Just Checking Up! Part Forty-One: Teleportation Madness

Silks:

Standing awkwardly in my kitchen, Nuit hovered next to my spirit guide. Avery toiled away with his schoolwork, Mary Allen pointing out a couple of mistakes. Linz bounced around by his feet, Avery's black and white skull sweater pointing out his matching taste in style to mine. Shifting around in my leather bell sleeve blouse, the hem of my lace burgundy skirt brushed against my burgundy leather boots. Sensing something was off, the hair stood up on Linz’ back. Flamios slumbered from Shal’s latest training session, a bit of dread bubbling in my gut. Shal yawned his way downstairs, Avery running over to him. A fiery arrow whistled by my ear, an impressed expression blooming on their features at me catching me the damn thing in between my fingers. Nuit and Mary Allen latched on, Linz remaining behind to protect Avery as I used the source to whisk myself away in a flurry of fire lily petals. Landing roughly in a sea of destroyed Tudor homes, a puddle of orange water informed me of who performed such damage. Slicing my palms on the closest piece of rubble, two pieces of carved wood appeared in my hand. My dual scythes crackled to life, Musette’s energy dominated the space as the flames twirled higher.

“Mary Allen, please seek out any survivors.” I requested politely, her hair floating up as she faded away. “Nuit, can you back me up?” Spinning on my heels, a wall of arrows were zooming in my direction. Pirouetting between the bigger ones, ash drifted into the air with every block. Sprinting towards the orange flaming arrows, the archer had to be close. Trauma laced the air, a push off a pile of wood brought me centimeters from a six foot four tall beast of a demon. His orange eyes narrowed in my direction, literal death oozing out of them. Vermillion red waves floated around his shoulders, shadows dancing across his matching red leather armor from the cast of my flames. A snarl twitched on his inky black lips, his fangs piercing his bottom lip in an aggressive manner. Black claws yanked back a bright orange flaming bow, a fair bit of dismay dimming his raw fury at the sight of a tidal wave of orange heading our way.

“Stop shooting at me if you want your territory to be saved!” I barked hotly, his bow dropping to his side. “I am aware that I am a fucking carbon copy of her but I am nothing like her, damn it!” Sucking in a deep breath, a disgruntled apology slipped off of my tongue. Bowing in my direction, another arrow formed in his other hand. Straightening his back, his boots dug at the ash piling around him.

“Forgive me, your majesty. I am Fantasma Angra, the boss of the Wraith territory. Damn, I guess both of our parents are monsters.” He introduced himself in a stiff tone, that tone loosening by the last sentence. “Flaring tempers seem to be my weakness. Please be patient with me.” Flashing my genuine smile, a few taps of my scythes has fire lilies blossom far enough to cancel out her wave. Shedding some of his stress visibly, words refused to come to the tip of his tongue.

“Time for a family reunion!” Musette sang angelically, a chill running up my spine. “Seems you have something that belongs to me.” Rolling my eyes, the lack of a cast meant a battle. Shifting my attention to a glitching Nuit, complex post traumatic stress disorder had him paralyzed in his place.

“How about you keep him safe?” I suggested hopefully, his head nodding. “Fant, make this place yours after. No one is stopping you, right?” Stealing away in a flurry of fire lily petals, orange water splashed over my boot upon meeting her halfway. Raising my scythes, her own bounced off of her silky black gown. Circling each other, patience didn't exist in my moral compass when it came to her.

“Funny, you ditched him the moment it seemed convenient. Forgive me for picking up what you discarded.” I retorted bitterly, her smug grin becoming a sick smirk. “Trauma will forever haunt him, just as it will my father. Leaving a trail of blood really is a fine talent of yours. Too bad you can’t make money off of that.” Stepping into the fighting position, matching determined looks spread across our features.

“Trash or not, you stole a piece of my soul. Naughty daughter!” She roared thunderously, her weakened leg shaking violently. “Chipping away at me must be frustrating. You strike me as the type to want to solve problems right away.” Wicked laughter rumbled in my throat, her eyes twinkling away with pure malice. Charging at each other, every graceful spin created steam. Blow for blow, her strength had managed to double mine. A golden bracelet shimmered on her wrist, panic rounding my eyes. Enhancing herself equaled the playing field if not made my odds of winning rather dismal. Once again, I would have to injure her severely enough for her to run. Skidding back a solid twenty feet, water swirled around her bad leg. Pausing for a second, a numb stare at my bad hand provided me one chance to get close enough to her. Then again, one wrong move and I would be lacking a damn hand. Water splashing rather close to my cheeks snapped me out of my train of thoughts, a jam of my knee into her diaphragm burst a couple of organs before sending her flying into a pile of rubble. Stop losing yourself in your mind, I hissed venomously in my head. Kicking up a large wall, the thick material blocked her water from hitting me. Huffing away, familiar burn scars did little to stir up any sympathy.

“Throwing a tantrum is for a toddler, Musette. How can I call you a mother when you can’t act your age?” I teased mercilessly, hoping to throw off her composure. “All you ever do is destroy. Fear doesn’t outweigh compassion. Nor will it ever.” Limping towards me, an unholy rain of arrows and shadow hands upset her concentration. Using the ten seconds that had been gifted, a few arrows would have to strike me. Bounding towards her, arrows struck my back as shadow hands blocked her blows for me. Skidding underneath her legs, a flip of my wrists sliced through her legs like butter. Collapsing into a heap, a puddle whisked her away. Crashing onto a pile of spikes, an annoyed groan slipped off of my tongue. Pulling myself off, inky blood splattered onto the ash. Plucking the arrows out of my back, an apologetic Fantasma approached me. Coughing up an obscene amount of blood, the outlook wasn’t so great. Orchid jumped out of a cloud of ash, a water bottle of her iced tea swinging off of her arm. Amaryllis popped up behind her, his casual outfit of a ripped black band t-shirt and jeans reminding me of home. Snatching the iced tea from his sister, a throw had it hitting my palm. Gulping it down, tissue and skin began to weave itself together. Fussing with her simple violet kimono, her tail twitched in frustration.

“Fanty, you can’t keep fucking around. Shooting our queen isn’t your brightest moment.” She snapped impatiently, her sharp eyes darting over to me sinking to my knees. “Please don’t push yourself too far with purifying his territory.” Ignoring her plea, a few drops of inky blackness had more fire lilies blooming around their different colored boots.

“Whatever. Protection is in order, my dear friends.” I chirped gruffly, the fucking blood searing the top layer of my throat tissue. “Clarify what darkness once touched! Turn this land into one of peace!” Whacking at a few fire lilies, petals fluttered into the air, an orange fire dome crackling to life. Laying on my back, their concerned faces stared down at me. Playing with the fresh holes in my outfit, a frown found its place on my lips. Must this always happen? Fuming for a bit too long, Orchid playing with her pigtails silenced the rage in my soul.

“What is the golden bracelet on her wrist?” I asked bluntly, an eerie silence washing over the subtle bickering between them. “Come now, I need to know how to get it off or I need to triple my strength. Either tell me how to get stronger or tell me how to destroy that damn thing.” Fanty, as Orchid called him, refused to even look at me.

“That is my mother’s. Do your best not to destroy it so it can end up on my future bride’s wrist.” He uttered dejectedly, his fingers massaging his forehead. “My old man gave it to her so she could protect her when ran his mouth a little too much. That woman could throw a punch when it came to defending us. Well, until that monster murdered her when I was about ten. Bye, bye went the bracelet. Surprised she wasn’t wearing it up to this point.” Orchid helped me to my feet, her frets going in one ear and out the other. How much had she taken from them?

“Did anyone else have anything that needs to be returned? If they do, then please have your people write it down. Prepare for a raid once I meet all seven of you. After that, heirlooms shall be returned to their owners.” I promised them honestly, all eyes flitting in my direction. “Musette will get her due. If I lost all feeling in my hand, then her legs can’t grow back. Some time has been bought. Trouble seems to taint our introductions.” Amaryllis scratched at the back of his neck, his lips pressing into a hesitant scowl.

“The others don’t mind working with you but they are scared of you. No offense, you keep showing up and kicking ass. The monarch of Hell either does nothing or rules with an iron fist. That is precisely why our parents joined your side to avoid a catastrophic contract with Musette.” He growled through gritted teeth, water twirling around his hand. “They were using you only to betray you.” Pondering over his words, such an act would have killed them in the end of their pathetic little gig. Leaning onto the closet dead tree, fear mixed with intense dread in their eyes. Laughing softly, a solid bit of their stress dissolved in front of my very eyes.

“Joke’s on them. The contract would have cut that bullshit short. Just like your betrayal would do the same.” I pointed out simply, a bit of fright hiding underneath their relief. “That being said, faith rests comfortably with my relationship with you guys. Something tells me that no worries are to be found. Sorry for the safety conditions.” Tracking their reactions, Fanty’s uncomfortable scoff spoke the loudest. Marching up to him, our arms folded across our chest at the same time. Staring up at him, fury simmered in his eyes. Ever the embodiment of wraith, the leather of his gloves groaned underneath his tightening fist clench.

“Where the hell do you get off by suggesting that I would ever be like my old man!” He thundered loud enough to wake the dead, my calm expression never changing. “People like you piss me off! All you do is play the holier than thou card!” Making a point to roll up my sleeves, his eyes darted to the endless scars.

“Mr. Fanty, you will find my past to be littered with many sins. From killing my human guardian for survival to get to this point! People threw me out because I had to do what I had to do, damn it!” I shouted back as boldly as he did, surprise rounding his eyes. “It took one lady to save me in the woods to see the first ounce of compassion! No, help didn’t come from the endless testing in what they called therapy! Humanity showed me two sides. Darkness can’t exist without light! Both of us know that! No, I am not holier than thou! If anything, I am far worse than you could ever see yourself!” Huffing after my rant, the others watched on to see his next move. Softening his scowl into a gentle smirk, his hand landed on my head. A fit of laughter exploded from his lips, a playfulness twinkling in his eyes.

“Damn, my mother gave me a nearly identical speech. Well, minus your personal traumas. Consider my respect earned.” He chuckled jovially, his lips pursing for a quick second. “Nice to see you have quills. Let me ask my forgers to get to work on a bracelet for your hand. It won’t return the feeling back to that blasted hand but it will mimic what your nerves used to do. Well, after we rebuild and all that bullshit." Raising my finger, a snap of my fingers had orange flames twisting into new homes. No longer would it take months for them to rebuild, a bit of magic ending that troublesome strife.

“Please hit them with your water, Amaryllis.” I asked groggily, his head nodding once. Guiding a violet wave of water over our heads, the forms solidified into a sea of shimmering orange marble homes. Dancing with individual flames, thick doors of scarlet flames roared to life. Hitting them with a second wave, only doorknobs were required. Returning my attention back to Fanty, inky stains trickled off of his pronounced chin.

“Why must you be so kind after I yelled at you?” He choked out brokenly, kindness clearly being a rarity in his home. “People don’t pull this shit out of their ass without a price.” Shaking my head, my hands cupped his massive hands. Donning my genuine smile, his inexperience in any form of generosity wasn’t uncommon. Trauma had her fingers around his throat, the grip getting stronger by the day.

“Why take an eternity to rebuild when it can take a few minutes to help a friend out? Besides, I left the doorknobs to the creativity of your blacksmiths.” I assured him in a comforting tone, his hand sliding down to my slender wrist. “Make it as small as you can, so I don’t lose it. That would ruin my day, ‘kay.” Punching his arm, a warmth returned to his eyes. All the children of the Sins bore enough trauma to drown me, the big sister side of me wanting to melt it into nothing. Yet, emotions don’t work like that.

“How about we gather for tea in my castle?” Fanty announced gallantly, his people coming out to see the chaos I had created. “Please get to work making the queen of Hell her bracelet. I would like it to be done before she goes home. Push as much magic as you can into it. Do your best work, men. Cheer her on for saving us. Respect must be revered in her honor, so cheer.” Cheers erupted around me, scarlet flushing my cheeks. Rushing up to greet me, Mary Allen and Nuit took my side to behave as body guards. Taking the time to meet with them, little demons were most impressed by the hardened orange fire lilies. Living in the bliss of it all, something felt so cozy about this. Finishing up with the last demon, Orchid and Amaryllis stuck close to behind me. Keeping the rear safe, Fanty waved to his people. Garnering respect wasn’t too difficult for him, his vibrant personality winning them over. Crossing into his castle, suits of armor glittered in all kinds of colors. Lining the walls were the greatest works of blacksmith treasures, an idea coming to mind. Guiding us to a smaller study, a thick dark wooden table waited for us. Orchid hummed her spell while getting to work on her flawless tea, Fanty motioning for me to follow him out of the cozy study.

“Shall I have the honor of making you armor? Our territory is known for that, after all.” He offered sincerely, the flames of hope waking up within my soul. “What is with that shell of a smile? Are you not used to generosity yourself?” Folding my hands across my skirt, his tough shell hid a cinnamon bun inside. Happy to see him opening up a touch, Hell could become a better place.

“One could say that until as of late.” I answered awkwardly, his palm resting on my shoulder in a brotherly manner. “People tend to run away from me so I don’t expect much for my aid. Putting others first is what keeps me going. Sorry for coming off as holier than thou.” Bringing his palm to my head, a ruffle of my hair reminded me of a big brother. Yanking me into a bear hug, this type of feeling woke up a fuzzy feeling in my chest.

“Count on me as your big brother to spoil you in ways others can’t.” He shouted loud enough for the others to hear. Poking their heads out, a spunky argument broke out around me. Releasing me, a true group of friends had gathered around me. Bursting into tears, the others embraced me. Pleading with me to stop, the tears of happiness wouldn’t stop. Who knew Hell would be the gift that kept on giving? Showering me in pure affection and admiration, the sheer fact that humans couldn’t do this alarmed me. Staring up at the orange blood moon, a silver sparkle fluttered in front of this. Was this my first spirit guide helping me out? Man, did I miss her. Shoving that down, one plea remained. Please don’t end this, God.