Her Power

"Hello, Mordred."

Kay greeted me as I entered the interrogation room, wiping blood off his hands with a towel.

He tossed it onto a table, where unused torture instruments lay pristine and untouched.

"Looks like you didn't use them.", I remarked, acknowledging him with a nod.

"He fessed up after a few blows to the nose.", Kay indicated the bound Deathwalker in the chair.

Even without the use of torture instruments on him, Jeko Hess was a bloody mess.

Well, getting the shit beaten out of him by an angry Knight of the Round would've been far more painful than any torture instrument.

"A few blows? Right.", I raised an eyebrow at Kay.

He shrugged, "I got a bit carried away. I was supposed to keep him intact for you. But..."

Clenching his fist, he stated, "Iris is my daughter. Be thankful that he is in one piece."

"Well. I wasn't complaining. He looks far more handsome than before.", I acknowledged, moving closer to the unconscious Jeko Hess, and examining his battered and bloody face.

"Blood looks quite good on him.", I remarked dryly, turning back to Kay.

"What did he squeal out?", I asked, meeting Kay's gaze with my own.

"Like we thought. It was her brothers.", Kay confirmed.

"Quite the ambitious assassination plot.", Artemis remarked, picking up a scalpel.

"Collect a hundred of the deadliest wraiths in a trapper, juice them up with a resistance to Purity flames, send a disposable servant with the canister, and blow the thing up in the bastard child's face."

"House Karsus is quite meticulous.", she said, planting the scalpel in Jeko's thigh.

He jerked awake and screamed out in agony.

"Oh shut up.", Artemis muttered and knocked him out cold with a smack to the head.

We stared at her, "That was quite the summarization.", Kay said, looking quite impressed.

Turning to me, he added, "She'll make a good captain."

"I shrugged, "Why do you think Iris and I keep her around?"

Artemis frowned, "I assumed you two wanted me nearby to either provoke one another or to act as a mediator during your disagreements."

"Yeah. That too.", I pointed out, glancing back at Jeko Hess, struggling to contain my growing fury.

"So. What will happen now?", I asked Kay.

He donned his jacket and adjusted his sleeve pensively, "I'll be drafting a report to His Majesty.", he replied.

Glancing at Jeko Hess, he continued, "The Karsus brothers and their accomplice endangered the Shield and the lives of the Deathwalkers, the very things that protect the world from the daemons."

"Not only that.", he added with a grave tone, "they put the lives of the High Queen and two High Princes at risk. Such offenses typically warrant execution."

I blinked, "I'm sorry? Two High Princes?", I echoed incredulously.

Kay sighed, "Mordred. You were sentenced to the Shield, not stripped of your title. You're still a High Prince."

"Ah. Well, that's reassuring.", I muttered with a tinge of sarcasm.

I then looked at Jeko Hess, "Execution, huh?"

Kay nodded, "Indeed. Immediate execution is warranted."

"Permission to carry that out, Commander?", I requested, keeping my eyes fixed on the man who had attempted to kill Iris.

After a pause, he responded, "Permission granted."

Kay made his way to the door of the room and glanced back at me, "Make it painful.", he instructed before exiting.

Artemis watched his retreating figure vanish down the corridor.

As he left, Artemis observed his departure, her expression unreadable.

"I guess we didn't hear that from him?", she questioned, turning to me.

"Indeed.", I nodded, "He never said that to us."

I leaned forward toward Jeko, "Let's wake him up, shall we?"

Artemis nodded and picked up another scalpel. Her eyes glowed as she activated Aeris and imbued wind energy into the edge of the short blade.

"This ought to be a good wake-up call.", she remarked with a chilling smile, before driving the scalpel into Jeko's thigh, dangerously close to his groin.

Jeko snapped awake with a bloodcurdling scream, immediately silenced by my hand clamping over his mouth.

"Wakey wakey, Mr. Hess.", I greeted with false sweetness, meeting his panicked gaze.

"Iris asked me to take care of you.", I informed him with a shrug, "And I cannot ignore what my beloved asked me to do."

"Also.", I added casually, "the Commander asked for your execution, so I am doing that as well."

I winced, "But there is one teeny weeny problem. You see, I'm quite angry at you for severely injuring Iris. It's a funny rage, something that my friend and I are sharing."

I regarded him coldly and my smile faded, "So your death won't be a pretty one."

Blood swirled around me, and my blood tentacles unfurled behind me, their razor-sharp crystallized tips quivering over him.

Artemis's eyes glowed as she retrieved her yoyo, stretching its thin black thread.

Releasing my hand from his mouth, I smiled once more

"There. Now you can scream."

*******

"You are quite the monster."

Artemis remarked as we walked toward Althea, wiping the remaining blood off her face.

"Gee. I wonder what gave it away?", I asked, not bothering to wipe the blood on my hands and letting it drip onto the corridor floor.

Artemis gave me an impressed look, "You gave him the very same injuries that were inflicted on the Captain."

"It was an experiment.", I replied, "I wanted to see if he would survive with those injuries or if Iris was just special."

"Well. You could survive having half your face ripped off by an angry High Prince but a gaping hole ripped through your torso? I doubt that is ideal for living.", she pointed out.

"I think the shock from the face tearing is what killed him.", I mused.

"Since when did you become a doctor?", she asked.

I smiled, "Since I realized that Gawain won't always be there to heal me.", I said with a small smile.

Artemis smiled back, "You seem to be in a good mood after brutally killing Jeko Hess."

"I'll feel better when Iris jumps out of the room, ready to assault me.", I replied.

But those words sounded hollow to me. There is no way she would be fine after what she experienced.

And so my smile faded as we entered Althea and saw Dr. Haytham standing with Guinevere, Gawain, Kay, and the rest of the Lunatics outside Iris's room.

"Mordred!", Guinevere called out, looking alarmed seeing the blood on my arms.

She walked over and examined my hands, "What happened?" she asked, her worry evident in her voice.

I gave her a strained smile, "I'm fine, Mother. The blood isn't mine."

She sighed in relief, "Ah. I was worried that man might've lashed out against you."

Kay snorted, "He is not that weak, Your Majesty. He just likes the feeling of blood on himself."

"That's even more concerning.", Guinevere retorted and sighed, "What has the Shield down to you?"

I chuckled, "I told you, Mother. I am fine. Dr. Haytham is waiting for me."

"Ah, yes. Casper was just starting to tell us. You arrived just in time.", Guinevere informed me and we walked toward the small crowd.

"How is she, Doc?", I asked, fearing the worst.

Dr. Haytham's expression was inscrutable as he glanced at each of us before speaking.

"Her condition has stabilized. We healed all the major wounds and are now letting her body heal itself. The wraiths caused the wounds on her face.

"Fortunately, they did not leave scars. So, she will remain as a beauty queen."

Kay narrowed his eyes, "So you're saying..."

"She's physically fine. I believe it will take a week for her to wake up, knowing the effects of her stigma.", Doc affirmed.

"You said physical.", I asked, my concern growing with each passing moment, "What did you mean by that?"

Dr. Haytham's gaze sharpened as he regarded me.

"You immediately caught on," he remarked, his tone grave. "She's physically fine. Mentally, I'm afraid things are more complicated."

The sick feeling returned and I swallowed hard, "Define complicated."

"We have detected some abnormal brain activity, particularly in the hippocampus, the part of the brain associated with memories," Dr. Haytham explained, his expression somber.

Kay frowned, "Memories. How are her memories connected to her present condition?"

A chill ran down my spine as realization dawned on me. "Her stigma," I interjected.

Everyone looked at me in confusion. Except Dr. Haytham who nodded.

"Looks like you figured it out."

"I had my suspicions," I admitted, my unease growing with each passing moment.

Confusion clouded Kay's features as he turned to me. "What are you talking about?" he asked, echoing the sentiments of the others gathered around us, their eyes fixed on Dr. Haytham and me.

Dr. Haytham sighed and turned to Kay, "I believe you know the conditions for Coup de grace?"

Kay nodded firmly. "Of course. Isn't that why you mentioned she'll wake up in a week?"

"Yes.", Dr. Haytham agreed, "But think about it: the ability to kill anything with a single, unerring strike. It's an extraordinarily broken ability, but one with a heavy price."

"Isn't she paying for it every time she uses her stigma?" Kay argued, "Isn't she cutting her life short until near death every time she uses her stigma?"

"Trading her life for that of her enemy's—isn't that sufficient?"

Dr. Haytham shook his head, his pink eyes filled with concern. "Unfortunately, it's not. She possesses the capability to vanquish gods and entities deemed unkillable."

"Her life is simply not enough. There is one more price, There's another cost, one more valuable than life itself to many."

Guinevere's expression shifted to one of realization. "Oh, Incarni. That's insidious."

She turned to Kay, "The stigma takes her memories."

Kay looked between her, Dr. Haytham, and me, "How can that be? Surely it would be evident if her memories were being taken."

"That's the insidious part, Commander.", I interjected, my voice tinged with anguish.

"Her stigma erases memories that she won't realize are missing, such as the abuse she endured at the Karsus Estate and the horrors of the battlefield."

"She never wanted to confront those memories, so their absence went unnoticed," I elaborated.

Ava chimed in, "Wouldn't that be a blessing, then? To be spared from recalling such horrors?"

Dr. Haytham nodded. "You're correct, Miss Baskerville. However, this time it's different."

"Only Purity Flames can truly vanquish wraiths, yet she annihilated every one of those fiends in that processing room," he pointed out, "Her stigma can only be employed once a week. How do you suppose she managed to dispatch them all?"

Kay's eyes widened in realization, "No way. She used her stigma multiple times?"

A shocked silence fell over us as we processed his words.

"That's not possible.", Carlo broke the silence.

"It is. For the right price.", Kay grumbled and stamped his foot in anger, releasing a shockwave of ardor.

"That foolish child!"

Dr. Haytham confirmed, "The reason she could use Coup de grâce once a week was to safeguard her sanity and prevent significant memory loss. It acted as a limiter."

His gaze turned grave, "But Iris exceeded those limits and paid the ultimate price for it."

"She removed the limiter and became Death Incarnate."

Just as those words left his lips, a powerful surge of ardor overwhelmed us. It lasted only a few seconds, but its intensity caused Apollo and Ava to fall to their knees.

Alarmed, we turned toward the room where Iris lay recovering.

"What was that?" Krystal asked, her voice an octave higher.

Kay and Guinevere exchanged incredulous glances, "No way. At a time like this?" Kay muttered.

Guinevere nodded grimly, "I'm afraid so."

"What is it, Mother?" I asked, feeling a sickening dread gnawing at me.

The High Queen regarded me with uncertainty.

"Mordred, Iris has just ascended to S rank."