Anybody But You

128

Chapter One-Twenty-Eight

Vibe: Little Dark Age by MGMT

It was only fitting for Creepy to be the next guinea-pig. With Useless as the first, Creepy was just the next obvious choice.

"You better not spill that on me, nutcase." Maggie eyed the chalice as Alice held it out to the side.

"I thought it was nutjob?" Alice hummed, grabbing onto Maggie's back as she held tight to the staff and chalice.

Maggie chuckled under her breath as she stood up with Alice on her back after slaying the corpses that were pulling themselves back up to whatever remained of their feet again, "Already fond of the nickname, nutjob? ...My love, stay to my side where I can protect you." She hastily told Talia after teasing Alice, watching the nervous girl carefully.

"It's awfully quiet." Alice anxiously looked around.

Where were Daisy and Serephin? What about the other slavers? They were headed straight to Creepy, and nothing was really opposing them. It felt... wrong.

"The captain and Miss Hercules are blocking the exit." Talia mumbled breathlessly, her eyes darting around the clearing at the rows of corpses making their way towards them.

That didn't account for the others, and Alice could feel another chill fall down the back of her neck. She held on quick and tight to the power holding the mages away from John's controlling grasp—he felt quiet in her head as well.

She didn't like this at all.

Standing in Creepy Ronald's path, Maggie faced the corpses between them as Alice slid down off her back. Holding the staff under her armpit, the gold 'redemption' fluid shimmered in the red and purple glow as it hung against the warm wood. Alice watched Maggie swing the curved daggers against the bodies—their moves counteracting hers as they slashed back with their own weapons. Maggie swore as the girls watched the corpses' bodies become suddenly... flexible. Instead of taking hits and damage and blindly swinging in rage, they were fighting back in a way that was smooth, choreographed, and far more dangerous. They even ducked.

"Did they just...?" Maggie hissed, nearly missing ducking in time herself as one of the four corpses' weapons lashed out at her. "You're seeing this, right?" She backed up, just managing to block an attack coming fast towards her side.

They didn't even seem to be barrelling towards Alice anymore. They're entire strategy had changed.

"You mean, the corpses actually getting good at fighting? ...Yeah, I'm seeing it." Alice answered her, grabbing the two small blades Maggie had managed to store away in her thick hair atop her ears.

Handing one blindly to Talia who had tensed up beside her, Alice began blocking moves and hitting the corpses in their blind spots. Creepy was only moments away; they had to get to him. Had to save Charles and see what the river water alone really did to a person—the water in the chalice sloshing around in a threatening manner as she held it close to the staff.

Pain suddenly sliced into the upper middle of Alice's back, causing her to hiss and spin around as she stumbled backwards towards the competent corpses. Alice's eyes widened as she took in her new opponent—her brain not at all prepared to witness what it was seeing.

Standing with the now bloodied blade drawn in her hands, Talia didn't wait another breath to attack Alice again.

~*~*~

A.N.

Yo. Tf Talia?? ...

Thanks for reading! Still struggling with connections so I apologize for the lack of music again x