Dana was fierce in her desire to escape death. Though her clawed hand scratched her swollen stomach in a bizarre show of indolence, that same hand would quickly smack away anyone who came too close—and then there was the strange corpse that lurked within her, its pincers and flailing hands always signaling a spell. Shania grit her teeth when she saw Ricardo, Natan, and Hilda simultaneously turned to stone by Dana's magic. Mao would be busy undoing the petrification, so another healer would be needed--with this in mind, Shania called on the spirit of La Sirene. Her clothes were replaced by flowing vestments of blue and red, and she rose off the ground as if the air had been turned to water. La Sirene looked upon Dana with some pity, knowing the girl had been torn from a happy life with a devoted love; but the monstrous form she had assumed, with rotting skin stretched nigh to bursting over veins of Malice, was both a mockery of life and a threat to it, and so La Sirene would not hesitate to return the girl to the afterlife.
Undeterred by the threat of being made statues, Frank and Johnny hacked away at the grotesque monster easily three times their height, slowly forcing it back. They both seemed foolish to Shania, albeit for very different reasons: Frank was using a sword embedded in a pedestal, an absurd-looking weapon, while Johnny had released his malice to change into the same being that had nearly killed them all at Uyuni. The warrior was powerful, and more help than Johnny could hope to be...but the boy only held a tentative grasp on his control and sanity in that state. Should he slip, his malice form could very well be the end of everyone.
Dana batted Frank into the wall. From where the blow had connected, Shania judged that the ninja must have received a few broken ribs and La Sirene responded to the need, its curative magic welling up to heal Frank.
Gunfire rang out as both Natan and Ricardo rejoined the fight. With Johnny between the monster and them, the gunslingers aimed high at the creature's chest. Frank came back with a fury and struck the monster hard three times before Hilda lifted her wand, casting a spell that flung the maggot-filled beast back. It struck the wall, shattering the nearby windows, and howled. Dana lowered herself to all fours; a strange corpse protruded out of her mouth, as though it were her tongue. A sigil formed in the air and shards of ice flew out. Shania curled up and only two fragments struck her, one striking her cheek. Ignoring the blood running down her face, she quickly scanned the situation, most concerned about the two fools who had been in front.
Frank, on Dana's left, was still on his feet; however, for the first time Shania had seen, Awaker was motionless as he lay on the floor, his torso a mess of ice and blood. As she approached the fallen warrior, she realized he wasn't breathing and sank to kneel by his side. He stared up, unseeing. Finally she understood why his gaze had unnerved her so much in Uyuni; in this form his eyes were blue, the same shade as the light of Will, when Johnny's eyes were green. Pushing the observation aside, she drew on La Sirene's life-giving power to perform the complex resurrection spell. The shards in his body were melted and purged, allowing the wounds to close. His chest rose with breath and his gaze flickered, focusing on her. Seeing that he was all right, Shania rose, only to have the sigh of relief catch in her throat when he grabbed her arm. Resurrection usually had a calming effect, but the intensity of his stare convinced her that Johnny had lost control. If he should attack...and even if he didn't, while the others were distracting Dana, it wouldn't take long for the malicious spirit to notice two of her enemies were sitting ducks. "Johnny," she said, hoping he would hear her. "Change back, now."
His expression wavered, but whereas she had expected an attack, his grip on her arm loosened, then was released completely as Johnny sealed the malice and returned to his sixteen-year-old body. He put a hand to his forehead, seeming dazed. "Shania--"
"Get back and stay by Mao," she told him. "I need to help the others." The fat cat would be able to handle whatever was bothering him; at worst, a pure root would settle him down. He nodded, still confused, and backed away from the chaos that the two gunslingers and ninja were caught up in. Shania turned to face Dana and called on Ta Tanka, switching forms as the resolute spirit took La Sirene's place. With a fierce scream she rushed into the fray and pummeled the monster's rotting flesh with fists encased in stone.
Though the monster attacked both her and Frank often, Johnny seemed to have gathered his wits and assisted Mao in casting Cure spells, keeping the two attackers in fighting condition. When Shania and Frank heard Ricardo playing a familiar tune, they pulled back and watched as missiles pummeled the titanic beast, followed by another fire spell from Hilda. At last, Dana finally fell, her body releasing streams of malice as it disappeared.
Johnny and Ricardo spoke in quiet voices, looking at the doll seated on the chair, before they turned to the rest of the group. "Well, we'd better go tell the doll maker that Dana's been taken care of, at least," Ricardo said.
Though they had expected the doll maker to be upset, maybe even angry at them for not being able to save her body, she was grateful for them simply sending Dana back where she belonged. When she used her powers one last time to allow Ricardo a chance to speak with Edna, the rest of the group understood the reunited lovers would want to be alone and slipped out--though Johnny and Shania had to go back and drag an all-too-curious Mao away.
"How long do you think they'll be?" Hilda asked after they had gathered out on the porch.
Mao sighed. "This is the only chance Ricardo will have to be with Edna, so you can be sure he's going to take as much time as he can. Have some patience, girl; at least it's a warm summer night, good for drinking..."
"Everything's good for drinking with you," the vampire retorted, leaning against one of the porch posts with a pout. Mao wasn't bothered by this comment, already taking a swig from her jug.
"Boy! How can you be cold?" Frank's remark made Shania look towards the teenager, who was slipping on his jacket. "You were just complaining about that jacket making you sweaty!"
The priestess smirked. "Johnny just can't get comfortable anywhere, I guess. In the Grand Canyon it was too dry, in Moana it was too humid, and all through South America it was too hot...now it's too cold."
Johnny's face turned red as he recognized he had indeed made those complaints before. "I didn't say anything this time! So what if I'm a little cold?"
"It's just funny, that's all. I'm warm, and I'm wearing less than you are."
"Yeah, a lot less," Johnny mumbled, averting his eyes as he zipped up the jacket.
"Are you ill?" asked Natan.
"Uh, no...I don't think so. I feel fine, just chilly."
Shania thought the light from inside the house, filtered through the colored glass panels, did make Johnny look pale, but it was probably only because of Natan's suggestion. Just to make sure, she walked up to the boy and pressed her hand against his forehead. "He doesn't have a fever," she said, looking more closely at him. No fever, but he was certainly pale, and--was he trembling? How could he be cold in such pleasant weather? "Don't get sick on us. Why don't you get some rest?"
"Yeah, that sounds good," Johnny answered. He sat down at the porch post opposite Hilda and wrapped his arms around his knees. His eyelids drooped slightly, but stayed open a crack.
"What should we do after this?" Mao said. "Roger said the gate's not about to open any time soon."
"Princess. What Okanagan said..."
Shania turned to her guardian and shook her head slightly. "Garvoy can wait." The elder of Moana had hinted at learning why Lady had attacked their tribe, but Shania didn't care what Lady's motives had been. She knew for certain that Lady's attack had been without provocation, and as such there was no way it could be justified. It didn't matter why she'd done it; the woman of malice would die.
And though she'd never admit it to the others, she was afraid of how she would react to seeing the desolated tribe. If it made her feelings of hatred even stronger...would that just make it even easier for the malice to ravage her spirit and turn her into a monster?
"The Jonin gave orders for Frank to return to Brazeel--" The ninja halted in his speech, quelled by a malevolent glare from Mao.
"Never again," the cat spat.
"Oh, come on, how bad could it be?" Hilda asked. "A village full of ninjas...I've never heard of anything like that before! I want to see it!"
"They're all insane, that's how bad it is," Mao muttered. "Anyone who stays in that village ends up a nut. They almost had me doing their ridiculous ninja shit, but I got out! I'll never let them take me!"
Hilda placed a finger on her chin, considering. "So did they drive you to drink, or are you just ranting like that because you're drunk?"
When the cat turned her gaze on the vampire, Shania sighed. "Natan, weren't you given another UMA to hunt?"
"Yes."
"We'll pursue that next."
This effectively ended the staring contest between Mao and Hilda. The vampire looked miffed that she wouldn't be able to see the ninja village Frank had spoken of so often. Frank's shoulders sank, but then he plastered a smile on his face. "Frank will just have to go later, then!"
"Yes, leave us out of it," Mao told him, before she peered at Shania--no, she was looking past her. "Kid, what is your problem?"
Johnny was shaking like a leaf in autumn, though he had wrapped his arms more tightly about his legs in an attempt to stop. Despite the question, his gaze was focused on the ground.
"Johnny, what's wrong?" Shania asked, kneeling in front of him to get his attention. He met her eyes and she frowned at his dilated pupils.
"It's c-cold. A-and dark..."
"Well of course it's dark, it's nighttime," Hilda said.
Shania looked over her shoulder at the large feline. "Has he used any pure items?"
"A pure root. Though it doesn't seem it did any good."
"Give me a leaf."
"I d-don't n-need--"
"It won't hurt to try," Shania told him, holding out the pure leaf. He certainly wasn't berserk, as he wasn't being aggressive or hostile, but his behavior was suspicious; maybe he was on the brink. "Eat it."
Hesitantly, he picked the leaf up from her palm and nibbled on it. It only took a few bites for it to be consumed, but even after he was done his body continued to tremble. When Mao tried casting a healing spell on him, he shot to his feet. Before Shania could react, he had already stepped past her, racing into the house.
After the door slammed shut, there were a few seconds of silence. "Well...there is more light in the house," Frank said hesitantly.
"But why was he complaining in the first place? There's enough light to see by and he's going to sleep, you'd think he'd want it dark. Ugh, what a pain," Mao said, shaking her head.
"He's just being weird," Hilda said dismissively. "He was perfectly fine after the fight."
Shania would've been glad to accept Hilda's explanation, but the expression on Johnny's face...if nothing was physically ailing him, the only explanation she could think of for his dilated pupils would be fear. But what on earth had scared him so badly and why hadn't he just said what was wrong? "I'm going to talk to him," she said before following.
The foyer was empty. Ahead, she could hear Ricardo playing with his guitar; Johnny must not have barged in on the two lovers, or else Spanish curses would be much more likely than the soft, pleasing music. If he'd been looking for someplace warm, the obvious choice was the bedroom, with its musty but fully furnished bed. She walked through the living room and opened the door to the bedroom. She didn't see Johnny, only four dolls with void eye sockets that stared at her. She shuddered and pulled the door shut. The dolls had been eerie enough with their beautiful eyes; without, they were hideous and menacing. Johnny would have been insane to try sleeping in there.
Maybe he was in the workshop? It was darker than the rest of the house though--if Johnny had been coming in for more light, he wouldn't have gone there. Still, it was right across from the living room, so Shania looked in. Besides scattered limbs, torsos and heads for dolls, it was empty as well.
That left only the two rooms upstairs. She charged up the stairs, determined to find out what was wrong with Johnny. The heavy metal door inscribed with the cross creaked open as loudly as it had the first time. The boy wasn't in the parlor, where the doll maker had once asked her visitors to wait; then, he had to be in the room where they had fought Dana.
Despite the massive fight that had taken place in the room, the six candles arranged about the chair still burned brightly. Seated in the chair was Johnny, and on his lap was a delicate doll, dressed in maroon with brown hair piled on top of her head--the doll which had housed Dana's soul.
Shania frowned, noting that his shaking had stopped. "Johnny? Are you feeling better now?"
"It's cold...and dark...and lonely," he said slowly, not even looking at her as he patted the doll's dark curls.
"You wouldn't be lonely if you hadn't run off. You don't seem to be as cold as you were before, either."
"I don't want to be alone again...in that dark, cold place..."
Hadn't Dana said something just like that? Shania scowled. Was he just putting on some sort of act? "Look, cut it out. You've got everyone worried, and if this is a stupid joke--"
"I remember it." And when he looked up at her, Shania noticed that his irises were blue.
"Awaker?" Johnny's expression was blank, his stare just as intense as Awaker's, and she could feel La Sirene stirring, also recognizing the similarities. But why was he acting like this when he hadn't even released the malice? "Johnny, just tell me what's wrong."
"I've already told you. You just don't understand. You've never been dead before."
"You shouldn't remember that," Shania said. Roger had said that the ceremony had brought back Johnny's soul from the instant before he'd died, so he couldn't have any memory of what it'd been like; he'd never experienced death.
Not him, La Sirene said, breaking into her thoughts. Just as Will can take Malice's role in creating a body, Malice can take Will's place in forming memories. An imperfect memory, filled with only hatred and anger, but...
"Is the malice troubling you?" the priestess asked, turning her attention back to the boy in the chair. As his body had been constructed from malice, La Sirene's suggestion that the malice of the dead had planted memories within him wasn't farfetched. His brush with death as Awaker might have triggered something--or maybe it was simply the influence of the dollhouse, where many souls had been called back from death for a period of time.
Instead of answering, the boy stood, letting the doll fall to the ground. The porcelain head cracked and Shania tensed at the sound, her hands wandering to her tomahawks. "Johnny." She tried to speak to him one final time, ready to shout for the others. "Get a hold of yourself. You need to get the malice under control." She knew she had lost control of her malice on a few occasions--she remembered Johnny's comment about her acting different and strange--but she'd never acted like this.
He tilted his head, still staring at her with blue eyes. "La Sirene."
She blinked. "What?"
"I want to see her."
Do it, the spirit answered, before the priestess could even ask if she should transform.
"If I fuse with La Sirene, you'll calm down?"
Johnny nodded in a manner completely unlike him: only the slightest incline of his head, his gaze never leaving her face. Shania bit her lip. Hopefully the ocean spirit would be able to help him--she didn't know what to do. As light surrounded her body, the boy walked forward; by the time the fusion was complete, he stood in front of her.
La Sirene began to float, but before her feet left the ground, Johnny grasped her wrist. When Shania attempted to free her arm, he transformed into Awaker. His other hand clamped over her mouth before she could make a sound to alarm at least Ricardo. The fusionist twisted in his grip, planting her knee firmly in his gut the same way he had once attacked Killer. Though La Sirene wasn't strong enough to send people flying, the force was enough to make Awaker's grip loosen. She backed away, opening her mouth--
No! The force of La Sirene's command made the priestess wince. If you fight him, he'll only get worse.
'Then what should I do?' Shania demanded. In response, she could feel La Sirene's spirit rising. With Awaker glaring at her, threatening retaliation, the Garvoy warrior knew she couldn't afford a struggle with the ocean spirit. She allowed the spirit to take control.
La Sirene approached Awaker, not hesitating even a second when a bolt of pure malice formed in his hand. Though the weapon crackled ominously, he made no move to use it when the fused being touched her fingers to his skin. "I'm sorry," she said as she drew on her power to heal the bruising.
Once again the man of malice grabbed her wrist, but unlike Shania's earlier attempt to escape, La Sirene raised her free hand to his face, stroking his cheek.
'What are you doing?' Shania asked.
Calming him, came the simple reply. The crackling of malice ceased as Awaker tilted his head into the caress, his eyelids drooping slightly. For an instant it seemed like this small gesture would be enough to calm the warrior, but that illusion was shattered when he grabbed the comforting hand as well and pulled La Sirene down, his lips smashing against hers.
Though Shania had relinquished control to La Sirene, she still had her senses and could feel the sting in her bruised lips. 'This isn't calming him,' she thought, 'he's a beast.' But the spirit of the ocean was serene, showing no signs of alarm as she opened her mouth to let his tongue dart in. The priestess could only wonder how far this would go.
I intend to let him go as far as he wants, La Sirene answered. And as a creature of Malice, operating solely on instinct, what he desires is to mate. The Malice seeks to escape oblivion by creating new vessels.
If Shania had been in control of her body, she probably would have bitten off Awaker's tongue. 'And he's chosen you as his mate.' Of course; Johnny had started acting strangely after La Sirene's magic had revived him. Awaker wanted the ocean spirit's healing powers for his progeny. 'This is not happening. This is--this is--outrageous! He can't do this.'
Well, La Sirene murmured, there is always the alternative of subduing him.
Ta Tanka gave a low chuckle. Change to me and punch him in the gut, gouge his eyes out...then bring him down.
'Such a gentle way to say "killing him",' Shania responded as she withdrew further into her mind. She knew Awaker would not submit readily, even if blinded. A fight would be fatal to at least one person. If La Sirene thought he could be won by appeasement, with no bloodshed--then that was the best course of action for now, but Shania didn't want any part of it.
A sharp pain snatched her back to the forefront of her consciousness. Under La Sirene's guidance, her body had ended up on the floor with Awaker on top of her, his hands still gripping her arms, and he had just...bit her shoulder.
Both Thunderbird and Ta Tanka stirred, demanding La Sirene fight. Shania struggled to keep them in check so that they did not disrupt the ocean spirit's control, but it did not help that Awaker was single-minded in his desire, taking no thought for his partner's comfort. The Garvoy priestess felt each twinge of pain when he suckled her breasts, sharp teeth nicking the skin. His right hand remained on her arm, but his other hand moved downwards, fingers prying at La Sirene's garments. Formed from the depths of the sea, they were a part of La Sirene and when he finally succeeded in tearing them, exposing her sex, she cried out. Shania thought she heard the distant sound of music stop--was it just her imagination? She found herself hoping so. If Ricardo walked in on them like this, the mariachi would not hesitate to attack Awaker.
"Johnny," the priestess gasped. "Johnny--please--" Her throat tightened when his eyes rose to meet hers. Even now they were a cold blue, emotionless; his passion was only reflected in the way he panted for breath, his mouth slightly open. Struck silent, she only watched as his gaze shifted back to her breasts. Shania closed her eyes. 'La Sirene, please, please bring him back.'
I will, the spirit answered, but Shania felt no reassurance. When she heard metal whine and then hit the marble floor with a clang and felt hard flesh touch the inside of her thigh, she bit her lip, knowing what would come. There was only a moment's hesitation as Awaker found the entrance to her body. He plunged into her and she grunted in pain, her eyes watering. Blood dribbled from her lip. Again he took no concern for her comfort, only rammed into her, over and over, pressing her into the marble floor. His thrusting settled into a rhythm and he bent his head to nip at her skin once more. Just as he came, he released a sigh, a hot breath of air that chilled her to the core. He had completed the act, filled her with his semen. She was contaminated--but no, that was ridiculous. She had been full of Malice since Lady's Kiss; this hardly made a difference.
She lay perfectly still as he pulled out of her with a sound that reminded her of Dana's tongue sliding back in her corpse. The priestess was vaguely aware of a ringing in her ears, strands of red criss-crossing in front of her eyes to form a veil of blood. Malice--but she didn't care at the moment, not if it would give her a chance to kill the man lying next to her and rip him limb from limb.
La Sirene, however, had not yet relinquished control of her body. Instead, the spirit was forcing her to take deep breaths, reassuring her: the pain will go away soon enough, just calm down so I can heal you.
"Princess!"
Natan's voice broke over Shania like a wave of frigid water. The others were looking for them. Shania beat down her revulsion, pushing the Malice away--though it was difficult with her rising panic. La Sirene healed her body, though she could still feel the tenderness between her legs. Then she turned to look at Johnny.
He was still Awaker, and his eyelids were drooping with sleep. "Damn, no you don't," she said, jogging his shoulder. "Johnny, come back. Change."
His lips twitched, as if to smirk at her distress, and one hand grasped La Sirene's long hair, pulling her face down to his.
There were footsteps pounding up the staircase now. "Awaker," she asked, gazing into his blue eyes, "Johnny, what more do you want?"
He brushed his lips over hers and smiled lazily as the glow of both Malice and Will surrounded him, changing the man of malice back into her young companion. Before the transformation was complete, his eyes had already closed.
Shania barely had time to cast a water spell, washing away any evidence left on the floor, before the door opened and Ricardo, followed by the others, looked in. The mariachi's eyes were dazzled by light as La Sirene ended the fusion; when he could see, he immediately noticed Johnny lying on the floor with Shania kneeling by his side. Then Natan pushed past him, concerned about Shania.
Shania could see no way out of it but to lie. She started to tell Natan the most convincing story she could think of on the spot: a monster had attacked Johnny, though he was fine now that she'd healed him, and said monster had escaped from the destroyed windows before she could kill it. She guarded her expression, fearful someone would point out a flaw in her hasty story or that Mao, with her acute sense of smell, would sniff out something the seawater had failed to cleanse. Luckily, they didn't seem to notice anything out of place and accepted the tale.
When Johnny woke up, he was bewildered by Hilda chastising him for getting attacked by a monster and interrupting Ricardo's last time with Edna. But as she continued berating him, he started nodding along, murmuring "oh, yeah, I remember." He looked up at Shania and said with a sheepish grin, "guess that was pretty stupid of me, huh? Thanks."
He doesn't remember what he did as Awaker? La Sirene asked.
He remembered when he beat everyone, Thunderbird grumbled.
Shania watched the boy for the rest of the night, until he went to bed. He acted normally for the most part, but when he looked her way Shania caught the confusion and worry in his eyes.
'He remembers, but everyone is telling him another story and he believes them. He probably thinks it was only a dream.'
You won't tell him otherwise?
'It'd only make things worse,' Shania answered. Besides, there was no reason to tell him. It wasn't as though she would actually bear his child--she would die before that could ever happen.