The Splinter of Delusion; Part-5

"Quick! Give me something to hit!" Kaia barked, yanking on the kid's cheek like it was a chew toy.

The kid slapped her hand away, scowling. "What do you think I am? A dokaebi? A mini guide in some lame adventure game?" He rubbed his cheek dramatically.

"I can't just keep kicking them!" Kaia shouted, eyes darting around. The air grew thick with the scent of slime. From the shadows, grotesque, humanoid slime monsters oozed toward her. "We're dead if you don't—"

"Fine!" The kid snapped, a blue, electric-charged bat materializing in his hand with a crackle of sparks. "Take this!"

Kaia stared at the bat. "A bat? Seriously?"

"It's all I got! I stole it from a mana user, so it's got a little magic in it. Not like I'm some idiotic quest giver! Just use it!" He flailed his arms like a toddler on a sugar rush.

"Alright, Shortie..." Kaia rolled her eyes, plugging her ear as if the kid's existence was the real nuisance here. She swung the bat at one of the slime creatures, smashing it into a puddle of goo. Her hands were instantly coated in the gross, sticky mess.

But she didn't stop. She swung again, and again, dodging slimes and slime horses alike.

[Fast forward a few minutes…]

The entire terrace was a disaster zone. Slime was splattered on the walls, the floor, the ceiling—heck, even the air smelled like bad decisions. Kaia stood there, panting, looking like she'd just come from a slime apocalypse. She stared down at the mess, her face like thunder.

The kid squealed. "Gyaaah!"

"Shut up," Kaia muttered, her voice colder than an ice cube on a bad day. The kid immediately choked on his breath, wide-eyed and trembling.

"Now," Kaia growled, her eyes narrowing to slits as she locked onto the trunk monster sitting at the center of the merry-go-round, sweating more than a pig in a sauna.

(How did they wipe out my entire army?) the monster's mind raced. His eyes twitched, his body swaying in a panic-fueled circle. He cursed under his breath. (At this rate, this human with no magic will crush me like a bug!) His thoughts scrambled faster and faster. (Wait! I've got it! I'll generate a mana blast and turn her into a slime! That'll teach her to mess with me.)

The monster grinned, a horrifying, manic smile spreading across his grotesque face. "You who step upon my territory," he boomed, puffing out his chest. "Shall perish—"

But his speech was abruptly cut short by the sickening sound of something sharp impaling him. A bolt of pain shot through him as he spewed slime everywhere.

Kaia wiped the goo off her face, grimacing. "His smile was gross. I almost lost it there." She glanced at the kid. "How do I kill this thing?"

The kid blinked. "Um... Magic? You know, like... the way magic works?"

"Right, magic..." Kaia cracked her knuckles with a grin. "Guess I'll just have to hit him until he's nothing but a stain."

Her eyes darkened, her smile widening into something far too terrifying. The monster, who had been trembling from the first hit, was now shaking uncontrollably. (Is this... really a human?) it thought, its slime dripping with fear.

***

"Why are you covered in that slimy texture?" Zero asked looking at Kiaan's clothes covered in colourful slime.

"This.." Kiaan finally took notice of his clothes. "This happened when I was fighting some monsters back then. You didn't encounter any?"

"Was that really what happened? Does that monster have tentacles?" Zero thought while making a face even philosophers didn't make. Some blurry scenes written with censored appeared in his mind.

"Tentacles?" Kiaan stopped and then pulled Zero's collar, aligning his sword to his neck. "What are you thinking bastard?" That was the loudest Kiaan had ever spoken to someone. His face reddened. "You live alone, right? That's why you are thinking of such shit. How impure your mind is?"

"Then what about you? You didn't take a second to realise what I was saying?"

"Shut it, bastard!" Kiaan's expression darkened. "Forget about the Apostle...I will kill you after we get out of this place." He threatened after maintaining his composure again.

(What are they talking about?) Thalia thought, her head tilting in confusion. She couldn't make sense of their argument.

But that confusion quickly morphed into unease as something caught her eye. Her expression darkened, eyes narrowing at the ceiling. Above them, a giant eyeball—huge, colourful, and unsettling—hung like a grotesque chandelier. The pupil swirled with every color imaginable, and slime oozed around its edges, giving it the appearance of some otherworldly, dripping horror.

"Guys!" Thalia shouted, extending her arm, finger pointing straight at the eye. "Look at that!"

Zero glanced up, squinting. "What? Where?"

Thalia's hand shook slightly as she continued to point. "It's right there!"

Kiaan frowned, his brow furrowing in disbelief. "Where is it, Thalia?"

Thalia's frustration rose, her finger still locked on the spot, but it was like they couldn't see it. "What are you talking about? It's right in front of us!" she insisted. But the eye... it seemed like it only existed for her.

***

The terrace was a wasteland. Everywhere Kaia looked, all that remained was slime—splattered on the walls, dripping from the ceiling, and puddled beneath her feet. She stood there, panting, wiping the slime off her face as if it had just been another day at the office.

"How much time has passed?" Kaia growled, shooting a glare at the kid.

"I dunno..." he muttered, eyes still locked on the trunk monster that now lay crumpled in a gooey heap. (She'd been hitting it like a machine. No matter how long it took, her attacks never slowed. It was like she had an endless supply of rage.)

Kaia's gaze shifted, her sharp eyes catching a glimmer in the midst of the chaotic rainbow of slime. Something shone like a miniature sun, glowing fiercely in the middle of the mess. "A feather?" she muttered, more to herself than anyone else.

She stepped closer, entranced by the strange glow. "Why... is it here?" she wondered aloud. Without thinking, she reached out, fingers brushing against the feather.

The moment her skin made contact, a jolt of energy shot through her, and her world went black.

"H-Human?" The kid blinked, a mix of confusion and panic in his expression as he watched Kaia collapse. "What happened?! Hey! Don't die on me... please..." His voice cracked, sounding more desperate than he would've liked to admit.

***

"Ah... What a soothing sight. You're more... like a human now..." A voice, soft and feminine, slithered out of the shadows, sending a chill down Kaia's spine.

(What...? A voice?) Kaia's mind raced. She couldn't move, couldn't speak—her head was fixed downward, her hands bound tightly behind her with heavy chains. She knelt in the suffocating darkness, the ground beneath her cold and unyielding. It felt like an endless abyss. Yet, somehow, she could still see her own body—alive and aware, but trapped.

That voice... It was the same one from the dream... (No... It can't be.)

Suddenly, glowing hands appeared before her. They hovered toward her neck, radiating a soft light. A woman's hands—no doubt about it. "Tell me, child," the voice purred, "How does it feel?"

Kaia's breath caught in her throat as the hands caressed her neck, sliding beneath her collar. The woman's fingers gently pried at her necklace—a strange, round stone with a moon-like symbol carved into it.

Without hesitation, the woman attached the glowing feather to the necklace, the same feather from earlier. She pressed it back against Kaia's skin with a softness that made her shiver.

"Make sure you collect plenty of these..." The voice whispered as the hands lingered. Then, with a firm grip, they cupped Kaia's head, fingers brushing near her ears. "How does it feel? To be... immortal?"

The word immortal sliced through her like a blade, and Kaia's world twisted violently. Her vision blurred. The ground beneath her seemed to disappear. She felt herself falling, spiralling into the void.

CRACK.

Her eyes shot open. She gasped for air, her body drenched in cold sweat, heart pounding like a drum in her chest.

"Finally awake, huh?" The kid's voice was shaky, his arms wrapped around her in a tight hug. Kaia patted his back absentmindedly, still trying to shake off the disorienting feeling.

"We defeated the Dad, right?" she asked, her voice hoarse.

"Yeah..." The kid choked on the word, his voice cracking, trembling. "We did."

Kaia pulled back, blinking as she processed his words. Her gaze sharpened. "Then where's the one you called Mom?"