Fear is Subjective.

"Behold, the intricate and subtle weaving of my cunning arcane . . . ah, screw it. Burn a lot!"

- Haretsa

    With her legs dangling out of the bedroom’s window sill, the young Head of Destruction took in a deep breath of refreshing mountain air. Her mind ran rampant with many different thoughts as she watched the sun begin to rise off in the distant east. Though she thought of many different things, Haretsa wondered primarily about the wellbeing of her two sisters. Emilia had shown up not too long ago while Haretsa was unconscious back when she and Mao went to track down a certain trouble making seven year old. Emilia had given Mao a letter that Haretsa read not long after the two dealt with the demented child named Lillith. It explained to Haretsa that Emilia was in fact alive and working for the Rune Knights. She also felt bad for not being able to interact much with Haretsa, but her letter promised that she would try to fix that relatively soon. ”I’m sure Emi’s fine… she’s always been strong. But… Sky…” Haretsa sighed with as a concerned look washed over her facial features. Haretsa hadn’t heard from her big sis since the two had reunited in Talonia and that greatly concerned her. ”Rainbow… you better be safe…”

    Shaking off her worrisome thoughts, Haretsa slipped back into her room and closed up the window as she proceeded over to her dresser. Haretsa quickly changed into a comfortable pair of black shorts with a purple stripe running down the sides and an asphalt grey tank top. Leaving her usual hand wrap on the dresser, Haretsa slipped her mother’s golden bracelet around her left wrist and stared at the marking that adorned her left arm. What looked like a black dragon tattoo was really a mark she had bore since her birth. It was the constant reminder that the blood of that damn Black Dragon coursed through her veins and for some reason, the mark seemed to be a bit… bigger. Was Haretsa simply seeing things?

    The cream haired mage hardly had time to dwell on this, as her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door followed by a voice asking for audience with the Dragon Slayer. Recognizing Malva’s voice, Haretsa proceeded to the door to her office and pulled it open. ”Well, you’re certainly an early riser huh? Come on in.” Haretsa spoke softly as to not disturb the surrounding areas. The sight of Haretsa barefoot, in shorts, and without the wrap covering her birthmark was probably an odd site for most people, but these were simply the clothes that she wore for training. Oncer Malva was inside of the rather expansive office that rivaled most small houses, Haretsa closed the door and turned her attention towards her guest. ”So, what’s up kiddo?”

"Behold, the intricate and subtle weaving of my cunning arcane . . . ah, screw it. Burn a lot!"

- Haretsa

    Haretsa couldn’t help but tilt her head in curiosity as the red headed child removed her black cloak; revealing her attire to be nothing more than a few bandages taped across her chest and boxers. Malva proceeded to explain that she wore this due to the fact that she usually ended up burning her training gear unintentionally anyway. Haretsa had forgotten what it was like to accidentally burn your own clothes, as she had gotten all of her outfits fireproofed by an enchanter in Talonia. She was about to mention that she would gladly take Malva to this enchanter, but she was given a letter and asked if she could accompany the redheaded mage on the job. ”I’ve faced who before?” Haretsa asked curiously, taking the letter and giving it a read over.

    The letter’s contents were rather surprising to say the least. The letter was addressed to Malva’s mother and stated that Lillith had escaped from her confinement and returned to the Haunted Village. The letter seemed to imply that the Rune Knights didn’t have the slightest damn of a clue that Haretsa was now a member of Infinity Hydra and much stronger than the last time she had worked with Mao to capture the mentally ill seven year old. ”The Rune Knight’s really need to get better security… I guess Emi wasn’t around when Lillith escaped.” Haretsa laughed slightly, knowing that Emilia would have easily recaptured the child if she were there when Lillith made a break for it. Oh well, it had happened and now Haretsa had a chance to stop Lillith once more. It would also serve as a great chance for Malva to get some experience doing slightly more dangerous jobs. While she didn’t exactly want to put Ardere’s daughter in harm’s way, Haretsa knew what Lillith was capable of and knew her own newfound strength. The Head of Destruction would be there to protect Malva from any kind of severe injury. ”Alright, go get dressed kiddo and meet me back here… Oh, and remind me to take you to Talonia sometime so we can get your clothes enchanted like mine. You won’t have to worry about them burning off after that.” Haretsa said, motioning for Malva to head back to her own room and get some actual clothes.

      Once Malva had gone, Haretsa stepped into her bedroom and set the letter on top of her dresser. Having no intention of changing her own outfit, Haretsa adorned the rather large golden bracelets that were now Blamo, secured Scisara’s holster to her shorts, and placed the small earpiece that allowed her to commune with her pet down in her workshop. ”Wake up boy, we've got a seven year old to go deal with… again.”

"Behold, the intricate and subtle weaving of my cunning arcane . . . ah, screw it. Burn a lot!"

- Haretsa

    Once Malva had returned to Haretsa’s office, the redhead grabbed her coat once more and gave the Head of Destruction a great big smile; asking if Haretsa was ready to capture Lillith once more. ”You bet! She should be a lot easier to deal with this time around.” Haretsa responded, watching the redhead whistle which caused her little pet to grow in size. The beast looked rather impressive, and delicious, as it towered over both mages at roughly fifteen feet tall if Haretsa had to guess. ”Well, he certainly looks like he’ll be useful. Although, I have much better alternative than simply walking there.” she explained, motioning with her hand for them to follow her into the bedroom portion of her office. Placing her hand onto the teleportation lacrima there, Haretsa would be engulfed in a crimson light as she was carried away to her workshop deep within one of the nearby mountains.

    When Malva followed suit, she would be greeted to the sight of the other half to Haretsa’s office; her workshop. There was the massive forge with a stone dragon skull carved above it along the northern wall, countless tools and machines scattered about the place, several workbenches and what looked like hangars for airships, a ceiling that looked as if it had no end, and most notably, the eight meter tall liger mech stomping around in circles chasing its own tail excitedly. ”Honestly, you’re more like a puppy than a liger.” Haretsa laughed, walking up to her pet as it knelt down and allowed her to scratch its snout. The cream haired Ace then turned and pointed her liger’s attention towards the redhead and the being that accompanied her. ”Ragna, this here’s Malva. She’s Ardvark’s daughter and the newest member of Infinity Hydra. Mavla, this is Ragna. I built him myself, so he’s more like a son to me than a pet really, but I guess he’s sort of classified as a pet.” ”Nice to meet ya!” the mech responded happily, as the top half of his head began to open and reveal the cockpit hidden inside with seats for five people. Ragna’s opening head would also prominently display the large, flaming red Infinity Hydra emblem emblazoned upon the mechs forehead. ”Hop on in, Malva. We’ll get there a lot faster than just walking this way!” Haretsa explained, climbing into her mech’s head and taking the frontmost seat. ”Not to mention I don’t have to deal with that stupid old map like I did last time…”

"Behold, the intricate and subtle weaving of my cunning arcane . . . ah, screw it. Burn a lot!"

- Haretsa

    It would seem as though Malva shared quite an interest in Ragna, as Haretsa witnessed the biggest smile filled with childlike wonder that she had ever seen. She was honestly amazed with the fact that Haretsa had managed to build Ragna, which made the Head of Destruction feel rather proud. Ragna really was the most complex thing that Haretsa had ever built, so having someone completely blown away by her invention was a nice thing to see. ”He can’t fly quite yet, but I plan to make something to change that in the future. I just need to mess around with that kind of stuff first.” Haretsa explained as Malva’s little pet hopped in. As Ragna closed his head on his own, Haretsa couldn’t help noticing that the little bugger was staring at her with those strange green eyes of his. Did he not trust Haretsa or something? Was that thing even a he? All questions for later as the 360 degree view inside the cockpit kicked in and Haretsa leaned back comfortably in her chair. ”Alright Ragna, we’re off to the Haunted Village. That part of your map should be clear enough for you to navigate there on your own.” Haretsa spoke, as a hologram display of Fiore popped up in front of her chair. ”Yup, that part of the map is clear enough for me to make out. Hold onto your butts!” Ragna exclaimed as he took off down the long runway and out the hatch at 190 MPH. ”He even talks like I do. You are such a freakin amazing A.I.”

   When they had reached the Haunted Village, Ragna’s head opened up once again as he let the two mages out to explore their surroundings. This place was just as decrepit and abandoned as when Haretsa had left this place with Mao. Several of the spears that had attacked the then Sabertooth mages were still sticking out of the ground in various spots, so it seemed as if no one had been here since that incident. Turning to face Malva as she asked if Lillith had killed the villagers, Haretsa noticed that the redheaded mage was starting to glow orange, her skin looking like it had fire coursing through her veins instead of blood. ”Uh… Malva? Do you normally start glowing like that out of the blue?” Haretsa asked, waiting for the young mages response before answering her question. ”When Mao and I came here last, the village was already in the same shape as you see it now. I don’t think anyone honestly lives here and that’s probably why Lillith likes it here. I don’t think she’s started killing people again, which is a good thing. As for where she is… well… Let’s just say she’s really good at hide and seek.” Haretsa explained as best she could. The truth was she still didn’t have any clue how Lillith was able to hide in this the town the way she did. ”I wonder if she’s still gonna try her same old tricks since she can probably sense that I’m here…”

"Behold, the intricate and subtle weaving of my cunning arcane . . . ah, screw it. Burn a lot!"

- Haretsa

    It barely even took ten seconds after Haretsa had mentioned Lillith’s old tricks before the Dragon Slayer’s ears perked up to an all too familiar sound. Malva’s pet let out a loud roar as it quickly transformed back into its much larger form and covered Malva from a few of the incoming spears. The rain of metal and wood functioned just the same as it had when Haretsa came to this place the first time; fifteen spears targeting her and the other fifteen targeting her partner. As Malva took cover and her pet took a few of the spears for her, Haretsa unleashed a steady stream of flames from the front of her body to propel herself backwards into the open door of a nearby house while the spears chasing her stuck into the ground. One spear managed to find its way into the home through a hole in the tattered roof, but Haretsa merely tilted her head to the side as the weapon whizzed past her head. ”Yup. Looks like nothing’s changed…”

     With a sigh, Haretsa stepped back out into the village to meet up with Malva once more. ”Well, last time she started out her tricks with these really weird mind games and those worked on me decently well last time, so I’m not sure if she does recognize me.” the Ace answered the young mage’s question. She then listened to Malva as she suggested that the two smoke Lillith out, by lighting the entire village on fire from the fact that Malva began to spread fire among the incredibly dry grass. ”If it were that easy, I would have done that the first time Mao and I faced her.” Haretsa sighed, inhaling the flames that Malva had begun to spread. Fortunately for her, Malva’s magic didn’t seem to have a single trace of Ardere’s accursed flames, so Haretsa could feast upon any blaze Malva set to keep it from getting out of control. ”The way she hides is in another dimension of sorts, so let’s just check around to see if she’s in this realm first before we go starting any fires. Ragna, you do a scan to see if you can detect any other magic signature in the area aside from ours. I’ll check to see if I can’t find her heat signature.” ”You got it!”

     Closing her eyes, the Head of Destruction channeled her magic into them, shifting hazel orbs over to a dull orange color. Haretsa then began to slowly scan the area, noting the massive amount of heat that Malva’s body was giving off as well as the temperature that her pet Spirit was giving off in the other house. Aside from those two and her own, Haretsa didn’t see any other heat signature in the nearby area. ”Not a damn thing… how bout you, Ragna?” ”Nope, I got nothing on my end either. She has to be hiding in that weird dimension of hers.” Ragna surmised. Haretsa knew that this was most likely true, but it seemed to anger someone else that Haretsa knew. ”For crying out loud!! Why won’t that little bitch just stop hiding and come out and fight us! I gotta pay her back for that stupid freaking bear of hers that ate my damn bullets!!!” a loud, brash voice rang out as Haretsa’s right arm bobbed up and down slightly to make it seem as though her large golden bracelets were talking. ”I know, Blamo, just relax. We’ll find her eventually, it's just gonna take a bit like it did last time.” Haretsa explained, before her right arm began to wave violently through the air. ”YOU RELAX! I’M PISSED OFF AND I’M GONNA MAKE HER PAY FOR IT!!!” the voice cried out once more. Malva probably couldn’t tell, but Haretsa’s lips were just barely moving as her arm was flailing about meaning it was all a ventriloquist performance; but Haretsa believe the voice to be real.

   After Blamo’s rather loud shouting, another voice caused Haretsa’s ears to perk the moment she heard it. ”G-go away… this… isn’t your home…” the voice whispered softly in a tone that sounded as if its owner was terrified. Looking around to see noone there, Haretsa knew exactly what was going on and who that belonged to. ”Lillith… she’s doing that whole disembodied voice thing again. Sometimes the voice is hers and sometimes it can belong to someone you know. Just remember that no matter what she does or how real it might seem, that voice is not real.” Haretsa warned Malva, remembering what Lillith’s mind games had done before. ”But… why did she sound so afraid? Is she scared of me or… something else?” Haretsa thought, unable to ignore the tone of Lillith’s voice.

"Behold, the intricate and subtle weaving of my cunning arcane . . . ah, screw it. Burn a lot!"

- Haretsa

    It seemed as though Lillith’s mind games were really starting to pick up now, as Malva began shouting angrily for the demented child to come out and calling her a coward. Haretsa didn’t know what exactly Malva was hearing, but it seemed as though her warning to the young Kasai either went unheard or she simply had that bad of a temper. Regardless, Lillith began to start the mind games with Haretsa as well, bringing back the old favorite of the imaginary swords. Every direction that the Ace looked, a sword danced tauntingly about ten feet in front of her. ”I said go away… why don’t you people ever listen…” Haretsa heard Lillith’s voice speak again from seemingly nowhere. ”Lillith, we’re just here to bring you back to the Rune Knight’s so they can help you… There’s nothing to be afraid of, so just come on out and nobody will end up hurt.” Haretsa tried the sympathetic approach in order to get Lillith out of hiding. While Haretsa still had a great deal of built up anger over the pain that Lillith had caused her last time, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t forgive the child and sympathize with her fear.

   ”No… I’m not going back there… you can’t make me!!” the voice cried, as the illusionary blade flew through the air and pierced through Haretsa’s abdomen. Knowing all too well that the blade was fake, Haretsa didn’t even flinch from the supposed attack. The Head of Destruction simply turned her attention back towards Malva who seemed to be getting more and more enraged by the second. ”Jeez… talk about hot headed.” Haretsa sighed, walking over to Malva’s position and taking note of the grass turned to ashes. While the heat being given off by Malva was incredibly dangerous, Haretsa barely noticed the difference as she proceeded towards the girl; the illusionary sword slashing away at the cream haired mage in vain. ”She’s certainly dangerous, but this isn’t much of anything compared to the temperatures her father’s magic gives offf.” Haretsa thought, remembering her training with Ardere and Kite as she placed a hand on Malva’s shoulder. ”I don’t think shouting angrily at an imaginary sword is gonna do much of anything, Malva. She’s really scared of… something right now, so burning down the whole village isn’t gonna do much other than provide me with a good a snack.” Haretsa laughed, hoping that Malva would calm herself down at least slightly.

"Behold, the intricate and subtle weaving of my cunning arcane . . . ah, screw it. Burn a lot!"

- Haretsa

   Watching as Malva pulled out a small bottle and swallowed some sort of black pill, Haretsa couldn’t help but be curious as to how that pill worked. Medicine wasn’t exactly her area of expertise, but this didn’t stop Haretsa’s curiosity in the slightest. Whatever was in that pill seemed to calm Malva down from her mindset of wanting to burn everything in the village to ashes. The young red head then explained to Haretsa that she had a bit of a bad temper and that the whispers were mentioning things that not many other people knew. Haretsa knew that feeling all too well having heard Emilia’s voice in the whispers the last time she had faced Lillith, but it seemed the Ace had little time to explain that she knew how Malva felt. The young girl quickly bolted for a nearby house and called for Haretsa to run as spears began to rain down from the sky once more. ”This is getting just as absurd as those damn swords were the last time…” Haretsa sighed, merging her body down into the shadows in order to avoid the assault.

     After the rain of spears had ended, Haretsa reemerged from the shadows before Malva approached and asked what Lillith could have been afraid of. ”I really can’t say for sure, but I do want to find out.” Haretsa answered, watching as Malva stepped forward to deal with yet another wave of the spears. The red haired mage put her arm out and summoned forth a rune from her hand that exploded; sending the spears careening into a nearby house and away from the two mages. Malva then asked how the two could help Lillith and mentioned that she knew how being a mage at such a young age could be taxing on the mind; something Haretsa knew all too well. ”Yeah, tell me about it…” Haretsa thought to herself, reminiscing on the outburst that occurred when she was eight whilst Malva called out to Lillith. ”Honestly? I’m not sure how we can help her… mostly because I don’t know what’s wrong.” Haretsa began to explain as the illusionary sword set about repeatedly stabbing her in the abdomen to no avail. ”The thing I’ve noticed is her voice is… different. When Mao and I were here, her voice had this weird tone to it that sounded ominous and stuff, but now it’s merely the voice of a normal, scarred little girl. It’s like something was possessing her before and the Rune Knights were able to clean her of it… or...were they?” Haretsa pondered, having a bit of an epiphany. ”What if something really was possessing her for all the things she had done before? The Rune Knights must have tried to separate that from her, but it didn’t fully work and now she’s consciously aware of it and is terrified… I know it’s a lot of assuming, but it honestly makes a lot of sense!” Haretsa exclaimed, believing she might have been onto something.

"Behold, the intricate and subtle weaving of my cunning arcane . . . ah, screw it. Burn a lot!"

- Haretsa

    It seemed as though Malva agreed with Haretsa’s assumption, as the young redhead proposed a question and an assumption of her own. That would make sense that the guild she slaughtered was responsible for putting the demon inside her in the first place… She really is a lot like me…” Haretsa thought, watching as Malva set about drawing a diagram of her own thoughts along a dirt portion of the houses’ floor. Malva then explained her theory of if the guild did put the demon inside of Lillith, then they did so in order to control this demon; the same case as why Haretsa was made a Dragon Slayer. The other theory was that Lillith was possessed by something naturally, which Malva surmised that this meant some demon was drawn to this particular village for some unknown reason. Haretsa stood quietly and listened to Malva explain all of this. The Head of Destruction was rather impressed with just how analytical the daughter of her guild master was.

      Unfortunately, Haretsa couldn’t offer her praise of Malva’s intellect for her age as the ground around them began to shake violently; the sound of loud crashes echoing from outside. Rushing out, the two mages soon bore witness to the cause of the crashes. ”THE FUCK IS THAT THING!?” Haretsa expressed in shock as she tried to make heads or tails of the demonic creature that was quickly approaching the village. While she was confused as to what the hell this creature was, Haretsa was just as curious as to how it got this close to the village already without her hearing it coming. Her sensitive hearing should have easily picked up on a creature of that size coming from miles away, so how the hell did it get here? The Ace had little time to think on this as Malva’s pet grew to the same size as the creature and started to fight in hand to hand in the middle of the village. She might not have known what Malva’s little friend was capable of, but Haretsa could tell that it was losing against this revolting demon.

   Malva went to Spirit’s aid first by jumping up onto the demons back and stabbing it. This caused the creature to turn its full attention to Malva as it began to bring its hand down to crush her. Releasing a steady stream of flames from the back of her body, Haretsa propelled herself over to Malva’s position; skidding to a stop in front of the redhead with her right fist cocked back and a one meter sphere of flames raging around it. The tattoo on the Ace’s back shined a brilliant red through her grey tank top as she shouted the words ”FIRE DRAGON’S CANNON FIST!” before thrusting her flaming fist up to meet the demon’s massive hand. A large shockwave due to the two forces colliding ripped through the surrounding area, sending Haretsa’s hair and clothes blowing around wildly as the ball of flames propelled the beasts hand back up into the air. The force of the attack was enough to carry the demon up off the ground a bit along with its hand before the sphere exploded; setting the creatures decrepit fur ablaze. However, this counter attack wasn’t without its consequences, as Haretsa’s arm fell to her side limp and rather unresponsive. The sheer force of the impact with this demon was enough to dislocate her shoulder, but fortunately it didn’t seem like it was much worse than that. ”You aren’t hurting a damn hair on either Malva or Lillith’s head if I have anything to say about…” Haretsa spoke as she clutched her right shoulder in pain.

”RAGNA! THAT THINGS YOUR NEW CHEW TOY!!!!” Haretsa shouted, causing the mechanical liger to leap over the two mages heads with its tail rapidly wagging back and forth. ”CHEWWWWWWWWWWWW TOYYYYYYYYY!!!!!” the beast exclaimed happily as it pounced down on the giant demon; pinning it down to the ground as he sank his fangs into its neck. As she watched this take place, Haretsa pulled her shoulder back into socket with a loud snap; slowly flexing her fingers to make sure she was still able to use her arm. ”It doesn’t feel too bad, but I don’t think I should really use it… remind me to have your mom check this out for me when we get back!” Haretsa laughed, giving Malva a reassuring nod as she turned her now flaming red eyes back towards the demon that they faced.