She is scared, but she's a quick thinker. She nods.

I take her hand in mine, although it is transparent right now. Ignoring the shouts coming from the former Hunter-general, I sense her. I feel the hand of the other similarly transparent being. The agreement making this a lot easier.

I pull. And the dark sillouette of a girl leaves the net and her body behind. I pull her closer to me, hugging her tightly, grounding, not letting go. Annie screams at first, in unison with her uncle, but then falls to silence. The tides of Abyss release her slowly, allowing the sillouette to gain colors, to gain consciousness, as the last of the timer's seconds go away.

With a quiet click, the grinder-net springs to life, tightening around it's hold with a mechanical whurr. Shepherd screams, as the metal wires cut through him and the body of his niece.

I pat Annie at the head, holding her gently, yet forcing not to look at where her uncle screams, struggling against the tightening net. It is not a sight for her yet to see, as a man is cut into bleeding pieces of meat and bones by machinery. Not yet, and if she's lucky enough – never.

We make eye contact one last time, me and Shepherd. His face a furious mess. But I say nothing to him. I only hold Annie a bit tighter, whispering to her quietly.

— It's okay. He will never hurt you again. He will never hurt anyone again. I promise.

(Pt. 2/2), crossposted on my subreddit where you can read the rest of the series as it appears