Telluric

Chapter XVII: Cherry Syrup

XVII

After carving the same symbol that she had in the rest of her victims, Christine wiped the dripping sweat from her forehead and took off the elegant gloves that Marilyn's limp hands grasped onto, slipping them on herself. Christine smiled devilishly and picked up the body, taking it to a pyre lighting the sparks.

In seconds the physical existence of the poor woman was dissipated into ash.

The ashes were promptly placed in a small bag and put on a shelf in the corner. Earlier, the blood of this young woman was drained and placed in mason jars, strictly for dietary purposes.

"Hmm... A pity, isn't it?" MUSE whispered seductively into Christine's ear, a menacing smile increasing on Christine's lips. Christine turned around to her old friend and they hugged in a friendly embrace. Despite MUSE's obvious psychotic personality, she still had friends.

"How are you?" Christine asked with a deadly grin and blood-red lips.

"Fine, darling. You know how it is, having to follow the whims of mortals when they summon you... all that bullshit." MUSE let go of Christine and looked at the pile of ashes. "Not your normal murderous method." MUSE noticed.

"I know." Christine replied. "But I felt that she should be... commended. She was quite the adversary, you know. She almost had me once, but that human weakness stopped her. So I decided to give her a proper... demonic departure."

"Hmm..." MUSE hummed, lying on top of the pyre, seemingly resting her eyes, though she could never get tired. When they flickered open again, Christine looked up. "I think this human has had some sort of impact on your emotions, darling."

"What do you mean? No human's had an effect on my emotions before."

"True, but something about this one..." MUSE sighed wistfully and let their arms drip lazily over the side of the pyre. Only the light of necrosis, a dim light, and MUSE's tattoos illuminated within the dark. With that being said, none of these were entirely bright or sufficient methods of lighting a space. "Something caused an impression upon you. Oh well..." MUSE shrugged.

With the shrug, the intensity of the conversation suddenly became a crimson sort of hotness. MUSE giggled wickedly at Christine, who smirked maliciously back. Each knew what the other was thinking, or at least the vague intentions of the other.

MUSE made the first move, vanishing before Christine's eyes, leaving her waiting expectantly in the darkness. When MUSE whipped an electric-blue sword around toward Christine, she expected it. The two clashed in a blinding light, and MUSE was gone again.

"What is it that you seek, MUSE?" Christine questioned the being aloud.

An echoed voice from within the darkness replied with one word:

"Book."

And Christine knew exactly what she was after.

"Why does that bitchy human need it? What's so important about it?" Christine dodged another attack and slid backward, aiming the carving knife at the shadows. Her red eyes glowed intensely and darkly, her body posed defiantly against her "friend."

"Those are spoilers, darling." MUSE cooed from the darkness. "I doubt the readers would want to know anything about that just yet." Suddenly she appeared, standing regally above Christine. "I suggest you hand the book over, anyway. You of all people should know that I always get what I want."

Christine hesitated, then with a defeated nod; she went upstairs and retrieved the book. MUSE then plucked it from her hands, bowed mockingly in a friendly flow, and vanished.