Iris

ACT EIGHT - The Barn

Characters: Iris, Odrithin, demon extras, Sara

Iris swings open one of the the barn doors and slips inside, leaving the entry open behind her as she surveys the building she has just entered.

Demons are watching her silently, making no efforts to hide themselves. They are sitting on top of the hay bales or standing around the barn. All of them are motionless.

Only Odrithin stands in the hayloft, Sara shoved to her knees in front of him. She is gagged and her hands are tied behind her back.

Iris stares up at her father and friend with an unreadable expression on her face as a demon swings the barn door shut behind her. Iris does not react, although she is now trapped. When she speaks, it is with the faintest hint of a smile.

IRIS: [coldly] Before things get...unpleasant...I'll give you the option of doing this the easy way. Let me have Sara and you can all [casting a glance around at the other demons] walk away unscathed.

ODRITHIN: [amused] You practically took my speech, darling. What a daddy's girl.

Iris stares at him with furious determination in her eyes.

ODRITIHIN: [amusement growing cold] You don't know how to defeat one demon, girl, let alone twenty, not to mention myself. And all without hurting your precious Sara?

He yanks Sara's hair when he says her name, and the woman's eyes squeeze shut at the sudden pain. She does not, however, whimper.

ODRITHIN: [pleased] I'm afraid it's quite impossible.

Iris has grown furious at seeing him abuse her friend. Her entire body is tensed and quivering.

IRIS: [through gritted teeth] I'm a fast learner.

ODRITHIN: [condescending] Sure you are. [to his demons] Get her. I want her alive...[smiling] mostly.

The demons begin advancing on Iris and she whips into action, unsheathing daggers she has concealed on her person and using her limbs as additional weapons. While she is a far superior fighter than the demons, stabbing them does not kill them and she cannot seem to knock them out. Eventually, she loses one of her daggers, soon followed by the other. She quickly kicks them away by her attackers so she has no hope of reaching them from within the circle of demons that has imprisoned her.

Iris continues to fight, however, with her legs and elbows and hands. Finally, she grabs one of the demons by the neck in a sloppy attempt to keep him from lashing out at her. Rather than try (and inevitably fail) to strangle him, her eyes flash pure white and the demon screams in utter pain as his skin begins to crack and flake off, leaving exposed, bloody patches of flesh. Within seconds, the demon is dead, his skin patchy and cracked with pitch black lines.

Iris stares down at the demon's body in shock, her eyes reverting to normal as the other demons pause. She stares at her own hands in wonder and chuckles slightly.

The sound shakes the remaining demons into action and they begin to attack once more. Iris's eyes revert to their pure white state. One by one, she grabs their throats or wrists and watches them crack and die carelessly. Finally, only one remains. The female demon tries to escape, but Iris leaps in the air, lands in front of her, and kills her as well.

From the hayloft, Odrithin applauds her.

ODRITHIN: [amused] You were correct. You are a fast learner.

Iris says nothing, watching him with a hateful expression, although no emotion can be shown in her eyes since they are still an angelic shade of white.

ODRITHIN: I judged you based upon the abilities of mortals - but I forgot you are not one. [gestures to himself] You are somewhat mine - [gestures to the ceiling] and somewhat theirs. [thoughtfully] It's the "somewhat theirs" part that I'm going to have to watch out for.

Iris is unmoving, silent.

ODRITHIN: [beginning a new tangentI love watching people suffer - [sarcastically] it's kind of a demon thing - so here you go.

He shoves Sara off of the hayloft. She instinctively shrieks as she plummets to the floor, her limbs bound and useless, but Iris leaps forward faster and farther than is capable for a normal human and catches her, setting her gently feet-first on the floor and removing her gag gently, setting to work on the ropes around her hands.

ODRITHIN: [watching them intently] You have five minutes.

Iris finally manages to free her friend of the ropes and Sara turns around, throwing herself into Iris's arms and clinging to her as she starts to shake with sobs. Iris strokes her hair, making shushing noises like one would do with a hysterical child.

SARA: [between sobs] He's going to kill you!

IRIS: [looking at Odrithin as she speaks] No, he's not, Sara. I'm his daughter. He wants me to - to join him.

Sara looks confused as she pulls back away from Iris, collecting herself once more.

SARA: You're his daughter? He's your -

IRIS: Do you remember the story I told you of - of how I came to be?

SARA: [sighing with laughter, shaking her head slightly] It sounds like a fairy tale - your mother wanted a child so badly that she performed black magic and created you -

IRIS: [impatiently] From the horn of a demon and the feather of an angel.

SARA: [glancing over shoulder, lowering voice] And he's the demon?

Iris nods hesitantly, her gaze flicking once more to her father.

SARA: [processing, slightly accusatory] Is there anything else I should know? Have you met your angelic mother as well, or...?

IRIS: [quickly] No, just him, and not until after he...you...He sought me out and - [regretfully] and took you because he knew it would hurt me the most.

SARA: [searching Iris's face, disbelieving] Iris...

ODRITHIN: [casually interrupting] I believe we've seen enough.

He snaps his fingers and Sara vanishes without a trace. Iris's eyes grow wide and she scans the place where her friend stood seconds before as if expecting to see some trace of her there. Then, she turns her now-furious gaze to her father.

IRIS: [angrily] You said five minutes!

ODRITHIN: [uncaringly] I lied. That's another thing we demons do. Now - [growing serious] getting down to business. You will join me, or you will never see precious Sara again. If you choose to join me, however, I will be so gracious as to give her to you forever. Just you and her for the rest of time, daughter. Imagine it.

IRIS: [furious, voice shaking] Why do you even want me?

ODRITHIN: You are my daughter, first off, meaning that you have some of my powers. As well as the powers of the angels, powers that could be quite useful in facing my opponents.

Iris seems to finds twisted amusement in this, by the small smile on her face.

IRIS: [sarcastically] The opponents of demons tend to be the people I work with.

ODRITHIN: [as if finally finding the issue] Exactly. We need to change that. [slowing down] Think about it, Iris. You'll know where to find me...when you see sense.

He snaps his fingers and he, too, vanishes. Iris looks startled for only a moment before launching herself up to the hayloft without any assistance. Where her father stood, there is a small, black card.

It is completely blank.