Darkness Falls - Chapter 16: Kirie

Malice, why do you do this? Why do you try and torture these people?

They never did anything to you; I never did anything to you. I'm sorry… I pity you for you pain, but you don't want pity.

You want pain. And you want to give pain.

Malice, why?

Why?

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"Iris?" The word came out as a whisper and the sabre finally fell from his limp fingers, landing with a resounding clatter, the light going out. But still, he could see her; her image burned into his mind.

Iris, imbedded in the wall, hanging limply, dead. Never mind the fact that she was already dead, he might have been able to save her. Instead, he let that girl convince him that Caroline was the problem, that Caroline was who he should have been focusing on, and not Iris. He had tried to kill her, when she had done nothing wrong.

"Iris?" Taking a step forward, Zero reached out with his arms, hoping and fearing that his hands would brush against the dead or unconscious reploid. "Iris?" For a third time the word came from his mouth, a soft, plaintive cry. "Iris…"

"If you really care about her, you'd quit whining," Caroline snapped, walking up behind him. Her boots clicked against the ground, quick, sure footsteps. "You'd find a way to release her spirit. She's dead, you know. You can't bring her back to life, not fully."

"What do you know?" Zero didn't mean it, but the words came out harsh. "How do you know that I can't bring her back to life? She's appeared here… maybe I can… I'll find away…"

"Because it's been done before!" An agitated edge was in her voice; Caroline was struggling not to blow up on him. "I understand now… a girl, she once became evil… she was under the influence of Malice, the force that's been harassing us here. When she was freed, though, she was brought back to life. And her life from then on was tortured and never ending. A half-life, really. Do you want that for Iris?"

Zero stayed silent for a moment, thinking about what she had just said. If Iris was brought back to life… it would be a half-life… torture… did he want that for her…

"It doesn't matter. She's going to die, going to be trapped here forever."

Caroline gasped and took a step back, her foot dragging across stray pebbles and scattering them. Zero blinked and turned slightly, staring at the coalescing form in front of him.

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Malice, it is not your place to choose when, where, or even why these people die. Don't you see? This is not your place…

I can't let you do this anymore. I will stop you. I did it once before; I'll do it again.

You can't stop me.

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The form took shape, first trying to become a girl, a young girl around the age of sixteen, then a man. Finally, it settled on both, a strange mixture of feminine and masculine features.

It really wasn't pretty.

Wrinkling her nose, Caroline glared at Malice, wishing she had the camera. It's kinda funny, almost like something from a video game… I'm being dependent on a camera. A flippin' camera. Smiling slightly, she resisted the strong urge to laugh.

There was something very wrong with the situation. Very wrong.

Malice growled, an odd noise that seemed more like a combination of two voices than just one, an alto female, and a bass male.

That's really just screwed up.

"I don't have time to deal with you," it spat, shaking its head. "She's coming, and when she does… I don't have time to deal with you." A twisted smile spread across its face. "Come here, so I can take your souls and be done with you."

Caroline opened her mouth to respond; Zero opened his mouth to respond. Nothing came out. Nothing needed to come out.

"Malice…"

"Kirie!"