Fade away just far enough
I'm drifting
I touch you so I know that I'm not dreaming
Safe until the night is gone
34 - Barrier
I rocked on the balls of my feet and sprung at her. I balled my Cataclyst into a fist and punched. The moment I saw her arms move upward to shield her face, I opened my Cataclyst to snatch her wrist. I pivoted on one leg, pulled her arm over my shoulder and flipped her over my back with all the force I could muster.
Before she could get up, I swung my Cataclyst down her face. She was quick to roll away. I punched the ground instead. As I pulled my Cataclyst from the tiny crater I had made, I noticed the cracks Adrianna's body had left on the ground.
I didn't waste any more time and jabbed at her repeatedly. Again, she rolled out of the way, jumping back when she had the chance. I veered to her direction, clawing on the ground as I did. She lowered her stance, claws ready.
As I reached striking distance, I scooped some dirt with my Cataclyst and hurled it to her eyes. I swung my Cataclyst at her. Even with her vision hindered, she caught it with her claws. I shifted my weight onto my other leg and punched her square in the face.
It wasn't as powerful as if I had hit her with my Cataclyst, but the surprise was enough to make her lurch back and drop down.
"Impossible," said she, glaring at me as she pushed herself off the ground.
I faced her. "You fight like my sister. And I have never lost to her. Not even once. I think I can take you out all by myself after all."
Screaming hatefully, she lunged at me, kicking, clawing like an animal. But as fatal as her attacks were, I could see the panic in her eyes.
My attempts at psychological warfare seemed to be working. I knew I wouldn't be able to match her in combat. But I thought that maybe I could hold her long enough if I manage to get her rattled.
I tried to dodge her attacks and used my Cataclyst as a shield when I couldn't. Every blow jarred every bone in my body. With her power, I kknew that once she lands a hit, I would be done for.
Not a minute passed and I had to leap away from her to catch my breath.
If I was to delay her longer, I should be able to make some real damage. Not just bounce around like a clown.
I didn't even have time to think before Adrianna pounced on me. I dove out of the way and rolled to my feet, shielding my eyes as the ground where I stood half a second ago exploded under her claws. Before I could recover, she appeared in front of me, eyes blazing. I braced myself for a blow. Instead, she grabbed my Cataclyst to throw me. But I managed to hold onto the Helcium shard still stuck on her shoulder. I twisted it and drove it deeper.
Her scream nearly deafened me. Violently, she pulled me toward her thrusting her knee into my stomach. Hard.
I hit the ground on all fours. Blood spattered the ground as coughing started. There was a sharp stabbing pain on my left side that got a hell lot worse with the slightest movement.
Just my luck, my Cataclyst already faltered.
Adrianna stepped toward me, leering. "You said you weren't going to lose. We're disappointed."
Groaning angrily, I pushed myself up, planting my feet apart to keep my balance. I could feel my broken bones starting to mend, but to be honest, I didn't think I could take her out with just my Cataclyst. I might be able to read her movements, but that wasn't going to be enough.
I didn't bother counting how many times I had summoned my scythe since leaving Halja, but I was sure it was more than three. And this time, I couldn't care less.
"I guess I have no choice..." I rasped through my teeth.
As Adrianna began to charge again, I reached for the mark on the side of my neck. A hand appeared from behind me and grabbed my wrist.
It was Alexis.
"I said, not more than three times," said he, replacing my hand to my side.
Vincent appeared in front of me, just in time to catch Adrianna's claws with the now-U-shaped point of his spear. The girl lurched back.
"We had a deal!" she growled.
"Well, I lied," he said, jabbing continuously at her.
The pain on my ribs suddenly intensified. I doubled over, gasping for air. I pressed both my hands where the pain was coming, clenching my teeth to keep myself from blacking out. My ribs weren't just broken. More like crushed.
"Let's get you out of here," Alexis said, wrapping an arm over my shoulder.
I shook my head. There was no way I would take my eyes off Vincent with Adrianna around.
Smoke began wafting from Vincent's skin. Crimson scales had already formed on his hands. His eyes smoldered with fury. Other than that, it looked like he was in control.
With a snarl, Vincent stabbed and lashed at Adrianna. She was quick to evade, jumping in and out of the Vincent's range, looking for her opportunity to strike.
Alexis glanced at Vladimir. The boy momentarily took his eyes off the Grimoire to give him a nod.
"The spell is almost done!" Alexis shouted at Vincent. "Get her inside the barrier!"
"What else d'you think I'm doing here?!" Vincent retorted.
Alex sighed. "If he doesn't get her inside the barrier before it is complete, all of this would have been in vain."
"You can help him, you know," I said.
He shook his head, throwing me a look. "He specifically told me to 'not get in his way' just in case he starts to lose control again."
"He won't," I answered with some hint of finality.
Vincent's attacks were getting faster by the second, more ferocious and Adrianna was starting to have a hard time dodging. Still, he couldn't land a fatal hit.
Adrianna bounded backwards, glancing at the barrier behind her. It was slowly solidifying. She started cackling.
"You're running out of time, my Scarlet Beast," she said lovingly. "You can't even touch us."
All of a sudden, she froze. A drop of blood trickled from the tiny cut on her cheek. Instead of rolling down her face, the drop of blood crawled up, then horizontally, forming an inverted triangular mark.
"The Devil's Curse," Alex murmured, eyes wide with curiosity. "Once one is hit, there is no escape. I should have brought my camera."
My forehead involuntarily furrowed as I glanced at him.
"F-for documentation purposes," he clarified.
Adrianna felt the cut with her fingers. Her eyes widened in horror at the sight of blood.
"No," she shook her head, backing away as she realized what was going to happen next. "We're not going inside! We like it here!"
Then, she started running.
"Yeah?" Vincent aimed his two-pronged spear at her. It was smoking and glowing red. "Who the hell cares?!"
He lobbed the spear to Adrianna's direction.
She could have dodged. But she abruptly stopped in her tracks and froze up. It was obvious with the way her eyes moved that she was trying to move but couldn't. In heartbeat, she was already flying across the field and through the barrier with one of the tips of the spear impaled right in the middle of the inverted triangle mark on her face.
She flailed her limbs in midair in a futile attempt to resist. Once Vincent's scythe had faltered, she fell into the abyss with a shrill wail.
In less than five seconds, the barrier was complete, glowing bright blue before it slowly dimmed and became invisible. I heard the slightest thump when Vladimir finally closed the Grimoire with a weak smile.
"It's over," said he, flopping down on the ground. "It's finally over."
The tension in the air seemed to have been lifted. When I looked up, the vortex, the clouds were gone, leaving only the starless stretch of dark sky.
Vincent closed his eyes, holding tight onto the mark on his arm. The spot he was standing was beginning to smolder. His whole body was trembling as he took the much needed deep breaths. The crimson scales on his hands were gradually receding, but it was obvious that he was struggling.
I was about to go to him when Alex held me by the shoulder. Gently, he shook his head.
"Let him calm down first," said he.
So I waited.
My master just stood there for two whole minutes. No one bothered him. The other Reapers and familiars were too busy killing the rest of the ghouls or celebrating or both to notice the internal battle that Vincent was still having. A battle only he could fight.
In my head, I was praying for him to win. No. I knew he would win. He would keep his promise that we would run away after this was all over.
At last, he faced us--shoulders stiff, jaws clenched, hands balled into fists. The scowl on his face was enough to make me shrink.
"Aramis Rayne! You are so dead!" he yelled as he marched over to us.
My first instinct was to hide behind Alex. If only he hadn't already stepped behind me first and gave me a slight nudge forward.
"Some ally you are," I hissed at him from the corner of my mouth.
"He's not going to murder you for real, you know," he whispered back. "Although, the same may not apply to the rest of us."
When Vincent reached me, he straightened to his full height and stared me down. "You never follow orders. You always get yourself beaten up! Why can't you just stay where I left you?!"
"Oh, so now it's my fault!" I yelled back, almost forgetting the pain from my injuries. "If you hadn't took off on your own and left me out of your"--I quoted the air with my fingers--"brilliant plan, this wouldn't have happened!"
His brows pulled together, his face a mask of disbelief. "That's why I apologized! You said there's no need to. But apparently, there is! So I'm sorry! But that doesn't justify why'd you even thought of summoning your scythe when you know it'd kill you!"
This was going nowhere. Whenever we fight, why did I always talk back when I knew he would always win? The edges of my eyes started to water and the swelling in my throat prevented further argument from me.
"I was just trying to help..."
Vincent opened his mouth but thought better of it. Exhaling sharply, he ran a hand over his head, a frantic look taking over his eyes. While looking down, I could see his feet shifting, unable to decide whether to get back or get close.
In the end, he swore under his breath, folded an arm over my nape and pulled me to him.
My eyes widened with the start. For a while, there was nothing to hear but the sound of my heart ramming against my rib cage--which was probably not fully-healed yet since it still hurt when he tightened his arm around me.
"Sorry," he murmured to my hair, sincerely this time. "I was just... scared--terrified that something bad would happen to you. If that happens, I don't know what I would do."
The lump in my throat threatened to choke me the moment his words started to sink in. All this time, was he always so worried about me?
He let out a deep breath. "Don't ever do that again. Promise me."
"I-I... promise."
"Aww..." I heard someone say. "Just like an old married couple."
I looked to find that it was Hector, crushing a ghoul's head under his boot. The sound it made--a combination of gasping and shrieking--made me cringe a little. He pretended to gag while looking at me.
Not just Hector, but everyone else was looking. Their gazes were like laser pointers on the back of my head.
I cleared my throat.
"Every pair of eyes within a half mile radius is on us, Master," I whispered to him, putting the much needed emphasis on the last word.
If Vincent had heard me, there was no way to tell. I tried to squirm away, but his arms only tightened around me. In the end, I buried my face onto his shoulder, hoping that no one had noticed how red my face was.