The rant

The knives I threw all start to back out of Edweed's wounds. I pull my silk gloves off so I can grip my spear better. By the time Edweed stands up the knives fall clanking on the floor. His wounds heal rapidly yet gruesomely slow.

"You're a hunter..." Edweed scowls.

"I was sent to find the missing woman. Come in quietly and I'm sure we can get your sentence down." I hold firm hanging onto that sliver of hope that he will do the right thing.

"Hazel, I thought we understood each other?" Edweed frowns at me. "These woman here picked trashy men. Why should they not suffer? Those guys tormented me for years! All my family, counselors and clan said I must endure to be stronger than them. Hehe. Well guess what? I did become stronger than them and took what was theirs!"

"So you're admitting to murdering the men on the river walks?" I state bracing for an attack.

"I only took what was rightfully mine after induring their attacks on me. Their name calling and physically hurting me, the lockers I got shoved in, knowing I could not fight back. Please, you understand, join me and the rest." He gestures to the room.

Edweed snaps his fingers. Side doors fling open, cloaked men and woman file into the room surrounding me. 

"Together, we can serve justice to the unjust ones. Like you and your friends tried doing to your bullies. The ones thinking they are better than us because of some given title they think they can walk all over us. Those girls hurt you for no good reason. Together we can make them pay." Edweed is fully healed now and is taking steps toward me.

"If you're going to come closer you better get on your knees." I command.

He tilts his head back and scoffs. "Feisty."

"Capture her but don't damage her. I need to feed to recharge." Edweed snaps his fingers again.

The cloaked figures lunge for me. Twirling the spear in my left hand I use the butt of spear to knock the people out one by three at a time, if I got a good swing in. To avoid stepping on the people I knocked out I had to move about the hall and ended up only a few paces away from Edweed. Knocking out the last person I turn to face him as he claps.

"You want to know something?" I indulge myself on the monologing.

"That we would be unstoppable if you joined me?" He grins holding his arms out beckoning me to come to him.

"Ew. No. Men with entitlement issues gross me out. What you should know is, I believe in karma." I state before taking a swing at his neck with my spear.

I continue to jab and swing at him while ranting myself. "The things I did to those girls wasn't exactly nice and I did get my back end handed to me a few times after those instances but their fate was far more cruel. They ended up settling for their husbands only for them to die leaving those women behind with children. How I found out was because I was sent to retrieve their belongings and return them to their widows and children. When I was younger I thought seeing them cry would have brought me joy but it didn't. The real crappy part now that I look back on it. Is I sent your organization to their house to help get them back on their feet."

I jab hard missing Edweed and shattering my spear end into the brick wall as Edweed slipped off to my right side. Finding the new middle of the stick I return to my onslaught. Yet he dodges and weaves like the scum he is. Til he phases to kick my feet out from under me. I drop my spear handle and it rolls away from me. Edweed is on top of me pinning everything but my left arm. My punches do nothing to his face and chest.

"You're right karma would have made them suffer so much more. I should have kept them alive to show them everything I took." Edweed's red eyes are no longer seductive and calm. They are filled with rage and madness.

I reach for my spear handle but its a foot away.

"Hold still. I don't want you damaged. You're the good thing that karma gave me for all my good deeds." His fangs extend again and he lunges for my throat.

Pain shoots from my neck as his fangs sink into my skin. My spear! I need my spear! I plead a silent prayer.

Cling clang. The sound of my spear rolling rings in my ear before I feel it in my hand. Swiftly I drive the wood into Edweed's side. Screaming, he releases me. Stumbling up and back away from me as he slowly starts to disintegrate to dust.

I press my hand against my bleeding neck and turn to where my spear rolled from. The woman that had no hope in her eyes earlier was smiling brightly at me. I smile back and mouth a thank you to her.

"He's dead." The girls in the cells start to chant and cheer.

<(^-^)>

After telling the girls to hang on a moment. I bandaged my neck with some of the dress fabric. Downed a healing potion. Then I called in backup with my translator device from my bag.  Unchained the women at the throne and gave them my snacks I had packed. Freed the other abducted women who brought blankets to cover the previously chained women. Who were already done ravaging the snacks. That's when the nocked out people started to wake up and the reinforcements showed up. Those poor souls had no idea what happened or how they got there. Turns out they had enchantments on them. One that cults tend to use to help their followers follow without a lot of questions. Thankfully, my protection spell Aba casted on me years ago was strong enough to ward that off.

"Hazel!" Shouts that same caramel voice from earlier. What I did not expect was the death grip of a hug that came from my blindside. Then James gently tips my head with his hand. "Shhh. Your hurt. I'm sorry."

"Get your grossness off me." I groan a bit too tired to fight him.

James steps back unhanding me with worry in his eyes. That's when the idea hits me. Sweet revenge that he will more than happily oblige too.

"Why are you smiling like that?" James is now on guard.

"You want to help me feel better?" I feel the smile grow on my face.

"I think we have different ideas on that subject."

"Oh, I'm sure we do." I say leaning in to give him a mischievous smile. A one way red portal opens up behind me. I can see Aba's room as if it was hidden behind red water. I grab my bag and step into it slowly as I wave him goodbye. "I'll message you later."

I step into the back room happily knowing my bed is just a hop, skip and a jump away. Aba slides a bag of coins over to me before leaning back in his chair.

"Thanks but what will become of them?" I ask.

"Lots of therapy, which you probably should talk to yours, if they have family or friends they will stay with them for a bit. It's best if they aren't left alone right now. I'll provide for them naturally. Along with some help." Aba jesters for the door. "You may come in." He says loudly.

Edweed's secretary walks into the room. Instinctively I grab for the first weapon I can find in my bag. The man in the suit drops into a full bow onto the floor.

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" This grown buff man cries on the floor.

"Whaaaa?" I look between Aba and crying suit guy.

"Reinhart here was under Edweed's spell for submission. That is til the Millimum clan found out and lifted it. They asked for him to keep things under wraps while the clan turned to me for help." Aba explains.

"It broke my heart that I let all those women go through what they did. Now that I am of no more use, please take my life as payment. I must atone." The normally well composed man has snot and tears running down his face.

Aba is squating beside the man in a flash holding his head back with his own bandaged fingers.

"No. You will live. Dying is the easy way out. Besides you couldn't help it at first, being weak and all. Also we need funds for those women and I think you can help." Aba whispers.

The man nods and agrees to live. Aba instructs that we will sweep everything Edweed did under the rug since he is literal dust. Reinhart will live and continue to work for the Millimum clan to help provide for the thelve women. Aba will send James as a proxy to ask the women if they can help keep things a secret since the one bad apple is dead.

I squat and get close to the men. "I need a dunk tank. You think you can make that happen?"

<(~.~)>

The next day, with special permission and rentals, my friends and I have set up a dunk tank in the middle of Bellamy's town square. Who is our lucky person to sit on the tiny chair above the tank? No other than James.

"Come one! Come all! Try your hand at dunking the one! The only! James! Our grand hero of the town!" I play up on my theatrics thanks to a potion Matilda gave me. 

James grins and bares it on his tiny seat waving to the public.

"All proceeds will go to helping the ones around town that are in need." I quickly run through the fine print as if it was a TV ad from earth.

A small hoard of men with a glint in their eyes swarm the tank. One after another they say their complaints of women comparing them to him. What was more surprising was these guys aim was near perfect and James got dunked by all the guys in line. I heard baseball was popular here too but dang they're good.

As the last guy walks away James is clinging to the side of the tank.

"Are they gone?" He groans.

"You alright?" I hand him a towel. I can feel a smile tugging on my lips.

"Rich coming from you." He jests drying his face and hair.

I shrug. "Karma."