Setting
Default Location for Syzygy
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east |
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Darwin is a part of 
Syzygy.
3 Characters Here
Kitra Vacivus [959] "Unless you have a death wish, you'll surrender to me!"
Celeste [959]
Casper Phobos [8] "People are most afraid of the truth." (WIP!)
Start Character Here »
-------------Celty makes friends with more friendly demon friends!--------------------------
Celeste's temples throbbed, her head swirled with a mix of thoughts and emotions as her eyes opened, a pink canopy above her head. "Where..?" She slurred, her mind foggy. Celeste tried to sit up, but found she was far too dizzy for any such movement so quickly. The angel thought back, attempting to reconnect her train of thought and could recall speaking to someone. Was everything perhaps just a bad dream? The pink canopy looked awfully similar to the one she had, had at home. Celeste fluttered her wings and found that no, it was not all a bad dream, it had, in fact, been real. She rolled onto her side, the chains on her ankles clinking together. Her vision began to focus, Celeste looked around the space, what appeared to be a mock up of what someone thought an angel bedroom would look like. "How did I get here?" Perhaps her brothers had saved her? But then the chains on her ankles would have been removed.
Here, at the Viridian Ridge, was another, more dangerous passage into Heaven. It wasn't guarded by a gate, because rarely could anyone make their way across the chasm that lead to emptiness if you fell. But this time of year was when the storms weren't quite so bad, so limited transit was possible. Nothing like an army, but moving one angel back to her home would be more than easy. Ruminating her next move, Valafar opened the door into the makeshift angel room, built in a rush to try and give the princess a sense of familiarity, comfort. She should have woken up from the drug by now, after all. "So you're awake." The noble gave her best calming smile at the angel princess as she asked her question. "Don't worry, you're far from that violent demon's grasp. We're close to a secret entrance into Heaven now. You'll be taken home, to where you belong." The demon went closer to the angel with a faint click of the tongue. "Of course, things will still be dangerous of that Queen comes along. If she finds us." Valafar gazed calmly at her guest. "So, what do you know? What are her weaknesses?" Hopefully being friendly would get the answers she wanted.
The door opened, Celeste had wrapped the blanket around her shoulders in a vague attempt to stop the shivers that crawled up her spine. It was odd, as though she was being made fun of again. Was this Kitra's idea of a joke? Did she enjoy tormenting Celeste with the looks and promises of home only to rip it all away at the flick of a wrist? No doubt at any second this would turn back into that dreaded dungeon. Only, the one who walked through the door wasn't Kitra, it was a woman that Celeste recognized, but couldn't at all recall. "The entrance to heaven?" Celeste repeated, feeling hope well up in her heart. Did this mean she was going to be allowed to return home? The woman confirmed it and Celeste was far too excited to question the faith she now put in this woman. "Queen Kitra?" Celeste questioned. She had to think, but so far, Celeste was coming up blank. The angel shook her head, feathers ruffling nervously. "I'm sorry, I can't quite think of one. She's mericless and violent."
The demon's nose wrinkled up in distaste after confirming that this was the way home. She disliked everything about that fledgling new tyrant and her warmongering ways. "If she finds her way here, you can imagine what would happen to us, can't you?" It didn't really take much imagination or anything, after all. Something like this was definitely a matter of urgence. "Strength isn't defined by war, you know? It's time for demons to change, to stop killing and fighting and... taking different, more peaceful approaches." Less barbaric, disgusting ways were needed if a progressive society was going to be made, after all. "In exchange for helping you home, I need information on defeating her faction." The obvious solution was to just call the angels in, but that wasn't really a solution Valafar was going to support. "This is a demon problem, so us demons should solve it without wasting angel lives." Of course, this meant that by keeping the angels out, the demons would be able to keep their sovereignty. No doubt the angels would just claim Hell's territory if they helped depose the lightning demon. "What about that Lilim? Or her lazy brother, Cambion? Does Kitra seem to care about them?"
Finally, someone with a rational train of thought, someone looking for nonviolent ways to end the war. "It's nice to speak with someone with sensibilities." Celeste closed her eyes, attempting to think back, far back. "She doesn't seem to care much for Cambion," Celeste replied. "I believe she thinks him to be a traitor." Lilim? Why did this woman want to know about her? Celeste could recall a bit now, her name was Val, she was clearly someone that didn't agree with Kitra's rule, which Celeste didn't mind. She would get to return home, finally, after all of this torture. Celeste was hesitant too, she really had no information. "I think her insecurity is her biggest weakness." The angel wasn't stupid, she knew that if she listed Lilim as a weakness the sweet pink haired demon who had been willing to heal her would no doubt be targeted "She uses Lilim as a tool, I doubt she cares for very many." A lie, but a harmless one. It would be best to keep the succubus out of this, she was so young and had already suffered so much. "You won't kill her, right? Just make her step down from the throne?" Violence was not the way to end violence.
Cambion, a traitor? As far as Val knew, he spent all of his time napping away in his room, not bothering to get to know anything. The few times she spoke with him, he was clueless about all the recent happenings and was eager to go back to sleep. How could he possibly be a traitor? "Interesting..." Valafar mumbled noncimmitally, taking in the information. Her insecurities were supposedly where to strike, then? So Valafar would have to topple that fake pride Kitra liked to flaunt, to crush her and eliminate her that way, then. But then, something a little interesting, why was the angel princess trying to keep her tormenter alive? "Violence is distasteful." Valafar said simply. "It's a tool of an old age, it's something that won't benefit anyone. After all, it's important to preserve the maximum amount of lives." The noble shrugged, thinking. "I highly doubt Queen Kitra will step down without a fight. And a tyrant like her will keep costing lives. By killing her, it'd spare the lives of her future victims." That's right, it was a game of numbers. "It would be safest to eliminate the Vacivus family line as a whole, to prevent any of their supporters trying to fight back." Once the siblings were all gone, it'd be a new age for the demons. "You'll be safe back in Heaven, so it doesn't concern you what befalls us demons, does it?" There was no reason for a spoiled angel princess to care, not really... right?
Celeste wasn't sure why she suddenly felt uneasy, but her stomach twisted in a knot in a way that was utterly similar to dread. "I can return home now, right? I've given you you're information." Celeste squirmed, if Val really did intend to keep her promise, then why would she keep the chains on the angel? Certainly she realized that Celeste wasn't very strong, there was no need for the use of the heavy metal that weighed her down. Celeste couldn't fly with one wing and she had no control over her angelic gift, she was useless in almost every sense of the word. Naive and ignorant, kept sheltered from the world around her, innocent to the last drop. "You can drop me at the nearest town, I can make my way home from there." There was no way Celeste was going to let a demon deposit her back on the front steps of Eden. No demon had ever stepped foot in the angelic capitol, not even the Demon King and Queen during the near signing of the peace treaty.
Valafar smiled, but this one didn't seem quite as friendly as before. "You'll be taken home, certainly." Then she lowered her voice to something akin to a whisper. "Eventually." After all, it was a shame to just get rid of such a perfect bargaining piece like her. As long as she kept her in custody, it meant Valafar and her faction was safe from the angels, it meant she'd always hold a card against the angels. "Once the current problems here are dealt with, you'll be brought home, back to Heaven. No harm will befall you, I assure you." As she said this, Valafar pulled a vial from her pocket and pulled a syringe into it, extracting the liquid into the tube. "War is such a terrible thing, isn't it? Loss of life is always sad. Don't worry, princess. You won't die." A modified compound of Ataraxia, one to incapacitate angels but not kill. Even with the princess, Val needed some sort of coutnermeasure, just in case the angels were to attack. "It's just a little science experiment." And so she carefully injected it into a vein in the princess's leg and drew a magic circle to monitor pain levels on her new test subject.
Another chill crept down her spine, Celeste was no longer certain that she could trust this woman. Of course, it was silly to trust any demon, why would this one be any different? She breathed a sigh of relief when Val confirmed that the angel would be taken home, only to tense up immediately afterwards. "You promised," Celeste said, hurt and betrayel in her eyes. The angel princess watched with a feeling of dread as Val pulled two things out of her pocket, a vial of orange colored liquid and a needle. "What are you doing with that?" Celeste backed up, attempting to hide in the pillows. She tried to channel her angelic power to change her body into some sort of animal, but as usual, it didn't do anything. "Don't come near me with that," Celeste warned, knowing full well that no amount of threats would do anything. "I gave you the information you wanted, now let me go!" Val was lamenting about the loss of life, then saying that she wouldn't die. "D-don't touch me!" Her leg was grabbed and injected; at first, Celeste felt nothing, then slowly, it began. Her heart pounded in her chest, her airways tightening. Celeste fell back on the bed, twitching. She clutched at her chest, her nails tearing into the fabric as she clawed at her skin in an attempt to get some air. Pain shot through her entire body, traveling like needles or sharp knives. It was the most agonizing feeling Celeste had ever experienced, her body shook with pain, she dry heaved, sweat trickling down her back as she thrashed, nearly passing out. Finally, it began to go away, her airways opened up once more and Celeste could breathe. "Please..." she panted, "Just... leave... me... be."
Valafar was a demon of honor, of course. She kept her promises, she always did. "I did, and you will return home. But it's too dangerous for that right now, don't you know?" She grinned, far too predatory but at this point it didn't matter, she had information, so any further discussion wasn't going to be of any merit. The princess was, understandably, afraid of the syringe. "I promise, there's no risk of fatality. You're perfectly safe." So she injected it and kept her eyes on the magical screen that appeared before her eyes. Unfortunately, the levels on the magic pain monitor weren't quite as Val would have liked. "No, not enough, it isn't enough to incapacitate one of the royal brothers if they tried to attack..." Stronger angels like them could withstand much worse than this without complaint, after all. "Here, I have a few more stronger versions, let me try them out. Shall I make up a consent form?" The demon smiled ruefully at herself and her little joke, and the princess was begging to be left alone now. "Oh, there's nothing to worry about, princess. Pain is temporary, there's no risk of permanent damage or death. You're perfectly safe, just as promised." And so she put another injection in, of a more concentrated dose. "do your best to endure, I'm sure you can handle it."
"No," Celeste whimpered. She had been lied to again, after deciding to put her trust in this person, she had been duped. She was so close, so tantalizingly near her home and yet, she wouldn't be allowed to leave. "Don't, please-" but it was too late, Celeste was injected and her body twitched and thrashed, pain coursing through her body like being dunked into a tank of cold water. If Celeste could scream, she would have and when it finally passed, she was left panting and weak, sweat trickling down her back. Tears welled up in her eyes as Val revealed that she was testing this to incapacitate one of Celeste's brothers. "You can't beat them," Celeste dabbed at her eyes. "They're stronger, much stronger than you. If you return me now, I promise you won't be harmed." Celeste could lie too, as soon as her feet touched the soil of freedom Celeste would tell them all about this Val who had a hidden home in a secret part of the border. Instead, Celeste was mocked and Val took out more potent versions of the orange serum. "No, please, I beg of you!" Val didn't care, that much was clear. The next thing Celeste knew, another syringe was being injected into her leg. She screamed, falling back and gasping for air once more. Pain coursed through her body, her limbs twitched, her hands shook, the feathers on her wing ruffling. Celeste choked, dry heaving once more from both pain and the inability to breathe. It felt as though her lungs were being crushed and her limbs as thugh they had been set alight.
The demon tilted her head curiously at these events, the angel princess was crying, she was far weaker than her siblings, that much was certain. Her tolerance for pain was definitely lower than most. "I'm doing you a favor, you know. Queen Kitra would never have let you go home. I'm just giving you a safe place to hide until the demon royal family is deposed of." The demon spoke in a calm, almost friendly voice, as if she meant every word. "I freed you, so you owe me, don't you? Paying one's debts is a good thing to do." Valafar smiled again at the attempt of a threat and shook her head. "There's no need for them to attack me. I'll gladly return you once it's time, safe and alive. I could even do research to grow back a wing, if you'd like." Out here where Kitra's influence was weak, Valafar could conduct any experiment she wished. After the next injection, she jotted the notes down onto her parchment, eyes lighting up. So then she took a small knife and shaved off a small sample of wing tissue from the remaining wing. "As a reward, I'll start work on the growth serum to give you back your stolen wing. So just wait here for me, princess." And with that, Celeste was left alone in the heaven-styled room.
This was no better than before. In fact, Celeste was certain this was just as bad as what Kitra had done. Finally, the pain eased away and Celeste could breathe again. She realized that there was warmth between her legs and to her horror, Celeste realized that while she had been fighting to breathe, she had been so scared that she had well... released everything. Thankfully it wasn't much, just enough to stain the panties she was wearing. The angel turned onto her side in an attempt to open up her airway more. "I don't.... owe you... anything." She panted, her hands shaking as they balled into fists. "Don't... touch me." Celeste jerked away weakly, seeing the sick light in Val's eyes as she jotted down notes on her parchment. This wasn't freedom, Celeste was trapped in another cage, this one slightly pinker and more plush, but a cage no less. Val leaned forward and Celeste cried out in pain, "No!" She screamed, realizing that Val was touching her remaining wing. A hanful of feathers came off, blood trickling between the white fluffy clump. How much more could she take of this? The angel wasn't sure. She wasn't strong like her siblings or her parents, she was the weakest link and now everyone knew it. The door opened and shut and just like that, Celeste was finally alone. A sob choked her, the angel could no longer hold back that tears that threatened to spill.
Celeste's temples throbbed, her head swirled with a mix of thoughts and emotions as her eyes opened, a pink canopy above her head. "Where..?" She slurred, her mind foggy. Celeste tried to sit up, but found she was far too dizzy for any such movement so quickly. The angel thought back, attempting to reconnect her train of thought and could recall speaking to someone. Was everything perhaps just a bad dream? The pink canopy looked awfully similar to the one she had, had at home. Celeste fluttered her wings and found that no, it was not all a bad dream, it had, in fact, been real. She rolled onto her side, the chains on her ankles clinking together. Her vision began to focus, Celeste looked around the space, what appeared to be a mock up of what someone thought an angel bedroom would look like. "How did I get here?" Perhaps her brothers had saved her? But then the chains on her ankles would have been removed.
Here, at the Viridian Ridge, was another, more dangerous passage into Heaven. It wasn't guarded by a gate, because rarely could anyone make their way across the chasm that lead to emptiness if you fell. But this time of year was when the storms weren't quite so bad, so limited transit was possible. Nothing like an army, but moving one angel back to her home would be more than easy. Ruminating her next move, Valafar opened the door into the makeshift angel room, built in a rush to try and give the princess a sense of familiarity, comfort. She should have woken up from the drug by now, after all. "So you're awake." The noble gave her best calming smile at the angel princess as she asked her question. "Don't worry, you're far from that violent demon's grasp. We're close to a secret entrance into Heaven now. You'll be taken home, to where you belong." The demon went closer to the angel with a faint click of the tongue. "Of course, things will still be dangerous of that Queen comes along. If she finds us." Valafar gazed calmly at her guest. "So, what do you know? What are her weaknesses?" Hopefully being friendly would get the answers she wanted.
The door opened, Celeste had wrapped the blanket around her shoulders in a vague attempt to stop the shivers that crawled up her spine. It was odd, as though she was being made fun of again. Was this Kitra's idea of a joke? Did she enjoy tormenting Celeste with the looks and promises of home only to rip it all away at the flick of a wrist? No doubt at any second this would turn back into that dreaded dungeon. Only, the one who walked through the door wasn't Kitra, it was a woman that Celeste recognized, but couldn't at all recall. "The entrance to heaven?" Celeste repeated, feeling hope well up in her heart. Did this mean she was going to be allowed to return home? The woman confirmed it and Celeste was far too excited to question the faith she now put in this woman. "Queen Kitra?" Celeste questioned. She had to think, but so far, Celeste was coming up blank. The angel shook her head, feathers ruffling nervously. "I'm sorry, I can't quite think of one. She's mericless and violent."
The demon's nose wrinkled up in distaste after confirming that this was the way home. She disliked everything about that fledgling new tyrant and her warmongering ways. "If she finds her way here, you can imagine what would happen to us, can't you?" It didn't really take much imagination or anything, after all. Something like this was definitely a matter of urgence. "Strength isn't defined by war, you know? It's time for demons to change, to stop killing and fighting and... taking different, more peaceful approaches." Less barbaric, disgusting ways were needed if a progressive society was going to be made, after all. "In exchange for helping you home, I need information on defeating her faction." The obvious solution was to just call the angels in, but that wasn't really a solution Valafar was going to support. "This is a demon problem, so us demons should solve it without wasting angel lives." Of course, this meant that by keeping the angels out, the demons would be able to keep their sovereignty. No doubt the angels would just claim Hell's territory if they helped depose the lightning demon. "What about that Lilim? Or her lazy brother, Cambion? Does Kitra seem to care about them?"
Finally, someone with a rational train of thought, someone looking for nonviolent ways to end the war. "It's nice to speak with someone with sensibilities." Celeste closed her eyes, attempting to think back, far back. "She doesn't seem to care much for Cambion," Celeste replied. "I believe she thinks him to be a traitor." Lilim? Why did this woman want to know about her? Celeste could recall a bit now, her name was Val, she was clearly someone that didn't agree with Kitra's rule, which Celeste didn't mind. She would get to return home, finally, after all of this torture. Celeste was hesitant too, she really had no information. "I think her insecurity is her biggest weakness." The angel wasn't stupid, she knew that if she listed Lilim as a weakness the sweet pink haired demon who had been willing to heal her would no doubt be targeted "She uses Lilim as a tool, I doubt she cares for very many." A lie, but a harmless one. It would be best to keep the succubus out of this, she was so young and had already suffered so much. "You won't kill her, right? Just make her step down from the throne?" Violence was not the way to end violence.
Cambion, a traitor? As far as Val knew, he spent all of his time napping away in his room, not bothering to get to know anything. The few times she spoke with him, he was clueless about all the recent happenings and was eager to go back to sleep. How could he possibly be a traitor? "Interesting..." Valafar mumbled noncimmitally, taking in the information. Her insecurities were supposedly where to strike, then? So Valafar would have to topple that fake pride Kitra liked to flaunt, to crush her and eliminate her that way, then. But then, something a little interesting, why was the angel princess trying to keep her tormenter alive? "Violence is distasteful." Valafar said simply. "It's a tool of an old age, it's something that won't benefit anyone. After all, it's important to preserve the maximum amount of lives." The noble shrugged, thinking. "I highly doubt Queen Kitra will step down without a fight. And a tyrant like her will keep costing lives. By killing her, it'd spare the lives of her future victims." That's right, it was a game of numbers. "It would be safest to eliminate the Vacivus family line as a whole, to prevent any of their supporters trying to fight back." Once the siblings were all gone, it'd be a new age for the demons. "You'll be safe back in Heaven, so it doesn't concern you what befalls us demons, does it?" There was no reason for a spoiled angel princess to care, not really... right?
Celeste wasn't sure why she suddenly felt uneasy, but her stomach twisted in a knot in a way that was utterly similar to dread. "I can return home now, right? I've given you you're information." Celeste squirmed, if Val really did intend to keep her promise, then why would she keep the chains on the angel? Certainly she realized that Celeste wasn't very strong, there was no need for the use of the heavy metal that weighed her down. Celeste couldn't fly with one wing and she had no control over her angelic gift, she was useless in almost every sense of the word. Naive and ignorant, kept sheltered from the world around her, innocent to the last drop. "You can drop me at the nearest town, I can make my way home from there." There was no way Celeste was going to let a demon deposit her back on the front steps of Eden. No demon had ever stepped foot in the angelic capitol, not even the Demon King and Queen during the near signing of the peace treaty.
Valafar smiled, but this one didn't seem quite as friendly as before. "You'll be taken home, certainly." Then she lowered her voice to something akin to a whisper. "Eventually." After all, it was a shame to just get rid of such a perfect bargaining piece like her. As long as she kept her in custody, it meant Valafar and her faction was safe from the angels, it meant she'd always hold a card against the angels. "Once the current problems here are dealt with, you'll be brought home, back to Heaven. No harm will befall you, I assure you." As she said this, Valafar pulled a vial from her pocket and pulled a syringe into it, extracting the liquid into the tube. "War is such a terrible thing, isn't it? Loss of life is always sad. Don't worry, princess. You won't die." A modified compound of Ataraxia, one to incapacitate angels but not kill. Even with the princess, Val needed some sort of coutnermeasure, just in case the angels were to attack. "It's just a little science experiment." And so she carefully injected it into a vein in the princess's leg and drew a magic circle to monitor pain levels on her new test subject.
Another chill crept down her spine, Celeste was no longer certain that she could trust this woman. Of course, it was silly to trust any demon, why would this one be any different? She breathed a sigh of relief when Val confirmed that the angel would be taken home, only to tense up immediately afterwards. "You promised," Celeste said, hurt and betrayel in her eyes. The angel princess watched with a feeling of dread as Val pulled two things out of her pocket, a vial of orange colored liquid and a needle. "What are you doing with that?" Celeste backed up, attempting to hide in the pillows. She tried to channel her angelic power to change her body into some sort of animal, but as usual, it didn't do anything. "Don't come near me with that," Celeste warned, knowing full well that no amount of threats would do anything. "I gave you the information you wanted, now let me go!" Val was lamenting about the loss of life, then saying that she wouldn't die. "D-don't touch me!" Her leg was grabbed and injected; at first, Celeste felt nothing, then slowly, it began. Her heart pounded in her chest, her airways tightening. Celeste fell back on the bed, twitching. She clutched at her chest, her nails tearing into the fabric as she clawed at her skin in an attempt to get some air. Pain shot through her entire body, traveling like needles or sharp knives. It was the most agonizing feeling Celeste had ever experienced, her body shook with pain, she dry heaved, sweat trickling down her back as she thrashed, nearly passing out. Finally, it began to go away, her airways opened up once more and Celeste could breathe. "Please..." she panted, "Just... leave... me... be."
Valafar was a demon of honor, of course. She kept her promises, she always did. "I did, and you will return home. But it's too dangerous for that right now, don't you know?" She grinned, far too predatory but at this point it didn't matter, she had information, so any further discussion wasn't going to be of any merit. The princess was, understandably, afraid of the syringe. "I promise, there's no risk of fatality. You're perfectly safe." So she injected it and kept her eyes on the magical screen that appeared before her eyes. Unfortunately, the levels on the magic pain monitor weren't quite as Val would have liked. "No, not enough, it isn't enough to incapacitate one of the royal brothers if they tried to attack..." Stronger angels like them could withstand much worse than this without complaint, after all. "Here, I have a few more stronger versions, let me try them out. Shall I make up a consent form?" The demon smiled ruefully at herself and her little joke, and the princess was begging to be left alone now. "Oh, there's nothing to worry about, princess. Pain is temporary, there's no risk of permanent damage or death. You're perfectly safe, just as promised." And so she put another injection in, of a more concentrated dose. "do your best to endure, I'm sure you can handle it."
"No," Celeste whimpered. She had been lied to again, after deciding to put her trust in this person, she had been duped. She was so close, so tantalizingly near her home and yet, she wouldn't be allowed to leave. "Don't, please-" but it was too late, Celeste was injected and her body twitched and thrashed, pain coursing through her body like being dunked into a tank of cold water. If Celeste could scream, she would have and when it finally passed, she was left panting and weak, sweat trickling down her back. Tears welled up in her eyes as Val revealed that she was testing this to incapacitate one of Celeste's brothers. "You can't beat them," Celeste dabbed at her eyes. "They're stronger, much stronger than you. If you return me now, I promise you won't be harmed." Celeste could lie too, as soon as her feet touched the soil of freedom Celeste would tell them all about this Val who had a hidden home in a secret part of the border. Instead, Celeste was mocked and Val took out more potent versions of the orange serum. "No, please, I beg of you!" Val didn't care, that much was clear. The next thing Celeste knew, another syringe was being injected into her leg. She screamed, falling back and gasping for air once more. Pain coursed through her body, her limbs twitched, her hands shook, the feathers on her wing ruffling. Celeste choked, dry heaving once more from both pain and the inability to breathe. It felt as though her lungs were being crushed and her limbs as thugh they had been set alight.
The demon tilted her head curiously at these events, the angel princess was crying, she was far weaker than her siblings, that much was certain. Her tolerance for pain was definitely lower than most. "I'm doing you a favor, you know. Queen Kitra would never have let you go home. I'm just giving you a safe place to hide until the demon royal family is deposed of." The demon spoke in a calm, almost friendly voice, as if she meant every word. "I freed you, so you owe me, don't you? Paying one's debts is a good thing to do." Valafar smiled again at the attempt of a threat and shook her head. "There's no need for them to attack me. I'll gladly return you once it's time, safe and alive. I could even do research to grow back a wing, if you'd like." Out here where Kitra's influence was weak, Valafar could conduct any experiment she wished. After the next injection, she jotted the notes down onto her parchment, eyes lighting up. So then she took a small knife and shaved off a small sample of wing tissue from the remaining wing. "As a reward, I'll start work on the growth serum to give you back your stolen wing. So just wait here for me, princess." And with that, Celeste was left alone in the heaven-styled room.
This was no better than before. In fact, Celeste was certain this was just as bad as what Kitra had done. Finally, the pain eased away and Celeste could breathe again. She realized that there was warmth between her legs and to her horror, Celeste realized that while she had been fighting to breathe, she had been so scared that she had well... released everything. Thankfully it wasn't much, just enough to stain the panties she was wearing. The angel turned onto her side in an attempt to open up her airway more. "I don't.... owe you... anything." She panted, her hands shaking as they balled into fists. "Don't... touch me." Celeste jerked away weakly, seeing the sick light in Val's eyes as she jotted down notes on her parchment. This wasn't freedom, Celeste was trapped in another cage, this one slightly pinker and more plush, but a cage no less. Val leaned forward and Celeste cried out in pain, "No!" She screamed, realizing that Val was touching her remaining wing. A hanful of feathers came off, blood trickling between the white fluffy clump. How much more could she take of this? The angel wasn't sure. She wasn't strong like her siblings or her parents, she was the weakest link and now everyone knew it. The door opened and shut and just like that, Celeste was finally alone. A sob choked her, the angel could no longer hold back that tears that threatened to spill.
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❝The one winged bird will fly once again!❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
Of the Valafar faction, there was another significant figure that was often working in cahoots with Valfar. The demon Orthon, another of the nobles and another known pacifist that wanted the wars to just stop. Lilim went to his house, because she wanted answers, she wanted to do a good job and fix everything. She wanted the picture Celeste promised her, she wanted to spend more time getting to know her! There were lots of things Lilim wanted to do, so this was the first step. Big sis and big bro were counting on her, so she'd get the needed information, she definitely would! Lilim wasn't good at fighting or anything, but something like this was something she could accomplish, right?
"Princess Lilim! It's good to see you!" Orthon was there, inviting her in without a second thought, like a super idiot! A mega idiot! But then again, it'd be rude to not want to play with her, right? So Lilim bounded in, wings fluttering with each step, eyes full of easily-mistaken joy. Orthon could happily mistake it for excitement to play. "I want to play!" Lilim declared in her best spoiled voice. "I don't like politics, I just wanna play. Let's play, okay?" Hopefully she wouldn't have to pull all the cards, but one way or another, Lilim was going to get the information she wanted. Valafar and Orthon were the heads of the Pacifist Demon Sect, or the PDS for short, arguing that demons were tired of war and just wanted to live peacefully. That was against what Kitra always said about strength and glory, and personally, Lilim only really cared about protecting what's left of the family. Big stuff like society and politics didn't interest her.
Orthon smiled fondly of the energetic and playful little princess, watching her explore every nook and cranny. Lilim shot a gaze back at her host, grinning her best grin, tail swishing like a cat's would. "Can I play with Val, too? It's fun with more people!" That much wasn't a lie, at least. The more the merrier, but now there was only three family left. Maybe in another world she could consider Celeste a sister, but sadly, nothing like that was really gonna work. It wasn't like Cam and Celeste were ever gonna fall in love or anything, and Kit probably didn't even know what romantic love was! Orthon then shook his head. "No, I'm sorry, Val went out for business.
Business? Kidnapping a princess wasn't business! It wasn't business when Lilim and Buer were kidnapped by angels and it isn't business now either! Lilim could overlook big sis kidnapping Celeste because she loved her, but other than that, she was tired of all the kidnapping. But it seemed Orthon wasn't just gonna fold easily, that's for sure. "I'm lonely. It's scary. Kit's always picking fights and killing people." Orthon was a pacifist, so something like this would stir his heartstrings, right? And something did flicker in his eyes. "When she comes back, we'll all play together, okay?" Of, what a silly fool. So Lilim decided to peel her top off and pressed her mounds against Orthon's back, making him freeze on the spot.
"I want to play with Val." Lilim said in a more insistent voice. "Okay? Please?" But Orthon was taking this moment to start being a boring old poop. "No, I can't. I can't tell you anything, Lilim. She's on a special mission, okay?" Lilim smiled then, because this was going to be a little fun. She peeled off more until she was completely exposed for Orthon's eyes to see, bouncing out in front, but the demon was stubbornly averting his eyes. "Big sis won't be happy if she sees this." Lilim grinned then, and then dashed around, making a mess, making it look like there was a struggle. She threw herself at walls for good measure, gathering a healthy amount of bruises. "You lured the princess in and assaulted her!" Tears dripped from the corner of her eyes and she pouted up at the taller demon. "How could you do that? Kit won't be happy, an angry kitty is never happy..."
Winona was always fun to ride on, and Kitra had to hurry. She didn't expect it to go this far, that's for sure. The Viridian Ridge, at the borders of Heaven and Hell, it was an easy way to sneak Celty back to Heaven. But of course, Kitra knew Val, she knew Val wasn't as nice as she acted. There was a very real reason why Kitra despised her. Valafar was so self righteous, always believed she was perfect, as any Pride Demon would, but she was a hypocrite. Maybe on some level she cared about pacifism, but deep down it was just a struggle for power, nothing less, nothing more. And no one but Kitra was allowed to touch Celty - not that she wanted to touch her or anything. Angel filth.
Here it was, the Viridian Ridge. Kitra hopped off, spinning her spear like a helicopter's rotors, using electricity to keep it moving fast enough to stay afloat, energy crackling all around her, creating a sort of fake magnetic field. "The angel princess is mine!" Of course, Kitra wasn't going to let anyone else get their hands on her prisoner! There it was, the secret base. Kitra landed and entered, finding Val right there. "I hereby execute you on grounds of-" And that was when Valafar smiled and Kitra didn't like that smile at all. "Are you sure you want to do that, Queen?" She asked in that stupid voice of hers. "Angels are close. Three of them. Prince Michael. You need the demons as a united front, you know."
"Not much of a demon, though, huh?" The Demon Queen snarled angrily, having nothing but disgust for her political rival. "Relying on stupid tricks and such in order to save your own skin. The princess is mine! What were you doing, touching what didn't belong to you?!" It was perfect, though. Prince Michael was here, so Kitra could blame Val's death on them, couldn't she? Her plan was flawless. "Die so that we can achieve unity." One slash and then a pulse and then Valafar became something large and monstrous, barrelling her way through the secret base to the outside. Bait to draw the angels out.
And there she was, Celty. "You idiot, you had one job." She was all tear stained and everything as well. The blood and feathers and pungent smell of yellow waste and everything else just infuriated Kitra more than she wanted to admit. "I was going to give you a break of no punishment and you get hurt anyways, huh?" One slash severed the chains with ease. "Let's get you back to where you belong. You're mine, after all." Kitra wasn't sure where her sudden possessiveness was coming from, but it didn't matter. Holding Celty close and her spear still in hand, the Demon Queen went quiet, listening carefully. And there it was, the sounds of battle against a monster. Nobles were stronger than normal demons, so Val was going to be giving more of a fight than most monsters did, definitely.
"Winona!" Kitra called, and just on cue, Winona came crashing down, allowing Kitra to pull both herself and her Celty up on top. Winona nuzzled her tail against Celty's back gently, far too fondly and the Scorpio candidate snarled. "Alright, stop the snuggling. Let's get back home." And so they ascended and just on cue, there was Michael and his two servants, facing off against a monster Val on the ground. Kitra grinned and shouted down at them. "My brother sent you, didn't he?" The Demon Queen screamed her suspicions for the three angels to hear as they fought. Kitra spun her spear, charging up a long distance attack. Why not make the angels owe her a favor? So with a powerful bolt strike, the monster Val disappeared, fading away into black vapors.
----------Celty and Val are super best friends!--------------
Celeste was shaking,she hadn't stopped shaking since Valafar had left the room. Slowly the angel slid off of the bed, using the wall to support her as she walked to the door. "I need to get out of here." The Princess murmured to herself, wincing as every step she took shot needles of pain up her legs. She was so close to the doors now, the chains clanking and making her movement extra slow. "Home... I'm so close."
While many demons focused on learning to fight, Valafar was different. She was a proprieter of bringing science and technology to Hell, to changing society from one of war to something better. After getting the sample ready for study, she heard a rattling of chains at he princess's room. Val stood up and walked over, putting the microscope down.
"You shouldn't be moving around, princess." Valafar said softly. "It's safer to just stay put, right?"
Celeste closed her eyes, moving was making her dizzy. She felt like a cat wearing a ball, every step a painful echo in her head. "Leave... me... alone." Celeste panted, her hands shaking. Her knees gave in and the Princess collapsed in heap. "I don't... want to... talk to you." The simple act of speaking was enough to make Celeste nauseous. If she has to crawl she would, even if she had to break every finger to dig her way out of this mock home, Celeste wouldn't give up. Not when she was right on he border, where Gabriel was no doubt guarding the gate.
The princess was rebelling and Valafar couldn't help but be a little intrigued. "Shouldn't you be thankful? I saved your life, didn't I?" She drew closer, pulling the angel princess to a couch with the same gentle smile as always. "Queen Kitra is a barbarian, you know. I'll keep you safe." Still, The princess definitely didnt seem happy. "I'm even figuring out how to grow a new wing for you." For that matter, a blood sample would help. So Val leaned in and pressed her fangs into that soft smooth neck, gathering blood in storage before depositing it into vials for research.
Celeste tried to push Valafar away from her, but she was too weak. She flinched away as the demon pulled her towards the couch, whimpering as the slightest touch shoved pain throughouther body. Whatever Valafar had given her before had raised the sensitivity of her nerves, making her body sensitive to the slightest whisper of touch. "Go... away." She was pulled against the demon though, up onto the couch. "You didn't save... me. You're just... using me. Just like... she did." A toy for their amusement, that's all Celeste was now.
She was fighting to get away when Valafar leaned in, her fangs piercing Celeste's neck. The angel princess screamed in pain, her vision becoming blurry. She couldn't do it, Celeste couldn't take the pain anymore. Her entire body went limp, her eyes wide and glassy as she cracked like vase dropped from a great height. The princess became a doll, unable to move.
Thr vampiric demon was a little confused at the princess's words. Wasn't it better like this for her, where her life wasn't at risk? "It's mutual benefit. You're safe from death, and I get reaearch done." Wasn't that the deal in the first place? But then Val stiffened, she heard something. Something she wasn't meant to hear. A dragon.
The Demon Queen descended from the sky, a master of war approaching. There was a reason everyone feared Kitra, but Valafar knew better. As long as this war hungry queen was on her throne, pointless fighting would continue. Kitra demanded execution, Val spoke quickly, saying that she was needed alive, but then a swing of the spear-
"You're mine." Kitra murmured to Celty after Winona arrived to back them up. "Stupid angel." There were sounds outside, angels fighting the monster Val. They had to go now.
At that moment Raphael looked up, his eyes widening. "Mizuki!" He called. Michael had left home the night Celeste had been taken and hadn't returned home. Mizuki whirled around on a ime, her wings furling open. They had gotten tipped off that there was suspicious activity on the border. At that moment, lightning struck the ground,a dragon appearing in the sky. "It's her," Raphael breathed. "It's the Demon Queen." Mizuki growled, knicking an arrow. She shot, but the beat of the dragons wings displaced the aim.
A demon appeared, once of monstrous proportion. The two siblings became occupied fighting it, wings unfurling, feathers flying. Lightning struck the ground, the monster vaporizing. "Queen Kitra!" Raphael's voice boomed across the sky. "We are willing to bargain for our sister's freedom!" Mizuki had an arrow knocked, her gaze enough to burn holes through the dragon's wing. "Her wing" Mizuki breathed and Raphael saw it, their sister only had one wing now. The petite white haired girl was shaking like a leaf, her face hidden.
She was clearly not in good shape, both of them could see that from their position in the sky. "Come peacefully, or we won't hold back!"
Time to return to the Onyx Citadel, back to where she was safest. This little adventure at the border was going to be troublesome, as much as she hated Valafar, it wasn't like the demon didn't have influence. She had followers, and now those followers were going to be even more unhappy with recent events. And to make things worse, there were two of the royal angel siblings, one sibling more than what Kitra was comfortable trying to fight. Winona was still not at full strength, either. A bargain offer was called, so the Demon Queen adjusted Winona's angle to face her enemies, far below her.
"In case you didn't realize, I just rescued her from a rogue faction." The Demon Queen growled, remaining far enough away that Winona could evade any arrows they tried to attack with. Electricity was gathered in her spear, prepared to strike at any arrow headed her way. "And what could you possibly give me? Most of my siblings are gone, and who the hell knows what's up with my parents. Celty's mine!" Kitra wasn't going to let anyone take the angel from her, and she had no idea why she was being so posessive of this stupid naive princess. "I'll get her nice and healed, though." She added with a grin, already knowing that she couldn't stop Lilim from doing whatever the heck she wanted. (e)
Celeste was unresponsive aside from the occasional flinch at unwanted touch. With her nerves heightened, the slightest brush as agonizing. She was I hiding inside of herself, nothing more then a doll at the surface now. Celeste was tired and afraid and her eyes stared glassy ahead, unseeing as to what was before her,the fact that she had been rescued and was being held by Kitra on Winona's back.
Mizuki growled, ready to ttack. Raphael, ever the wise one, held out his hand to keep the arrow from loosing. They couldn't believe anything the Demon Queen said, for all the siblings knew Kitra could have been the one personally overseeing their sisters torture, keeping her so tantalizingly close to home only to never allow her to return. "We have information on your parents!" Raphael said, clearly angered. "Return Celeste to our custody and we'll release your parents!"
This was all a waste of time. Kitra was angry, just looking at Celty made her blood boil for reasons she couldn't even begin to comprehend, she just wanted to start the attack on Heaven's Gate already, to find some way to relieve her anger and bring herself back to equilibrium. "Information that I can't verify or anything, is that all she's worth to you?" Then a bit more of a sweeter deal, her parent's release, but Kitra wasn't going to go for that one, either. "My parents are monsters, so even if you released them, I'd just have to put them down afterwards. Hardly a fair deal, right?" Her eyes glinted viciously, not letting her gaze leave the bowstrings. "Add some more sugar and maybe we'll talk."
"We'll give you the research!" Mizuki suddenly yelled and Raphael's eyes widened. "All of it! My parents have been dedicating every doctor and scientist to try and turn them back!" Mizuki didn't waver,even infuriated like this, it was clear she had perfect control of her weapon. Even from their position below they could see Kitra's grip tighten, as though Celeste was some sort of favorite toy or pet. They could see the vicious glint in Kitra's eyes and the way her dragon began to waver. "Release our sister and we'll tell you everything you need to know! (E)
Okay, Kitra hads to process that for a few seconds, because there was something here that didn't make sense no matter how much she tried to spin it around. All of her venomous hostility vanished in an instant and she tilted her head in surprise and incredulity. "Your parents do realize that my parents will just keep warring once they found out what happenned to my siblings, right?" She shook her head, trying to wrap her mind around this new, probably fake, information. "It makes no sense. Where do you angels possibly benefit from that research?" She scowled then, expression darkening. "Stop wasting my time. I need to get my sister to fix Celty up." It was all useless, anyways.
"We've been trying to convince them of that. You've angered the King and Queen, should they come to personally see to the end of this you nor your remaining siblings will survive!" They had to get her back, no doubt the Queen was lying about healing her, she probably just wanted to torture her more. If the woman tried to leave, they would attack and fight to get their sibling back. "This is your last warning! Release Celeste now!"
A bitter laugh escaped her lips. Whatever hint of neutrality was gone now, nothing but the twisted smirk of either madness or severe depression, neither of which were any good. "Of course you angels just want to finish the job you started. Not satisfied unless you take everything away. Genocide is such a nice word to you, isn't it?" She's heard enough, this was going nowhere. "I was planning on keeping Celty alive, but if you lay a hand on the last of my family, you'll find that your family doesn't get to be fully intact anymore, either." It wasn't a threat, but a promise. "Winona, let's move." Electricity crackled, a self protective field of electric energy surrounded the dragon as her wings beat, ready to fly.
The shaking was only growing worse. The border of the angelic Kingdom was full pf now mountains and in the scant amount of clothing she'd been allowed that were now torn, it was clear the angel doll was cold. "You won't get away with this!" Mizuki's voice could still be heard. They were not pursuing,knowing that there was little chance of victory should they try to follow. Celeste flinched as the wind brushed her, her wing fluttered slightly as though trying to remember what it felt like to fly. Her neck had a trickle of blood going down it and her eyes slowly began to close.
Celeste was shaking,she hadn't stopped shaking since Valafar had left the room. Slowly the angel slid off of the bed, using the wall to support her as she walked to the door. "I need to get out of here." The Princess murmured to herself, wincing as every step she took shot needles of pain up her legs. She was so close to the doors now, the chains clanking and making her movement extra slow. "Home... I'm so close."
While many demons focused on learning to fight, Valafar was different. She was a proprieter of bringing science and technology to Hell, to changing society from one of war to something better. After getting the sample ready for study, she heard a rattling of chains at he princess's room. Val stood up and walked over, putting the microscope down.
"You shouldn't be moving around, princess." Valafar said softly. "It's safer to just stay put, right?"
Celeste closed her eyes, moving was making her dizzy. She felt like a cat wearing a ball, every step a painful echo in her head. "Leave... me... alone." Celeste panted, her hands shaking. Her knees gave in and the Princess collapsed in heap. "I don't... want to... talk to you." The simple act of speaking was enough to make Celeste nauseous. If she has to crawl she would, even if she had to break every finger to dig her way out of this mock home, Celeste wouldn't give up. Not when she was right on he border, where Gabriel was no doubt guarding the gate.
The princess was rebelling and Valafar couldn't help but be a little intrigued. "Shouldn't you be thankful? I saved your life, didn't I?" She drew closer, pulling the angel princess to a couch with the same gentle smile as always. "Queen Kitra is a barbarian, you know. I'll keep you safe." Still, The princess definitely didnt seem happy. "I'm even figuring out how to grow a new wing for you." For that matter, a blood sample would help. So Val leaned in and pressed her fangs into that soft smooth neck, gathering blood in storage before depositing it into vials for research.
Celeste tried to push Valafar away from her, but she was too weak. She flinched away as the demon pulled her towards the couch, whimpering as the slightest touch shoved pain throughouther body. Whatever Valafar had given her before had raised the sensitivity of her nerves, making her body sensitive to the slightest whisper of touch. "Go... away." She was pulled against the demon though, up onto the couch. "You didn't save... me. You're just... using me. Just like... she did." A toy for their amusement, that's all Celeste was now.
She was fighting to get away when Valafar leaned in, her fangs piercing Celeste's neck. The angel princess screamed in pain, her vision becoming blurry. She couldn't do it, Celeste couldn't take the pain anymore. Her entire body went limp, her eyes wide and glassy as she cracked like vase dropped from a great height. The princess became a doll, unable to move.
Thr vampiric demon was a little confused at the princess's words. Wasn't it better like this for her, where her life wasn't at risk? "It's mutual benefit. You're safe from death, and I get reaearch done." Wasn't that the deal in the first place? But then Val stiffened, she heard something. Something she wasn't meant to hear. A dragon.
The Demon Queen descended from the sky, a master of war approaching. There was a reason everyone feared Kitra, but Valafar knew better. As long as this war hungry queen was on her throne, pointless fighting would continue. Kitra demanded execution, Val spoke quickly, saying that she was needed alive, but then a swing of the spear-
"You're mine." Kitra murmured to Celty after Winona arrived to back them up. "Stupid angel." There were sounds outside, angels fighting the monster Val. They had to go now.
At that moment Raphael looked up, his eyes widening. "Mizuki!" He called. Michael had left home the night Celeste had been taken and hadn't returned home. Mizuki whirled around on a ime, her wings furling open. They had gotten tipped off that there was suspicious activity on the border. At that moment, lightning struck the ground,a dragon appearing in the sky. "It's her," Raphael breathed. "It's the Demon Queen." Mizuki growled, knicking an arrow. She shot, but the beat of the dragons wings displaced the aim.
A demon appeared, once of monstrous proportion. The two siblings became occupied fighting it, wings unfurling, feathers flying. Lightning struck the ground, the monster vaporizing. "Queen Kitra!" Raphael's voice boomed across the sky. "We are willing to bargain for our sister's freedom!" Mizuki had an arrow knocked, her gaze enough to burn holes through the dragon's wing. "Her wing" Mizuki breathed and Raphael saw it, their sister only had one wing now. The petite white haired girl was shaking like a leaf, her face hidden.
She was clearly not in good shape, both of them could see that from their position in the sky. "Come peacefully, or we won't hold back!"
Time to return to the Onyx Citadel, back to where she was safest. This little adventure at the border was going to be troublesome, as much as she hated Valafar, it wasn't like the demon didn't have influence. She had followers, and now those followers were going to be even more unhappy with recent events. And to make things worse, there were two of the royal angel siblings, one sibling more than what Kitra was comfortable trying to fight. Winona was still not at full strength, either. A bargain offer was called, so the Demon Queen adjusted Winona's angle to face her enemies, far below her.
"In case you didn't realize, I just rescued her from a rogue faction." The Demon Queen growled, remaining far enough away that Winona could evade any arrows they tried to attack with. Electricity was gathered in her spear, prepared to strike at any arrow headed her way. "And what could you possibly give me? Most of my siblings are gone, and who the hell knows what's up with my parents. Celty's mine!" Kitra wasn't going to let anyone take the angel from her, and she had no idea why she was being so posessive of this stupid naive princess. "I'll get her nice and healed, though." She added with a grin, already knowing that she couldn't stop Lilim from doing whatever the heck she wanted. (e)
Celeste was unresponsive aside from the occasional flinch at unwanted touch. With her nerves heightened, the slightest brush as agonizing. She was I hiding inside of herself, nothing more then a doll at the surface now. Celeste was tired and afraid and her eyes stared glassy ahead, unseeing as to what was before her,the fact that she had been rescued and was being held by Kitra on Winona's back.
Mizuki growled, ready to ttack. Raphael, ever the wise one, held out his hand to keep the arrow from loosing. They couldn't believe anything the Demon Queen said, for all the siblings knew Kitra could have been the one personally overseeing their sisters torture, keeping her so tantalizingly close to home only to never allow her to return. "We have information on your parents!" Raphael said, clearly angered. "Return Celeste to our custody and we'll release your parents!"
This was all a waste of time. Kitra was angry, just looking at Celty made her blood boil for reasons she couldn't even begin to comprehend, she just wanted to start the attack on Heaven's Gate already, to find some way to relieve her anger and bring herself back to equilibrium. "Information that I can't verify or anything, is that all she's worth to you?" Then a bit more of a sweeter deal, her parent's release, but Kitra wasn't going to go for that one, either. "My parents are monsters, so even if you released them, I'd just have to put them down afterwards. Hardly a fair deal, right?" Her eyes glinted viciously, not letting her gaze leave the bowstrings. "Add some more sugar and maybe we'll talk."
"We'll give you the research!" Mizuki suddenly yelled and Raphael's eyes widened. "All of it! My parents have been dedicating every doctor and scientist to try and turn them back!" Mizuki didn't waver,even infuriated like this, it was clear she had perfect control of her weapon. Even from their position below they could see Kitra's grip tighten, as though Celeste was some sort of favorite toy or pet. They could see the vicious glint in Kitra's eyes and the way her dragon began to waver. "Release our sister and we'll tell you everything you need to know! (E)
Okay, Kitra hads to process that for a few seconds, because there was something here that didn't make sense no matter how much she tried to spin it around. All of her venomous hostility vanished in an instant and she tilted her head in surprise and incredulity. "Your parents do realize that my parents will just keep warring once they found out what happenned to my siblings, right?" She shook her head, trying to wrap her mind around this new, probably fake, information. "It makes no sense. Where do you angels possibly benefit from that research?" She scowled then, expression darkening. "Stop wasting my time. I need to get my sister to fix Celty up." It was all useless, anyways.
"We've been trying to convince them of that. You've angered the King and Queen, should they come to personally see to the end of this you nor your remaining siblings will survive!" They had to get her back, no doubt the Queen was lying about healing her, she probably just wanted to torture her more. If the woman tried to leave, they would attack and fight to get their sibling back. "This is your last warning! Release Celeste now!"
A bitter laugh escaped her lips. Whatever hint of neutrality was gone now, nothing but the twisted smirk of either madness or severe depression, neither of which were any good. "Of course you angels just want to finish the job you started. Not satisfied unless you take everything away. Genocide is such a nice word to you, isn't it?" She's heard enough, this was going nowhere. "I was planning on keeping Celty alive, but if you lay a hand on the last of my family, you'll find that your family doesn't get to be fully intact anymore, either." It wasn't a threat, but a promise. "Winona, let's move." Electricity crackled, a self protective field of electric energy surrounded the dragon as her wings beat, ready to fly.
The shaking was only growing worse. The border of the angelic Kingdom was full pf now mountains and in the scant amount of clothing she'd been allowed that were now torn, it was clear the angel doll was cold. "You won't get away with this!" Mizuki's voice could still be heard. They were not pursuing,knowing that there was little chance of victory should they try to follow. Celeste flinched as the wind brushed her, her wing fluttered slightly as though trying to remember what it felt like to fly. Her neck had a trickle of blood going down it and her eyes slowly began to close.
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❝The one winged bird will fly once again!❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
Once that adventure was finished, Kitra found herself back at the Onyx Citadel. The first thing done was that she took Celty over to the medical bay with the only demon in all of Hell with a medical power was already ready to work. "Alright, set her down, I can drain the poison and fix her up!" Lilim used some diagnostic magic circles to figure out what was wrong and was already at work with both her powers and primitive-compared-to-Heaven technology. "Her nerves are overstimulated..." Kitra could see the pain on her younger sister's face, she already absorbed some, hadn't she? "Lil, you have to take care too, you know." Kitra murmured softly, touching her sister's elbow as a show of support. What was that sad smile in response all about? Did Lilim know more than she was letting on?
"I'll take care of her!" Lilim exclaimed with forced cheer and it was becoming more and more obvious that her sister was wearing a happy smile to keep everyone else in decent spirits, because, unfortunately, the family was broken. It was to the point that instead of being able to comfort a crying Lilim, they'd break even more if she stopped being able to smile. The girl was forced to learn how to hide all of her own pain in order to give Cambion and Kitra a sense of normalcy. "I'm proud of you, Lil." Kitra was about to go and plan out the next attack with Minerva but then Lilim grabbed at her cape, pulling her back. "You stay too, okay? If Celeste is your property, you have to care for her too!"
Well, this was a little irritating. Lilim started barking out orders, not being a little sister but being someone with actual knowledge and expertise, the only nurse there was among the demons, the only one that knew how to do it. Drain this, bandage that, a whole bunch of things. That was when Cambion arrived, with a whole bundle of clothes in his arms. The Demon Queen raised an eyebrow, confused. Those weren't demon clothes, that much was certain. "My servant, Acedine, got them, just like you ordered, Lil." Cambion yawned as if he were the one that did all the work and Lilim tittered in joy. "Great! Heaven-style clothing! This should work!"
Kitra shuffled her feet uncomfortably. Did Lilim not know about the tensions between Cambion and Kitra? Did she not know the suspicions and dislike and everything else? "I have a war to plan." Kitra growled, pushing past Cambion. She was sick of this, she didn't want to be here anymore but then Lilim's eyes widened and she looked miserable. "No. You're staying here. We don't ever do anything like a real family anymore! Just because we lost a lot doesn't mean we aren't still family, okay? So stay, okay?" There was something in those far-too-large eyes that Kitra simply couldn't refuse.
"Fine." So she'd have to set aside her differences for now, then, wouldn't she? There was way too much to do but... didn't she have a duty as a sister, too? Lilim then suddenly glared at Cambion, clicking her tongue. "You forgot the Heaven-style cookies!" The laziest brother raised his hands in surrender, sighing. "I was really tired!" He said in the worst possible defense ever, which lead to a question. Why all the heaven stuff? "You do know that she's a prisoner, right?" Lilim frowned, and pulled at her sleeves, staring deeply into her big sister's amber eyes.
In a voice that was way too innocent to be genuine, Lilim explained herself. "But she doesn't know anything, right? And she had nothing to do with the wars, too! So that means punishing her doesn't benefit you, strategically!" The little sister was almost bouncing as she said this. "But if you let me have her as a friend, then I won't be as lonely and you can do war stuff! That benefits you, right? It does, it does!" Kitra just stared numbly, not sure if she should be proud or annoyed as Lilim grinned. "All done, Celeste is as fit as a fiddle now!" A fiddle with no strings, an angel with a lost wing, but fit nonetheless.
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❝A dream is a wish your heart makes. ❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
Back at home, Mizuki stormed into the palace. In her hand was a single thing and as she burst into the throne room, her palm open for her mother to see, she could tell that they were deeply affected. A single bloodied feather was in Mizuki's hands, one they all recognized. There was no other angel with such a pure white wing and tears stemmed in her mother's eyes. "You saw her?" The Queen of the Angels stepped down from her throne, meeting her daughter at the floor. Raphael was close behind, clearly perturbed by their recent encounter. "The Demon Queen Kitra has her. She's claimed Celeste as her toy," Raphael reported. "Celeste wasn't in good shape, she was banged up, was shaking like a leaf, and... she's missing a wing."
"WHAT?!" Their Mother and Father were both incredulous. There was fire in his eyes, the kind that only a parent could have when their child was knowingly being injured. "Has Michael returned?" Mizuki inquired and her Father shook his head. "Not since the day he left, he hasn't given any sort of message, although he took his two servants with him." Mizuki's fists clenched and unclenched, her Mother held onto the feather with all of the tenderness and love that only a mother could have. "There's only one thing to do," she breathed. "We'll have to release them," their Father tensed up, clearly not liking the idea. "If we do, it could mean the mass destruction of Hell. We can't allow so many innocents to die," their Mother whirled around, there were tears in her eyes. "She has our baby." A hand on the shoulder, th King drew the Queen into his arms. "We'll just have to put our faith in Michael."
"We can't simply sit around while she's being hurt!" Raphael protested. The doors burst open just then, a streak of blonde seen as Gabriel burst through, normally blue eyes turned red. "I spotted the dragon," he reported, his feathers ruffled. His wings were molting, something angel wings sometimes did when they needed to grow larger feathers. "You're late to the party," Gabriel nodded to Raphael, who went to take charge of guarding Heaven's Gate. Gabriel knelt at the foot of the steps to the throne, where their parents were standing. "The dragon is weak, but I wasn't able to pursue due to an electrical shield." Mizuki hugged her elbows, shaking her head. "We ran into the same trouble." She explained, her hands shaking slightly. "Not all is lost, Celeste is strong, she can handle herself." Their Father spoke confidently, singing praise for the little girl he ha tried to teach to defend herself.
In truth they all knew it to be a form of optimism, not a lie per say, but a praise. "You must be joking," Mizuki felt sick. "She can hardly keep from tripping over her own feet, much less defend herself." There was another matter though, something that they weren't speaking of. "Her wing-" the Queen's expression darkened. "An angel with one wing is practically unheard of," it was true, although sometimes you had a rare child born with one wing or no wings at all. They normally didn't last long, having other problems at birth as well. "There's a healer," their father spoke up. "He lives in the mountains at the border, a powerful one. I can send for him, perhaps he will have knowledge on regrowing a wing." A summons be the King was something most artisans and apprentices only dreamed about, no doubt there would be no hesitance in returning contact. "For now, all we can do is pray."
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❝The one winged bird will fly once again!❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
After a few hours, Lilim finally gave up. "I can't do anything more for now, she'll have to wake up on her own." She said, hugging her new friend that she selfishly decided to keep for herself. Nothing Kitra or Cambion could do or say could change it, and they were both opposed to this for their own differing reasons. Kitra wanted Celty for herself, and it'd be bad if Lilim got emotionally attached to this angel, and unknown to Kitra, Cambion was already spinning the wheels that'll lead to Celty's release back to Heaven, a secret deal with the angels. "We should give her some time to rest." Cambion said, the obvious one to point out the benefits of sleep and Lilim nodded reluctantly. "Okay! I'll bathe with her and stay with her for now, you guys are free to go!" With a radiant beaming smile no demon could make, Lilim shooed her older siblings out.
"Let's go somewhere more private." The Demon Queen said with a dark scowl, her whole body was tense. Now without her meddlesome little sister being a pain, she needed to get something done. She needed to confirm her suspicions, she needed to find out exactly if Cambion was someone to suspect or not. It was painful to think of something like this, she didn't want to have to suspect her last brother, but it seemed there was noting else to do about it. They were in Ronove's old room now, his childhood room before becoming the King of Hell. Brother and sister, opposed to one another, except in reverse of how it was with Ronove and Zepar. This time, the sister was on the throne, and the brother was the opposition.
Kitra swung her spear at her brother who stepped back just in time, clearly expecting the attack. Nothing but anger flared in those amber eyes. "Tell me everything. What are you planning?" Kit growled, low and menacing. Cambion just smiled tiredly at her, as if there was no tension in his body at all. But despite the tired smile, it was obvious that he was alert. No sleepy person could avoid the spear that easily. "I don't know what you're talking about. I just nap all the time, there's nothing to suspect, is there?" "Lies!" Kitra replied in an angry shout. "There are three angels in hell when they shouldn't be! You know something!" She was going to get answers one way or another -
In her anger, Kitra let her guard down, and Cambion got the opening he needed. With a touch on her skin, it was all that he needed in order to activate his powers and put her into a deep sleep. Kitra slumped, and now she wasn't a menacing Queen, just a petite little girl. Cambion grabbed her and eased her fall so that she didn't hurt anything, then drew a magic circle, filling the runes in the four areas to establish a connection with a certain angel, Michael. "If you want your sister, now's your best chance. My sister's incapacitated, so come quickly." He held his sister tightly. "So in exchange, you won't take her from us. That's our deal, and don't forget it, alright?"
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❝A dream is a wish your heart makes. ❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
Michael paced the floor of the demon Cambion's room. He was sleep deprived and a bit bloodied from having to fight his way here, but he had made it and now, all he could do was wait. "I'm sure she's fine," Ami reassured the angel, keeping watch. "Cambion promised she'd be in one piece," yes, they were making a fair trade. The angels would take their Princess back home and in exchange, Michael wouldn't harm Lilim. "I've put her to sleep," Fin stood, opening one eye. Fin could put people to sleep temporarily, although he mostly just wove dreams. "They're in debate right now," Ami reported from her shadow puppet. Suddenly, a golden orb lit up, Cambion's face coming into view. It was time to make their move, Michael knew he had only minutes to pull this off until Fin's power wore off. "Thank you Cambion, you've done the right thing."
The three angels moved quickly, disguised as Dragon Knights thanks to the uniforms they stole. Their wings were concealed, able to fold up easily on their backs. They headed towards the medical bay, where Lilim would be asleep and Celeste hopefully stable enough to move. They opened up the doors, only to find it empty. "Tch, where could they have gone?" Ami was clearly frustrated. Michael put a hand on her shoulder, "The Princess's room, that's most likely where she's taken her." They began to move again, keeping their heads down, sticking to very random hallways in order to keep anyone from tracing their movements. Finally, they arrived at the Princess's room. Celeste was unmoving save for the rise and fall of her chest, she looked to be asleep. The demon princess wasn't in sight, although they could hear rustling in the bathroom.
Michael gestured with his fingers, sweeping movements to tell them the plan. He crept up quietly, lifting Celeste up and finding her to be far too light. Michael then walked back towards the door, slowly, quietly, opening it up and leaving. Celeste's eyes were open, but they were unfocused, as though she wasn't really present. Michael's fury only grew. He held her close, his grip on her protective. They made their way back to Cambion's room, going through the window with which they had come from. He took off from the window, launching himself into the sky. Ami and Fin were close behind, loyal servants that had insisted on following him into enemy territory, even when he had ordered them to stay home. It was a suicide mission after all, going into it, Michael had no idea if he would even make it back home alive.
Their progress was slow, the headwind was far too strong and they had to fight against it with every beat. They were high up in the sky, hidden by the clouds. Celeste had not stirred, the only difference was that her eyes were now closed and she shivered every so often, no doubt trapped inside of a nightmare. "Don't worry," Michael fluffed her matted white hair that normally had a feathery quality, "we're going home now. You'll be safe there," Fin and Ami were tearing up, whether it was from the tender display of Michael saving Celeste, or the fact that the wind was so strong was uncertain. "We'll fix your wing once we're there, you won't remain flightless."
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❝The one winged bird will fly once again!❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
When her eyes opened again, Kitra knew very well that something went horribly wrong. She was put to sleep, it wasn't exactly like Cambion, though, it was something different. He had sleep powers but since he hardly ever did anything but sleep himself, it wasn't particularly a trained power. No, this one was someone stronger, someone with better practice of their powers. This proved it, her brother was a traitor. Kitra stood up as fast as she could, she wasn't just going to let this happen! She dashed up but then Lilim was already on the roof, looking anxious and nervous. "Um, angels took Celty. Cambion told me not to let you fly with Winona, but...." Kitra could see her younger sister shuffling awkwardly. "It's probably selfish because she should go home, but I want to see her again, because she was my friend." Her little sister was too honest for her own good. Why was she a demon, anyways? Shouldn't she be an angel? "Alright, let's go. We'll do it together, we'll get her back."
Kitra made a magic circle to contact Minerva and have her Dragon Knights stationed near Heaven's Gate to be ready for a fight. So the Dragon Knights were mobilized, but Minerva still had something more to say. "The winds are heavy around here, I doubt the angels can fly far. Only dragons can fly in this weather." Okay, that was more good news. "Thanks, Minerva. Station yourselves around, but be careful, the Angel Army might attack from behind." With that settled, the last two sisters of the Demon Royal Family boarded Winona, who looked eager for a fight. As friendly as she was, Winona was a war dragon, something like this was what she lived for. With a beat of heavy and powerful wings, she took flight.
Kitra drew a magic circle on her parchment that all demons had, and wrote the runes into the four corners. A hunter's circle, one to identify the locations of their targets. But when she saw the information light up, something incredibly bad happened. "Omega Island." The Demon Queen muttered. It was an island to the south of the gate, isolated from most main territory. It's where demons go to die as monsters so that they don't hurt those they love the most. So the island was overflowing with monsters, but it's also full of greenery and a lush natural forest. Magic Circle Technology is powered by nature, after all. The more you used it, the more life it sucked out of the earth. Still, it was incredibly convenient and could do many things that were otherwise impossible, so demons couldn't just stop using it.
"We'll wait outside the island, it's too dangerous to give pursuit right now." If it could be helped, the Demon Queen didn't want to bring her sister there, to the island that all demons feared and hated. Lilim let out a bit of a whimper, obviously afraid. "I don't wanna go there." She insisted sadly. "But Celty is there, Celty's there, so we have to!" That was when a particularly strong wind hit them, knocking them off of Winona, Kitra grabbed for her lightning spear and then Lilim's tiny wings beat as strong as they could but -
Here they were, the deadly jungle of Omega Island. Kitra didn't want to be here, but it was too late now. Lilim looked exhausted but nodded bravely, trying to act stronger than she was. "Um, let's regroup with the angels for now? Then we can work together to survive?" That made sense. Especially for now, she couldn't contact Winona, and the winds were too strong to even try doing anything with. So Kitra held close to Lilim, whispering to her that she'd protect her and followed the image on her parchment, until she heard sounds of battle. Something was happening, a monster with arms like a mantis was facing off with the angels. Celty was -
"Die, you stupid monster! No one touches Celty!" A blast of lightning channelled through the spear as if it was a large sharp magic want, vaporizing the monster instantly. Her voice was sharp and angry at these stupid foolish angels. "Sure, it's one thing to take her and escape, but did you really have to come here, to Omega Island, like complete idiots?! This is where demons go to die, why the hell did you think this was safe? Celty could actually die here, stupid!" Lilim tugged at her sleeve and shook her head. "Um, no, be nicer, okay? We have to work together." The succubus raised her voice but was still shy and quiet. "I'm Princess Lilim. Um, can we... team up until the storm dies down?" Her wings twitched nervously, awaiting the angel's answer.
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❝A dream is a wish your heart makes. ❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
The wind knocked them over, they could no longer fly over this space, the floating island far too close. "It's Omega Island," Ami said, dread laced into her every word. Their wings were beating as strongly as they could, but it wasn't exactly working. "We need to land!" Fin called over the wind. "We can't go on much longer!" Just then, a gust of wind as strong as an obsidian elephant pushed them out of the sky, sending them tumbling towards the ground. Michael held onto Celeste, twisting them in midair so that he landed on the ground and softened the blow for her to fall on top of him. There was a cry from the east, far too loud and sorrowful to be anything mortal. "Ami, Fin, you know what to do!" Michael called. Fin grabbed Celeste, freeing up Michael to fight, Ami created several shadow puppets, each with her choice of weapon, a pair of twin daggers. Michael drew his saber, the metal lighting up with his touch.
The first two monsters were easy, it was the last one that they struggled with. Fin had climbed up into a tree, his wings surrounding himself and the Princess to shield the two of them. He had his hands over Celeste's ears as well so that she wouldn't have to hear the monsters scream as they were killed, in case she could still hear. Suddenly, descending from the sky were two figures. One struck the monster with lightning, the other shifted nervously. "Oh, it's you." Michael didn't put away his weapon, rather, it remained in his hands. His distaste for the Demon Queen was obvious by the expression on his face and the glint in his crystal clear blue eyes. "Do you think we came here by choice?" He pointed up towards the sky, the storm that was very obviously brewing. "It seems you faced the same difficulty and yet you're criticizing us?"
"She is no safer in your grasp then she is here." Fin jumped down from his perch, handing Celeste back to Michael. The little demon princess with pink hair tugged on her sister's sleeve. Yes, it seemed that they would have to work together if they ever wanted to leave this island. Ami was the first to make a move, she bowed, the way any servant would in front of a royal. "I am Ami, servant to Michael." Fin followed her example, "Finnik, servant to Michael." Michael looked down at the Princess and Queen before finally placing a reluctant hand over his heart and giving a slight bow. Not enough to respect, only to acknowledge. "Prince Michael of the Angel Court." He held Celeste against him, not in a possessive way, but the protective way that only a big brother could pull off.
"If you think Celeste is yours you are sorely mistaken. You cut off her wing, you injure her so badly she no longer wants to move or speak and you dare to call her yours?" It was clear that while a temporary alliance was formed, Michael was still not going to accept the Queen and her torture. "You may think you saved her, you may have healed her, but make no mistake Queen Kitra, I Michael Angeal swear on this sword that I will repay you in ten fold for every cry of pain you have made my sister scream." Fin put a hand on his shoulder and Michael turned. "Let's begin to setup camp, night will fall soon, we should set up a barrier so that monsters don't venture too close."
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❝The one winged bird will fly once again!❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
Lilim was afraid. She joined in on this quest but she didn't plan for this to happen. She just wanted to be friends with Celty, she had to do something! But Kitra, big sis was being insane, she was just as self destructive as Cam always said. It was scary, and she didn't want to lose her! Kitra was going to die if she kept trying to fight this war, and yet she was still going to do it. And now they were on Omega Island, where the monsters roamed, with the angels. "She's just upset, okay? Apologize to them. We're fr-... allies now." Kitra glared, smoldering eyes, but sighed. "Fine, whatever. Sorry."
It was obvious to the succubus that they were going to have to work together. Michael, Finnik, and Ami were going to be indispensible allies. Lil nervously pulled Kitra closer to the group, relieved that at least the angels agreed to the alliance. "I wasn't gonna kill her. I wasn't even the one that poisoned her!" No, Kit was being combative again, they needed to get along. "I won't let her die, promise!" Lilim walked up to them with her hands up, to show that she had no bad intents. "More than a promise!" She touched Michael's hand and shut her eyes. "I, Lilim Vacivus, vow on my life that I won't let Celeste Angeal die!" Kitea glowered, grabbing her sister by the arm.
"You idiot!" Kitra shouted, but it was too late, the Heavenly Vow was complete. It was far too tense but Lilim felt a little more at peace. "Don't carelessly make vows!" Lilim grinned happily to herself, definitely pleased with her actions. "Now I'll die if she dies. So you can trust me, okay?" It was her way to prove that she wasn't going to let anything happen. "Um, I'm a healer! I can, I'm good, I can keep us alive!" Ami seemed to be a shadow puppet wielder and Lilim had no idea about the two boys. "Um, big sis is lighting. She can help fight!"
"She gets pain when she heals. She did it for Celeste, even without permission." Kitra snapped, still unhappy with all of this. They were setting up camp, a barrier to protect them from the monsters. Kitra grinned at Michael's promise of paying her back and Lilim shook her head. "Don't hurt her, she's my only sister left." Her eyes went large and wide and weepy and the Demon Queen snarled unhappily. "I admit it, I cut the wing, but the poison was someone else. Want me to vow that to truth to prove it?" Lilim hugged her big sister close, flinching at the sounds of monsters roaring in the distance.
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❝A dream is a wish your heart makes. ❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
"The poison didn't do this," Fin explained gently. She took off the cape from her armor, setting it on the ground. Michael placed Celeste on it and then his jacket over her as a blanket. "It's a loss of will," the servant tensed, no doubt picking up something from a dream. "She probably no longer has the will to live, or she's doing it as self preservation so she won't get hurt again." Ami and Michael began setting up camp in the meantime, picking out a spot underneath a tree and pitching tents. They had come prepared to camp out, setting up a tent for the girls and a tent for the boys, that way there was always an angel with the Princess so that the tricksy demons didn't dare pull anything over them.
"There are only two ways to come out of this state: you can go into the dream and try to convince them, or you can wait. The later route can take years, but forcing a person out may have repercussions as well." Fin explained, having seen this condition before after his own mother was taken and tortured by dragon knights. It was the reason he had become a servant, in order to find the demons that had done such a thing and see to it they were properly punished. Ami on the other hand had joined out of a childhood crush on Michael and bad been in this position for as long as either of them could remember.
"It's not an easy thing, convincing a person that it's safe." Michael glared at Kitra. "Cutting off a wing isn't any better than poison. Grounding an angel is akin to death." He looked at the promise mark on his hand from the princess Lilim. "Thank you Lilim," he bowed in respect to her. "It is an honor to be allied with you." His dislike for Kitra was especially clear. "I do not need nor do I want any promise from you." Ami stepped between them. "Break it up. We still need food, water, and fire." She said, listing things off on her fingers. "Lilim and I will stay here. I can guard both princesses. Kitra and Michael go and find food, Fin, you can hunt for some water." Fin nodded his head, setting his feet on the ground. He lifted his weapon, a pair of metal claws that could slash any weapon to ribbons. Michael didn't look happy, but he knew Ami designated these groups for a reason.
"Fine then, come Kitra, let us hunt for food. My ability is light, Fin can manipulate dreams, and Ami is a shadow maker." There, with that done, Michael could now begin the hunt with his foe.
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❝The one winged bird will fly once again!❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
Many things were making Kitra angry here. She was the Greed Demon of the siblings, not Wrath, so she shouldn't be as angry as she was, so maybe it was her way of commemorating her favorite of all the siblings, Furfur. It was more likely for Kitra to hoard things and keep them selfishly close to herself, just like she was doing here with that stupid spoiled princess. Lilim was already making nice with the angels, making the Heavenly Vow that will bind her to it. Now, if Celty died, Lilim would die with her. "You're so stupid, Lilim." The big sister muttered angrily, tightening her grip on her spear. She listened as Fin explained the catatonic princess and scoffed angrily. "She was still fighting before being abducted." The Demon Queen explained. "Even after losing her wing she was fine." Lilim pulled at the cloak draped on her big sister's shoulders.
"Um, not fine, no, but she was still talking and everything." The succubus said, clarifying. She shook her head. "Let's wait, okay? If she's still scared, let her stay like that!" It was obvious how much compassion the little demon held but Kitra just felt even more annoyed, pulling Lilim back closer to her after Ami broke up the vow. "I wanted to make the promise, so you can trust us. We won't do anything bad, we won't!" Fine, it was obvious that they were going to have to work together here, but that didn't make the situation any less aggravating.
Ami set up the plan, they were going to separate into groups. This time it was Kitra that was full of suspicion. "Lilim can't fight. If you betrayed us she has no way to protect herself." It was clear what was going to happen. Fin was going to put her to sleep and Ami would fight if she tried to do anything. Her spear crackled threateningly. "How can I know you won't do anything to hurt her?" A raging tempest was in the Demon Queen's eyes. She wasn't going to let it happen again. "It happened before! She was abducted before, remember? Lilim's eyes widened, but not at the angels. "Sis, you're - no, they won't! They wouldn't, they know we have to work together, don't be silly!"
[color=#8f8c89]"How can you trust them so easily? They kidnapped you before, they'll do it again, they don't even think they were in the wrong!" No, she wasn't going to let this plan happen, absolutely not, but Lilim dashed over to where Celty was laying motionless. "I can't fight, I'll just get in the way. I can absorb whatever pain Celty's in, so I can be useful here! They won't take me, since they need me to regulate her pain, okay?" Kitra was still intensely uneasy, though. This was way too suspicious. The Demon Queen aimed her eyes at the angel prince. "But they betrayed us before. Zepar put her faith in angels and she died because of it!"
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❝A dream is a wish your heart makes. ❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
"You think someone can be fine after losing a wing?" It Michael ran a hand in frustration through his hair. On the sidelines, Ami sighed in contention. "He's so cute when he's mad." She said, leaning against a tent pole. "How about I cut off your leg and we can see how fine you are?" That was just about the equivalent. Losing a wing was the same thing as losing an arm or a leg, for an angel, losing their wings was worse than death. "Michael, I advise you to stop." Fin spoke gently, as his vassal, he was supposed to jump in front of Michael in case Kitra struck and Fin was not in the mood to get electrocuted. "You can trust us," Ami cut in, "because if I leave Fin, he won't be able to defend the Princesses in case something attacks." At least Ami could fight, Fin was still new and sort of useless in that respect. He was in training of course, but otherwise, they had only brought him along so that they could contact one another through dreams.
"It might not get any better if you just leave her." Fin murmured, no doubt picking up pieces of the dreams. "Go. Find. Water." Ami repeated, shooing Fin away. Kitra and Lilim were speaking now, Kitra clearly didn't want to leave Lilim, but Lilim insisted on staying here. "You have my word that no harm will come to her," Ami promised, bowing in respect. "Lilim has a very important power, healing is a rare gift." Ami said and gave Michael a look as he clearly didn't want to leave Celeste's side. "Here, we'll be in this tent. You have nothing to worry about," Ami was doing her best to be polite and convincing, but it was Lilim in the end that convinced Kitra to go along with Michael and hunt for some food. Ami realized then that they had a problem, even angels and demons needed to eat, but how were they to feed Celeste?
In Eden they had technology that could help them with that, but out here, in these woods, it would be hard. Lilim was a healer, so she could keep anything bad from happening, but they had nothing they could do. Did people even get hungry when they were catatonic? Ami didn't know. "Come Kitra, let's go hunting." Obviously they couldn't just hunt down monsters and eat them, that was cruel, they were still demons at the end of the day and eating another person was disgusting. They would have to hunt for animals in this small, lush jungle. It was clear that Michael was doing his best to ignore that comment about Zepar, the demon he had fallen in love with. There was a bit of pain crossing his expression when she mentioned that they had double crossed them. "You truly know nothing," he said, his hand clenching around his sword.
Celeste couldn't open her eyes. She couldn't hear or see or speak, her lips had been sewn shut, her eyes blindfolded and pieces of thick cotton placed into her ears, making them bleed. The pain was endless, nameless, faceless figures coming through the darkness and stabbing her with needles, causing pain to flood her body. Blood dripped from her back, lash wounds from a whip leaving her flesh exposed and open. Every so often something would sear her skin, it felt like lightning traveling through her body, leaving burn marks and making her shake and pull at the thread over her mouth in a vain attempt to scream. Her wrists hung from chains, blood and other bodily fluids swirling on the ground and into a drain.
The pain didn't end, Celeste couldn't escape but she couldn't see or hear, she couldn't scream for help because her lips were sewn shut. The worst, however, was the throbbing pain in her neck. Every so often she'd feel teeth dig into her neck, ripping at the flesh, drinking blood. No matter what they did, Celeste wouldn't die. She didn't fade or pass out and even though her wings had withered to nothing but bone and feathers, Celeste remained in this awful place, trapped from the real world, falling deeper and deeper towards the point of no return.
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❝One incapable of determining their own fate is a filthy insect.❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
It was clear that they were a few badly chosen words away from a large fight breaking out. Yet Kitra was still being combative and uncooperative, but in her mind, she was doing the right thing. If she wasn't careful, it could spell the end for Lilim, because these were angels they were talking about, and angels absolutely couldn't be trusted. Lilim was kidnapped before, it could happen again, how could she know otherwise? Kitra wasn't going to let it happen, she was going to selfishly hold everything that mattered to her close, no matter what. She was Greed, after all, losing what was hers was some of the worst pain in the world. Lilim was still insisting, though, everyone was. "If anything happens to her, I'll-"
Someone clutched at her arm, shaking her head. "No, no, don't say it like that!" Lilim said with her big weepy eyes that could churn anyone's heart. "Silly Kitra, just say something nicer, like 'My name is Kit! I hope we all get along!" She then did a wink and a goofy little twirl, clearly trying to emulate her. The Demon Queen bit her lip tensely, this was clearly her way to try and defuse the fight that was about to begin. So the Demon Queen rubbed her head insistently. "Whatever you think of me, don't take it out on her, okay? Lilim's an innocent, she's hardly even a demon. Hates war. So don't touch her." Lilim puffed her cheeks out and tried to look tougher than she was. "I am a demon! Just because war is dumb doesn't mean I'm not a demon!"
And with that, it was time to go hunt. Lilim went to do pain management as much as she could and was happily chatting with Ami, as if they weren't different species at all, as if they weren't even enemies, leaving Kitra and Michael to go on a hunt for food. They couldn't really look for monsters to eat, since monsters faded away into black vapors upon death, so that wasn't an option. Small animals and plants would have to suffice. "I know nothing? I was directly involved for everything that happened." The Demon Queen snapped, gnashing her teeth angrily. "Fur and I were the ones that discovered your family's lie, that my parents were still alive in some capacity." She paused, then glared at her enemy. "If you angels just told us the truth, we could all be a big happy family right now." It was a little ridiculous to think about that now, though.
A sound distracted them from the fight. A loud roar, a tree falling over, revealing a gigantic flying centipede type monster. "Here it comes, this one's strong." Kitra recognized this one, it was from one of her father's generals that died on the attack on Heaven's Gate. He was immensely strong in life and was even more of a threat now, in death. Kitra, of course, was the candidate for Scorpio, so she wasn't going to let herself lose against anyone, much less a mindless creature. She twirled her spear, gathering electricity, and jumped, dodging several dozens of those disgusting wriggling legs, the clicking of the monster's pincers echoing uncomfortably in her mind.
Of course, in the lush jungle, Kitra couldn't use her electricity, so she relied solely on her spearwork, slashing what she could, dodging and spinning and landing on top of it's hard exoskeleton shell. Free from the foliage, Kitra charged up electricity and slammed the tip of her spear through a chink in the shell, into the meaty bit of the monster, then let loose her electricity. To prevent falling she spun the spear like the rotors of a helicopter, using electricity to speed it up fast enough to support her weight, landing gracefully on the ground, akin to a swan. "Saved your butt." There was another rustle, and then a deer-like animal bounded through the bushes. The Demon Queen grinned. "There, you can have that one. A little more your skill level, isn't it?"
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❝A dream is a wish your heart makes. ❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
"Did you forget I was directly involved with it as well? Engaged to be married?" He questioned, careful to go around plants. "That's poisonous, don't touch it." He pointed out, "The last thing I need is for you to get injured and blame me for not pointing out a tree root." He pointed to a tree root that was directly in their path. His hands shook slightly, tightening around his sword once more. It was clear that Michael was being very careful so as not to hurt any plants. He knew Hell could not afford to lose anymore greenery. "It was not our decision, it was one my parents made. I cannot control the actions of others, just how you cannot control the actions of your sister." If Michael could, things would have gone a very different way. Maybe he and Zepar would be married, maybe their unborn child would be alive. "I've spent months trying to convince my parents to kill them, they're fixated on the hope that they can bring them back."
"Maybe if they had things would have gone differently." It was clear in that moment that Michael had lost a lot too. He had lost his bride to be, his unborn child, and now, he was afraid of losing his sister too. Those who said that angels hadn't lost anything were clearly blind. "I have never loved anyone as much as I loved her," he whispered, heartache laced into his words. It wasn't purposeful, Michael truly missed Zepar. Had he and Zepar married, Celeste would be safe, Kitra would still have her siblings, Cambion wouldn't be a traitor, and Lilim wouldn't have to pretend to always be happy. Suddenly, a monster began to attack. Kitra counteracted, returning blows with the centipede that in a past life was no doubt a strong enemy. Since the demon queen seemed to have things under control, Michael stood back, recalling that Kitra was a child of greed.
No wonder she clung to Celeste like his sister was some sort of toy. She was a greedy child who selfishly wanted what didn't belong to her. Celeste had to go back home, where they could fix her severed wing, where she could heal. Once Kitra touched the ground again, a few deer popped out of the bushes. In one clean cut, Michael killed them, quickly and hopefully for the animal, painlessly. "Let's return to the others," he said, shaking the blood off of his sword when he spotted it. "Move!" Michael pushed Kitra out of the way, what appeared to be a long whip with a talon on the end striking him in the arm. "You barbaric monster!" Michael whirled around, flashes of light used to blind the monster so that he could kill it from behind without taking anymore damage. Kitra may have been a contender, but Michael was already a Zodiac.
Back at the camp, Ami had moved the girls inside. She was braiding Lilim's hair, something she used to do for Celeste and Mizuki all the time. Every so often, Celeste would open her eyes and Ami would feel a little bit of hope, but then she would see the glassy stare and reclose them so that the Princess's eyes didn't dry out. "How old did you say you were?" Ami laughed slightly, Lilim was rather developed, although Ami had a nice sized chest herself, unlike the Demon Queen and Celeste who was near flat chested. "There, I wove some flowers in it too." The were little yellow flowers that had dotted the area around the tent. Weeds was more correct, but they were pretty and in abundance so Ami had used them.
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❝One incapable of determining their own fate is a filthy insect.❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
The Demon Queen kept one eye carefully trained on her hated enemy, an angel of the Heavenly Royal Family. Michael was the oldest, and thus, most likely he was the strongest as well, being the next in line for the throne. He was going to be a major enemy, that much was certain. Her hand darted away from the plant identified as poisonous and Kitra shrugged carelessly. "Geez." Though honestly, she didn't mind if it was poisonous. Heck, maybe it'd even be better that way. If Kitra died, maybe many things would be better, more people would undoubtedly be happy. She too, might be happy, to be able to not have to live with the loneliness of being separated from the majority of her family any longer. Michael was trying to defend himself from her accusations, saying that you couldn't control others, but Kitra glared.
"That's senseless." She said clearly. "Of course you can control other's actions!" Maybe it was because she was a demon of Greed, but she always knew about controlling others. "We both control our subordinates, don't we? And Lilim made you all trust her with the Heavenly Vow. There's always ways to manipulate people." Then, something strange. The angel prince was talking about how he loved Zepar, how he loved her more than he loved anyone else. "I loved her too." Kitra said softly. Zepar was a complex creature, full of poison and hatred but was a good person inside. "Dunno why she hated herself and her powers so badly, I always idolized her." Of course, Zepar was now dead and gone, either her soul is being reformed, or she's already reborn as someone else, never to come back.
After dispatching the centipede, a few deer shot past, and one was quickly taken out by Michael, one smooth clean cut, instantly killing it. There, that was their meat for the time being, hopefully it'd last a while. "Tch." The Demon Queen scoffed, allowing Michael to push her out of the way of the next monster that attacked, looking akin to a long snake with talons, eliminating it with apparent ease. "They can't help our nature, you don't have to hate them." While it was easy to despise monsters, demons didn't have that luxury. For all demons, they knew one thing and one thing alone. Monsters were their eventual future, like it or not. "It's the fate of all demons to eventually become a monster." Kitra said quietly. Even her siblings turned into this. And one day, Kitra too, would become a monster.
Lilim was giggling as her hair was being carefully braided by Ami. She wasn't worried about Kit and Michael, they'd be fine out there. The two were really strong, after all, and they were forced to work together for now. So the nurse-like demon was tending to Celeste as they waited, keeping a hand on her forehead to absorb any pain she could, knowing that the angel princess was probably in more emotional pain than anything else. The lust demon cocked an eyebrow at the question. "I'm thirteen years old!" She exclaimed with a grin, squeezing one of her rather developed mounds. "And they'll get even bigger too!" Ami wasn't too bad either, but Lilim was a lust demon for a reason, after all! Finally flowers were put into her hair and she smiled happily at her new friend. "Thank you! I bet I look super cute! You're really good at this!" Her happy expression faded then as she glanced at Celeste, still catatonic. "If you take her back, can I come visit? I made friends with her! Celeste was going to paint me a picture!" At first their relationship was one of selfishness but after the bath incident and the kitty mode, Lilim knew she wanted Celeste as a lifelong friend, even if she was an angel.
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❝A dream is a wish your heart makes. ❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
"But manipulating someone is not allowing them to live to their full potential. I cannot control my parents, you cannot control your siblings." That was his final word on the matter. Michael picked up the buck by the antlers, lugging it over his shoulder. Blood smeared on his shirt, which was fine since it was a dragon knight uniform that he had taken from a passed out soldier. "All life must come to an end at some point," when angels died they turned to humans, when demons died, they turned to monsters. "We both come to an eventual disparity." It wasn't fair or just, but that was just the way that life was. "We cannot control fate, as much as we try." They should return back to base camp, hopefully Fin had returned with the water. He was not good at offensive combat, so Michael was quite worried when Ami had sent him off alone. Hopefully his new servant would return with a clean bill of health.
"I do hope you haven't deluded yourself into believing that you'll be keeping my sister. They trudged through the shrubbery, Michael pointed out the poisonous plant again. "It isn't enough poison to kill you, only to give you a rash so irritating you'll probably want to die." Nothing as strong as ataraxia or sword dipped in poison. They were close to camp again when Michael heard it. "Take this," he said, handing the buck to Kitra. "My servant is in trouble," Michael was trusting Kitra to not do anything rash to Ami while he went to see to Fin. He darted through the underbrush, keeping his head low and his wings tucked in so that the extra weight did not slow him down. Michael came to a stop, seeing that Fin was battling against some sort of water demon. "Hang on!" Michael called, stepping into the water.
"Don't!" Fin yelled, grabbing Michael and pushing him towards the shore. Michael could see it then, the slightly shiny quality, no doubt the monster was secreting some sort of poison. Fin was in its grasp now, being flung through the air. He used his wings to straighten, turning himself and landing behind Michael. "Stay back," Michael warned. Fin was a bit banged up, but nothing too bad. The monster lunged, but not for him, but for Fin. Fin coward and Michael leaped into action, blinding the animal with light. H used to distraction to push Fin away, the two of them falling into the bushes. Michael stood, turning back towards the animal that now had spots in its vision. "I'll finish this quickly," he stumbled, looking down at his leg. There was a rash climbing up it, pain searing through his every movement. "Tch, this is irritating." He was a Zodiac though, this was not enough to stop a warrior!
Three slashes and it was over. Michael staggered, the poison turning normally blue veins black. "You need to get back to camp," Fin said, supporting him. "They've got a healer don't they?" Michael inquired. Fin grabbed his bucket, the two of them making their way back. "There's something you need to know," Fin spoke quietly. "I've been picking up pieces of Celeste's dream... it's, it's not good." Michael winced, limping, using his sword to support him. "I figured as much... I'll go in and... gah!" He fell to his knees, the poison was spreading far too quickly. "Lilim!" Fin called, they were at the foot of the clearing. Ami was the first response, being Michael's biggest fan it was a surprise she hadn't opted to go with him.
"Prince Michael!" Ami yelled, her and Fin dragging him back towards the fire pit they had established but had gotten no tinder for. "I'm fine," he protested. "I need to... Celeste." Fin shook his head though, "you're in no condition to go in there." Fin looked around, his eyes widening as he realized that the only one they could send in was the Demon Queen. "Queen Kitra," Fin stood, bowing. He explained the situation quickly, then turned to Lilim to tell her what happened. "He saved me, but the monster leaked poison."
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❝One incapable of determining their own fate is a filthy insect.❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
Kitra sat down once they were back to camp, eyeing Michael as he went off to deal with his weak vassal, taking the corpse of the buck in and setting it down haphazardly. She was in a bad mood now, there were too many things to think about. Primarily, how was she going to nab Celty? It was going to take luck and extenuating circumstances to keep the angel princess as her own, especially since Lilim was most likely going to just try to convince her to let her go. As if that was going to happen, the idea was laughable. The Demon Queen could hear her sister laughing from the tent so she was no doubt in good health. With Michael gone, it was just Ami, as long as the storm ended and Winona came back, she could overpower Ami and take Celty and her sister back to where they belonged. But alas, that turned out to not be fate's hand - instead Michael and Fin returned with the promised water, both of them not looking particularly well off. After Ami and Lilim arrived, the situation was explained.
"Geez, you're so needy. Don't have fancy Edentech to bring her back?" This wasn't her responsibility, Celty's condition was all because of Val. The spoiled princess was holding up well enough back at the Onyx Citadel. But judging from Lilim's expression Kitra already knew she was going to be forced into helping regardless. She was already wincing uncomfortably after absorbing Finn and Michael's pain - or whatever of it she could. Without her tools, she couldn't exactly drain the venom. "Big sis, you have to! She's my friend, so you have to help!" Kitra stared helplessly at her overly pushy sister and sighed internally. "And I take it you won't harm Lil while I'm asleep then?" She glared directly at Michael before muttering under her breath. "You're gonna owe me big time for this. Not my mess that did this." She said with a twisted scowl.
"Contrary to what you may believe," Fin panted, wincing. "It usually stems from a drastic change. Being taken from her home, chained up, whatever you've done, it was just the beginning. No doubt you set her up for this condition, whatever happened at the border, that was simply the final straw." Fin knew all about mental health, physical health, however, he was hopeless at. He turned to Lilim then, thanking her in earnest. "I am in your debt," he said, giving a half bow. Ami brought over her bag containing a first aid kit. "Will this help?" She inquired as Fin confirmed that no harm would be done to Lilim. "On our honor," Ami piped in. Michael was in no condition to move anyways, so the demon Princess really would be safe. "Please, you are our only hope at bringing the Princess back." Michael grunted, whether it was a protest or affirmation, or maybe just pain, was unclear.
"There is no 'Edentech" as you put it that can go into someone's mind. Luckily, we have a dreamweaver that makes up for it." Ami patted Fin's shoulder. "Lilim and I will be watching over everyone the whole time." Well, Lilim was preoccupied with making sure the poison didn't reach Michael's heart, so Ami would be monitoring the others. "Ready?" Fin inquired, he led Kitra into the tent where Celeste was, setting up a spot for the Queen to lay down. "Close your eyes," he began, placing something on Kitra's forehead. It was a little mark drawn in chalk. "I'm sending you in now. Don't panic, at first you may feel as though you're trapped in a dark puddle. If you begin to walk or swim, you'll see a light. You want to move towards it." He explained, placing a similar mark on Celeste's forehead. "Remember, what you're seeing isn't real, it could be a nightmare or a dream. You may need to sort through things as well, sometimes memories pop up and interfere. You have to dispell them by announcing they aren't real. I'll give you your next instructions when you find the Princess."
While Fin explained random stuff that Kitra didn't care about, the succubus was squirreling around with the first aid kid. First, the girl was somewhat thrilled about the tools that wasn't really available in Hell, but she quickly looked at everything and was able to deduce what she had to do in little time at all, grinning at Michael and making a joke about being a personal painkiller. The idea of Lilim hurting herself for an angel's sake was irritating to say the least, but Kitra knew it was useless to convince her not to. "I already said I'd help, don't gotta say random crap." The Demon Queen muttered sourly, waving off the bow of debt. Once Lilim's safety was guaranteed, there was notihng else for it. She made her way into the tent that housed Celty, and it was more than irritating to see the girl asleep like that, a stupid little thing.
"Get up already, idiot." Kitra murmured under her breath, but she wasn't sure if it was actual concern or just a child's temper tantrum that a toy wasn't acting how she wanted it to. She liked Celty best when she was trying to resist, when she was rebelling and struggling, like when she freed the angel prisoners from being executed. But all of that fun and respect was gone at seeing Celty being a useless heap like this. She laid down then, and shut her eyes at Fin's command, knowing she could beat him in a fight if he tried anything sneaky while her eyes were shut. He explained all the stuff and Kitra nodded. "Yeah, yeah. I'm ready, so can we get this over with, already?" She didn't like being prone and vulnerable like this. As soon as she could fix this and get that spoiled princess working again, the sooner she could be salient and aware.
"I'm sending you through now." Fin said, taping Kitra's forehead once and pushing her into Celeste's mind. Kitra was mostly on her own now, the only thing Fin could really do was guide her through. "Remember to swim,"[/] he said as she faced the first challenge, the darkness. Kitra was a demon, no doubt to her, something like darkness was what she was accustomed to. Fin could see and hear what Kitra was going through, but he couldn't interefere. [i]"I can't locate Celeste, you'll have to do it on your own." No doubt to someone like the Queen, this seemed like a trivial task that she would normally send a servant to do. Unfortunately, magic like this wasn't easy and it left Fin vulnerable and weak. He was pouring all of his energy into putting Kitra in there, placing all of his eggs in one basket and pinning the hope that Kitra could overcome it.
And here it was, an endless sort of darkness. The Demon Queen remembered to swim, kicking both legs as if they were a tail. There was no light or anything to follow, so she was just going to go some random direction. The darkness was nice, in a way. Kitra felt more comfortable, more at ease, in the darkness. Supposedly most demons were like that, but Furfur loved bright lights and parties and all that buzz, while Lilim was always a fan of vibrant colors and the like. There were weirdoes for every race, it seemed. "I don't sense her." The Demon Queen reported, already a little annoyed. How long was she gonna swim in this murk, anyways? If there was gonna be torture and pain and stuff, it was better to just throw it at her, then to bore her like this. This sort of thing was demeaning, but she just had to do it, especially now that she was in. Fin wasn't gonna let her out otherwise, not until she pulled Celty back to reality.
They were swimming deeper in the darkness, Fin experiencing all of it through Kitra. "There, I felt a tug to your left." He reported, a bright light visible. "Go that way," there was no guarantee that they would find Celeste right at the end of the darkness. Fin was right, unfortunately, they were faced with a memory. It was a happy one, one where Celeste had first discovered the joys of paint. She was a child, bright white hair in a messy bun, her dress stained with colors that were smeared on her hands and a bit on her face. They were outside in the garden, Raphael and Gabriel there with her. "Mother isn't gonna be happy, you were supposed to wear that dress to the garden party." Raphael was saying, Fin cut off Celeste's response though. "You need to declare that it's not real before you can move on."
Kitra dutifully swam to the left at Fin's command, feeling more than slightly irritated that she was at his mercy now. She was greeted by what was definitely a memory, a kid version of Celty was playing with paint, looking both idiotic and spoiled at the exact same time. A girl like this, no doubt she was coddled and shielded away from the truth of the world, from the wars and all the other bad crap that was going on. Kitra burst into the dream, careful not to let electricity crackle before she realized that she couldn't summon any at all. That was peculiar in the least, and without her spear, she was just an average demon. "Oy, teach me how to bring my stuff into the dream, at least." Kitra scowled, before waving the paint away. "This isn't real, dummy. Only pathetic weaklings cling to happy memories." Still, Kitra was dubious. Wasn't she part of the reason Celty was retreating like this? Why the heck did anyone think she could convince Celty to go back to the real world, anyways?
"Good job," Fin praised as Kitra declared the dream unreal. No doubt the Queen was annoyed having to do all of this, still, it was a necessity. They were getting closer, Fin could sense her a bit now. The next memory wasn't so happy, a thunder storm. Celeste was terribly afraid of them and she hid underneath her bed, her blanket pulled over her head. She was still little in this dream, maybe ten years old. Michael was there this time, attempting to coax her out with cookies. They had made a wide jump from happy to fearful, Fin had a dreadful notion about the sight they were about to see. "Again, declare it unreal." He instructed and once that was gone and faded, she was there. Celeste was in what appeared to be a cage, hanging by her wrists. Her ears were stuffed with cotton to the point that they were bleeding, her mouth sewen shut with what appeared to be red wires, or perhaps they were simply stained from blood. Her eyes were covered, blind folded by a thick strip of black cloth. She was naked, body covered in blood from the torture she had been going through. Covered in cuts and bruises, there was hardly an ounce of flesh untouched. Blood trickled from the bite mark on her neck, her wings were broken and twisted at odd angles, bone protruding from the skin, clumps of feathers missing. Fin swallowed, unable to speak for a moment. [i]"Once you touch her, I won't be able to speak to you anymore."[i] He warned, watching through Kitra's eyes as a being descended from a staircase. Even like this, Celeste trembled, knowing it was coming. She thrashed, a whip licking her body, bolts of lightning traveling across her skin, the smell of burnt flesh mixing in the putrid smelling air.
Kitra kept moving forward after abandoning the last now-dispersed memory, concentrating on her silverish spear, the image of it in her mind. She thought hard, thought about how it felt in her hands, about it's familiar weight, and finally it seemed to materialize. Finally, she was complete, her fifth limb brought back to her. With that, she found herself in a new memory, in what seemed to be a storm, the girl being a coward from the thunder storm, afraid and hiding as a familiar annoyance was there, offering her cookies. Of course, what was more interesting was Celty herself, her current conscience manifesting in that grotesque way. "Hmpf, only I'm allowed to do that." Kitra growled angrily, but was slightly surprised at the way her words didn't quite match up with her emotions. No, she wasn't upset that Celty was being hurt by someone other than herself but was - no, it was pointless to contninue thinking that way, it was pathetic.
"See ya later, then." Kitra said to Fin, then moved herself closer to Celty, using her spear to block the whip and cut through it like paper, making it dissolve into nothingness. Celty definitely looked far worse than anything Kitra had done to her, this was the dumb angel's own doing. The figure, Kitra did her best not to look at it, to not recognize the shape, and she cut through that as well, before shouting in the angel's ear. "This isn't real, stupid! Sleep exists for a reason, and it's to avoid crap like this!" Sleep was meant to be safe, not like this. She cut through the cage and chains next, and - a bit more gently - through the stitches on her mouth as well as the blindfold. "Stop being stubborn, I never did anything this bad to you."
She could sense it, the warmth that meant there was a person there. Celeste coward, moving away from it, from the touch that brushed her. It was going to hurt her, wasn't it? It always did. Everytime someone touched her, they sent pain into her body. She was no longer an angel, she aws an experiment, a toy, stuck with needles and poisons and kicked around for everyone else's entertainment. So when people touched her, it meant that bad things were going to happen. The chains were released, were they going to shove her head underneath water again so that she couldn't breathe? Perhap they were finally going to kill her? It would be a mercy. Someone eased her to the ground, this was it, Celeste told herself, they would finally kill her, then Celeste could live a happy human life, no more wings, no more pain, no more pain. Instead of being killed though, the things in her ears began to come out, someone was unplugging them. Celeste shook like a leaf, no, if they were doing that, it meant bad things would happen. They would put a bug in her ear, or maybe stick a tube in there. No more, Celeste wanted to beg. Something touched her mouth, this time it was more gentle, cutting through the wires that kept her mouth shut. She didn't understand what was happening, after spending so long through this torture, it felt as though her mind couldn't process the fact that she was being rescued.
A voice yelled at her. Celeste coward, trying to curl up on herself, to make herself so small that she would disappear. Moving was agonizing though and the only sounds that Celeste could muster were whimpers. Kitra had nothing to do with it, this had all began the first time Celeste had been kidnapped, Kitra had reactivated it, Val had pushed Celeste into it. Finally, the blindfold came off. Her vision was blurry, unfocused, but Celeste could see her, the one that had caged and chained her, that had cut off her wing, that had taken Celeste from the people she loved so much. "N-no," the girl stuttered, trying to get away from Kitra. She whimpered, unable to move around much. "N-no mo-m-more. N-n-no m-m-mo-more. P-please I-I be-beg of you." Celeste squeezed her eyes shut, it was better to not see, she plugged her fingers in her ears, it was better to not hear.
The Demon Queen's face twisted in irritation. Whatever happened to the princess that was willing to argue with her, to stand against her, whatever happened to someone that was actually worth the time and respect of someone prestigious like herself? This was just a sad lump thing, Celty as she was was useless. If Kitra wanted someone pathetic who could cry and beg, she could have gotten anyone. But more than any other of her victims, Celty was the one that intrigued her the most, Celty was the one that resisted her more than anyone else. No one else would satisfy her, no one else would have what it took to go against her even in the worst pain. And now Celty was just hiding, running away from everything that scared her like a pathetic little cat, helpless and weak. This was an insult to the angel Kitra abducted, it was practically blasphemy at this point.
"Don't just hide away, weakling." She pulled her fingers out of her ears, gripping tightly to her wrists, but not tight enough to hurt under normal circumstances. "As thanks for saving Winona you weren't supposed to be punished, so why the heck are you doing it to yourself, anyways?" It was bordering on idiocy. If you're gonna be catatonic, at least be in a pleasant darkness, not like this. "You were meant to be special, not some weak thing. You're better than that, at least." Kitra felt emotions she didn't understand so she shut most of them out, focusing on the one she knew best - anger. "Michael's poisoned, you know! If you don't wake up, maybe you'll never get to talk to him again!" It wasn't exactly a lie, but hopefully it'd jolt the princess into being more than a pathetic ball of self pity.
Was this another of their games? To pretend that she was saved? To pretend that someone actually cared enough to help her? It was this very person that had put her here and now she was yelling at Celeste as though the angel was the one at fault. Celeste's wrists were grabbed, yanked into the air. The angel cried out in pain, her wrists were sore from hanging from them for so long. "N-no more!" Tears formed in her eyes, Celeste didn't want to be punished anymore. "I-I d-don't kno-know an-any-anything!" She shook her head, wincing at the sting of the bites. Feet stomped down the staircase, Celeste coward again as two people appeared, Kitra and Lilim. "Want to play another game?" Lilim asked, bounding off down the hall and disappearing. The fake Kitra came closer though, holding her staff, crackling with electricity. "No, no!" Celeste cried in fear, curling up on herself once more and trembling. "No more," tears welled up in her eyes, not even the mention of her dear brother was enough to make Celeste see sense in the face of her nightmare.
Fin in the meantime wanted to thrash Kitra. If real Kitra was caught by the fake Kitra, then both girls would be trapped inside Celeste's mind. Fin couldn't tell her that though, if fake Kitra so much as tapped the real one, it was game over. Someone else would have to go in there and rescue both of them. Celeste was like that same child trying to hide from the thunder storm, any semblence of happiness gone. Her eyes were wide and hollow with terror, she tried to pull her wrists from Kitra's grip, the raw skin leaving blood on the Queen's hands. Her wings fluttered nervously, more feathers falling off with every little twitch. "I-I do-don't want an-anymore." Celeste whimpered, "P-pl-please ki-kill me."
This was beyond just normal irritation. This was advanced irritation. Celty wasn't even listening or anything, she was just a pathetic weak thing. Kitra was like a child, angry at her toy for not functioning the way she wanted it to. "At least be coherent." She murmured at Celty's increasingly nonsensical words. The angel wasn't even capable of holding a conversation, much less be anything close to strong. Was she just mistaken? Was it silly to think Kitra finally found someone with a strong enough will to point out her flaws, to scold her, to do what most others couldn't accomplish at all? And then there were more people coming down the staircase. "Didn't I already say this wasn't real?" The lightning demon hissed, annoyed that it wasn't disappearing. She caught sight of the new fakes, both herself and Lilim were here, Lilim bounding away but her mirror image was right there and waiting.
Though she didn't get Fin's warning, Kitra knew that she was at a disadvantage. The other Kitra could still use electricity, but she didn't know how to make it appear in the dream, so if she touched her, it meant instant defeat. "Fine, just be weak forever. I'm starting to not care anymore." Kitra growled angrily. "You think that by crying, someone's going to come save you? It doesn't work like that. If you can't be strong enough for yourself, there's no point anymore. It's all useless." So Kitra shut her eyes. She couldn't defeat fake her, but she knew someone who could. And with that, Furfur materialized before her, her red hair and flaming sword ready for action. Her favorite big sister launched herself into battle, easily cutting through the fake and then grinned happily back at her. "There, saved your butt, Kit!" Furfur said heartily. "I'm always with ya, y'know? So don't be so lonely!" Of course, Kitra was making her say these things to try and quell how much she really missed her sister, and knowing that she was faking it just made it even worse. With a wave of a spear, Furfur vanished back into nothingness.
The fake Kitra was dead, but Celeste couldn't relax. The dream began to change, to mold into something else. The dungeon turned into a garden, bright colors painting the ground, a blue sky illuminated above them. Celeste had fallen asleep, no longer looking pained and nightmare filled. Her wounds healed, her wings straightening themselves out, bright white feathers regrowing in the place of the pulled out ones. Her skin returned to its smooth, porcelain quality, the only markings marring it being the ones that Kitra had given her. There were no bonds and chains, no wires or cages, just an angel in a messy white dress that had been colored in paints. Celeste began to awake, not the one that was so afraid, but the normal one, still slightly fractured, but present once more. Her bright red eyes opened, standing out even in a garden of technicolor flowers. There was a piece of paper stuck to her face, a girl who had fallen asleep mid painting and was just now waking up. The only remaining scars from Valafar's attack were the two little bite marks on her neck. "I finished the painting for Lilim," Celeste said, gesturing around to what she had been painting. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, blinking a bit painfully from the unexpectedibly bright sun. It was her home, the one Kitra had taken Celeste from.
"Do you think she'll like it?" The angel stiffened for a moment before realizing something. "My brother, I sense him. Is he here?" She got to her feet, stumbling a little.
The dungeon faded away, giving way to a whole new locale. Kitra didn't expect it, her mind was already preparing her for whatever cage Val prepared for her, but this was something completely unexpected. Not that she let any of that surprise show on her perpetually-frowning face. As if by Lilim's magic, Celty's wounds and pains were all healing away, leaving nothing but the few Kitra left behind, and a white dress seemed to just blossom out from nothing, covering up her body, hiding the cauterization scars from view. The girl was asleep, but then woke up, slowly, showing her not-so-irritating self, the Celty that saw her bad situation and was strong enough to make the best of it. The version that wasn't pathetic and useless. Unfortunately, even this wasn't real, this too was fake. Kitra had a sour expression as she held her spear tightly, waiting some sort of surprise attack from who knows where. "She'd like it more if it was real, y'know." The Demon Queen sighed, still irritated but her voice came out as as gentle as it could manage. "You're still dreaming, Celty. This one isn't real either." Celty asked for her brother, Michael, and Kitra nodded. "Came to rescue you, got himself poisoned. Wanna wake up and have a sappy tearful family reunion now?" She kept her eyes carefully on Celty, knowing a little stumble wasn't enough to cause any damage, especially in a dream.
This wasn't real? She wasn't home? Of course not, because home didn't include her tormentor in it. "Why did you save me?" Celete inquired quietly. "You hate me, you hate everything about me, so why?" There wasn't time for that though, her brother was here, he had come to rescue her. "Fine," Celeste closed her eyes, ejecting both herself and Kitra from the dream. Her eyes opened slowly, the setting sun greeting her. Celeste shivered, feeling cold. She was covered by a uniform jacket, her feet bare, a light cotton dress covering her body. Celeste was no longer in Valafar's grasp, there was no mock angel room, only a tent in the middle of the woods. At first, Celeste was confused, then she realized her brother must have saved her from there. The Princess sat up slowly, her head spinning from the sudden movement after two days of not moving and no food or water. Her tongue felt dry, parched like the desert and her stomach gnawed with hunger. Shakily, Celeste crawled out of the tent, seeing her brother sitting with his shirt open, drinking a glass of water. "Michael!" Celeste cried, stumbling to her feet and running to him. His expression was one of shock, then delight and he stood, opening his arms for her to run into them. Michael caught her, easing them both to the ground since he was dizzy from being treated for poison. "Celeste," he murmured, kissing her forehead and rocking her.
"You're alright, I'm so glad you're alive." Celeste giggled, clinging to him. "You're going to take me home aren't you?" She asked eagerly and Michael nodded. "As soon as the storm passes." Celeste hugged his torso, her arms shaking a drop but she was clearly ecstatic. "Princess!" Ami said, bounding over. She looked to Michael, who gave a subtle nod before wrapping her arms around Celeste in an embrace. "You're okay!" She cried, rubbing her cheek against the other angel's. Celeste giggled, "Yes, I'm alright. Thanks to Kitra no less."
Celty was back, to some sort of semblance or normalcy and Kitra supposed that that was about as good as she was going to get. The Demon Queen grimaced with distaste as Celty spoke to her, asking why she was saved. "For the record, I don't actually hate you. Not anymore at least." Was the almost mute response, and Kitra wondered if Celty heard it at all. Before anything more could be said, they were ejected from the dream, and Celty woke up for the first time in who knows how long. Kitra wasted no time in getting up and returning to Lilim's side. It was a happy family reunion it seemed, brother and sister reunited, and Kitra knew that she and Lilim didn't belong. They wouldn't get a happy reunion of all the siblings back together. Something like this was impossible. Lilim smiled at her and whispered. "Thank you. You brought her back." She said in that way of hers that was both happy and sad and the Demon Queen nodded, feeling somewhat lightheaded after it all. They don't know how lucky they are. We'll never get a moment like this." Lilim nodded, she understood, obviously. How could she not? It was annoying just to look at, to see the angels having what the demons could only ever dream of. "Doesn't mean we have to take it away from them, though." Lilim added, sounding much wiser than her years indicated. Kitra said nothing in response, only staring at the wind still brewing, debating if she should hug Lilim to her or keep her at a distance, but then her sister snuggled in next to her, answering that problem. Celty was awake now. What the heck else was there anymore, anyways?
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❝A dream is a wish your heart makes. ❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
A happier reunion between siblings had never been seen. Celeste hugged her brother, Ami, and Fin, believing that she was finally going home, that she was finally saved. "We'll go home now won't we?" Celeste asked eagerly, looking up with sparkling eyes at the person she admired most. "As soon as the storm is over?" Michael nodded and took Celeste's delicate looking hands in his. "Yes, we'll be going home the moment this storm ends." Ami and Fin, in the meantime, had begun to slice and cook up the buck. Celeste's stomach growled, it was clear that she hadn't eaten her drank in a while. "Here, sit," Michael made Celeste sit by the fire. He wrapped a blanket around her shoulders and made her drink two cups of water. "Is Kitra really the one that saved me?" Celeste inquired as the sun dipped below the horizon. Fin nodded, gesturing to Lilim as well.
"Lilim kept everyone alive." Celeste turned to her and smiled, "Thank you for saving my brother and his servants. As an extra special thank you, I'll make you an extra special painting!" It was the only skill that the Princess had to offer anyhow. Still, it seemed Celeste was quite happy to be with her brother, believing that she would finally get to return home. As night fell and the stew was eaten, Celeste consumed nearly three whole portions, she couldn't wait to return home and sleep in her bed. For tonight, however, there was a tent. One for the girls and another for the boys, as it was deeply inappropriate for them all to sleep together. The Princess was already growing tired, the sun had set and angels had a natural tendency to be sleepier when there was little to no light. "Thank you for the food," Celeste yawned as she rubbed her eyes, turning into a kitten.
Ami picked Celeste up, carrying the sleeping kitten to the tent. She balled up a jacket, placing Celeste in it and putting a sleeve over the kitten to cover her up. The camp was quieting down, the fire began to die out and Fin was placed on duty to watch over everyone since Kitra and Lilim both needed their sleep. "Shoot, a bug." Fin slapped his neck, falling over sideways from a tranquilizer dart. They crept in on quiet toes, their dragons as stealthy as they could be. More darts were passed around, one in the toe, another the hand, any visible surface was hit. Only two were take though, one kitten and one Queen. Neither awoke on the ride on the dragon, the two of them being taken to a very special place.
The kitten was placed in a room, a collar on her throat. The demon was given her own special room too, each one fitted with particle deflectors so that they couldn't use their abilities. The kitten turned into an angel once more, shuffling in her sleep, but not awaking. They were in no immediate danger, in fact, they were to be with extra care since clients payed a higher price for undamaged goods. "A Princess and a Queen, they'll fetch a high price!" Celeste awoke then, finding herself in a strange place, but in a fancy room. There was a bed and dresser, a table and two chairs. Another door was there, a two door system where one had to be closed before another was open and a third door that led to the bathroom. "Where am I?" Celeste asked, hearing voices.
"Still, one of them is damaged, she won't get very many takers." Another sound could be heard, flesh against flesh. "Are you kidding! She's an angel princess, even with one wing whoever takes her will have power over the court!" The other scoffed. "Whoever has the Queen will have the most power, she's whole and boy, does she have a body on her!" There was a slap, skin against skin. "Don't even think of touching the merchandise!"
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❝One incapable of determining their own fate is a filthy insect.❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
This whole thing just gave Kitra a sour taste that she couldn't get rid of, not even the buck was enough to clear the disgust from her mouth. Why was it that the angels got to have their happy ending but the demons were going to be stuck to their misery all over again? The Demon Queen was just annoyed with it all, she was sick of it. Of course the angels got to be happy, of course they got to have their family intact, nothing would change for them at all. Meanwhile Kitra was going to end up fighting Cambion and only one of them would make it out of the civil war intact, forcing Lilim to pick up the pieces or break all on her own, becoming nothing but a shell. Lilim looked like she wanted to go and interact with the angels but didn't leave Kitra's side, even as they went to sleep that night. It was clear that she was running out of people to hold close, and soon, Kitra had a feeling that she'd be left all alone, with no one at all to cling to.
When she next woke up, Kitra wasn't expecting to be in captivity whatsoever. Still, the months of hardening herself after Zepar's death made it so that she could cope with pretty much anything without ever having to deal with it. So the Demon Queen stayed quiet to give off the impression that she was still asleep, instead using her ears to try and determine everything. People were talking, auctioneers, rogue demons (and some fallen angels) that didn't follow either kingdom, and thus lived on the outskirts, ravaging whatever they liked. They were a pressing problem, and Ronove did his best during his rule to stamp them out, but when Zepar came into power her priority was the war against the angels and thus it allowed these pirates to grow stronger in the meantime.
There were rumors that the leader of these marauders was in fact, one of the twelve Zodiacs, and through process of elimination, Capricorn seemed the one that wasn't accounted for otherwise. Still, rather than panic, Kitra was actually getting excited. She was going to face what was probably a worthy opponent - well, the excitement wore off just as quickly when she realized that Lilim might be in danger, sparing a brief thought for her toy, Celty, as well. Well, the Demon Queen knew what she was going to have to do. No doubt they accounted for her electricity, but there was something every demon had that couldn't be suppressed. And so Kitra focused inward, drawing out her inner beast, tentacles and blades erupting from her back, giving her the faint shape of an arachnid, slicing through the chains binding her arms. Honestly, if there was any other choice, maybe Kitra would have taken it. The more a demon drew on their monster form, the more unstable they were at maintaining it and keeping their human form intact.
But there was no other option.
"Shit, the Queen's awake." One voice called out and Kitra grinned to herself. She drew a magic circle quickly with a tentacle, first to determine who the other captives were - only Celty, and then she drew another one, filling in the runes to make a direct connection into Celty's mind. "Since you're my property, I'll save you this once. These barbarians are worse than you can imagine." No doubt if she didn't make her move, they'd be sold off, most likely to different bidders. This was their one chance. "I'm gonna let my monster side take over, so don't be surprised by what happens next." And so Kitra gave into her beast, maintaining only the smallest hint of her sane mind, breaking through the door when the bandits opened to try and attack.
It was like a bloodbath. Kitra was already strong in her base state, but when she was half-monster like this, she could defeat armies completely on her own, with no help whatsoever. The Demon Queen could hardly think anymore, she was just attacking anything the last shell of her sane mind identified as 'enemy', slashing and cutting through them, then breaking down the door to where Celty was being held. The almost-monster Queen let out a strange sort of sound that wasn't decipherable at all and cut Celty loose, fastening her to her back via the tentacles, using the scissor blades to lash out around her. In this state, Kitra was little more than a mindless beast, but there was enough left to mutter something to the girl on her back.
"Can't... think. Celty... you have... to point... me to.. the exit."
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❝A dream is a wish your heart makes. ❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
How had she gotten here? Where was her brother? Did they capture him too? Celeste looked out the door, seeing another room directly across from her. There was a girl in there, young and whimpering, shielding herself with her wings. In the room next to her, a demon was pacing the floor, mumbling to herself about one thing or another. There were dozens of them, all wearing the same collar, some crying, others sitting quiet and still, accepting their fate of being sold on the market like dogs. Celeste could hear footsteps, someone was coming. She ran to the bed, grabbing the blanket and pulling it over her head so that it would look like she was still asleep. A demon came through, a fallen with a doctor kit as well. "Wakey wakey kid," the blanket was peeled back, revealing the shivering girl. "Welcome back Princess, hope you enjoy her stay. It won't be very long."
"Don't touch me!" Celeste yelled as the fallen angel reached for her. The demon grabbed Celeste, pushing her against the bed. He held her down, strapping leather on her ankles and wrists to bind her to the bed. "Remember me?" The fallen asked with a sharp toothed grin. "This is the easy part," he plucked a feather off of her wing, putting it in a tube. Just like how a demon could be identified by their monster, angels could be identified by their feathers. Next was a needle, a blood sample taken. "Now for the fun part," Celeste wiggled, remembering this all too clearly. "No!" She screamed, thrashing against the binds. "Ooh, we've got a live one!" The Demon cackled, he touched the collar, electricity crawling down her spine. "Don't worry, this won't hurt me at all," he put a bit in her mouth to keep Celeste from clomping down as he took a swab, wiping it against the back of her throat.
Celeste choked, trying to fight it. She suddenly tilted her head back, then whammed it up to hit the fallen's head. He stepped back a few feet, yelping in surprise. Celeste coughed, the swab had touched her uvula and left an awful taste in her mouth. "Bad angel," the demon said, touching the collar again. Celeste whimpered, shying away from them. "Alright, that's enough for now." The fallen decided, packing up his bag and going out the door. The demon undid the binds on Celeste's hands and feet, allowing her to move freely once more. Was anyone else here? The angel wondered, was Michi captured? Ami? Lilim? Kitra? Celeste went to the door, she could hear a scuffle between the rogues and something else. A demon? Maybe Michael had come to save her! She eagerly watched, waiting for his face to appear. Instead, her eyes widened, seeing a whirling dervish of blades and tentacles.
A voice came into her head and Celeste knew who it was simply the fact they called her property. Blood spattered against the door. Celeste stood back, a tentacle breaking the door open and grabbing her. "Kitra?" Celeste questioned. She wiggled out of her grip, falling off of the monster's back. "I can't leave, not yet!" Celeste ran to a switch on the wall, pulling the fire alarm. Instantly, the doors opened, angels and demons alike all set free. "This way!" Celeste yelled over the alarm, running back towards Kitra. "We have to hurry before the boss gets here!" Gabriel had nearly lost his life fighting the boss last time, a powerful demon that could do strange things. A magical circle appeared on the ceiling, a cage falling down. "Look out!" Celeste pushed Kitra and herself out of the way. "The exit is close!"
There, standing in the doorway, was the boss. "What's this cute little rebellion?" He chuckled, taking a few steps forward. "It seems my men are having a hard time quelling you my Queen." His tone was mocking, with one flick he could turn a monster back into a human looking demon and vice versa. "We saved you Princess and this is how you repay us? By trying to escape?" For him it was easy, he strolled up to the monster and flicked her. Celeste took a few steps back, her legs shaking. No, she couldn't cower! She had to do something! She grabbed hold of the collar, electricity coursing through her body, a scream rising from her as Celeste ripped the collar off. She was panting, but she wasn't done yet. Without thinking, the angel morphed into a cheetah, lunging at him.
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❝One incapable of determining their own fate is a filthy insect.❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
The Demon Queen was lost in the mire of her own madness, old regrets and ghosts rising up to haunt her while her body ran on what one could consider autopilot. She didn't like giving in like this, but it was the only way to fight back right now. Some people considered a demon succumbing to their monster temporarily was more frightening than just an actual monster, since you could still sense the human features in the creature's physiology at the same time, opposed to how a monster is pure beast, with no remnants whatsoever of their normal default state. There was a ringing sound and Kitra wriggled inside the depths of her mind, Celty had done something, probably freed the rest of the captives, and went back to her side.
She couldn't think at all, she could hardly process anything that was happening. That was why she needed guidance, Kitra was lost to the whims of whatever her body decided to do, it was taking all of her will to implant the idea that Celty was an ally to be cooperated with, and so none of her demonic appendages lashed out to kill the angel princess. Even with the mess of tentacles and scissor blades sticking out of her back, helping her move, in the middle of it all was the familiar Demon Queen's body, eyes shut. Honestly it looked more like it was a parasite infecting her, using her normal body as a host, but now, Kitra was just as much a horrid monster as she was a small girl.
With a feral grunt, Kitra bounded forward, the sharp clattering of her scissor blades on the ground as they acted as legs to propel her forward. Then she sensed a magic circle above her at the same time as a warning cry, and Kitra was moved out of the way, though her blades were already in the process of slashing through the heavy steel that tried to capture them. Once out of the room, they entered the hall, and Kitra moved forward, tentacles gripping Celty's ankles and hoisting her up onto the back of the human-looking form in the center of the mass. An insectoid sort of clicking sound came out, Kitra was trying and failing to communicate with Celty, cutting up anything that got too close, captive and captor alike.
A powerful enemy, the beast could sense an incredibly dangerous foe before her. Kitra didn't have to wait for a command from her master, she could attack and know that this enemy had to be dealt with as quickly as - and that was when her body shifted back into a humanoid form, all the extra tentacles and blades retracting back into her body, though there were still open wounds all over her back, six large ones, from where her new limbs were ripped from. From the sudden pain exploding through her body as a result of using her monster form, Kitra collapsed pathetically onto the cold stone floor, losing her grip on Celty.
"You're so arrogant, you think... you can defeat.. the Demon Queen... and touch what belongs... only to her?!" Kitra growled once she put together the pieces of her sanity back into one piece. Everything hurt, it was hard to breathe, she could hardly see anything without piercing agony in her head, this was the drawback of using too much power in a short time, a pain that all demons had to deal with when using their monster sides. She shorted out her collar with a quick burst of electricity and was ready to attack again but Celty went first, lunging in as a cheetah, jaws snapping at the demon. That would buy Kitra enough time to summon two of her scissor blades, one from her left hip and the other from just below her left shoulder, making her look like some sort of demented creature.
Kitra wasn't awake long enough to know if her attack killed Capricorn. All she knew was that in her last moments of waking consciousness, she bundled Celty up like a pillow and covered her as she fell to the ground, she overused her powers and now her body was paying the price.
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❝A dream is a wish your heart makes. ❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
The cheetah stalked her prey, her and Capricorn walking in a circle. "You have no power here," he grinned, jumping forward. Celeste jumped too, right onto his back, scratching at his shirt. Some of his captives managed to get out of the exit and Celeste mentally egged them on. She jumped back, turning human once more, panting slightly. Celeste spit out of a piece of his shirt and wiped the blood off of her mouth. "Kitra, are you alright?" Celeste couldn't turn to see her, her father had taught the angel never to look away from your target. "Holding a conversation while fighting?" Capricorn raised a brow, chuckling. "You must be very brave, or stupid." Celeste leaped again, mid shift, but something struck her first. Her shift promptly halted and the angel coughed blood. One of Kitra's scissor blades stuck through her middle. The other was cut off, sliced through by one of the rogues.
"Don't let the merchandise die." Capricorn said, turning away. "It seems like we only have a handful left thanks to them. We'll have to raise our prices." Dots danced in the angel's vision, she couldn't feel her legs. "Kitra," Celeste attempted to reach for the demon who was passed out. The angel was ashamed, she was so useless, she couldn't even escape when the door was right in front of her. "Aye, don't let this one die!" A rogue yelled and the fallen angel appeared, looking rather pleased. "It's time to finish your examination Princess," he said, locking a new collar around her neck. Tears welled up in her eyes, she didn't have the strength to fight them. "Don't," Celeste whimpered, flinching at the touch. "Hurt... them." She was talking about the leftover captives, the ones that hadn't gotten away. A few had died, most had escaped.
"They'll be just fine, you on the other hand, I can't guarantee. You see, the boss is pretty upset that you tore up his favorite shirt." Celeste whimpered as she was lifted, Kitra's scissor blade still embedded in her. "I can't... feel my legs." The fallen didn't seem concerned. "It's shock," he explained. They cut off the scissor blade, rogues coming to collect Kitra. Celeste was carried away, through some confusing hallways as she faded. "Get me some angel blood," the fallen requested as Celeste was placed on the table. "You'll be just fine, now breathe." A cloth was pressed against Celeste's nose and mouth, it smelled sweet, like mint and lemons. Her mind fogged, her thoughts blurring together. "Michael," was the last thing Celeste whispered before falling asleep.
She awoke without pain, just a bit of soreness. Celeste was back in one of those nice rooms, the fancy ones with the fake window that displayed the outside. Her head was spinning and her mouth was parched. The angel was strapped down to her bed, dressed in a short cotton gown in the color blue. There was a tube in her arm sending blood into her body and another going into her back that delivered a silver colored liquid. The memory of what had happened hit her full force and Celeste winced, wanting to curl up onto her side and cry. The door opened, the fallen and his assistant coming in. "Oh good, you're awake." He grinned, raising the gown to look at what was probably a mess of bandages. "Not even a scar," he ran his fingers over the spot, looking quite satisfied with himself.
"Kitra?" Celeste coughed, wondering why it was that she cared. "Oh Kitra is quite alright," he assured her. The angel breathed a sigh of relief, her head falling back into her pillow. "I have a request from the boss," her legs and wrists were unstrapped, but Celeste didn't have the energy to move. The rogue drew a magical circle on Celeste's stomach, the girl shrinking, shrinking, shrinking, until she was a kitten. She was weighed down with chains, a muzzle slipping on over her mouth. They carried the fluffy little kitten to a cage lined with a blanket, locking Celeste in. "Mew!" The kitten protested. There was a little bowl of milk in there, not that Celeste could drink it with the muzzle. The tubes were still in her, one in her paw, the other in her back. "Mew!" The cage was placed on the bed, the princess trapped in extra secure bindings to ensure there would be no other attempts to escape.
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❝One incapable of determining their own fate is a filthy insect.❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#8f8c89 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #7D65B3】
|| Swan Song || Set it Off ||
When Kitra awoke, she knew that something had gone horribly wrong. Her whole body was rippling with agony, all she could do was be chained up there. She didn't have enough left in her to move, she was completely worn out. Still, her mind was still going strong, her mind was very much going strong. Something like this wasn't anything. No matter what pain happened, nothing could compare to the pain of having to put your own siblings down in their monster forms. No, Kitra already suffered worse than any of these bandits could ever do to her, so she had nothing to fear. Lilim wasn't here, she was almost definitely safe, so Kitra was okay. She was a contender for Scorpio, so she'd definitely be strong enough to fight her way out.
Capricorn entered then, with a grin and two people behind him, ready to attack in case something went wrong. The Demon Queen was chained up, naked, in this dark and cold room. So she scoffed, since there was nothing else she could do for the time being. "Only a suicidal fool goes against the Demon Queen. Who do you think rules Hell?" Capricorn snickered and approached. "Dear, you rule nothing, especially not here." The two glared at one another, and Kitra was annoyed. This could have been an amazing fight, a contender against a zodiac, this could have been the funnest fight of her life. But instead of that, she was incapacitated through tricks. Pathetic. Cowardice. What honor was there in the Capricorn name?
"Too weak to beat me in a fight, so you resort to surprises. How clever of you." Kitra snarled, full of menace. "You haven't won until you beat me with my spear and lightning, one on one." Capricorn stared at her for a few seconds and erupted into raucous laughter, patting his stomach in mirth. "Come on, how naive are you? Only idiots fight without tricks. The best way to win is to defeat your opponent without a fight in the first place." He was a demon! So why was he ignoring the strength of the demon bloodline? This was a travesty. This was a wasted chance for an actual fun fight. But it was clear that he didn't care for fair contests of strength.
There was no use in struggling. She just had to wait for an opportunity to catch him by surprise. Capricorn then grinned, as if he had some sort of insight to bring up. "So, you should know. There's a really bad famine in the poorer areas of Hell, right?" Of course Kitra knew that, it was a side effect of magic circle technology. It sucked life energy out of the surrounding nature, turning into black barren lands. "So you see, when a demon unleashes their monster, they regenerate what they lost, right?" Before Kitra could realize what was happening, it began. He turned her back to her semi-monster self, and cut through her tentacles and scissor blades, and then made her human again to keep cutting and cutting for the perfect endless food supply.
Kitra grit her teeth, she forcibly held onto her sanity as the saw went through her limbs over and over again. She wouldn't scream, she wouldn't move, she wouldn't do anything to give this man his satisfaction. She was strong, so she could withstand this torture, Kitra wasn't afraid, even as her limbs were sawed off and she was forced to grow them back more and more. Hours passed and the Demon Queen was fraying at the edges, holding onto pure stubborn hatred as her tentacles and scissors kept being dissected over and over and over again. One of the men took one tentacle and smirked. "I think I'll go feed this to a kitty." He left then and Kitra kept twitching despite her immense willpower.
"Looks like the famine... ain't so bad, huh?" Kitra forced a laugh out, sounding stronger than she was. This was fine. She could handle it. There was nothing to worry about. If this was the best he could come up with, then Capricorn was definitely going to be disappointed.
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❝A dream is a wish your heart makes. ❞
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#F6A8B6 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #BDA0CB】
|| Bird Set Free|| Sia ||
Celeste attempted to move around in the cage, but she couldn't do very much. Her paw with the tube hurt if she put any weight on it and her little body shook if she tried to stand on all fours. Celeste couldn't drink any milk with the muzzle, she could dip her maw in the bowl but lapping up anything was beyond her capabilities with the metal mesh. "Mew!" The kitten called, hoping someone would come rescue her. "Mew!" She rubbed against the bars of the cage, her ears twitching. Finally, the door opened; Celeste attempted to stand up, but quickly fell back down. She paced a little, limping around as she waited for the second door to open. Her stomach dropped seeing who it was striding through the doorway. Capricorn came with a tiny silver tray, no doubt here to torture her. Celeste hissed as he unlatched the cage door and picked her up by the tummy, carrying the kitten to the table.
"So precious," he sighed, watching her squirm. She could easily be carried in one hand in this form. Capricorn placed her down, lifting up the tray to reveal food; a small bowl of milk and what was probably fish. He removed the muzzle, pushing the tray close so that Celeste could eat. Her tummy growled, the angel dug in, attacking the fish and eating it up. It was only a small piece of course, but it was enough. She drank down the milk too, her maw dripping with liquid. "I hope you enjoyed your last meal with us Princess." She stiffened, looking up at him. He wiped around her fur with a cloth napkin, then drummed his fingers against the table, prompting her to attack. Like this, she couldn't do any damage, her fangs didn't even draw blood. Capricorn chuckled, replacing the muzzle back over her. Celeste whimpered, trying to shake it off.
Someone came in then, lifting the kitten up from the table. "Allow me to take one souvenir," he reached over to where there were a few molted feathers, grabbing two. "I know someone who will very much want these." Celeste wiggled in protest, "Mew!" She cried, hissing and clawing. "Aww, how sweet." A hand came down on her head, roughly petting her. "Kitra won't miss you once she's found out she killed you," they weren't going to kill Celeste, just tell Kitra that since the two seemed too have some sort of relationship. Celeste the kitten was carried to the bathroom, where the bathtub was filled up with warm soapy water. She was dropped into it, chains and all, hissing and clawing and mewing pathetically as she tried to stay afloat. The magical circle washed off and Celeste was an angel once more. "Don't touch me!" She screamed as she was scrubbed down, hair washed, teeth brushed, they even got the blood underneath her nails.
Afterwards Celeste was dried off. She was dolled up, her hair brushed and pulled into an intricate design, nails polished and painted with light pink paint. She was given touches of makeup and finally, a skimpy outfit to highlight her best features while at the same time, hiding the scars. Capricorn returned, clapping his hands together, the fallen angel gave her the doctor seal of approval, the tube in her back and hand removed. "Stop it!" Celeste flailed, a cry of pain coming out as the epidural was removed. "She's all ready," a blindfold came next. They were locking Celeste in another cage, a sheet placed over it the same way one would to quiet down a bird.
It was very much like a nightmare, being blindfolded and bound and caged. The collar buzzed threateningly, the chains feeling exceptionally heavy as the cage was wheeled towards the room where Celeste would be auctioned off to the highest bidder. "Tonight we'll be ending our auction with a very special piece, an angel with blue blood." The heavy curtain was removed. Celeste felt like a marionette the way she was hanging inside of the cage. "An exquisite sample of heavenly royalty, Princess Celeste Angeal." There were quite a few interested sounds, but Celeste could hardly hear them over the thump of her own heart. They began with the obvious facts, hair color, eye color, height, that sort of thing. Then they moved into more personal territory, "fertile, but too underdeveloped to carry." Her cheeks burned with shame, it was a fact Celeste herself had never known.
"The Princess would make a fine piece to any collect. Let's begin the bidding at five hundred million quid." She needed to get out of here, she needed to leave right now, before it was too late. The backdoor burst open, there were sounds of a struggle. "Where is she!" Her heart nearly stopped in her chest when she heard him call. Michael had come to save her!