Authors Note: And now we return to the mess that is Kai Palakiko and her group of Witches + 2 Guys.

Like the last chapter, I cut this one in half, the other half will be up soon.

Time continued to fly as preparations were made. There were many things that had to be done before anything could truly happen, before they could lay a siege on DWMA. People needed to be contacted, alliances needed to be strengthened, followers reminded of who they followed, not to mention the equipment they would need, the training some would have to be given, even if it was only going to be a rushed crash course of how to fight, how to shoot a gun or use a knife and so on.

Kai wasn't exactly a patient person, and so the wait was driving her absolutely mad.

They had to be careful not to let the agents of Death to find them, to keep them off their trail as they made their way to the Acolytes, and eventually that had brought them to the heart of Russia. So far, Kai wasn't exactly impressed. Not by the landscape and it's frigid cold, not by the people who she was forced to accompany, Medusa's tools. They were annoying at best, unbearable at their worst. She doubted they knew just how much effort Kom was putting in keeping her from actually hurting them despite how much her instincts told her to drown the bumbling idiots in the nearest pool.

Kom was the only one in this group that she could actually stand to be around for a long period of time, and she even felt a little grateful that he was coming along with her down this winding yellow bricked road to madness.

But that didn't mean that Kai didn't hate the group any less with Kom there. Because, by God she hated all of them. There was nothing that she wanted more than to done with Medusa and her gaggle of goons. But no, she had to sit and let her rage simmer because cooperation was necessary or something. Medusa was offering a way to get Maleko back to her while destroying the shitty school for taking him from her in the first place.

Despite how much Kai hated Medusa, she understood that if she went with just her and Kom, the chances of anything working out right was low. It was unlikely that she would be able to get Maleko back unharmed, it was unlikely she would get out of there unharmed. But with an army? With the Acolytes?

Ooooh, Death and his bastards were going to know true terror.

So for the time being Kai would sit and let her rage and hate slowly boil while following along to Medusa's whims. It was only temporarily, once she got what she wanted, she'd have no need or reason to follow along with the snake, and certainly no want for her company. Medusa was disposable once her use was fulfilled, and it was unlikely that Medusa even knew how limited value she held.

The group had gotten a hotel when they had come to Russia, currently the pool was closed for the night but that didn't stop Kai from leaving her room at one in the morning and sinking down to the bottom of the pool. She had spent far too long in the air during the flight to Russia, and even though she was surrounded by snow and ice, there was nothing more soothing than being completely submerged in water. It was her own little sanctuary where no one else could reach her.

Medusa couldn't get to her here, neither could the other witches, the werewolf, or even Kom. She was away from the rest of the world down here.

A small batch of bubbles escaped into the chlorine filled pool as Kai opened her mouth to exhale. The chemicals burned her skin only for the water to soothe and heal her in an endless loop of pain and relief as she sulked on the pool's floor.

She missed Maleko.

That was an understatement. Kai wanted him back desperately. The more time that passed with the two apart like this, the more unhinged she was becoming, it was as if the glass of her mind was starting to crack, ready to shatter at any moment. It was taking all that she had to hold on. Maleko had always kept her grounded, had always been her rock, but now the ground had been torn out from under her and she was doing everything she could not to fall into the abyss.

It was clear, even to Kai, that she was inching closer and closer to falling back into old habits that she had broken free of since she had found Maleko. Could feel the whispers in her ears, the thin tendrils wrapping around her body and bind. Alcohol helped to stave off the madness, but it would only treat the symptoms and being drunk twenty-four/seven was not going to last as a fix.

She had to get Maleko back, if not for his own safety, than for Kai's own wellbeing.

It frustrated her, scared her. Kai knew she was falling apart, a card house touched by the breeze, a cracked dam ready to burst. It frustrated her that she was afraid. Afraid of what was going to happen when the dam broke and all that she had spent hundreds of years contained within her would spill out. Water was dangerous, water couldn't be stopped. Even Maleko could be hurt when that damn finally gave up.

No… no. Kai would sooner kill herself than ever hurt him.

A shadow fell over the water, followed by a distorted voice that dragged Kai out of her thoughts. A familiar shape was standing at the edge of the pool, peering into the water to look at her. A wave of annoyance rushed through Kai and she looked away. Maybe if she stayed under the water then he would go away and leave her alone. Maybe… no… she knew him, knew he was willing to wait hours for her to come up.

With a powerful kick at the cement bottom of the pool, she swam up to the top a short distance from the pools edge and emerged from the water with about as much grace as a three legged deer trying to dance. On purpose, of course. The large splash she had intended to make hit Kom's feet and he stumbled backwards a little as Kai turned around in the water to fix him with a hard glare. It wasn't just Kom either it seemed, Eruka was standing behind him, hat in her hands and looking nervous to be around her.

"What do you want?" Kai asked.

Kom gave her a sheepish smile and sat down at the pools edge, letting his feet dip into the water. "Sorry to intrude," he said and waved Eruka over. "We just wanted to talk, check in on you. Fiigured you'd want to talk to someone who's not a snake."

She could believe Kom wanting to, but it was doubtful that Eruka was coming to see how she was doing without a reason to do so.

Giving a sardonic smile at the notion that she would even want the company of any of them, she let herself sink deeper into the water until only her head was above the ripples. "Well we talked. You two can go now."

They didn't go away and it irritated Kai even more, but she had to admit it was interesting that Eruka wasn't taking this chance to back off and go back to her dog. But she watched as Eruka drew closer and sat down beside Kom. The frog witch looked nervous, trying to find the right words before finally speaking up.

"You and Maleko… you care about him a lot," she said slowly, as if she was trying to find the right words to use. "It's cute, actually. The way that you care about him. I never would have thought of you as such a motherly person."

Kai glared at her, clearly unamused by the topic at hand, "I care about him? Huh, what a groundbreaking revelation," she responded dryly. She and Maleko were close, she cared about the child she was taking such desperate measures to rescue? That was about as obvious as saying that fire was hot.

But Kom was laughing at how Eruka was stumbling through an attempt at a conversation, at how Eruka appeared nervous. And it was right for her to be nervous. She was facing Kai, who had been in a foul mood since the start of this little 'journey' of theirs. She was facing a witch who's magic centered around water, was facing said witch at a pool surrounded by water. If she said the wrong thing, the chances were high that she might get killed. One wrong word and Kai wouldn't think twice about drowning that pretty little face of hers.

Then again, Kom was here and he would probably hold her back, and credit had to be given to Eruka for being here. It was brave to come down and face her. Brave and foolish. Who knew, maybe the Frog Witch had a pair hidden down there after all.

"Sorry. It's just… strange? I know I don't know you all that well, but even I know you're the living definition of a misanthrope," Eruka wrung her hands together and looked for Kom for reassurance before continuing. "You hardly ever came to meetings with the other witches, but as soon as you come with Maleko, you're… different. You're not as quick to lash out… and just… how did he make you nicer?"

Kai waited until she was sure that Eruka was finished talking before she swam up to the pools edge, gripping the ladder with one hand and staring up at Eruka impassively. "Sorry, but you're not privy to that kind of information. That's something for people I can trust and like, and I don't like you nor do I trust you."

From his spot, Kom laughed at that, "Sorry, Eruka. You need to be a level four friend for her to tell you her tragic backstory. Right now you're probably negative four." He laughed harder as Eruka puffed her cheeks out in frustration, a face much like what Maleko would often make. It made Kai's expression soften a little.

Why was Eruka even asking these things? It's not as though she actually cares about Kai's past, about Maleko. It wasn't any concern of hers, the prying brat.

Though… Eruka wasn't wrong, either. In fact, she had been pretty on point. Kai couldn't deny that she hated people, society, didn't like involving herself with them, misanthropic was an accurate term when it came to her. She hated everyone, witches, sorcerers, Kishin eggs, monsters, humans… everyone. She held some kind of grudge against the whole world.

It was no wonder that to an outsider, her suddenly seeming 'softer' and 'kinder' was a surprise. Honestly, Kai hadn't even realized that her harsh attitude easing up had become so apparent. Sure, she kept her irritation and quick temper in check when Maleko was around and when she was at home to keep the people from growing suspicious. She didn't want Maleko to take after her, she didn't want him to look at her and think that he wanted to be like her. But had it really been so drastic a change that others noticed?

She glanced up at the frog who was standing by the edge of the pool. If she had to be truthful than Eruka was probably the only one out of Medusa's group she could probably put some trust in. The frog hated Medusa and feared her and didn't even want to be a part of this at all, but was forced to be involved. She didn't want to be Kai's enemy, and she was usually well-mannered to Maleko during the meetings that Kai would attend.

"Maybe I'll tell you how Maleko and I met one day," she said simply.

She pushed herself out of the pool, wedging herself between Kom and Eruka and ignoring her friend when he offered a hand to help her up. With hardly more than an afterthought, the water reacted to her commands and flew off her, spraying right at Eruka and Kom while leaving her only a little damp.

"I'm going back to my room, you two can stay and play in the water or whatever," she said to the two as she made her way towards the doors. The heavy glass door pushed open and she trudged down the halls.

No one was up and about at this hour, no one to ask why she was wet and smelled of chlorine. She felt a little bit… lighter. Loathed to admit it as she may be, maybe talking with Eruka and Kom had been helpful, even if it was only a little bit. She felt more determined to find Maleko.

Maleko had always been such a cheerful boy, even when she had just met him. He was resourceful, had to be with how long he had survived before Kai had entered his life. Who knew how long he had lived in the wilderness before they crossed paths. Long enough that his development had been stunted so much that he did not understand human behavior, understand human language or norms.

Just thinking back to when she tried to teach him how to wear clothes, how much he despised them at first and preferred to run around naked as can be, it made Kai laugh. He hated baths at first, too. Didn't like being dunked in water nor the soaps and shampoos. The worst, of course, had been trying to cut his hair. The white mane had been about halfway down his back, full of tangles and the jungle, and the boy had absolutely refused to sit still for anyone to cut it. It had taken a good hour and half for her to get him to sit and not squirm before she even got to start cutting.

(He's strong) echoed in her head. Strong, whatever the school does to him, he can survive and he will come out stronger. He can endure whatever they throw at him until she finds him.

A smile found its way to her face as she entered her dark hotel room, unable to hide the way that thinking of him made her feel warm and happy inside, made her feel at peace. Turning on the lights, the room was dimly illuminated and her smile fell at the small figure on her bed.

"Medusa."

The witch gave her a smile and smoothed out her outfit. "Kai, nice of you to return to your room," she greeted as she hopped off the bed. "We've work to get done right now."

Kai didn't move and crossed her arms over her chest. "What kind of work is it now?"

Medusa gave a happy hum. Whatever she had been up to since they got to Russia, it was pleasing the snake and that only made the tendrils inside of her to twist even more. "All our work has finally got attention. I've been able to contact the Acolytes, they're willing to meet with us, meet with you." She emphasized as she began to circle Kai. "We're going to go and say hello at their upcoming meeting, so I need you looking and acting your best."

"If this is all a convoluted way of asking for us to give each other makeovers, I'm rejecting that right now," Kai cut in bluntly, but she made her way to sit on the floor when Medusa gestured for her to do so, watching as the snake climbed onto the bed to sit behind her.

Thin and small fingers began to twist into her hair, pulling at the knots and messing around as though to find some kind of style that could fit her needs in impressing the Acolytes. "I just need you looking professional is all," Medusa answered, "It's important that our allies get a good first impression of you, and how you look will affect that first impression. Since we can't expect help from the rest of the witches, the Acolytes will be crucial in your plans. I need you to ensure they swear loyalty."

Kai growled but didn't move. Medusa was right, the Acolytes were crucial, they were the army they would need to fight the DWMA. Humans, not Kishin eggs, not monsters. Normal humans with 'pure' souls that can't be hunted. People that the meisters and weapons would be conflicted about in fighting and how to fight.

But, she wasn't entirely looking forward to dealing with the Acolytes, not again. She left them all those years ago for a reason, after all. Well, the members she had been with were all long dead, maybe the modern Acolytes wouldn't be such a bore.

So long as they got her Maleko back, it didn't matter.

-0-

Before long the days had begun blurring together and soon it was the night to meet with the Acolytes. Kai didn't want to go. The idea of heading straight into a meeting of a bunch of zealot cultists wasn't exactly high on her list of things she wanted to spend her night doing. Even though she knew how crucial and important it was to get them on their side, she wasn't really looking forward to it at all. As Medusa began spending the day preparing for what they would be doing, plans for in case things went sour, Kai felt everything start to go stir crazy inside of her. She had to get out of that hotel and take a breath fresh air.

In the end that 'breath of fresh air' was a bar downtown.

Dressed in a double breasted cardigan coat and pair of jeans, she shivered against the chill of the air. She never could get used to the cold, especially not after spending most of her life in warm countries and places. She was sure that Maleko wouldn't be bothered by the cold at all, his blood was like a furnace.

Kai had found herself at one corner of the bar, settled down on a stool as she held a bottle of Jever in her hands. Or more accurately, it was her third bottle of Jever. She could feel the edges of a buzz starting to kick in, but for the most part she was still pretty sober. Hopefully that would be changed before the night was done.

The bar wasn't too crowded, but there was enough people in it to be loud. A TV hung on one of the walls, some rerun of a local football game was being played. Not that Kai could understand what was going on in the game, though she could speak Russian, she had never really payed much head to sports to know how the game was going. Besides, most of her effort was spent on making sure she said the phrases 'Get me another' and 'I'd like a—' which would be accompanied by a name of some alcoholic drink or beer or something.

Speaking of beverages, her bottle was magically empty again.

Waving down the bartender, it wasn't long until she had another bottle of Jever placed before her and her wallet was a little lighter. Kai easily pulled the metal cap off and took a sip.

Her thoughts drifted back to Medusa. Why wasn't the snake just letting her go and storm the school and get her kid back? She had the magic to do so, there were plenty of pipes under the town full of water just waiting to be broke free and put to good work, and even without the pipes and water in the town, people had enough water in them.

She just wanted Maleko back, was that too much to ask?

Growling, Kai grabbed her bottle and tilted her head back as the bitter liquid ran down her throat. If this kept up, if Medusa kept playing games, stalling… well she was disposable. Kai wasn't an idiot, she knew that Medusa was doing this for her own goals, she had little interest in getting Maleko back unharmed. She was just using Kai to get the Acolytes, and was going to use the Acolytes for whatever the hell Medusa planned to do now that her Kishin planned had failed.

Kai was going to have to get rid of Medusa before the snake could try and get rid of her. That much was certain.

A hand landed on her shoulder, breaking Kai from her train of thoughts. A tall man with a handsome face and black hair was smiling down at her. By all accounts he was a pretty good looking guy, had a charming smile, too. "What's a beauty like you doing all alone?" he asked, his voice rough as he spoke his native tongue.

Kai shrugged his hand off, her glare as cold as the icy winds of the north, "Because I want to be alone." She responded in Russian for him.

Her attitude didn't seem to affect him at all, the man just laughed and took a seat next to her, setting his bottle of Bud beside her Jever. He was all smiles, body turned to face her fully. "You don't look like you're from around here. Are you visiting our humble town, or did you just move in?"

It was clear that he wasn't taking the hint that Kai didn't want him here. "Passing through."

"I see. Will you be staying long?" the man asked as he took a sip of his Bud Lite.

Kai contemplated how to answer, what kind of response would be best to get rid of this annoyance without causing too much of a scene. It was clear that he was either too thick skulled to take the hint that she didn't want him around her, or was just refusing to acknowledge it. Maybe she should be blunt and tell him to fuck off.

The hand returned to her shoulder before she could make her decision, and suddenly he was closer, close enough for her to smell the alcohol on his breath. "By the way, can I ask your name?"

All she wanted was to get drunk and this man was ruining that plan. Time to say screw it and use force, and with that she let her soul protect go away for a brief moment.

His hand had gone tense, shaking and trembling as it was forcibly pulled back, though no one was even touching him. The expression on his face was clear fear, but his mouth wouldn't move. Kai watched with a bored expression as the man, awkwardly and wobbly, got off his stool and stumbled away. All he was right now was a meat puppet, the water in his muscles, his blood and his skin were acting as the strings as she forced him to walk away.

The man would have probably screamed if he could. Good thing Kai wasn't letting him.

Once he was out the door and out of her range of vision did she cut the strings and put her soul protect back up. Better safe than sorry should there have been any meisters in the area. Though running into one wasn't a bad idea, it'd give her someone to kill, to let out all her frustrations on.

The man's screams were muffled by the music and chatter of the bar and by the brick wall between them as he ran off, leaving Kai to drink the rest of her Jever in peace.

No one seemed to have noticed that odd display and she was glad for that. Fewer witnesses to start questioning and whispering, fewer people to kill off. She could drink in peace and hopefully be so smashed by the end she wouldn't be dragged to the meeting.

But fate was not her ally.

Finishing off her bottle, she was about to order another when another hand hit her in the back, not hard enough to be an attack, but it was a friendly pat with a bit too much force that nearly had her fall out of her chair.

Whirling around, she found her glare locked in the mismatched eyes of the wolfman.

"Free," Kai greeted curtly, going back to face the bartender and to try and get his attention so she could have another drink. He seemed to be ignoring her now, great.

The immortal took a seat next to her on the barstool. "Medusa had me and Eruka out looking for you, since you up and vanished. We're supposed to be going to the meeting soon," he explained and she didn't ask. "Saw a guy run away screaming about witchcraft. Your work?"

"He's not wrong, it was witchcraft," Kai remarked dryly.

Free laughed at that, a loud and annoying laugh and giving her another hearty pat on the back. Kai wished he would stop acting like they were friend.

But it was clear the bartender had no intention of giving her any more drinks, not that she understood why. It didn't matter, no more drinks meant she had no reason to be here anymore. Damn shame that she hadn't even had enough to get a full on buzz. The mild fuzziness would wear off before they even got back to the hotel. Critical mission failure.

Kai stood up from her stool and took a deep breath with her eyes closed. "Let's get going, mutt," she muttered to Free as she walked away from the bar, the large man following behind her.

As they left the bar, the sound of glass breaking and screams filled the bar, the vast amount of alcohol spraying everywhere and mixing together on the floor with the glass shards, not a bottle left untouched.

Authors Note

As always, let me know what you think, anything you think I can do to improve this story and so on.