Huntress Wizard sat in her orange prison, her legs crossed and eyes shut, breathing carefully—her entire focus dedicated to keeping her rage in check. Her quiver was empty. Her spells were futile. Her resolve all but broken. The fingertips of her gloves were in tatters, exposing the bloody remains of her fingernails. After scratching the candy shingles to dust, she discovered the hardwood that sat underneath which, in turn, resulted in her bruised and broken knuckles. And, despite the damage to her hands, the roof still remained solid.
She now sat in the scant divot she had created. The pain helped to distract. But really, she was just trading one pain for another. No amount of misery or meditation would blot that image from her mind's eye. Each time the memory encroached on her thoughts, she squeezed her fists tighter—reigniting the pain of her wounds—and it faded away once more.
It never took long to return.
Between her own strained breaths, she heard footsteps. Huntress stood quickly and began scanning her surroundings. The orange visage of the pyramid was, regrettably, hindering her ordinarily exceptional eyesight. She struggled to find the source of the noise.
Deep breath, she told herself. She took her breath then stared straight ahead, allowing her eyes to lose focus. The rage was blighting her hunting prowess. When you can't get to the prey...let it find its way to you. As a predator, her peripheral vision lent itself to motion over fine detail, especially in low light. And so, in the corner of her eye, she was finally able to see it. Her gaze fell on the figure of Gridface Princess, who was trying to sidle undetected past the wizard on her way to the drawbridge.
As soon as she looked her way, the princess froze in place. If she weren't so mad, Huntress might have been impressed with the princess' proclivity for camouflage. Her orange jumpsuit made her nearly invisible against the orange hue of the pyramid, and she utilized that advantage surprisingly well. Huntress continued shifting her eyes—trying to mollify her target into believing she was yet to be discovered—as she considered her options. Then it hit her.
Back in the castle, in Princess Bubblegum's shower stall, an arrow dislodged itself from the wall and floated swiftly out the window. It whistled through the night air, following a straight path directly towards Gridface Princess. She collapsed to the ground and covered her face as it approached—but when she lowered her hands, she found that the projectile had stopped a few inches away. She looked back at Huntress. With the lit Cloud Kingdom to her back, she appeared as a silhouette. Her piercing green eyes shone through the shadow, looking back into her own. Gridface couldn't help but shudder; even at a distance, her eyes conveyed fury.
The princess began crawling backwards, away from both the arrow and its wielder. It flew over her shoulder, then turned back to meet her. She felt its cold tip digging between her shoulder blades. She cautiously stood. The arrow pushed. She stepped forward. It pushed. She stepped. And so she slowly, begrudgingly, made her way back to the house upon which Huntress remained trapped.
Huntress spoke as she neared. "Release me."
At the sound of her voice, Gridface shook in her boots. The arrow hovered back into her field of view—its tip glinting by her right temple.
"Release me or I'll stick this in your ear."
The monarch reluctantly pressed the button on her wrist and the pyramid dissolved. Huntress Wizard leapt from the roof and landed deftly at her side. While she managed to remain steely in her countenance, her captor was far less composed. Gridface now shook with unbridled fear, her breathing shallow and raspy.
"You…" Huntress spat, "...are going to do exactly as I say." The arrow pressed closer, digging into Gridface's mask. "Or I will kill you. Understand?"
She nodded.
The pair marched into the castle side-by-side. The arrow glided dutifully behind the princess, prodding her whenever her pace began to slow. Huntress led them to the royal chambers and kicked down the door with one quick, decisive motion.
They found Princess Bubblegum laying on her bed in wait, completely undressed. She shrieked in surprise and pulled one of her sheets up to cover herself.
"Get up!" Huntress barked. She snatched her arrow from midair as she approached the bed, brandishing it as one would a sword. She directed its point towards Bubblegum. "Stand!"
Bubblegum carefully shuffled to the edge of the bed and stood with the sheet still pressed to her body. Her expression of shock quickly transformed into one of unapologetic contempt. Huntress pulled the sheet away from her and made several small cuts along its edge with the arrow. She tore off a long, thin strip of fabric and twisted it into a cord.
"Turn around," she said.
Bubblegum scoffed but did as she was ordered. "You're going to regret this," she said curtly.
The wizard ignored her and bound her wrists.
"Marceline is on her way right now. Do you really want her to find me like this? Do you know what she'll do to you?"
Huntress continued her word, unfazed. She tore herself another strip and used it to tie the princess' ankles together. "I've hunted bigger game," she responded.
"There is no bigger game. You have no idea what you're getting yourself into—hey!"
Huntress balled up another strip of fabric and shoved it into her mouth as she spoke. She cut off one last strip and tied it around her face to hold the gag in place.
"I don't know what Finn sees in you," she said. "You're weak."
She pushed Bubblegum into the corner of the room, where she sank to the floor in resignation.
"Stay."
The wizard gripped her arrow firmly. She muttered incantations under her breath while the other two women watched with curiosity. The arrow levitated from her hand and splintered along its shaft. She took a half in each hand and pulled until they broke apart, then she whispered a final spell. Green light consumed her work briefly and faded to reveal two new, whole arrows.
She had everything she needed now.
Huntress released one of the two arrows. It quickly found its old post at Gridface's temple, and hovered there, awaiting further command.
Huntress Wizard approached Gridface. "When the vampire gets here, trap her. Got it?"
The princess choked and sputtered in response. The arrow edged forward, piercing her mask and scratching the skin underneath.
"You don't have a choice," Huntress said. "Trap her. Hold her here until Finn and I escape the city. Got it?"
Gridface nodded. The arrow retreated once more.
Huntress Wizard turned to the balcony and jumped nimbly onto its railing. She pulled the bow from her back and positioned her new arrow at the ready. Her eyes closed and she exhaled slowly. As her lungs emptied, she shrank down into the form of an ant; she was now imperceptible in the dim light.
Jungle Princess was hit with an invisible train—or so it felt.
The Vampire Queen flew low and fast, snatching her victim from underneath the human. On impact, the princess lost her hold and Finn fell unceremoniously to the ground. Marceline stopped on a dime and released her. Carried by the momentum that the vampire had imparted, Jungle Princess tumbled forward a hundred more feet, stopping only when she met the side of a fountain.
"Now, Jake!" Marceline called.
A tower of yellow flesh emerged in the distance, stretching until it grazed the floor of the Cloud Kingdom, then came careening back down towards the princess. The ground shook with the impact. Jake shrunk to his usual size, revealing a crater where the fountain once stood...and a squashed princess at its center.
The dog barked as he split his arms into another mass of tentacles. Each new appendage adorned its own fist. A flurry of blows pushed Jungle Princess further into the ground. Her dull groans echoed down the candy streets.
Finn screamed at him—desperate to call off his attack—but was muffled by his constraints. Marceline rematerialized above him, smirking.
"Yoink."
She plucked the human from the ground, using the vines as a handhold, and shot towards the castle at top speed. Still distracted with his charge, Jake was left behind with Jungle Princess at his mercy. Finn squirmed and strained against the vines to no avail.
"Dude, chill. Jungle Princess can take a beating. And I'm just taking you back to Bonnie." Marcy winked.
She flew directly to Bubblegum's balcony, racing towards the open entryway, slicing through the night sky like a blade—then froze in an instant. A green arrow tip rested mere inches from her face, aimed right between her eyes. Huntress Wizard stood on the balcony handrail—having seemingly appeared out of thin air—with her bow drawn.
Marceline growled. "You again? You think I can't take you?"
Huntress didn't speak. She didn't show fear. She stood confidently, her steely gaze unwavering.
"Get outta here! Don't make me hurt you…"
Finn's eyes darted between the two.
The vampire raised her free hand to strike. Huntress lowered her bow and released the arrow. It tore through Marceline's abdomen. She recoiled in pain, releasing the vines that ensnared Finn. The instant he dropped, she found herself captured in yet another orange pyramid.
Huntress Wizard caught the human and skillfully pulled him to safety. Gridface stepped out of the darkness of the bedroom and out onto the balcony, still beckoned by the hovering arrow. Finn could hear her hyperventilating, even through the mask.
"P-please c-can I g-g-go n-now?" she asked weakly.
"Fine." Huntress summoned her arrow to her hand. "But this doesn't square us. Not by a long shot. And if you release her early, I swear I'll—"
"I won't!"
Huntress nodded.
Marceline enlarged herself to fill her new prison and beat on its walls with all her might. The display was terrifying to behold. Each hit violently shook the hard-light chamber and reverberated the air around it. Gridface sprinted away.
The vampire shrieked from fury. "I'll kill you!"
Huntress Wizard smirked in turn. She ran the tip of her arrow along Finn's restraints, slicing through them cleanly and quickly. The human threw his limbs out, tossing aside the vines and inadvertently exposing himself to the two women. Once more, the wizard allowed herself to stare. The sight even placated Marceline—briefly.
As the Vampire Queen resumed her assault on the pyramid, Huntress helped Finn back to his feet and pressed a leaf to his chest. It expanded into a loose poncho which just barely draped low enough to provide him some modesty.
"Th-thanks," Finn said softly, still distracted by Marceline.
"Finn!" she shrieked. "Let me out, Finn! C'mon!" She pounded her fists against the wall.
"Marcy, I—"
Huntress took his hand and led him back into the bedroom, towards the exit. Marceline's pleas devolved into curses as her line of sight was broken.
"Focus on me now, Finn," Huntress Wizard said. "Just on me. You're safe now."
The human relinquished himself, finally beginning to feel secure with Huntress by his side. He followed her to the door, allowing her alluring visage to distract him as instructed. Then he noticed the woman in the corner.
Bubblegum's cries for help were suppressed not only by the gag, but by the clamor echoing in from the balcony. When Finn saw finally her, his jaw dropped. The princess squirmed on the floor, desperately shuffling towards them despite her ties, still completely naked. He rushed to her and began frantically pulling the knots apart.
"Finn! Forget her! We need to go." Huntress reached out to take his hand.
Finn waved her hand away dismissively and continued working to free Bubblegum's wrists. "I'm not leaving her like this."
"Do you even know what she is? The things she's done? What she could do to you?" Her voice cracked.
The hero slowed and looked up at her. "HW, did you...was this you?"
Her face burned red. "You don't recognize my handiwork?" she asked quietly, looking anywhere but back at the hero.
"Huntress, this is messed up!"
"No! You know what's messed up, Finn? What they did to you out there!" She pointed out towards the city. "That was messed up! This…" She pointed at Bubblegum. "...was necessary. I couldn't...I can't…"
For the first time, Finn saw Huntress Wizard vulnerable. She balled her hands into fists and stumbled forwards, trying to catch her breath, to steady herself—but it was too late. The wizard dropped to her knees. A tear ran down her mask.
"I can't...I won't see that happen to you again," she said, just above a whisper.
Finn crawled to her and wrapped her in his arms. To his surprise, she returned the hug.
Bubblegum tugged her hands free of the loosened cord and untied her legs and gag. She crouched down beside the human and rested a hand on his shoulder.
"Finn...what happened out there?" she asked anxiously. If it were enough to elicit this reaction from Huntress, she could only imagine the severity of the situation.
The wizard swatted her hand aside. "Get away from him!"
She hoisted the human over her shoulders and dashed out of the door.
"Wait!" Bubblegum called down the hall after them.
She heard the distant voice of Finn, quickly quieting from distance: "Wait, HW! Go back!"
Princess Bubblegum sighed and slipped on her nightgown, then rummaged around the drawer of her bedside table. She collected a small, pink remote from it and walked out onto the balcony. Seeing her, Marceline stopped attacking the pyramid and transformed into her normal self.
"Hang on, Marcy."
Bubblegum held up the remote and pressed a button. Nothing. She adjusted the settings and tried again. The orange pyramid flickered briefly. "Dammit," she muttered. After one final adjustment, the pyramid dissolved entirely, and Marceline darted beside her.
"Where is she?" she hissed.
"Marcy, calm down." Bubblegum took her hand. "I don't think Huntress Wizard is our enemy."
"Like hell she isn't! You didn't see what I saw, Bonnie! She brought straight to that group of fucking...rapists, and—and—"
"What?"
"The other princesses! Muscle Princess, Breakfast Princess, Raggedy—PB, they were…" Marceline swallowed hard, unwilling to say it again.
Bubblegum took a shaky breath. "I don't think she meant to. She was crying, Marcy. I think she was as upset as you."
"Crying? Huntress?" If it hadn't been Bonnibel who said it, she wouldn't have believed it.
The princess felt weak. She walked back to her bed and sat down, and her girlfriend joined her. She collected her thoughts for a moment, then spoke. "We need to find Finn. This...has gotten out of hand. I never would have thought the other princesses would even—could even…." She sighed. "Where are they now?"
"I dunno. Muscle Princess is in the moat. She might be dead, honestly. I kinda...did a number on her."
"Good."
"But the rest, I have no idea. They were gone by the time I got back. Finn was gone. I heard him and Jake talking in the Cloud Kingdom and I made a move, but Jungle Princess—of all princesses—took him from me. She's down for the count too, I hope."
Bubblegum gave herself a few seconds to process this new information. "Where was Huntress Wizard? After you were finished with Muscle Princess, I mean."
"She was—dammit." Marceline sighed, realizing her mistake. "She was stuck in one of those traps. She wasn't working with them." She glanced over at the remote, still in the princess' hand. "Speaking of which…."
"Oh, this? Yeah...I was monitoring Gridface's frequency range and remote control signals back when she helped with Darren. When I was less...laissez faire about security. I mean, you saw how difficult those force-fields are to break. It's a major threat to the kingdom if she ever—well, now that she has become an enemy. Anyway, she's not as smart as she lets on; her system has pitiful security."
"Compared to you, Bonnie, everyone in Ooo is an idiot."
She gave a slight smile in turn. "I guess you'd have to be an idiot to not implement a radio receiver authentication key for disabling your prison cell. Anyone with a transmitter can access your junk." She handed the remote over. "Hold on to this. Just in case."
Marceline pocketed it. She stood. "Welp. Guess I'm going back on the hunt."
"I'm coming with you this time. Let me get my Ball Blam Burglerber."