Guilty x Creatures Ch. 46

"...Wait. Wait, hold on." she mumbled as she tried and failed to lift herself back up "Wait... Just, just wait, wait a second....Let me go....Please, let me go!"

"No..." cooed Kianna as she drummed her fingers on Mica's back "You still can't move. So if I let you go, you're just going to drown. So no, you're not going anywhere..."

"No! Wait, wait, wait!" whimpered the kiochi "I, I mean it! Let me go! Please! Please, I need to get out of here! Please! You have to help me!"

"Wha, what?" questioned Kianna.

"You! You helped me before! Remember? You let me go! Please! You have to help me again!" begged Mica as her voice dropped down to a desperate whisper "Help me get out of here. Please!"

"Stop it, Mica, that was different." stated Kianna in a calm but stern tone "That was a mistake. We shouldn't have done that. We thought you were in danger. But you're not."

"But! No! Yes I am! I am in danger!" whimpered Mica "You just said it yourself! That bastards gonna hurt me! Torture me! And enslave me! Please! Please, don't! Just let me go! Please... Please... Please, I just want to go home..."

Kianna went silent for a moment as she listened to the kiochi beg her for help.

"Please! I'm serious! Please, help me!" continued Mica.

"...Stop, Mica." said Kianna "That's enough. You know you're not going anywhere. You're staying here, and you're going to have to live with that."

"No! Wait, wait!" cried Mica as she started to struggle anew.

"It's too late, Mica." said Kianna as she softly shook her head "It's over. It's already over."

The kiochi froze as she felt a comforting warmth begin to seep into her being from wherever the dark elf was touching her. Recognizing this for the unstoppable effect that it was, she sobbed loudly as she tried to fight back against Kianna's effort to calm her.

"No!" she wailed as heavy tears began to spill from her eyes "Please! I wanna go home! Please, let me go! Please!"

"You can't go home, Mica." stated Kianna as she spoke through her teeth "You know that!"

"No! That's not true! Please! I don't want to be here! Please! I don't want to be enslaved!" begged Mica "Please, you have to help me!"

"Mica, stop it!" snapped Kianna "You did this to yourself! Okay! You did it! So stop it, right now!"

Still sobbing loudly, Mica clenched her jaw in determination and redoubled her efforts to escape from Kianna's hold. Failing to even lift her tail out of the water, she finally fell limp in defeat and went quiet for several long moments.

"...Okay, okay, you're right....Okay....I did it." she whimpered as she clamped her eyes shut "I did it. I did it all....I was stupid! And I tried to kill somebody... I invaded... I attacked... And I kept fighting....I did it....I did it....And, I'm sorry!"

Kianna said nothing as she merely stared forward into the empty space in front of her.

"I'm sorry, okay! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" wailed Mica "Please! I'm sorry! I don't wanna do this anymore! I wanna go home! Please! Please, let me go home! Please, help me!"

"...No, Mica." whispered Kianna.

"Yes! Please!" cried Mica as she began to literally panic "Please, I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I don't wanna fight anymore!...I just wanna go home! Please, help me! Somebody! Please! Help! Help me! M-Mommy! Please help me! Please help me! Please! I want my Mommy, and my Daddy! Please! Please, just let me go! Please, please... I just wanna go home... I just wanna go... Please, I want my Mommy... Please... Please... Mommy! Please..."

Kianna's breath became caught in her throat as she listened to Mica's frantic and terrified cries.

Both Anton and Fiona remained silent and still as the kiochi's words began to slur and become nothing but incomprehensible sobs.

With her own eyes growing misty, Kianna's arms involuntarily tightened around Mica's trembling frame as she slowly turned her head to face Anton.

"...Master." she whispered around the growing tightness in her chest "Please. Please, we have to do something!"

Closing his eyes with a sigh, Anton shook his head before turning to Kianna. He stopped short as he found her clutching Mica in a clearly protective manner and staring back at him with eyes that were tearful but burned with a desperate determination.

"...Kianna, I'm sorry." said Anton as he gave her a sympathetic look "But you know what her situation is. And you know there's no simple fix for it."

"But there has to be something you can do though! Some way you can help her!" exclaimed Kianna "Listen to her! She's scared... And she wants her Mommy..."

"...Yes, I understand that, and I am sorry. But you have to understand, Kianna. Just because she's started to cry doesn't mean that all of a sudden anything has changed for her." explained Anton in a gentle tone "We still can't just let her go. It would be the end of her..."

"I, I know that..." mumbled Kianna as she struggled to control the heartache that was spreading across her tear stricken face "But can't we at least let her see her Mommy!? Or talk to her!? Or something!?...There has to be something we can do, right!?"

"That... I really don't think that would be a good idea..." said Anton in a hushed tone as he shook his head "I don't think it would help... In fact, I know it wouldn't..."

Kianna went to speak but stopped short and became startled as she felt Mica's arms begin to slowly wrap themselves around her. Having apparently regained some feeling in her limbs, the trembling kiochi was whimpering quietly as she began to frantically cling to the dark elf.

Looking down at her for a second, Kianna lowered her ears in sorrow and gave her a gentle, comforting squeeze before turning back to Anton.

"Please, there has to be something you can do." she cried as her ears dipped even lower "Something that can help her. Something that... Just, anything! Please!"

Anton stared at her for moment before turning away with a sigh, leaning forward in his seat and resting his elbows on his knees.

With his chin now cradled in his hand, a calm, thoughtful looking expression spread across his face as he stared forward at nothing.

Save for Mica's whimpering sobs, the room remained quiet for some time. The stillness was finally broken when Anton twisted around at the waist to glance back at the counter-top behind him and the bottle of healing potion that was sitting there. Nodding at the sight of the potion, he turned back to an anxiously waiting Kianna.

"Alright. Now, first of all. I do appreciate that Mica has finally admitted to her guilt, and has even apologized for what she's done." said Anton in a calm and quiet tone "But be that as it may though, I still have absolutely no intention of just letting her go. As not only would that be a death sentence for her. But in my mind, she has done nothing to actually earn her freedom. Nothing at all."

Whimpering loudly, Mica hunched in on herself as she clung to Kianna.

"So then, if Mica wants to go home, she'll first need to change my mind, and convince me that she deserves to go free... And I suppose it's only right to give her an opportunity to try and do so... And with that being the case..." said Anton as he began to rub his chin "Kianna, do you have any clothes that Mica could borrow? Preferably something that was simple and lightweight?"

"I, um, maybe?" said Kianna as her ears pointed themselves straight upwards in surprise "I have some workout clothes that might fit her. Would those work?"

"That would actually be perfect." nodded Anton as he stretched his back out and then settled back into his chair "Alright then, another few minutes and then I'm gonna need everyone to vacate the tub, get dressed and be ready to leave. We're all going to be taking a short walk this afternoon, so you girls will need to dress accordingly."

Kianna tilted her head and cocked one of her ears in a curious manner.

"Wait, what are you going to do!?" she asked as Mica twisted her head to the side and tentatively peeked back at Anton.

"...Well, I want to see exactly just how tough and skilled Mica really is. So I'm going to put her through a little test." answered Anton as he turned his head and looked directly at Mica "And in the process, I'm going to give her a chance to earn her freedom."