"Did you even know me anymore?"
With her back to a solid grey slate of rock Mira gazed up to the gray sky as the rain fell down on her face. Her hair was wet and matted against her flesh. Over in the distance she could see Winslette leaning against the entry gates with a cigarette in her mouth, but it went unlit. Just like…how she used to do it.
How many years had passed since that day? Closing her eyes the nightmare replayed itself just as vividly and just as clear as the very day it happened.
They had all been out on a date. Mira had been happily teasing Winslette as Salisa walked close behind them watching over them as she always had. It was a cloudy day, but the smile in each other's face had been all the joy and happiness needed to brighten the mood of the dreary day. Ice cream, shopping, a movie, and the arcade. They had done it all together that day. Until Mira had decided," Let's go to the boardwalk! You know, by the beach. I hear that there are going to be tons of stars out tonight Sal. You love star-gazing don't you?" She had turned around to look back at Salisa who had a cigarette hanging out of her mouth. Reaching up Salisa then ran her fingers through her silvery white hair and smiled slightly," Well if that's what you guys wanna do then I'm totally down for that." Giving a toothy grin Salisa then added," I've never gone to the beach to stargaze before. It should be fun."
Winslette sighed slightly and looked at the time," While I would just love to sit around and watch some dead stars in the sky I have a test I need to study for so I'm going to head back now, but try not to have too much fun without me. Not that you can. I'm the life of the group after all." Flipping her hair back Winslette then put a hand on her hip as she looked to Mira and Salisa," You two be careful out there. Be sure not to get back too late okay?" A slight flush came over her face but she then quickly approached them and pecked both of them on the lips before turning quickly on her heels," I'll be waiting for you both….so come back soon." Immediately she began to walk off not wanting to sit around and wait for the two of them to start teasing her about her voluntary display of affection. It was something that she was still adjusting to, but was becoming more and more warmed up by the idea. If she didn't think people were blatantly watching them she didn't have too many open issues with it.
Once Winslette had turned the corner away from them Salisa and Mira looked over to each other with slight laughs before then turning to head towards the boardwalk alongside the beach. The sun was beginning to set and there was a gentle breeze. For a while they walked together in silence, Mira enjoying just watching the sun set behind the horizon and the blurring colors of the sky that melded into one strangely familiar tone that could be identified as no other color other than "sunset". Stopping for a moment Mira touched the wooden side rail with one hand," Salisa it really is beautiful out here this evening isn't it?" Salisa nodded before moving over to lean against the railing herself," Yeah…it is. I'm certain there is nothing more sacred and more breathtaking than sunsets and sunrises. They are so symbolic and so…unable to be replicated. The sensation, the feeling….the moment itself." Nibbling gently on the end of the cigarette in her mouth they both once more sat in silence as they watched the sun be consumed by the horizon. The sky once a plethora of colorful hues began to become more and more devoid of color and the space above them once filled with one massive source of light began to be speckled with tiny bright lights. There was a warm breeze that seemed to embrace them both, caressing their flesh and playing in their hair.
For a moment everything felt as if it had stopped. Mira glanced over to Salisa and felt for some reason that this was a moment that could never be had again. Her gaze on the fair woman beside her as her lover and mate gazed up to the beloved stars that she adored so much seemed timeless. Sal's beauty in that moment was indescribable. Blushing slightly she had to break her gaze as to not become entirely overwhelmed by the moment. Mira's gaze instead turned to the water that crashed onto the sandy shore. They were far enough away that her massive fear of water did not paralyze her. She also knew that Salisa wouldn't ever let anything happen to her. For some reason the thought made Mira more confident and she muttered softly," Why don't we….walk along the sand. I hear that walking in the sand with no shoes on at night is especially relaxing."
Looking to the time Salisa looked a bit hesitant," We told Winslette we wouldn't be out too late…" Clutching slightly onto her sleeves Mira couldn't remember the last time she had truly had alone time with Salisa. It wasn't like she didn't enjoy Winslette being around, but Sal and Winny seemed to get along so well since they also thought of each other as fighting rivals. They trained a lot together, but they didn't always train with her because her powers weren't meant to be nearly as offensive and in your face as theirs was. To have this alone time with Salisa or even Winslette was extremely important to her. "Just for a few minutes…" Mira insisted as she looked up to Salisa to see if she'd be okay with it.
Of course, Salisa could not say no to such a request. Reaching over Salisa pulled Mira under her arm and nodded," Mhm…just for a few minutes is fine." Leaning down Salisa then pulled off her shoes and held it in her hand and Mira followed suit. With that they walked down the wooden stairs and stepped into the cool sand and began to walk along the beach. Salisa stood with her body closest to the water and Mira's closest to the boardwalk. Most of the time Salisa was looking up gazing at the twinkling stars in the sky with awe. "Looking at stars at night….really is…something…." She whispered softly. Nodding her head Mira muttered a "mhm" and closely stood by Salisa's side.
However, suddenly the air around them seemed to become bitterly cold unexpectedly. Salisa stopped and looked out into the water. Her eyes focusing hard as she held Mira close searching the surface of the water for what they both knew was coming. Mira tugged hard on Sal's shirt," It is a marid…it is marid we need to go!" she insisted, but it was too late. The marid was already peeking its ugly head up from the depths of the water. It let out a painful screeching noise and Sal covered Mira. Looking back to Mira, Salisa said," Run back. Run back to school and get help. I will hold it off so it doesn't get out of the water."
"Salisa! You can't. You can't take on a marid by yourself!" Mira shouted as she tugged on Salisa harder," Let's go. Let's go together. We can go get Winslette and Fletcher and everyone. We can come back."
Shaking her head Salisa muttered," It'll attack people Mira….we can't let that happen. Just go. I'll be here when you get back. Just go okay. I'll be fine." She said as she leaned do and kissed Mira deeply on the lips and gave a gentle smile," I'll be just fine, like always. Trust me."
The marid suddenly reached out with one large arm towards the girls, but Salisa reached for her waist and suddenly pulled out one of her swords slashing at the arm causing the marid to let out another horrific cry and recoil its arm. "GO, Mira!" Salisa shouted as she then dashed forward to take on the marid. As much as Mira wanted to run forward and protect Salisa the best she could, there was the water. There was….no way she could get near the water. Quickly she turned and fumbled to put on her shoes as she began to run in the opposite direction. Reaching into her pocket she began to feel for her phone. Her hands were trembling as she desperately tried to dial numbers. Eventually she was able to press the call number to get ahold of Fletcher," Fletcher! Mister Fletcher! Salisa! SALISA! She's fighting. She's fighting a water marid all by herself! At the beach! At the beach!"
"You can't be fuckin' serious. No…no way. That can't be! I will gather the other exemplars! We will be there immediately. You stay there and do everything you can to help her." Fletcher ordered before immediately hanging up. Mira could already feel the burning of tears in the back of her throat as she then stopped and turned around to look back towards the boardwalk she had just run up. Go back and help her? But how? She was so near the water and….
There was a massive scream. A roar that she was all too familiar with caused her to turn on her heels and run back to the boardwalk which had only moments ago been the location of a peaceful, sacred memory. When she arrived back at the boardwalk she could see from her vantage point that Salisa had in fact gone into Berserk mode. The image was gruesome. The marid had pierced through Salisa's shoulder and it seemed Salisa's body had gone into shock from blood loss and forced her into Berserk mode. This was bad.
"No. No no no…if she was forced into Berserk mode then….she doesn't have a goal…how is she going to get out?" Mira panicked. Clutching tightly onto the wooden railing she couldn't think of anything she could do to help Salisa as her partner was battling for her life. The lightning fast speed that Sal moved at was impressive, but Mira knew better. The harder Sal hit meant the more injured she was. Salisa seemed to be slashing at the marid left and right, but as most of its body remained submerged in the water it was as if it was just regenerating itself. Salisa too could generate, but it seemed like she was taking more damage than dealing at this point. Her white tribal markings glowed even brighter causing Mira to panic even more.
"This isn't good…please…Salisa…stop…please…help is coming. Hang in there! HANG IN THERE!"
Mira dared not shout. If she did she might draw the attention of not only Salisa, but also the marid. She hadn't been there when Salisa had turned so Salisa likely had no recollection of Mira at all right now. Her knuckles began to whiten from how hard she was clutching the edge of the railing.
"The exemplars...they'll be here soon…just a little longer…just…a little longer…"
Salisa was shoved back onto the sand as suddenly the marid's arm split into three different tentacle like spears and attacked the berserker. While the beast of a woman had been able to deflect two, one pierced right through one of her blades and wounded her leg. Blood splattered from her wound as she coughed up blood and her white eyes gazed at the threat before her.
Salisa's mind was entirely empty. She had no objective and no goal. Maybe when she had first been shoved into this state her goal was to "survive" to "save myself"? She couldn't remember. So she'd merely keep going at the obstacle in front of her until it was gone and then…what? Panting Salisa slowly rose up her two swords once more and began to launch herself forward. Jumping Salisa brought her swords down and embedded them into the moving creature's equivalent of a skull. In return the marid wrapped its hands around her torso and flung her off and straight into the boardwalk. That portion of the boardwalk collapsed entirely the splinters of shattered wooden planks raining down onto her body. However, her body that felt and knew no pain slowly began to pick itself up despite the fact there was a very sharp wooden rod that been plunged into her side.
Mira covered her mouth her eyes widening, the tears had begun long before this moment.
"Don't scream…if you scream you'll throw Salisa into panic. She'll lose her concentration don't….scream…"
Completely unaltered by the wooden piece piercing her side Salisa stumbled forward. Her bestial state still insisting on moving and fighting and so she did. It felt like this fight was going on forever as Salisa pursued the marid once more. With the marid moving around so much and slapping its arms in and out of the water it felt like it was raining even though it was really just a mist of the salt water being displaced from the altercation occurring.
Mira watched it all. She wondered when this nightmare would end. Something caught Mira's eye on the marid and she then suddenly screamed," SALISA! LOOK OUT!" The marid had brought forth a horde of its own creatures of mermaids and other mutated monstrosities. Just as Salisa landed on the sand she glanced back at the sudden shout, which distracted her just long enough for the monsters to lunge. They bit into her flesh and some even ripped it from her limbs. Screaming at the horror of watching Salisa be quite literally mauled she was just about to move forward when there was a clap of lightning that came down on the marid. The monsters scattered as she then heard the exemplar for Team 1 yell," Get back!" The blonde haired woman suddenly jumped over the railing Mira stood at and ran towards the marid with the other exemplars following her. Janos and Kanja went forth to join Rin on the front lines as Fletcher and Fuurin came up beside Mira," Where is Salisa?!" Fletcher shouted immediately. Mira pointed down to the bloodied and mauled Salisa down on the shore's edge, her finger trembling.
Fuurin nodded and immediately began to rush over to Salisa's body using her flight ability to cover distance quickly, but quickly jumped back as Salisa's bloodied body roared. "I can't get her! She's mad!" Fletcher looked down to Mira," She's in berserk mode?! Can't she get out?" Mira was practically hysterical at this point," I don't know. I mean yes she's in berserk mode, but I don't know. I don't know if she can get out. I wasn't…I wasn't here when she went in and she was hurt and I don't think she was able to…to make a goal and…she's bleeding…she's so bloody she's going to…she's going to…" There was another clap of lightning accompanied by the sounds of water surging up and being pushed out by Kanja and then Janos manipulating the wet sand into large blockades to prevent any monsters from getting onto the beach.
"Damnit…" Fletcher muttered under his breath as he created a pistol in his hands. Mira's eyes widened and she asked softly her voice trembling," Wha-what are you going to do with that?" He looked over to Mira before averting his eyes from the young woman's gaze," If we can't get Sal to snap out of it….we'll have to kill her….she can't…she can't be controlled in this Berserk mode. We'll do everything we can though to save her…" Without waiting for a response from Mira Fletcher went out onto the beach with Fuurin and stepped on Salisa's chest pointing the pistol right at her head," Salisa! Salisa! Snap out of it!" Mira screamed," NO! NO! Don't shoot her! DON'T SHOOT!"
Fletcher's finger was firmly on the trigger, but even it seemed to hesitate slightly as Salisa was very clearly trying to force him off of her despite the fact she was missing ligaments from her legs and even her arms were missing large chunks of flesh. Clearly too much of her was wounded for her regeneration to keep up. Salisa's white eyes showed no ability to recognize any of the people around her. Her vision at this point was mostly black and very little white as permanent blindness was setting in. She had pushed herself too hard.
"Salisa! Listen to me! This is your last chance! If you don't listen to me we'll have to….we'll have too…" Fletcher couldn't even finish the sentence as his aim remained set on her head.
"SALISA!" Mira shouted as she jumped down from the boardwalk.
"MIRA!" Fletcher shouted as he was suddenly tossed off Sal as she jolted up causing him to misfire into the sand.
Salisa ran right at Mira intent on killing the girl. Intent on killing everything actually.
"Sal….Sal is going to…." Mira's mind seemed to stop and a flashback to the beautiful woman gazing up at the stars on the boardwalk filled her memory.
"Kill…me…"
"MIRA!"
Mira could hear Fletcher screaming in the distance but…
She watched in slow motion as Salisa lifted her swords to place down the final blow on Mira's small body, but the blow never came….to Mira. At the last second Salisa dropped one of the two swords and brought the one still in her bloody grasps to her neck. The blood splattered onto Mira as Salisa's body fell to the ground before her. Mira fell backwards and gazed with wide eyes to Salisa's body.
"Sal…."
The white tribal markings slowly began to grow duller.
"Sal…"
Blood stained the sand that had once been cushioning their feet as they star gazed together.
"Sal….come on…get…get up…"
There was no movement.
Slowly Mira rolled over onto her stomach and crawled on her hands and knees towards the almost unrecognizable body. Salisa's beautiful silvery hair now stained in her own blood. Her neck had been slit right on a main vein. Of course, even in her maddened state Salisa had managed to be perfect in fighting….even herself.
"Sal…Salisa….Salisa…my…my prince…my knight…my love….please…" Mira reached out, but Salisa didn't move.
Mira was brought back into reality as Winslette reached down and touched her shoulder. Winslette whispered softly," Let's go…Mira." Nodding her head slowly Mira slowly got up glancing back to Salisa's grave from four years ago. They had all since graduated from the academy and now Mira and Winslette lived together. Softly she whispered to the grave," Winslette still won't do a lot of kissing in public Sal….but she'll hold my hand. She gives me great hugs…just like you used to. She does the whole cigarette thing now too…just like you."
The rain poured down even more heavily from the sky. "We can't see the stars today….but maybe you can….wherever you are….Salisa…"