Smiting the devil

Everywhere Jagger went, he pulled Kadyn behind him with a chain around her neck. No matter how barbaric this act might seem to onlookers, no one dared to confront Jagger about it. With a broken vision, Kadyn could only see a small fragmented view of the world under mismatched shades of colour. However, most of the time, she closed her eyes instead. Not because of the head-spinning mash of colours but because she simply gave up on life. In her mind, she has lost everything and deserves nothing. She has let Mike's sacrifice be in vain while losing the only hope she had for motherhood. 

As Jagger dragged her along inside the hallway, an Allied officer suddenly approached Jagger with a message. 

[Officer] - "My lord, we have located a group of imperial cyberknights in Australia who are planning to ambush us from behind. "

[Jagger] - "And... I should care? "

Said Jagger as everyone around them fell silent. 

The officer swallowed nervously before continuing to read the rest of the report. 

[officer] - "Well, my lord, their target is... you! "

[Jagger] - "Ah... why didn't start with this then? "

Said Jagger in a relaxed voice before suddenly grabbing the officer by the neck and lifting him in the air. 

[Jagger] - "Now, you better not be lying or I'll kill you and your entire family, and I say this not as a threat but as a promise! "

[officer] - "I swear on my life! "

Said the officer in a suffocated voice as he struggled to breathe.

[Jagger] - "Give me the specific location of their base of operation. I'll make sure they squirm like worms when I find them. "

Said Jagger as he released the man from his grip. 

[Officer] - "Of course, my lord! "

Sometime after, in the Australian outback, Jagger emerged from the duststorm with Kadyn trailing behind him in chuffs. He arrived at the supposed location of the enemy where he found a small hill with a massive cave entrance. Without taking any precautions, Jagger rushed in thinking that he could easily take on his opponents. 

[Jagger] - "Stay here! Don't even think of running away because I will find you and make you suffer more. "

However, Jagger's threat no longer had an effect on Kadyn's broken spirit. All she did was nod slightly before sitting against the cave entrance. With a satisfied grin, Jagger ventured further inside the cave but quickly reached its end without finding anything unusual. Soon, Jagger realized that nothing was inside its walls. 

[Jagger] - "That bastard lied to me! How dare that piece of shit Allied dog lie to me? "

Yelled Jagger in rage.

Suddenly, a massive figure appeared behind Jagger. He turned around just in time to be ambushed by War who immediately tackled him against the ground. Just as Jagger prepared to fight back, a shadow abruptly emerged from the ground and stabbed its fingers toward Jagger. As Jagger tried to defend against his assailants, his crystals suddenly shattered under the combined power of the two horsemen. 

Jagger didn't even get the time to be shocked before Death kicked him in the abdomen with so much force that he was sent right out of the cave. Jagger's body rolled around in the sand before coming to a stop in front of Kadyn. In desperation, Jagger tried to crawl away but was immediately pinned on the ground by icicles which fell from the sky. 

[Death] - "The absolute rule of the white crystal must not be challenged! "

Said Death as he arrived in front of Jagger.

[War] - "At least, not by such unworthy scum of a human. "

Said War as the crystal on his chest glowed once more. 

All of a sudden, the icicles dove deeper into Jagger's limbs and body before completely pinching him against the ground with no chance of escape. 

[War] - "We saw the unhuman creature you are. "

[Death] - "Thus, your sentence is death under pain reserved for a creature of your nature. "

[Jagger] - "Fuck you! You bunch of dog shit bastard! "

Yelled Jagger in protest. 

[War] - "The ice infused with my ability will keep you alive but not enough to keep you comfortable. This way, you will be subjugated to the outback's intense sun, cold night and creatures until you break. By the time of the 100th day, you will be allowed to die but by then, your soul would been dead long ago. "

Said War in a monotone voice. 

Jagger, having finally realized the gravity of the situation, began to plead for his life. 

[Jagger] - "Hey, let's talk about this! We don't have to do this! "

Said Jagger in a panic. 

[Death] - "This is a place where no one will find you. Let fate have mercy on your soul. "

Said Death in a cold voice before mounting onto his horse. 

[Jagger] - "Hey! Hey! You can't let me die here! I beg of you! "

Yelled Jagger in desperation. 

In a flash, Death and War disappeared behind a white cloud. In a panic, Jagger struggled against his restraints but to no avail. 

[Jagger] - "You! You goddamn mutt, free me from my shackles! "

Yelled Jagger at Kadyn.

Kadyn only glanced at him before returning to her catatonic state. 

[Jagger] - "Don't ignore me! Come on, I promise I'll be good to you this time! "

With an empty expression on her face, Kadyn stood up and went to sit deeper inside the cave. No matter how hard Jagger shouted, no matter how many insults or empty promises were hurled at her, Kadyn remained stoic without an ounce of humanity left on her face. As the day went on, Jagger began to sweat profusely under the intense sunlight. Soon, Jagger's throat was so sore that he lost the ability to shout. As time went on, crows began to circle Jagger's reddish body while insects crawled onto his limbs and torso. Meanwhile, Kadyn remained inside the cave and stared blankly at Jagger as he suffered.

Days turned into weeks and by the end of the second week, Jagger resembled more a mummified corpse than a person. Somehow, despite being a corpse, Jagger's mind was still kept conscious by the horsemen's abilities. The unbearable pain broke his mind. Although he wished for the sweet release of death, he just couldn't die no matter what. Meanwhile, Kadyn remained in the cave in an extremely weakened state due to starvation. Every time consciousness returned to her mind, she wished for death just like Jagger. Hope is lost and their fate is sealed.

However, one person was still fighting against fate. As Kadyn lay motionless inside the cold embrace of the infinite dark void, a ripple suddenly pushed against her body. Although she remained unbothered by the first ripple, a second and third ripple abruptly appeared. Before long, a hand smashed through the dark water and pushed a dark figure out of the fabric of that dimension's floor. 

[Mike] - "I said I would return for you! No matter what, as long as I can still exist somewhere, I will come for you! "

As much as the darkness tried to swallow Mike under the depths of its void, its grip just wasn't strong enough to pull Mike back down. Kadyn's eyes widened as she saw Mike's grin break through the black tar that covered his face. 

[Kadyn] - "Mike... "

[Mike] - "Hold on, give me a moment. "

Said Mike before he pulled himself out of his restraints. 

As soon as Mike emerged completely from the darkness' grip, an angry growl abruptly rocked the dimension as if a dark God unleashed its frustration. 

[Mike] - "Looks like the bloody bastard's angry. "

Said Mike as he kneeled beside Kadyn. 

[Kadyn] - "I'm sorry... I failed you and everyone. "

Said Kadyn as regret and pain filled her heart. 

Without hesitation, Mike took her in his arms and hugged her with all of his strength. 

[Mike] - "It's not your fault. You did everything you could. You fought valiantly against the odds and got farther than anyone could ever dream of. "

[Kadyn] - "But look at me. Look at us, look at where we are right now. All our hopes and dreams are gone. "

Sobbed Kadyn as she pressed her face against Mike's chest. 

[Mike] - "Who said it was all gone? "

Kadyn snapped to attention as Mike stared at her with a shining smile of determination. 

[Mike] - "Opportunity is often something you can't see. It reveals itself only when you search for it. "

[Kadyn] - "What kind of fight is there even left? "

[Mike] - "Not fights, my dear Lemon, opportunities. With Jagger condemned, you are free to live the life you always dreamed of. "

[Kadyn] - "I... don't remember what kind of life I wanted. Besides, I don't have enough energy to move. I have been starving for two weeks. "

Said Kadyn in a weak voice.

[Mike] - "Then let me be your guide. "

Said Mike as he carried Kadyn on his back. 

[Kadyn] - "We are we going? Isn't this void infinite? "

[Mike] - "As long as we keep on walking, we will eventually hit its borders. "

During this time, Kadyn's mind slowly snapped back to reality as she was woken up by the sound of a truck. For the first time in weeks, she opened her eyes and saw the fragmented image of a few men standing by the cave entrance with a stretcher. Reaching them was her only way to salvation but her body was too weak to make a noise. 

"Help me, Mike! Give me the strength to reach them. "

Thought Kadyn as she forced her hand forward. 

[Mike] - "Courage, I'm here with you. "

Kadyn's eyelids jumped up as she suddenly heard Mike's voice. After falling to the ground, she saw the sleeve of Mike's coat around her arm. During all this time, Mike's coat was still on her back without her realizing it. After this realization, Kadyn gained one last boost of energy which allowed her to barely stand up. 

By this point, the truck was preparing to leave but Kadyn remembered how Mike carried on her on his back. 

"No distance is too far away. "

This phrase flashed inside Kadyn's mind before she was compelled to run toward her salvation. With inhuman effort, she sprinted forward before jumping into the back of the truck and landing on the hard metal floor with a hard thud. Luckily for her, the men didn't seem to notice her presence amongst them. Although Kadyn felt pain all over her body, she couldn't help but be proud of her effort. 

After walking for a while, Mike and Kadyn arrived at the border of the darkness dimension. 

[Mike] - "Looks like we are at the edge. "

[Kadyn] - "How come is it so short? "

Said Kadyn in a confused voice. 

[Mike] - "Because you refused to believe that the darkness is infinite. Our reality is what we make for ourselves. I knew what you were truly capable of, that's why I never stopped fighting alongside you. Even when I felt hopeless, one look at you made me realize that the word hopeless is just a lie as long as we both still exist. "

Said Mike as he opened an invisible door on the wall. 

As soon as Mike carried her through the door, a colourful world reappeared in front of Kadyn. Although she couldn't properly see the world in all of its colours, she could easily taste and hear the colours around her. 

[Kadyn] - "Thanks for believing in me. "

Said Kadyn as she kissed Mike on the cheek. 

[Mike] - "Now, don't ever talk about hopeless situations or purposeless lives. As long as you live, I will live too. So go out there, do what you want to do and live life the way you intended to live. "

Said Mike with a confident grin.

[Kadyn] - "But I can't remember... "

[Mike] - "Then I'll remind you. "

Tears slowly filled Kadyn's eyes. However, this time they were not tears of sadness but of joy. 

[Kadyn] - "Then be my guide, Mikey. "

Said Kadyn with a delighted smile. 

The truck arrived inside a massive open-air prison facility in the middle of the desert. While Jagger's decomposing body was rushed to urgent care, Kadyn was pushed by guards into a massive holding area with electrified fences and filled to the brim with prisoners. As a group of men approached her with malicious intent, Kadyn suddenly remembered her ability. In a flick of a finger, Kadyn disappeared inside the minds of the men as they stood confused at their current predicament. 

After they all returned to their previous occupation, Kadyn breathed a sigh of relief. Although the exact working of her ability was still vague to her understanding, she could at least assume that it allowed her to become invisible to a certain degree. Now armed with this knowledge, she stumbled her way to the cafeteria where she began to viciously devour any food she could get her hands on. Meanwhile, prison inmates watched in shock and terror as food disappeared into thin air. 

After a few days spent regaining her strength, Kadyn was finally ready to move on to the next stage of her plan; Getting out of the prison facility. 

To be continued...

*EXTRA

- Profile: Kadyn

- Ability: [My marmalade]: "The ability is one of the rarest types of ability in the series with the capability of affecting the minds of those Kadyn considered a threat. The ability works by causing the affected target to forget Kadyn in his mind. As a result, while Kadyn isn't truly invisible, the affected individual will forget Kadyn with such efficiency that she will appear invisible despite being there. Unfortunately, this ability can still be blocked by crystal users with active ability shields around their bodies. "

- ABILITY STATS:

Power - None

Speed of the ability - B

Speed granted by the ability - E

Range - C

Durability of the ability - S

Durability granted by the ability - E

Precision - E

Potential - A