Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Shattered Illusions ❯ Punishment Game ( Chapter 41 )

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Shattered Illusions

By: Melissa Norvell/Revamp

Chapter 41: Punishment Game

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"Remember when I told you I worked at the strip club?" Tsubomi was ready to tell everyone the truth about herself. It was now or never. After all, the worst of her secret had already been exposed. There was nothing else that could have possibly been worse, right?

"Yes," Copernicus nodded.

"I don't work backstage," Tsubomi closed her eyes and her voice lowered in shame, "I work on stage."

"You're a stripper?" Millie could hardly believe her eyes. No wonder she had such a fit body. She had to in order to perform her job. It all began to make sense, but at the same time it was weird picturing her in some sort of sparkly stage costume.

"Yes, I'm the stripper Copernicus likes. My call name is Oshiana," Tsubomi hated this. She truly did. Tsubomi wanted nothing more than to disappear from the face of the earth. This wasn't her shining moment...far from it.

Copernicus blinked a little. He could hardly believe that this beautiful boy would have gone through such a drastic transformation. When she was her regular self, and when she was a stripper it was as if she wasn't even the same person. If there was one thing that he could say about his stripper donor, it was that she was a good transformation artist. "You're Oshiana? So you acted jealous of yourself?" He had to admit, it was a good tactic. He would have never suspected her due to that.

"I had to, that way I could implant into your head that we weren't the same person, in case you were suspicious," Tsubomi explained her tactics. There was no way that she wanted them to even have an inkling of suspicion or distrust towards her.

"You knew me well, and you fooled me well," the Inheritor admitted that he was under the girl's spell.

"I have ran out of masks to wear. My Illusion has shattered," Tsubomi looked down.

"Is that why you wouldn't make love to me or stay at my house, because you thought I'd find you out?" Copernicus was sure of the answer but he wanted it to be said to him.

"Yes, it was. I didn't want you to know that I was a woman. I still wanted to play the false donor for Coscatta and I didn't want you to think I was weak," Tsubomi had a type of respect as a male that she didn't get as a woman. Even if it was hard at times, she fell into place and adapted. It became a familiar situation that she was used to and that she liked.

"Why do you dress in male clothing?" Copernicus was a little curious, considering he was pretty sure that Tsubomi wasn't intentionally trying to hide behind a ruse.

"It's my personal preference. Plus, I hate skirts and dresses. I'm nothing like Millie," she was a tomboy through and through.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Millie crossed her arms and puffed up her cheeks. What was wrong with liking dresses?

"You're giiiiirrrlllllyyyyy!" Teru sang as he poked her in the cheek affectionately.

"I know you're probably questioning what else I've lied on, but everything else is true. My feelings are true. I do love you, Copernicus...King Copernicus, my lord and master," she walked over to the vampire after getting up from her position and bowed before him, just as she had so many times before. The girl fell before him on one knee and kissed his hand, then looked up to him through her tresses of brunette hair. "I'll do whatever you wish."

The vampire bent down to his donor, taking her face in his hands as he lowered his, closing the space between them. "I don't care about your gender, I love you. No matter what you are...However," his lips brushed against hers as he continued to talk, "you can't lie to me anymore. No more deceptions - for the both of us." He then captured her lips and she returned their sweet embrace.

After a few minutes, she pulled away, feeling the warmth of his hands on her cheeks. "Does this mean that you forgive me?"

"No, it means you still have a lot to do." Nothing was ever that easy, and this was no exception. Tsubomi still had things to make up, but on the other hand, so did he.

The girl blinked for a moment and looked hurt by his comment. "But, you're still wanting to work things out, right?" She felt a small anxiety build up in her chest. She was afraid that he wanted to break up with her and losing her status with him was what scared her the most.

"I still love you, and things are stressful right now but I'm going to deal with this the best I can. Hide is still after me, and from this point on, it will become a game of wits." A twisted, dark smile crossed his face. "He has yet to acknowledge that I have the potential to be just as much of a tyrant as he. After all, I was his student."

"Isn't that stooping to his level?" Tsubomi asked as he pulled away.

"Sometimes, you have to bathe in the blood to bask in the glory. That's what the prime rule of politics is." His voice was dark, unlike his usual calm demeanor. Tsubomi couldn't help but wonder what exactly he was talking about, but she had a feeling that she was about to experience the dark side of the vampuric race.

Shiva walked entered the room with a piece of parchment in her hands. The dark-skinned vampire stopped at her king and handed him the letter. "This just came for you."

"Oh?" Blue eyes darted to the girl beside of him. He took the letter and opened it, reading the contents with a serious expression on his face. "What is this? Is he trying to mock me?"

"Nah! He'd never do that! It's silly!" Teru waived in dismissal before a look of bewilderment crossed his face. "Wait, who are we talking about?"

"This is from Hide," Copernicus made the sender's name known.

"What? So soon after all of this?" Millie asked.

"What does he want?" Shiva asked coldly, her lavender lips upturned in a frown.

Copernicus read the contents out loud. It consisted of a simple card, scrawled with red embroidery along the edges that shimmered in the light. He held up the piece of parchment and spoke.

Copernicus J. Wittenburg:

I sincerely invite you to play a game with me. If you win, the promise will be big, and you will gain more than you could ever imagine. Plus, if you win, then I'll back down and hand myself over to you, accepting my crime as the one who murdered your family and followers.

Teru blinked and cast the king a bewildered glance. "So, you going to go?"

"There's something wrong. This is probably some rigged scheme of his, but in reality, what choice do I have? Even though the chance is small, there is always that chance that he might actually be sincere." There was only one way to see, and that was to go to him and accept his little game.

"As if, I bet he wants you to come alone, doesn't he?" That was a typical condition to that kind of proposition, or at least that's what Millie had always known to be true.

"It doesn't say," Copernicus skimmed through the card over and over, but no contents were found that told him specifications on the number of people Hide wanted him to bring if any, "but Hide isn't the type for exposure, so I would safely say that he'd want me to go alone or at least face him alone."

"There should be a way that we'll know you'll be alright," Horatio didn't like the idea of just sending him up to Hide without anyone coming along.

"I'll set something up with Hide. We can't go completely by the rules, especially if he won't be either." That was more than likely what would happen. Copernicus knew Hide all too well.

"Are you so sure that you should go so soon?" Tsubomi asked, now on her feet before him. "I mean, you're hurt, Copernicus." It didn't seem like a good idea at all. He needed to rest and get better before he even tried to face off against his hardest rival.

"According to this, the game just requires a table and chairs." It was odd, and yet he had a feeling that he might know what Hide already had in mind.

"Like chess?" Teru asked. That was an odd request for a game of choice in a final battle.

"It doesn't really say, but I doubt he would be one to settle this over a game of chess." There had to be something more to it that he wasn't seeing. Copernicus knew that even if they did play chess, it wasn't going to be any normal game of chess.

"It doesn't seem right. Something just seems out of sorts with this," Tsubomi didn't trust it whatsoever.

"Well, we did play chess together when I was younger. I always beat him." That was saying a lot for a man with intelligence like Hide's. He was hired into the royal court as a man of intelligence and war games. Copernicus had wondered if he wanted to prove a symbolic point with this chess game. Maybe he was going to finally beat him at it? There was no telling with him.

"If you do decide to go, just be careful. We all know the true nature of the man," Shiva gave words to heed for the king.

"I would say that I'd go with you but-" Tsubomi was cut off.

"No, if you do that, you'll be stressing yourself even more. You're in a dangerous situation right now. Your mind has been fed off of and drained from the first point that you met Hizaki," Copernicus couldn't risk her weakened mental state. Hizaki very well could possess her again, and he didn't want a repeat of what was already happening.

"If you need blood then I have to go," the tomboy noted something so important that her master had no choice but to take it into consideration.

Copernicus said nothing and frowned.

"You know...she is right. As much as you don't want to admit it, but you kind of have to take her." It was stupid for him not to take her. Teru knew that first and foremost that a donor was an important part of his existence.

"Fine, just stay by my side and let me protect you," the king commanded.

"Yes, master," the tomboy complied as vivid memories assaulted her mind. 'After what happened with me...' Tsubomi thrusted the Rigatama forward and struck him in the chest, the blade dug into his flesh.

Shock and pain registered in the vampire's visage as blue eyes looked down to see the blood welling up around the sword blade. It bubbled up in his throat and leaked from the corner of his mouth. Red ran down the blade, to Tsubomi's hands. She looked at it drip from her flesh and land on the unforgiving ground below her. 'I can't possibly go against you, Copernicus...no, you majesty. I wasn't myself and I feel like a dumbass for letting myself become possessed. I should have said something when I knew there was something wrong with me. I shouldn't have just said back and said nothing like I could handle it all.'

Closing her eyes, she cursed to herself, "damn it."

"Damn what?" Teru asked with a finger to his lips quizzically.

"Nothing, I'm just thinking aloud," she replied with a look of disgust on her features.

Copernicus put on a white, button-up shirt and began to fasten each button before getting up out of bed.

"You're going now?" Shiva was a little surprised that he would take action so quickly.

"Of course, the sooner I act the better. Besides," he grabbed his blue coat and slipped it over his broad shoulders, "the quicker I win this, the quicker I'll get results." Laying around and waiting only made things worse. It was better to take immediate action. Hide wouldn't be expecting it, either.

"If I may, my lord," Horatio interrupted, "won't your injured state affect your sense of concentration?"

"I can concentrate just fine, thanks," he didn't need to worry about him. Copernicus wasn't so easily affected by pain like normal people or even vampires were. He had always had a high pain tolerance by nature. "Tsubomi!"

The girl jolted in place and turned, "y-yes sir?"

"Get ready and meet me outside in twenty minutes. From there, we'll go to Hide's together. If I keep you by my side, then you can judge the game and watch over me," he would entrust her to be his personal guardian. He just hoped that he wasn't making a mistake by trusting someone weaker than himself to care for him and monitor the situation.

"Of course, my king."

"I'll be relying on you, so don't let me down," Copernicus looked over his shoulder at his donor before he exited the room.

"I won't," Tsubomi replied. 'That is a promise. I won't screw this up like I did when I got possessed. I refuse to give in to them. They're the reason Copernicus' life is hell. Not to mention the reason so many people have been taken away from him. The king and queen...Prince Yale...I'll get revenge for his death. That way, Millie won't suffer anymore.'

Those things, she was sure of.

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Outside of the mansion, Tsubomi walked up to her master, ready to go. She looked to him with determination sparkling in her navy blue eyes and told him 'let's go' simply. He asked her if she was sure about the decision that she had made.

Nodding, she replied, "I am positive. I'm ready to go the distance with you." There was nothing more to hide. Nothing to be put between them anymore. From here on out, they were a team with a complete trust established between them. Nothing and no one would be able to break their bond now.

Copernicus smiled at the girl before telling her 'let's go then' and the two began their journey back to Hide's base to face whatever twisted game the vampire had in mind for the two of them.

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They stood before the familiar base, the same base where Copernicus had faced off before Hide the last time they were there, the same base Tsubomi had infiltrated countless times. It was a place where memories of horror resided. It was a place that Tsubomi would rather not see yet another time. She was tired of looking at its dingy, metallic walls and creepy-looking, fogged up windows. She would just as soon take a wrecking ball to the whole establishment than let it even stand condemned.

She truly hated the monstrosity of a building.

"How many times do I have to see this place?" She sighed to herself in irritation.

"Too bad I don't have a military behind me. If that were the case, then I could easily rid myself of him," Copernicus sighed. "However, things aren't that way. This is purely tactical strategy."

"Do you think it's wise to come here alone? I mean, you know that he'll be with Hizaki." That was something she had thought about for a while. If Copernicus had some alone, then he would have undoubtedly have been ganged up on by the two of them.

"Yes, and I have you. Whether or not you believe me, I think you're amazing. Your fighting skills are impeccable and you handled your strange weapon masterfully." That tribal axe was undoubtedly Tsubomi's best friend. Even if it gave her bad memories, she was skillful at wielding it and it would come to be a great aid to her in physical battles.

"I should have brought it with me," the only reason she didn't was because of the horrible memories that it plagued her with of that incident, and the fact that she didn't find it necessary since there wasn't going to be any physical fighting going on. It didn't mean that she wasn't prepared to fight if she had to, however.

"It would only arouse suspicion." If Tsubomi brought it, she would turn heads and Hide would think that they planned to attack him by surprise. It might have caused more harm than good.

"I really am sorry that I didn't tell you who I was earlier." More than anything, she regretted that moment the most. It put such a stress on their relationship and she could feel a bit of detachment towards the vampire on both sides. It hurt her and made her feel as if they had lost something they had before.

"Do you always dress like that?" The girl looked like a commando, with her black tank top and green cameo pants tucked into her high, black boots.

"Yes, it's my style of dress. Why?" Tsubomi found it slightly annoying that he kept questioning her wardrobe selections. He needed to just accept that she wasn't going to put on a dress of be girly any time soon.

"Why?"

"It's a stupid reason," the tom boy didn't care to discuss the matter.

"I'd like to know," Copernicus thought she owed him that much.

"When my parents had me, they were disappointed because they wanted a boy. So, I thought if I could be more boyish then they would accept me," she muttered in embarrassment. It wasn't something she liked talking about or something that she told anyone until now.

"Did they?" Copernicus asked as they entered the building, walking towards Hide's location.

"No, I was still disowned by my family." That was why she lived on her own and had to get the job that she had. No one else would hire her.

"You're still a part of mine," the vampire reassured. "You are the only family I have, and even though you lied to me, I would never cast you out." His words were warm, and comforting. Tsubomi surrounded herself by their love and the anxiety in her heart quelled in that moment.

"You're still distant to me." However, that one fact remained.

"I need to think about everything," he said as the two approached giant, red doors with dead bolts around the corners. "After that, then I'll know what to do. Here it is Hide's personal chambers." Using one of the golden knockers, he clanked it against the surface hard a couple of times to signify his presence.

Tsubomi inhaled deeply, readying herself for what was about to happen as the doors slowly opened. They revealed to vampire guards. One of them looked like an older man with facial hair and long, black tresses and the other was young, a blonde man with a well-built body.

"Hide will see you now," the two of them said in unison and stood to the side to reveal Hide, standing at a table with two chairs. It looked like a chessboard was sitting on top of it with strange chess pieces and spires on each side of the board.

The red-clad vampire smiled at the two. "Welcome, Copernicus, it's good to see you again. I see that you brought company." He knew that the king wouldn't come alone this time. It was just as expected.

"Tsubomi is here to make sure that everything goes well and there is fair play," Copernicus stated his donor's presence and purpose.

"You don't trust me?" Hide asked in amusement.

"Never," Copernicus frowned.

"Smart boy," Hide's smile widened.

"Now, what have you called me here for?" First and foremost, that was going to get out of the way before anything further happened.

"I'd like to invite you to play a game with me." It was a simple request. Surely the king already had plans to at least partake in it since he made a special appearance and all.

"A game? What kind of game?" Copernicus knew better than to assume that it was some sort of child's play and if someone lost then they lost everything.

"It's a torture game," Hide's voice darkened.

"What?" Tsubomi didn't expect that.

The blonde vampire pulled out a chair for the king to sit in. Glancing down at the board, Copernicus sat with his elbows up and hands rested on top of each other. He glanced down at the playing field, eyeing each intricate piece before him and absorbing the environment in, "I see. So, how does the game work."

Hide sat down and began to explain the mechanics of the game. The rules were easy. It was a tactical game, much like chess. The rules were slightly different than chess, however. To command the pieces, one simply had to speak and they would move to the desired square. That's all there was to it.

There was still one thing that he didn't explain. "What about the razorblades, spires and other devices on the ends of the board?" Before the both of them were sets of tools of punishment. He had a feeling that they had something to do with the torture aspect of the game, but what?

Hide went on to tell him that any time of the pieces destroyed another, the player who owned the destroyed piece would have to spill their blood on the battlefield. The king spills his blood for the sake of his people, it's an unwritten rule. Just as his brother, Copernicus must also sacrifice his blood on the field. Whoever was the weakest would fall. Either that, or whoever made it to the other side of the board first.

"What if the other's king is defeated?" Copernicus asked.

If that was the case, then Copernicus would have to succumb to his demands. The king was the most important piece on the board. Above everything, he must not let the king fall.

"How did you learn about this game?" The Inheritor was pretty interested in such a horroresque game. It was like an ancient game of nightmares, or some kind of occult game. The fact that even Prince Yale played with him at one time interested him.

"It's a game of the ancients. Many rulers have settled disputes this way. The only difference between that game and this one is that I have modernized it. Nearly everything is mechanical." Other than that, Hide had preserved it very well and stuck to the old traditions that had been passed on for centuries.

Blue eyes glanced down at the weapons. "Are those mechanized as well?"

"For the most part, they are only stationary," Hide educated him on their functionality.

"What do you mean 'for the most part'?" Copernicus narrowed his eyes. He caught the emphasis put on that phrase.

"They will take action if you don't," his opponent cleared the air on his obscure words.

"So, if I'm supposed to torture myself and I refuse," the Inheritor started to speak but before he could get the rest of his sentence out, he felt the cold metal around his ankles. Shackles clamped around his ankles snugly so that he couldn't move from his position at the table.

"Then you will be forced to. If all else fails, then I'll do it for you. It's perfectly fine and it's within the rules of the game." It was the same for Hide, so in other words, they had to suck it up and deal damage to themselves accordingly.

"What do you call this game of yours?" Copernicus was interested to see if it had an official name.

"It's simply known as the Punishment War Game," Hide said matter-of-factly.

"Well, since I'm already seated, we should begin, correct?" The Inheritor had nowhere to go from here. He was pretty much forced to play the game regardless, and those shackles weren't going to allow him to refuse the offer.

"Alright," Hide smirked, "let's begin. It's your move."

...To Be Continued

A/N: The Punishment War Game is actually a very old concept of mind back from 2000. I hope that everyone finds it interesting. The next chapter will be slightly gory but nothing outside of the span of normal anime scenarios, thus this story will keep its T rating.