Oh Ma God, I'm still alive - oh...I'm still alive, aw well! Here's the long-awaited arrival of Arc II, enjoy! And also, uploads will take time, since my new project and a full-time job will make things...strain. So be warned, I will be taking my time from now on!
Arc II: Barons Rising
Chapter 10: Sister of War
What would you do in the face of death? Cry? Scream? Suddenly beg for the holy protection of Gods you never believed in? Maybe you did both. But for the girl who sat atop a small chair, she felt none of those, all she wanted was to wake up from an endless hell, a nightmare of unbearable pain and cold. Where the darkness crept not from the shadows, but into her mind, heart, and soul, pulling, twisting her bones, chewing away at her thoughts, that was decades ago, but that didn't make it any easier to silence their voices.
The endless night continued to dawn across the wasteland, rocks of black and purple, jagged, uprooting the soil of Remnant, the sky a blood red to the shattered moon left behind by those who abandoned their creations. From black mirrors sung cries of beasts, some abnormal and mangled freaks of nature, others of common myth and folklore brought to life in nightmarish forms. All this, from atop a massive cliff-face, the stained glass of the Gothic fortress overlooking the wasteland like a lord to its workers. The Queen? Well, she sat patiently, biding her time among her loyal subjects, the girl included.
"I'm telling you, that boy will only lead to more trouble with that blasted machine! Either you fix this problem, or leave it to those of more...intelligence." An ex-atlas bio-engineer, with more pride than the girl would like to admit, but he knew machines well, but not as well as he thinks. "Send the girl, all she does is sit here anyway."
"You know better than to bring Tabus into this." About the only person who'd treat her with a level of respect, Hazel, the girl, Tabus, knew very well of his reasons, and a sense of relation made them work well together, they both knew not to make the other mad by pushing buttons
That couldn't be said for the one that laughed in his seat.
"Hehehe...oh, is the little one gone all huffy since her 'Master' left? Such a good little mutt." Tabus may not have shown much movement, given the mask over her face, but that struck a nerve
"Bite your fucking tongue." Tabus spat, unfolding her arms. She wore black, spinning a knife in her hand, and another held in her left. She wore black shorts with hazel boots, a massive collection of silver knives along with a belt, her abdomen was exposed, a skin-tight fabric covering her chest and around to her neck with a white line through the middle, though a bit of her chest was exposed slightly
Black, fingerless gloves and bandages wrapped around her arms, with a black jacket, red lines like code stretching across it with a white outline, including a hood. Last was her smooth, White Fang helmet, with a cross necklace danging around her neck. But even with the mask, Tyrian laughed.
"Oh, did I say something wrong?" Tyrian was quickly silenced by the knife that melted next to his ear, the cherry-red blade hissing away at the material used to construct the seat, this made him growl
"You call me a 'Mutt' yet you growl more like a Grimm than me, that's cute." Tabus cooed venomously, spinning a knife between her fingers. "Just remember, you're nothing more than another human I could slit the throat of, and I wouldn't feel anything, even if you begged me to stop."
"Stop." Any conflict was silenced by a pale hand, and all eyes were on their Queen. "Tabus. Is there something you would like to tell me?"
"..." She didn't reply, well, not until she placed her knife back into her belt. "Forgetting Tyrian, I wondering the same thing they all are, why not kill the brat with my brother's technology? If he gains control of it, this whole plan of yours is screwed, full stop. So forgive me for being a little baffled by this?"
"Its simple, the higher one climbs despair, the harder it is to get back up from the fall." Tabus' head snapped around to the sound of footsteps behind them, the large doors creaked open to reveal a set of crimson eyes in the darkness, the tip of a silver blade poking from above. To its left, large, reptilian eyes watched too, the sound of hissing beating in her ears
Yet before her, wrapped in black and grey cloaks like a mummy, stood a tall, armoured man, yet anything beyond that wasn't human, the dark, empty pit that hung in his center, how nothing beat against his hollow armor, only the eyes through a purple helmet gave any sign of sentience.
"Trust me, I'm fully aware of his...upgrades, this is why I haven't done anything to prevent it." Her brother, the only being she could consider a relative, he was the reason she was alive, how she became something in a world of monsters and Gods, of light and darkness. "I assure you, Salem's plan will not fail."
"Well, excuse my concerns for this...risk, you implore we take." Arthur lied, he just wanted a reason to gain access to the technology Tabus' brother had created
"I swear, one more lie and-ugh?" Tabus felt the cold, metal hand on her shoulder held her back, her eyes looking up to her brother again, and slowly, she relaxed. Tabus didn't realize it, but her hands held knives out, and a black mist had risen from her pierced palms out of anger. "Right...I'm going to think." Without another word, Tabus left the room, pushing past the two that stood in the shadows. Yet one, more feminine did call to her.
"Tabus, are you ok?" Her voice sounded so concerned and motherly, despite what she was, and the confliction in Tabus only kept growing
"Peachy." A bitter reply was all she got, and Tabus continued down the hallway. "Unless you have something important to say, leave me alone."
"You are never alone, please don't forget that." Tabus paused in her step, allowing the words to move around in her head like a tidal wave. Caring is not what she was, not since that day, love, happiness, none of it was real, not when she felt like this. Conflicted and confused, angry at...something, it made her lash out, had her screaming for miles, kill anyone who she found. Yet her memory, it was all she had left
"I never do...sis."
To Be Continued...
Short, but I wanted to give you the notification I wasn't gone. Still, hope you enjoyed, seeya in the next chapter!
Next Chapter: Blackjack
Sky and Ruby take some much needed time to relax over the weekend, yet they run into a strange man with cards, and in turn, he tells them what awaits their future, and what is lurking in the shadows.