[DPA Station Nine]
"Hey, Ayako!" Valerie shouted at the 'water magic' user as she and Maria made their way across the station's cafeteria. "You got a minute?"
"What's up?" The woman asked. She was currently sitting across the table from Sebastian and Skylar, who were also halfway done with their food.
"Do you know what's up with Cyrus?" The tall blonde asked immediately after she was within arm's length of the woman. "He's been acting kind of strange today."
All Ayako could do was shrug before giving her response. "No clue. He's been like that all day. I asked if he was alright, but he just said that he didn't get a lot of sleep."
"Really?" Maria quirked an eyebrow.
"We just passed him down near the records room, and he looked like shit. He barely said anything to us before dragging himself off over to the restroom."
"Is that really surprising, though?" Sebastian now felt the need to put in his two cents.
Like usual, the bearded man was scrolling through one of the many dating apps that he had on his phone. But this topic of conversation was something that he found a lot more interesting than figuring out who his next conquest was going to be. "I mean, the guy did off someone for the first time a few days ago. Pretty brutally, I might add. He's probably still dealing with the mental rebound."
The two junior agents thought about what their coworker had to say. Neither of them had seen the aftermath of Cyrus's fight with that Hannah lady, but from what they heard, it got pretty gnarly at the end. All they knew was that Cyrus ended up having to create a ball of wooden spikes inside the woman to finally put her down. So it made sense that he wouldn't be totally okay after having to do something like that.
"Just give him some time." Sebastian then leaned back in his chair and threw his arms behind his head. "He just needs a few days to cope, and maybe a little therapy, before he's back to normal. I was pretty much the same way right after my first kill."
Ayako scowled at the guy. Totally unsatisfied with how flippant he was being about having to take another human life. "Please tell me that all of you APS guys aren't this casual about having to kill people."
"We're not." Skylar interjected. "Sebastian's just that special brand of crazy that we have to ignore whenever he talks like this."
"It's one of my best qualities!" The man said with a chuckle before suddenly changing topics. "Speaking of Tree Boy, are you ever going to tell us what he did that suddenly turned you into an S-rank sorcerer?"
The lone 'earth magic' user of the group rolled his eyes before responding. "For the last time, asshole, I don't know! We think that it's some sort of side effect from being in range of his overdrive skill. I got checked out by the medical staff, and they said that I'm fine. But we don't know if it's going to last forever."
"You do know that we know you're lying, right?"
"Tough shit!" Skylar folded his arm over his chest, revealing the brand-new mana suppressor that was currently strapped to his wrist. "You're just gonna have to deal with it!"
"It's still pretty amazing, though." Valerie then added. "Whatever happened bumped you up an entire rank."
'I really want to see what his overdrive is.' Maria then thought to herself while the others chatted in front of her.
The mere idea that being in the presence of the 'tree magic' user's overdrive was enough to permanently increase your overall power level was just insane to think about. It practically went against everything that they knew about sorcerer biology. The raven-haired teen had heard bits and pieces about what it could do from Evan during the night of the raid, but she really wanted to see it for herself.
Don't get her wrong, Maria wasn't some power-hungry lunatic. She was perfectly happy with the amount of power that she had right now. But she would be lying if she said that she wasn't the least bit interested in experiencing that kind of thing for herself. If anything, having more mana might be useful when it came to feeding her companions. Especially her primary companion.
"Anyways…" Ayako looked at the two junior agents. "I think it's best that we just give him some space. He still hasn't fully recovered from the whole kidnapping thing, so trying to bother him might not be the best move right now."
"If you say so…." Valerie shrugged. She was worried about her friend, but she didn't want to be the one to accidentally send him over the deep end. So, she decided to just let things be for now.
With that, the group went back to their regularly scheduled shenanigans. Now that this whole Iznana threat was over and done with on their end, they finally had a chance to return to some much-needed normalcy. And lord knows they could use a break after everything they had been through.
-(o)-
[Later That Afternoon]
Cyrus was not in a good mood….
Far from it, actually….
If anything, this had to be one of the most mentally draining days that he had experienced in quite some time. And that was saying something.
Not only was he dead tired, but he felt as if his brain had been dunked into a bucket of cold water and left to sit out in the snow for the entire night. He had done what he could to at least maintain the appearance that he was okay, but he knew that everyone was already catching on to him. And it was only a matter of time before he slipped up and did something that he was going to regret.
"You really should get some sleep." Hannah said to him with an annoying grin. "You look like shit. Not that I'm complaining, though."
"Fuck off." The young man said to the ghost that was still plaguing his senses. He really didn't know how much more of this he could take.
Whatever this was, he really hoped that it was going to be over with soon. He genuinely didn't know how much longer he would be able to keep his sanity with the ghost of a dead woman suddenly popping up beside him every hour to poke fun at him and his obviously deteriorating mental state. He was already on edge enough as it was.
The fact that this was even happening to him was a clear sign that Cyrus was beginning to lose his grip on reality. And not in any sort of way that was close enough to what one would consider to be fun or humorous by any stretch of the imagination. But there was still too much to be done before he could even hope of finding a way to address this issue of his. And all of that centered around the meeting he was currently waiting to have.
'Let's get this shit over with.' The young man thought to himself as he made his way out of the building. It was only a matter of time before Elaine and her minion showed up at his apartment. And he needed to be ready for whatever was about to happen next.
-(o)-
[Cyrus's Apartment, One Hour Later]
Just before the sun could fully set over the horizon, the long-awaited meeting had finally arrived.
"Nice place you got here!" Elaine said with a smug grin as she made her way into Cyrus's apartment with Nick trailing only a few steps behind her. The woman was acting a lot more casually than one would expect, given how she was poking around to get a better look at the living room's decorations. But at least she was polite enough to take off her shoes before she started snooping around.
Of course, the 'wind magic' user and her assistant were simply doing a cursory check to see if there were any hidden cameras or listening devices set up in the apartment. But she was genuine with her comments about how she liked the way the place looked.
"Thanks…" Cyrus sold coldly while watching each and every one of their movements. He knew that they wouldn't be dumb enough to just assume that he wouldn't bug the place, so he didn't even bother trying it, just to avoid unnecessary drama. Doing so would've been way too risky.
"Well, here it is!" Elaine then declared before setting the large metal briefcase that she was holding down on the young man's coffee table. "All fifteen vials that Hannah took from you, just like I promised!"
"And how do I know that it's really mine?"
"You're more than welcome to check if you want." The woman replied confidently. "But that'll probably take some time. It's cool, though. I can wait."
"Whatever…"
The trio then stood in awkward silence for a good thirty seconds while sizing each other up. The tension in the room was hard to ignore, and Cyrus suddenly found it hard to breathe with the two Iznana operatives looking at him with those strange smiles of theirs.
Somehow, the young man was able to regain his nerve just in time to stop a cold sweat from forming on his brow. And he quickly retrieved the briefcase before opening it up to see its contents with his own eyes. Cyrus really didn't know how to feel about looking at a metal box full of his own sperm that was forcibly extracted from him by the woman who spent the better part of a month tormenting him. But he was happy that it was now back in his possession.
Part of him was tempted to destroy all of it right then and there, but he quickly decided to do so later after their business here was concluded. He still didn't know what these two were planning on doing. So he didn't want to force their hand early by doing something rash.
"Isn't it about time you broke that enchantment on your tongue?" Elaine then asked while placing her hand on her hip. "You're more than skilled enough to do it. So what are you waiting for?"
"I didn't really feel like it." Cyrus momentarily brought his hand up to his mouth before directing his gaze back onto his guest. "But now that there's no point in having it anymore…Dispel!"
Elaine and Nick watched as the young 'tree magic' user stuck his tongue out before activating his mana. And they continued to observe in curious silence as the black celtic rune in the center of it began to glow a brilliant shade of dark green.
Over the next few seconds, the enchantment marking began to slowly dissolve like one of those old tattoos one could get out of a gumball machine, and the 'wind magic' user was thoroughly impressed with how efficient the young man was being with his powers.
Breaking an enchantment, even a simple one like this, was no simple feat. But Cyrus had managed to do so without breaking a sweat. It was a testament to how talented he was when it came to the art of enchanting. Talent that Elaine was planning to use to her advantage in the near future.
"There, it's gone." Cyrus declared after finally finishing his spell.
"Aw man…" Hannah's ghost folded her arms and scrunched her face. "Do you know how long it took me to perfect that enchantment? Oh, wait, you do! I remember telling you about it!"
Cyrus chose to ignore the ghost's words. He didn't have the patience to deal with whatever the hell this figment of his imagination was saying right now.
Another awkward silence followed before Elaine decided to get down to business. After all, they all knew what the deal was the moment the two Iznana operatives walked in the door. It was only a matter of how exactly things were going to play out from here.
"So…what happens now?" The woman folded her arms across her chest. Behind her, Nick was subtly activating his body reinforcement.
"This!" Cyrus shouted before reaching behind his back and pulling a pistol out from his pants. "Put your fucking hands up!"
"A pistol, really?" Nick couldn't help but give the young man an unimpressed glare. "Come on, dude, you have to have a better plan than that."
"You two didn't really leave me with a ton of options." Cyrus shot back. "I already know that you have both of my phones bugged. And that you have Duncan's bugs watching my every move. So it wasn't like I could call anyone else over here without raising the alarm."
The 'tree magic' user then pointed to the apartment's balcony, where one of Duncan's companions was indeed hiding right above the doorway just out of sight of the window.
Elaine smiled and shook her head. "And here I thought you wouldn't notice. I'll have to let Duncan know that he needs to work on his stealth skills a bit more."
Cyrus was quick to change subjects. There were still a few things that he wanted to know before he pulled the trigger. "What exactly do you want from me?! I know you targeted me for a reason, and it wasn't just because of my magic. What the fuck are you really up to?"
"Like I said before, you're special, Cyrus. Far more special than you realize."
"What does that even mean?!"
"Tell me something…have you had any weird dreams lately?" The woman asked him. She hadn't even bothered putting up a mana barrier to protect herself. Which meant she was either confident that she wouldn't get shot, or that she was skilled enough to outpace a bullet from this close a range. "Dreams where you encounter some weird being cloaked in darkness?"
'What the fuck?' The young man thought before opening his mouth. "How do you know that?!"
It had been a while since Cyrus had experienced one of those strange lucid dreams that had been plaguing him ever since he awakened his powers. Probably around a month or so, if memory served him correctly. But the fact that Elaine knew about that was simply way too weird for him to wrap his head around.
He knew that he had never told her about them back when he was living in her mansion. So how could she possibly know about them?
"Because those dreams are a part of the reason why you're so special." Elaine continued. "Those aren't just dreams, Cyrus. They were real. Just like the person you were speaking to when you had them. Visions from beyond the void. Just like me, you're able to touch the other side."
"What are you talking about?" This was starting to get way too freaky for the man's liking.
"Don't worry, you'll find out soon enough."
"Cut the bullshit and-"
Before Cyrus could finish letting out his threat, Elaine suddenly snapped her fingers as a pulse of mana shot out from her body.
At that moment, Cyrus felt a sudden burning sensation overtake his entire body. One that originated from the center of his back, right where his flying enchantment was placed. In a matter of seconds, his skin became pale, and all of the mana within him began to behave erratically.
"Shit!" The 'tree magic' user dropped to his knees as he tried to fight back the pain that was now coursing through his muscles. He had no clue what had just happened, but he was well aware of who was responsible for this. "W-what did you d-do to me?"
Elaine looked at the young man with a satisfied grin as she watched the distended blood vessels begin to form all over his face. She did feel a bit bad about having to resort to such measures against someone that she valued so highly, but it was a necessary evil in order to get what she wanted. Besides, the guy dared to pull a gun on her. Her, of all people. So, it was only right that she punished him a bit for his impudence.
It was only after a few more seconds of agony that the woman finally decided to give the poor guy an explanation.
"I took the liberty of placing a little insurance policy within your flying enchantment back when I gave it to you. It was the reason why I volunteered to do it instead of letting either Evan or Elizabeth take care of it themselves." The woman then knelt down to the ground so that she was now eye-level with him. "I needed a backup plan in case you didn't come to your senses."
"What?" Cyrus groaned as tears began to come out of his eyes.
"It's called the obedience curse. It's something that my grandfather created back when he was still a member of the DPA. He used to use it whenever he needed to convince people to give him money to help fund the agency. Only me, him, my father, and my cousin know about it. It's one of the many secret techniques that my family keeps locked away just for us to use."
"Y-you bitch!"
"Shh…" Elaine then placed her hand over Cyrus's mouth while gently patting his head. "It's okay, it's going to be over soon. It only takes a minute or so for the curse to work its way up to your brain. Once it's done, you'll be perfectly fine. Don't fight it…just let it happen."
The woman then stood up before walking over the sofa and sitting down in full view of the 'tree magic' user. She and Nick watched in calm silence for the next few seconds as Cyrus's body continued to seize and convulse on the living room floor. And despite how rough the guy looked in his current state, they knew that it was only a matter of time before the deed was done.
"Oh…how interesting…." Hannah's ghost smiled at the sight of her host writhing around in pain.
Eventually, Cyrus's body went limp, and the circulation of his mana went back to normal. And after a few more seconds, the young man let out a thick cough before groggily forcing himself onto a knee.
"How do you feel?" Nicked asked the 'tree magic' user, curious as to whether or not the curse actually worked or not. This was only his second time actually seeing it in action with his own eyes.
"Sore as hell." Cyrus replied in a peppery tone while rubbing the side of his neck. "A little warning would've been nice, y'know!"
"Sorry about that." Elaine replied with a satisfied smile. "But it had to be done."
"Whatever…."
Based on outward appearance, Cyrus looked perfectly fine. The bulging blood vessels were now gone, and it seemed as though he was back to normal. On the inside, though, something had changed. It felt as if a fog had lifted from his mind. A fog that he didn't know was even there to begin with.
"Tell me, do you still want to hold onto that briefcase?"
"Nah." The young man replied while looking over at the container that was still sitting on top of his coffee table. "I was planning on destroying everything inside of it, but something tells me that you want to hold on to it."
"Well, you're not wrong. I do have someone in mind who would love to get her hands on it. But I'll be sure to run it by you before I give it to her."
"Whatever you say, Boss."
Fully happy with how things have turned out, Elaine stood up from her seat and walked over to Cyrus before giving the young man a warm hug. She had officially gotten everything that she wanted out of this little adventure of hers. And now that the first of the final two pieces of the puzzle was now firmly under her control, she could finally relax a bit.
Of course, there was still much work to be done, but she couldn't help the excitement that was now washing over her.
"I'm so glad to have you with us, my new apprentice. I've been looking forward to this day for quite some time. You don't know how happy I am to finally have you on the team. We're going to do great things together, I promise you that."
"Just make sure that you'll never do that again." Cyrus told her while pulling away from the 'wind magic' user. He still wasn't exactly a fan of human contact right now. "I don't think that my body will be able to handle it."
"Don't worry." Elaine replied with a slight chuckle. "Now then, there's much that we need to discuss. I can't tell you everything yet, but let's get you up to speed on what we're going to do next."
"Sure thing. Just tell me what you need me to do."
"Excellent!"
As the sun fell over the horizon, no one was aware of the significant event that was taking place inside the walls of Cyrus's apartment. But soon enough, the entire world would feel the effects of what was to come. And in the not-too-distant future, the reality that they had grown accustomed to would come to an end.
However, that was a story for another time….