Uetum and Pietta

“But whatever. I’m sorry for bumping you…” Anna narrowed her eyes. “It’s two… Two in the bloody morning. No child should be out here.”

Maren hovered uneasily at her side, blade glowing faintly. “Y-yeah, even I think this is strange… and I don’t even sleep! Why is there a girl standing in the alley?”

The little figure turned. Her face was half-hidden in the shadows, but when the lantern light hit, veins of blackened lines crawled up her cheek, her eyes glowing white with that sickly shimmer of corruption.

Anna’s jaw dropped, saying to Maren telepathically. Wait—hold up! That girl clearly isn’t normal!

The “child” tilted her head. The catgirl stepped forward protectively, baring fangs at Anna. “Don’t come closer, human! You’ll not harm her while I’m here!”

Maren’s glow flared in panic, burning Anna’s arm with sizzling light. “ANNA! We should run away!” she squeaked, glowing brighter until Anna hissed.

Then dim your stupid holy light! I’m not the enemy here—she is! Anna snapped, eyes narrowing at the corrupted child.

But the child only blinked slowly, her cracked lips moving. “…I’m just… Hungry. Usually, no human at this hour…”

“Pietta!” Uetum the black cat hissed, “Don’t just give random information!”

Anna and Maren froze.

“…That’s worse, isn’t it?” Maren whispered, her glow sputtering nervously.

Anna gritted her teeth, “Well, fantastic. Just be on your way then, I won’t tell anyone.”

The catgirl hissed again, tail puffing. “You’re lying! You’re 100% gonna call the guard on us! We’re not letting you leave!”

Anna leaned back, staring at the girl’s jagged, corrupted cheek. “Relax. I don’t work for the kingdom… and I don’t feel like being eaten tonight.”

Maren whimpered. “Annaaa, d-don’t make her angry! What if she comes closer?! What if she comes closer and I can’t stop her?!”

Anna glanced sideways at her sword, smirking despite the tension. …Then I use you as bait.

“YOU CRAZY WOMAN!”

Uetum looked curiously at the floating sword, “That’s your friend?”

Anna looked back at them, “And why would you want to know? Just leave us alone. I’m sorry for bumping to her but I mean no harm. You should eat right? Now go on before I’m the one who’s gonna eat you.”

“Eat us?! Such brave things for a human to say…” The little girl muttered.

“I won’t do what you said!” Uetum snapped, “You humans won’t understand our suffering! I must kill you right here to make sure there are no witness!” the catgirl hissed, her ears pressed flat.

Anna blinked, fangs glinting under the moonlight. “Human?” She let out a short laugh, “I said… It’s literally two in the night. You lot shouldn’t even be here… this is vampire hour… Mine.”

Her smile widened as her fangs caught the light.

The catgirl froze. She limped backward, pulling the corrupted kid with her, her ears twitching nervously as her bravado shattered. The young girl's lips quivered and her eyes grew wide.

Maren’s voice buzzed in Anna’s head, shrill with panic. “Anna!! Stop scaring them, you’re burning holes in your image!!”

Anna smirked I guess that’s a good thing…

“You’re awful—completely awful! What if they cry? What if they—what if—”

Anna shut her eyes briefly, savoring the tension. Keeping her distance, lowering her voice into a playful hiss. “So black cat… You still want to fight me?”

The catgirl’s breath hitched audibly. She squeezed the corrupted child’s hand tighter, whispering something that Anna’s ears just barely caught— “Don’t… don’t look at her eyes. Vampires have the power of seduction! She is baiting us to be her food!”

Anna tilted her head Am I really, now?

“Uetum, no choice!” Pietta said.

Pietta, the corrupted little girl suddenly dropped to her knees, forehead touching the stone. “We’re sorry! We’re not looking for food! Please forgive us!” The catgirl followed, ears twitching nervously as her tail curled low to the ground, “We didn’t mean… to frighten you.”

Anna blinked in surprise, she hums softly, “Hmm... You bow too quickly. Makes me wonder if it’s a trick”

She crosses her arms like she’s unimpressed, “But rejoice. I won’t hurt either of you.”

The catgirl lifted her head cautiously, amber eyes uncertain. “…Truly? Usually, vampire will enslave other dark beings if they hunt humans also in their domain...”

“I have a brain.” Anna said simply, as if it was the most natural thing in the world, “If what you said is true. Then other vampires are a coward.”

“Most vampires would. If you’re different, prove it. Show me you mean no harm” Uetum pressed.

Anna thinks for a moment before sighing, pointing to both of them, “If I wanted to kill you, you’d already be bleeding. If you wanted to kill me, you wouldn’t still be talking. So let’s not pretend either of us wants this fight.”

“W-What about that flying sword?”

She looked at Maren, then back at Uetum, “Rest assured, she won’t attack without my command.”

The catgirl hesitated, looking at the girl, they nod at each other and then took a deep breath. “We trust you then… My name is Uetum. And this girl…” She gently stroked the trembling child’s corrupted hair. “…is Pietta.”

“Alright… Cute names. I’m Anna, an adventurer. But now I’m really curious, what are you two doing out here at two in the bloody morning? Is it really eating?”

Uetum’s ears flicked. “Um… Eating, yes, we ate chicken and cows, not humans! And after that, checking how far the capital of Minilon Kingdom is doing to stop the corruption…”

Anna blinked again, confused. “Hold on. I’m new to this world. You’re under…? Which side are you?”

“New to this world?” Uetum looked shocked; she’d never heard anything like that, yet her magic found no lies in what Anna is saying.

Anna meets her eyes, “Yes, I just woke up here with no memories at all…” She answered.

Uetum straightened her back slowly, confused about where to start. “Um… do you know the story of Orivaneia and Morvane?”

Anna nods, “Yes, I know that part.”

“We’re the wardens of Morvanium. Corruption spreaders. Lord Morvane told us to corrupt Minilon!” She said it so innocently it almost sounded like a child boasting about her school club.

Maren screamed in Anna’s head. “WHAT—WHAT—WHAT?! She just call herself an international terrorist?? Anna, we should RUN! Or fight! Or—OH GODS—do something heroic!! But we don’t have enough mana to defeat them both! Anna, We’re dead!!”

Anna’s eyes widened as she froze in place, she slowly move backwards, positioning herself so Maren could protect her fastly, “…So you both are the culprit of the corruption?”

Uetum smiled sweetly, tilting her head. “Kind of! And you, Anna! You as a vampire should thank me. Corruption makes us dark beings stronger!”

Anna stared blankly at her. “…Of all the people to bump into, it had to be the apocalypse interns. I won’t thank you guys. Clearly, I’m strong enough as it is.”

Pietta finally raised her head, her clouded eyes glimmering faintly with that sickly corruption. “Such arrogance… But sure. Thankfully, the kingdom of Minilon has just lost their saint… so we can corrupt it faster, it looks like… Ars Caelus is gone, so it’s going to be easy.”

“I see. Well, you do you, I suppose. Everyone has their own part in this world. Any more I should know?”

“Oh, and!” Pietta shuffled closer on her knees, her small hands trembling as she pushed something forward. A tiny crystal, round and perfectly cut, glowing with a warm orange light.

“I… shouldn’t really give this around, but…” she whispered, cheeks puffing as if guilty, “…this is a corruption seed. …This seed. If you keep it, no human will touch you. I… I shouldn’t… but I want you safe... And we can teleport to your location, you as a dark being won’t mind, right?”

Anna’s eyes narrowed, fangs glinting under the moonlight. “...And why the hell should I side with you?”

Uetum lifted her gaze, “We as a dark being should come together! They enslaved our kind. They’re only nice to wolfkin. But chained the rest, burned us, forced us to work in the mines.”

She paused, making sure Anna is listening.

“You should also feel mistreatment, right? Didn’t they try to turn you into a human? Vampire is clearly superior. Why would you want to turn back? Human is clearly scared of us! So we have to protect each other.”

Anna looked down, rubbing her own chin, “So they enslave beastkin and try to turn strong dark beings to normal human, huh… Kind of terrible, not gonna lie.”

Pietta nods, “That’s why we should corrupt their land. Just like what lord Morvane wants. Equality.”

Anna’s brows furrowed. “But what’s the point of equality if everyone’s dead?”

Uetum flicked her black tail, scowling like Anna was the stupid one here. “Ms. Anna! We’re not destruction makers. We’re corruption spreaders. Dark beings get stronger. Humans turn into dark beings. Isn’t that equality?”

The silence stretched. “Wait… So corruption doesn’t kill human? That do changes lots of my understanding…”

Maren buzzed in Anna’s head, frantic. “Don’t listen! Don’t you dare entertain this edgy cat’s manifesto!”

Anna ignores her, “…So, you’re saying your plan isn’t to destroy the kingdom… but to… repurpose it. Assimilate it. Make humans into something… useful?”

Pietta nodded rapidly, clutching her crystal closer like it was a holy treasure, “So you want to join us?”

Anna smirked faintly, taking the orange stone. “…Hmph. You say a lot considering you’re clearly a normal human that has been infected.”

“I’m not just a normal human...”

Anna’s eyes narrowed. “...What are you, then?”

Pietta’s lips curved into a too-sweet smile as she pressed the glowing crystal to her chest. But before she could answer, the big bell in the middle of the city toll so loud.

“Wh-!” Something’s weird about this bell. She could feel her instinct kick in.

Anna looked at the bell hatefully, and when she looked back at Uetum and Pietta, they were gone.

“Tch. Cliché.” She muttered. “You’d think apocalypse interns would be more creative.”

She looked down at the corruption crystal, “So should we keep this?”

Maren floats slowly looking at it, “I mean… If it can protect you then it’s a good thing, I guess… There’s really no rules that the users of Ars Weapon can’t have extra power with dark being.”

“I see. Well. I’ll keep it then, let’s go continue our way then.” She continued to walk. “No dashing again.”