Fan Fiction ❯ Jiikron: Legend of the Two ❯ Progress ( Chapter 8 )

“Who is this irresistible creature who has an insatiable love for the dead?” - Unknown

 

-Chapter Eight-

-Progress-

 

Despite the fact that his incompetent servant, Kisra, had yet to exterminate those pesky survivors from Hyran, Andsaca was in a relatively good mood. He had sent Feldro Rona out to Lasah the day before to make sure that everyone there was dead. The demon came back later that night and gave Andsaca the affirmative. No stragglers. That was good.

 

Now he had his sights set on Worr, the trade and commerce capital of the country and possibly of the world. The city was huge - almost as big as Celatyne, the home of the King and his family - so taking it over would not be nearly as easy as the sorcerer would have liked. And the people there, while not known for their powerful fighters, were not without their defenses.

 

While Worr's massive amount of supplies and resources could have been beneficial to Andsaca's cause, there was no doubt in his mind that if he didn't crush the population there, they would certainly rebel. The uprising itself wouldn't be much of a problem either; he could take care of it fairly easily. It was the time and effort it would take to crush the rebellion that was the problem. He couldn't afford to have anyone fighting a bunch of annoying peasants. He had bigger fish to fry. After Worr, the next places on his list were the Twin Cities: Tel and Hi.

 

So the best option, he decided, would be to completely wipe out the people of Worr, and their trade as well. For that he would need a damn good fighter. Or maybe, he thought with a devilish grin, two good fighters.

 

~@%%@%%@%%@~

 

Loyola and Avila were flying. Well, soaring was a better word for it. And even though the sky was gray and stormy - just the way they liked it - neither of them was very happy. In fact, they were downright mad. They'd just been playing in a hot spring with a delightful young human gentleman that they'd put under a spell. And just when the twin sisters were about to eat him, they were interrupted by the arrival of a large black bird with a scrap of paper in its mouth.

 

The paper turned out to be a summons to Akatrial, and was signed by one Miss Averna, Queen of the Night. Ugh.

 

And so they were forced to abandon their fun and follow the bird back to the Dark City, whose borders they had just crossed. Sprawled out below them were the many dank and dingy looking houses of the ave and all the other creatures who called the city home. Dirt roads wound in between the dwellings, looking like muddy rivers from above. Miniscule beings scampered about the paths, and from the sky they resembled deformed ants.

 

Rising high in the very center of the sinister metropolis was the Akatrialan Castle. Completely black from the tip of its uppermost pyre to the lowest stone of its base, the structure was intensely foreboding. For many it was the last sight they ever saw before they were killed, and that was true for both people of the Light and the Darkness.

 

Avila had never been to the Castle before, so the sight of it made her excited, and her bad mood melted away. Loyola, on the other hand, had visited it once a long time ago. That time had been fun; she'd spent the entire day with a young demon that happened to be very good looking. She considered it quite a pity that she hadn't been able to even get a little taste of him, though.

 

The sisters changed direction and started into a downward dive, when they were about twenty feet from the ground in front of the Castle, they righted themselves and landed gracefully on their feet. A hideous seven foot tall creature stood on guard beside the enormous wooden doors that were the entrance to the gothic edifice.

 

Loyola approached the gigantic being and declared in a loud, commanding voice, “We were summoned by Lady Averna. Let us in!”

 

The thing just grunted in response, as if to say, “Yeah, yeah, lady. I'll let you in, but I don't think you'll fit through there when you're up on your high horse.” Then he stepped aside and the doors swung open all on their own.

 

They were greeted with the sight of the vast Entrance Hall, which was painted deep purple and hung with black decorations. In the middle of the room stood Averna, who was obviously expecting the girls. Avila and Loyola walked past the tall guard and strode haughtily into the Castle, prepared to give the Queen of the Night a whole lot of hell. She was the reason they hadn't gotten any dinner, after all.

 

Avila reached the sorceress first, and glared at her with her hands on her hips. “You'd better have us here for a good reason, Averna! We were about to eat a really tasty looking human, you know.”

 

“Please, spare me the details of your would-be meal. And don't you dare look at me like that. I've got some orders for you.”

 

“Who're you to order us around?” shot back Loyola, whose angry glower was identical to her sister's.

 

“Actually, ladies, they're my orders.”

 

All three women turned to look at who had spoken. Andsaca stood at the foot of a giant black marble staircase, hands behind his back and a welcoming smile on his face. His appearance changed everything; the twins immediately brightened up and hastily moved to bow in front of him.

 

“Master!” they greeted in unison. Andsaca put a finger underneath both of their chins and tilted them up until they were forced to stand straight and look at him.

 

“I have a favor to ask of you, girls.”

 

“Anything, Master!”

 

“What do you need?”

 

The sorcerer's smile grew twisted. “Well, you see… There's this pesky little place called Worr…”

 

~@%%@%%@%%@~

 

The southwestern flight to the trade city took Loyola and Avila about an hour to complete. By the time they got there it had started to rain. Torrential sheets of water fell to the ground, the skies were almost completely black, and the girls were in danger of being shocked by lightning. They loved it.

 

Worr proved its reputation as the unstoppable city of business: even in the pouring rain, vendors lined the streets, shouting out their wares, and customers lined up to make their exchanges. It really was too bad that all these hard workers would have to die.

 

The twins received many odd glances as they walked through the streets. With their long sky blue hair and matching evening gowns, they looked completely out of place. Even stranger, they didn't appear to be wet at all.

 

They didn't stop walking until they reached the center square of the city. There they turned to face each other, delightfully sinful smiles on their faces, revealing their razor sharp teeth.

 

“You know what to do, sister,” Loyola said.

 

Avila giggled and nodded. This was her favorite part. She reached into the top of her dress and retrieved a small brown leather bag that was closed tight by a draw string. She pulled on the string and the little pouch opened, revealing a shimmery silver powder. She pulled a pinch of the stuff out and put the bag back into her dress.

 

“Okay, sister. It's time to bring in some wind.”

 

Loyola nodded and closed her eyes. She rose her hands to the sky and summoned all her energy. A light breeze manifested itself around her, then quickly evolved into a steady gale. Avila threw the powder into the gust and watched it get carried up and out over the city. In another hour, the substance had fallen over the whole populous of Worr and swiftly took affect.

 

People fell where they stood, landing unceremoniously on the ground, fast asleep. The sisters slowly walked around, taking in the scene.

 

“There are so many of them!” Avila exclaimed. “This is going to take hours!”

 

“That may be so, but we have to do this. It's for the Master, don't forget.”

 

So now it was time to finish what they started. The people had to be killed. Their first victim was a little girl, whose hand was still tightly clutched in her mother's. Loyola bent down and placed a kiss on the child's cheek. The result was immediate.

 

The skin where Loyola's lips had touched the girl turned black and rotted. From there, the color spread like spider webs over her face, down her neck, along her shoulders out onto her arms and all the way to the tips of her fingers. It disappeared under her clothes only to reappear down around her knees where it kept going until it reached her toes. Then the cracks widened until they touched one another, and soon the little girl was completely covered. It didn't end there.

 

The child's flesh began to turn withered and sunken in, like that of a mummy's. It shrunk more and more until it was stretched over her bones, and then it started sizzling and fell away in little patches. Steam and the horrible stench of death rose from the small body. When the skin was gone, all that was left was a pile of gray bones, and those disintegrated into dust and blew away in the wind. Loyola smiled and turned to the mother to repeat the process while Avila bestowed a kiss on an old man.

 

They continued to do so throughout all of Worr, moving in and out of buildings, making sure not overlook any person. They came across a small gang of teenage boys as their task was nearing completion.

 

“Oh, please, sister, can't we just keep a few of them as pets?” Avila turned hopeful blue eyes to her twin.

 

Loyola almost said no, but her empty stomach made a stand against her mind and won. “I suppose so. Pick two cute ones and put them in that house over there.”

 

Avila did as she was told, grabbing a couple of the boys by the hair and dragging them into a quaint little dwelling on the side of the street. Then the two of them set off to take care of the last few people. By the time they were done, they were both tired and irritated. The thrill of killing only lasted so long; after the first three hundred victims it got rather tedious. But they had completed the assignment given to them by Andsaca, and that at least was something to be happy about.

 

No more than a quarter of an hour after they sat down next to their new boy toys to rest, the same black bird that delivered Averna's message showed up again, this time with a letter from their Master, himself.

 

“'Loyola and Avila,'” Loyola read out loud. “'Once you've eradicated Worr, I'd like you to stay there and take care of anyone who wanders into it. You may handle them any way you please.'”

 

“Oh, sister, this is going to be fun!” Avila giggled and smiled down at the still sleeping young man on the floor. She placed a hand on his cheek and caressed it lovingly. Then looked over at her twin, eyes sparkling mischievously. “We'll never go hungry again!”

 

~@%%@%%@%%@~

 

AN: For those of you who didn't know (which happens to be everyone except for Dice…), today is Kona and Vitani's birthday! So in honor of that I spent the day finishing this chapter so I could post it. Even though the twins aren't even in this chapter… ^^;; Oh well, you got to meet a different set of twins, right? That's better than nothing.

 

Also, this chapter is dedicated especially to my best friend, Cara, who also happens to be celebrating a birthday today. I love you, darling. Hope you have a wonderful day.

 

Disclaimer: This story is a product of my imagination. Any and all similarities between real people/places and those in the fiction are purely coincidental.

 

~ The Neko Kami of the Fruit Loops