Aria materialized in the middle of a forest near the GIT building. She hadn't thought of a specific place when she had stepped through the portal, only that she needed to get far away fron the building. Far enough that those inside woud be safe from her.
She stumbled forward and leaned against a tree for support. The wild flickering in her eyes had become a steady pulse of blood red light. A thin stream of blood ran down her hand where the spider shape on the hilt of her dagger had dug into her skin.
She struggled to maintain control, knowing that if she lost it, this time she may never regain it again. In her head a dark, seductive voice whispered. Let go Aria. Surrender. Let go of the pain and give me your will. Your flesh. They don't want you anyway. He doesn't want you. Oh, but I do little Aria. Give yourself to me and be free.
She shook her head in violent denial. "No! No, I'll never...stop...fighting. I won't let you hurt them!"
Aria felt the Other moving in her mind like a caress, seductive and sickening. "Why do you fight so hard, little one? What do you cling to? Love?" The word rang in her mind with contempt. "Love is a lie. Do you think Julien loved you, there at the end? With your knife sticking out of his guts, do you really think his love endured? He died cursing your name little Aria. His love was as fleeting as his pitiful life. "
Aria staggered, clutching her head and sobbing at the memories the dark voice conjured. Julien, lying in her arms, his life blood flowing from a horrific wound in his belly. A wound she, under the control of the Other, had inflicted on him. He had spoken her name at the end. She had always thought he had spoken it in love, but what if the Other was right? What if her name had been a curse on his lips? "No...no...he loved me. I know...."
The voice let out a cruel chuckle. "Or is it Kaos you cling to? Handsome. Intelligent. Charming, in a simple sort of way. Immortal. Someone who would never die. Someone you couldn't kill. Someone who would never leave you. But he did, didn't he? If someone can leave who was never with you to begin with, that is. You were nothing to him. A game. A passing flirtation that poor little Aria took too seriously. A burden he was all too happy to get rid of at the first opportunity. A poor, pathetic joke. He must be so relieved to have you gone."
She felt the last remnants of her will slowly weakening under the Other's onslaught. She reached desperately for the harp Julien had given her, her one last link to sanity, and found, to her horror, that it was gone.
Evil laughter rang in her head. "You see? Even you know the truth of it. You left the harp behind because you know. Love is a lie. Only power is truth. Surrender little one, and rest."
Aria's breath was coming in deep, ragged gasps as she fought with all that was left of her strength. "No! I. Won't!"
Surrender.
"No!" Tears were streaming down her face.
Surrender!
"NO!" Her hand gripped the dagger tighter, twisting on the hilt until the thin trickle of blood became a steady flow as it tore deeper into her palm.
Surrender!
"JULIEN!" His name was torn from her lips in a despairing cry as she fell to her knees. Her vision went red and the world shattered, leaving her gasping and helpless on the ground.
Slowly, Aria's breathing returned to normal and she sat up. The darkness of the forest was pierced by her glowing, red eyes. She climbed to her feet and looked around, sniffing the air like a curious dog. Her attention was drawn to a dark patch of turbulent clouds on the horizon. She could feel the evil rolling off of it in waves, and basked in the glorious feeling. A slow, cruel smile spread across her face as she went seeking the source of such beautiful darkness. "This....is going to be fun."
