| abstract | - He had seen so many terrible things in his long life, but in all his time, he never could have begun to imagine the love of his life lunging at him, out for blood. His blood. Reaver quickly dodged Connie's deadly black blade, spinning around in time to see her make a slash at Victoria. Victoria quickly brought up her cutlass and blocked, but Reaver could tell that she was still so unsteady with her weapon. Connie would easily kill her if he did not react. Reaver had no choice, Victoria was doing well to hide it, but she was fighting to push back her mothers blade, which inched ever closer to her throat. BANG! It took every inch of strength he had, and as the bullet pierced her perfect flesh, Reaver felt a wince of sharp pain and deep guilt. The shot did grab Connie's attention however. She turned and stared daggers at Reaver. "You! Now I can finally have my revenge for being locked up in your horrid manor with your filthy dog!" She growled as she came at him. Reaver remained vigilant to free her. Victoria watched as her long-lost mother advanced towards her father, sword drawn. "Daddy!" She cried as she started forward to assist him. A bullet nicked the stone floor in front of her and the princess stopped and looked up to see her father, his pistol smoking, and a look of seriousness on his usually light and confident face. "Victoria, stay with your brother. Keep each other safe, and stay out of this!" Reaver ordered his daughter. Victoria hesitated but for once, she did as she was told. Reaver turned his attention back to Connie. "You want a fight, then come for me. Leave the children out of this Connie. I'm the one you want!" Reaver spoke to the charging battle woman. Logan hadn't moved from the floor, despite his chains being removed. Victoria wondered what was wrong with him as she got to his side. She sat down next to him and put her hand on his brow. He was burning up with fever and dripping with sweat. That's when she noticed his sword. Victoria's face paled in horror. "Logan! What have you done to yourself?" She stared at the long sword, now lodged in her brothers hip. Logan gasped for air. "It wasn't me...it was him..." Logan pointed up at Xaiver who was grinning at all the commotion he had caused. It was then that Victoria realized that it wasn't Logan's sword at all, but rather a transparent blade of glowing white. "Hold still." Victoria instructed him, and she placed her hand firmly on his hip and pulled free the magical blade with the other. Logan grimaced at the pain, as Victoria reached in her satchel and retreived a small flask of potion, her last one, and set it down. She looked down gently at him, handing him the potion. He guzzled it, feeling the pain dissolve. When he was finished, he set the empty flask on the floor and smiled kindly at his little sister. "Thank you Victoria." "Are you alright?" She asked concerned, glaring up at the evil warlock again. Logan weakly nodded. "Yes, I lost my long sword back at sea. I was in a battle with a sea serpent...I peirced his eye, ugly thing..." The king grinned, but then his face grew dark. "Victoria, in case we don't survive this crazy nightmare..." "Logan! Don't say such things! We will survive!" "No, sister, listen! You don't know that. I have grown up far to quickly and I know how uncertain battles can be. No, are. I need to say this because there is a very real chance that we shall never again return to Castle Fairfax. I am truly sorry for the way that I have been acting. As I told you earlier, it was in my best intentions to guard you, and to keep you safe. But I should have been listening to you. I should have watched you from afar, but otherwise letting you be who you wanted to be. I fear that I have forever damaged the precious brother and sister relationship that we used to share. But I would go down a very happy man if you would only grant me your forgiveness now. Please Victoria, I need you to forgive me..." The king begged her, as the emotion welled up in his proud eyes. Victoria threw herself into his arms and hugged him, and Logan shakily hugged her back. "Of course I can forgive you...I only hope that you can forgive me. The night that I last saw you, I told you that I didn't want to be your sister anymore. It was a horrid thing to say, and I am sorry, I didn't mean it." Victoria explained as her brother smiled. "I forgive you, my dear sister." The two siblings then sat very still, fear pricking at both of their hearts as they prepared to watch their parents duel to the death. It would be a battle that neither of them wanted to see, because there could be no good outcome. One of their parents was going to die. Reaver and Connie circled each other, as the warlock watched in sick fascination. Despite his life being in danger, Reaver refused to kill Connie, and he still tried to reason with her. "Connie stop. It doesn't have to be this way!" "This is what my master wants, and so it must be." Connie replied, blood trickling down her arm and onto her long black gown. Reaver shook his head. "Snap out of it Connie, he's not your master, you are a strong woman, you are a hero! Make your own choice, its yours to make, not his." "Fine then. I choose to kill you right now!" She cried with a lunge. Reaver blocked her sword with his own just in time. She was so violent and so agile. This was NOT his Connie. The Connie that he knew was sweet and delicate. Yet strong and feisty. But she was not a killer, nor an animal like assassin. Whatever that implant was, Reaver knew that he had to destroy it. He felt a chill run through him at the realization. It would be a seconds decision. He would have to shoot her in the chest. Even as the Hero of Skill, it would be a hard shot. There were only two outcomes: If he hit the implant and shattered it, then she would be free, and his forever. But if he missed, he would pierce her heart and kill her. Connie's blade pressed harder onto his own, and even Reaver's skill with the sword was beginning to be tested. Her agility and force was unnatural, and it was gaining on his own. He felt his knees buckle under her push, and it took everything he had to keep himself standing. "Connie...please, don't do this..." Reaver grunted through the pressure, but Connie kept right on coming. Then, Reaver felt his right knee dislocate in a sharp terrible pain, accompanied by a sickening pop. He collapsed back with a groan, and then the Maiden of Dread was upon him. She wasted no time in slashing Reaver violently with her sharp blade. From afar, Reaver could hear Victoria and Logan screaming. He yelled back at them. "Stay where you are!" He turned back again to a bloodthirsty Connie, as she slashed through his arm. "Connie...I love you..." He managed as the blood loss and pain overtook him. "Very good my slave. Now, finish him off." Xaiver commanded. Connie's eyes gleamed red as she lifted her sword high above her head, ready to deal out the final blow CRRRRAAAACCKKKK! The whole room seemed to fall still at the sound of the crackling electric field overhead in the observatory. Connie, Victoria, Logan and Reaver all looked up in time to see two will users, one in black and one in white facing each other atop the second floor. The one in white stood poised with a shock spell lighting up the dark room, and Xaiver also stood looking very intimidating, his fireballs in tow. "Axel...I had a feeling that you would come...Finally want to challenge me eh?" Xaiver asked. "Don't waste your time asking questions Xaiver. You know why I came here." Xaiver smirked. "Do you actually think that you can kill me?" "You know that I can." Axel replied. Xaiver blasted Axel with fireball. The old will user easily deflected it with his lightning, before charging Xaiver again with a ice storm spell. Thick shards of glassy ice began to rain down upon the two, Xaiver used an inferno spell to melt most of them into puddles before they reached him, but a couple managed to stab him in the shoulder and upper back. Xaiver howled as he readied a dark wave spell. Axel chanted some strange words, and the rolling wave of death disappeared. "You can't hope to beat me, Xaiver. You're a mere child compared to me. I was dueling other wizards and warlocks since before your grandfather was even born." Axel said with strong authority. Xaiver's red eyes widened as he suddenly realized how much power the mage before him possessed. He knew now that the fight was going to futile. He began to chuckle. Axel looked at him confused. "What's so funny?" He asked. Xaiver looked up and spoke. "So, you're going to kill me no matter what, I see. There seems to be only one option I have left then." Xaiver replied. Before Axel could respond, Xaiver took a small black book, bound in red flesh and threw it open to the floor. Axel knew exactly what he was about to do. Below, Reaver, Connie, Victoria and Logan all watched the great scene up top in the observatory. Axel called down to Reaver, who lay in a pool of his own blood. "Reaver! Now! Shoot her in the heart, dead center, blast that implant out of her!" Axel yelled. Reaver weakly looked up and called back. "But I might..." He started. "If you don't try, after Xaiver's spell is complete, she will be lost forever. He's trying to take her and all of his power with him! Hurry, it's now or never!" Axel exclaimed. Reaver looked at Connie, she was still distracted by the fighting upstairs. Xaiver was beginning his desperation spell, there was little time left. Reaver held his breath and with all his skill and experience, her aimed his gun and fired a single bullet straight into Connie's heart. The minute he did so, Xaiver dissipated with a bloodcurdling scream into a black orb. The said orb rolled silently onto the torn yellowed pages of the book. Then, the pages swallowed up the orb until it was a mere picture and some words on the page. Axel watched in disbelief at what he had just seen Xaiver do. "He turned his soul to shadow..." He whispered. Reaver was looking at Connie, who laying motionless on the floor of the arena. He weakly got to his knees and shakily crawled to her side. He took her up in his arms, looking for any signs of life. She was soaked in Reaver's blood. Reaver put a strong hand on her shoulder, and stared into her eyes, which were still open. For the first time since he had seen her alive, Reaver saw a hint of Connie in those now lifeless eyes. She looked as frightened a baby deer. "Connie. I loved you so much..." Reaver tried again, the sight of what he had done, slowly killing him. He slowly and tenderly pushed her eyelids down, then he buried his face into her chest, and began to weep uncontrollably. Victoria and Logan, rushed to their father's side. They saw their mother laying there too, but she showed no signs of life. Victoria came to her father's aid and cried at the sight of his deep wounds. "Father!" She carefully undid the crimson ties from her jeans and hair, letting her blonde hair fall away. She started to tie them to the deepest wounds that were gushing blood, hoping to slow the flow. Reaver looked up and winced in pain at the sight of the old scraps from his pirate cape. "Victoria, no, don't. Those are yours." Reaver spoke to her. "For 16 years, these old things were all that I had of my father, they were the only hope that I secretly clung to that he might still be out there. It seems only fitting that I should use them to keep you here with me now." As she finished applying the last rag, Axel reappeared in front of them. He cautiously approached the family gathering and then knelt before Reaver. "It's all over. Xaiver has trapped himself forever. He probably had hoped that someone would one day find the book and carelessly summon him out of it. But the book is now in my possession, and I have sealed it away." Axel explained before healing Reaver with a spell. A calm, soothing ray emanated from the will users hand, and the slashes and gouges on Reaver faded away. "Father? Are you alright?" Logan asked him. Reaver took one more look down towards his dead queen. "No." Was all he managed. Reaver turned to Axel angrily. "Why did you heal me?! You should have let me bleed to death damn you!" He cursed as he got to his feet. Victoria stood and chased after him. "Father..." She started. "Go home Victoria. Get away from this place, and from me..." "But I love you." Victoria added. Reaver started walking out of the room. He gently picked up the lifeless body of Connie and then continued out of the keep. "No point in love Victoria. You should give up on such trivial fantasies." He replied coldly. Victoria continued to follow. "It's not a fantasy! You love me, and you loved mother too!" She argued. Reaver whirled around and aimed his gun at Victoria. "I said leave me alone! I won't tell you again." Reaver continued to carry Connie's body as he holstered his pistol and walked away. Just then, Connie let a small tear trickle down her cheek, and blood mixed with tears as Reaver noticed it and slowly wiped it away. "Connie?" He looked at her again, hopeful. Connie slowly opened her glassy blue eyes and met his worried gaze. "Reaver..." Her first word brought his dead heart back to life "Oh Reaver, I missed you so much!" She cried sweet tears as she wrapped her arms around his neck. Without a moment's hesitation, he leaned forward and kissed her softly on the cheek. The kiss was small and sweet, yet long and looked up at him, passion burning like two blue flares in her eyes. Green eyes embraced blue as the lost couple shared their first kiss in over 16 years. After the kiss had been broken, the moment was interrupted by the sound of a triumphant bark. Connie looked over her shoulder to see Axel with a happy smile on his lips, his eyes glistened and laughed. "I found it in a cage upstairs." Axel pointed to his left. There stood Lance, his white plummed tail happily wagging at the sight of Connie.
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