Irene's wings flapped harshly as dust clouds your vision, your tendrils flexed, gathering enough strained force before releasing like a could spring and making you fly upwards and staying there for three seconds before spotting Irene and smirked as you drop to the ground with a ground shaking punch, dissipating all dust as you lunge towards Irene with your rapier rapidly materializing on your hand and swinging it at her side. Irene parries the attack with a loud 'clang!' As she blocks it with her spear, the impact of your weapon shaking your arm as you jump back, knowing well that Irene won't wait for you to recover an observation that she noticed while you were new to the form.
She grunts and hovered over the marsh green ground and points the spearhead towards your direction, you spin the blade, your body moving by what feels right and by instincts. Beads of sweat form on your forehead as you feel energy surged in your arm and heating up as you stay rooted to the ground and waited for her to be close enough for an attack. Your right arm that's holding your weapon began to rotate like a speeding drill as Irene attacks again, the impact of her slash gives your body tremors as your drilling sword hits the corner of her robe, slashing and ripping it to pieces with one strike.
Irene gasped and move away as you lunged again, your feet moving on their own will as you go behind her back, your right hand swiveling to the side as you slashed the blade on her side only to be thwarted by her once again, and she did that without turning back and by simply raising her arm to her back and parrying it. You were thrown off by your momentum, as you land harshly on the ground, you hear a wincing 'crack!'
Irene seemed to hear it too as she runs towards you, "Y/N! Are you alright?"
You let out a pained grunt, though you're aware that the crack was not from any one of your bones.
As the dust clears, Irene kneels next to your figure, "Baby-I am so sorry, are you hurt-" She stopped mid-sentence and gasped when she sees a golden crack on your face from your forehead traveling down to your right lower jaw, your hands shakily touch the cracked skin your body becoming numb and your blood seared hot, making you whimper and double back in pain.
Irene panicked as she immediately cradles you, your veins burning orange to red as you writhe in her arms. "Fuck!" You groan out loud, "It burns!"
"Where?!"
"Everywhere!" You say in a distorted voice, Irene then lets out a gasp. She looks at you, clearly conflicted and angry-no, she's furious. The older woman held you close as you begin to whimper, the pain dulling to a numb ache as Irene stares blankly at you, though her eyes held a concerned tone in them. Irene sighed in relief before loosening her grip around your upper body and set you on the ground gently.
"The girls aren't back." She whispered, making you prompt on your elbows and furrowed your brows. "What do you mean?"
She inhaled deeply and closed her eyes on cue black smoke oozes from her body as she sat on her calves. You kneeled beside her and winced as your body ached with every move, the empress growled.
"One of their mana's weak." You felt your heart drop and your insides turn. "W-what? Wea-weak what do you mean?"
She stands up, almost making you stagger back. Irene's face darkened as her golden spear materialized on her hand, "One of our children might be in danger." The smoke thickens, "You stay here."
Worry consumed you as you hastily stand up and reached out a hand to her, "Jo-Joohyun wait!" But she's already gone, you let out a groan as you pace back and forth. "What the hell is going on..." You mumbled before closing your eyes. "What the hell should I do..."
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Jiah's lips trembled in anxiety as she was surrounded by a sea of strangers, her hands clenched and relaxed as she continued to weave through the crowd. "Bae Jiwoo!" She calls out again, not caring whether or not people looked at her weirdly.
"If I find you, Woo, I will kill you and resurrect you myself." She growled underneath her breath, "And probably make you do my dish duties too."
She shook her head sideways and let her thoughts relax, find Jiwoo now, punish her later.
And-
She sensed heightened, every cell her in body suddenly started screaming in alert and panic. "What the fuck-" She looked up and her jaw slacked. Her legs started moving on their own, her speed was frightening as she felt like she had bumped on countless shoulders and inevitably spilling coffee in either one of them. Her eyes glowing red and zeroed on the figure falling from a great height, people can't seem to see her, or maybe she thought they didn't bother to look up and care at all.
Which was an advantage for her...
"Jiwoo!" She screamed in hopes for the blonde to hear, yet there was no reaction. "JIWOO!" She screamed again. She groans and gathered enough momentum to jump from the concrete ground and hitting the windows though her weight didn't break the compound as she switches from one building to another. "Hey, bimbo!" She calls out and catches her twin, her sibling immobile as she cradles her body as they crashed to an office building, people screamed as they dodge both her and her sibling.
Jiah carried her sister and noticed a crimson liquid seeping from her shirt, "Oh no..." Jiah gasped as people begin to corner her, "Hey kid," One of them stammered, "You okay-"
Jiah's eyes became full-blown red, the people murmuring and gasping as they jump back. "Forget what you saw, get back to work, and tell your boss to fix your ugly window!"
The people who seemed like were in a trance obeyed and ignored the girls as Jiah carries her unconscious sibling. "Jiwoo," She whispered, gently shaking her twin. "Hang tight Woo, I'll get us a private space okay?" She didn't need a response as she carries her twin in bridal style, her legs ached with every move as she finds an empty office and gently lay her sister in a loveseat before rushing to lock the door before coming back to her sister.
"Jiwoo," She whispered and applied pressure on the wound, making the blonde groan lowly, "Woo!"
The blonde coughed and weakly opened her eyes, "Jiah?" She whimpered, "Where are we-where is she?" The raven-haired lady held her hand tightly, "We're in the office, who did this to you?" Jiah sat next to her twin and leaned closer, Jiwoo coughed dryly as her other hand grabbing her sister's bicep.
"Jiah," She coughed again, "We-we need to-" Before Jiwoo can finish, she coughed specks of blood on her twin's face and clothes, eliciting a frightened gasp from the uninsured twin whilst Jiwoo continued to cough out blood until black goo escapes her lips.
"Jiwoo!" Jiah yelled as she fell out of balance, the raven-haired girl cradles her sister's now unconscious body.
She watched helplessly as her twin's hair turn from blonde to jet-black. Fear, panic, desperation, and uncertainty flood within the young heiress' body, she can't leave her sister's body now while she goes out for help, that would only put them in trouble of explaining and she can feel her sister running out of time.
Her stomach dropped at the possibilities...
"Moms," She whispered shakily, "How do I do this...."
Black smoke oozes in front of them, Jiah, who immediately recognized who's responsible for the smoke sighed in relief. "Mom!"
Irene drops her spear and rushed towards them, her dark eyes cast a glance at the jet-black-haired Jiwoo and caressed Jiah's cheek, her eyes hardened with anger and concern. "What happened and who did this to the two of you?"
Jiah finally broke down and sobbed as she too can feel her twin's mana weakening. "Someone separated us! Took Jiwoo and-and-" Her heart constricted as she tries to choke out her final verdict. Irene felt her insides churn as she kissed her forehead gently. "It's okay sweetie." She whispered.
"Give her to me," Irene coaxed as Jiah maneuvered gently away from her unmoving twin while sobbing softly. Irene held her unconscious daughter, her body numbed in anger and the desire to punish and kill whoever did this to her heiresses. Her hands touch the once blonde Jiwoo, her orbs turning to a hue of red and gold. Her body oozing dark-colored smoke in an attempt to seal the still-bleeding wound and watched as the torn skin reconnecting itself, both women heaved a sigh of relief.
"Okay, " The older woman closed her eyes and held her daughter close, "You two need to lay low while me, my friends, and your mom figure out what's going on with your sister's body."
She stares at the now black hair of Jiwoo, "She's unconscious but her mana's stable."
Jiah hesitantly looked at her twin, "T-thanks mom." Irene smiled softly and gently lay Jiwoo on the couch as she walks to her spawn and embraced her tightly, Jiah heaved shakily and weakly returns her hug. Irene calms her down with a gentle caress of her back. "You did well in saving your sibling." She whispered, "If you didn't catch her, she'd be worse."
Irene held her tighter, words of reassurance are what they both need right now, even if her voice didn't sound confident. She'll make whoever did this to your children will pay with the heaviest punishment and gruesome death she'll give.
A promise, a threat to those responsible for hurting her children...
And she'll put their heads on her spear as a warning to those who will try.
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You exhaled shakily as your veins begin to burn once again, deciding to copy Irene's technique, you exhaled softly and closed your eyes as black sand materialized from the ground, your senses heightened in resolve to look for your wife and daughters.
The Olympian in you examining and following the trace of Irene's mana before she decided to leave abruptly without giving you a hint. As you prowl to every strong mana you sensed, one of them caught your attention...in your haste, you follow the energy flow of your wife to the tallest point of the building and lunged. You land on the concrete floor and dusted your robe. "Irene! Are the girls okay-" You stopped...
Your senses screaming at you to run, the mana you once followed is now filled with malice and hostility. Lisa stands before you in her white robe, she stood gloating with arrogance and pride, her lips forming into a dark smirk.
"Well if it isn't the mother of demons." She sneers and fully turns her body towards you, that's when you realized, she was holding a dagger coated with blood. Your jaw clenched and your body stiffened with silent, cold fury.
The mana on the knife may be weak, but you're certain it's familiar.
Is this the danger Irene foresaw before she left?
Your mask materializes on your face, your rapier appears on your right hand as red tendrils break the skin of your back and curling with animosity.
Your voice distorts as your eyes changed their hue. Lisa hummed and looks at her weapon, "Oh, were you looking at this?" She raised her knife for you to look at, you felt your hands balled into fists and your blood runs cold. "One of your kids kept squirming, had to do something about it with the same poison she shot at our duke."
Your voice dripped with venom as black sand forms around your body like a protective flat barrier.
"How dare you lay your hands on my daughter, Lisa."