"It's an illusion! It's an illusion! Everyone, stay calm! Their side might have a magician who cast an illusion on us!" Rashina roared, looking left and right wildly. She shouted out of control, "This is the Star Port of the Apocalypse Star, it can't rain here, there are no celestial bodies around, everyone calm down! Have you forgotten your commitment to His Majesty Darkseid?!"
She didn't realize the panic in her own tone.
Because she'd heard it. She heard whispers, like the rain that fell on Star Port, dark, subtle, and decayed. Like they were trying to burrow into her heart and brain, forcing her to succumb to madness.
Rashina looked up suddenly. She saw a boy in the opposing team, his head lowered, his face obscured in the shadows, but his lips moving incessantly.
A wave of anger arose within Rashina. She believed that Little Bruce was surely whispering a spell that created illusions. She had to teach him a lesson.
Her whip lashed, electricity sparking. Rashina used all her strength to launch her attack, sending the whip curling towards Little Bruce.
Her mind was filled with bloodthirsty fantasies, she couldn't wait to see the fragile human boy cut in half by her powerful strength, blood spilling forth. She would take his head and show her loyalty to His Majesty Darkseid.
In Rashina's vision, the boy appeared stunned, seemingly not planning to evade. At the moment the whip touched his shoulder, it tore his arm apart, electricity charred his body. Screams echoed in her ears and the pleasure in Rashina's heart increased.
A pathetic human mage dared to show off in His Majesty Darkseid's territory - this was the price they had to pay. More bodies, more blood, even more, more, more!
Rashina screamed internally, anger gnawing her insides like a poison stub. Thoughts of bloodshed and violence drove reason from her mind.
Using more strength, the whip began to dance, and hidden weapons expertly hit their enemies' vulnerabilities. Becoming more powerful, more frenzied, immersing into a frenzied banquet of killings!
The cold wind blew the scent of blood into Rashina's nostrils, her trembling arms hanging powerlessly. Before the exhaustion of going all out in killing could surge from her body, Rashina took a deep breath. The vision blanketed in fog revealed bloodied grounds and severed limbs, bringing satisfaction from the glory of her ultimate victory.
"Look, Your Majesty Darkseid, I have used all my strength to show loyalty," muttered Rashina with a grin. "Those insects who dared to challenge your majesty have all met their deserved fate!"
Another gust of cold wind passed her cheeks. After her rage dissipated, the slight chill in Star Port overwhelmed her.
Suddenly, Rashina's vision went blurry. Transparent ripples spread at the edge of her sight. She saw an expression of terror; how could there still be survivors? Didn't she kill all the enemies?
No, no! Rashina's voice echoed in her head. Were't there only a few humans? Why were there so many bloody corpses and severed limbs on the ground?
Oh, Rashina suddenly understood. She must have accidentally swept up those fragile, lowly beings when she attacked. That must be it. The extra blood and limbs on the ground must belong to those lowly civilians.
It didn't matter, Rashina thought. There were plenty of lowly ones, and on a typical patrol mission, perhaps she'd trampled hundreds of obstacle insects. No high-ranking official of the Apocalypse Star would reprimand her for killing many lowly beings. In contrast, by thwarting the human plot and offering Darkseid sufficient bloodshed and destruction, she was due for a promotion.
Suddenly, Rashina heard more noises, like screaming, crying, and cursing. Something felt wrong to Rashina. Who would dare curse her? After all, under Darkseid's rule, she had become the most powerful officer. Even Doctor Desaad, with his unlimited favor, had to kneel before her, addressing her as "ma'am".
Her sight blurred again, and as the water-like ripple spread, Rashina touched her eyes. She looked down at the raindrops on her fingers. Upon looking up, the scene before her was still a river of blood. But the burned fragments of the dismembered limbs wore the armor of Star Port's guardians.
"No... No!!!!" Rashina screamed.
She couldn't accept what she was seeing. How could she have attacked the guardians of Star Port? Weren't those torn to pieces by her supposed to be those weak humans?!
In the blink of an eye, more tears fell from Rashina's eyes, and the scenery became clearer. On the edge of the room, the surviving lowly ones were continuously crying, and on the opposite railing, an Apocalypse Star guard who had lost his lower body but was tenacious in life was glaring at her with resentment and fear, cursing something.
"His Majesty Darkseid... Lord Desaad will not let you off, traitor... traitor..."
Rashina let out a piercing shriek, her heart completely consumed by fear.
Rashina is a member of the Revenge Goddess Team, which is a loyal and elite guard force trained by Kindly Granny for Darkseid. Each member of the team boasts unique skills and unwavering loyalty gained through relentless brainwashing and torment.
Those years spent training under Kindly Granny are the most frightening memories for Rashina. The wicked old woman implanted a seed of absolute loyalty, using the cruelest and most ruthless methods, into each member of the Revenge Goddess Team that is even more obstinate and robust than the brainwashing received by the lowly ones affected by the Apocalypse Star Force Field.
Rashina, realizing what she had done, completely broke down. Yet at that moment, she felt a raindrop fall on her eyelid, and heard a call from behind.
"Lady Rashina, Lady Rashina, what are you gaping at? Take action quickly and kill off these humans. They actually dare to use magic within the Star Port on Apocalypse Star…"
Rashina turned around abruptly to see an angry guard behind her. She looked up to see the dark clouds above, with the moon occasionally appearing behind them. The thin, cold rain accumulated mirror-like puddles on the smooth metal floor.
Humans, right, humans. Rashina gritted her teeth, still seeing Little Bruce, his head bowed in recitation. She thought that it must have been an illusion crafted by humans. As long as she could kill this strange little boy, she would be able to escape from this terrifying illusion.
This time, Rashina was clever. Instead of brandishing her electric whip for a mass attack, she grabbed a dagger from her waist. As swift as a streak of lightning, she rushed towards Bruce, determined to take him out precisely and avoid massive destruction, just in case it was another illusion.
All of a sudden, Little Bruce disappeared, and the old woman from her recurring nightmares replaced him. Kindly Granny stood before her, saying, "Rashina, I am so disappointed in you. You could not withstand the test of the illusion, and you betrayed His Majesty Darkseid. Your loyalty is still shaky, and this was your last chance!"
Rashina stood still, the image of Kindly Granny was so lifelike that she could even see every familiar wrinkle. Her hand gripping the dagger wavered.
Yes, Rashina remembered. Kindly Granny had once used a brainwashing device to subject them to illusionary tests. Within the illusion, they couldn't remember who they were, and the only thing they could recall was their loyalty to Darkseid. During this illusionary time, she endured countless battles and interrogations. Did she fail?
Rashina remembered her failure. During a mission, she was affected by a mage's illusion and ended up killing one of her teammates and betraying Darkseid. She understood the consequences of her actions. She would face the most brutal execution, her corpse tossed to the Hounds Team under Kindly Granny.
No, she didn't want such an ending. She wouldn't die in pain, and she feared that the wicked old woman wouldn't even let her die but would extract her brain and throw it into Doctor Chaos's lab, where the sadist would endlessly torment her through mind control in her dreams, forever unfinished.
The fear rendered Rashina trembling all over. She was terrified of such an ending, but knew she still had a chance to change. She couldn't change the outcome, but she could die a dignified death.
Rashina looked down at the dagger in her hand, as if witnessing the blood about to stain its blade. However, just as the thought struck her, she felt a dampness on her eyelids. The reflection on the dagger showed that a raindrop had fallen onto her eye.
"An illusion! It's an illusion! It's trying to force me to kill myself!" Rashina roared as she endeavored to wipe the raindrop from her eye, frantically looking around for a flaw in the illusion.
There were no flaws or exits, only layers of dark clouds, an occasionally visible moon, and soul-crushing rain.
Afterwards, every round of illusion became a real memory. Sometimes she found herself going berserk on a mission and betraying Darkseid. Sometimes she was brutally punished by Kindly Granny and sent to Doctor Chaos's lab. At times Doctor Chaos would put her through various tortures, and sometimes, she remembered the failed operation and the raindrop that fell into her eyes during the torture time.
Finally, Rashina went mad.
Or perhaps, she finally realized the truth, distinguished reality from illusions, and understood how to break free of the illusionary world.
After wiping the rain from her eyes again, Rashina slowly knelt down and jammed the dagger into her eye socket, and cruelly gouged out her own eye.
She looked up to the sky with empty, bloodied sockets, like a disregarded statue on the ruins of an altar, abandoned because of its lack of devotion.
Solitarily, Rashina felt a dampness on her eyelid. As she moved to wipe it off, she noticed her own blood smeared all over her hand.
Rashina let out a desperate laugh. She lifted the dagger again, this time the sharp blade was aimed toward her throat.
The blood and the dagger fell into the puddle together while the sky reflected in the water was no longer full of dark clouds with a hidden moon behind, but a brilliant starlit sky.