Notes: My apologies for taking so long to update. My condition hasn't improved yet and it's causing a huge impact on my mental health. I'm so sorry!
Eastern Europe, Village - Present Days
Bela always read about the stages of courtship in her book novels, but none of them could ever had prepared her to meet her brother in law in such strange occasions. Since she started dating Aleena, she assumed it'd eventually happen at some point. Maybe she'd invite Auryk for a dinner in the castle, where she'd formally introduce herself and state her intentions with his sister. But now, they were standing together inside an old warehouse loading her girlfriend's truck with explosives and weapons, before proceeding with their plan to defeat Mother Miranda.
"Don't fuck this up," she lost count of how many times the Novak boy had repeated those words since they left the pub that evening. "I still don't trust you. How can I be sure you and your sisters aren't plotting against us to give Miranda what she wants? After all, you served her for years!"
"You're not your father," Bela finally said something back to him, instead of listening to his insults in absolute silence. He furrowed his brows confused. "I'm not my mother either. She used to serve Miranda, not me."
"But aren't you grateful for the gift she's given you?" He asked sarcastically. "Don't you show her your gratitude, by doing her any favors she asks?"
Gift. Were there any times Bela considered herself blessed with a gift? Differently from her sisters, she had never seen things that way. Living in the castle wasn't enough. That family wasn't enough. Being almost immortal and extremely powerful wasn't enough. When she was turned, Miranda had taken something else other than her humanity. There was always something missing, something broken inside her. She never felt truly complete.
"What gift, Auryk?" Calling him by his name sounded appropriate. That manthing was Aleena's brother, and though Bela didn't care about him, she wanted to show some manners. "Weakness to the cold? Having to consume human blood to live? Having a parasite implanted in your brain?" She had to ask it aloud. "I see no gift, only a curse. And yes, I did favors. To please my mother, not Miranda. Which was a huge mistake either way."
He was in silence for a moment. Bela was good reading people. When their eyes crossed, she felt a connection between them. She could tell how much that boy had been hurt before, trying to earn his father's respect. How much pain he carried because of his failures, his punishments. His tough exterior was only a facade. Pretty much like hers.
"Yeah, I see," Auryk kicked away a stone, before opening the truck's door and retrieving a metal box. He quickly changed the subject. "Here are the tools you'll need to disable the bomb. Are you okay with the instructions?"
"Yes. I'll do it as quick as possible and meet you guys at the ritual site," Bela was prepared to leave when the boy prevented her, calling her back.
"Bela, wait."
And now Auryk called her by her name too. No longer a 'monster' or a 'thing'. He was speaking to her as an equal.
"If something happens to me, I need you to promise you'll take care of my sister."
"You're not dying. Don't be ridiculous."
"I mean it," he continued, his deep blue eyes staring right into Bela's. "She's all I've got and I... well, now she got you too and you can protect her better than I do. Please, promise you'll take her away and keep her safe."
"I promise you," Bela finally answered. "As long as you promise me you'll do your best to live. Aleena loves you, she wouldn't take losing you. Don't do anything stupid."
"Well, I'll try," he nodded as he followed his path, headed to his house. "Good luck, Bela."
"Good luck, Auryk," before vanishing, Bela still yelled. "You'll need it."
Hours had passed since their conversation. Leaving one last fly behind, Bela witnessed as Miranda entered the small house and captured the boy, dragging him to the ritual site. She closed her eyes and clenched her fists in anger. She had to stop this. She had to save the village from Miranda's power. She owed that to her sisters, to her mother, to Aleena... and to herself.
As Bela continued to fly around the village's perimeter, searching for signs of the Alliance, the temperature started to drop a little bit and she could slowly feel its effects on her body. She wore a coat, one of the extra clothes she brought with her.
"No, please," she told herself. "Not now."
After a while, from the cold and from exhaustion, she could no longer shape into flies. She had to continue her path by walking, which meant she'd take even longer to meet Aleena and her sisters.
"She's good with knives... she said that. She's always bragging about it."
The memories of their moments together in the castle gave her strength to continue moving until she found a an aircraft in the fields. Some kind of secret base.
"The Alliance..."
It wasn't safe to strike. Like a cautious predator, Bela waited for them to show any signs of their presence first. Any voices or any soldiers leaving that huge flying machine, that so far she had only seen in books. She moved closer, trying to listen to their conversations or figure out their next steps, but as reached the windows, she noticed the base was empty. Not normally empty but...
"They're all dead," Bela opened the aircraft's door, concluding Miranda had already been there before and killed all the soldiers before they could even react. She probably used another one of her disguises to lure them into a trap.
There was blood everywhere. The smell filled her nose and her senses reminded her she needed to feed. She grabbed one of the soldiers, drinking from his jugular. At least now she'd be temporarily healed from the damage caused by the cold. When she reached the ritual site, she had to be strong again and right now, she wasn't in her best shape.
"Bela," Gustav called her through the ear plug, "I don't see you in the caves. Where are you?"
"At the..." she looked at a laptop screen in front of her, "BSAA's base? Miranda has been here before. She's killed all the soldiers."
"Well, good for us I guess. Now leave, follow to the ritual. It must be about to start. We can disable the bomb later."
"Gustav, wait... there's a lot of information here. About Miranda, the Lords..." Bela was intrigued by all the data she was seeing. A research beyond anything she had imagined before. "Oh my god, the village isn't the only place in the world. Other places, they've also been infected and mutated... and somehow, she seems to be the mastermind behind all of this?"
"Sick. After the ritual, we can retrieve all this data. Something tell me we'll need it for this Alliance to leave us alone for good. Thank you for finding this."
Bela tapped a few more keys on the computer's terminal. A picture of her girlfriend showed up at the screen. She smiled.
Aleena Novak. She was truly special. Half American, half Romanian and with a body that couldn't suffer any side effects from the mutations. She couldn't get killed by any of the creatures. In fact, one of the manners the Alliance planned to use her was to try to control them.
"You're not a tool to be used, love," gathering all her forces, Bela wore one of the soldiers outfits. It was far better than her actual clothes. As they weren't used to that area, it was designed especially to keep them safe from the cold. "You're my Aleena."
Eastern Europe, Ritual Site - Present Days
There were a lot of things I'd rather to be doing. I remembered the calendar on my cell phone, alerting me that next morning I should be in United States already, for my college interview.
They'd probably ask me where I was from, when they noticed my accent. And once I told them, they'd ask me to speak about the place I grew up, or about my daily routine. I'd lie as usual. That was how me and the other villagers were taught to act. Nobody would believe the stories from the village. Everyone would think we were crazy. And if anyone ever dared to investigate, they'd probably blame it on hallucinations, caused by chemicals in the water or a toxic fungus. It was a lot easier than 'the population suffered mutations through the ages, turning them into vampires, werewolves and monsters'.
Yeah. I'd say I was only Aleena Novak, a regular girl who worked on a pub and dreamed to be an artist. I'd skip all the rest and change the subject. I'd comment about the weather.
"Move!" I felt a sharp sickle pressed right against my ribs. Daniela wasn't the one to be taking the whole prisoner act seriously, it was Cassandra. She kept my hands tied behind my back, as she grabbed me hard my the arm and conducted me further to the ritual site.
"Ouch! There's no need to..."
There were some strange and eerie roots emerging from the ground. I assumed them to be the fungus responsible for providing Miranda all her power.
"Don't you even dare to run away," Cassandra threatened me for the tenth time since we left the pub. "Whatever you're planning, I'm not letting you ruin this. You're the main piece in this game."
"I'm not planning to run," I told. Indeed, running away was the last thing going through my mind. I could attempt and save myself, if I wanted to. But my life wasn't the only one at stake. There was Auryk's, the villagers' and Bela's. "I was thinking we should locate a side entrance where we can have access to the ritual, but without being openly seen."
"She's right," Daniela agreed, running her hands through the walls and searching for a secret door. "Miranda's supposed to think I am the traitor. Not you, Cassandra."
"I suggest we change roles. That bitch isn't stupid as you're assuming, she'll get into Daniela's mind faster than I can say 'blood'."
"But you'll have the chance of beating the crap out of her until Bela's here," I said. "What else could you enjoy more?"
"Assuming Bela is still alive and coming," Cassandra scoffed. "We can't count on this part of the plan completely."
I started thinking about the possibility. The sisters were doing their best to hide it, but a temperature change had already started to affect their bodies. In that state, Bela would be unable to fight and defeat any soldiers from the Alliance. She was vulnerable to all sorts of weapons. I felt my chest tightening. Was it the reason why Bela thought I should have the dagger? Did she know she had high chances of dying? Suddenly, I did start to plan to run away and find her but then...
"Here," the youngest sister pressed a stone in the wall, opening a side entrance. "I'm good finding secret passages. Where do you think Bela learned all those making out spots from?"
We both laughed. Cassandra rolled her eyes. We were in some kind of secret laboratory. There was a lot of notes, sketches and jars. Projects Miranda had been developing over the last few decades. The Megamycete, she called it, the fungal root she found when she arrived at this place. The source of all her powers and the mutations. It was easy to get fascinated, and even seduced by that thing. It seemed to find a special manner to gain access to your mind, your conscience.
"Wow..." I ran my hands through a book, there were many pictures showing the implant surgeries Miranda made, describing the procedures. I recognized the girl in one the pictures, it was Daniela. She seemed to be dead. "The specimen was poisoned by Alcina Dimitrescu. Hours later the implantation was made. The mutation already started to develop". There was also another picture of her, one from when she was alive, dated from 1955. Knowing the drama those discoveries could bring to the moment, I immediately closed the book. "We should probably get out of here. This place is giving me chills!"
"I agree," Daniela said. I noticed she was staring at some jars, labeled as 'Cadou', the parasite inside her brain. Somehow, in that moment I knew what she should be thinking. "We need to follow the plan. Right, Cassandra?"
The brunette sister didn't answer. She was too focused on something. A small object in her hand.
"Cassandra?" I called. Approaching, I noticed it was a locket. "We need to go. Now."
"Those bitches..." she gritted her teeth. Her hands were shaking in anger. "They killed her... she killed me! My own mother killed me!"
She kicked a large desk away, shattering it to pieces and spreading all the papers and books around the room.
"Miranda convinced Lady Dimitrescu! She took advantage of her loneliness to manipulate the idea of giving her 'daughters' and she followed it. She killed and transformed us into this!"
The drama I was trying to avoid suddenly came to surface. Those were no news to me. It was easy to connect the dots as soon as you entered that castle and saw the four women standing together. It was obvious they had a twisted view of a family, even when Alcina seemed to really love them. A bond truly existed, but they were forced to that life. Before that, they were somebody else's daughters and sisters. Bela seemed to have realized that already, but her sisters were still in denial.
I took the locket from her hand. There was a picture inside it, a young woman that resembled a lot my friend, Elena Lupu. On the other side, there were three other people I assumed to be her parents and a brother. She also found a book, describing her own procedure as I found Daniela's.
"Cassandra, I know how you must be feeling right now. God, I discovered Miranda caused my mother's death and possibly my father's too because I'm her... vessel or something. And this where we need to focus our anger, on getting a revenge."
"You..." she grabbed me by the neck. "You don't understand. You will never understand! Don't even dare to compare me to you," she lowered her hood and pointed to her scar. "Look at this! It fucking hurts everyday! It controls me sometimes, forces me to do things I don't want to... by impulse, by rage... and my own mother did it to me!"
And this was exactly what was happening right now. The implant inside her brain had been triggered and she was acting merely by instinct.
"Cassandra," Daniela threw something at her. I could tell she was also affected by the discoveries but she was trying hard to keep herself under control. "Let Aleena go. Now! She has nothing to do with this."
Cassandra closed her yellow eyes, taking a deep breath. Then, she released me, throwing me against a cabinet. I hit my head a little bit hard, making me feel dizzy and confused.
Daniela came to check on me and then, she found it inside a small refrigerator nearby. A small plastic bag with three syringes inside. They were all labeled with the three Dimitrescu sisters' names. There was a folded paper too, that she started reading aloud:
"Merging the Vessel's DNA with the Blowfly DNA from the sisters, I was able to obtain satisfactory results. The blowflies are stronger to the cold, being able to survive under lower temperatures for a decent amount of time.
The subjects must still ingest a small amount of human blood on a regular basis to maintain regeneration and shapeshifting properties."
"Wait..." Cassandra grabbed the paper from her hand, "so her blood is the improvement to our bodies? The one we've been waiting for our entire life?"
"Apparently, yes. We should've kidnapped her earlier."
"Girls, are you sure you will really inject this in yourselves right now?" I asked, still recomposing myself. "I mean, it could be a trap Miranda planted, knowing we were coming for her."
"Trap my ass," Cassandra took the syringe and plunged it right into her upper arm. "At least now I'll be capable of murdering her with my bare hands. Alone. I don't even need you idiots' help. To the hell with your stupid plan."
She walked away before we could even witness if she managed to obtain the promised results or turned into ashes. I glanced at Daniela, who stared at her own syringe in her hands, wondering if she should mimic her sister or not.
"I will wait," she concluded with a heavy sigh. "After the battle. Right now, I need to take you to Miranda as a prisoner. I won't ruin the plan. This time Bela will be proud of me."
"Hell yeah, Dani," I smiled. "Guess I'm your prisoner then. Let's go."
Eastern Europe, Caves - Present Days
"Bela, what are you doing?" Gustav asked through the ear plug. "Move to the ritual site, now! The sooner we end Miranda, the sooner Aleena will be safe."
"I'm sorry, little man," Bela took off the small device from her ear. "Everything on its own time."
It was too soon to appear at the ritual site, she could sense it. Through the connection she shared with her sisters, she could sense the battle hadn't even begun. In fact, she could feel Cassandra was having one of her moods. Which could be good during the combat, as long as she didn't act impulsive and stupid as usual.
She walked deeper and deeper into the caves, following the map given by Aleena's brother, Auryk. After all, even with that Alliance's squad being dead, others could come to finish the service. Even Miranda herself could run away and use the explosives in her favor, in case her plans went wrong.
The air was getting colder and colder. Wasn't it by the special outfit Bela had gotten, she would be dangerously hurt by now. She also activated the night vision goggles. Though her abilities provided her a good sight in the dark, that manner it'd be easy to spot the explosives among all those... growing roots?
Bela touched one of them, getting immediately invaded by a vision of how Miranda was controlling it, using it to gain more power, more forces to her ritual. If only she could stop it, Lady Dimitrescu and the other Lords could be saved in time but she was powerless, weak, upon such an unknown organism.
She didn't know much about the fungal root but she knew enough to know it was part of the parasite that was implanted in her skull when she was turned. And if it had the power of enhancing Miranda's strength, who knows what else it could do? In fact, she could already feel it trying to get into her mind. Lure her into embracing her real potential... Bela shook her head, dismissing those feelings. There was no time for that. She continued to walk.
"Touché," she found the core of the bomb, as Auryk showed her on his computer. All she had to do now was to pull down the lever. But before she did, more visions started to play inside her head like a movie. That thing was directly connected to her mind, her conscience. It was trying to show her something...
She saw her previous life, her life as a young woman who lived in a village nearby with her parents. Though they worked hard on their grocery store, they would never be able to afford her studies in the city. Her high intelligence and skills had granted her a spot in the university, which was rare for women on the decade.
"We'll find a way, my little butterfly," her father entered their cozy little house, kissing her forehead after kissing her mother's.
Both women were sitting on the couch, reading novels, their favorite activity to do together. Her eyes were still green. Her hair grew equally on every part of her head. There was no scar or tattoo on her forehead.
"Dad!" She snapped the book shut and scolded the man in a fondly manner. "You know I hate when you call me that. You make me feel like a little girl again!"
"You'll always be my little girl."
"And mine too," her mother pressed her forehead against hers. "Even when the decades come by and you're in your 70s."
Deep down, she wish she didn't have to leave them. She didn't want to move to Castle Dimitrescu in the following days. Mother Miranda had assured them the Countess was formidable, but she was still nervous. She was well-studied but simply mannered. How could she even be a good chambermaid for such a refined woman?
"I'll write you everyday, mama," she promised. "And once I come back, I'm going to finish my studies to grant you both a better life. You're amazing parents, you deserve a lot more than that."
"My love, everything we are, everything we've got... it doesn't matter. You are enough for us. You are our most prized treasure. Always keep that in mind."
Bela felt the tears running down her cheek non-stop. She wanted that back. She wanted that life back. She wanted her mom, her dad, their cozy little house, her humanity...
She watched as the years passed and she never returned home. Her parents received a letter from the Countess, a few months after her departure, informing them of her death during a sudden strike of an infectious disease. She couldn't be taken home for a burial. But Lady Dimitrescu sent them money every month, until they both died. They were never the same. Her father had a heart attack only five years after her death. Her mother lived until her 80s, still calling for her daughter, lonely and sick in a retirement home.
That angered her more than anything. She hated Lady Dimitrescu. She hated Mother Miranda. Somehow, they deserved that fate. Their both deserved to die because of their crazy experiments and all the lives they ruined. If only she used of the same artifacts as Miranda and obtained the fungal root's powers, she could become invincible, indestructible. They could battle like equals. After she defeated Miranda, she could take her title as the new Countess of Castle Dimitrescu. She could rule not only those lands, but all the territory. She could start her small little empire. She could become a Goddess.
But there was Aleena. And the rest of the villagers. They had absolutely nothing to do with her pain, her anger. Her demons were something she had to deal with by herself. They were innocents. They should be able to have the life that was taken from her, and probably from her sisters too. The life Miranda took from so many other people with her experiments.
"Screw up, your fucking messed up root. I'm not falling for your evil tricks!"
Bela pulled down the lever and cut the indicated wires, immediately following through the chain of wires connected to the Lords' houses. She cut and disabled everything she needed.
Now she was ready to leave that creepy cave but before she left, she had one last vision. Something they didn't count on when they elaborated that plan. Aleena was in danger.
Eastern Europe, Ritual Site - Present Days
Since he was a little boy, Auryk had this theory his house was haunted. It was too old. Too many generations of the Novak family had lived there before him, all of them marked by tragedy and doom. Aleena used to say he was a wimp. He probably was. She had always been the bravest and strongest of them. Aleena never feared anything. He would never forget her confidence, her courage to stand up against Lady Dimitrescu for him during the trial. If any of them deserved to survive that night, it was his twin sister.
After he entered home, he tried to act as normal as possible. He started by cleaning the mess Daniela left around the house. The youngest Dimitrescu sister reminded him of Aleena herself. Then, he followed to the basement to collect the empty bottles of alcohol Cassandra consumed. The second Dimitrescu sister also tested each one of the knives they had in the secret storage, using a picture of his beloved father as target. Auryk put them all back into a safe box, except for one.
"This one should stay here," he stared at the ornate dagger right between Adrian's eyes in the portrait. "Masterpiece."
Aleena's bedroom should be a mess. It always was. It wouldn't hurt to clean and organize it, like he had done so many times before. Yet, he stopped himself by the door. Things were different now. His sister had a new life he wasn't part of. A part that should stay private.
She had Bela. Auryk wondered how that relationship even happened. The Dimitrescu daughter was beautiful, he recognized it, but he knew her beauty wasn't the only thing that caught his sister's heart. Aleena definitely needed more than that to fall in love. She should've seen something special, something different from the stories they grew up with. Aleena knew how to see the best side of everyone and that was probably what made her fall in love. Though it was hard to admit it, Auryk decided to trust her. He'd accept her relationship with Bela.
His bedroom was still the same, except for his wardrobe, where Aleena had worked very hard on finding the hidden diaries.
"Oh Leena, I should've told you the truth when I found out. We should've gone to United States sooner."
Auryk had barely started to rearrange his stuff when he heard the noise downstairs. Deep inside, he already knew what it was. Or better, who it was. It was almost polite of Miranda to come to take him so peacefully, without trying to hurt him or use one of her shapeshifting skills. She simply announced she had come to take what belonged to her and he agreed. He followed her to the ritual site, waiting for his incoming fate.
Hours had been passed since he had been trapped in that awful place, tied and suffocated by that heavy toxic air and those fungal roots, that also seemed to be draining his energies even if he wasn't one of the Lords.
Cassandra was the first one to arrive at the scene. What wasn't supposed to be happening. She should be keeping herself out of sight, waiting for the right moment to engage in combat with the Priestess. Daniela should be there first, bringing Aleena.
"You..." Mother Miranda said. "What are you doing here?"
"Surprised to see me, bitch?" The Dimitrescu sister snarled, pulling a sickle from behind her back. "You should, because according to your plans I was supposed to be dead right now. But instead I'm here to settle our score."
"Cassandra, no!" He yelled, in an attempt to fix the situation. "Just let the ritual happen. We agreed on surrendering."
"Change of plans, stupid manthing."
Mother Miranda conjured one of her fungal roots, wrapping it around Cassandra's body. She used her weapon to cut it and set herself free, but it was useless. More roots were growing out of the floor, chasing her around the place. For Mother Miranda's surprise, and Auryk's too, she vanished into a swarm of flies, even when the night air was so cold.
"I see you found my gift, Cassandra," Mother Miranda smirked. "You could at least show some gratitude. I've made you stronger."
"Never again!"
He couldn't spot Cassandra anywhere, as she wasn't using her human form, however Auryk still could listen to her voice.
"I could make you my strongest soldier, my bodyguard. Even if you aren't perfect yet, you could ensure my daughter's protection."
"I'll pass. And we aren't your toys, your experiments to be fucked with. You'll pay for all you've done."
Auryk looked around, searching for his sister. Aleena wouldn't risk everything that way, but he feared she was powerless against the Dimitrescu sisters. He started wishing Bela was there. She was the most responsible of the three, she'd know what to do.
Eastern Europe, Ritual Site - Present Days
"Reckless, impulsive jerk!" I yelled.
"She's going to ruin everything," Daniela complained about her sister, while we watched her fight against Miranda from our hidden spot. I noticed she was shivering in cold. Her breathing was difficult and shallow.
"Are you sure you don't want to take this?" I asked, pointing to the syringe Daniela was carrying. "You're cold and vulnerable. She could easily harm you."
Mother Miranda was having trouble to keep up with Cassandra when she turned into flies. None of her attacks would manage to inflict damage on the Dimitrescu sister and that was an advantage she had. But soon, I figured out the Highest Bitch In Charge could also shape into birds, making the fight very balanced between them.
"It needs to look real, Leena. Or she won't buy our desperation."
"You're right. That, if Cassandra doesn't ruin everything first."
"This is why we needed Bela here. She's the only who can keep Cass under control when she slips."
I started to feel worried about Bela and the rest of our plan. I decided to call Gustav before we proceeded further into my assassination attempt.
"She unhooked the plug," he told me. "The BSAA squad was already dead when she arrived at the camp but... she still wanted to disable the bomb first."
"Perfectionist as usual," I shook my head in denial. Of course Bela was thinking about every detail. What if more BSAA soldiers were monitoring us from afar, ready to detonate the bomb once we were distracted? I only prayed she wasn't going to the same body changes as Daniela, that could be extremely dangerous.
"Gus," I told my best friend. "Proceed with the plan. Bela can handle herself, bring us the truck. We need to act fast."
Daniela entered the scene, dragging me with her sickle deeply buried in my leg. I groaned in pain, but with all those changes we needed to make that seem as real as possible. Besides, now I knew I'd eventually heal I decided to make use of my abilities too.
"I surrender, Mother Miranda," Daniela announced. Seeing me, made Miranda turn back into her human form immediately. "I bring you the Vessel, if you promise to cure my mother."
She stared at us in silence before approaching and touching Daniela's pale face.
"Oh dear," Miranda raised her chin, forcing her to look at her. "Aren't you sweet? But you won't need your mommy anymore. Instead, you'll be joining her!"
Using her enhanced strength, the woman started to squeeze the Daniela's throat to the point she couldn't breathe. Differently from Cassandra, she was weakened, which meant she couldn't transform into flies or regenerate. If nothing was done, her head would be separated from her body and she'd die.
"No!" Cassandra re-appeared, landing on the top of Mother Miranda and throwing her away from Daniela. Using her sickle, she was finally able to inflict the Black God some harm. "Don't you dare to hurt my sister, bitch! Grab your vessel and leave us alone."
"Daniela..." holding my injured leg, I crawled to Daniela's side and grabbed the syringe on the floor. "Here, take it."
I injected the content on her upper arm, hoping it wasn't too late. She was too weak from the cold and harmed from Miranda's attack. I removed my jacket, wearing it around her body.
"You have to go now. In a few minutes my friend Gustav will be here. Stay inside the truck and you'll be okay."
"But Leena..."
"I can take the bitch on my own. You've done your part very well. I'm proud of you."
I stroked her red hair and she nodded in agreement. After I helped her to get back on her feet, she moved away from the ritual site.
I sat down, observing the battle between Miranda and Cassandra, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. The Dimitrescu sister was getting exhausted, she couldn't take any strength from the fungal roots as Miranda did. It was a matter of time before she was killed.
I swore I'd do my best to protect Bela's sisters too. After all, she did everything to protect me back in the castle. I owed her that. It was time for me to act.
"It's between you and me now, Miranda," I announced as I stood up and gazed into her deep eyes, they had acquired a tone of black like a bottomless lake.
"My child..." she smirked. "I've been waiting for you for so long. So many failures, so many tries and now you're here, in my arms."
"NOT FOR TOO LONG!"
I remembered how I was tormented by the stories regarding that woman. I remembered the manner how she plotted to mutate me, killing my mother in process. I remembered everything she caused to Bela, her sisters and the other villagers.
In one move, I took the dagger from my jeans', stabbing her right into the heart. Miranda let out a loud growl in pain as she started to convulse and thrash beneath me. Black blood started to jet out from her chest and her eyes rolled inside her sockets.
"Aleena!" Auryk grinned. "You did it! You killed her."
"Damn," Cassandra complained, between pants. "I was going to finish that bitch. Bela... she gave you the dagger."
Speaking of Bela, my beautiful girlfriend arrived just in time to see my victory and watch Miranda's final moments. Even wearing one of the Alliance's special uniforms, she looked stunning as usual.
"I did, Bela!" I smiled. "Just like we trained back in the pub."
"You did it, love..." she smiled back as she started coming in my direction. But then, she stopped. Her golden yellow eyes widened in pure fear. "You... oh no."
I looked back. Mother Miranda was far from dead. Instead, she was gaining a new form. Something terrible. Something monstrous. Something deadly. Completely different from her usual gorgeous features, she had a skeletal body, with long and sharp claws and three pairs of wings.
"What the actual fuck?" I asked.
She summoned a giant ball of energy, throwing all of us away. By my side, Auryk was lying unconscious. I had to get him out of there before she hurt him. After all, she still needed my twin's blood for the ritual.
"Cassandra..." Though I couldn't see her, I begged. "Get Auryk out of here. Hide him somewhere safe, where she can't complete the ritual."
"Got it."
My brother vanished in the middle of her swarm of flies. Now, I just needed to earn time before Gustav was here with the truck. We'd set the roots on fire and attack Miranda with our weapons once she got weaker. Bela helped me to stand up again and started to drag me away using her flies too, but she stopped midway. Even in that outfit, she was weakened by the cold.
"Fuck!" She cursed. "We gotta hide until I can transform again. It can take a few minutes. This is all my fault! In the cave, I had this vision. I saw her getting this form if she got stabbed. I should be here sooner but the cold..."
"This isn't your fault okay? We should have predicted that. She's too intelligent and powerful," I spoke. "I... I need to end what I started."
"Are you insane, love? With Miranda in that form, you can't even approach her without getting yourself killed."
"Bela... I love you."
I desperately grabbed her face and pulled her for a kiss. I knew it could be our last, so I savored every second, every move. I lowered one of my hands, injecting Miranda's serum on Bela's arm while she was distracted. It'd take a few minutes before she got stronger, this time would be enough for my plan.
"What is that?" She immediately pulled away.
"Something Miranda created to make you stronger," I told her. "Your sisters will explain better. Now go, find them."
"Aleena, I won't let you..."
"It's my fate to kill her or die trying. I'm sorry."
"No!"
I ran back to Miranda before she could do anything to stop me. The Priestess tried to capture me with one of her fungal roots but I managed to deflect her attacks, stabbing them with the dagger. They instantly turned into ash.
"It's over, Miranda," I shouted.
"Yes, indeed," she spoke, moving closer to me.
I felt my heart thundering inside my chest as I risked one last attack, like I was used to practice at the forest. I threw the knife in Miranda's direction but it never reached the target, I miscalculated her long claws. They hit the blade, throwing it far away from where we were standing.
"It's over for you, Aleena Novak."
Those were the last words I heard before my ears starting buzzing and my eyesight got blurred. I didn't understand what was happening. I could no longer breathe. I looked down, noticing how her claws were deeply buried inside my chest. The blood had soaked my clothes.
"Aleena!" I heard Bela's voice calling for me distantly, but I couldn't answer. I couldn't say goodbye or tell her how much I loved her. I couldn't say I was sorry for failing. The world went black before I could even see her golden yellow eyes one last time.
I was dead.