A/N:
So the group made an escape when Shad's back was turned. I'm guessing that this doesn't go according to plan? Oh I forgot to mention, the song mentioned at the start of the last chapter is 'Blood' by My Chemical Romance.
Shad rubbed his temples in thought. It had been a fair few hours since he'd been forced into given the brief reveal that Slender had left in search of the cause of such an anomaly in the humans. Of course Slender most likely already knew, and Shad agreed with him on that theory. But after seeing the drawing that the girl had left behind… an uneasiness that was already present in his mind was starting to swell uncomfortably. The drawing was with him now in the Informer. And he did not wish to look at it. What a way to see his mentor, his master… his friend; laying in contorted in a death that was not meant to be his. The creature that did this, or as the case may be, will do this.
No, it would not be so. If he had anything to do with it, this premonition would not come true. After all, Trixie may see the deaths and draw them, but the sole reason they came true was because one of the others were sent out to complete them. Wasn't this the same thing? Well in theory demons and Proxies should be exempt form such visions. So what made this different? Shad adopted the notion that it was foul play at work, and Slender was playing right into it.
The deal that was made all those years ago still stood firm, so that means that something must have changed in order to trigger all of this. There was no doubting it. Shad hated to admit it, but he could not just wait around here and pretend that things were okay. If Slender was in danger, then it was his duty to do something to change that. Granted he'd also sworn duty to stand in Slender's place; but this seemed more important. Shad had been though a lot with that demon, and he planned to continue that. No matter how troubling or existence-threatening it may have and will be. But what he'd hated to admit the most, was that to carry out this task of finding his mentor… he was going to need help.
With that disturbing notion in mind, Shad started drifting through the corridors. He figured that the best person to start with would be Jack. After all he was the one who had mentioned the deal in the first place. He would be easy to convince before moving on to Alice as she'd already introduced her curiosity to the matter. Not wanting to be left out, the others would follow easily. Yet, as he searched for his peers, pushing himself through walls and knocking on bedroom doors before entering of his own means; he found no one. Not even the new girl.
"Oh…" he muttered, a state of such furiousness bubbling through him that he couldn't even speak. They'd disobeyed. Of course they did, what else were they going to do? Such arrogance. Such disrespect. Shad turned and stormed his way out towards the exit, "Oh, this is just… perfect…"
"Hey! Hey dude! Awesome Jeff the Killer cosplay!"
Jeff huffed and gave a dismissive wave at the passing teenagers, flipping them off the minute their backs were turned, "Cosplay my ass…"
Alice feigned a swoon, "Oh Jeff, tell me to Go To Sleep, Jeff! You're such a damaged soul, let me fix you, Jeff!"
He shoved her, "I hate the fucking internet."
"Don't blame the internet, blame the people who use it." Ben answered.
She smirked, "Like you?"
"Well I'm just a small factor. Someone's got to hack the news sites and cover your tracks."
That explained a lot, Trixie thought, like why the only thing about them that's in the media is just stories. And even then, as she found out earlier, not all were just fictional. She avoided all contact with Jeff, she felt both intimidated and angered at his presence and didn't want to act upon it. Jeff however, didn't seem to either care, or notice and continued to act as he would as if nothing had happened. In truth, he figured that he'd given his warning, job done.
"When are we going to look for Slendy?" Toby asked, hood down to reveal a mass of wild brown hair.
"Does it matter?" Jack asked, "We'll only end up back where we started anyway."
"No one asked you to come." Alice stated before turning to Toby, "We'll look for him later, okay?"
"I can't be alone…" he muttered after she'd already dismissed him by looking back to the others.
"How come?" Trixie asked gently.
He looked at her, expression unreadable, "I really hope you don't find out."
Considering the amount of things she already wished she didn't know, Trixie accepted this and left it there. It was late evening, the sun setting along the rooftops of the houses as the wondered down the streets, finally settling in an empty burnt-out playground that had clearly seen better days. They'd only been out in the open for just over an hour now. In truth, they were not used to just sitting around on the outside and doing nothing. Whenever the outside was with the intentions of completing a job, and then doing one thing for themselves before heading back. And it wasn't like they'd been able to sneak out in the past. Slender had been on perfect guard every time.
"Liven up, gents!" Ben called as perched atop the rusted monkey-bars, "And girls…"
"That's ironic coming from you." Trixie mumbled from the swing seat, but not quietly enough to not catch their attention.
"I mean cheer up and stop moping around like we're heading to the front line. We're out, right? Where's the fun?"
"It's somewhere else obviously." Alice stated from the other swing.
"Care to let us in on the secret?" Jeff snapped, leaning on the frame tiredly.
"Not really." She shrugged, "Honestly, I'm with Toby on this one."
"Awesome!" Toby grinned, dropping an arm down on her and Trixie's shoulders as he stood between the swings, "I got me a posse!"
Trixie winced, kind of wishing that she'd stayed behind but was too late now. Instead she just looked at the ground and tried to pretend she couldn't feel his bones cracking under his skin. Alice pinched the fabric of his glove and lifted it from her, promptly letting it fall to his side with a deadpan expression.
"You've got nothing." she ordered, "I'm just saying that we're missing the basic point here."
"Oh look, Alice is getting philosophical…" Jeff mocked.
"I'd point out that Jeff is being an imbecile but that's no big news." She quipped, "But I'm serious. We're coming across people with severe Sickness, Slender's gone and is showing up in Passive works, and now there's a deal with something that might be causing all of this? It doesn't add up and no one seems to care."
"I care." Toby muttered, crossing his arms and staring out along the street.
"I get that, but why do you?" Ben asked Alice, "Doesn't no Slender mean no stopping you from getting out?"
"No Slender means whatever he's dealing with takes over. I'd rather not be controlled by something like that and I'm pretty sure you'd all agree."
Ben's remained silent after that one, hands gripping the metal bars of his perch. Trixie let out a slow breath and thought about this theory. She barely saw Slender when he was around, but at least the times she had spoken to him her civilised and there was even a hint of gentleness. What would life be like if something just as powerful and from what she'd seen and heard, just as ruthless.
"So how to we find him, I'm guessing he's not the easiest to look for." She asked, refusing to let herself feel intimidated by the quizzical looks around her.
Ben looked like he was about to answer when something caught his eye, and what looked like a smirk and a cautious countenance spread on his face, "Ah, good evening, Shad, nice of you to finally join us."
The figure glided towards them with an air of calmness that seemed to chill the air around them. The Shadow Lurker's expression was unreadable, cloak swirling at the floor as he stopped before them. Trixie shrank into herself at the sight, having a sudden feeling of a child about to be scolded by a parent. Toby waved eccentrically, but still took a few steps to the side as if trying to hide behind Trixie where she sat at the swing. There was a long pause while someone waited for the tension to shatter. Ben, Alice and Jeff smiled wryly, silently challenging their substitute leader while he kept his face blank of all interpretation. Finally, Shad spoke. His voice scarily steady, not looking at anyone in particular.
"What do you think you're all doing out here when there's important work to be done?"
"A well deserved break, is all." Jeff answered, "You could use one yourself come to think of it."
"You infuriate me…" Shad forced.
He grinned, "I'm doing my job then."
"Have you no respect for those in charge? We may possibly be under threat and you do this?"
"We were going to look for Slender." Toby interjected, looking at the others for support, "Right?"
"And you think you can find him by wondering the streets? You should know better." Shad hated wasting words like this, he wanted to get to the point but he couldn't stop himself, "We're going to need more then simple searching to find him, if he even wants to be found. Yes, I'll admit that action needs to be taken but this is not how to go about it." He took a breath and traced his eyes over the group, noting their eagerness to hear more about what this action could be, but also amused by his outburst.
"Okay, Shad, don't get your nightmares in a twist." Ben eased mockingly, drifting to the ground, "What did you have in mind?"
"Not here. Home." He stated, hesitating for a moment, "Where's Jack?"
Trixie took this one, "He was just over there." She trailed off after she realised that the boy was in fact not on the bench where they'd last seen him, "Was."
-x-
Jack had listened to enough. He'd left the moment they started discussing Slender. It was hopeless and he knew that, there was no point in going on about it. Of course, leaving meant being alone. And being alone meant that… But it had already happened. Jack felt the black rush from his blackened eye-sockets and a burning rage inside him that merged with a hunger within. Anyone would do. He had to satisfy this. Anyone. Please, is there anyone?
Yes. One person. Just someone wondering alone. Perfect. He'd show them all. He'd teach them a lesson for doing this to him. Revenge for the torment he was put through. Why shouldn't he do the same to them what they did to him? So angry… So hungry… The stranger was on the ground before he even saw the hooded boy coming. Jack snarled and realised that he didn't have anything good enough to cut with. Ignoring the man's pleas of mercy, Jack searched him found a set of house-keys. Perfect.
He drove the metal tip into the strangers skin, jaggedly tearing it out only to plunge once more. Blood warmed Jack's hands as the dotted punctures melded into a gash. It was messier than he was used to but at this point he didn't care. He curved his fingers into the wound and tugged, feeling the flesh peel from the muscle. Jack forced a free hand over the man's mouth to muffle the screams of agony. Don't scream, he thought, it's so loud, I'm only doing what you did to me… So hungry… The abdomen was a marred mess of muscle and tissue, Jack continuing to gouge at the pooling opening. But something made him pause. The stranger's eyes had changed, so a shadowed black, and fiery scarlet…
"Jack! Enough!"
Jack felt something yank him backwards onto his back. He could sense the others around him, Toby the closest and pulling him away. Still induced in rage, he swing his arms wildly, the damp keys skill in hand and jaggedly slicing down Toby's arm, ripping the fabric of his clothes and into his skin. Trixie looked on at the sight and froze, bile rising to the back of her throat at the blooded mess of the victim and the animalistic snarls of one she'd known to be so timid and quiet. He was as insane as the rest of them…
And then her eyes set on the victims, the inhuman colours jarring her, "He's one of them." She rasped, trying not to vomit.
"Out of the way." Jeff demanded, steering her back a few steps and leering over the guy, "What are you?"
"Speak!" Alice cried threateningly, placing a boot on the man's chest and pressing down hard, causing his already rapid breathing to struggle further.
"He comes…" It breathed, a cruel laughter to the tone that made the hairs on Trixie's neck stand erect.
"Who does?" Ben demanded.
"He comes to reclaim his servants, his followers…" It forced, ruby pupils darting from Shad, to Ben and around the others, "He comes for all…"
"Who?" Shad yelled, taking the others by surprise and exchanging uneasy looks.
"The one who waits behind the wall…" It cackled, "Behind the walls and he's waiting… He comes… He comes for all in the end… Your end is near… He comes…"
It died laughing right there in the street. Trixie didn't understand, and she wasn't alone. Nobody had anything to say just yet. They had to get out of there before anyone arrived, for the noise that had been made was definitely going to attract attention. And what do people do when they're in need of escape? They go home. Jack was put into quarantine in order to regain his senses. Even behind the door his strangled cries of desperation could be heard. Alice had explained to Trixie that Jack was a special case, if he didn't have someone of trust near, then there was no telling what he could do. His past was a mystery, but it cut deep. And he had to get it out of his system before senses could be reached.
Now, the remaining of the group stood in the common room, all eyes on Shad. Finally, Ben took it upon himself to break the tension, or rather, add to it, "I think you'd better start talking, Shad. I think at least I had a right to know that he was involved in this."
"We didn't know for sure." Shad stated.
"Uh, how about including the rest of us on this little inside joke?" Jeff asked sardonically, "And don't give us that crap about Proxie's not being involved."
Shad gave an exasperated sigh before swallowing his pride, "Slender thought that the one behind this could be Zalgo."
This had mixed reactions. To had and Ben, there were looks of anger. Jeff and Alice remained confused along with Trixie, and Toby momentarily held a look of fear. Trixie shifted anxiously, "Who's Zalgo?"
"The see all and know all; some call him He Who Waits Behind the Wall." Shad answered grudgingly, "He's a demon, a powerful one that originally had control here."
"I thought that was Slender?"
"No, Zalgo's his boss. They had a bet like a million years ago and Slendy lost." Toby muttered.
"You mean a deal?" Alice asked, "What was it?"
"I don't know exact details." Shad admitted, "But basically speaking, Slender delivers the damned to him; but I'm unaware of what's given in return. I wasn't technically there when the bargain was made."
"And they call you the Observer? Jeez you're crap at this!" Jeff groaned.
"I do my job." Shad snarled, "And I'm trying to continue it. If Zalgo is behind this, then it won't be long before this gets worse. So I'm going to look into this, I suggest you do the same."
Before they could argue Shad pressed himself against the wall, vanishing amongst the cracks. Ben narrowed his eyes. As a different species of spirit, he couldn't follow in the same way. But he'd be more damned then he already was if he was just going to ignore this. He had a right to know more, more than anyone in fact. But that was another matter. He was not going to let this lie. Giving a knowing look to Jeff, he left the room through the doorway in hopes of finding out where Shad had gone. Jeff, curiosity peeked as well as irritation, trudged on after.
He was sick of this. They all were. As far as Trixie could make out, Shad and Ben were more involved with this than they were letting on, Toby too possibly. That left her in the same position as Jeff and Alice, something she was not too happy about. So, if Slender gives out jobs to kill, and then hands over the souls, does that mean that this Zalgo leaves them alone? But why was he such a threat anyway? It didn't make sense. And if Shad wasn't there when the deal was made, then it really could be anything.
"Well this has been a fun and enlightening day." Alice said sarcastically.
Trixie shrugged, "If you say so."
Alice removed her sweater, and as she did her cami beneath it hitched up to reveal her bare back and stomach. Trixie was about to look away out of politeness, but something caught her eye that made her breath catch in her throat. Alice broke free of her clothing and eyed her questioningly, looking down to follow the gaze. All across Alice's left side, spreading along her back in jagged patterns, were scars of pale raised flesh. One stood prominent to the right of her belly-button, and one lined diagonally just under her ribs. Alice gave a reminiscing smirk and lowered her top to once again hide the damage. She started sniggering at her observer.
"For gods sake, just ask."
Trixie lowered her eyes, but compelled to obey, "H-how did you get them?"
"I collected most of them on jobs. Most people don't tend to give up their lives easy, you know." She added sarcastically, "And one or two are from practice. But this one," her voice became softer as she lifted her hair to reveal a thick, paled strip along her shoulder, "This is personal."
The way she said it seemed to instantly put an end to the matter and Trixie felt too intimidated to press it further. Instead, she wrapped her arms around herself and took a breath, "Did they hurt?"
"Like a motherfucker on crack. But it comes with the position so you get used to it. Hell I don't think I've felt real pain since… Well not for a long time anyways."
She didn't like the sound of getting used to pain, "Does everyone end up with scars?"
Alice gave her a condescending scoff and walked towards the doorway, "Kid you wouldn't even have joined us today if you didn't have some scars already."
A/N:
Alice has a point there. So for those of you who guessed Zalgo was involved in this, yay for you and your Creepypasta readings! XD