Subject: Sweat, Blood and Tears: Chapter 6 - Fire
Author:
Posted on: 2012-10-02 19:59:00 UTC

A/N: Ummm so tihs chapter is a littl bit VYOLENT. Umm i would put teh rating up if I coudl I think...

The Flowers of the Board crowded round their saviour - and that was when the wall exploded and black-clad figures swarmed through. At their head was a black woman with vicious blue eyes.

"Architeuthis?" Jay said, coming forward in bewilderment. "What are you doing here? Are you here to worship the Starflower too?"

"Worship?" Architeuthis snapped. "That?" She spat on the floor. "I'm here to kill it - and all of you, too."

"Kill... me?" Jay breathed, blinking rapidly. "But Archy - I thought you were my friend!"

"I worked very hard to keep you thinking that way," Architeuthis growled. "By the dark gods of all the worlds! The number of times I wanted to just rip your heart out..." She grinned, her teeth gleaming in the light of the Starflower's blossom. "Guess I get my chance after all." She pulled out a knife and started to advance.

NO! bellowed Jaycacia, the Starflower, and a wall of fire leapt up between the evil Spy and her prey. The Board Flowers fell to the ground before the ferocious heat, but Jaycacia never quailed. You will not harm my faithful! she went on. Leave now!

"Not going to happen, you little weed," Architeuthis snarled. "All right, guys and girls - get them."

Jaycacia threw up a second firewall, but the two monsters with the Spies - Kyaris the hydra and Voltarmi the dragon - acted as bridges for the others. Gliding between her mother and the attackers, Jaycacia launched her offensive.

The first fireball took Bulldog full in the chest, throwing him back in an inferno that engulfed the white-coated shape of Keily Shinra too. Angus MacFarlane leapt over them and swung his lightsaber, and Jaycacia cried out in horror as he cut straight through Hornbeam's trunk before her fireball reached him. The Spy burned with the Ironwood, both of them screaming.

There was a loud whinnying sound, and the murderous shape of Snapshot - a unicorn who seemed to be more than half rhinoceros - reared up over the prone form of the Marquis de Sod, her hooves primed to smash him to compost - but Jaycacia was faster. The unicorn's neck snapped back, faster than she could act - but not faster than thought. Her cruel horn blazed with black lightning even as she died, and the Marquis was flung across the floor - straight into the walls of fire. The Daisy burnt like a torch... but even in his agony, he managed to intercept the charging form of Tourmaline, taking her with him into the fire.

The remaining Flowers, led by the Sunflower Official - Jaycacia's heart swelled to see her beloved being so brave - fought back against the tide. The Queen Anne's Lace spread herself wide, catching the goose Monty and his pigeon thanes and crushing the life out of them. The Floating Hyacinth threw himself at Nasir, pushing the Spy back into the path of one of his own colleagues' knives - but was forced to retreat when the mouse Ceepileet slashed away half of his blossom. The SO finished the mouse off, but the damage was done - the defence's lines were broken.

Jaycacia turned from her victory over Kyaris and Voltarmi, both now nothing more than scorched skeletons, to see Amber Dashel and Gaspard De Grasse lunge through and stab the brave Queen Anne's Lace in the back. She exclaimed in horror, sending forth a fire-blast which consumed them both - but it was too late to save the Flower.

The battle was almost over, with only a few of the Spies left standing. Jaycacia watched - holding back her powers for fear of hurting her husband - as the Sunflower Official threw Gauri Narain across the room. The Spy flew past where Architeuthis stood, watching the fight with a cold expression, and hit the wall hard enough that her spine snapped - and then there was an explosion, and a cut-off scream, and Jaycacia felt utter dread in her heart.

~

"... whoa." Jay leant back against the side of the tepidarium, staring at her friend. "Are you sure that's the same author?"

"She certainly has gotten a lot more vicious," Acacia agreed, folding the sheet of paper and placing it on the floor by the pool. "Can't say it's an improvement."

"Well, no," Jay agreed. "And she's clearly never been in a real fight."

"Or met any Spies," Acacia said with a grin. "Seriously, can you picture how that would actually have gone?"

"I can, and it's not pretty," Jay murmured. "Still... maybe it's a good thing."

"Oh?"

"Yes." The woman nodded solemnly. "Can you imagine the trouble she'd cause if she was
well-written?"

There was a brief pause.

"Yes. I can. And it's not-"

"Oh, hush."

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