What was this…this thing?
Was it even a reaper anymore?
Chains rattled and old creaked, the web formation holding up the being before her wide eyes, bile rose in the back of her throat as she collapsed to her knees to throw up the acidic taste bubbling in the back of her throat. Coughing violently, she could hear the chains rattle louder as the being laughed madly, forcing herself to once again gaze upon the thing, she squinted as her eyes took in more details of it.
By the looks of the cloth hanging off of it, the dress was once very pretty on her, long black hair that had begun to turn grey dropped down past the flesh hanging off her torn limbs. Yes, torn, as if something had ripped them away in the most brutal fashion possible, her arms were no better; she was literally a head on a torso, hanging off of chains. A metal head wrap covered her face from the tip of her nose, up to her forehead, effectively blinding her. The cravings were in Romanian, and although the language had similar words with Italian, Hecate was unable to read the language.
Covering her mouth while she got off her hands, horror painted Italian features as she swallowed her gut back into place, a lot of horrendous things she had seen before..but they all ended in death. Never before had she seen something this broken, this old, yet somehow still stubbornly alive.
"Nice of you to finally join me, young one."
Oh Gods above, even her voice was broken, it was as if nails were on a chalk board in her own mind, a wince of pain was given before fear turned its' head angrily. "Wha-What are you?!" The being tilted her head, a frown now forming, along with a disappointed sound. "Still so unaware, inexperienced…yet that magic…so ripe..for the picking." What? The rattling picked up, instincts telling her to jump, to which she obeyed immediately and went straight for the beings' mask. "Answer my question, monster!"
The metal was strong, she'd give it that much, but was still crushed under the strength of her hand, the metal ripped away to reveal underneath..what would likely give her nightmares for centuries to come. It came as such a surprise, that she didn't expect a chain to wrap itself around her waist and throw her into the opposing wall, several more appearing to pin her there.
Those eyes, they were her eyes, now wide with excitement and glee as she could finally see; but..that was her?
Hecate screamed in terror, drowning out the metal wrap clanking to the floor, the broken Hecate looked down to the thing that blinded her for years before returning her stare to her past self. Centuries she had waited for the right moment, and it was finally here. Smiling widely and sweetly, sarcasm edged her voice like poison on a blade, "Does that answer your question, darling young one?~" She could literally feel the magic pulse off the girl, yet it was held back, restrained by her own subconscious in hopes of containing what could not be caged.
"I'm sure you're quite confused, I assure you everything will be told in good time, but first things first..I'm sure you understand, business first and what not."
Despite being insane, this Hecate seemed to hold some amount of conversation, and with the past self panic-stricken to the point of frozen..well it just made things easier. An evil smirk pulled at her lips, a movement made by her left arm..or what was left of it, brought her closer to the female pinned to the wall. "Darling, I know you're ignoring that wall in your head..but I'm going to unleash some very bad..things inside your head. Just endure it, I'm sure once you know everything you'll understand why you became this…And why I'm doing this to you now."
While mental, Hecate wasn't stupid, she wouldn't kill her past self by sucking all the magic out, merely use her past self as a battery of sorts. Eyes shifting to a vibrant green that pierced even the darkest of nights, the last bit of magic she had left was used to break the wall her subconscious had built in order to protect herself. Now hearing the past self scream in pain as everything was unleashed, she watched as waves of magic were absorbed into the chains and transferred to herself, the relief said magic placed on her was so immense that she moaned in pleasure as the pain lifted away. For far to long had she been in such immense amount of agony that she had forgotten a moment of peace.
Though because of the peace being brought back, she could instantly recognize when the torment of her injuries returned. Snapping her eyes open without having realized she had closed them, a furious glare was sent to the one who returned it with twice as much wrath. She watched as the past self gripped the chains with such intent that the metal bent under her fingers.
"How..dare you..try and take…what isn't yours.." What was this woman going on about now? Did she not understand yet? "You're..not me…I will not…become you!" The orbs surrounded her, but how was she able to pull back the magic, surely the shock of everything would've had her pinned much longer..
Then she saw her scythe, and the sound of chains breaking, with no magic left to defend herself nor save her own skin, Hecate was forced to watch her own blade come down to slice apart what was left from the hell-cat and her daemonic Master. Screaming out, she felt the chains go slack as her torso collapsed to the floor, head cracking against the ground loudly, stars were seen before her vision. Once it cleared, her past self stood above her with a menacing stare that could've turned her to ice, coughing up blood, a sad smile formed on her face.
"If..you must kill me…at least..save Grell…before it's to late."
Unrelenting, as she expected from herself, Hecate brought down her scythe into her own heart, bringing out the cinematic record. Without bothering to read it, Hecate sliced through the ribbons of her own soul from the future, shaking and panting.
Save Grell?
A unique last wish, one that she'd respect, simply because it was herself…and while mad, who else could she trust but herself?
"I will not become you, I will do better..I will win."