Chapter 86: Interlude Nineteen: Scarlet - A Courageous Bat

Scarlet’s world cracked as Relica’s cruel, twisted smile dared her to impale her with the blood spears. Yet then, Maria warned her that the kids would die if she hurt the witch. What was she supposed to do? Now her spears aimed at Maria, and the terrorists brought crying hostages out; this wasn’t supposed to happen!

Without Rachel telling her what to do, she might make a mistake and kill dozens of people. There was no way Rachel could die; she was too intelligent, driven, and strong. Rachel always had an answer; she always knew what to do. Rachel never panicked. Why couldn’t she be more like her instead of feeding off of the in-control aura she produced?

She could feel the bloodlust and fear pulsing through the building like a beating heart, applying more pressure against her chest with every passing second. Yet, one emotional wave stood out from the others.

Scarlet felt weightless as Fiona’s hum brought a soft wind that lifted her off the ground, her skirt fluttering a tad at the breeze circling her. Electricity sparked across Maria’s skin as the fairy’s enchantment took effect.

It didn’t take long for chills to run through Scarlet’s bones in the cooling, magical atmosphere, and she froze at the sudden shift in the fairy’s mental state. She hadn’t felt cruelty, coldness, and such a deep thirst for murder since meeting Veronica in the ocean of blood. Yet, Fiona’s voice and smile were like smooth jazz as she thanked the terrorists for making things easy for her.

A shimmering shard of ice formed in two seconds and scattered her spiraling string of thoughts as it flew straight through one of the gangsters’ skulls. A short, stunned silence overtook the tense scene, Relica looking just as confused as everyone else.

Another ice spike formed above Fiona’s hand, causing Akio to sigh, shut the doors, and spin the rooms. Maria purified the ground under them to keep herself stable while shouting at the fairy, but Astra’s staticky voice in her ear snapped her panicking heart back into focus.

"Fangs... You there—"

It cut off as the supernatural aura of the area scrambled the signal, killing her hopes of news regarding Rachel’s whereabouts. A baby-blue glow brought her feverish gaze to the smiling, illuminated fairy, and Scarlet breathed in Fiona’s similar confident vibe, not quite, but close to Rachel’s.

"Hey. It’s okay." Her tiny hand patted her cheek. "Mhm. You and Maria go after Relica with her purifying power; I will rescue the hostages and draw their attention."

Maria responded to her as Scarlet closed her eyes and breathed, using whatever power she had to feed off the fairy’s grace and confidence. The unicorn’s unique blend of courage and attitude, mixed with Fiona’s emotional aura, provided just enough of a crutch to stabilize her frantic mind.

She would have responded, but Fiona was already flying away, as serene as a clear sky if a clear sky rained down shards of ice. Another frigid spear shot out above them, barely missing Maria’s shoulder and making her curse. On the flip of a coin, Fiona’s serenity became a blazing ball of enraged laughter.

Akio went after the fairy, and the room shortly started to return to normal as Maria carefully took her arm and pulled her away; it wasn’t hard when she was floating a few centimeters off the wooden floorboards.

"Aye, chica, you got us, right? Chica?!"

"Huh? Oh. No, yeah, umm... I-I’m with you! Just—just give me a second," she panted, clutching her chest as her blood cycled around them; Relica’s claim about Rachel was like a dagger plunging into it.

With Fiona’s departure and the crutch of her stability replaced by a whimsical, manic hate, all Scarlet could lean on was Maria to keep herself from falling back into a petrified hole at just the thought of being forced to tell Molly her daughter had died. It was enough.

Scarlet breathed a long sigh, and her feet touched the carpeted floor as the paper walls and wooden boards receded with the supernatural presence; it seemed Akio was abandoning the ship, and he wasn’t the only one.

"About damn time ya got your head straight. Shit," Maria snarled, picking up her pace as their room became a long hallway on what appeared to be the second floor. "Aye, Tony, don’t do—"

Two gangsters with two terrified female hostages came into view with the melting paper walls, and the light-skinned man instantly dropped his knife upon spotting them. He shoved the woman forward and dropped to his butt.

"Hey! Hey! I’m done! Zack, drop the—"

Her blood launched forward, creating a wall between them; Scarlet felt death looming. Her vision tinted red just as the mass of purplish force flooded the men’s veins, moving along a string-like substance that permeated their circulatory systems. Then, suddenly, her hand flew to her mouth in shock as the men exploded.

All sound from the detonation was hidden behind the crimson wall blocking off the hallway, Scarlet dropping to her knees with the cowering women. Maria rushed forward to comfort the women but paused beside them as Scarlet bent over to dry heave, gripping her throat.

She could taste it: their blood mixed with her own, filling her with power, sweet, terrified hormones mixed into the liquid. Scarlet didn’t want it, yet the blood crawled to her as if she were a magnet.

"No... I don’t like it..."

It was a lie, and Maria seemed to know it by the bewildered look on her face as she whispered to the two trembling women. Scarlet didn’t want to love it, but her body welcomed the blood in like a gourmet meal.

"No, focus..." Scarlet growled, breathing deeply and trying to pull from her inner Rachel. "Focus... Relica..."

Her fangs bit into her black lips as she stumbled upright, the cool breeze of Fiona’s enchantment still flowing around her. She had to trust in Rachel, and Rachel told her that she could handle this—Scarlet knew she was powerful—she would handle this...hopefully.

Taking a deep breath and releasing the pressure, Scarlet walked forward, shadows and blood pooling around her. The women tensed and wept for their lives, but they were behind a group of soldiers when the darkness left them safe from harm.

Without explanation, she left them, carrying Maria and her to two more groups of panicking gangsters; every time she appeared, the violet string running through the gangsters’ bodies expanded and turned them into living bombs. Scarlet detached herself from her emotion, instantly teleporting the victims away after the ghost’s disappearance.

Maria’s eyes were practically spinning with the swift changes in location as Scarlet brought them to the front entrance; Relica was waiting inside.

"W-What the hell was that about?" she choked, sweat slicking her face as the sprinklers triggered from the fire Fiona was creating on the upper floors. "If ya had that kind of power—shit..."

Scarlet’s blood fanned out to keep them dry, fingernails digging into her palms to keep herself from trembling. She could do this; she just had to remain strong, but now she didn’t know what to do.

Her focus shifted from Maria to the room where the terrorist waited. Everyone in the room had the same magical thread laced throughout their bodies, and it wasn’t just them. Maria was supposed to have the answers, though. However, the unicorn’s panting and flushed skin were now concerning her.

"Maria..."

"What?" she grunted, sounding breathless as she plucked at her tank top to let air in. "You got a lock on the kids? Take me in, and I’ll purify that shit. Let’s go, chica."

Scarlet slowly shook her head. "You’re...dying, aren’t you? Your body doesn’t have blood."

"The hell you talkin’ about? I can do a mass purification!" Maria shifted uncomfortably, scratching her scalp, but her illuminated horn was already dimming. "Shit, I got it; let’s go—we’re wastin’ time! Zip in, nab ’em, purify, we out. Ya know?"

Rachel had told her Maria couldn’t lie, so Scarlet shook her head and revealed the bad news.

"Relica moved all of the kids to the edges of the room... I think she knows you’re limited, and I can see the magic, or whatever it is, in all of them... In the women we saved, too. I—"

"Dammit!" Maria’s nose twitched as she began to pace, running her fingers through her hair. "¡El culo maldita mierda, perra! Aye, chica; encárgate de tu mierda—give me somethin’, huh?! Are you telling me she’s got a damn army of human bombs?"

"I-I... Yeah, what can we do? It’s in all of the gangsters—at least a hundred or more..."

"Well, shit." Maria worked around her jaw and tapped her shoulder with the back of her hand before nudging her head to the room. "Okay. Okay. Aye, you confident in yo shit?"

"What do you mean?" Scarlet mumbled, trembling fingers holding onto her shoulder. "No. I don’t have any confidence in myself..."

"Ugh. Aye..."

Scarlet stiffened as Maria clasped her head and looked into her frightened eyes, her blood curling threateningly. "S-Stop—I don’t want to hurt you..."

Maria didn’t back down, her sweat-slicked face filled with determination. "I promised those kids I’d get them out, and I don’t lie; ya hear me? My body is screaming at me to lay my ass out and call it quits, but I ain’t doin’ that... If we can’t punch our way out, we gotta talk them free—we gotta buy time. Ya feel me?"

"F-For Rachel?"

"For Santa Claus, dammit! I don’t give a shit who," she snarled, forcing a smile. "You with me, vamp girl; your crew will figure something out, right?"

Scarlet’s heart sang as Astra’s British chuckle spoke into her ear.

"Well, I like this Mexican lass!"

///SMENote///

How about a Power Stone Goal?

Every 200 Power Stones this week = +1 Extra Chapter

We could have the normal 2 Daily Chapters... Or +2 Extra Chapters Every Day. The power is in your hands! Or should I say Stones?