92.- The Echo of The Plague

The shadows of the gaunt trees twisted like broken specters under the grayish light of dawn, their bare branches creaking with a dry whisper that mingled with the crackling of flames in the clearing. The cabin—or what was left of it—was a heap of smoldering rubble, charred planks dripping ashes that the wind scattered like dirty snow. Kaili lurked in the gloom, hidden behind a rotting trunk, her iridescent wings buzzing like a restless swarm, a murmur that slipped through the roar of the fire and the crunch of the fractured earth. The air reeked of a sharp stench—fresh blood, burnt wood, and a metallic tang of melted ice—that she breathed in with a mix of disdain and amusement as her black eyes, deep as starless voids, tracked every clumsy move in the fight. There he was, her gardener, swinging that Plague Edge with a stance that looked more like a joke than a threat, facing off against five pieces of human trash who weren't worth the sticky mud under her boots.

"What a ridiculous show," she thought, an icy chuckle echoing in her mind like shattered bells. "Look at my gardener, strutting around with his little toy like he's some real warrior. What's he hoping for, that these bugs will bow to his stubborn face? They're not even worth a puff of my breath." She saw them as pathetic rats, with their dented armor and shiny weapons that seemed more decorative than dangerous. She'd agreed to stay back just for the fun of it, to watch him stumble and maybe growl at her with that obstinate voice that, though it made her huff, had its odd charm. "A hundred years pounding him with my fists, and he still thinks he can impress someone. Let him tire himself out and call me already, the stubborn fool. I'd even laugh seeing him crawl over with that goofy look of his." She pictured his face, all dirty and sweaty, begging for help with that tone that always made her raise an eyebrow, and something warm—annoyingly warm—slipped into her chest before she squashed it with a sharper thought.

The fight kicked off, and her initial amusement wobbled like a dry leaf in the wind. Zephyr, that scrawny archer with a rat-like face, fired a black arrow that pierced Sebastián's shoulder, blood spurting onto the ground with a wet hiss that reached her like a distant echo. Her wings buzzed faster, a reflex she couldn't stifle, the sound slicing through the air like an angry swarm. "What does this wretch think he's doing, marking what's not his?" Her fingers twitched, the runes on her hands flaring with a silver edge that glinted like ice in the dim light. It wasn't concern—that'd be absurd for a being like her—but a growing annoyance, a spark of possession. These fools were messing with something she'd shaped with her own hands, something that, in her twisted, sarcastic way, she liked having around.

The fight turned into a messy disaster, and her amusement crumbled like wet ash. Valerius, with his sparking staff and that gray robe that looked stolen from a beggar, unleashed a blast of ice that seared Sebastián's arm, the skin crackling in a furious red as he grunted and stayed upright, staggering but unyielding. "How's this stubborn idiot still standing after that?" she wondered, her breath turning cold, the air around her trembling with an unexplainable weight. "Damn him, always so pigheaded. It's almost like he's doing it to make me laugh." A corner of her mouth twitched upward, a tic she couldn't stop, but it faded fast when Magnus, the hulking brute with more muscle than brains, raised his hammer and slammed it into Sebastián's chest. The dry crunch of breaking ribs rang out like a busted drum, a sound that hit her ears and made her clench her teeth. The gardener flew back, crashing into a tree that toppled with him in a burst of splintered wood and gray dust. Kenshin, that skinny creep with daggers that stank of cheap venom, pounced like a starving mutt, slashing a deep gash across his side, blood gushing like a dark river, the poison sizzling in the wound with an acidic hiss.

Kaili clenched her fists, nails digging into her palms until a trickle of black dripped from her purple skin, staining the ground with an oily sheen. "How dare they break him like that? My gardener's not their damn punching bag." Her runes glowed brighter, a silver shimmer spreading up her arms like icy veins, pulsing with a fury that wasn't just cold but personal. "This stubborn fool, always getting into trouble. What am I supposed to do with him if they smash him to bits? I'm not hauling around a corpse that doesn't know when to quit." But it wasn't just annoyance; there was something else, a warmth sneaking through the cracks of her anger, a possessive echo that made her want to laugh and growl at the same time. When Sebastián fell, his body crumpling among the rubble with a wet thud, blood dripping from deep cuts and the Plague Edge slipping from his hand with a dull clang, her patience shattered. "They tore him apart. My little chaos. This doesn't slide." The forest quaked under the weight of her fury, shadows writhing as if they smelled the blood that would soon flow.

The adventurers were pulling away, their heavy steps sloshing through puddles of mud and blood, thinking they were done, that they could just walk off. Oberon wiped his sword with a filthy rag, the blade sparking with leftover flames, his sharp voice cutting through the silence.

"He doesn't know squat," he said, turning with a snort. "Let's leave him as a warning and get the hell out of this cursed place."

"Don't finish him," Magnus growled, his hammer dripping dirt and splinters as he slung it over his shoulder. "This base is toast. No point getting dirtier."

"Wait," Zephyr cut in, pausing with his bow still in hand, his voice shaking like a dry leaf. "What was that buzzing? Did you hear it?"

Valerius spun around, his staff sparking with ice, the crystals glinting under the faint light as his face went pale.

"I don't like this," he muttered, stepping back. "Something's coming. We should bail now, before it's too late."

Kenshin, wiping his daggers with a blood-soaked rag, looked up, his hands trembling just enough to notice.

"Let's talk to whoever's coming," he said, his tone wavering but firm. "We don't need more trouble. We can bargain, offer something…"

But their words drowned in a roar that wasn't sound but pure presence, a weight that crushed the air as if the world held its breath. The sky above the clearing darkened, not with clouds, but with a rift tearing open in reality itself, a black gash bleeding living shadows, thick and throbbing, as if the darkness had a heartbeat. The ground shook, cracks snaking out like broken veins, and a black bolt surged from nowhere—not falling from above but erupting from the earth like a spear of pure, jagged darkness. It struck the clearing's center with a force that uprooted trees, their trunks snapping with a deafening crack, and pulverized rocks into gray dust that hung like fog. A cloud of dirt, blood, and splinters rose, blinding the dawn with a thick veil, and the roar was a primal scream, a howl from something ancient and ravenous that sent the forest's creatures fleeing in silent panic, their footsteps a distant drumbeat.

And at the heart of that chaotic storm, she took form. She didn't appear; she forged herself, as if destruction itself molded into flesh and shadow. The shadows congealed into a blurry outline, swirling like living smoke, then sharpened into a silhouette that sliced the air, and finally resolved into details that chilled the blood to the marrow. Kaili emerged, her liquid obsidian armor dripping like black blood, splattering the ground with a hiss that scorched the earth. It swallowed light, dimming the clearing until the flames seemed to quiver in fear. Her hair, a cascade of ink that seemed to drink the stars, billowed as if alive, strands dancing with the icy wind that followed her. Her six membranous wings unfurled with a crack that tore the air, a deep, dry sound like breaking bones, casting a shadow that engulfed the adventurers like an inescapable verdict. Her eyes, infinite wells of blackness, burned with a cold fury that promised not just death but a slow, deliberate suffering, a punishment that would make gods tremble.

The adventurers stumbled back, panic clawing up their throats like bitter bile. Oberon raised a trembling hand, his sword clattering to the ground with a dull clang that echoed in the silence.

"Wait," he stammered, his voice broken and wet, almost a sob. "We don't know who you are. We can talk, avoid this… Please, don't…"

"We don't want a fight," Valerius added, his staff slipping from his hands and hitting the dirt with a weak thud. "We can leave, abandon this place. Please, just… hear us out."

Kenshin took a step back, his daggers shaking in his sweaty grip.

"We don't have to do this," he said, his voice cracking. "We can negotiate, give you whatever you want. It's not worth it…"

But Kaili didn't hear them. Her presence was a wall of ice and shadow, and her voice sliced through the air like a frozen blade, each word a thunderclap that shook the ground beneath their feet.

"You filthy scum dared to touch what's mine," she said, her tone dripping venom but laced with a playful edge that chilled more than her rage. "You'll suffer until your souls rot in the void, and I'll laugh watching it."

And then, hell broke loose—slow, sticky, and grotesque.

Valerius was first. He tried to run, his boots slipping in the blood-soaked mud, but Kaili raised a hand with an almost lazy flick, and viscous shadows erupted from the ground like tentacles, coiling around his legs with a wet crunch that snapped bone. They dragged him toward her, his screams echoing like a shattered wail as the shadows pierced his flesh, stabbing through his skin like poisoned needles. A swarm of black insects burst from his own blood, their bodies swelling as they devoured him from the inside, their legs clicking against his ribs. His chest split open in a spray of shattered bone, guts spilling out like writhing snakes onto the dirt, and his eyes melted in their sockets, black streams dripping down his face as a gurgling scream choked in his throat. Kaili tilted her head, her cruel smile slicing the air like a blade. "Feel every bite, you rat. This is for dirtying what's not yours."

Kenshin lunged with his daggers, a blur of desperate speed, but Kaili snapped her fingers with a sharp crack, and the air warped around him like broken glass. A cage of shadows trapped him, its razor edges slicing his skin into slow, precise strips, each cut a gush of blood splattering the ground with a wet squelch. His own arms turned against him, the daggers plunging into his gut with a viscous sound, gutting him as his legs quaked. The shadows tore through tendons, exposing white bone that splintered under the strain, and his face twisted in agony as blood filled his mouth, dripping in thick threads. "Wanted to cut, little killer? Do it to yourself," Kaili hissed, her voice a deadly whisper dancing with a hint of mockery as he collapsed, a broken puppet drenched in red.

Zephyr fired black arrows in a panic, his trembling hands sending one astray to thud into a tree. Kaili raised a hand, and time froze for him, his eyes locked open, trapped in conscious terror. A vortex of shadows enveloped him, peeling his skin in thin layers like paper, each strip falling with a wet hiss as his flesh unraveled in tatters. Exposed muscles pulsed, veins bursting in black spurts, and the shadows punctured his lungs, blood bubbling from his mouth like a dark geyser. She kept him alive, his heart pounding in plain view as his body disintegrated, a scream caught in an eternity she stretched out with relish, her wings buzzing as if applauding. "Keep running, useless archer. There's nowhere to hide from me," she murmured, letting his torment linger until his final breath broke in a ragged whimper.

Magnus roared, his hammer crashing into the ground with a boom that split the earth, dust and blood spraying the air. But Kaili took a step, and dark chains slithered up like snakes, wrapping his arms with a crunch of metal and bone that rang like a busted drum. She pulled slowly, tearing off his right arm with a wet pop, blood and tendons dangling like snapped threads as he howled, his voice cracking into a guttural echo. Then the left, bone shattering with a dry crack as his armor melted into his skin with an acidic hiss, flesh bubbling in black blisters. She held him on his knees, his legs buckling under his own weight with a wet snap, and with a flick ripped his jaw off, exposing a mute scream as his tongue flopped like a bloody rag. His heart beat exposed, throbbing, until she crushed it with a wet squish, his body slumping into a puddle of flesh and molten metal. "Swing now, you pile of scrap. This is for smashing what you shouldn't have touched," she spat, her tone sharp but tinged with playful satisfaction.

Oberon was last, his firestorm roaring in a desperate bid, flames licking the air with a roar that died against Kaili's armor with a futile hiss. She wrapped him in a vortex of icy shadows, the fire snuffing out as his skin withered, black blisters sprouting like rotting mushrooms. She lifted him with one hand, fingers digging into his chest with a tear of flesh, and snapped his ribs one by one, each bone cracking dryly and splattering hot blood across her face. She kept him alive, his teary eyes wide as his body fell apart, organs dropping like spoiled fruit, his liver bursting on the ground with a viscous squish. Finally, she seized his shadow and tore it free with a slow pull, hurling him into a void where his screams echoed forever, fading into nothing. "Burn in the cold, king of nothing. This is for wrecking my fun," she said, her voice a final thunder laced with a mocking edge that lingered in the clearing.

The clearing fell silent, a grotesque graveyard under a dimmed sky that seemed afraid to look at her. Mangled bodies lay scattered like broken dolls, blood soaking the earth in sticky pools that glinted faintly, chunks of flesh and bone mingling with the cabin's ruins in a nauseating mess. Rotting trees stood like corpses, their branches dripping a black sap that stank of death, and the air hung thick with a stench that burned the throat, a reek of decay and shadows clinging to the skin. Kaili stood at the center, her armor dripping shadows as if sweating darkness, her wings spread like a mantle of death, her cold breath cutting the silence with a soft hiss.

She turned to Sebastián, his still form sprawled among the rubble, blood seeping from deep cuts that painted the dirt a dark red, his chest sunken from broken ribs that barely rose with each faint breath. Her boots crunched over the shattered ground as she approached, the hum of her wings fading to a whisper that felt almost tender. She knelt beside him, her leather armor creaking as if grumbling at the motion, and reached for his face. Her finger traced the blood streaking his cheek, wiping it away with a slow, almost careful swipe, leaving a clean streak on his pale skin. Then, with the same hand, she brushed a sweaty lock of hair off his forehead, her fingers lingering for a moment, toying with the idea of mussing it up more just for kicks.

She looked at him, her black eyes glinting with a fury still smoldering like embers, but also with a warm spark, a possessive echo sneaking through the cracks of her sarcasm. "Damn stubborn fool, always stumbling into messes," she thought, a crooked smile tugging at her lips as she took him in, all bruised and broken but still breathing. "A hundred years, and you're still an adorable wreck. What am I going to do with you, huh?" Her hand slid along his cheek again, wiping away more blood with a touch softer than she'd admit, the sticky liquid staining her purple skin with a wet sheen.

"Look how they left you, you hardheaded idiot," she said, her voice sharp but laced with a playful tone that danced on the edge of teasing. "Get up before I drag you by the hair, my little chaos. I'm not lugging a pathetic hero like you around all day." Her fingers paused on his face, brushing the line of his jaw with a slowness that felt more like a disguised caress, and she let out a low laugh, a sound that echoed in the clearing like icy bells but warm in its own way. "If you don't wake up, I'll paint your face with this blood just to hear you grumble later, you dolt," she thought, her gaze locked on him as her runes flared with a silver glint she didn't bother explaining.

She leaned in a bit more, her hair falling like a black curtain that brushed the dirt near his head, and with an almost theatrical flourish, she flicked his forehead lightly with her finger, leaving a tiny red smudge on his skin.

"Come on, gardener, don't leave me bored out here alone," she murmured, her tone dripping with sarcasm but sparking with amusement she couldn't hide. "If you die, I swear I'll yank you back from the other side just to thrash you for ditching me with this mess." She stayed there, kneeling beside him, her towering figure looming over him like a dark, mocking guardian. Her wings folded slightly, the buzzing softening to a faint purr, and for a moment, the clearing seemed to hold its breath, caught between the fury still smoking in the air and the twisted warmth she let slip over him like a private joke.

The dawn paled over the clearing, shadows still writhing at the edges as if scared to get too close, and the silence hung heavy, broken only by the distant crackle of the ruins and the soft crunch of dirt under her boots. Kaili didn't budge, her fingers playing with a strand of his hair as she watched him, the dried blood on her hand gleaming faintly in the dim light. Sebastián's fate dangled in the air, suspended between her devastating rage and the fragile stillness of his broken body, but in that instant, under her sarcastic, warm gaze, it felt like the whole world could wait a little longer.