Providence: Book One

Chapter Nine: Rage

Chapter Nine

Rage

Rio stared at her counterpart in awe. She had never seen the Goddess in the flesh, she had only ever felt her,scraping through her mind. Ekirei was astounding, she looked as soft and fragile as a porcelain doll, but she had an aura of danger about her. And she looked very, very angry.

"Do you have any idea what you've done?" her voice was quiet, as if she was holding back a deluge of fury. She clenched her tiny fists so tightly that veins popped out along her knuckles.

Rio shrunk back from the intensity of her glare, grovelling in the mud like a dog. She knew she was trembling. Above her, Ekirei scoffed.

"What a pathetic vessel I have. What have you done to our hair?"

Rio's teeth were knocking together so hard that she couldn't answer. Ekirei seized her by her hair and shook her like a rag doll. The strength in those small hands was incredible. Rio cried out in pain. "What have you done?" Ekirei repeated.

"It was my hair or my life"

"Your hair or your life" Ekirei repeated, disgust clear in her voice. "You can kill every man, woman and child who crosses you, and yet you choose to hide like a thief." Ekirei flung Rio down into the water, further soaking her clothes and cutting up her knees with small stones. She cried out in pain and the Goddess sneered in disgust.

"Here you are, the proxy of pestilence, the Maiden at the End of the World, MY vessel, and yet you grovel like a frightened rabbit."

Pain erupted in Rio's head like an explosion, and she pressed her hands to her temples, shaking violently, a gorge flooded her throat and she spewed thick black blood from her mouth.

"It will take years for our hair to return to it's former glory!" The Goddess gripped her short black hair and yanked her upwards, high enough that Rio's feet dangled in the air. Her poison green eyes burrowed into Rio's, causing the already white hot pain in her head to expand and intensify. "This is the last time you will take liberties with my body." she released Rio and she fell to the floor, gasping.

Her entire body spasmed with pain, and she crumpled into a ball, hoping the Goddess would cease the assault. Darkness was creeping into her vision and she could feel her extremities going numb. Was she losing conciousness? She clawed at the edges of her mind, desperate to stay awake, but darkness was prevailing.

Surrendering to unconsciousness she closed her eyes, lying in a crumpled heap in the mud.

~x~X~x~X~x

".....looks like she was beaten pretty badly, was there anyone hanging around the area?"

"No, I'm telling you, she was all alone out there, it took me a while to find her. I told her not to leave her room."

Rio cracked her eyes open, every inch of her felt like it was on fire. She turned her head to see Naoki talking to a petite blonde woman in a green kimono. She had a round, friendly face and her eyes were the deepest green Rio had ever seen. Suzu was no where to be found.

Naoki's hands and arms were covered with mud and his face was as pale as rice powder. The blonde girl looked peaceful, even happy. She spoke to Naoki in a calm, cheerful manner. When she noticed Rio's eyes were open she smiled.

"You're awake! How are you feeling, darling?"

Rio struggled to blink her swollen eyelids. When she spoke, her voice sounded like sandpaper.

"What happened?"

"That's what I would like to know," Naoki appeared at her bedside, his eyes bright with worry and anger. Rio tried to sit up, but the blonde woman pushed her back down.

"No sitting up now, you'll open your wounds back up, you have some nasty cuts on your back."

"What happened?" Naoki snapped, the blonde woman gave him a warning look. Rio's eyes began to water and Naoki stepped back, shamefaced.

"Kotone," he said to the blonde woman, "May I have a moment alone with my sister?"

The woman, Kotone nodded and left the room, her long green robe swishing behind her. Rio prepared herself for the verbal thrashing she was about to get, but was surprised when Naoki slumped onto the floor in relief.

"I thought you were going to die," he whispered. Rio's heart did an odd little dance in her chest. "When I found you lying there, I really truly thought you were going to die, there was so much blood from your mouth...your...your ears...what happened?"

Rio swallowed thickly, her mouth felt like it had been sealed for a long time.

"It was her, The Goddess...she...she was upset at me for something." the pain in her head flared and she paused. "She said ah...something about the Maiden at the End of the World."

"Wait...you're telling me that you separated from the Goddess?" Naoki's voice was hoarse with concern.

"No, it's more like she separated from me, I think it's because I made her angry, but she's back now..." she felt the Goddess' energy thrumming in her skull.

"That's..." Naoki shook his head, trying to conceal the look of fear on his face. "It doesn't matter right now, get some rest. We'll talk more in the morning." he got to his feet, and left the room. Rio curled herself into a tight ball. If Ekirei could separate from her, what else could she do?