Fighting Blind [Published]

Chapter 11: Kei Valancia

"Kei," he spoke cautiously as if not wanting to spook a frightened animal, "I think it's best you go blow off some steam." I quirked an eyebrow and scoffed.

"I don't think me taking a run will change this situation."

"Sweet Goddess, Kei. Will you just listen to me for once?" I glared at him.

"I will only listen if I think it's best. Right now, me leaving this thing alone is the worst possible outcome." The woman inched her way behind Ryker, and I would bet my life that she had an evil smirk.

"I-I'm sorry for whatever I did wrong," her voice was timid but I heard an underlying sound of giddiness underneath her stutter.

Oh, let me rip her to shreds, Rei growled.

Chill. This woman has been here a lot longer than us, therefore she has a butt ton more of influence than we do, and she knows it too. By the end of this, she'll probably have me in a chokehold.

"Look lady. You can't hide that energy from me."

"I don't know what you're talking about," she instantly replied. Suddenly, the dark green tint in her aura caught my eye, an idea dawning on me and I had the strong urge to facepalm.

"Oh, I bet you do. Have you ever heard of the name Draven?" She jolted, as if I had shocked her.

"No." Her voice came out sharp and I smirked.

"Oh but your reaction tells me that you do," I smiled slowly. "And the state that your aura is in, you've been hanging out with him for quite some time haven't you?" She was silent but that answered my question. However, I knew he was not involved with the bigger problem. I knew Draven and he was just not an evil man.
His Casanova ways on the other hand seem to reach quite a ways from what I could tell.

He has got to stop with his playboy ways or else he's going to get himself in trouble, I groaned to myself. So now the question left unanswered would be what in the world happened to her? Whatever it is, these people had a rat and I'm more than happy to exterminate it.

"Kei, explain what in Goddess's name is going on." Ryker was beginning to sound livid at this point.

"Hmm. Let's just say that I've found the reason to how these men were captured." I walked over with slow, deliberate steps, a smile growing as I noticed her increasing unease.

"And what would that be?" I shot Ryker a sideways glance before putting my attention fully on the woman before me.

"You're standing right next to her," I said. The room was silent, the woman's ragged breathing the only sound.

"And what's the evidence," he rumbled. I cocked my head.

"The evidence is her horrible color. I mean, jeez woman. What in the name of everything that is holy happened to you? Did Draven make you do some freaky stuff under the sheets? Wait, don't answer that. I do not want the details." I shivered with disgust. "The question is, why?" She was silent. But then something happened. And that something would be me being slammed against the wall with a hand wrapped around my throat.

"Totally called it," I choked out and smiled crookedly.

"Kei!" I tilted my head and noticed with slight confusion that Ryker's body and power seemed muted but then it dawned on me.

"You have some freaky magic shield thing going on." Her laugh was sounded almost like a dying deer but underwater. It was quite the laugh.

"To be honest, I didn't believe Draven when he kept going on and on about your powers. But I guess he was right after all." Her voice was a sneer, the colors around her were all mashed up into a dark ugly mess, showing how unstable she actually was.