LOOK BEYOND THE SURFACE AND SEE THE LIGHT OF A BLINDING SOUL

It’s so quiet now, we’ve been left alone in the darkness. Though they gave me a bowl of beef stew, it’s to feed Asuka with when she wakens, yet she has yet to wake up. The stress must be awful; I don’t know how she’s coping with it all and how she’ll feel when she wakes up. My teeth have not turned back to normal; I think it’s the presence of the lance. Once more, its doing things to us. It’s like we can’t repress it, and this kind of thing for me at least only happens in the Evangelion.

She ran her hands through Asuka’s long damp red hair gently and softly. She heard the other woman groan painfully as she started to open her eyes. Her left one instantly lit up and, strangely, so did her right one, though it turned glowing green once more as pupil once again became cat-like. “Asuka?”

The next moments caught her off guard as Asuka suddenly rose up onto her knees, pulling on the chain, forcing it taut, getting closer to her as a loud tiger roar hit the air. The roar was so animalistic and had no sense of human in it at all, unlike many times before. Asuka stopped within inches of Rei’s face, razor teeth bared as she stared at her intensely for a long moment. Rei breathed in deeply. “It’s me Asuka, it’s Rei.” She watched as Asuka’s good eye moved as it studied her. “You know me, don’t you?” She raised her chained hand, running it gently down the other woman’s face as she sniffed the air. “You remember me.”

Asuka’s body slowly relaxed as she took in a deep breath before speaking, though her tone was full of pain. “I’m sorry; I didn’t recognise you… I thought you were Christopher for a moment; it’s your glowing eyes, but then I smelt Alpine.” ”Rei let out the breath she’d been holding as she spoke “I can’t control my teeth or eyes in this place, but I’m not your awful stepbrother Christopher, I can assure you.”

Asuka moved even closer, pushing her body against Rei’s suddenly becoming even more animated. “I’m so sorry… I failed you. All of this is my fault, I should have given myself up… it’s just I thought they wanted you not me.”

Rei looked up, putting her hands on Asuka’s torn suit, which was almost dry now, as the chains meant she couldn’t hold her and Asuka’s chains meant she couldn’t do so either. “It’s okay Asuka, you couldn’t have known this was going to happen.”

Asuka suddenly felt the anger burn again. “They blew up the auction house they told me, and now all of those people are dead because I was so sure I could win against Christopher!”

Rei shook her head sadly. “Even if you had won Asuka, I think deep down you know it wouldn’t have stopped them killing people.” She paused, looking up slightly. “Christopher is your stepbrother, is Achika related to you as well?”

Asuka looked down sadly. “Yes, Achika is also my older stepsister. They’re from Mari’s side of the family, from my stepfather’s first marriage. I had forgotten them; they visited the house once a month, but my memories of them are so vague because I was focused on my Mama at the time. But I remember that woman now, I remember she did throw me in the lake; all this time I thought I tripped or fell in, but she threw me in. She was making an example of me; all three of them, they were meant to watch me drown and die.”

Rei sat up slightly. “She tried to murder you Asuka, and you were a child.”

Asuka looked at her sadly. “Yes, and I’m alive because Mari loved me more than her own family and went against them for me, even though it meant being seriously punished.”

Rei breathed in deeply. “They think you’re some kind of god.”

Asuka laughed, but it sounded anxious even to her own ears. “I’m not a god… I don’t know why they think that, it’s insane.”

Rei looked up slightly. “What if you are a god Asuka? Have you ever considered that you’re more than you like to see yourself?” She paused, feeling deeply uncertain of her next words. “I saw them put you into red water and you could breathe in it like it’s LCL. I’m not angry or anything that you never told me that and may have kept it to yourself.”

Asuka looked at her for a long moment, the pain in her voice as she spoke. “You misunderstand. I thought everyone could do that who can swim in red water; I never viewed it as special.” She looked up down, unable to keep the fear out of her voice. “I don’t want to be their tool, Rei. I’m not this death god they think I am, I don’t want to destroy this world!”

She felt herself start to shake. “I can feel them doing something to me and it terrifies me. It feels like they’re poking at my soul with hot flames, and it hurts so much.” She felt the tears come before she could stop them. “I don’t want to become what they’re talking about.” Rei looked up, putting a hand on Asuka’s face. “You’ll never become what they want if you choose not to.”

Asuka felt the tears as they carried on streaming down her face. “What if I don’t have a choice? What if, like they say, it’s my destiny?”

Rei looked up sadly. “It’s not your destiny if you reject it Asuka; you have the power to choose.”

Asuka shifted, burying her head in the other woman’s shoulder crying harder. “I’m not their monster… I’m your monster!” Rei turned, understanding the statement instantly, as she spoke softly in the other woman’s ear. “Yes you are, and so long as you never forget that, it will all be okay.” She watched as Asuka pulled away, her tears finally subsiding. She leaned up, giving her a gentle kiss before pulling away.

Her hands moved as she raised the food bowl. “They brought you food Asuka, you really need to eat something.”

Asuka eyed the food. “It’s probably got drugs in it. I’m not verfickte touching it!”

Rei eyed the bowl, not thinking as she put a spoonful in her mouth, ignoring Asuka’s shock as she swallowed it even though the taste was beyond awful and she deeply disliked eating red meat. “No, it just tastes like red meat does to me normally, in that it’s not very pleasant.”

Asuka blinked in shock. “Seriously Rei, you did not have to do that!”

Rei turned to her, raising the bowl. “Yes I did, if it means you’d eat something… now please eat this.” She watched as Asuka started to eat and made a face. “Is everything okay?”

Asuka eyed the stew. “No, that tastes like scheisse. Whoever made that has no idea how to make a decent beef stew. I wouldn’t feed that to Erika, let alone a prisoner.”

Gabriella breathed in, turning the sound feed off as she watched Rei carry on feeding Asuka from a stationary room which was hidden inside one of the Egyptian god statues. “What do you think Asuka meant when she said she’s not our monster, but Rei’s monster?”

Christopher shrugged. “Maybe it’s some form of weird sexual bonding. It’s not like they’re a normal couple anyway, I mean ever since they got here their eyes and teeth have started showing. Must be the Lance.”

Achika raised her hand. “I agree with my brother, it’s a sexual bonding thing nothing more. Maybe Asuka’s a sadomasochist and likes Rei to punch her in bed or something.”

Gabriella turned, eyeing Rei and Asuka. “I’m not convinced. I think Rei is hiding something. All this time I assumed that she didn’t know or maybe was in denial about Asuka being a god. Maybe the reality is she knows far more than she wants to let on, and I will be chatting to her as soon as we have used the Sekhmet’s eye.”

Somewhere in Tanzania, Africa

Kensuke eyed the older man who was sprawled out on the floor, breathing heavily. Blood ran down the man’s face as he struggled to get up, eyeing him and the others in disgust. Kensuke adjusted his glasses before speaking. “David Cooper, I presume, or White Gryphon as your little group like to call you. Honestly, you were fun to track down, but it would appear that your men and women were so afraid to be killed by us that they gave up your location before we could sink those five tugboats you call warships.”

The older man eyed him before speaking. “Fuck you all and your fucking abominations, which you stole from the angels who are our gods!”

Kensuke walked around the house, which was an old African mansion from days gone by when white hunters had hunted the African plains. It was an antique, and it was clear that he was here because he was on vacation trophy hunting, clearly going for the super crocodiles and constrictors, just like every dumb celebrity and hunter out there who normally died for their trouble. “How’s about we just cut to the chase, old man. Where are you hiding Rei Ayanami and Asuka Langley?”

He paused, looking at Avel. “Please tell us, or he is going to beat the shit out of you some more.” He turned slightly, eyeing Kuchisake, who looked bored and annoyed. “Or maybe you’re more a guy who doesn’t like walking dead syndrome, because I can have her make you die.”

David eyed them. “I don’t have those two Evangelion pilots, you dumb shits! Don’t you get it? You’ve been set up, no doubt by that bitch Hyena of Vasai!”

Joshua eyed him in disgust. “Oh please. Are you stupid, or just old and senile? The Hyena of Vasai is dead.”

David laughed, but it was a cold, mocking laughter. “Stupid little queer. Just because something looks one way does not make it so.” He breathed in painfully, dragging himself so he was against a wall. “No, that bitch lived. She just lost part of her arm, but then decided open combat might be better if she was behind the scenes, so she went underground and has been there ever since working behind the scenes. But I know the truth. Fuck, do I know the truth.”

Hikari eyed him. “What fucking truth?”

David looked up slightly. “That she is the creator of Ankh, your greatest rival next to Cerberus. But that’s not all; her family tree extends to Nerv.”

Kensuke moved closer to him. “What do you mean, extends to Nerv?”

David raised a bloody finger. “Mari Illustrious Makinami, that’s one of her grandchildren, because in reality that’s not her real name; it’s Marian Langley.” He paused. “And she’s not the only brat to bear the Hyena’s blood, no, there’s two more, Christopher and Achika Langley, the older siblings who have a different mum.” He paused again. “All have the same daddy though, and that daddy was the Hyena’s son directly when he was alive.”

He looked up slightly. “I heard Keel knew Langley was an issue before he killed him, but I doubt he ever knew that his mother is founder of Ankh or that Mari is the other child linked in, as very few people know about it and they’re clearly getting way too smart for you people, since you’re here tracking me instead of them.”

Hikari eyed him. “How do you know about all this? I’m very curious.”

David felt a cold smile form. “Because I was here first, long before all of your groups rose up and took everything away from me!” He narrowed his gaze. “So yes, I know more than you will ever know, and I know right now, you being here is pointless. Ankh took what you’re looking for and set me up.”

Fang breathed in deeply. “Not that I really give a shit, but why did they set you up?”

David turned, eyeing her. “Let’s just say, one of my kids who disowned me back in the United States was of great interest to her. She wanted the child back for some reason, some shit about breeding her with her son Langley to create some Aryan race bullshit which I never understood.” He eyed his ring finger. “Safe to say, my children are not walking wombs or studs for anyone, and I told her to fuck off and that if she got near my daughter or my sons, I’d disembowel her, because even if they hate me and do not believe in my cause, I love my children.”

He leaned back. “I personally thought that was the end of it, but you know the moment I saw my banner rise in the auction house footage, I knew this was coming she couldn’t have what she wanted. So, she took it real personally and did all this because I rejected her all those years ago.” He paused. “I do know one thing though, which is, I know why she wants Asuka Langley. They say she was once a death god in her former life, that she brought about the end in a truly horrible way. So if you want to stop it, you need me, because if you don’t we are all going to die. Gabriella was always an insane bitch, but never a liar, and she wants to destroy us all!”

Joshua breathed in deeply, easing one of the double-barrelled hunting shotguns off the wall calmly loading it as he moved over to the desk. “Yeah, you see, we’re not really about that, David.” He slowly turned the gun, aiming it at him watching as the shock spread across the old man’s face. “We don’t want Asuka because we want to stop the end of days, we want her because we want to use her for the same thing. So you should be happy you won’t see the end of days when it comes, because if it’s anything like the last one, it won’t be nice, but it will be necessary to see human instrumentality restored once more, then all will be right with the world.” He paused, enjoying the look of horror in David’s eyes. “Nice gun by the way, always wanted to fire one of these.”

Kensuke watched as Joshua fired, causing blood to splatter as it hit the man right in the chest. His face turned to pain for a spilt second before he fell forward, blood dripping down the wall behind him. “You know you could have just shot him with a pistol.”

Joshua eyed him. “What’s the fun in that? Plus I’m keeping this gun, it’s really good.”

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Kuchisake folded her arms in annoyance. “What a waste of time… you know Keel is not going to be happy that we just did someone else’s dirty work.”

Hikari leaned over, picking up an apple taking a bite out of it. “Yeah, but we know way more than before. I mean he just spilled the beans on Mari’s family tree; that has to be worth something right?”

Avel breathed in deeply. “Yeah, there is that. So maybe he’ll take that, I mean it’s not every day you find out who the power behind the power is, and we heard stories about the Hyena growing up in Ukraine. She had a real taste for slaughtering unarmed people.”

Joshua moved over to the desk, rummaging around. “Fine. Let’s take whatever we want then from this place, and then head back to base.” He pulled out a bunch of thin, expensive Cuban cigars. “Look Kensuke, he even has those cigars you like in here, among other stuff.”

8

Chilam breathed in as she eyed the hologram, which was now stripped down to its skeleton and nerves and fully gutted, with all of its insides hanging in the air all over the place, all of them opened and even turned inside out. They had been at this almost all day and all night, and they just hadn’t found anything. She breathed in, laying on the floor, ignoring the people from the other science labs who were looking into their lab with mixed confusion over why they had been stripping a pilot hologram down like this. “There’s nothing! All we have left is her brain cavity, eyeballs, tongue and spine along with her nerve endings.”

Vitor eyed the female skeleton. “No, it’s got to be here! We stripped this force of nature back to her bones, that means it has to be here.” He moved over to hologram. “Let’s peel back the last muscle layer and expose her whole spine.” He used his tool, slowly easing the hologram muscle away watching as the nerves and bones came into view. He was about to peel more, only to stop. “Chilam, get your ass up here and look at this with me…”

Chilam got up, looking at the hologram spine.

“Tell me, does this look normal to you?”

Chilam moved over, looking at what he was talking about, which did look strange. “Hang on, I need to change the hologram to realistic. I apologise, but it’s the only way I can tell.” She pressed the button, watching as it turned hyper-realistic just along the spine and nerves and bone. “I’ve turned off blood simulation because I need a better look, so when I cut there’s no spraying.” She looked at the long thin nerve that was coiled all the way up the spine. It was red in colour, but looked swollen. “I’m making a minor cut now.”

She paused, looking at Vitor. “You know, this could just be very minor swelling from Bardiel leaving, you know as he was wrapped around her spine.”

Vitor eyed her. “Just cut it already.”

Chilam breathed in, slowly pressing down, only for the next moment to catch her completely off guard as a mass of thick white webbing shot out instantly down the whole spine and nerves, covering them causing her tool to be thrown back before it could cut further. “What the hell is this, it’s fucking alive!?”

Vitor didn’t think as he moved over, pressed the button on the hologram desk, causing the sound proofing to come on. He pressed another button, causing all the metal panels to come down instantly cutting off the view from the few people looking in. He turned, moving to stand right next to Chilam and watching as the long red nerve turned white, pulsing and showing its real colours. There was a line of pure, glowing blue running through it as the webbing loosened, coming free and going back inside it. “Is that Bardiel?”

Chilam eyed the thin, white worm that went from the base of the neck all the way down to the pelvis tip, hiding itself among the real nerves, and clearly masquerading as one, hence why it had probably been overlooked. She grabbed her scanning device, scanning it slowly. “No, I am getting fragments of his DNA in it, but it doesn’t read as angel or Evangelion. In fact, I have no idea what this DNA sequence it is; it’s not in any of Nerv’s databases.” She eyed it. “One thing is clear though, it’s hooked right the way through her spine and it’s got some kind of thin vines penetrating the nerves, but it’s not causing any damage; not like Bardiel was.”

Vitor shifted closer. “So is this a parasite, like say from him..?”

Chilam carried on scanning only to stop. “No, and you know your concept of symbiosis? Well you could be right. This thing isn’t young, the scanner ages it at just over nine years old. This has been here since this woman was a child and long before Bardiel.”

Vitor eyed the strange creature. “We need to bring up holograms of all the other pilots, every single one, and test if it’s there.” He paused. “This could be a true form of both mutualism and endosymbiosis; you know, where two creatures live off each other but neither hinders the other, as the one attached is very much symbiotic rather than a parasite.”

Chilam lowered the scanner. “Well, I tried to poke at it, it instantly tried to protect the whole spine. Maybe that’s what it does, it somehow protects the spine and central nerve system. That would explain why in the Alpha Unit incident, all Asuka got was a fracture to the top of one spinal disk, which they fixed, and then there was her fall on Uluru mountain, which she walked away from despite smashing her back hard, and only needing pain killers. They said it was the Evangelion’s primal state, but what if it’s in reality both?”

Vitor looked up slightly. “But wouldn’t this also mean when Bardiel took over, he wasn’t hijacking one being, he was hijacking two?”

Chilam looked at him for a long moment before speaking. “That would explain why he stayed off her spine until he really needed to, and it’s clear this thing has absorbed part of him, but neutralized it.”

Chilam turned, noticing that Vitor’s budgie was playing a digital chess game on his holographic panel against her mini mass Evangelion’s. She moved over, grabbing her device. “Wait how much DNA of Bardiel is there in that thing?”

Vitor picked up his scanner. “Twenty percent, but this worm has converted it into its self.” He paused, eyeing her. “Why, what’s your thinking?”

Chilam smirked. “All angels have code blue signals right? So what if we could find her, like her true location, like use Bardiel’s material to track her.”

Vitor breathed in deeply. “That’s brilliant, you do that while I bring up the other holograms and see if they’ve got this spine worm too. When we have all we need, we’ll call in everyone, because this is going to be the fucking find of the century!”

8

Gabriella watched as the guards brought through the strange, black, nineties-looking video camera, which had glowing red-gold veins moving through there were also six interchangeable coloured glass filters where the film normally went in. The guards placed the camera directly in front of Asuka, who was still being held by the hanging chain and on her knees, though once more she was asleep. Her lover had been taken back to the prison room, which Gabriella had set at its lower point, as she wanted Rei to witness this.

They’d stolen this camera from Ouroboros over a year ago, and it was safe to say they had spent a lot of time testing it on prisoners. They knew now what it was and what it did. It was a device that could see the soul under the true body and create a projection of it. As the lenses of colour spun, they cracked the body image and revealed the pure soul itself.

Use it further though, and it became like a cheese grater, in that it could cut the soul’s top layer, revealing older ones underneath. From her study of using it, she had found that when you did this it led to danger, as the soul would lash out violently to protect itself and destroy things, and the destruction was real. Not everyone’s soul looked human; people had different mental images to protect themselves. Though she didn’t understand the psychology of this, only that it was important and if you broke too much you could send people insane or crazy, with bad results, which was why this session was going to be a slow one.

She adjusted the lens carefully as she turned it on, watching as the veins of red-gold began to glow intensely. She pushed down the first blue glass filter very carefully as she turned it on, eyeing Christopher and Achika behind her. “Stay out of the light at all times and behind the camera; people get their arms ripped off when they’re within the light. It’s when a person’s soul can attack you, even kill you.” She breathed in, easing on the second switch and watching as the bright blue light shone out on to Asuka’s whole body, lighting it up. She watched as the light started to flicker, but nothing happened. “Okay, so she isn’t a blue grade soul, not that I’m really surprised.”

She slowly pushed the next filter down. “Green, maybe.” She looked up as the light changed again, flickering, though once more Asuka didn’t wake up, she just carried on sleeping. She forced the next lens down. “Maybe yellow then.” She watched the light in the darkness of the room, seeing that Asuka was still not moving.

Achika blinked in confusion. “How is she not a yellow grade? Most people are screaming by now.”

Gabriella breathed in deeply. “Clearly gods are something more.” She pushed the orange lens, seeing Asuka’s body start to twitch but not wake up. “It’s tapping it, it’s not shattering.”

Christopher eyed the final red lens nervously. “Grandma, we have never used the red lens. Is it really wise? If it goes wrong, it’s very hard to switch back from the high point.”

Gabriella eyed him. “Have faith, my precious grandchild. Clearly seeing a god demands sacrifice and bravery.” She slowly pushed the red glass lens in, watching as the red light fell up onto Asuka, only for the camera to go into overdrive as it suddenly burst into white light, hitting Asuka causing her to snap awake. An inhuman tiger-like roar hit the air once more, as her left eye lit up in blazing white light and the other opened, revealing the glowing green eye with its cat-like slit. Gabriella watched as Asuka stood up and started to fight her arm chains violently. “The more you struggle, the more painful this becomes for you, Asuka. Just embrace it, we only care to see the real you.”

She watched as Christopher passed her the second set of lenses. These went in a slot in front of the first and acted as a stabilizer so you could keep the soul’s image stable. They came in bronze, silver, and gold, and had a pure crystal glass lens in the centre. She put in the bronze one, seeing Asuka struggle even harder. “I might have known bronze wouldn’t cut it, she must be gold.” She pulled it out, switching for the gold lens, only to blink in surprise as the light didn’t get more intense. “Strange, not gold and it is the highest range of stabilization.” She pushed the silver one in, ignoring Asuka’s roars of pain. “That makes no sense, she should stabilize on gold and reveal her soul to us.”

Achika turned sharply. “What if she’s a gold crossed with silver? We get those; they’re normally people who can swim in red water, though they’re rarer.”

Gabriella breathed in deeply, easing up the silver lens getting ready to put in the third holder, which meant all the lenses would line up perfectly on the top of the camera. “If she is, then she is the first red, gold, and silver combination we’ve ever had.” She looked up slightly, pressing the lens carefully. “Prepare yourself.” She watched as the light changed to a piercing beam. The beam hit Asuka straight in the chest, knocking her back as her face turned to shock. Both her eyes widened, staring at them, only for her left eye’s light to flow out slowly, enveloping her whole body.

Christopher turned as the whole room started to shake, he grabbed the camera, trying to keep it stationary. They couldn’t afford for it to fall in this state, as it could hit them. The light was getting bigger and bigger, then there was a sudden cracking sound as the back brace and collar came flying out in a crippled mess that had been bent up and warped. Its chains made to hold the arms had been broken off. He stared as the light started to slowly vanish and a huge form appeared, though it was kneeling.

He watched in shock as the light faded fully, revealing what could only be described as a lycanthrope, but it wasn’t a werewolf, no, there was blazing red fur and tiger stripes. The huge head rose with its blazing long red mane of hair, as the two tiger tails behind its body thrashed violently. The blue right eye had a slight glow, while the left was blazing out white light. He could see the huge clawed hands and feet as it rose to its feet, standing six foot tall not including its body-length tails.

It was huge and muscular, and had teeth that came out of its mouth on both the lower and upper jaw. Along with white fur on the stomach, chest, hands, and snout just like a tiger in any zoo, it had longer ears which had wisps of fur at the tips. He could see the chains and cuffs still attached to the wrists, but they were coming away and were also bent and buckled.

Gabriella felt a smile form. Well wasn’t this fascinating? She’d taken the form of Nekomata, of all things; the demon cat, the same as her Evangelion unit. No wait; this was the same face in her artwork, which was on display at the Nerv visitor centre. This was this were-tiger in the flesh. She watched as it turned to look at them, a sneer forming as it showed off its gums and teeth. She breathed in deeply, feeling a smile form as the camera light faded, though it was still there, keeping this image in their frame of existence. “My, my, you have a powerful soul.” She paused. “You understand me, don’t you Asuka?”

Asuka raised her huge, clawed hands, looking at the bent and buckled cuff hanging off one. She wasn’t sure if this was a dream, or if she was awake; it seemed so surreal to her now. Maybe she’d died and this was some kind of vision, or maybe she was still dreaming. She pulled the cuff off, putting it in her other clawed hand as she closed it, hearing the bending as it broke. She opened it, watching it clatter as it hit the floor. She breathed in as every smell and sound hit her, and her gaze shifted up to the prison.

She could smell the Alpine from here, and even from this distance she could see Rei staring down below, utter shock in her face. Her glowing red eyes, were beautiful even at this distance, and they glistened like red sapphire in the moonlight. Asuka could see them as the prison room was lower than before. Maybe she had been laced with drugs; maybe none of it was real, and yet it felt so good, like being completely free and without restraints.

Gabriella felt a sneer form as she eyed the huge were-tiger, who was no longer paying attention to her. “Stop looking at your lover and look at me! You can talk can’t you?!”

Asuka turned sharply, lowering her ears as she let out a massive roar in their direction, making sure they saw her teeth as she tensed, which caused her mane to rise like a cat’s did when they felt threatened. “These are interesting drugs.”

Gabriella breathed in deeply. “They’re not drugs. What you’re seeing and feeling is your true soul made flesh. Right now, you exist as if this part of you is real.”

Asuka eyed the other chain, yanking it free of her arm. “Then shouldn’t you be very afraid?”

Gabriella smirked. “No, because this part of you only exists within this device’s light. Outside of it, you’ll just go back to normal.” She raised her robotic hand. “And if I were you, I wouldn’t, since others went insane doing so.”

Asuka eyed her, going down on all fours as she walked forward, before rising up on two legs again as she snarled at them in disgust. “I’ve already gone insane once in my life when Bardiel was trying to drive me to ruin, so I don’t fear what’s beyond the light!” Gabriella looked at Christopher and Achika, who suddenly looked very nervous. “Remember Asuka, you’re sitting in a flying airship that’s deep in the ocean and you’re a big kitty who can’t swim in blue water. Also we didn’t give you this form so you could escape, we gave it you so we could talk to the real you, not the human skin you wear.”

She looked up slightly. “Now I understand why you call yourself Rei’s monster; I’m guessing she’s seen this side of you somehow. Maybe when you both did that strange tail linking on the training ground perhaps.”

Asuka turned sharply, not thinking as she roared with all her might, leaping, landing with inches of the camera. She leaned forward, not past the light, but close enough that she could see the older woman and see her breath blowing her hair back as her jaws were inches away from her face. “You were listening to our verfickte conversation! That was not for you, it was for her!” She paused. “Now I can see why my grandma wanted you dead; you don’t know when to shut your mouth. I can’t wait to tell her that you tried to drown me as a child, because she always blamed Mari’s mother and my stepdad being careless.”

Gabriella breathed in deeply, looking at the huge, razor-sharp teeth, which were very close to her face. “Mari’s mother Lydia was a fool who gave birth to a weak runt of a child.”

Asuka eyed her in disgust. “Don’t speak ill of my big sister; she is braver than you’ll ever know.”

Gabriella looked up slightly. “Some things clearly never change. You know, I beat that child so hard with a horse whip after she saved you, I believe she still carries the faded scars on her lower waist.”

Asuka narrowed her gaze. “When I get out of this, I’m going to rip your insides out and tear your head off its verfickte shoulders and strip the flesh from your bones!” Gabriella folded her arms. “Please, let’s stop with the small talk. You’re in this form so you can give us all your godly power.” She raised her hand, pointing upwards. “Now breathe life into that lance and fulfill your destiny!”

End of part 29

Silvermoonlight