In the night (2)

In Marmalade's head, a mental map was being crafted. Each branch led to a dead end, and the thought of tying these loose ends together was a pipe dream within a dream. She had the biggest headache in weeks - it didn't make any sense.

Neither were Sami's story, a cluster of random words, spoken with a confidence that failed to hide their lack of logic; nor Lee's random nods, helping Marmalade in understanding anything.

"You're both twenty?" They were stuck on this topic, right after Marmalade had given her own. Twenty, of course.

Lee nodded, while Sami spoke. "Yes, that's right." His tone was steady, too steady to be natural.

Marmalade played with one of her bangs. Her unique way of coping with nonsense. A pair of siblings, not twins, yet the same age? There was better odds of believing that the Karyla's death was imminent. At first, she thought that they were mistaken. Maybe - the concepts of twins wasn't engraved in their head. It was a bold statement. Still, Marmalade told the siblings about it; in thorough details, the biology wasn't spared.

Yet, they nodded against it.

And now, Marmalade's attempt at breaking the ice had erected a thousand-meter-tall barrier. In a desperate attempt, she tried breaking through. "So, about your country." The conversation looped back around.

"You said it's white. Nothing else? Really?" Marmalade asked, lost. She didn't have trouble trusting Sami - rather, she wanted to paint a comprehensive look into their world.

At this point, these behaviors were becoming erratic, so much that believing their land to be another world all together wasn't illogical. Perhaps, a secluded space. Marmalade had no idea.

Sami smiled, then dimmed his expression after. A bipolar behavior - erratic, yes. "There's nothing in it. A boundless white space, that's it." He pondered for a minute. "Ah, they were other things - people, I guess."

Marmalade butted in, sensing a gap. "Your parents?"

A freeze occurred on Sami's body. Complete paralysis, followed by a sigh. "No." His short answer shut Marmalade tight. She muttered 'I see' under the blizzard. A wave of guilt seeped through her skin.

Worse, Sami minded. Lee's figure, hidden behind his, had a complicated expression too. After a couple of silent seconds, Marmalade shrugged.

The snow cut their talk, creaking at each step. The noise hid under layers of gales, throwing the three's hair in a mess. Sometimes, a conversation lit up again.

"And, what made you take the journey here?" Marmalade asked, giving up in finding out their alleged country's quirks.

At the question, Lee's footsteps hastened, walking up to Sami's rear. A golden spectacle, as her hair fluttered.

"..." The heavy silence clued Marmalade. She mused that it was a burning topic, but turning around revealed another conclusion. Sami was thinking, a hand on his chin like an old detective.

"Boredom?" He spoke. "When I think about it, we went on a whim." Sami turned to Lee, not speaking in Japanese at all. Marmalade weirded out. "Did we?" Lee whispered, leaning to his ear. They shared a conflicted expression, until letting go of one another.

Sami peered at Marmalade's eyes. "Actually, that was a lie. It wasn't a whim at all." Seeing his sincere look, she laughed, both in fear and humor. "O-Okay."

After a deep breath, Marmalade spoke. "I'm guessing you've never seen monsters before." A frown formed on Sami's face.

"I know. We're without luck." He spoke, to which Marmalade glared at him. A haughty look.

"Lucky? Trust me, you've never met a proper one. I'll be better off with these guys skinned and buried." Her every word was spite-infused and bitter. Lee, however, had her eyes glistering. The smell of battle turned her on.

"What's your goal, anyway? To meet them? I don't get you two." Marmalade rolled her eyes twice, before kicking a lump of snow around. The wind created a white mist that irked her throat. She couched, until Sami interrupted.

"Lee wanted to fight them." Her said without lying. While it wasn't the complete truth, this half of the story was correct, judging from Lee's smug face.

Marmalade wanted to talk - in fact, scream at them for their dumbness. Another deafening cry muffled her voice. A high-pitched, devilish kind of sound, in-between a weep and a laugh.

Sliding back her orange bangs, she bit her tongue. "Well, here's our dinner. I'll show you how annoying it is to fight them."

They'd walked a good amount, shoveled snow around. In front of them, the base of mountain took root in the center, with two path that split on both sides. On the left one - two red lights shone. It got bigger, until the surrounding yellow mist lit a body up.

Sami shuddered; Lee licked her lips. They didn't know if calling it a beast was accurate. A round head and a gaping mouth, where boundless rows of sharp teeth dug into its flesh. At the top, two squinting eyes hid, noticeable at their red glint. Because they were triangle-shaped, the sight wasn't appealing.

Then, supporting this galling ball, was an atrophied body. A cropped chest, standing on top of two elongated legs; the two stood at about a meter of height. Connected on the rear, a pair of arms hanged down, like collapsing. Their length made them stroke the snow.

Because of its proportion, however, it stood at about three meters of height. Three meters of absolute madness.

"Ohh..." Lee couldn't help but let out a noise. Again, she found a certain beauty that, for once, Sami refuted.

The beast, about twenty meters from the three, was making erratic strokes sideways, as though judging their worth. An ugly grunt escaped from its mouth.

"Listen." Marmalade spoke up, "It looks horrible, doesn't it." She pointed at it, mocking. "A Bingusse, it's not really dangerous. And they taste good, if you know where to search."

Sami titled his head. "Don't you have a weapon somewhere?" As he spoke, Marmalade took out a black whip - no, rather, a long and rough rope - from her pocket. About a dozen meter of length.

"That's it?" He asked. Marmalade grinned while looking at the night sky. "This is." A blue glow was spreading over the rope; like a thin coat.

Lee, expecting a show, sat down in the snow. She fidgeted with her hair, snapped her fingers around. He had nothing else to do - Sami sat near her.

The beast, having peered enough, opened his gaping mouth. The rows of teeth, wiggling, extended far into its throat. Not the hint of a tongue was found. In large, exaggerated strokes, it darted towards Marmalade, trying to chew off her neck. The maw closed off, as she rolled sideways with ease. Her hair and face were white with snow and dirt.

Gripping the very tip, Marmalade threw her rope with enough strength that it coiled around the beast's faint neck six or seven times. She threw the loose end backwards, sticking it around a rock. A gruesome weep came from the beast.

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"See, now, he's got nowhere to run." Marmalade spoke with pride. In spite of her low standing at the academy, here, she had a teacher's mantle.

"And now..." The beast began jerking around, pulling on the black rope to no avail. "Well, there's a lot of ways to finish him." Marmalade played with the rope with a grin.

Lee raised her hand, Sami talked. "Yours?", he asked.

"Mine? This." With slow steps, Marmalade closed the distance to the shackled Bingusse. Its black drool fell on her head. She brushed it off with disgust. With her hand forming a fist, a mass of blue particles began clustering above it. At first, shapeless; then, the outlines of a cylinder became visible. Finally, in a second or two, a transparent spear, more than a meter long, hovered, barely stroking Marmalade's skin.

Neither Lee nor Sami could tell if the weapon was solid. It glistered in a gorgeous sheen.

Marmalade took a step back - the spear, also. As her arm and shoulder arced backward, then mirrored the motion of a punch, the spear flew into the Bingusse's head, carving a red hole. Scarlet blood poured out, staining the immaculate snow, as Marmalade wiped her clean forehead.

She winked at the two siblings. "Not bad, right?" A clapping sound entered her ears - Lee's eyes were full of sparkles and wonder for her. Meanwhile, Sami's mental notes regarding the fight were getting clearer.

Lee and Sami stood up, both answering over one another. Thus, Marmalade understood none of it. She took a glance at the Bingusse's lifeless body, before walking up to them.

"Lee, what did you think?" She asked. Instead of talking - the sole thing Lee couldn't - the girl raised her thumb, making light jumps in the air. An ecstatic display that fueled Marmalade's ego.

"Humm...Sami, your opinion?" Because she expected a similar reaction, the answer she got froze her thought process.

"It was...alright." His words were high with praise, contrary to their mild content. Marmalade stood conflicted. She nodded to shave off the awkwardness.

Seeing how Lee eyed the sprawled body with contempt, Marmalade spoke up while crouching near it. "Trust me. The meat is good. Very nutritive, also. It's a favorite of everyone in these mountains." She chuckled. "Well, first..."

As Marmalade leaned forward, the bingusse's red jewels shone back the moonlight. Her brown eyes became gray with a coat of silver glisters.

With a trained gesture, she gauged out the two eyes in one motion. A blue layer surrounded her hands, avoiding the black blood. After wiping out the remaining dirtiness with her sleeve, a pair of red rocks danced in Marmalade's palm.

"These are what you're looking for!" She screamed, one-upping the wind. "Like, a hundred bucks each - not too bad, right?"

In a united act, Sami and Lee nodded. However, they had no idea what a 'buck' meant, or the value of a hundred of them. Marmalade, accustomed to this silence, fired back. "I mean, money!"

Then, the siblings nodded. In truth - again - the concept wasn't far from foreign to them. Apart from Sami, whose brain had picked up pieces of understanding, Lee's was an empty shell.

Curiosity washed over Sami, who stood up. He walked towards Marmalade, followed by Lee. "Which part are we eating?" Sami asked, peering at this unappealing sludge.

Without a word, Marmalade pointed to the bingusse's lower body. Having lost a gallon of blood, its body, already atrophied, was flatter than a dead leaf. In fact, it didn't resemble anything. Lee couldn't find any appeal in this mess anymore; Sami frowned.

"This? No. Absolutely not." He spoke, with Lee as his side, banging her head up and down. Marmalade met the two with a snicker. "What? You know, there's nothing else to eat."

Lee wanted to punch this behavior, tear apart a teeth or two. The plan cut off at that; a thought. With the sound of an echoing bell, Marmalade closed her eyes. A thin transparent layer formed, following the shape of her arm. It extended a few centimeters beyond this boundary, making for a makeshift blade.

Marmalade's eyes creaked open - then, she sighed. "If you don't want it, it's fine. Don't disturb me." She began touching the bingusse's flat body, from its chest to the thin sticks reminiscent of limbs. The blue edge slid under the crumpled skin, skinning the beast with precision and care.

Removing the beige layer, red and dry muscles remained. They had the appearance of low-quality meat. Marmalade took out a couple of parts, the ones that she deemed usable, before cutting a dozen slices. She let them out on the snow, presenting the siblings with her craft.

"There it is..." Marmalade's excitement didn't seep through. Lee watched the crispy meat with disdain. Then, pondering about the matter, she chose not to close her mind off to the new. Conflict could be observed on her shifting expressions.

Because Sami shared the same feeling, he gulped, before grabbing a slice with his fingertips. The meat hanged like a rag; it lost all its appeal.

"Wait." Marmalade interrupted. When she snapped her fingers, orange flames surged from under the meat. A light burn irked Sami's skin. "It's better that way." She explained, taking out another slice over the fire.

Then, thirty seconds passed. Sami's skin hurt, but he never voices it. Lee, intrigued, waved her hand over and inside the fire. When she felt nothing, the novelty died down.

"Okay, we're good." With a soft blow, the fire withered away. A cracking noise came from Marmalade's mouth. She took a bite, nodding towards the beast with gratitude. Mirroring her, Sami brought the hard slide to his face, before chewing off one side.

To his surprise, the taste wasn't bad. Pleasant, in fact. He wondered the point of this statement, as he'd never tasted anything else in his life. For a first time, he praised in silence Marmalade's choices.

Lee observed Sami's reaction. Decent. Grabbing a slice with her hand, she gulped it raw, before chewing. A bitter taste began spreading in her mouth. Marmalade threw a coy glance at Lee - a blend of pity and mockery.

"This is nice." Sami spoke up. The best analysis he could think of - given his limited experiences.

"Right?" Marmalade grinned. "If I'm alone, this should get me by a week or so." She lied. By this, it meant 'enough to survive'. Sami caught on to it; Lee's expression said otherwise.

The three sat on the snow, eating in relative silence. At least, a lack of conversation. Every minute, Marmalade made flames burst out in the middle, before they dimmed out.

Sami eyed Marmalade; her neon orange hair, the dainty coat over her shoulders. Then, a question popped out.

"I've been wondering - but what are you doing here?" He asked.

Marmalade lifted her gaze from the ground. She glanced at the siblings. "It's...something like an internship?"

Seeing how her answer didn't get thought, she continued. "I told you that I study at an academy?" Sami nodded; Lee kept on listening. "I'm not alone here. There's about fifty guys of my grade scattered in these mountains. We were given two weeks to survive, and hunt as many monsters as we can."

"To improve your abilities, or something like that?" Sami mused.

"Yeah, but..." Marmalade paused. Dark thoughts were surging from within. "Ah, really, it's so annoying!" They burst her heart open. She stood up, before running her hands through the air. "You can't imagine how boring it becomes; I've been holed up in this cave for a week now. How would not become crazy?!"

She tried pulling out her hair - of course, it was an act. Lee, caught up in her madness, stood up. She grabbed Marmalade's arms with an iron grip, before pulling them apart. Sami sighed, following their gesture. "Isn't that the whole point of this exercise?"

Marmalade laughed, shaking off Lee's weakening grip. "Maybe I'm too weak for this."

Sami crossed his arms without raising a brow. "Perhaps, you are." His lack of concern stunned Marmalade.

"..."

"Or maybe it's the opposite. Don't ask me." In tandem, Lee shook her head. Somewhere inside of Marmalade's reason, a tight wire snapped. She bit her lip, coiled the black rope around, before shoving it in her pocket.

"You're right. The night is young - let's hunt some." Sami wanted to slap her out of this frenzy - at the same time, he wondered where it would lead the woman.

"Let's go." Without waiting for a reply, Marmalade turned around, then rushed toward the left exit. Lee's face lit up - the thought of conflict fueled her energy. She bolted to Marmalade's direction.

Sami followed the two, although belatedly. The path, a straight line that rose at a snail pace, led to an upper area. They had complete vision over a lower floor, trapped inside of a crater-like structure. As he arrived, Sami watched Marmalade and Lee's rush coming to a halt. He caught up to them - the two turned around, a finger on their mouth.

"What's going o-" Sami stopped midway. He saw a strange kind of spectacle. Two bingusse were sleeping, side to side, leaning against a nest of rocks. One was similar to the one Marmalade had slaughtered. However, the other had a different face - shaped in an oval, instead of a bloated ball. Its proportions were - well - less gruesome, with smaller arms and a longer chest.

Between the two beasts, a third one seemed to gaze at the sky. He was a third of the other's size. His proportions were similar; though no teeth pierced at its skin. It was peaceful scenery, cut off by soft snores.

"Their child?" Sami mused. He watched, alongside Lee, Marmalade nod at his words. "That's right. And that means - an easy target." She flashed a bright smile at the siblings.

"Ah, wait." Marmalade whispered. "You two. Give me your sprays." They complied without asking. It was the ones that she gave an hour ago.

"Why?" Sami asked, while Lee frowned. Without the spray, there wasn't any mist of light - or so Marmalade had explained.

"I need to get up close." At her words, the siblings understood what she meant. After dispelling the air around, a black veil fell down. There wasn't any light - except for a lingering glint on Marmalade's skin.

Sami and Lee didn't move, linking their arm with one another. Then, they saw. They watched Marmalade, sneaking up on the left, hugging the edge, before she made her way right up behind the sleeping beasts.

Her figure was hidden, however, by a massive boulder. A second passed; it began rolling forward. As it tripped over the edge and bulldozed down the cliff, Lee and Sami observed with awe. It rolled, without stopping nor looking back, gathering dirt and snow, until the cluster of rocks created a black and red sludge of organs and mush.

Lee complained at the lack of resistance.

Sami praised Marmalade for the efficient strategy.

Marmalade began scribbling down on a notebook.

Nobody cared much.