After half a week executing heists, and a few days after she obtained what she sought for, Ece finds herself standing statue-like, surrounded by mountains of foul-smelling waste.

And neither the afternoon's radiation nor the fresh wounds on her body can stop her.

There's a pair of twin-buildings on both her sides, acting like the field's gateway. Chunks of fading brick rest near the doorsteps. The gaps they used to fill gape like a trap far above her head.

It reminds her of her house's recent state. Yesterday, she overheard the thugs-conspiring officials' intent to confiscate it. Raiden's unfortunately like these buildings, failing to shield the homeless shelter from her scheme.

He's unlike her. She believes all of this is for better purposes in life.

Ece advances farther. Trampling on gooey substances and remnants alike.

The shelter doesn't differ much from the previous buildings, besides its one-storied state. But this one has human voices, like high-intensity cries and bickerings. 

And there are scents. Tobacco. Sour expired meals. Putrid puked leftovers.

Several lifted brows are aimed at the dried injuries wounding her nape, which she received while pursuing the onyx. Some women in dirty rags throw hushed tantrums at the constant squishes of her polluted boots and her yellowy-white skin.

She breaks through the rickety entrance with a single jerk of her burning palm.

The receptionist at the desk is yet to query when Ece's face vanishes. The buildings' materials shake, bursting out of their respective places and volleys along with the crowd's balance.

"Help! Quake, earthquake!"

Colorful threads stretch out of the panicking bodies, weaving into the glowing-amethyst onyx as if it's absorbing them. Together, they enter through Ece's palm like yanked prisoners. Leaving their quaking and crumbling world behind.

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The curse-caster's journal hasn't mentioned the weight of bearing people's souls.

When Ece reaches her new hideout—hours away from the site she's been to, her sudden arrival causes Tayana to shrink deeper into the patched blanket with widening eyes.

The old yet sturdy door is forced back to its frame with the smallest of kicks. Ece's fervent inhales and Tayana's gasps cloud the entire room after the creaks recede.

Ece lies on the bare wooden panels, face-first. Her chin and mandible ache after the unplanned contact. Forcing herself to move, she thrusts her arms forward, nails digging between the floor's panels.

Her face has returned after the onyx's effect dissipated.

"I brought something, Tayana," she lifts the jeweled palm, "to help you."

Tayana trembles from her fever, breath exiting like rusty hinges. "You should've let me die. Nothing can save me now."

"Come on, after all I've been through for you? You can't surrender now."

Tayana looks at her hands, which are decorated with darkening veins. The last time she stared at a mirror, a black-spotted face stared back. She hasn't recognized her own reflection ever since.

"These souls in this onyx can heal you. They provide life-energies. Enough to patch your consumed ones." Ece's monologue doesn't pause, despite her continuous sharp intakes of breath and tightened cries in her throat.

Who knew that the onyx has side-effects as torturing as these for the bearer?

"There aren't any side effects for me, are there?"

"The caster didn't mention anything in his journal."

There's a depressed pause as Tayana's neck crack at her rushed sideways movement.

"What caster? Ece, if you're attempting dark magic on me—" By then, Tayana's composed self has revealed its slumbered personality—bigmouthed. "Give me the journal, please. Since magic isn't commonly acknowledged by commoners, I'd like to—"

"For Hades' sake, Tayana. I'm in pain, and you're pressing on a journal!"

"You could've explained the terms and conditions—"

"When could I?"

Yesterday was the peak of Tayana's suffering. When Ece smuggled into the hospital, Tayana was convulsing, surrounded by a dozen medical troops in white. The tubes were bundled into one another as they struggled to keep her breathing.

Losing Tayana, who was her brother's crush, means more than losing him.

Tayana's destined—supposed—to die today.

"I'm here to save you, not otherwise. How many times should I convince you?"

"How many times do I need these—"

Tayana's heart leaps as Ece's struggles intensify. The piercing weight drops Ece to the rug. The jewel's imprinted heat is a cue of its restlessness.

Maybe once is alright. The consequences can wait, right?

"Cursed gink—"

"Alright, alright, do it!" It's quieter than supposed amidst Ece's grunts of despair. Without brushing her scabbed legs to the thick blanket, Tayana attempts to adjust her head on the sweaty pillow.

Ece clasps her rebelling right wrist. She has memorized the caster's healing incantation, which was scribbled on the shabbiest page in the journal. Her flattened tongue, however, pronounces the Lithuanian sentence far from her linguistic brain's expectations. After all, it's supposed to be mouthed in an intake of breath.

"Be grateful that the onyx grants you health, survival, and second chances."

The onyx turns amethyst as Ece collapses. Obsidian threads strain out like medical tubes, aiming for Tayana's trembling arm. The coldness smothers Tayana's gasps. It tightens around like a blood pressure monitor.

Shimmering amethyst particles cross the threads. The ones reaching the end submerge into Tayana's anemic skin. They give her life. Resurrect her strength and will to live.

They also damage the mysterious plagues which have persisted since six months ago, and treat them like a dandelion's florets. The amethyst particles replace those darker ones in her vessels.

Here's her second chance at living.

The jewel's finally removable, and as its amethyst hue darkens into teal, Ece tosses it to the nightstand next to Tayana's bed. Sweat streaks across her sallow facial features, glistening like bulbs.

All the same, the black dots tainting Tayana's physique fade, as if it's wiped with acetone. "I...Goodness. This is amazing, Ece. You've—"

"Became a medically-uneducated doctor." The lifted weight empties Ece's palm, leaving a pinkish outline of the onyx.

"This is unbelievable. How can I repay you?" There's an unfamiliar strength in Tayana's voice, one which had rejected to linger in her throat.

For a while, Ece's words stumble inside her mouth. She, too, is awed by the onyx's capabilities. "I need you to stay alive and remain as my unofficial sister, that's all."

The teal particles evaporate from the scorching jewel, leaving nothing but a sickly scent. The jewel returns to its inactive—onyx—state.

The pair is soon engaged in a two-way conversation, unlike yesterday. However, their next topic after Tayana's recovery is the one she's eager for, contrasting Ece's will.

"How's Raiden with you leaving him?"

"He doesn't know we're here. I think it's better to leave him unaware of these."

"But why? He can join us here."

"Let him deal things himself. First, our house will be confiscated soon."

It's the second blow for Tayana. "Then where is he?"

"Possibly weeping behind the shrubs near the fountain—his favorite hideout. He still thinks you're dying."

"Yeah? I want to meet him. It's been a while since—"

"Don't," When it's out of Ece's mouth, it sounds like a threat and not prohibition. "He'll question your recovery."

"I can make a story—"

"He'll sniff my existence here."

"Well, don't you want to—"

"I've had enough of his lack of independence." She doesn't entirely accept that statement actually. Just, when she has earned a prestigious title one day, she doesn't wish to be labeled as an ex-refugee's younger sister.

Tayana's silent the whole time when Ece's face crumples itself. Upsetting Tayana, who's just recovered, is the least thing she will ever do.

"Tsk. Fine. You can visit him. But don't say anything about me. Convince him this is an earthly miracle and not—"

"Sometimes I feel like I'm the one 14 and you're 16."

"Check Raiden for me, and ensure he's guaranteed. Not scavenging over our neighbors, that's humiliating."

Tayana kicks the layered blanket, relishing her freedom. It almost lands on Ece's face and not thin air. Tayana salutes as she ransacks her webbed drawers, gathering her essential belongings.

"To avoid his suspicions—he possesses mom's detective brain," Ece fishes a handful of keys from her purse, unclasps one off its ring, and throws it to the widemouthed girl. "Our neighbor's. He's kayaking at Oceania. Say you're his distant relative—"

"Don't worry. I was a literature champion—remember my victorious poems last year?"

"Mama! Rose petals!" The rushed feet clashing with the floorboards from the outside result in Ece's stiffening face. Ece rolls off the bed and hunts for a broom and a dustpan. She was so careless to not clean the mess her onyx has caused. If the others find out...

"Where the heck—" Apparently, Tayana stores them under her bed. She's too frozen to inform its forgotten whereabouts. "Return soon, Tayana. While I deal with these..." Ece's eyes squint as Tayana's fallen hazel hair curl on her toes, "chores on your doorstep."

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A/N: I deeply thank everyone who has reached this part, you guys don't know how much I appreciate your acts. Also to the voters and commenters—you guys really support me a lot! I hope this story meets your expectations. I'm keeping in mind each of your feedback and try to improve Sinister the best I can :D