Guilty x Creatures Ch. 47

"You can certainly try." said Anton "And I'm sure you'd be able to figure out a few things. All of these abilities will come naturally to you after all. And now that you know about them it shouldn't be too hard for you to stumble through learning them, in theory at least. What will be difficult for you is understanding where your limitations are, and then finding the perfect motivation to go beyond them."

Mica shifted her gaze to him and narrowed her eyes.

"Right, my limitations." she grumbled sarcastically "What are you even talking about? As if you're some kind of "guru" who knows my "limitations" and how to find some "motivation" for them!"

"I do though." said Anton "I know exactly how to motivate you."

"Right, sure!" scoffed Mica "And how are you going to do that!?"

"Simple." said Anton "I'll just use your will to live."

"...Wha? So all you're gonna do is threaten me then!?" exclaimed Mica.

"Me? Oh no! No, I don't need to threaten you." chuckled Anton as he shook his head "No, I just need you to want to learn as badly as you want to live. So in other words, I need to help you to understand that you don't have a choice anymore, Mica."

"...And what do you mean by that?" questioned Mica "Why don't I have a choice anymore!?"

"Well, to be honest, I've already begun to answer both of those questions." stated Anton "I started by bringing you out here. So I could show you why you don't. You see, Mica, by the time we're done here, you will fully understand exactly just how limited your options really are."

"...What the Hell are you talking about!?" exclaimed Mica as she leaned away from him.

"You'll see, soon enough." said Anton as his face became sympathetic "For now though, I think we should go ahead and get started with the, "challenge" as you put it."

Twisting to the side, Anton grinned as he moved to face Kianna and the dark elf immediately perked her ears up as she smiled back at him.

"Kianna, could you bring me that bag please?" said Anton as he pointed to the bag in the crook of her arm "I need something out of it."

"Of course!" chirped Kianna as she crossed the distance between them and held the tote bag open for him.

"Thank you." said Anton as he reached into the bag and rummaged around for a bit before pulling out a roll of thin string and a locking, shackle-like cuff.

The cuff was made of a hard yet pliable rubber that coated a thin metal frame. Several small seal-covered strips attached to its side indicated that it had some magical components in its design.

Mica's eyes widened at the sight of the cuff before narrowing in anger.

"What the Hell is that!?" she exclaimed as Anton unlocked and opened the cuff.

"It's an incentive." said Anton as he looked down at her "And a major part of the "challenge" you're going to face."

"...Is that thing going to enslave me!?" exclaimed the kiochi as a slight tremor marred her voice.

"This? No. This is just part of an invisible fence. Set to max, of course." said Anton as he held up the cuff "This is going to be locked onto your ankle. Or your wrist, if you'd prefer that. And what it'll do is give you an incapacitating electrical shock that'll render you unconscious if you move more than 1000 yards away from me."

"...Okay! Why in the name of Hell would I ever wanna wear that then!?" exclaimed Mica.

"Because this is your "challenge" and the only way I'll be willing to let you go free." said Anton "Put this cuff on, and I'll remove the light chain and manabinder from around your neck. You'll be able to move freely and use your abilities again. So long as you stay within the 1000 yard range at least."

Anton tossed the opened cuff to Mica who caught it by wrapping it up with her tail. The shinoccubus brought the cuff closer to her face and gave it a look over before turning back to Anton.

"This will be a two part challenge that'll last an hour in total." explained Anton "For the first half an hour your goal will be to free yourself by getting this key."

Anton raised the key for the locking cuff up so Mica could see it clearly. He then tied a length of the thin string around the key. Making a loop out of the remainder of the string, he tossed the loop over his head and let it come to rest around his neck.

Mica's eyes were locked onto the key as it now hung against Anton's chest.

"If you can get this key and unlock the cuff, then you're free to go. You can leave and I won't chase you or try to stop you." said Anton as he tapped the key "I won't actually attack you during the first part of the challenge either, I'll only defend myself whenever you attack me."

"...Okay. That sounds easy enough. So what happens if I don't get the key in time?" questioned Mica.

"If you fail then we'll move on to the second part of the challenge." continued Anton "In the second half of the hour your goal to get the key will remain the same. However, things will be escalated by the fact that I will actively start attacking you, and I will now have my own goal as well."

"...Alright. So what is your goal supposed to be?" asked Mica as she furrowed her brow.

"To catch you." said Anton with a grin "From that point on my goal will be to catch you by grabbing hold of your tail. So you'll now have to risk trying to get the key while at the same time avoiding all my attacks as well as being captured. This is not going to be easy for you, even with your abilities, so, to make things fair. If you can run out the clock and avoid being captured then I will unlock the cuff and you'll still be free to go. In this way I'll know for sure that you'll be able to survive on your own."

"...Wait, what do you mean by survive?" questioned Mica "What's that supposed to mean!?"

"By that I mean your family." explained Anton "If you can somehow escape from me, then you'll be able to escape from your family when they attack you. And they will attack you, Mica. You have no reason to doubt that."

"Oh, right, sure." mumbled Mica as she digested everything that had just been told to her "...So what exactly is the catch here?"

"...I'm sorry? What do you mean by that?" asked Anton.

"I mean this whole thing sounds too easy." stated Mica as she gave him a look that was full of suspicion "It's like you're just trying to let me go. So what's the deal!? Where's the catch!?"

Anton chuckled as he slowly shook his head.

"You're right, Mica. I am trying to let you go. I am literally presenting you with an excellent opportunity for you to earn your freedom." explained Anton as he crossed his arms and looked down at the kiochi "Because when you lose, and you have been caught... I want you to feel it. I want you to know it, to believe it. And I want you to fully understand, that you never stood a chance."

Mica remained stoic as she stared back at him.

"When you fail, Mica, and you will fail, I will become your Master." said Anton as he matched her stoic expression with his own "And you will acknowledge that, and accept it."

Mica was still for a moment as she assessed him. A scowl spread across her face as she spoke.

"You really think this is over already!" she hissed through her teeth as she raised her tail and the cuff above her head and pointed her spade at him "You seriously think you've already won!"

"Yes, I do." said Anton as he kept his eyes locked to her's "But you're more than welcome to prove me wrong."

"Oh! I will!" declared Mica as she dropped the cuff from her tail and caught it in her outstretched hand "I will go free! And then I will go home and straighten all this bullshit out!...First though, I'm going to wipe that smug look off your face by beating the living shit out of you! And I'm gonna enjoy every single minute of that!"

"Hm, is that right? Well then..." nodded Anton as a broad grin slowly spread across his face "Good luck with that!"