Angela pulled the microphone to her lips, as she stared at the camera. She ignored the panicked crowds around her, and concentrated only on her invisible audience, who was seemingly watching her from afar. She opened her lips, and began talking, her calm demeanor surprising even her. She couldn't even hear what she was saying, at that time. She felt her mouth moving, to the rhythmic sounds of the chaos, the heartbeats around her shattering the peaceful illusion everyone held onto for that day.
The deafening roars.
The howling wails.
The cascading tears.
The families gathering around.
And then, gunshots.
Angela stopped, and turned, to find those grieving families now running, screeching at the top of their lungs. Flurries of shapes passed her, drowning out whatever pleas there were to stay, to give the bastards what they deserved. Large, feral eyes raced to safety, all the while more and more of the same people fell, from the bullets, from tripping and being trampled on, the tiny drops of scarlet falling away from them, so very easily. It didn't take long for her cameraman to join them, his own instincts taking over at the last second. Angela stared at the scenes around her, seemingly mesmerized by the devastation around her.
She should be running too, shouldn't she?
And yet, she couldn't. She just kept standing there, shapes passing her in their own moments, the despair on their faces memorable, no doubt thinking that this might be the last moment they ever breathe. And in those precious seconds, she gripped the microphone tightly, perhaps the only thing to anchor her there. People were getting shot, left and right, almost everyone left behind writhing in pain, the bruises covering their limbs splayed across their skin. Someone was crying, from what she remembered.
Then, she saw them.
The murderers.
They were all the same, with that cruel, cold gleam in their eyes. Pale skin, all black, with a single, red rose strapped to their throats.
She'd seen them before.
Akiza could feel the pull of their bodies against her mind, as she flung the two men away from her. Hurriedly, she raced toward Jean, and before she knew it, her hands were on the gun. She clenched her teeth, then swiped it away, the trigger so delicately held in her fingers. She kept the men behind her away, as she hurried toward the door, practically seeing Security making their way towards her. She turned back, and kept the gun barrel trained on a pale Jean, while the other hand began unlocking the door. She then creaked it open, and automatically, the sounds poured from the outside.
Gun shots.
Screaming.
"What the hell did you do?!" she suddenly screamed.
But she couldn't get anything from Jean. He could only sit there, the confidence immediately fading from his eyes, as he watched the nightmare unfold before him.
Lost eyes, the light slowly returning to his pupils, the vaguest notion of humanity coming back to him. She could see him there, trembling, wondering just what'd happened, what was going on, the questions swirling in the back of his brain. Whatever vanity he carried before instantly disappeared, leaving him little more than a cold shell he could afford to lose, especially at this time.
She clutched the gun then, and without thinking, thrust her power toward the men who were still struggling to get up. She threw them away, taking no notice of the loud cracks resounding through the air as she opened the door widely. From the corner of her eyes, she could see the officers in the distance, guns ready, shields up. When she turned back, she saw the other men running to them, the desperation already evident on their faces. They were dragging their rifles toward her, shouting incoherent gibberish that she couldn't understand.
'I…I…" Jean began sputtering. He took a deep, shaky breath, and tried standing. And yet, his knees were shaking so much he collapsed, unable to move, all the while unbelieving of the situation around him. "I…I didn't…w-what-?"
She was about to say something, but decided against it, and walked away from the door. When she looked up, there were more men there, the confusion written all over their faces as they pointed their guns toward Akiza. Some were shaking as badly as Jean, while others were calm, murmuring words of encouragement to their comrades. It was as if they were trying to pass it all off as some bad dream, that their idol wasn't just sitting there, endeavoring to pretend none of this was happening.
It won't be long before Sector Security arrives, and Yusei and the others with them. From the people standing here right now, as she expected, the hostages are going to be left alone. That was all she could comprehend. As she fumbled with her phone, surveying the men carefully, she felt her own power moving whomever was in her way, making them disappear from her sight without the slightest of effort. She paid no attention to their screams, none at all to their pleas.
There was a stinging pain from her cheek. She moved her fingers toward the mark, feeling the crimson fall down her cheek. It was then she looked up, the Crimson Dragon no longer in her mind. Her phone dropped from her pockets, and with both hands, she started to attack.
As she flung the men away from her, the rifles seemingly disappearing from their grasp, her vision became hazier and hazier. She imagined their bodies in the air, driving them wherever she wanted them to go. A sadistic smile cradled her lips, as she played with them, all the while never taking her eyes off the man still sitting there, watching as she broke those newfound toys. Spines cracking, bones destroyed, organs flying everywhere…
She narrowed her eyes, the frustration building and building inside her brain. This wasn't supposed to happen; unless Jean had given the orders beforehand, or was even smart to begin with, everyone should've gotten out safely.
Someone else had taken over.
And then, all of a sudden, she was forced down.
She could hear something break, a strange, burning sensation erupting throughout her entire back. All the air was forced out of her body, her lungs beginning to twist so very painfully. Her vision stained red, all the while aches erupted from her limbs. She bit down on her lip to keep herself from screaming, as she stretched out her power, the mens' pathetic screams no longer reaching her ears. She gasped for air, before moving away, cold sweat dripping down her forehead. She flicked her eyes upwards, seeing a now vigilant Jean staring at her, his eyes darkened with humiliation.
Psychic, was her first thought.
Automatically, she moved the gun toward him, as she rid the men from her sight. She watched him struggle, watched as her power eagerly surrounded him. He was choking, though he kept glaring at her, daring her to shoot. He bit down on his lip, the blood dripping from his chin, as he fought down a painful grunt.
She could feel her finger trembling on the trigger.
Then, she saw a neat little hole, right there, between his eyes.
He stared at her, with wide, unblinking eyes. His lips parted slightly, as he stood there, the surprised embracing his features. The bright, red petals caressing his throat started falling, one by one, scattering in every direction without him knowing. As they left, the flower became more and more putrid, withering away away at the seams. The lush color faded from her eyes, the shallow beauty the blossom carried now disappearing before her very eyes. She could see sharp, black thorns, instantly caressing the collar. They became scars, those thorns, entwining its merciless addiction to his neck without any hesitation.
Glassy eyes reflected back at her.
She could see Sector Security rushing toward her, yelling, shouting, trying to get a hold of Akiza.
She saw Yusei, just right behind them.
She blacked out after that.
Mangled.
That was the only way Yusei could describe them.
Arms and legs, all twisted the wrong way, and deep, dark holes covered their bodies, the red so easily entwining with the once white, pristine floors. Eyes wide with fright, with concern, the deadness in their faces now evident, he could only imagine the madness that caught up to them, the moment they stepped forward and aimed their guns. Heads were turned the wrong way, the brutal cracks on their necks enough to make him flinch. He could see them before, as they ran toward their leader, prepared to do whatever it took, if only to get him out of there safely. Bullet holes coated their torsos, all the while only withered roses hung to their throats, clinging to it as tightly as they could for fear they'd fall, and be trampled on.
He took in the scene with the those thoughts, as the horror gradually settled within his eyes. All the while, the officers kept on moving, seemingly oblivious to the massacre in front of them. The hostages, were running the other direction, the same, desperate hope shimmering from their eyes. They were all coming this way, toward his direction, without the faintest idea of what was going on outside. And yet, just behind, he could hear Jack, and Crow, and Leo and Luna, racing toward his direction, prepared to rescue their friend, the expectations so predictably written all over their face.
And then he saw Akiza, sitting there, right in front of them.
Emotionless.
With one, single gun in her hands.
He ran toward Akiza as Security stormed in, shouting out for the hostages to come, with Trudge just a few feet behind. He crouched down, and grabbed a hold of her shoulders. "Aki!" he shouted.
She neither said anything, nor returned his gaze. She just sat there, like a porcelain doll, holding that gun with all the strength she could possibly hold in that fragile grip of hers. Dead eyes stared back at his, and though he could feel her pulse, her heartbeat resonating loudly from his eardrums, he never noticed any of it. Only that cold, icy, look the other men carried, her skin cool to the touch.
"Akiza!" he repeated, shaking her lightly, though to no avail.
His eyes fell to her hands then.
Trembling.
Quickly, he placed his own fingers on hers, trying to get her to calm down, all the while attempting to see where the officers were all going, trying to comprehend the predicament before him. He sat there for a single moment, before gritting his teeth, and to prying her fingers away from the gun. He stared down at it, then looked out at the other men laying there, their bodies so very similar to the nightmares he's held just days before.
Did Aki do this?
"Akiza!" familiar voices chimed.
Yusei hid the gun within the folds of his jacket.
As the others swarmed around her, the concern deep within their eyes, Yusei looked ahead. There were more coming this way, both the men, and the hostages. It was so hard to tell who was who, from the panic in their eyes, to the realization that if they didn't do something, they'd end up dying. Everyone kept calling out names, trying to get someone, anyone's attention. As the officers kept on with their jobs, the remaining men following in suite of their demise, Yusei noticed something moving from the balconies.
A shadow.
It was small, the shadow, the thick ebony wrapped around it so carefully. It just kept standing there, beckoning for someone to come in. A callous howl poured out from the shadow.
His eyes flickered toward Security, to Trudge, to his friends.
No one noticed.
Then, in that one, single moment, the shadow froze.
Slowly, Yusei stood up, the gun still in his possession. Carefully, he moved himself out of the way, allowing Jack and Crow to examine her, the ambulance already wailing from a distance. He came away from the officers, as he came toward that shadow, their footsteps echoing from the depths of his mind. He brushed aside the bodies as he did so, their voices slowly coming away from his ears. At that instant, he started running.
As did that shadow.
Yusei clenched his teeth, as he raced after it. The smell of iron and rust coated the atmosphere around him, as that shadow disappeared down below, the enigmatic hallway taunting him with everything it could possibly have imagined. He turned back briefly the other's voices fading completely from him, then followed in after it.
The cold enticed the stone caressing it, the lights growing dimmer and dimmer with each step Yusei took. Soon after, the tiles faded, changing to concrete with the slightest hints of mold growing off to the side. The steps became slippery, the iron rails tightly hanging to the walls helplessly. The daylight faded from him, replaced by artificial florescence, which provided little detail as to where the shadow went. And yet, he could still hear their footsteps racing away, along with light laughter following in suite.
He clutched the gun in his jacket, as he continued on, knowing full well what would've happened had he let the monster get away. Anger, resentment, testaments of a grudge he knew he could never let go; he kept moving, even in the darkness. The bodies reappeared before him, the families waiting outside, and even Akiza…
They swallowed him whole.
He stumbled, before catching himself again, moving onto the shadow as quickly as he could. He couldn't afford to gaze down at the bodies, maneuvering himself out of their way. He could feel the gun slipping from his jacket, all the while trying to come up with a plan to drag them back up the surface, for Sector Security to come and haul them away. Whoever this person was, the Dark Signers probably had nothing to do with it. Was it one of Goodwin's enemies? Jack's? Some higher-up someone pissed off? The killer?
And then, the shadow stopped.
Yusei's eyes widened, his own pace softly dying away.
The staircase had seemingly vanished behind him, leaving but a long, narrow hallway in his wake. From what Trudge showed Yusei, this tunnel was the only other way out of the mall. Supposedly, it led to the sewage systems, a convenient way of disposing trash. Since Trudge knew about the system, by now, Sector Security must've already surrounded the openings, fully aware of the hijacker's escape routes. If that was the case, then the creature knew it would've sense to stop here, and try to fight their way out, one final desperate move before they were taken into custody.
Tension rested between his shoulder blades, and a cold sweat drop came down his forehead. He clenched his fists, as he began walking toward the shadow, replaying Jean's words over and over again in his head. Then, carefully, he pulled out the gun, and waited.
"Come out," a soft voice sang.
Yusei clutched the gun tightly, doing whatever he could to force down an enraged scream. Slowly, his mind dissipated the tempest of emotions clouding his judgement. Then, with one breath, he came out, gun in hand.
A young girl stood there, who was just around Luna's age. Dark, raven hair glistened beneath the low, flickering lights, with equally dark shadows beneath her eyes. Just like the other men, she had pale skin, her red, crimson lips reflecting accurately the nightmarish scenes taking place on the surface. She wore a long, black dress, with chains softly dangling from her ankles. with bloody bandages wrapped around her small arms. Bright, green eyes kept examining him, her predatory eyes taking in the frustration deeply embedded in his face.
Like all the others, she had a red rose strapped to her throat, one that wasn't wilting yet.
"Hello," she greeted, in a quiet, musical voice.
He kept groping for words, trying to find the right thing to say.
She returned his silence, before giggling. "You like what I did? My handiwork, sir."
…Sir?
She clapped her hands happily. "But of course, I guess I got a little messy. Then again, what was I supposed to do? They all just kept standing there, and I couldn't really do anything productive. But don't worry; no one was killed! You know, except for the ones Jean already got to. He really is an idiot, isn't he? Well, I guess you already knew that… Ah! I'm so sorry! I'm rambling again, aren't I?"
Slowly, he raised the gun up, his icy breath coming away from him. His head was throbbing, as he stared at the girl, the one with that happy, innocent smile so eerily strapped to her face.
Why was she here?
What was she talking about?
She blinked, as she stared down at the trigger. Confusion marred her bright look, but before long she cast it aside. "Oh right; the game! Well, I had to. If I didn't, they'd come for us. But seriously though, to think he's actually participating in that stupid game. See? I did tell you not to make him a knight; got bigheaded he did, and he had a really big mouth-"
"What'd you mean?" he finally asked.
The girl's smile disappeared then. She took a tiny step closer to him, hands to her side. She cocked her head. "Sir-?"
"Don't give me that!" he spat, the disgust enveloping around his tone. The pain became more prominent, the throbbing now pounding against his skull. "What'd you want from me? From us? Who are you?"
"What'd you mean?" she asked. "Stop playing around sir; we've got to go or else they'll come back. I don't think the other covens will appreciate it if we-"
Covens.
Just then, a loud shot rang behind Yusei's ears.
He turned back, only to find an officer standing there, just a few feet behind him.