Asylum

Pushed to the Edge

Typically, I can make peace with my mistakes and the wrongdoings of others, so drawing from negativity has never been a niche of mine. Today is different, however. I can't seem to focus on anything positive. Because of my irresponsible behavior, I trusted Xavier and he led me right into a trap, which then put all my friends in danger. The darkness comes easily to me. Too easily.

Reaper sprints to me, eager and full of spite. She's tasted a bloody victory against Ren already, and she's rocking a high right now. Reaper alone is terrifying, but a reinvigorated Reaper is absolute nightmare materials. As she runs, arms pumping at her sides, a few blood drops from her daggers fling on the floor, like this is some disgusting slaughterhouse.

I'm scared when I raise my hands. My fear runs deeper when I freeze her on the spot. It's clear that the Reaper is trying to budge her body. I can feel all the nerves and cells in her body trying to fight me, but they can't. The only thing Reaper has control of, that I've allowed her to maintain, are her senses and face. "How?" she asks, voice shaking with rage. "You aren't connecting to my strings but this is still possible. How?"

Slowly, I draw in my breath, reminding myself that as long as I only keep someone still, I won't get a marking. And if I don't do anything too drastic, I will be fine. "Have you ever taken a science class? In your entire life? Even fifth grade science class?"

Reaper glares and grimaces, and I swear a bit of Ren's fire has locked itself inside her dark irises. "I'm smarter than all you filthy mutts put together."

Leo speaks up next. "Ah, that must be why you're frozen with no way out...got it."

Pinned to the wall, slowly working the knife out from his shoulder, Ren hisses, "Not now, Leo."

I continue my train of thought. "Then you'll recall that up to sixty percent of the human body is composed of water. A lot of it is in your lungs..." I squeeze one of my hands a bit, flooding her lungs and making it harder to breathe. She starts to choke, and as her eyes water in strain, I remove the water and straighten my hand. "Some of it is in your brain..." I flex my other hand, curling it into a ball and releasing, giving her a pulsing headache. Reaper shuts her eyes, trying to block out the light like this is a normal headache. But the cause of this is internal. There's no shutting it out. Once I straighten my hand out, her pain subsides. "And of course, a lot of it runs through the body."

I make sure to practice restraint in my force as I force Reaper to move. I feel the water coursing through her veins, flushing through her tissues, and filtering in and out of her cells. I manipulate them so she takes tentative steps towards Ren. Once she's within reach of him, I force her arm to rise. I'm startled with the amount of resistance I face when I do this. Reaper's adrenaline is giving her extra strength, which means I must be more forceful and deliberate in my actions if I want to retain control of her. But if I go overboard, like I did with my parents, then I could do something regrettable.

End her now while you have the upper hand, a voice in the back of my mind urges. While my natural instinct is to ignore it, I can't help but take it into consideration this time around. Reaper's mission is to bring us back to her agency or Asylum, but it's evident that they don't care if we're dead or alive. It's also evident that Reaper is after our blood. Particularly after this encounter. Maybe it really is better if I fix our problem now. This way, she can never hurt my friends again...

This isn't me, I remind myself. Killing people isn't what I do, even if they're bloodthirsty monsters like the Reaper.

Taking a slow breath, I guide her arm to her dagger, where I force her fingers to contract, allowing her to grasp the blade's hilt. Gently, I manipulate her shoulder backwards, centimeter by centimeter as the blade exits Ren's body. The process pains him, as he uncomfortably groans and gasps, but I can't do this quickly. I don't want to make a wrong move - twitch the wrong nerve or nudge an incorrect tissue – and ruin Ren's shoulder more than it already is.