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Echoing voices, filled with agony and cries for help. There was wanting in those shattered choruses, all wishing the same thing–to be freed from the glass jar they were put in.
Mary stood in the middle of an endless void, surrounded by floating jars filled with an unidentified matter moving like a slime. How could she hear these things? Why did it make her heart clench with both worry and fear?
"This is your fault..."
"Help us..."
What was she supposed to be accountable for? Nothing made sense.
The redhead stepped back and made a run to avoid the floating objects but she was stopped by black shadows coming from the ground, it tangled around her legs. Just like the contents of the jar, these ominous shapeless shadows let out eerie hums.
Mary turned teary, struggling to be released. "Riddle! Grim! Help me!" She called her clammy and cold hands trying not to touch the gripping black tangles on her limbs. "Snowdrop! Inky!" She then tried again.
But nothing, no miraculous twist of light and rescue came. She was already shrinking within the bottomless pit of black under her. Mary tried wriggling out of the black tentacles wrapped around her body now, she reached both hands up and prayed for someone to appear and save her.
Someone did.
A hand held Mary's and brought her up from the restless shadows–but this person, no this young woman, she wasn't familiar–taller with rich long purple hair and those narrowed eyes, it was the same with Vernie, heterochromia but unlike the latter, this girl's eyes of electric blue and magenta were lackluster. It only held contempt.
"I am going to eliminate you." The female stranger was swift, driving a dagger to Mary's chest before any reaction or question could be raised.
.
Mary rose up from the bed, panting and sweating coldly. She was pale, wide-eyed, and unnerved, giving in to her impulse to look for an anchor she did the first thing that came to mind–tackled the person sitting across the bed and hugged him.
This action was enough to make Ellis freeze and unable to formulate any proper response except for having a huge question mark, his expression sculpted with disbelief. He was certain if William saw them like this, he would kill him without a blink. But Ellis then realized, Mary was shaking and sobbing–her face buried on his neck and he felt the warm wetness coming from her eyes.
It's a good thing Elbert already left minutes ago.
"Mary? Do you want to talk about it?" He wasn't good at this stuff but if he wanted to know what suddenly brought this on. "I am sure you won't just hug me without a reason"
Mary sniffled, crying in silence before talking, "Dreams that didn't make sense again..." She actually stopped having puzzling dreams after graduation.
"Dreams are not always manifestations of our subconscious, there are times it's made up of metaphors that describe something either hidden or forgotten" Ellis explained, he wrapped his arms carefully, soothing her back up and down. "If it keeps on coming back then it must have meant a thing"
Slowly lifting her head up, Mary noticed the subtle marks on Ellis' neck, it was like a tattoo–a branding with a thin glow. "Does this hurt? You have a scar on your neck." She finally pushed herself up and was at a decent distance from the male.
Ellis also got up, sitting on the bed, and touched the branding scar. "It doesn't hurt but this is a symbol that means we are tied to this organization and Her Majesty" He noticed the confusion as she tilted her head. "Her Majesty is the one funding Crown Organization and mastermind behind the goal of acting villains to defeat villains. Let's just say if there are places too corrupted and awful to be at, we are the expendables to be deployed there"
"How can you easily refer to yourselves as expendables, Ellis?" She sounded like she wanted to argue about this idea.
He raised a brow, "It was a mindset we had to form in our head, that way, doing our jobs will be easier. Without emotions attached to it, no sentiments, executions are nothing too dramatic"
A heaviness filled Mary's chest, she didn't want to be convinced that these men were really trained as killers or dirtydoers!
"Hm? Don't give me that look, Mary." Ellis stated, "There is no remorse in us, we've been doing this for years."
"But Ellis, do you not want to live differently if you get a chance?"
The question from the clueless redhead made Ellis ponder, would he actually choose another path should he have gotten an opportunity to switch his work?
"It's unfair and cruel that she is ordering you all to stain your hands–" As Mary continued, her words were cut off.
Ellis leaned closer to her face which made her stop talking. "You can't survive in this world armed with purity, innocence, and kindness. Those three are going to be the cause of your death, Mary" His hand encased her neck tightly.
She began to struggle, panicking. "Ellis!"
"What are you going to do, Mary? You are being endangered, will you not do a thing? Will you not fight back?" Ellis felt his irritation increase again as he recalled the unexplained familiarity and connection he suddenly had with her. "Come on, there is a dagger in my pocket, take it and wound me"
Her green eyes gleamed with dubiety, what? But she did see the dagger peeking from his belt pocket. "N-no, I don't want to–" She went into a coughing fit and moved her hands frantically to pry off Ellis.
"No...I don't..." She was already having a hard time breathing.
He shook his head, "You foolish woman," And then, Ellis dipped down, capturing her lips with his.
The door loudly swung open, kicked by a pissed-off rowdy orange-haired male with a tattoo near his eyes. He was seething furiously and if looks could kill, Ellis was already a puddle on the floor. "You. Little.Loathsome.Bastard.I.am.going.to.kick.your.ass" Ace gritted his teeth.
–
Chaos and rampage everywhere. Their headquarters has been found. So many things happened at the same time, the others were already engaged in a fight with the invaders. William Rex just returned from the secret passage where he and Victor went–his mood plummeted down, and he had this murderous aura around him after the meeting with Her Majesty.
William tsk-ed, his stress level wouldn't be going down anytime soon. He scratched the branding scar on his neck. "Goddamnit,"
These people who got in their headquarters were the boys in the picture they saw last time–Riddle's companions and they all have magic which they didn't have any issue using to its maximum just to kick their asses.
Grim was out of the dungeon too, and boy he was so alive–throwing tables and chairs, helping Cater in dealing with the Crown members. There was this dark blue-haired male too with a spade tattoo making it rain with annoying cauldrons.
"The tables are turned," Riddle showed up, he was beyond pissed. Although still pasty but that didn't hinder him from wanting to get back at these assholes. Trey was with him too and the usually neutral man was not disapproving of exacting revenge against the Crown Organization members. "Checkmate"
William smirked haughtily at him, "Ah, Red King, that's what they used to refer to you as, right? But you are just a boy, you never grew."
"Carry on with these insults and you will surely end up without a tongue before this day ends" Riddle spat venomously. "I am going to mince you apart for everything you did to my Alice"
"Your Alice?" William taunted, walking forward and letting his anger take over. "It is no doubt Mary is oblivious, the likes of you surround her–a so-called significant other who wanted to keep her in a cage"
"To keep her safe" Riddle clenched his fists.
Laughter erupted from William, "That's too bad because she didn't seem the type who wants to be caged but she solely believes in the wrong man, you are not the right one for her. I'd say our lips are more befitting to touch than she did with yours"
Trey's face contorted in disbelief, "What's that supposed to mean? Did you unwillingly touch our Alice?!"
Enjoying the irritation gnawing under their skin, William pushed further. "She tasted delicious" He darted his tongue out to his upper lip.
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A/N: I got some foreshadowing in this chapter that'll be relevant and make sense in the final season of this series.