The sky begins to weep thick tears as I summon a fireball into my hands. I stare at the man and woman prostrating themselves before me. Their knees slowly sink as the dirt in Sines turns to mud, but they don’t dare complain. It must be a strange sight, two full grown adults kneeling before a child in a rainstorm. You really didn’t think anyone would care that you ratted out Nadania and Pisa, huh?

Well unfortunately, Romy and Mark may be gone, but I’m not.

Yan told me everything, once I went back to his shop. How jealous the town widow, Sheila, was of Nadania’s Demi-Cat beauty and Pisa’s adoring love. How she hated that even the married men would look twice as Nadania passed by. When the Daggas Clan came and asked if there were any Demi’s in town, they didn’t have to threaten anyone. Sheila stepped right up and led them to the house with a smile. As for the guy she’s kneeling with…well, he’s one of the local dads. Not Sheila’s husband, that man died years ago. While she sold out Natalia’s family for nothing, he nodded and did nothing to stop her. I caught them sneaking around and having fun in Sheila’s room while most of the town was at the funeral. They didn’t even wait for the embers from Nadania and Pisa’s cremation to finish smoldering. I remember Sheila talking up Mark at the grocery store with a smile and my mood gets even colder.

“So…” I murmur, staring at them both. “What should I do with two traitors. No…that’s not right. Two murderers.”

“I…I…please, it was a mistake!” Sheila shrieks hysterically as the fireball in my flares brighter, “I had no idea they would kill them!”

“Mmm, no idea, no idea.” Mockingly, I echo her, and lean in. Catching her eyes, I notice the fear in them. It’s amazing the effect magic can have on ordinary people. Sometimes I forget how uncommon it is because Mark and Romy are here. But to these townspeople who spend their ignorant lives amidst the fields and forest, my talent is terrifying. The fire in my hand grows with my temper. A raindrop falls on Sheila’s face and she flinches, but doesn’t dare look away. Something moves off to the side. True to his nature, her unfaithful lover isn’t staying. I chuckle having seen the move coming, “Uh uh, where are you going?”

“M-Me?” The man, freezes. I think I’ve seen his family before. Is your wife watching right now? “Listen, I have nothing to do with this. Whatever happened is between you and Sheila, Kid. I didn’t even say anything! Just…just…woah!” He stops as I conjure a deadly shard of ice in my other hand and point it at him. The arrow-like crystal turns slowly in the air, awaiting my command. “I…now hold on, I have a family!”

“Do you now…?” I mutter, laughing coldly. With Foresight on, I see everything they will say, all their pathetic excuses before they say it. So, I’m not worried that they’ll escape. Rather, I’m looking forward to seeing them squirm. “So, then you’re also responsible for her crime, as her husband, correct?”

“She’s not my wife!” The man yells excitedly. “We were just…”

“Screwing around?” My eyes narrow and he stumbles backwards as the ice crystal begins to vibrate and hum violently. “Tell me, what is the punishment for adultery in this country?”

“I…I…” The man nervously looks between me and Sheila. “T-There is no punishment…Kid, you don’t really want to hurt anyone, right? Look, we’re all human here. How about we just calm down…”

“Ah. I see.” Nodding, as if I agree, I close my left fist and the ice crystal disappears. Raindrops continue to fall in-between us as I close my eyes. In the future, I watch to see if anyone runs. They think about it. But these cowards don’t have the guts. I’m getting tired of this. My eyes snap open. I stare at the man and he breathes heavily. “Sorry, I misworded my question. What I meant was…what is the punishment for cheating on your wife with a murderous harlot and aiding in said harlot’s crime?”

“They were just Demi-Cats-!” His response is the wrong one. Instantly, I see red.

*Shing*

“Ahhh!”

A silent Chill sends an ice crystal directly towards his shoulder. It thuds inside. Blood spurts out, disappearing amidst the dark rain. The storm cries out for vengeance. Up above, lightning begins to crackle and Sheila quivers as thunder booms overhead,

“Dag!” She screeches, “Are you okay!”

“I dunno.” Since the man in question is too busy rolling around in the mud, probably infecting the new hole in his shoulder, I answer for him. “Is Dag, okay? Why don’t you check?” Sheila’s chest heaves at me words. She’s sweating, not that you can tell in the rain. Face red, terrified, I see the townspeople, pathetic cowards that they are, watching us from inside their houses, behind drawn curtains and locked windows. Not one of them steps up to stop me and I laugh. How fitting. Sheila looks towards my hand, the fireball still glowing orange. Little puffs of smoke rise up as rain lands in it. “Go on, check on him.”

“O-Okay!” She takes a hesitant step forwards. Once her back is turned, I turn down the heat on my fireball. Don’t want to make this too easy for her. “Let me-“

*Whoosh*

“AHHHHHH!” Her scream is drowned out in thunder. Sheila falls onto her hands and knees. She shrieks in agony, a sooty black flower blossoming on her back. The tips of her hair catch on fire but the rain puts it out. My face has absolutely no expression whatsoever when she looks back at me over her shoulder. “W-Why?”

“Does it hurt being burned when your back is turned?” I conjure another fireball as the remnants of the first one sizzles out. Walking over, I kick mud in her face so it’s as ugly on the outside as inside. This kind of woman…I hate the most! “How do you think Pisa and Nadania felt when strangers came into their house. Strangers they had never met before…and did…that…FRICK!”

“PLEASE DON’T HURT ME!” Shiela recoils, hiding behind her hands as my fireball turns into a full-on pillar of flame which licks at the heavens. “Why do you care so much about some Demi’s! You’re human! One of us!”

“You…dare. Claim that I am one of you? You think I’m an animal?” Suddenly, I don’t want to make this slow anymore. Walking over to the other guy who is still clutching his shoulder, I point the fireball at his face. You first. “I think I’ve decided on a good punishment for someone who turns a blind eye. What do you think? An eye for an eye…two eyes for two deaths. Does it sound…just?”

“N-No…you wouldn’t…the law says…I get a trial! Wait! WAIT!” He screams, as I extend the flames, bring them closer and closer to his left eye. For a brief instant, I consider stopping. But then I remember Natalia’s sorrow, her desperation as she thought she lost everything. No…I won’t stop. This isn’t Earth. What they did…no one will investigate the deaths of two Demi’s out here in a town like this. If I don’t do this…there won’t be any punishment-

“STOP!” Someone else screams. It wouldn’t have stopped me, but the voice is high-pitched, like Natalia’s, and I hesitate for an instant. The fireball stops growing right as the flames are about to reach the man’s face. He’s pressed back as far as he can get into the mud, his eyes closed in utter fear. “Please don’t hurt daddy!”

Daddy?

Turning around, I realize that the voice I heard was in the future. I was so into it that everything was blurring together. When the girl runs and repeats her line in the present, I shake my head.

So you want to save him?

A girl runs towards us. The likeness to her father is evident. It’s the cheating bastard’s daughter for sure. His real wife isn’t far behind. Both their dresses are getting stained with mud, but they hurry out anyways.

“You know this man…was cheating on your mother, right?” I ask the little girl when she gets close. She gulps, seeing the flame in my hand, but continues to plead. “Do you know what that means!”

“Please, please don’t hurt daddy!” She begs. The wife, a plain woman with none of the treacherous beauty of Sheila, also approaches. I watch her carefully in the future, and am surprised by her response to my words.

“Do you also want me to spare him?”

“Please…Nita needs her father. I can’t afford to raise her on my own.” She says calmly, in my face. Despite a slight tremble in her voice, she doesn’t flinch despite knowing of the unnatural powers at my command. I’m impressed. Nodding towards Sheila, she smiles, “Her though, I don’t care what you do with. Just…please, punish Dag, if you must, but don’t take his sight!”

Really. The man who cheated on you is with his mistress right in front of your eyes and you’re just…going to let that go?

A sour taste rises in my mouth as I see the little girl’s hopeful expression when she comes up and tugs at my sleeve. It’s not one of the kids who bullied Natalia. Pulling away, I spit on the ground. Making sure to step on Dag’s injured shoulder, I ignore his groans and go to Sheila who has collapsed in fright.

“Very well then. Your husband, your problem.” As I approach, Sheila tenses in terror, her back still smoking slightly from my fireball. This time, I manifest twin shards of lethal ice in the air. Aim them towards her eyes. “As for you…what do you want on your tombstone?”

“Nu nu nu nu nu!” She continuously yells, her teeth chattering, “Someone help! This kid’s crazy! Please! I’m innocent! Save meeee!”

No one speaks up. Everyone just watches, even the man she was cheating with. Raising my hand, I prepare to exact judgement for Pisa and Nadania’s deaths. Foresight shows me a possible future. As I chant the words, her eyes bug out of her head and when the lightning flashes, I see her slump. She falls backwards, in a dead faint. And then the thunder comes and I release my spell. The storm greedily laps up my offering. And then I walk away.

All I have to do is say the words.

[Frozen Wind of My Soul-