*****A Cursed Existence*****
Entry 17: Hello Darkness, My Old Friend
AN: Well then. Things are happening, and even I'm excited. Shall we?
December 30th, 2182, 11:14 am. (2 hours, 43 minutes later)
Shuffling uncomfortably in the car, I scowled at nothing in particular. While I was able to find a pair of leathers that would fit under a dress, the leathers in question were clearly not intended to be worn with something going over them, as the dress fabric kept getting caught in all the wrong places. It was far from unbearable, but the additional stress didn't exactly help calm me down.
Then again, I'm not even sure if I should be calm right now. For all I know I'm walking into a trap, and could potentially be shot on sight. Now granted, I doubt that'd happen, but the possibility exists…
Running a dozen potential scenarios through my head as the car drove on, I glanced over at Aena in the driver's seat. While most wouldn't be able to tell, she was in fact ready for war: no color escaped her crest, her features were like those of a statue, and she had assured me that her wrist blades were sharpened and oiled before we left, never mind the extra carnifex she was packing in her other leg now. Funnily enough I didn't even need to ask if she was capable of wielding them akimbo, as she calibrated them in the backyard as soon as I told her about using both. Your average mech didn't have the appropriate hardware to use such a gun reliably, and a normal (non krogan) person could only handle one at a time due to the recoil, but Aena? She was far from being "normal."
I just hope she doesn't need to prove it today… have enough on my plate as is.
Watching the scenery as we flew past it, I tried to settle my nerves, doing what I could to distract myself. Being jumpy when talking to whoever was there to meet me wouldn't be a good move, regardless of what they intend.
That's it, Miri. Calm. No need to worry, because whatever happens here, I'll come out on top in the end…
Breathing deeply for a few moments saw me loosening my tight muscles, the self-assuring belief at the very least soothing some of my worries. Granted, I was anything but relaxed, but I'd settle for being collected if nothing else.
"Aena, how close are we to the meeting point?"
"We are still nine minutes away, Mistress," she answered, her voice being the only thing even remotely emotional about her in her current state. It was a little jarring considering I was used to seeing her so expressive, but that was neither here nor there.
"I see. May as well reiterate the rules of engagement while we wait: I will talk to them. Should the conversation deteriorate to where they become aggressive, or if something unexpected happens, you are to shut off or intercept all outgoing signals in the area using whatever means you have available, up to and including the physical destruction of communication devices as necessary. It goes without saying, but be sure to use a jamming program should this occur. Avoid killing unless they pose a danger to either my life or your continued function. Disabling via dislocating bones is permissible. So… just to be clear: is there any confusion or misunderstanding with these parameters?"
She spent maybe a full second to process (or rather, reconfirm) my orders before responding. "None, Mistress. Parameters have been updated accordingly, and have been recognized as 'for this situation only unless otherwise specified.' Non-lethal asari oriented combat programs have been installed."
…should I be concerned that she didn't have them installed already? No, no point to worry about that now.
"Good," was all I said, thoroughly ignoring the part of me that wanted to keep talking.
And now we wait… Goddess, the waiting is always the worst part…
…
…
…
Arriving at the tiny food shop in the middle of nowhere – that wasn't an exaggeration, because it barely counted as a rest stop, and there was nothing but forest and a two lane road heading into the distant city past its parking lot – the car came in for a smooth landing. Looking at the lot, I could see only two cars there, one of them a police cruiser, and while that was technically a good thing given my own paranoia regarding crowds, it still seemed more empty than I expected considering it's almost late day by now.
Hmm. Suppose we'll see, won't we?
Opening the door and stepping out, I took a quick glance around the area. Given that nothing seemed out of the ordinary so far, I allowed myself a breather before closing the door. Aena followed soon after, her own door closing being the signal I needed to start walking inside.
There were windows showing the building's interior, and a glance at its occupants showed four asari: two sitting at a table, one at a corner booth, and then one sitting just outside of what I assumed was the door leading to the kitchen. The diner's automatic door opening allowed me to get a better look at each of them, two of whom I recognized. Of the pair sitting down at the table, one was Inspector Minellick and another officer, both in uniform, and who looked at me as I entered. The former nodded in greeting, the latter only glancing up to acknowledge my presence, while the one at the booth was Justicar Isayla, looking as serene as if she'd just finished meditating. Which was a very possible scenario for all I knew.
The final person, wearing what could be argued was both a dress and an apron, because asari love their fashion, took note of my arrival and brushed herself off. Looking at her now, she seemed to be the oldest one here, even surpassing my own age. Though despite that, she was still about as fit as most asari tended to be, albeit the age looked to be catching up with her around the eyes.
"Welcome to Old Ira's Rest! Can I get ya anything?" she asked in an accent I couldn't place. The closest I could guess was that it came from somewhere in the terminus. Not feeling particularly hungry, and not wanting one extra person around should anything happen, I made a quick decision on how to deal with her.
"Nothing right now, thank you. I'll let you know if I need anything, so you can relax," was my response, and maybe it was how I said it, but she just sort of… paused for lack of a better word, before nodding and turning toward the kitchen door. Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure I caught a bit of color making its way to her cheeks.
"Well, if you do want somethin', just holler. I'll be in the kitchen."
With 'Old Ira' out of the way, I walked over to the table with the pair of officers. The one I didn't recognize looked especially young, her uniform similarly clean and crisp. Granted, you could say that was because she kept it clean and maintained, but compared to the faded and slightly worn uniform of the Inspector, it came off as her simply being inexperienced and new. A term from a show I watched way back when came to mind to describe her: shinies.
Sitting down at one of the vacant chairs after a gesture from Minellick, Aena stood vigilantly behind me. The table was circular and had six chairs in total – asari love being social doncha know, so of course they'd prefer more chairs rather than less – and upon settling into my seat, I took in the pair's appearance in more detail. The Inspector looked a little tired, which, along with the cup of what smelled vaguely like coffee held in her hands, further reinforced that image. A quick sip had her smiling a tiny bit, doubtless as whatever it was gave her a brief rush of energy. The shiny, on the other hand, looked stiff as a board and mildly uncomfortable. Or maybe nervous was a better word. Despite that, she was scrolling through various screens on her omni-tool, only barely acknowledging my presence, at least until the Inspector placed her cup down and sent a look at her that had her instantly pausing and closing out whatever it was.
"Matron V'Seila," the elder of the two greeted.
"Inspector Minellick," I greeted in kind.
Turning to look at the new person, I waited for her to greet me as well. If that's what we were doing, then it was only polite.
Looking like a deer in headlights, the shiny somehow straightened up even more before finally saying something.
"Officer Idari Tilasius." Pausing for a moment, she then added on, "Ma'am."
I couldn't help but blink at that, raising a brow in Minellick's direction, who in turn sighed.
"She's my assistant while we're working this case," she explained, looking as if she'd already lost the energy gained from her sip of not-coffee.
"I see. And on that topic… what can I do for you? Because I must say, the message was rather sudden, all things considered." I thought about explaining that I was getting ready to leave for another business trip, but she didn't really need to know that right now.
Straightening up, she pulled up what I assumed to be notes on her tool, quickly skimmed through them to a certain point, and then closed it after seemingly double checking it. "Apologies for that, but the department is quite busy right now, what with that smuggling ring being hunted down, so it was now or never."
Oh right, that was a thing that popped up in the news… huh.
"That being said, it was quite important that we got in contact with you to clarify some things."
"Very well then. I'm here now. So, where were we?" I asked, trying to veer the topic back to the important part.
Nodding to herself, Minellick continued where she left off. "Recently, as part of the investigation, it was discovered that you were in contact with the missing person's family. As is procedure, given this is an ongoing case, I am required to ask you about this. Considering you have already stated you never knew Arenne D'Vese, I hope you can understand why this seems rather unusual."
Nodding along, if anything to at least make it seem like what she said made sense, I hummed in thought before deciding on a response, already having a decent story made up. "Wait, do you mean Ceora? The shy kid? You mean to say her sister is the one who went missing?"
The Inspector didn't react to my description of the one in question aside from a slightly raised brow, not giving me much to work with. "Sadly, yes. The mother was quite adamant that her eldest would not have simply ran off somewhere. Regardless, both of them still remember you, so I hope you don't mind my asking what your relationship with the family is."
Not especially liking where she was taking the conversation, I narrowed my eyes, deciding to see if maybe being a tad more aggressive would suit my purposes. "I met Ceora at her job one day, we had a fun conversation, and at the end of it she invited me out for a date, which while enjoyable was unfortunately enough to make me realize she wasn't really my type. Although somehow I feel like you already knew most of this." Making my suspicion known, and giving her a cold stare, I had to admit, if she felt some, she didn't let any discomfort show. "For my own sake, I need to ask: am I a suspect in your investigation?"
There was a pregnant silence only broken by the Investigator sighing and taking another sip of not-coffee. "Yes. You are one of the suspects, along with several others, I need to note."
"I see," was all I could respond with, maintaining an impressive level of calm if I do say so myself, trying to think of how to peacefully walk away from this. She said 'one of' for a reason, after all, so hopefully that just means anyone that's been in touch with the family over the past few months. Apparently, though, the decision was made for me.
"However, as of right now, given what both you and the missing person's family said, you never met Arenne before she disappeared. As far as I'm concerned, you don't rank any higher on the list of perpetrators than any of the rest."
I couldn't help but blink, both surprised and relieved that she'd say it so blatantly like that. Thankfully, only the first of those emotions showed on my face.
Taking another sip of her drink, Minellick noted my surprise and continued. "I feel I should clarify: that's not to say you're completely in the clear. Rather, the possibility of you being guilty is roughly even with most of the other suspects at this point in time. As is department policy, I need to ask you to stay on-planet until you can be cleared of any suspicion."
"But-!" I found myself saying before I stopped, quickly burying it.
"Is something wrong?" Minellick asked, a slight narrow to her eyes.
Sighing, I figured the truth (or at least as much as she needed to know) would be the best way to go here. "I had already arranged for a business trip into Alliance space. Colonies are a fantastic long term investment, after all, given the potential for expansion they offer. To cancel the trip now…" Cringing to make sure the point was made, I shook my head and gave her a disappointed but accepting look. "Very well though. I'll comply and stay in the area."
Like hell I will, a part of me said in the privacy of my mind. I enjoy living, thank you.
The more rational part of my brain slapped that one back into place, just in time to watch the Investigator nod in acceptance.
"Again, I do apologize for the inconvenience this is causing you. Hopefully we can find the thing responsible for Arenne's disappearance before long, so that we can all go back to our normal lives."
Oh honey, you have no idea, that same part of me said again, so I just imagined icily glaring at it. I already have enough voices in my head, I didn't need yet another one to cause trouble.
"I would certainly appreciate it. Did you have anything else you needed to ask me, Officer?" I asked as politely as possible. Granted, the undercurrent of genuine annoyance crept in, but if she noticed, she had the good grace not to point it out.
"Nothing as of right now. If anything else comes up, the department or myself will get in contact with you," she answered, standing up after taking a final sip of her (now empty) cup. "You can go back to doing what you were before we interrupted you, Matron. Next time I'll make sure the meeting request is less sudden, should there be one."
Standing up and nodding, being grateful for that much at least, I felt myself unwind after being so tense the entire time, now able to more fully take in my surroundings. "Thank you. Though nothing against this place, but perhaps if there is one, it can be arranged at a more fitting venue."
I could've sworn Minellick pouted a little at my wording, but it was gone just as quickly as it came. In its place was a mask of professionalism. "Well, until then. May you enjoy your day."
Taking the polite goodbye for what it was, I returned it. "And you as well." I then followed it up by turning to leave. Internally though…
Finally! All that paranoia was wrong after all! Hah! Suck it, pessimistic me! Sure, we're not in the clear yet, but we walked away breathing and with all our limbs intact, without being in handcuffs, so I'll take that as a win.
As if to spite that thought, another, so far silent voice spoke up. "One moment, Matron V'Seila."
Not initially recognizing it, as it didn't belong to either officers in the room, nor was it Aena or the restaurant's owner, I turned to the only person it could be: the Justicar. After doing so, I felt every fiber of my being lock up at the look she was giving me.
"Arenne D'Vese kept a journal containing her daily activies," she started, voice apathetic yet oddly accusatory, and already my mind was going into total panic overdrive thanks to the silent threat in her words. Whether or not it was intentional was irrelevant. I wasn't the first ardat yakshi discovered thanks to a journal after all.
Vaguely I could see Minellick's confused look, as if hearing this information was unexpected, but I was far more focused on what the Justicar said next.
"She mentioned a mysterious person whisking her off her feet; showing her heights she couldn't even imagine; and ultimately, a future that could never be. Her sister, too, mentioned meeting someone similar, though not using the same description. So, tell me…" Waiting for her to continue, I felt my pulse quicken, my biotic amp slightly pulsing with the mixed signals it was getting from my brain. It wasn't visible, but the tingling sensation at the back of my head told me everything I needed to know, even as I remained rooted there, wanting her to just say what it was she had paused for. "Does the name 'Morinth' mean anything to you?"
And that was what did it. My eyes widened, hands twitched, yet before I could do or say anything, the next thing I saw… was the Calabsan sky.
"-as of right now. If anything else comes up, the department or myself will get in contact with you," Ciaris answered, pushing the chair back and taking one last gulp of the slop falsely advertised as "instant energy." It just so happened that said slop was also her favorite drink ever since becoming a cop, curse her murdered taste buds. Standing up and placing the empty cup down, she continued where she left off. "You can go back to doing what you were before we interrupted you, Matron. Next time I'll make sure the meeting request is less sudden, should there be one."
V'Seila stood up herself and nodded, and Ciaris could tell the Matron was more relaxed now that the meeting was over, briefly glancing around at Old Ira's walls. "Thank you. Though nothing against this place, but perhaps if there is one, it can be arranged at a more fitting venue."
What's that supposed to mean? Ciaris found herself thinking, mildly embarrassed considering she'd chosen the place as it was one of her favorite stops on the way back home after work. Though given the Justicar specifically asked for an 'out of the way meeting point so as to not arouse suspicion and alert the suspect,' it was just coincidence that she already knew of the perfect spot.
Burying those thoughts and dragging her work mentality back to the forefront, Ciaris replied to V'Seila's comment. "Well, until then. May you enjoy your day."
With a simple, "And you as well," V'Seila turned around, her mech assistant following in its owner's footsteps and turning with her. The thing's perfect transition from the interactive and remarkably animated VI that Ciaris remembered from several days prior, to a complete and total statuesque bodyguard of a machine, was slightly jarring considering the differences.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the voice of Justicar Isayla, something Ciaris had become unfortunately used to hearing in recent days.
"One moment, Matron V'Seila," the person in question began, and she groaned internally, turning nonetheless to look at her undesired "partner" for this case. The look on the older asari's face, however, was one of cold judgement, which had even Ciaris stopping for a moment in surprise, despite the look not being directed at her. Worse still, Ciaris recognized that look ‐ how could she forget, when the last person she'd witnessed it directed at was turned into a violet mist mere seconds later?
No, no, no… not again… we didn't even find any actual evidence yet! She could be fucking innocent, for Athame's sake!
"Arenne D'Vese kept a journal containing her daily activies," the Justicar started, and Ciaris could already tell it wasn't just a statement: it was a judgement. The information itself wasn't news, but how it related to this, Ciaris couldn't guess. She'd read the diary as well, and while it certainly gave them some hints about the kidnapper's personality, that was all she could figure out from it. A look at V'Seila told her that the billionaire was frozen in place, looking decidedly concerned about the way she was being stared at by the resident executioner.
"She mentioned a mysterious person whisking her off her feet; showing her heights she couldn't even imagine; and ultimately, a future that could never be. Her sister, too, mentioned meeting someone similar, though not using the same description. So, tell me…"
I need to stop her at least! But… can I even? I've seen death, but what she did to the last one… Goddess, the way her heart kept beating afterwards…
Forcefully shoving down the memories of the exposed, steaming organs from her first case with the Justicar a decade prior, deep into the recesses of her mind where they belonged, she pulled herself back to the present just in time to catch the finishing statement from the law sanctioned murderer.
"Does the name 'Morinth' mean anything to you?"
Whatever reaction the Justicar got was clearly enough to warrant action, as immediately she sent a table flying at V'Seila with her biotics. It happened so fast that Ciaris couldn't help but stare, dumbfounded, as it sent the Matron flying out through the restaurant's windows, the barrier she apparently had up being the only thing that kept her from being cut in half from the furniture practically launched at her. Even still, she landed on the ground outside with a painful smack!
V'Seila stood up quickly, albeit in a daze, yet before she could do anything else, the Justicar shot out after her, a biotic charge sending her off to the side and out of sight from where Ciaris was standing. Given the black and blue flash of a Warp impacting the Justicar's barrier barely a second later, it seemed she was still alive even after the assault, though Ciaris had a bigger issue: the mech was practically radiating violence now, a deep crimson holographic light rolling off its artificial crest, as it started chasing after the pair now fighting outside.
"Shit!" Ciaris cursed under her breath, and in spite of herself she channeled her biotics into making a stasis field around the mech, briefly holding it in place. Remembering that her "assistant" had been specially trained in e-warfare and digital counter-terrorism – fresh out of the academy as she was, the kid had indeed earned her spot at the top of her class, as she had demonstrated throughout the past several weeks of the investigation – she voiced an idea that popped into her head. "Tilasius! Hack that thing and shut it down while it's locked up!"
The rookie looked shocked at everything that was now happening, but credit where it's due, she followed the order better than could be expected. Whipping her omni-tool out, Tilasius flew through a series of screens that Ciaris only vaguely recognized as having to do with some sort of virus that the TCPD liked using to stop a perp's car before it could even start up. Hacking wasn't her forte; she was more of a physical world person. Regardless of that, she knew something was going wrong when her fellow cop cursed under her breath and shook her 'tool arm in pain, said arm having had a blue jolt course through it, starting from the device itself.
"Whatever that thing is, it's got better software and security programs than I do," Tilasius said, making Ciaris curse, herself.
"Well, looks like we'll do this the old fashioned way. I'll take the legs, you get the-" she was interrupted when Old Ira burst out from the kitchen with a shotgun in hand.
"WHAT IN EVERY HELL IS GOING ON OUT HERE?!" The older asari demanded.
"Not now! TCPD business!" Ciaris tried flexing her authority a little, on principle if nothing else, knowing from the years she'd eaten here that the owner wouldn't give two shits about something like that.
"Varren shit it is! Who the fuck blew out my windows!? Is your department going to pay for that?!"
Before the argument could escalate any further, the lights in the building flickered for a moment before going out, the emergency lights activating in their stead, followed immediately by an explosion outside, causing Ciaris to flinch. It was only when she turned to look out the window to try and see what it was that she noticed a change in the mech: it was staring right at her with pulsing red and white eyes. And damn did it look angry.
How long will the stasis hold that thing again? She idly wondered, and wouldn't you know it, someone was apparently listening, because barely a second later the stasis field gave out, releasing a far-too-fast for her liking android. She tried locking it in another stasis, but it was ready for her this time, its' shields tuned to the right frequency to counter the effect as it barreled at the duo.
Wait… where'd Old Ira go?
A quick shwoop signaled the closing of the kitchen door, and given the sound of multiple manual locks sliding into place, it wasn't opening any time soon.
Well shit… so much for liking her regular customers…
That thought was quickly buried, however, as Ciaris had to focus on avoiding a rib cracking jab from the machine. She did so with little grace, but say what you will, she was at least able to keep up with the first few punches. It wasn't until the mech used a feint and managed a painful gut shot that Ciaris started to realize that experienced or not, this thing was just too damned fast.
Her fears were calmed a little when an overload shot at it from where the rookie was standing, the electric shock temporarily keeping the mech in place, Tilasius yet again proving her usefulness, as it gave Ciaris an opening to back up and make some space. Briefly she thought about pulling out her pistol, but given the glistening quality of its armor, along with the near visible layer of shields now flickering over it, she doubted anything short of a hand cannon would do much more than scratch the paint. Biotics, though, had already proved effective, and that just so happened to be one of her specialties.
Alright then… we can do this. Just going to need to be careful is all. Thank Athame this bot doesn't have any other tricks aside from speed, though. We'd be fucked if she did…
Getting launched back a second time thanks to the biotic charge testing the limits of my barrier, I growled and flung a warp at the Justicar while midair, reflexes I didn't even know I had kicking in, adrenaline and biotics making me move in a blur even to my eyes. The bitch shrugged off my warp with only a slight pause to show for it, before she darted after me yet again in a flash of blue. I countered with a burst of energy myself, sending me to the right of her charge, close enough to feel the gust of air after she shot past. It even managed to leave a burn-like mark in the hem of my dress, the fabric not having kept up with me.
Given my own biotic amp was quickly warming up after the brief exchange, I knew hers must be close to overheating. As if to prove me right, once she turned around after her charge (bracing slightly when I sent another warp at her) she settled for rushing me the old fashioned way. Both our amps would only need a few seconds to cool back down, and given we'd just started, neither of us were anywhere close to low on energy. Considering I knew asari martial arts were, put simply, devastating due to their biotics enhanced moves, I decided the way to go here was to play keep away and wait for an opening.
I did what I could to maintain distance, but it only took a moment to find myself backed up to my own car, the Justicar taking advantage of my mistake and trying to box me in.
After ducking a swing that glowed blackish-blue, and barely managing to avoid the follow-up kidney shot, I figured it couldn't hurt to try being the aggressor here, if only for a moment, and tried a few jabs, ending with a right hook. She blocked the jabs with the practice a centuries old killer would have, dodging the right hook as I added some biotics to it. Barrier or not, those hurt. After handling my short assault, she went for a biotic side kick, and not having anywhere to dodge, I decided to take a gamble, reducing my weight to a fraction of what it actually was. Thankfully, I doubt she was expecting that, as instead of bashing into my chest, the move sent me flying off and up a lot higher than was normal.
Doing what I could to control my momentum, I created a miniature singularity to pull me in the direction I wanted to go, instincts from fights that I remember yet didn't experience providing me options. The artificial gravity well ended as soon as it did its job, and I landed on the restaurant's roof, behind a waist high ring of the asari equivalent of concrete that went around the entire roof, next to what looked like the building's power junction box. Looking down where I came from, I saw the Justicar glaring back at me, before she pulled out a particularly large pistol off her hip, firing it as soon as it unfolded. I rolled in time to avoid most of the shots, but one still managed to hit its target, impacting my left leg and setting off a small explosion of energy, similar to a tiny biotic warp. The result was that my dress was further shredded by the initial explosion, and this time my barrier went down, the lingering effect of the not-warp making me grit my teeth as it bit through a spot in the leathers underneath and left a similar sensation to a burn.
Being particularly pissed off now, and wishing I'd grabbed one of Aena's Carnifex's for myself, I looked around for a conveniently shaped object I could launch at her. It turned out that was a good idea, as the bitch had sent a glowing blue orb at an angle so as to make my cover useless, and I rolled just in time to avoid it. Given what it did to the bits of loose material on the roof, it was most likely a pull.
Feeling my barrier go back up, only needing a quick flash of biotics to do so, I decided to peek out of my cover to see what she was doing. It turns out she had a similar idea, as I just caught sight of her glancing out from behind my fucking car! That asshole, doesn't she know how much that thing is worth?!
Any further outrage was cut off as she sent another glowing orb my direction, having the same type of arc as the previous one, and not having any of that shit, I intercepted it with an orb of my own. The two of them collided midair, canceling each other out. Unfortunately for me, it was quickly followed up with more shots from the bitch's pistol, sections of the concrete getting blasted out with every shot. Screaming in the privacy of my mind for what I was about to do, I looked at the power junction from earlier and focused my biotics on its base, channeling my anger and squeezing and twisting the metal until it gave way with a violent *screeek!*
Now having an unreasonably large projectile at hand, I sent it flying at my car, a part of me wanting to cry at the destruction of the beautiful luxury sedan formerly known as Quicksilver. Sure enough, it hit the car's eezo battery, which was where I was aiming, setting off an explosion soon after. Unfortunately for me, I caught sight of a blue flash just before the explosion, so while the Justicar managed to avoid going down with the car, I did at least feel a twinge of satisfaction at seeing her stumble at the end of her charge, the shockwave of the explosion sending her tumbling. Noting the opportunity, and realizing she had the advantage at range as well as up close – and wasn't that simply delightful – I built up a charge of my own and sent myself rocketing for her.
Having seen me coming, because of fucking course she did, she took the charge head on, only stumbling from it rather than get flung back like I was earlier. Pushing my advantage, I jabbed at her face repeatedly, her blocking the hits same as before, even getting off a counterattack, damn her competency. This time, however, I was planning on it, as I grabbed her wrist just as it was about to hit me. She was caught off guard by the action long enough for me to do what I intended, which was rip off a move I saw from some red and white suited superman clone in a comic one time: shoulder checking her with a miniature biotic charge. It was satisfyingly effective, as it finally sent her flying back, and I used the second it took her to land to charge of a singularity.
Annoyingly though, rather than hit the ground as intended, she rolled with the movement and flipped onto her feet in an admittedly impressive display of acrobatics.
"ENOUGH!" she yelled out, clearly furious at having been treated like a ragdoll herself for once, her body flaring in a corona of biotic blue with the rage she expressed.
"PAYBACK'S A BITCH, ISN'T IT?!" I yelled back with a downright evil grin, sending the singularity her way. The grin was wiped away when the crazy space monk charged through the singularity. The two biotic fields interacting resulted in the singularity detonating prematurely, the explosive force greatly reduced as her charge's built-in barrier absorbed the worst of it, and she came out the other side with a look that screamed bloody murder.
Shit, was my only thought before she ran into me with all the momentum of an enraged bull, though given her charge was similarly weakened from her going through my singularity, it ended with both of us on the ground instead. Upon hitting the pavement, we both rolled a few feet, and I felt a sharp pain make itself known as a good part of the right side of my face along with my exposed right hand was cut into by the glass and metal shards left on the ground from our fight so far.
Rolling onto my (mostly) uninjured side, I only had a moment's rest before the bloodthirsty hag leapt on me with a scream of anger, and I found myself engaged in a decidedly unfriendly wrestling match with the Justicar. Even worse, wrestling was never my strong suit, as while I'm pretty sure I had the muscle advantage on the bitch, she most certainly had technique on me, and in a move that looked similar to one I'd seen plenty of times in both movies and actual wrestling matches, she forced me face down long enough to position herself on my back. Following that, she wrapped herself around my right arm and pulled, and with a sudden pop! and onrush of new pain, I felt my arm be dislocated. Even for all of original Miri's memories, that particular feeling of agony was a new one.
Using a quick rush of pain fueled energy, I bucked her off me and rolled to my left so I could face her, only for the psychotic bitch to hop right back on, wrapping her legs between mine to hold them in place, one hand gripping my left wrist to keep it from moving while she used her other arm to push against my throat. Fortunately for me, the leathers I wore had a high collar, but that would only buy me so much time before I lost the fight to breathe.
"What. The fuck. Did I do. To you?!" I ground out, mind racing to think of what I could do to get out of this alive.
"Kill. And kill. And kill again." She spat in my face, voice a strange blend of righteous anger and weariness. Short as the fight was in the grand scheme of things, it had exhausted both of us.
You know what you need to do… a voice I didn't recognize said in my ear, the oddly echoing girlish lilt managing to sound wrong somehow.
What? What the hell can I do to this goddess-damned lunatic!? Talk her out of it?! Force her off again!? Fuck her silly?! WHAT!?
Despite my numerous injuries and slowly depleting oxygen supply (or perhaps because of it) I felt a shiver run up my spine as the voice answered.
That last one will work for a demon like you…
But- that- I can't initiate a bond if they're going to actively resist it!
A giggle was the voice's response, and it was then that I understood who, or rather, what it was. It was also at that point that I felt any semblance of rationality in my thought process decide to simply jump ship, though that could've also just been my survival instincts trumping any sense of panic I would've otherwise felt at the nausea inducing other that made itself known now that I had identified it.
Who said she would resist? In fact, if you want, no one can anymore. Enjoy the gift, my little succubus.
And with that, the mental presence that was Agatha disappeared as suddenly as it came, leaving me questioning what she meant with that last comment. The answer made itself known as I felt a burning sensation coming from my left wrist that caused me to groan in pain, the distinct smell of burnt flesh making its way to my nostrils. As that happened, I felt something about me change, though I couldn't tell what.
Wait… smell? I can breathe again!
That thought made me focus on the Justicar's face to see what had changed. It turns out she was staring at the wrist she had been keeping pinned in what looked to be sheer confusion, something about it seemingly shocking her enough to distract from her attempt to choke me out. Before I could take advantage of the distraction, an onrush of new information flowed into my head, making me wince as if it had the same effect as a brain freeze. When it finished, however, I couldn't help but widen my eyes at what the info was and what it meant for me.
So that's what it did to me… holy shit… that is… actually evil… fuck me... but I can't even refuse it if I want to survive. Fuuuuuuuuccck… I'm going to feel disgusting just for having this, but at least I'll be alive…
Shuddering at the thought, I took in a breath and focused on what needed to be done, the mantra of "living is worth it" being the only thing keeping me steady.
"Hey, look at me," I told the Justicar, who did so with dangerously narrowed eyes, whatever had been done to my wrist no longer holding her attention. Which was exactly what I wanted.
Using her loosened grip to my advantage, I used the last of my energy to force my head up towards hers. She looked ready to headbutt me as a reward for my efforts, but that too worked in my favor, as all it did was bring her closer. Now in striking distance, I did the one thing that would win me this struggle: I moved at just the right angle so that I kissed her. The kiss wasn't pretty, or romantic, or anything even remotely sensual, but the initial realization of it left the Justicar wide-eyed and surprised. Giving her a silent apology, I thought the words that would activate the "gift" granted to me from the… creature that enjoyed watching me squirm.
Embrace Eternity.
And as if turning out a light, both the Justicar's eyes and my own turned into orbs of pure black, thus signaling the bond's success… as well as cause a sensation of falling to wash over me as my mind and soul crashed into hers without a care in the world for the damage done…
Woooooboy. Let me tell ya, I have been waiting to write this chapter for years now, and if I'm being honest? I'm happy with it. It's not perfect; I could've made some parts of it more nuanced; maybe some choices of the characters here don't make much sense without extra context (don't you worry, context will come) but all in all? I'm still happy with it. Perfection is great if you can get it, but actually writing it, and making it good enough to still be enjoyed, is far better.
Right then. Comments, concerns, criticisms; do your worst so I can give my best. This chapter was a milestone for me, so now… well, now I need to pick what the next one will be. Suppose we shall see, won't we?
Oh and before I go: if any of you are from, or know someone from Florida, what with the hurricanes happening right now... take care of yourselves, alright? And stay safe.
As always, and truly I mean this: it has been a fun ride, I hope you enjoyed it bumps and all, and I'll see you next time.