"What the hell was that!" Matt yelled as we drove away from the house. His voice cracked at the end, but I couldn't blame him after what just happened. Thankfully, he could drive because we did not need to draw attention to ourselves right now.

I, on the other hand, was struggling to form any sort of coherent sentence. All I could think about was Bri's eyes turning black as she screamed at me to run. It was my fault she had to deal with this. The moment Dark started showing any interest in her, I should have made her go home. It was my selfishness and stupidity that put her in danger, and I'll never forgive myself for it. Matt's shouting pulled me out of my thoughts and had me focusing on the problem at hand.

I turned to look at his face. He was wide-eyed and breathing heavily as he drove. "That was my best friend trying to give us enough time to escape. That was my best friend fighting off Dark long enough that we weren't….." My voice trailed off as I was slowly dragged into my own pit of despair. I should never have made Matt come over. Now, he was in danger too. I kept making stupid mistakes, and now I wasn't entirely sure how to fix the problem.

"What are we supposed to do about that!? I don't know how to fight off anything like that. I don't know if you know this, but I am a drama kid, not a fighter! I'm the brains, not the brawns." Matt was quickly losing his shit, and I wasn't entirely sure how to fix that. He was turning down different roads at random, with no clear destination in mind.

I spotted a park and pointed at it, a small thought coming to mind. "Pull in there. I need….I need to think for a moment."

He gave me a frightened look but started making his way into the parking lot. "We need to come up with some kind of plan. Br- Dark knows about Stephanie and Oliver! What if he tries to go after them?"

I shook my head as we pulled into a spot, and Matt turned the car off. "You're not the one he's after. The only reason he came after Bri was because she's my closest friend. You aren't even a blip on his map. He was trying to scare you enough to leave me on my own." I left Matt sitting in the car, his head planted against the steering wheel.

I paced through the parking lot, muttering to myself, as I tried to come up with some kind of plan. Anti was working with Dark, and that was out of character for him because the two hated each other. That meant I was in a lot of trouble and couldn't rely on Sean for help. I paused for a moment before slapping the palm of my hand against my head. I am such a dumbass. Anti wasn't the only ego Sean had. Some of them were even helpful to have around.

I put a hand in the front pocket of my jeans, fishing around for a particular item. I had started carrying it around again after the last encounter with Dark. I finally found it in my back pocket and held it in the palm of my hand. It was a small gold coin that shimmered in the bright sunlight. The difference between this coin and a normal one is that it had a white cat mask on the front with ruby red eyes. The back had a black wand.

Matt looked at me as I slammed the door shut. "Turn off your phone. Turn off anything that has electricity. Anti is probably looking for us, and that is the easiest way for him to do it." I took my phone out and did the same.

Matt looked at me afterward with a frown on his face. "Did you come up with a plan because I'm at a loss. I don't know enough about either of them, aside from what I've seen in the videos. I didn't even take those seriously BECAUSE I THOUGHT THEY WERE FAKE!" It would seem that he was starting to panic again. Before he could get going, I showed him the coin.

"Anti and Dark aren't the only egos that are real. Sean has a few that are very helpful." Matt snatched the coin and started to examine it closely. "One of them is a magician named Marvin. He gave me this coin and told me to use it if Anti gets out again. It'll help me get in contact with Marvin. He's the only one that can help us right now." I'd only talked to the magician once and was skeptical that he could help against anyone as powerful as Dark or Anti.

Matt looked at me with as much skepticism as I felt. He held the small coin up and waved it around. "Mark, you're telling me this thing is supposed to help us contact a magician. A magician that is going to help us take down an electric body-snatching killer and some weird demon dude? Is that what you're telling me? How does this make sense? None of this makes sense. I've lost my mind. I hit my head and am unconscious at home right now." His voice was incredulous and sarcastic at the same time. He was definitely in denial.

I can't say I blamed the guy. I thought I was going crazy when I first started having dreams about Dark. I snatched the coin from Matt's hand and got out of the car again. This time Matt got out too. "I know what it sounds like, but just think. If Dark and Anti are real, how many other egos are real too? Are they all real? Can they all break through like these two, or are they stuck...where ever they are? If they're all real, then we are in some serious trouble because I have like 20, and most are terrible."

Matt followed beside me as I made my way to the small bathroom facility by the parking lot. He was silent for a few seconds before I heard him gasp. Looking over, I see him drag his hands down his face in horror. He looked at me, "If what you're saying is true, then I am in serious trouble. My followers... They...after a few videos, they created...Oh, god, no." He looked so devastated, but I had no idea what he was talking about.

He cleared his throat and tried again. "A while ago, I saw pictures popping up. It was after the Fnaf musical we did. I didn't think anything about it, and it seemed to die down. After you and Sean came out with your ego videos, my fans went crazy and created an ego for me. I didn't encourage or discourage it, but that's not what my channel is about. If what you're telling me is true, then there is a very good possibility that I have a genius scientist ego out there somewhere. I think they call him Madpat or AntiMatter."

I opened the door to the bathroom and walked into the dimly lit room. Thankfully it was empty, and I locked the door behind us. No need for a stranger to get caught up in this mess. "I hope for your sake that this guy isn't a horrible ego like Dark or Anti. Otherwise, he'll make himself known to you eventually."

Standing at one of the sinks, I look into the mirror and hold up the coin. I was pressing it against the glass with the mask side to the glass. After a few moments, Matt gets impatient and opens his mouth but stops. My reflection starts to shimmer, and the mirror seems to absorb the coin. I ignore Matt's sputterings and focus on what is happening in front of me. My reflection slowly changes into someone entirely.

Marvin's blue eyes stared at me from behind his white cat mask. Tufts of his forest green hair spilled over the mask. All I saw was Sean, and I almost broke down into tears. I drew in a deep breath, "Anti is back and has teamed up with Dark, who is currently possessing my best friend."

The words rushed out of my mouth like a tsunami.

Marvin frowned and got a little closer to the glass. "That's not possible. They would rather die than work tagether." He paused for a moment, stroking his beard, before continuing. "Dark would have ta offer Anti something he couldn't resist in order ta get him ta cooperate. How long has this been goin on?" Marvin turns around and starts to pace. A thick black cape was attached to his hoodie flowing in the wind as he walks.

"I'm not sure. I didn't even know he was back until everything in my house started going crazy, and I found Bri lying on my couch, half dead. Suddenly, Dark is trying to possess her, and she is fighting him off so we can get away." Marvin's head snaps in my direction, and he starts looking around.

"We? Who is this we ye speak of? Who's with ye?" He walks close to the mirror again as he continues to look around.

Matt gulps and pales as he looks at me. I step back so that he has space to stand in front of the mirror. Marvin's eyes widen in shock before turning into a glare. "It would seem that a great many things are happening in yer world and mine."

"What...what do you mean?" Matt nervously asks.

"Yer appearance in this means that the rumors I've heard about are somewhat true."

"I still have no clue what you're talking about. How do I have anything to do with this? I haven't done anything besides try to help Mark fix Bri." Matt starts to gesture towards me with confusion on his face.

Marvin looks at me, and I shake my head. "I didn't tell him anything. He would never have known this much if it wasn't for the fact that I stupidly asked for his help. I had no idea what was happening otherwise, I would have contacted you right away and left Matt alone." I couldn't help but berate myself over and over again in my head.

Matt looked at both of us, his voice much steadier and demanding now. "Tell me what? I need to know what's going on. This affects me now just as much as you, Mark. What if Dark goes after my family like he implied?"

Marvin sighed and gave me a pointed look. "I don't have time to explain everything now. Ye'll have ta ask yer friend about it later. I will answer one question, though. Ye bein in the middle of this means that the unsettling rumors I've heard about AntiMatter are true. A while ago, rumors started spreading that Dark made a deal with a scientist. No one knows what the deal was, but word got around that the scientist was called Madpat...or AntiMatter. Nobody could agree on what name was correct.

What they could agree on was that he was a genius in his experiments and inventions. I've never seen any of the stuff he supposedly was doing, so I thought someone was tryin ta frighten everyone. Hell, I thought it might have been Anti tryin ta cause trouble, but I never found anything. Apparently, I was wrong, and this is a much bigger problem than I realized."

"You mean to tell me that he exists… That is a real thing that is happening. Right this second. Madpat exists. Because, why not? Obviously, I'm still asleep and having a crazy dream, and any moment, Oliver is going to wake me." Matt had finally cracked. He was having a mental breakdown that no one had time for. I gently nudged him over, and he blindly accepted it.

He walked over to the far wall by the door and sank to the ground, still muttering to himself. I looked at Marvin, who had a sympathetic look on his face. The pity in his eyes made me feel even guiltier for bringing Matt into this. My shoulders sank as the voice in my head got louder, repeating over and over again that it was all my fault.

"Ye should have contacted me sooner. The moment Anti started showing up or Dark focused his interest on yer friend. We could have been prepared and shut them down before it became too bad." Marvin gently told me. "Do ye have anywhere safe ye can stay for a few days while I prepare some things?"

I sank in on myself as his words hit me hard. I had fucked up bad, and no matter how I looked at it, this was something that could have been avoided if I had only listened to reason sooner. I shook my head, "Dark went after Bri for a reason. He may have sent Anti after us, and I don't want to put anyone else in danger." My words barely more than a whisper.

"This should keep Anti from finding ye. Keep it on ye, and it should disrupt most electric frequencies that Anti can use. It can only do so much, so try and take any precautions ye can." Marvin held up a small cat statue with a diamond, club, heart, and spade on it. "Keep this coin with ye. When it starts ta glow, that means I'm ready. Hold it against a large mirror if ye can find one."

The mirror started shimmering, almost turning to liquid as three objects came through. I grabbed them before they fell and held up a small leather bracelet with a little black stone in the middle. "What's this for?" I asked him.

"That's ta calm yer friend's mind. This is no time ta panic, and ye'll need his help. Stay safe, Mark. If anything else happens, contact me immediately." Marvin disappeared, and my reflection returned.

I put the small statue and coin in my pocket and walked over to Matt. He was still sitting on the ground, but now he had his knees up to his face with his head in his hands. I snapped the bracelet around one of his wrists, and the muttering slowly stopped. I squat down and pat his shoulder, causing him to lift his head and look at me. He didn't look as panicked as before, but I could tell he was still coming to terms with what was happening.

"Hey man, we have to get going. We need to find a hotel to hole up in for the next few days and plan our next course of action." I say as I stand up.

Matt nods his head and slowly starts to stand. "So, this is all pretty wild."

I open the bathroom door and walk towards the car. "Are you ok to drive, or do you need me to? I understand if you need a little more time to come to grips with the situation. I'm not sure how long that bracelet is going to work on you, and I don't want you to be driving if it wears off."

"I have no idea where to go next or what we need, so it's probably best if you drive." He hands me the keys and gets in on the passenger side.

Two hours later and we were in a cheap hotel. All the electronics were unplugged, but it was only 2 in the afternoon, so we had plenty of daylight to plan things out. Matt was in the bathroom, taking a shower while I got us some food. When I left the room, I could hear Matt trying to keep quiet as he had another breakdown. I thought it best to give him some privacy, and I drove to the store for a few things we might need.

This day seemed to worsen by the minute, and everything I did only seemed to make it worse. Maybe I should just let Dark take me? Would he leave Bri alone if I gave myself over to him willingly? It was all my fault she was in this mess. I could leave Matt safe in the hotel and just keep driving. Would that work?

I was dragged out of my thoughts when I returned to the hotel to the hotel room. Matt was sitting on a chair on the balcony. He was lost in thought and never even budged when I set the grocery bags on the table. I sighed and put on my best smile before making my way over to him.

"I got some food for us. I don't know how long we're going to be stuck here, so I think it's a good idea if we come up with a plan and get some rest." I was leaning on the railing as I looked out over the city. I waited for a response, but I never got one, making me turn around to face Matt.

Matt continued to stare out at the city and never looked at me once. It was almost like he was in a trance….Or he was completely ignoring me after everything that had happened. "Hey man, I'm sorry. No matter what Marvin said, you can just walk away, and no one will think any worse of you. I'd understand completely if you did exactly that." Still no acknowledgment.

I gave Matt a small pat on his shoulder as I walked by. If I were Matt, I would have walked away from this mess the moment things went to hell. He has a family he has to think about. Something I should have thought about before dragging him into this.

I put the groceries away, grabbed the new clothes I had picked up, and went to the bathroom. I needed a shower, and then I needed to figure out a way to get Bri out of this mess. The shower felt nice after everything that had happened, but I was too far into my dark thoughts to enjoy it. I leaned against the shower wall and spiraled farther and farther into the darkness that is my mind.

I'm not sure how long I stood there wallowing in my own misery, but it wasn't until my teeth started chattering that I realized the water was freezing. I got out of the shower and got dressed. My mood was dark, and I no longer felt hungry. It was too early to go to bed, but I was ready for this day to be over with. Matt was still on the balcony when I got out of the bathroom. I glanced at him before making my way to the fridge.

I put a can of coke and a sandwich on a plate beside Matt and left him alone. Hopefully, he'd come around, and he wouldn't hate me too much. I sighed, sitting on the edge of my bed, and tried to think of anything that might help us. On the run from Dark and Anti didn't leave me many options. I couldn't come up with a single solution that would get us all out of this mess. I would just have to hope Marvin had something up his sleeve. I laid down and fell straight into the abyss of sleep.

"Mark, I told you it was an impossible jump!" Bri laughed as she gently shoved me. We were on the couch playing video games and I had just died….again. Sean started laughing hysterically at me while I attempted to make this stupid jump again. She was right, of course, it was an impossible jump to make.

"I am trying my best! Give me a break!" I mock glare at her as I jump off the cliff and die another terrible death. "Fuck! I give up. You try since you think I'm doin such a shitty job." I smiled and tossed the controller at her.

"Yer such a baby, Mark. Anybody can see that's the wrong way ta go. If ye weren't so stubborn, ye'd see that." Sean stuck his tongue out at me, and I laughed as I flipped him off.

"You guys want anything to drink? I'm going to get me something." I stood up and headed towards the kitchen. Both of them said yes as I opened the fridge to grab a few drinks. "Are ya guys hungry?"

There was no answer, and I shrugged before taking the drinks back into the living room. The cans slip from my hands as I walk into a pitch-black hole that used to be my living room. At the very center of the black hole was Bri. She was in a large cage, chains around her wrists that came from the ground. She was screaming something at me, but the metal band around her mouth muffled the noise.

"BRI!?" I shouted and ran over to her. I shook the bars, reaching my arm in as far as I could to try and grab her. She reached out as far as she could, but the chains didn't even let her get halfway. "Bri, are you ok?"

She struggled against the chains, and I saw one snap in half. She focused her attention on the other one, but it didn't budge. Bri grew tired and instead started reaching for me again. Our fingertips touched, but that was as far as we could reach each other. We were both crying as I yelled promises at her."Bri! I'll get you out of here, I swear! Don't give up. Please, whatever you do. Don't give up."

Slow clapping comes from behind me. "What a touching reunion. Best friends reunited again." I turned around to see Dark standing a short distance away. He had a condescending smirk on his face that made me want to punch him.

"Let her go, Dark. It's me you want. Let her go, and I'll do whatever you want." My voice was harsh as I glared at him.

He stared at me for a moment as though he was thinking it over before he laughed and walked closer. "As tempting as that sounds, I think I'll decline the offer. Seeing you in this much pain is much more amusing."

"Why are you doing this? What do you want from me?!" I screamed in anger and frustration.

"Why?" His face contorted with rage, red and blue echoes of him shouting in his anger. "You want to know why I'm doing this? You promised you'd let me in! I waited patiently, but nothing happened! You shut me out, cast me away. Well, I'm tired of giving people a choice!"

The color drained from my face when I realized that all this might have been my fault from the very beginning. "I didn't start this Dark. I thought you were a dream when I said that. I...I didn't know that you really existed until later on. How was I supposed to know that some character my fans created was real? I didn't know! I refuse to accept the blame for something I never did to you. I didn't do anything to any of you except make a few videos!"

Dark snorted, actually snorted, and put his hands behind his back. The echoes occasionally shouted or grabbed their head. He had a calm demeanor, but those glimpses showed just how bad he was starting to crack. I was almost afraid to know what would happen when he lost all control.

"If it hadn't been for you, I wouldn't be like this. WE wouldn't be like this! You are the reason we are in this accursed state of existence. I am tired of living in your shadow. I am tired of being trapped in a world that caters to the whims of others. I will no longer be held back, and I will destroy anyone in my way." Staring into Dark's eyes, I could see the madness taking hold. I don't think there was any reasoning with him in this state, and if I wanted to survive whatever was coming next, I needed to wake up now.

"I...I don't know what you want me to say." I was at a loss for words, but it didn't matter. Dark wasn't listening to what I was saying anymore. Not truly anyway.

Dark opened his mouth, and then his expression changed. It went from enraged to confused, with him cocking his head as though he was listening to something. I looked around and caught Bri's eyes. She looked just as confused as Dark. She shook her head at me and shrugged.

There was tension as we waited for Dark's next move, and then the world started to shake. I stumbled as I tried to keep my balance on the moving ground.

"NO!" The rage in Dark's voice had me jerking my head in his direction. He looked furious, and I could see multiples of him all shouting almost a few seconds behind. "You can't chase me out as though I'm a mongrel stealing a scrap of food. HE IS MINE!"

Swirls of darkness thicker and darker than I thought black could ever get started reaching out for me. I turned and ran, not entirely sure where I was going to run to get away. I didn't make it very far before multiple strands of the darkness shot out and wrapped around my entire body. I screamed out, fear and panic making me struggle. I was being dragged back to Dark, the last thing I wanted.

A bright light started shining in the distance and getting closer every second. It burned away the darkness as it rushed towards us. I had no clue what this was, but if it helped me escape, then it must be good. Right? I heard Dark scream in pain and anger as that light washed over me in a wave of heat.

I shot up, a scream bursting out of my throat. The first thing I saw was Matt's concerned face staring at me from a chair at the foot of my bed. I was breathing heavily, trying to get my bearings from that nightmare, when Matt started talking. Except it didn't sound like he was talking to me.

"Is he going to be okay?" Matt asked.

A sigh to my left had me jerking in surprise. I hadn't expected anyone else to be in the room with us. The lights in the room were on and let me see the figure standing next to me. My eyes landed on the green hair and mask first.

"Marvin?" I wasn't sure what was happening right now. He shouldn't be here yet.

Marvin ignored me and answered Matt's question. "I'm not sure. I cleansed his mind and chased Dark out, but his aura is still darker than it should be. I don't know if it's because of the connection between the two of them. I'd have ta run a few tests, but we don't have the time right now." His crystal blue eyes met mine with a frown.

"Marvin?" I said again. "What are you doing here? You said it would take a few days to get ready."

He turned his crystal blue eyes to me, a piteous look on his face. "Mark, ye've been asleep fer over a day. Dark had ye trapped in yer dreams. If I hadn't gotten ye out, ye might have been trapped there forever."

I looked at Matt with disbelief. He shrugged his shoulders. "I didn't know what to do. I tried everything, and I still couldn't wake you up. You were quiet most of the time. Then you started screaming for Bri. The little coin started glowing, and I figured that was the only way to help you." His voice was unsure like I was going to be furious at him for trying to help.

"Thanks, Matt. Dark… He showed me Bri. I think she's being held prisoner in her mind. She was chained and in a cage. I couldn't get to her. I tried. I tried so hard. If it wasn't for you, I think Dark would have kept me just as locked up until they could find us." I gave Matt a weak smile, trying to reassure him.

He gave me a small smile in return before looking at Marvin. "What do we do now?"

Marvin grimaced and rubbed his hands together. "Now, we get ta work."