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Katie tore down another wall while humming some kind of melody through her breath. Dust filled her nose and lungs; she would’ve preferred it to be cigarette smoke, but she doesn’t have time for that right now. She stepped a few paces back and looked at her work from afar.
“Hmmm, yeah. I’ll need to rebuild the top part and give it some kind of curve. Make it more museum-like.” Her gaze dropped to the rest of the work around her. “The enemy list has to go, and then I’ll need to tear down more walls too, but what stands out right now is… the windows.” She needs to replace them with wood and then fill them with pictures. She took a few steps toward the staircase leading to the second floor. “And this has to go too, hmm.”
Her finger smeared with blood as she rubbed the wound on the knuckles of her hand. She climbed the stairs, and the second floor greeted her.
“This place is perfect as it is.” she decided after taking a long look around. She’ll need to find a door and fix the glass windows, but for now she hasn’t thought of making changes here. She took a few steps toward the empty room and raised her hands to form a rectangle.
“My trampoline room!”
Feeling pleased with her idea, she spun around to face the next room across from it. The expression on her face softened slightly, and her feet carried her inside without her ever needing to think about it. Inside hid her two favorite people. Only in the form of pictures can she see both of them. The smile that formed on her face twisted in strange ways.
Down below, her fed hubby. Holding a large camera on his strong shoulders and staring at the photographer with an expressionless face for he had no eyes or mouth. Katie never expected to find such a perfect person in her life. Usually all mortals were structured the same way, though that isn’t true for this place, where a multitude of different species exist. He never speaks, never disagrees. He really only entertains her. When she doesn't hear accusations of him cheating, that is.
Her eyes wandered upward, to the two pictures of the person she liked more than anyone else. Her heart forgot to beat for a moment, searching for eyes of its own so it could admire the sight.
It is the one and only view of the Goddess of death. Katie's only companion when she ruled above the clouds, above the heads of those she associates with today. It should have been lonely up there. She didn’t have many people to play and talk with. But she always felt complete, never empty with her. At the border between life and death she always sat nearby, waiting for the comfort of her presence. They met occasionally, centuries and millennia passed with them simply talking. Katie liked making her change expressions, so she always stole a few jokes from the ones she heard from mortals. When she smiled, when she laughed, Katie felt as though she herself had reached true heaven. Her joy, which should have been measured, rose beyond what was expected.
The only disadvantage was touch, which was forbidden to them. The goddess of everything, of life itself, could not set foot in the kingdom of death. Like darkness retreating before light. The only thing she could do was leave sighs behind and create pleasant fantasies of what could be.
Until she had enough. She wasn't the most patient person.
An idea came to her. She would go down to the mortal world and become a mortal herself! Then she would be able to die in a mortal body, and her soul would manage to travel to her beloved. She was a genius!
“No Katie. Don’t do something stupid. If your soul returns to me, it will still be you. The goddess of life, and should I touch you, the world will vanish into nothingness.”
Riley told her those words when Katie presented her idea. Katie was allowed a moment of silence.
“But I really want to hug you, Riley.”
“You know how it is, Katie. We can’t hug.”
Katie is the mother of all, goddess of everything. She decides what is and isn’t allowed.
When Riley left to escort some important souls, Katie did the same. She guided her soul downward and was reborn.
She lived a happy life until she discovered the cruise ship. Until the cruise ship sank, and Katie, not knowing how to swim, got swallowed by the sea. She fully believed that she was done for so it came as a surprise when she woke up alive on the sand, suddenly carrying memories of a divine life. Her head hurt, but she had returned.
She traveled a short distance and stopped when she found a skeleton hiding beneath a tree. The skeleton immediately attacked her, and its arrows began opening holes in her body. Blood washed over her like rain drops.
Katie enjoyed the pain. She enjoyed every sensation that had been stolen from her in the kingdom of life. She smiled with red teeth and began choking on her own blood as an arrow pierced right through her lungs. Her legs finally abandoned her and she collapsed onto the ground awkwardly, dust rising around her.
She was dying. Katie was finally dying. She would be able to see her at last.
Her hand lifted toward the sky. She watched it try to catch the sky in between her fingers through darkening vision. She would be able to touch her, hug her, kiss her. And then the eternal end would come for everyone.
Her eyes closed one last time, already seeing the goddess behind her eyelids.
And Katie died.
Katie opened her eyes some time later, and the orange sky greeted her. She blinked once, twice.
“Heyyy are you okay?!” A man in a hood ran toward her.
Katie used her hands to steady herself and lifted herself up. She felt no pain.
This is wrong.
All her wounds had vanished.
“But I died...”
“Hey!” The hooded guy tried getting her attention by standing in front of her.
“I died but I’m alive. What the hell?”
“Um yes?” The guy seemed to respond to her. “That’s what usually happens. You respawn.”
Katie glanced at him, her eyes piercing directly into his, desperate for the truth.
“Death isn’t permanent?” As it is supposed to be since the start of time?
He gave her a look. “When was death ever permanent? Did you hit your head?” He turned to his dog hybrid companion, who only shrugged.
No. Nonononono. She covered her head in her hands.
A voice rang inside her head.
Sorry Kitty, but you can’t come to me. No matter how much you or I want it.
Riley! No! Riley!
Tinakitten is leading a decent life. Emphasis on decent, because as comfortable as she is in her mansion with her beloved neighbors, it certainly comes with downsides when you have to kill… She’s not going to dwell on that today. No.
She’s going to be happy, and the only thing that makes her truly happy is a single person.
A goddess.
Tina, a demon, thrives in blasphemy. For she fell in love with the goddess of life. The only reason she is here today.
She smiled as she walked through the commercial district, her cheeks growing rosier and rosier. She doesn’t have the privilege of visiting her often since she gets so nervous around her. She feels embarrassed even admitting it because everyone knows her as the extroverted, friendly type.
She tugged at the collar of her green shirt. It’s hot outside, and the heat only worsens as she approaches the large pink and white building.
How is she supposed to start a conversation? What could they even talk about? They barely know each other.
"Please watch over my Catherine, okay?"
That sentence brought her into existence, and for a moment she saw dark chestnut hair before finding herself standing in front of a cruise ship, carrying a distant past that made no sense, as if someone had implanted false memories into her brain.
Nonetheless, her first reaction was joy. She wasn’t in the underworld anymore as some overworked employee! She was so lucky they chose her! She began hopping around in excitement.
But then panic wrapped settled in.
Wait, who's Catherine?! How is she supposed to protect someone she doesn’t even know the appearance of?! These memories give her no clues!
She swallowed hard, staring at the huge ship casting its shadow over her. Okay, maybe this and the suitcase in her hand is a clue. She'll simply have to...
Tina boarded the cruise ship, but she didn’t meet her until much later.
She shook her head. She didn’t have time to reminisce now about their first meeting when she could see her in person instead. Her heart trembled with anticipation. Taking several large steps, she slowly climbed the stairs, and her eyes immediately began scanning the interior. What she saw were demolished walls, ominous photos of her goddess hanging on the walls, and a hole in the glass ceiling.
Oh no, did something happen to her?!
“Katie?!”
“Yes! I’m coming!”
She let out a huge sigh of relief. She was fine. But now she felt kind of stupid. She sat by the entrance, waiting for her to come down from the second floor, and soon she saw her.
A stupid smile spread across her face. She’s dressed in another silly outfit again. Everyday its something different; today its KFC day, huh.
Her eyes were ready to fall onto her face, but stopped when they noticed something red that wasn’t part of her clothes.
“Katie! Your knuckles!” She ran toward her, Katie had barely managed to finish descending the stairs. Without thinking, she wrapped her hands around Katie’s and lifted them to inspect them carefully.
“They are all bloodied! What happened?” A whine escaped her at the sight of those beautiful hands in this... sorry state.
She’s a demon. Gore isn’t foreign to her.
But a goddess should never look so… human.
“Oh, I was just working on something, come look!” Katie slipped out of her hands, moving toward the destroyed walls. Tina’s eyes dropped.
“Do you see my vision?” Katie gestured toward the walls. “This is gonna be a museum of me soon, I’m already halfway through finishing it!”
Well, that doesn’t look halfway finished…
Tina shook her head and walked toward the center of the room where Katie stood. She removed the backpack from her shoulders, and Katie waited, curious while Tina rummaged through it.
Her palm wrapped around something white, but before Katie could see it, Tina gestured outside.
“Let’s go sit by the stairs, come on.”
Before Katie could ask questions or even decline, Tina once again took her hand and dragged her outside. They sat by the steps, a fallen car visible in front of them.
Tina briefly let go of her hand so she could let the backpack by her side and the bandage beside it. Once ready, she asked for Katie’s hand again.
“Oh, you don’t have to do this—”
“Please, I want to help.”
“... Okay. Thanks.”
She took out a bottle of water from her backpack. Need to clean the wound first.
"I'm gonna pour some water on it."
Katie nodded, hand stiff in anticipation.
"Oh this is actually feels good." Katie said as the cool water hit her knuckle, feeling the soothing liquid wash over the ache in her torn skin.
As for Tina, she stared at it with teary eyes, as if she herself were feeling the pain.
How could she let her get injured? Stupid Tina, you had one job.
“Are you okay?”
And now Katie is asking if she is okay, as though her own hands aren’t stinging with pain. Of course. Katie is kindhearted. Of course she would care for a lesser being like her. Tina’s traitorous heart beat accelerated and she bit the inside of her cheek. The bandages slowly stained faint red in certain spots, making her furrow her brows even more.
She pulled out a clean cloth from her backpack, wiping off the trails of blood from her hand. Next, she took the bandage in her hand.
“Do you have a phobia of blood? You look upset.”
“I am upset." she grumbled.
Katie’s head perked up at the response. Now she’s getting somewhere.
“Why? Did I do something? I’m sorry if I upset you Tina. I always seem to bring the worst out of people…” Her tone turned sad, though obviously hypocritical. Tina knew this, yet still rushed to contradict her.
“No no no. You didn’t do anything Katie. It’s just…” Ah, she can already feel her face turning red. “It really pains me to see you hurting.” She said it while her gaze hesitantly left Katie’s hand to read her expression.
Was that too cheesy? Did she come off too strong? Did she weird her out?
Katie stared at her silently and then, a charming smile broke across her face, making Tina suppress the sound of swallowing.
“Thank you Tina, I didn’t know you cared about me like that.”
“Of course I do!” she exclaimed boldly.
She truly does. It isn’t because the goddess of death entrusted her with this mission. These feelings are not a lie.
Every time she sees Katie, flowers bloom across her vision. The same flowers that decorated the flower crown Katie gave her. The same crown she wore for hours until she became worried something bad would happen to it if anything went wrong.
She adores talking to Katie. She’s the best person here, simply so kind and cute. She melts beneath the shine of her aura and that huge smile. Warmth wraps around her blood and makes her boil worse than the sun.
Such a blessed being should never feel pain!
“Hey.” Katie set her free hand around Tina’s shoulder, making Tina jump as she was dragged out of her thoughts. “It’s okay, it really doesn’t hurt. It’s no biggie for me.”
“Liar!” She tightened the bandage harshly around Katie’s knuckles, making her flinch.
Oh no!
“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to use that much force! I’m really sorry!” She apologized desperately, searching Katie’s face for any sign of disappointment or resentment.
Katie averted her eyes, cheeks tinting slightly red.
“It’s ok.” She choked out.
Oh no, she angered her.
Tears almost spill out immediately from Tina's eyes.
“Oh look, it’s Ewroon!” Katie suddenly yelled, making Tina jump.
In the distance, Ewroon stood beside Zabka, seemingly staring at them, though she couldn’t really tell from how far away he was.
“Bestie!! Come here!”
He complied after a minute of being unresponsive.
He approached them with a very tight smile, the kind he wears when trying to hide his thoughts.
“Bestie and Tina! My two favorite people in one spot, wow!”
His eyes settled on their hands. Narrowing at the bandaged one.
“What happened?” he asked calmly, sounding a little worried.
Katie answered fast.
“Just some construction accidents, but Tina is helping me out. She’s so very kind.”
His eyes shifted to Tina, whose cheeks turned a distinct shade of red while her expression tightened, protest written all over it. Katie simply waved it off with her free hand.
“It doesn’t really hur—”
Ewroon caught her hand with both of his, holding it still between his grip. Katie froze, suprise overtaking her features. He didn’t bother explaining. He simply stared intently at the red blood, that shiny little thing. Almost the same color as the one decorating his clothes, the one decorating his enemies and his most loved ones alike.
“Awwwh, look at that little thing, poor Katie. You must be dying!” he cooed.
Katie’s eyebrows twitched in annoyance at his condescending tone.
It amused Ewroon. He liked getting a reaction out of her. He leaned in and gave the bloodied knuckles a long lick. It took Katie a moment to process it before jerking her hand away.
“Ew! What are you doing?!”
“Hey that’s disgusting!”
Ewroon straightened his back, savoring the liquid in his mouth like someone licking salt from their lips.
He wants more.
He always wants more.
People are supposed to feed off the blood of their god and become one with them. Ewroon wants all of Katie. All her divinity. He’s the most devoted follower. He even built a church in her name.
“I’m just kissing it better. Didn’t your mothers do that to you when you were kids?”
“That was like a full blown french kiss dude! Mothers don’t kiss like that!” She shook her hand and wiped it on her white uniform, staining it red. Way to go, Katie. He thought.
“How do you know? Have you kissed Roier’s mother?” he hummed, acting as though reminiscing over a sweet memory.
“Wha— no. Why would I do that?” Katie asked, trying to process how the conversation even reached this point.
“Don’t do that again Ewroon. That’s really disrespectful.” Tina cut in.
Ewroon’s gaze flicked toward her. Without even turning his head, he gave her a scrutinizing look.
Tina, his close friend. She has those eyes. Those eyes of absolute reverence. They almost mirror his own. It’s the main reason he gets along with her so well, and the only reason he enjoys talking to her so much.
She acknowledges Her.
Not many people know about Katie’s true nature, and while he’s friends with Tina because of it, he’d rather it stay that way. They don’t need to know about her. Ewroon is all the followers the goddess will ever need. He will be the only one to devour her bread and wine.
Only he deserves it.
“Do you want to try?” He lowered his voice, directing the question to Katie.
“Huh? Do I want to kiss Roier’s mother? Heck no?? What kind of question is that?”
Ewroon shook his head and approached Katie where she sat. Crouching down, he took her hand again, but this time in a gentle, unexpected manner.
“Do you want to try kissing, with me?”
“Whoa—”
Something moved between them, pushing Ewroon backward, though not with much force. Losing his balance, he fell onto the hard road. His back slammed against the nose of the truck, causing it to start blaring loudly. His ears lowered at the piercing sound of the alarm.
“Kurwa…”
He looked upward and once again met Tina’s eyes.
“Don’t invade her personal space so suddenly without permission.” She warned him, her voice sharp.
Ewroon laughed.
“Oh, I didn’t know you were her bodyguard.”
His head tilted to the side. Katie looked between the two of them, unsure what exactly was going on. Ewroon’s smile widened.
“I thought someone could actually protect herself, but apparently she’s not as strong as she claims to be!"
I would protect you better. Day and night. I’d lock you inside a room in my church and feed you there, or inside a coffin so I could pray over you. I’d make sure you were always safe, far away from the sinful hands of others.
A leg stepped between him and Katie again, cutting off his view. He bit his lip but tried hiding his irritation, looking at Tina with a smile.
“How dare you speak to her like that!”
Tina didn’t try to hide the anger in her voice. No, she shouted with a fury she usually showed no one.
Good.
When people get angry, they become more impulsive and easier to read.
Under Tina’s stare — one that watched him like a hunting owl in the night — Ewroon rose back to his feet.
He dusted off his clothes and then folded his hands behind his back, the smile still fixed on his face while Tina continued glaring at him with that feral expression.
Testing the waters, he leaned his head close to hers.
Tina didn’t back away.
“And what are you going to do about it? Hm?” he challenged, prepared for any kind of attack.
“Ladies ladies! Stop it!” Katie suddenly jumped between them and pushed them apart. “Don’t fight over me like that, not in front of my headquarters!”
“Though I’m flattered...” she added, coughing into her fist before putting on a serious look. “I’m kind of busy right now so I can’t deal with this at the moment. BUT we can have a therapy session tomorrow if you want.”
“No—!”
“Sure! Let’s have a therapy session.” Ewroon interrupted, taking Katie’s hand and shaking it quickly.
Tina sighed.
“You know what? Therapy might actually do you some good.”
“I’m sure it will!” Katie said, stepping aside with a little bounce in her stride. “Sooo I’m going to continue my work. See ya tomorrow!”
She disappeared inside the building, leaving them alone.
Ewroon shifted his gaze from the place where Katie had stood, back toward Tina, savoring her expression. He pulled out his waypoint and regarded her with one final smirk.
“See you at therapy, bestie.”