CHAPTER FIFTY SIX
[56]

song: cry little sister by gerard mcmann

THE LIGHT WAS GONE but there was no mistaking where they were. Through the moonless night came the rhythmic pounding of the waves and the salty air moving gently over their skin, flicking the tiniest grains of sand into their semi-closed eyes.

"Here." Kai spoke softly, as he handed Daisy the warm cup of tea he'd just prepared.

She felt the warmth against her palms as she accepted it, holding it close to her chest as she let the ocean breeze cool it off itself. "Thank you." Daisy said happily as she let out a yawn, Kai sat down on the soft couch next to her.

After a long cold night the morning brought glimmers of warmth. The golden light softly caressed the sea and ignited the birds into a chorus of melodies. The sunrise illuminated the blue as if it were igniting the most perfect flame.

Daisy sat with Kai for as long as she could. The sound of the waves. The smell of the lavender tea Kai made her every time. The chill ocean breeze reminding her to appreciate the brief warmth of the early morning sun. She wanted it to last.

But it never did.

Coming back with a gasp so hard she could almost feel her stomach and backbone meet, she was quickly thrown back into reality once again.

There was no time to readjust, the pain struck her as soon as her heart began to beat again. She coughed up the blood that lingered in her mouth, slowly raising her heavy head to see all the people awaiting their turn to kill.

Two months, powerless. Each day was hopeless, each day was vulnerable, each day was terrifying. For both Kai and Daisy respectively.

Daisy had become so used to the pain inflicted that it barely fazed her anymore. She experienced the feeling of death so many times a day, that she knew if it ever really arrived, it would be such a sweet relief.

She craved the feeling of a soft bed. A big meal. A breeze. A warm hug. And when she was dead, there were short moments where she got to experience those feelings again. Death was the only thing keeping her alive.

Kai had spent everyday in the same room, fighting his way out. The farthest he'd made it was a few feet down the hall, but he was inevitably grabbed and dragged back. He had no strength left, with the lack of magic, lack of food, and the overwhelming feeling of anxiety and anger— he was exhausted.

Sat in the farthest corner from the door, on the concrete slab he'd painstakingly used as a bed, Kai tried to siphon something. Anything. That's the only thing he could do with his never ending time. He could feel the magic radiating off of the walls of the dark room, he could feel it in the air— but there had to have been a spell in place that stopped him from absorbing any of it.

Kai's eyes sprang to the door as it swung open, bright light filling the room as he squinted his eyes to try and adjust to the change. "Should we inject him?" A man's voice asks.

Kai tried to see who was there, but it hurt to open his eyes. "No, he's weak enough already. And we need him to talk." Marzia's immediately recognizable voice spoke. "Just grab him and meet me down the hall."

Kai opened his mouth to speak but before he could get anything out, two strong arms had yanked him up and onto his feet. The sudden motion made his head throb with pain as they drug him out of the room.

As his eyes soon began to adjust to the harsh tungsten lights that hung above the hallway, he realized they were taking him to a new room. As one of the men let go, he opened a door to a bigger room, one with significantly more light and at least a chair and a table.

After throwing Kai inside, the two men shut the door behind them. Kai stumbled as he tried to stand, adjusting to the new environment he'd been deprived of for months. He itched at his sore throat, feeling the stubble of hair that grew on his face and neck.

"Feeling okay?" Marzia spoke. Kai turned to the corner where she stood, a little bewildered he didn't notice her standing there at first.

Kai glared at her, "Been better." He mumbled, his voice coarse.

Marzia smiled a bit. "Why don't you take a seat?" She suggested.

Kai eyed her hesitantly, but sat down on the cold metal chair that sat in the middle of the room. He wasn't in the mood to play stubborn, and there had to be a good reason he was pulled from the room for the first time in months. As soon as he sat down, he felt relief from the pain of holding himself up.

Marzia slowly walked to the other side of the table, and Kai followed her suspiciously with his eyes as she sat down across from him. The two just stared at each other for a few moments before Marzia spoke. "We've discovered you might be of some value to us." Marzia began. Kai's expression didn't change, he just sat opposite her leaned back in his seat with hateful eyes. She didn't expect a response, but when he didn't even seem affected by her words she spoke again. "You're the son of the Gemini coven's leader. Given that information, we believe you know how to get back to Dimension 0."

Kai noted how they've get to call where they are a 'prison world'. They still believe that they've done nothing wrong and don't deserve to be here. "If I knew how to get out of here, I probably wouldn't be sitting here against my will right now." Kai responded, leaning forward a bit with narrowed eyes.

"Of course." Marzia nodded. "You have the information, you know how to get out— but don't have the tools to do it."

Kai eyed her. "And you have the tools?" He asked suspiciously.

"We can't give you the tools if you don't give us the information."
Marzia responded.

Kai let out a scoff. "And I'd help you... why?" He asks.

She shrugged slyly. "We'll let you and the girl come with us."
He felt his heart skip a beat at the mention of Daisy, but didn't let it show. "All you have to do is tell us what you know— and you're both free."

Kai watched her as she spoke, his mind quickly racing with possible outcomes. The problem was— he didn't have any information. None that would be of any value. He glanced around the room and took a deep breath, leaning back in his seat before redirecting his attention to Marzia.

"Food first." He responded cheekily.

She narrowed his eyebrows at him. "What?"

"I've died multiple times from starvation down here." Kai frowned. "And I'm feeling a little peckish."

Marzia looked at him like he was crazy. "So—"

"Burger, no tomato." He spoke. "Not drive thru— I want it homemade."

Marzia let out a small scoff, "No." She shook her head.

"Fine." Kai shrugged back. "Then I guess you don't need me that bad."

Marzia stared at him for a few seconds. He could be demanding much worse, but this was just annoying. They did need him, but he didn't have to rub it in their face. "Okay." Marzia complied. "We'll be back."

—

Daisy got a few moments of sleep as she sat atop the throne in the church, only to be rudely awaken by a dagger being plunged into her stomach. "Fucking hell!" She yelled with a groan as the Algean pulled it back out.

"Quiet." One of the guards that stood on her right spoke to her.

She squeezed her mouth shut, trying to stifle the curses that she wanted to scream at the lady who just stabbed her. She watched as the lady brought the chalice to Daisy and collected her blood. With newfound strength, the woman triggered an aneurysm to collect more.

As the pain deepened on Daisy's brain, she felt herself approaching the familiar feeling of death— but the woman stopped before she could get there. Letting out a pained groan, Daisy tensed against her seat as the next person approached from the church aisle.

"Have it in you for one more?" Ezra spoke as he approached the stage, Michelle by his side.

"Don't taunt her, Ezra." Michelle rolled her eyes, she turned to Daisy and smiled. "Hi, Daisy. How are you?"

Michelle's words were genuine. That was the worst part. None of this seemed wrong to them— there was no pleading or getting through to any of them. They were in th right, doing nothing wrong, and Daisy's cries would never change that.

Daisy weakly spoke, her voice coarse and strained. "I'm going to rip your throats out and shove them back up y—"

She felt the yank of chains from behind her and they tightened around her neck, pinning her closer to the chair as she let out a few coughs at the sudden force. She watched as Ezra let out a few quiet chuckles as he and Michelle exchanged words as they scanned the weaponry.

Ezra always took the longest time to choose what he'd use to draw blood, so Daisy took it as a chance to rest her eyes for a few seconds. She closed her heavy eyes and let out a deep breath as she slumped in her sleep, pain throbbing in her stomach as she bled.

—

The sound of the glass plate clattering against the table made Kai smile a bit, as he looked down to see the burger he had asked for was prepared just as he requested. "Was that so hard?" Kai asked with sarcasm as he took the bun off to examine. "And no tomatoes? You guys really have great service." He nodded firmly.

"Talk." Marzia says, sitting down across from him.

Kai put his hands out in defense. "Woah, woah. I haven't even had my first bite yet." He shrugs annoyedly as he brought it to his mouth and took a satisfying bite. He tried to not show how starving he truly was, but it was impossible when he hadn't eaten in months.

"So obviously you know that Bennett witches have something to do with the celestial event, right?" Marzia spoke, trying to get to the conversation going.

Kai did not know that, but he went along with it. He glanced up from his burger before taking another bite. "Right." He lied with a full mouth.

"The problem is there's no Bennett witches here to help us perform the spell." Marzia continued.

Kai took note on all of the information she was dishing. "Riiight." He repeated. "And we need a Bennett witch here because—"

"Because they're the only ones who can open the ascendant." Marzia finished.

"Mhm." Kai almost laughed at how easy this was. "And this ascendant, right, it's the—"

"The object that your father used to send us here." She nodded. "We need that, a Bennett witch, and a celestial event to get back to Dimension 0."

Kai took another bite, hoping it would hide the smile that he couldn't stifle. He didn't even have to work for the answers. It was ridiculous. "Celestial events can be anything. Full moons, meteor showers, eclipses. If we can travel somewhere where something like that is happening, then we can check celestial event off the list." Kai suggested, before taking the last bite of his burger. He examined the now cleaned off ceramic plate before raising his head back up to Marzia. "Unfortunately, I prefer traveling alone."

Before Marzia could register his words, Kai had grabbed the plate and smashed it against the table. He grabbed one of the shards that broke off, and plunged it into Marzia's throat in one swift, satisfying motion.

Her body tensed under his hands as blood began to spurt out from the wound. "I would recommend you don't take this out, unless you want to bleed to death in less than a minute." Kai whispered, jamming it further into her neck as she crumbled to the ground, he used his free hand to hold onto her arm, siphoning from her. "But I think that might get the job done quicker." He yanked the shard from her neck and she fell down completely. Quiet groans escaping her lips as her eyes darted around the room frantically. "Thanks for the food." He smiled, and then waved his fingers in her face. "And the magic."

He stood up with a smirk and walked towards the door. When he swung it open, he was met by the faces of the two guards that had always followed Marzia around. They both quickly brought their hands up to begin a spell on Kai, but he had snapped both of their necks before they could get a word out. The sound of their necks breaking was louder than the thud they made when they hit the ground.

Kai looked down both ways of the hall, quickly calculating which way would take him to some sort of exit. He took a left, running as fast as his weak legs could take him. Adrenaline quickly flooded his system, and all he could think about was her.

Darting past doors and separate hallways, he came to a quick halt and took a couple steps back when he saw stairs. He changed directions, rushing up the metal steps and out of wherever he was. He bust through the door at the top of the steps, shielding his eyes with his arm as the setting sun quickly shined directly in his face.

Kai glanced around and tried to gather himself. Anger surged through him so much so that you could see it from a distance away. A mix of fury and panic that made him tremble.

He found himself in an alleyway, in between two dumpsters. He charged towards the exit not sure what his next move was, but his worst moments was when he pre-planned, so maybe it was best he was working off of pure adrenaline.

Yanking the first person he saw off the street and pulling them into the alley with him, he shoved them against the wall. "Where is she?!" He whispered, staring angrily into the mans eyes.

The man looked at Kai frantically. "Wh-who?!" He questioned confusedly.

Kai shoved the man against the wall again. "The girl— the human —" Kai quickly tried to gather words that would signal familiarity in the man. "Daisy."

The man tried to understand what Kai meant, and it was clear in his eyes when he caught on. "The Sanctus?"

A part of Kai still had a bit of hope that she was still just obliviously living in that house. That hope was crushed by hearing the title they gave her. "Yes. Where is she? Where are they keeping her?"

"I—" The man's eyes faltered out towards the exit of the alleyway and Kai brought his arm up to his throat, pushing it against the wall and beginning to cut off his access to air. "In the—" the man struggled to speak and Kai let off a bit of pressure. "In the church."

Kai felt another wave of anger go through him. He breathed heavily as he stared at the man with wide, angry eyes. His mind raced with ways to go about this, ways to make this happen easily and smoothly. But that really wasn't how he worked.

He waved his hand lazily and broke the man's neck, before pushing him to the ground and walking out the other exit of the alleyway, where less people would see him walking around.

It's the fear that made him so mad. The thought of what they might've been doing to her all this time while he was locked up, helpless, made him almost sick to his stomach. He wished he didn't care. He wished his words that he yelled at her the day he tried to get her to leave were true. He wished he could go back to his old ways, where the only thing he took care of was himself. But he couldn't do that anymore.

Pushing himself further, even though his tired legs could barely stand let alone run, he approached the church.

Breathing heavily, the adrenaline rush took him on it's own course and he could feel the blood pumping in his ears as he rushed inside. The feeling that he was so close to what he'd been so terrified of seeing of was comforting and scary at the same time.

Shoving the two big doors open, he didn't even take a second to process what was happening before his hands were raised and he was muttering another spell. He could feel his power latch on to every person in the room, except for her.

One by one he slowed their hearts, screams and groans in pain echoing off the church walls as they crashed to the ground.

It was an overwhelmingly satisfying feeling to watch them all grasp at their heads and chests in pain as he charged down the aisle. The power that rushed from his words and fingertips was an unbeatable feeling.

Like he was grabbing onto a rope that was latched onto every single one of their neck's, he forcefully yanked his hands backwards and heard the satisfying snap of bones twisting in the wrong direction, then the sound of thuds to the ground to follow.

As he panted quickly, looking at the numerous bodies that were waiting for their turn at her, his eyes slowly trailed up to her.

She was sat atop the altar in a red velvet throne, bound by chains and with a crown of thorns atop her head. Covered in scars, and red with her own blood, she weeped in pain as she struggled to keep her head up.

He felt a furious scream rack his lungs but he kept it inside, leading to a tremble in his lips as he ran to the altar for her.

Stepping over a body, he approached her slowly and hesitantly, holding a hand out in reassurance. Her eyes were groggy and her own blood drained from them. It was clear she had just come back from death. He gave her a moment to come to, and when she understood what was happening— you could see it in her eyes. That flicker of hope that made him want to fall to his knees.

He quickly walked over to her and undid the chain around her wrist and ankles first, then the one around her neck that held her tightly against the chair. When it came undone, she fell forward and he caught her before she could fold in on herself.

Holding her now scar covered body, he wrapped his arms around her back. All he could feel was the sobs she let out that shook her entire body, and he was so petrified that he thought he might cry too.

He pulled away and gently lifted her limp head to face him. "You're okay now." He spoke so quiet he could barely hear himself.

Her eyes were so lifeless and pained that he felt like he really was looking at her corpse again. That panicked feeling creeping up from his stomach as he put an arm around her back and under her legs, lifting her up.

She watched him as he carried her out, trying to keep her head up and her heart beating. When the sun hit her face, she inhaled as deep as she could to try and familiarize herself to the feeling of fresh air again.

A group of people got out of their cars in the parking lot, looking at Kai with wide eyes as he approached them. He didn't even need to raise his hand, just tilted his head to the side and every one of them fell to the ground with a snapped neck.

He pushed the bodies out of the way with his feet, putting Daisy in the passenger seat of the car they had just gotten out of as gently as he could.

As he shut the door and came around to the other side of the car, he let out a soft chuckle as he made sure no one else was approaching. Hysteria the only rational emotion he could muster as anger was tiring him out.

He got in the driver's seat and immediately started the car, reversing out of the spot and speeding out of the parking lot.

Glancing in between the road and back to Daisy, who leaned against the car door, holding her bleeding arms. As he approached the edge of town he came to a stop.

He turned to her and gently began to lift the crown of thorns off of her head. He squirmed as she winced and cried, as he himself could feel it pull out of her skin. She lifted her hands and helped him a bit, and when it was fully off, she examined it with trembling hands, before throwing it out the window.

a/n
omg yall that edit i was talking about in the last chapter THAT I COULDNT FIND AGAIN FOR THE LIFE OF ME ,, i found it !! kinda!! the editor ( @geminivvvv ) messaged me the other day and said they deleted their old page so that's why none of us could find it fhfhfh. but they also said they restarted their account on tik tok and there is already another Kaisy edit on their page 😽😽😽 their username is geminivvvv if u want to check it out ,, i'll link it here too:

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMeGYhrSq/

THANK U SO MUCH AGAIN FOR ALL THE EDITS so cute so fun make me v happy. if u have any that i haven't seen or something or just see any message me and i'll put them in the end of future updates :)

hope u enjoyed this chapter :')) sorry for typos and shit i'm too lazy to reread and edit so i hope this is at least has some coherent sentences

- jane