Episode 3 (part 1): I’m lazy?

The warm light that erupts on the pile of bodies enhances my somber mood. The murky green fog is miles behind me but I can still hear the shepherd's call and the curdling screeches of the ghouls. In the middle of this little village of small makeshift shacks made from rubble discarded by the peak infrastructure, the people who had made the village a lively home were burning. My world has been shattered once again. 

After my mothers death, the people of the shore, Tito, Tia, as well as Dior, have been the only thing that kept me going. I am still a failure. Eight years of growing insurmountably powerful and I'm still unable to protect anyone but myself. 

I want to invoke pain on that wretched peakie Zara, but the venom in my bite has been nullified. What is the point of all of this? What purpose does my goal of reaching my father through destroying the peak elites have if I can't protect anyone from a single diver?

Tito is still up there struggling to hold balance. I dash up there in a split second, struggling to hold in my grief of the burning corpses as I pass them and Zara by. Luckily he is unscathed. Ripping apart his bondages, I leave on the blindfold. He shouldn't have to bear the sight. I'm sure he could hear the searing flesh and the moans of tortured souls. 

Wait a second… That's odd. I don't hear anything from the pile of burning corpses. I turn to Zara and half heartedly strike her cheek with my fist. It phases through. An illusory blessing? This entire time, this girl had been fooling me with this bull shit?

I wipe away the tears from under my mask. Can't believe she broke my heart with a simple illusion trick. Wait a minute… but Tito was real. I just saved him from up there so she must have really tied him up there and wanted me to save him. Uh oh… she's right behind me isn't she?

Six rapid rounds erupt behind me and pelts of excruciating pain sting my back. I turn to see Tito holding the smoking barrel with a shaky hand. Frantically patting myself to check for blood or penetration, I panic at the thought of being betrayed by Tito. The bullets completely peeled off my outer coating of protective clay, but my skin seems to have not been broken through, although severely bruised.

Tito's eyes have a maddening glint to them, something has taken over his senses, his sight is betraying him. He no longer looks to me like his warrior older brother, he thinks I'm her. Zara must have planted an image of myself as her, tormenting the coastal people just as I had just witnessed. 

Titus: Tito, put that sword down, it's me. She's using an illusory blessing, snap out of it.

Tito doesn't move. My mothers xiphos that I had gifted to him is glowing green and violently vibrating from the aura he is channeling through the enchantment. A normal strike from the short sword shouldn't be able to pierce my skin, but with his blessing of luck, I was weary of the possibility.

I'm still faster than him though, so If I couldn't convince him of what was really happening, I needed to run and find Zara to stop the illusion. I turn to dash out of Tito's sight but as soon as I do, I hear the sound of a blade gliding through air.

He threw it? He's never thrown knives before, and besides this is a short sword. It isn't arrow dynamic at all. What are the chances it hits me? Damn it. The odds are always in his favor. I duck and roll in an attempt to dodge the aerial attack but the searing pain of an enchanted blade embedding itself into my left shoulder erupts.

Oh gods. Oh hell. That hurts so damn much. I've been blessed with this overpowered body so I haven't had to feel pain much in my life. Warm blood drips down my back as I grab the hilt of the sword. I need to pull this out and run. Find that damn girl and kill her before Tito kills me.

Who knew that this little guy would be so menacing? Just good luck on his side. If my objective was to kill him I should be able to win, but trying to avoid him while defeating a cunning diver was a very daunting task. I slowly pull the blade out with an embarrassing whimper and look back to check how much distance I have between Tito and I.

The silhouette of a tall slender woman wearing a menacing diver mask loomed over Tito's figure. They were a few paces behind me but the pain in my shoulder is too overwhelming for me to get ahold of myself to run.

Wait, I don't need to run, she's right there. I need to get up and kill her before Tito does something stupid. Hold up, is that even her, or is she just trying to get me closer to Tito so he can harm me again? Damnation, fighting illusory vessels is such a pain. I'm stumped, I don't know what to do. Fear starts creeping into my heart. 

Zara: Behind you.

Her voice is in my ear. I'm startled but I don't show it. I don't move. She can't fake sounds, so she is definitely behind me, and close enough to speak directly into my ear. If I turn around and grab her I may be able to kill her but then I would be taking my eyes off of Tito. He is the only true threat here, she can't harm me. 

Gentle soft hands rub my shoulder where the wound is. She is smearing the blood all over and it stings each time she brushes past my wound. What kind of shit is she playing here? Two of her fingers slip into my cut and spread apart to force the wound to stretch out. Another embarrassing whimper escapes my mouth and I hear her mocking giggles close to my ear. 

That's it, fuck worrying about Tito, she's getting on my nerves. I need to end this now. I turn to face Zara with my hands ready to rip open her throat, but am met with a pair of the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen. I get lost in them again. Her lips are inches from mine and I can feel her breath on my cheek. What in the actual hell is wrong with me? Stay focused, I must stay focused! I snap out of it and grab her by the throat. It doesn't phase through this time. Her long soft neck is tangible, all I need to do is squeeze and she's gone; just like the other bodies I've demolished. 

A loud click and the muzzle of the barrel can be felt on the back of my head. It's Tito. She has me where she wants me.