Elysia Molan's Story

It was early on a Saturday morning in the beginning September, and the sound of sighing snapped Elysia out of her boredom-induced gazing. After blinking in surprise and looking around, she realized the sigh had come from her own mouth. Giggling to herself, she rubbed her eyes and shook her head. Her cheek hurt from where she had been leaning it on her fist, her arm upright, as she had been blankly starting at her computer screen.She had plans to hang out with her best-friend-since-childhood, Jaika, today... but he was presumably still asleep. She had sent him a few texts, but it was only a few minutes past 8 A.M. She shrugged to herself, she didn't expect to get out of the house this early anyways, but it was worth a shot. Elysia and Jaika had both made a habit of exploring the city they lived in, walking around for hours upon hours, having discussions, checking out abandoned buildings, and generally being friends. However, now that Jaika had his car they spent most of their free time exploring places farther away from where they lived. Over the summer, Jaika had taken Elysia to an abandoned house outside of the city limits that was claimed to be haunted. Elysia greatly enjoyed exploring these kinds of places, for it filled her with a sense of adventure. Jaika, on the other hand, was usually less amused but would come along anyways since they were best friends.

Thinking of which, today Elysia had another such destination in mind. Out in the woods outside of the city, there's a small cabin that teenagers at their school claim is the home of a witch or something. The other kids talk about it and dare each other to go, but no one ever does. Elysia isn't even sure whether it's a real place herself, but she wants to go see it and she'll be damned if she doesn't drag Jaika through four or five miles of woods to go see it. She sent him another text, 'Jaika wake up ya git.'

'Rin-ring-ring-rin' came the chime of the phone, receiving yet another text message from whoever had- Oh no pretenses... It was obviously Elysia, and there was no ignoring her. A soft grumble crawled its way out of Jaika's mouth, leaving him quickly and without much emphasis on any sort of emotion. He had been trying, trying to go back to sleep since the first text from Elysia. He endeared the girl to death, he really did, but sometimes it was just too early for her brand of 'entertainment'. His eyes opened slowly, bleary and filled with enough irritation to leave him looking quite like the cat roused from a satisfying nap. A lone hand reached out and picked up the offending device; glaring for a moment before sighing and letting a small smile cross his features unbidden. 'I am awake, what is it...?' came the reply. He put his phone down after, sighing and mulling over the idea of actually having to get up. He knew that Elysia had plans to take him somewhere newer today... And as much as he loved exploring abandoned buildings and places, today Jaika just couldn't help but feel like something was... Unusual.

Vmm-vmm! Elysia's phone vibrated on her desk, startling her with a jump. She read the text from Jaika and chuckled to herself. 'I am awake, what is it...?' She had a half grin. Five texts later, she filled him in on the plans for the day. They'd go somewhere to eat first, then drive to a campsite out in the woods they had been to multiple times. She learned from another friend that the "witch's cabin" as they called it, was in that neck of the woods. 'What do you say? We won't be out too late. We'll be back in the car before sunset.'

After sending the text, she absentmindedly swung her legs whilst waiting for Jaika's reply. Clicking on her computer screen, she shivered. She had been browsing Reddit, reading about Wicca and "real life witches," trying to get whatever background knowledge she could before going to a cabin the locals claimed a witch lived at. Of course, she was skeptical of most things, but she wanted to believe it was real. A few clicks took her to a subreddit called "FearMe" and she shivered once again. "Creepy place, that," she said to herself, clicking the back arrow. Vmm-vmm! Her phone objected, and she read Jaika's response. Smiling, she sent him 'Great! I'll be there in an hour and a half!' And she ran out of her room to go take a shower.

Another chime, another text, and yet another grumble. He had been so close to falling back asleep! He sighed and read his replies and hers, taking note of how quickly she was responding. "Must be excited." He mused aloud. Jaika stood then, getting himself out of bed and rubbing his face as he made his way about his room; grabbing a bland set of clothing before moving into his living room. He still had no clue how he felt about this new 'haunt'. "Witch's Cabin", as it was called.

Jaika frowned, humming to himself before shrugging and getting dressed as slowly and casually as he possibly could; a bad habit of his when the boy didn't feel like getting ready and going somewhere he wasn't completely on board with just yet. A pause, and then a start of thought. Perhaps it'd be a good idea to make sure that his long-time friend was genuinely sure of going on this adventure. Jaika grabbed his phone again, sighing and twisting his lips into a sort of half grimace as he typed out a text message for her. 'Elysia... Are you sure about this place?' he questioned her, stepping towards his front door and grabbing the keys for his car and then the spares; albeit not necessary it was better safe than sorry. He paused before leaving, sighing and sending out another message. 'Also, would you mind bringing something with you that I can write on? I want to record this place as well.' He smiled once it was sent, a quiet chuckle passing through him as the memories of the summer before came back to him; various buildings entered and so many taken down on a list.

Vmm-vmm!

The phone vibrated noisily on the bathroom counter. Again? Elysia thought as her phone went off. She was already naked and about to step in the shower when she heard it vibrate. Reluctantly, she went and read the texts. 'Elysia... Are you sure about this place? Also, would you mind bringing something with you that I can write on? I want to record this place as well.' She breathed air out of her nose, amused. Jaika was usually worried whenever she told him their adventures would take them someplace potentially haunted, but he seemed more worried this time. Then again, they've never been anywhere associated with witches. She replied, 'What, you can take haunted houses but not witches? :P And yes, I'll bring one of my spirals. Now brb, gonna shower.'

An hour later, she was out of the shower, her hair dried, and light makeup on. She was in her "Exploration Gear" which was really just a black shirt, green cargo shorts, and a hat to keep her short hair in a ponytail. She made her way to her garage and grabbed a cool water bottle out of the fridge. Pulling her phone out of her pocket, she sent Jaika another text stating that she was going to walk to his house, and that she'd be there in about thirty minutes. It was a two mile walk, and she wasn't in a hurry, so she'd probably take about 25 minutes at a leisurely pace.

The trip there was uneventful, and as it was early autumn, it wasn't too hot, so it felt nice. When she eventually reached reached his house, she checked the tree in his front yard, which was where he usually was whilst waiting for her to arrive. This time he wasn't there, but right as she walked up to his door and was about to knock, the door opened, with Jaika about to step out.

"Jaika!' She exclaimed, jumping on him with a hug.

'Haunted houses have a tendency to be empty and with things I can't see or touch... Witches can touch me, and you, and therefore we can touch them. I'd rather not touch them...' Jaika sighed as the response was sent, then he paused, chuckling and shaking his head as he waited for a short while; walking out of his house before walking back in, and then out again... And then returning inside before finally, finally going out and meaning to stay out... This was interrupted by the sudden surprise hug. "Shit!" He yelped in return; though in reality it was more of a modest gasp of minor shock.

Jaika peered at Elysia with an expression of bland amusement; eyebrows raised high and nose scrunched up at the amount of time it took her to get here. "You honestly couldn't have just waited for me to pick you up...?" He mused quietly, gently prying himself free from the embrace. A grin had managed to plaster itself over his lips as he spoke, voice soft and murmuring; unassuming, without much to give way to how he felt. As was his way; though once he stepped back, he lifted his own pack and slung it over his shoulders, wearing his own 'Exploration Outfit'. Though it really just consisted of a dark black hoodie with an equally dark gray undershirt beneath, as well as the glasses he often tried to keep off of his face, but wore when he knew they were going to be out for a while: his eyes tired easily, but could one really blame him?

"You honestly couldn't have just waited for me to pick you up...?" Jaika asked her, wearing an expression that she took as bemusement.

Elysia shook her head. "I wanted to friggen walk, man!" She laughed, and "pap"ed him on the head. Then they were in the car, and on the way to the campsite they frequented over the summer. Only this time, they wouldn't be setting up camp. Just exploring a cabin for a few hours. On the way there, Elysia and Jaika talked a bit, mostly about the witch's cabin. There was a lot of teasing Jaika.

---

It was about noon now, they had parked at the campsite and gone hiking through the woods for a bit. The cabin was supposed to be somewhere northwest of their campsite, along a small creek. Eventually, they reached the creek. Elysia looked to Jaika, her jaw hanging. "I didn't expect to actually get this far. Maybe this cabin is real, after all..." She trailed off. "Jaika. What's that?" She asked, pointing ahead. Through the trees, in the distance, was a small run-down house. Elysia let out a nervous laugh. "Good thing it's day time..."

"A cabin..." Was the affirmed reply, before a voice of trepidation and regret filtered out from Jaika's clenched teeth; he felt the need to avoid that cabin, to turn away and leave and never once look back... Yet... "Well, we're here." He sighed, rubbing his face with a single hand before giving a grimace at the nervous laughter that escaped Elysia. That was the last thing he needed, hesitation from the adventurous one. Jaika gave a groan before striding forwards, ignoring the 'run away' feeling that had grown from just permeating his gut, to screaming and pouring over his entire person. "I've got nerves, do you have nerves? I have nerves... Why are we here again?" Rambling, the taller, usually well composed boy was rambling nervously. His eyes were flicking about, never a moment of stillness as the sapphire blue orbs took in everything that there was to take in.

Though he then took a moment, composing himself with a great inhale and exhale before he turned and grinned at his partner in adventurous crime. "Let's get going before it gets dark then, Elysia. I don't want to walk back to the car in the dark; I might have to hold your hand." His voice was quiet and bland, betraying no evidence of the nervousness he felt inside, or at the least trying hard to do so.

The autumn air lacked a breeze and sat lukewarm like milk left out too long, and yet Elysia shivered. The cabin was a small, run-down, rusty, cabin with weathered wooden planks and peeling paint. The door hung slightly ajar, with no light within. No smoke billowed from the chimney, no paths were anywhere in the orange and yellow leaves scattered around the forest floor. There were no signs of living here, and yet Elysia felt as if she was being watched. She hadn't heard a word Jaika had spoken...

Then she laughed out loud. "Jaika, it's just an old abandoned cabin. There's tons of them out here, I'm sure the whole witch thing is just a legend. Come on, pull out your notebook and let's go look around inside. We've been inside a couple dozen run down haunted houses that were much bigger and more ominous than this one. Just because the legend is about a witch rather than ghosts makes this house no different." She lightly punched Jaika on the shoulder to lighten the mood. She walked towards the cabin, and though she would not show it to Jaika, he stomach sunk with each step closer, and goosebumps appeared on her arms. Definitely peculiar. She thought. These kinds of places almost never scared her. She reached her hand out to push the door open, and froze. A cold shiver ran down her spine as she imagined a hand shooting out of the darkness to grab her wrist. Shaking her head, she struck the door with her palm, making it swing open way too loud for the silent woods. She looked inside the dusty cabin as the sunlight filtered in through the door. What was once darkness was now a light glow in the one room house. She stepped in, he fear completely gone now that she could see inside.

"It's empty." She stated. There was a small bed to her left, lacking sheets with a mattress torn up and eaten through by moths. A plastic icebox lay overturned next to it, empty except for dirt. The floors were covered in dust, dirt, and leaves. To her left was a table... "Ah. There's the source of the witch rumors." She stated simply. On the table was a simple pentacle with unlit candles at each of the five points of the star. Above the table was a singular shelf hanging from the wall, with a few dusty, water damaged books. Except one of the books, which seemed in remarkably good condition.

Elysia reached for the book, and flipped through the pages. The entire book was in a foreign language, she couldn't read a word of it... Until she flipped past a page with a pentacle on it. Licking her finger, she thumbed back until she reached the page again. On the page was a perfect drawing of what was on the table, down to the table itself. An eerie feeling passed through her again, when she noticed a very large word painted under the picture, in red, versus the black ink of the rest of the book. She whispered it aloud.

"Baal."

Suddenly, the door of the cabin slammed shut, and the candles lit ablaze. Elysia looked over at Jaika slowly, fear in her eyes. She found she was unable to control herself as she smiled wickedly at him.

Elysia looked around, confused. Where am I...? She wondered. She looked around, and everything was all black. It was void, oblivion, and endless dark abyss with a total lack of light anywhere. She looked down at her hand, and electricity jumped between her fingers, causing her to jump back in shock and attempt scream, though no sound escaped her lips. The scene changed. In front of her was a giant twelve-foot-tall figure. Tight black skin clung to a skeletal shape, with two long arms than hung down below it's knees, and two large curved horns atop it's head. Baal. It did not speak to her, but she felt intention from it. Intention that told a story, emotions and thoughts that explained thing. It was a demon named Baal, and usually it killed people who were able to successfully summon him, but it should not have been possible for people who did not have the gift of magic to do so. The demon had decided to be their patron, to gift them with magic and introduce them to the world of Cults. She knew all this, yet she had no clue what any of it truly meant.

When Elysia woke up a few moments later, the candles were out and the door had creaked back open. The woods were no longer silence, with the sound of birds chirping in the distance. Jaika was passed out on top of her, as if he had tried shaking her awake then passed out just as she had. She tried shaking him awake, and whilst she did she noticed something else. The book and pentagram were gone.

Jaika sat up with an aggressive sound, one that hadn't ever left his lips before: a growl. His eyes at first were wild, his mind still stuck on the thought process of 'Fix Elysia. Run away. Get away. Fight. Run.' He whipped his head to and fro, glaring and giving ragged breathes of exertion. "Elysia? What- Where? Who the fuck is there?!" Jaika felt... Delirious, his thoughts were scattering easier than they usually did, and the myriad of confusing emotions pouring into his head didn't assist him in any sense. He felt caged and yet not, and worst of all he felt vulnerable. He could barely remember... Something, a fragment of some sort of memory that had permeated his thoughts; a creature so unearthly and frightening that his mind wanted, needed, to reject the very notion of it being plausibly real.

He paused then, taking a moment to breathe before realizing that he̡- r͢͏ę̸͢m͝em̶͠͏b͠҉è͡re̸͟d̷͝͞ ̧it̀͠ ͘t̶̀͡h̀é̷͠n͘͜,͘ ̢́sk͟͡e͘͝l͡e̴̶͜ta̢͜͞l͟ ̧a̕nd̶͢ ͜͞ć͏o̕m̧̡pl̨͝é̡t̴̢e̷̡l̴͞y͢͠ ̧͜i̛͠n̴̶hų̧͜m̕an͞͝͞e̡͘,͢ ̴͜͝s̛҉҉k͏̵̢í̛n̵͘͢ b͠l̵̵̛a͞c̸ķ ̷a͘n̷d̢̧͡ ̷̧t̴́͟a̸͡u͏͞t̡̢͜ ͜ǫv̷͘e̸̷̷r͞ bò̷n̨e҉̧s̕ ̨͝t͢o̡͘͝o͠͠ ҉͘b̡iǵ͞;̢̛͠ ͠to̶̶͟ó̧ ͞͏t̶h͝i̧͘n̶̛͞.͘ ̀ H̸id͡e͘ou͢͢҉s͠ ̧and͡ ̴ỳe҉͏t̵̛͝ ̕be͏a̵ưt͝͏̷i̷͝f̛͞uļ͡ ͠a͟l͢l͟͠ ̵̶ąt̀ ͜͜͠ònce̕͘͡,͜ ̵͏̢a̢ ͞͡s̕o̢͠r̢̕͠t́ ̶̸̢ǫ̷͞f̢͝ ͟g̀͝ĺ͜o͜r̴͜io҉ưs͜ ̴̢͟b̡e͜ą̕úty͡ ̴́o̧f̶̢͢ ̨m̧͞e̴ŕ̡͘c͠i̵͟l͘e̶śs̷̛ ̶͝é̴v̶͝i̷̛l͡͏.͢͡ ̸̕I̢͝t̵̨́ ̢s̸h̴̡͝o̸̶ul͢d̀̀n̛'͝҉t̵͡ ̀h͝à͟v̵e͡҉ ̡͜b͞e҉͟͜e̴ņ̨ ͘͢àļ͞i̴̢͘v̶̀̕ę͜͝,́͘ ̢͏a̴̶̢n҉d̨̨̛ ýe̷̛t̶͠ ͢i̢͝҉t̨͝ ̛͏̨ẁ̵a̴̷s͏҉͞ a҉n̷̢d̢͏̴- "Oh my fuck Elysia are you okay?! Fuck- I'm so sorry- I tried to move faster!" He started stammering then, voice filled to the brim with worry and fear; his thoughts tumbling away from the sight that had jerked him back to awareness along with Elysia's moving of his shoulder... The book, the pentagram where did t̵̸͜h́e҉y͞-҉͞ ͠we͜r̢͝en͢'̀͜͡t̛ i͜͏m҉͠po̕͢r̶͞t͜a̕nt̡͞͏!̡̛ ͜Sh̢̨͢e͘ ͜m̵̀͠i̷̧͘g̛͞h̴̕t̴͠ h̨̀áve̸͜ bé̵e͜҉n ̶͝h͟úr͢͠t̸!̧̨ ͏̛̕H͟͜҉e ̸ńe͟͏e͜déd̷͝-̴͘ to make sure that Elysia was going to be okay!

Jaika spent a longer amount of time fussing and worrying about Elysia than he did realizing that perhaps he needed to get up and off of her. Sure, he was thin, and rather unassumingly light-appearing, but he still had more weight than was needed to push air out of her.

Elysia and Jaika got up from the floor, and she assured him she was fine and unharmed. For the first time ever at one of these houses, they had a supernatural experience. It was what she had always secretly been searching for, but now... "Let's just... Let's just go home, pretend this never happened." She said, tired. Whenever she recalled the form of the demon, she shivered and her gut dropped. Let's just go home.

---

Later that night, Elysia lie in her bed, texting Jaika, when her phone suddenly turned off. Slightly annoyed, she got up out of bed and plugged it into her charger. "It was fully charged ten minutes ago, what the hell?" She mumbled to herself. Elysia sighed, then she dropped back onto the bed. For some reason, it wasn't super comfortable, but at least it was cold. She listened to the faint hum of the air vents, and slowly her eye lids got heavier and heavier. She rolled over on her right side, how it was most comfortable, and attempted to wrap herself in a cocoon of her bed sheets...

Wait. Didn't I just lay in bed? Elysia thought, looking around at the grassy field around her. She was laying in the grass, in a park of sorts, and it was night outside. The sky was clear and pretty, and she could see the stars. In one direction, over the trees she could see the light in the atmosphere indicating a city in that direction. Then she saw a streak of white jagged lines make its way across the sky to the city. There was no sound, she realized then. No thunder, no wind, completely inaudible. Another lightning strike tore across the sky, this time closer, and lighting up the night. She saw another flash, this time it came from behind. When she turned, she saw a tree across the park on fire. Then, lightning struck a tree about twenty feet away from her. But instead of hitting the tree, it tore the tree in half, and the ionized air and plasma flew at her in a curvy-jagged line. The lightning hit her in the chest and launched her back, off of her feet. She landed on her back, knocking the air out of her, her body numb. But she was unharmed, and she felt no pain. What is going on? Then, the park stirred and shifted. The ground under her rolled like a waterbed. Shadows were thrown everywhere as the sky turned into strobe lights, lightning hitting trees multiple times every second, many strikes hitting her and knocking her all about. Lightning split the sky like a shattered window, and for a brief moment she felt as if reality had actually broken. Suddenly it halted and she floated in the void again. Electricity flowed through her clothing as if it were made of strands of metal, she could hear the humming and see the air shimmer. Strands of thin electricity flowed through her hair, which was a static-y mess. Her skin shimmered a light blue and seemed to glow. Then she exploded, electricity went everywhere, flowing through the air like rivers across a landscape, except in a 3d globe around her. it all seemed to freeze and linger there, before she drifted even deeper into her dreams, and could no longer understand what was going on.

When she woke up in the morning, she remembered none of the dreams, but her room was a mess, and her computer screen was rainbow-colored.

Jaika had been responding to her, he remembered it clearly. Though when the replies stopped coming; he felt the worry building in his chest again before it dissipated. Exhaustion tore through him, dragging his suddenly too heavy to stand form, from being upright and alert, to crumpled up on the ground with a soft 'whump'. His eyelids drooped, fluttering and refusing to stay open... Then, without much fanfire, Jaika was gone.

I͢t w͟a͠s t͞oo͡ ̧b̷ri̷g͏ht͞,̸ u͏n͢c͝omfor̢ta͏b͠le,̛ ̧thȩ cage͠ nee̶ded͏ ̶to g̨o͝; ͘b͟u̢t ͞w͟ai̴t- wh͞e͠r̶e̸ d̴id t̷he c̕a̸g͢e ̵ev͝e͜n com͞e̴ f̶ro̷m̛? h͜é ͟c͏o͘ul̷dǹ't͠ ̸seé, an̕ḑ ̸no amou͟n̴t̨ of sq̧ui͟n̨t̕in̡g͜ ҉w̵as͏ ҉hel̶p͘i͘n̢g ҉hi̶s sįght̶. T͢h͏en̶ w͢iţhout wąr̸ǹi̕ng͘ he could see clearly, light flaring and then dimming from some unseen source, filling the room with no scant amount of odd shades thrown from here to there to everywhere. His bones hurt, his back especially... Like thick strands of pain were worming their way out from his shoulder blades before looping back around to his lower back and then the very top of his spine; just below the point where it became his neck. Then it was- p̨͡ą̷̴̛i͞҉̴̨͜n̕͠,̧͠͞ ͝҉g̵͠o͞d̨́ ͝ą̸͏̶ẁ̷̢̀͡f̵͠ù̴̡͢l̴͘ ̢҉̀͜p̵̵̴͢҉a̛͘͢͟͞i͡҉́͟͡n̵͟͞,̢̀ ̨̨̛̕s̸̀͜͟o̸̶͠͝ ͏͘͝m̷̧͢u̢͞͠c̷̸̡̕͞ḩ̨ ͝͠͝p̡͞a͞i̵̷ǹ̴̛-̸̵͟ se̴a͏ri̧ng̛ and ̀teari̛ng ͜ąn͏d ri҉pp͜ing̸ ͞t̕h҉roug̶h him͏,̵ b͜ųr̸nin̸g ̀his̴ ̀s͜kin;͝ fl͢a͞ying̀ ̷h̶is҉ b҉ác͠k open ̀a͞nd̵ ex̢pos̴ing ҉a͟ļl ̴th̀e̢ ̨blo̶od͡y̢-mu͞sh͞y ͢o͠rg҉an̸s ̷un̢ḑe͟rn̨ea̕th. Cla͏ws ̶e҉x̶tend̀ed ̨f͡ro͏m͠ ̷t͘h̕e̷ ͠flayed҉ ͝sk҉in,͡ f̵ĺa̡r̨ing͝ oưt ͜l̵ike the͘ le̶gs ̴óf ̢śo̷m͏e̷ ungơdly̧ ińs̀éct ̢bȩf͝o͡r͜e c̢u͞rl͞i͟ng͠ in ̸o͠n̷ the̛ms͡elves͟ ̴ànd͟ b͟ecoḿin͜g ҉two ͞i͝nd͜i̕v͟idual̴ ͡leng̸th͟s̢ ͞o͢f͏ ͝sin͟uơu͘s͟,͝ ̛pulsin̷g̨ ̛m͞us͟cl͝e. Th̀eý ̀ga̢v̶e the impres̀si͠on̢ ̧of̶ whips, pulsing with an unknown light that writhed through the already flaring and seizing things. A voice screamed out from nearby; flashing past his hearing and then suddenly filling his head. Incredibly loud and yet not loud enough; it was his own screaming that was filling him up, yet it wouldn't quiet down and leave him when he stopped, throwing his thoughts to the wind as the pain slowly, finally subsided... And then it́ ̶̷t́͡h̸͜ŗ̴͟e̕w̧͝ ͟h̡̛͠i̢͏̶m͏ ̀o̸҉ǹ͜͝t͏҉o̵ ̶͘͞his̨ ̀͝҉b̢̕ac̨͟͞ķ̵ ̡a̸n̷͟͟d̵ ̵̧t҉̕ore͟ ̴h̕͟i̡ś̴ ̢͡s̡͟͠t҉o̸m̕à͝c̷͡h ̶̛o͟p͠e҉ņ,͝ a҉ ͘͜m̧o̶̷͡n̴͘s̕t҉e͝҉r҉̕, so͞m͝e̵͘ ̸̛͘b͏e͝a̷s̀t͡͡,̢̡͟ ̡i͝t ̕͘l̶ǫ͢o̕͜ḱ̛͝e̸͢d̛ ĺ̶i͜k̢e̕ ͏͡h̡͜i̷̛m̨ ̢͏ą̷n҉d͡ ̨̨ýet̸͟ ́ì̡͢t̨ w̧͢a̴̸͟s͝ń̢́'t̢̛ ̶̀͢a͝͠nḑ ̸̨i̸̷t ̷̢̧w̨à̴s̶͟ ͞s̡͡͞o͘͝ ho̸ŗ͏ŗ͘įb̵̀̀le ͝a̶̢͞n̶҉d̸̨-̡ he could see it through his stomach, a writhing mass of barely discernible shapes and forms before it began to settle... A face appeared within his stomach, screaming up at him in silence before-

He woke up then, mouth agape and muscles taut as he held back a scream that almost tore it's way out of him just like t̡̢̧̕h̢̢́͘͢e̵͜ ͟͟͠m̸̨̕͝͞ǫ̶́͘͠n̵̷s̴̡͏͜t̕͡͞e̴̛͘r̢̧ ̸̷̢͟͞i̴ǹ̨̕҉s͏̵͞i͜͠͡d̷͏e̴̵̴͘͡,̴̢̀͘ ̴̧̢͢i҉͟t̛͜s̶̵̶̛͠ ̧̀͘͡i̶͠͏͜͞n̡̡̧͝s͟͝i̸̡͢͟͠d̴̀͠͏é̸̛ ̴̶̨̀͢i̢͝n̷͝s͜͟͞i̶͝d͢͞ę͢͠i̴̴̕̕͝n̢̧͝s̵͢͟͟i̧̨͜d̸e̶̵͝I̸̸͠͠N̵͞S͏I̷̷̡̛D̸̸Ȩ̷͜͞-̸. His room... His living room was lined with gashes and rips in everything, leaving the entire space looking as if someone let loose a wild animal of some kind. He stared... And then-

'Elysia please be up.'

It was 4:17 AM. Or at least, that's what Elysia's alarm clock said. After waiting in bed a few moments, she noticed the time on it wasn't changing. She checked her phone, and saw that it was sometime after nine in the morning. She also saw a text from Jaika from around midnight. She sighed, and got up and went and sat at her desk, and booted up the computer. She had remembered going to sleep with it on last night even though she hadn't actually got on it and found it peculiar that it had shut off, but it happened sometimes. When she touched the shell of the computer, it shocked her, but she paid no mind. She pressed the button, and it started up. When the monitor flashed on, it had round streaks of color across the screen as if a magnet was close to it.

"What the...? Mom!? What happened to my computer?" She called, and a few moments later, her mom was in her room.

After a few moments, her mom poked her head into Elysia's room. "No one came in your room while you were gone yesterday, honey." Her mom said, raising an eyebrow. "Are you sure you didn't do anything to it?"

"What- Me?" Elysia asked, incredulous as her mom walked away. Elysia had called her mom in here, asking about it. Of course she didn't do it. She sighed once again. Great, well her monitor was jacked up now. At least computer monitors aren't too expensive. She sighed again, and leaned back in her plastic desk chair. Suddenly, her room lights went out. What the hell? She wondered, unscrewing the light bulb from her ceiling fan, to discover it was burnt out. Sighing, she went to the laundry room to get another light bulb. When she screwed it into her ceiling fan, it stayed lit for about ten seconds, before burning out. She furrowed her brows in confusion, and went to grab her iPhone. She pressed the home button on it and watched as the battery percentage at the top right of the screen literally went down from "100%" to "1%" in the span of about fifteen seconds, while it was still plugged into the wall and charging. The screen went black, with the symbol of a red battery in the center of the screen with the charging symbol. She dropped her phone on her bed and backed up a few steps. What the HELL is going on?! She screamed internally. She walked out of her room and to the living room.

"Mom? I'm going to walk over to Jaika's to check on him and make sure he's fine. I might go somewhere with him afterwards."

"Okay sweetie," She said. "But if you start feeling bad, call me and I'll come pick you up." Her mom said, referencing to Elysia's state as she had came home the night before, pretending to be sick to hide her fear.

"Alrighty." She said, neglecting to mention she wasn't bringing her phone with her. And with that, she walked out of the front door.

Jaika had still yet to move from his standing position beside his living room sofa, his eyes were still locked on the deep, rough edged gouges that had been cut into the furniture. His walls were no better, nor was his TV- the latter not even remotely close to working condition, with the cracked screen and broken plastic borders. Even his windows weren't strictly safe, though they thankfully weren't shattered, the glass had deep maroon smears that crossed from one side to the other. The door was just barely hanging onto its hinges, with long stretching gashes that looked similar to claw marks. In other words, his room was a mess. And now that he thought... So were his clothes.

The casual hoodie and T-shirt were stained with some sticky substance, not quite blood and yet not quite... not blood. The holes behind his shoulder blades, the small of his back, and just near the back of his ribs were more than easily felt, and the front of his top half garments were completely ripped open, his stomach and chest visible and absolutely covered with lint and other minor debris. His jeans were just barely holding together; with holes ripped in the knees, and a long rip that flowed from his left ankle up to the hole in his thigh. They too, had presumable blood stains on them.
"Oh..." Was the murmured realization, a mind left struggling to comprehend just how everything had gotten into such a state; the body felt fine, and there were no wounds on himself. And yet there was blood everywhere on him. And no one else was ever in his house!

'Elysia? Elysia I need help.' A short pause, perhaps a five minute wait; time was crawling by and yet so easily forgotten. 'Elysia? Stormie where are you? Are you still asleep?'. Another short wait, before a rushed message came, panic pouring through the hurriedly typed words. 'Elysia please where are you Im panicking are you okay?' "Hah- Wow- That was consistent..." Jaika muttered to himself, hands shaking as the totality of reality slowly began to sink in. His room: trashed as if a tornado of glass tore its way through. His clothes- well rags, really: the same as the room. All of it: smeared all over with stains like blood. A crime scene of the most epic proportions.

Felken Colden, age 27, leader of the Celtlight Cult, had sensed right away that something in the air was off. The day had a strange air about it, but he couldn't quite place his finger on it. Until she walked by him.

It had been early in the morning, and Felken was on his way to meet up with his Cult members for their daily routines when he walked by a girl whom he could only assume was a high schooler. She was clearly distraught as she hurried her way down the sidewalk on the street, stepping into the street whilst passing him so as to not get too near to Felken. It was then that Felken felt something odd about her. You see, Felken had a secondary power that was pretty insignificant most of the time, but helpful other times. He could sense when someone else was a power user, which isn't something all power users can do. It's what helped him found the Celtlight Cult, how he found his members.

But this girl's aura seemed different. Off. Unstable. More-so than his own or any other he'd crossed path with that had unstable powers. And she carried with her the slight scent of another's powers that seemed equally unstable. He was intrigued. And so he stepped into the shadow of a tree and instantly disappeared, traveling between shadows in order to follow the girl. He was stalking her, but he'd never be caught. Powers of darkness were perfect for stealth, especially in the early morning when shadows are long and dark and the sun is low enough on the horizon so as to be hidden behind houses. And so he followed the girl until she reached someone's house and knocked on the door.

"Elysia?" A questioned asked to a door that was noticeably in poor condition, more so than it had originally been in, even when storms and other 'disasters' had threatened to break it down. Oh just so barely on it's hinges... Had the man been watching, unknown to Elysia or Jaika, he perhaps would have seen the dark maroon stains on the other- younger than himself- boy's clothing. He would have seen the amount of disrepair that his clothes had fallen into and most of all, he would have seen the absolute wreck that the living room was; just behind the door frame.

Jaika stood there, having spent all of his time watching and waiting for Elysia picking up the living room as much as he could, and trying to scrub the windows clean of the smeared blood- and failing to accomplish much, seeing as his hands kept shaking and his body refused to stop feeling pulled taut; tense under his skin. Skin which felt stretched to the point of discomfort. He was disheveled in appearance, already unruly hair mused into a state even more messy and unkempt than usual. "Oh thank-! Oh wait... Get inside please? Er.. Yeah, please? I don't uh... Yeah." He was stammering, stuttering over his words nervously as he ran a hand through his hair with angst.

Elysia. That was, presumably, the girls name, due to Felkin hearing the guy say it. Felken observed with mild curiosity that the boy had ripped, bloodied clothing and that the room beyond the doorway was a total wreck. The girl, Elysia, had understandably freaked out and during this, Felken learned the boy's name. Jaika. But more importantly, it told Felken that this was not normal. Something strange had happened. Had they both just recently received their powers? Most people's powers would manifest when they were much younger, but it was not unheard of powers manifesting as late as 18 years old. Still, you'd think they would know they were to receive powers, it was hereditary after all... Unless... Perplexed, Felken, in his invisible, non-physical, shadow form, did the mental equivalent of furrowing his brows.

When Jaika had opened the door and Elysia beheld the scene infront of her, she almost screamed. "Jaika! What the fuck happened?" Before Jaika could even respond, she grabbed him by the arm and pulled him out of the door way, into the house. "We need let's get out of here. Something weird is happening to both of us and we need to go somewhere else to talk about it. Your house is a mess and you look like you just murdered someone. Get changed and let's go."

Jaika made a sound in his throat, somewhere between a strangled whine and a imploring gurgle. "Wh- Wait- You can't just-" His words were cut off, held back by a sound of frustration as he tried not to push Elysia out of his house. Instead, he chose to shove her towards his room, not once even thinking of how much of a bad idea it might have been. Then again, the fact that the living room had yet to begin to smell like the blood that was smeared about all over the place, and on his clothes as well, was starting to get to him. If Elysia took the time, maybe she would have noticed how Jaika was holding himself. Twitchy, jumpy even to the faintest touch; whether it was his to her, or her to his.

"Elysia..." Jaika whined, rubbing his face before pulling his hands away and taking a deep breath, only to let it out again in a suddenly silent sigh. "Where, then, do we go?" The question felt like a brick, thumping into Jaika's chest as he realized just what asking that much implied. His mind reeled and drew in on itself before casting his thoughts back out into the open and- rather ironically given his usual attitude of silence- out of his mouth. "Where the hell are we even going to go? And furthermore, what do you mean 'both of us', did something happen to you too? Oh and before I forget, where the hell were you?! I was trying to get a hold of you almost all night! Jesus!" The teen threw his hands into the air above his head, sighing yet again before groaning and leaning back against his doorframe with a loud 'thump'. "Ugh and my room is a mess! Great! Absolutely perfect!"

His voice had risen, slowly, panic seeping into the tune of every word that left his lips before he again drew in on himself, letting his suddenly voiced thoughts return to their proper place: silent, in his head and known only to him. "Where are we going to go? Oh! And don't think I'm letting you off the hook for abandoning me." He murmured softly, raising an eyebrow at the girl across from him with as much self control as he could possibly muster. Jaika knew that he was being petty, and highly irregular, and rather stupid in all honesty; yelling like he was and then quieting down like a child with mood swings. "Jesus..."

Elysia could, would, and did, drag Jaika to his room, ignoring his arguments. Of course, he made this easier on her by pushing her towards the room about halfway there. When they got to his room, Elysia watched Jaika as he whispered her name and rubbed his face, smearing a bit of the blood there before sighing.

"Where, then, do we go?" Jaika asked her, but it felt more like he was asking himself. Where indeed. A faintly recognizable voice sneered somewhere in the back of her mind, but she instantly forgot about it. "Where the hell are we even going to go? And furthermore, what do you mean 'both of us', did something happen to you too? Oh and before I forget, where the hell were you?! I was trying to get a hold of you almost all night! Jesus!" Came the volley of questions, and Elysia flinched back for a moment.

"My phone isn't working. In fact, no electronics seem to be working around me. I walked by a freaking street light on the way here and it exploded and showered glass behind me. My computer and phone are fucked up." She almost screamed. Elysia was just as stressed out as Jaika was in this situation and he was not making things easier for her. "I don't know what's happening to either of us, but something is happening. Get changed, we need to at least leave the house for a bit."

---

Two hours later, Felken had followed them almost five miles from Jaika's house. Felken had many thoughts on the couple of them. Firstly, they were interesting. It seems that they both acquired their powers today and neither of them know what is going on. It also seems that they have little to no control of their powers. It's common for people to have unstable or at least unpracticed powers at first, but not to this extent. It's almost as if they were both normal, powerless humans, from normal families, that somehow got powers. He had been debating with himself as to whether he should show himself to the pair of them, but he was unsure of whether or not it would be a wise idea. As the leader of the Celtlight Cult, he definitely had the authority to make such a call or to forbid such a call. However, he did feel that not showing himself and revealing information about Cults may result in more harm than not, as they might end up exposing themselves or hurting someone with their new powers. I'm not doing it alone, He thought. They might be in denial, they might attack, or their powers could lash out with their emotions, or any number of unknown events could happen. Not to mention, he really was terrible at social encounters and usually relied on his fellow Cult members to help him in diplomacy. He didn't particularly enjoy talking to people outside of his Cult, so it was a hard decision to make.

In the blink of an eye, he was in a familiar library, near the closest Cult member he could find. Stepping out of the shadows of a nearby bookcase, he spotted Yaela, a young and in his opinion, powerful member of the clan. He saw that near her was a librarian, so he decided to greet her in sign language to keep the ruse of her being deaf. In reality, he knew she could hear but just couldn't speak without destroying the building or killing someone. Felken signed to Yaela, but also spoke aloud to feign her reading lips, "I need your help in recruiting two new members."