In which we find out exactly what is wrong with Alice...

APOV

I wonder if this is how a ghost feels, or an out of body experience. Sure I'm still actually in my body but that's just a minor detail really.

I can see and feel everything that happens to my body but I literally cannot control myself. Normally I would probably find this funny but now? Not so much.

I can see my friends and I can hear my voice snapping at them, deceiving them. I can even hear the thoughts flying through my head and feel my mouth moving but I have no way of changing the words. No way of warning them.

I can feel flesh hitting my knuckles and the stinging sensation it leave as my fists smash home into the back of Sophie and Zhalia's skulls. I'm screaming in my head for him to stop, to leave them alone but he laughs, encouraging my outburst. Because the more energy I use, the weaker I become. And the weaker I am the more this feels right…

Normal POV

Zhalia watching Alice saunter through the village, scanning the trees and caressing the huts as she passed them, a devilish smirk on her pale face. A flash anger lanced through her and the sight of the spiky haired Seeker. She had no right to judge traitors but that had never stopped Zhalia before so she felt perfectly justified in her boiling anger towards the other woman.

Alice stopped in the centre of the village, holding her arms wide. "Foolish men." Her voice was loud, gravely and filled with dark intentions. The villagers sprinted from their huts, crowding around her as the sun finally emerged from behind the clouds, casting its light and flooding the clearing in brightness. Zhalia's eyes were drawn to the ground, or more specifically to the shadow of a dark haired Seeker; it had tails. She had six tails waving proudly in the nonexistent breeze.

"Alice has the Six Tails." Dante breathed unable to believe what his honey coloured eyes were seeing.

"You have imprisoned the only ones who could save you and now, you will face my wrath." Alice roared and fire leapt from the ground at her feet, flying through the air to form a twisted pattern around her. She threw her hands forwards and balls of fire obeyed her vicious motion, flying towards the villagers and leaving them screaming as their flesh bubbled and fell away from the bone.

"NO!" Dante's cry of denial attracted Alice's attention away from her actions and she looked directly at the caged Seekers, eye locking with theirs. For a split second Zhalia could see a spark of Alice in those deadly green eyes and then she was gone, replaced by the sheer hatred of the 'Six Tail' she contained.

The door of their cage creaked mournfully before falling off completely, the hinges still glowing a vibrant red. "We need to stop her!" Exiel yelled firing power after power at his rampaging friend as the huts began to smoulder. Alice growled at the man when the powers disappeared into her fiery vortex but otherwise ignored him.

"Don't hurt her!" Zhalia shouted as Sophie called Sabriel to her side, the Sabriel that Alice had given to her. "She's still in there." She added at the incredulous look on the Casterwill heirs face.

"Oh so you'd rather she destroyed this entire village then?" Sophie snapped turning away to cast her own powers at the fire swathed woman. Zhalia sighed, angling herself towards the battle as she made her choice and already regretting it.

"Touchram." The spell slipped through the vortex of flames and struck Alice full in the face and the Seekers surrounded her when she finally saw them as a threat, however small she deemed them to be. With only a low growl for warning Alice propelled herself towards Zhalia, knocking her to the ground. Within seconds one pale hand was holding Zhalia's wrists above her head and both her legs were pinned with Alice's. The blue haired woman struggled in her grip and a feral grin appeared on her face.

"Can't handle the heat?" The flames of the vortex had surrounded the pair, arching overhead to form a burning dome. Outside the dome Dante was throwing everything he had at it to no avail while the other three attempted to save the villagers from their fiery deaths, taking advantage of Alice's distraction.

"What are you?" Zhalia gasped, the scorching air burning her throat as she stopped struggling to catch her breath. Alice's grin widened, showing the other woman impossibly sharp teeth.

"I am Kitsune. My kind call me Ignis." 'Alice' leaned closer, breathing in her captives scent. "My host doesn't want me to kill you." She muttered against the slender arch of Zhalia's neck. "She's wasted the little life force she has left to try and make me spare you." Zhalia felt the grip on her arms loosen slightly as Ignis spoke and a small flicker in the Valkyrie Seeker's eye told her she only had a second.

"Kilthane!" She choked on the name as a hand clenched around her throat.

"How dare you?" Ignis snarled, one hand releasing Zhalia to press against his host's forehead as he winced. "Why don't you just shut up and die already?" He was talking to himself, or rather Alice and Zhalia's vision was fading to black as Kilthane raised his sword above his helmeted head before burying the blade in Alice's back. Dull green eyes drifted closed while Alice's form pulsed red, the glow fleeing to her palm as the flames died and Zhalia joined Alice in blissful unconsciousness.

//

The first thing that Zhalia was aware of was the burning pain in her throat, as if someone had forced fire down it whilst she was unconscious. The second was the fact that Dante's strong arms were wrapped securely around her and his coat was covering her. "Hey." The man smiled down at her, eyes sparkling with what seemed to be unshed tears. "Are you ok?" Zhalia extricated herself from his arms, rubbing her neck absently.

"I've been better." She rasped, then frowned. "Everfight." The familiar orange glow surrounded her body, forcing the ache in her throat away. "Now I'm ok." Dante chuckled helping her to her feet. It was then that she realised that they were on a boat. Sophie and Lok were sat on the bench opposite them, watching her with concern etched across their features, although Sophie tried to hide it, and Exiel was steering the boat, looking for all the world like a statue. But there was no sign of Alice Astra.

Dante must have seen her look because he tensed behind her, his hand falling from her shoulder.
"We had to leave her on the island." He murmured. "Her wound." In her minds eye Zhalia saw Kilthane standing over the spiky haired Seeker, his blade buried in her back. "She's gone."

...and the merciless author strikes her down.