Pain tore through Laurel's head like it was being split open. She dropped to the ground with her hand gripping her head.
"What is this pain? Make it stop."
[Unless hosts agree to work together the pain won't go away. If it goes lower… that will be the end of the system… and the hosts' lives.]
"Un… Unbelievable. Can't we just have new partners?" Laurel groaned in pain.
[NO]
"There is no way I can work with her. She is ungrateful and doesn't know what she wants." Ling Xuan's voice was calm, but it was laced with pain.
Laurel's brows furrowed. "Who told you I don't know what I want?" she snapped back.
"Then, what do you want?!"
"Revenge! I want to pay back everyone for the wrong they did to me. I want to rise when the apocalypse comes… I want to be revered by all!" Her voice thickened with pain.
"Then why are you still kind?! Why are you fighting with me when I stand against the people who have hurt you? I wouldn't have cared about this… but I'm sharing the same body as you… which means your problems are the same as mine!"
"I cared because I'm not heartless. I'll only face the people who have led to my death." Laurel's eyes narrowed, her shadows trembled as her breath came out in huffs.
"And what about the people who talk badly to us?"
Laurel blinked her eyes in confusion. Hearing the word 'us' made her realize that this wasn't only about her… it was about them.
"What do you want?" Laurel muttered under her breath.
"Power."
"Power? What about our revenge?"
"Think about it, how can we have revenge without power? Power… is everything." Ling Xuan's voice lowered.
Laurel's brows knitted together. She could hear her heart pounding in her chest. As much as she wanted to tell Ling Xuan that she was being greedy and too power-driven, she knew that everything she said was right.
She had lived in the apocalypse, she knew what it was like. It was only the ones in power that managed to survive… without power, you become a doormat for the ones on top. And you become disposable without them thinking twice about it.
If she really wanted to survive the apocalypse… she had to harden her heart completely... Which she believes will be quite difficult for her considering her kind nature.
But she has someone inside her who is as good as heartless. Ling Xuan. If she had Ling Xuan then she wouldn't need to be worried about not being hardened enough. Ling Xuan would be her shield.
Laurel closed her eyes, trying to steady her breath, but her chest kept rising and falling fast.
"If you're too soft to kill our enemies," Ling Xuan's voice cut through the silence again, colder this time, "then I'll do it for us."
Laurel's eyes snapped open. "You can't just kill everyone who insults me," she hissed, gripping her arms.
"I never said everyone," Ling Xuan said calmly. "Just the ones that are a threat to us. And what do you view me as? A killing monster with no brain?!'
Laurel barely had a second to respond before another wave of pain exploded behind her eyes again. She screamed and lay flat on the ground, her fingers clawing at the floor.
Inside her head, Ling Xuan groaned through clenched teeth. "YOU…"
[SYSTEM WARNING: SYNC RATE FALLING… HOSTS IN DANGER.]
Laurel gasped as her vision blurred, her skull throbbing like it would crack open. The pressure was worse this time like her soul was being yanked in opposite directions.
"Stop… stop it!" she cried.
[CRITICAL CONDITION: COHERENCE REQUIRED.]
"Fine!" Laurel shouted hoarsely. "We'll work together… but only under one condition!"
Ling Xuan's voice was breathless but steady. "Say it!"
"You don't take over unless I'm in danger. Not ever without my say."
"In your dreams! We have the same right to this body and you can't decide when and where I should take over!"
A blaring alarm sound began to ring in their heads.
"Fine! We will share the body!"
A long pause followed.
"Good," Ling Xuan murmured, "And whatever I do in my time, you don't have the right to nag me about it… Remember it is OUR life."
Laurel stared at the faint ceiling light, sweat trickling down her temple. "Deal."
[Soul Sync compatibility increasing: 25%… 30%… 40%…]
The pain eased slowly. Laurel slumped forward, her arms trembling under her. Her heartbeat slowed like it was seconds away from stopping, and Ling Xuan went quiet too.
They both exhaled.
For the first time since the bond, the weight in Laurel's chest felt a little lighter. She sat up shakily. "Let us survive… together."
Ling Xuan's voice was low, but it was sharp like steel. "Survival is an understatement… we will conquer."
"Mrs. Wayne!" A loud voice came from behind her.
Laurel turned around, and she grimaced in displeasure.
One of the maids stood at the end of the hallway, her eyes widening with fear. "Are you alright?"
Laurel wiped the sweat off her face with her sleeve and forced herself to stand straight. "I'm fine."
"But you were screaming like you were in serious pain," the maid said quietly. "Should I call the doctor?"
"No," Laurel replied a little too quickly. "Don't call anyone."
The maid hesitated. "But you…"
"I said I'm fine," Laurel cut in, her tone firmer now. She didn't mean to snap, but she couldn't afford more people asking questions.
The maid nodded and backed away slowly, casting one last glance before disappearing around the corner.
Laurel sighed, dragging a hand through her hair.
Inside her mind, Ling Xuan hummed in approval. "That's more like it."
Laurel closed her eyes, ignoring her. She dragged her aching body to her room. If everything happens like it did in her past life.
Tomorrow will be the day her sister will be visiting. She clenched her hands tightly into a fist. "I need to prepare a befitting gift for her."
"I don't mind doing the honour of presenting it to her."