Chapter 55: Family Ties

  Under the blaze of burning fire, a woman stood atop a pile of corpses, holding a man by the neck. Both of them looked to be in a sorry state, blood dripping down their tattered exosuits.

  "You disappoint me, Alexandra…" his face was cold, unmoving, expressionless. "To think you would turn to bite the hand that fed you." As much as he looked defenseless, she looked tired. "Is this really what you should be saying in this situation, uncle?" She definitely wasn't in her best shape, her voice was shaking. She'd been getting in such a state a lot recently. It slightly reminded him of himself. He didn't know whether it was good or bad that he was rubbing off on her.

  It hadn't been hard finding her, she was still in the same spot he had left her, but when he was about to interfere, he was reminded of what she'd told him "...this is my fight." So all he did was watch through gritted teeth, but when he heard his last words, his eyes grew wide. "There is nothing more to say."

  Sasha was probably too weak to notice. Space was wrapping itself around her, binding her down. What was that bitch doing? This was her domain… Arissa. Sasha's eyes turned to shock as her opponent began to glow. "Project Rebirth has always been a tool no matter who uses it, and so are you. And when no longer useful, tools must be discarded."

  Slava closed his fist as if shattering something invisible. The world around him slowed to a crawl, and he let his feet do the rest. Rushing through the corpses, his eyes didn't leave Sasha. He knew that weapon was cursed, he should've broken its fucking shaft when he had the chance.

  Only when Sasha was safely within his grasp did he take the time to look back toward the man she'd called: uncle. Their eyes met and for the first time, the man's expression shifted. His eyes widened and the corners of his lips rose. "So you're the one…" before he could finish his words, his glow intensified, and his body quickly expanded, just for it to collapse on itself in the next moment.

  With Sasha finally lowering her arm, exhausted, he took a knee, making her lean against some debris. "Now give it to me," he said, coldly. She weakly looked up and when their gazes crossed, she averted her gaze, weakly shaking her head. "I can't," she simply said, biting her lip. "I'm not fucking playing around, Sasha. I said; give it to me, now!" He was mad. This wasn't only her mistake, but also his oversight. And he surely wouldn't make the same mistake twice.

  "It wasn't her fault…" she coughed up blood, unable to finish her sentence. Slava had enough of her bullshit. "Look at yourself, for fuck's sake. You look like an addict. It's just a fucking weapon, you gotta learn to live without it. It's not the source of your power or your mother, your mother's dea…" his words were cut off by the sound of her palm striking his cheek. She hadn't put much force into it, it didn't hurt, but he knew he'd hit the nail on the head. She looked at him with teary cold eyes as he stood back up. "Think what you will, but that thing will lead you to your grave." Glancing at her one last time, he turned around.

  "And what are you doing there?" He locked eyes with Mag piquing around a corner. As soon as she saw him, she stepped out. "The surroundings seemed to have settled down, so I decided to scout it out," she hesitatingly said. He scrutinized her body, before staring down at his opened palm. It began to shine, the chain on it materializing. "Crow," he suddenly called out. To his words, a mist appeared in front of him, slowly forming into Crow's kneeling figure.

  "You called? My lord." Slava pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing. Hearing no response, Crow sneakily looked up with one eye. Seeing his expression, he smirked. "I finished the assignment you assigned me with." He closed his eye. "They are inside the Basilica. The structure remains unstable after the owner's death, so I stayed to monitor the situation." Slava frowned, grabbing his chin. "Why did you not stop them from leaving?" Crow instantly answered as if he'd expected the question. "My lord, it was not part of the assignment. After the domain restriction vanished, some fought and left. Albeit, I kept those I thought you care for the most, safe." He weirdly smiled. "What are you planning to do next, my lord?" Hearing the question, Slava sighed once more. He stayed silent, his chains shooting out behind him, past a stunned Sasha. No one had noticed the two figures on their way to them. They were too focussed on the awkward situation in front of them. The current most powerful individual was kneeling before Slava, calling him 'lord'. As the two crashing figures reached the floor, his chains wrapped around them.

  "C, you fucking idiot!" One of them said, her winged body drenched in blood. She moved her hand to her face to remove the blood from her eyes. "I can't keep protecting you, get a hold of yourself!" True to her word, the other one seemed to be overcome with a blinding rage. "Shut up, shut up. Shut up! I'll make you pay! Where is he? Tell me, Blood Queen! Where is he?" He didn't even take the time to look around him. He stared in the distance with his turquoise glowing eyes, his voice booming through their surroundings. There were no injuries on their bodies, but the blood indicated otherwise.

  "What the fuck?" Angel's appearance was unstable, constantly changing, her skin shifting, changing color. She calmly looked around as her partner was aimlessly flailing his limbs and domain around. "Crow, what are you doing? This isn't…" stopping herself mid-sentence, she looked towards the horizon. "Alright, enough jokes, put me down, kid, they're coming." Ignoring her, Slava's gaze lingered on Crow.

  "Get them out of here," squinting his eyes, he moved one of his chains, forcing his head up, leading their gazes to lock, "not a word until I get back." His eyes briefly shook, but he soon smiled. Slava had no choice, but to give this guy what he wanted if he wanted him to follow his will. He knew Sasha would want to save everyone. If he wanted to keep her safe, he had no choice but to do it himself.

  Cold dark mist rose from everyone's shadows wrapping around them, and that's when he moved closer to Sasha, putting his hand on her shoulder, moving to whisper in her ear. "Use the feather, find them a new home. This is what you wanted, isn't it?" Her expression turned from shock to anger. "Don't worry, I've got a plan." Her shoulders slumped in relief, but the truth was; he didn't have one. "I'll explain everything once I come back." Stroking a streak of hair away from her face, he touched his forehead to hers, closing his eyes. Feeling a cold wet hand touch his cheek, he opened them back up. "Don't leave me alone… You promised." Her eyes were teary as she let go of his face, the shadow completely overtaking her. Slava slowly stood back up walking towards the approaching figure, his now bloodied face gradually getting engulfed by his suit, the coldness seeping into his veins.

  "Blood Queen!" Ceator was still struggling to break free from Crow's grasp. "Crow, let me go! I'll help the kid," she said, attempting to break free from the dark tendrils creeping up her body. "No, in your current state, you'll only get in my lord's way." Hearing his words, Angel simply stared at him speechless. "Has he already come this far?" She managed to whisper as her body was completely overtaken.

  "I told you to stop calling me… argh, never mind." To his words, the familiar mysterious smile crept onto Crow's face, before he finally also dispersed into mist. "Now, shouldn't we get to business?" He asked rhetorically, stretching his arms in front of him.