The Prime Princess

Hermione walked out of the castle of Hogwarts and looked up into late night sky. She expected trouble with Saga and others but at that moment she really didn’t care. She spotted violet lightning hitting the Forbidden Forest. Another bolt twisted itself around the first and so did the third until a tunnel was created.

“Time to play,” purred Hermione and took off running past Hagrid’s hut. She heard Morrigan roar with excitement somewhere in her twisted mind as she reached to tree line. Raising Hel’s staff, the crystal between wolf’s claws started to shine so brightly it illuminated the pitch-black road going deeper into woods. Keeping her eye on time and space contortions leading her to incoming Saga, she rushed over tough landscape where everything wanted to bleed her with branches, thorns and teeth.

‘Switch dimensions, my darlin’,’ instructed Morrigan, as they got closer to an active portal.

It was said that in Forest were dangerous things but at the moment Hermione considered herself the deadliest being in there when she shifted back into phase and felt it tingle all over her body. Her eyes grew dark and blazed with a tint of ruby; her body was tense with uncontrollable raging magic that Morrigan brought up in her. Wild cherry-black locks whipped through the magical currents like snakes, free in open air.

Avenging angel strode further and further into the forest that grew darker and colder with every step she took. Hermione heard her own blood pounding in her ears as she anxiously waited to reach Saga.

Radio cracked and Saga’s voice came through: “You have no chance against me.”

Hermione gritted her teeth and stormed on. Saga was much too confident and stood on open at a small clearing, waiting. Hermione noticed her careless position but never doubted in her own abilities and in alliance with Morrigan. She had a feeling that Morrigan had long ago wanted to kick her ass for being an interfering little bitch.

Morrigan told her to turn up the volume on the shield because Saga always used full power on her staff. That also meant that her staff’s energy source would be drained quicker but on the other hand Hermione’s shield would eat up more energy as well. It was just a matter of time witch ones batteries died first.
***
No one knew who had started first. Within seconds two Aristons were battling with fierce fire running through their veins. Saga never gave Hermione a chance to take time off; she was determined to teach the young rascal some manners. Morrigan had taken over after few first shots and turned the fight into mortal combat. Punch, kick, parry, blast and strike again. She was like a machine, combining Void Walker’s staff and martial arts while feeding all knowledge about fighting to Hermione’s subconscious.

Morrigan knew that Saga was no match to her in hand-to-hand combat but somehow she was able to foresee her every move within a quarter of second. That had never happened before but Morrigan didn’t mull over it too long. She was ragingly happy that she could kick the shit out of Saga.

Hermione heard the indicator signaling that the shield had only 20% power left. Saga was still coming hard at them and as Morrigan fought with her, she had some time to come up with a plan before they both lost their heads.

‘Staff… It’s not powerful enough,’ pondered Hermione inside her head and felt the pain as Saga had gotten close enough to hit her into ribs while shield had faltered for a moment.

‘Of course it’s not! That’s Void Walker’s staff. We use much greater toys!’ snorted Morrigan for response as she had heard her thinking.

‘Aa,’ made Hermione and tried to concentrate on what Morrigan was doing and felt the raging flow pulling her along into the fight. She had an axe and a sword in both hands. Crystals burned in both ends brightly of the color of red. Reaching out in her mind she shared with Morrigan, Hermione willed her twin-wands unscrew themselves from around her wrists.

Morrigan swung staffs around and shot at Saga while Hermione busied with wands. She let the quicksilver draw back from the form of axe and slither back into shaft to where she slammed one of her wands after it. Joining two tools into one, she felt the power her wand gave to the staff. It hummed in her hand as Morrigan took it into quick use and let her to do the same to the other one.

‘Ye’re good at this!’ complimented Morrigan as she tested improved staffs that finally penetrated Saga’s shield as their own failed moments later.

“Don’t you worry about your playthings. I can assure I will take good care of them just like I did with your parents and lasses,” sneered Saga and moved around Hermione, rotating a sword in her hand. “Yeah, Lucius will be fun. He is so passionate and he would enjoy every minute with me. He would keep screaming for more… and I would give… hard.”

Hermione’s features twisted with hatred. Just thinking about that bitch touching Lucius made her fume with violent loathing and clouded her mind with blood-thirst. Morrigan was mingled with her own emotions running amok, her boiling rage poisoning her very soul itself. Hermione felt evilness rise from the pit of dark black hell and fill her completely – she was the ultimate evil – Satan. She wanted to hurt that slut and hurt her bad. The lust for the need to kill overwhelmed her. She wanted to rip Saga’s heart out, to see her blood gushing out of her body, to hear the hag scream and scream and scream.

Without warning she slammed the battle-axe into Saga’s fox-helmet and split the vizier in half and cut into her forehead drawing blood. Morrigan was right at her side and crashed the sword through her neck.

Saga groaned in pain and fell back on her ass, spitting blood and grasping at her slashed throat. Hermione roared and rotated her staffs around, pointing green power-crystals at Saga. It took Saga only a second to realize what the green meant. The avenger aimed at her stomach and shot from both staffs. Saga’s lungs sucked for air but her windpipe was gagged with blood and vomit, sending her into fits of coughing and gasping. She had to do something before next shot took her life.

Hermione grinned wide as she crushed her boot onto Saga’s chest and crouched closer, until she was on one knee and face to face with her doppelganger.

“Was it just as good as you killed them?” asked Hermione and reached over a bit to slip her hand under Saga’s tight tackle jacket. Pulling out a knife, Hermione admired its blade for a second and then whacked it into her chest. Racking the blade between delicate ribs, hearing Saga’s blood-muffled screams Hermione continued to carve her heart out. Hot blood flooded over her fingers and made them all sticky. Coppery smell filled her nostrils as she went on, keeping Saga down with her bodyweight, feeling peace descending over her, as she was almost able to touch the pulsing organ with her fingertips. So close…
***
Wraith Walker lifted her hand from Hermione’s forehead and looked up. Behind the glass wall of observation room stood General Lucianus of Asgard and his wife, Supremeverse Marshal Saga of Asgard. The commanding duo looked very much satisfied of what they had seen on screens before them. Colonel Severiano had a very naughty look on his face and Branwen smirked. Major Paris and Underverse Marshal whispered among themselves in a dark cloud of mist while Major Draconis looked down on Branwen with arms crossed over his chest. He still looked grim, somehow pained and angry.

“I believe we are ready,” announced Branwen and stepped back from the gurney onto where Hermione was strapped down. Saying that, the door slide open and orderlies rolled in another one. Morrigan had gone into coma and was no longer able to fight off what they were about to do.

Major Draconis didn’t even blink as the Scot was wheeled in next to Hermione. It was the way of Rage Walkers and he had to accept with that. He couldn’t have done anything when Morrigan had stormed into full battle with Khals – multiple breeds of genetically created warriors. She had saved Oberon and Titania, Osiris and Isis, Odin and Frigga – great Hiveships supporting altogether approximately 45 million lives in stasis pods.

General Lucianus clicked in the microphone and said: “Proceed.”

Hel stepped back into mist and through the Void she walked out to the room below. Branwen greeted her with a nod and faced her audience. Somewhere in the room were Elohim also but at the moment she wasn’t able to see them. But she could feel them all around.

“As Hermione of Midgard has told us, she doesn’t want to be bond by blood!” told Branwen to everyone standing above. “So, Elohim have approved to perform a true bonding of anima – to fuse two souls into one life energy stream.”

Wraith Walker looked right in the eye of Saga who was not quite happy with the idea that Hermione got exclusively all Morrigan’s energy and didn’t share it with the rest. It meant that Hermione was going to get one extra life and had greater source of energy than others.
***
A white room with no end in any direction surrounded a lost child of Midgard. Hermione floated in soft glow and hummed to herself. She felt happy in the little world of hers. Morrigan soared next to her, turned onto her back and levitated there awhile. Her red hair floated around her like flames of sunset. Mismatching eyes turned to look at Hermione and smiled.

“Come on, lass. Don’t say it wasn’t exciting,” purred Morrigan. “Think of all the fun we’ll gonna have together.”

Hermione didn’t answer. She was still inside her pink bubble and continued to hum.

“You’d be stronger, faster, smarter and more powerful than I or Saga ever were,” lured Morrigan.

“And I would live your life,” whispered Hermione and opened her coffee brown eyes. They expressed sadness, thoughtfulness and most of all – responsibility.

“I’d consider it as a bonus,” grinned Morrigan. Hermione turned to look at her and thought hard. She had felt the power and being a greedy little thing, she wanted more and more, even if it meant fighting both battles. Becoming something greater than any Ariston has ever been was very appealing. More powerful than Voldemort, greater than Harry Potter and superior than Dumbledore… She could be anything she ever wanted to be.

But was it worth to sacrifice herself for someone else’s cause? Just to become a heroic witch in both worlds? The name Ariston meant “the best” and that’s what she was going to be. She was going to live by her own name, rewrite the history of mankind and show the world what she was capable of.

“I will fight your war, Morgan, if you’ll fix up my life,” told Hermione. Morrigan grinned ear to ear and reached out her hand. A glowing Mark was glistening in her palm. Hermione took her hand and their Marks coincided. A flash of light burned between their joined hands. Cryptic symbols started crawling from Morrigan’s Mark to under Hermione’s skin and flooded all over her.
***
“As one could born again, one must die first!” declared Hel in ragged voice as both her and Branwen raised silver-daggers and plunged them into hearts of Morrigan and Hermione.
***
Hermione felt absolute happiness and freedom. She was able to see all the secrets of life and death before her eyes. Nothing held her back anymore. Morrigan smiled and changed into sparkling cloud of light, circling around Hermione.

“This is not the last goodbye,” told Morrigan as she was totally dissolved into light-entity and surged right through Hermione’s chest.