Dancing In The Void

Nikolai looked down from under her dark hood, her blood-red eye twitching with anger and agitation.

It was a resigned anger. One leaning more on annoyance and heavy irritation. After all, she was still greatly exhausted from her lengthy journey back from the ruins of Gausville. It was a long, tiring journey, with quite a few moments where Nikolai spat in rage and cursed her fate. She had to either risk a perilous crossing of the river back towards the port city of Brenwood, or take the delayed path around. There was only one bridge across for miles, but she decided it was the quickest and safest path, despite the possible risk of running into military or other nefarious groups holding the bridge.

It would normally not even concern her, the possibility of running into something as trivial as soldiers or tanks, but Nikolai felt incredibly weak and wounded. The scars of her battle with Uriel and the empyreal devastation she had unleashed on the city of Gausville, twice, had deeply taken their toll on her. Lady Death restored her body as a final gesture before her departure, but the debts still had to be paid, just not all at once. There was a constant pressure throughout her body as she walked, a dry thumping, as if her own heartbeat was magnified a thousand times, bathing her in agony and physical pain. The first few days of walking were the worst, with her nearly ripping her skin off in a fit of frenzy. The next ones however, she slowly grew accustomed to the sensation, to the point where she was able to tune it out.

My power returns and grows with each passing moment. She remembered thinking. Embers finding their kindling once more.

It was fortunate then, for both her and whoever would have been unlucky enough to cross her path then, that the bridge was entirely abandoned. The bridge was littered with the waste of cars and corpses, those unfortunate enough to not make it out of the city before her balefire fell. She stepped lightly between the wreckages, making her way across the bridge with haste. But her eyes glimpsed upon something that made her hair stand on end. Two corpses, charred, ashen, almost collapsed into dust. A mother and daughter holding each other moments before the end. She stared at them, curious, with a sense of intrigue and childlike wonder.

What were their final thoughts, I wonder? She asked herself. Fear, love? I do not know. It aches my heart to snuff out a life so young, but… you are both free now, your souls have been cleansed of sin! But… if so… why am I trembling? Why do I look upon them… and feel a pang of guilt? I… helped them…

"Do not falter in your convictions Nikolai." She suddenly told herself, startled at her own voice. "You did what was right, and just. Move on, let their bodies rest." She said with a nod. A flick of her wrist followed by the billowing of her cloak was all she needed to turn and walk away once more.

The rest of her journey was somewhat dull and eventless. The days and nights blurred together, and Nikolai spent her time walking undisturbed by any prowling creature or scavenger thug hoping for easy prey. It was as if she was enveloped by an aura of terror, one that spread for miles like a warning and deterrent. The aura however was not much help against the mire and dirt that began to cling to her skin, the aching of tiredness in her muscles and strangely and most irritatingly of all the growing hunger in her abdomen. It was an unusual sentiment. Since her resurrection, food was not something she concerned herself with. It was no longer a necessity, but an occasional indulging pleasure. Was it not hunger for food perhaps? Was it a hunger for something else, a different form of sustenance, some burning desire within her that she could not place or realize at that moment? She pondered this feeling, at least it was something to occupy her thoughts.

On the afternoon of the sixth day, after making her way through an off beat road up a hill, she found herself overlooking the town of Brenwood. That is when the anger overtook her. The realization that the town she left full of people and activity had an eerie quietude about it.

"What is this? This… something is not right here…" She said as she quickly made her way down and into the city proper. The outskirts were empty, but the homes and streets were lived in. They must have left only recently… have they been summoned somewhere? Is Matthias having a sermon or something?

Her answer was granted swiftly, as soon as she made her way deeper in the city. The echoing voice of dissension soon reached her ears.

In the town square then? She pondered as she walked closer, trying to keep stealthy and out of sight.

"This is your final chance! These are the last boats leaving tonight. Do not fall into temptation and ever be led astray by the deceiver again!" A powerful womanly voice boomed through a megaphone. "Your savior was a liar! She has fallen and died, that is why she has not returned in due time! She is gone! Be freed from her terrible influence!"

"Is that so?" Nikolai finally called out, breaking through the crowd. The people gasped in shock at her appearance, her half-plague mask blinding white, accentuated by the flickering flames of red and gold around her left eye, a clear sign of their prophet in the flesh. "Then why am I standing here now?" Her voice called out quietly, yet it carried with a deep sense of ominous terror.

The crowd quickly backed off from her, murmurs and gasps echoing throughout the plaza. A few immediately knelt on the ground, crossing themselves with the symbol of the rose. Their acts of devotion immediately inspired others as well, and soon most of the crowd was on their knees on the cold wet stone.

"You left us here to starve!" The lead woman said from the podium on the tribune. Her voice was trembling now, but the defiance in her voice was still prominent. "You left on your so-called 'holy quest' and abandoned us to fend for ourselves!"

"Don't you think you're being a bit dramatic?" Nikolai said, casually taking off her hood and revealing her long, black and white gradient hair. "I was gone for a couple of weeks at most."

"But you died!" Another dissenter screamed, making his presence known. This one was definitely a lot more terrified by Nikolai's sudden appearance, as indicated by his gasps and heavy, dripping sweat. "Gausville exploded, we thought…"

"I do not know where this disgusting rumor came from." Nikolai said. "But I assure you, what went down in Gausville was nothing I will waste my breath concerning you with. The city was full of sinners, and their souls have now been cleansed, that is all." She looked up, her piercing ice-cold eye staring at the frightened man. "And the same cleansing awaits you all, unless you repent and prostrate yourselves before me." She said, pointing her scarred index finger at the group of protesters.

A few worried glances and gazes passed between them, but their time to consider was cut short by the same man suddenly bursting into a sprint away from everyone. "FUCK THIS!" He shouted as he bolted away, to the confused and judging looks of everyone else. A few tried screaming at him, trying to save him from his foolish mistake, but it was too late. Without warning or a moment of realization, a blast of golden, lightning-hot fire shot through the air towards the man. Instantly, his upper half was nothing more than a pile of mulchy, flaming skin, and his remains began falling down beside him in a shower of boiled blood and bones. His corpse fell with a wet thud to the floor. The plaza was silent except for the wet splatter of his remains, and the crackling of Nikolai's flames, until a few people screamed in terror. They were immediately silenced by a quick glance from friends and those nearby, and soon everyone stood simply in quiet shock.

"How brave. Now then…" Nikolai began, massaging her aching digit. "...Should any of you attempt a similar display of braveness, I will subject them to a similar fate."

Everyone of the dissenters silently accepted their doomed position, hanging their heads in fear and shame. They all avoided Nikolai's gaze, trying to move as slowly as possible, scared of being the next one to get fireblasted. However, a few of them stood tall and proud, puffing out their chests in defiance. Nikolai smiled under her mask, mocking their pathetic attempts.

"Which one of you is the ringleader?" She asked.

She expected the woman on the megaphone to step forward, but instead it was a man that stood beside her. He was tall, with a grimy face and a torn jacket that both looked like they'd seen better days. "It was me, Witch-Queen."

"Witch… Queen, is that what I am to you?" She said softly, walking closer to him. "Am I supposed to feel insulted?"

"Yes. You are a deceiver, nothing more. You've subjugated these innocent people with your lies and demonic power, claiming to be a holy vessel of God." He said, trying very hard to sound convincing in his speech, but Nikolai remained unimpressed.

"Deceiver… hmph… Your mistake was assuming I am a mere vessel." She chuckled. "I am God. I am your God. When I left, did I not leave a set of simple instructions to everyone?" She said, her voice louder, and she paced around the plaza, addressing not just the man, but the entire crowd that surrounded her. "Did I not make sure to leave enough rations and supplies to last an entire month at least, should the worst happen?" Nikolai said with a pause, listening to the approving murmurs of her people. "Did I not leave a barrier of my undying flame upon torches, with defenses and traps, surrounding the city? In order to deter any ill invader or raider seeking to harm you all?"

Once again, her pause was met with a louder approval and clamor.

"Did I not leave my priest, Matthias in charge? A kind and gentle soul, that would care for any ailments or troubles you might have?" She said, spreading her arms out towards the crowd. "Has he mistreated you all in any way? Has he defied my orders?" This time the people conclusively shook their heads, with some shouting their opinions out. "So then…" Nikolai said quietly as she spun and pointed at the ringleader. "By what right do you claim that I have wronged any of you in any capacity? No… the truth is, you have fallen to sin. You took advantage of my absence, and you committed a coup! You overtook the leadership I instated, and led my dear flock astray. In your greed and lust for earthly pleasure, you and your lot gorged on the food and rations meant for these starving people! The Silver Rose has withered and dried with you insects biting at its roots!"

"W-what? N-no!" He tried arguing, but the crowd was too riled up to hear him now. Their booing and heckling overpowering any sound he or anyone else could make. "She's lying to you!" He made one desperate final attempt, but to no avail. Nikolai had completely won over the crowd, easily turning everyone against them.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk…" Nikolai tutted. She lifted her scarred hand, and immediately the plaza fell silent. "I remember you, now that I get a better look at you. Jaros was your name, right? You hung out with Thomas… right? I guess his absence of faith wore off on you. Where is he, did he leave?"

The man did not respond, only staring back at her with hateful eyes. Nikolai walked up the stairs of the tribune, making her way closer to all the protesters. She was shorter than the man, but that did not matter from how feeble and small he seemed before her. He was meek and terrified, especially when she placed her scarred hand on his shoulder, as if to touch his cheek.

"Your silence betrays you, Jaros. Tell me, what have you done with those I left in charge? Matthias, Victor, Charles… my dear Yuuya…" Her voice was melodious, hypnotic almost, but it carried with it the threatening undertone of boiling rage. "Quickly now, I've had a long tiresome trip, my patience is running thin."

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Defeated, Jaros answered: "We keep them locked up in one of the warehouses… they tried to oppose us at the start and… yeah…"

Nikolai nodded. Her head snapped to one of the larger, more muscly men in the crowd that happened to be within the front rows. "You there. Grab a few others and go find everyone, tell them the Witch-Queen has returned." She said, her smugness palpable in the tone of her voice.

The man nodded and quickly rushed off, a few others willingly joining him.

"As for the rest of you, this is the last warning of my earlier request. Prostrate yourselves, and repent. I will spare your lives, and dutifully impart my teachings and love upon you all. You are all my flock still, the beautiful petals of my Silver Rose, do not be led deeper into deceit and fear."

Nikolai paused, opening her arms and letting her scars alight with the flames of her powers, flowing like a coiling serpent of lava. She waited, and then watched as one by one, the dissenters began to kneel and press their foreheads into the ground. Disappointment was the only expression that could be read on Jaros' face. All the work he had done scattered in the winds in an instant. As Nikolai waited for everyone to beg for penance and forgiveness, she took the opportunity to do a quick, rough count of how many people were still in the city.

If this is everyone, it seems quite a few dozen have already abandoned… That means they must have started their insidious schemes quickly after I left… Not to worry however… my flock still numbers in the hundreds, and this is an obstacle that will only grow my people's loyalty and faith in me. None will dare dissent in my city, ever, again!

"Is that all of you?" Nikolai asked.

About ten people were on the ground, with only three still standing: Jaros, the megaphone woman, and another brave soul.

"I do not fear you." The woman said with misplaced courage once Nikolai approached.

"Ah… Mary, the mother of the girls, is it? I thought you'd learned your lesson after the last time." She said. "You are truly adamant to have both of your girls grow up motherless, aren't you? What were their names… Roxanne and, Abigail?"

"You will not touch them again! They are far from here. Far from your reach. In a safe place!" Mary argued.

"No. You are an idiot. They are not safe, if anything, you've only led them closer towards danger. What do you think will happen? I will find anyone who left, sooner or later. I will take your daughters under my care and do what you couldn't. I will raise them with love and purity."

The mother began breathing more intensely, as panic began to set in. Still, her eyes did not falter nor did her convictions. "I do not care! If there's even the slightest chance they might have a life free of your stupid cult, then I would gladly give my life to offer them that chance! I will not willingly let you brainwash my daughters into fiends!"

"Such a pathetic display of defiance, born out of fear, not rationale." Nikolai said, shaking her head and walking away. She stopped, and said one more thing. "I have given you too many chances already, but consider this the last of my mercy. Reconsider this, ask for forgiveness, tell me where the abandoners fled to, and I will let you live alongside your precious daughters in peace. Do not put your pathetic fears over their lives, do not let them grow up motherless, lest you want me to become their mother. You have until nightfall."

Nikolai walked towards the crowd, with joy in her heart at the sight of a small group making their way through the plaza. More importantly, the cheerful Yuuya that ran into her arms.

"Oh, Yuuya, are you alright? Are you hurt?" Nikolai said, letting her imposing, prophetic voice fall to normalcy briefly.

The child simply shook her head, smiling her half-stitched smile. "I'm… glad you're back." She said softly.

"I'm sorry for leaving you for so long, my sweet child. I will make it up to you, I swear it." She said, tightening her embrace, and ruffling Yuuya's chestnut hair. "You, meanwhile, Matthias, I want a full report on what happened while I was gone until your imprisonment."

"Y-yes, your Holiness!" The poor elderly priest said, shaken and fearful. "A-as soon as I get a chance to cle-"

"I don't care, do it quickly. Victor, Charles, grab a few others and lead all these strays into the same warehouse you were jailed in." Nikolai said, pointing towards the tribune.

"You're jailing us?" One of the dissenters that kneeled shouted, shocked.

"Of course. Did you think I would just welcome you back with open arms?" Nikolai said with a quiet chuckle. "No, no, no. Did you forget what I did to Thomas? You all must be punished and reeducated. However unlike these three, your punishment will come later and at much lessened severity. Now move it. If any of you tries anything funny… well…" She did not have to finish that thought, only look in the direction of the still-burning corpse from earlier. "Everyone, we meet tonight in this same plaza. Do not be late!" She added, addressing everyone of her people.

With that, most of the crowd began to disperse, with Nikolai demanding a few remaining men to build something on the tribune before she left. Nikolai retreated to her home, one of the larger mansions of the port city that she claimed for herself before she left. With Yuuya sticking closely to her leg, she rushed home and burst inside. She quickly drew herself a bath, letting the weariness and grime of her trip, alongside the anger that bubbled within her, wash away. After her relaxing bath she followed up with a quick meal for both her and Yuuya. She then prepared herself for the night's ceremony with a polishing of her mask, and a new, untattered and un-bullethole-ridden cloak. One with a fine shade of luscious black, with streaks of dark gold and purple around the edges.

"Are you ready dear?" She asked Yuuya, who nodded back eagerly.

"You're going to punish the bad people again, right, Niko?" The child said quietly, occasionally missing a syllable due to her cheek wound.

"Yes…" Nikolai answered as they made their way out of the door.

The return trip was quick, and the crowd had dutifully arrived long before her. Nikolai was pleased. Both because of their renewed dedication to her, and with the stellar job they had done with the construction she requested. Three tall wooden pyres had been built on the tribunes, with each dissenter tied tightly against the main stakes. Before going up, she entrusted Yuuya to Matthias, giving her a quick parting headpat. She quickly walked up to the podium, and raised her arms, silencing the crowd.

"These three, have attempted to lead you all astray. They have succeeded with some, but you are a strong people, and have resisted their temptations to sin." Nikolai said. "For that, we shall have a feast in due time, as a celebration to my return!"

The crowd erupted into cheers.

"Now then, these three will be liberated from their sinful cages of flesh and blood. They will be proof that I tolerate no dissension in my city, no evil, no sin. My word is the word of God. I have been merciful many times before, but from now on, those that dare defy me any longer will be treated thusly." She said, snapping her finger. Immediately, the third pyre on the right burst into flames, with the man tied to it screaming and shouting in immediate agony. The fire swallowed him, and his charred black form could be seen through the dancing red wisps. The crowd was initially startled, but soon the cheering and glorious clamor coursed through them, as they praised their savior and deliverer. She looked back at Yuuya, whose eyes were alight with glee and wonder at the terrible sight.

Jaros saw him, and a great fear overwhelmed him. Sweat dripped down his brow and he tried screaming something, perhaps a moment of final reconsideration to the Witch-Queen, but she did not hear him. Instead, she snapped her fingers once more, and the golden fire enveloped him as well. But as the two burned, Nikolai walked closer to Mary, who had a terrified, tearful look on her face. Her whole body shivered and trembled, and Nikolai could visibly see she had shamefully wetted herself.

"Disgusting. But alas, I gave you until the night. Have you reconsidered?" Nikolai whispered.

Mary just nodded, her head hanging low, not even daring to look at her. Nikolai felt insulted.

"Look at me. Do you wish to be forgiven?" She barked.

The woman's head lifted slightly, her whimpers and panicked groaning somehow constituting an answer.

"Answer me clearly, woman. Do you wish to rejoin me, obeying my word, and dutifully praising your Goddess?"

"Y-yes, yes! P-please, spare me! I'll do anything. I'm sorry, I w-was wrong! Misguided, deceived, please!" She pleaded and begged.

Nikolai stepped back satisfied. Something about the way she moved sent a dreadful chill through Mary's body. But in that moment, something about the pleading look in Mary's eyes stirred something within Nikolai. She thought for a moment of the mother and daughter she had seen as she returned, their charred empty corpses tugging at her heart, as if pleading for mercy. Though she had never intended to give mercy, an icy chill gripped her, and she decided to relent yet again. With a snap of her fingers, Nikolai unleashed a quick flicker of flame, and all of Mary's bindings were charred and snapped away. Mary fell down on her face and knees, sobbing softly to herself.

"You should consider yourself exceedingly fortunate." Nikolai said, turning away to face her audience. "You see, all of you are welcome to find that the mercy in the heart of your goddess is great. Punishment only comes when you force my hand, not for any slight misdoing. I do not wish to be cruel." She paused, turning around for a moment as the flames in her left eye flared under her mask. "This sinner has begged for forgiveness, so forgiveness she's received. With this, we will find Mary's children, and bring them back into our flock so that they may be kept safe and secure from the evils of this world." Her voice fell with a terrifying melodious tremble.

Mary looked up, tears frozen on her cheeks as her eyes went wide. She stared up at Nikolai, and despite the fear that welled within, it all boiled away to anger. Her hands rested on the wooden platform, and her fingers brushed against a slightly bent piece of wood. With a quick tug, it became a sharp makeshift dagger.

"NO!" She screamed, and charged at Nikolai with her makeshift weapon. "YOU WILL NOT TAKE MY CHILDREN EVER AGAIN!"

"W-wha-" Nikolai yelled, shocked to see her prisoner slamming her to the ground. Her followers clamored and screamed in fear, seeing their Goddess tackled so savagely. Their screams echoed even louder moments later as Mary stabbed Nikolai in the neck.

With eyes wide, Mary stood and backed off, watching the blood drip from Nikolai's neck. It was a harsh scarlet sheen, aglow as if her flames flowed through every drop of it. Instead of death however, Nikolai stood up slowly. With slow, methodical movements her left hand rose and pulled the stake from her neck, much to the shocked gasps of everyone watching. As she did, her wound erupted with flames, igniting her blood and sealing her skin shut. The blood that had flowed was now alight with pure fire, and the wooden weapon immediately turned to ashes. Nikolai's right eye was cast by a dark shadow, while her left was billowing with wildfire.

"I… gave you another… chance… and you threw it back in my face. And for what?" Nikolai said, her voice weak, almost filled with grief at the certainty of what she was now forced to do. "Even when I try to give mercy, you all spit in my face."

"I…" Mary said, stepping away.

"No. There is no you. Not anymore. I offered you salvation, but you broke and faltered before the end. I had no intention to let you back after you refused earlier and still I opened my heart, and gave you that opportunity." Nikolai hair billowed in the winds of her fire, a blazing inferno kicking up around her from all the holy blood that she'd spilled. Her divine anger was manifested. "You have made a grave mistake. Know that I will erase every, single, memory of you from your daughter's minds. They will live, and thrive, and you will die now, without a grave or any remembrance of you left. You will go to hell, and spend eternity regretting ever crossing me."

Snap.

The flames swallowed her screams, and illuminated the pitch darkness of the night. Nikolai stepped back, turning to her crowd and closing her eyes. Sadness and disappointment envelopped her like her robes, but she turned away those thoughts, letting herself sway. Her body swayed gently in the breeze, as if she was enjoying the tortured deathrattles of those sinful ones behind her. The swaying drifted her into a trance, and that night quickly became nothing more than a memory. A memory of fire, a memory of death, a memory of despair. A memory that manifested in Nikolai's mind four months later as a nightmare. She jumped from her bed, heaving and gasping for air.

S-something… terrible… what… is this? She thought as she quickly got out of bed and rushed towards the windows. She opened them, letting the cold rain wash over her face and soothe her. There were no stars and no moon in the sky tonight. Only a single dreadful shade of darkness. Nikolai stared at the sky, and it was a subtle whisper echoed in her mind. She placed a hand over her chest, feeling her heart beating. A sadness overwhelmed her, a longing, yearning.

"Ah… I understand…" She said, letting her chest ache painfully. Tears began to flow down her face, turning to steam against her scars. "So… you have fallen, have you? I wished it was by my hand but… alas, my task is now fulfilled with your death."

Now there is nothing left to hold me back. No one left to save me from this abyss… Nikolai said, unable to stop herself from crying softly.