Pincer (3)

      Rose's revelation of a secret better kept isn't what bothers me. No, it's that she is still valuing me as a Title. Not as me, but as a duty. My heart feels heavy; I thought I had gotten through to her. I thought maybe as an individual I had a chance. But… I was wrong? I try not to show the hurt on my face, but Rose must have realized how her words came across as she turns to me with worried eyes.

      The sound of the heavy metal door opening draws our attention.

      "Wait! Kay!" I yell out to no avail. I run after her, forcing the others to follow.

      Inside, the building is atrocious. We're in the Academy's cafeteria, and it is hell on earth.

      The entire area is littered with bodies, whole and in pieces alike. Blood, bile, rot, and stench coat everything. The walls seem to have pustules oozing and squirming, letting out squelches as they pop. In the middle of the cafeteria stands Fennis, engaged in battle with a tall woman with red hair.

      A smile cracks her face, reaching her eyes. Her pupils are a dark red with the white of her eyes now a pitch black.

      "Ame!" Kay rushes out and slices at Fennis, who manages to leap away from Kay just in time.

      "You fucking whore! What are you doing?!" he screams.

      Behind him kneels Charlotte. Her beautiful earth-green hair is stained with blood. Her gaze seems to focus on something far away. She's alive, but has suffered. The thought of that burns my soul. I will fucking kill this woman for what she has done.

      I move to take a step forward but notice that behind that monster, this Ame, lays Mimi. She's chained up against the wall, wincing with every move she makes. She tries to speak, but her voice fails.

      "A wonderful silencing spell, if I say so myself. Works wonders, doesn't it, Kay?"

      Kay doesn't bat an eye at the revelation.

      "Shut your mouth and let her go! Now! And undo your stupid magiks." I shout to her.

      "My, my. Gehenna pegged you so well, little Ember. Now, my little Kay, it is I, Ame. You are my girl, are you not?"

      Kay's eye starts to glaze over.

      "Whatever the fuck you're doing, stop it, you whore!" Fennis yells out.

      "Oh, but my little-faux Zero, you know nothing of our relationship. You love me, don't you, Kay? Do Ame a favor and destroy that red-headed Ember. Remove that spark from this life. Revel in watching the light leave her eyes! Bring joy to our master Gehenna!"

      Kay pivots and charges at me. Abi is the first to confront her, but Kay is a Valkyrie in the end, and slices down, straight through Abi's sword. Shifting her weight backward, she continues into a back somersault, smashing her foot underneath Abi's chin. This picks her up, and Kay ends the encounter with a roundhouse to her midsection. Abi is sent flying toward Charlie and crashes into her.

      They yelp in pain. Fennis uses that moment to dash in toward Kay and shove the pommel of his sword into her ribs. A crack reverberates throughout the room, but Kay doesn't flinch. A madness in her eye shows her pure enjoyment. She whips her dagger out and smashes it's hilt into Fennis' throat.

      He falls back, hands on his throat as he coughs violently. He berates her with every profanity he can think of.

      Kay looks toward Dom, ready to strike.

      "Dom, what the hell are you doing?" I shout, interrupting Kay’s focus for a second.

      For an unknown reason, he walks off over toward Abi and Charlie, leaving me with Kay and Rose. I swallow hard when I turn to meet Kay's gaze. She dangles her tongue and laps at her lips. Rose places me behind her.

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      "Eve. I'll handle this. I can-"

      "Don't you dare, Rose. You are not killing Kay."

      "But-"

      "No!" I instruct her. "Just no. I'll do something about her. Please, just keep an eye on Ame. See if you can help Mimi. That is the whole reason Fennis is holding back."

      "Fennis? Zero?" She turns to him.

      Shit. This is so annoying.

      "Look, just help save Mimi so Zero can take this bitch out, okay?"

      I kiss the back of Rose’s hand.

      Kay's eye bulges and her brow twitches. She immediately charges at me before I have a chance to react.

      Shoving Rose to the side, I raise my sword to deflect her dagger and bring my other hand up to block the following knee. She drops down and swings her dagger at my knees. I swap my sword to the other hand and let it fall point-first into the ground, stopping her. Using my free hand, I smash the side of her face. It sends her to the left.

      She lands and rolls and she doesn't miss a beat. She throws a dagger at me and I raise my sword to block. She follows it aggressively. I wasn't expecting that, so she manages to stab me square through the chink of my jerkin.

      Leave it to an assassin to see such a small opening.

      She yanks the dagger out and slams the palm of her other hand into my chin. Rose, in the distance, yells at me. I see her hair start to glow. I right myself and try to ignore the stars that blind me. I shake my head at Rose and the glow ends, if only for a moment.

      Damnit, this is bad. She didn't land her dagger deeply, but it still pierced me. The blood I cough up is telling of my wounds. I glance at Fennis to see him fighting Ame, completely oblivious to what Kay just did to me.

      I regret taking my attention from Kay because she doesn't hesitate to come in for the kill.

      She strikes forward with one dagger while slicing low with another. I opt to block the one aimed at my head, but the other slices my thigh open. I push her back and immediately fall to my knees. She's cut into my femoral artery.

      How could I possibly fight against a Valkyrie as a normal woman? Goddamnit. Is there no choice but to let Rose end this? Judging by how she doesn't take her eyes off me even as she tends to Abi and Charlie, I know she would do it.

      But it would hurt her so bad to take Kay's life! She's already done the unthinkable and I refuse to add to it. There is no possible way for me to fight her like this. There's no choice. I was never good with a sword anyway. I have no choice but to rely on Grandpa and Mimi's teachings. Kay knows very little of what I can do hand-to-hand, but I will only get one chance.

      Kay lifts her blood-soaked dagger high. She admires the sheen of my blood in the dim light as drops of it fall and splatter on her face. She is in ecstasy as she looks down her nose at me and licks her lips. Her smile twists and grows to her eyes, her skin cracking as her smile widens still. It's hard to see my beautiful Kay like this – she's turning into an Eld. I don't understand how, but it's definitely happening.

      "Bring it. After you, I'm going to kill Ame," I goad her.

      She twists her wicked-toothed smile to a frown and turns red with anger, rushing at me. Her left arm jabs forward toward my heart. I parry it with my sword. Her other arm reaches high as well and I use my other hand to punch forward and redirect her stab.

      Kay recovers and goes low again to my legs, knowing I can't dodge well at all now. I swing my sword down and smash her dagger out of the way. A small smile dances on her lips when she brings the other dagger up, aimed directly at my throat. She knew she won.

      I let go of my sword and reach forward, letting her dagger pierce through my hand. Her eye widens as I wrap my hand around her fist and pull her in. I slam my right elbow into her sternum, visibly watching her deflate as air is siphoned out of her. Pivoting, I use my momentum to wrap her arm over my shoulder and lift her high. Bringing her down with all of my strength and her weight, she slams into the floor, her body leaving a dent.

      I rip my hand free, taking the dagger with me. I immediately bring my good leg down on Kay's face. Her nose breaks under my knee, causing me to wince in guilt.

      I know this isn't over, and if I’m any less ruthless, I know I’ll die. I pivot and straddle her. Kay's beautiful brown eye stares up at me just in time to see my fist coming down on her face, again and again. I beat her until almost nothing remains of my fists.

      Breathing raggedly, I look down at her bloody, broken face. At some point, the dagger fell out of my mangled hand. Even as I gaze down upon her once-good eye, now uncovered, I can see her wounds healing. I have a minute at most before the Valkyrie's healing finishes.

      I notice her revealed eye staring back with its red pupil and pitch-black sclera. The thought of her suffering under the effect of the Eld scares me.

      I reach out and stab my fingers on every side of her eye, feeling the visceral, raw meat of it all. I wrap my fingers around it and Kay screams louder than I have ever heard from her before. The devil himself would say this was too much, but it's all I can think to do.

      With all my strength, I pull. Her eye wiggles and squirm and catches me off-guard. The dark tendrils shooting out suddenly, definitely, catch me off-guard even more. A hellish scream leaves me as it darkens my entire world.

     The last thing I hear is Rose screaming at us.