"You…I will chop your head inside me!" She screamed.
Seo swung his mace down; Belladonna moved back. Pollux used the mace as leverage and lunged himself forward, spinning with his blades continuously slashing his creator. Belladonna deflected them all, using her scalpels and slashing off Pollux's arms with ease. The blood that came out of Pollux was sticky, thick, and black.
The orphan clicked his tongue, nimbly leaping back a few times to create distance. Belladonna flew past Seo, picking up Ayami's head and chopping it in her stomach's built-in guillotine in half. Her feet scraped the floor as she slid rearwards, stopping abruptly as her back bulged like water that was starting to boil. Figures of Ayami sprouted from her back, holding weapons. Some of her clones could only spawn her facial features on Belladonna while the others were arms and the entire torso.
Belladonna dove to where Roi was standing, dodging down to avoid Seo's attack. She reached for Roi's head but her hand was cut off by Pollux who was biting his dagger.
"You worthless imitation!"
Karma briskly drew in the air, summoning a skull that bit down on Belladonna. There was an audible crunch as the skull chewed her like a biscuit. The skull grew ligaments, tendons, and a bit of muscle.
Seo wasn't at all pleased with the outcome. The vessel roared from having his trophy ruined. He slammed his mace on the skull, shattering the head part. It dug inside, grabbing a piece of leg that was the only part that wasn't masticated well.
Dissatisfied with what it got, it shoved the skull away, lifting its mace to squash Roi who was shivering in front of it.
"No…stay away from him!" Castor shouted, shoving Roi away to take his place. Castor shut his eyes, expecting to be smacked like a mosquito, but no pain struck him. He glanced up, finding Pollux hanging by the lone dagger that was pierced into the vessel's eye.
"Po…Pollux…"
Seo grabbed the limbless child, crumpling him like paper. Blood dripped out of its fist, Karma could only look away.
'The skin on his other half didn't show any reactions to the injected venom, Miss Belladonna. The rest of his body and organs are already inflamed and paralyzed.'
Shadows surrounded him. His breathing was squeaky and noisy as if air was escaping through holes in his lungs. They had used his body for an experiment that mostly aimed for regeneration and immunity. He was injected with hundreds of poisons. When it appeared that he'd die from the venom, they would immediately give him an antidote. He was able to gain immunity to all of them after several tries. The other orphans who had undergone the same experiment had perished, mostly from a certain poison that only half of him was able to tolerate. Since the rest of him was useless, they removed half of his skin and created a clone from it.
Pollux was born. He was Belladonna's favorite. The moment he was created, Pollux killed most of the scientists who made him possible. He was feral and barbaric. It was exactly why Belladonna adored him.
Despite not being the product of success, the scientists decided to keep Castor for future uses in a cell along with the other monsters they used for orphans. They kept him alive with fluids delivered through a thin tube from glass bottles. He didn't know how long he was kept there, gasping for air. It was dark, cold, and scary. He was all alone in that cell with either beasts growling in anguish or monsters whimpering in despair in the other cells.
The floor he was lying on was hard and stained with his own blood. He would only be awake for a moment before passing out and dreaming a nice dream. The days in their orphanage was the only good memory he had. It was the only hope he kept clinging on– that someday he would return and play with his friends again, not worrying if they'd be able to breathe the next minute.
'I want to…play…play…'
Castor wanted to breathe the fresh air upon waking up again. Eat a simple meal even if it isn't enough. Turn pages with his fingers even if he could only admire the pictures with his eyes because he couldn't read. Run with friends and push them as they play. He wanted to feel the sun on his skin and have simple cuts and bruises from playing too recklessly.
They didn't have much but he was happy to be there. They had all their limbs. They weren't strapped on a cold metallic table. They weren't poked with hundreds of needles everyday. In the orphanage, they lived as a child and not as an experiment.
His eyes drowsily opened again. There was a masked boy staring down at him.
'You look miserable. I can't believe I came from you.'
'I want to…play.'
The boy sat, leaning his cheek against his palm. 'You're dying you know? How can you possibly play in that state?'
'It's co–cold…' was the only response Castor could think of.
The boy sighed, leaving the cell and coming back with a blanket and a book in hand. He placed the fleece blanket on top of Castor, sitting down to flip the pages of his storybook. He began to read out loud despite the growls and shrieks. Castor listened, a smile weakly growing on his lips.
'The little boy finally found his long lost mother sitting in the clouds. He asked her: 'Mother, how can I go there?' His mother responded with: 'Someday, you'll learn how to fly, for now, you should learn how to walk your life. As soon as your journey ends, your body will float on its own and you can tell me all your adventures while we sit on the clouds.'
'I think…I'll be flying too…my body feels light,' Castor murmured.
The boy closed his book and placed it on his side. 'You should have flown a long time ago, why didn't you?'
Warm tears trailed from Castor's dark blue eyes. 'Because I wanted to go home…I have no mother waiting for me in the clouds…'
The boy bit his bottom lip, looking away. 'You should go. Even if you don't have any mother waiting for you there, your friends went ahead of you. You're missing out on all the fun.'
Castor chuckled. 'I am…aren't I? What's your name?'
'Pollux, my name is Pollux.'
'Po…Pollux?' He didn't expect him to be there. He was terrified of him. But what is to fear if death is about to claim him? Castor's eyes slowly shut. He thinks he'd fall asleep for good now, never waking.
Castor nearly forgot that he spent the last moments of his life listening to Pollux read him that story. He could only remember his viciousness. In spite of being born from the hands of man, Pollux showed more humanity than the rest of them. Pollux's blood thickened in Seo's grasp, spreading out and encasing its body in his gooey remains. Seo snarled, trying to remove the tenacious liquid that feasted on his flesh. If that blood finishes off the vessel, Jinx would never come back to them.
Karma hurled his scythe, cutting off the arm that Pollux was eating off. The arm came off and appeared to squiggle like a slug.
"What now?" was all the young teenager could ask himself. Seo was out of their control. Only his master could tame him.
The ground beneath them illuminated. A magic white circle with symbols moved around them. A shadow pierced out of the trees. Salem opened his umbrella, dropping a translucent tube that caged Seo inside. The box dispersed
into white glitters, transporting Seo into safety.
"I am but a sinful creature humbly calling upon your name. Cleanse my soul, my heart, and my body, oh Lord, make me a rightful servant serving you and Elysia. These souls that have suffered have suffered enough. Won't you let them enter your heaven and make them whole again, oh Lord? Have mercy. We beseech you. Have mercy."
Basil opened his eyes, releasing streams of tears down his cheeks. "Lord, I am unworthy. Lord, I have been ungrateful. Lord, I have betrayed many, but please use me as your tool to save them. Take away every unclean spirit! Exterminate every demonic power! Prevent any more invasion and defeat the infernal enemy! From the snares of the devil, deliver us, Lord. Embrace your children. Take them in your arms…because they don't deserve more despair."
Ayami, Roi, and Castor became torches of lights. Three bright orbs swirled amongst each other, bumping and laughing. Basil's eyes widened when their orphanage appeared across from him. The three orbs landed and transformed back into their child forms with their bodies unharmed and in pristine condition.
Castor shoved Roi forward, causing the latter to fall forward on his knees. "Tag, you're it!"
"Castor, you pushed him too hard!" Ayami scolded, placing her delicate hand on one of Roi's shaking shoulders.
Roi started to wail, rubbing his eyes because of the grazes on his knees. "Waaaah! I'm going to tell Sister Bernadette!!! Waaaah!"
Basil couldn't help but chuckle. Sister Bernadette waved from inside. Her stern face scowled.
"What are you children doing? Come inside now or else the evil vessels will take you!"
"Coming sister!" The three children responded in unison.
Ayami and Castor ran ahead of Roi who was stopped on his toes. He turned around and waved at Basil with a bright smile.
"Let's play again someday! Bring big brother Kou, okay?"
Basil waved back, feeling the stones that were Roi's eyes crumble gradually and become dusts of gold that soared and followed Roi's form.
"I will. I'll see you soon."