6 years ago – Thriller Bark.
Leila, aged 15 was a troubled girl. At this age, she was especially sensitive to those around her and her own confusing emotions. She was beginning to lose sight of her goal; to leave this place and survive for as long as possible. Over the many years that she had lived in Thriller Bark, it was hard to keep the same drive to freedom when those around her were the closest she had to family. She still remembered her time in cells and almost every week she would gain an additional scar or bruise. However, she was beginning to forget about her happy childhood... the violence became all she knew.
There were many times she would laugh happily, enjoy the company of her crewmates and think 'hey, this isn't so bad!' but then the nightmares would come. The times of her in a cell; her father's dead face staring back at her in her dreams. Of course, she could never fully forget. Thus, she was internally conflicted. She felt like she had played the part of the red princess for far too long – she wasn't sure who her true self was anymore.
She stood in the training hall with various knights at her disposal. Xander patrolled around her in circular motions, like a predator observing its prey. Small devil horns were sprouted from her head along with her swishing tail.
"Since you've been so well behaved recently…" Xander spoke slowly, observing the teenagers face with intense heat. "You can pick today – what would you like to train?"
Leila shifted uncomfortably in the middle of the hall. She could feel his gaze on her back, digging into her like sharp daggers. It was a training day, a day she despised. Ever since she acquired her devil fruit she would be forced to train and control the sins to the best of her abilities. It was safe to say, she was hopeless at it. She could summon them pretty much at will – but controlling them was a whole different story. She felt like she had no direction. She was being trained like a soldier – a weapon only useful for war.
"You took too long" Xander tutted as his eyes grew dark. Leila's eyes widened in fear, she had been in her thoughts for too long. She looked at Xander with subtle pleading and he grinned maliciously. "Wrath".
Leila shuddered and her breathing quickly increased. She knew better than to argue, she had no choice at this point. She turned her attention back forward in her stance and swallowed the lump in her throat. Things weren't so bad recently – she was carrying out her tasks as asked and overly performed greatly. But it was never enough for Xander – he wished for her to control all the sins, despite the strain it put on her young body.
"Leila, now" He commanded her, his irritation growing. She felt her hands shake but nodded. She knew what she had to do – what emotions she had to channel to bring this on with ease. Her mind flittered to her scars, her father, the cells, the dresses, the commanding and overbearing Xander Brady. The anger within her easily surfaced – bubbling and rising to the top. She took a deep breath and opened her eyes once more which were now a ruby red. Xander moved in front of her and whistled in appreciation.
"Good" He nodded curtly, adjusting his collar as the hot air seemed dense and compact around him. It was bearable, still. "Not enough though, you're not going to be able to control anyone with weak surroundings like that"
Leila felt incredibly irked, her sanity barely holding on. When she was under this wrathful form, it was incredibly hard to keep her own personality intact. She could feel the sins of the devil crawling down her back and it was so easy to snap. Alas, she knew if she did not try harder she would face the consequences. She let out a slow breath through her nose and concentrated on the man in front of her – the tall, sharp faced man cloaked in red.
"More" He commanded once more, almost growling.
Xander grabbed ahold of a knight, pushing him towards Leila acting as bait. The knight's eyes were wide and looked immensely fearful. He looked at Leila as if she was a wild tiger with no chains and shackles to control her. That's how most of the soldiers saw her. Suddenly, the atmosphere seemed to double in density. The pain started to set in, even for Xander who coughed uncomfortably and began to sweat.
"That' still not enough – more!" He shouted at her. Leila felt herself shake as he continued relentlessly.
The knights at the edge of the room began to run to the outside of the hall as far as they could. Some were not so fortunate to be placed near the doors, thus, when the heat of her wrath seeped through their skin and every orifice on their body, chaos ensued. Weapons were thrown, screams heard and blood began to cover the floor of the hall. Xander stayed still, unmoving, unaffected. He did not stop the commotion, nor did he partake in it. Leila stood, swaying slightly as her eyes were clouded and dark. She had lost it, her sanity snapped.
The knight in front her quivered, his weapons clattering to the floor out of sheer fear. For on her face was a crooked grin, her teeth practically snarling in a laugh. Xander let out a deep sigh in annoyance, seeing that she had lost her control. He made large steps towards her.
"Stupid girl" Xander tutted. He grasped her by the wrist pulling her along with him as she thrased around wildly. She began screaming incoherently as her nails dug into his arm, trying her best to draw blood from the commander. He didn't seem too phased – this was a regular occurrence in their training, after all. She was fairly hopeless at controlling wrath, but what 15 year old girl could?
Leila felt an intense fire in her stomach that seemed to spread over her skin. She felt like she was burning alive, her skin sweating and her lungs tight. She began to splutter as Xander dragged her to the end of the hall and she felt desperate to break free. He had wrapped his arm around her neck, dragging her backwards as her legs kicked helplessly.
Suddenly, she bit down as hard as she could onto Xande's arm and he lost his cool for a split second. He struck her across her face, causing her to collapse on the floor in a crumpled heap. He ran his fingers along his jaw as veins began to protrude from his forehead. "It's like you're not even trying anymore - what kind of princess bites the man that cares for her? You're like a rabid dog. Don't bite the hand that feeds you"
Leila quivered as she tried to hold herself up, her tail twitching avidly. Her eyes were still red and she looked up at Xander with sheer hatred and bloodlust. He had cut her cheek with his rings, leaving a smear of blood from the cut.
"I'm not a princess" She spoke lowly, her voice calm despite her raging appearance. Xander smirked at her twistedly, his teeth grinding as he observed her in a crumpled heap. His dark eyes were glaring down at her – the rabid animal that was once an obedient girl.
The knight who had acted as bait took this opportunity to run, but he was struck down in an instant by a large, red and bloody dagger. Leila didn't even have to look at him. Her gaze was locked onto the large commander before her, glaring. Her weapons had formed and were sent flying to the knight without her even having to glance at him, without having to hold her hands out and hold it. It simply formed, aimed and landed perfectly by itself.
Xander smirked and nodded in head in appreciation. "Well, I suppose I can excuse your defiance as you demonstrated remarkable progress"
His words weren't even entering Leila's ears. She couldn't hear anymore, her ears felt like they were filled up with water and her chest felt like it could burst any second. She was no longer herself, but her bloodlust and its target remained.
Xander began to turn away from her, ready to call for someone to clean up the bloodied hall. However, in that moment he underestimated her. It only took a moment. Leila had gotten up and rushed towards him with a large bloodied sword. It happened suddenly, quickly. Blink – and you would miss it. Nobody could have expected it, especially Xander who had trained the girl to be obedient no matter what he had done to her. All her life she had built up trust with this man; became his right hand weapon and had done whatever he had asked. It all came crumbling down at that moment.
In a split second Leila was beside him, the sharpest blade she had ever conjured was held by her two frail arms and had connected with his body. His eyes widened as he realized what was occurring but before he could act – she had severed his arm from his body.
"AH- fucking bitch" He couldn't help but scream, clutching at his arm, his eyes furious. Leila had a twisted grin on her face, stabbing at him repeatedly.
"Die. Die. Die" She chanted; her eyes ablaze with a deep set maliciousness and intent to kill. "Just fucking die" She screamed, a singular tear escaping from her eye as her face contorted into a complicated expression. She looked like she was in mourning, inconsolable and distraught. Yet she also looked like a maniac, a deviant and insane.
Xander pushed her off of him with ease, grasping her neck with his large fist and picking her up with his singular arm. He felt such intense rage he wished to crush her windpipe right then and there. But alas, he couldn't. She had the most important thing to him – the devil fruit. Leila scratched at his hand, flailing uncontrollably. Xander threw her to the ground and took out his gun, shooting her.
Leila screamed as she felt a bullet implant itself into her hip and she gritted her teeth, grasping at the ground. She felt like she was dying – she hoped she was dying. Xander pressed against the wound with his foot, grating it and stomping on her repeatedly.
"How fucking dare you" He roared, in his own trance of anger as he clutched at his shoulder that was now left without an arm. Leila's horns and tail instantly sunk back into her body as she screamed in agony, returning back to her senses. The torture was far from over.
Later that evening Xander visited Dr Hogback. He was studying his arm and disinfecting it. Xander barely flinched.
"I can put your arm back on you know, or I can give you something more powerful – like a claw?" Dr Hogback spoke aloud in thought. He could create a monstrous arm for one of his colleagues; he liked the idea very much.
Xander grunted and shook his head. "No, keep it"
"..You…don't want an arm?" Dr Hogback raised his eyebrows in surprise and tried to hide in disappointment.
"No. It's a reminder" Xander smirked darkly, looking down at his grizzly arm.