-Pratt Street—

Bolin crossed over the Pratt Bridge into what seemed like a different world. No building reached past two floors, and any that did looked as if they had been set on fire.

The sky turned gray, and the gray seemed to descend and fill the streets, sucking away all the color.

He pulled up and parked next to an old school. It might have been the safest place around here. The school was operated now by an organization that taught poor children, so maybe it would be alright to leave his car there.

Laying on benches, getting warm underneath newspapers, urinating in public, waiting in line at kitchens, fiends were everywhere. They lied in alleys and sluggishly walked up and down streets. Looking for their dealer. Waiting for more stuff. The fiends inhabited abandoned buildings where they would squat, kill for space, do their drugs and slowly die off as their bodies gave up on them. It was sad. Everyone resented this street and its branches. This would be difficult to do for Bolin. He walked through the dilapidated town. Buildings falling apart and covered in writing, some of them asking about the "Great Oni" or the "God among us".

Everyone he spoke with answered cryptically. They were living in their dream world brought on by their drugs. Bolin kept his guard. These people must have seen a wonderland painted over this wasting neighborhood. It almost felt like walking through zombies. He came to a convenience store where two fiends stood outside smoking cigarettes. They pushed away any of the seriously far-gone fiends.

"Back off man. Crazy sunova bitch. I got no money."

"Excuse me, fellas. May I speak with you for a second." The two men looked at Bolin with hatred. "I am wondering if you have heard anything about the recent mob wars that have been going on around here. Particularly the one last night. Someone from this area was involved we think."

"Wars going on every day. Ain't no break around here. We just let them happen. It's a way of life. Can't tell ya bout any battle in particular, son."

"Well", Bolin said, "maybe you can tell me about any of the drugs that have been going around?"

"Hah, tons of drugs, boy. Variations, new ones, flowing in and out every day."

"Do you know any drugs that those gangs would be interested in? Any really fancy ones that they could turn for a good profit or something? None of them have spoken to you about it?"

"Man get lost! Don't need to be answering to you!" Bolin gave up and moved on. He walked around the corner of the shop and was looking down a long street littered with delirious fiends, trash, and just the gray that fell from the sky. A women seemed to slither out of an alleyway. An older woman who looked like she had experienced the effects of some hard drugs, but hadn't gone off the deep end just yet.

"I think I know someone who can help you with what you are looking for, boy. What you speak of sounds familiar. My friend, Animal, may know what you speak of."

Animal. These fiends seemed to forget who they were. They forgot their names and their personalities and just adopted a new one when they delved into the world of drugs. The drugs created for them a new identity. It was amazing to Bolin.

He was led to a warehouse around the corner. Inside was empty except for an old desk where a young girl, not much older than Bolin, sat atop.

"Animal," said the old woman, "this man has come to ask about the Elixer!" These fiends have no morals. They could snap at him. He tried to look for an escape preemptively. The girl on the desk rolled her head forward and looked at him. She was nearly his age, but her mind was completely disrupted at this point. Maybe if she hadn't chosen this life, she would have been a beautiful, smart girl. Maybe Bolin would fall for her. Now her body was just a host. The drug simulated a life within her. Like a parasite. She had a new personality. And everything in this girl's life revolved around a fix. Bolin was beginning to get sick of this place. He felt nauseous. He turned to leave.

"You seek the great Elixer! The liquid of our destruction and our survival." Just another drug. But maybe he could get something out of this. He was already here. He reluctantly answered.

"What is this Elixer? Who wants it so badly?" Bolin asked.

"We all seek the Elixer. For some, it kills, rots the mind. For others, it saves, just like it did for him," Animal said calmly.

"For who?"

"Steel. It saved him. He could think again. He could walk again. This elixir, it became an addiction. He left us. He became a giant among us. He told us he would return to lead us out of this place. That we would find a new home in a new world. But he needed more. More elixir. We thought he was right. We were ready to march out of this place. We were ready to take over. But then Pig. Big, stupid Pig. The Elixer had the opposite effect on him. He fell further away. He had nothing left. His mind dissolved."

These people were speaking in riddles or something. Bolin didn't get it, but he took notes and tried to make sense of it all.

"They all believe in Steel, though. They believe he will help us, and they choose to ignore Pig. They tell me this. They say Pig was just a fool. I don't believe in either of them. They are not idols. They are wrong. Only Oni can save us now."

Bolin looked up. A name he had seen before. "Oni? What can you tell me about Oni?"

"Oni is our savior. She has come from the Spirit World to end all of this. She will obliterate the Elixer and the madness it will cause us all to fall into. If she fails, we all will fail." This was starting to sound strange to Bolin, like he was speaking to an Oracle. "She will stop those who wish to abuse the power the Elixer brings."

"Thank you, ma'am. You have been very helpful."

Bolin wanted to leave as soon as she started talking. When she spoke, he swore he heard another voice, a slightly higher pitch, speaking over hers, saying the same thing, only barely delayed.