A Broken Spark - A Feral Story

Chapter 5: Lazura, Shinigami Witch

In the Blood Tundra's infamous lake, a mysterious traveler appears. A strange character, wearing a cloak that covers their face. It looked like a muscular fae, but had the head of a senri. They had a hammer held over their shoulders, with black smoke coming out of her nostrils. She was wondering the isles of the lake aimless, plucking some materials to be found. After finding some, she decided to take a small break on the mountain-island in the center of the lake.
She sat down to relax, and...
"YaAGGH!"
Her rather massive weight made her fall through the mountain, landing somewhere.

A little earlier...
Maxwell woke up somewhere unfamiliar. He was sitting on some kind of couch.
He raised his head and looked around. He tried to move, but something restricted him from doing so. He looked down and found a shackle on his paw, which was chained to the wall.
"What the-?" He looked to his side, and saw Azar, knocked out on the other side of the couch. She had a shackle on her right talon, chained to the wall. "Azar!"
She drowsily woke up. "M-Max? Where are we?"
The two could then hear singing. A woman's voice. It sent them into a fight-or-flight mode briefly. It came from the doorway they were facing.
Someone joined the two in the room. It was the witch, holding a tea tray. She was vocalizing some kind of song.
Azar tugged on her chains in a panic seeing her.
Maxwell scowled somewhat. He was angry, but managed to contain it.
"I believe we got off to rather... unfortunate start last time." The witch began, before sitting on a chair. She used her magic to give the two their cups of tea, and set them down on tables close to them.
Azar didn't dare touch her cup. Max just scowled.
"In any case, pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Lazura." The shinigami greeted.
"And what do you want?" Azar growled.
"I just want to ease any tensions between us. Make some peace. Get us to understand one another better." The shinigami chuckled beneath her silver mask. "I am surprised though, that managed to make through the Blood Tundra, no Spark's land. My experience would've said the exhaustion of cracked Spark would've gotten to you." She refereed to the green kitsune, who just scowled.
"Why did you do this to me?" Maxwell angrily asked.
"Why did I do it to you? Consider this. Everyone in Feral, we're all just pieces on the board of life. There are stronger pieces and the weaker pieces. I consider myself one of the stronger pieces, for I have been working on a way to revolutionize magic everywhere. However, such takes years to develop, and I don't have years. At least, not on my own."
"And what does that mean?" Maxwell asked.
"You, Maxwell. You and me, we're in the same boat, are we not?" Lazura chuckled slightly. "You see, I understand your pain. I really do. But I've had to endure for much, much longer." Lazura said, sliding her finger on Max's horn, and picking one of the flowers on it.
"Don't touch him." Azar threatened. "And spit it out, stop being cryptic."
"Have you truly not figured it out?" Lazura then moved her mask slightly, revealing her forehead. She revealed her Spark, which, like Maxwell's, was cracked.
The two gasped at that revelation. "Like I said, it's just a game. The stronger pieces have to knock the weaker pieces off of the board to prevent their downfall. So just like that, I 'borrow' the light from sparks by cracking them, to preserve mine, so I can finish my life's work." She explained.
"So that's why you did that to him? To steal his energy? And kill him?!" Azar yelled as her voice got louder and cracked, holding back tears.
Lazura scoffed. "I don't intend to kill him. Wether he, or many other that met a similar fate, die to me, that's not my concern. All that matters is that I get my life's work out the world. He's just a pawn on the board; they don't change the game, they only assist the stronger pieces, on way or another."
"Your 'life's work' isn't worth the lives of hundreds of sparks! You monster!" Azar snapped as she tried to tug on her chain.
"Besides, Maxwell. You said it yourself. You're nothing but a burden. To your family, to Feral, to your friend here. You wrote it down in that journal of yours. But in five measly days, you ease that burden. You hurt no one more."
Maxwell knew the witch was right. And it hurt hit him deep, making look off to the side and shed a tear.
Azar was mad at the vile witch for upsetting Maxwell, and tried to snap at her with her beak, but she couldn't get close enough to her.
"Tenacious one, aren't you?" Lazura chuckled. "Actually, Azar, I would like to have a word with you." Lazura then snapped her fingers, causing Max to teleport away, making him scream while doing so.
Azar gasped upon seeing her friend disappear. She held her wing out in his direction then sighed with a mixture of despair and anger. "What do you want?" She growled.
"You have quite the spirit for such a young witch. An unbreakable will. To bring happiness to Feral. Am I right?"
Azar paused and nodded slowly.
"I'm an old shinigami. I'm not regaining any time I lost even as I speak, and bringing about a way to change how magic works globally is hard work. But someone with such spunk, such energy, like you. You, would be the perfect helper. You know what they say, us witches have to stick together." Lazura said.
"Y-Yes But..."
"This is your chance to step on the board. To become a piece that matters." Lazura offered.
Azar growled. "I can move up as a piece By figuring out how to fix broken sparks and learning how to help millions! That's how you bring a revolution to magic!" She snapped.
The witch tapped her fingers together, and smiled beneath her mask. "Ah, I see. That Maxwell lad, you... care for him, don't you?"
Azar looked down. "I-I do." She said as her voice got quiet.
She put a hand on her feathers. "I can tell. But not as a friend. I sense... something stronger about him from you. Aah, now I get it."
Azar continued to look away. She had a feeling she knew what these emotions Lazura was referring to were, but she was somewhat ignorant.
"Don't get me wrong dear. There is no need to hide your feelings from your fellow witch. We have to stick together, you know." She tried to comfort.
"...I do care for him. A lot. I don't really know what this feeling is. Whatever it is, I'm doing everything in my power to save him. I'm not doing this for a stupid breakthrough, it's to save him. No one deserves to go out like that."
"But why? Why develop such feelings for him? You know he has less than five days left. The more you grow attached to someone, the more it will hurt when they're gone. And besides... do you even think he feels the same for you? You're a phoenix with a mastery over magic, he's a kitsune who spent his whole life behind pencil and paper."
"I don't care! I want him to be saved, so I can... tell him how I feel. That's... what I feel like. I would do anything to save him." She said.
The witch sipped her tea, and readjusted her mask. "Anything, hm?"

Meanwhile.
Maxwell woke up, found himself in an icy cave, attached in chains, which were strapped to the ceiling. He tried to wriggle out, but to no avail.
"Azar!!" He tried yelling for her. "Azar. Wh-where...." He stammered to himself.
Suddenly, he heard a loud crash noise, a deep female scream, and a thud behind him. The loud noise startled him, and he tried to turn his head behind to see where it came from.
It was strange senri-fae, with the massive hammer. She got off and shook of the fall.
"Hey! Hey! Help!" Max pleaded.
The strange character got up, and saw Maxwell chained to the ceiling. "Should be chained up there?" She asked.
"No time! Help me get out! I gotta find my friend!"
"Okay." The strange being said. She jumped up, and swung her hammer against the chains, breaking them.

"Well, pleasure doing business with you, fellow witch. Assuming you do decide to do that." Lazura chuckled.
"Now, let us go." Azar threatened.
"Very well." Lazura snapped her fingers. Suddenly, Azar's body was wrapped in chains. She squirmed in them, trying to get out. She picked the phoenix up by the chains, and carried her.

Maxwell impacted the ground from being freed from his chains.
"Thank you." He thanked the strange character.
She picked up the chains and examined them. "Bah. Poor quality."
"Azar! That witch still has her! I-I need to find her!"
Then the door behind Max opened, with the witch emerging from it, holding Azar.
"What?!" She saw Maxwell free from his bonds. "How did you?!"
"You!" Max screamed before summoning a sharp crystal from his Spark, recoiling him backwards.
The crystal hit Lazura's mask, cracking it and making her scream in pain. She dropped Azar.
The strange senri-fae helped Azar break free. "Thank you."
"No time, let's get outta here!" Max urged, with the three begging to run out of the cavern.
Lazura quickly got up, her mask cracked. "Oh no you DON'T!" She then fired a strange purple magic orb, which struck Maxwell in the spark, making him trip.
"Maxwell!" Azar screamed.
"I-I'm fine." Max didn't feel any different. "Come on!" He continued following the two to the exit of the cave.
"Hahaha... the clock is ticking faster, kitsune. Enjoy your time... unless your little 'special someone' comes through with me." Lazura cackled before heading back into her hideout.