Syntra
Baba Yaga
Once upon a time, Iskra thought, I believed that she understood me. Yes, believed! As in, past tense. That faith had been ridiculous from the very beginning, of course-- as ridiculous as thinking that a rat would grow wings, or that flowers would sprout from the cold, rotting corpse of her heart. Still, hearing Verity misunderstand so wildly? That put things into a new perspective, sort of. The princess's gaze, you see, was set on the stars, and those stars guided her step. The same stars also blinded her, though. For their radiance, she saw not the chains wrapped around Iskra's feet-- saw not that she was sinking, sinking, sinking, and dirt was pouring into her mouth. How did that old proverb go? 'The one who is sated does not grasp a starving woman's plight?' Something like that, yes, if her memory served correctly, and... well. Of course that Verity wouldn't understand! (...she had never had to pass that threshold, only to watch herself become less and less and less. No monsters chased her, eager for the taste of her flesh. Was there even a point in looking back, really, when you existed with such a deep sense of security? When the sun shone in the sky, you needed not to look up to confirm it-- by its grace, everything was bathing in light. ...except that, you know, there was no sun for Iskra. No sun, and also no sky.)
"How do you know?" the pirate asked, with barely restrained anger coloring her voice. "That I'm not a thing, I mean. You speak as if all the mysteries of this universe revealed themselves to you, princess, but your words ring hollow. You accuse me of underestimating your intelligence, and then you have the nerve to treat me like this?" ('Don't,' some voice within reprimanded her. 'You mustn't. Make yourself small, remember? Not a bother, not an inconvenience. This is-- this is--' 'A woman who killed me,' Iskra responded, with no small amount of bitterness, 'as she claimed my lips. I owe nothing to her.' Oh yes, yes, yes. The pirate still knew not what Verity was to her, but the one thing she was certain of? That the gift of her obedience no longer belonged to her, and she didn't have to listen to these ridiculous, unfounded claims. Not without objections, anyway. Theoretical discussions were one thing-- on that battlefield, the captain would relent gladly, when presented with a convincing argument at least. Here, though? When they were talking about her very life, which Verity obviously hadn't lived a day of? Hearing her speak of it as if she somehow knew better set her blood aflame.)
"As if I'm entirely mindless, and have been waiting for all these years for someone to tell me what I am. But, princess, trust me-- I know. I know, and I know far better than you ever will. I've watched myself become what I am. You, on the other hand? You haven't even asked. What do you know about me, other than the fact that I cannot die? When you look at me, what do you see? Me, or a picture of myself that you've painted in your mind?" The words were becoming more and more acidic, more and more searing, but they had to be released-- for, surely, had they remained in her throat, they would have burned her from the inside. (Just, how did Verity not get it? Assumptions were poison, along with confidence, and she was drinking it so greedily! As if death tasted sweet on her tongue, like honey instead of wormwood.)
"And," the pirate continued, still as fiery, "perhaps I simply enjoy not learning these things. Have you not thought of that? My dignity isn't for sale, princess. It's all I have, so I shan't trample all over it." Because, if nothing else, Iskra wasn't a liar! She also wasn't stupid, though, so when the voices of the shark-women reached them, her mind immediately switched to the defense mode. Swiftly, the pirate drew her blade. (The water resisted her, as if it was in cahoots with its inhabitants, but frankly? It didn't scare Iskra. ...death, after all, was a journey. So what if it led her to a place she didn't like? All her life, the pirate had dwelled in darkness, and even losing herself completely couldn't be worse than that.)
"Halt!" a shark warrior shouted. "You belong to us now, seekers. Surely, you wouldn't deprive us of that pleasure?"
"Go," Iskra pushed Verity forward, perhaps with greater force than was strictly necessary. "Go, go, go! I'll join you shortly." ...if she survived, that was. Blindly, the captain turned around, and-- ahhh! The blade of her sword sank into their enemy's chest, as easily as if it slid into mud instead. How had she gotten this close already? Iskra's ears hadn't registered a thing! Blood was rising from the woman's wound now, in these smoke-like patterns, which...
"Ah, there you are. Thank you for marking your location for us so kindly, dear seeker. Now, shall we feast?"
In your dreams, Iskra thought. With one elegant move, she pulled the sword out and stabbed another combatant. Immediately afterwards, she used her body to bounce forward, closer to the surface, in other words, and that probably saved her life. (Had she stayed there for a second longer? The spears that materialized seemingly out of nowhere would have pierced her chest, undoubtedly.) Just a little more. Come on, come on, come on! Every muscle in her body screamed, screamed and threatened to rupture, but Iskra pressed on, with adrenaline singing this wild melody in her head, and-- aaargh. A red stain was suddenly blooming on her waist, alarmingly large. The pain almost blinded her, too, but still she swam, not caring to find out which of these sharks had mutilated her. Not when the knowledge would be bought with additional injuries!
Panting loudly, Iskra finally emerged-- her dolphin allowed her to climb its back, which she did, oh so thankfully. For the first time, her gaze fell on her injury, which... damn. Damn, that was a big one! Nothing the Shade couldn't repair, of course, but it was safe to say that nobody could expect anything from her now combat-wise. In fact, the way her head was spinning? Just holding onto her consciousness was an effort! "Princess," Iskra said, sounding as if she was about to pass out, "do you... do you have a rope? Something I could use to tie myself to the dolphin. In case I... I fall asleep." Yes, fall asleep! A wonderful, wonderful diversion tactic, she was sure.
"How do you know?" the pirate asked, with barely restrained anger coloring her voice. "That I'm not a thing, I mean. You speak as if all the mysteries of this universe revealed themselves to you, princess, but your words ring hollow. You accuse me of underestimating your intelligence, and then you have the nerve to treat me like this?" ('Don't,' some voice within reprimanded her. 'You mustn't. Make yourself small, remember? Not a bother, not an inconvenience. This is-- this is--' 'A woman who killed me,' Iskra responded, with no small amount of bitterness, 'as she claimed my lips. I owe nothing to her.' Oh yes, yes, yes. The pirate still knew not what Verity was to her, but the one thing she was certain of? That the gift of her obedience no longer belonged to her, and she didn't have to listen to these ridiculous, unfounded claims. Not without objections, anyway. Theoretical discussions were one thing-- on that battlefield, the captain would relent gladly, when presented with a convincing argument at least. Here, though? When they were talking about her very life, which Verity obviously hadn't lived a day of? Hearing her speak of it as if she somehow knew better set her blood aflame.)
"As if I'm entirely mindless, and have been waiting for all these years for someone to tell me what I am. But, princess, trust me-- I know. I know, and I know far better than you ever will. I've watched myself become what I am. You, on the other hand? You haven't even asked. What do you know about me, other than the fact that I cannot die? When you look at me, what do you see? Me, or a picture of myself that you've painted in your mind?" The words were becoming more and more acidic, more and more searing, but they had to be released-- for, surely, had they remained in her throat, they would have burned her from the inside. (Just, how did Verity not get it? Assumptions were poison, along with confidence, and she was drinking it so greedily! As if death tasted sweet on her tongue, like honey instead of wormwood.)
"And," the pirate continued, still as fiery, "perhaps I simply enjoy not learning these things. Have you not thought of that? My dignity isn't for sale, princess. It's all I have, so I shan't trample all over it." Because, if nothing else, Iskra wasn't a liar! She also wasn't stupid, though, so when the voices of the shark-women reached them, her mind immediately switched to the defense mode. Swiftly, the pirate drew her blade. (The water resisted her, as if it was in cahoots with its inhabitants, but frankly? It didn't scare Iskra. ...death, after all, was a journey. So what if it led her to a place she didn't like? All her life, the pirate had dwelled in darkness, and even losing herself completely couldn't be worse than that.)
"Halt!" a shark warrior shouted. "You belong to us now, seekers. Surely, you wouldn't deprive us of that pleasure?"
"Go," Iskra pushed Verity forward, perhaps with greater force than was strictly necessary. "Go, go, go! I'll join you shortly." ...if she survived, that was. Blindly, the captain turned around, and-- ahhh! The blade of her sword sank into their enemy's chest, as easily as if it slid into mud instead. How had she gotten this close already? Iskra's ears hadn't registered a thing! Blood was rising from the woman's wound now, in these smoke-like patterns, which...
"Ah, there you are. Thank you for marking your location for us so kindly, dear seeker. Now, shall we feast?"
In your dreams, Iskra thought. With one elegant move, she pulled the sword out and stabbed another combatant. Immediately afterwards, she used her body to bounce forward, closer to the surface, in other words, and that probably saved her life. (Had she stayed there for a second longer? The spears that materialized seemingly out of nowhere would have pierced her chest, undoubtedly.) Just a little more. Come on, come on, come on! Every muscle in her body screamed, screamed and threatened to rupture, but Iskra pressed on, with adrenaline singing this wild melody in her head, and-- aaargh. A red stain was suddenly blooming on her waist, alarmingly large. The pain almost blinded her, too, but still she swam, not caring to find out which of these sharks had mutilated her. Not when the knowledge would be bought with additional injuries!
Panting loudly, Iskra finally emerged-- her dolphin allowed her to climb its back, which she did, oh so thankfully. For the first time, her gaze fell on her injury, which... damn. Damn, that was a big one! Nothing the Shade couldn't repair, of course, but it was safe to say that nobody could expect anything from her now combat-wise. In fact, the way her head was spinning? Just holding onto her consciousness was an effort! "Princess," Iskra said, sounding as if she was about to pass out, "do you... do you have a rope? Something I could use to tie myself to the dolphin. In case I... I fall asleep." Yes, fall asleep! A wonderful, wonderful diversion tactic, she was sure.
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