Control is the Key

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1694

In character:

 The white-haired woman opened up the piece of parchment in her hand, her mind still trying to reel from the events of a few minutes before- and simply because of that, she wasn't able to even comprehend what was on the paper--- or more like; not on the paper. It was completely blank, with not a single drop of ink marring its yellowish tinge. Despite of that, Aedre's eyes gazed with a blank stare, her face clearly lacking any sort of expression. It was only after a second or two, that she turned the paper and tried to see if there was anything expressed on the back side.
'Nope.'
Her fingers instinctively crumpled the paper into a small ball and she carelessly disposed it in one of the nearby bushes; then began to walk in a direction from where she could not only hear commotion, but also sense a small amount of magical pressure. Her walk was unstaggering, however her mind felt completely out of control. Not only was she fooled into fighting some idiot and waste her precious time, she was also lured into it with a straight-to-the-face kind of lie. Aedre Crawford wasn't really used to this kind of treatment. Really.

The Slayer's predetermined path was meant to take her to the other side of the volcano- and she was simply walking parallel to its edge, thus trying to avoid any possibility of getting lost in such an uncharted and unknown area. But apparently... she was meant to lose her path. She was meant to experience trouble every single moment of this god-forsaken day.

The surroundings melted in a way similar to a blob of ice-cream from its cone on a hot summer day. It was a slow transition, a bit painful to be a witness of, since it took away the suspense, fear, anxiety and uniqueness of the whole trap. If Aedre had been her usual, sarcastic self right now, she would have clicked her tongue and expressed her disappointment. But she didn't feel that kind of zeal now. It was some sort of an illusion, for the white-haired woman was suddenly standing on the brilliant vantage point of a mountain in... Iceberg, maybe. She felt the cold biting through her skin, her head even surged with a pang of sharp pain due to the sudden drop in temperature. She shut her eyes tightly for just a second; an attempt to ward off the terrible pain. At that very moment, she also felt a magical presence right behind her. She let out an inaudible sigh and turned back to face another person. A fresh face. A bright face.

It was some male, perhaps in his mid-twenties, with ruffled brown hair and calculating grey eyes that had the unnerving I-know-everything kind of look. He wore a crisp, official-looking suit, the same shade as his brilliant hair. This official vibe around him ticked the woman off within a second and were it not for the strange, yet charming smile resting on his lips- she would have attacked without a second thought.

Aedre knew. Knew all too well that he brought trouble.

"Never been to Iceberg before, right?" He questioned, while his smile widened into a toothy grin.
"Just introduce yourself already." Aedre stated, having completely ignored his previous question. For some reason, she could figure out a handful of things about this man at the first glance itself. Surely, he knew a lot more about her than what could be vice versa. So, there was no point in leading herself to a false sense of security that confirmed she was more informed than him; for she simply wasn't. Secondly, he had something to do with Greed for sure- and it was confirmed by the way his aura felt.
His little chuckle followed her question, before he proceeded to finally answer, "Acedia, sometimes referred to as Sloth." His reply even brought forth a glint in his, whose purpose, Aedre couldn't really place anywhere, let alone understand it.
However, the name struck a chord within her head, as her bright-green pupils contracted with the realization, "Don't tell me... The Seven Generals are related to--- let's see, the Seven sins?" Her question wavered in the open air and simply made the glint in Acedia's eyes brighter.
He nodded in reply though, agreeing to the woman's guess- a guess she had based off all the reading that she did. For apparently, the Seven Sins defined the evil and vices within humans; in other words, just gave the dark side new and fancy names. Nothing but an all new concept that will perpetually confuse the one who's want to delve deeper and understand. The time she had happened to learn about this so-called, Seven Sins, she had brushed it off aside casually. It had just been a thing of fascination for her mind for the moment she read it, something to be forgotten after a little while. Who cared about defining the darker side of the alignment spectrum anyways?

But, perhaps, she should have made a thorough research; that might have actually helped her to get rid of these bunch of flies who prided them with the name of the Seven Generals, right? The woman instinctively sighed, having understood by now that she would need to deal with all seven- and that she might just need the entire day, or days to complete this task. Her Uncle had got her into so much trouble--- and that too, without a proper reason.

The woman clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth, as she brought the palms of her hand together and made a ball of water condense between them. Acedia's pupils nearly dilated, as for a single second, he seemed to lose his composure.
"Already on the offensive, are we?" He questioned playfully, while the surroundings around them melted and changed tortuously. The orb of water pulsated in Aedre's hand and her pupils flitted around the place- only to see the light dimming and the formation of thick, solid walls all around her. It was another illusion, of course, but the problem was that Acedia was no longer to be seen. Instinctively, the orb in her hand dissipated and Aedre straightened, naturally thinking that it was no use to prepare an attack if her opponent couldn't be seen.

It was some sort of a lab, or so it was indicated by the hundreds and thousands of instruments and test tubes that were propped neatly on shelves all around her. Aedre took a single step ahead, her senses on high alert, as she expected the brown-haired man to jump at her at any particular moment. She called upon Elucidator in her right hand just for precautions and started walking in a straight direction, from where she could see a dim, blue light glowing. As she neared, the Slayer could hear the incessant shuffling of feet, as if a person was trying to quickly make their way to a particular destination, but didn't feel at home enough to let their feet make any noise.

She neared the light, while her emerald eyes fell upon a machine of colossal size, which emitted the same blue light that nudged her into this direction. A second later, in the shadow of the machine, she noticed a man, no tall than five feet, who was bent over a table while writing something in a hurry. Aedre's grip on Elucidator tightened at this sight and she was about to question the man and figure out if he was a threat or not.

But, all of a sudden, a loud pounding of fists on wood shook her senses and the woman nearly jumped out of her skin. Well, the downsides of being extra alert, right? She watched the man near the table look back and his eyes actually focusing in her direction. But, the problem was, there was not the slightest amount of surprise etched onto his face. It was almost as if she didn't exist- for he looked right through her. He turned completely and started walking in her direction; which made Aedre position the black sword in an offensive position. She was ready to stab the moment the guy made a wrong move.

However, what happened next rattled her core, for the male passed right through her! He walked and walked in her direction... then, just phased through her as if she was nothing more than thin air. She quickly steered on her heels and followed him, noticing on the way that she couldn't touch anything in that room. Her hand simply passed through any equipment or shelf she touched. Apparently, this illusion was very poorly made. Then again, there was perfection to it in the sense that she could hear the voices, and everything that fell in her range of vision seemed very much real. The illusion only lacked material consistency.

By now, the man had reached a door on the other side of the lab and had opened it--- in the dim, blue light that scattered throughout the room and extended outside the door as well, Aedre could make out the silhouette of an old man and a young toddler that stood by him. The man within the lab bent over the kid and offered a hand, which the child accepted after a brief moment of reluctance. As the kid stepped inside, Aedre could make out that it was a little girl; blonde haired and green eyed. Aedre's eyes slid over to look at the old man who brought her here and she padded a couple of steps ahead to see his face clearly.

'Harland?' The realization shocked the white-haired lady and she nearly lost the grip on her sword. As she stared at the old man whom she identified as her grandfather, she noticed him turning his back on the door and walking away calmly. Without a second thought, the Slayer rushed to follow him, only to have a strong surge of pain sear through her head, while Acedia's voice echoed in her ear-drums, "You cannot experience anything that you haven't experienced before. You can only see what you saw before."

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Tagged:

You there!

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1190

In character:

It barely took more than a second for Aedre to contemplate the meaning behind the words that echoed within the confines her head, 'A memory. Its limited to my own experience.' Her mind romped madly, as she settled her vision on the blonde girl who was now being carried by the scientist to the huge machine that emitted the light that lit up the room. She followed them, watching closely- for she had already made her way to the conclusion that the blonde girl was none other than her own, younger self. This whole set up was her own memory. That's the reason it seemed so much more real, despite of there being no material consistency to the world that currently surrounded her. It was her experience... that she had to experience all over again. The agony was tantalizing, considering the fact that Aedre had no recollection of this event. The only thing that confirmed its authenticity was Acedia's words and her own common sense.

The machine was actually a huge sphere, made of transparent, beveled glass. It was suspended in mid air, a couple of feet off the ground, while blue bolts of electricity buzzed inside the glass sphere. A few minutes before, Aedre hadn't given the machine and its presence a single thought; but as she watched her younger self being propped within the glass sphere by the man--- her head began to process if she was going to be harmed or not. She paid better attention to the machine and tried to figure out its working as well.

Its funny how short a human's attention span is. Even mundane things gain importance when we realize that they affect us in some way.

Her younger self sat within the sphere in a fetal position, but, surprisingly, there was no fear or surprise etched on her face. It gave away that this was probably a daily occurrence for her six year old self; perhaps, she already anticipated what happened next. The electricity that was teeming within the sphere now pulsated as an orb right above her head, before it all zoomed into the body of the little girl. However, she didn't hear a scream like she expected to, for the process that her younger self was going through was certainly painful. Pain was the only thing anticipated after being shot by megawatts of lightning, right?

Did it hurt or not? She never got the answer to that question, for the memory of the lab was sucked out into nothingness and she was brought back to the dry, scorching summer day of the Raging Volcano. Before her stood the man responsible for her being the witness of her own memory... A memory that she had forgotten for some reason. The woman shut her eyes tightly for a second, hoping that the pain in her head would collapse quickly, so that she could relinquish a proper hold on the sword and stab it through the heart of this disgusting man.

It was because of him that she reacquainted herself with something horrible. In her opinion, it would've been better if she stayed in the dark; if that memory never resurfaced. Now she knew that she'd be hell bent into finding what happened on that day, or any preceding or successive day. The only thing that Aedre had realized with it was that she was used as a test subject--- or something similar. Whatever it was, it wasn't pleasant. It wasn't fair. It only gave her more reason to hate Harland, to hate the Crawfords; with the only exemption being Harrigan, of course.

"It doesn't matter how tough you are, Aedre. Some memories always leave a scar. They follow you home, they change your life. Some memories mess you up. But, maybe, that's the point. All this pain, the fear, the uncertainty and the rest of the crap. Maybe going through that is what keeps you moving forward. Its what pushes you. Maybe you have to get a little messed up before you can step up." The brown haired man spoke, his voice an earnest tone of advise, while a smile adorned his lips. His words only brought more walls of confusion to descend on the white-haired woman's mind.

"You had me see my own forgotten bit of past so that I could be happy for it?-" She questioned, her words full of spite and anger, "-Guess what? The trick backfired. I'm just pissed." With that, Aedre burst forward, plunging the black sword ahead of her and trying to make it rip Acedia's chest out. She missed when he dodged and felt the temperature around her go down to a chilling extent. She was back in the Iceberg surroundings, "Not only memories... there's illusion in your arsenal too." The woman muttered under her breath, while she tried to figure out where her adversary was. If this kept on happening, there was no way she'd ever land a hit on him.

"Its one of those things people say, you can't move on until you let go of the past. Letting go is the easy part, its the moving on that's painful. So sometimes, we fight it, try and keep things the same. Things can't stay the same though, Aedre. At some point, you have to let go-- and you did that. You let go, but you didn't move on... You just stuck with the the need to avenge... But, move on now, now that you have the chance, because no matter how painful it is, it's the only way you'll grow."

"There's a good reason why they call you Acedia. You're discouragement incarnate." Aedre's spiteful voice replied, as she backhanded the sword and stabbed the sword horizontally to her right side, with her hand completely extended. Just the place where the man had moved to after dodging her first attack. There was a pained grunt to be heard, while the Iceberg vision disappeared and Aedre was once again back in the familiar setting of the Raging Volcano.

"I just figured there would be a crippling weakness to your powerful technique. Especially, when it allowed you to completely conceal your presence. I thought... where does the man go when his victim is experiencing an illusion. The answer is : nowhere. He's right there--- but you won't feel him till you look for him. Its like wadding in the darkness for a candle." The Slayer explained her strategy, as she noticed that Excalibur had already dug within the brunette's stomach and was now sticking out of his back. She pulled the sword out and let the man collapse to the support of his knees. She could already see his body dissipate, knew that she had overcome another one of the Seven Generals... But, there was something she needed to let him know, "Forgive and forget? That's what you meant to say, huh? It's a good advice. But its not very practical. When someone hurts me, I want to hurt them back. When someone wrongs me, I want to be right. Without forgiveness old scores never settle. Old wounds never heal, and the most I can hope for now... is that someday I'll be lucky enough to forget what you reminded me."

Notes:

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You there!

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1339

In character:

 The words were spoken, the man had disappeared, leaving the white-haired woman standing right in the middle of nowhere--- surrounded by nothing but a dry piece of land; the only relief being a green patch of bush here or there. She sighed, as the swords in her hand, having served their purpose, disappeared. Right now, her head was a complete mess; she knew she'd need a good damn while to figure all the infromation out. Sit down, collect it all, observe it, sort it and then finally place it all in the right voids. Exactly how one plays with a set of puzzle. Oh, well, life does have much in common with a puzzle, right? You're always uncertain if you're doing it right. Questioning whether you're taking the right step. Wondering if the final picture would be flawless... Wondering if you'll die without regrets.

'Where do I go?' Aedre questioned, as if expecting the answer to float somewhere in the air. This uncertainity, the liquidity of this mission was her biggest problem. She didn't really have a clue about what was going on, it was just beating around the bush, hoping to find a direction, hoping to stumble upon a solid base of the task. The hope was what fueled her feet forward, as the Slayer walked forward, her sight set upon one part that she hadn't yet walked up to. It seemed like the only logical place that anyone would be at, since in the lookout for these strange men, Aedre had nearly spanned the entire surroundings of Raging Volcano.

On that same note, it was worthy of notice that the way leading to that part decended ever-so-slightly. As Aedre proceeded on the dusty, sun-beaten road, she could feel her body tip forward and the stones hitting her feet rolling ahead by a good distance. The way got narrower with every yard though, giving off that vibe of a dead end. However, the fear of a dead end and a goose chase didn't last long in the woman's mind, as she could smell someone's scent lingering in the air, indicating clearly that someone had just passed the trail. A sly smile rolled up her lips, while at the same moment, she came face to face with the entrance of a cave like structure.

On closer inspection of the entrance, Aedre found the walls of the cave to be made of a smooth, black, volcanic glass, that reflected th sunlight from outside to a fair distance in, thus lighting up the path beautifully. However, at some distance, the sunlight came in contact with a soft, emerald light and was successfully overthrown in the scale of strength. The woman squinted a bit, trying to discern the length of the cave, but to no avail. It seemed as if the cave descended downwards as well and thanks to the height at which she stood, she couldn't see a damn thing. Picking up a stone from the ground, Aedre flung it inside the cave with substantial strength, only to hear it dropping to the ground and then roll forward, "Yep, it descends." She concluded in a low whisper, assuring none other than herself with her voice.

Taking slow strides within the cavern, the woman let her fingers graze the glass walls slightly, keeping herself to one side of the way, instead of just walking right into somebody on the other end. There was sufficient ambience for her trained eyes, and within a few minutes of walking she could sense and see that the way was no longer going to be a narrow cave, but was opening into a huge dungeon-like place. This was the place where the green light wavered from, because as she made her way into the roughly-circular area, she noticed the shallow pond in the middle, with a statue erected inside the water--- the statue of a boy and girl, standing side-to-side, their closest hands raised up in the air and holding up a glowing, emerald lacrima together. In the girl's other hand, a longsword was held, while the boy had a bow; and a quiver hanging to his back.

As Aedre walked in the direction of the beautiful piece of art, her boots clacked loudly against the stone floor; the eerie silence played the part of the magnifier. Reaching at a position where she was only a couple of meter away from the works of sculpture, she noticed the faces in the glow of the lacrima. They were an exact replica of each other. The only part that seperated the faces from this uncanny resemblance was the hair, for the girl had this beautifully sculptured hair that ran straight up to her waist.

'Twins.' Aedre mused within her head, as she proceeded to notice the water in the pond, and noticed in a fraction of a second that it was purposefully made there to reflect the light of the lacrima. After all, the hands of the statue were angled in such a way that the water beneath the base of the sculpture would echo the light throughout the cavern. And, of course, one could notice the mesmerizing effect it had on the walls, as the grassy light was played like music by the gentle waves of the water. The woman kneeled down next to the small pond, while dpping her fingers in the water, meaning to create ripples in it and observe its effects on the lighting. However, the moment she gazed up, a sharp pain jabbed her torso.... As if a dagger pierced into her flesh.

The Slayer's pupils dilated in horror when she saw a thin, fish-shaped metal piece sticking out of her stomach. Her immediate response was to pull it out sharply, letting the wound open and the blood seep into the white clothes that she wore. She grunted a bit, noticing that the fish-shaped dagger had a small jaw, out of which several metal teeth stuck out. It wasn't a normal dagger.... It was designed to literally bite into your flesh.

The woman's eyes glanced around the cave in a frantic search of the assailant, but couldn't see a single breathing soul. The only magical signature she could feel was from the fish itself, and that alone spoke that her opponent was as capable as she was. There was no upper-hand. As she stood up to her feet, Aedre grabbed the wound with her left hand, hoping to at least slow down the damned bleeding. However, another sensation of crippling pain caused her to swear under her breath. Her left hand itself; for there was a metal-fish sticking out from her opisthenar, causing her hand to bleed profusely.

'I can't see it coming, or feel its magical aura till the moment it hits me.' She concluded, her eyes still scanning the place for the attacker. However, the blacking out of her eyes shook Aedre inside-out, as she felt her eyes close shut tightly and heard a single heart-beat of hers within her head. Pain coursed through her spine, her left hand and the muscles near her torso were going numb... slowly, but surely.

"Dammit, its poisoned." The white-haired female whispered, as another fish bit into her stomach; the exact same place that it hit before. This time too, she didn't see it coming from any direction. It seemed as if the fishes had no physical form till the moment they tore into her flesh, 'This is bad, I really can't tell where the attacks are coming from.'

A low chuckle, followed by the words, "108 points." It was a male, and the voice was within the confines of Aedre's head. It wasn't clear, but fuzzy and echoing. The woman closed her eyes for a second, feeling the numbness of her body and knowing that she was in a tough spot at the moment.

"You have no idea what's going on? I should tell you that you're hearing my voice in your head and that if you survive long enough, you'll figure out what's happening."

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Tagged:

You there!

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2914

In character:

Aedre gritted her teeth in annoyance, just like what anyone would do when they don't get to see the physical form of their opponent and are rather subjected to hideous words and pressure tactics. She lowered her gaze and proceeded to pull out the metal-fish that bit deep into her skin, only in time to notice it dissipating into thin air with nothing but a whiff of green aura. The woman raised an eyebrow, realizing full well that her earlier calculations had been a wee bit wrong.
'They're just a tangible form of magic and not actual weapons... Question is, why can't I sense them? I guess something is triggering them from somewhere else. How else can I be attacked by something I can't see or sense?' Her thoughts resounded within her head, as the woman tried her best to ignore the numbness that spread through her body like a vine creeping up a wall; albeit, with some flashing speed.

One. Two. Three.
Right shoulder. Right leg. Left leg.
Three more metal fishes lodged themselves into her skin, this time in quick succession and then disappeared into a plume of magical aura. Blood seeped onto the snow-colored clothing of hers, as she felt her knees tremble slightly due to the soreness. It wouldn't be long before she gave in to the lack of senses. The white-haired female knew that if she didn't take some action or find a shelter from these strange attacks, she'd fall prey to the enemy's trap. The poison was taking effect at an alarming rate, and here she was, only trying to figure out the tactics of her enemy.
"This is going well...." The male voice spoke once again, its voice laced with malice and a strange sense of complacency.

Left hand. Right hand. Right foot.
The string of attacks would continue mercilessly, as emerald orbs could do nothing but observe the tangible forms of the fish appear on her wounded skin and then disappear the next second. All that was left was blood and pain, soon to be accompanied by numbness. She could deal with the pain without batting an eyelash.... But what could she possibly do against the potential toxins that worked their effect on her body?
"Well, have you determined anything about these attacks?"
'Three. He can only materialize three fishes at once. After that, the fish will disappear.' Aedre concluded, choosing against the idea of verbalizing her thoughts, a simple tactic that was part of her training process with her foster parent.
'Never let the enemy know what you know about him, so that he's less wary about you.' The baritone voice of the God of the Seas resounded as a chain of memory.
Poseidon.... maybe it the memory of him that drove Aedre's next step, but the woman stumbled closer to the pond in the middle of the cavern and knelt beside it; closing her eyes at a whim and placing her dominant hand in the surprisingly tepid water. The liquid layered up her skin at the first moment of contact, crawling up her arm like a slithering snake and flowing back into the small pond, having attained a bright red color. Aedre's white hair shaded her face into a pitch dark and she was secretly glad that it did- for the lady was stubbornly prideful at heart.... and letting her pain show on her face to this invisible, but all-seeing opponent would crush her very soul.

There was something seriously amiss in the water though, and she sensed it almost instantly. It wasn't healing her wounds like it was supposed to do... Healing, perhaps very bare healing, but healing nonetheless.
"Tch." The Slayer clicked her tongue out of sheer annoyance and anger, opening her eyes to gaze into her reflection in the water, as she pulled her hand out of the pond. The image that met her eye made the woman's breath hitch in her throat, for her skin was no longer the healthy pale that it used to be, but rather a sickly pallid-green. However, that wasn't all- because a thick band of raven-black ran from the middle of her forehead and down her throat.
'What in the world....' She couldn't even complete the thought, as her mind was jerked away at the sight of both her hands. Not only were they bleeding at the spots where the metal-fishes had bit in, they had changed color to the same green as her face. Black bands had coiled around her palms and elbows, and if one were to trace the path of this weird coloring to Aedre's torso, they could see several black bands running from all the directions, right to the center of her solar plexus. On top of these black bands on her torso, there was a circle of blue and red sections.... A Weird resemblance to.... "A dart board."
"BINGO!" The male in her head exclaimed bemusedly, as a fish stuck stright into her left shoulder.
"That's the perfect answer, but the specialty of our power is that figuring it out won't save you..."
'Our? So he's not alone....' Aedre figured, as she pulled out the fish stuck to her skin with a small grunt. The pain was now taking its toll on her body, after all, there's a limit to how much the human body can take.
"... Since my fish darts don't have a physical form until the instance that they pierce your flesh. That fact makes it impossible to block them." The man continued his explanation; while Aedre rose up to her feet.
"Incidentally, your left shoulder is 54 points. I have a dart board that's linked to various parts of your body. For instance, your right elbow is 27 points." The voice stated, as a fish pierced into Aedre's right elbow at that very instance and another one tore into her right hand.
"And your right hand is 18 points.... Now, I'm at 99 points... Hey, what's wrong? I can't hear your screams. Are you already dead? The game's only just begun.... Triple 6! 4! 13!" The number rolled for a little more, as the metal fishes relentlessly pricked into the white-haired woman's body.
"Bravo! That was just magnificent brother~" A female voice now perked into Aedre's head, its high-pitched tune ringing with amusement--- she was but, a silent spectator to the show that her brother put up.
"Mind telling me who that is... Mister... uh? You never introduced yourself like your counterparts, actually." Aedre spoke up, voicing herself as clearly as possible and lacing her words with the grifter-like skills that she possessed. She now had a plan.
A hollow laugh resounded from the male's side, it was as if he wasn't expecting the question at all, but when asked, it only served as amusement for him.
"Pride. The primordial being of the Seven Generals... and this here, is my sister- Lust." He spoke, his tone of voice not betraying his name by the slightest--- it dripped of unjustified boasting.
"Brother, let's give her a bit of an insight of how our power works... She's gonna be dead meat very soon, after all." The sister chirped, earning the trust of her sibling in a second, as he agreed to her notion.
"Well, well, pay attention kiddo. As Lust, I have complete control of your body and so I'm responsible for linking it to the game of darts that my brother is so adept at playing. Until this game ends, even the almighty being cant de-link you."
"And whenever my darts hit the board, our target, which is you, is attacked by the needlefish. And this, is our ultimate power- Needlefish darts!"
"Oh, please. Stop spewing your vanity into my head- nothing's unbeatable." Aedre criticized menacingly, while she felt her knees grow weaker by the second. She'd need to bring her plan into action as soon as possible.
"Of course...." Pride's voice replied, slow and drenched in contemplation, "We do incur some risks like---" He spoke in a dreamy tone, as if about to spill all his deep, dark secrets out without a care.
"---Brother!" Lust shot in, cutting off the man's sentence.
"Hm? Oh, its okay... She's gonna be dead soon, I know that. Might as well help her die a less curious death. Geez, stop worrying so much, sissy... Well, as I was saying, the risk is that if I miss my target.... my sister and I take complete damage. But! That's not happening in the wildest of dreams, for I haven't missed a target in eons." The man mumbled on, while his sister let out an exasperated sigh.
'Being prideful is a sad vice.' Aedre mused in her thoughts, as a smirk graced her lips--- after all, she finally had the upper hand now.
"Hehe, it seems the game is almost over now..." Pride announced, while another metal-fish hit Aedre square in the center of the makeshift dart board on her body.
"... I'll have to admit though, that if she were pleading for her life, it'd be easier for me to focus. Or if she were to give up and beg me to kill her or if she wanted to be a nihilistic hero and said, 'Not a bad way to die.' Those would help motivate me as I toss my darts. But she'll just have to dread her impending death, never knowing when it will end... but only the idea that it is in my hands-- her very life; at my mercy." As he ended his monologue, another fish would hit the right end of the white-haired woman's torso, causing her to lose her footing and fall back on the rough floor. Her breath was getting turning heavy and ragged with each passing minute, and her legs felt near-damn numb. The Slayer wouldn't be surprised if she completely lost control of them. That possibility did seem to be looming in the air. And as if on cue with her thoughts, a piercing pain shot through her left leg, warning that she had been hit once more.
'Damn. This looks pretty bad...' Aedre worked up, while heaving herself up on her elbows and then sitting upright, observing all the blood that had pooled around her body, 'Too much blood-loss, I'm done for. I could actually die here, so no point in saving what's left.'
"Now, then. Its my final turn."
That single sentence sent a course of tingling excitement running through the woman's body, as she assumed a crouched position and extended her right hand on one side; concentrating her magical energy on that bit and trying to strengthen it as much as possible. Her emerald eyes stared swiftly ahead, her eyebrows scrunched up in concentration.
"Left ear. Right calf." Pride announced in merry, while Aedre closed her eyes in pain--- knowing full well that her much-anticipated moment was finally here.
"Last throw now~"
"I trust you, brother. Completely."
"I've got this." He stated confidently, while letting the dart sear through the air and hit the board. A counter above it went from 20 points to 0; thus pulling an exclaimation of joy from Pride's sister, as she claimed, "You're the best brother~ I'll go and check on the corpse for you."
"I'll tag along."


Back in the cavern, Aedre lay sprawled on the floor, a layer of blood pooled on the floor and only one metal-fish sticking uptight on her forehead; and the dart-markings having disappeared from her body. That did signify the end of the game.... and, well, her death.

Two heads emerged out of the water in the pond, their eyes observing the dead target for a second or two; after which, they pulled out completely and strutted towards Aedre, their heads held proud, pleased that they had fulfilled the task handed out by their master.

"We can be squadron leaders now!" Lust exclaimed jubilantly, high-fiving her brother and just as he was about to reciprocate the gesture--- something big swooped in majestically from the entrance of the cavern and landed right behind them with a heavy thud and a sharp flutter of enormous wings. Before they could even look back at their assilant, both of them felt trapped in the clutches of strong, feathery arms. The grip was so strong, the twins would find themselves gasping for a single whiff of air.

"Get up. You're bad at acting anyways." A thick, regal, male voice spoke--- the owner of the wings and the feathery arms and the realization itself caused the siblings to peek a glance above them, since the attacker was evidently a full head and and shoulder taller than them both. Their first vision was of a yellow beak than was pointed below.... "A BIRD?!" They both shouted in unison, thus causing the so-called bird to strengthen his grip around their bodies.

"Don't you dare call me a bird... I'll have your organs spewed on the floor." The bird ordered, as his grip relaxed lightly and the twins were left shivering like a lone leaf on a windy, cold evening.

"Relax, Orel. Take it easy, I knew they were too dumb to figure out if I was actually dead or not." Aedre's muttered, her voice a little weak and much less eloquent than it usually was; but regardless, sufficient enough to draw a collective intake of air from the siblings. The white-haired woman opened her eyes slowly, and pulled herself up in a sitting position- realizing in that second itself that she couldn't actually feel her legs. The needlefish stood upright from her forehead, as she turned to look at the twins and saw them for the very first time after such a long time of interaction.
Both of them were tall and lanky, with bright, pink hair and shrewd-blue eyes, their facial features were sharp and crude, and if it wasn't for the fact that the sister had long hair and a feminine body; they were an exact replica of each other. In fact, they happened to resemble the statues of the twins in the pond.... Which was now, right behind them. They owned the cavern.

"H-How? How can you be alive with a dart sticking out of your brain?!" The male twin questioned, his tone akin to a bewildered shiver; while his eyes dilated to look like two saucers.
Aedre only raised an eyebrow, observing the siblings with a look of disgust, which soon changed into a conceited smirk. The woman placed a firm hand on the needlefish and pulled it out effortlessly, bringing about a small pop! sound to echo around the silence of the cavern, "Its just a small suction cup... I do have to admit that I own the most weird collection of stuff." She explained, while pulling out the suction cup from the tip of the dart and holding it gingerly in her right hand. A second later, it had been de-summoned back into the little collection-box that she had in her cupboard back in Savage Skull.
"No... No... My darts were perfect! Its impossible to stop them!" Pride screamed, shaking his head vigorously.
"Yeah, but I didn't stop it. I just grabbed it, the moment it materialized at my head. From what you were telling, I could say that you could hear my voice, but couldn't see me. I had plenty of time to switch out the needle for a suction cup; just had to break the tip and attach the cup to it."
"H-hold on, no human has reflexes fast enough to catch a dart!"
"Well, it wouldn't have been possible if had I not known where it would appear. But I knew exactly when and where the last dart would hit. The final dart must hit the board's outer ring as per double out rules. And you were playing a 01 - 501 game. You start with 501 points and the goal is to reach 0. These rules are used in professional competitions."
"I n-never told you what rules I was using!"
"As soon as I knew you were playing darts, my suspicions were confirmed. Remember how your first dart hit double four? The game starts by hitting the board's outer ring. A double in.... a sign that you were confident in your abilities. A skilled played would play by official rules. After all, players with talent and confidence tend to seek public recognition. After that, I just had to do the math and endure the pain. I subtracted your points from 501, and waited until your score was under 40. At that point, I placed my hand in the 40-point area, my forehead. That's all it took. And to improve my reflexes... well, I'm a mage, after all." The woman explained nonchalantly, causing the twins to sigh audibly; but of course, not discouraging from asking more questions, "Do you have some history with darts?"
"I mastered the game at age six, learning to count down from 1440 points. It was part of my training."
"Its your fault for getting cocky and talking too much!" Lust reprimanded, while.... 'Maybe I was seven.'
"Pipe down! You just stood around and clapped."
"Shut the hell up. Both of you." Orel ordered, strengthening his grip around both his victims, as his sharp, avian eyes observed the pool of blood that surrounded his master and her vain attempt to stand up, "Lie down, you probably--" And before he would complete that sentence, the white-haired female fell face-down into the cold, wet floor.

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