"We all wear masks, and the time comes when we cannot remove them without removing some of our own skin."
―Andre Berthiaume
8:00 pm, As Jericho falls asleep miles away.
"Hello... Mikhail. Or should I call you Doctor now?" The shadow sneered.
"Dark," The man known as Michael Ikard acknowledged with a nod.
Dark let out a harsh laugh.
"Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Here you stand, the world's most feared Knight and hunter, Mikhail Icarod Vesuvius; The infamous 'Reaper,'" he growled, His distaste for the old moniker apparent.
"The very mention of your name sent even the most powerful of paranormals fleeing for the hills. And look at the mighty Reaper now: stowing himself away and running from reality like a sniveling child that hides under the covers in the midst of a storm. Coward," he spat, hissing the insult.
The old Knight took his words in stride, not even batting an eye.
"Why Dark, I had no idea you cared. I'm positively flattered. You know, we haven't met in awhile; perhaps we could stop for a spot of tea to catch up on things." Mikhail's expression remained neutral as he taunted the demon. Oh, how Dark always hated that smug superiority of his.
"'Awhile' doesn't even begin to cover it, Knight. No one has seen or heard any trace of you for twenty years. How you've managed to stay hidden all this time is a mystery to me. It's an impressive feat, even for a man of your caliber. Tell me, what have you been up to these past two decades, hm?"
"I should think it would be obvious, Blood King. Can't you think of anything here in the sleepless city that might draw the attention of both the council and the hunters?"
Dark's eyes widened in revelation. "The girl..."
"Yes. The girl. Everything hinges on the girl. I see no point in keeping information from you that you would have inferred on your own by sunrise on the morrow," Mikhail sniffed.
"That's a sight that you won't live to see, Mikhail. Your mission, whatever it was, ends here. She. is. MINE." He growled lowly, lowering his head and baring his fangs in a terrifying snarl. Shadows rose from the ground and fell from the open air, appearing from every corner of the alley as they coalesced around Dark in a violent maelstrom of hellish darkness. His insane gaze bore a chilling resemblance to the blood he thirsted for.
"Maybe. Maybe not. I've never been afraid of death, my *sometime brother.* I hope for your sake that you can say the same."
The Red Prince roared and flew across the space that separated them as Mikhail The Reaper drew a wicked dagger from his waist. Neither held anything back, matching each other blow for brutal blow long into the night.
As the night finally reached it's end, only one of the combatants was left standing. Chest heaving as he struggled for breath, he gazed blearily at the body at his feet before limping away slowly into the early morning light.
Jericho POV:
Eight days later...
It had been about a week since I'd had any contact with dark. The encounter on the park bench was last Wednesday; this was Thursday morning. Part of me wondered what had happened to him. Part of me didn't give a shit. But A huge part of me was absolutely terrified that he might come back, dreading what he might do if he did. I prayed daily to whatever God that might be listening that he wouldn't return, that I'd never see his beautiful, terrible face again. life had gone back to normal, and I wanted desperately for it to stay that way.
Actually, that's not entirely true. My parents had left a note for me on the table the morning after my birthday that read,
Hey Jay bird! mommy here. :)
Sorry for not waking you up before we left. We got a call last night from my sister that her husband was in a car accident yesterday morning and is in critical condition, so we're going down to Colorado to visit. We knew you'd want to go, so we didn't wake you up. I know how much you love your aunt Jennifer and uncle Benji. But, He's in stable condition now, so there's no danger. You just focus on your classes, you have scholarships to keep up! Love you to the moon and back! -Mom.
Underneath mom's elegant script was a messy scrawl that read,
Yeah, what she said! XD
I had chuckled at my father's antics and how he had managed to be as goofy in writing as he was in real life.
...But that had been a week ago. I hadn't heard from them since then. I tried calling and texting and even emailing, but all I got were answering machines and unanswered messages. Even more troubling was the fact that the same thing when I tried contacting the rest of my family, and believe me, I tried everyone.
Dr. Ikard was M.I.A. as well. He hadn't had a class since he spouted all that cryptic mumbo jumbo in the hallway. That was last Wednesday as well, so he and my parents left at the same time. I preferred to think that they left rather than went missing. When I asked around, none of the students or professors I spoke to had any idea of 's or my parent's whereabouts. I even went to the police to try and file a missing persons report, but after four days of badgering them constantly, I gave up. Why they wouldn't listen was beyond me.
Sean was helping me stay sane, though. We had already become great friends, and were talking and studying together every day. He was so cute, funny, and caring. It was such a relief to have a little light in my life after all that had happened. He looked extremely troubled and perturbed when I talked to him about my concern for my parents and . I was glad to have some sympathy so that I didn't feel so alone.
Anyway, despite all the strange happenings of the past seven days, It was a new day, and I knew I had to carry on like I would any other. I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. God, I hoped they were okay...
I was about to walk out of my room when I saw mom's ring glinting at me from atop my dresser. I picked it up and gazed at it thoughtfully, marveling at the way it caught the light. I hadn't worn it in a while; I'd almost forgotten I had it. I slipped it on my right middle finger. It made me feel marginally better.
Alright. Time to go.
First thing's first; I needed to make my daily rounds to check if had returned. It had become a habit:
1) His office. Nope.
2) The theory classroom. Nada.
3) The admin building. No luck there either.
Wash, rinse, and repeat. Every morning for the past six days once I'd realized something was wrong. I needed to find him, almost as much as I needed to find my parents. I knew that he had answers, that he could help. I needed to find out what he meant when he warned me about 'venturing too far into the darkness.' had been in the background of my life for almost fourteen years; If he knew something about the mess that my life had become, that meant that everything that had transpired so far could have been set in motion long before it influenced my life directly.
My phone buzzed suddenly, startling me out of my thoughts. I took it out and grinned when I saw that it was from 'Sean Mcloughlin the third,' momentarily forgetting my problems.
S: Hey Jay-plier, do you want to come to the library with me? We can pretend to study! XD XD XD
J: haha Sure, I was just thinking about taking a break. What time?
S: Are you free now?
J: yeah! I can meet you by the tables outside the library entrance.
S: Got it chief ;)
J: haha see you there, Sean-septiceye :D
I put my phone in my pocket and began heading in that direction, a light bounce in my step. I really, really liked Sean. He was the kind of guy you'd take home to see your parents. When they weren't missing, of course. We were even around the same age! I had to be realistic with myself though. I had been incredibly lucky to make just one friend; There was absolutely no chance that I'd be lucky enough for someone to fall in love with me as well. I walked with a little less bounce in my step at that thought.
I was shaken out of my gloomy reverie when I heard Sean call my name, looking up to see him waving at me with his mega-watt grin. I smiled back and walked a little quicker. We hugged and sat down, getting our books out even though we knew we would just be talking instead of studying. About thirty minutes in, he suggested that we watch YouTube for awhile for some laughs. I agreed enthusiastically; it had been weeks since I had let myself relax. I chose the first video, one of markiplier's of course. I decided on one of the classics; outlast, one of my favorite horror vids of his.
As we watched, shrieking and giggling as we played along with Mark, I began to focus more and more on Mark's face. I stared at him as he reacted animatedly in his signature over-the-top style. What was it... about his face...?
'Oh no. oh God no.'
My jaw went slack in shock as I stared in fascinated horror at the familiar face I knew so well. I couldn't hear the video anymore, just a static ringing in my ears. I felt dizzy, like I was going to faint, but I didn't. I just kept my eyes on the screen, unable to look away.
'He's... he's...'
"Jericho...Jericho!" I heard a voice say through my shock. I felt myself being shaken.
"Jericho! Hey are you okay? Say somethin' man!"
I came back to myself and turned to see Sean looking at me with a confused and concerned expression. "...Sean?"
"Yeah, that's me darlin,'" he laughed nervously. "Are you... are you okay? Do ya feel sick or somethin'?"
I shook my head quickly with what I thought was a convincing smile. "Nah, I'm good, I'm probably just tired. Mind if we head back?"
"Yeah, whatever ya need," he said, obviously still worried.
We journeyed back to the campus parking garage in silence, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
'His face. I didn't realize it before because the way they move and act is so different, but... There's no mistaking it. I finally know who Dark is...' I cut off my train of thought before I could even think the name.
"Hey, we're here. You sure you're okay?" Sean said. I looked up in surprise. He was right...I guess I was too out of it to notice.
"Yeah...see you tomorrow." I said before turning to walk to my car.
Sean suddenly grabbed my hand. "Jericho, I- GAH!" He suddenly yelped in the middle of whatever he was trying to say, flinching hard and yanking his hand away from me like he'd been burned. He clutched his hand to his chest and hunched over slightly, his face contorted in obvious pain.
"Oh my God, Sean! Are you okay? What's wrong, what happened?!" I exclaimed, rushing over to see what was the matter. I reached for his hand and...
"NO!" He yelled suddenly, jumping back a few feet, chest heaving. I stumbled back in shock; I didn't think Sean was capable of yelling. What was his problem?
I watched as he remained where he was, eyes closed, still cradling his hand. He seemed to be in a state of intense concentration. His breathing slowed as he gradually relaxed and opened his eyes to glare up at me from his hunched position. I'd never seen him with that serious of an expression before. For a split second, I thought I saw his eyes change color, but reasoned with myself that it was probably just the light.
"Show me your right hand, Jericho."
Something about his expression and tone told me that it wouldn't be a good idea to argue. I balked at him for a moment before raising my hand, palm down. His eyes darkened and he tensed slightly.
"Where...did you get that ring?" He asked, speaking through clenched teeth.
"The ring? My mom gave it to me for my birthday, It's a family heirloom," I explained, wondering why this could possibly be important.
He abruptly spun on his heel and stalked off, moving quickly.
"What- Hey! What's your deal?" I shouted, chasing after him. "What's wrong? Sean?"
He rounded a corner, speeding up. "Sean, please! Why are you-" I stopped short when I turned the corner.
He was...gone.
*When Mikhail calls Dark his "sometime brother," he's saying that they were once brothers, or allies. It's Shakespeare speak for 'things between us aren't what they used to be.'