Private Tales Prove Your Humanity

[Vittoria Larrainth]

"Can you please stop looking out the window. I promise, if they find us, I can handle them." Vittoria had finished tying one last knot, securing their target to a chair. To muffle them, she had shoved the man's scarf into his mouth, wrapping the hanging length back around his neck as if it were being worn as normal. The Initiate gave him a smile, one that made him flinch as she now had a sliver of malice inhabiting her otherwise emotionless expression in the past few hours of making their acquaintance.

"Sabrina." Larrainth turned to furrow her dark brows at the other Initiate tasked with this mission. It seemed like a cruel joke to pair them, as if any other Initiate could stand up against Vittoria and her deadly keen sense to get the job done. "Might you come away from the window, lest his friends spy your stardust and our hiding spot given away?" Her voice was soft, well mannered in terms of speech, but it was missing the essential warmth or tone needed to direct her words. Vittoria had always been a weapon, an easy feat when one was born with the destruction she was capable of. Even as she smiled, with synthetic warmth and sweetness, a sickly honey to her tone as she next spoke. "We need to get our answers now. I am yet to fail a mission, and I will not fail this one when the objective is so simple as this."

Interrogation. They all had been taught several ways in extracting information, but in their class, it was clear who excelled the most. Vittoria's magic earned her two nullifying cuffs at her wrists, cancelling out the magic that gave her the ability to unmake anyone and anything. Before the Revolution, a young Initiate Larrainth was given free reign to take apart any animal put before her, but it was not until her fascination in watching their moment of death mere seconds before their bodies were torn apart did some Proctors fear what she could really do. With a legendary father that served as a First Rank Dreadlord, there was much to fear in what the Virak loyalist would have taught his daughter.

Patience had been one of the many lessons taught by her father and the Academy.

It strained her feigned kind smile, causing her hands to curl into fists at her side as the other dark haired Initiate still stood in the window, the loud voices of the men trying to find and retrieve their friend. "Might I demonstrate how I can conceal items with my magic by hiding your body beside this man's?" She spoke full of irritation. Fed up with this unusual pairing for a simple mission entrusted to Initiates. The man in question gave out muffled protests, squirming against the restraints now the threat of Vittoria was no longer within distance.

The task was simple: Weed out the unreliable, the sympathisers of the enemies of Vel Anir. Extract, and then relay to the ears of Vel Anir.

 

[Sabrina]

Sabrina all but ignored the demands across the room, kneeling in front of the window and peeking out at the nothingness outside. Still, she had an awful feeling churning deep in her stomach. She, unlike her counterpart, was not particularly skilled- in interrogations or anything they trained for. She did not care for their cause. She was content with her future amongst the lowest ranked Dreadlords. No motivation extended beyond her own survival until then.

Sabrina.

That sharp voice called her again and the girl flinched, fighting the nervous yelp that wanted to escape her and draw attention to the room in which a man was tied up. Her words were laced with an iciness that only Vittoria had mastered. It was a shock to Sabrina, and no doubt many others, that her powers had little to do with the cold. Shakily, she pulled herself away and nodded at Vittoria. "Y-yes." She whispered, stuttering as she tried to turn off that annoying, lingering glow she fought so hard to master.

She did not particularly care if they failed the mission or not. Sabrina had failed most of hers. On purpose or not, she did not share. Regardless, she knew Vittoria would make her life more of the living hell it already was in her presence if she did not comply. Slowly, fighting her nature, she crept closer and once again fought the urge to let out a yelp with another threat.

"No." Her voice was still near silent, obviously full of a fear that only made their target wriggle more as he wondered how bad a dreadlord could be if she made another dreadlord so nervous.

Deep breaths behind the target, she took her place and used all the power inside to halt the shimmering starlight that surrounded her. The room was utterly dark now, illuminated just barely by a glint of moonlight through that same window.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

There was a thrill of power that surged inside her watching the other Initiate squirm by her words alone. Never mind her demonstration was already at work; the entire building seemed to be hidden and tucked away despite the run down home being so obvious without magic being undertaken. Out of sight, out of mind.

Vittoria took her place before the man, an Anirian born here in Carelian, a town found hours from Vel Stratholm. There was a very important piece of Anirian history that been stolen from the archives of one of the research centres found in the religious city. It was surely work of those wishing to steal from the Republic, and what better way to send a message than to send one of the best extractors of information the Academy had seen?

Of course, she wished her partner assigned to such a mission was that of her dearest and good friend, King D'Amour.

Sabrina was a skittish thing; like a pet that grew old with unkindness... perhaps the years Sabrina had attended the Academy were filled with an unloving environment when she had to deal with Vittoria and King for so long.

"There we are, Sabrina." Vittoria smiled now, a true show of genuine cheer. Her ocean hues, now dark flickers in the low light of the moons, fell on the man. "Let us test him. Start by asking his name." The Initiate lifted her hand, the silver cuff snug at her wrist. She became good at slipping it off, as if she were a street magician working their way out of whatever tricky confines they had found themselves in. One cuff off, she lifted the other hand and did the same.

The man watched the Initiate, feeling a sense of strangeness overcoming his entire self. It was as if his bones itched like the fiery hells! He squirmed slightly, as if to alleviate the sense.

"Go on Sabrina. Remove that gods awful scarf and ask him. If he screams..." Vittoria rolled her wrists before lowering them at her sides, the cuffs now tucked into the pockets of her breeches. The itching only increased for the man tied to the chair, making him growl into the woolen scarf acting as a gag.

Sabrina

 

[Sabrina]

She tried to drown out the terrible feeling she got whenever she was around the girl who tortured her. It must have just been some mistake by the proctors to send them...together. They knew. They had to have known that Vittoria was scary. Vittoria was unsafe. Sabrina only thanked her lucky stars that this had not been a three person mission. She would have been tied up and gagged alongside the poor man an hour ago.

Eyes big as saucers, she looked up when the devil-woman spoke her name again. Those eyes darted hesitantly between Vittoria and the man before lingering on Vittoria. A silent plea that she would do all the talking while Sabrina maintained the lookout. A lookout they didn't even need.

It was all for nothing. She watched him squirm and knew that Vittoria was doing something and when her voice was uttered once more, Sabrina crept closer. Her eyes locked onto the man. Her stare, full of apology as she slowly tugged at the scarf.

"W-what is your na- OW!" She pulled her hand away. "He BIT me."

And did not reveal his name

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Disappointment came in the form of her clicking tongue, the wagging of a finger as she chastised the man. She crouched down, feet flat on the wooden floorboards as her arms rested on her knees, hands dangling before her and just out of reach of the man. The smile returned to her lips, visible as a silhouette against the moonslight filtering in. Eyes stared at the man still, even as her next words were for Sabrina.

"Try again, Sabrina." Vittoria need not to peer up at the nervous Initiate, and effectively ignored the silent pleas in her pitiful gaze. "And if he does not comply, well... we have ways of getting simple answers."

It was a shame he was putting up a fight over a name, one they both knew already as it was stated in their mission summons. A target by the name of Ishaan, who had the means to be in easy contact with several people.

"Sabrina." Vittoria now lifted her head to peer at the other girl. "Your turn again."

 

[Sabrina]

Deathly calm and devastatingly beautiful.

A terrifying image that both Sabrina and the man were faced with as she ordered Sabrina once more. Calmly, like death. She wondered, cradling her throbbing finger, if Vittoria could hear how hard her heart was beating in her chest.

She stepped back towards the man, her breathing heavy as she tried to calm herself. In...out...in...out...

Her hands dropped to her sides, flinching just barely as her name was stated again. Another deep breath, in and out. Ready. She huffed and crouched down in front of the man. Her eyes twinkled as she stared deep into his own. Starry-eyed, they called her. A wonderful feature when talking to a child. Not so much when attempting an interrogation.

"Name." She demanded this time, no more convincing than the last. Though something behind her caught the man's eye and he replied in a strained voice.

"Ishaan."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

"See? That was not difficult at all! Now, Sabrina... ask him what he knows about the Virak history stolen from the archives."

Tamhas Larrainth, her late father, was a great loyalist to the Great House Virak during his time as Dreadlord. Even as a youngling studying at the Academy, their interest in her was made known. Of course, all of that no longer mattered now, but Vittoria always stayed true to those she trusts.

And there were none present in this dimly lit room.

Ishaan flinched, turning to look up at nervous Initiate with pleading eyes. "I promise, I do not know anything! I do not! Please, please! Have mercy on me!" He began to mutter prayers, making the mistake of looking at Vittoria who had changed her cat-like expression of watching a mouse panic under her paw to one of absolute voidless expression.

"Mercy is not why we are here, Ishaan." Vitorria sighed and stood up tall, making his line of sight roll upwards to keep his terrified eye contact with her. "We punish those that steal from Vel Anir."

Her eyes, find Sabrina's. Wordless, she asked the Initiate to continue the interrogation.

 

[Sabrina]

Sabrina's eyes once again darted between the man and Vittoria. Her expression in the dark room still managed to be clearly painted on her face. She had no need to say the words aloud when the way her eyebrows curved upward...and that sad look in her eyes practically screamed: Do I really have to?

She wanted to pray with him, not because she cared for his cause. She wanted whatever Vittoria had planned to be swift and painless. The fear in his eyes made her stomach churn. "Vittoria stop!" Sabrina snapped every so quietly.

They were, to Sabrina's knowledge, here to interrogate. Not. Harm. Sabrina wanted no part in Vittoria's cruel threats. Of course, her attempts to reign her in would likely go unnoticed. Or, more likely, result in her facing more torture from Vittoria and King.

There was a tense minute before Sabrina continued. "Sir...Ishaan." Her eyes locked back onto his, a few glimmers of her starlight pushed through as she grew more nervous...more stressed. "We are not here to hurt you. We just need some information. If you provide what we ask, you will be free to leave. I promise you, no harm to a hair on your head."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

The cat-like expression returned to her visage after Sabrina's quiet outburst. She was amused, perhaps too eager to press upon the nerves of the girl, but there was a lesson to be taught in everything.

But Vittoria did not speak anymore, watching the two mice before her speak.

Ishaan stared up at the girl that walked with stardust. He remembered seeing the shimmers and had become fascinated by them before the other Initiate held a dagger to his throat when he attempted to run before she could tie him to the chair. That feeling he was experiencing now, he had felt it then. It was enough to keep him in the moment, able to weigh his options.

The Stardust girl promised he wouldn't be hurt anymore, and he could trust her. If he hadn't witnessed the differing Initiates, he might have doubted the girl, but fear was hard to pass as a lie when it was so raw.

"I was not involved with the crime." He said.

Vittoria had a good read of his heartbeat, steady, but his face betrayed him. He was speaking truths but he forgot to compose himself.

"Oh, no. No, you had no part in the crime itself... but it is written all over that face of yours. You know who was involved. Perhaps you are not too happy with them..." Her eyes flicked upwards to Sabrina, smiling. A genuine smile, and not the feigned appearances she liked to do. "I think if you tell us who, it may just save your life. Sabrina can promise you would not be hurt, but I like to work within the parameters I am given. So... dear friend, will you be returning to your family tonight?"

 

[Sabrina]

Sabrina held his stare, noticing how he looked at her the same way that others did. As though he felt sorry for her. A lost doe stuck in a bear trap while something much larger, much more dangerous lurked behind. Like she was bait and Vittoria was the hunter. And something in his tone would lead Sabrina to believe he was being honest to her- if only for her sake.

She turned back to Vittoria, her honeyed voice still sending a shiver down the initiates spine and goosebumps to the skin covered in her navy robes.

"Y-yes..." She shuddered as her focus once more was on Ishaan. "Please, if you could, tell us who was involved..." There was a pleading look on her face. One Vittoria could not see, but probably sense if she was as terrifying as Sabrina imagined. She tried to force it from her face as she snapped her head back toward her classmate. "His life is already saved. I promised. He will not be harmed."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Vittoria let out an uncharacteristic snort. Who were they to deny the orders given to them? Not only was she sent on this mission for her efficiency in extracting information, Initiate Larrainth was a dedicated soldier. There was no doubt her late father had voiced his praises in his daughter, pleased with how hard she broke herself to rebuild into this weapon.

Ishaan took a shaky breath. His heart raced, his hands shook. "Lainey. Her sister used to work for the Viraks, but died. Lainey never recovered... her grief was made of unholy agony..."

"Does this Lainey have another name? What about her sister?"

"Solaine. Her sister was called Solaine."

Vittoria frowned, as much as her face could. Her dark brows furrowed with light indentation above the brow line, her lips pursed lightly. "Solaine Ruknil?" A Dreadlord. She had heard her father mention the name enough to recognise it. Especially when the name popped up numerous times as part of the party that went against her father. "Ruknil plotted against the Viraks. How fitting her sister is involved with stealing from the Great family too."

She turned, taking to pacing the room in a triangular route. The Initiate was beautiful, hauntingly so, but it was clear after gazing upon her face for a moment that there was something unnerving about her. Even as she walked, there was a predator's precision to it, as if her footfalls could easily turn to face you and catch you in the act. She was honed, that much was clear, but she did not need the speed of a hunter to make her opponent fall.

"Lainey has six others working in her team. She has a Dreadlord, but none of us has seen their face. She calls them The Benefactor." Ishaan watched the girl move before him before turning to look at Sabrina. "Please... I gave you names, I gave you direction!"

Vittoria looked to him with a small huff. "Names." She said simply, turning to sit at a chair from the dining table. Ishaan's chair came from the same set. "Funny thing names." Her hand reached for the golden chain around her neck, searching for the golden medallion there and bringing it front and center. She fiddled with it; her thumb running over the overside to the coin. "What are the other names of Lainey's group?"

 

[Sabrina]

Lainey... Sabrina tucked the name somewhere deep into her brain for safekeeping. Same for Solaine. Though, the latter, had not been unfamiliar to her. Something uttered at some point by someone during her education. And, by the look on Vittoria's face, she too seemed to have a history with the name. The other name...Virak...Sabrina was not sure if the shuddering was only in her mind or if the pair in front of her watched her stir in her spot. What the hell was the Academy, no, Vittoria getting them into?

She watched the girl pace, not daring to utter a word while she looked to be contemplating...planning...Sabrina was too afraid to wonder what was wrong with her. What had happened to make someone so young so ruthless. So uncaring. So perfect. So vile.

Her eyes moved slowly, back onto Ishaan's own while he begged. Still, she did not move. A silent apology was conveyed, once again, through starry eyes.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

"Names..." Vittoria repeated once more. "Do you remember our names, Ishaan?"

It was hard to decipher her tone, but her face was shrouded in the dark. The moonslight blinded Ishaan but he knew where the other girl was. He turned to look at the stardusted Initiate beside him. "Sabrina..." Nervous, he was nervous.

"And mine?"

Again, looking into the darkness, he fixed his eyes on something the glinted. Metal. Perhaps at her neck. "Vittoria." Sabrina had said it once, but his memory latched onto it, and yet saying it aloud felt like he was speaking his own death sentence. He could taste it, something odd and coppery. Like the girl was an open wound, not to fester with infection, but for show.

"And do you think we should allow you to walk these streets? What is this town called again?" Vittoria changed her voice, sounding as if she were being factual, revisiting the evidence before coming to a verdict.

"Carelian."

"Right, Carelian. Thank you, Ishaan." She was smiling again, no glee, no glimmer. "Carelian does not know our names, but you do. Who can trust that you would not repeat them to... Lainey and her other associates?"

Thank Kress Ishaan was tied down, because those very restraints began to come undone. Vittoria made no move to fix the rope as is fell from his wrists, laying on the dust ridden floors in a serpentine heap.

"Sit down, Sabrina. It is time to play a game."

 

[Sabrina]

She watched the interaction before her, a tennis match as Vittoria questioned and Ishaan tried to answer. Tried, and succeeded. Names. Vittoria had a point- if he knew their names, and had clearly been observing Sabrina's unnaturally dazzling aura, he had ammunition. Vittoria could run, Vittoria could hide. Sabrina, glowing like the freaking stars, stuck out like a sore thumb in society.

Shoot.

Her skin had gone a sickly shade of white. "A game?" She looked up, but followed instructions and sat on the cold wooden floor. Was the terror written so plainly across her face? The criminal was being freed and she was being detained by her own classmate...?

Her own power buzzed around her, humming a soothing tune as she just sat and stared.

Panicked and froze.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

"I will say nothing!" Ishaan called out, pleaded.

Vittoria clicked her tongue, "I barely said anything and you are being quite talkative." The smile on her face turned cat-like again, as her next words came out like a purr. "We cannot have such loose tongues running amok."

Ishaan shook his head, "Please, please! I can spy for you!"

Ocean eyes fell on where Sabrina chose to seat herself, the smile unwavering as she looked upon the shaking man before her. Vittoria fiddled some more with her necklace, watching the man plead relentlessly to both the Initiates present. "We do not need spies, we seek loyalty. Not thieves and accomplices to crimes committed. Our orders were to get information. We have a solid lead, thanks to you." The young Initiate spoke slowly, as if they had all the time in the world sitting here. They were stuck here at the whims of her state of mind, and no doubt the cat would become bored of playing with her dinner soon enough.

Two minutes went by, only Ishaan's shuddering and murmuring for mercy to be heard. Vittoria stared him down, smiling wickedly when she witnessed him flinch whenever she moved a muscle. She knew Sabrina would not dare say a word, not when Vitt was quiet. She was always her cruelest in silence.

"Pl—" Ishaan's mouth moved, and Vittoria sucked in a shallow breath.

Barely a second had passed and Ishaan's skin stretched outwards, like cracks taking form and ripping apart. Muscle and sinew did the same, and his bones were pulled from their skeletal form. Vittoria's favourite part was watching their eyes. It has disturbed her as a child, but she kept doing so and began to relish in the fear, panic, and acceptance in one's windows to their soul. How swift all them emotions came to pass before even the eyes were torn from their sockets, skin already bursting at the seams.

Magic allowed the pieces to hover in the air for a moment before coming undone as gravity forced it all down, a disturbing wet squelching sound slapping against the wooden floors. A lot of blood covered Sabrina, who was closest to the mess, and Vittoria now watched her classmate in the aftermath.

 

[Sabrina]

Sabrina thought she may throw up or pass out. Perhaps both in this horrible room that felt too hot and too cold. Too large and, yet, too small to be sitting in now. The pace of her breathing increased until she was sure both Ishaan and Vittoria would notice. She was not okay with any of this. "Vittoria!" Her please were too quiet to be of any use. A voice she wished would draw attention from outside the building was little more than a whisper in the wind.

"Vittoria! Please! Stop!" Again, her words may as well not have been said at all.

And then, the silence ensued. Sabrina had never seen Vittoria's work up close. She'd only been a victim of her physical and verbal abuse. Never a victim of her powers. And as she watched, Ishaan's skin stretching and tearing from inside out, she prayed she never would be a victim of her darkness. Her eyes shut tightly, but she could not block out the scene in front of her. Each squelch as organs, tissue, his eyes were turned from a being into a bloody mess.

Her eyes shot open, blood was misting her as chunks of Ishaan's flesh burst outward. A piece of...him landed on Sabrina's shoulder and she moved on her hands and knees, slipping in the bloody mess that flooded the wood. Splinters from the wood in her knees allowed her blood to mingle with Ishaan's and her hands clawed desperately to get the chunks off of her skin.

Heat filled her body and she could no longer fight the mixture of terror and disgust brewing inside.

Sabrina froze on her hands and knees in the puddle of Ishaan's blood and flesh and vomited. And she continued to do so until the edges of her vision had gone dark and there was nothing, not even acid left to make its way up her burning throat. She sat there in the mess panting until she very well may pass out.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

For a minute, she watched with a hard expression as Sabrina emptied her stomach, her body still doing it's best to dispose the contents of her belly until the bile was now littered on the floor. For a minute, Vittoria watched a real, human reaction once again. She let it sink in just how catastrophic she could be, and why the Proctors decided it was best to dull her magic with the nullifying cuffs. With them on, all she could really be able to do it undo smaller mechanisms such as a compass or clock. A lock, even.

After that minute, not minding the mess and gore, Vittoria leaned beside Sabrina. "Come now." She placed gentle hands on the girl, helping her up. Without another word, Vittoria led her out the door, into the street, but once people passed them, it became clear they went unseen. Another talent of Vittoria's, keeping them concealed. They were on the move, slowly but surely coming to stand before the tavern where their lodgings were for the night.

Vittoria helped Sabrina to the room that was decided to be Sabrina's, placing the girl on the floor before the bath and ran a hot bath for the girl. Vitt hummed, a soft and gentle tune that gave her the appearance of normal as her fingers tested the temperature, adjusting minor. Eventually, she turned to Sabrina and smiled, a real one. Happiness, or what passes as it, was painted across her lips.

"Time to get in, Sabrina."

 

[Sabrina]

Everything was a blur after Sabrina had finished being sick. There was no power, no will in her to move, to think, to exist in this moment. She could not even muster up the strength to toss herself into the starry abyss and hide from the monster in front of her.

She couldn't feel Vittoria's hands on her, lifting her from the mess and guiding her the the tavern room they shared. Couldn't see the people in the street. Couldn't hear the world around her. All she found herself able to do was breathe. Deeply and slowly. In and out. Until their movement ceased and Sabrina found herself once again on her hands and knees on a hard floor.

The world seemed to creep back into life, slowly. As slowly as she breathed. Muffled sounds of water running mingled with the soft humming. A sickening tune that, if she had anything left inside her, would have made her vomit once more. The blurriness of her vision began to dissipate as that horrid, evil voice broke through her barriers. Without moving any other muscles, her eyes shifted upward at the girl standing before her. Smiling down as though she had not just liquified a man. Smiling as if Sabrina wasn't currently coated in a layer of human pieces.

Willing her body to move had been a great effort, but if she wasn't to throw herself into the bath then she was certain Vittoria would take the opportunity to drown her and rid herself of any evidence she was linked to this murder. Slowly, Sabrina had stripped her blood-soaked clothing off- pausing to peel a chunk of what seemed like the man's ear and scalp off of her shoulder. She gagged, dropping to the floor with the rest of her clothing and approached the tub. This had not been the way she pictured her first time standing bare in front of someone to be, but in her panic she couldn't bring herself to care or be ashamed.

One leg after the other, she crawled into the scalding water and eventually dunked her head in. And held it there for far too long.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

When Vittoria watched Sabrina descend into the tub, she did not watch to curiously see her form. No, her eyes trained on the haunted expression on the girl's face. It truly struck Sabrina, the horrors that Vittoria was able to do, and do without any regret.

If only she knew I did the same to my true uncle and his half elf wife. She thought to herself.

Vittoria watched the water turn pink from the blood coating the girl where her clothing had not covered, and frowned slightly when the Stardust girl kept her head submerged for longer than needed. Vittoria took a small step towards the bath, towering over it at the opposite end to where Sabrina could look up and be met with her figure standing there.

Did she wish for death? Vittoria liked hearing some people beg for death, but the true symphony to her own ears were pleading for mercy.

She could... perhaps yearn to hear Sabrina say such words, to see the agony and panic over that pretty face.

Vittoria knew she did not want to die in that bath. No, Sabrina would not have it in her to commit to such a thing.

I could simply tear her skin enough to crack... have her panic... perhaps make her hurt and play with the nerves in her body... would she beg for mercy? Death? Of course... I could quite well prolong each tear in her flesh... just long enough to hear what her true desire was.

"Sabrina." Vittoria said softly, waiting for the girl to rise. "We do not have all night to clean up. There is a check in we must meet, do you remember?"

 

[Sabrina]

Her eyes stayed open, watching the water shift from clear to a murky reddish brown from below the surface. Vittoria was right, Sabrina had not wanted to die, but this girl was not Sabrina. Sabrina had never killed, never allowed an innocent to be killed. Even when instructed, Sabrina had always found a way out- targets escaping or Sabrina outright releasing them if they promised to stay quiet.

She let him die.

The muffled voice of Vittoria could be heard, but Sabrina made no attempt to remove herself from the water, willing whatever power from the stars she could to hold her down longer until she, too, was extinguished. She only blinked once and allowed the water to rush in.

Bloody, polluted water filled her mouth and her nose. Sabrina did not fight it. She would not be leaving alive.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

What an outright witch...

Vittoria sat on the edge of the tub, meeting the stare of the defiant girl beneath the water's surface. She smiled.

Her hand fell and lightly rested on Sabrina's knee, holding tightly onto the girl as her magic delivered the pains of flesh stretching, her very bones and muscles tearing ever so slowly. Sabrina's refusal to leave, to clean herself up and ready herself to go with Vittoria and meet their check in was an invitation to do as Vittoria had thought of doing.

"No, no, Sabrina." Vittoria cooed, kicking up the tearing sensation a notch and letting it remain that way for a few more minutes. "If you wish to die, it will be my hands."

She would not be robbed of this. Of course, the Academy discouraged the murder of an Initiate, but they were in a position that Vittoria could paint Sabrina's death as a fatality on their mission.

Beg for it... beg for it or cry for mercy.

 

[Sabrina]

Vittoria could see Sabrina squirm under the water, fighting that horrid touch grazing her knee. She felt it, her flesh moving and the ache that accompanied whatever Vittoria was trying to do. She fought the screams that wanted to escape as she felt her bones moving, muscles tearing at their insertions as though she were trying to break her femur.

Get on with it. She wished, in her head. Vittoria, the fucking nutjob, could probably hear her thoughts anyway.
In her head she begged Vittoria to make it quick. End her before she had to live another moment with the memory of what she'd just witnessed. Memory of the man tearing apart in front of her. Memories of his flesh and blood filling her mouth, her nose, her stomach, her lungs.

The pain got worse. She clenched her jaw, grinding her teeth as she swore she could hear her bones groaning in protest to the movement.

Crrraaack...!

Sabrina thrashed against the water, screaming as her head shot above the murky surface. Her hands went to clutch the broken leg. "Stop! Stop! Stop!" She screamed over and over.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Was it cruel to smile with satisfaction hearing bone crack? Was it cruel that she let the pain continue for a few seconds more despite Sabrina begging her to stop?

No, this was by far the most tamed thing she could inflict on the girl.

"Your weakness is not going to make us late for this check in." She withdrew her hand and gave it a shake to dry. Vittoria stood tall once more, lifting her head so as to look down at Sabrina as if she were worthless. "So clean yourself. Lest you wish I assist you."

True Dreadlords could fight against pain. There were tales that even an amputation could not stop them from wielding magic. Larrainth had every doubt Sabrina could work past the pain, but even a human could learn to bear it.

Vittoria crossed the room and pick up a wash cloth and a bar of soap, dropping both items into the bath without real care of where the items would fall, but narrowly missed the broken leg. "Do you want a medic, Sabrina? Someone to mend your leg?" She turned, slowly walking out from the bathroom and going through the pack Sabrina had brought with her here to Carelian. Moments later, Vittoria returned to the room and placed the clean attire on a stool. "If you would like, I can attempt the same lesson Ophir taught us weeks ago."

She smiled, lips curving and no kindness found there.

 

[Sabrina]

Sabrina screamed when the pain got worse, a true blood-curdling scream. The two of them would be lucky if someone, somewhere didn't come rushing towards the sound of her distress. She leaned over the side of the tub, vomiting one last time from the pain before she leaned her head against the tub panting. Or maybe it was crying. Probably both.

She would have let Vittoria assist her. Each movement as she tried to scrub herself clean from the mess she sat in was excruciating.

"No." She struggled. An answer to all three of her questions. Vittoria would kill her if she went to a medic. Sabrina was an awful liar. They would know who caused the fracture. And letting Vittoria do anything else to her was out of the question.

"I'll...be...o..kay..." She was still crying as she tried, and nearly failed, to pull herself from the tub. But eventually she was out and sat on the floor in her towel as she assessed the swelling in her leg. It was bad, already turning black and blue. She wasn't sure she could walk on it at all, but knowing Vittoria was probably laughing while she tried to stand was enough to force herself to try.

There were stars in her vision as she put pressure on it. Just keep moving. You'll be done soon enough. She convinced herself. She managed to dress with great difficulty, but eventually rejoined Vittoria and swayed back and forth as she announced. "Alright. Ready."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

"I see that." From her perch on the edge of the bed, she appraised the Initiate with a cruel smile. "Fully fledged Dreadlords can weather the pain of a simple broken bone. You are well on your way to being great, Sabrina." For it truly was a magnificent feat that the girl had dressed herself and walked this way.

Without the help of King bolstering her attempts with healing magic, Vittoria resorted to the basic runes she had learned in class. Dipping a finger in the pitcher of water by the door leading to the bathroom, she began to draw the rune on Sabrina's forehead. "Keep still." She instructed, working quickly before the water could shrink. As soon as she finished the rune, her finger glowed with magic, calling on the ability of concealment so as to not frighten the skittish girl. With the magic to charge the rune, healing began to filter into the girl.

Although Vittoria did not allow Sabrina to heal fully.

No, the break would partially fix to a fracture, something to ensure for an easy break again if the Larrainth girl deemed it right. "There, you can manage on that for now. Come along, Sabrina. We shall not keep them waiting any longer."