Even in moments where she felt her mind at ease, free of the risk of breaking down, Maya found the silence of being alone all too unpleasant. She had only her own devices to keep her entertained, as Lyza had been gone for the vast majority of the day. A simple visit for Six shouldn’t have taken so long, even if the designer was trying to win him over and have the beta see his…ex.

Maya hated that word. Even thinking about it made her want to pull her hair out, tear at her scalp, or just scream into a pillow. Already, she’s inflicted harm on her body. While unintentional, Maya had dug her nails deeply into the flesh of her arm during moments she tried to calm herself; keep from falling apart at the constant notion that Six, her one and only, wanted nothing to do with her.

“It’s my fault. It’s always been my fault. I’ve killed him, I’ve abused him, he lives in pain because of me.”

Though she tried to fight against the thoughts they came all the same. Even as she clutched her head, trying to drown out the voices of regret, she couldn’t escape them. Maya lay in bed, trying to hide away from the world by throwing sheets on her barely covered body. Maya hadn’t even gotten dressed as she’s chosen to remain in bed for the entire day. At the moment her only clothing was her undergarments, a simple pair of black colored bra and panties, along with one of Lyza’s shirts, which she kept unbuttoned.

She had hoped to surprise her girlfriend; give them a pleasant show after a hard day of work before continuing their anniversary. Instead, Maya was left alone again, and now even such a small amount of clothing felt suffocating.

Maya felt hot, in pain, and confused. She was the last person who should be left alone with her thoughts; she was not oblivious to this. The fact is that Maya was very aware of it.

She understood how her mind would antagonize her. It would plague her at every opportunity it seemed. There was no reprieve, not even a moment when she was left alone. Those rare instances where such thoughts did not bother her were few but well recalled. Only when with those few she loved, or knee deep in death, could she find herself free of any self-inflicted mental abuse. But now she lacked both those things and found herself suffering because of it.

“Why do I think I’m deserving of love? Every time I have it I always waste it. I was happy with Six, before everything that happened. Why did I have to kill him?”

She wished, for more than anything, that she had an answer to that question. As far as the reasons for her killings and why she found pleasure in it, Maya couldn’t really think of any. As far as she could recall, even into her youth, she knew herself to be odd. Different from everyone else; always viewed from a distance. Never brought in close for comfort, never given a second of affection. The only exception was her parents, and even then it was the same twisted version of love that Maya often demonstrated around Six.

“But can I even blame them? Even they cared about each other. All I can do is kill, kill, and kill!”

She was terrified of the idea of killing another lover. Of killing Lyza. If that happened, if Maya did away with one of the few good things she had in this cursed life of hers, then she doubted there’d be anything stopping her from finally breaking completely. No more restrictions, no more restraints.

She wouldn’t be held back by anything, the only solution to stopping her at that point being a bullet between the eyes.

“But…would that be a bad thing?”

Maya sat upright, letting that sheet that had covered her fall off, revealing her blood-speckled hair and face. It had dried by now, the very victims who the psychopath had brutalized had been tossed away or ground up between Maya’s teeth.

She did text Lyza that there’d be no survivors, and Maya was not one to go back on her word. At least not when regarding her queen; her majesty. Her dear and wonderful shackle.

Maya made her way to the bathroom, unable to stay in bed any longer. All the while she contemplated just what the world might be like for her if she finally decided to cut loose. A world filled with endless fields of crimson; bodies piled high for all to see. The populace too terrified to even venture out at night for fear of joining the mounds of dead. Corpses from every lot of life, poor to rich, young to old, even the big and small among the numbers. There was no discrimination among who she would kill, nor was there any reason.

All there was death left unchecked, and the lovely smell of iron that hung in the air.

It was a beautiful sight that seeped into reality with each step Maya took. Every footprint left behind a bloody trail that spread towards the walls, flooding the structures from within before seeping through any cracks that formed to mirror the psychopath’s breaking mind.

Maya traced her fingers along her cheeks and found that she was smiling. A world run with red was almost too good to deny. A world made for her. One where she could thrive despite her fractured state of mind. She’s already broken the world once after all, what’s one more time?

She stopped though, the moment she made it to the bathroom. Maya stood silent before bringing her head down against the door with such a thud it was a wonder she hadn’t broken through the wooden frame. So hard was the impact that a slow stream of blood flowed down between her eyes as she cursed her horrid thoughts.

“What the fuck is wrong me with!?” She despised her moment of weakness. She loathed her very being. How, for even a second, could she think of doing away with everything she had now? Sure, she had lost Six. But she was determined to get him back no matter the cost.

And Lyza

“How could I even think about doing any of that to her?”

At times, Maya terrified herself. Few and far between, yes, but every so often she’d remind herself just how…damaged she was.

With weak arms she tore the door open, stepping in and looking at herself in the mirror. Bloody, bruised, and beaten. But what else was new?

She had done this to herself. She’s been cruel, she’s been sadistic. She’s been everything Six had a reason to hate. And yet, still, she wanted him back? Maya found the situation funny, even smirking at the thought, even if it was rather depressing of her.

Maya wondered, had she tried to search for ways to make her little lover’s predicament at least enjoyable, could she have won him over? Could she…

“Would he forgive me? For having killed him?”

It was a delusion. Of course, he wouldn’t. Maya knew better than to believe something as far-fetched as that. Whatever she and Six had before, when he actually had love to spare for her, she had ruined it.

But even if impossible, she found solace in the idea all the same. The very idea of it was enough to drive any other intrusive thought away from her mind. It cleared her head when she needed it most. “I wonder, what would a perfect life with him be like?”

Maya had pictured it several times before, each a little different but the theme was always the same. Her one and only, Maya’s first real love, accepting of her; flaws and all. She was kind and caring, working to tend to each and every desire her significant other may have. No matter how obscene or how obscure, if it was within her power she’d grant it to him. And if it wasn’t she’d work nonstop until it was.

On the other end, Six was reciprocating her affection. He was sweet and gentle, always the shoulder she could lean on and cry on. Ever the anchor she needed to keep from slipping, just as Lyza was, but far more profound. Though Maya loved the designer a great deal, it was Six who opened her up to such wonderful sensations. Even if their last confrontation didn’t end on the most pleasant of terms, it only worked to make her want him more.

He fought against her. Stood up against someone so much greater than him; a goddess by comparison. And he did so with such conviction, such energy, that at the time Maya couldn’t do anything but cower. Even if it did tear him away from her, Six had shown Maya a side she wasn’t fully aware of.  She’s not sure even he was aware of it at the time. He could be strong; he could stand up for himself.

He could be every bit the human he believed himself to be. And she wanted to tear it down. Maya wanted to break him.

She’d be lying to herself if she denied it but seeing him stand up against her reignited something in Maya she hadn’t felt for years. A challenge. Back when they actually dated, Maya teased or taunted her one and only, and he would give in. So complacent, so small even if he was almost as tall as her.

Maya found it oh so adorable.

But, when Six fought back, it was a new experience for her. This meek little thing, this beta who was the first to shrink successfully, was raging against her. His fury and anger were enough to make HER the meek one. Enough to make Maya seem small.

He wasn’t quiet, he wasn’t complacent. Six wasn’t even obedient. But he could be. He should be. If it was for her, he could be anything she wished. She saw him change that night, into something grand. Maya wished to see it again; to push her one and only passed the edge once more and see what came about a second time. Would it be another new experience, something more magnificent than before, or would he retreat into a shell she could just as easily break?

Her mind was clear as she thought this, free of the blood from her dream. As she looked in the mirror, her hands digging into her cherry red cheeks, she smiled. Her blue eyes seemed to shine back as the light from the world sunk away into a void so black no light, no matter how powerful, could think of pulling free from her embrace.

The dried speckles of blood that littered Maya’s body shun just as brightly as her eyes, allowing her to see just what she really was; the very thing she knew herself to be.

“A monster”

That was all she believed herself to be, and with all those troublesome notions of regret or guilt gone, for now, she could accept that clearly. She had her anchor, Lyza, who she would stand beside for as long as they were together, but Maya was missing a vital component to keeping herself in check. Without Six, Maya wasn’t sure if she’d be able to keep herself from growing beyond just being a monster. Something more akin to a devil; hell on earth.

She needed him back; there were no two ways about it in her mind. Without him, Maya felt fit to explode at any moment of the day. She needed him to entertain her, to keep the blood from her hands and teeth.

“I wonder…” Maya twirled her blue hair in between her fingers, thinking of cutting it, or perhaps dyeing it a different color for once. She’s gone blue for ages now. “Maybe it’s time I go natural?” 

Maya’s attention fell on the blood splattered upon her body. While not bothered by it she knew better than to keep such a ghastly appearance. A shower was most certainly in order here, and perhaps a quick mop around Lyza’s home.

“Oh! And some new sheets too!”

Perhaps she wouldn’t see her dear Six today, but that didn’t mean it needed to be the end of her. Maya would have him again, in time, and when she did there’d be no force in heaven or hell that was going to pry him away from her.

Exhausted from a combination of stress and worry. Lyza found herself missing the now seemingly long past days where she only had to deal with one such issue. First, she had to deal with keeping the knowledge that she knew of her sister’s odious connections. Following that came the worry of having left Six to gather intel on her apparently tyrannical sibling.

Worst of all though, more than enough to make both previous worries seem simple by comparison, was the fact that she had left Maya all alone. On their anniversary no less. Lyza cursed herself for having been so foolish.

Surely all this could have waited a day more, yes? It wasn’t as though Lynette had herself some timetable that ultimately lead towards world domination.

Hopefully anyway… Lyza wasn’t sure if that was even the case. It very well could be actually. All the possible thoughts, the ideas of what they could be planning, added no end to the designer’s worries. Just what was that pink-haired ditz planning? What were they even doing, filling their mother’s shoes?

Lyza must have been a better pick. She was older, smarter, and more experienced in manipulating people. Was Lynette trying to get rid of the competition? Was Lyza’s life, and by extension Maya’s, really in so much danger? The frustration was enough to make her sulk in her car, bringing her head to rest upon the wheel and forcing her horn to go off. Right in front of her own home.

“This…is beyond frustrating.” She felt like she was running in circles. Chasing tails and false leads, all in the hopes of getting one up over her sister. But now she doubted if she even could. Such connections they possessed, according to Roxanne, could end all of her efforts with little more than a word. But did Lynette’s reach truly extend so far?

Though she had her fans, Lynette was never a truly likable person. Those who knew the younger Vermont sister understood her to be a spoiled brat who’d seethe if they didn’t get what she wanted. She’d threaten and blackmail just to get her way. A true mother’s girl who only really got as far as she did due to kissing the ass of the very individual who gave her life.

Lyza supposed that’s just why she and her sister were worlds apart as far as bonds were concerned. Lynette didn’t mind spending her whole life in her mother’s shadow, feeding off their achievements like a parasite whereas Lyza was more than willing to make a name for herself. Though some would deny it, the designer worked herself to the bone to get where she was right now. After tireless nights of learning just how exactly she could best utilize her skills, her knowledge, to run a company her mother was crashing into the ground.

Everything her father had taught her, she instilled into her very being.

In some ways, actually, Lyza assumed herself to be more like her father than her mother, and Lynette often proved to be the exact opposite of that. Both carriers of their parents will.

Humorlessly ironic but Lyza laughed all the same, falling against and shrinking into her seat. She worked so hard to keep her composure that at times she forgot it was fine to leave herself vulnerable, especially in these moments of silence. Peaceful though they were they could not last forever, and looking at the passenger seat of her car, directly at a heart-shaped container of chocolates and a bouquet of flowers, she understood that she could not remain in such a state for long.

For all the weight she carried on her shoulders, Lyza needed to be the strong one. As far as this strange little group of hers knew, she was the apparent leader. She was the one who called the shots, deciding on each and every decision Roxanne and Six would make. The only exception would be Maya, but the psychopath was fiercely loyal to Lyza. To the point of near complete obedience.

But she had broken the façade for a time. She had shown weakness towards Six. Lyza cared about his safety far more than she originally thought. It was strange, dealing with another crush.

“I’m 31 and I can still feel like this?” Lyza couldn’t really place what sort of emotions she was feeling. There was humor in her hopeless situation, followed by regret for having let the mask fall. She wondered just what Six must have thought when she revealed her concerns.

But then again, it made her feel young. Giddy in a way to feel affection for another. Thus far in her life, she only ever really came to love a handful of people, Maya among them. Most however were long gone, dead or just out of her life. So to understand that she could make another connection in this pressured existence of hers was a mixed bag of emotions.

“I do hope he’s fine…” Lyza’s sister was not a kind person, despite what she may show to the public. Neither of the Vermont’s were. But Lynette’s tastes were more…extravagant, when compared to Lyza’s. She hoped six would find a way to avoid her, but if he found himself against a wall…

“No, don’t think like that.” Lyza had to shake her head clear of any ill fate the beta could meet. She had to have faith that he’d find a way to learn what he can and come home safely. Maybe then she’d finally have some pressure relieved of her.

But, of course, that’s the future. She had to focus on the present. And right now her greatest concern was her girlfriend’s likely wounded feelings. For all Lyza knew, Maya had probably snapped. She was left alone nearly the entire day. It was well into the evening now and left to her own devices the psychopath could prove a general menace when boredom struck her.

The flower and chocolates were the least Lyza could do to appease those lovely demons of hers.

“Why, oh why am, I so into the crazy ones?”

Stepping out of her car Lyza took note of her home’s simplicity, at least compared to her sisters. She knew she had an abundance of wealth, easily one of the richest individuals in Los Demonios. Maybe even the west coast as a whole. But while grand, her home was a far cry from her sister’s. Six would have a difficult time navigating it compared to hers.

At the very least, the beta was familiar with the structure of Lyza’s abode. It’s every nook and cranny for when he wished to hide around. He was skilled in remaining hidden, all he needed was a single simple space to find shelter in and none save for Maya could likely find him.

Such an obsession led to many interesting skills, most of which were honed to peak perfection for the psychopath. There didn’t seem to be anything Maya wouldn’t do to get to her Six, though Lyza hoped that some chocolate, flowers, and perhaps a movie would be enough to make her forget him. At least for the night.

Her first step into her house though pretty much said that perhaps Lyza needed none of those things. Her nose was assaulted by the stench of chemicals. It stung slightly due to how much was used and one look at her floors showed why. They were spotless, clean of any sort of imperfection. Not even a single drop of blood was seen, and after her most recent text message, Lyza at the very least assumed there’d be a minor mess.

But to her surprise, there wasn’t even that. No matter where she looked it all seemed so clean. It was rather alarming.

“Did Maya do this?” Lyza wondered. She’d rarely cleaned so extensively before, only really making an effort to hide any sort of evidence. Bodies would be finely chopped up and disposed of, and blood would be mopped and drained. But Maya had no reason to do any of that.

“Who else would?” A voice beside Lyza suddenly spoke out. The designer nearly jumped up in fright, even if it was her lover just standing beside her, curious eyes watching her intently.

Lyza had been so focused on the cleanliness of her home that she didn’t even hear Maya approach with a still wet mop in hand and wearing nothing but… “Hey, isn’t that one of my shirts?”

“Yes, it is” Maya confirmed with a grin as she crossed her arms. “And to answer your earlier question, I did. Was hoping to get everything cleaned before you got home, but I didn’t even manage to get to the second floor yet.”

At the very least, she was able to clean her head wound enough so that Lyza wouldn’t make any sort of big deal over it.

Maya’s eyes fell to the heart-shaped box in Lyza’s right hand and the flowers in the other. “Hey…are those for me?”

Lyza didn’t get a word out as Maya gently took the bouquet from her hand, taking in a long whiff of its fragrance. Such a pleasant aroma given through such a common display of affection. So common in fact that people often took such displays for granted. Almost always, the common couple would choose a grander show of love, and while Lyza could easily afford the most expensive forms of it, Maya simply wouldn’t care for the display as much as now. Something so simple, so easily discarded, was cherished to no end by Maya.

“It’s lovely…” despite her earlier fears of loneliness, it was moments like this reminded Maya she couldn’t be any further from such a fate. “Really, it is.” Even if most of the day was spent alone, this moment was not. That was more than enough for her.

“I imagine you wanna share the chocolates?” Maya asked a visibly puzzled Lyza. They had expected her to be broken by the time she had arrived. A maddening mess brought upon by a fractured mind. But instead, Maya was very much sane.

“I…I do…” Lyza managed to get out. “And m…maybe a movie?”

Lyza had no clue why she was stuttering, but it likely had to do with her lover. Maya seemed changed, in a way. More focused. It could be seen in her eyes, a sort of drive that was normally in those who had goals.

“You’re not going to ask about where I’ve been? How Six or Roxanne have been doing?”

Maya shrugged, completely at ease. “Nope”. There wasn’t a single break in her composure that could be found. “I’ve found it’s much easier to not worry about those things right now. This, for little time remains, is our day. So let’s focus on our day.”

“I’ll take my Six back later.”

Lyza was taken aback. This was far from what she had expected. “Uh, s-sure. Okay! So, a movie right?” This was reassuring. It worked to ease some of the designer’s worries. “You…got any recommendations?”

“Hmmm…naaah” Maya wasn’t much one for movies these days. They were so much more enjoyable when she had a little ‘snack’ to suck on. And with her favorite one gone, they just didn’t do it for her. “I’ll just go with whatever you pick. Though, it’s gonna have to wait until after I shower.” Maya gestured towards her still blood-speckled face and hair. “I’m something of a mess right now, I could do with a lil fresh up.”

Lyza wrapped her arms around the killer’s neck, gently pulling them into a kiss. After the day they both had, they practically melted into one another. Pulling away Lyza stifled a chuckle. “You always look good babe. Blood and all.”

Maya blushed, Lyza’s compliments always working wonders to make her swoon. “Oh, you tease~. You know I still need to shower anyway. I probably stink of sweat.”

Lyza wasn’t willing to let this moment part. She saw an opportunity to let her stress just disappear for the night, she was not going to lose it.

“Maybe I’ll join you then? I hot shower after a long day”

“Just washes all your troubles away.” Maya finished. “Yeah, I like the sound of that.”

For all their flaws, and their fractures and problems, they made things work. Whether one was playing the other wasn’t a concern. Maya and Lyza loved each other truly, and though both faced their own demons, those were furthest from their minds at this moment.

This was so nerve-wracking, but also extremely exciting. Roxanne found that to be such an odd combination. Not too unpleasant but also not too addictive. With Six gone she’s allowed herself the chance to fall back into more questionable habits. She needed to keep his trust; it was important that she did. Her life hung in the balance so long as that was a factor. Not simply due to Lyza’s threats, but also due to the sheer importance of the first beta. His safety was of the utmost concern, but now she didn’t need to exercise so much caution now that her favorite little experiment was gone.

He was a success, in every sense of the word. Through the late Minerva’s genius, along with Roxanne’s of course, Six would work wonders in helping to reshape the world. Just as was intended before the untimely death of the arbiter of this new world. While deemed a failure by Josephine, Roxanne knew better. Though her hand was just one of many in his change, she knew an opportunity when she saw one. There was so much that could have been learned from him before Roxanne was ultimately tossed to the side like yesterday’s trash.

Idiots, every single one of them, who cared little for the advancement of mankind when it meant they wouldn’t be getting a few cents more in their already deep pockets. Greed and gluttony were rampant in every corner of the world, and no matter how well hidden it was Roxanne knew this. she was aware of just how badly the world needed to change.

She was no arbiter. No queen or prophet. She could not, would not lead. No, someone better suited for just the position was needed.

And she had a few in mind.

Those who tried to get rid of her, she’d get even with. And right now the clearest and quickest path towards that was Lyza. She had the resources to give what Roxanne was promised, and though not quite as much of a power-hungry as the late Minerva, Lyza could most certainly grow to fill in that vacant position. She hid some details of what’s been told to the designer.

While Roxanne knew her mother and sister, she also was aware of many secrets the elder Vermont had kept to herself. A drive to be more than what was apparent. People spoke behind her back, and Lyza was aware of this though rarely worked against them. Better to appease than to replace.

But that couldn’t remain the case.

In Lyza was a drive Roxanne felt was missing from this corrupt world. The Beta epidemic was the first step toward creating the utopia Josephine had dreamed of, but despite the reverence the scientist had for her, their visions came up short. Josephine, after all, was only human. Fallible. Just as the world was corrupted so too did she follow in that depravity. It was good that Maya killed them when she did.

Lyza may have lacked the qualities Minerva possessed, such as her fierce intelligence or power through allies, but the few benefits the designer did have was more than able to make up for that. She had Six’s trust, Maya’s loyalty, and now Roxanne’s miraculous hands.

As she rested upon her couch, finishing up the last bottle of scotch she had, Roxanne smiled. Within, she pleasantly watched what was perhaps the new world’s smallest beta. Through enhanced vision she could see the 30-something-year-old flail fruitlessly, trying to keep above waves so large and in such a confined space that it defied all senses of the modern world.

What made the scientist smile though was the fact that this small being possessed none of the qualities of a typical beta. No pale skin, silvery hair, or red-tinged eyes. They were like the average man, different only in their height which by now couldn’t be more than a few millimeters. 7 to be exact, though the average eye wouldn’t even be able to tell. They were an Alpha once, someone meant to be immune to shrinking.

But Roxanne helped in creating the epidemic. She knew better than most how it worked. Nothing was permanent in this life, not even an apparent immunity.

She sighed in contempt before drinking the remainder of the bottle, taking the unfortunate beta with it. Who they were and what they did hardly mattered anymore. Roxanne still had her reservations about actually consuming others, but so long as they were this small they weren’t really felt sliding down her throat. Any bigger though and she’d throw up.

Even in a year, she was able to work on and even succeed with several lovely experiments. Wonders that, if now were widely produced, would make such incredible strides for technology. But no experiment brought her as much joy as anti-Antilirin.

“Name still pending”

The world needed to change again, and with that variant of Antilirin, it most certainly would. Everything, right now, hinged on not just Six, but all of their efforts. Maya, Roxanne’s, Six’s, and Lyza’s. If the designer was going to replace her sister they all needed to cooperate.

Still, Roxanne knew, as controversial as it might be, that she needed a fallback plan.  In the very likely case that Six needed to be retrieved, Roxanne knew just the person who’d do anything to get him back. Even if it might cost her a limb, or two, Roxanne felt it necessary to have this sort of recovery in place. Just in case.  

Throwing the bottle to her side, not minding if it landed on the floor or couch, Roxanne wondered just how the person she had in mind might think about going behind Lyza’s back. A dangerous situation to be sure, but it was nothing new to the scientist.

She just needed to think of the right words to coerce Maya into helping her.