Madness Ensues

The room was silent save for Lilian's shallow, panicked breaths. She stood frozen, her wide eyes fixed on Berethia as though looking at a stranger. The green light of Berethia's staff bathed the room in an eerie glow, flickering like a candle in the wind.

"Berethia…" Lilian's voice trembled as she took a hesitant step back, her body trembling. "You don't have to do this. Please. Whatever you're feeling, we can work through it. We're sisters."

"Sisters?" Berethia's voice was a chilling whisper, laced with venom and mockery. "Do you even know what that word means, Lilian? Sisters are supposed to care for each other, to protect each other." She took a step forward, her staff crackling with energy. "But all you ever did was take everything I wanted. Their love, their attention, their pride. It was always you."

"That's not true!" Lilian cried, tears streaming down her face. "I never wanted to take anything from you! I—"

"Liar!" Berethia's scream echoed through the crumbling house, the storm of her magic surging with her fury. With a swift motion, she pointed her staff at Lilian, and a web of green energy shot out, wrapping around her sister like binding vines. Lilian gasped as the magic constricted her, holding her in place, her struggles futile against Berethia's power.

"You took everything from me," Berethia hissed, her voice trembling with a mix of rage and despair. "But not anymore."

With a flick of her staff, the green energy lifted Lilian off the ground, her body suspended in the air like a marionette. Berethia turned, striding toward the shattered doorway, her sister trailing behind her like a shadow.

Outside, the village square was a patchwork of chaos and ruin. The earlier commotion had drawn the remaining villagers from their homes, and a small crowd had gathered, their murmurs filled with fear and confusion.

When Berethia emerged from the house, dragging her bound sister behind her, a collective gasp rippled through the crowd. The villagers froze, their eyes darting between Berethia's glowing staff and the lifeless house she had left behind.

"Berethia?" one of the older men stammered, his voice shaking. "What… what have you done?"

Berethia ignored him, her gaze sweeping over the crowd, her expression unreadable. She came to a stop in the center of the square, lowering Lilian to the ground but keeping her bound in place. The green energy pulsing from her staff cast long, twisted shadows across the cobblestones.

"Do you see this?" Berethia's voice rang out, cold and sharp. "Do you see what she is? Your perfect Lilian, your golden child." Her lips curled into a bitter smile. "All this time, you praised her. Worshipped her. And me? You didn't even see me."

The villagers exchanged uneasy glances, their murmurs growing louder.

"Berethia," an older woman said cautiously, stepping forward. "Whatever this is, it's not too late. You can—"

"It's too late!" Berethia snapped, her voice cracking as her rage surged. "It was too late the moment you all decided I was nothing. The moment you turned your backs on me. Well, now you'll see. Now you'll all see!"

She raised her staff high, the green light intensifying as her sister's screams echoed through the square. The villagers recoiled, their fear palpable as Berethia's madness unfurled before them.

"You wanted a monster," Berethia said, her voice trembling as tears slid down her cheeks. "So now, I'll show you one."

The villagers hesitated, their collective fear giving way to a desperate courage as they began inching closer to Berethia. Their faces were a mixture of anger, fear, and sorrow, their hands clutching whatever crude weapons they could find—pitchforks, wooden planks, rusted blades.

"Stay back!" Berethia shrieked, the green glow of her staff surging as the vines around Lilian tightened. Her sister gasped, her face contorted in pain, her struggles weakening. "You think you can stop me now? After everything you did?"

One of the villagers, a middle-aged man with a weathered face, took a tentative step forward. "Berethia," he said, his voice steady despite the tremor in his hands. "You don't have to do this. We—we were wrong to treat you the way we did. But killing us won't fix anything."

"Killing you won't fix anything?" Berethia repeated, her laugh brittle and sharp. "Maybe not, but it'll make you feel what I felt. Maybe then you'll understand." Her voice dropped, cold and venomous. "Or maybe you won't. Maybe you'll just die as blind and selfish as you've always been."

The villagers exchanged uneasy glances, their murmurs growing louder as they debated whether to rush her.

"Look at you," Berethia spat, her voice filled with disdain. "So brave now, aren't you? So righteous. But where was that bravery when I was starving? Where was that righteousness when you turned your backs on me, when you whispered behind my back, when you laughed at me? Where was it then?"

"You brought this on yourself!" a woman shouted from the crowd, her voice trembling but loud. "You're the one who killed your own family, your own people. You're the monster!"

Berethia's eyes flared, the storm of her magic intensifying. "Monster? Is that what you think I am?" She raised her staff, the green energy swirling around her like a living thing. "Fine. If that's all I'll ever be to you, then I'll make sure you remember it."

The villagers froze as the energy around her surged, crackling and hissing like an untamed wildfire. "You cursed me with your hatred," she said, her voice rising with every word. "You made me into this. So don't you dare pretend you're innocent now."

Another villager stepped forward, an older man with a scar across his cheek. His voice was calm but firm. "We were wrong, Berethia. But this isn't the way. Let her go," he said, gesturing to Lilian. "You don't have to do this."

Berethia's laugh was hollow, her grip on the staff tightening. "Let her go?" she repeated, tilting her head. "You think I can just let her go? After years of being nothing while she was everything?"

"Berethia," the older man continued, his tone softening. "She's your sister. Whatever's happened, she's still your family."

"My family?" Berethia's voice broke, her expression twisting with rage and despair. "They're the reason I'm like this! They made me this way!"

The storm of her magic surged again, the green light flooding the square. The villagers stumbled back, shielding their eyes, but they didn't retreat entirely. Their courage, born of desperation, held them rooted in place.

"Go on, then!" Berethia screamed, her voice filled with raw emotion. "Come closer! Try to stop me! Let's see what your precious courage gets you!"

The villagers hesitated, the tension thick enough to cut with a blade. For a moment, no one moved, the square silent save for the crackle of her magic and Lilian's weak gasps.

And then, someone stepped forward. A young man, barely more than a boy, clutching a broken pitchfork in trembling hands. His steps were small, hesitant, but he didn't stop.

Berethia's eyes narrowed, her lips curling into a sneer. "You really think you can stand against me?" she hissed. "You can barely hold that thing."

The boy froze, his knuckles white as he gripped the pitchfork. His courage faltered, but he stood his ground, his eyes meeting hers.

Berethia raised her staff, the energy swirling around it in a dangerous spiral. "You don't stand a chance," she said, her voice low and menacing. "None of you do."

But as the storm raged within her, as the villagers held their breath, something flickered in Berethia's eyes. For a brief moment, a glimmer of hesitation—a shadow of the girl she used to be—surfaced, only to be swallowed once more by the overwhelming tide of envy and rage.

The flicker of hesitation in Berethia's eyes vanished, replaced by an intense glow of green light that pulsed with the rhythm of her fury. The young man who had stepped forward froze, his courage dissolving under her piercing gaze.

"You want to be a hero?" Berethia sneered, her voice trembling with anger and mockery. "Fine. Be the first."

With a sudden, violent motion, she thrust her staff forward. A bolt of green energy shot through the air, striking the young man squarely in the chest. He was thrown backward with a sickening crack, his body crumpling lifelessly to the ground. Gasps and screams erupted from the crowd as they scrambled back, their makeshift weapons clattering to the cobblestones in their panic.

Lilian let out a strangled cry, struggling against the magical binds that kept her frozen. "Berethia, stop!" she screamed, her voice hoarse and desperate. "This isn't you! Please!"

Berethia turned her head slowly toward her sister, her expression cold and unyielding. "You don't get to tell me who I am," she said, her voice devoid of warmth. "Not anymore."

Her gaze swept back to the crowd, now huddled together in terror. Some whispered prayers, others clung to each other, their faces pale and stricken. Berethia's lips curled into a bitter smile, her voice rising above the chaos.

"Where's your bravery now?" she taunted, her staff glowing brighter. "Where's all that righteousness you clung to while you cast me aside? If you won't see me, then I'll make sure you remember me."

With a wave of her staff, a torrent of green energy erupted from its tip, arcing through the air like a serpent. It struck one villager, then another, each falling lifeless to the ground. The cobblestones became slick with blood, the acrid smell of burnt flesh mixing with the scent of fear.

The crowd scattered, their screams filling the night as they fled in all directions. But there was no escaping Berethia's wrath. She moved like a predator, her staff casting out tendrils of magic that sought out anyone who dared to run. One by one, the villagers fell, their cries cut short as the life was ripped from them.

Through it all, Lilian could do nothing but watch, tears streaming down her face as she begged for it to stop. "Please, Berethia," she sobbed. "You've made your point. Just stop. Please!"

Berethia turned to her sister, her expression twisting with a mix of rage and sorrow. "You still don't get it, do you?" she said, her voice cracking. "This isn't about making a point. This is about making sure they never forget me."

She raised her staff again, the glow intensifying as she targeted another cluster of villagers. The air crackled with energy as the green light consumed them, leaving nothing but silence and stillness in its wake.

The square was nearly empty now, the bodies of the villagers strewn across the cobblestones. The green light of Berethia's magic cast long, eerie shadows over the carnage. She turned slowly, her gaze falling on Lilian, who was still bound and trembling.

"Do you see now?" Berethia asked, her voice low and trembling with emotion. "Do you see what happens when you ignore me? When you treat me like I don't exist?"

Lilian's voice was barely a whisper, choked with grief. "You didn't have to do this."

Berethia let out a hollow laugh, the sound sharp and bitter. "Didn't I? Because as far as I can see, this was the only way to make you all see me."

She stepped closer to her sister, her staff still glowing with residual energy. The storm of her magic had quieted, but the tension in the air remained thick and suffocating.

"You should be thanking me," Berethia said softly, her voice dripping with bitterness. "I've given you the chance to see the real me."

Lilian's tear-filled eyes met Berethia's, her voice trembling as she spoke. "This isn't you. This is what Envy has done to you."

Berethia froze for a moment, her expression faltering. But then her grip on her staff tightened, and her eyes burned brighter. "No," she said firmly, her voice hard and unyielding. "This is who I've always been. You just never cared to look."

She raised her staff once more, the green light flaring as she prepared to unleash another attack. But this time, it wasn't directed at the villagers. It was aimed at Lilian.

"This is the end," Berethia said, her voice trembling with emotion. "The end of you, the end of them, the end of everything that ever made me feel like nothing."

The storm surged again, ready to consume everything in its path.

The storm of green energy swirled around Berethia like a living entity, crackling and pulsing with her unbridled rage. The few remaining villagers tried to scatter, their terrified cries echoing through the square. But Berethia was relentless.

"You can't run from me," she hissed, her voice low and venomous. She raised her staff, and with a swift motion, sent out a wave of energy that rippled across the square. It struck each fleeing figure with pinpoint accuracy, their bodies crumpling to the ground as the life was snuffed out of them.

The air was heavy with the stench of death, the cobblestones now slick with blood. The village square, once a bustling center of life, was a desolate graveyard. The green light from Berethia's staff cast long, eerie shadows across the carnage, flickering like a dying flame.

Lilian, still bound by Berethia's magic, wept openly, her cries echoing in the oppressive silence. Her body trembled as she struggled against the magical binds, but it was futile. She could do nothing but watch as her sister stood amidst the chaos, her chest heaving, her face a mask of rage and sorrow.

"Do you see now?" Berethia said, turning to Lilian, her voice trembling with emotion. "Do you see what happens when you ignore someone? When you make them feel like they're nothing?"

Lilian's voice was barely audible, choked with tears. "Berethia… please. This isn't you."

Berethia let out a hollow laugh, the sound sharp and bitter. "Isn't it? Because as far as I can tell, this is exactly who I am. The forgotten one. The invisible one. The one who was never good enough."

She stepped closer to Lilian, her staff still glowing with residual energy. Her face twisted into a bitter smile as she looked down at her sister, who had always been the center of attention, the golden child, the perfect one.

"I envied you," Berethia admitted, her voice soft but trembling with raw emotion. "I envied your beauty, your talent, your charm. Everything about you was effortless. And me? I had to claw and fight for every scrap of acknowledgment, every fleeting moment of their attention."

Lilian shook her head, her voice trembling. "I never wanted to take anything from you, Berethia. I just wanted us to be sisters."

"Sisters?" Berethia's eyes glinted with a dangerous light. "You say that now, but where were you when I needed you? Where were you when they turned their backs on me? You were too busy being perfect, too busy being loved."

She raised her staff, the green light flaring brighter as the air around them grew colder. Lilian gasped, her breath visible in the sudden chill.

"But don't worry," Berethia said, her voice dropping to a chilling whisper. "I'll make sure you're never forgotten. I'll make sure you stay just like this, the perfect picture of who you are. Frozen. Beautiful. Forever."

Lilian's eyes widened in terror as the green energy spiraled around her, constricting her further. "Berethia, no! Please, don't do this!"

Berethia's expression flickered for a moment, a shadow of doubt crossing her features. But it was quickly consumed by the storm of envy and rage that had taken hold of her. "Goodbye, Lilian," she said softly, her voice trembling. "I hope you enjoy being the center of attention… for eternity."

With a final surge of power, Berethia thrust her staff forward, and the green energy engulfed Lilian completely. When the light faded, Lilian stood frozen in place, her eyes wide with fear, her expression locked in a silent plea. Her body shimmered with a crystalline sheen, encased in a magical stasis that would never break.

Berethia stepped back, her chest heaving as she stared at her sister's frozen form. For a moment, the square was silent, the storm of her magic settling into an eerie calm. She let out a shaky breath, her hands trembling as she lowered her staff.

"You're perfect now," she whispered, her voice hollow. "Just the way they always wanted you to be."

She turned away, her steps slow and deliberate as she walked through the ruins of the square. The village was silent, the only sound the faint crackle of green energy that still lingered in the air. Berethia's eyes burned with the glow of her magic, but somewhere deep within them, a shadow of regret flickered, buried beneath the overwhelming tide of envy and madness.