A sudden gust of wind slammed into Tarina, nearly knocking her off her feet. She stumbled back, her boots skidding against the dirt as she instinctively raised her arms to shield herself. The force was unnatural, not just the byproduct of some stray breeze. No—this was deliberate.
Her grip tightened around the spear that had materialized from the warp in space near her palm. With a quick flourish, she spun the weapon, shifting into a defensive stance. Her narrowed eyes scanned the darkness, lips curling into a snarl. "The hell? Who's there?!" Her accent thickened as she pressed her back against the alley wall, minimizing the angles from which she could be attacked.
But there was nothing. No figure lurking in the shadows, no glint of steel or telltale shimmer of spiritual energy. She was alone—at least to her it seemed that way.
Not taking any chances, Tarina's irises glowed faintly as she activated Spirit Sight, seeking out the spiritual essence of whoever had dared to interfere. Her sight should've revealed everything—the ebb and flow of energy, the spiritual energy in living things, essences of anyone nearby.
Instead, she saw nothing.
Her breath hitched. What?... Was that... all in my head? No way, right? I swear...
Then, without warning, an unseen force wrenched her backward, slamming her back against the rough alley wall. The impact knocked the breath from her lungs as her arms jerked upward, the spear's razor-sharp edge pressing against the delicate skin of her throat. Panic surged through her veins—her own body was betraying her, acting against her will, as if some unseen puppet master had seized control of her limbs.
Her fingers trembled around the spear's shaft, knuckles white. She struggled, but her movements were sluggish, like she was submerged in an invisible current. "W-what's... going... on?!" Her voice cracked as she tried to will her body to respond.
A soft, almost mocking chuckle echoed through the alleyway. "Well, well, well~"
Tarina's blood ran cold. That voice.
From the rooftop across from her, a figure stood, silhouetted against the sunlight. The faint glow of spirit energy traced the edges of her form. The woman took a step forward to drop off of the roof—except she didn't descend the way gravity intended. Instead, she walked downward, her feet finding purchase on nothing but air, as if invisible steps had been carved from the sky itself.
Elana.
Tarina's breath quickened. How did I not sense her?
Elana strode with the grace of a ballerina, each step slow, measured, it's clear that right here, right now, she had absolute control. As she neared the ground, her gaze went toward Ao's crumpled against the wall. A thin trail of blood traced the curve of his cheek, his chest rising and falling in shallow but steady breaths, he's alive but she didn't know of his condition.
Her expression darkened slightly as her gaze drifted toward the other two thugs, both sprawled out, barely conscious. The wall behind Rohn was smeared with blood from where his skull had met the cold stone. Tyler, meanwhile, remained pinned in place by a splintered wooden plank impaled through his gut, his breaths wheezing he wasn't bleeding out, too quickly at least.
Elana let out a low, impressed hum. He took out both of them… alone. And I didn't sense a massive fluctuation in spiritual energy, which means he didn't even fully summon his element. Outside of maybe Convergence... This child...
She turned her attention back to Tarina, a smirk playing on her lips. "If it isn't Adeline~" Elana drawled, eyes gleaming with amusement.
Tarina's breath hitched. That name.
A sharp spike of fear curled in her stomach. It had been years since anyone had called her that. She clenched her jaw, trying to suppress the involuntary shudder that ran down her spine. "Tch. You of all people…" she muttered, straining against whatever force bound her. "What do you want, witch?"
Elana chuckled, taking the final step down onto solid ground. She tilted her head slightly, studying Tarina as if deciding whether she was worth her time. "Oh, me? I'm just here to clean up a little mess. A mess you and your little friends made, I might add."
Tarina's eyes darted toward Ao. A child—barely older than a toddler—had done this. A kid with no formal training, no refined technique, had left her allies bloodied and beaten.
And he had nearly killed Rohn.
Elana followed her gaze, her smirk deepening. "Surprising, isn't it? A child not just surviving but winning. Almost like the universe has a sense of humor." She took another step closer, the air around her shifting subtly. "Now, tell me, Adeline… what should I do with you?"
For the first time in years, Tarina—Adeline—felt something she had long since abandoned.
Dread.
Elana took slow steps toward Tarina, her heels clicking lightly against the cracked stone pavement. The air between them was thick with spiritual energy exuding off of Elana, it was suffocating. The dim alleyway smelled of damp wood, old metal, and the faint iron tang of blood that still dripped from Ao's unconscious form and the other two who were with Elana.
Elana leaned in close, her breath warm against Tarina's cheek, lips barely an inch away. It was an intimacy laced but the truth couldn't have been further. Her soft, honeyed voice carried an almost playful tone, but her eyes—cold, calculating—contradicted every ounce of feigned affection.
"Not to mention, your men attacked a customer of mine," she murmured, but her tone was sharp as a dagger. She tilted her head slightly, as if amused, but the flicker in her eyes suggested something far more dangerous, like she had already dissected Tarina down in her mind thousands of times over already. "You do realize how much that displeases me, don't you?"
Tarina swallowed hard, her throat suddenly dry. She could feel the heat radiating from Elana's body, but it wasn't comforting—it was suffocating, like standing too close to an open flame. A shiver ran down her spine, but she forced herself to keep her composure.
"W-Wait, you know we were only doin' this for some quick coi—"
Elana snapped her fingers, cutting her off before she could even finish her sentence. It was clear that she didn't care about whatever she needed to say on the matter. She stepped aside just enough for Tarina to fully see the shattered potions on the ground, their contents soaked into the dirt like wasted opportunity. Her fingers traced an absent pattern along Tarina's hip before resting there.
"I don't like my product going to waste." She whispered into her ear.
Tarina's heart pounded in her chest. The stories she had heard about this woman weren't just tales told to scare street rats into submission—Elana was unpredictable, a force of nature, as terrifying as she was beautiful. The rumors spoke of her slaughtering a spirit beast, of hunting the cursed races for sport, and above all, of an enjoyment in breaking those who crossed her. Tarina had never believed in monsters, but standing here, pinned by an invisible force, with this woman's gaze dissecting her very soul—she believed now.
"And that child you attacked." Elana gestured lazily toward Ao, whose shallow breaths were the only sign that he was still alive, which was a relief for Tina, though she already knew he was she's just glad that he didn't bleed out or die while this all was happening. "He's someone I expect great things from. He was going to work to pay me back. So, tell me—" she tilted her head, her locks spilling over one shoulder, "—how do you plan to make up for that?"
Tarina clenched her teeth. The woman was toying with her. Testing her. Drawing out her fear like a cat stretching out the agony of a dying mouse.
"I… I can—"
Elana cut her off again. Tarina tensed as Elana pressed against her, the warmth of her body sending a stark contrast to the icy dread settling deep in her stomach. Their chests touched, the steady rise and fall of Elana's breath unnervingly slow. A hand, featherlight, trailed along Tarina's thigh before resting there.
"Maybe," Elana mused, voice dripping with faux affection, "I'll make you work for it. Fight a spirit beast… hmm~?"
A chill shot through Tarina's body. Her lips parted, but no words came out at first. Her heart was slamming against her ribs now, her? Fighting a spirit beast? Was she mad? Was this some kind of sick joke?
"Are you crazy?! I can't fight a—"
"Hush." Elana placed a single finger against Tarina's lips, silencing her as if she were a misbehaving pet. Her eyes flicked toward Ao, her smirk deepening. "That boy was going to fight one without hesitation. And here you are, whining about it." She chuckled softly, shaking her head. "Pathetic. The only thing you had the courage to fight was a child. But don't worry~"
Her hand slid higher, slipping beneath the hem of Tarina's shirt, fingers trailing against the smooth warmth of her skin.
"How about I take an organ or two instead?" Elana whispered, her lips nearly brushing against Tarina's ear. "The intestinal tract… a kidney… maybe a liver?" She let the question hang in the air, letting the weight of it settle deep into Tarina's bones. "Then again, even that wouldn't cover the cost of the potions you so carelessly wasted, now would it?"
Tarina's breath caught in her throat, like someone grabbed her neck and started to choke her. The threat wasn't an empty one. Elana would do it. She would cut her open, sell her piece by piece, and still smile sweetly while doing it. The fear wrapped around her chest like a vice, making it hard to breathe.
Her mind raced. Was this really happening? She had thought this was just a quick grab—a simple, easy payday. She never imagined that she'd be backed into a corner by someone like Elana. And what disturbed her even more was the casual way she had spoken about Ao.
Tarina's eyes glanced toward the boy. A child—no older than two—was going to fight a spirit beast? No. That had to be a lie. A bluff. A trick meant to intimidate her.
"D-Don't lie—" she rasped, desperate to convince herself as much as Elana. "That kid wasn't gonna fight a spirit beast. Not unless you planned on getting him killed."
Elana pulled back just enough to meet Tarina's eyes directly, a slow smile spreading across her lips. It was the kind of smile that sent ice through the veins, the kind of smile that told Tarina she had already lost before the game had even begun.
"Oh, darling," Elana purred. "You have no idea what that boy is capable of."
Tarina's breath started to quicken, her chest rising and falling rapidly as the weight of the situation pressed down on her. Her wide eyes darted between the unconscious forms of her comrades and the terrifying woman before her. How did it come to this? A simple robbery, a quick job, just some coin to get by—but now, she was trapped in Elana's grasp, and the power imbalance was suffocating.
"I... I'll pay ya back! I swear, ma'am, just give me time! Please!" she stammered,she was running out of options and in turn, growing desperate. The words spilled from her lips before she could even think, survival instincts kicking in. She didn't want to die—not like this, not for something so stupid.
Elana smirk never left her lips, tilting her head slightly as if considering the plea, she had the thief right where she wanted her, of course she could kill her. But why waste a good slave? And Shiro would be indebted to her, it was a two for one situation.. For her.
"You're going to pay me back?" Elana's voice was teasing, but beneath the sweetness lay a razor's edge. "Oh, I know you will."
Without breaking eye contact, Elana crouched beside the unconscious boy, her fingers pressing against his pulse point. The warmth of his skin, the faint but steady thrum beneath her fingertips—it confirmed what she already knew. She exhaled through her nose, shaking her head. She knew Ao was alive, after all, she watched the entire exchange, it was a wonderful opportunity for her to win Shiro's favor, make ao indebted to her further and see what he was capable of all while getting three new slaves while she was at it. And she wasn't disappointed.
"He's alive. Seems you're luckier than I thought," she murmured, as if she didn't know this information. Then, with a sharp snap of her fingers, Tarina's body was released from the invisible force that had held her pinned against the wall. She collapsed onto her hands and knees, sucking in deep breaths, her fingers clutching at the ground as if grounding herself in the waking nightmare she'd barely survived.
Her hands trembled. Her heart thundered in her chest, adrenaline coursing through her veins like fire. She was alive, but the real question was: for how long?
"Listen. And listen well."
The shift in Elana's tone made Tarina freeze. Slowly, she lifted her gaze, looking up at the woman who now stood above her, one hand resting on her hip, the other hanging loosely at her side. There was a casualness in her stance, and that only made her more terrifying. She was in control. Completely. And in turn, she was in control of her life as well.
"You're going to take that kid you attacked," Elana gestured toward Ao's small, bloodied body, "and you're going to bring him to Grandma. Safely." She said while not breaking eye contact. "You try anything—hurt the kid, disobey my orders, even think about running…"
Elana stayed silent, letting the implications of her words sink in without her not needing to even finish her sentence.
Tarina felt her stomach twist.
"I... I ain't stupid enough to go against ya. Promise!" she blurted out, her words tumbling over each other as she scrambled to her feet. Her legs still felt weak, but fear kept her moving, stumbling toward Ao.
Elana sighed, as if this was all a mild inconvenience to her, brushing imaginary dust from her sleeve. "Good girl. Don't disappoint me." She cast a final glance at the unconscious child before turning away. "I have a deal to keep thanks to the mess you and your boys made."
She took a step forward, and in an instant, her form dissolved into mist, dispersing into the air as if she had never been there at all.
Tarina's breath came in uneven gasps as the air around her stilled. The oppressive aura that had loomed over her vanished with Elana's departure, but the weight in her chest remained.
Her fingers clenched into fists as she looked down at Ao, his small body slumped against the cold alley wall, blood staining his clothes. He was just a kid. A damn kid. But he fought like a beast, and worse—he had Elana on his side.
She cast a glance back at Rohn and Tyler, both still unconscious, their faces bloodied and swollen. A pit formed in her stomach. They had no idea what they had just tangled with.
Taking a deep breath, Tarina exhaled slowly, trying to steady herself. Then she muttered under her breath, barely above a whisper:
"I'm in some deep shit, mate."