Chapter 14

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Isabella smiles evilly as she looks at him. "Please." the man begs,

"No prisoners sweetie."

He tries desperately to balance himself as she pushes against his chest with a stick. She drops it and kicks him, he screams as he flies off the building.

"Still not as brutal as Sheila."

Isabella looks back at Sylvia. "I'm not trying to be, I don't need that much crazy in my life."

Sheila behind her grunts and starts forward but Sylvia throws her arm out to stop her. "It's okay Sheila, maybe she can answer Venix."

Sheila looks at Sylvia and back. Isabella's eyes widen, "What are you talking about? Answer what?"

"As I recall the plan was, you distract them till Sheila tears into them."

"That wasn't my fault! Adam had a materializer, I can't control whether or not he uses a clay ball."

"You don't want to put up with Venix? Then maybe you should work on your skills rather than your mouth. As Sheila told me, one of the three warned the rest, correct?" Sylvia asks walking over to her,

"W-well yes but-"

Sylvia grabs her throat and leans her back slightly off the edge of the building. Isabella gasps and grabs her hand.

"And you were close enough to interfere! As soon as he looked up to see her! But you didn't! You sat there like a dumb drunk! If I had not been on the other side of town. You wouldn't have gotten the chance ask for forgiveness."

Isabella whines loudly as she fails at her attempts to breath while she pulls on Sylvia's arm.

"C-cant breathe-I can't breathe." she whines,

Sylvia throws her back onto the ground. Isabella gasps for air, coughing hard.

"Well Sheila? Do you want to kill the one that screwed it all up?"

Isabella and Sheila look at each other, Sheila tilts her head. "If I did, I wouldn't have the chance to hear her screaming when Venix talks to her."

The corner of Sylvia's lips curl. "I suppose that's true. Well you missed your chance I guess. Do. Not. Hesitate. Again Isabella. You're pathetic, even pretending to be my sister."

"Yes Sylvia." Isabella mutters,

Sheila grunts and follows Sylvia off the roof. Isabella gets to her feet and walks after them. They walk in the street, over countless bodies. Fynn smiles evilly at them, "Finally going back are we?"

"Just shut up and take my hand." Sylvia says,

They all join hands, she crushes the ball and they disappear, leaving behind their soldiers and warriors that were hidden among the civilians.

The smoke clears and they stand in front of the huge black castle. Isabella hesitantly follows them in and to the library where Venix sits, waiting for them.

He frowns, "You know what's funny, is I see you, but no corpses."

"The pricks escaped. They had materialize balls on them, I'm sorry Venix....I failed."

He jumps to his feet and slams his fist sideways into the bookcase. It quickly falls and slaps the ground.

BOOM!

They all jump, "Don't you dare lie to me you little bitch!"

She trips as she takes a step back and falls. She grunts and scoots back as the others rush back closer to the wall.

Venix walks past her and grabs Isabella by the hair as she turns to run. He yanks her back and throws her to the floor beside Sylvia.

He stomps on her back holding Isabella to the floor. "Who, truly is responsible for this Sylvia?"

She looks at Venix and down at Isabella. "She is."

"Why?" he spits,

"She hesitated."

He presses harder until he breaks two of her ribs. She yells out, "Please! Please I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" she cries,

He bends and leans down, "The next time, if you don't kill her Sylvia, I'll rip her guts out in front of you, then you'll be next."

Both shake tremendously with fear. "Yes Venix."

He walks over to a desk and pulls out the chair. "Don't fail me again."

Sylvia gets to her feet, she's turned as white as snow. Shaking softly, she turns and starts out.

"Bella, you're in charge of our prisoners."

"Yes my lord."

Sheila snorts, "Sheila, you fought well, I'm proud of you." Venix says,

She bows to him, turns and hurries after Sylvia. Fynn chuckles and walks out joyfully.

Bella feels her ribs, but like before, Venix healed them. The prick just wanted to hurt her. She starts down into the dungeon she grabs a dirty metal tray and scoops pale slop onto it from a couldron.

She walks into the next room and slides it under the bars to the prisoners who go for the cream of wheat like substance as if they were starving bears.

She goes back and forth bringing trays. Until she comes to the last prisoner, chained up in her cell.

Her head hangs as she barely breathes. Her blonde hair hangs over, covering her face. The circular brand on her back.

"How does it feel to be worthless? Does it still hurt?"

No answer. Bella snorts and slides the tray in with her foot. She pulls a lever and the chains holding the woman's arms up release extra slack.

She groans loudly in pain as the blonde hits the floor, blood pounds through her arms like a milk truck is trying to fit through a rat hole.

Tears roll down again, she moans as she lies there, she can see it, but she doesn't know if she has the strength to crawl over to the tray.

She moans and reaches out. She whines louder than her groan as she slowly pulls herself across the cobblestone floor to her tray.

"You're pathetic."

The blonde woman pulls the tray close and digs her fingers into the cold mountain of food and slowly feeds herself. It gives her so much energy, but it's still nothing.

Her dark long red dress is torn horrible, but at least it still keeps her from being indecent. The other prisoners look at her through their cages. But they don't dare even encourage her, they'd receive more punishment for it.

The woman's energy suddenly depletes again, she's so tired, it cost more energy to eat than what she gained, or at least so it feels. She closes her eyes and passes out again.

She wakes again and rubs her eyes, searing pain shoots through her body and now more through her tender eye. Sheila stands there and scoffs.

"Some hero."

She jolts and looks at her, she scoots away slowly. Sheila swings the door open and walks in. The blonde woman whines, Sheila begins kicking and beating her relentlessly. The woman yells and whines, begging her to stop.

She coughs begging for air. Sheila scoffs again and walks out, slamming the door shut behind her. They beat her to keep her weak.

She pushes up to her knees. She moves into the back corner of the cell and pulls a rock off the metal nail that Isabella kicked into the cell by accident. She had been filing it away, she crawls to the door and sticks it in the lock.

"Come on prick." she says to the nail,

The others stare at her.

Click.

It feels like a mountain is lifted off her shoulder while two are placed on, she can't mess up.

She looks around and throws the nail to one of the cells, they grab it and look at her. "I'm sorry, I can't wait." she whispers,

She turns and hurries around the corner. She grabs her sore waist and stumbles over to a table. She walks past it and up a staircase quietly. She turns the corner and walks till she sees a light on, down the hall.

She freezes, terror swirls in her. Someone covers her mouth, she jolts and gasps. "Sh." a voice says quietly,

She looks back at the other prisoners. "You ready?"

She tilts her head, offering an apology. One shakes their head, "We get it, come on." He says,

They walk down the hall and peek around the corner, Isabella leans over a table, bottles and papers and items scattered on the floor and tables.

On one is three materializers. She looks at the others and points to them, saying two of them take one and the other prisoner and her will take the last two.

They nod in agreement. They creep in, the three cover Isabella's mouth and hold her still while the blonde simultaneously pulls her sword and stabs it through her back and into the table and yanks it out again.

Isabella lies there, held down on the table in shock as her blood leaks onto the table and floor. They let go, she grunts and yells out, they take the balls and crush them quickly, disappearing.

She spins through the air and drops onto the dark grass. She rolls over into her back and stares up weakly at the stars.

Her body aches, she's so tired, this grass feels so nice compared to the stone cell. She blinks, it's so hard to open her eyes again.

She rolls to her side and pushes up, sitting on her knees. She looks around, mostly rocks all around her.

She crawls over to one of the rocks and lies against it, huffing and breathing heavily. She does her best to ignore the pain and drifts off.

The morning comes, she lifts her head and shrieks out at the intense, sharp pain flowing through her stiff body. She forces her head up, tears roll down her cheeks as she forcibly stretches her aching body.

She slowly gets to her feet and stumbles down a hill to a wide river. She looks around and follows the current into the treeline further.

She picks up branches and twigs and barely manages to start a camp fire. She gathers more fuel for the flame and sets it down beside the fire.

Its a risk with the smoke but she needs it. She walks to the bank of the river, she stabs her sword in the dirt and drops her dress, revealing her malnourished, skinny, beaten and bruised body.

She she climbs into the freezing water and shakes from the cold, now that she has become so skinny, she has hardly any muscle or body fat.

She washes the dirt and blood off her skin. She looks down at the water, she lays her blonde hair over her shoulders in the water.

The blonde dry dye and pollen that was mixed to dye her hair runs away with the current. She scubs it until it has left, even to the roots.

She climbs out of the river, drags her dress and sword over to the fire and dries herself off. She gets dressed fast, she needs to make traps, but she's so tired. She forces herself to do so anyways. She spends hours making the supplies and sets it all up by nightfall.

She walks back to the fire, lies down, with sword in hand, but she stares at the blade, charred like coal.

It's like seeing a familiar face that you haven't seen in a decade. Both caught in the eternal trance until she finally falls asleep.