This is about the book Powerless by Matthew a Cody and takes place after their battle with the Shroud in the first book. It is a one shot

Disclaimer: The brilliant Matthew Cody owns Powerless, not I, but he has allowed me to borrow them as long as I encourage others to read his magnificent story, Powerless. (Seriously, go read it if you haven't already! It's my favorite book and it is fantastic)!

Warnings: insomnia, horrible night terrors, torture, murder, hints of rape

He was standing in the Shroud cave, alone, his soft breathing echoing off of the limestone walls. The cave was devoid of life, but it was just like it was the last time Daniel had seen it, except then, shadows had peeled themselves from the walls and Herman Plunkett had dangled from a spider web.

Daniel took a cautious step foreword and realized what a mistake that was. A hand cuffed upside the head and someone kneed him in the back causing him to fall. He turned on his side to face the person near the entrance to the cave. A kick to the ribs sent a gasp of pain to his lips.

"Give in, Daniel," the Shroud's voice hissed in his ear. "Use the ring."

"N-Never," Daniel stuttered, but anyone could see that he was terrified.

Someone grasped his hand in a freezing cold one and slipped a heavy, rock ring onto his finger. The voice laughed, "You don't have a choice, Daniel."

Daniel stood in a trance, unable to control his movements and turned to face the throne. Before it stood six children, all under age fifteen, and their faces held frightened, betrayed looks.

"D-Daniel, please don't," Mollie Lee stuttered. Tear had filled her dark eyes and that's when the boy knew that something horrible had happened. Mollie never cried.

The powerless boy took time to examine the row of kids. The first one in line was Mollie. She was covered from head to toe in blood and it was splattered across her face and matted her black hair. Her clothes were nearly torn to pieces and the remnants clung to her body, which was covered in bruises, cuts, and welts. Mollie's ankle was twisted at an odd angle and one of her wrists was hanging limp at her side.

Next in the line up was Eric. He looked even worse than Mollie. He was being supported by Rohan because he seemed unable to stand on his right leg. A piece of bone was sticking out of his bloodied wrist and the entirety of his skin was cover by blue and black marks. His clothes were still mostly intact, but some parts were charred and burned.

Third was Rohan, who was barely able to hold Eric Johnson up. He was thinner than ever and weakly hunched over himself with a fearful stare at Daniel. His button up shirt was torn to shreds, revealing the angry injuries beneath, and his pants bore claw marks at the edges. Blood soaked through his pant leg.

Fourth was Louisa, staring at Daniel with a sad glance. Her dress was torn and blood ran down her legs and Daniel felt sick, praying that it wasn't from what he thought it was from. Hands prints graced her wrists and tear tracks stained her cheeks.

Next in the row was six year old Rose Rodriguez. She was openly sobbing, crying his name in anguish and desperation. She looked a lot like Louisa with a torn dress and bruises covering her, but luckily showed no signs of being... you know.

"DANIEL!" She screamed.

Sixth was a chubby boy with blonde hair. Simon, the boy that Daniel had failed to save from the Shroud, stood there, staring at the boy in betrayal. His yellow hair was stained with red and his skin was marred with scrapes and burns. He looked so utterly confused that Daniel wanted to cry out to him and save him from this torture.

Finally, there was one last boy, the eldest. He was crying tears of fear and confusion, the first time that Daniel had ever seen him cry. He had several injuries and broken bones and parts of his skin were burned black. His name was Micheal.

"Daniel! D-Daniel, stop, or- or I'll-" he never got to here the rest of Mollie's statement. He touched her shoulder and she crumpled to the floor in a heap. He watched for another minute or so until her chest stopped moving and her glassy black eyes stared at nothing.

"No!" Eric screamed, battling Rohan's grasp. The younger held tight but that didn't stop Eric from screaming, "No! You are a traitor, Corrigan. You didn't trust me, lead us into a trap, and then killed Mollie. My best friend. I'll kill you! I'll hunt you down and-" Eric was interrupted when Daniel slapped him to the stone ground, where his head cracked, sickenly.

He moved onto Rohan.

"Daniel," Rohan whispered, "I forgive you. For everything, but please. Think for yourself. Don't make anymore mistakes." The shorter gestured to the row of kids, closed his eyes, and Daniel shoved him. Rohan collapsed just like Mollie and his eyes stared at Daniel, seeming to mock him.

"Daniel," Louisa whispered, "I forgive you." She didn't get to continue because Daniel kissed her smack on the lips. When he pulled away, he smiled a horrible, mocking grin.

"I never loved you." And then, she dropped like the other two and she was gone from this world. Looking like that, maybe it was for the best.

Daniel knelt before Rose and hugged her. The dark skinned girl was momentarily comforted before gasping in pain. The boy pulled away, his shirt now drenched in blood but not nearly as much the girl's dress. He watched as blood drained from her body and she died on the stone floor of the cave.

Simon was next and he was angry. "Kid, I never did anything to you, so why the fuck are you doing this? I hate-"

He never got to finish. Daniel touched his shoulder and Simon began to convulse, electricity racing through his veins like acid. What an ironic death for the previous Super.

"Daniel, right?" Michael tried to reason. "Why are you doing this? I-I thought that they were your friends, so why did you kill them?"

"Because I'm a monster." Daniel tapped his neck and Michael screamed as he floated into the air and with a sickening crack, went limp. "Goodbye, flier."

"Whose a monster?" The Shroud whispered into his ear.

"I am."

"You got that right."

Daniel screamed as he awoke and his concerned parents were leaning over him.

"Daniel? Daniel, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, Mom. J-Just a nightmare."

"That seemed like more than a nightmare, son," his father said, placing a hand on his child's shoulder. Daniel jurked away and started fighting his parents' grasps.

"Don't touch me!" He screamed.

"Daniel..."

"Look, I'M FINE! All I need to do is sleep."

"Okay, son, get some sleep."

His parents left the room, but Daniel couldn't stop thinking about the dream.

He didn't get any sleep that night.

so yeah, dark, but I thought it was pretty good. Matthew Cody didn't really detail the time between Powerless and it's sequel, Super, or what the Supers and Daniel went through in that time, but now one could come out of a battle like that unscathed.

Thanks for reading! Review please!