[En Route to the DPA Detention Facility]
The slight bumps in the road were the first thing that Mikayla Dempsey felt when she finally woke up from her slumber.
That, along with the not-so-sutle pain that was currently radiating throughout her entire body.
When the curly-haired brunette finally came to her senses, she immediately realized that something was not right. Not only was she sore all over, but the fact that she couldn't move any of her limbs was more than a bit concerning, to say the least.
For a brief moment, the young woman thought that she had lost the ability to move her limbs, but those assumptions quickly came to an end when she realized that she was strapped down to what appeared to be some sort of hospital gurney. One that was outfitted with mana-suppressing cuffs that were currently holding her arms and legs in place.
'What the fuck happened?' The Iznana operative wondered before the memories of her fight cam flooding back in.
The last thing that she clearly remembered was seeing the absolute monstrosity of a cryptid that Maria Ortega apparently had in her possession. A creature that she had never actually seen before, that stared at her with those horrific yellow eyes, before what she assumed to be its tail came crashing down on her like a moving car.
How that woman could have something like that in her cryptid inventory was a complete mystery to her-
"Oh, fuck!" The 'bone magic' user shouted when she finally put two and two together.
Mikayla instantly began to check her surroundings and was horrified by what she saw. Not only was she currently tied to some sort of detainment bed, but she was also inside of a large truck that had DPA logos on the wall.
The worst-case scenario had happened. There was no way for her to deny it. She had been captured. Taken prisoner by the very people that she had spent so much time and effort avoiding with the rest of her friends.
Purely out of instinct, the curly-haired brunette began to thrash against her constraints in an attempt to free herself from her confinement. But unfortunately for her, Mikayla was locked in tight. Completely unable to move a muscle. Not only that, the DPA had taken the liberty of making sure that she wouldn't be able to use her magic thanks to these damn cuffs. Normally, something like this would've been childsplay to get out of. But since she couldn't use her 'bone magic' to cut herself free, there was no chance of that happening anytime soon.
"I need to get out of here." The woman then said with a sour look. "I can't get caught like this. Maybe Hannah and Aaron can-"
Mikyala's mind then flashed back to Sebastian's comment earlier that night. The guy had straight-up told her that their stupid station was making a move on all of her people.
This meant that there was a very real possibility that the others were captured as well. Just like her. The woman didn't want to believe it, but if the DPA had managed to get their hands on her, then Hannah and Aaron were probably in the same predicament. Or worse, the two of them were probably dead by now.
She knew that the DPA preferred to take their targets in alive whenever possible. But there was no telling what might've happened to them in all of the chaos. But even worse, if the two of them were out of the picture, then the chances of them coming to rescue her were effectively zero.
"What the hell am I gonna do?" The woman wondered out loud as she desperately tried to find a positive way to spin this.
This wasn't supposed to happen to her. Not even in the slightest. Mikyala Dempsey was someone who had a bright future ahead of her. One with riches and comfort as far as the eye could see. She couldn't end up in a place like Area 53, a cold underground prison where the country housed all of its sorcerer criminals. She was simply too good for something like that.
No, that wasn't what the universe had planned for her. She was supposed to be living in the lap of luxury until the end of her days. That's what the plan had always been.
As the woman began to seriously lament over her current circumstances, one semi-positive thought popped into her head. At the very least, she wasn't going to be killed. That wasn't how the DPA did things. And that by itself was enough to give her a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel.
Mikyala had a ton of valuable information that she could use to bargain with. The kind of information that the DPA would love to get their hands on. She was in the know about a lot of Iznana's inner workings. How much money they made, where they were located, and who worked for them. And she had firsthand knowledge about one of Iznana's Branch Heads, including her identity and those who worked directly under her.
It wasn't ideal, but Mikyala knew that this kind of juicy info would be enough to grant her a bit of leniency at her upcoming trial. Hell, it might even be enough for her to secure herself a nice plea deal. After all, the DPA would love to know who was really running the show around the country.
"Man, screw that bitch!" The 'bone magic' user said with a frown. "I don't care how much she's done for us! I'm not getting locked away forever without putting up a fight and taking her down with me!"
Yeah, that was it. That was going to be her out. Mikayla was going to use everything she knew about Elaine and her flunkies to keep her head above water. It was her best chance at avoiding the worst while possibly being enough to get herself a nice deal.
These thoughts alone were enough to bring a slight smile to the 'bone magic' user's face. But that smile quickly vanished when she noticed something appear out of the corner of her eye.
The woman tilted her head up to see what was going on, and her blood almost froze in place when she got a good look at what had piqued her interest.
There, steadily crawling up her leg, was a bug. And not just any bug, but a black one, roughly the size of the palm of her hand, with strange purple and blue markings all over its body. The creature could hardly be considered ordinary by any normal person who could see. However, Mikyala knew exactly what that bug was, and who sent it….
"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" The woman once again began to violently thrash against her constraints as the insect-type cryptid continued to crawl up her body. "No, fuck, get away!"
Mikayla knew good and well just how dangerous Duncan Conley's hive of cryptids was. She had seen the damage that they could do with her own eyes a few times before. These disgusting creatures packed a deadly venom that could take out a full-grown elephant if they wanted. And the fact that one of them was right in front of her could only mean one thing.
"No, stop!" The curly-haired brunette shouted again. But unfortunately for her, her cries of defiance did nothing to stop the creature's advance. And not even the DPA dogs driving the truck could hear her screams.
Soon enough, the cryptid had stopped just shy of her face and planted itself right on top of the right side of her neck. A cold sweat suddenly formed on the 'bone magic' user's brow as she desperately tried to activate her mana to try and get the thing away from her. But despite her struggles, she could do nothing to stop the thing from raising its fangs and plunging them deep into her flesh.
Immediately, Mikayla felt the insect's magically fueled venom entering her system. And what little control she had over her body suddenly vanished as she began to uncontrollably convulse right where she lay.
In a matter of seconds, she had completely lost control of herself. And it felt as though someone had injected gasoline right into her veins.
With its job now complete, Duncan's companion simply opened its wing before flying off, leaving a rapidly deteriorating Mikayla to suffer her fate.
Despite the pain, the woman was still conscious enough to feel everything that was happening to her. But as the seconds went by, her body steadily began to shut down and lose all function.
As the world began to twist and turn in all directions, a batch of old memories filled Mikayala's mind. Memories of her parents, of her time on the street, and even ones of all the good times that she had with her two closest friends.
Her vision was now getting blurry, and she could feel the foam beginning to leak out of her mouth. But for some reason, all she could think about was the few moments of genuine happiness that she was able to experience.
'It's not fair.' Mikyala thought to herself as the world slowly faded to black around her. 'It's just not fair. It wasn't supposed to be this way.'
Maybe in her next life, Mikayla Dempsey will be able to experience the joys that she never had a chance to in this one. She'll be able to buy all of the jewelry that she wanted and wear all of the expensive clothes that she desired. But as far as this one was concerned, there was no happy ending for her.
No, what she got instead was an unceremonious death in the back of some armored truck. Tossed away like a cheap toy by the very people who had given her a chance to try to obtain the things that she always wanted.
'Fuck you, Elaine. I'll see you in Hell, bitch…' Was the last thought that ever crossed Mikyala's mind before her heart stopped beating.
And just like that, her life had come to an end. Alone and afraid, with no one but herself to blame for how it all turned out in the end.