You briefly considered the possibility of having the Kaiju King summon Louise here to test Goat Boy's theory, but you quickly dismissed the idea. If you took Louise away from the other group, that might place Shaggy, Harpy and Deadhead in danger. It might even cause the deaths of innocent supernatural creatures.

No. You couldn't. But if you didn't l, Grandma Young might…

Your hands frantically patted your body up and down, looking for something–anything that could-

Your hand found something hard and slightly sharp. You froze momentarily, before pulling out the peace offering that Mina had granted you. It shone crimson in the dim light, illuminating both your face and Young's.

Susurrations rippled through the crowd as they leaned closer to get a better look at what you were holding. You stared deeply into the bloodstone shard, unsure of what you expected to find out from it. As if you could detect signs of duplicity or malice through your naked eyes.

You didn’t know the Nosferatu Twins very well at all, and you haven't really had a chance to get this thing examined, but it was starting to look like you didn't have much of a choice here.

If you sat here and did nothing, you might lose your only remaining grandparent. Your eyes moved from the stone, and back to Young’s face, still bathed in red from the stone's eerie glow.

You bent down, swept your hair over your shoulder, and planted a gentle kiss on her forehead. Then, you set your expression, and loosened her robes enough for a portion of her chest to be exposed.

“Please work…” you prayed.

And then, you pressed the bloodstone shard against the exposed portion of flesh. A network of veins rose up to meet it, just barely contained by her thin layers of skin. Slowly, the stone began to sink deeper into her flesh, its eerie glow blinking in sync with her heartbeat. Your own heart started to beat faster as you carefully removed your hand from the stone. After a few seconds, the stone settled in place, right below her collarbone.

Your eyes searched her face for any sign of her waking up, but all she did was groan in discomfort.

“Come on. Wake up…” you muttered, nudging her arm tenderly.

A moment later, Young’s eyes flew open, and a pair of blood red orbs stared up at you in shock. You nearly jumped in surprise, but you somehow managed to maintain your composure.

“Grandma!?”

Young opened her mouth to let out a faint whimper, and you slid your hand under her head to prop it up.

“What's wrong? Are you alright?” you asked, your eyes darting between the bloodstone shard and her face.

Her mouth shut, and you could tell that she was gritting her teeth tightly. She looked like she was in pain!

You swore, on Khonshu's honor, and on the lives of your remaining loved ones, if Mina had tricked you into killing your own grandmother…

(Cont.)