Finally finished this chapter and have to say that i'm pretty happy with how it ended up. I've taken the advice of a few of my reviewers and tried to balance the story a little while maintaining all the different characters. Though there's a lot going on i don't necessarily think it's a bad thing, though i do admit it has been a tad bit challenging keeping this story consistent lol.
always enjoy! and please fav this story and leave a review!
The day had only begun and already the colosseum was quickly drawing large crowds to marvel at Priscilla and Marcus in the center, the two engaged in a battle of savage proportions. Their metallic blades clashed loudly, sending thunderous sounds that echoed chillingly around the dome structure that rumbled theground beneath their feet with powerful tremors. Among the crowds that gathered, guards and regulators were among them, their senses focused entirely on this seemingly dangerous, yet impressive battle between these two powerful individuals in the centre of the colloseum. By the look of things, it appeared as though much of the security of the entire facility had now been drawn to this commotion, and with such large crowds gathered, there was little doubt things were to get interesting in no time.
Standing down in the battlefield near the two, Teresa's boots dug into the rough sand in the ground as she observed the battle before her patiently. Both Marcus and Priscilla were incredibly impressive in their own right, and by the look of things, it seemed they were able to keep up with each other quite well so far.
A sudden gust of wind from one of their powerful strikes blew red dust across Teresa's face, irritating her eyes and obscuring her vision for only a moment. But such a thing didn't bother her. Much of the information she received wasn't visual anyway.
From my analysis...
Priscilla seems to be holding back a little...
Can't say the same for Marcus. I cannot sense a thing from him.
I wonder who will win?
"Teresa...what's going on here?" A familiar voice said from behind her.
Without turning around, Teresa recognized the familiar aura of Irene approaching her from behind. A few other regulators followed her closely as well, the sound of their armor distinctive as they arrived beside her, their gazes frozen ahead.
"About time you showed up. Some number one you are..." Teresa said mockingly.
"You were much the same if I remember correctly, always arriving fashionably late." Irene snorted.
One of the male regulators next to Irene removed their dark metallic helmet, turning over to his superior with a look of concern across his scar riddled face:
-"Irene...what are your orders? this battle is unscheduled and seems to be getting out of hand...should we prepare an execution squad?"
Irene remained silent for a moment as she analysed the situation before her. There was no doubt that Priscilla was amongst the strongest of their kind, and any fight that involved her was interesting indeed. Even Teresa herself seemed intrigued by it, and that in itself was a big deal. Teresa never seemed to be intrigued by much if she remembered correctly.
She turned over to him: "Not necessary. The crowds seem to be enjoying the fight reguardless if it's schedueled or not. Let's just observe for now... Secure the perimiter."
-"Understood."
With a nod, the regulator made a hand gesture to the others, then quickly, they all scattered outwards, leaving the two former comrades alone to themselves.
Teresa smiled tenderly over at her: "Ordering others around like that...it seems to me that it's actually you, not I, who's unfit for battle..."
"Oh so you've heard? Well, does the truth upset you? Teresa?" Irene smirked.
The wavy haired warrior looked over at her chillingly: "Do you wish to test me? old friend?"
"The last time we met, Teresa, was well over a decade ago...and I've grown much stronger since back then."
Teresa smiled softly:"Oh? so strong that you think you can defeat me?"
-"Time and time again you have surpassed my expectations, Teresa, but even you might find it difficult to keep that perfect track record after all this time."
"I suppose it's a little inconvenient to have been dead for over a decade...Perhaps you're right, perhaps I should sharpen my skills every so often."
Irene smirked proudly: "But reguardless, i'm relieved to have you by my side once more."
"Is that so?" Teresa asked curiously.
"Yes. Wherever Teresa of the faint smile was assigned, her fellow comrades would end up unharmed, and the following mission was to be a guaranteed success. Now that you're back, I suddenly realize just how much I missed having somebody as annoying as you."
Teresa raised a brow in suspicion: "I'm not sure whether to feel flattered or insulted."
Irene grinned in accordance: "Take it however you like. But the truth is that i'm glad to have you by my side again, old friend."
Teresa wasn't sure how to respond to such praise from her former comrade. Though she felt a little flattered by Irene's words, at the same time, she still found it difficult to trust anyone, especially after what happened with Priscilla. Trust was something she found quite foreign to her as of late, with even the closest person in her heart not excluded from her list.
Up ahead, Priscilla had already began to release her yoma powers, her movements and strength increasing to unpresidented levels, no doubt giving Marcus one hell of a battle to keep up with. The deathly silence of the crowds had now erupted into bright applaus and cheers, the excitement clear in the atmosphere around them.
"It looks like Priscilla just may need some assistance...at this rate she'll probably get herself killed." Teresa said.
"If that happens then so be it," Irene said: "Do not forget that Priscilla is an awakened one. She is no longer one of us. If she does end up killed then perhaps it's for the best."
Teresa turned a questionable look Irene's way, suprised at this bold response from her former comrade: "Well that girl is just too stuborn to die... but I wonder what will you do if that pill wares off and she ends up awakening? Surely you must know that no matter how many guards you throw her way she will never be defeated..."
"Priscilla is a monster, quite possibly the strongest amongst all with the possible exception of you, but even she would find survival quite difficult in this place." Irene smirked.
"You underestimate Priscilla. You really think you or these guards will make a difference?"
-"I know her power very well," Irene said, looking over grimly at her missing left arm: "I've witnessed it first hand. I do hope that situation does not happen, but if it does occur then like every other awakened one she will be exterminated."
The three resurected ones had already left for the Collosem up ahead, and already Rafaela had a looming feeling in the back of her mind. At that centre of that giant structure up ahead there was no doubt something interesting going on, as evident by the impressive yoki in the wind, and the earthshattering impacts that could be felt all the way down here even at the docks.
Rafaela wasn't sure if Teresa was responsible for all this, but given the magnitude of the powers involved, the possibility was quite likely indeed. There weren't many others who she considered to be in the same league as Teresa after all, with the only exception being perhaps Priscilla herself, the former number two whom she had trained to execute Teresa of the Faint Smile a very long time ago.
A moment ago, Audrey had left with Rubel someplace, the two insisting they had some sort of a deal going on. When asked about it, Audey would simply say there was nothing to worry about, and had assured her along with everyone else that she would keep a close eye on him and wouldn't let the man get away with anything sinister. Rubel was a powerful man within the organisation after all, and there was no doubt that he could be used for their great benefit. Galatea and the others seemed to trust Audrey somewhat, and there was little reason to doubt them after all.
Over to Rafaela's side, Luciela, along with the rest of the current warriors including Galatea stood closeby, their attention caught ahead as well. She found herself marvelling at the sight of her sister's now faded blonde hair, and eyes just the same as hers. Isley, however, had his attention somewhere else entirely, eyeing the mountains off to the distance instead. Like Luciela, he had also taken the pill from Rubel back on the ship, and would probably fool most that he was a warrior just like everyone else, but whether he would stay in such a way was something debatable.
Rafaela turned over to her former comrade: "Galatea, i'll leave you in charge of taking care of the lower ranks among us, but first, tell me, just what is expected up ahead?"
"It appears as if Priscilla is doing battle against something with no aura whatsoever...strange...must be one of those dragonkin." Galatea said, warranting odd stares of the group her way.
Rafaela's eyes widened when she heard that name, disbeleif plastered across her shocked expression. She only recently accepted the fact that Teresa had been revived, but now Priscilla was involved in all this too? This was a situation that took her by surpise, but given recent events, something like this should have been expected anyway.
"You failed to mention that Priscilla was among the rebels..." Rafaela said, her face sinking.
"So even you know her too? Is that going to be a problem?" Isley smirked.
Rafaela stared coldly at this man, looking back at Galatea a moment later: " I just find it surprising that's all..."
"It also appears as if she's taken that pill and temporarily reverted back to one of us...though at this pace, it appears as if she may awaken at any moment." Galatea added.
"Is that so?" Rafaela said: "Well, we're here to rendevues with the rest of the rebels, so if such problems arise we can deal with them better then."
Luciela stepped forward, a delightful smirk across her lips: "Enough talk...If we don't hurry, I fear those three ressurected ones will have all the fun..."
Rafaeala looked at her impatient sister for a moment, then turned towards Raftella who shot her a curious look in response.
"Raftella... that is your name is that right?" Rafaela said to the younger, timid warrior.
"That's right..."
"You have a most interesting and most valuable technique...Audrey asked me personally to look after you but it's not like I wasn't going to anyway. I need you to do exactly as I say from now on. Do you understand?"
Raftella nodded at this, though looking clearly nervous about this situation they all found themselves in. There was a lot of uncertaintanty in this place, and Rafaela didn't blame her among anyone else for feeling that way. Among the powerful warriors gathered here, there was also the issue of an alien race of beings known as the dragonkin that they may have to deal with in the not so distant future.
"Alright then, let's not waste any more time..."
Miria, along with the rest of her comrades including Raki and Ophelia, entered the side of the busy colloseum, moving up towards the highest observation platform that was thankfully devoid of any pesky observers. A moment ago, she had raced back to gather everyone she could, knowing for sure that these three ressurected ones she met earlier were up to no good. For reasons unknown to her, they seemed to be looking specifically for her and Teresa, and this was quite a disturbing prospect.
Far down in the Colloseum's battefield below, the group watched curiously as Priscilla and Marcus fought in the centre, their attention flicking wildly between them and the crowds, hoping to find the three warriors Miria had mentioned earlier.
"What is Priscilla doing fighting that guy?" Raki said.
"That man Marcus is one of the dragonkin..." Tabitha said.
Both Miria and Ophelia were the only ones among the group who didn't look suprised in the least. The lack of a reaction made it seem the two already suspected this strongly, and simply had other things in their minds that preocupied them.
"So you said one of them was Hysteria the Elgent huh? i've heard of her... tough bastard apparantly" Ophelia said with a wide grin, looking over at Miria cunningly.
Miria threw her a simple nod in response, while doing her best to locate the elegent warrior amongst the crowds throughout the giant collosem. Being the tallest among the three, she would be the easiest one to locate first among the other two, and there was little doubt that they had arrived in this place by now.
"So we have three ressurected ones to deal with and now one of those Dragonkin?" Helen sighed.
"You said they were after Teresa? just what would they want with her?" Deneve asked.
"Well Teresa is one popular warrior so i'm not surpised..." Helen added.
"I have no idea, but I don't like this situation at all." Miria said.
"I would love to see them try and take Teresa on. It would be so fun to watch! all these fights are just too exciting!" Riful said joyfully, the only one amongst the group who seemed to enjoy the situation just a little too much.
"They didn't mention anything about Clare right?" Raki said, peering over curiously towards the captain.
-"No, they don't appear to know anything about her. They weren't even heading for her direction."
"Well that's good, but we should warn Teresa about those three then," He added: "Clare would never forgive us if something happened to her."
"No," Miria snapped: "We want to draw them out. If any one of us goes down there perhaps they won't show themselves and they will have the advantage of a pre-emptive strike."
Ophelia smirked cunningly, folding her arms over across herself: "It's not like you have anything to worry about. Irene is down there so that Teresa isn't exactly alone. Both are annoying bitches afterall."
"Not as annoying as you I can guarantee that." Raki spat at her.
"Too cute. Funny you say that after losing to me."
-"You threw dirt in my eye! and even then I managed to slice you up pretty good. I'm pretty sure i'm the new number two, and you demoted down to three."
"Whatever you say..." she hissed.
"Miria...are you sure there are only three of those ressurected ones?" Tabitha said.
"There were only three that I saw..." Miria said, looking over curiously at her.
"Well, there's another group heading towards this direction...and most of them are very powerful indeed..."
While the rest of the group headed towards the colloseum, Galatea quickly took notice that Isley had carefully slipped away from them, moving off down a side street of this estranged city all by himself. She had suspected as much, and already knew he wasn't particularily interested in what was going on within this place, so there was nothing suprising about his behavour. After leading the younger, and lower digits to a place she considered a safe distance away from all the action, she decided to found out exactly where that man was going and left the group for a short moment to investigate.
Following his trail, she moved by a few slick alley ways, following him down towards the far western part of the city, entering upon the large outer gates that seperated the place from the wilderness. Cleverly leaping on top of the structure, she noticed Isley along the very edge of the wall, the chilly winds blowing across his hair and long cloak playfully. By the look of things, it appeared as if he had already been waiting for her to catch up all along, and merely stood patiently to await for her presence.
Walking towards him, she looked over at the distant collosem for a moment, before looking back at him with a curious look upon her face. She already knew what he was thinking, but decided to ask anyway.
"Leaving already? Didn't you come for Priscilla and that man Raki?" she said, her tone almost a tease.
The man with silvery hair remained silent for a moment longer before turning around and leering upon this woman with an intense look in his eyes, a slick smile sliding upon his lips as he replied:
"This is no place for someone like me, and those two are safer without my presence anway, so if you're here to follow me then I would advise against it."
She slipped closer, smiling cunningly as she stood before him: "I never planned to follow you beyond these walls. I'm just curious about what your plans are. Perhaps you'll now move off to some cave somewhere and live your life like you always have? sounds terribly exciting"
"Perhaps. So then, will you miss me?" he said.
A delightful smirk came across Galatea's lips: "What do you think?"
He sighed grieviously: "Something tells me i'll probably miss you more than you'll miss me..."
"Correct. You were merely a pretty boy who was just a bit of fun for a while, but now i'm completely over you."
"So you just used me? I have to say, i'm pretty suprised at how cold you actually are..." he said
-"What? do you think I actually cared for someone like you?" she said with an almost wicked smile.
Isley remained silent for a moment, looking over at the distant mountains with a faded smile across his lips, silent for a moment as he was left alone to his thoughts.
"Yeah whatever. It's not like I felt anything...for you either."
"I'm glad." she said.
-"But tell me," he added, looking up at her with a hopeful look: "If we weren't what we were...do you think it could have worked between us? I know it's a ridiculous thing to say, especially for someone like me...but...I just thought..."
Galatea merely stared at this man for a while longer, his words cut off by the howling winds that raced by them both.
"Well you thought wrong," she said: "I only used you to guarantee my own protection. Thanks for that by the way, but in the end, I don't care in the least for you."
"Bitch." he hissed.
She smiled back at him sleekly: "Oh don't tell me you thought it was something else?"
He brushed a glance over at this woman, trying to stop himself from having a long hard look at her. Her eyes, he noticed, made it pretty clear that she meant what she said with all that, and there was nothing he could do to change that.
"If it were any one else...I would simply rip them to pieces for speaking to me in such a manner..." he said, his face lowered.
"Don't tell me...that you feel something for me or something foolish like that? that's so pathetic..."
Isley didn't respond to her. Instead, he spared one last glance before turning his back to her for the final time, pulling his cloak over his face before preparing to leave. He had hoped to simply leave, and just hope she had felt the same way about him, but instead, things ended this way, and it felt far worst than any wound from any battle he had ever endured.
"Be safe Galatea..." He said, taking the last steps across the edge of the wall and dissapearing into the wilderness.
Another powerful clash from the battle up ahead blew a second gust of wind over, forcing both Teresa and Irene to blink in rapid succession to protect their eyes from this obscurity. The fight ahead had been going on for a while now, and Priscilla's yoki was quickly approaching its limit. Marcus, however, showed no evidence of using any sort of strange energy like their kind, and simply managed to keep up with Priscilla no matter how much strength she had managed to summon.
"I've had enough of this..." Teresa sighed heavily, drawing her blade out from its sheath from her back.
"Oh don't tell me you're going to save Priscilla?" Irene said curiously.
"That man and I have unfinnished business. If she get's in my way i'll kill her if i must. Stay here."
Irene watched as Teresa moved off, trotting towards them in the most casual of manners. As long as she could remember, the smiling warrior was someone who never took anything too seriously, treating most things almost like an annoyance with even this intense situation no different it seemed.
Not long after Teresa had moved off, Irene could sense an intriguing presense approaching her from behind. Curious about this, she turned around and could see a strange warrior whom she could not quite identify, but seemed quite familiar nonetheless. She was far taller than most, with a distinctive pair of braids tied to either side of her long silky hair that blew off to the side so tidily by the gentle winds. She had a claymore in her main hand, and a dazling smile that oozed of pure arrogance.
"You...I don't recognise you. What rank are you?" Irene said, her brow raised in suspicion.
"Number one," Hysteria smiled.
"Number one? what are you talking about? i'm the authority here so get back to your post and secure the perimiter."
"Listen to me!" the elegent warrior demanded with an annoyed expression: "I'm looking for a Teresa and Phantom Miria, but this place is so noisy and crowded, it's difficult to find anything. Tell me where they are!"
A puzzled look came across Irene as she stared at this strangely familiar face of this warrior. She couldn't quite figure out just where she had seen this individual before, but there was no doubt in her mind that they had met once, though when and where was a complete mystery to her at the moment.
"Wait a second..." Irene said, scrutizing this warrior that appeared more and more familiar as the seconds passed by.
"Oh do you know me? Are you one of those two?" Hysteria said with a intrigued look.
"So it's really you! Hysteria who died on Rockw-"
Hysteria's smirk quickly turned into an annoyed frown, and before Irene could even react, the wind was taken from her as Hysteria raced by her at an unbelievable speed, slicing across her front in a blindingly elegent strike. She could hear the crowds erupt in applaus at this, and feel the sound of thousanads of excited people stomp their feet in response.
Staggered, Irene frantically turned around to face her swift attacker, lost admist sheer shock to even care for the newfound wound upon her. She couldn't beleive that Hysteria the Elegent was now walking amongst the living yet again, this ghost of a warrior she swore was reduced to nothing but a distant memory. The last time she had seen this former number one was when she hadn't even reached single digit status long ago, back when even Teresa was rising in the ranks. If this was truly the former number one, Hysteria, then the rumor of her resurection was no doubt true, and that must also mean that the other two, Cassandra and Roxanne must me amongst the crowds somehwere just waiting to make their presence known.
"Oh? So You can still stand after the first strike? Just what's with warriors these days?" Hysteria said, peering innocently at her.
Irene didn't respond, instead, she found herself still unable to comprahend just what was unfolding before her. She instinctively looked around the giant collosem, running her eyes along the crowds that stacked the sides of the structure in their thousands, hoping to find evidence of that which she suspected, but saw no evidence whatsoever. Wherever the other two must have been was a complete mystery as of now.
Being the number one regulator in this establishment, Irene knew she would not recieve any assistance from the other regulators as long as the fight was one on one, so for now it was wise to focus her attention upon this single threat before she did anything else.
She returned her attention back upon this most elegent warrior, preparing her blade before herself: "So you want Teresa?"
"Yes! And Miria! tell me where they are now!" Hysteria spurted, her patience sinking.
"Right behind you," a sudden voice said, much to the suprsise of Hysteria.
The elegent warrior turned around, raising her blade at the last moment to defend herself from an incoming strike from a familair person that came at her at an impressive speed even for her standards. It was the woman with the distinctive spiky hair she had met earlier, the one she had remember named herself Hilda.
Miria phantomed backwards rapidly afterwards, the sight of this pronding Hysteria to throw her the most suspicious of stares.
"Hey! just who exactly are you really?" Hysteria yelled.
"My name is Miria."
Hysteria's eyes widened at this, continuing to stare at this warrior for a moment longer, but it wasn't long until her gentle face turned into a one of deep hatred when she heard this.
"Hey! you lied to me! I don't appreciate being made a fool of!" Hysteria spurted fumingly.
"Sorry to deceive you, but I just couldn't be honest back then at that time."
At that moment, Roxanne emerged out from the crowd, landing by the three with a snarky look across her. She peered at Hysteria for a moment, then looked over towards Irene a moment later. Her eyes snaked across her venomosly, a curious grin coming by her lips:
"What's that I heard earlier about you being the authority here? I'll just have to take that away from you then I suppose..." Roxanne said, drawing her blade against Irene.
Just what?
I leave Irene for a moment and already trouble arises?
Teresa turned around herself, and down the other end of the battlefield, alongside Irene, were three other figures looking as though they were engaged in combat against eachother. One of them was Miria, the other unknown, and the tallest one someone whom she had trouble recongnising but seemed strangely familair to her nonetheless. She didn't know what exactly was going on or why these two intruders seem to be attacking her comrades, but she was determined to find this out.
She spared a glance back towards Marcus a short ways ahead, watching on hopelessly as the man managed to overwhealm the younger warrior with a quick combination, sending her flying towards her direction.
Landing with a thud, Priscilla skidded across the reddened sand, rolling many times over until finally stopping before Teresa's boots leaving behind a trail of dust in her wake.
"Good going there," Teresa said annoyingly to the wounded warrior that lay so pathetically beneath her: "You really showed him."
Priscilla shakily got to her feet, still holding on to her weapon as she dusted herself off and resumed a prepared stance nonetheless. Her eyes glowed a hellish yellow, muscles dying down back to their normal size as she began to calm herself down. Though she was wounded with a dozen or so cuts across her, it was clear she still had a lot of fight left in her, and didn't look as though she was prepared to give up at any moment anyway.
"He's pretty good..." Priscilla said, lifting her blade upwards.
"Clearly too good for you," Teresa replied, glancing upon the incoming Marcus then back upon Irene and Miria's direction.
-"Hardly. it's not like you can do any better..."
"Well then stop playing around and finnish him then," Teresa snapped back.
Priscilla smiled gently over at her, but almost immediatelly her attention fell upon the side a with a look of curiosity as she saw something interesting approach them "Just who...is that?"
Noticing this strange warrior also, Teresa raised a brow suspiciously at this intruder with short hair that slivered down her sides with long elongated ears and an impressive aura that no doubt cemented the great strength she no doubt possessed.
"And just who are you supposed to be?" Teresa said.
The warrior stared at them equally as oddly, but almost immediatelly she drew her blade and shot them a long unfriendly glare:
"Are you Teresa?" she said.
-"I am,"
"My name is Cassandra, and i'm sorry to inturupt but I will be attacking you now."
Cassandra? one of the ressurected ones Irene mentioned earlier?
At such a time?
Then the other two must also be ressurected number ones...
Marcus walked up to them a moment later, the man flicking his gaze between the three warriors before him, looking up Cassandra before cementing his gaze upon Teresa:
"Wherever you go it seems you draw Trouble huh Teresa?" he smirked at her, thrusting his double edged spear into the ground beneath him: "But then again your kind has always been a little disfunctional."
Teresa groaned in annoyance at this estranged turn of events. Not only did she have to deal with Marcus, but now this new warrior called Cassandra that for some reason wanted to fight her as well. At the same time, Miria and Irene were left to combat the other two, while the defeaning roar of the collosem made the situation seem like it was just one giant game to everyone else. For Teresa, this day was definatelly turning into a nightmare, but something was telling her it wasn't going to get any better any time soon.
Finding herself lost admist a barren desert, Clare looked around herself in frantic motions, but saw nothing but redenned sand and various dying shrubs in all directions, with nothing else but the blinding sun making it's presense known in the empty sky above. She didn't know where she was, or how it came to be that she arrived in this dessolate place, but she was determined to discover the truth.
Though Clare couldn't quite explain it, she found herself wearing human clothes that seemed strangely familiar to her. As she though deeply on this, a sudden realization drew into her confused mind. The clothes were similar to the onces she wore before she became a hybrid, the same ones she wore the day she had met Teresa of the Fainst smile.
In her right hand, was her trusty Claymore, and in her left was something that made her stomache cringe from the sheer horror of gazing upon it. Teresa's decapitated head.
Dropping the head in a fright, Clare took a step backwards in confusion, trying her best to piece back her entangled mind. Just what was going on? and why was she holding on to Teresa's head? where was she? was this a nightmare? was she already dead?
Hearing a strange sound behind herself, Clare turned around and noticed the outlines of what looked like a humanoid figure that had began to form in the sand that blew in the gentle winds. She could not properly make out the figure, nor figure out who or what it was supposed to be, but before she could figure this out, the world quickly fell into a chilling darkness as the sun vanished into nothingness.
The sandy figure transformed into something surreal and ghostly that stuck out from the overwhealming darkness, with long wavy hair that bristled gently by strange cosmic winds that surrounded her. Her face was indistinguishable, her body equally so, but what was apparant was a simple faint smile and a pair of mesmerising eyes that glistened brighter than all the other parts of her ghostly body.
Unable to beleive her eyes, Clare almost dropped her weapon as she scanned this mysterious figure before her. Was this Teresa? or merely something that looked just like her?
"Teresa..." Clare said softly, hoping to get some sort of a response.
The figure, however, did not respond in any way. Instead, it merely raised it's main hand, revealing a glowing weapon that, like the rest of herself, glistened in the cosmic winds, looking as if it was made of a supernatural substance that was not particularily solid and looked as it it were to be dispersed into the wind at any moment.
"Teresa it's me. Clare. Is that you?" Clare said again, her suspicion growing.
Yet again the figure did not respond, and after thinking to herself for a moment, Clare decided to move through the overhealming blackness around her, closer towards this strange image of Teresa.
As she approached the figure, the image suddenly raised it's weapon against her, and Clare jumped in alarm, doing the same. She didn't know what was going on, or what this image of Teresa actually was, but something definatelly didn't feel right in the back of her mind.
"What are you doing? Do you know where I am? How do I get out of here?" Clare said.
A chilling silence set between the two of them, then, without notice, Teresa suddenly raced towards her, leaving a trail of the ghostly substance in her wake. Their Claymore's clashed, and Clare gritted her teeth in frustration as she struggled to hold back the incredible strength being thrust upon her by this ghostly Teresa, their weapons grinding with white hot sparks flying in all directions.
"I don't want to fight you! Teresa! stop it!" Clare yelled into the figure's ghastly face, lost amdist the emotionless faint smile that greeted her.
Much to her dismay, Teresa withdrew her weapon and striked again, forcing Clare to a quick parry to avoid getting herself killed. As this transpired, the wind blew the strange, ghostly substance from Teresa's image, brushing by her skin and chilling her to the bone. The energy felt cold, but at the same time, pleasantly warm, feeling very much like yoki that flowed through the blood from that of a Claymore warrior.
Continuing to defend herself from Teresa's merciless offensive, Clare quickly recognised the origin of this yoki aura. From the incredible density, and familiar nature of it, there was no doubt this was Teresa's yoki, a power that had been sealed within herself for so many years. This was an energy that could be felt during only the most desperate moments of her life, during fights that demanded its presense and had saved her life more than once before. But now, this once pleasant energy no longer felt as welcoming as it had before, and instead, seemed more and more hostile as time went on.
"What are you doing Teresa? Stop it!" Clare yelled.
As she suspected, Teresa did not respond, and a clever combination from the wavy haired warrior exposed an opening in her, and as a result, Clare felt a crushing blow across her abdomen that sent her flying backwards into the oblivion behind her. Teresa's kick propelled her backwards, falling violently across the glassy smooth floor, landing an impressive distance away.
"So then it's like this..." Clare said, groaing in pain, raiseing hersef to her feet, Claymore still ready in hand, her frustration growing stronger at this strange situation she had found herself in.
The cosmic winds blew across ever stronger, dispersing much of Teresa's figure as she casually trotted towards her. Though there was no doubt this was Teresa in a sense, it wasn't 'her' Teresa, and was not concious in it's own right.
Teresa raced for her yet again, and this time, Clare swung her weapon towards her, but merely hit empty space as the image dispersed into the wind, reforming behind her in an instant. Predicting a strike across her, Clare ducked at the last moment, cleverly evading a blow and responding with her own offensive to which Teresa evaded equally as simply.
"Learned that from you," Clare smiled softly as the two engaged in a frantic sword play: "Such a technique is uniquely yours isn't it? to predict attacks even before they are made."
There was no response from the figure as usual, but Clare continued on soundly with a forced smile through the clashing sounds of their weapons:
"It was always you protecting me from everything wasn't it? Whenever I needed strength in times of need, you were always there to lend me a little of your power huh?"
Distracted for only a second, Clare cringed when Teresa's blade managed to pass her defences, inflicting a wound across her side that felt terribly real. Blood exploded outwards, drenching her humanly clothes and flowing beneath her feet and staining the prestinely clean floor.
"So then you're not Teresa...you just look like her...Well then, I guess I should get serious..."
Throwing her Claymore behind her back, Clare propelled her blade forward again in devistating swipes as she turned her attacks up a notch and released the power of the windcutter. Teresa's incredible agility and skillful swordplay, however, managed to stop the attacks with little effort, her chillingly eerie face as casual as ever as she did so.
"What did I expect? it's not like that's enough to stop you," Clare said, pulling her weapon back for a second time.
This time, Clare flooded her right arm with her own yoki, the awakened flesh flooding with life and lashing outwards, her blade flying off in random directions and slicing up the very air in a mad frenzy. As she suspected, Teresa managed to stop this also, but as she summonned more and more power across herself, Clare smiled proudly as she began to force Teresa to retreat backwards in response to the ever increasing power she threw forwards.
"Irene once told me that my quicksword was only half as powerful as hers," Clare smirked through the defeaning winds of her weapon's onslaught: "But recently, i've managed to make it many times stronger than even hers back then. Are you impressed?"
Recieving the same empty response from Teresa as always, Clare then raised the speed and power of her technique to a point even further than ever before. The awakened flesh in her arm begged to spread across her body, but she was determined to keep it at bay, determined to keep Teresa at bay. She was impressed that Teresa managed to keep up so well so far, but it was only a short moment when the first innevitable strike across her opponent was first realized.
Clare's blade crept past Teresa's defence and landed a clear strike across her form, errupting the wavy haired warrior's illuinated blood outwards in an clear arc, the strike dispersing much of her ghastly form.
The two came to a temporary retreat, gazing upon the other with a chilly gaze. Teresa had been hit, but already the illuminating energy that made up her form had reformed around the wound, returning her back to normal.
As soon as she had completly regenerated, Teresa blinked gently, revealing a pair of hellish eyes drenched in a rich gold. The eyes tore through the darkness, sending a pulse of incredible energy that flooded outwards chocking the air between them.
"I should have known..." Clare said, a single drop of sweat running down the side of her face: "You were only toying with me so far..."
Teresa merely stared at her for a moment longer before engaging yet again, her movements raised to a level completely different than before. In response, Clare released much of her own yoki in an attempt to compensate, but quickly found that no matter how much she would release, it would barely be enough to keep up with this superior warrior.
Eventually, Clare found herself releasing most of her powers, causing her muscles to expand ever so slightly and veins bulge outwards. Teresa was so quick and powerful, that even such an amount was simply not enough, and a few times, the strength of the strikes Clare defended herself against felt strong enough to force the weapon out of her grip.
Attempting a second quicksword, Clare swallowed the last of her might in this last desperate attempt, but before she knew it, Teresa ghosted past her, sinking her blade deeply across the front of her chest in an incredibly fast motion.
Immediatelly, the quicksword was ended the moment it started, and Clare collapsed to a single knee, dropping her weapon in response to this devistating wound across her. She wasn't sure if this was even her real body, or if this place was something akin to a dream, but even so, the pain and blood felt very real. She placed her hand across her chest like a wounded animal, looking back at her unschathed opponent.
"Ridiculous...just how tough are you really?" Clare said, wheezing and coughing out blood that dripped across her lips.
In silence, Teresa walked up towards her, staring down at her like a predator to its prey, those golden eyes reverting back to a familiar silver as they stared down at her.
Clare found herself too distressed to respond in any way, unable to help her body from shaking due to the incredible power before her that anchored her down like a onverwhealming weight across her shoulders. As she looked up at this image of Teresa that had defeated her, Clare couldn't help but take notice of that faint smile that had never left her gentle face, the smile that surely was the last thing she would ever see if she didn't do something about it.
Looking over to her side, Clare could still see the glistening silver of her dropped blade as it lay so innocently across the floor beside her. She gazed up at Teresa's face for a moment, and noticed her attention was completely fixated upon her, and immediatelly, strange thoughts began to fill her mind. Though this person looked and felt exactly like the Teresa she knew, there was a strangely odd presense about her, almost as if there was a complete lack of life to her. This Teresa's eyes glistened like that of a yoma, emotionless and dead and her face didn't show the fainstest trace of life to it.
As much as the thought pained her. She knew what she had to do.
"I'm sorry..." Clare said, slowly reaching over for her downed blade and then rapidly swinging the steel before her.
She watched as Teresa's eyes widen in response, both her hands sliced off as they fell to the ground. Clare spared no time as she raced forward, removing Teresa's head a split second later, her blade slicing through her fragile neck and ending the battle.
Clare's heart ached as she watched Teresa's lifeless body drop to her knees, falling over in a lifeless manner and dispersing into the wind a moment later.
Dropping to her knees, Clare broke down in tears, her mind torturing her as it replayed the sickenning act over and over in her mind. She couldn't believe what she had done, or the fact that she even had it in herself to do such a thing.
As the tears fell down her face, a blinding light suddenly engullfed her surroundings, and all of a sudden the familiar essense of Teresa flooded the space around her, sending pleasant feelings across her skin and warming her insides to the core. She could feel a marvelous rush of energy engulph her, an ecstatic energy that, though overwhealming, was also incredibly relaxing and welcoming. Suddenly images of Teresa flooded her overhealmed mind, the pleasant aroma of her hair, and the warmness of her skin and touch could be felt across her own as the energy carressed around her form like a warming ocean of loving energy.
Panting heavily, Clare woke to the unmistakable sound of a distant battle, a maddening sound of steel clashing against steel in the background, a sound that had been long since engraved in her mind. Opening her eyes, Clare looked around herself and found herself alone in the empty barracks, seeing nothing but untindy beds, and the bright rays of the sun indicating the morning long since started without her.
What a strange dream...
wait...
was that even a dream?
Tossing herself out of bed, Clare cringed under the weight of her beaten body that, unfortnatelly hadn't completely healed from the night before it seemed. Noticing her claymore to her side, she grabbed her weapon, smiling gently to herself when she noticed her distinct symbol engraved along the edge of the hilt. She remembered the weapon being covered in Priscilla's dried blood, but was surprised to see it completely unstained. She figured Teresa must have cleaned it for her, even going as far as giving it a good polish that made it glisten in the early morning sun.
She jumped when another distant sound caught her attention, the sound ripping through the rock walls of the empty barraks. Sheathing her weapon in its holster on her back, Clare made her way out of the darknened building, entering upon the strong light outside and staring at the distant colloseum with a look of intrigue.
Just where...is everyone else?
Are they in that building?
Teresa...
wait for me...i'll be right there...
And there we go. Chapter finished. I really hope you guys enjoyed reading that as much as i enjoyed typing it! please let me know what you think as i've done my best trying to maintain the cast of characters that i know people like. I try to give screen time to as many as i can and perhaps i have too many characters in this pic, but regardless it seems to be going fine. What do you guys think? let me know in by leaving a review to help improve this story!
thanks for reading!
