This was proving to be far more amusing than the creature had first anticipated. This new prey, was much faster than the other. Perhaps it would actually enjoy this hunt. It’s body tensed as the woman spoke, all of its senses focusing on her. It readied itself, but refrained from turning towards her just yet. Energy arced in thick lines across its body, gathering once more, into both of its hands this time. The swirling spheres of energy gathered quickly, gathering energy from the heavily charged air.

As the creature gathered energy for the second time, a strange thing began to happen. Above the combatants a thin, lightish brown haze was gathering. The creature paid this no mind, as it was aware of what was happening. Instead, with its back still to her, it taunted its female prey.

[color=red]“Some of us enjoy playing with our food,”[/color] It growled, rather amused. Suddenly  It spun around, twisting on one foot. One of the spheres of energy screamed through the air as the creature turned, aiming the ball just in front of the woman. Simultaneously it took the second sphere, its hand arcing high over its head as it smashed the ball into the ground. The packed energy dispersed into the ground violently, becoming volatile in nature. The impacted ground erupted, as if hit by a large explosion; leaving a thick screen of dust in its wake. 

The creature hunched over, once more down on all four of its limbs. It was effectively blinded by the dust screen, but it was a hunter. It ignored its eyes and let its other sense take over as it stalked forward quietly. It could still smell her, she was determined–she was afraid.   

Lying forgotten, slumped against a rock, Vladimira stirred, blinking through a red haze as she struggled to open her eyes. They seemed to be crusted shut with someth- >[i]Ah, finally waking up, good. I was getting bored without company.[/i]<

She started at the voice, trying to jump up and look- around only to fail and fall back, aching all over. >[i]Don’t know why you’re doing that, just going to break bones. Painful, in case you weren’t aware.[/i] <

She still tried looking around, vision obscured by blood encrusted eyes, “Th-the Ад are you?” She managed to croak, fumbling for her canteen to rinse her throat. 

The voice returned, >[i]I believe the term is Spark. Unless they’ve changed it recently… have they? Really, you guys need to have a better naming scheme. How about, ‘Source of power that lets the individuals known as Immortals conduct fantastic feats of forcing matter itself to do their bidding’? No? True, it is a bit long, but still, something nicer sounding than just plain old ‘Spark’ would be appreciated. How about Crucib-[/i]<

Vladimira interrupted the… voice, by thumping her head against the rock. “Now that you’ve stopped talking for a second, I don’t know what a Spark is, sorry. Could we possibly have this conversation when I’m not in mortal peril from a girl who’s turned into a Hollow or… whatever it is?”

Indignantly, the voice replied >[i]Not at all what it is you uncivilized barbarian. Well, I take that back, you’re either a rather civilized barbarian, or an uncivilized… civilized… person… thing. Look, it’s been awhile since you looked at a thesaurus -I’m being generous there for the record, you never have, you loveable ignorant savage you- so cut me some slack on the synonyms. Also, to fuel your gun fetish, check the back of that truck, think I saw something you’ll like.[/i]< To say she was confused would be a gross understatement, her confusion decreased slightly as the Spark returned to matters in the present day, >[i]And for the record Ms. Entitlement, I’m just as mortally imperiled as you are, so I’d appreciate it if you could be so kind as to not get me -and yourself- killed. I’m Pandora for the record, Pandora the Curious if you really want to know. The big spiky guy attacking your new friend is Aeshma ‘the Hunter’, oooh, scary, I’m quaking in my metaphorical boots. He gets angry easily, in case you hadn’t noticed. And you’re Vladimira, I’ve lived here long enough to know that, so no wasting time with introductions, only I’m allowed to do that.[/i]<

She blinked, opening her mouth to speak only to hear the same voice, this time exasperated. >[i]My god woman, must you use your mouth to speak to me? It’s almost like you’re talking to a voice in your head or something. Just think it at me, I’ll ‘hear’.[/i]<

Vladimira blinked rapidly again, she knew she’d hit her head when she went airborne, but had she really hit it this hard? 

<[i]Alright, ‘Pandora’, what do you expect me to do against ‘Aeshma’? Throw more steel at him for him to cut through?[/i]> She “thought at” Pandora, <[i]I mean, I could probably bludgeon him a bit, but he seems to have gotten more than a bit of an upgrade, and I seem to be stuck with the baseline model.[/i]>

Pandora’s response was unexpectedly brief, >[i]Have you looked at your hands?[/i]<

She groaned, lifting a hand in front of her eyes, which had somehow cleared during the conversation, her eyes widening at the appearance it now sported. She lifted the other arm, which mirrored the black chitinous material she saw on ‘Aeshma’, gunmetal highlights ran along any edges, of which there were many. On the whole her arms looked like they’d been encased in thick armor plating, not unlike a plate gauntlet, though they didn’t seem that much bigger than her regular arms. <[i]So, care to explain? Last I checked I didn’t have these ten minutes ago.[/i]> 

Pandora responded rather hurriedly, >[i]I’ll give you a full explanation later, boring info dumps, charts, the whole shebang- but right now, don’t you feel like hitting something? Like, really hard? I feel like hitting something, don’t you? Oh wait, that is you. Okay. Alright. Go hit something girl![/i]<

She was going crazy. No doubt about it. 

But… she couldn’t deny she really wanted to hit something right now. 

She jumped to her feet, taking a moment to mutter a “Whoa.” at her sudden energy. Looking around, she absorbed what she could from the environment. Ozone. Giant dust cloud. Giant figure hunched on all fours in said dust cloud. >[i]Punch him! Yeah! That one! Slam the ground first though, for dramatic effect, just don’t go overboard.[/i] 

She smirked at her head-voice’s commentary, <[i]You do realize I’m not convinced you actually exist beyond being a figment of my imagination, right?[/i]> Pausing for a moment, she raised her arms above her head, <[i]But I’m inclined to agree with you on that point.[/i]>

She brought her fists down to the ground with a primal yell, mixing in some of the worst curses she could think of at the moment, hurled in Aeshma’s general direction. The ground shook as though someone had just dropped a loaded shipping crate on the spot, small cracks running out from the impact points of her fists. “Hey you!” She shouted at Aeshma in case she’d failed to get his attention yet, “Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!” She shouted the words without even knowing where they came from, blinking in surprise the moment after. “Did I just say that?”

Pandora chimed in, >[i]You’re welcome. Figured your insult repertoire could do with some expansion beyond yelling obscenities. I’m serious about the thesaurus you know, you should find one. I think you got his attention, by the way.[/i]<

Evelina had her teeth grit, trying to calm her beating heart. Even as she continued to gather more and more light into that small orb of hers she could feel the beating of her heart to steadily become more from the strain of using her powers than the fear she felt, now mixed with a stubborn determination. 

It was all a matter of time before whatever Alex had become turned around, allowing her to sear its retinas for good. But when Alex turned around, a pair of orbs of electricity pulsating in each of her palms, her hopes of that were broken. One of said orbs were thrown even before she could react to her turning around, and the other smashed into the ground almost immediately after. She simply didn’t have enough time to blind her before it was thrown at her, but she did have time for something else.

The light between her palms flew out, creating a small shield right in the path of the attack. [i]Smaller size means more energy to put into the strength,[/i] is what she told herself. The ball hit, sending sparks everything, and it would have stopped it entirely if not for the fact that she had miscalculated its trajectory. 

Stone and lightning flew everywhere from where it impacted the ground a few metres beside her, her shield having hit its edge and sent it careening off to the side rather than directly against her. Evelina herself was also thrown back, small shocks wracking her body from where stray bolts of electricity struck her body. 

She was coughing and, brushing the hair out of her face, struggled to stand up again, the bolts of electricity having caused some few cramps. It hurt to stand, but she had to regardless. She couldn’t let that thing go, not without putting a permanent stopper to it. She let out a breath, her fear abating replaced instead by a small ember of anger. It was yet small, but it was enough. 

[i]:So you can finally hear me.[/i] 

Aeshma’s claws dug into the earth as the ground shook. It wasn’t a very powerful shockwave, but familiarity tingled across his spine. [i]Today is rather amusing…[/i] he thought as he turned, his perpetual grin still splitting his maw into a twisted smile. His cold blue eyes stared through the rising haze of dust. It seemed the woman from earlier had come back to play some more, and she brought a friend.

[color=red]“Pandora the Curious…”[/color] Aeshma mused, noticing the woman’s hands, [color=red]“I had a feeling that was you, Feeling timid are we?”[/color] What an appropriate time for Pandora to manifest, although, it was only partially. Aeshma was delighted at the new and slightly improved prey. But his delight lasted only a second as anger flared up from within him, [i]Does she not think me worthy of her full form?[/i] A sneer replaced his grin, and an angry growl escaped from his throat. He ran at her, like an animal on all fours, seething on the inside.

Vladimira lifted a hand, feeling the truck and the assortment of junk in the back of it, [i]Oh, definitely something interesting there.[/i] She floated the junk in the rear off, or at least the bits with steel. She secured a ‘grip’ on the truck, grinning maliciously as she bellowed at Aeshma, “I HAVE THE POWER OF MOTHER RUSSIA, BITCH!” she jerked her hand, sending the truck hurtling at Aeshma at a blistering speed.

 Aeshma howled in blind frustration as the wreckage smashed into his side. The twisted metal whined as it piled ontop of him, igniting the fuel line. It took only seconds for the entire hunk of metal to burst into a raging inferno, fueled by leaking gasoline cans in the back of the truck. The flaming wreckage shifted as Aeshma worked his claws through it, slicing through the structurally compromised  metals. He shook with rage as he walked from the blazing inferno, his body live with electricity.

[color=red]”Now, we dance,”[/color] He growled, kicking up a cloud of dust as he sprinted towards her.

“Don’t like dancing,” Vladimira grumbled. She pulled a piece of metal towards her, pushing off of it as Aeshma neared her, gripping the same metal and swinging a 180 on it to propel herself at his back with her arm cocked to deliver a punch. 

Aeshma dug his heels into the ground, violently stopping is momentum. Simultaneously he turned counter to his prey’s spin, his left leg arcing through the air as he pivoted on his opposite foot. They hit each other at the same time, the force of her punch connecting with his chest sent him reeling backwards. Vladimira had the breath knocked out of her as the kick connected with her armored chest, she braced as she went flying backwards, managing to slow her fall with another piece of scrap lying about, [i]Aeshma scattered this stuff all over the place. Idiot.[/i]

Aeshma slid to a stop, his momentum leaving a narrow gouge in the ground. He laughed, suddenly jerking his hand out, electricity running down his arm to fire towards Vladimira in a thick bolt. Vladimira lept out of the way, throwing one of the larger chunks of the wreckage of the truck at Aeshma. >[i]Oooh, I love how he telegraphs the attack like that. Think we could get him a neon sign that lights up and says, “I’m going to shoot lightning at you!”?[/i]< The hunk of metal screeched as Aeshma’s claws flashed through it with inhuman speed, giving the metal the appearance of breaking apart into smaller chunks as it collided with him.

Vladimira circled warily, keeping an eye on Aeshma as she pulled the various scraps of steel from the truck’s chassis, forming them into wickedly sharp rotating blades of steel that orbited her head. With a flick of her hand, they shot towards Aeshma like a swarm of oversized shuriken. She grabbed another scrap of metal and propelled herself to Aeshma’s side, launching the water bottle sized bar as fast as she could, following up with another arm cocked back to deliver a brutal punch to Aeshma’s face.

Aeshma’s claws flashed through the air as he sliced through the metal discs, shredding them into fragments. He caught the metal bar from his peripheral vision and altered its course with the back of his hand, narrowly avoiding it. The woman followed up with another punch, but Aeshma was not inclined to receive another one of those; he stepped to the side, grabbing her by the back of her clothes and using her momentum to throw her off balance and into the ground. 

Vladimira swore as she went flying into the sand again. “Y’know. I’m really starting to dislike you.” She grumbled at Aeshma, dusting herself off before hurling herself at him again. “[b]Just. Die. Already![/b]” She shouted as she aimed a punch directly at Aeshma’s face. Aeshma stepped aside slightly, just enough to knock her punch out of the way; following up his deflection with a quick strike from his knee. Vladimira grunted as his knee connected with her gut, sending her flying again, but up this time. She grinned, grabbing one of the ridges on his head with her left hand to stop herself and smashing him in the face with her right. >[i]Grabbing the bull by his horns! We need to get you a red cape. Maybe just a Darwin award though.[/i]<

Aeshma stumbled backwards, actually falling to the ground and catching himself in a crouched position. Soreness radiated from the side of his face, he had [i]definately[/i] felt that. He was sloppy, overcome by her sheer need for survival. But he knew he was faster, stronger. She was only partially awakened, there’s no way she could match him. [color=red]”I grow tired of playing with you, whelp,”[/color] He seethed, irritation heavy in his voice. 

Aeshma’s body suddenly lit up with streams of electricity, flowing along his body in sporadic bursts. The air too, became even more heavily charged as electricity streaked through it, jumping from molecule to molecule. Skywards, the dusty haze slowly gathered into a grayish mass, spread across the sky. [color=red]”No mores games,”[/color] He said, a blast of forked lightning flashing from his hand, branching out in a wide, but focused manner–Focused on Vladimira.
[i]Well. Fuck.[/i] She pushed against Aeshma, trying to avoid the bolt of lightning. The bolt of electricity hit her dead center, charring her clothes and igniting them, and heating her armor to red hot. She fell to the ground spasming as her clothes burned. [i]Shit. Shitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshit.[/i] The bolt had been brief and she scrambled to her feet, putting as much distance between herself an Aeshma as she could. 

She scrambled with the straps, dropping the red hot plate as the clothes that had been beneath and around it burned. [i]Shit. Shitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshit.[/i]

Tearing off her cloak, shirt, and ammunition pouches, she dropped her weapons and kicked sand over them to extinguish the flames. The lightning hadn’t charred her own flesh like she’d have thought it would’ve. [i]Wonder why that is…[/i] She glanced down, noting her lack of clothing with alarm, then anger, “I really, really hate you right now.” She growled. All the scrap steel from her clothes and the truck flew to her, surrounding her in a swirling mass of wickedly sharp metal. >[i]Oooh, flying blender that blends outwards! Very nice! Maybe you can just seduce him into not killing you though.[/i]< 

Aeshma laughed, feeling the power surge through his body. [color=red]”You mortals… always concerned with appearances”[/color] He laughed, another bolt flashing from his hands and colliding with the metal scrap whirling around his topless opponent. Before the energy could fully disperse he sent another, fueling the myriad of electricity arcing through the metal, jumping from bit to bit. [color=red]”Come now, have we resorted to hiding?[/color] He mused, feeling once more in control of the situation. 

“What? Who are you?” Evelina looked left and right, her head turning left and right in search of the voice. 

[i]:You need not speak aloud. I can hear you if you think your answer to me.[/i]

Evelina blinked, a hand rising to her head unwittingly, almost as if trying to feel for an alien precense. “Wha—” [i]:Who are you?[/i]

[i]:I believe I am what your people call a Spark. That which gives you your powers as an Immortal. As to who I actually am, I call myself Fianna. I would say it was nice to meet you, but we have been together for quite a while already, so I will settle for: Pleased to finally talk to you.[/i]

[i]:You are what made me Immortal? Does that mean you are a human?[/i]

A sound like that of bells echoed in her mind, Evelina suspecting that it was this Fianna laughing. [i]:No. I am not, nor will I ever be. I am, in fact, more akin to a sapient parasite, if I am to be honest.[/i]

[i]:A virus? Like the Sickness?[/i] She received an impression of a figure nodding. [i]:But you’re what allows me to control light?[/i] Another nod.

[i]:I am. When I… emerged, you were dying in the desert. The light of the sun affected both you and I, giving you the ability to bend light to your—and my—will. But Evelina, there are more important matters than the origin of our union and your powers. Look up.[i] 

Evelina did as asked, looking up. The metal wielding woman was currently engaged in battle with that beast, the former of the two having something black covering her hands and lower arms. [i]:How did she get up again? She was knocked out cold before.[/i]

[i]:The black, beastly thing is called Aeshma, and is an Awakened form of us Sparks. He is the embodiment of rage and fury. Whoever is within no longer seems to be in control. The other woman, however, is only half awakened, it seems. I do not know how only her arms are affected, but it has happened.[/i] She paused for a few moments, during which Evelina quietly watched the fight progress. It was violent, to say the least, and she doubted she’d be able to defend against some of those attacks. 

Fianna spoke again. [i]The Immortal woman is half awakened, as I said, and Aeshma is fully awakened. That happens when a Spark, such as I, extends our influence to the outside of our Host’s body. It also increases said Immortal’s power substantially, in some cases even giving them new powers, although what they already have is empowered.[/i]

Her eyes widened, her heart skipped a beat. That was it, a chance, however small. [i]:So… can you do the same? To me? Can you help me beat that… thing? Aeshma? Can you make me strong enough to beat him?[/i]

[i]:Yes, and no.[/i] The tone of Fianna’s voice was strange, it was sad with a mix of something else that Evelina couldn’t quite put her finger on.

[i]:Why no?[/i]

[i]:I can do it, but it requires one of two things. Either I take over completely by force, taking your body for my own, even if only for a short while—[/i] Evelina shuddered involuntarily. That must have been what happened to that girl within Aeshma. [i]—or I am to be allowed to do it by you. I can’t know your mind entirely, so it is up to you if you will allow me. I understand that it is a risk to take, given what is in front of you, bu—[/i]

[i]:I’ll do it![/i] Evelina grit her teeth, baring her fangs as she pulled her lips back in a snarl. [i]:If I can just become strong enough to beat him, then I am willing to trust you, even despite… whatever.[/i] 

Like she had gotten the impression of a nod before, now she got the impression of a smile. [i]:Thank you, and I will also apologize in advance.[/i]

[i]: What? Why?[/i] 

Yet again that bell-like laughter rang out in her mind, only this time it sounded somewhat hollow, and saddened. [i]Your mind was in a state of desperation when I first spoke to you, and you had already been… accepting of my presence, ever since I first made myself known to you through that dream. So I have been… extending my influence to outside of you ever since we started speaking. Forgive me. Look at yourself.[/i]

Evelina blinked yet again, a confused look on her face. She looked down at herself and was… shocked. Black chitin covered the entirety of her body, interlocking plates covering her torso, back, and sides, as well as single-piece plates covering most other places of her body. She looked, for all intents and purposes, humanoid. She had retained the wide hips of her human form, although a modest chest seemed to be sculpted into the chitin as well. 

She continued the survey of herself, finding her feet to look like a pair of boots; flat footed, and like boots. Her hands were covered like everything else, although jointed at her knuckles and finger joints. At the tip of each finger extended a long, nail-like protrusion, thick and sharp like claws. The bigger surprise, however, was the horns extending from her temples, curving backwards following her scalp, a curving upwards again and narrowing into a needle-like tip, but even that paled in comparison to… something on her back. Craning turning her head enough that she could look behind her, she saw a pair of immense, appendages in the shape of leathery wings attached to the lower part of her back, but only with the skeletal structure of said wings, the joint turning upwards was tipped with a wicked looking point, thick and sharp and looking murderous to say the least, as were the ends of each ‘finger’ tipped with a wicked point, almost as murderous looking as the primary one. 

[i]: What is this?[/i] Evelina asked, wonder in her voice.

[i]:My form, surrounding you.[/i]

[i]Why…[/i] She looked at her own chitin, then at Aeshma’s. [i]:Why is my… chitin? Different than his?[/i]

[i]:Like you, I do not like violence, and prefer defense to whittle down my enemy. The chitin on your torso, back, lower arms and hands, legs and feet, and your ‘wings’ are reinforced, making you far more durable than anyone else. However, your wings are incredibly powerful and more than capable of being used as weapons, so do not be afraid of using them in a fight: They can take it.[/i] She chuckled, more light hearted this time. [i]:I hope you like the hair, too. It’s your length, but like silver threads of light instead. I prefer that colour over red, to be honest.[/i]

Evelina shook her head, bringing a few of the silver strands into view. They were pretty, she had to admit, but that was far from important at the moment. Stopping Aeshma was. [i]:Can I beat him now?[/i]

[i]:You can, if you fight well. Your chitin is strong, but it will not hold forever. But remember this…[/i] 

Evelina stood up fully, her fingers flexing and wings spread. The words of Fianna rang true in her mind, like a clarion call it rid her mind of fear and filled it with a determination unlike anything she had ever felt. She bent in her knees, wings spreading out behind her. 

[i]There are three things that a wise man will always fear. The storm on the sea, the moon in the night, and the anger of a gentle soul.[/i] Evelina’s eyes narrowed, the green light coming out from the eye holes in her chitin mask dimming.
 
[i][u]:Let us be that soul.[/u][/i] 

Her body disappeared, dissolving into light at a moment’s notice. She rushed forward faster than even sound itself, invisible in the noon light. However, barely a split second before she was on Aeshma, she materialized, clawed hand extended towards his face as she rapidly closed the last remaining distance between them, a shimmering barrier surrounding it. 

The sudden appearance of this new foe came as a great surprise to Aeshma, who was currently focused on his partially awakened opponent. The attack came so fast he didn’t have time to react as a fist suddenly materialized with the being, connecting with his face. The strike was far stronger than he would have anticipated, but he hardly had a thought other than pain as he was sent tumbling towards the ground.

He skid to a stop in the dirt. He stood, sneering with amusement. [color=red]”Ah.. Fianna..”[/color] He started, working his jaw from side to side to ensure it was still correctly in place. [color=red]”It’s still a mystery why you’re called [i]’The Gentle’[/i].. that was one hell of a punch,”[/color] He complimented, laughing as he moved a little closer, still leaving some distance between them.

A slight glow radiated from every nook and crevice on his body as it filled with energy. The crackling torrents gathered around his body in swirls and sporadic bursts, bolting through the air and dissipating just as fast. Tiny arcs of lightning jumped between the tips of his claws as he concentrated his energy. [color=red]”Shall we?”[/color] He taunted.