Hey everybody! Glad to see you all here reading this chapter! Hope you're all doing well, especially when it comes to the how things are going right now.
Well, I'm assuming you know what's going to happen in this chapter. Remember, no spoiling anybody else about it, though I do have some additional news; this is a three-parter! I'm combining it with another episode within the series, which you'll understand as soon as the next chapter is published. If you have already, make sure to keep spoilers out!
Now without further ado, let's start.
Karkat was back in the counselor's office again. And he sure as well didn't like it.
The crisis at the dance apparently awarded another round of forced visits to the school counselor. If he didn't feel so agitated right now, he'd almost feel sorry for that Serket woman for the amount of work she's probably been swamped with.
"At least Tethis turned out to be okay…" He mumbled to himself, squirming in his seat while he waited for Aranea to show up.
Nobody was able to prove anything weird had gone on during the dance, though they did find the scorch marks from the fight. Nobody had been blamed, but the teachers have been on the lookout for anyone that might've caused a fire during that time. No hands had been pointed at him or his friends, so that was a nice reprieve.
Tethis herself remained unconscious for a few minutes, but after getting her out of there and getting her into a safe place, she woke up and only complained about being sore. She was questioned by the police later about anything she could've saw, but she hadn't remembered shit.
Whether that was due to the amulet or him possessing her, Karkat didn't know. He honestly didn't want to know.
He couldn't help but inwardly cringe at his own behavior after the night ended. He admittedly tried blacking out the rest of it from his memory, but it was kind of difficult. Everything played out in his head perfectly, a play by play every few moments.
He was just at the part when he slipped into Tethis's body when the door behind him swung open, startling him out of his thoughts.
"I'd say that it's good to see you here again, Mr. Vantas, but it'd be almost ghoulish to say so." Aranea sat down in her seat with a huff, adjusting her papers as she did so. She looked a little worn out, though strangely satisfied about something at the same time. "I'm guessing you already know why you were sent here."
"Because of the fire during the dance." Karkat rolled his eyes at her. "Not entirely sure why, other than that. Nothing much to say on the subject, really."
"I suppose that's fair. Though your father did raise quite a ruckus about the situation if I remember correctly." She adjusted her glasses, looking over what was most likely the incident report. "He seemed to be ranting on about ghosts the entire time, something about getting an ecto-signature on his radar. I can't say that doesn't sound embarrassing."
"It was the first few times he did it, but that's basically old hat by now. He'd have to do something extreme to embarrass me now." He couldn't help but legitimately laugh at that. "You really haven't seen any of his 'experiments,' so I that's only the start of it for now."
"I'll make sure to keep that in mind." Karkat swore he heard her mutter about raising her insurance but decided to leave it be. "Though, speaking of your father, he actually did contact me about your behavior over the past weekend."
Now that was a curveball he wasn't honestly expecting.
"He did?" Karkat felt a little shame at that, having fully expected that his dad didn't notice anything at all. "I mean, maybe I've been feeling a little depressed from all the crazy stuff happening, but I didn't think it was that bad."
"Well, it's alright to feel a little overwhelmed at everything that's been going on lately. The school's been facing a lot of challenges lately, and it's not unusual that students like you would be stressed." Aranea put her hands together, watching over the boy with a careful eye. "Though, I do have to admit that doesn't seem to be what's bothering you."
Karkat grit his teeth at the (appropriate) observation. He looked away briefly, trying to think up of something.
"Have you ever thought about ghost powers? How they work and stuff?" Okay, not what he wanted to start with, but he could roll with it. "He talks about his work a lot with me, especially when he's talking about a ghosts' powers. One of them kind of stuck with me."
"Which one?" The young woman was already writing things down, which would've irked him if distracting her wasn't the point of all of this.
"Over-" He gulped and corrected himself. "Possession. When a ghost can take over your body and essentially pilot it without warning."
"That's a common ability ghosts share in popular media, I suppose." She didn't seem perturbed by his self-correction. "Why is it any different when your father brings it up, though? Is it because he personally researches them?"
"I guess. It's more that… I had a really disturbing dream after I got home from the dance." Karkat balled his fists in his lap. Dangerous territory, Vantas, what are you doing? "I dreamt I was a ghost. I was mainly messing around with my powers and stuff, trying to figure out how they worked when I found someone I knew. I don't really know who it was now, but I did know that they were doing something wrong. So, I wanted to do something about it."
"I'm guessing as a ghost, you tried to do possess them?" Aranea paused in her writing long enough to turn a page, starting notes anew. "I'm guessing it didn't work?"
"Nah, it worked. It just worked a little too well." Karkat thought over the night again, and while he would've done it again, he couldn't help but think…
GETOUTEGETOUTGETOUTEGETOUTGETOUTEGETOUTGETOUTEGETOUT
"When I went into their head, I could feel them trying to push me out. To make sure they weren't under my control. They were screaming at me and I didn't know what to do."
SHUT UP!
"So, I just pushed them down. Overwrote anything that made them themselves and made them go quiet." Karkat shook his head, composing himself. "They didn't say a peep after that. If it wasn't for the feeling of overall fear, I would've thought I was only on in control of their body. And that was…"
Possession. He didn't like possession. Tethis would've burned down the entire school if it weren't for him, but he couldn't help but hate how that was the only solution he came up with. But the fact that he overwrote someone completely, only leaving their pure fear in their place, kind of threw him for a loop.
Not to mention how plain horrible it was to be in skin that wasn't your own. Biology that wasn't your own. They were both relatively human, so he thought he knew what to expect, but piloting someone else's meatsuit was just awkward, horrible, and even disturbing.
Aranea frowned at Karkat, who seemed lost in his own thoughts. She tapped her pencil on the table loud enough to jar him from them.
"It sounds to me like you did the good thing here. I don't know what exactly they were doing, but it if it warranted possession, then I assume that it was worth it." Serket twirled her pencil in her hands, frowning deeply. "Though, it is understandable why you feel this way. Dream or not, overriding someone's cognition can be a disturbing experience. But it sounds like the ends justify the means in this situation, so you shouldn't feel guilty in this situation."
"That's not as easy as you think." Karkat shrugged. It was a nice thought, but there was no way in hell she'd understand the scope of all of this. He didn't even know why he bothered to mention it. "I'm probably just blowing this up more then I should, anyway."
"If that makes you feel better, I suppose." Aranea didn't seem happy to leave the subject there, though, judging from her next sentence. "Though before we move on, there's just one more question I want to ask you."
"Go for it." Karkat figured it wouldn't be any weirder than anything else they've talked about.
"Does this 'dream' of yours have anything to do with any of the strange happenings going on about the school?"
…The teen couldn't help but draw a blank at that.
Thankfully, before the panic could set in, she got a notification on her phone. This seemed to throw her off, looking at the phone on her table with disdain. It only increased when she picked it up to unlock it, realizing who the message was from.
"Is she serious- sorry, I'm going to have to cut this short. Family emergency." Aranea picked up the phone, almost angrily, dialing in a number.
Karkat figured that was probably for the best since she looked ready to throw the thing into the wall if he decided to interrupt. He moved slowly out of his seat and out the door when she started to argue with the other person on the line.
"Well, that was a close fucking call." The teen pulled out his own phone, turning on the Ghostian function. It already looked like some of his friends were chatting right now. He clicked on to…
…Why the fuck did Terezi pick that for her typing quirk?
GC: 4ND WH4T 3X4CTLY 1S TH3 FUNCT1ON OF 4 RUBB3R DUCK?
TA: why the fuck do you thiink we know that?
AC: :33 there's no shame in admitting you don't kmeow.
AA: it's n0t that we d0n't kn0w, we just never th0ught ab0ut it bef0re.
Karkat sighed, rolling his eyes as he typed into the chat himself.
CG: NICE TO KNOW THAT ALL OF YOU ARE KEEPING BUSY WITHOUT ME.
GC: K4RKL3S! HOW H4V3 YOU B33N? H3R3 1 W4S, TH1NK1NG YOU W3NT OFF 4ND D1S4PP34R3D ON US.
CG: I CAN BARELY READ WHAT YOU JUST SAID, BUT I'M ASSUMING THAT WAS AN INSULT.
AC: :33 oh, come on karkitty! she just likes messing with people.
GC: Y34H! B3S1D3S, 1T'S D3SP1C4BL3 TO P1CK ON TH3 BL1ND G1RL! SH4M3 ON YOU!
CG: I'M STARTING TO PREFER WHEN YOU WERE TRYING TO LIGHT ME ON FIRE COMPARED TO THIS.
There were a few seconds of silence before Sollux finally decided to join the conversation.
TA: 2o, how wa2 therapy? m2. 2erket'2 doe2n't 2u2pect anythiing, riight?
CG: WHAT KIND OF CHUMP DO YOU TAKE ME FOR? OF COURSE, I DIDN'T TIP HER OFF.
AA: g00d. n0 0ffense t0 her at all, but i always feel 0n edge ar0und her.
AA: that smile 0f hers just makes me feel like she has literal skelet0ns in her cl0set.
AC: :33 i thought you liked skeletons in closets?
GC: TH4T'S TH3 V1B3 1'V3 B33N G3TT1NG TOO.
AA: 0nly in true crime d0cumentaries, n0t in real life.
TA: gettiing back on topiic, ii know how you feel.
TA: ii can't help but feel a biit draiined whenever ii leave her offiice. even iif ii don't 2ay anythiing.
CG: IT'S PROBABLY ALL THE BULLSHIT WE'VE BEEN GOING THROUGH. SHIT GETS TIRING SOMETIMES.
CG: THAT REMINDS ME.
Karkat sent out a quick invite to Horuss and Muelin.
CG: HEY, YOU TWO. JUST WANTED TO KNOW HOW PROGRESS ON THE PORTAL IS GOING.
HZ: 8=D Ah, hello everyone! Progress is going quite nicely, though we've hit a few snags.
ML: ＼(=^..^)/ IT'S STILL GOING ON, THOUGH! YOU'RE DAD DOES WEIRD STUFF WITH HIS WIRING OR SOMETHING.
That was good at least. One less thing to worry about in the long run. Hopefully. They were getting too close on time, though, so he hoped that this progress would continue.
CG: THAT'S GOOD TO HEAR. THANKS FOR THE HELP SO FAR, WE APPRECIATE IT.
AA: we weren't interrupting anything, right?
ML: ＼(=^..^)/ NAH, ME AND HORUSS WERE JUST ABOUT GET INTO A CUDDLE PILE. YOU CAUGHT US JUST IN TIME!
HZ: 8=D Meulin!
GC: TM1, L31JON. TM1.
TA: yeah, what 2he 2aiid.
AA: s0llux, y0u d0n't even kn0w what they're talking ab0ut.
CG: WHATEVER THAT MEANS, WE'LL LET YOU GET ON WITH IT. AGAIN, THANKS.
HZ: 8=D Not a problem. I hope you all have an e day!
ML: ＼(=^..^)/ LATER EVERYONE! REMEMBER NEP, IT'S YOUR TURN TO CATCH DINNER TONIGHT!
AC: :33 got it!
As soon as the two logged off, Sollux sent in a message, this time with a link.
TA: 2iince ii'm a22umiing mo2t of u2 don't have anythiing two do today now that 2chool2 over, ii fiigured we 2hould try 2omethiing diifferent.
AA: is this a c0ncert? i d0n't think i've ever heard 0f this band.
TA: me neiither, but ii've been heariing 2ome decent thiing2. fiigured that we 2hould get one niight two our2elve2 before more 2hiit hiit2 the fan.
AA: g00d p0int. been a while since we've just d0ne s0mething that wasn't gh0st related.
AA: nepeta, terezi, y0u guys want t0 c0me with?
GC: C4N'T, MOM'S B33N ON MY 4SS 4BOUT TH3 4MUL3T TH1NG. ST1LL TRY1NG TO 4VO1D SUSP1C1ON.
AC: :33 still n33d to get dinner tonight. sorry!
Karkat raised an eyebrow, clicking on the link. A digital poster came up on the screen of his phone, an advertisement for a band that, honestly, he'd never heard of before.
The poster itself looked nothing special, a pure white background being used as the backdrop. In the center of the ad, a young woman around his age seemingly floated in the void, long hair floating behind her. Her face was shadowed by her blonde hair, with only a pair of blue eyes staring forward and mouth spewing out white smoke being visible. Wearing a tank top, ripped jeans, and black boots, the only thing her pale skin showed was a web tattoo going down one arm.
The band was called Scourge Sister, written in dark blue letters around the figure with a date and time set for her concert.
CG: CAN'T SAY I'VE HEARD OF HER EITHER. WHY NOT, I'VE GOT NOTHING TO DO TONIGHT ANYWAY.
TA: thank god. well, ii gue22 ii'll 2ee two of you toniight. tz, np, riip.
GC: H4. JUST P1L1NG ON TH3 D34D JOK3S, HUH? H4V3 FUN 4T YOUR W31RD HUM4N CONC3RT.
AC: :33 be safe. danger really loves to follow you guys.
CG: WE'LL TRY. WE'LL MOST LIKELY FAIL, BUT WE'LL TRY.
Karkat sighed and put the phone away. He really hoped that this was going to be a normal concert. He really didn't need to deal with even more ghost crap as is.
…He didn't know why, but he felt like he jinxed himself.
The meeting place for the concert was an abandoned warehouse. Kind of a strange place to hold it, especially if the band was so popular, but maybe that was their angle. Probably some kind of rebellious angle or something.
Or this was all an elaborate way to rob some teenagers looking for a good time. Karkat wasn't exactly an optimist, so he was definitely making sure to keep an eye out if it was the latter.
"Well, can't say this place looks all that great. Fucks sake, why didn't I do a Google search?" Sollux groaned, kicking at the floor. "I mean, not the worst place in town to hold a concert, but I'm pretty sure none of this is legal."
"Must be a real grunge or underground scene. I'd definitely hold a concert here, but I'm pretty sure the cops wouldn't like it." Aradia moved up beside her friends, inspecting the place for all it's worth. "Hey, didn't we corner that Box Ghost guy here not that long ago? Before we had to deal with tall, dark, and skulky?"
"Don't fucking remind me. The both of them have serious issues." Karkat rolled his eyes at his friend's antics. He turned to them. "Alright, listen to me. This is supposed to be a ghost free zone. At no point do we talk about or event think about anything involved with the undead. As far as we're concerned for tonight, they don't even exist. Are we all clear on this?"
"Crystal." They both saluted, both sarcastic in their own individual ways that signified that they'd be taking this somewhat seriously. They were probably looking forward to having a night without ghost hunting and he honestly hoped that would hold up. He turned to head towards the building.
"What have they been saying about the band, anyway? You didn't really say much after inviting us here." Aradia moved to walk beside Sollux, people watching as they got closer. It seemed like a pretty mixed crowd as far as she could tell, filled with more varying age groups then she was expecting.
"A lot of it was pretty standard stuff, but you got a few creepy ones crawling in. But everyone seems to be saying that she's pretty good, though I couldn't find her songs anywhere online." Sollux shrugged, frowning slightly. "Couldn't really find any negative reviews too. I made sure to check on some things, but nobody's been saying that negative stuff is being deleted, so she could be for real."
"Or have some pretty good lawyers." Karkat remembered the digital flier from earlier. "I'm still hoping this isn't some weird scam. Nobodies even asking for tickets from the looks of it."
"If someone pulls a knife on us, just phase us out of there. It's not like they can hurt a guy that can go through walls." Aradia laughed, hitting Karkat on the back. "Now come on, I wanna hear some good music while I'm here. Can't do that while standing around."
Getting inside of the run-down building, they noted that at least it looked like effort was put in. Decorations and lights were strung about the place, in various colors and styles. Some glowsticks and other items were being handed out by some volunteers for the band.
"Not a bad set up. Looking less like a mugging every minute." Sollux looked over the stage, watching as band members set everything up. "Looks like we got here just in time, too. Hopefully, they don't take too long to start."
"I think the singer's coming on stage right now." Aradia pointed out, seeing someone come on from one side the stage. She blinked before almost rearing back in surprise. "Wait, she kinda looks like Ms. Serket."
"The hell are you talking about?" Karkat looked where she was looking and stopped immediately. "Holy fucking shit."
Aradia didn't seem to be joking when she said that, because he was pretty sure that he was looking at Aranea's younger sister. While she was a littler wirier than Aranea and was, strangely, wearing an eyepatch over her left eye, the resemblance was pretty clear immediately. She also looked exactly like the girl on the poster, which made Karkat wonder why he didn't connect them sooner.
"So, a psychologist and a rockstar in one family." Sollux started off sarcastically, seemingly brushing it all off. "At least if she decides to go off the deep end like they do in Behind the Music style,she can get some cheap mental health."
"Well that's just negative, I'm sure she'd be smarter than that. Hopefully." Aradia crossed her arms. She did consider something for a second. "Then again, she's probably wearing that eyepatch for a reason."
"It's probably for show. If this starts to devolve into a bunch of pirate shanty's or something, remind me to fucking bounce." It was still weird for Karkat to see the resemblance, but at least this was something he was familiar with. "Ms. Serket did get a call earlier that pissed her off. Looks like we may have found out why."
Before they could speak any further, a whine came from the speakers coming around them, causing everyone to flinch. It seemed like the microphone had been turned on, evidenced by their entertainer for the night tapping at it impatiently. When it responded to her to her liking, she smiled toothily, blue lipstick shining as she started to speak.
"Well, if it isn't flattering to see a packed house out here tonight." Blue eyes looked over the crowd, leaving most of them silenced. "All of you here just to hear little ol' me? I'm certainly over the moon."
Karkat bristled at the cocky tone but didn't say a word. He didn't know why it irked him so much, though that tone really did set him off.
"I already see a bunch of old faces here, but since I love introducing myself, I might as well anyway." She grabs a guitar that's handed to her by another volunteer, fitting it onto her shoulders. "I'm Vriska Serket. Anyone new here should feel free to remember it, because I doubt it'll be the last time you hear it."
Karkat felt an elbow hit his stomach, Aradia looking proud that she was correct. Sollux and him only huffed, though they nodded in deference to her clear mental superiority. Sollux was already trying to take a video of the concert as well, probably to mess with Aranea later.
"Well, let's not waste too much more time then. I'm on a pretty tight schedule myself, so let's start this shit." Some cheers were met with that declaration as Vriska motioned for the keyboard to start. She sent one more confident smile out. "Now give it up to the Scourge Sister!"
(Readers Play: Rock and Roll Thugs – Icon for Hire)
Starting out slow, the piano went on the crowd seemed to shift with it, moving slowly. Vriska seemed to get contemplative, manic energy going away all of a sudden. She swayed slightly in front of the microphone, but her voice went out to the crowd smoothly.
"Oh, the music, is in my blood. You don't understand.
Oh, the music, is in my blood. You don't understand."
Karkat actually blinked in surprise at this, surprised at the quality of it. Maybe they'd lucked out after all coming here, an opinion the other two teens seemingly agreed to as they nearly stopped where they stood too.
"A guitar was added to the melody seconds later.
Sleepless nights at the black and white keys,
I'll let my fingers say it for me,
Sometimes my spirit's still so scared."
Vriska started to up the guitar as the piano began to hype things up.
"Once I put it in a melody it means so much more to me,
Fate sealed, I guess this is how I feel,
Sometimes I swear the lyrics write me.
The lyrics write me."
The piano and guitar seemingly stopped as she suddenly got close the mic, snarling almost. Karkat almost felt a chill go up his spine as the tension in the room spiked at the pause.
Vriska smirked before starting up the guitar, taking it up to an eleven.
"Bury all the records in the backyard,
When you're not looking I'll go dig them back up!
You can bury my body in the backyard,
When you're not looking I'll go dig myself up!"
She moved to the front of the stage, pointing at the crowd as it began to go up in a fervor. The look on her face showed that she loved every second of it.
"And I know all about the drugs they hide inside the music!
I know, I know,
I know all about the drugs they hide inside the music!"
She continued to play the guitar as the chorus died down, causing the audience to cheer. Karkat cheered along with them, surprised at the energy of the crowd as he did so. He laughed hearing Sollux and Aradia cheering loudly beside him. They usually weren't this enthusiastic to bands they've been fans of for years.
As Scourge Sister went into its second verse, that fact made him feel queasy for some reason.
"And the preacher at church must've told you about them too,
Cause you came home dead set on what you had to do.
You said the demons and drugs hide in rock n roll thugs,
If I wanna grow up nice, I better give the music up."
In a weird way, this verse came out almost in a chant from nearly everyone in the crowd. Even from Sollux and Aradia, something that definitely threw him off. Didn't they only hear about this band today?
"Bury all the records in the backyard,
When you're not looking I'll go dig them back up.
You can bury my body in the backyard,
When you're not looking I'll go dig myself up.
And I know all about the drugs they hide inside the music,
I know, I know,
I know all about the drugs they hide inside the music."
The crowd was in an absolute roar at this point, with Karkat noticing a very troubling fact; everyone's eyes had turned blue. He didn't know when he noticed this, but maybe it was around the time when he looked at Sollux and realized he didn't look so heterochromatic anymore. And that Aradia's brown eyes were shining in a way they certainly shouldn't.
"You've gotta be fucking kidding me." He mumbled, narrowly dodging as some people began rushing to the front of the stage as Vriska calmed down the song.
"Oh, the words unwind, my hands rebel,
I hide behind these notes too well,
I can't pretend anymore."
The crowd, which Karkat now knew was brainwashed, started stomping in unison.
"You're not listening, you don't understand.
You're not listening, you don't understand.
You're not listening, you don't understand.
You're not listening, you don't understand."
Karkat made it a point to grab onto his friends before they moved to the front of the stage. They struggled, Sollux's bony arms poking at any chink in his armor while Aradia was certainly going to leave a couple of bruises on him later. He started to slowly move him to the back of the room.
"Bury all the records in the backyard,
When you're not looking I'll go dig them back up
You can bury my body in the backyard,
When you're not looking I'll go dig myself up.
Bury all the records in the backyard
When you're not looking I'll go dig them back up.
You can bury my body in the backyard,,
When you're not looking I'll go dig myself up.
And I know all about the drugs they hide inside the music,
I know, I know,
I know all about the drugs they hide inside the music."
The song ended with cheers from the crowd resonating throughout the building. Vriska looked borderline victorious, laughing as everyone started to chant her name in a slowly increasing frequency. She raised her arms and soaked it all in.
Karkat couldn't help but feel like an energy, one that was becoming damningly familiar, was surrounding him at that moment. That it was coalescing and getting stronger with every cheer, with every bit of worship shown to the singer before him.
It was ghostly in nature. Of course it fucking was.
Before the energy could reach a fever pitch, however, the doors of warehouse banged open, revealing several officers standing in the doorway. Everyone turned to them all at once.
One of the older looking ones stepped up, pulling out a megaphone so that the crowd could hear him. "This is the APPD. I'm going to have to ask you all to leave the premises in an orderly fashion as this concert has gone on without a permit." He only received a daze murmuring in response. "If you don't leave the premises, we will be forced to arrest you and check for drugs and alcohol."
"For crying out loud, I barely got started on my set!" Vriska (or whoever she claimed she was) looked absolutely insulted that she was interrupted. "At least let me get through a couple more songs before you decide to bust us!"
Megaphone-cop didn't seem to care. "I'm only saying this one more time-"
"Yeah, yeah, we heard you the first time you fucking pig." Vriska sighed, rolling her eyes. She turned to the crowd, tilting her head and smirking. "Sorry folks, but it looks like the local rent-a-cops are on a power trip. Though, I've got an idea how to make up for all of this!"
The crowd remained silent as Vriska's smirk turned sinister.
"Get them. Anyone who brings a badge to me gets my autograph."
Karkat would swear that this is where things immediately went to shit.
The crowd, as one, dove for the officers, who scrambled back in what he could perceive as fear. Karkat couldn't help but feel glad that Amity Parks police didn't usually carry guns, though the tasers the officers were scrambling to get were most likely not enough.
He gripped onto the struggling Aradia and Sollux even tighter, pulling them to the back wall. He made sure to look around before phasing them through it and throwing them to the ground. As the two got up, he went with his first instinct and slapped them in the face.
Thankfully, it wasn't for naught as they came to their sense. Sollux fell flat on his ass pretty much immediately while Aradia may have slapped him the face right back.
"Ow, fuck's sake Megido!" He wasn't really offended by the slap, but that still didn't mean it hurt. "Get a hold of yourself, it's just me!"
"I know that! Why'd you slap me?" Aradia rubbed at her cheek, irritation clear on her face. It melted away eventually into confusion as she finally got a good look at her surroundings. "Wait, how did you get us outside? Didn't the concert just start?"
"I don't fucking know, but everything hurts right now." Sollux was holding his head, rolling on the ground. "I think I got a headache. Please tell me I didn't have a seizure again. Are the meds not working anymore?"
"You're meds are fine. It just turns out our headliner has fucking ghost powers." This got the two out of their funk, getting them up in arms. Karkat immediately raised his. "I don't know what she did, but she mind controlled anyone that listened to her singing was put under control. I think I kept my own head because of my situation."
"Then I guess you want us to stay out?" Aradia didn't look happy about it, but he could already hear the resignation from her.
"Yeah. Besides, the police are here already. They see you guys; they'll just assume you're a part of the crowd and arrest you on sight." Karkat pulled Sollux up with a quick tug, nearly sending the noodly boy over again. "Vriska sent the whole crowd after the officers and I'd rather nobody got tased or shot. I'll come find you guys after I'm done with her."
"I really don't like that this is becoming a thing." Sollux grabbed Aradia's hand and started walking. "Don't your ass killed while we're gone. If you do, I'll never forgive you."
"I'll make sure to." Karkat immediately transformed into Phantom, turning invisible and going back into the building.
Sollux groaned, ruffling his hair with his hands. "I'm getting fucking refund when all of this is over." He could hear the faint sounds of a fire alarm ring through, most likely Karkat using it to get everyone else in there out of Vriska's control.
"Didn't we get in there for free?"
"…fuck."
Vriska Serket was figuring that tonight had gone pretty well, despite the cops ruining the party. Directing her "bandmates" into putting the equipment way, she felt a high go through her. Even the repeated calls she was getting didn't seem to annoy her.
She did turn it to silent, though, just so she wouldn't have to hear it.
"Alright people, hurry your asses up!" She barked, strumming her guitar softly. She hummed contently as some of the workers immediately began to work harder. "We got my world debut coming up soon and I'm not going to be late just because you idiots decided to slack off."
She laughed as one of them almost tripped up.
That good mood almost immediately soured when a green light suddenly hit one of the speakers lying on the ground, immediately destroying it.
"Hey- the fuck?!" Vriska jumped off the van she was sitting on, looking around. "Alright, who the fuck did that?! Whoever did it, it's coming out of your nonexistent pay!"
"Sorry to disappoint, but I'm not on your payroll."
She almost jumped at the echoing voice, looking upwards to find Karkat floating not that far above them. A look of confusion fell across her face as she noticed the hazmat suit, gas mask, sickle, and laser gun.
"You know, dude, it's usually a better idea to find one gimmick and stick with it. I don't know what look you're going for, but I'd suggest switching some things out first." Vriska tilted her head to the side, looking him over again. "I mean, it isn't bad, but I'm pretty sure the little knife thing is going to throw people off."
"Well, I'd be able to worry more about my looks if, you know, ghosts like you didn't decide to send people to almost get shot." Karkat twirled the sickle, anger oozing out of him. "You're lucky all it took was setting of the sprinklers to the place to get everyone to calm down. If I hadn't, people would've died."
"None of those idiots had guns. I actually do my research asshole, and last I checked, they do their shit the British way." The blonde rolled her eyes, adjusting the guitar a little to stay in front of her.
"Yeah but being tased and pepper sprayed could still cause a lot of fucking damage." Karkat brought out the ecto-gun slowly, pointing it at her. "I'm going to ask you this only once; come quietly, or I'm giving you a one-way ticket to hell."
"As adorably corny as that is, I'm going have to decline. Too many irons in the fire, you see?" She turned to the workers, waving them off. "Get the shit out of here. I'll catch up after I deal with this asshole."
As the workers did so, Karkat narrowed his eyes, upping the power on the ecto-gun. "Last chance, Serket. This doesn't have to end in a fight."
"Oh, that's too bad." Vriska smiled grew big as she took off the eyepatch, showing an eye with seven different pupils. Smoke came out Karkat's gas mask as her skin turned blueish in color and she rose above the earth and strummed her guitar menacingly. "I'd love if this ended in a fight."
As a few notes started to play, Karkat immediately felt his skin crawl as the temperature dropped.
This was going to be a nightmare, wasn't it?
Sorry about leaving things on a cliffhanger, but I'm making sure to keep the pacing of the story right.
So, yeah, Vriska is Ember in this AU. This probably comes as a surprise to no one. Have to admit, she's a slightly different character then what I've written so far, which will be further explored as more chapters are sent out. I think you'll like what I do with her in the near future.
Also, more playlists! This time, it's focusing on Sollux and Aradia and I've had them prepared for a while now. I probably won't make anymore unless requested or I get a bit of inspiration on one of my stories. It's just fun exploring the personalities of the character through song!
Aradia: playlist/2StwmChR8gchiRcPSVh0c8
Sollux: playlist/1W2YU1yHHXx7917dXelOu9
Anyway, feel free to comment/review and have a good day everyone!