With Freedom Comes Blood

"Yeah. Short time no see, Jai."

A forced smile tugged at my lips, looking down at the feisty pink-haired girl in my arms.

The resolute spark of life her orange eyes typically held was now pale grey and scared. The former person she was in the forest had vanished as she slipped further and further from life within my grasp.

BANG...SHHK!

I sliced the photon bullet in half intended for Jai. Our relationship up until now wasn't the greatest, but I found myself facing her attackers with unkempt fury and complete disregard for their lives.

"You're all...Jai's crewwomen. What the hell is wrong with you all. Just look at the state she's in. I know you guys disliked her, but this goes well beyond that!"

"Are we out of line somehow?" The lady I'd blown back regained her composure, standing to her domineering height of seven feet. "Are you willingly siding with that enslaver, Leifa?"

"Darh." The older woman's red wine eyes shone through the messy bangs of her brown hair, softening wickedly when I called her name.

"You led the group as acting captain when Jai looked for master Reis. You're the eldest out of everyone present at age twenty-three. Would you be keen on talking everyone down?"

"Give me a reason, and I'll consider it. Truthfully, you should be aligning yourselves with us. ...Say Leifa, what were those two days like being caged and watched for sport- hell wasn't it?"

Vastly different from the caring big sister attitude she talked with aboard the ship, every word that escaped was cunning and psychotic. Darh advanced like a mad dog as if any reason she previously had had thoroughly reached its limit, overtaken by an anxious bloodlust.

I glanced at Jai without taking my eyes off the women closing in. The paleness in her skin had increased drastically in the two minutes since Thalia and I arrived.

She drastically needs medical attention. Retreating while carrying Jai and Thalia will pose problems...on the other hand, they have yet to notice Yis. Perhaps... with my magic and his shadows, I can have him teleport Jai to Xiala. In that case...

"My two days there were frustrating. It made me feel less than human; in any case, your scars seem to run deeper than mine. The anger you're portraying says it all."

"Heh...thirteen years worth." Darh stopped, lowering her gun, reminiscing. "In actuality, I was captured when I was seven. We all were. Us here, plus the three who died, the fourteen of us came into Takata's possession after being traded when we were ten. Killing monsters for their enjoyment, locked in cages, physical abuse, mental torture-we were treated the same as you guys and harsher for seven years until finally being bought by Jai upon turning seventeen."

"A miserable six years we've been under her thumb. Someone around our age, buying us like cattle then acting as if she was our guardian savior, every moment was a slap in the face! But with Tak gone...this nightmare can finally be over, nearly two decades later, and we'll finally be able to rejoice in obtaining our freedom! Surely you understand our feelings, Leifa?"

Yis was only up to Jai's right ankle, and yet thankfully, her condition had already delayed worsening. Counting down in my mind, I sneakily put my plan into motion.

"I understand completely. The continuous years Tak and his people abused you combined with the three years prior, your anger and desire for freedom are warranted..."

"Of course," Darh said, shrugging her shoulders confidently.

"...However, it is blatantly misplaced."

"Oh-" Darh and her companions averted their eyes to the floor for a brief period, glaring back with flagrant anger when they rose. "And what are you saying, Leifa?"

"The truth is that you're blindly forcing your contempt upon the wrong person. You know as well as I Tak is the actual scumbag you and your friends are angry with Darh. Takata and the person previously were subjecting you guys to constant torture; however, Jai. It was clear she cared about you all."

"When Resa and I were escorted onto the cruiser, we passed several rooms before reaching the ship's foremast. Thirty in total, but half were bedrooms, precisely enough for her, you each, and the other three deceased. Their interiors varied in decorations and colors, but they each had state of the art technology and high-class furniture and beds most others wouldn't be able to afford in numerous lifetimes."

"I'm not confident what Jai thinks about all of you. At any rate, I can guarantee that most torturers wouldn't bother flooding their victims in grand luxury. ...Her gestures don't completely excuse that she bought you like cattle but at the end of it all. She was the one who took you away from that hell. Thinking deeply, I finally understand why master Reis decided to trust her. Freedom at the cost of dignity, tell me, which one is most important to you, Darh?"

"......Freedom at the cost of dignity? ...Why should a person have to give up either?!"

This might come down to a fight, after all.

One overzealous bellow and Darh began radiating something supernatural. The remaining remnants of Jai's crew followed suit, emanating great murderous intent as black auras enshrouded them.

"You don't understand our feelings at all. Saved us; she did it to save herself! Final warning Leifa, hand that breathing corpse over."

Their guns charged in sync, humming softly with clear means to fire. I wandered between Jai in my arm and the girls ahead of me. Two groups suffering endlessly, with only one whose would end based on my decision.

I sighed. "Sorry, but I can't do that."

Jai's body vanished on cue. Swallowed and kept safe inside Yis, who arrived at her head at long last.

"Y-You... You."

The group's faces went from appalling confusion to angry banshee as agonizing screaming engulfed the building.

"You bitch...!"

Normal, plasma, corrosion. All kinds of bullets zoomed in to attack us. The invisible wall I created took a surmountable beating facing down the magic, the elements meeting in tandem.

The barrier dissolved, and in front of me stood ten people. Dazzling light shining through the broken window started dancing, moving left and right across the floor wildly like a beast.

Behind, bounding off the walls.

Reading the surprise attack, I turn around, meeting blades with one of the skinnier crew members. Her twin daggers sliding in the struggle against my halberd while Thalia stood behind me, looking frantic.

There's too much noise happening here. She's having difficulty pinpointing the safest place to stand with all the danger.

"Eye for an eye, Leifa. Since you took something important from us, expect the same kindness in return!"

Another crazed member ran up, positioning behind Thalia with a cutlass. It took a second to register. The blade aimed for her neck clashed with the barrier I formed hastily, breaking upon impact.

A terrifying shriek pierced the air as mist filled the entryway. Blood showered profusely like rain amongst celebratory cheering, gradually silencing itself once everything was revealed.

"I feel sorry for you people, but...you've made a grave underestimation."

I cut through the cutlass girl's neck on the tip of my weapon, beheading her reflexively. Behind me, twin daggers soaked in a pool of red, the only remains of their wielder. In all but an instant, I'd killed the two attackers reducing their numbers to nine.

Power I hadn't felt for years coursed through me. The veins in my body rippled with electricity. Roaring winds stormed around me and Thalia, who I shielded protectively, my eyes glinting a killer blue glow.

"Talking isn't enough to comfort your souls. All you guys seek is blood. You girls...are bringing forth a side of me I sealed away eight years ago."

"You said you've fought beasts before, tell me, how keen are you on fighting this one?"