Sienna Cartlow's Story

Taja glared at the perverted man in front of her, she wasn't about to fall asleep in the same room as that man. She was extremely tired and if she didn't act fast she would fall asleep right where she was, which was in direct view of the perverted man. Everyone had passed out including the Great Yohan himself. "Loser." She whispered.

Wobbling towards the stairs she climbed each one with the last big of energy she had before opening the door and rolling into a seemingly hall and closing the door behind her. She had made it, her eyes barely opened. Raising her hand to her shoulder she gave herself a job-well-done pat right before falling asleep pressed against the closed door.

If someone was to try and open the door, say by the perverted man, than she would be awakened and ready to fight off the attacker.

---

---

Taja woke up in a large pink room and lined up along the walls were tables covered in grey sheets and on top of it was plated of food. Hot dogs, hamburgers, french fries, and more! Her mouth watered just looking at it. She hadn't eaten since she the morning she heard the voices. Her brows furrowed, if she would have just stayed home and called her mother about the voices in her head, then none of the events would have happen.

"Momma is probably sick with worry right now and what about daddy?" She said to herself, though in the middle of the room was Sienna pigging out on plates of food. Her face twisted with disgust. "Just what can't you shove down your throat?" She asked the dream Sienna. She just looked up at Taja, her expression blank and she kept shoving food down her throat.

Shivers ran down her back as she moved away from her and towards one of the tables. A sigh read ALL YOU CAN EAT! on it. Well she was hungry and if it was free she might as well. Taking a plate she started to fill it up with hot dogs, a hamburger, some fries, a donut, some gummy worms, and headed to a safe spot away from the lifeless expression of Sienna.

She took a bite of the hamburger and squealed with delight, "Sew gewd!" In six bites she was done with the burger, she understood why Sienna was eating it as fast as she could. The food was amazing! She watched as Sienna got up and grabbed two more plates and return to the place she was at. Taja counted the plates that were stacked in next to Sienna. "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten. Oh there are some more behind her." Taja leaned over, "eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen! How is she eating that much? And why isn't she stopping?"

A voice from under one of the tables could be heard, "Well you see, she is just a pig. Though her thighs aren't as gre-" Taja had shoved her plate into the perverted man's face.

"What are you doing here?! Get out! Get out! GET OUT!" She had kicked him back under the table and ran over towards Sienna. "We have to go! Stop eating!" She screamed as she shook the expressionless red head. Sienna did nothing but eat and look up at her. Taja took a deep breath and slapped Sienna's face. "WAKE UP!" But to no avail she kept eating.

Behind Sienna two doors appeared, one red and one blue. She looked behind her and the perverted man was smiling at them in a very creepy way. She grabs Sienna's hand and runs towards the red door. Behind her the perverted man danced with a broom after them. "Come back my lovely ladies!"

Frederick simply lay on his back and ate his burger in thought. What was he going to do now?...Well he cant just walk back home right now. What if someone sees an unknown man walk out of their neighbors house? What would he tell the police? "Hello officer! This seems to be a mistake, I was inside a parrallell dimension and then appeared in this hous's basment after a teen grabbed a strange device and said magic words!" They would think he was a mad man! He did not need to read books, or watch cartoons to know this was a very bad idea.

Once Frederick finished his burger he soon sat up. Well...there were two teens sleeping in a dark and decrepit basment...which was also dusty he had to add. Well, this was a house...must have a bed somewhere...With a shrug and flex of the arm. He lifted Yohan over one shoulder and Sienna over the other shoulder. And they say Janitor work did not build some muscle. Well he was proving them all wrong! Like...right this instant even though no one was here to look at his acomplishment.

The man easily noted the little girls missing person. He just guessed she had found a secure place away from him. Come of Frederick! Even though a human with horns and a tail are almost impossible...now a girl thinks your a pervert...well, what could he do? He just drew comics and manga, cooked food food and cleaned house very well...man...this kinda stinked but maybe he dould make this up!....somehow!...

With a simple shrug Frederick climbed the stairs from the basment into the house above. There might be a few rooms with beds right? Well...they could be locked for starters, I mean how easy would it be if he placed his hand on a doorknob and...twisted...and...it opened...

How...covinent! The room led to a single bed which looked like someones personal room. Well he plopped Yohan right in bed and pulled the sheets over him. Then after looking around the house descovering almost every other area in the process, he soon found another empty room and got Sienna tucked in...

Now what? He had nothing to...Oh! Thats right! This house was dusty! And dirty! He was going to clean this place up! Easily grabbing a broom and with a mop and a bucket of cleaning water. He got to work cleaning this house at a quick pace. "A janitors work is never done!...maybe I should cook some food afterwards...yeah...more burgers sounds nice..." He nodded ro himself as he dleaned the house.

Shiro and Yohan traveled along a set of stone stairs. With each step they took, the spiraling motion they underwent as they ascended upward messed with Yohan's mind. How could the place have been built and yet he could only see the same pattern over and over again? How could he not see any differences in the steps when he could see things like cracks in them? Perhaps they were minor things to complain about, but to him it was like a bad itch that just wouldn't go away.

It finally came to an end when they ascended up to the top of one of the castle's towers. Seeing the castle itself like this struck Yohan in a way only his body seemed to recall, a feeling of overwhelming excitement that made him want to see the castle in full. His attention quickly was drawn back to Shiro when he pointed out towards the land around the castle. When Yohan rushed over to where Shiro stood, the excitement was quickly gone and replaced with horror.

Barren. It was a barren wasteland that surrounded the castle. Not a single fire to light up the land, not a single plant could grow here, not a single sign of life was here. "Why?" Yohan spoke with a growing despair to his tone. "Why is it like this?"

"This is the struggle everyone eventually faces. Ruin, Desolation, Destruction, Death, Despair, Madness, Agony. This is the world outside of this castle now."

"But... How could it have gotten to this point?" Yohan's question forced Shiro to inhale greatly before releasing it slowly. The expression on Shiro's face showed the pure sorrow he held for his next words.

"Because hope dies out. When hope dies out, one loses the will to fight. When one loses this will, they want only the end. This is that end now, creeping it's way into the mind and infecting everything around it with corruption. If nothing is done, there will only be nothing. This castle is the last stronghold against this nothing. When this castle falls, death will come."

"What... What can I do about it?" Yohan turns his head to look at Shiro, who's eyebrows rose before quickly lowering as his eyes closed.

"Believe. You must believe." These words left Yohan confused, yet when he went to speak, everything became blurry to his sight. He felt tired, his eyes closing as his mind drifted off.

---

Back we shall go, for all of you connected. The feeling of shared bonds shall pass on similar feelings. A tightening grip of visions shall now take hold for this point of time!

The loud noise of thunder caused his eyes to open, if it weren't for his helmet rain would be dripping all over his face. He rose up from the ground to find he laid upon grass, his body shaking with upmost fright! His head felt foggy, his chest heavy with fear, while his skin crawled with pain that cut deep into his soul. A terrible night had striked his home, and only he had lived to tell the tale.

His body shot up to rise, quick with adrenaline, as a storm rained down upon his armor. The heavy force of rain clashed with his armor, an eerie darkness tried to cut off his sight! With his newfound energy, he pushed himself up to his feet to look for his parent's castle. Alas, with a flash of lightning and a roar of thunder, he had found his home. The darkness was not there merely for looks, it had somehow creeped it's way to the physical realm!

The castle he once called home had now been consumed, the darkness before him reeked of something born of wicked desire. Visions struck through his mind of how he had been inside the castle, of how he had traversed his way through it and saw the fallen bodies of his comrades before it appeared. The sudden darkness that had consumed his home had now latched itself onto the castle, everything inside was more than likely lost. Within minutes, the sound of horses came in the distance, the knight looking over to see his friends approaching his position. Someone had found him, and that could only mean more disaster awaited him.

"My prince, thank the gods you survived!" One of his fellow knights spoke up, with all of the horses stopping before him. "Thy castle was attacked by a wicked force of magic! Where is his Majesty?!"

"I cannot say." The prince said. "I did not see him come out. I, too, had thought myself consumed."

"Thou mustn't speak lies, m'lord!" The knight proclaimed with disbelief. "No man could hath survived from within!"

"'Tis only the truth I speak! I was within, and here I stand before thee! Would thou question me in a moment of crisis?!"

"T'was not my intention, but that would make thee the first man to hath survived! This evil has spread throughout the lands, m'lord! Our forces dwindle each time we attack! This could very well spell the end if his Majesty truly is dead!"

"There is a way, but thou would hast to take me to a wizard!"

"Hath thou lost thy mind?! Wizards hath brought nothing but misfortune upon the lands! What makes thou think any wizard can be trusted?!"

"This one owes me a favor, and I intend to find out from him the truth of this evil! If my father truly is dead, he will know. I will ride alone if I must, but either way I am seeing this wizard!"

---

Yohan's eyes slowly opened as his eyes narrowed. He could hear it raining, again with this huh? He reached out slowly and grabbed hold of the time near his bed, his eyes shifting tiredly to look over at it. Eight A.M. huh? That was unusually early for him. Oh well, he could at least get people out of his house so he could go back to sleep. He already heard the noise of something moving about, no doubt it was that weird adult they had met before.

He got up to his feet and walked out to the living room, as he did so, he heard the sound of a television already playing. His eyes slowly narrowing until he walked out into the living room to fully see and hear it. "Yesterday afternoon saw a terrible tragedy." The news was on, and they were talking about yesterday of all things? "A model crashed her car and died immediately upon impact. Police suspected her ex-boyfriend Richard Leonard to be behind the case, however when coming to his home for questioning, they found Richard nowhere to be found."

Wait a minute, yesterday, accident... No, it couldn't be. They were talking about that lady who just crashed and died before they were sent off?! No, he had to calm down, he was overthinking this. He still couldn't entirely believe that everything yesterday was connected, it had to be just coincidental. "Richard Leonard, known by some as Little Ricky, is the son to Walter Leonard, the very same wealthy man who owns Leonard Industries. Richard has been known from an early age for getting into trouble and if found linked to this new murder, could find himself arrested for the last time."

"In other news, five individual's suddenly vanished yesterday without a word. How do we know this? Well, let's now go over to the man who was called in to start the investigation." Yohan had to sit down for this, he had a feeling he knew exactly what was going to happen next. Sure enough, a man wearing a large coat appeared on the television screen.

"This isn't the first time I've been called in for this. Lately, groups of people seem to be going missing like these five from Timberland. A man in a nearby town also went missing, we got reports of him heading off to work when people say he just suddenly never turned up to it." Yohan's mind turned to the man he had seen getting devoured last night. It had to have been him, someone who looked ready to go to work suddenly being attacked. This was starting to make his head hurt, if only he knew how that device in his basement worked!

"We couldn't get anything positive until we discovered another unfortunate accident. Sadly, there was another crash sometime last night, and it took the life of yet another person. Luckily, what we could find left lead us to find out it was a person linked to one of the five who went missing." Another crash, another death. Unfortunate, perhaps they'll go more into this second crash when they aren't so focused on the missing people.

"So where did this lead you next?" A woman's voice asked the man with the large coat.

"Well, we were able to find out about a girl named Sienna Cartlow. Wouldn't you know it, she was supposed to be at work only to dissapear just like the man in the other town. Through this, we were able to get into contact with a man, who you'll hear from later when the second crash comes up." This wasn't looking good to Yohan, how the heck would the others react to hearing this?

"So I hear you worked all night to find out where Sienna had last been seen, is that correct?"

"Yes, it is. We found ourselves going to Timberland Gym, where some passerby's who had seen the crash had apparently spotted a woman who fit Sienna's description. We don't know exactly why she went there, but if my assumption is correct, she was snatched up with the others and taken away. This is where we found out about the other four, and that's where we stand now. Two people dead, five missing. I had heard the crime rate with this town had gone up recently, but to think things would all come together like this here is unfortunate."

"I'd just like to personally thank you for all of your hard work in discovering this." The man with the large coat gives a quick nod to this.

"Well, it wasn't just me, you know. We had parents to a little kid who kept calling us, asking where their daughter had gone. We had some school staff members who told us of a man who went missing and just left his keys strangely out in the front. The owner of the Timberland Gym suddenly going missing when she had last been seen there and not going home. And, of course, the helpful young man who helped us out with the second crash incident."

"Thank you again for all that you have done in this. Now, we will present picture ID's of the five missing individual's with the names of each. We can only hope that the worst hasn't come for them and that they are all still safe."



"Rina Jasmine. Sienna Cartlow. Taja Halterman. Miranda Wallace. And Frederick Bell. See, I told you we'd find out who they were." The man sitting next to Ricky spoke out, giving a devilish grin to him. Ricky just kind of gave an awkward stare while continuing to eat for the first time today.

"Well, well, well. You said it, and it happened. Wow, sir, how did you ever do that?" Ricky gave a taunting chuckle to follow. "But seriously, how did you do it so fast? People shouldn't of given these punks five seconds."

"I told you, Ricky, I have ears and eyes in the best places. I knew people connected to them wouldn't resist hearing that someone important to them had gone missing. If that second crash had never happened, we would of never been able to confirm a connection. Poor girl apparently went out searching last night for her friend, and ended up dead instead. Lucky for us, since we would of had to deal with her if she got too close."

"Haha, I know exactly what happened to that girl!" The Djinn couldn't help but give a sinister laugh. "I ain't telling you buttheads though, it's going to be my little secret." Another chuckle to annoy Ricky, who raised his arm and swung it through the demon to swat him away for a bit like a fly. The food was just too damn good to waste with such an annoying loudmouth to spoil it.

"So what do you want me to do about it? If they go home, that's the end of the story right? Nothing can be done then!"

"You underestimate our power, Ricky. We have roots deep within the world of Gaia. Think about it, Timberland is a dump of a town! Nobody cares about some little place that just barely got put on the map. The only reason the news is even like this today is because we demanded it to be as such! You already saw yesterday first hand what this power can do when you put your mind to it. Tomorrow, you will begin searching for these intrusive little brats."

"Oi, you ask a lot out of me, you old man. How am I going to find them among so many?"

"Oh, don't you worry Ricky, they stick out like a sore thumb, just as you do now. They have only just begun to live a life of fear, we will have answers out of them yet. And if they are the sources we picked up on last night, well... We'll just have to take care of them, won't we?" A sinister laugh escaped the man as he stood up and walked over to a window.

"Sure, as long as you keep your word to give me Timberland to do with as I please." The Djinn flew back over near Ricky and gave a sinister grin upon his words. "I'm going to have fuuuuuuun~"

A sudden crash was heard Somewhere in the house as the resident werewolf awoke from her sleep, flinging whatever was on top of her off of her body and onto the ground. Sitting up she rubbed the sleep from her eyes, her Demon staring at her as it lay next to her, like a lover from a one night stand. "Here you are, in the house of a young man, and you're not going to take advantage of that?"

Silence.

"Oh come on, you haven't done anything fun in a long time." Again, silence. "Raid the pantry at least? Fucks sake Miranda you've gotten boring....and you smell." it was that that merited a response. A Grunt in the affirmative. Of course, the noses of mere humans, magical or not now, wouldn't be able to detect the smell that Miranda and her Demon could pick up, but it was time for a shower regardless.

Standing with a grunt, she stretched out her tall, muscular body, bones and joints cracking in relief as she did so. Walking out to the living room, where Yohan watched the news, the woman grunted and leaned against the wall. "Yo....boy....Yohan, whatever your name is....you got a shower and some extra clothes for me to wear till I can get home?" She asked, looking at the boy with lazy, but still predatory, piercing eyes.

Frederick crossed his arms together as he looks over at his finished masterpiece. A now clean house! Not a speck of dust left, every item organized and it smells clean and not dusty anymore! Heck, the basement was so clean you could hold a skating ring down there!...it would be wise to actually not try skating down there actually, its just very clean and you would just likely fall down...

Well with a whole house clean...now what? Oh yeah! Breakfast or...something...eh, everyone likes bacon. Unless they were vegetarian. Or hates bacon in the first place...Alright he should just cook the bacon. Heading to the kitchen and basically raiding Yohan's fridge, Frederick took out a tray of bacon and began to fry it on a frying pan because what else would he use? His coat? Nah, that would catch on fire and that would be bad!

Food for Six maybe? Some people might have more appetite than others though...Eh...Cook the whole tray of bacon! That will solve the problem. Wait a second...forget just bacon! He would fire up another spot on the stove and Raid Yohan's fridge again and get out a few trays ground beef. He was making some burgers! Because burgers were awesome and delicious!

Frederick whistled to himself as he began to mix the ground beef with some spice and bread crumbs giving it that extra crunch when people bit into it. A few eggs to loosen it up a bit and presto he made himself some meat patties. He soon threw that on the frying pan after spraying it with a non-stick spray and whistled to himself as he cooked. The smell of food filling the house.

Eh...He'll pay back whoever owned this house...Wait? Why was he just raiding someone's fridge to cook?...Ah who cares! He was going to pay them back with money so in a sense...he was just cooking food like normal, he just had to pay for another persons groceries instead of his own groceries.

Sienna Cartlow

“She gets too hungry, for dinner at eight…~” Sienna scrunched her eyes tightly as the voice began to filter through the air. It wasn’t entirely unpleasant. In fact, there was a talent buried in it, and the lyrics itself that were being sung were familiar, though she couldn’t quite place them. “…She wouldn’t bother, with someone she hates…~” The song continued, despite Sienna pulling the nearby pillow over her head. She had a pounding headache, and wasn’t even considering leaving the comfort and warmth of the large, fluffy… Wait, this wasn’t… Where…-?

Opening her eyes with a start, Sienna sat up rather quickly, looking about. Looking to the window sill, she detected the source of the voice, the small feline of Sinopia bopping back and forth to an unseen rhythm as she continued to sing. As Sienna began to clamber out of the bed, the cat turned to look over its shoulder, punctuating the last line of the verse. “That’s why this lady… Is a tramp~” Perking her eyebrows once as she met Sienna’s gaze, the girl returned an eyeroll as she stretched slightly, looking about her accommodation. “Was that supposed to be an insult? I-“ Sinopia hissed in Sienna’s direction, cutting her off and leaping off the sill to the floor as she began strutting towards the door, each step continuing to move in time to a beat, though Sienna noted that the rhythm seemed to have changed. “The best is yet to come and babe, won't it be fine?~”

Leaping up towards the door, it loosely swung open, allowing the cat to stride through. “The best is yet to come, come the day you're mine~” The voice continued to filter to Sienna’s ears, even as the feline descended the stairs towards the kitchen. Sighing, Sienna groggily took a moment to slap her cheeks and fix her hair a little, stepping back into her shoes which had been left neatly by the side of her bed. The moment she took to collect herself had begun to bring back all the memories of the previous day. Briefly, she wondered if she’d had too much of a drinking spree and some sort of lucid dream, but the singing cat told her otherwise. “…We've only tasted the wine, we're gonna drain the cup dry…~” As Sienna followed the sound and rounded the corner, peering her head about the room, she noticed a pleasant smell in the air, and realised just how ravenous she was feeling. Seeing that weird guy cooking, Sienna moved over, leaning in to see what was in the fry pan. She wasn’t disappointed, but it did look like it’d take a while to cook.

“Let me know when that’s ready for me.” Sienna stated unabashedly, not bothering with a greeting or anything else to the man. He looked like a wimpy pushover anyway. Moving past him to follow Sinopia’s swinging voice, she stepped into the lounge, spotting Yohan and Miranda in some degree of conversation, maybe about the news on TV. Hesitant as she was to stay around much longer, Sienna’s stomach refused to let her leave without a meal, so she may as well get comfortable until then. “My head keeps - spinning, I go to sleep and keep - grinning…~” Sinopia’s tune had changed again, and Sienna wondered exactly what the cat was playing at. The freakish feline had proved itself strange enough, so whether this was another game or just a weird aspect of the demon she couldn’t tell. "If this is just the be-ginning, my life is gonna be; bee-you-tee-full~”

As the cat was singing, Sienna couldn’t help but notice the way her eyes kept darting away from Sienna to something beside her. Furrowing her brow, it took Sienna a moment in her sleepy state to follow the gaze to the television. What, was there something importan-

“Friends and family described the girl as one with a passion for life, learning and helping; an energetic and promising young engineer. This tragedy, along with the missing individuals…” Sienna froze where she was, staring in silent shock at the screen as she listened. The photo in the corner was of Rio. Somehow, that and the words on the screen didn’t make sense to her. ‘Tragic Fatal Accident’. It had to be some sort of joke, it- “I’ve sunshine enough to spread, It’s just like the fella said…~” Leaping up to the television cabinet, Sinopia crossed in front of it, meeting Sienna’s vacant stare. “Tell me quick, ain’t love a kick in the head?~” Her face and tone was mocking, and the reaction from Sienna was immediate. Grabbing the nearest vase, Sienna immediately threw it at the feline, who leapt to the side, moving to the floor. “…Like the fella once said, ain’t that a kick in the head?~” The singing continued, and another piece of the lounge décor flew at the cat, this time Sinopia leaping from where she was to the seat where Yohan was resting. “Like the sailor said quote, ain’t that a hole in a boat?~” Sienna practically screamed in anger, and Yohan nearly had a painful encounter with a picture frame had Sienna been a little less accurate. As it was, he still had to duck down.

Leaping down from where she was to just in front of Sienna, Sinopia stopped singing, smirking with sinister satisfaction. “Hmm, fun as this is dewdropper, you’ll miss the best part if you focus on little ol’ me.” Sienna practically exploded as she made a lunge, though the cat was far too quick, and probably intangible anyway. Hitting the floor hard, Sienna watched Sinopia slink her way back upstairs, pausing only to talk down to her from her new vantage point. “Just watch the gogglebox, then come and see me. Should be easy for a sap like you to laze about like that.” Darting up the rest of the way, the faint words of another song could be heard, this time something about a shark and teeth. Sienna could only roughly push herself off the floor, briefly looking to Yohan and Miranda before she got to her feet, moving over to the television screen as she stood and watched with something akin to determination.

It continued to talk about Rio and her fate. The crash. Instantly fatal. Thought to be unrelated to the crash earlier in the morning, but found to be connected to a number of missing people, Sienna amongst them. Dimly, Sienna fumbled with her pocket, finding her phone. Punching in the number as she continued to listen to the show, the words she heard on the other end of the line sent electricity through her body. “Hi!” Rio spoke, full of enthusiasm. “Rio! It’s Sienna, I-“ Sienna stopped as Rio interrupted her. “This is Rio! So sorry! I must be busy or something, but trust me when I say you’re really important to me! Leave your name and number, and I’ll totally call back. Unless you’re like, a telemarketer or something. Anyway, uh, here comes the beep!” Sienna listened to the whole spiel in a hollow trance, before lowering her phone to her side, clicking the button to end the call. Unwilling to turn around, tears were dripping down her face as the reality began to finally settle in.

“Now, we’ll have a re-run of the interview we had with Tate Rosenfell, roommate and friend to Rio Rillia, as well as the missing Sienna Cartlow.” The television announcer continued, Sienna faintly looking up as she saw Tate, seated opposite some local news anchor. He was asked all sorts of questions – About Rio and about Sienna, and although his sadness looked genuine, Sienna had no doubt that it was some bullshit act. The crocodile tears caused him to stop mid-talk, the interviewer comforting him. “Rio was… She was so special to me. I never… I never got to tell her how I really felt…” Tate continued to sob, taking a moment to ‘compose’ himself before speaking again. “I... I just want to know what happened to Sienna. Please, work with the police. Anyone that sees her, please, please tell them… I-I’m barely coping by myself as it is…”

“That’s fine, you’re doing great Tate. It’s at this time that I’d like to bring up something Tate spoke to me about, but was too embarrassed to ask for. The three were struggling financially, and by himself, Tate can’t afford a funeral service. Any charitable souls willing to donate to this cause and help get Tate back onto his feet, as well as make a tribute for Rio, please, call…” Sienna fumed, practically about to knock the TV from its stand. That slimy bastard! He wasn’t poor! Rio wasn’t in the same state she was either; her parents would definitely be able to pay for something like that! That disgusting creep was using this situation as some sort of scam to mooch money off dopes sucked in by that act! Practically strangling her roommate through the TV, Sienna would’ve stormed off if not for the fact the interview was still going.

“T-thank you… I don’t know what I’d do if not for people like you… A-and as for Sienna… I… I don’t know what to say. She… She didn’t sound well when she called. She said something about someone stealing the keys to the register and stuff, but the money was gone and she wasn’t there and… Well, she might’ve gotten involved in some bad stuff… Drugs or… Sienna, I don’t know where you are, but I’m worried and…” Tate broke down again, and Sienna looked incredulous. Just what was he saying on local television about her!? Not only that, but somehow she KNEW that slimeball was the one that emptied the till and blamed it on her! God, this crap was… What the hell was wrong with him?! As If she didn’t have enough to worry about right now…

Slowly, steadily, Sienna began to sob to herself. It was getting harder to hide and hold back now. It was getting overwhelming. Just what… Why…? Why was all this happening to her? Why’d it have to happen to Rio? What-… Sienna stopped for a moment, taking in a sharp inhale and holding her breath. The tears stopped as she clenched her eyes shut and gritted her teeth. Maybe Yohan or Miranda had started to try to speak with her, but something else had reached her mind. That cat. It had known. It had mocked her. It. Knew. The pieces were beginning to snap into place for Sienna. Squeezing her hands into fists, she shoved her way past to head back to the stairs, climbing back up towards the bedroom.

And as she got closer, she heard the lyrics of song to mock her once more.

As Frederick was busy cooking the food, he heard a voice call out to him. The voice was of course female, and she wanted him to let her know when the food was ready for her. "Don't worry, I am making enough for everyone and enough for extra's!" He laughed to himself as he continued to cook the food.

Suddenly Frederick felt a chill up his spine, he felt like someone was standing right behind him. Funny...there were a bunch of people in this house and he was getting a little freaked out. What? A scary ghost was behind him now?

"I think I am much scarier than any silly spirit..." a voice spoke right behind his ear. Frederick himself jumped as he turned around, hands in the air with surprise plastered all over his face. "What's the big idea sneaking up on me while I am...huh?" Frederick paused his rant when he noticed whatever whispered in his ear was gone.

Strange...He could have sworn he heard something. "You are indeed hearing something." The voice spoke again.

"O-Oh! For a second I thought I was going crazy. Pleased to meet you random voice! Now if you excuse me, I have food to cook rather than listening to some unknown voice that suddenly popped up in my head." Frederick shrugged and began to cook his food.

"If you think you can ignore---"

"Cooking food is serious business, if I lose concentration it could cause a fire. And paying for a whole house takes much more money than groceries."

"Will you---"

"And secondly, I could accidently burn myself as I cook. If I focus more time on talking to a random strange voice then there is a good chance I will burn my hand."

"Could you let me---"

"Also! As a cook I cant let myself be distracted! Unless I improve by abilities as a cook and make sure my communication is great I have to only listen to orders! I cant do small talk yet! I gotta level up for that!""

"Can I speak? Good. Now shut it for one minute. Are you really going to let people keep on pushing you around like that? You are too nice for your own good, that woman that was just speaking to you could easily tell you were a pushover. If you are going to let any little person just do whatever they wish, then you are no better than a dog." The mysterious voice finally got a word in.

Fredrick on the other hand seemed to have ignored the voice's words and was just whistling to himself. "Will you listen to---"

"Remember! Cooking! No time for idle chit chat!" Fredrick raised his hand as he silenced the voice.

"He did it again...Leave it to me to get the idiot..."

Rina listened to Fredrick, her face growing more drawn the longer he spoke. Oh, hell, maybe he'd be easier to deal with tomorrow? His observation of her outfit made her uncomfortable, especially as she became more aware of her bare midriff. She'd never liked her stomach on the best of days, but now..."Cool," she said once he had wound down and Sienna had made her comments. "I'm Rina."
She rubbed the back of her neck, watching the others follow Yohan out. It didn't take long for her to decide to tag along as well. She didn't know what else to do. Besides, judging by Yohan's waving around and the vague sounds of voices, it looked like he might need the company.

The walk passed uneventfully enough and she scampered up the stairs into the "house" as quickly as she could, praying that the insides would be safe. As her eyes adjusted, though, she noticed sketches and words all over the walls. A shiver ran down her spine. Worse for her, she was hardly paying attention to Yohan, bizarre behavior seeming normal coming from him. The stairs and door snapped shut, bringing forth immediate panic that sparked in the back of her neck. She nearly cried when she felt herself being pulled into the wall with the others, but she heard her demon speaking in her ear.
"Don't worry, kiddo," it said. "I'm not going to let you die now."
And as it turned out, she didn't have long to be frightened: soon enough, the bizarre feeling of being transported wore off and she found herself in a strange room. Common sense would dictate Yohan's house.
Rina plopped down on the floor and pulled out her phone, leaning her back against a wall. She fought to stay awake as she texted her uncle, telling him that she was safe, but before she could finish, she dosed off.

In the morning, she woke feeling stiff and sick. It took her a moment to get her bearings, but the momentary panic made her more alert. She stretched, checked the time and started up the stairs. Her leg caught her attention, warped by the pact with her demon. Well, now she knew it wasn't all a dream.
Rina followed the sound of the television to the lounge. She looked from Miranda, to Yohan, to Sienna crying on the floor. Then she caught Sienna's name on the TV. Between that and the headline at the bottom of the screen, she put two and two together and backed out to head to the kitchen.

Taja woke up, the noises from television causing her to slowly sit up. She was away from the door. She was to hungry to care at the moment though. Standing up she followed the smell of food till she reached where the television was. Some people were missing and there in the photo of people were her. Her family had to be worried.

"Of course they are, they probably fired your stupid nanny too. Way to go, Taja. The great Taja. The Sweet Taja." Elsworth had appeared out of nowhere, standing next to her like he somehow belonged there. Her tiny hands curled up into a fist.

"Why can't you just leave me alone. Obviously you aren't wanted." She turned away from him and walked into the kitchen. It smelled really good, her mouth watered, and her stomach growled. In a low voice she asked, "Hey, Pervert Man, when will the food be ready? I would like to go home as soon as possible."

---

---

Cayson laid in bed staring up at his action picture poster on his ceiling. He wasn't supposed to have anything on there, but his parents never looked up to see it. It had been a month so far. Yesterday he had went over to Taja's house to see her, but there were cop cars. He figured that something serious was going so he ended up at the park with a few friends. His friend, Gregory, told them that he overheard his mom telling his dad that Taja had went missing and that there was a note from her saying that she had went to the store, but that she never returned.

When he heard the news he was angry. Who could have taken his Taja? Whoever it was was going to get a fist to their face. Rolling out of bed he got dressed and headed down to the kitchen where his mother was cooking for everyone. The news was on and he wouldn't have paid attention if it wasn't for Taja's picture on the screen. So Gregory's mom was right. He shoved some bacon into his mouth and grabbed a toast before sliding his back pack on and heading towards the door.

"Where do you think you are going?" His mother said.

Cayson swallowed his bite and smiled, "Out."

"Not till you brush your teeth." She said sternly, not even looking up at him.

"But I did already!" He whined.

"Mind coming over here to let me smell your breath?" She asked, smiling up at him now.

He grumbled, running upstairs to brush his teeth before running with the toast in his mouth out the door.

I will find you, Taja. Don't be too scared. He thought as he ran towards the closest store to Taja's house.

Starting Off Good

"At last, I have ascended up in the world." Ricky said as they walked down some stairs to get to a Gateway to prepare for tomorrow. "My place is here, among the strong, among the elite, among the great! I, Ricky, am going to show this world who is boss! I will be the one who will be remembered for a great new era in humanity's history! I will --"

"Little Ricky had a little lamb!" The Djinn interrupted. Ricky stopped to give him a quick glare before looking forward to resume walking.

"I will march upon the bodies of my fallen enmies! With this power, I am --"

"Little Ricky had a shortcoming!" The Djinn interrupted again. Ricky stopped and gave him a very annoyed expression before taking in a deep breath and shaking his head.

"Ahem... I am the harold of chaos, of darkness, of hatred, of sin! And then, and only then, shall I look upon the sky and declare --"

"I'M LITTLE RICKY! I compensate for my little dick by making up stupid bullcrap!"

"SHUT! UP!" Ricky turned and glared darkly at the Djinn.

"Okay, okay, I will." The Djinn held up it's hands and shook them briefly.

"That's better..." Ricky raised his head and closed his eyes, puffing out his chest as he gripped his jacket with both hands. "I look upon the sky and declare --" He turned to look at the Djinn, who said nothing. "And declare...." He watched him carefully, slowly turning back forward before smirking. "And declare --"

"I. LIKE. DIIIICCCKKKSSS!!!!" The Djinn burst out with laughter as it spun around Ricky.

"RRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!" Ricky was overwhelmed by rage, swiping his arms furiously at the demon as his face went red with pure rage, you could almost see the smoke coming from his ears. "I'LL KILL YOU, I'LL FRIKKING KILL YOU!!! GET BACK HERE, YOU SON OF A WHORE!!! GOD DAMMIT!!!!!"

"Aaww, is that any way to treat your betters?" The Djinn slipped itself through a wall, Ricky pounding his fists on it repeatedly in frustration.

"COWARD!!!" Ricky began slamming his head on the wall, only for his eyes to widen as The Djinn poked it's head back out, but now twisted and malformed.

"Boo~"

"WURAAAHH!!!" Ricky fell back and fumbled about like a scared little child. The Djinn slipped back fully into the room and laughed hysterically at Ricky fumbling about.

"Ah, I'm just pushing you, kiddo. You talking in a loud speech to purposely annoy me is one thing though." The Djinn shrugged as he began to float forward. "C'mon! Those kids make you look like a pussy!"



It didn't take long for people to come out, almost as if all at once. It was unusual, really. It had been so long since he had bothered to pay attention to actual groups of people, sure there was school, but he had zoned out more often than not. Life had changed itself in one single day, and today felt like it could all go wrong. "Come back here tomorrow night." The man's voice came back to him, it felt like it had just been a few minutes ago he was talking to the strange man.

Why should he bother, none of them had any real reason to -- "Because you are now targets." He put his hand on his head. "If I could feel your power, what would a person with actual harmful intentions do?" They could be sensed? By who, when, how close did they have to be, what special conditions had to be met?! "There are people with this power on Earth that have connections, some darker than others." They are... living among us? Living as common people?! "They could easily find you and your family or friends if they so wished it." ... What time did they have to meet him again? "Eleven PM."

He heard Miranda call out to him and he got up to his feet, looking over at her. She still had that same look from yesterday in her eyes, even if it seemed more hidden today. "Yeah, I do." He spoke up. "It's not that far up the stairs. Second door to the right. There's some unused clothes in the third door to the left, nobody cared for those clothes anyway." He wasn't going to follow her up those stairs, he felt unsafe around her. Maybe it was because of yesterday, or maybe it was multiple things. Whatever the case, the appearance of her inner demon last night meant she could be trouble.

By the sounds of it, and the looks of the entire bloody place being cleaned from head to toe, Frederick was currently making something in the kitchen. For some reason, it made Yohan think he was the perfect fit for the old definition for a housewife. Suddenly, Sienna was throwing things like left and right, holy balls! He had to duck to avoid the picture as his eyes shifted to Sienna and stared at her for a little while as if she was about to do something again. Luckily she didn't, but it was obvious what was going on the television right now was upsetting her. He started to feel bad for her, he wanted to say something to her, but she began to walk without another look or word. It was probably better not to say something anyway, he didn't want anymore stuff being thrown around.

He could hear more movement in the house, but it didn't sound like anymore trouble was going to happen. He walked over to the painting she threw and picked it up, looking over at the picture. Yohan, five years old, with his parents. All of them were smiling, Yohan looked like he was so happy, his parents looked so satisfied here. Ten years already, huh? Time sure flies by when you are lost. He would have to fix it later, it was the last thing he had left to remember his parents by. Placing the broken picture on a desk, he decided to pick up the broken pieces of the things Sienna threw, being careful not to stab or cut himself as he sighed. He'd have to get a bag to get rid of the broken mess later.

Yohan decided to experiment with something, looking to fingers on his right hand and focusing on them. He walked over to the nearest wall and tapped it lightly with the tips of his fingers, but nothing happened. It couldn't work with this? He looked over to the television. "Oh, that'll do." He pressed the tips of his fingers on it as he focused. Sure enough, the sound began to change to a certain rhythm instead of the news talking about typical news stuff. He couldn't help but smile a little, his spark was back and he wasn't about to let some corrupted people scare him down. He walked over to the window and stared outside of it, tapping his foot to the beat playing from his television, though none of the lyrics were actually being sung.

---

Ricky stopped once he was back home and pulled out some headphones, putting them on and plugging them in as he began to walk, hands in his pockets as he began to move his body side to side with the beat he heard. The Djinn stared at him curiously, unable to hear the beat, but shrugged. He taps Ricky's shoulder and motions for him to speak out the lyrics, to which Ricky shrugged and decided that was fine. No harm in doing it, right? After all, the demon and him had been working together just fine so far, why not?

---

"You think you got your game planned out?" Yohan started, boping his head to the beat. "To a T. Yet I'm two steps ahead yeah."

---

"So you step into my way, stand down. It's a trap, one more step, and you're dead (yeah you're dead.)" Ricky continued.

---

"Why just a picosecond ago, clear blue skies, but now lightning's struck your last resolve." Yohan picked it up.

---

"It's not an accident that no one hears your cries, as your last strength seems to dissolve." Ricky finished.

[ALL TOGETHER NOW!]

"You'll never see it co-miiinnnngg!"

As Frederick was finishing up his cooking, a sudden crashing noise made him jump a bit. "Oh come on! I just cleaned the whole place..." He sighed to himself as he turned off the fire meaning he was now done cooking.

"Why must you clean up another persons mess? Obviously whatever happened it was the fault of someone else, you should let them do it instead of just paradeing yourself through filth and muck." The voice in his head spoke. To this he had an argument for.

"Wanna know why? That's because I get paid to clean up messes! Just like my dad before me he was possibly the greatest janitor that ever lived! He was the most amazing father I could ask for so I will follow in his steps. Of course a disembodied voice has no use for money because you probably don't need to eat. And you seem to not need any place to sleep in. heck, you might be mooching off in my mind right now and chilling like a moocher you moocher!" Frederick spoke firmly as he began to plate the hamburger.

"Me?...a moocher...and...forget it for now then..." The voice decided to give up this battle for now. Obviously, this man has something wrong in the head.

"Hey, Pervert Man, when will the food be ready? I would like to go home as soon as possible." A small voice spoke, directed at him. Only one certain girl called him a pervert...And her insult was upgraded! That was mean...Frederick sighed but regained his smile as he began to stack burgers on a massive tray. "They are all cooked to perfection! A stove cooked meat patty! A nice small stack of bacon, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese and a nice homemade Barbeque sauce! I call it the Texas Burger! Fit for any burger lover! Breakfast!...Lunch...Dinner? Forget it! Foods ready!" Frederick raised a fist in the air as he laughed proudly at the twenty burgers he had cooked.

"Have thou sinned now? Its not enough that you degrade yourself for meager janitorial work but now being perverted to the younger generation. How low can a human go I wonder?..." The voice spoke.

"Well excuse me random disembodied voice! I am neither a Pedophile nor pervert! I happen to look at the tail growing out of her back, and my eyes noticed her thighs. Have you seen a child's thigh that thick? I Don't think so whatever you are! I looked for a total of two seconds, that's it. And for your information if I was lonely I would find a girl that would like to get with a janitor cook comic writer! Thank you very much!" Frederick spoke in his own head as he gave a huff before he nabbed himself a burger and bit into his hard cooked meal.

Delicious!

"And now you are deluding yourself...One must---"

"Hush nwow! Ish fwood twime! Shve complicwtd twlk fer lwter!" Frederick spoke in a mouthful as he happily ate.

Miranda let out a small grunt as Yohan showed her where the shower was, and told her that there were fresh clothes in another room. Moving to the third room, she quickly found a set of clothing that would fit her; some leggings, a tank-top, and a hoodie. Folding them and then grabbing a towel before moving into the bathroom and locking the door, the werewolf proceeded to strip as she waited for the water to heat up.

She was quiet, staring at her body in the mirror. She wasn't overly-proud of her toned, muscular body, but she wasn't ashamed either. She looked good, and she appreciated it. Biting her bottom lip she shifted her hip to one side, thinking about the events that had just transpired. Another world, hell-hound things....a new power, and a demon following her around, doing lewd things in the corner of her eye.

Waving the sight out of the way, Miranda growled softly and stepped into the shower. She wouldn't linger however, taking only perhaps seven minutes to wash her body and rinse her hair before turning off the water and stepping out of the shower, grabbing a towel and drying herself quickly and effectively. Grabbing the clothes she'd found, she put them on, leaving the bathroom with the hoodie draped over one arm, and the towel rummaging through her hair to dry it, but otherwise in a kind of provocative outfit until she put the hoodie on over the thin tank-top.

Sighing she licked her lips at the smell of the food the man in the kitchen was cooking, and was drawn to the kitchen to wait until it was finished. Once it was, she wasted no time in picking up two fully stacked burgers and a plate before sitting at the table, and eating quickly, her canines flashing themselves into view every time she went to take a bite of the burger. Large, sharp, and intimidating, it only solidified the fact that she wasn't human.

Her phone went off. Standing, she quickly found it and answered it with a loud, almost growling huff. Her father was on the other line. "I'm fine. Yes, fine. No, I didn't officially leave. I'll explain when I see you again." there was a pause as her father lectured her about staying on duty even if no one showed up to work out. "I know, Father...look, it's something you need to hear to understand. I'll be home soon." Another lecture. "Understood, Father.....Yes....Okay. Goodbye." she hung up and a low growl rumbled from her throat before she sighed and turned back to the table, moving to finish her food.

She looked straight at Yohan, knowing he'd heard some part of her conversation, it would be impossible for everybody to not hear anything, she spoke loudly and clearly, yet for such a strong voice, it had an almost...beautiful quality to it, one that made people want to listen to her speak. Either way, she needed a car and to know where she was, as was the question in her eyes as she looked to Yohan, expecting him to know what she wanted based on how her own family spoke in person with each other.

Sienna Cartlow

“That's life, that's what people say. You're riding high in April. Shot down in May~…” Pushing open the door to the bedroom, Sienna’s expression was one of deathly seriousness, a stark contrast to Sinopia’s more whimsical tone to her singing. At first, Sienna hesitated, as she didn’t spot that cat anywhere about the room. Then, as she looked to the vanity chair, she saw her. Not the feline that she was used to, but the full-sized adult women from before. Or at least, that’s what the reflection showed, the chair itself looked empty with Sinopia’s cat-self hidden behind the back rest. Eying Sienna in the reflection all the while, she continued to sing as she tidied her hair and did her makeup, the cat preening herself in reality. Then again, was the delusion that Sienna saw any more real than the woman in the mirror?

“…I said, that's life and as funny as it may seem. Some people get their kicks. Stompin' on a dream~.” Pivoting to look around the chair, and now stare directly at Sienna, reading between the lines made it all too obvious what Sinopia meant. “But don't let it, let it get you down. 'Cause this fine old world…~” Smiling sweetly, Sinopia leapt from the chair, moving onto the bed closer to Sienna, looking up to her. “…It keeps spinnin' around~” Suddenly, the door behind Sienna closed by some unseen force, giving the two privacy. Turning to look to it briefly, Sienna then returned her stern glare back to Sinopia, having not said a word yet. Finally, as Sinopia winded down her singing, she decided to actually speak with the girl that she represented.

“Sienna, darling, relax. Why, you look grimmer than that Rio girl before that truck hit her…~” The mocking sent fury through every inch of Sienna’s body, but she managed to hold herself composed for the moment. She needed answers. Though that didn’t stop her fist from trembling. “Why… What did you do?” Sienna asked, and was caught a little off guard by the immediate laughter that followed. “Really, sweetie? That’s how you start this? I took you to be smarter than that, but I guess you’re just a tomato after all…” Strutting slightly away from Sienna, Sinopia stopped as she reached the edge of the bed, glancing back over her shoulder. Sienna’s glare hadn’t changed, and once she was certain she had the cat’s attention, she continued to press for answers.

“I heard what happened. But I want to hear it from you. I want to know why. How. I want you to try and explain yourself, because so help me, this is not what I wanted!” Sienna’s tone raised a few octaves at the end of her demands, losing her composure as she swung her hand wildly behind her, striking the wall. Sinopia watched this a moment, then relented. “Really? That’s not what I remember. You and I? We had a deal. My power and keeping you alive, in exchange for what you consider most precious to you.” Striding back towards Sienna, Sinopia moved to the edge closest to her and took a seat. Sienna herself remained standing over her. “That’s not what we agreed on you piece of shit! I didn’t think-“

“Didn’t think what? Didn’t think you cared about her? Oh, I know. I’m just as much you as you are. But see, I’ve tapped into much more of your potential than you seem to realise you have. I suppose I’ll have to explain the beauty of my work…” With another leap, Sinopia moved back over to the vanity, sitting on the edge of the desk. “I took that which was most precious to you. Or rather, I took all the things that were most precious to you, past and present.” With a wave of her tail, images began to filter through the mirror of the vanity. “You didn’t care about Rio, you cared about yourself more than anything. And I took that from you, by taking her. I made you realise just how much she meant to you. But by then, it was too late. She was already mine, even as she became the most important thing to you.” Behind Sinopia, images of Rio’s final moments flashed across the reflection, Sienna able to only watch in a stupor.

“So you see, I really did make the most of my bargain by taking multiple aspects from you. You have no one to blame but yourself - I mean, I am a part of you – but that aside perhaps if you’d thought things through more or weren’t such a pathetically selfish human being I would’ve chosen something else. The you in that moment found your life to be worth more than hers, and the you now finds things to be the other way around. That’s not my problem, sweetie.” Having shut her eyes for part of her spiel, Sinopia didn’t realise Sienna had moved up closer to her, swiping her hands to grab her around the neck. Just like before however, they phased right through. “Like hell it’s not your problem! I want nothing more to do with this crap or you or anything! I’ll kill you you –“

“Kill me? Hah, please. You can’t do anything to me. I’m a part of you, not some physical thing, so you can’t just-“ Sinopia was cut off by the sound of glass shattering, Sienna shoving her fist into the mirror enough that it splintered to the floor around her, small bits of glass causing her hand to bleed. “Dearie me, that’s bad luck, you hear? Just what do you think you’re…” Sinopia stopped as Sienna picked up a particularly jagged piece of glass, holding it towards her own neck. “Part of me huh? Well, I can only assume this is one way to hurt you.” Sienna laughed hollowly as she watched Sinopia’s eyes dart between the sharpened glass and her neck. The two sat like that a moment, before the feline broke the silence.

“You won’t. I know-“

“Won’t I?” Sienna interrupted, her tone daring in spite of the situation. “You’re a part of me, right, Sinopia? You know what I’m thinking. You’ve taken what’s precious to me, so why shouldn’t I?”

“You’re too scared to-“ Sinopia started, but never managed to finish as once again, Sienna interjected.

“Shut the hell up! If you’re gonna ruin my life, my friends, everything, then I won’t hesitate to end it, and you, got it? You played me for a fool, but if you’re going to be a part of me - if your sorry ass is gonna be sticking around - then we play by my rules from now on! No secret manipulative backstabbing shit from you, you play it straight, or you don’t play at all, got it?!” Sienna was shouting now, and as she finished, the two slipped into silence. Sinopia’s eyes moved about, as if contemplating the situation, watching the blood drip from Sienna’s hand. She was trembling and squeezing the glass shard a bit too hard, and it was cutting into her palm.

“…You win, darling. For now, at least. I like the fire you’ve shown, bearcat. Dealing with your own devils like this… It’s ingenious. But…” Sinopia trailed off as she climbed down from the vanity, heading for the door. “I’m you. So like you, I don’t like losing, and I don’t like playing second fiddle. And just like you, if I see a chance, I’ll be seizing my opportunity to take command.” With that said, the door opened, Sinopia heading out before calling over her shoulder. “So put that away Mrs. Grundy, you’ve made your point. And go get cleaned up, you’re making a mess.”

Finally dropping the shard of glass, Sienna stumbled to sit on the bed, holding her head briefly despite the blood on her hands. This was all so crazy… Why… Why had all this happened to her? Still trembling, Sienna patted down her pockets to retrieve her cigarettes and lighter. Doing her best to compose herself as she made her way to the bathroom, lit-stick in her mouth as she filtered smoke into the air, she could still hear song drifting down the hall as Sinopia began once more. “Don't you know little fool, you'll never win. Why not use your mentality, come on step up to reality. But each time you do, just the thought of me. Makes you stop before you begin. 'Cause you've got me under your skin~.”

Well, everything was going smoothly. The tunes stop as soon as he had finished saying the words and everything after that was silence. Not a word spoken from him or making any more noise in order to relax for once since, well, waking up yesterday. But he could never fully shake off what he had seen in that place, a place that they could now access at anytime through his own basement. The sketches had not revealed why it was put there or how his parents had obtained such an "interesting" object, but he certainly couldn't reveal it to the public now.

It was a simple decision, one that he hoped the others would come to realize as well. Visions of the beast's face, if it was indeed a Hell Hound, that sinister look in it's eyes and the demented smirk it gave before... It was at this moment he realized: They had no plan. How were they going to meet back up with this man if that thing was still around? His mind had started to wander again... He let out a deep breath. For now, at the least, there was no need to worry about it.

Noises from the kitchen and a lingering smell of food making it's way to his nose confirmed his suspicion about people enjoying themselves in the kitchen. It mattered not to him, he would simply move in and eat whatever was left after the others were done. If everyone else had already eaten, so be it. It's not like he personally cared what happened to himself anyway, nothing about his body would change despite others worrying about possibly starving himself.

Just when he had settled into a few minutes of silence, his ears catch the attention of Miranda on her phone. Well, guess he had quickly relaxed more into his position than he had realized. Once the call was over, she looked him straight in the eyes. It just had to be him of all the people in this god forsaken household right now, didn't it? It couldn't be the actual adult in the kitchen, it couldn't be the cranky ruthless person upstairs, it had to be him. If there was such a thing as fate, it certainly had it out to make him thrown into situations he never wanted to be thrown into!

Her eyes said it all: Where Am I, and how do I get the nearest car? "Well." He started off, his voice sounding a bit strained and tired as he honestly was holding back the more forced push he was giving himself right now. "We're in the north part of town. I hear there's a car shop just to the left and down the street." It didn't sound like much, but he figured if he just got to the point sooner, she'd leave him be so he could enjoy the silence again. Maybe he'd get lucky and she'd actually leave the house. He could only hope though.

When he heard some noise, he thought it sounded like it came from upstairs. What was that girl up to now? If she was breaking more things, he would have some fierce words to say... Well, if he cared enough. The sooner he could go back to being alone, the better for him. He never seemed to get any luck when hanging around others, it usually lead to disaster. Oh, had he only known the irony of his own thoughts right now.

WHACK! A sudden noise erupted outward, he thought it came from upstairs, but it sounded closer somehow. He became startled, was someone attacking them, now?! WHACK! In rapid success to the previous noise, the same noise carried with a bit more weight behind it this time. He definitely heard it coming from the kitchen this time, just what was going on in there?! WHACK! Well, that sealed the deal, something was very much wrong. Even though the noise had stopped, that didn't mean his fears had.

Without much thought, he ran towards the kitchen's direction. He almost made it there when he stopped to see the scene. Rina's body, being held up by Frederick who was now being covered by the mess that was coming from her body, and somewhere Taja was hiding herself he could only presume in this moment. He had stopped as soon as he had discovered the scene, and his mind immediately raced back towards that sudden scene of his parent's car again. He had no choice, he had to run away, there was no other choice for him in this instant. His body was going too far out of his control, and he felt that tightening grip over his heart.

He felt himself hiding back in the spot he had originally started from, he could hear the news from the television going on in the background as he kept himself away from seeing that again. That girl was... Dead? That sound, was it her that did that or had it been one of the others? His mind raced at the assumptions, she had been one of the more quieter ones of them and had always seemed more distant... Had she tried to do something and they had retaliated? He just couldn't come to grips with the reality that she tried to take her own life, no, it looked more like she had taken it. What was happening? Was he in danger, was he about to die too?!

"In other news!" A familiar voice came from the television. Oh no... When he turned to look at the television, there he was, with one smug of a smile and actually appearing to have taken the place of the reporter just now. "Rina Jasmine is found dead!" The white haired male fake gasps at this, putting his hands up to his cheeks while his eyes dart left and right constantly. "But where did it happen?" He suddenly stared directly at Yohan, a sinister smirk growing on his face. "Why, it was you! YOU caused her death!"

"No, no, I had nothing to do with it!" Yohan tried to defend himself, but it wasn't working.

"How sad. Denial is a thing, you know. Let's see that instant replay!" Happy cheers came on the television as Yohan is forced to watch Rina slam her head repeatedly until she is stopped by Frederick, but by then, damage had already been done. "Oooh, I guess you could say she's got a few brain bits from that huh?!" A laugh track plays out of nowhere as he smirks while snapping his fingers. "Keep it on repeat." The same process was repeated several times, each time more gruesome and violent than the last. Everything was starting to get red, he felt his heart racing, everything was starting to feel faint...

Until the last play, when she doesn't hit her head strangely. She looks kind of scared actually, hesitant. "Please, no, don't do this!" She cried out weakly, looking hurt and limping back as best as she could. A gun came into view, pointing at her head, tears ran down her face as she continued to beg. "No, please! I want to go home! I want to go ho--" BANG! Her word were interrupted and she fell to the floor, cold as ice. When the man with the gun turned to the screen, he looked just like Yohan and gave a nasty grin of pleasure.

"N-no... Stop..." Yohan had tears running down his eyes now, the screen suddenly went static as everything now had a red tone to it. Sitting in front of the television was the boy... But something was off as his pupils turned red and the smirk melted into a frown.

"Death does not wait, my boy." He rose up to his feet, his form partially malformed as he had rags all over him, only his red eyes were visible in the darkness as his bony long arms gripped each other over his chest. He stood hunched, yet his form towered over Yohan's to cast his shadow over him. "It's time you joined her. It's what you want." He pulled out a gun and slowly pressed it right up to Yohan's forehead. "You can't deny what you feel any longer. It's only going to get worse from here." BANG!

Everything went back to normal, and he found himself holding a piece of shattered glass. His eyes widened and he threw it away, it had only been inches from his neck. He gripped his hand lightly and looked it over, tears running wild down his face as he got up to his feet and ran right back into his room, the door slamming shut and the lock turning to keep anyone unwanted out. Then, only silence. But the four others would all hear a ghastly voice suddenly call out to them. "Strike one."



"Knock, knock." Ricky stated before the door. He didn't bother to actually knock, which didn't surprise him when no one answered the door. He groaned and looked down at his wrist, tapping his foot three times before raising up his right arm and pounding it on the door. "I SAID KNOCK, KNOCK YOU ASSHOLE!"

"Ugh. Go away, Ricky!" A voice screamed out from the other side of the door.

"Let me in to see the boss, god dang you!"

"The boss don't want to see you. You aren't wanted here right now, Ricky. He's in a bad mood right now, trust me, you don't want to --"

"I am the one who sent that threat, you moron!" The door slide open almost immediately and a gun was pointed right in Ricky's face. "... Well it's nice to know I'm as welcomed as ever."

"Follow me, Rick. Ain't no saving you this time." Ricky rolled his eyes as he was brought in, his hands casually in his pockets as he whistled. "Hey, what's with the whistling?!" Ricky shrugged as if to apologize, but The Djinn knew better. He grinned as he reached down and placed a hand on Ricky's left shoulder.

"Wish granted." He stated, chuckling as he watched Ricky brought into a room where he could see everyone pointing guns at him almost immediately.

"Ricky. You were like a son to me." The fat man who ran the group turned his seat around to face Ricky, his gun pointing in Ricky's direction. "Tell me. Why would you betray us like this? I gave you a gift yesterday, and now today, you come here and threaten my life? You get this much to say before you are filled with lead."

"Ah you fat piece of crap, I'll tell you something. You've held back this group's true potential for far too long. Think about it, back before we knew magic existed, what did you do? You ran this place like a family, no? You said you would treat everyone with respect and that everyone would get a fair share. Am I wrong?"

"Get to the point, Ricky. My patience is running out for you and the waste spilling out from your mouth." Ricky grinned at these words.

"We were offered a deal one day, were we not? How everyone could have a better life if they accepted the responsibility of their actions. Yet you got greedy. You fell under the influence and became afraid of it's own power corrupting you from within, so you withheld us from truly obtaining it. You exposed everyone briefly to it, but small doses are not enough! You lied to everyone in order to keep us all limited!" Everyone started looking towards the boss, who was starting to shake and sweat terribly.

"I've heard enough! I'm through with you! Everyone, shoot him!" But no one fired, causing the boss to look around at the others.

"Boss, you told us that if we exposed ourselves to a small dose every week, we would eventually rise above the average human. Why would you lie to us? We all agreed to share in the power together!"

"Y-you don't know what it does to normal people! This whole magic business is bullcrap!" The boss glares back at Ricky. "The White, The Black... Don't you see?! Neither side really matters! Both are bull in the end, both of them end up becoming corrupted! If The White or The Black are allowed to run wild through Timberland itself, everyone will die! This town will crumble! There are some forces you should never get involved with, and I will not allow myself or my family to become slaves to those monsters sitting at the top! You were always trouble, Ricky. It pains me to have to kill you, but I never considered you a true member of this family!"

"Go ahead and shoot me then, old man." Ricky's smirk ignited a fire within the boss' eyes, as he and the others all opened fire on Ricky. For a minute, all anyone could hear coming from the room was the flurry of gunshots. However, when the guns had stopped, a wave of silence crept it's way over everyone. Ricky was still standing, and not a single bullet had even hit him.

"What...?" The boss could only managed to get out these words as he watched the bullets slowly being crushed in the air. A dark aura slowly became visible to everyone, this dark aura resembling an outline of smoke around Ricky as each bullet had been taken in and crushed by hands that had manifested from the aura. The boss' eyes widen as his worst fears come to realization through Ricky.

"Get 'em." The Djinn stated to Ricky. Suddenly, Ricky was gone to everyone.

"W-what?!" One of the others looked around, sweat starting to form as they couldn't help but start to freak out. "W-where did he go?!"

"Find him!" The lights start to flicker at this moment, everyone freezing in place as they all slowly looked up. "What is going on with the power?!" The boss looked around quickly as he got up to his feet.

"Hey there." Ricky said, grabbing the boss' shoulder from behind. "I got you."

"WHAT?! WHEN DID YOU --"

"Kidding!" Ricky backed up with his arms in the air, everyone's guns returning to focus on him. The lights returning to normal as he smiled, the aura now gone.

"Alright Ricky, enough games! Time to sleep with the --" The boss stopped speaking, his body shaking violently as the others looked over at him with concern. Cracks started to appear all over his body as his eyes rolled into the back of his head, his body boating up before BOOM! His body erupted up into a literal explosion, everyone becoming surprised as nothing was left of the boss but a big scorch mark on the ground where he once stood.

"That is the power of The Black." Ricky raised up his left arm, showing how it had been changed and the ring had been infused with his middle finger. "The power I just used is called... A Dominion~"

Miranda blinked as Rina began to bash her head into the counter, the werewolf frozen in uncertainty. While she had no problem with gore, death, or normally traumatic events due to her upbringing and ancestry, the fact that someone was willingly smashing their head into the counter surprised her. And Dissapointed her as well, someone too weak to live on by themselves wasn't worth living, in her opinion. Standing after the deed was done, and looking at the bloody carnage. Without thinking, her hand twitched, and so did the still dying body of Rina.

The blood stopped abruptly, and the body shuddered and made a sickening gagging noise before dropping to the ground. Miranda blinked again, her Demon smirking as it leaned against the wall. "You just mutated a fellow human. How does that make you feel?" it asked, a devilish smirk on its face. Miranda only glared. "You're right. She was already dead. I suppose it doesn't count all that much, then. Does it?" again only a glare.

She turned to Yohan, seeing the boy freak out over the fact that there was a dead body in his kitchen. She picked up her phone and called her home. "It's me. Something came up....I can't return to the gym today. I know....I know. Yes. I promised I know. One day will not hurt. Okay. See you soon." She hung up the phone, and moved to Yohan, grabbing him by the shoulder rather gently and guiding him back to the couch, sitting him down.

She paused for a moment, showing what could be described as an uncharacteristic sign of affection to help calm the boy down, patting his cheek gently, her thumb tracing his cheek-bone before leaving him there, and moving to the body of Nina. She looked to Frederick, nodding to the blood. He wore the uniform of a janitor. Surely he'd know what to do. She knew how to hide a body well enough.

Grabbing her by the collar, she hefted the body over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes, and moved to the back yard of Yohan's house, looking around for something to bury the body under. Then it occured to her. It'd be easier to call the authorities, tell them it was suicide.

She knew just the person.

Pulling out her phone she put the body down, and rested it against the wall of the house. "Ches', it's Mir. My...friend just committed suicide, need the body buried properly....she had a mental breakdown. I'd prefer it this was kept quiet....The home-owner is....young, shocked, inexperienced." she paused as her cousin talked. "Yes I realize what I'm asking. I'm not telling you to just get rid of the body. Inform the family, let her have a full burial, the whole thing. But normal cops won't believe me if I say it's a suicide. You know they don't like...us." she said.

"Thank you."

Frederick mind went on pause as his efforts to help stop Rina ended in bloody failure. Her limp body falling to the floor along with the pooling of blood. He just remained silent as someone who was just alive moments ago was now dead, literally right in front of him.

He backed up a bit to let his mind calm down for a bit. "She's...She's really dead huh?..." Frederick questioned himself as he took steady breaths.

"And such was the fate of that young woman...her mind lost and broken...poor lost lamb." The voice went silent almost as if it was taking the moment to have silence for the dead in front of them. Of course Yohan was obviously frightened by the sight but for Miranda. She just hefted the body and motioned for him to...clean the blood?

Okay, he was a janitor. But this was technically a very illegal thing to do. Its like tampering with the scene of a crime. But...how would they explain their disappearance and the death of her? Like...He would be the most likely to be jailed here.

"I can't belive I am going to do this..." Frederick sighed as he tried to cheer himself on the inside as he left for a bit and got a mop.

"And thou haf sinned once again...Removing evidence of a death...In a day you have already sullied yourself in lust and death now...Such a shame...But everyone has sinned one way or the other. No matter how pure their soul may be." The voice spoke as it continued its strange habit.

"Could I please...have like a small moment to myself...someone is dead and...jeeze..." Frederick replied as he finished cleaning the mess making it like nothing happened. He soon put the mop away and sat down on a chair and grabbed a burger to finish his meal...funny, it tasted worse now...

"Do not fret now, if you lose yourself you too shall become lost like she has. Do indulge in yourself, maybe find someone to spend your night with. Lest you sully the young girls body."

"Goodness graces random voice, I am no pedo. Stop trying to insist on that! If anything you are one naggy ghost spirit thing." Frederick responded as he waved his hand around his head.

"Trying to touch me now? My, someone is desperate now..."

"I cant even tell if you are male or female! GAH!"

Sienna Cartlow

“Huh… Have I lost weight?” Sienna mumbled absentmindedly to herself as she patted her stomach. Though her showers were normally lazy, drawn out affairs, she hadn’t soaked too long; just enough to clean up the cuts she’d made on herself before finding some bandages and ointment to help fix it up. Oddly, a lot of her minor abrasions seemed to have already disappeared, and part of her assumed that had something else to do with the powers she’d inherited from Sinopia. Still, the point was that her jeans definitely felt looser, enough so to warrant using the slightly tighter button. Weird, but not an unhappy weird. She still wasn’t super fit or anything, but it was nice to see she probably could’ve had that noodle cup earlier. Stupid 10 year old didn’t know what fat was through her stupid fat head.

Taking her time slightly to dry her hair and examine herself in the mirror, she still looked pretty worn out and beat up, but respectable enough. She normally looked pretty dead inside in life, so it wasn’t that far off her normal resting bitch face. It was enough of a façade to hide all the craziness going on in her head, and the guilt and agony she was feeling over her loss. To think, she’d thought herself lucky when she’d seen Yohan and the others. Now, she’d trade practically anything of hers to just feel the pleasant warmth of having Rio by her side. Or yelling at her to stop being lazy. Or doing that goofy thing with her ears when she tried to make her laugh. Or… Or that would never be coming back. Sighing again, Sienna was grateful that Sinopia was giving her at least some reprieve to consolidate her thoughts. She needed a plan of what to do here. But where was she even going to begin?

She was wanted for questioning and who knows what else after her disappearance; and frankly, no one would believe her if she told them half the shit. Heck, she struggled to still believe it even now. Still, there was Yohan, Rina and Taja. Something like their arms, or Taja’s… monster stuff (Fitting for the little brat) would surely go a long way to helping that. Then there was also… Patting down her pockets again, Sienna retrieved another of her crumpled cigarettes, spinning it in-between her fingers, before she held it towards her pointer on her other hand. Just like magic, a small flame sprouted forth, lighting the stick as she drew it back up to her lips. Well, if there was anything to take away from all this shit, at least she wouldn’t have to bother bringing her lighter with her anymore. Regardless, being able to do crap like that would be proof enough, yeah? Then again, all this crazy horseshit… Did the government already know about it? Was stuff like this kept under wraps? Screw the aliens at area 51, maybe they had freakin’ wizards and witches and demons…

“I have to do something…” Taking another deep breath from her cigarette, Sienna leaned on the bath tub edge, letting the extractor fan do the work for her in clearing the smoke. Weird. Normally her smokers lung would be bothering her by now after having so many in quick succession, but she hadn’t coughed once in ages. Shaking her head, she reminded herself not to get side-tracked. She had to tell someone and get back out there. It wasn’t like she could avoid society indefinitely. Whatever consequences that held from there, well, she’d have to face them as they came. It wasn’t like she could just return after what happened, even if she did want to go and slug Tate in the face. And Rio… Were they already planning that funeral? Would she get out of police custody and all this crap in time to attend? Then there was the others. What would they want to do about all this crap? She could talk it over with them after eating, speaking of which…

Heading downstairs and oblivious to the events that had transpired, Sienna walked in on the end of a horror scene. Rina’s body lay slumped on the ground, pieces of… Her just… across the counter, part of the wall, floor… Blood… And on top of that, her head looked like… God it was… Covering her mouth in both shock as well as to try and stop the involuntary reflux, she turned back out of the doorway, dry heaving in the corridor. She was kinda grateful she hadn’t eaten yet. “What the fuck guys?! What the hell happened?!” Sienna called from the corridor, refusing to re-enter the kitchen just yet. Slowly, her mind began to process the rest of the scene in the kitchen – Taja in the corner, that weird man covered in blood and at the counter, Miranda on the phone…

“That is the fate of one who can’t change. One who can’t see the world differently, who rejects themselves and fails to face their inner demons.” Sinopia’s voice came from seemingly nowhere and everywhere, perforating every facet of Sienna’s mind to ensure that she heard it. “That could be you, in time. Remember earlier? You weren’t too far off from a cadaver yourself.” There was a certain smugness in Sinopia’s voice, Sienna just trying to steady her breathing and take it in. She certainly didn’t feel like eating anymore. Shit shit shit, this day just kept getting more fucking brilliant every second. As if she didn’t have enough crap to deal with in her life, now this shit? God, she’d probably be questioned about this crap too, ugh. I mean, she didn’t know Rina at all really, nor did she really care for her but jeez, she didn’t want her to die or anything! Resting against the wall in the corridor, another voice filtered into her mind, and this time, it wasn’t Sinopia’s.

“Strike one.” It said mockingly. Sienna had no idea what that meant. Other than the obvious ominous implications of striking out. “Sin, what was that?” Sienna asked, and weirdly, could feel the cat shrug. “A warning. Suffice to say, having your comrades die would not be wise. Lame as they may be, you and I are now connected to them, like it or not… Well, except the dead one.” Sienna grimaced. This shit was getting to be too much. Just… There was way too much to handle. What was she supposed to do? Breaking through her panic to be rational, she realised that they needed to start taking some direction. “Guh… Hey, are you calling the cops gym girl? We’re all probably going to have a lot of explaining to do at the station…” Thankfully for Frederick, Sienna hadn’t entered the kitchen again to see him cleaning. She’d probably have had something to say about that.

Taja's body went numb. Strike one came a warning from nowhere. She didn't even think anything of it as she got up and turned to walk out of the kitchen. She passed up the group she had been with and walked towards the front door. You know, kid, you could have stopped her. Elsworth appeared next to her. Taja kept her head down, she didn't feel like talking or listening to the stupid thing that always kept coming around when it was clear he wasn't wanted. I mean, why did she come after you and not the pervert? I just find it so str-"

Taja interrupted him, "Probably because it was me who had her go to the stupid gym, ElsWORTH." She said his name, mocking him like he was actually something of worth. "If I hadn't listen to the voice or the visions she wouldn't have ran after me! She would have gone home." She was screaming at him now.

The image of Rina bashing her head over and over again brought her pain, but somewhere deep inside it also brought her joy. Shaking her head ran towards the living room. "Where is the gym from here? I am wanna go home. I need to go home..." She glanced back towards the kitchen and saw just the feet of Rina. Her eyes started to water, "Someone needs to call the police..." She wasn't aware of her feet moving but she saw the phone behind where Rina lay. Before she knew it, Taja was walking in the blood was tippy toeing to the phone when she slipped in the blood. It took a few moments before she lifted her hands and saw red. "No no no..." She quickly got up and to the phone, dialing 9-1-1.

"911, what is your emergency?" A female voice came over the phone.

---

---

Cayson felt a chill near him and looked around. "Strange." He said before going back to his pickle selection. "Pa, pa pickle pa pa pa pickle." He sang as he looked through jars of pickles, making sure they were in good conditions and looked as fresh as a fresh pickle could be. He was just about to pick when a vision flashed before his eyes. He was to go to some kind of tea party at a place called The Sunny Shield at 8 p.m. and to bring food.

Once the vision ended Cayson stood up tall, he didn't like the feeling that was going through him. He looked around and saw an old couple and a lady in her twenties staring at him like he was some kind of piece of cake. Smiling awkwardly he went back to pick the jar of pickles he selected and then a couple more. "The vision did say to being food." He said to himself and walked to one of the cashiers and looked at his watch. It read 11:13 a.m. He had a good amount of time to go looking for Taja before he had to go have tea at the sunny place.

"Eleven dollars and ninety-four cents is your total." She said. Cayson dug around in his pocket and gave a fifteen dollars. "You sure do like pickles, huh?" She asked before turning to get his change.

"Yeah, plus going to bring some to a tea party." He said nonchalantly.

The cashier gave him a looked and laugh, "Well that is a bit odd to have, but hey if you like it then that it is all that matters." She said while she gave him his change. "You have a good day."

"Thanks, you too!" He waved as she jogged out the market. He headed towards the corner store that was near Taja's home. He planed on going around the block and towards the gym where that other girl who was too skinny was walking towards.

His mind was empty during the moment, nothing seemed to really matter but getting away from it all. His heart raced, his body leaped into action and now he saw the door in sight. It was all he could think about, throwing himself onto his bed and just closing his eyes and forgetting the painful memory. Honestly, something in the back of his mind wanted to destroy the body, to get rid of it all in order to push out his emotions right now. But running came first, for whatever reason, running felt like the only option he had left in this situation!

Then, it all came to a sudden halt. He found his body easily being lifted up and being put down on the couch, his eyes wide with surprise as he could only blink right now. He thought he had done it, that he had gotten into his room and that everything was gonna be all right from there. Instead, he had been dragged back to where he had struggled with before. He felt something move along his cheek before going away. This seemed to bring him down a little, enough that he could accept being out here for the time being.

What else was there left to do for him? He could only assume the cops would eventually come over and notice this, what would they say to him? He wasn't one of the five listed missing, he already knew he had no records or anything except for the last ten years he had been living in town. That was all though, the only reason he seemed to have gotten away with it up until now was because of his parents. He no longer had them here with him though, he had avoided trouble for years and now finally karma had come up before him and told him it was time to face the music.

It felt like an eternity now, being trapped in limbo and forced to endure the everlasting torment it had in store for him. She had just up and killed herself, why? Why had she done such a thing?! She seemed perfectly fine up until just a few ago, he should of been more cautious and more alert, he should of been to stop her from doing it. It was ultimately his fault, how could the others be expected to do anything about it? They had been dragged into this, just like she had been. Her death was on his hands, yes, his hands!

He had known for years about this stuff, not enough mayhaps, but enough to warn people. He should of warned them about the dangers, he should of warned them about staying away from him instead of drawing himself to them. Why had he done this terrible deed today? She went crazy because she was thrown into a whole new world, and here he was, feeling sorry for himself. He should be the one that died, not her! Why had he survived, why had fate cursed him to a life of misery?! Wasn't it suppose to go better, wasn't everything suppose to be better now that he was finally here before the door?!

His mind went silent for a bit, he had no idea how long he had been sitting here. He ultimately decided to just lay down, face away from everything that was happening right now. He had to calm down, he had to relax, this was the only way to do it. Ultimately, ultimately, ultimately... His mind pushed itself to the brink of insanity, words started to repeat themselves in the process of relaxation. He had no idea what was even happening now, where was he even, why was he here instead of home, had he gone and just died, finally given up attempting to live?

He could remember so many things, to a point at least. Ten years already it had been, ten long years of this damned life. Negative, negative, negative. Always so negative. Yes, he had always been so negative. Why bother trying to hide it, he had nowhere left to run. People were now running around his house, screaming and yelling here and there, it was madness. Panic was surely running through the minds of the others, how could he blame them? Sad, all so sad, too sad for you. Yes, it was too sad for him... Or was it?

What was he doing right now, laying here and thinking he could get away from everything? The truth, the truth, THE TRUTH! Yes, suddenly it was all too clear. He had even admitted to it earlier, he had finally reached the door. Now was the time, he had finally reached it and now he was about to let it get away?! Nonsense! A person killed herself because she couldn't handle what she had seen, but not him. He had thrown it away, even if for today, and he knew then and there what had to be done. It's time you learned the truth, the truth, the truth, the truth.

Suddenly he rose up to his feet without another moment to waste and headed for the basement door. He grabbed hold of the doorknob and opened it, walking down into it as he stopped down at the stairs. "Okay, so, like, no one let anyone down here. Trust me on this one if you don't believe me." There was no way any of them could explain what this thing was or why it was here, but he could investigate it. Yes, yes, yes! Obviously he left the door open in case any of them wanted to come down here, after all, it would be some time before the cops came. Surely they would be too busy with the body to come down here, and even if they weren't, he trusted someone like Miranda could handle them.

Well, here he was again, down here... With the device. It certainly felt strange being here, after all, this was the device that had brought them back, and yet it was the only real proof that they were all still alive in some form or another. Those sketches had to be drawn by someone, there had to be a clue or some clues down here or somewhere in his house that would explain about this device. There just had to be, he knew there was no way his parents would just have a device like this for no reason! Well, one thing was for sure, they would have to use it tonight to go back and return...

Return, return, return.



Ricky wasn't too keen on what had to happen next, somehow, deep down, he knew it would come to this. Even when he explained to them or tempted them with power, they still had the nerve and the gull to pull out firearms on him. Needless to say, they were no real threat to him, and so he decided to demonstrate how hopeless it was for them. The dark hands came forth like a nightmare, a faint howling like noise came along as the two shivered with fright as Ricky went on the offensive. Loyal or not, they were still the lackeys of a now dead man.

The hands first attacked the person on the left, cause they sure as heck wouldn't fight back now. They grabbed and restrained the user's arms and legs, limiting them on how they could move, not like it mattered all that much in the end. The person on the right only got to watch as his friend was bent backwards slowly and without any means of fighting back. Slow cracks came as they pushed the person's body further and went beyond the limits of what could be done. With a loud shriek, the person's back snapped and ended the life of a poor fool. The hands threw the body aside and went for the next target, who tried to run away from his frightening new enemy. Alas, he was far too late.

The hands grabbed a hold of his leg and tore a piece of it off. The man screamed with pain and fell down, unaware of the horror that was now surrounding him. And when he came to his senses, only terror could register in his mind as the hands blocked out any light and grabbed a hold of his body, now with aggression and force behind their grips! Ricky's sadistic grin grew as he saw pieces of skin fly about where the man was trapped, like pieces of paper being blown through the air. The sound of tearing and crushing made it's way outside the room, and anyone who heard it could only register the worst was being done.

Then, everything went silent and everyone could only stand and wait, guns ready to blaze through and kill whatever came out. No light could be seen to those who stood closet to the door, they knew something was coming, but what? Then, the door bust open, and hell itself seemed to emerge unto them. Darkness quickly swept out, seeming to engulf the walls and all visible light within it's craps, and they could all see the creepy little hands all stretching out, coming right for them. The sound of gunfire was the first to emerge, they thought they could somehow get rid of the menace. But they learned all too quickly that what they did was meaningless.

Ricky walked out of the door slowly, only his eyes visible in the engulfing darkness that was The Black as he watched the mayhem occur. When darkness engulfed this poor unfortunate soul, they panicked and tried all they could to escape. But the hands grabbed a hold of one of their feet, grabbing the person further into the darkness as the hands quickly made short work, the face being the first to go before red stained the walls nearby. Red would be the only color Ricky's mind allow to stand out in the dark.

Ricky continued his walk, hands in pockets, eyes showing no form of empathy for the people he once considered family. They all screamed the same, was the first thought to register into his current mindset. They were all the same to him: Scum. One person struggled to fight off the hands as they gripped onto the body to push it against a wall, and then the last thing they ever saw was two sharp looking fingers stabbing their way into the person's eyes. Another person tried to shoot themselves in the head before the hands could, but they quickly snapped the arm and let the gun fall to the ground. Oh how poor a choice, for the hands would not accept anything other than death by their own actions, and so the person's head was twisted around in an instant before the body was dropped and the hands began to tear the body into pieces.

He couldn't help himself as he began to laugh among the darkness, the only sound that he could register other than the cries of misery that filled the darkening place. People were being slammed until they were mush, some had their heads crushed slowly under the hands, others would not get such a mercy when they were thrown into the ceiling and dragged along it to make a red trail along it. One person almost got lucky, they saw Ricky and saw him as the threat, aiming a pistol at him and shooting in his direction. But no bullets would hit, and the eyes only got closer to the person's position. They kept firing until they were out of bullets, and then, they wanted to run. But before they could turn around, a hand burst forth through their chest, the person struggled to breath as the hand slowly twisted itself and began to race faster and faster. Ricky couldn't help but smirk as he was covered with a new paint job of red!

Five. Only five remained. When they saw Ricky step out into the light, they were horrified at the sight of the fresh red liquid dripping off of his body, and that horrifying grin that only a monster could make turned to them. One of them burst out into crying, another seemed to come close to a panic attack, while the others seemed to suffer from a lack of breathing. "Give it to me." Ricky spoke in a low tone, almost like a whisper. The five couldn't help but look at each other, what exactly did he want from them? What COULD he want from them at this point?!

"Bow." His demand was clear, and they all felt a crushing grip within their chests. Swear loyalty to a sadistic and cruel murderer, or join the slaughter fest. It all clicked that Ricky had spared them because he viewed them as the closet of the bunch, and they had a hard time coming to grips with the reality of the situation. However, when they began to see the red hands slowly make their way out and begin to spread, they all knew what to do and kneeled before Ricky like some kind of King. The hands stopped all at once, except for five, which the others could not see coming due to their heads being bowed and their eyes being tightly shut.

"Welcome to oblivion!" He shouted with glee, and the hands each grabbed hold of the faces of the five, they struggled to get free but the hands were just too strong for them. Ricky began to chuckle as cracks began to emerge all over the five, their eyes rolling as they were slowly engulfed in darkness. Ricky turns around and shakes his head, putting one of his hands over his face as he went into full on laughter, the hands slowly receding as the five bodies shook and twitching with The Black having consumed them. Then, they stopped all sudden movement and the darkness began to become absorbed into them, all of them getting the same twisted smirk Ricky had as Ricky throws his head back and laughs like the demented lunatic he always was!

By the time Taja could dial 911, Miranda had entered the house once more, and the werewolf could hear the dial tones clearly. Quickly snatching the phone from the young girl's hand, she answered. "This was a test call, please do not send anyone, there is no emergency." she said calmly. She looked to Taja, shaking her head and putting a finger to her lips to shush the girl before she could speak. Her glowing Amber Eye stared into the eyes of the girl, sending an unspoken message of "It's okay, I handled it." there was some more speaking on the otherside of the line before Miranda grunted. "Yes I realize the importance of this number, my little cousin does not, I told her to test it out and she accidentally hit dial. Yes...Correct. Okay, good bye."

She hung up and sighed. "I handled it, young one. I have a cousin in the police force. He's handling the whole situation so that none of us are being questioned by the cops. Myself especially." She said. She placed the phone on the counter, pausing for a moment. That janitor worked quick....blinking she shook her head and then rubbed Taja's head softly, another show of affection. Of course she was oblivious to the fact that most of the people in this house were considered missing, meaning that the cops would show up eventually anyway.

She stood straight and looked around, her nostrils flaring as she got a smell of the area. It still smelled like blood. Miranda's body shuddered, uncertain whether it found the smell of blood revolting or satisfying. She coughed, shaking her head before moving to the living room and flopping herself on the couch, her toned, muscular body relaxing as it lounged on the couch, her eyes closing slowly as she tried to drift into a sleep.