Have you no fear? }{ Morgana and 17

[morgana]

Morgana was in the guest bathroom, mentally preparing to face the next challenger to seek their fortune from the great fortune teller Baba. The young woman’s teacher had decided to send her out first, wanting to dispatch of this terribly annoying group of rambunctious young men quickly. They had seen the purple haired witch in passing and made their cat calls to her, making Morgana all the more pleased she would get a shot at them first. No one could say the older woman was not kind to her student, that was for certain.

Grinning into the mirror at the thought of grown men screaming like girls, her teeth began to take on a pointed triangle shape; a second upper row formed moments later over the top set. Her hair began to grow longer as it twisted into long tentacles and two misshapen horns. Her arms split, creating a second pair, the tips forming into menacing ebony claws. Her body shortened as her mouth continued to widen, making way for yet more teeth, her long red tongue flicked about like a serpent seeking escape from the gaping hole. Soon, her clothes became scales. The newly formed beast crouched, something out of a child’s most fiendish nightmare, come to life and seeking blood.

The beast that was once Morgana slinked from the bathroom, a low growl of anticipation gurgled from inside the beast as the unusually large tongue flicked at the air as if trying to sense where to go, the door frame becoming scratched from grabbing claws from one set of her gnarled hands. Slowly, the creature began to make its way to the fighting ring that Baba had set up for such fights. Before she could make it half way there on her lizard like clawed feet, the small elderly witch speed up to her on her crystal ball. There was a slight fear in the elder’s eyes but not from the sight of a beast she knew so well.

“Change of plans, our doom approaches! I had foreseen the end but I never imagined it would be this soon. Though I did have a terrible case of allergies that day. All the same, change back and prepare to meet our final hour.”

Quickly, Morgana returned to her original form, her fair, milky white skin adorned with deep orchid and black garments. Purple hair hung loosely at her shoulders as lavender eyes raised to the sky. A light was approaching them quickly, and from that light they could see no escape. The apprentice had never seen her master like this and could do little more than heed her warning and prepare for the worst. Clinching her fist and prepairing for the unknown pain of death, she did not flinch as her eyes continued to keep their focus on the approach of her final and unbeatable opponent.

In a flash of light, they were gone and there was nothing and then suddenly, everything went back to the way it was. The woman blinked slowly as she looked around, quickly, at the unchanged world around her, the older woman doing the same.

“Fortune Teller Baba, what in HFIL just happened here? We can’t be dead if we‘re still at your palace.”

“No, we’re not dead. I don’t know what happened here but we need answers and we need them now. I think we should go to West City so I can get better reception on my crystal ball. The buildings there are much taller so I can easily get a better reading from the top of one of those towers.”

Morgana flinched at the thought of going to the city. Every time she went, bad things happened to her. Muggings, death threats, kidnappings; all proof the city people resented her existence. With a sigh she agreed, nodding her head in defeat. At least there would be new people to frighten until they wet themselves. A slight smirk formed at the corner of her lips at the thought of it. Yeah, this trip wouldn’t be so bad.

From the palace, both teacher and student would fly to the nearby desert city of Abul. From there they would take a bus to an airport just outside of the desert. That plane would take them straight to West City. The home of technological marvels and great minds. That silly little tag line Morgana had once read in a pamphlet had deceived her. Most of the people in West City were just as ignorant as the people outside of West City. The only people who seemed to know anything there were a small handful of scientists. Morgana disliked scientists; they were always poking and prodding at people to find out how they worked.

The two oddly dressed women made their way to a hotel and checked into separate rooms. Baba, taking the best of their rooms known as the ‘President’s Suite’ and Morgana taking a luxury room a floor below her teacher. She had no need for good reception as she did not read crystals of any kind. Morgana was perfectly happy with reading cards. As soon as she was settled, she began her work at once. Counting seven cards, she placed the seventh in front of her and returned the rest to the bottom of the deck before repeating the process two more times. Once the three cards were set in front of her and the deck put aside, she closed her eyes and flipped over the cards one by one.

“Past. Present. Future. Show me what I must know.”

The young woman opened her eyes and looked at the first of the cards. The Fool, a common card to get first. This was her past. A spark had ignited to set things into motion in her life, perhaps the strange light she had seen. The sun drew her eye on this card more than anything. Very little came to her other than the fact that what had happened before was the beginning of something larger. The second card was The Magician. Something was happening as she sat here. Something big that would change her life forever and she had no idea what it was. The third card, the card of her future, The Lovers. So many things can be gleaned from this. Either she would find something or someone that would complete her, which was a laugh, or she would have to make a decision biased on morality, which was also funny. The cards did nothing to help her but tell her what she already knew and give her a nice laugh. There was a knock at her door and she put away her cards quickly before opening it. One should not advertise their talents until they are fully developed. As soon as the door was cracked open, Baba raced inside and shut it behind her.

“Morgana, I have yet to determine the cause of the strange light but I think we have went back in time.”

“Back in time? That’s stupid, how would we go back in time and why haven’t we run into our past selves?”

“Not just us, everyone and no one has a double. Don’t question me any more or there will be consequences.”

With a sigh, Morgana nodded her reply.

“So now what?”

“Well, apparently, some big event involving a dark haired and evil man, or is it a good man, I don’t know anymore, I think the crystal ball needs to be repaired. Anyway, you will meet a man with dark hair and that meeting will change you life forever.”

“So my cards were right, imagine that.”

“Don’t be too sure of yourself, my crystal ball is acting up again. Anyway, he will have icy blue eyes, you’ll know him by that.”

“I met a boy with black hair and icy blue eyes once. Remember when the red ribbon army kidnapped me and I escaped? He helped me, well, not really helped, so much as he talked to me and kept me from loosing my cool. He… he saw me transform and wasn’t afraid.”

“What? Someone saw you transform and you never told me?”

“I’m sorry, I did not think it was important at the time.”

“Well, when you meet him, you will be officially done with your training and it will be up to you to stay in practice.”

“I see.”

After a long silent pause Morgana smiled slyly.

“I’m going to go for a walk.”

“I thought you would, stay out of trouble.”

“Do I ever?”

That last mumbled statement made the old woman’s eyebrow raise. The young woman flicked her wrist in a half hearted wave to her teacher, before shutting the door behind her. With a deep breath she strode quickly for the elevator and took it straight to the ground floor. When she stepped out, the dark clad witch cracked her knuckles before making her way out of the fancy high rise hotel. It was time to have some fun, not too much, just a little. Now who would be her first target?

WC: 1511

[android17]

Blood from his recent kill dripped from his muzzle, his breath fogging in the chilly air of the underground room. His paws ached from the icy feeling floor as he softly padded his way through the darkness, his eyes having adjusted slightly to provide him with a sense of direction. In the distance his keen ears pick up the sounds of several people talking, his sensitive nose detecting multiple males and one female in the room ahead. Creeping forward slowly he popped his head around the corner of the doorway, intently observing the situation before him. The males were surrounding the female, her body chained to a pillar, their eyes leering at her seemingly harmless and beautiful form. The men were young, early twenties, wearing the uniform of the Red Ribbon Army. A sense of urgency fills the young wolf’s body, his prey was so close at hand that he could taste victory beyond the coppery red liquid that he licked off his chops. The young lady, no more than a teenager, wore attire that could almost be called witch-like. The tight purple dress accented her feminine features quite well, her gentle curves hinting at the woman that she would become later in life. The soldiers, for that was what they were, were giving her demands, telling her to become part of their Army. Her negative responses elicited anger from the young bucks, their dispositions going from friendly and somewhat perverted to spiteful and furious. Their catcalls and suggestions of bed play quickly became threats and taunts, mocking her situation, and informing her that she would stay there for as long as they needed her to…until she gave in to their wills.

Slinking back into the shadows to hide the young wolf waited for the males to pass him by, his plan to follow them to their base was to be a sure success if he went now. Unfortunately, or fortunately as fate may have it, his steps took him in the opposite direction, leading him to where the young female was trapped. It was only when his feet stopped, his body directly in front of hers that he realized that he had let this chance for victory pass him by in favor of the lady. Sitting back on his haunches and studying her he let his mind wander, pondering as to why the illustrious Red Ribbon Army would want such a seemingly normal teenage girl among their elite numbers. Thoughts formed in his head, words never spoken aloud, questioning her purpose there, and what they had wanted. To him she seemed to be a mind reader, picking up on the unspoken contemplations, and answering them almost as fast as he could form them. He had thought she would ask for his assistance to escape her confinement, but to his surprise she offered him her aid instead. Before he could make a jest about their situations she had him take a few steps back, his jaw dropping as she began to change shape before him, her chains breaking and falling off of her shifting body. His was mind still in shock as he followed her while they made their escape, his original goals changed to that of nothing more than a companion; talking with her while they made their way out into the warm sunlight. As they reentered society he asked her what her name was….but in the haze of fading memories and din of the crowd he could not hear it. Calling back to her his own name he was rewarded with a bag over his head and the feeling of something solid connecting with his skull and knocking him unconscious…..

He awoke with a start, cold sweat dripping off his brow as the unusually vivid dream burned its way into his mind. The unusualness of it struck him moments later as the fog of sleep faded away; he had never had a dream for as long as he could remember. Who was the girl he was with? Why was he a wolf? What was she? Why, after all this time, did he have a dream about someone he couldn’t quite remember? These questions and more swept through him as he shifted and stumbled out of his bed, nearly falling to the floor as pain and other memories resurfaced. The tournament, his humiliating defeat, the loss of blood and the drinking, his other side taking over, the female archeologist that he had befriended helping him, the pink-haired cyborg that had been his opponent standing there, and fragments of the escape from the tournament grounds. Afterwards, once back in his own home, there was a flash of white, a blank slate of nothingness, and then he was asleep. Stripping down to nothing he removed the bandages and gingerly made his way to the full-sized mirror in his bedroom, assessing the damage that was to be a permanent reminder of his failure. Stiches and burn scars ran across his body in crossing patterns, the female offspring of Gero’s attacks having been brutal enough to kill ordinary people. His anger and disgust at her were gone now, replaced by a sense of curiosity, his mind wanting to know how she had come to be as she was. The hatred that burned inside him for her father was still very much there, a flame that would never die so long as the experiment known as Android Seventeen lived.

Shaking himself from his thoughts and feelings he made his way down into the small cybernetics laboratory that he had built, unusual machines and devices lining the walls and sitting on stainless steel tables. In the center of the room sat an old and out-of-date healing pod that he had recovered from a Saiyan crash site, the machine flickering to life as he punched in numbers and adjusted the settings for someone of his build and structure. Repairing Nano-machines flooded the pod along with the clear liquid, ensuring that both his mechanical and human parts would be fixed once his time inside was finished. As he began to climb inside he felt his strength give way, the energy he normally possessed not there for him when he went to lift the heavy lid. He felt no stronger than a normal human, the hatch that would lead to his recovery causing him such strain to lift that he felt his nearly closed wounds reopen and fresh blood pour from them. Using everything he had he managed to lift it up all the way, slipping down inside and letting it close heavily before sealing it shut, his mind drifting back into blackness as the healing agents began their long and arduous task. The whirrs and clicks of machinery in the background were his only companions as time passed slowly, drawing ever closer to his full recovery.

Hours later the alarm went off, informing him that the pod had done all it could. Bringing himself back to full consciousness he checked himself over, the results satisfactory for him as most of the wounds were now nothing more than small scars, only a few were left that were large, left over from the most devastating of her attacks. Lifting the lid from the bottom proved to be a daunting task, the leverage he had from the top not being present. Several slow minutes passed before he was able to lift it high enough to partially slip under, using his legs to finish the job before falling off the side and onto the ground. Picking himself up he made his way to the control panel and shut down the healing chamber, the lights and sounds dying out as he turned and made his way back upstairs, dressing in a fresh set of his normal clothing. The black shirt carrying the emblem of his former life, jeans, green socks, and tennis shoes that were most comfortable to him, all were of a style that others would probably laugh at, but they were familiar and allowed for flexibility in combat. Wondering about his recent powerlessness he grabbed his orange scarf and made his way outside, shielding his eyes from the sun while he let them adjust. Testing himself he found that he could still fly, though at a much slower pace, and that he could still feel a faint pulse of energy residing within him, though it seemed as if it were locked away. Shaking his head he lifted off into the air and headed for the nearest inhabited place, West City, wondering if anyone else had been affected by whatever had drained him of his power.

It took nearly an hour for him to arrive by flight, landing just outside the city limits and walking in, pretending to be just another human in a human crowd. Nothing really seemed any different, the people seemed unfazed by whatever had happened, and he began to wonder if maybe he was the only one that felt different. Stuffing his hands into his pockets he wandered around the town observing people, though his mind moved in a different direction, thinking back on his dream and trying to figure out the significance of it. Due to his inattention to his front he ended up running into what felt like a wall, his body naturally moving to go around it until the wall grew an arm and blocked his way entirely.

“Oi! You wouldn’t be tryin’ ta bump inta me without sayin’ yer sorry, would ya mate?” Lazily focusing on the voice that was addressing him he found himself face to chest with a large and angry looking alien, his orange skin and long white hair in sharp contrast to the humans that surrounded him. He stood nearly eight feet tall and roughly three feet wide, he towered over everyone near him, an imposing figure that was matched by the spiky space-faring armor that he wore. Before he could react a large gloved fist grabbed him neatly up by the collar and threw him into a nearby alleyway, his flight stopped short by a gated wire fence that he bounced off of and onto the ground. “Ya see, it’s humans loike you that make me knickers bunch up! Buncha sorry excuses for livin’ beings, no better than them slug people on that dirtball planet I passed by on my way ‘ere!”

Dashing forward he aimed a kick at the young human-looking male, his leg swishing through air as the Android rolled out of the way and regained his feet completely. He might be less powerful than he had been, but he had not lost his sense of fighting, or the skills that he had from before. While the large alien recovered from his hard kick the lithe cyborg pushed off from the fence, using the extra momentum and force to drive his elbow into the orange pretty boy face of his adversary, grinning as blood gushed from the freshly broken nose. The humans who accompanied the goliath being surged forward, preparing to defend their leader from the unexpectedly vicious raven-haired man. While attempting to staunch the flow of liquid from his nose the visitor from another planet looked at the fighter with hatred, a grin of malice lighting upon his face while he stepped back and waited for his men to deal with the resistant Seventeen. “Tch….and all I wanted was a nice walk in the city. Now I have to deal with a bunch of fools who think they own the sidewalk, and their moron of a leader who thinks he is top dog in town. I guess they’ve forgotten who I am…..I’ll have to show them how terrifying it can be to face down a cyborg, and how pointless it is to resist the black call of Death…” Dropping down into a fighting position, his hands up and at the ready, his knees bent, and his focus solely on the problem at hand, he prepared to show them all the afterlife in as grand a fashion as he could manage with his weakened abilities.

WC 2,009

[morgana]

For years Baba had rambled on and on about Morgana’s future. How she could become the greatest fortune teller the world has ever known if she applied herself and how she could easily make more money than the elder herself in her lifetime. It was silly to think she could ever even amount to half the fortune teller her teacher was even if she was easily twice, no three times her size. She couldn’t even read a crystal ball, she had to keep to the cards for the most part. Though, the cards were always more accurate than any other form of divination she tried. However, it was still hit and miss.

The old woman had also couldn’t seem to shut up about a mysterious dark figure from her past revealing himself once more and how it would be a bitter sweet reunion. Details were never divulged further than that. Most people would be annoyed by such a vague and shoddy fortune as that but Morgana understood the art of the craft well enough to know it was likely all that Baba could glean from the crystal‘s mysterious knowledge.

Sighing, defeated, Morgana kicked a rock. How was she supposed to know this mysterious person when she ran into him and who could it be? A few times she had thought it might be one of the people from the red ribbon army from back when they took her hostage, but it was a silly thought. Those fools were so scared of her they’d still wet themselves if they saw her out in public even though she was older, wiser, and less likely to kill before having her fun with them first.

Fun was something this city lacked. Baba had practically begged her to stay out of trouble until she was done here. Maybe she would be able to figure out what the mysterious light was and why her prediction was wrong. She was a grumpy old hag but she was never wrong. Morgana’s cards were more concerned with the future that Baba had been predicting for her. Stupid cards, there were other things to worry about. Like why she was made to think she was going to die and didn’t. Her teacher never played jokes and she did seem convincing back when it happened. Were they the only two people on the face of the planet who knew about this? One would think the doomsayers and religious fanatics would be everywhere spreading their personal messages if they knew.

A commotion could be heard from a nearby allyway and a sly grin parted the woman’s black painted lips. That was the sound of fun being had, and it wouldn’t be right for her to miss out. She jogged over to where a crowd was beginning to gather. A giant of a man had a smaller man cornered. How boring, watching some guy get beat up by someone other than her. However, she if acted like she was defending the smaller guy, she would get to beat up two fools in one go. Maybe after she might act like the orange one bit her and then transform into him before plowing through the crowd on a rampage. Yep, that would be fun, screw the rules Baba gave her to follow.

“Well, well, well, what do we have here?”

Her loud voice hushes the crowd and she strode forward, her hands on her hips. The crowd, confused, parted to let her through.

“Looks like the jolly green giant got mad and turned orange on us. Better look out everyone, someone got ‘Hulk Angry’”

She mocked the large orange alien, laughing as she finished her sentence.

“What was that puny human?”

“Oh? A puny human am I? Better than being a big orange derp in a tin can.”

That must have been the orange alien’s breaking point. He rushed her with a fist. She ducked down and kicked him in the knee, causing him to howl in pain. Was it possible for anyone to be this dumb? Morgana tilted her head to the site and drummed her black painted nails on her arm, the purple glitter sparkling in the sun.

“Are you done crying yet?”

“I’m not crying!”

The enraged orange giant rushed the violet woman again, this time with both fists. She caught them, the force of it pushing her back a bit on the pavement. He was a strong brute and her arms were beginning to shake from the force of his strength. Quickly, she raised a leg and planted her boot in his chest, sending him back a bit and taking some of his breath.

“I think I’m almost done playing with you. You’re not a very fun toy.”

She formed a small ball of flaming energy in her right hand. This was always the most she could muster of this kind of energy, much to her dismay, as she loved the look fools got on their faces when she did this. The typical frightened look crossed his face for a split second before he rushed her again with both fists. It was like a charging bull about to lock his horns into a bull fighter, she was happy for his moment. This time when Morgana caught his hands, one of his sleeves caught on fire from her energy sphere. The orange monster tossed off his armor and shirt to keep it from spreading, his expression livid with pure rage.

“What’s wrong with the big orange crybaby, you mad?”

The smaller man was all but forgotten as all her attentions were on the alien before her. They had to be since he was apparently stronger than she thought he was. At least he didn’t have energy magic or she would really be in trouble. However, the goal was to make everyone present feel like she was toying with him and she seemed to be doing well.

WC: 985
TWC: 2496

[android17]

As the orange alien’s men closed in on him he decided that the best course of action would be to take the offensive, launching himself at the nearest of the unsuspecting thugs. Grabbing the unfortunate human’s arm he neatly twisted it round with one hand, breaking it in several places as the skin and flesh started to visibly spiral and tear. The echoing screams were a delight to the unseen darkness that resided within the Android’s body and mind, a psychotic laughter barely suppressed by his strong will. Grabbing the henchman up by the throat the cyborg slammed his head into the wall repeatedly, the surrounding opponents frozen in shock by the display of brutality. They had thought that he would be an easy mark, someone they could beat up and then laugh about it. The seriousness of their situation snapped into place the moment that the first victim’s skull split open, blood spattering the wall and brain matter leaking out slowly from the new fatal wound.

Dropping the corpse to the side Seventeen spun around and dropped down, kicking his leg out to sweep several of the closest men off their feet. Not one to let an opportunity pass him by he jumped on top of the nearest one, digging his fingers into the man’s abdomen until he punctured the skin, and then ripping out the slimy intestines and internal organs. Looking back he tossed the stomach to one of the standing males, watching in amusement as the human puked onto one of the others who were on the ground. “You see? You fools should have just left me alone. Now instead a good number of you will die, while the others will probably run like cowards. Which will it be? Would you gentlemen prefer to die by my hand, or your ugly leader’s?” Grinning he held up his still bloody hands, wiping them on a semi clean spot of the dead body underneath him. While this kind of merciless killing was normally his other half’s area of expertise, he knew that these kinds of people only respected force and the only way he would end it is by killing all those who chose to stay.

Several of the younger members looked at one another fearfully, looking back down at the corpses for a brief moment before turning tail and fleeing like cowards. Seventeen laughed maniacally, forming what little energy he could muster into his hand and forming a sharpened edge around it, dashing at the next victim that had chosen to stay ad stabbing him repeatedly, the blood fountaining out of hand-sized holes in the man’s chest and neck. Quickly turning he passed the hand over the abdomen of another that tried to sneak up on him, neatly disemboweling him, the human’s innards spilling out onto the ground in a pile as the male desperately tried to hold onto all of them and stuff them back inside. The sight of the Android’s abilities broke what little courage the remaining people had, their lives suddenly more important than their leader’s orders as they ran out of the alleyway screaming.

Grinning to himself the cyborg turned to face his final adversary, the large orange alien that had started everything. He had expected the giant to be running at him, ready to strike him down and kill him. Instead what he was treated to was the sight of a woman taunting and teasing the brute, and the alien getting angry enough to attack her. The biggest surprise though was when her hand formed a small fireball in them and lit the orange males arm on fire, causing him to shed his now flaming armor. Seventeen snickered as he began to slowly walk towards his final victim, keeping an eye on the strangely familiar lady who had entered the alley. Her dark purple and black outfit clung tightly to an extremely attractive body, her attention focused solely on her opponent as she toyed with him. “Hmm? How unusual that someone would interfere in someone else’s business these days, you must enjoy picking fights that aren’t yours.”

Having made it to his former adversary without being detected he brought a hand up, gripping a handful of the alien’s white locks and pulled him backwards, kicking the back of his knee to bring him lower to the ground. “As for you….remember this as you make your way to the afterlife. The bigger you are, the more there is of you to cause pain to. My name is Android Seventeen, try to not be too disappointed that a non-human sent you to an early grave!” With his final declaration he twisted the orange goliath’s head quickly, breaking several vertebrae and severing the spinal cord. Laughing as the limp body hit the ground the cyborg stomped onto the dying individual’s throat, crushing the airway, a distinct crunching and popping emitting from the assaulted area. The alien’s last look was one of despair and fear, his body shutting down bit by bit without him being able to do anything about it. The darker side of the Android grinned sadistically from his hidden perch of their shared mind, wondering what other delights his lighter half would occupy himself with when he was in as black a mood as he was.

Looking back over to the new person who had entered his little world he reappraised her, noting her witch-like look, and the mischievous yet calculating look that was in her eye. “While I do not understand your motives, stranger, I do wonder as to what you could hope to gain from this. Just now that if you attack me now I will not hold back, I have no plans of dying here today.” Taking a step forward he squared off against her, his posture relaxed yet ready to spring back into the defensive if she tried anything that looked dangerous. Something about her nagged at him though, something he couldn’t let go. “I do have to ask though. Who are you, and why is it that you look so familiar to me? You have my curiosity, enough to where I would rather glean the answers from you than just simply kill you and move on.” As he awaited her response he scanned his surroundings, looking for possible escapes routes, and wondering how things would go with this somehow known individual that stood before him.

WC 1,066
TWC 3,075

[morgana]

As the gang members turned tail and ran, Morgana stood straight up, her hands on her hips, and laughed.

“Yes, run you cowards, flee to your mothers and never return! This is my city now.”

She kicked a discarded tin can at them, hitting one of the frightened humans in the back. After celebrating with a fist pump she turned to the dark haired man whom was being preyed upon by the group, he seemed to have already taken care the majority of them already in a most destructive way before turning to their leader. Before he had done so he spoke to her.

“Why yes, I do. Can’t let other people steal all my fun in such a dull place. It just wouldn‘t be right.”

The purple clad woman watched as the man she once considered a victim laid waste to the leader of the group. A smile crossed her face as she watched as fear grew in the orange alien’s eyes before it faded with his life. This ‘Android Seventeen’, as he called himself, had just easily won her respect. It wasn’t something many people could do. Morgana saw most people as being toys or tools there for her own amusement. This stranger had somehow risen above that in a very short amount of time.

“After that round of fun, I don’t think I want to. It’s not that I’m scared or anything, I just think you’re better than those tools is all.”

The witch suppressed the urge to face palm as she cleared her throat. That had come out more awkward than she meant for it to. What the hell was wrong with her? She could barely bring herself to look in his icy cold eyes let alone say much more to him. He was different, but he was no better than her. However, the distinct possibility of him being her equal was toying with the back of her mind. He spoke again and her head jolted upright from the position it had been in. Morgana had not even been aware she was looking down. She was familiar to him?

“I am Morgana, apprenticed to some old hag fortune teller even though I‘m a million times better than her. And to tell the truth…”

The witch walked in a circle around him before getting up close and forcing herself to look him in the eyes. She backed up and smiled slyly.

“You seem familiar to me as well. Perhaps this is what the cards were trying to tell me when I arrived here and what that prune has been babbling on about. As for killing me, you could try it but you wouldn’t like what would happen. I’m not what I appear to be, you know. I‘m better than those tools, too. They ran away before they could see my darker side.”

For a moment she stood there in though, searching her memory for any flash of anything that might be relative to the man before her. His eyes were very unusual. Only one person she had ever met had those eyes. He had saved her from the red ribbon army by showing her the way to freedom. For years they had hunted for their new secret weapon, but she was nowhere to be found. Could it be that this was the same young man she had met when she was a teenager? Was he really still alive? What was his name again? Her eyes grew wide as a hopeful grin spread across her face.

“Thomas?”

Morgana caught sight of the red ribbon army insignia and tensed. Did they send him to hunt for her? No. They had long sense been defeated, there was no red ribbon army. She was no longer being hunted. If she was Baba would not allow her to walk about so freely without her ranting and yelling and being generally annoying. She relaxed a little, the smile on her face soft and genuine. The only person whom had ever done anything nice for her without seeking anything in return was the youth whom helped her escaped. The only clue left of him was a piercing icy blue gaze and the name Thomas. It could even be the wrong name, he had yelled it was she walked away. Her eyes glittered with a kind of hope that a child might have on Christmas morning, a look she never wore until now.

WC: 738
TWC: 3234