Enchanted -N. Lantsov

Cause They See Right Through Me

"But it's a very low amount. To even be able to detect it, you'd need to be extremely powerful."

"Something Fabrikators are not." Sergei growled.

"I think you crying on the floor would say otherwise." Olysia crossed her arms.

"Have you taken a look in the mirror because you don't look as unharmed as you think."

"At least I'm not bitching about it."

"Enough!" Alina yelled. "Olysia stop antagonizing him and Sergei just stop."

"She's breaking the natural order of things." Sergei continued to argue. He lowered his voice, but everyone could hear him. "How is she any better than the Darkling?"

It would have been better if he punched her in the gut.

Olysia could not even refute it. Ever since she was a child, the Darkling had taken it upon himself to corrupt her from the inside, poisoning her once innocent soul and condemning the ruins to a lifetime of violence and anguish she could never get rid of.

Olysia began looking around at everyone with wild eyes like a rabid beast being cornered against a wall but she regretted it. They were scared of her, looking at her like they used to look at the Darkling.

In the corner of her eye, she could have sworn she saw him nodding proudly with a dark satisfaction in his eyes. Like he was proud of the darkness overtaking her.

Maybe Sergei was right. Maybe the Darkling had tainted Olysia from the inside and she allowed it to fester within her mind to create another one of his monsters. She had the evidence to prove he still haunted her with the scar that laid shamefully upon her shoulder.

Olysia felt her chest crack in half at the comparison and the world suddenly seemed duller so she did the only thing she could and filled the hole with rage.

"Say that again." Olysia urged with a snarl showcasing her bloody teeth.

"You are no better than him." Sergei stated.

All hell broke loose.

Olysia launched herself at Sergei. She didn't get very far because a set of arms wrapped around her torso and held her back.

Sergei's eyes widened and he stumbled backwards to get away from her as quickly as possible.

Everyone began yelling.

"Let go of me!" Olysia thrashed against the arms that held her. "Stop being a spineless coward and fight me like a real man."

"Olysia, he's not worth it."

Olysia turned her head around and glowered at David. "You heard what he just said."

"And there are other ways to prove him wrong because he is wrong." David tried to reason with her and reassure her that he didn't believe the cruel venom Sergei was spitting. "But this isn't one of them."

But Olysia couldn't believe him. The seed had already been planted. Just another heavy burden for Olysia to carry. Another nightmare her mind would craft to terrorize her sleep. She was already beginning to collapse under all the pressure, all the blame, all the guilt. What was a little more.

Olysia grew limp in his arms and David let go of her, trusting her to stay peaceful or at the very least too drained to act on her impulse.

"Let's get one thing straight, I will not have us compare our fellow soldier in arms to that monster of a man. Is that clear?" Alina spoke slowly to make sure everyone clearly understood her words. She waited for a verbal acknowledgement from everyone in the room. "Second, starting meaningless fights with each other is exactly what the Darkling wants, what the anti-Grisha men in the Grand Palace want. They want us to fail because if we attack our own then we're making it easier for them to get rid of us."