Epilogue
"Simon." She whispered as she tangled around him. "You know there's only one way out of it all. Only one way, which you have to pick on your own. No one will pick that for you."
The crown screamed, as he heard numerous voices in his head. Each and every single one of them told him to run, to avoid this weird woman, to ignore her words, as nothing good will come out of it. To run as fast as he can, hardly matters where. To the ones he loves, to yet another crudely digged hole, hardly mattered. What mattered was for him to get away, as fast as possible, before she will spew out even more words, before she will grab his attention, before she will make him consider, before she will make him do what he shouldn't.
"Give me a reason to change this world, give me a way to make it whole." Her voice was echoing through his head, silencing any whispers that came from other sources and directions. Her power was astonishing. And the scent, the scent of the forest made him trust her almost instantly. "Give me a way to protect those that are of most importance to you."
"How."
"You already know the answer."
He pondered. Yes, the crown gave him the answer, but how did she knew about it? How did she knew about the solution that he should pick, how she knew about the whispers? And finally, how she was able to silence them? No one else before her could not. Why was she special? Why was she capable?
"That I do."
He had to agree. Hiding that fact from her would be futile, as she apparently knew him inside out. Perhaps she was the solution he sought. Perhaps she was the being that was meant to tell him that his choices matter, that his choices will change the world. Perhaps she was there to make him feel better.
"You think this will help? You really think this will help in any way?"
"I'm most certain of it."
And there she was once again, waving her body around. What a strange woman she was. He remembered her somewhat. Some vague memory of her being. Always present, never really noticeable. A being that he knew nothing about. And apparently a being that knew exactly what troubled him. A being of strong presence. A being he probably needed.
"Simon..." She whispered once again. "If your life wouldn't be such a... troublesome road. If you weren't such a... bad fruit... I would be thrilled in your company. As I am right now." She caught her breath, as she almost felt into his arms. "Simon... do it for them. Give me a reason. Give me a reason to save everyone."
She slowly put her hand underneath his shirt, as she began to caress him slowly. Within her circling movement, he looked at her once more. He knew about her tricks of course. Scents, a little bit of magic. Her own charm. Just to give her what she wanted. But he wasn't the one that she wanted. For that, he was certain.
"Simon, oh Simon..." She moaned. "She is like your daughter. You would like to have a better place for her, right? A better place in this world. And you know hiding her away won't do the job. Won't do it... Oooh no..."
Her lips closed by, as he could feel her breath on his face. Warm breath. Meaningful scent. She even bit her lower lip, to look even more seductively. It hardly worked on him, but she wanted to play the role regardless. Perhaps more for herself than for him. Perhaps she was lost too, in a way. She strove for the lost glory, both of her and of her people. But mostly, she longed for something that he knew about as well, for he longed for the same thing not so long ago. A warm body nearby. Or perhaps something else? What a strange woman that was.
"I need a reason." She grabbed him by the nape, tangling around like a snake made out of vines. "You, you are that reason. Oh Simon. Simon, Simon, Simon. Your name shall be known in the streets. Oh Simon, few will cry, but not all of them." The huntress put her right hand on her heart. The stench of the forest flourished even more around them. "Some will remember you, some will remember what you did, and why you did it.
The crown talked to him during this whole time. For once, he hardly even noticed that. Words, absent, ambient, like the sounds of surrounding. This time around however, he needed not the wisdom of this token of his, as he had the exact same questions. And the exact same answers. He was her reason. His disappearance was the push she needed. His body was the body she needed, but not in the enjoyable way. Only a symbol can take others to act. Only a symbol can make them bleed for something other than themselves. Only a symbol and a martyr can shift things in it's own direction. And finally, only a corpse can make the city flourish once again. Just a corpse. Only a corpse. As much as a corpse.
"Keep your end of the deal then." He sighted, despite the whispers in his head. "And go now, what needs to be done, shall be done. I'll give you a reason."
She finally let go of him, as her body was getting tiresome next to him. Her frame wasn't the one that he wanted to have nearby. She began to circle around, like a real huntress, seeing through him, gazing at every inch of his body. And then, she stopped.
"I will..." Her legs trembled in ecstasy as she stood up and looked him straight in the eyes. "I will destroy this world for you. I will savor what will be to savor. The rest I shall destroy."
"You have two to spare."
"Two..." She moaned once again. "Oh, two. Two, I will remember. Two." She grinned. "Simon, oh Simon, only two? Or more?"
"Two I care about."
"Oh Simon, that's so, so sweet of you." She shook her head. "So, so sweet. So you agree."
"Yes."
Such short conversation. But she was right, to a point. One's doing will trigger the events that no one will be able to undo. Otherwise, it would mean running. Running like decades ago. First to the lemon paradise. Then perhaps someplace else. But Marceline deserved more. So much more. She deserved to flourish amongst the one she strove for, whomever that would be. Not to slowly rot along the city that meant to rot. Not to see her smile decay amongst the ruins. To change things, means to sacrifice things.
"Doubts will come. Things will come. But hold still. I shall give you the tool." She enclosed. "A tool, that will make it all easier. No pain, when aimed. For your love. For my love. And for Marceline."
He couldn't even blink fast enough, as she was near him once again. Her hands, once again stroke his body. He barely saw sanity within her eyes at this point. But wasn't he insane as well? In more than one way?
"Hold still, hero." She blew him a kiss. "Hold on dear."
She put a piece of steel within his hands. It was cold. Cold despite the fact that he normally dwelt in everything that was cold. Cold despite the fact that he could conjure ice from within his hands. And the shape. He knew that shape. And he also knew what will happen when he'll pull a certain trigger. Chaos. Almost as if she felt his doubts, her fingers smudged his arms.
"She will never know of this." The huntress whispered to his ear. "What happened here. She will only know chaos."
"I know."
###
Finn and the princess were already waiting in the warehouse's main hall, as they searched for their lost friend. The man at times looked behind him, on all the explosions and all the mayhem that was caused by those that he tried to stop not so long ago. There was nothing he could do now however, and if the vampire is so important, so be it. Not much can be done about the world right now, at least their little search won't be futile. Or, he could only hope that it won't be. The half fiend could already be truly dead for all he knew. Bubblegum apparently had high hopes about her, why, he couldn't tell. She was like that at times, when one notion appeared in her head, there was no way of getting rid of it. So what that the world was crumbling, she only wanted her little toy back, pitiful. What was even in her head right now? Thoughts about butterflies perhaps, what else. And as the man thought to himself, the main host finally emerged from within her hideout, dragging the girl alongside.
"Welcome!" She once again rose her hands up in the air, as the leaves on her head began to swirl. Some even sprouted beautiful flowers, no doubt on this occasion. "I never thought I'll see you again, sweetest of sweets." She smooched the air a couple of times just to indicate that. Her pupils however grew thinner and thinner. "You, in my home, it's so improbable that I'm going to cherish this moment almost as much as the kiss you never gave me." The huntress bowed down before them in a nonchalant fashion. "And you even dragged your guard dog with you. Delightful."
She laughed loud, as her echoing voice trembled across the room. Finn remembered her. Somewhat remembered. The memories were vague however. He was always in the back somehow. Always like a part of a background he enjoyed, but not really needed to focus on. She even took part in one tournament, a long time ago. All she wanted to obtain was Bubblegum's kiss. Why such a trivial matter? It was beyond him to comprehend. Such nonsense. And now this fragile being was going to destroy the world. Or at least attempt to do so. This fragile being that just now, began to circle around the thin vampire. As she began to caress her. To comfort her. To be for her.
"Well Marceline, love, I must excuse you. But don't you worry. I have a treat for you."
She snapped her fingers, and almost instantly, from within the smoke, Ash appeared once again, just to serve the will of his mistress. She quickly grabbed the arrow in his throat and pulled it out, swirling it around in a sadistic matter. Despite freeing him from his little prison, she simply had to do it in the most painful way possible while at it.
"Entertain our guests. I need to entertain the princess all in all, right? Right." She pulled him closer towards herself by his collar. "Play, maim, do what you wish." She kissed him. "But leave the dark one alive." She said as she let him go and slapped across the face. "Go."
And just like that, Ash charged before any kind of warning. And for that matter, he didn't even speak a word. Not a single cynical remark. He simply collided with Finn, pushing him outside the room through the glass. The vampire took a single glance at the gummy, pink presence. The princess simply nodded in a silent acquiescence. Since when she needed her accord? No matter, as she rushed right behind them. The sorceress smiled. Huntress and Bubblegum. Now that was a meeting she strove for. No pesky bystanders. No pesky family, subjects, protectors, guardians, knights, and other things, however she wanted to call them. No, just she and the princess. Just the two of them. Her legs once again began to tremble.
"How I dreamed about this moment, oh, you wouldn't believe!" She shoot out numerous thorns from within her sleeves, in a vague attempt to hit the pink being that stood before her. The princess was agile enough however to dodge all of them, disposing and cutting those that came anywhere near. "We will have so much fun, so much fun!"
She jumped right at her, pinning her into the ground. There was something savage within her. Bubblegum quickly felt the scent of wood, the scent of forest and the intense smell of trees surrounding her, mangling everywhere around with her sweet scent. It was almost unbearable. Some could say that it was a delightful scent. Some could say that it was the most beautiful smile in the whole wide world. To her, it was as repulsive as ever.
"What's wrong with you?"
"Wrong?" She looked quite surprised, in a rather playful matter. "There's nothing wrong with me per say, I just wanted to hang around with the princess, that's all. Just a kiss, just a little lullaby, just a little something more." The huntress tried to bite her pink neck. Bubblegum however kicked her off her body and prepared herself for a counterattack. "In a mood for a fight, I like it! I like it!"
"So you did all this just because someone hurt your feelings? Just because you felt in love with someone, but that someone hardly even noticed that?"
"World is an interesting place, isn't it?" She shrugged and wiped off the saliva from the tip of her mouth. "Worse things were made due to more meaningless things, I assure you."
Once again she proceed to attack her. Despite all the magic she held in her frame, despite all the tricks, all the possibilities, she decided to be a bit more... physical. The thorns and wines from within her wrists were like whips, forcing the princess to dodge and parry all the way. The princess simply tried her best to slice her way through them, as her sword went back and forth, left and right, slash and stab. She knew exactly what her adversary aimed for. To tire her, to worn her out. And then, to have her. To claim her in more than just one way.
"So you want a kiss from the princess, huh?"
"I wanted, I don't want it anymore."
"No? Shame. I wanted to tell you how to get one."
The magical being chuckled, and swirled. Part of her wanted to get as close to the pink one as possible. The other part wanted to run away for some reason. All her dreams were accomplished right now in a way. Right now, she was close and far, she saw her and only her, was here for her and only for her. And meant to kill her, leaving her for nobody. What a nice end. And what then will be left, if not the devilish offspring. That's fine too. Just not as sweet. Just not as sweet.
"Well, maybe I still do." She finally whispered. "What of it?"
"To get one, you have to be a knight. And to be a knight, you have to fight like a knight, not use some kind of wile magic."
The huntress shrugged and pulled out her blade. It was a thin, almost grass like weapon, that seemed to be too weak to deal any kind of real damage. The princess knew better however than to test it's strength on herself, just as she knew better than to question one's ability to fight. She slashed her sword in the air, just to indicate that she's ready. The huntress took it as an invitation, charging right at the pink being, who almost instantly parried her attack.
"That's more like it." Her warm breath was once again near her face. "Fight me. Love me."
###
Ash. Much could be said about Ash. Wizard. Abomination. Being of chaos. Being of pure disgust. And now this very thing stood before the two. The wound on his throat still steamed. Marceline looked at him and smiled. We all make mistakes, she pondered to herself. Ash was just a mistake on her way. The one she needed to deal with. And she thought she did. But mistakes tend to come back, despite the fact that we got rid of them in a way.
"Think you can take out two of us?"
He didn't say a word. Why was that, no one really knew. Perhaps the wound inside his throat still hurt, to a degree. Perhaps, or perhaps he simply lacked words for this very moment. He rose his hands and became one with the darkness, disappearing from their sight, as echoing mist that shuffles through this place. He was a wizard after all. And a wizard has many tricks upon his sleeve. First, to get rid of the big one. To get rid of the one that humiliated him. Within the mist he drove his blade and appeared right before the huge hulking statue of a man. His swift attack quickly found his way towards him, however his hand blocked the path. Ash suspected as much as that, and pressed even harder. As his blade finally got through metal, it cut deep in the man's chest, leaving a clean horizontal cut.
"Finn!"
Ash hardly said a world, as he turned at her. He hardly cared about his master's wishes and orders. He will forgive him at some point. And that little brat needed to die. Not as easily as the man probably. But she must. He became shadow, and as shadow, he came after her. But there was darkness within her as well, just ready to sprout about. As she changed into her numerous forms just to avoid him, she pondered. She could bite him, she thought just as she jumped from the range of his attack in her wolf form. She could maul him into the ground, she realized, just as she went underneath his chilling blades, this time switching into her less stable, gelatinous form. She could torn him to pieces, she imagined, as she jumped above the numerous strike from within the mists as a demonic bat. But each and every single way she would end him, he would simply come back. No, to destroy Ash, one had to destroy him from within. She had to come close. She had to find herself near him. And erase him. Much like mistakes are erased – you simply need to encounter them once more. And as he came from within the mists to once again hit his prey, she attacked. Her strikes were swift and deadly, yet not a single one could hit the target the way it should. He simply disappeared right before it hit the mark. The process repeated itself numerous times. And then, out of nowhere, her hero came once more. Pain didn't matter for him. The lose of his robotic arm didn't mattered. He still had the one that belonged to him. He still had his flesh. As he grabbed the beast from behind, as he gauged his eyes and held his head, the wizard finally could not move, if only for a brief one.
"Finish that son of a bitch once and for all."
Her teeth glittered for a brief second, just before they were driven within his neck. She hardly need any other invitation. A swift move. Obscure and disgusting taste with each sip. She knew his taste from before obviously. Only now, it got repulsive. And finally, after a bit of a struggle, his lifeless body felt on the ground. Just like that. The only way to kill that being, was to destroy everything within him. Everything that lingered inside. Marceline stood up slowly, and almost instantly felt on her knees to threw up. Painful. Disgusting. But somewhere in her head, she felt that it was a fitting end for Ash. But Finn. What of him? She quickly ran towards the man. His robotic hand was in a mess. He had a cut all across his chest. And still, he smiled towards her. They both knew that he saw worse. And better.
"You're alright?"
"More or less."
She grabbed his hand and tried to pull him up, as it was the most logical thing to do for her in this situation. He quickly rejected that help however and took a glimpse of her.
"Run to your princess..." He gulped, as it was hard to keep the saliva within his mouth. "I deserve a moment... for myself."
"Aye." She chuckled sadly. "That you do."
###
"I can almost taste the sugar off your lips. Bonnibel. I want to lick your body full. I want to taste every pink inch of your skin. Every drip and every sip. I want to get drunk over your precious being." Her teeth grinned against each other. "To... devour your purity."
The swords danced. No mistakes, no remorse, no weak spots. Parry, stab, parry, slash, parry, cut, parry, dodge. Blade always met another blade. Despite the fact that each and every slash was always perfect, always dodge was that way as well. They both held their name high, and expected no less from their enemy. At least, the Huntress thought that way. The princess hardly even know her enemy. Hardly even cared for hem. This weird being came out of nowhere, threatened her world, and now wanted to kill her. She just needed to find a weak spot.
"Bonnibel, I love you, I love you, you know?"
Her slash finally hit the spot, as it cut right above the princess waist, leaving a scar over her belly. The wizard seemed to be shocked at first, as she stopped for a brief moment. She just hurt the one that she loved. She just hurt the one that she once swore to protect. Was that what she really wanted? To see how her loved one under her blade? There was no turning back at this point, one way or another.
"And from that love, I hate you, I hate you so much..."
She charged once again, this time striking with only one of her hands, as the other one was placed close upon her hearty. It hurt somewhat, for whatever reason. She thought it would be easier. To show her affection, to humiliate her in her last strikes. To erase her at the end. And to erase the world she created. It should be easier. It should be.
"But I love you."
"That is how you treat those whom you love?"
"Isn't love also about hurting one another?" She swirled around and stabbed. "To caress and bring pain?"
"No!"
"But you did that each and every time with everyone you loved." Between the moves and dances, steps and sweeps, she found a moment to smile. "You brought pain to each and every one of your subjects..."
"Are you my subject?"
"Never." She parried the princess attack, and blew a kiss in the air. "Always."
"Then I love you as well."
And with the final slash, the blade landed right in the huntress chest, piercing it inside out. The green blood sprouted everywhere, as wherever it dripped, plants began to emerge one by one, only to die off almost instantly. She on the other hand was quite surprised. She always thought that she's unbeatable. She always thought that nothing was able to harm her. That she was beyond reach. Life as usual proven her that she was wrong. As her eyes slowly began to close, she recalled one last thing within her deranged, wicked mind.
"But... but..."
She quickly grabbed the sword that pierced her and pulled herself towards the princess. She saw her own reflection in her beautiful eyes. Those beautiful eyes that she loved. And, for that matter, those beautiful eyes were fixated on her, only on her. Finally, only on her. No other, just her. In her last moments, Bonnibel looked only at her. She never dreamed about nothing else in the end. So what that the world began to burn. So what that Simon had to die. It was worth it. And with the last ditch effort, she quickly gave her a kiss, tangling their tongues together, as the blood slowly dripped from within her mouth. Lips so sweet. She really tasted like candy. Nothing less. Nothing more. If that was the last thing she had to taste in her life, it was worth it as well. When they lips finally detached, she once more looked at her love.
"Hah... hah..." She gasped. "Hah... so... only two... not me... Simon... you joker..."
Her lifeless body finally hit the ground. The princess just looked at her, pondering for a little bit. Such meaningless thing caused such mayhem. Such mayhem for such meaningless reasons. This one pitiful being. And for what, because she wanted to feel special? Because she thought what she's doing is right? What a silly and redundant way to think. Who would have done anything like that. Who would have kill over such nonsensical matters. Who would like to destroy the world and claim that he's saving it? Who would do such a terrible, nonsensical thing. As she wiped the blood stains from her blade, she looked at her reflection in the cold steel.
###
Bonnibel sat down, holding her wound. Something dripped from within, and she should probably attend to it. There was no need in the end however. She felt pain, yes, but if needed, she could rebuilt herself. At someone's cost, but she would maintain. Should the blade hit the right spot however. But it didn't. And never meant. And as she sat right there, as she pondered about many things, her beloved one came from behind. Just like that. Only like that.
"So what now?" Marceline asked and looked at her mate, as she looked somewhere in the distance. "What will we do now?"
"About what?"
"About the world."
"It's in a mess, isn't it?"
"It is."
"I did that mess, didn't I?"
"Yes."
"I did that mess..."
They both looked into the horizon. And as always, could not find a single solitary answer which would be appropriate. The answers should always be searched within one's mind. At least that's what Bubblegum always told herself. Not so easy in those days however.
"So, again, what now?" Marceline asked once more. "Simon is dead, the huntress is dead, the world is burning." She chuckled, almost as if she reminded herself about her childhood. "Literally I would add. See those flames over there?"
"We'll start over." The princess shrugged. "Like we did before."
The princess grabbed one of the bricks before her and put it into the wall where it was missing. She build her kingdom with her hands alone once. She could do the same thing. She could do that. With or without others. But as she felt someone's hand on her spine, she knew, that this time she would have company. And perhaps this time will be different. Or not.