Raven Queen hunted for Tabitha Katherine Lynch throughout the entire cafeteria; up and down, Raven tried spy upon her blonde-haired friend, however, the other waves of blonde-haired girls crushed Raven's hopes of finding her in under five minutes. The thirty-minute period to eat and socialize was not particularly interesting; however, Raven felt the need to at least be within Tabitha's presence. Something was amiss in school; something was not right in the atmosphere. It reminded her of what her Chicago cousin told her; an event that happened in a Catholic school, near her home. Something that had to do with an occult and the feeling of death surrounding it each and every day; a boy, a sick and twisted boy, manipulated the Word. And that feeling was surrounding her. Or, perhaps it was just the atmosphere that high school continually leaked out.

She prowled around the jocks and cheerleaders, pushed her way through the Debate Club, rounded the Math Club, twisted and turned her way around Drama Club, was hip-checked by Hockey Club, and was finally allowed to enter her little corner where the world no longer seemed to be so cruel and unruly. She sat down as one of the jocks decided to lay claim to new surrounding areas, pushing out the weaker social classes in order to expand –" His massive attempts at world domination. Could someone please come up with something a bit more original? At least in this God forsaken school!" – when Tabitha finally entered the scene sneering at the stupidity that was muscle. She pushed her blonde/red-highlighted hair out of her way, making sure that her blue eyes could analyze everything and everyone in sight. "See that? That is pure proof that humans came from apes…look at the way he acts! It's primitive, crude, and animalistic…the need for territory, the need to demonstrate masculinity, and the need to battle the weaker for anything leisurely and needed to the survival of the race—it is all there! Evolution and genetics. At least for the slower part of our species." She smirked and pulled out some cash. "At least they keep me in the money."

"Oh yes, stock in homework help will be on the rise in the next few years." Raven grinned back. Her shoulder length black hair was tucked behind her ears, allowing her eerie gray eyes to soak up the high school environment. In the corner of her eye, she noticed the latest hunter slinking through the crowd with ease and grace. "Great. Kyle."

Tabitha slowly turned and noticed Kyle Went, sighed and immediately tensed up. The little hairs on the back of her neck bristled, as she waited for him to appear and demonstrate his stupidity once more. "Oh look at what the dog brought in." She waited for the usual snide remark; however, he simply sat down and began to chatter, mostly about Ember's vanishing act during third period. "She just up and left in English class—looked so pale and nauseated. Something about last night; something about her dream; I think it is about another premonition. Man, she ain't gonna make it if this keeps up."

"She is not going to make it…How about some grammar lessons, Kyle." Raven growled the last words, letting her eyes bore into his. "You have an education. Use it." Settling back into her rhythm, she waited for him to pounce back with a nasty remark, which would result with her a) breaking some important bone in his body b) ripping off an appendage c) snapping him like a twig d) slapping him upside the head or e) all of the above in any preferred order. Tabitha's eyes widen in anticipation, but her "good friend" senses kicked in. "Do this and you're out of here. As much as I want you to beat him into a bloody pulp, I also want you to stick around and help me with business."

Kyle moved back and began to explain Ember's predicament "Her condition is worsening. This we all know. However, I feel that it is because the people that she truly cares about are dying and for no apparent reason. In class she was muttering something about Cody Storm. However, it is in my opinion that she needs help." He moved in closer and whispered, "She ain't gonna live long with this. She should never have been given this sorta burden."

"Sorta? Sorta is not a word. Sort of is. However you find it necessary to piss me."

"Raven, now is not the time to worry about grammar."

"Kyle, don't make me hurt you."

"I thought that was last week's business. I recall you pounding my head into something that was made up of a hard substance."

Tabitha shook her head –"It was the brick wall!"-and waited for Kyle to finish pestering Raven, before she decided to reenact the scene again. Her eyes scanned the crowd of people and heard discussions from many fascinating topics and sighed. "Normalcy, I wonder what that is like?"

Kyle shrugged. "Go join in. They won't notice you unless they can see inside that façade. They might notice a bit of inhuman grace, that only a certain species could hold. A certain ability to shift from one place to the other. A talent for being completely silent when…"

Raven grabbed his throat and pulled him towards her. "Shut up! Or else you'll be in the same pot! We all know what we are… and it is not them! So, shut up!" She dropped him down, waited until the blue from his face vanished and wished that she really could have thrown him from the school roof. "Stupid!" She watched him slide away from, facing Tabitha, who was trying her best not to start laughing which failed miserably.

"You so had that one coming! I could just see Raven strangling you right here, in front of the whole school, though I doubt anyone would be interested--"

Idbash slowly stalked around the figure that was fuming with distain. Her slanted pupils allowed to her view Him more deeply and see that patience was getting on His nerves. He wanted them found and resurrected now, not in the days in took to prepare, just now. "Well, she has most likely killed off Zoë and fed those damn creatures before returning to report how long it would take to retrieve the final ingredient for the resurrection of the leaders. Raising the dead properly certain has not been the same since 968 BC. She'll need the Hand of Glory in order to perform Your wishes. And I'll bet she'll need you to locate the vessel of her late victim, the Life-giver."

I'll give her the Hand of Glory, if that is what she needs to kill the Life-giver.

"No. She needs it to pinpoint the Life-giver's location. Where and when she is to return to this dimension is impossible without the Hand of Glory. It holds the power to give Admatha an exact address of where the Life-giver is before her power builds up to its full potential and she ends up dominating the playing field. And if that happens You'll have to wait to be released another 3000 years."

Hn.

"That should take care of everything. She spoke to the Great Elder and received some information that was apparently of great value."

What did he say?

"Remember. I do not speak the old language nor can I translate it. However, I could tell that from the way he was speaking that it sounded rather positive."

You know the signs, don't you?

"I know nothing. I'm simply here to listen to further instructions from Admatha. Not from you." She cocked her head to one side and smirked, waiting to see the reaction that she would get from the almighty Corn deity.

So, you do know something. I always catch liars. And you are not very good at it.

"What makes you think that I was intending to be good liar?"

I think you want her and the Life-giver dead. I think you have your own needs to fulfill and you are just buying time until the right moment. Idbash, the demon of destruction— you hold an inner desire. I think you want the power that Admatha holds and I think you want to kill the Life-giver so that your power may increase and the population can die with your every whim and whish, leaving Me with no followers or a leader. Instead you will banish Me into the pits of hell where I will have to deal with my paranoid brother. Is that it?

"You still did not answer my question. What makes you think that I was intending to be good liar?

Because I am a deity and I can see right through you.

"And now I see that You are lying as well. I guess we come from the same stock."

Hn. No, we simply want the same thing. We want what we cannot have. You will never get the power that you desire and I will be able to kill any immortal. However, the champion will. And then I can get rid of you.

"Hn. No, You would not dare. I know that in some way, You need me to stay. You know that a destruction demon would be wonderful to have in a back pocket. Especially one with an appetite to kill and destroy." She smirked menacingly at the shadowy figure, eyes illuminating in the sun-forbidden room. "You do realize that it is morning out there and the Your followers are waiting for you to give them a sign-so, shoo! Give the people what they want."

What people? They are not people; they are children. Mindless, obeying children.

Tabitha looked over her shoulder and smirked as Raven threw another piece of chalk at the teacher's rather large back, aiming at the checkered center. It bounced off and clashed on the floor, causing such a disruption that the teacher had to turn around. With a finger pointed at the obvious suspect, he drilled her quickly with a resounding "OFFICE NOW!"

"I hate you," whispered Tabitha as she gathered her belongings. Turning towards the teacher she immediately stuck her tongue out. "Can't take a joke, can ya? Or is that because you get paid so little?" Slamming the door, she left, looking relatively pleased with herself; Kyle leaned in close and asked, "Why did you let her take the blame?"

Raven snorted out a reply. "Hello? Her boyfriend is picking her up. That's why she did not put up much of a fight."

With a sigh, Kyle returned back to his work. "Damn."

Idbash opened the curtain slightly and grimaced as the sun hit her directly in the face. "Fuck!" Covering her eyes, she scowled at the idea that she would have to go and retrieve Admatha from her home in the dimension portal and see if the Life-giver was assassinated properly, before the dispensing of the newly acquired vessel. She moved deeper into the room and wondered when He Who Walks Behind the Rows would return with an answer to her proposal. She wanted so desperately to be free from her rule and hold a higher position, maybe even given the chance to dispose of Admatha slowly and torturously. Idbash licked her tongue over to fangs and waited by the mantle, waiting and watching for at least the tallest one to ignite. It was rather boring to be locked up in a room with only candles to guard; there was no movement, no killing, and no entertainment to be found anywhere. She already read the following journals left behind by Isaac, Micah, and Ezekiel and learned nothing that would be of great use to her. Only the journals that contained the strange language seemed to be of any use, but the words which seemed to intertwine with Latin, French, and the Demon-subLatin made no sense; each word in each language was just repeating itself over and over again. The soft and hardbound books smelled older than they were; most likely they were gifts from the Underworld itself no doubt. Isaac wrote mostly about the Commandments that he had installed when in power, whereas Micah wrote down the accounts of how manipulation was the key to most successes. But it was the leader Ezekiel who wrote the history of why He Who Walks Behind the Rows came to be cast out onto the earth and rule such a small amount of land. It was a read that even Admatha would find to be very interesting. Pages and pages were written about the old ways, sacrificial prayers, and cleansing prayers. Every bit of history was documented well within the pages of a dark brown leather-bound journal. "Interesting plan. Very interesting. Would have made a great world; too bad that You just had to tick off your brother." She pulled back her dark hair and tucked it behind her fox-like ears, her padded feet silently walking over the wooded floor. It creaked and groaned a bit under her weight, shifting forward and backward. The light still crept in, intruding upon the whole "dark and dank" look, which irritated the fox demon greatly. Her fangs steadily grew inside her mouth as her anger rose and the light continued down a path. Her eyes adjusted to the intruder, the color changing to a lighter, almost golden, color. "Fuck!" she snarled, walked quickly towards the curtains. "I hate sunlight!" With the curtains drawn a little, she could see that a few of the followers were clearly discussing abandonment, annoyed that the coming leaders were taking their good old time in making their grandiose appearance. A boy, light haired, motioned towards the building, theatrically proclaiming that the "creature" inside was helping to delay in their coming. She growled loudly, but not loudly enough for the punks outside to hear. "Come and get me!" The curtains were tightly drawn, the light vanishing quickly. "Admatha, you had better get here and get here soon, or else a bloodbath will begin rather quickly. And it won't be for the welcoming ceremonies."

            The candlestick stood ready, even though to the trained demon eye it seemed as though the wax had already begun to melt.

Tabitha passed the office, praying that her escape would go unnoticed. Fortunately, it did. The office aids, mostly bored seniors, learned early on not to rat on Tabby Kat when she prowled off grounds. Their health coverage did not hold to unsuspecting accidents, mostly involving torn limbs. With eyes lowered, they continued going on about their business, filing papers and computing in important information about the rest of the student body. Easily, Tabitha made it to the parking lot where her 18 year-old boyfriend Michael waited. "So," he began excitedly, "What class are you missing now?"

"Does it really matter?" Tabitha grabbed the helmet and began to adjust the straps.

"Yeah, it would be cool if you ditched Math or English; ya know, just for me?" He looked at her with pleading eyes. "This way we can feel like the true Bonnie and Clyde."

"Fine. I missed English."

"But you just finished English, Tabby Kat. I know, because I have fulfilled my public obligation as a boyfriend by memorizing your entire schedule."

Tabitha slipped the helmet on and began to climb on top of the cycle. "Call me Tabby Kat and die, Mikey."

Admatha gracefully and theatrically pointed out to her Silksters that the Life-giver was not dead yet; she had only passed another stage in the cycle. The pregnant female stood away from the group, hissing ferociously at everything that moved; her hairy legs moved themselves closer to her body, holding her balance. The Life-giver's ashes had already spread out to the farthest distance in the land, making Admatha wonder, if perhaps she had been too careless with the sacrifice. After all, an immortal could always return quickly to another body, even one already alive and kicking. Anything was possible and Admatha quickly realized that perhaps if she were too choose another host body, perhaps the next one would be the one that held the power to destroy He Who Walks Behind the Rows. The pregnant female hissed and snarled loudly, raising her massive body high above the young male's own body; her teeth clipped together, while her saliva dripped onto the floor, hissing as it ate up the surrounding dirt and vegetation. One of the younger Silksters had taken the liberty to test the female, who had begun to growl loudly and frantically, warning the younger one that her patience should not be tried. The deer carcass was shredded and devoured quickly, even the bones were left touched and broken. The younger Silkster pushed back one of the larger leg bones and continued to make his way towards the alpha female, slyly crawling towards her on his belly. He snapped a few times, his fangs gleaming. Admatha wondered if maybe she should put the female in isolation fro a while, but the alpha male Silkster slowly backed away with the others leaving the thought that perhaps getting near the female would be difficult. The young Silkster slowly circled the female, weaving and bobbing, ready for any strike from the opponent. The female watched through her numerous black eyes the moving target and quietly she hissed out her final warning. If the young arachnid did not follow her instructions, then he would be dead quickly.

Idbash moved quickly, pacing across the floor as she waited for Him to return. The books that he did not want her to see were gone, with the exception of a few that fell behind the desk. She picked these up and went through them quickly, discarding what she could not understand. But there, in the mist of readable materials, she saw it. A book, unlike the others. A book that was dressed in passion red leather and with no title on the cover. Looking around, Idbash knew that this book had to be special. It was locked and locked well. The metal safety net looked as though it had been casted from the pits of Hell; it was blacker than the candlesticks and cooler to the touch. "This might be important," she whispered, her voice immediately deepening. "This might be very important." Her pupils became slits and her legs grew increasingly muscular. The hair on her head turned a lighter shade of red and her fangs become increasingly sharper. "This sucks. I have to be in here and watch the candles. I knew I should have never agreed to this. I could still be back in the other world, hunting and killing, and escaping from all of those traps that the Spirit hunters make. I could be free." Pointed furry ears popped up and her body became smaller. "I wish I was home." There on the floor she stood; a red fox with amber colored eyes. "I wish I could be free from this entire contract; what self-respecting demon would want to waste their prime years waiting for the return of a few dead guys. They apparently were not the ones suited to perform the tasks needed. Chose another." She growled and felt her body acclimate to her warm, sleek fur. "Chose another. Take Samuel and make him stronger than the others. And learn from Your mistakes."

Admatha ran into her stone tower as she saw night approaching fast and the pale moon hanging over the already fearful forest; up in the attic lay all of her equipment. The moon was red looking, as though blush has been added to its own unique style and flare. Upstairs, in the secrecy and betrayal room, there lay the power to wake the dead from their endless slumber. There lay Vitera, Life Beyond Life. The vial, which would bring about a new chapter to the tale that, would never end. She picked it up and examined the contents; a prickly leg rested upon her shoulder and gave it a quick pat. "Yes," she hissed. "Now, we wait for the child to kill her own, and then we will be in business."

Ember lay in bed, wanting so badly to die. Everything in her body ached with pain and suffering. Pressure came from all sides, filling her head with undesirable and indescribable visions of death and mourning.         

Idbash was about to leave in her fox form and hunt out another rat in the almost-perfect system, when it happened. The candle from the far left lit. It stayed lit long enough for Idbash to realize that one of the undead was getting impatient with the process and was willing to break boundaries to get out. And suddenly, it went out. No left over smoke lifted up into the air and there was no smell of anything burning. No proof that what she saw was real; and yet, it was so very real. The flame was there, lighting up just a small amount from the room. And now it was gone. Her fox-like eyes watched the candlestick and noticed what the naked eyes could not. A tiny bit of melted wax that had begun to cascade over.

Curling up her tail next to her body, she sat and looked around her. Surely, this was a sign that one was already strong enough to defeat the others. Idbash placed a paw up to her chin and began to think out loud about whom would have the strength to accomplish such a feat. "Let's see," she began, "There is Isaac, the first one, but I don't think he would be willing to boast about his power increasing. Micah might; Lord knows he could use the ego boast after such an embarrassing show of leadership. Eli might have; he could be powerful enough. Josiah was the closest to He Who Walks Behind the Rows, so he might also have the power, and Ezekiel was the youngest but also the most strict. So, who would want to show their power now? Who would want to show the others that they have no chance?" Getting up from the floor, she walked towards the mantle and gracefully leaped up to give a closer inspection on the object in question. Her fox-like eyes peered through the darkness and saw that indeed there was a small piece of wax that had began to melt and slide down the body of the candle; she also noticed that the wall behind it was somewhat singed, as though the flame was too hot for it. The smell was clear, like rain.

"Strange. But then again, I'm in Gatlin. Something like this should not surprise me at all."

Ember slept the entire afternoon away, dreaming about her premonition. It was hard to think at school, especially since Cody was there, alive and well for the time being. Kyle was a sweetheart, making sure that she made it to the office okay and that the people in the office called the right house; he had asked her early what the problem was, but being who he was it did not take him long to realize to figure out the conclusion. The taxi came and she entered into it, not very sure about how her legs could walk at a time like this, but apparently they understood the necessity of sleep more than she did.

Her house was quiet and peaceful; the couch was too inviting for her. Her stuff was on the floor, scattered around, just as her body was on the couch. It took less than a second for her eyes to close and the blanket of darkness to shroud everything. The sound of wind chimes reached her ears, clinking and clanking their musical notes and beckoning the art of spirit harmony to enter her soul; little did it know that the girl could have no peace. Deep into slumber land, Ember watched as Cody's blood dripped down from his gut area onto the floor, his mouth open wide in horror. Not a sound could reach his lips. But what she did see was a boy, standing in the distance. The unrecognizable figure smirked slightly as Cody's knees began to lose their foundation. "See," he spoke softly, "You can not save them all. I won't allow you to rescue him. Just like I stopped you from saving your mother, the traitor!" The child-like voice deepened with anger and continued in an off screen fashion. "She got pregnant with you, Ember. A mistake that should have been aborted a long time ago."

Ember gasped for breath, her hands widely and frantically searching for God up above her to free her throat from what ever was crushing it. She felt her brain run haywire, screaming for her to receive oxygen now. "Help---me!" she choked out. "Help---me."

"Who would want to help you?" asked the same voice from her dream. "Who would want to help an illegitimate child, a child that should never have been born in the first place? Your father does not even want you around; so I'm helping him."

"He-l-p---me."

"No, I don't think I will."

"P-le-as-e."

"Hn. Absolutely not."

"Go-d!"

And harshly, he replied, "I said your Father does not care! Get it!"

She understood, especially when her eyes began to roll towards the back of her head. "God. Help-m-e!"

Admatha felt it. Somewhere, she knew that it was already happening. One of them was trying to free themselves from the boundaries of natural law and order. Even her male Silkster felt the tremor. It was happening, one of the dead leaders was not pleased with the slow progression and was attempting the impossible. "Seta tumo letira sanco!" she cried out. The male Silkster crawled away from her, heading towards the cold stone walls where there hid nocks and crannies of every kind; the tone of her voice frightened him up the wall where his brethren were nesting and watching. With black eyes, he watched her, pacing back and forth screaming out obscenities in her private language, and told the others that the master was not pleased with the outright rebellion against her work. Clicking his teeth, a warning ran through the pack and ended with pregnant female, who simply spurred it off as an idea that held no sensible solution.

Raven looked out the window and watched as Michael quietly led Tabitha away from the school grounds and onto public property. The mall was near, but not Tabitha's ideal place for ditching school. The hidden motorcycle was alive now, its engine roaring from a distance; Raven glanced at the clock and back towards the window, hoping that if they passed Ember's house that they might check up on her.

A hand touched her shoulder, bringing Raven back down to earth. Kyle watched as the teacher moved from the chalkboard over to his desk, waiting for the rest of his class to become occupied with what was on the board. The chalk dust was all over the ground creating small mountains of powered "snow", making anyone that focused on it, to dream of skiing down the Alps or Aspen. "So, she left us to fend for ourselves?"

"No, she left to see if you would still be alive tomorrow."

"Are you trying to tell me something?"

Raven sighed heavily. "Lord, help me."

Ember's arms lay on her chest that had stopped moving a while ago. Her eyes showed nothing but the whites and her face was strangely a light colored blue. The presence stayed in the room, creating a feel of heaviness. "Okay. Now I'm bored. Killing her was fun, but the rest of the entertainment in this house holds little value. Her voice held a beautiful tone of fear." It slithered down and gently rested near the dead girl, who looked much more innocent in her new state than before. "I could always wake you up, dear little girl. However, I feel that plan would ruin my return to this dimension; I need to be back and rule, dear dead Ember but I know that you will try to stop me and the rest of the leaders. This is why you are dead. But, if you promise to leave me alone, I might be persuaded to return your soul back to your body. How about that? Just promise that you will not involve yourself." A piece of hair was pushed back by some unseen force. "Hmm. I will allow you to return for only two reasons. I'm sure to win and…" The voice paused as the eyes rolled back into place, "and I'm the cute one."

Idbash leaped down and ran over towards the door and clawed frantically. "This can not be happening. One cannot change the force of natural law. Whoever is doing this surely wants to kill the others and quickly." She reached out and clawed once more, yelping to be heard by anyone near the door. "Come on, someone. Answer the damn door. I need to speak to your deity. It is an emergency."

He's everything you want

He's everything you need

He's everything inside of you

That you wish you could be

He says all the right things

At exactly the right time

But he means nothing to you

And you don't know why

(Vertical Horizon, Everything You Want)

Raven waited and waited for the bell to ring, while Kyle continued on about how he felt the Ember's health was deteriorating. She brushed off his conversation, which became one-sided soon enough, and began to think about how much she wished her mother would just come to accept her for what she was. A part of her.

"Tu sema allitor comieter wenadi tumo sela solerta taaki mentoutor, shoupa!" chanted the hooded monks. Their heads were bowed and their were clasps together as though they were praying, But the lead monk paid little heed to their performance, feeling the same tremor race through their caverns and disrupt his entertainment time with his followers. He quickly motioned for one of the minor rookies to come to his side and explain what it was that he felt earlier. The boy described that the prophecy was not fulfilled yet, because a "fair child had not walked out of the fields yet with the blood of her ancestor" and therefore proves that it was still not time. The head monk sighed from underneath his cloaked and quickly snapped the boy's neck. "I only asked that you prove me right in saying that the tremor I felt was a sigh of impatience; I never asked you to treat me like a child and explained the prophecy. Well, at least your slack of insight was rewarded to the best of my ability." The snap of the neck was quick and painless and very quiet as to not to disturb the others at their work. "I wonder who would dare show such power as to light one of the candles on the mantle. I wonder who would want to show the competition immediate strength. That is not usually a smart move, but none the less it is intimidating."

She felt it right behind her. She felt the heat growing and allowing the light to truly shine through. Turning her heads back towards the mantle, she saw the candle and the dancing flame on top of it. "This is not right," she murmured, her tail swishing back and forth. "This is not right. Someone is definitely planning on wining early in the match before the others have a chance to escape." She scratched as the door, frantically. "I have to tell Admatha."

Deep down inside the caverns, past the lava pools and biting steam, there lay the center of a dungeon, full of inmates moaning for freedom or screaming from amidst the torture chamber. The stone walls were hot to the touch and the steam from the cool underground water hitting the lava found escape through the cracks and crevices in the walls. The inmates inside the dungeon were all shrouded in a cape of darkness, hiding their grotesque figures and scarred bodies from the many hours of tortures that they suffered through. A few immortal bats hung from the rafters, screeching out callings to another. Their leathery wings flapped and covered their upside-down bodies. It was here that the Elder priest decided to meet his confidant and question him about the unexpected signs of an already impatient leader. The Elder's dark cloak lightly touched the floor, sweeping up the dirt. He knew that the dungeon was famous for some of its prisoners, including the rotting corpses of one of the leaders, Micah Balding, and one of the main followers, Malachi Craig. Deeper and deeper into the place of moans and wails he walked, never once sneaking a peak at the other prisoners. If he did, he would have started to laugh and never cease at their sad and unfortunate stations; through small openings, the yellowed eyes peered out to look upon the ghostly visitor, before dropping their gaze towards the floor. The Elder monk walked faster as he felt another tremor moving quickly through the ground and through his entire solid figure. "This isn't right," he hissed, "No mortal could have that power; surely, He Who Walks Behind the Rows knows that this is not the correct procedure. This is not good at all; one has energy to kill the others before they are even released from their imprisonment." He moved swiftly, down the winding stairs that could cause horrific vertigo, and heard the echoes of his footsteps becoming increasing louder. "There it is again. Another tremor, only much more determined in destination. Et suma wendterigo selata hinua."

Near the floor level, the Elder heard the voice of his confidant beckoning him to come and join the rest of the group. "I know what you want," said the beast-like growl. "I always know what you want. You want to know which leader is causing the commotion; he is an arrogant little fool, priding himself that only he deserves to be free from the capture. I shall prove that one wrong. I like to prove people wrong," he half hissed and half-snarled.

Ember woke up quickly, once again gasping for breath. Something heavy was still by her side, but the oxygen, which she craved for, came in quickly. Her head was spinning out of control and her heart raced so fast that she thought that she might induce a heart attack.

"Don't be too alarmed. This was only your first of many warnings."

Raven moved and shuffled intensely while in her seat. For some reason she felt the strange urge to leap out of the classroom and head towards Ember's house, just to see that she was all right. Something uneasy tingled up and down her body, causing Goosebumps at every available opening. This uneasiness swept through each and every view and blood vessel and her heart was beating too fast for her own breath. The low and steady sound of heavy metal filled the void that surrounded her and the lyrics from Metallica easy slipped inside her already stormy head.

Now I lay me down to sleep

I pray the Lord my soul to keep

And if I die before I wake

I pray the Lord, my soul to take

Hush little baby

Don't say a word

And never mind that noise

You heard

It's just the beasts

Inside your head

In your closest

In your head

Exit Light

Enter Night

Take my hand

We're off to never, never land

(Metallica, Sandman)

"Lord, let Ember be all right."

Michael dropped off Tabitha at the music store and went in search of decent parking for his cycle. Entering into the shop, Tabitha immediately noticed the guitar sitting on the back wall, where million of microscopic dust could fall with all the convenience in the world. "This would be perfect for her, absolutely perfect for her." She ran over and grabbed the instrument, strumming a few notes before realizing that the manager was looking down at her with gleaming eyes.

"Are ya gonna buy that or are you gonna get the hell outta here?"

Tabitha turned around and sneered back an answer. "I'm gonna play it all day long, just to annoy the fuck outta you. Then I'm gonna stay here the entire night and play every single Michele Branch song that I know. And if you're lucky, a bit of Jewel."

"If ya ain't gonna buy, then get out!"

"Wanna lose your only customer?"

The guy shook his head.

"Then back off!"

Idbash watched as the flame burned higher and higher, towering over all the rest of the candles. It was something to behold. Her eyes watched the dancing and swaying flame and again a tremor, much larger and much more noticeable shook through the Gatlin grounds. The desk shook considerably, the books fell behind one another, and the rest of the objects on the desks (including papers, pens, pencils, and containers of ink/blood) fared not as well. With her agility, she leaped up to the window sill and nudged her head under the window, struggled a few seconds, and finally was able to crawl underneath with the little space she was able to create. "Crap, Admatha won't like this at all." She shape-shifted back into her human form and ran into the fields, her feet drumming the ground. "Whoever is doing this won't get far; this type of power cannot be held in complete control."

The corn stalks pushed themselves away, hoping to avoid getting trampled on by the fleet-footed demon, who decided upon making a mad dash into the portal from where she originally came from. "To flee from this dream would take one kiss, but to flee from the horror being born is to outrun that dream in the first place."

And to the gentle maiden, a bid farewell, for the world will no longer be able to hold such beauty any longer.