fandomtownies | Woods Around the Preserve, All Day

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Woods Around the Preserve, All Day

Anyone hiking through this patch of woods throughout the day would notice something distinctly...odd. Normally, it was a simple stand of trees surrounding what appeared to be a small cave, bare for the winter, but otherwise unremarkable. Sometimes, though, there would be a moment and things would...shift. A flicker, a blink, and for the barest instant, the trees would seem darker, the air colder, the cave a little more foreboding. From time to time, there'd be a soft skittering noise from inside the cave and, when the light caught the trees just right, long strands of white could be seen tangling around the trees.

Usually, the illusion spells around her lair gave off feelings of warmth and comfort, exuded a sense of welcome or a spate of curiosity, like something exciting could be found within if one bothered to look. Right now, however, reality flickered in and out too quickly for the illusions to take. They'd come back, though, once this reality had bled into the new one and cemented its hold. Most of the residents were wary enough not to trust anything that seemed so friendly, but there were always a few idiots who were naive enough to fall for it. And in a new world, well, who knew what delightful creatures would come exploring through and discover her home?

Come into her parlor, little flies. Karla would be ever so happy to see you.

[Mostly establishy, but if people want to ping in during one of the longer reality blinks, that's cool, too!]

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Raven spent a lot of time outside in this cave. The spells were so tempting, love and warmth and comfort and friendship, and if she closed her eyes and relaxed, she could see herself giving in, letting it wrap around her, letting Karla devour her and unmake her.

So tempting, especially on days when another life slipped through her fingers. None would ever affect her as much as this one, however. The last bit of hope she had had died with Karla. Only she wasn't dead, because Raven had been too weak to do it before she became...this.

Now she came to this place frequently, waiting for a chance to do what she hadn't been able to before. But Karla was strong, and so far she'd failed in that as well. She wouldn't give up. One day she'd end this.

There was a slight clicking from inside as Karla tasted the psychic scent on the air outside her cave. A low laugh echoed from inside, rich and amused. "Oh little bird, are you still there?" she called, voice echoing slightly. "Is today the day you get caught in my web?"

Raven didn't answer, at least not with words. Instead, she sent a wide blast of disgust toward the cave.

How was that, abomination?

Another chuckle came from the cave and a pair of long, slender legs made their way out of the cave.

But they were not women's legs. Or even human.

"Come in and tell me all about that."

And then the legs withdrew and a dessicated husk was tossed out in their stead, still wrapped in silk.

Once Raven might've flinched at the sight of the body, mourning the lost life. Now her heart barely stirred. She didn't try to see who it might be. Whomever it was, they'd been a fool to get trapped in Karla's web.

"Come out and I will show you, monster," she snapped.

"I believe we've played this game before, birdie," Karla called. "And here I am, still walking around on my own...number of legs."

"Then why are you afraid to come out and face me?" Raven taunted, refusing to let Karla's words find their mark. She had failed so far, either due to Karla being too strong and resisting her attacks, or her own inability to finish her off, as she hesitated and looked for some sign of her friend left in the creature she'd become.

She'd buried that hope with the bodies that piled up around Karla's lair.

"Because I'm eating, darling," Karla said, voice silky and amused. "And my mother always told me not to interrupt my dinner. It's rude."

"Your mother," Raven threw back, "would be horrified and ashamed at what you have become. As would Jaenelle. Saetan. Lucivar. All of them. Queen of Glacia turned Queen of Rot. How far you have fallen."

"My mother was a cold and callous bitch who wanted a doll to dress up and simper at her and be a testament to the ~*great love*~ she shared with my father," Karla declared. "She didn't want me."

And then, just in case the knife hadn't twisted enough, she added, "I might have fallen far, but then, who let me, my dear? Who let me slip right through her pretty fingers?"

Raven looked away. She did blame herself, for Karla contracting this disease or whatever it was, for being unable to heal her, and for being unable to grant her a peaceful death rather than become corrupted. She'd almost lost herself after she'd lost Karla, retreating into herself and letting her demon side take over. The other survivors must've thought her dead after she disappeared for days, returning only when she'd sated her rage with blood and death.

"I am sorry," she whispered.

"That and a five dollar bill will get me exactly nothing at all." And all the false amusement was gone from Karla's voice, leaving cold menace behind. And a slight hissing, as if her mouth weren't entirely shaped for speaking. "If you're really sorry, come prove it. Let's see how long I can live off of your penitence, shall we?"

That thought had crossed Raven's mind more than once. She likely could feed Karla for a very long time. But Karla would grow bored, she reasoned, and want other prey instead of a willing victim. And there was no telling what Raven herself might change into if she got that entangled with the corruption that had taken her friend.

She shook off the moment's weakness, cursing herself for letting Karla's words get to her. "No, I think you are right where you belong now," she said coldly, her skin reddening as she shifted into demon form. "Alone. Abandoned. Only trickery gets you visitors now. Everyone else shuns you for the abomination you are."

"So much for penitence," Karla said, sounding wry. "And here I thought you felt bad for losing me like this." A pause, and then a truly wicked laugh echoed out for Raven to hear. "Temper temper, darling. It seems you've let your darker side out to play again. Feels good, doesn't it? I bet your daddy would be proud. Hmm, do you think he'd still want me? Like this?"

She is not Karla she is not Karla she is not Karla she is NOT

"My father would be disgusted with you," Raven snarled. "He would not want the leavings of whatever chaos spawned you."

She stalked closer to the mouth of the cave, still sparing no glance for the silk-wrapped body. "And yes, yes I have, but I control it. It does not control me. And it will give me more than enough power to defeat you if you dare face me. So come out, unless you are afraid."

In the darkness, there was a hint of movement. The sound of rustling, silk rubbing against silk. And then Karla's face appeared in the dim light of the cave mouth, blond hair tumbling to her chin, ice blue eyes looking as guileless and full of mischief as before, when they were dear sisters and the best of friends.

"You called?" she asked, batting golden lashes Raven's way. "Why should I go out there? Come in here if you wish to murder me. I'm not about to make it easy for you. How brave are you, little birdie?"

NOT Karla

Seeing her face like that, though, was the equivalent of a knife in her heart. Steeling herself, she challenged, "Come out here if you want to feed. Just think of the meal you could make of me. Anything you want to feed on, blood, flesh, spirit, power...I can generate so much of it."

She subtly projected hunger toward Karla, trying to lure her out into the open.

"If that's the best you've got, no wonder I ended up where I am," Karla said. "Are you really sure you're ready to do battle with...this?"

She conjured a witchlight and ran it along her form--which meant going upwards, as she was hanging from the roof of the cave, which was much larger than it looked on the outside. "I don't think you are, little birdie."

"Is that supposed to scare me?" Raven said, thanking Azar she'd never been arachnophobic. The wrongness of it all, Karla's face attached to that body, was making her stomach roil, though.

She lashed out with her powers, sending bolts of ~~hot pink wtf~~ demonic energy out at Karla.

Those bolts crashed into the Ebon-Gray shield at the cave's mouth and dissipated with crackles of ~~hot pink lol~~ energy that skittered off to the sides.

"Oooh, doesn't look like that worked," Karla cooed. "Perhaps you'd like to teleport in here and try again? You'd be behind the shield..."

And in the middle of a gigantic tangled web. Probably a terrible idea, Raven.

Definitely a terrible idea.

"I am not fool enough to do that," Raven said, shaking her head as she let her demon form fade. "But you will have to come out sooner or later."

Trouble was, she couldn't stay watch forever. She was also needed at the park, to heal those who had been wounded, and occasionally she needed to rest.

"Do I?" Karla challenged, using Craft to pick the dead body up and wave it around in the air. She made it dance in place, a macabre shuffle while she sang the chorus to Walk Like An Egyptian. "I think I can stay right here and order in, thank you."

A lie, but hopefully Raven didn't know that. Her Ebon-Gray was weak and most of the Craft she had went to powering the shields and the illusions. Her petty little show was drastically cutting into her reserves. But she couldn't afford to appear weak. Not in front of her greatest foe.

She just needed to feed more. That was all. A few more victims and she'd be well on her way to her full glory.

A stalemate then, neither quite confident to face the other yet. Raven blamed residual feelings for the face this thing wore and vowed again to harden her heart against them.

"Then we will see about that," she said. "You will not know when I am watching, preventing the fools you lure from reaching you. I will starve you out, abomination."

How many times had that vow been broken, Raven? Like your vow to keep Karla safe from anything that threatened?

"If you say so, little birdie," Karla said with another indulgent chuckle. "But I do know there are always some broken winged fledglings out there that you can't help but heal. Doing otherwise would be a sign you were going hollow yourself, wouldn't it?"

Her voice lowered, went seductive. "You could, you know. You could just give in. Let go of all these lofty ideals. You could come to me...." The illusion spells rippled, changing her form. She stood on two legs at the entrance, her hand on the invisible shield separating them. "You wouldn't hurt anymore, Raven. Wouldn't be alone anymore."

Shut up, not-Karla.

Raven laughed. Hollowly. Maybe one day she'd be tired enough to fall for that, tempting as it was, but not today. Wounded as it was, her Pride still held, even if Karla's words rang true. She'd shut down a lot of her empathy, but healing was still the way she proved to herself that she wasn't going hollow. It kept her alive.

"You are just an illusion," she said. "You are still nothing but a monster beneath the spell. You will not trick me."

"Darling, I've always been a monster," Karla said. "How many people did I kill in high school alone? How many more during the war? And afterwards? And yet you loved me then. Now I just finally look the part." She struck a pose, giving Raven a sultry pout. "Are you truly that shallow? Can't accept me now that I have just a few more arms to love you with?"

"Shut. Up." Raven's eyes flashed red, and she sent another bolt of demonic energy at the shield.

"Karla was not a monster. And you are not she. You are nothing more than a corruption of what she once was, a twisted mind to match a twisted body. Do not speak to me of love. You have no idea what love is."

"Maybe I do," Karla said quietly.

Any hope that she was serious vanished when she smiled. "Bring me my children and we'll see."

Even if Raven somehow got tired of responding to Karla's other jabs, she would never, ever let an implied threat to the children go. And Karla so loved pushing buttons.

Raven wasn't about to disappoint. "You will never touch those children," she snarled, shifting into demon form again. "Never! I will tear you apart with my bare hands first!"

She lunged at the shield, slashing at it with her talons.

Karla laughed and skittered backwards, enjoying the show. The children were safe in Glacia still, or so she presumed, and Karla couldn't get her hands on them, but it remained an easy target.

"If you say so," she said, letting the shadows engulf her again. "In that case, perhaps I should think about breeding more here. An army of children, loyal to me, running rampant along the island. I'll let you think about that for awhile and maybe you'll realize it's better to bring me what I ask for instead."

The last word echoed out of the cave mouth as Karla withdrew completely. She'd play with Raven again later.

Raven scraped the shield again with her claws, breathing heavily as she fought to calm herself. The children were safe, all of them. Karla couldn't touch them.

Her heart ached for her own children. She'd long stopped trying to keep track of how old they'd be now because it was madness.

She stood outside the cave for a long while until the sense of something happening, a new tide of emotions brushing against her shields, drew her away. But she'd be back.

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Woods Around the Preserve, All Day

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