Dark Reign: A Snake Enters the Garden

Berenice literally growled at the new contender, baring her teeth at her with a vicious look in her eyes. "Who's this bitch?" she snarled, closing her hands into fists, holding them tight enough to turn her knuckles white as she did her best to not just leap at her attacker with a violent vigour.

"I'm guessing you two have a history, whether you do or not, lets kick her ass, she's clearly hear to try kick ours" she said, staring daggers into the new opponent as her left eye twitched harshly, a low rumble emitting from her throat as she resisted her urge.

“You guth pocked my noth!”

The speedy red head was totally crumpling apart now. What was once just a small stream of red and green liquid rolling from her nose quickly became a disgusting river of a sickeningly bright green serum! It rolled from both nostrils and her mouth, causing the once stoic attacker to crumple to the floor and cough up what liquid was left in the back of her throat! Any threat she posed went along with the serum, which was quickly beginning to pool around the floor. All the while, Ashley’s once green eyes went back to their regular shade of blue.

“Wath happening anywath?”

Before Ashley could get any answers from the three strangers in front of her, they all seemed to have taken an interest in the opposite direction. Following their gaze, Ashley found that another woman, this one sporting an uneven ponytail, tanktop, and eyes that were as sharp as a knife, was standing in the exit doorway. A flash of recognition would cross Ashley’s face as she realized she had seen this woman before.

“Hey! I thaw you at the dym da oder day! You….you thtuck me with that drug!” Was the best the red head could say with her busted nose.

Rather than respond to Ashey, the woman that was apparently named Kassidy only smiled at the woman in purple.

“Well, looks like you little sluts actually managed to pull one over the two rookies! Can’t say I was expecting that...Low expectations and all of that!”

This time, the larger blonde woman would step forward, electing to bullrush Kassidy and take her out with force! Oddly enough, both the muscular blonde as well as the one known as Hyacinth were growling like animals, while Kassidy actually laughed at the threat! Like it was nothing more than a joke told between friends!

“Oh please Berenice! If you were capable of that type of fun, you would have done so a long time ago!” She preened as she pulled a long, serrated blade from a hidden holster on her leg. “I on the other hand have been playing this game for years! And no overgrown dye job on steroids is going to stop me!”

While everyone was distracted, Amber would feel a hand with a grip of steel cover her mouth! Muffling her screams, the small Irish girl would be pulled back into the darkness! She would find herself face-to-face with an earlier attraction that nearly ran into Berenice! The eerily realistic zombie face that had pulled a frightened squeal from Amber herself. But the face was not that of a zombie. The face was that of a man, whose scarred features and sunken eyes gave him the appearance of the dead.


"Requiescat In Pace…”

If looks could kill, Kassidy would already be on the ground already. Hyacinth held a deep hatred for the woman in front of her, not just for what she had put her through in her brief time as Juno’s minion, but because she knew exactly what she was capable of and what she could do to Amber if she got her hands on the poor girl. Hyacinth placed a hand on her knee and grimaced as she slowly began to rise, “Berenice...little red head, get behind me. You have no idea what this woman is capable of.” She winced and coughed a little, ”Kassidy, I’m so surprised to see you, finally managed to unglue yourself from Miranda’s side? What was it the last time we were all together...didn’t she call you a disappointment?” making Kassidy mad was the only play Hyacinth had at the moment, especially now that she had her blade out, she couldn’t afford to let the others anywhere near her, “Have you forgotten already why she called you a disappointment? You’ve never beaten me Kassidy and you never will, not with all the SMILE you can take. Even with a small dose I was still able to beat you and I’ll do it again.” She said, meanwhile, while everyone else was distracted, Amber felt a hand cover her mouth and pull her back, but she made no effort to struggle as she was frozen with fear at the sight of the man’s face. She tried to scream, but no noise came up, her body was frozen and all she could do was stare as the other’s attention was focused on Kassidy.

"I don't have these scars for nothing, the ones that caused them...well, things didn't end well for them, so don't worry about me, some stupid bimbo with a knife isn't gonna drop me" Berenice laughed, smiling sadistically at this "Kassidy" and cracking her neck.

"And if she does harm you badly in any way, she'll find her knife being used to spill her blood onto the floor from her throat" she snarled, raising her fists and readying herself for the fight.

The heavy sigh from Kassidy’s lips was laced with disappointment and underlying frustration. The three women looked at her with such stupid expressions on their faces. Hyacinth was a pathetic mix of french beauty being scrunched up into an ugly pug face thanks to her rage, Berenice looking like a gorilla and a cur had a baby with her rabid look, and Ashley being a complete nitwit to the entire situation. It was hard being the smartest person in the room, especially when all you ever wanted was to collect something from someone you have hurt.

The wild dog at Hyacinth barked her threats, Kassidy looking at her with a bewildered look as she spun the knife in her hand. Whether they liked it or not, they were still at an amusement park, and while Kassidy had no issue dolling out violence in front of kids, Berenice’s comments were a bit too over the top to be believed. If she was a wrestler like Hyacinth, then she seriously needed to work on her smack talk.

“Hey, Berenice...can you fuck off? Your edge is dulling the blade of my knife. Thanks.”

With that, Kassidy turned towards Hyacinth and effectively ignored the giant brute. Berenice wasn’t the target. She wasn’t even on the radar. But Hyacinth and Kassidy still had a score to settle.

“Technically, we’ve never fought, you french bastard. But if clinging onto me little accident is what gets you through the day, then feel free to label it a victory. It can be the last thing you think of after I tear you to ribbons...at a later date of course.”

Kassidy smiled, so sure of herself despite the fact that she was outnumbered. Her relaxed posture and candid nature hid the anger that was beginning to boil over thanks to Hyacinth’s earlier comment.

“Miranda is my boss. Nothing more. She wants your head, she’ll get it. But right now, she wants something else. I don’t care what she thinks about me, but she knows I’m the best at what I do! And unlike the others, I don’t need to be supervised.”

If Hyacinth chose to respond, she would find Kassidy was already closing in on her! The blade would catch what light there was in the dark haunted house hallway. The glint of the blade came fast, ready to bite and slice at Hyacinth’s body with reckless abandon!

Hyacinth smirked, her attempt to distract the knife wielding mad woman seemed to work. She said nothing more, but instead slowly crouched down and waited for her to get close. From their previous engagements, it always seemed the two were equal in strength and speed and Hyacinth knew this fight would be decided by the one who managed to land a hit on the other first, but for now Hyacinth decided to remain on the defensive and lull Kassidy into thinking she had the upper hand. Hyacinth bobbed and weaved away from the woman's blade and slowly began backing up, trying her best to stay away from the serated edge, but it suddenly managed to get a solid hit in on her, causing her to cry out in pain and clutch her shoulder where the blade had dragged across her. Blood already began to drip from her hand and dribble down her arm as she took a few more steps away from her, "Berenice, I know you want to help me, but the best thing you could do for me right now is take Amber and get the hell out of here. You know where my keys are so grab her and run. I'll be right behind you." She said, though her eyes never left the woman in front of her. She glared daggers into her and waited for her to start gloating about wounding the purple beauty before she would launch herself at the woman, attempting to knock the blade from her hand with a spinning back kick before rushing forward and launching a barrage of punches aimed for her midsection and face. Should any of the attacks land on her, Hyacinth would follow it up with another spinning kick towards Kassidy's jawline in an attempt to stagger the woman and buy Berenice time to get Amber out of the haunted house.


The only problem was, Amber was already in someone else's clutches. Amber was in a state of shock at the sight of the man before her. Having thought he was just a prop placed by the people that built the haunted house, but now he was standing before her and was actually speaking to her, though she had no idea what he had just said. It took all of Amber's courage and will power to keep from feinting at that very moment, though the massive amount of fear and panic she was feeling made her brain want to turn the lights off. Slowly, Amber's body began to respond to her and she started to slowly wiggle in an attempt to break free from the man's grasp. Soon her movements became more and more erratic as she struggled more before she was wiggling and flailing about as much as possible and trying to scream. Should she succeed in her struggles, she would raise her hands and attempt to pry the man's own hand from her mouth and scream as loud as she could to get her friends' attention.

Berenice let out a growl of annoyance. "If you lose, I'll kick your ass you hear?" She said, looking around and noticing that Amber was very much nowhere to be found. She Considered telling Hyacinth, but something like that could break her concentration, that or it'd make her fight harder. Not wanting to chance the first outcome, she decided to go find the girl herself, Seemingly she'd been voted out of the fight by the enemy and her ally. She walked back into the haunted house, figuring that's the only place Amber could have gone. The Attractions, like before, didn't effect her much if at all as she searched, hoping to find the small green head hiding under a table or attraction of sorts. "Amber! Where are you?!" She called, hoping for a reply.

“Aww. sacrificing yourself so your friends can make it out...That’s so generic, I think I might just puke.”

Kassidy just had to ruin the moment. The tender send off was just too much for the crooked hunter as she flicked the blood from her serated knife onto the haunted house’s walls with a swift and clean move. Hyacinth was hurt, bleeding from her chest and shoulder. But the pathetic specimen still thought she could pull through long enough to survive Kassidy’s irritation. Despite Miranda’s orders clearly saying the little Irish girl was the target, Kassidy wanted nothing more than to terrorize Hyacinth for as long as possible. So long as Brook got Amber and she didn’t kill Hyacinth, then she was still technically doing her job. Right?

“You know, that little speech you just gave...usually the hero says that just before they bite the dust.”

The hunter rolled the blade’s handle in her hand. The glint of the blade flashing in what light was left, ready to take another bite out of Hyacinth for its beloved master. Berenice’s retreat meant that Hyacinth’s luck had just run out. The only way she could win in this case was if Berenice put pressure on Kassidy and Hyacinth took the chance to double team her. Ashley had already up and disappeared, leaving Kassidy holding every advantage one could ask for.

But that didn’t stop Hyacinth. The crazy woman suddenly charged forward with a death wish! Just as Kassidy made to jab the blade into her opponent's thigh, Hyacinth changed directions, moving from a swift sprint to a surprise twisting motion! Before Kassidy could retract her arm, her opponent’s foot smacked into her hand and sent the blade sailing to the side! Kassidy heard the damn thing get stuck in the wall before avoiding the quick onslaught of blows that came raining down on her! Kicks, punches, everything but the kitchen sink was in Hyacinth’s barrage, and not all of it Kassidy could avoid!

A kick to her legs here, a punch in the jaw there. For every three blows blocked, Hyacinth got one through! Kassidy had to hunker down and wait for the right opportunity to strike, to get her momentum back and beat the living snot out of Hya for daring to fight back at all!

--

Struggle as she might, Amber would find the hands that held her were as strong as a brick of steel. The man’s grip was soft, but firm as he carried the small woman out as though she were weightless. The duo passed a few guests still exploring the haunted house, but no one thought it odd to see a monster drag a girl off into the darkness. In fact, some even thought it was part of the show! Amber’s frightful eyes and the man’s undead facial features helped sell the idea. Thrash as she did, Amber was taken away by sheer force! Right out into the open air as the stranger pulled her from the Haunted house and into the bright sunny day!

“Nervous...Very, very dreadfully nervous I had been, and am.” The man muttered as he reached into a bag on his back. He held Amber tightly, his hand still secured around her mouth as he slipped a helmet over his head. A wide, painted grimace greeted Amber now as his helmeted face looked like something from a nightmare. His grip returned around her arm and he began to drag her over towards a nearby bench where the large and still hungry Brook sat.

“But why will you say I am mad?”

“I heard all things in heaven and the earth...I have heard many things in hell.”

Hyacinth began panting as she unleashed everything she had at Kassidy, yet she still wouldn't go down. Eventually, Hyacinth had to bounce backwards to catch her breath, glaring dagger's at the woman in front of her and spitting a little, "Still as stubborn as ever...you know you can call it quits now, no one will think any less of you...well, maybe Miranda will, but I won't She smirked, her mind games coming back into play as she panted heavily. She had pounded on the purple huntress for a solid minute and a half, but hardly any of her hits went through. She had a few good shots in now and again, but it just wasn't enough to bring her down, coughing a little as she continued to think of another way to bring her down since clearly she wasn't getting through with brute speed and force.

Meanwhile, Amber continued kicking and punching at the man's arm, trying to break free right up until he started speaking, causing Amber to stop and look up at him, "Wait...stop please...are you okay?" She asked quietly, raising her voice only slightly so as to get his attention, but not loud enough to draw anyone else's attention, "D...do you need a hug?" She asked, but before the man could even respond, Amber wrapped her arm around him and snuggled in close, wrapping him up in a small hug as her other hand was being restrained, "I don't know if someone hurt you, but if they did...I'm sorry." She said softly, to her, the man's words were that of pain that needed comforting. As shy as Amber normally was and as scared as she was at that moment, she decided to go right out of her way to attempt to comfort this man, even though he was the one that had forcefully removed her from her group.

“Do you ever shut the hell up?! First thing I’m gonna do is cut out your tongue! Then I’ll never have to hear your annoying voice again!”

Hyacinth’s mind games seemed to strike a nerve with Kassidy. Everytime the Crooked woman heard Hyacinth speak about her and Miranda like she knew anything, it made her blood boil and stew like it rarely ever had before. Even when she was bleeding in a pool of her own blood, she couldn’t shut the hell up! Hyacinth always acted as though she had the slightest inkling about her hated foe, like she knew what was going on in her head. She hated a lot of things about Hyacinth, but that false knowledge was probably the thing she hated the most.

“Time to finish you off, once and for all~”

The hunter dashed towards her weakened foe! Her blade cutting through the air with excited and swift movements! The bloodied blade hungered for more flesh to devour, and more blood to drink! All that was needed was one last thrust before Hyacinth’s lights went out...forever!

--

It had been some time since Kassidy, Mercury, and all the others went into the haunted house. A part of her wondered if she should at least try to get through it to see how everyone was doing. Did they catch that Amber and Hyacinth girl they were after? Were they hurt? A part of Brook felt responsible for finding out the answer to those questions. But her fears very quickly shut any notion of responsibility down. She was hired muscle, someone to scare off other people or maybe get into a fight every once in a while. Getting freaked out by horror stories or ghosts and doctors wasn’t in her job description. So, there she sat. Waiting until she heard something...anything.

So, when she heard someone breathing through a mask, quoting some creepy poem while someone struggled behind her, that was enough to catch the hungry hooligan’s attention. She was a bit surprised to find a man wearing what looked to be a sort of science fiction power armor outfit. The suit was entirely black with only a few hints of white and silver, a painted grin plastered across the man’s featureless face. It made the small, green haired Irish girl stand out a bit more than she would have normally.

“...Is...is that Amber?”

The girl suddenly lunged at the man, holding him closely. Brook only blinked as the featureless face looked down at Amber, tilting its head in confusion as the crowd walked on past like it was nothing. The people must have thought he was an attraction, and Amber was just a girl who wanted her photo taken. His grip around her helf firm, but no longer did he pull her along.

“Nemo me impune lacessit. No one wrongs me with impunity.”

His empty mask stared at her...was he expecting her to respond? His voice was so quiet...it was hard to hear him over the sounds of the amusement park.

“You do not comprehend?” He asked, his grip tightening around her wrist, “Do you mark me well...I have told you I am nervous: and so I am.”

Brook stared at the pair from afar. The masked man seemed to watch Amber, as if waiting for her to release him. Odd, considering how tightly he held her. That painted smile on his mask grinning the entire time.