"She could have a break," Shields warned Ekko. "It's going to hurt her." She looked toward Vi and Ekko. "You have to reconsider. This could cause her a painful break. This is too much for her."
"She's going to fight this out, or Ekko and I are going home," Vi declared. "She will try with everything she has to win."
"It hurts. It hurts her every time she tries this, no matter how many times she does it. It hurts every time. It's another wound in her. Don't. Do. This. Please." Shields was warning them as hard as she could. "Look at how much she's gotten better. Why are you making her suffer?"
"She has to," Vi said solidly. "A Zaunite doesn't stay in the mud, we kick ourselves out."
Shields took a deep breath. "You had an excuse back then for hurting her. You were just a child yourself. What's your excuse this time?"
Vi gave her a definite 'shut up before I punch you' look.
"This will hurt more than her. You are hurting yourselves too." Shields stalked off and went back to the room with PJ.
"All she wanted was for me to be here for her wedding, but can I do that? No, Vi, you have to be a hardass. Damn it, Ekko, this better fucking work," Vi muttered to him.
It has to.
This. In front of Vi. PJ was doing all she could not to cry. This was not going to be easy for them. No one who knew her back then, who knew that moment, suffered with her. They hadn't been part of that moment whenever she challenged him. They will leave the wedding. Vi wants to see how much I can't break free on my own. She won't take any less. Still such a hardass sister.
Deep breath. Five minutes.
"How come you did that?"
Hm? "Bear. What are you doing in here? This is the bride's area," PJ reminded him.
"I'm not a mercenary anymore. I'm a basic helper. I got the area ready."
"Right." Right, he was helping with that. "Well, what's up?"
"How come you did that?" Bear asked again. "You were telling your sister about our magic. Shields too."
Oh. Nooo. "Bear, I'm working undercover to break the bond is all. Mine is trickier because of the shimmer so a regular, you know, break won't work, uh, so I didn't want to stress him out! Figured I'd have it figured out myself, you know, 'cause marriage, he's not gonna hold me in a bond when I'm a wife."
"Oooh!" Bear said loudly and then smiled. "That makes sense. I didn't know it. Anatoly didn't know it either."
Anotoly? "You told Anatoly?" This could not be worse. "Kiddo? Okay? Hey?" Oh no. "Shields." Shields? Shields!
She opened the door. Anatoly was dangerously close to Shields and- "Cake." No. No. Sword, where's my Sword? Farther away. Good, but those two were way too close. "I don't want to fight, I changed my mind, Sweetie!" She yelled out at Anatoly. "Let's just go, get married, who cares if they run off? Not me."
"Come over here. Powder-Jinx."
"To . . . to get married? I just. Let me take this off." She yanked off the outfit. "There. Veil? We don't need a veil, do we? Let's just get this show on the road, huh?!"
"Come over here."
She moved closer, but Shields wasn't moving any farther away. Neither was Cake. Shields, move. Shields. Move. You and Cake. Move away.
"You see how bad she is starting to break?" Shields gestured toward her. "This won't be good. She can't handle it."
"She can handle it!" Vi shouted. "Come on, Powder. You can do this."
Am I fast enough to move them? Once he touched her hand. If he knows I was leaving and getting strangers magic, he's not going to be gentle. This is going to be really bad. I have to move them out of the way.
Ekko and Vi were clear on the other side. Where was Sevika?
"Forget it all, really. Just. Let's get married. You. Me. Away from everybody else! Please?" No change in his expression. "Please, please? I'll be a very good wife. Anything you want, you get, just don't do this."
"What I want?" He moved toward her, moving away from Cake and Shield.
Now! She used her shimmer speed to move Cake and Shield and tossed them to Ekko and Vi. "Guard them with your life!" She ran toward the building with the green liquid.
This was it, whatever she- "Damn!"
He caught her easily, turning his speed up, but she knew he'd be coming and swerved just in time.
"What do you plan on doing?" He called her out. "Stealing the magic? You are gonna live two years, max, and you aren't going to get it all!"
"Powder!"
Vi's voice. No, how could it be her voice, she was supposed to be watching Shield and Cake with Ekko. Did she shove them both with Ekko? She kept dodging him, but he was just getting faster and faster until-
"It was inevitable," he said as he held her hand in his, straight up in the air. "You can't leave. We are going to have this fight. No. Running. Away. Darling. Stop embarrassing yourself in front of everyone."
Vi showed up there, but PJ was already getting dragged back to the wedding event.
"Powder, it'll be okay," Vi tried to comfort her. "It's just one fight."
"Sword, Shield, and Cake. Keep them away!" She warned Vi as she kept getting dragged along.
"Come on, Powder. Jinx. Powder-Jinx. Hijinx. PJ, Pow-Pow, Hi-Pow, Pow-Jinx, did I miss anything?" he stated as he brought her back to the wedding event area.
Uh? "No, think you nailed them all, Sweetie."
Vi joined over by Ekko, who was keeping Cake and Shield behind him. PJ couldn't really tell what he was thinking, but as long as he was keeping them safe.
Vi looked angry and worried, and PJ didn't know which one was more serious. Anger? Right. They think I'm just freaking out about it all. She felt like she couldn't speak anymore though. He was playing with her ability to speak. To prevent her.
Anyhow. This is going to get nasty.
Ekko watched between Shields and Cake, and PJ. Jinx was majorly freaking out. Stating she was ready to just get married. Running off at top speed. Her paranoia about protecting those two.
Yet, she also seemed really serious about getting away. But? He's got to get her down to the base level, or she won't be able to vaccine for shimmer. After she did that, then he would do the next part. Come on, just make it through, Jinx. This one thing. Zaun needs you to do this one thing.
"Ready?" Anatoly said. He lifted her hand straight up. "Your base level. That's what you want. You at your weakest."
Ekko watched light shine around her as he let go.
The whole weather started to change. It started to rain.
"Stop this!" Shields yelled at Anatoly as Ekko kept her back. "Her stress doing this is so great, it's not just her, there is environmental changes now in the illusion!"
Anatoly ignored her. Around him and PJ was now fire and rain.
And PJ. Powder. Those blue eyes. Her hair in one braid with it's little barettes. Her purple and pink striped shirt with the half jacket on top. Arm covers. Boots. Sunk to the ground, crying so much it was amazing she managed to talk.
"Vi!" Powder shrieked. "Vi come back, please come back!" She belted out nothing but pain. "Please Violet, I need you. Please."
Violet. She actually called her sister by her full name. Damn it. Illusion! He tried not to get sucked in, but this was little Powder! He never saw Powder like that. When he thought of his old friend it was always with that fun, quirky smile. Usually she was okay. Maybe agitated. Sometimes sad, or in pain if she was sick, but usually happy. When they were together, they were usually playing. Now? His brain now added this painful image scar. It's not happening, that's not her, it's not real! But it was.
But it was. She was that desperate at that time. Maybe it wasn't then, but it was back then. Fuck!
He looked at Vi. Vi may have envisioned something like it in prison, but the realness of this, in front of her. She was stunned. No motion, except her eyes. They were definitely extra shiny, trying to keep them in control.
Then, the yelling for Vi stopped from Powder. Powder stood up. She was still crying, but it was clear she was trying to simmer it down. "I. Will. Do this." She held her hand up. "In a minute."
"You're dedicating a whole minute to get it together?" Anatoly said like an asshole. "Am I supposed to say that's cool?"
Powder was still sighing heavily, as she moved toward the left. She was just as slow and uncoordinated as she had been back then, but she did manage to avoid him with a roll.
Then, she was back to her adult self. She was still heavily breathing. "Everything that I have. I don't care if I have to bust all of my arms and legs, I'm going to do this!" She charged straight at him, trying to knock out his stomach.
He just caught her hand and threw her across the ground. As she rolled, she became little again. She was Powder again.
Powder got up off the ground, rubbing the blood from her nose.
Shield's was not fucking kidding, this was hell for them too. For Zaun. For the vaccine.
Vi was beyond angry, but her allegiance to her word held her back. "I hate you right now, Ekko, I fucking hate you."
Yeah. I hate myself right now. But it had to be that way, there was no choice, and it was almost over.
Vi was breathing heavily, it was tearing her apart. To her, she was letting a grown ass man beat up her little sister.
That scene. It wasn't easy to watch. Powder wasn't a good fighter back then, and now she was facing off against her worst enemy. With the power of a kid that couldn't actually throw a punch. This was the ground level of the power though. Bigger picture.
Ekko watched as Anatoly grabbed Powder and threw her against a tree. Hard. Blood was seen on the tree. That wasn't a fight, it was a beatdown! Anatoly held her in that spot until the illusion disappeared. Just Jinx in her dress, being choked against the tree, the tree being spattered with blood behind it still.
"A firm reminder, for the audience. Don't interrupt. It won't end well," Anatoly said casually right before he took Jinx, swung her over him like a mallet, and shoved her to the ground!
"Powder!" Vi was ready to take off.
Ekko got in front of her. This guy killed a Fireflight! If he touches her, she's dead!
"Move, Ekko, I don't care, he's hurting-!"
Ekko knew he couldn't hold her back. "You're an enforcer, you do what you have to!"
"He is crushing her!" Vi stopped trying to pass him though. "She's got the strength of a kid, how can we-"
"For Zaun!" he shouted. "For. Zaun." He glanced toward Shields and Cake. Still fine.
"But he could-"
"He won't." He'd immediately set time back if he killed Jinx. "He wants to marry her, he wouldn't do that."
"No one would do that to their bride-"
"-she heals fast with shimmer-"
"It's a bullshit excuse!"
Yeah. It was.
Damn it. You couldn't take a serious hit back then. Even if she looked like PJ again, she was still just as weak. She hated this, and he wasn't playing around with her this time.
"Why?" Anatoly whispered to her. "I gave you everything. I was going to give you everything. You have your Sword. Your Shield. Your food, your shelter, everything. I was going to give you everything. Why?"
"You. Didn't." She was choking, but she'd get it out. "Let. Me. Create." It was more than that, but she wasn't going to go out like that. Just kill me and end it.
"Why do they want you at your weak point? Hm?"
What? "To fight. And. Prove. I'm." He loosened his grip slightly. She caught a gasp of air before he tightened it again. "Stuck."
"I doubt that. There's something else. What did you want to do with my magic?"
Choking. Damn. Just. He loosened his grip again. "Help."
He smirked. "Help what? Do you want to vaccinate your dumpster fire of a city?"
Was that possible? "Yes."
"No." He picked her up, bridal style. "It's our wedding day so I will give you one chance. If you mess up again, I am going to end you."
"That's not a real threat for me."
"I didn't say I would end your life, I will end you. All of your progress. All of your life. I have memory power as well, inherited it from mother. I will stick you in a moment of time, and never let you leave."
"Are you serious?"
"Yes. You will never remember any of this. You'll be stuck, living as the psychotic daughter of Silco you always will be. Or, maybe I'll just turn your life into that constant grief forever of that night. Continually."
No. "You'd end me." Her, as PJ. As she was now.
"Yes, you get it. So. You will play nice. Not make a sound of your betrayal. You do not want to see a mage's power against you. Real power. I will fuck up your mind so bad, you will never return. Understand?"
"Yes."
"Repeat it."
"Yes."
It looked like the battle was finally over.
"Your wedding dress is all torn up, Sweetie, but it will be okay." Anatoly went toward Vi and Ekko holding her. Vi was running toward her now. "Don't worry. I have a second wedding dress if needed."
"Powder!"
Ekko wasn't far behind Vi.
"You hurt her so bad!" Vi blamed him.
"She has the strength of like a ten year old," Anatoly said. "Of course I did, that's why she never fairs well in the fight. She warned you of that."
"Powder?" Vi called out again.
"I. Really. Tried," Jinx said hoarsely in Anatoly's arms as he stood her back up. "Are we good?"
"Good, we are good!" Vi gave her a hug. "Come on. Let's get you all fixed up for the wedding now. I'm sorry, I guess I just needed to see myself that you really were stuck with a mage. I was an idiot."
"You'll stay now?" PJ asked her.
"Yeah. Yeah, we'll stay," Vi insisted. "Let's go relax."
"Okay." PJ moved slower.