Chapter 16: Damage

The village had been destroyed and ink was splattered everywhere. Linda was the only one remaining on the dock, shaking like a leaf.

The ink had slaughtered every last 'lost one' and 'searcher' in the now desolate town. Linda may of had her eyes closed during the process, but she had heard it all; the constant screaming and cries for mercy as the ink engulfed every last inky being in the village.

"I'm sorry..." She whimpered.

Linda looked out towards the river as she heard a motor echoing in the distance. She soon spotted a boat with a small crew slowly propel out of a large tunnel.

Henry was at the controls, pushing forward a lever that allowed the boat to move while 'Charley' and 'Edgar' were at the back, huffing and puffing in exhaustion. All three of them looked to be in rough shape, but Linda's heart swelled at the sight of their faces.

"Henry!" She called out, catching her husband's attention.

His eyes widened as he saw her on the dock and stopped the boat before hopping out, quickly making his way over to her.

"Linda! Thank god you're alive!"

Before he could get any closer, the ink from Linda's body spread out before them and formed an inky wall between the couple.

"Watch out!" Linda warned, not knowing how the ink was going to react next. "I-I don't have control over it!"

She was relieved to see the ink relax a bit as Henry backed away, but it still kept him at bay.

'Charley' and 'Edgar' hobbled up next to Henry, wary of the ink as they garbled on in what sounded like confusion.

"Careful, you two." Henry said looking down at them before looking out at what was left of the town and freezing in place.

"Oh my god...Linda, what happened?"

"It was the ink." Linda replied in a sorrowful tone. "I-it just...destroyed everything and everyone after Sammy attacked me!"

She began shaking again.

"I'm afraid I'll hurt you."

"You won't. Not on purpose." Henry assured, trying to calm her. "The ink might, but like you said, you have no control over it."

"But why is this happening?" Linda asked, trying to make sense of it all. "The ink wasn't alive before."

Henry sighed.

"I don't know. It might've been something the 'Ink Demon' did. He seems to be attached to you."

Linda frowned a bit.

"You seem to be taking this well."

Henry let out a soft chuckle, but there was sadness and exhaustion in his eyes.

"After you spend several hundred time loops in this place, things like this don't surprise you much anymore. I'm just glad you're alive."

Linda wanted to embrace her husband and to be held in his arms. She wanted that more than anything, but didn't want to risk the protective ink on her to harm him. She didn't even want to go near 'Charley' or 'Edgar' for the same reason.

"I'm glad to see you're all alive as well. I'm sorry I couldn't be there when you went after Boris."

Henry frowned.

"Linda, Boris is-"

"I know..." She interrupted.

"What happened here?"

Linda and Henry looked over to see a toonish woman with a halo and horns on her head.

Alice Angel.

Linda would've been wary of her, but she realized she wasn't the same Twisted Angel she had become familiar with. This Alice was different: Her face was whole, she had both eyes, and her halo wasn't broken and sticking into her head.

A rather stern looking Boris followed the new Alice out into the open to survey the area. He had a mechanical arm and was wielding an axe.

Knowing better, Linda knew that this Boris was not the same Boris her and Henry had befriended. She was going to miss the friendly toon wolf.

Alice looked at the human couple as her eyes widened. She rushed over towards them.

"Henry! Look out!"

"Alice, wait!" Henry cried out as Alice withdrew what looked to be a blade.

Linda squealed as the blade slashed through the shield of ink, close enough to nearly cut her.

"Back to the ink with you, Harbinger!" The Angel growled.

"Stop! She's my wife!" Henry yelled.

Alice whipped her head around to look at him. Linda could see the confused expression on her face as she looked at her.

"Wife?"

The ink reformed its wall, making itself taller to the point it towered over Alice and threatened to splash down on her. Linda could hear the garbled nonsensical wailing of 'Charley' and 'Edgar' before she saw a head of an axe at the corner of her eye. She turned to see newer Boris and watched in horror as he swung. Henry bolted and went the toon wolf to the ground.

"Tom! No!"

Pain spread through Linda's shoulder and arm as she was cut by the axe and let out a loud cry.

Everything seemed to have stopped as the cavern began to quake.

Linda stumbled as she held her should and fell into the inky river. Ink entered her eyes, nose, and mouth as she sunk deeper in the dark substance. She thought she hit the bottom until she felt something large underneath her push her upwards out of the ink, and was dropped on to the dock.

Coughing up foul tasting ink, Linda could feel something large hunched over her. Something else had emerged from the ink with her. She wanted to wipe the ink out of her eyes, but searing pain shot through her with each twitch of a muscle. All she could hear was the monstrous growls above her as ink dripped on to her back in pools.

Was it the Ink Demon?

It seemed much too big to be him, yet the presence was familiar.

A loud roar ripped through the creature's throat and Linda could feel the vibrations from its large chest. She soon felt her protector leave her as it charged off, making the wooden boards of the dock shake violently beneath her.

"Tom!" She heard Alice cry out along with heavy crashing sounds like something was being thrown around and causing more destruction to the remains of the village.

Linda flinched and pain jolted through her as she felt someone wrap their arms around her tightly.

Henry.

"Linda! Ohmygod Linda! I'm so sorry!"

Panic and anguish was in his voice.

"You're going to be okay, Linda! I promise!"

"He-Henry!...It hurts! It hurts so much!" Linda cried as she coughed up more ink and felt more of it seeping from her.

"Oh god, no! Nononono! Stay awake Linda!" Henry begged. "Please! You have to stay awake! The ink will claim you if you don't!"

A deafening roar filled the cavern as Linda could hear the beast charge towards them. She felt herself lose consciousness.

It's comfortable here.

I don't want to leave.

A bright light shone down at the end of the tunnel, ink swirling around Linda as she laid submerged in it.

Just...five more minutes. I'm tired.

The voices emitting from the ink wailed loudly in her ears.

I just want to go home!

How could he have done this to us!

He's hungry, always hungry!

Liar

"Stop it." Linda groaned as the voices rambled on and she sat up, not noticing the ink crawling up her. "Just stop it!"

"Ma?"

Linda looked up and saw a toon wolf in suspenders standing before her.

"Ma, what are you doing here? Pa needs you!"

"Boris..." She whimpered as tears filled her eyes.

"Pa needs you, Ma!" He repeated. "He needs you to be set free!"

Linda allowed Boris to pull her up from the ink.

"Wh-what about you? I don't want to leave you alone here." She replied.

Boris gave her a smile and begun to guide her down the well.

"Don't worry about me, I'll be free once Pa finishes what needs to be done. But for him to be free, you have to help put everything to rest."

"I don't know if I can..." Linda said, full of doubt. "I don't know if we'll ever get out of here."

"You won't know until you try." Boris replied. "And at first you don't succeed, try again. This place is riddled with time loops."

As they reached the end, Linda hugged the toon wolf.

"I'm sorry for letting you get taken by that awful angel." Linda apologized as she began to sob.

Boris gently patted her back as he returned the embrace.

"Oh Ma, it wasn't your fault. None of it was; it's just how my story was written."

Before she could question what he meant, the toon wolf pushed her through the well's exit.

"Say 'hi' to Pa for me! And tell him I don't hold him responsible for what happened!"

A/N: That took an odd turn, but someone had to coax Linda out. Why not a more familiar face?

Also Tom wasn't quite paying attention when Henry mentioned that Linda was his wife. All he could think of was how the "Harbinger's" ink was going to harm Alice(Allison). He seems like the type that would make rash decisions if not given enough time to think things through.