Chapter 9
Dreams come true? Part 2
After the Fears brothers found her last clue, Brooklyn knew she could fly away. Being the only shadow not attached to a body, she left her hiding spot, allowing them to see her and ensuring them that this was her clue and not anything else. Having a titan in your body that allows you to enchant items and make them do pretty much everything you wanted was without a doubt quite useful.
A hint of guilt pinched her diamond heart and caused it to skip a beat. She felt responsible for their sorrow and as a matter of fact, she had somewhat played a part in it. Seeing the reaction of the team to the video and to her call, how exhausted they all were and the pain they were suffering under made her damaged heart hurt her chest. The final blow came with Harrison and Den. Harrison was falling apart right in front of her own two eyes and she just wanted to jump out of those shadows and officially join them, clear all their doubts and just give this horror they all were in an end. Then there was Den, who was so compassionate towards his brother that it warmed her heart and created a feeling of admiration, combined with nostalgia. Remembering the good times with her brother was unavoidable. She missed his smiley, bubbly presence in her life and she sometimes wondered what it would have been like if he was by her side. Would he be like Den, compassionate and caring? She couldn't possibly know or even guess, since she hasn't received any signs of life from her brother ever since she became her uncle's tool, but she knew one thing for sure. Harrison was lucky to have a brother like Den. Both of their histories which Brooklyn knew too well and the scene in front of her were proofs of it and she couldn't suppress the hint of jealousy that shot through her, much to her dismay. At times like this, she hated to have such emotions. However, it's only understandable from a damaged female like her to seek company, compassion and genuine family love. She just craved to feel that unique bond again.
Actually, she kind of felt it once before. When she felt that connection with Zhalia, she compared it to everything she could remember about the feeling she had when her mother bought her her favorite flowers or when her brother held her hand when they were on the boat on their way to Africa and she was feeling seasick. The connection resembled this feeling a lot. Perhaps it was because for the first time, she actually found a person who understood her and didn't just claim they do. At times she has heard people say 'I understand' to each other and she immediately traced the dishonesty leaking from their voice, but when it came to Zhalia, there wasn't such dishonesty. No, with her the understanding was unadulterated and not just words of comfort that were meant to obey some kind of gentleman code. This was pure humanity, as rare as the diamond beating in her chest. A smile crept its way to her big, dry lilac lips. Another part of her mission was complete and she had every right to feel proud of herself for it. Now she had some good news to tell Zhalia. Well, despite of her team being depressed, they are making progress and Dante is there. Up until now, both females didn't know whether Dante was still in the council or officially back with the team and Brooklyn was certain that Zhalia would be happy to hear that the man she loves was doing everything in his power to find her. Of course, this was nothing but a small step that shouldn't encourage them too much, but still, it was warming her heart.
She reached her cell in the blink of an eye, using a spell her uncle taught her and much to her surprise and delight, she was still not being watched. There wasn't a single glimpse of the purple hue around her and she allowed herself to feel brief joy. Now, she had to tell Zhalia the news and move on with a plan while she had to finish the task Eathon had asked her to fulfill when they managed to trust each other and decided to cooperate. She didn't understand what it would get them, however, she didn't doubt Eathon either. Wasting no more time, she took a deep breath and turned into a shadow again.
The mere thought of seeing Zhalia and feeling that warmth radiating from her gold-hazel orbs was overwhelming and was the cherry at the top to her good mood. After a long time, life decided to show a hint of light in her room, in her heart, in her life and a few colors on her face. There was nothing that could ruin this temporary, yet precious feeling which was necessary for the damaged female to go on.
Or so she thought.
Before she could even move from the wall of her cell to another room, she felt his hands grabbing her shadow form by her neck and violently pull her up. She gasped for air as his grip kept getting tighter on her small neck the higher he pulled her, until she brought her tiny figure right in front of his face, lifting her a few centimeter above the solid ground to match his height. Any hope of Brooklyn's face to regain color vanished. Airdan squeezed her neck so tightly it left blueish marks on it and her face was getting redder and redder, as if it would erupt at any moment. Her mouth was open, emitting small gasps due to the lack of air.
The twisted psychopath eyed her with odium, more than usual. He was wearing his usual attire, only now it was clean. Way too clean! No blood-stains or dirt from his morgue or dungeon, no scratches. It almost looked like it was new and just got dried off after being washed. He no longer had that dullness in his eyes or any signs of tiredness. His face looked too refreshed, as if he suddenly got 20 years younger and his grip was stronger than usual.
Brooklyn had no idea what kind of spell or weird, cannibalistic ritual he used to achieve that, but it definitely wasn't good. Maybe he managed to take care of the prisoner or found the mysterious caller so now he had gotten rid of every load that delayed him. No, it couldn't be it. Just a few hours ago he looked way too exhausted to stand on his own two feet. It's not the exhaustion that his magic couldn't get rid of, but the burden. After taking a closer look to his two-colored eyes, a silver-grey and a red one, she noticed a hint of irritation, indicating that he had a lot of things going through his head. If he still had to deal with the prisoner and the caller and had no idea about her little progress, why was he so mad at her?
His pupils looked like canons, shooting her with hatred and despise, while his hand threatened to crush her throat and separate her head from her body. However, aware of the fact that he needed her alive, he let her trembling figure crumble to the ground while he stood there, cool, calm, emotionless, witnessing the girl gathering her pieces. His eyes were narrowed in two slits which looked like sharp knives cutting through Brooklyn's soul; his monstrous lips were pursed in a perfect straight light, or so she could tell due to the carvings on his mouth, half smiley and half sad. They exposed his blood washed pointy teeth and their reddish color created a perfect yet frightening contradiction with his naturally pale skin color. A small frown was plastered on his face but his complexion made the wrinkles it created quite visible, just like his eyes didn't try to hide his displeasure. Airdan was simply standing there with a perfectly straight back and an elegant position, as if he was some kind of noble and not some insane serial killer, leaving his right hand hanging loose while the left one was holding something.
Brooklyn felt his stare weaken every muscle under her skin, making it impossible to move. Her neck was itching and the attempts to catch her breath were troublesome, since she was coughing violently. She felt every inch of her face slowly starting to grow swollen and her eyes only barely kept their place in her skull, while her throat was as dry as her lips were. His expression didn't help much wither. He was hiding the reason of his actions from her by dulling the usual murderous sparkle in his eyes, what was a bad sign, and the damaged female couldn't think straight due to the feeling of her brain bouncing inside of her skull. The only thing she knew for sure was that some serious shit was about to happen. She has never seen him this serious before. Apart from being a joker, playing with his victims, entertaining himself with their helplessness and pointless mental fights, he kept a smirk on his face even though only a few can trace it between the carvings in his face. There were times when he would get serious and wipe away that smirk, dressing his face in an emotionless expression with only his eyes betraying his anger, anger which she could not only detect in his pupils, but feel it burning her skin at that specific moment. His efforts to hold back an already plastered frown only worsened the situation. He was ready to rage out and Brooklyn could only pray that he wouldn't pull her eyeballs out of her skull.
After a suffocating silence, with Brooklyn slowly melting under his deadly stare which could easily drive you insane, he decided to honor the place with the sound of his hoarse deep voice, his eyes not leaving her shaking figure.
"I have to say Brooklyn, you have achieved something I never thought that anyone would. You surprised me, not pleasantly though." His voice dropped a few octaves as he mouthed the last words. His pose and look were indifferent, his voice holding a serious stable tone, and did he just call her by her full name?
Oh no! He wasn't just mad, this was something entirely different, not even close to furious or any other word that was a synonym of angry. And the worst part was that Brooklyn had no idea what to expect, since she had never seen him like this before. All she could do was to look right back at his slanted orbs and mutely beg him with her weak gaze. She knew that there was no going back. At least for the next three hours, she was going to suffer like never before and her imagination was already creating violent, cannibalistic pictures of how she might end up, what didn't help at all.
"W-Why?" she asked with a tremble in her voice which wasn't supposed to be there, but she couldn't suppress it. She had never been this scared before in her entire life and hiding it in any way was impossible.
Airdan merely shook his head in a manner of disapproval and lifted his free hand so that his elbow was only a few inches away from his ribs and was created a 90 degree angle with the rest of his hand, his pale palm with blue lines that represented his veins, thought they looked more like they were brushed of a painting, was pointing at the area between her neck and collarbones. His expression was indifferent and cold.
"You know exactly what you did and I won't allow you to ruin my plans. I have to admit, I underestimated you. But now I realize what a pain in the ass you can be and I have more important matters to deal with, so-"he pause and turned his palm, so that it looked like he was stretching it out for her to take it, just like when he took her of her shadow the day she got lost because of Peter Pan. Though now the gesture wasn't friendly but threatening.
"So?" the damaged female begged him to continue. She knew that whatever would come after the speech is going to be the worst torture she will have ever endured in her life and wanted this to begin already so that it will end quickly. Her original colors had returned to her human form, though it's a mystery for how long they will remain there. Her forest green orbs which looked like tree leaves after a chilly spring rain now looked like winter had come to fast and froze the glimpse of fear in them; the frosty color hugging the edges of her pupils was the proof. Airdan simply eyed her frozen eyes and trembling lilac lips with all the bruises around them, her neck still bluish and dry. There was no satisfaction in his eyes and right now, not even anger. He was empty, there was no longer any emotion in his chamber heart to show, and he had no reason. For all those years, she had been the only one able to trace even the slightest of emotions in his two-colored pupils. Allowing this to happen, allowing his heart to form a soft spot for her was a mistake and so now he will show her no mercy. She needs to finally understand that there is simply no may she can escape from her fate and he is the one who defines it. As if having read his thoughts, Brooklyn chuckled mockingly.
"As if you have ever felt sorry for me, for everything you have done. I am just your tool right? Not your niece or your family. Go ahead, do your worst! But know this, as long as I breathe, I will never stop to get away from you and even though my heart has been created to only feel love, I will never love you! What are you waiting for? Give me all you've got! It's you who will have to take the fall later!" She spitted those words to him with the last drops of courage remained in her and she meant every single one of them. Airdan's expression and posture remained indifferent. He was aware about what she meant. Entrusting her a part of his past was wrong, but that day, he was drunk. She knew that she was his weakness now, she knew that the fact that she showed him love when she was a kid no matter how harshly he would trait her, had left a few spots of light in his dark heart, as if they were stains of goodness on his perfect insanity and evilness. But now, after all this, he has decided that he must not have any weakness. He has allowed her to roam around and spill information because he had a big ide of himself and seeing how far Brooklyn can go took him by surprise. It's not like the Huntik team has any chance of defeating him without Carter activating his powers as a Sunken Soul, or Daniel, or some dark magician at their side. What bothers him is that he let himself grow to fancy an enemy who has been living under his roof. But not anymore! Now she will see the worst part of his darkness!
He started to bring his fingers closer to his palm, one by one, slowly and with elegance, forming a fist. With his every smooth move, Brooklyn felt the blood drying in her veins. He was playing with her blood circulation in the most painful way, letting her brain and heart supply enough blood to function, but not enough to not make her head spin due to dizziness. After a few moments, her head felt too heavy and her feet too light and she gave up all of her struggles, surrendering to the numbness. Resisting now was pointless, she was only giving him more time and satisfaction, which she can't allow him to have if she can do something about it.
Having completely surrendered to the unusual force pulling her head to the ground, as if she was in a planet were gravity works literally like a magnet, her head hit the stone floor with force, leaving a piercing pain in her skull. Her hands and legs followed that example and in the blink of an eye, she was tied with the same magical trammels Eathon and Zhalia were. They were formed from blood magic, so she could easily cut herself and break them, but she didn't have the strength at the moment.
After he tied her the floor, Airdan used his magic to lift the stones higher, enough for his hands to move effortlessly around her tiny body. He had took care that she will be able to remain conscious during the … show. He lifted up his sleeves and opened his right palm to reveal the object he has been holding all this long.
A Fork.
Using his blood magic again, he opened her mouth without putting as much effort as he thought he would. She wasn't resisting this time. He opened her mouth as much as possible and then he used two hooks, which he put in her lower lip like they were earrings, and one more in her upper lip and tied them with strings to the edges of the stone bed he had created for her to lie on right now. No matter what happens, her mouth will remain open. Brooklyn let out a sound which resembled a hiss of pain as the hooks punctured her lips, creating three rather big holes in them.
Airdan then took her small tongue in his long bony white fingers and scratched it a little bit with his black pointy nails. Brooklyn felt disgust rising in her as his fingers felt equally sharp as his nails against her dry tongue and the color of his nails was black due to the dirt of the dungeon. So, she was not mistaken. The prisoner hasn't been eliminated yet and she can guess with a little doubt that the same stands for the strange mysterious caller. At least when he is done with her, he won't have enough time to sink in satisfaction and hat made Brooklyn feel a little better. It is not like her at all, but lately she finds herself smirking with glory and pleasure with his troubles. However, those sudden evil twists were justified, since he has been the one torturing her all of her life.
Without a second thought, Airdan pierced her tongue with the fork until its pointy parts came out from the other side of the pink mass. He turned his hand in circles so that her tongue followed that example and then used every inch of power his muscles carried and started pulling the fork.
The pain Brooklyn felt when the fork pierced her tongue was incomparable with this one. He was trying to take her tongue of her mouth in the worst and most torturing way possible. Pulling and pulling violently back and forth, using his blood magic to overdose her head with blood and increase its weight while also pushing it to the ground. If her tongue was q tree, then Airdan was trying to cut it out with its roots and now Brooklyn now how it would be like if trees could feel. Her mouth was going dryer and dryer with every second that ticked and she almost chocked in her saliva when the she felt blood rushing in her gullet from the first parts of her tongue which were ripped. Pulling her with such force and speed felt like he was going to take her whole gullet or thyroid with him. Brooklyn felt every organ of her interior bouncing in the beat of his pulling, rising and then falling back to their place, turning up and down like a crazy ride in some amusement park theme.
Feeling her tongue slowly getting ripped from her mouth caused a pain that words meant to describe terrible emotions look like a shame to the human vocabulary. Searing, drowning, malicious, killing, unbearable, lacerating, sharp deep, like there was a drill right under her tonsils, drilling slowly, unmercifully and totteringly. The spikes of the fork started creating three symmetric, parallel where it was settled and caused an extra piercing pain, since her tongue is still attached to her mouth, but not for long. Not much tugging is left.
Brooklyn had to cough many times not to drown in her saliva and blood and also had to try to spit them, since she couldn't properly shallow without worsening the pain. Screams were echoing through the cell and the dark corridor which lead to it. They were so loud and holding a shad of pain, enough to hug the entire earth and sink it in darkness, enough for the people in the paintings in the dark stone moist walls to come to live and shut their ears with the very first object they could reach in an arm's length distance and also, enough for Zhalia, who was locked in the so called lab, two floors lower.
The now pale blue haired woman didn't need to think much to understand that her partner had gotten into huge trouble and that her turn would come afterwards. Had she failed to deliver the usb? Had she been caught in the process of editing? Had Airdan caught her while she was calling them? Those questions were torturing Zhalia's head equally badly with the way Airdan pulled one last time, and Brooklyn's tongue was hanging in his fork, still moving lightly.
If any living soul could she Brooklyn's face at that moment, they would have burst into tears. There hasn't been sadder expression to watch in any being which has walked on this universe. Her face and neck were red, the blue color of her veins breaking this red monotony, drawing wavy lines in her forehead and neck. Her breathing was laborious, puffed and shallow, as if she has been running a marathon to escape from a space where the air was running out. Also, from time to time, she would hold her breath to ease the pain, but then leave sudden indrawn heavy breaths which only worsened it. Hot tears washed her already hot face which would be able to produce steams if it was a cartoon and the heat was enough to warm a person who accidentally fell in a frozen lake on the North Pole. Having inside her an ice titan helped with the temperature issue somehow, but not with the pain. All of her organs were still bouncing, doing a cheap oscillation and causing a knot to make its way to her throat, which felt dry enough to beat Sahara. The overproduce of saliva and the blood leaking in her mouth and jumping out of it like a blood fountain didn't help, since she had to spit it to not drown. Those attempts went in vein after a moment and she surrender to a violent painful couching, chocking her saliva and blood. Cries of pain could still be heard, but her ears had gone numb a long time ago, so the sound didn't bother her, only her dryness, the unbearable killing pain in her mouth were her tongue used to lie, the acknowledgement of the small bluish veins which were sticking out of the terrifying hole between her lower layer of teeth, swinging with her every cough and drop blood everywhere as if they were freshly opened campaign bottles. For the first time in her life, she wished she was dead, because this pain was the most ominous, execrable and ghastly one she has ever felt in her entire life.
With her wet, puffy cried out eyes, which refused to stop leaking waterfalls, she peeked at Airdan's face, who was staring at her tongue like it was a bad quality piece of meat they have brought in a supposedly five star restaurant. Though he didn't keep that look plastered on his face for too long and replaced it with his casual emotionless one. Despite of his attempts to hold his straight posture, indicating pride and satisfaction, or an unmoved expression, Brooklyn could trace, even with her cloudy vision, a small glimpse of satisfaction lingering in his eyes like two dancing flames.
Brooklyn let out a hiss of disgust when he licked his lips mischievously and gave her a look of amusement. After waving her tongue in front of her face, he bend and brought his face near his ear, the huskiness in his voice and the low, stable, confident tone it held often, he whispered loud enough for her ears to detect a sound.
"You know love, that tongue of yours has caused more trouble than I could predict. I have to admit, you surprised me big time with how far you can get to expose me" He let out a chuckle and finally allowed the corner of his pale lips to rise upwards. "But worry not, even after all you have done against me, I still have enough generosity and politeness to teach you how to behave and avoid similar troubles in the future"
Brooklyn's stare has never held so much fright. At first she was eyeing the ceiling, feeling his cold breath in her small ear, which was washed by the saliva and blood she has been spitting or chocking, her pupils growing wider and wider with his every word and were ready to pop out of her skull. Fear overtook her and she started shaking like a leaf under the mercy of the fetters that kept her to her stone bed. Then Airdan brought his face right in front of hers, leaving enough space for the fork to fit and bring it in front of his lips, licking Brooklyn's tongue. Without a warning, he stuffed it into his mouth and started chewing it, earning a look of disgust. Brooklyn eyes turned into slits and her brows were almost connected. The sounds of his teeth ripping her tongue and making it a fluid puree with the help of his saliva were equally disgusting with the sickening look in his psychotic face. He was enjoying the every stretch of his jaw and every bite of the solid wet pink mass in his mouth, which turned into a pink fluid pulp. After having gotten rid of all the solid parts, he used his magic to bring the stones that were forming his well sculpted stone bed back to their place in the floor and changed the shape of the fetters, so that now only Brooklyn's legs were attached to the ground and her hands were tied behind her back, allowing her to take a sitting position.
'Oh crap! Please don't do what I think you will' an almost soundless weak voice begged, echoing inside Brooklyn's head. However, Airdan did just what she thought. He opened his mouth and slid his tongue in her mouth, forcing it to open, while letting the fluid slide in her esophagus. Brooklyn chocked and coughed in his mouth, but that didn't stop him from 'kissing' her. After making sure she had shallowed all of the content in his mouth and that there wasn't a drop of it remained on his pointy teeth which left biting marks in her lower lip, he pulled away and released her from the fetters formed by blood magic. Brooklyn crumbled to the floor and held with one hand her stomach and with the other her mouth. Vomiting seemed such a tempting option at the moment, just to get rid of this disgusting feeling in her stomach.
Airdan watched her suffering with shinning eyes, pleasure overflowing in his cells. He had now taught her a lesson she will never forget. He doesn't have a big idea of himself because he is naïve but because he has the right to do so. His plans never fail no matter what stands in the way, even a small spot of pureness in his dark heart which has now been destroyed.
With an emotionless expression, Airdan tied her in the cold stone onyx colored wall with fetters Brooklyn has never seen before and then took out a threat and needle to stitch the whole the loss of her tongue created. After all this, Brooklyn's mouth felt numb, so the signals of pain that reached her brain through her neural network felt like tickles.
One of them is punished and one more remains. The cold blooded killer locked the cell and headed to his next destination, leaving behind him a tortured damaged female and the last white part of his now entirely black heart. There is no space for love, and life just taught it to him once again.
Brooklyn felt numb and dead inside. Her tears were washing all the blood flowing from her old scars the stones pierced. Hope vanished from her eyes. Those fetters were not working with blood magic, but with spirit magic. She can't unlock them without using the proper spirit, the proper titan, a titan of his. She cried and cried even when her eyes protested. Everything seem to be over, every small possibility of her being free in the future sunk into the rough black sea of the hell he has created.
She is over…
Zhalia was getting more worried by every second that ticked in the non-existing clock in her head. Brooklyn's screams and absence was the most discouraging thing at the moment. She desperately wanted to know what happened, if the team made some progress, if Dante is there, if there is any kind of hope, even the tiniest one or in the distant future, for them to escape this mad mess they are into.
Suddenly the door was slammed open and the most hideous person she has ever known entered with a sick expression and a bloody costume. His eyes dancing from joy and lingering playfully in her pale figure, his carvings failed to hide his mischievous smirk.
Zhalia eyed him with odium in her golden pupils as he approached her with his usual slow, steady confident pace, taking his time and having already started the upcoming torture by boiling her heart with agony. Even though he has made her bend many times, she still doesn't want to give up on her stubbornness and does everything in her power to keep her strength at a respectable level. Zhalia Moon is not the person who will accept weakness but will fight it for eternity if needed, that's why she gave him her infamous emotionless expression while her eyes looked like they were made out of ice.
"What did you do to her?" She asked with the same cold stable tone he had talked to her when she woke up, causing his smirk to grow into a grin.
"What she deserved my love? My niece things she knows me but I can assure you that you still have no idea who you are messing with"
"And you still have no idea where your limits lie" she simply answered with flames dancing in her eyes, melting her previous cold stare and replacing it with a fierce one. "You believe that no matter what gets in your way, you will succeed but I don't have to be a fortune teller to conclude that you will lose" now the corner of her lips freely drew upwards due to the certainty she was feeling while making her statement and Airdan let himself burst in laughter.
"And why is that love?" he asked after he regained his breath from the satanic laugh which could make any villain tremble. Zhalia kept her expression indifferent.
"Because you have no one by your side Airdan, you are all alone" her answer took him by surprise, considering the fact that Zhalia Moon is mostly a lone wolf. There was a time when she thought that she didn't need people in her life to be strong and indeed she doesn't. But when you fall apart, sometimes you need someone to pull you up and when that someone pulls you up, you don't want them to let go, not because they borrowed you their strength but because they gave you a reason to regain yours. Airdan knew exactly what she was thinking about and didn't let her justify her opinion; instead, he justified his own.
"Listen now love, I don't need people as reasons for me to regain my strength for two reasons. I never fall and I have other reasons that keep me going. All I need is my plan to work as I want it to and I just took care of that. Don't worry, she is alive, I just punished for a month and took care that she won't be able to spill any important information. As for you my love"
He then looked at her with his previous sick expression and Zhalia noticed how his fingers played with something in his pocket. She kept her eyes hardly fixed on him as he drew out his dagger, the one which he has been using for a while now. She knew that what was about to come would bend her one more time, but she was ready to resist every urge to offer him satisfaction upon watching her suffer.
She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and waited for the first stab, but it never came. When she opened them, a gasp escaped her raspberry lips upon finding him in front of her at the distance of ten centimeters, faking an innocent smile.
"I believe we made a very bad start love, don't you think so?" he calmly asked and Zhalia raised a brow. What on Earth is he planning in this twisted mind of his?
Airdan lifted his hand and the edge of his dagger barely touched his signature which was carved in her neck, lingering upon the top of the triangle in the letter A.
"Putting limitations and claiming you as my procession, depraves you of the freedom to share your opinion with me, which you did without my permission." His eyes narrowed into two slits, resampling his sharp dagger which was flirting with her neck dangerously close to it. A layer of sweat traveled down her neck and touched the pointy tip of his knife. She was scared and she he knew that, yet too stubborn to give up the fight. This stubbornness of hers is one of his three troubles. A long as she resists, there is no space for her dark side to fully awaken. They are now equally strong and one of them has to take a step back and Airdan will take care that this one will be the light Zhalia. Upon seeing her cold expression, combined with the blooming fright darkening her valuable gold orbs, he smirked.
"Don't worry love, this is not a punishment, I am just granting you permission to chat with me freely, since my niece is now unable of doing so, I'll need some other kind of entertainment" He finished and gave his wrist a right turn so now his dagger was parallel with Zhalia's neck. "From me to you, a bit of freedom"
He started cutting her skin into small slices, as if he was peeling an apple or peeling a cucumber for a salad. As a piece of skin which looked like a slice of bacon fell to the ground, Zhalia's breathing became unsteady and moans of pain escaped her ripped lips much to her unwillingness and stubbornness. Airdan kept peeling her skin as if he was preparing his breakfast; more slices were falling, until he reached her neck muscles. The slices then got redder and bloodier and Zhalia's moans turned into screams. He was cutting his way through, but this time, not violently or with one hit, but slowly, inch by inch judging by how thin and perfectly shaped and similar the slices were. Airdan wouldn't even let out a sigh, a frown or any sign of displeasure when she was moving, which didn't give him hard time at all. He was too calm and absorbed in his recipe of suffering and today's meal required many slices of pain, since the meal is called the punishment of Freedom.
The muscle was gone and now he had found a few veins, parts of the neural system, bones and he could get a small view of her thyroid. First, he started with the veins and the nerves, not minding cutting them at once but in even smaller slices, taking his time to feel the jam of the loud screams and the melody of her tears falling In the floor, like a raindrops falling In his window, each of them carrying a different story about their journey. Zhalia's tears had the most painful story of all the raindrops that have fed mother earth's treasures.
After the veins, it was bone's turn. Airdan's grip on the dagger was strong, as he was cutting the hard white vital part of her body. Zhalia has run out of tears. Her body is so dehydrated she can't even produce enough tears to make her eyes look watery. Her voice is leaving her, her throat is dry and breathing hurts more by every inhale and exhale. The pain was the same and maybe even stronger, but she didn't even have half of that strength to react in it. Her body looked lifeless. The spark of determination abandoned her like the guilty traitor she was once. She felt like her eyelids resembled an Atlas who can't keep Earth in his hands anymore, her world is falling apart and the darkness of Airdan's soul was ruling her vision when she closed her eyes. They were puffy, swollen, shinning du to dry tears. Airdan cut the final part of her bone and put the dagger casually back in his pocket with a smooth, elegant motion and took care of being the last picture displayed in her mind before she closed her eyes and sailed to a more peaceful kind of darkness which will soon turn out to be the disguise of an emerging light which will lead her to the final battle. There she will have to understand that the only cure for her suffering is surrender and that her freedom will be forced to turn into an imprisonment to herself but this time she will be the witness of the endless violence she is causing, moving like a puppet under his hands.
Yes, this time the looming disaster in her dreams will win over her and come out.
All Airdan has to do is wait a little longer until it happens and give her the time she needs to accept her fate.
As he was pacing at the door of his lab, the wind blew one of the many slices to his direction; two letters could be seen in the piece of flesh, causing him to let out a devilish chuckle.
"With or without the signature, you are mine Zhalia" he said and for the next few moments, his last words echoed in the room, as if the space itself was sick of the emptiness and wanted to fill it with something else, even If it's evil.
The question is will Zhalia's heart do the same?
During that month
The abnormal looking man made a sound which resembled something between a reptilian hiss and a wolf's growl, as he threw his old phone of the table. It was a simple black 80's phone, since its owner didn't exactly fancy the latest fashion trends or the evolution of technology. Magic is the only thing he needs.
The annoyance was crystal clear in his red and silver orbs, his brows so narrowed someone would think his forehead was melting and his sharp pointy monstrous teeth clenched tight and exposed through the carvings in his cheeks.
"He has gotten strong" He hissed again like a reptilian with anger spreading from his piercing voice to the ears of the animal lying beside his office chair, its fur slightly rose upon sensing its master's anger. "Do I really have to associate with this bloody fucking pain in the ass and on top of that ask him his help?" he shouted with his characteristic Dutch accent to emphasize his annoyance and odium towards the person who has been making his life harder than it should be.
All these spells, all the curses and traps, yet the FBI agents were still in room 998. It wouldn't have been a problem for Airdan if it wasn't the only way for him to tail after the Lambert boy, his G1. For some reason, no kind of magic works on that boy. He had thought that Lok would have been his easiest target, but not only the separating curse, but both his spirit and blood magic didn't work on them. He wanted to create as many 'crime scenes' as possible, kidnap or kill many foundation agents so that he'll have the chance to plant there a source of magic to keep an eye on Lok and trace what kind of magic he has on him and repels his own. Apparently, since hi insist on keeping his operations secret from the world and particularly from other dark magicians who might desire his own prays to get the power for them and use it for their own purposes, he cannot encounter the boy himself, forced to stay hidden in the shadows. But his god damn nephew has brought normal people to those scenes, which wouldn't have been hard for him to get rid of, and also has put up a protective barrier impossible for him to break. Judging by the fact that his nephew has been plotting against him since he was sixteen and even dared to watch over him, tried to find his castle and almost succeeded, has confronted him and knows him too well, he knows every single place he had in his mind as a candidate crime scene. Hell he even made calls, not long, just telling him the names of the people he was about to tell Brooklyn to kill and when he was using his magic to get a view of the target's places, they were occupied by FBI agents who had the same magic barrier. He knew his moves before he made them!
And the most nerve wracking is that even though Daniel has been working against him, he hasn't joined forces with the foundation which makes Airdan question his nephew's loyalties. Just whose side is he on?
A sigh of indignation escaped his thin non colored lips upon realizing once again that no matter anything else, he needs him as an ally. Casting a barrier his own magic can't break, following him like a shadow without him knowing, having access to his plans and confusing him, are admirable abilities and will turn out to be handy if he wants this Lambert scum in his hands an hour sooner.
Consumed in his odium, he got up from the chair and violently pushed it down on the floor. The wooden furniture hit the poor Black Panther lying there, causing it to back up in an instant and growl at his master. The way the panther's eyes narrowed could hardly be visible, since there was no iris or white in his eyes, just two pitch black eyeballs which reminds you of the frightening eternity you wouldn't have been able to live even if the carnivorous blood thirsty creatures had spare your life. Airdan turned to face it and allowed his face muscles to relax upon witnessing the sweet madness in the panther's dark eyes, madness similar to his own. He kneeled with elegant, careful moves not to anger it more, put his hand above his bended knee and smiled at the animal.
"I am sorry my dearest Magdalena" he softly whispered, his voice sounding unusually silvery, revealing the respect and appreciations for his extraordinary servant, the only one who does her duties right and has shown exceptionally satisfying obedience. The reason Airdan can endure the darkness flooding his heart, violating it endlessly and threatening to punish him for crossing the limits.
The Black Panther's muscles immediately relaxed as she accepted his master's apology and with a soft purr rubbed her body against his leg like a cat. Magdalena's loyalty is the only thing he can be certain about no matter what, that and his victory. Yet, if he wants to ensure that victory and secure the result of all those years practicing forbidden dark magic, he had to settle an alliance between himself and his nephew. Airdan let his hands travel to Magdalena's body, caressing her soft black fur, gaining strength and patience for what he is about to do.
"Thank you my dear, for always being here" he shot the animal a loving stare before he ordered her to go back to her place. "My dearest Magdalena" he hummed while watching the panther's back disappearing in the corridor.
A few moments of silence passed before he took out a colored world map from one of the endless selves of one of the libraries in his office and carefully placed it on his dark desk made out of dark wood and ruby. One can easily get lost in Airdan's studying room. When you enter, the first think your eye catches in a hall in the middle of the room of white plackets and walls at the color of dirt, they are so uniquely designed that they give you the impression of being underground. The ceiling is made out of rubies which have pointy edges and threaten to fall. The hall has a big desk with drawers under it, a black 80's phone by the side, endless papers and maps of unknown kingdoms and dimensions and a candle which never seems to melt and rests on a dusty ruby teacup. All around the hall are dark wooden libraries with designs around them which look like red and black melting candles leaking from the top of them to the bottom, a hawk made out of gold with ruby eyes resting at the top of every library. The libraries had different shapes and all together formed a labyrinth around the hall. There is no one who can exactly understand the use of it, since no matter which way you take you'll end up in the hall, so you could easily assume it's his aloof taste of decoration.
Putting the map in the desk, he drew out a smaller pointy knife with gold handle and silver carvings and put it above his palm. Staring directly at the wound he was slowly carving to his palm, not feeling the slightest of pain, he put the knife besides the map and let a few blood droplets slide from his hand to the map and murmured 'blood union'. The small pool of blood created somewhere in the middles of Africa started to move and separated in four small drops that traveled their way in the map. One of them stopped in Netherlands, the other in Venice, the other in Japan and the last one kept making circles. He knew the last one represented Brooklyn, since the spell was supposed to locate every person who has his own blood and his castle was untraceable by any kind of magic, even his. The one in Venice is Carter, the one in Netherlands is definitely Gaston and that leaves the one in Japan, Daniel.
Airdan didn't feel surprised; Japan is one of the mothers of dark magic and one of the countries that the power of the Sunken Souls originates, according to legends. There are two dark magicians who are remarkably skilled and Daniel would gain benefit by learning from them. Those are Makita and Tanaka Haruki, two of the best blood magicians and necromancers. An idea suddenly hit his head and anger started boiling in his interior once again. What if he is trying to gather allies against him? Sure, he knows powerful magicians that will be willing to stand by his side if he offers them a part of the benefit he will gain by the success of his plan but he doesn't want to do that. If Daniel intends to use the only kind of magic he hasn't mastered against him, Necromancy, this might cause some serious complications to his progress. Not wasting any time, he let one more droplet slide to the map in Egypt, another mother of magic, and with a smooth move he made the droplet that represented Daniel magically move to the exact same spot the droplet that represented him was.
This was all it took for the spell to be complete and do exactly what it says. Reunite chosen people with the same blood flowing through their veins. Airdan vanished in thin air and reappeared inside a tomb, no wait, a pyramid, a pyramid which he can easily recognize as the Pyramid of Kharfe. Two entrances lead to the burial chamber, one that opens up the face of the pyramid and one that opens at the base of the pyramid. There is a theory about why there are two entrances is that the pyramid. It was intended to be much larger with the northern base shifted 30 m further to the north which would place the entrance to the lower descending passage within the masonry of the pyramid. The passageways do not align with the centerline of the pyramid and so many suspected a secret entrance which would lead to passageways, connected with the others and lead people to a secret chamber. The guy who came up with that theory died before he could find proof to publish it, since he would endanger the secrets of the dark magicians who were using that secret chamber. Airdan has been there once again, when he was trying to gain control over his spirit magic. As a mother of magic, most dark magicians to be found in Egypt usually practice spirit magic and necromancy when at the rest of the African countries, especially in the South, blood and spirit magic are used more often. The reason necromancy is used so much in Egypt is because Egyptians believe in life after death and wanted to bring descended pharaoh's back to live and learn what life after death is like. But this is not the time for Airdan to refresh his dark magic history knowledge.
Just seven meters away from him stands his nephew, dressed like some kind of Japanese noble from the Edo era in the Tokugawa clan. The Japanese outfit looked almost sad on him, with his tanned skin and his big muscular body being a lot more different than the white and usually skinny body of Japanese men. He was holding a simple double edged katana, indicating he was probably practicing his swordsmanship skills. Daniel only looked surprised for a second and then he completely calmed down and shifted his weight to his right leg, crossed his arms in front of his chest and gave his uncle a satisfied look. A smirk made its way to his lip, having apparently expected to meet him sooner or later. Airdan expected that reaction from him and remained indifferent as well.
The chamber with the moist dusty walls made of limestone, the floor made of granite which indicated that the chamber lies really close to the base of the pyramid and the only thing filling the empty room was a Canopic chest, some white sheets which didn't look s white anymore but carefully piled up, a salve which looked like a huge hole in the wall filled with gem stones and crystals, some wooden sticks, necklaces with skulls and bones at the corner on Airdan's right and another pile of black cloaks beside them. At the center of the room between the two men was big porcelain plate was placed between what looked like claws of a hawk. Every inch of the place screamed death, but this non-existed strident voice died as the two men made gave life to the chamber, the magic flowing through their veins activating the source of magic that existed there.
Daniel knew what his uncle was trying to achieve by bringing him here and what he had to ask. This place was perfect for a fight and what lies in the canopic chest is known for its ability to block someone's powers. It was used as a punishment for traitors in the society of Necromancers that he knew as well as his uncle. However, the advantage Airdan thought he had become a matter of doubt. What surprised the middle aged adult is that his nephew, being the strong dark magician he is, wouldn't have left himself exposed to such spells and despite the acknowledge of the dangerous item that lies really close to both of them, he both allowed his uncle to bring him there and doesn't seem to be afraid of the object at all. Finally Daniel broke the silence.
"You seem to be deep in thought uncle. Allow me to answer your questions. First, I wanted to meet you and second, you won't have to use the Atef of Osiris" Daniel said with certainty and confidence in his voice, causing his uncle to suppress a frown.
"Well my dear nephew, I am glad I granted your wish to encounter me, but I am curious about what makes you think I won't use it?" Airdan kept his usual stable cold tone, but Daniel knew he was restraining himself from strangling him.
"Simple, you need my powers and the Atef can only take them from me and preserve them, not pass them to you. You only wanted me to feel threatened and give in easily. Don't play such tricks with me uncle. You might like to think you are smart but putting yourself on top and looking down at others prevents you to see the dangers that come from above" Daniel proudly shared his knowledge and chuckled with irony at the last two sentences, which only made Airdan start to lose his patience at that show of superiority by a less experienced magician.
"Let's just get over with it, shall we Daniel? I am sur you have more interesting activities to occupy yourself with" Airdan said through his teeth making every word sound as clear as his impatience was on his two-colored eyes. Daniel just shrugged his shoulders and gave him an uninterested expression, as if it was some kind of boring typical conversation between two neighbors about the weather.
"Yeah, let's do that. You were the one who brought me here, so spit out what you have to say and quickly" Airdan's eye twitched at his nephew's demanding tone. He wasn't used being bossed around and felt like he was talking to an immature teenage guy whose hormones work faster than his brains.
"Alright then, you have been giving me quite the trouble. Isolating me from the G1 and being capable of watching over me, knowing most of my plans… it's really impressive and threatening at the same time. My mind dwells now, should I congratulate or finish you? But no, I won't do that. I need your powers to get into that Lambert boy and before you protest, I've got a deal for you." Airdan paused for a second and noticed how Daniel raised his brow, but he couldn't understand whether this was a reaction of interest or doubt, so he remained indifferent and continued "If you help me get Lambert and tell me what you use to remain like that and promise to not use your powers against me after that, you will have your sister and the woman you love back, well half of them" Airdan finished his speech and watched how Daniel reacted.
His baby blue orbs darkened upon hearing the deal and contrary to his uncle, he didn't put the tiniest effort to hold back his frown which barely wrinkled his forehead, a advantage of being young. Of course Daniel knew what his uncle meant. He wanted the separating curse to take effect, then keep the dark sides of the mentioned females to himself and give the light sides to Daniel, but he is not as self-seeker as his uncle thinks.
"You really think I am like you? You really believe that my power is directing my thoughts and not rationality? You pretty much asked me to let you destroy the world, even if I accepted your offer, which will never happen, we wouldn't have lasted a day in the chaos you want to create. But of course, what should I expect from a man who has never loved?" Daniel freely raged out, but the only thing that Airdan showed interest in is his refusal. However, he couldn't help but point out to himself how wrong his nephew is. Airdan has love and this love is pretty much the reason he is who he is today. He doesn't know from who did Daniel learnt about him or about dark magic, probably his mother since he left his dad, but whoever it was knows too little about him and not his powers.
Airdan was about to use force instead of showing a bit more patience and insist, but his nephew stopped him in an instant.
"Don't bother wasting your energy, harming me will bring you no benefit and you can't use the Atef against me. I am a part of the Necromancers society but haven't betrayed them, so it won't work"
Airdan paused for a second. He didn't know if he was bluffing, but his limited knowledge about necromancers, since he hasn't mastered necromancy and only knows how to use one spell, don't give him many options to oppose his nephew's knowledge about their sacred items. As for the idea of using force against him, he is right again. Hurting him won't benefit Airdan; most likely it will wind up into a battle without ending and Daniel clearly has the advantage. The only place where Airdan has the advantage against him is his castle and Cairo is far from it. He let a hiss of annoyance for the hundredth time this day.
Even though he has an idea of how to get him by his side, he is not sure he can trust the person who can offer him his help. After all, his prisoner has been giving him a hard time too and no matter how many times he would try to get him with his side, he would end up exhausted and with terrible headaches upon resisting his prisoner's magic. To avoid the extra burden, he has given up on those efforts and let the prisoner rot in the underground dungeons of his castles. So that leaves him with no options for the moment.
Daniel, knowing very well of his advantage, he decided to use it and leave his uncle drown in the bitterness of his failure, but before he could take a last glance of the chamber and vanish in shadows, his uncles hoarse now voice reached his ears.
"At least answer me this. You are against me and I already know that, but your actions also bring troubles to the foundation and Dante Vale's team. Just… in which side are you Daniel?" the indignation could be easily traced now in his uncles voice, which resembled a reptilian's. Daniel simply turned around, showing him his back and casted the spell that would bring him back to Kyoto, but before his figure was gone completely, he said loud enough for his uncle to hear.
"In the one that can bring them back to me"
A month later (like in the previous chapter)
Zhalia's body was shaking like a leaf; cold sweat was leaking in her forehead and stained her clothes. Her breathing and heartbeat were too fast. A few of her wounds had opened and new gashes and bruises were created in her back upon slamming her in the wall as she was trembling. Screams or moans of pain would leave her mouth. This has been exactly what she looked like when she is asleep for the past months, since every time she falls asleep, another war with her dark side begins and lately, she grows weaker and weaker. Surrendering is only a matter of time. But this time, you could make out words through her screams, a specific name being repeated many times… Dante!
It took some time, but the screams woke up the second person which was sleeping on the floor of this room with wide open eyes. It's probably rare to see someone sleeping with open eyes but the particular female didn't exactly sleep, but whatever she was doing, the screams brought her back to her senses. She took her time to adjust her sight to the new source of light and her eyes widened in an instant.
What is she doing here? She was supposed to be at her cell! How did she even manage to break the fetters? They were locked with spirit magic; she couldn't have possibly unlocked them! Those thoughts were ringing in Brooklyn's head like annoying bells. However she had to relieve herself from the shock she received and nap out of her thoughts upon confronting Zhalia's trembling figure. Brooklyn knew she was fighting again, but the name of the man that escaped her lips caught her attention and gave birth to a blooming curiosity in her mind.
What on Earth is Dante doing in her so called dream? How can he be there when Zhalia is fighting with her dark side? This wasn't normal!
She simply stood there dumbfounded and witnessed the scene in front of her, having no idea if she should wake her up or not. Her mind didn't ponder for too long and Zhalia woke up with a piercing scream of pain as a new wound was somehow created near her neck and started to bleed, shouting Dante's name once again, before her eyes opened wide.
Brooklyn approached her and put her arms around her to comfort her. Zhalia didn't have the time to act surprised as she was trying to ease her breathing. When she was completely awake, Brooklyn let go of her waist and gave her the ability to take a good look at her.
Brooklyn made some motions with her hands, trying to say that Zhalia was strong and that she will manage to win over her dark side, but Zhalia was more focused to her strange looks. Dark purple hair, greyish skin which became invisible as she was reaching her limps, her eyes had a cloudy white iris, her lips had lost their lilac color and were now white and there was a chain wrapped in her neck. Suddenly the lack of words caught her attention.
"Brooklyn what are you doing? Say something!" Zhalia looked at her terrified. She had a thought of why she couldn't speak and the girl's reaction only confirmed her suspicion. Brooklyn lowered her head and then brought her head close to her mouth and pretended to pull something, but refused to open it. Zhalia needed to see no more to understand what Airdan has done to her. She gave the damaged female a warming smile to light her spirit and then brought up her two main concerns at the moment.
"Brooklyn has a titan taken control over you?" she asked causing Brooklyn to panic and try to look at her reflection in the metallic table. She immediately understood who it was and made the appropriate motions with her hands. Zhalia was confused at first but then she understood.
"It's the Dream walker, right?" she asked only for reassurance and the damaged girl nobbed. An idea flashed in her mind, causing her to gasp.
"Brooklyn, I…I saw Dante in my dream!"
A/N: Hello to all my sexy beautiful human beings! Hope you are all having a great day and that you smile!
So...here is the next chapter and i think a few questions have been answered, like where was Daniel during this month, why was Brooklyn abscent, you learnt that Airdan is not really as strong as he seems but refuses to accept his weaknesses...
And of course my classic questioning part: Which side is Daniel really at? He has confused us hasn't he? Why no kind of dark magic works on Lok and how can Daniel help Airdan with it? What wil Daniel do? Soooo...the dream Dante saw wasn't really a dream...he was on Zhalia's transformation fase, but how did that happen? And how did Brooklyn escape since those fetters were locked with spirit magic? She doesn't have any titan of Airdan? And how did Airdan knew what Brooklyn did even though he hadnt casted her the spell to watch her? And what about the task Eathon asked her to fullfil? What is Eathon doing by the way? Is he still alive? Airdan once used to be in love huh... And what makes this black panther so special to Airdan? What lies in his library labyrinth? Will Brooklyn ever be able to speak again? Who is this Gaston i mentioned? He is definately a Cole, since Airdan's blood magic located him... What was Daniel doing in Japan and what did Airdan mean when he asked him 'What does he use to maintain like that?"?
I know, too many questions and believe it or not, there are many upcoming surprises that will blow your mind~
Never forget to smile and stay awesome~
God bless you~
Lot's of love from Irene Rays
