Act IX

by Alexander Gordon

  Reiko moved closer towards her lips before Star warped out of her hold and appeared nearby, backing away from the harvester and shaking her head with low meows.

  “Of course I can accept everything about you, I already have,” Reiko promised her. “You don’t have to be afraid, I simply adore everything about you, Star. I know all there is to know about the infamous Bloodcat of VanEllovan, and I know very well that she has captured my heart more than any other.”

  Star shook her head slowly and meowed again, with Reiko now showing a puzzled smile towards her.

  “What do you mean I don’t know everything about you? I’ve studied you well, Star. Your fighting techniques, your living preferences, your fondness for fish, and I’ve seen where all the right spots are to scratch behind your ears to make you melt in pleasure.”

  Star raised an eyebrow and meowed at the harvester who merely giggled and shrugged with an innocent smile.

  “I may have spied on you a little while you were living in the citadel. I mean I was ordered to by my countess, so I had no choice in the matter. Though I found it more entertaining and useful to learn about you and what made you happy rather than attempt to kill you for my idiot employer. You really are so cute when you’re sleeping or taking your baths, I just wanted to coddle you so much!”

  Star blinked and remained silent for a while, seeming to be at a loss for words hearing Reiko saying such things, before shaking her head and looking down with troubled frown.

  “What are you worried about? What else is there that you fear could possibly fend me away from you? Star, I promise you, no matter what you think you did in the past that was beyond forgiveness, I still want to be with you. I know we belong together, that can never change.”

  “Star!” Daniel’s voice called out.

  Star jumped and looked towards the sound, seeing Daniel riding atop Kroanette with a torch in hand while Clover was riding Lucky beside him.

  “There, she’s over there!” Clover said pointing ahead, seeing the jinx and harvester very clearly up ahead with her nocturnal vision near a rocky wall in the cavern.

  “Star, wait!” Kroanette pleaded as they ran over and came to a stop. Reiko turned towards them with an annoyed sigh, her kind smile being replaced by a bitter scowl, while her spectral tendrils slowly crept out below her gown. Star watched them in awe for a moment, surprised they had even come after her, and then lowered her head again with closed eyes as she felt the cold touch of her past resting on her shoulders.

  “Star, please don’t go like this,” Daniel pleaded. He hopped off the centaur and walked towards Star before Reiko quickly flew over before him.

  “Enough!” she yelled, aiming her spectral cutters towards Daniel while Clover jumped down from Lucky and drew an arrow onto the harvester. “Stop your foolishness now, boy. You’re only confusing her, hurting her. You’re doing nothing to help calm her spirit nor could you ever!”

  “I’m not going to turn my back on her!” Daniel shouted back. “You’re wrong, Reiko. I won’t cast her away because of-”

  “Liar!” Reiko howled with a frightful leer at him. “I saw the look in your eyes when you heard the truth, I saw you realize your mistake in believing she was a peaceful girl and cast her away. You all reacted just as I knew you would from the start!”

  “She’s not the Bloodcat of VanEllovan,” Kroanette asserted. “She simply cannot be. We refuse to believe such outlandish lies from you!”

  “You think I’m lying?” Reiko chuckled. She turned to Star who was glancing up at them from behind her bangs. “Star, it seems they refuse to believe the truth from me. Tell them yourself, be honest. See if they can truly accept who you really are.”

  “Star,” Daniel said softly, seeing the heartbroken look in the jinx’s eyes. “You’ve been a kindhearted girl with us since we met you. I know your inner nature made you act rather harsh with me at first, but you learned to control it. The way you were playing with the girls so well, the way you’ve been behaving yourself with us and being so nice, I know that’s who you are.”

  “A killer didn’t come to my rescue last night,” Clover added. “Star didn’t try to kill of any of those assholes that were messing with me. She merely fended them off, letting their own ignorance of attacking her to claim any lives, and protected me from harm the entire time. The girl that I held in my arms that night couldn’t have been the Bloodcat of VanEllovan, she was far too benevolent.”

  “Star, say it isn’t true,” Kroanette begged. “Reiko is just messing with your head, confusing you. She has to be. Please come back with us, please.”

  Star slowly breathed out then warped in front of Daniel. Staring into his eyes with despair she slowly held a hand up to his heart. He opened his mouth to speak before she meowed and shook her head, the girl then pointing to herself and slowly nodding with remorse.

  “She is the one that slayed an entire village in one night,” Reiko boasted, with Daniel falling silent as Star nodded again in agreement. “The region of Glyphmare was ravaged by her claws. Daniel, standing before you is indeed the famous Bloodcat of VanEllovan, slayer of men, women, and children of both human and monster kind. There is no denying it.”

  Star nodded and meowed softly, watching as Daniel was frozen in shock at hearing the truth.

  “You fucking serious?” Clover carefully asked. “You really are that monster? You’re really the one that was said to be just as cruel and evil as a Darker One? That was you?”

  Star agreed to that with a sorrowful glance at the elf.

  “How could you though?” Kroanette mourned. “Star, how could you possibly have done those things? That’s nothing like you at all, it isn’t.”

  “Star,” Daniel breathed out. “You really are the Bloodcat of VanEllovan?”

  Star slowly nodded with a faint meow.

  “Why did you come to us then? Why have you stayed with us if that’s true?”

  Star hesitated then slowly moved her hands down to his crotch, lightly cupping him with a small meow.

  “You wanted Dan’s dick?” Clover said with anger. “Are you fucking kidding us? The only reason you’ve stayed with us, that you came to help me last night, was just so you could get Dan’s seed? That’s all you’ve fucking wanted?”

  Star shook her head, meowing softly before raising her hands to rest on Daniel’s chest. The one over his heart lightly gripped him, her meows of sorrow being accompanied by a few tears dropping from her cheeks.

  “You wanted his heart,” Kroanette mused. “You wanted to be with Daniel. Star, are you saying you love him?”

  Star nodded and meowed dearly, with Daniel again being rendered speechless as the jinx mewled again and again at him as if begging for his forgiveness.

  “It seems she heard about how forgiving you could be,” Reiko relayed. “Though she feared you would never give her a chance, she wanted to be loved by you just as you love your other girls. The poor thing, she fooled herself into thinking you could ever see past who she once was.”

  “Star, is that true?” Daniel softly wondered. “You feel that strongly about me?”

  Star nodded and meowed at him urgently, waving her arms around and trying to confess something that was apparently only upsetting her more.

  “She wanted your love,” Reiko bitterly conveyed. “She wanted to belong with you and your family, even though she knew it was only a fantasy to think as such. I don’t know how you tricked her into feeling so strongly about you. I feel rather bad for the poor girl, being deceived so horribly like that by the likes of you.”

  “You love him as well,” Kroanette realized before falling silent as she didn’t know how to react now.

  “Dan, stop being so fucking charming to everyone,” Clover flatly stated.

  Star meowed and pleaded at him, holding onto his vest and shaking her head with tears falling to the ground. Reiko sighed and gently floated behind her, taking hold of the jinx’s hands and pulling them and her away.

  “Seems she
thought you would forgive her sins,” Reiko said shaking her head. “Well, Daniel? Can you? You now know the truth; you know what and who she is. So tell her, tell us all even, how do you feel about that? Can you honestly love her after all she’s done? The amount of lives she’s taken, the blood she’s spilled with her own hands, the way she deceived you all, could you ever forgive her? Could you honestly love her?”

  Everyone turned to Daniel as he continued to stare at Star in silence. A while passed while waiting for his answer that he never gave, the girls all showing concern from that except for Reiko who had a smug grin on her face. Star reached out towards Daniel and meowed hoarsely, her voice getting choked up in her throat as she felt heartache from his silence.

  “I told you, Star,” Reiko empathized, gently taking hold of Star and guiding her away. “Nobody but I could ever appreciate everything about you. He doesn’t love you, he’ll never love you. Don’t waste your time chasing such silly dreams as being with him.”

  “Why?” Daniel finally called out. Star and Reiko stopped and looked back to see him taking a step closer. “I want to know why, Star. If that really is true, if you really are the Bloodcat of VanEllovan, they why did you choose to do such horrible things? Tell us the truth. Did you really want to kill so many people? Did that make you happy? Was that really the kind of girl you are on the inside?”

  Star whimpered before Reiko lifted the jinx up into her arms while baring her spectral cutters towards the boy, the harvester snarling with anger towards him while floating off to the side near a rounded boulder.

  “Stop patronizing her!” Reiko shouted out. “Stop criticizing her for what she did! She was the finest slayer in Glyphmare and I dare even say the entire world! Yes, she did everything I’ve told you and she did so without hesitation! Face it, she’s not the quiet little pussycat you wanted her to be. She is everything you’ve heard her to be, and you just can’t accept that!”

  “Be quiet, Reiko! I was talking to her!”

  “All you’re doing is causing her more pain! Shut your mouth, human! It’s obvious you can’t forgive her, you never could. You were never going to love her, you despicable, deprived, hypocritical sack of meat and seeds!”

  “Shut the fuck up, bitch!” Clover yelled before firing her arrow. Reiko’s head ripped off to the side on her neck, dodging the arrow that flew past and struck the rock behind with a clang before ricocheting off into the air. The harvester’s head snapped back into place as she smirked in derision at the elf.

  “None of you understand. I respect Star for who she is, I love who she is. We’re soul mates, born from the same divine spark and destined to be together in this world. Unlike you I would never shun her for what she did, condemn her for her past, or even yell at her for what she was like. I’ve waited so long to be reunited with this girl, and like hell anyone is going to tear her away from me again. Do you hear me? I will never, never, allow anyone to harm my beautiful Star!”

  At that very moment the arrow flew back down, striking into Star’s head and through her eye with a crunch. Everyone gasped at and stared in horror as the jinx twitched in Reiko’s arms with blood spurting out from her face, a faint meow being made before she remained motionless.

  “S… Star?” Reiko breathed out.

  “How could that happen?” Kroanette stuttered. “You can’t attack a jinx, you can’t hurt them like that. This can’t be happening!”

  “Star!” Daniel cried out a moment before Reiko shrieked loudly in despair.

  “No, you can’t die!” Reiko screamed shaking her friend. “I finally got you again, I finally had you! You can’t leave me like this, Star!”

  “How did that happen?” Clover nervously asked. “I never aimed at her, I never even tried to. I was just trying to hit Reiko. How… how the fuck did that happen? It was a fucking accident!”

  Reiko let out a hauntingly loud wail, her spectral cutters flailing about from underneath her as she turned a murderous glare onto Daniel and the girls. She clutched Star close to her chest, the jinx’s empty gaze staring straight up with one eye while the other had an arrow pierced into it.

  “You took her from me! You wretched piles of flesh and horseshit, I’ll make you regret ever having touched my beautiful Star like this! I’m going to rip your souls out and then I’m tearing apart your fucking corpses!”

  Daniel and the girls slowly backed up while Lucky began neighing and bucking about in a panic, all of them sensing a dreadful aura coming from the extremely pissed off harvester. Daniel saw the terrifying look in Reiko’s face then turned his sights to Star, his heart aching at the sight of seeing her struck down. He blinked then stopped and stared at Star with wide eyes, with Clover and Kroanette also halting in their retreat as something caught their attention. Reiko paused then slowly looked down to see Star reaching up and carefully pulling the arrow out of her head.

  “What… the… fuck?” Clover said in disbelief.

  “She’s… still alive?” Kroanette asked in shock.

  “Star?” Daniel wondered as everyone saw the jinx pulling the arrow out and dropping it next to her. The cat’s head turned slightly and showed everyone the hole in her face that had blood coming from it, right before it began to slowly seal up on its own. Her eye formed from a blood clot and regained its vibrant color, the iris focusing slightly before she blinked and wiped away the blood that was on her face.

  “Star?” Reiko slowly asked as she was just as confused as the others.

  The jinx blinked a few times then saw Daniel staring at her in awe. Aside from a few drops of blood she failed to get off her face she appeared perfectly fine, without a single scratch or blemish remaining from when she had been fatally struck with an arrow through the eye.

  “Star… how are you…” Daniel asked before falling silent.

  “Are you alright, Star?” Reiko worried.

  Star warped out of Reiko’s arms and onto her feet, taking a moment to catch her balance before looking at Daniel with timid eyes. She slowly wiped the remaining blood off her face and meowed softly before lowering her head in shame.

  “Can… jinxes do that?” Clover carefully questioned.

  “I don’t believe they can,” Kroanette answered.

  Daniel walked up to Star and gently held her cheek, lifting her gaze up to meet his and seeing the saddened look in her eyes. He wasn’t sure how to feel, whether he was more thankful she was alive or baffled as to why she was.

  “Star!” Reiko squealed as she hugged the jinx from behind, nuzzling her head against the cat’s while tenderly holding her arms around the girl. “You’re alright! Don’t ever scare me like that again! I thought I lost you, and you know how much I care about you! Promise you’ll never leave me again, promise promise promise!”

  Star showed a dull expression with a quiet huff as she felt the harvester cuddling her again. She reached up with her finger and poked Reiko in the eye, prompting the harvester to quickly back off holding her face with a painful wail.

  “OW! Star, you know I can still feel pain, right?” she complained shaking about. “Just because I’m undead doesn’t mean I can’t feel like you can! And that goes for breaking my heart, too!”

  Star ignored her friend while keeping eyes on Daniel, watching as he tenderly held her cheeks while trying to decide how to react first. He then pulled her into a hug, the girl staring over his shoulder in surprise as he held her close.

  “I have no idea what’s going on, Star. Everything we thought we knew about who and what you were is being questioned. But I know I saw a kindhearted girl in you, the very same we all have. And I know how grateful I am that you’re still alive, even though I don’t understand how you are. Please, don’t run away again. I don’t want you to be alone or sad in this world, I don’t.”

  Star mewled and started crying into his shoulder, holding onto his back while hiding her face. The other girls watched in wonder as Star cried while being held by Daniel, his eyes going from the harvester that was growling a
nd flipping him off to the jinx that was breaking down in his arms.

  “Answer me one thing, Star. Tell me the truth. Did you want to kill all those people? Is slaying others who you really are?”

  Star shook her head, then nodded, then shook her head again while crying.

  “We need a straight answer here,” Clover spoke up. “Yes or no, which is it?”

  “Star, please tell us the truth,” Kroanette pleaded.

  Star slowly leaned back and sniffled with watery eyes, shaking her head at Daniel with a sorrowful meow. She hesitated then nodded before looking down and shaking her head once more.

  “It’s not a simple answer, is it?” Daniel realized, with Star shaking her head to that. “Then please tell us the whole story, starting from the beginning.”

  Slowly Star looked up to him with worried eyes as he stepped back while holding her hands.

  “No more running away, Star. If you want us to trust and accept you, then you need to be honest. Come back with us and please explain who you are, and where you’ve come from. Tell us your story so we can know who this girl really is, once and for all.”

  Star lowered her head and whimpered before he pulled her closer.

  “Give me a chance to understand, Star,” he requested. “I’m holding onto hope that you truly are a kindhearted girl inside, and I want to believe you’re the same friendly cat that appeared in our home yesterday.”

  “Yeah,” Clover added. “Plus, we’ve got a few questions for you. You know, regarding the whole ‘not dying from taking an arrow to the fucking face’ thing.”

  “If you wouldn’t mind explaining to us of course,” Kroanette mentioned with a weak smile.

  “Why?” Reiko snapped. “What’s the point of her going with you, you’re never going to accept who she is.”