Usual disclaimers apply.
Description: A normal evening for the Ronin Warriors becomes much more as something wicked toys with them one by one… starting with Cye. First chapter in Ruby's "Something Wicked" series.
"Water Torture" Part 1
By Ruby
Friday night, the fifteenth. Somewhere, just a few miles from the city, dwelled a peaceful looking home by a lake. The surrounding trees swayed gently in the wind as birds of all species sleepily sang to the setting sun. With air fresh and cool, the serenity hid the panic and alarm happening inside the large house.
"Where's the remote?!" Ryo cried. He frantically stripped the living room barren as Mia and the other Ronin Warriors watched in awe of his speed. Ryo overturned a flower vase and peered into its hidden depths. "I can't find it!"
"No wonder the Dark Warlords--I mean, ex-Dark Warlords--never caught you," Cye laughed as he tried to spot the red blur that was their leader.
"Cye! Go check the bedrooms," Ryo ordered in a stern voice. "Kento, look in the kitchen--"
"Right on, boss!" Kento grinned. He saluted smartly then cheerfully headed out, most likely to the fridge.
"--Sage and Rowen--"
"Ryo! Relax!" Rowen called. He was barely hanging on to a giant bag filled with movies that the group had rented.
The blur stopped abruptly in front of him. "Did you find the remote?"
"No, but I think my arm's going to fall off."
Mia just rolled her eyes and chuckled. It was like a ritual. Every month the guys would rent all the videos they could fit into the huge, and ugly, beige gym bag Sage had found in the back closet. Then, like the testosterone-filled men they were, they would try to stay up and watch every single one. The last person to fall asleep apparently "won", though Mia wasn't sure what the point was.
"Ryo, you don't need the remote to watch a few movies," Sage calmly explained to the nearly hyperventilating teen.
"But how else am I supposed to fast forward to the gory parts?" he complained. Then with a mischievous smile, "Or re-watch the bimbos running around in practically nothing?"
"Well, you can walk over to the VCR and push the button," suggested Cye.
"But that's… that's… work."
Rowen carefully made his way to the television and dropped his burden. He groaned as he tried to rub some feeling back into his numb arms. "This from the guy who beat Talpa… *twice*."
'Boys,' Mia thought as she leaned on the doorframe. Out loud she sighed, "I'm off to bed. If you break something, don't tell me."
***
It soared through the thoughts of countless, uninteresting individuals, leaving only wisps of dark intention to mark It's passing. The young mother It had just left, who was combing her daughter's long hair, began tearing the golden locks out, suddenly and viciously angry. Then, just as quick, the mother stopped, hugging and apologizing to the sobbing girl.
It continued on Its journey, unknown, never seen, never found.
A fleeting quote from a reading boy was the best way to describe It.
"He wove through them, brushing past their shoulders, leaving a wake of chaos behind him. The souls he bumped into lost their concentration and sense of direction--a woman stopped short, forgetting where she was going; a man lost his train of thought in the middle of a conversation; a girl, just for a moment, forgot who she was, and why she was even there…"
Except the ones It touched didn't just forget. They lost control.
***
"Couch!" stated Sage.
At that word the four of them tackled the gray leather couch in front of the screen, hoping to claim one of the three huge seat cushions. Sage didn't bother. He was comfortable on the ground. Cye and Ryo managed to escape the fray with one and watched while Kento and Rowen dueled for the last.
"Give it up!" Rowen snarled. He hoped that the little game of tug-o-war they were waging wouldn't rip it in half.
"You don't need one!" growled Kento in response "You're just gonna conk out after two movies!"
"And you're going to leave grease stains every time you wipe your hands on it! Ever heard of a towel?"
"Ever heard of a knuckle sandwich?"
"Tell you what, I'll give you my share of popcorn if you let go."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
Kento suddenly released the cushion, sending Rowen tumbling back onto the floor. Brushing locks of blue hair out of his eyes, Rowen stood up, triumphantly gripping the gray square. He didn't like popcorn, anyway.
Sage rifled through the video bag, tossing them out with the titles up. "So what do we see first?"
"Do you have 'Jaws?" asked Cye. "You know, the one with the big shark?"
"What about 'Encounters of the Third Kind'?" Rowen nodded enthusiastically. "It's a classic!"
"'Clash of the Titans'?" suggested Ryo.
"'Rocky,' all the way!" Kento added.
"How about 'Nightmare on Elm Street'?"
When the following chaos of choosing which movies to watch died down, the team situated themselves in front of the large screen TV.
***
It was hungry. The hunger for knowledge drove It to seek all minds, to find out how they worked. Dark arms like tentacles reached out to brush the thoughts of those who lay innocent and unknowing.
Strange creatures. Minds so focused on meaningless things, worried about jobs, money, and life… trivial. Thoughts too one-dimensional. So many has It seen that there seemed to be none who were exciting. Different. Unique.
***
"Kento, stop hogging all the snacks!" Cye frowned at his friend during the middle of 'Honey, I shrunk the Kids'. Seeing the tiny stars snacking on an oversized cookie gave him the munchies.
"I'm a growing boy!" he protested. He protected the stash of food out of everyone's reach.
"Yeah, you're going to grow… sideways."
He shoved handful of popcorn into his mouth, "What's zat stupposed t'mean?"
***
In like a flash and out in a blink. Flitting here and there, It searched… hunted…
***
Hours later the great white shark of 'Jaws' blew up. Chunks of flesh littered the waters.
"Poor guy," mourned Cye, clutching the stuffed orca by his side.
Ryo gave him a skeptical look. "Who? The fish?"
"Yeah…"
"Why? It was eating all of those people!"
"It's not its fault, that shark was only doing what was natural."
"Just because it's natural doesn't mean what it does is good. How would you feel if you were swimming along in the middle of the ocean and a dozen shark fins pops up? It's either you or the fish, and I remember you telling me that sharks were hard to read."
"Well," started Cye, "first, I'd probably have Suiki there with me."
"Suiki?"
"He's an orca." He proudly held up his toy as an example.
"You mean a killer whale?"
"I've know him for most of my life, and he's not a killer. Anyway, second, I'd never swim near a place with so many sharks."
"That shark is a hunter and it hurts people, why feel sorry for it?"
"Well, White Blaze is a hunter and hunts other animals, why is he your friend?"
The teen paused for a moment. "… Touché."
The Ronin of Trust gave a sheepish smile. "Seriously, though, it's just a movie. And besides I'll probably never come across any real shark like those actors did; they aren't as bad as they are shown. Nothing is hunting us down right now, is there?"
"I guess you're right," Ryo agreed.
***
The surroundings melted across Its vision. A house. A lake. Some woods. Then…
Five minds. Interesting, different, and unique. A fortunate day.
Still… thoughts not to their potential. They needed more studying.
***
Cye's eyelids grew heavier and heavier. He had already watched five movies, and the sun would rise in a few hours. He glanced tiredly at the others and saw that they had fallen asleep. Rowen had gone to bed a while ago, Ryo was stretched on the floor like a cat, Kento snored softly as his head leaned back on the couch's armrest, and Sage… He could have been sleeping, but he also could have been meditating.
Oh well, close enough. Cye gave a small internal victory dance. He'd stayed awake the longest! Not that it mattered…
Then, without further ado, he closed his eyes and promptly drifted off into blissful slumber.
But when he awoke he was greeted by darkness.
End of part 1