A/N Hello everyone! Welcome to another chapter. It might get a bit graphic, just as a heads up. Enjoy!
Chapter 9: Echo creek- after hours
"None of your business..." Star said as she stood and dusted herself off. Sledge laughed.
"Calm down girly. No need be so hostile. Curiosity never hurt anyone." Sledge grinned wickedly at Star and her wand. She held it to her chest defensively. "Anyway, you guys ready for the last day of detention? Boy was it awful."
to
"You weren't even there for it." Mike retorted. But before Sledge could reply, the school bells rang, signaling that all kids should head to class. In their case, detention. Sledge gave them one last grin before heading to detention. The trio looked at each other nervously before following suit.
Later
The trio decided to celebrate the end of detention by getting something to eat at a diner. Sledge was oddly quiet during detention. But they paid no mind to this. They just wanted to enjoy their hard-earned food in peace. It was delicious and they got milkshakes after, but it was getting dark and they had to head home. They paid the bill and started heading home through the town.
"Thanks for the treats Marco." Star said as she patted her belly. Marco chuckled.
"It was my treat, guys."
"So am I able to find out what normal school is like tomorrow?" Mike asked jokingly. Star and Marco laughed as they continued walking. All was going well until they passed a dark alley. They were suddenly dragged into it and slammed against a wall. Mike tried to retaliate, but a swift knee to the gut knocked the wind out of him. He attempted to recover but three more swift blows to his body drained him of his energy quickly. Last, he was forced against a wall and he only had enough time to see a dark figure's foot dig itself into his gut. The force, combined with the other attacks caused him to spit up a bit of blood. His head was ringing, but he could clearly hear his sister crying out, as well as deep, heavy, sadistic laughter from his attacker. He struggled to look up, but his assailant grabbed him by the hair and yanked his head up so he could see. "Sledge..." He mumbled weakly. The wide, crooked grin he got from the kid was far from sane.
"What, freak? Did you miss my beatings? I made sure I kicked your ass this time." Sledge let go of Mike's hair only to backhand him, sending Mike to the ground on his side. Sledge gave Mike one last solid kick to the stomach. At the same time, Marco tried to come up to Sledge from behind and attack him, but Sledge was too fast. Sledge turned around and grabbed Marco by the throat, lifted him up, and slammed him into the ground. Marco's air was totally knocked out of him and was left gasping on the ground. Sledge prepared to kick Marco, but Star send a beam at Sledge that nearly missed his head. Sledge quickly turned and glared at her. Star tried to do another spell, but Sledge punched her right in the face She was knocked down and tried to crawl away with Marco while clutching the wand tight in her hands. Tears started to roll down Star's cheeks as Sledge started approaching them. He laughed darkly as they backed themselves into a wall. "I'm gonna enjoy this..." He licked his bloody fist and moaned.
"You're crazy!" Star exclaimed. Sledge simply grinned in reply as he began to raise his fist, but Mike got in the way. Bloody and beaten, Mike saw his best friend and sister being attacked by this insane teen. He used what little strength he had to put himself between Sledge and the others.
"Look who's back for more. Gotta say, I'm impressed you're still standing." Sledge said. Mike simply stared at him. Sledge glared at his silence and swung, but Mike dodged, causing Sledge to drive his fist into a nearby glass, impaling his fist and cutting deep. He howled in pain then glared at Mike with the look of a madman. Mike wasn't able to dodge the next attack. Even worse, was that his fist was covered in glass as he hit Mike. Mike's feet stayed planted where they stood but his torso was twisted back from the impact so that he was now facing Marco and Star. They saw Mike's face... Bloody, scratched, beaten. His eyes were closed from the impact of the punch. But then he opened his eyes, and they flashed green again, but was gone in an instant. But this time, they both saw it. Mike, using the momentum of him being twisted away from Sledge, swung his fist right into his jaw. The powerful force rattled Sledge's skull as he crashed head-first into a wall. He was out like a light. Mike stood, breathing heavily, body shaking. Marco and Star slowly stood.
"Mike...?" Marco said.
"Bro?" Star added. Mike slowly turned to them. He looked so beaten... So weak... But he smiled when he saw that they were OK. They started to smile back, but then Mike began to collapse on the ground. Thankfully, They caught him and held him up.
"We need to get him to a hospital." Marco said. Star nodded.
"And we need the police. This is more than just a bully. This was an attempted murder." Star added as she glared at Sledge's body. They started by taking Mike to the hospital. They would call the police after.
Later
Ludo looked at the heap of human on the ground and rolled his eyes.
"Figures..." He heard sirens in the distance. "Fine then. I'll do it myself." He glared at Sledge one last time before using his dimensional scissors and snipping himself away from the scene. But soon after, Sledge began to wake up, and be heard a voice in his head. His eyes shot open and his eyes glowed a demonic red.
