Icy Vengeance
Chapter 3: Sacrificing the One
Mariana stared at her sister; a look of pure horror and grief etched in her silver eyes. She couldn't believe how quickly her life was spiraling downward! First she and her friends are dragged into an unwarranted war; then one of her best friends is killed and there was nothing she could do about it and now her sister had been forcibly turned against them. Vienta had been taken advantage of as she grieved over the loss of her lover Lustros; and was now eyeing her former comrades with a look of hunger, malice and absolutely no regret.
The Mystic Mermaid gulped as Vienta, the Alpha Strigoi and his "children" began flying toward Aarde, Astraios and herself at incredible speed. She barely felt herself being lifted away from an oncoming clawed hand. Mariana looked up to see that Astraios had flown in and pulled her out of danger. Glancing down she noticed that Aarde had taken off, strong legs moving him swiftly away.
"Mariana," Astraios's charismatic and slightly hardened voice snapped her back to reality. "Are you ready?" He asked, gently tightening his grip on her slim arm.
"Yes," she replied, her voice getting a cold edge all of its own. Soaring through the air; Astraios pulled back his arm then flung Mariana forward.
Mariana stretched out her arms toward two Strigoi who were flying close to ocean awaiting orders from their master. In one swift motion she knocked them into the water, hands locked around their throats, eyes ablaze with silver fury. Together the three magical creatures plummet into the harsh, unforgiving waters. To the sorceress of any and all things water; the ocean had a calming effect allowing her to control her adrenaline rush and focus on the task at hand. And while the ocean is what Mariana called home, to the Strigoi, the cold shock of the water caused temporary paralysis. It was like a slow seeping poison, and it gave Mariana enough time to murmur an incantation that would strip them of their Dark magic.
The Strigoi let out garbled screams as they struggled to fight back. But their efforts were to no avail. In the water the Mystic Mermaid clearly had the upper hand and she planned on using that fact to its fullest advantage. Her beautiful eyes blazed silver flames as she yelled out; "Uthe Zorchaicos!!"
The Strigoi shuddered and convulsed. Their glittering crimson eyes turned solid black as an aura of darkness pulsed from them; streaming from the eye sockets and dissipating shortly after being touched by the pure magic of good that resonated in the water. Once the streaming black light faded, the Strigoi's bodies began to change. To Mariana's surprise and slight horror, the grayish alabaster skin of the demons softened to the warm pink flush of a human's coloring. Eyelids closed over innocent blue and brown eyes. Mariana's alarm heightened as the humans went limp and began to sink. Swiftly she swam after them, a thought crossing her mind. "These Strigoi were merely possessed humans! Innocent mortals who were victimized! What kind of monster is the Alpha Strigoi?"
Her slender hands grasped the clothes the drowning humans were wearing and swiftly swam up to the surface, placing them on the shore. The Mystic Mermaid studied the unconscious humans. One was male, the other female. Both were quite young. Perhaps they were lovers? While Mariana didn't know that the humans' history; she did know that both weren't breathing. Placing her hands over their mouths, she willed the water out of their lungs and onto the grass. As she watched their chests rise and fall with air, Mariana felt a sharp pain lance through her left side.
Gasping, Mariana clutched her side and looked down to see scarlet blood seep through her hands and down her turquoise tail. Quickly she healed it however the wound did not completely disappear; it left behind a livid red scar on from her waist to the first curves of her tail. Healers could never completely restore themselves to perfection; it was just a natural price for the healers to pay. Out of the corner of her eye, Mariana noticed a giant harpoon that was slowly sinking beneath the ocean's surface.
"Stupid mermaid," A voice snarled. Looking up, Mariana noticed a Strigoi hovering over her. He was bald with a muscular form. Large arms were crossed over a leather vest and his red eyes sneered down at her. "Wasting our dark magic like that." She looked quizzically at him. "After a certain period of time these humans," here the Strigoi spat his final word as if it were repulsive. "Become our brethren." Mariana's eyes became etched with pain as they flickered toward her sister in the sky. Vienta was attacking Aarde. And the blows she was dealing him were relentless.
"You should have left those vermin in the water," the Strigoi spat as he eyed the unconscious humans. His hateful words snapped Mariana's gaze towards him. She scowled up at him. "Rescuing these mortals is not a decision I regret making!"
The Strigoi regarded her coolly. "Oh really?" he asked. "Even though they could have killed you?"
"Who's to say you would have treated me differently?" The Mystic Mermaid sneered.
The Strigoi's lip curled into a smirk. "That is true," he conceded. "And I highly doubt I would want to be saved." Turning to fly back to his brethren; the Strigoi paused, looked at Mariana and said, "The period of time I mentioned earlier? Once a new Strigoi kills, he or she cannot revert back to being a human." Not bothering to relish at the look of horror on the Mystic Mermaid's pretty face, the Strigoi flew away.
Mariana looked towards the battle in the sky. From her vantage point in the waters it was difficult for Mariana to pinpoint her sister; there were numerous amounts of demons flying about in the sky attacking both Astraios and Aarde. She raised an eyebrow, her horror briefly replaced by miff. "What, am I viewed as so weak I'm not even worth fighting against?" Quickly she dismissed her bitterness and continued scanning the skies for her sister.
Finally she spotted Vienta's shock of violet hair. The now evil Mystic Sprite reared back, about to hurl her deadly wind blades at Aarde who was too distracted batting off Strigoi to pay her notice. Remembering her attacker's parting words, Mariana leaped back onto the land, her tail transforming into legs and screamed, "Vienta, no!!"
Hearing her sister's voice; Vienta froze for a moment, her old self flashing over her malicious glare. Her hesitation gave Astraios an opening who seized the precious few seconds he had to barrel into Vienta's side, the wind blades missing Aarde by mere inches.
Vienta lay dazed, barely hearing Astraios's pleas for her to come to her senses. Instead a haughty, gravelly voice crept into her mind. "Yes, my dear," the voice whispered. "Come to your senses and continue in aiding us as we bring down the Mystics!" A shadow fell over her eyes as she smiled and answered, "Yes my master." With amazingly increased reflexes, she grabbed Astraios by the throat and flung him into Aarde, the two male Mystics striking the ground painfully. "Vienta stop this!" Aarde yelled as he struggled to dodge her vicious blows. Trying to get in an attack using a thorny vine; the Mystic Minotaur instead had to dodge a flame ball Astraios attempted to strike Vienta with yet watched it get redirected by her wind toward his comrade.
Meanwhile Mariana who had seen the shadow that slid over Vienta's eyes knew that her sister was under the mind control of the alpha Strigoi. She slunk toward the demon who was flying high above the battlefield simply observing. Vienta's blood still dripped from his claws, his tainted aura nearly asphyxiating Mariana who was on the ground.
Renowned as a healer, Mariana truly preferred to use her magical gifts for treating wounds and as a last resort for violence. However the alpha Strigoi had one of her friends murdered and now he simply watched as her possessed sister batter her two friends. The Water Sorceress was not going to stand for that. Closing her eyes, Mariana summoned all of the magic that resided within her very being.
She felt the cool rush of water magic surging through her veins to her fingertips. Water mingled with silver pulses of magic as it swirled around Mariana's hands. The water became colder and harder. Eventually Mariana was in control of thousands of shards of ice; each one as sharp as a dagger. When Mariana opened her eyes, they were pools of blazing silver zeroing in on the alpha Strigoi. With a powerful sweep of her arms, the Mystic Mermaid sent the ice shards upward, a reverse shower of unyielding glass knives about to do some serious damage to the demonic leader.
The alpha Strigoi, caught off guard by the thousands of shards of ice that blocked his view of the battlefield was forced to endure being cut by many of Mariana's creation before finding an open window in her surprise attack and put up a shield that bounced off the rest. Grinding his teeth in frustration at himself for overlooking the Mermaid's ability's as that of a mere healer, the alpha Strigoi let out a roar, his eyes glowing blood red as he dove toward Mariana with a speed that would have rivaled Lustros's power.
He knocked Mariana to the ground, pinning her to the earth by her throat. The Mermaid's arms began to flail as she tried to shove the large demon off. Oxygen could not reach her lungs; her mind began to shut down. In her haze Mariana summoned a jewel encrusted dagger, its blade made of enchanted ice. Using whatever energy that wasn't sapped out of her body; Mariana thrust her arm upward, the daggering sinking into the alpha Strigoi's flesh, a point of light touching the core of darkness that replaced a heart.
Unused to such pure light magic, the alpha Strigoi recoiled from Mariana as if burned. He screamed as he felt a swift coldness sweep through him. He was going to be turned into ice from the inside out! Growling at the fact that he was going to be severely weakened the alpha Strigoi made one last desperate attempt to take Mariana down. As the Mystic Mermaid struggled to catch her breath, the demon ripped through her side reopening her wound and filling her blood with a slow-seeping paralysis poison. Mariana collapsed back onto the rocky surface, her silver eyes blank. Her awareness of her surroundings faded rapidly. Mariana barely heard the shouts of her comrades; barely felt the warmth of the rising sun. She just made out the flapping wings of the Strigoi retreating. Feeling her body being lifted, Mariana's last thought before sinking into the darkness was, 'Vienta have you come back to us?'
"Aarde groaned as he sank to the cave floor. Astraios had spotted the cave as each side of the war raced away from the battlefield. Aarde closed his eyes and tentatively flexed a hand. Very little pain sprung forth which was truly a wonder seeing as how Vienta perpetually smashed it underneath her heeled boot.
The Mystic Minotaur opened one eye and watched as Astraios healed Mariana. Aarde had been truly surprised as his normally tranquil and somewhat timid friend find the audacity to attack the leader of the Strigoi. He heard Mariana stir and ask Astraios weakly, "Where's my sister? Has Vienta come back to the side of the Light?" Aarde cringed. How exactly would Astraios be able to say no? Silence rang throughout the cave. Not good, Aarde thought. Astraios is hesitating! Mariana can see right through that!
'You'll see her soon," was the Mystic Phoenix's reply. "You need to rest now Mariana; that way your body will be able to heal completely.'
"Apparently Mariana heeded her friend's words for Aarde sensed Astraios slump to the ground next to him. He turned to his friend and asked, 'how is she?'
Astraios grimaced. 'It's a good thing she herself is a full-fledged healer,' The Mystic Phoenix began. 'I have healed her superficial wound. As for the internal damage, that is all up to her.' The two males looked at the Mystic Mermaid who was lying on the cold cave floor bathed in a shimmering turquoise light. 'Aarde my friend,' Astraios spoke. 'I have a feeling the fate of the world is going to rest in our hands for quite some time.'
"Mariana floated in a vast realm of darkness. Her eyes were closed as she floated. She was neither hot nor cold. She did not feel loneliness or realize she was alone. She felt no fear. All Mariana could feel was serenity, a complete sense of peace.
'Kill me,' a female voice pleaded.
Mariana opened her eyes and frowned. 'What?'
'Kill me!' The haunted voice resonated through the recesses of Mariana's mind. It seemed to be filled with sobs. 'Please Mariana my dear sister, kill me!!'
Mariana was fully alert in her subconscious state of mind now. 'Vienta what….?'
Vienta materialized before her. She collapsed to the shadowy ground, her huddled form shaking. Slowly she raised her head towards her sister. Her eyes were no longer fierce and blood red; but terrified amber. 'Please Mariana,' She whimpered. 'Kill me! It's the only way I can be saved!'
'No Vienta!' Mariana pleaded. 'There has to be another way to free you of the Strigoi's grasp!'
'Even if there was another way,' Vienta began. 'The fact that I've been on the side of evil, I don't think my soul would be able to take that.'
Mariana bit her lip. 'Vienta, I don't think I'm emotionally strong enough to do any kind of harm to you. Please don't let this be the only way out.'
Vienta sighed as she stood up and glided across the floor toward her sister. The Mystic Sprite embraced the Mermaid. After a moment she pulled back and as she looked her sister in the eye she said, 'Sometimes you have to sacrifice the one in order to save everyone else.'
Mariana's only response were the streams of silver that ran down her cheeks.
Sorry that this tale is not done yet! My computer's being evil so this will have to do for now. The modern day action picks up next chapter. Promise.