wait for me [illumi zoldyck]

39. Only the Strong Will Survive

Mia

I found Kyser sitting at his usual spot at the cove. He sat at the head of the small dining table on the sand, sipping from a crystal glass that contained a clear green liquid. Just like every other day, the table is garnished with all sorts of colorful foods. It surprises me every day, how magic can make something like this appear from nothingness in such a deserted place. Kyser watches me intently as I approach him from my room, padding across the water to the beach.

I decided against telling him about what I saw the other night in the bathtub, seeing as I am still not sure if he can be trusted. His intentions are bland and unclear and he never shares anything personal about himself.

He remains silent as I seat myself just across from him. I reach for a piece of bread and place it onto my plate before finally giving him any form of attention. My eyes rest on his own. The purple of his irises striking me once again, as though it were the first time I see them. Despite their beauty, they're a clear reminder that he is an immortal who is getting ready to take me to Heaven. Away from where I long to be. Home.

"Good morning, I suppose." He hums, taking another sip of his green drink before setting it down onto the table.

I remain silent, biting into the edge of my toast.

For some reason, his calm demeanor egnits anger within me. He shows up out of nowhere, expecting me to trust him and takes me to this place as a prisoner without an explanation. A very vague one at least. Everything he's told me up to this point has been riddled and secretive. The urge to hit him increases as he cocks his head to the side raising an eyebrow at me.

"... you must prove yourself."

He thinks he's helping me, considering the fact that I was in Hell, but going to Heaven is not what I desire.

He watches me, almost instantly noticing how I'm not answering him. I don't plan to either. He's taking me to Heaven when my original plan has always been to return to the mortal world. But now, I have to figure out how to escape Kyser first.

He doesn't eat while I do. We don't make any further move to acknowledge each other until I am finished with my food.

"Now are you ready to talk?" Kyser questions, as I wipe my hands on a napkin before sitting back up in my seat. "You need to understand, my job has always been to protect you. I knew you would say no if I told you where I was taking you, which is why I just had to do it without telling you. Hell would've destroyed your soul, don't you get that?" he asks, seethingly calm.

Still no words on my behalf.

If Kyser is irritated by my lack of words, he doesn't show it on his expression. Already, I can tell he is a master at concealing his emotions. I take a mental note of it. I'm going to have to watch out for that if I'm going to manager escaping from here.

He knows everything about me. I don't even know where he comes from, or how old he is. Just thinking about that for too long gets me angrier.

"What can I do to make you trust me?" he pleads.

I consider that for a moment. "Take me back home. In the real world, I mean. To my family, to Illumi."

"I can't do that. I was sent here on a mission to bring you to Heaven, which I still plan to do. You no longer belong in the mortal realm." He articulates solemnly, looking quite genuine.

My jaw clenches. I go to stand, but Kyser suddenly speaks up, making me freeze. "Mia, please. Things aren't going to go well until we learn to work together. I know you want to go back, but can't you at least understand the position you're in?"

My eyebrows furrow at his words. "Your magic. You explained to me what you did to this place to conceal it from the outside world. Can't you find a way to help me out of here with it?"

"The amount of magic that that would require..." He trails off, standing up to match me as I step away from the table. "Wait, please, just listen."

I stop, folding my arms over my chest and watch him.

"When mortals die, their nen... a type of magic, is used to transport them to Heaven - or in cases like yours, Hell. In case you haven't noticed, your nen is gone." He explain, motioning his hand over me. As if it was physically obvious. I hadn't noticed it until the moment he told me, but my powers were in fact gone. I couldn't summon spirits anymore, which is usually something that comes naturally.

"It takes so much power for one person to bring themselves across realms that if you were to do so, you would kill yourself again in the process."

~~

Illumi

I look up at the blanket of stars that stretch to infinity. The pale crescent moon shines like a glowing silvery claw in the night sky, which illuminates the flowers of my mother's garden below. The distant sound of insects chirping is the only thing that breaks the silence of the night up on this mountain. That and the muffling moans that suddenly arise from the bed just behind me, as I stare out the window. With a sigh, I turn around to face Anika who lays on her side, tied up on her own bed.

The sheets, which once were folded neatly into the bed, tucked into the crevices and edges of the mattress with care and precision, were used to tie up her hands and feet. It's a shame that it had to come to this, after the maids spent so much time cleaning each room to perfection.

I twisted one of my needles between my fingers, maneuvering them with expertise that came with nothing but experience. As I approached Anika, her eyes widened and she let out another long moan.

"You know it wouldn't bother me if I had to slit your throat right now." I explained. It's as though I have to speak to a child, talking to her. "But that would not be in either one of our interests, seeing as we're supposed to be engaged and all of that."

If they found out that I killed the Akagi girl, they would surely ruin all of plans. Everything that I'd been working towards would have been for nothing.

Anika begins to pull on her binds, making struggling noises.

"You need to calm down." I stared down at her small body. So weak, so fragile. There's no way that this girl was ever raised to be an assassin. Her family has raised her to be their little doll and nothing more. There's simply nothing to her but the longing for the unsolicited love she never received from her family.

It's pitiful.

After a few moments, she stops resisting. Only then do I decide it is suitable to allow her to communicate and remove the gag from her mouth. She remains silent.

"Your parents would not be happy to hear what a dissapointment you've been." I twist the knife, metaphorically of course.

"What do you want from me?" She spits, eyes narrowing.

What do I want? I think about it for a moment.

"You must go do a little chore for me," I decide, formulating the plan in my head. "You must go bring me Killua, he's the only one who will give me what I want."

++

Don't forget to comment and vote!

This book proudly sponsors the Kyser. A brand that sells super chic high quality clothing and accessories WORLDWIDE for affordable prices!