Aftermath

[Clownpiece]

Somewhere in the back of Liberty’s mind, she realized how futile of an effort this was, how dumb of a task this was. Leaves and sticks crunched beneath her feet, two or so steps followed by a noticeable dragging noise, stopping again as she needed to take a break and catch her breath. Her tiny arms felt like jelly at this point, her small frame heaved with deep breaths. A light, burning sensation was slowly beginning to seep into her sore hands, as she grasped onto the black outfit of the still-unconscious assassin she was tasked with dragging back to the village.

It wasn’t fair. Why was she the one who had to drag this half-dead man over to the village? Why couldn’t Clownpiece do it? And where had all that strength she’d known previously gone? The little hell fairy interspersed her thoughts with another few, dragging steps. The forest thicket was impermeable, she couldn’t see far enough, she couldn’t gauge how far she’d traveled, how much longer until she reached the villa.

If she had taken her mind off of complaining and taken more than a moment to actually consider the situation, Liberty probably would have realized that this was a horrible idea. A little girl, her size, her strength, simply showing up in town, dragging a would-be assassin behind her probably wouldn’t be taken too well. Especially if it turned out that they had sent him for some nebulous reason. Like disturbing the peace. Such a thing probably wouldn’t turn out well for her in the least.

Of course, such a feat was far beyond her, so she simply continued on, her legs slowly turning to jelly, her palms slowly being rubbed raw. Time slowly dragged on, her arrhythmic footsteps the only method to tell how long this was taking her. To someone young and impatient like Liberty, it felt like an eternity. It was only through sheer determination that she actually found the will to keep going. She absolutely had to prove to Clownpiece that she could do this. Else she’d never see that wonderful light again.

And finally, that determination paid off. Faintly, in the distance, the white-clad little girl could see a parting in the trees. The orange light of sunset pierced through the summer leaves, and the dying bustle of the villa echoed into the forest. A vibrant grin crossed Liberty’s face; she was so close. The fairy stepped forward enthusiastically, starting up with a renewed vigor now that her task was nearing its end. Or so she thought, at least.

Halfway through her second step, a strong hand grabbed hold of the collar of her dress, right at the back of the neck, and the small girl was wrenched right up into the air. Her weak grip was no match for the sheer strength she was lifted with, and the unconscious assassin slipped from her grip. In an instant, she was fighting and flailing with all her might.

“Put me down!” Liberty yelled between gasping, worn-out breaths, struggling, kicking, and trying to turn. Anything to let her hit or at the very least see her assailant. No such luck, whoever it was, they were holding her out at arm’s length. Her weak hands wrapped around the thick, muscled arm holding her up, trying to pull herself free from it, once again to no avail. They were far stronger than her. For her last resort, the little fairy pushed off their arm, trying to wiggle her head into her dress and slip free. They held her collar far too tightly for that.

“Only you, huh?” A calm, feminine voice sounded off from just behind Liberty, vaguely off to the side. It wasn’t close enough to be the person she was trying to pull herself free from. “I figured more of you would have been indignant over that....”

“Let me go!” The only response from the fairy was petulant demands that she be released, no effort to try and find out what this woman was talking about. Her struggling was swiftly growing weaker and weaker, she’d already worn herself just dragging the unconscious man this far.
“I figured at least the miko would have gotten involved. She seemed like the meddlesome type....” The level voice continued on, a note of disappointment to it, not seeming to notice the fae’s frantic struggles. “Maybe that other fairy, she seemed to be a lot stronger.... Oh well,” she sighed noticeably. “I suppose she’ll do just fine. Proceed as planned.”

A large hand closed over Liberty’s mouth, strange scent on it, and the world went black.