Chapter-34 Weird Bone Girl

Kira was being mercilessly pulled further into the chamber of darkness, her body. The deeper and deeper she went, the darkness swallowed her and the chamber whole. Unsure of her destination, Kira's senses were overwhelmed by the agonizing pain coursing through her entire body.

The grip on her leg was relentless, and the femur bone felt like it was being used as a gruesome anchor. She desperately clung to anything within reach as she was dragged mercilessly. With every inch as she was pulled, the pain intensified. Then, with a sudden jolt, the femur bone tugged against something on the ground, and a sickening snap echoed in the darkness.

"Ahh!" Kira's scream pierced through the darkness of the chamber.

As the dragging finally ceased, Kira found herself surrounded by a strong brightness. Struggling to make sense of her surroundings, she discovered she was in a room.

Kir decied to flip over and examine the room more to see who pulled her, only to be met with a surprising sight. Instead of a monstrous creature or a skull knight, it was a human girl. The girl, dressed in dirt-covered clothes, stood at 5'7", her pale white hair and clothes blending with the light. Blank, pure white eyes with no irises stared back at Kira, sending shivers down her spine.

The girl effortlessly held the long skeleton hand that had just dragged Kira, dropping it heavily to the ground. As Kira tried to assess the situation, the girl's body contorted, a sudden pain twisting her features. What happening to her? Kira wondered as she observed the girl's hand. Something sharp poked out, breaking through the skin, revealing a long black and white object kire examining it properly saw it was a bone.

Kira, despite her pain subconsciously got up from the ground and started limping to toward the mysterious girl. 

The girl continued to twist in pain, her body contorted as the look of another sharp object started to emerge from the side of her hand. Kira, watching the gruesome transformation unfold, couldn't fathom the depths of the girl's suffering.

"Stop this, you're only causing yourself pain," Kira pleaded.

Ignoring Kira's words, the girl persisted in her self-inflicted ordeal. Another Sharp, black and white bone erupted from the side of her hand, accompanied by agonizing screams and the transformation of her teeth into razor-sharp fangs. Beads of sweat adorned the girl's forehead.

Kira, determined to understand, questioned, "Why are you putting yourself through this?"

"If I don't eliminate you, Motherwitch will bring her wrath upon me," the girl explained, her voice devoid of emotion.

"But it's clear that you're hurting yourself in the process," Kira observed, genuine concern etched on her face.

Despite Kira's pleas, the girl persisted, driven by a mysterious duty to face the pain head-on. Kira, having no intention of fighting after witnessing the girl's torment,but she also realized that the mysterious "Motherwitch" she mentions must be Morgana.

The girl, breathing heavily after the bone burst from her other hand, stood up and faced Kira with a threatening gaze.

"Now let me kill you so I can end this," the girl declared, her bione toward kira at the ready.

Rather than preparing for a confrontation, Kira turned around and began to limp away. "Wait, you don't have to do this!" she shouted as the girl slowly caught up to her.

"If she really cared about you, she won't let you do this to yourself," Kira insisted, hoping to reach the girl's conflicted heart.

Kira, driven by an inexplicable urge to help the tormented girl, continued to speak out, trying to break through the dark veil that shrouded her. The girl suddenly stopped in her tracks with surprise on her face as Kira's words, caused her to contemplate something before resuming her pursuit toward Kira.

"Being surrounded by fear as all I feel is pain," the girl admitted a hint of sadness in her voice. But as her words shifted to anger, she fiercely defended Morgana known as Mother Witch. "And don't you talk bad about Mother Witch!"

While limping away, Kira accidentally kicked the ground, stumbling in the process. The girl deciding to seize the opportunity, sprinted forward, launching herself toward Kira. In a moment of shock, Kira turned to face her, realizing the perilous situation she had inadvertently placed herself in as inside her eye was the girl in the air and coming straight at her.

'There I go again, helping others I don't know. First it was Twinkle, now her. But now I'm about to die because of it, ' Kira thought, a sense of impending danger settling in.

Somehow Kira always felt drawn to helping others, and she felt an inexplicable need to aid this girl. The girl crashed heavily into Kira's stomach, knocking the wind out of her. With bone aimed at Kira's eye.

"Goodbye, because of what you said about Mother Withc, I will make your death extremely painful," the girl declared, anger etched on her face.

In a moment of desperation, Kira closed her eyes and spoke from the depths of her heart. "You are not defined by the darkness that Morgana has twisted around you. I know you understand what I mean. There's a resilience in your spirit as you want to break free of her hold on you."

"And I know the weight of choices, the burden of facing one's own demons that I know very good. It's never too late to rediscover your true self, and so will I," Kira continued, her words carrying a composed and empathic tone. Her plea hung in the air, a call for the girl to reclaim agency over her life, urging her not to let Morgana keep her under control. 

After a couple seconds Kira's realization that she felt no harm left her questioning her own existence. 'Am I dead? What's going on?' she wondered, peering through her eyes. The bone, poised dangerously close to her eyes, revealed tears streaming down Alexei's face.

"I'm sorry," Alexei apologized in panic, swiftly retracting the bone and retreating to a corner, huddled up like a ball. Taking deep breaths, she seemed to find relief.

'I guess somehow my words work on her,' Kira thought, recalling the words she spoke on instinct. Though she was sure some of those words she learned from Mentor Kage, she approached the crying girl, still limping from her injuries.

Extending her hand to the trembling Alexei, Kira asked, "Are you okay?" The girl continued shaking, repeatedly saying sorry under her breath. Kira decided to sit beside her, aiming to calm her down and learn more about her and Motherwitch.

"As you can see, I'm fine, aside from a few scratches and one of your femur in my damn leg," Kira said jokingly, trying to lighten the mood.

"I'm sorry," Alexei repeated, her apology taking on a more sincere tone.

Kira, was surprised by the response as she didn't expect the girl to take her joke seriously but it seemed like she didn't know what joke or her joke was just terrible, so she decided to question her further. "No, I'm... Can you tell me your name?" 

"Im... A-Alexei," the girl stammered.

"Well, Alexei, I'm Kira. Can we be friends?" Kira proposed, attempting to establish a connection.

"Friends?" Alexei hesitated, but she nodded but under her ducking head Kira noticed that her face had a slight smile, indicating to her a breakthrough.

"Can you tell me why you're down here?" Kira inquired, seeking answers about Motherwitch.

"Motherwitch left me down here, saying there will be unlimited treats," Alexei replied.

'Treats... is she a humanoid creature?' Kira pondered.

Kira suspected that Alexei might be a humanoid creature, but she quickly dismissed the idea, realizing that typical humanoids retained some features of their human origins, but Alexei didn't as far as she could see.

"Can you tell me about Motherwitch or Morgana?" Kira inquired.

Alexei trembled slightly before responding, "The only thing I know is from when we traveled together. She said she came from a bloodline of witches of corruption. She has curses and forbidden rituals."

As Alexei spoke, Kira realized that the Nexus students were under Morgana's corruption control. George, in particular, seemed easily swayed by her charm and corrupted influence, leading the rest of the Nexus students to become lifeless participants in her dark rituals.

"But why was she doing rituals on them when she can corrupt people into doing things for her?" Kira questioned.

"She has a mysterious disease called Soulbane Corruption that stops her from absorbing a lot of Nexus energy," Alexei explained.

As Alexei raised her head, appearing more comfortable talking to Kira, the realization dawned on Kira that Morgana's condition might have been beyond the help of Nexus Academy, but also without being able to absorb nexus energy you won't be able to evolve as a nexarc.

"But at the Nexus Academy, they could have helped her with whatever disease she has," Kira suggested.

"Mother Witch has been alive for over 50 years, and she's stubborn so she won't ask for help. Still, she knows that each sacrificial ritual leaves an indelible mark on her soul, darkening it further. Additionally, the diseases within her body worsen with each forbidden act, threatening to consume her from the inside," Alexei revealed.

In the recesses of Alexei's mind, fragments of a distant past flickered like elusive shadows. Memories of laughter, sunlight, and a time before Motherwitch's influence cast its suffocating veil.

Kira, driven by a desire to help Alexei and intrigued by the unfolding story, declared, "Now, How about we get out of here, I still want to get to know you better."

Pushing herself to get up, Kira noticed her leg bleeding more than before. Despite her determination to get up, the heavy movements from the skull knight fight, dragging and Alexei chasing her it worsen her injuries.

"I can't leave, but you can," Alexei said.

Still trying to get up as she became dizzy Kira responded, "What do you mean? There's so much better thing for you to see outside than in here—" Before she could finish her sentence, Kira slowly passed out.

"Kira! What's wrong? Are you okay?" Alexei exclaimed in panic, looking at her with a worried expression. That was the last thing Kira heard and saw before slipping into unconsciousness, knowing that Alexei might be conflicted but cared about her well-being.