Due to circumstances, I couldn't post chapter 23 last week, so I'm just gonna double-post today! Enjoy!

Dew & Ena Chapter 2: Pops

Kabby leaned against the lockers as Red got dressed, watching the demon. "So…"

Red perked, tightening his tie. "Yes?"

"What's the, uh, what's the outlook here?"

"What do you mean?"

Kabby shrugged, sighing. "I mean, how bad could this get?"

Red paused before moving on to his cufflinks. "Define 'bad'."

Kabby slammed his fist against the steel locker door, rattling it. "What'd I say about bein' coy, Red!?"

Red sighed, turning to face him, a wan smile on his face. "Bella finds out, calls me in, forces me to explain everything and… takes the Arrow for herself. Does what we're doing, but, y'know, her way."

Kabby groaned and leaned against the lockers again. "That's pretty bad."

"Indeed," said Red, setting off for the door. "Good thing we have our best people on it."

"Ha!" The imp scoffed, following after him. "You say that like it inspires a shred of confidence."

"You must have faith, Kabby," said Red, turning around and pointing at the crater of shredded metal that used to be a bank of lockers. "In fact, this whole mess may have been a blessing in disguise."

Kabby turned to look at the mass of buckled metal and back to darkening welt on Red's cheek, the result of the obstinate little shit casually smacking his terrifying boss upside his head. "The kid's got starch, I'll give him that. Once he coughs the rest of that thing up, though, he could be trouble. Do you really think we can trust him?"

"Dew?" Red laughed, shaking his head. "Gracious, no! That boy has an entire log on his shoulder and a deep, murderous rage to go along with it. No, I don't trust him to help us, but I trust him to help the other 'Donna kids. I also trust his desire to paint the halls of this hellhole with Belladonna's blood."

"Fair point," said Kabby, following him down the hallway. "How, uh, how're we gonna go bringin' that about, anyhow? I mean, no offense, but she's still got you leashed, Red. Anyone guns for her, they're gonna have to go through you."

"Indeed." Red didn't turn to face him. "As I said, a blessing in disguise."

Kabby spun his wheels on this for a moment, his eyes going wide, mouth hanging open as the revelation hit. "Red, you can't be serious!"

He didn't turn to face him, his shoulders set and his back straight. "I'm entirely serious."

"But they're just kids!" Kabby cried. "Scrappy kids with superpowers, sure, but still just kids, Red! You'll tear 'em apart!"

"I'll do no such thing," he said, pithily.

"Red!" Kabby sprinted forward, looping around Red and stopping in front of him, clambering up the towering Sinner and grabbing his lapels, glaring into his eyes. "You will. You'll have no choice! That Pact will force you to go as hard as you possibly can to protect Bella! Even with your powers on the blink, they won't stand a chance against you!"

Red did not meet his gaze, his expression grim but set. "They're tough. Resourceful. They'll think of something."

"Red." Kabby shoved his face into his boss's, forcing him to meet his eyes. "There's gotta be another way! I know you don't think you got a conscience, but if you hurt those kids, if you kill any of 'em, you'll never forgive yourself!"

"And if Belladonna gets the Arrow, what then?" Red replied, pointedly. "What happens to them? Huh? To all of them? What happens when Bella gets her chance to bust out of the little leagues? Do you think she'll bother keeping any of them around, keeping any of them alive, if she does?" He reached up and grabbed Kabby by the scruff, pulling him off and setting him down. "We play the cards we're dealt, Kabby, you know that better than anyone. But don't worry, if this clusterfuck has shown me anything, it's that our hand may yet be better than hers. We just have to play it right."

"I hope you know what you're doin', Red…" Kabby grumbled. "Cuz if that Pact really has to knuckle down, I don't think even Solido could hold all your bullshit back."

Red paused, eyebrow arched in fascination. "…You think so?"

"They deal with Souls, right? 'Only sundered and undone / by the two / not the one'?" Kabby said, tapping his forehead. "Not even Lucifer can bust a Pact! If those kids press you hard enough… who knows?"

"If that happens…" Red muttered, smirking. "I could erase the point in time she ever even leashed me!" He paused, his smile fading. "But in the process, I'd probably kill one or more of them. Syx… Setty…"

Kabby shrugged, starting to cotton on to Red's thought process. "Hey, if that happens, cantcha just, I dunno, erase the moment they died or something?"

"No…" Red replied, his face darkening, holding his hands out in front of him, as though cradling something… or someone. "I-I tried that once before. With her…"

"Her?" Kabby cocked his head to the side, studying the burly demon's face. His green eyes were distant and deep-set in his shadowed face. For the briefest instant, the span of a blink, they flashed fuschia. A tear rolled down his cheek. "Red?"

Red snapped out of his trance, his hands balling into fists as his face hardened, his eyes glowing toxic harlequin. The mighty Sinner's aura flared and boiled the tear away in an instant. "No. It doesn't work like that. At least, not when I want it to, need it to. Besides, it's a moot point. My abilities aren't in Solido's grasp any more than they are in mine."

"What do you mean?" Kabby asked, curious.

"Oh," said Red, suddenly chipper, an amused smile on his face as he tapped his temple. "San took them by accident when she was trying to steal the Arrow a few days back. Stuck 'em in Emerson. I hear he's gone a bit batty."

Kabby thought back to how, earlier that week, the sniveling slug had started acting weird…er. Flinching at loud noises before they happened, ducking tools and bits of garbage the kids would regularly throw at him, tossing ball-bearings into the mouth of a beer bottle with surprising acuity, but mostly just staring into space with a look of supreme dread on his ugly face. "Huh. I figgered he was just crackin'. So… you don't have your busted-ass powers at all?"

"Just these," said Red, putting up his dukes, smirking. "Hopefully, they won't be enough."

Kabby recalled Dew's casual swatting of the demon with his barely formed Stand, Setty's various feats in the field and cunning brutality, and Syx's 'finger of Satan' gravity-thing and his brutal cunning. Not to mention some of the shit the other kids could do! "Holy shit… they might actually stand a chance!"

"That's what I'm betting on," said Red, sighing and shaking his head. "I just hope it doesn't come to that. If we can just keep this whole mess under wraps, who knows? Maybe we can find a kid who can fully free me of Solido's influence. Maybe San can do it! With any luck, we'll keep things under wraps long enough to sort all that out, erase the Deal, and murder Bella at our leisure."

Kabby opened his mouth to respond when his and Red's hellphones buzzed. Kabby pulled his device out and looked at it, a text from Syx had come in. It read: 'BUNKS SNAFU ASSIST ASAP'

A low rumble sounded, the foundations of the building shuddering slightly. Red and Kabby exchanged tired, resigned looks before heading off at a sprint.

Syx leapt out of the way as a section of bunk was hurled past him at bullet-train speed. [D5H]'s eye snapped open, flaring. Gravity warped, a linear force of 200G snagging the lump of warped metal as it passed, negating its motion in an instant before hurling it back at even greater speed. The projectile exploded against the towering bulk of the creature Dew called 'Pops', barely budging him. The malformed doodle-monster growled, raising his fist, wrapped around it was a brown mess of lines, dangling from it was a length of brown chord tipped with a large brass loop: a belt.

"MORE BOYS, ENA?" Pops rumbled, outraged. "LIKE YER MOMMA. GONNA FIX THAT."

The belt streaked out with incredible speed, cracking like a gunshot. [D5H] rushed forward, kicking out at the incoming strike. Syx hissed in pain as the belt-buckle smashed into the Stand's metallic shin, scoring it and shearing flesh from his own limb, deflecting it nonetheless. [D5H] reached down and grabbed the belt, anchoring them to the ground with a thousand times normal gravity. Pops roared and pulled, his crude muscles bulging as he attempted to yank the boy off his feet as they sank into the concrete. Syx sensed Ena – still cowering over an unconscious Zak – flinch and cry out as a surge of… something shuddered through the air toward the giant. Pops bellowed, yanking on the belt with newfound strength, hauling Syx and his Stand off the ground. Syx somersaulted through the air, [D5H] sliding over him as they streaked through the air. Gravity spiked, hurling Syx forward at immense speed, his Stand's sharp, metallic hoof smashing into the monster's face, cratering it like playdoh.

"ATA!" [D5H] cried, its tail looping around Pops' bull neck as its feet vanished in a pummeling blur. "ATATATATATATATATATATATATATA!"

Syx leapt off the beast's smashed face in a backflip, his Stand's tail still wrapped around its neck, barbed tail dug in its shoulders like a harpoon. With a masterful whirl of gravity, he sent it hurtling away from the girl. It flew through the air, set to crash into a rack of bunks when Dew streaked down on it, his barely formed Stand smashing it into the concrete with enough force to crack it. Dew bellowed in rage as he pummeled it, those arms were fast and powerful, sure, but Syx could tell from his swings that they were operating off of Dew's senses, his reflexes, normal hellborn perception. The punches were sloppy, halting, and inaccurate as Dew used them as he might his own fists. Still, he was rapidly turning that thing's head and shoulders into paste.

"Go Dew go!" Scrum cheered from Syx's back. "Show that old bastard who's boss!"

Pops' belt swung up, Dew's left arm automatically blocking it at the last second. Dew grunted as he was stent flying by the impact, a strip of flesh smashed off his forearm, mirroring his Stand's wound. He crashed into the steel bunks, mattresses and bedding tumbling out of the cubbies and burying him.

"LITTLE SHIT. WHORESON." Pops got to his feet, his torso reforming from a red mass, like clay. "GOTTA LEARN YOU SOME RESPECT, DEW. WHIP YOU INTO SHAPE. TOO MUCH OF YER MOMMA IN YOU. DON'T WORRY, I'LL FIX THAT. LIKE A GOOD POPPA."

"I'm hearin' a lotta talk, Old Man," Dew said, rising out of the rubble, spitting blood from his freshly split lip. "If you was any good a fixin' shit, you wouldn't have got shitcanned. What happened? You got drunk and get the sparkplugs outta order again?"

"SMARTMOUTHED LITTLE FUCKER. GET THAT FROM YER MOMMA, TOO." Pops snarled, his head fully reforming, his eyes baleful pits of yellow light. "GONNA FIX YOU LIKE I FIXED HER."

"She never said nothin' to you, you bastard!" Dew roared, putting up his dukes, both of them. "Dinner by six! Beer! Sandwiches! Fuckin' footrubs! She tried her best to make you happy! Why'd you always wail on her?!"

Pops' eyes narrowed, his snarl curling into a grin. "SHE WAS THINKIN' IT."

"Sonuvabitch!" Dew roared, launching himself at the abomination.

Syx watched as Dew clashed with his 'father', bobbing and weaving swipes and belt-strikes, blocking and swinging with singular focus, the air between them crackling.

"Ena? Ena!" Scrum cried, jostling the little girl, who was curled up on the ground, eyes staring vacantly over her scuffed knees. "C'mon Ena, don't go away! You're safe! Dew's here, Mr. Syx is here! Soon Ms. Setty and Mr. Red'll be here, too! Your dad's not gonna hurt you!"

"What's going on?" Zak mumbled, blinking through the blood from his split brow. "E-Ena? Are you okay? Syx? What're you–whatheshitisthat?!" Zak cried, recoiling from Scrum, scrambling between Ena and the living teddy bear sketch. "You're with that freaky thing, aren't you?! Stay back!"

"Hey!" Scrum said, affronted. "I'm nothing like that giant red goat's ass! I'm Scrum, her best friend in alla the Rings!"

"Stay back!" Zak shouted, shielding her with his body. "If you wanna get to her, you gotta go through me, freak!"

"Fine," sighed Scrum, turning to Syx. "He's good and spooked now, Mr. Syx, he should be able to hear you."

"Zak," Syx said through his [D5H]. "Get her out of here. I'll take care of it."

"What? Syx, how the fuck're you gonna…" Zak began to say before stopping, his eyes wide as he looked up at the teen. "Syx? Y-you can talk? Since when?"

[D5H] flared to life behind the blind boy, causing Zak to squawk and leap back. "Whathefuck?! Syx, what's going on?!"

"What's going on is you're going to get Ena out of here," Syx replied, his brow furrowing behind his dark shades. He tersely pointed down the alley between some stacks. "Now."

Zak looked back and forth between Syx and the Scrum, visibly suppressing his confusion and nodding, carrying her away in a sprint.

"RUNNIN' OFF WITH SOME BOY?" Pops rumbled, swatting a bruised, huffing Dew aside with one hand, belt lashing out with the other. "LITTLE SLUT."

Syx summoned a massive surge of gravity, pinning a section of the belt to the ground with the force of hundreds of tons. The part of the belt not pinned extended, lashing out like a snake. Syx pulled it back just in time to prevent it from bisecting the incubus, merely slashing a huge diagonal gouge from the back of his ribs to his shoulder. Zak cried out in pain as the impact sent him flying through the air, curling around Ena mid-tumble, landing hard on his back and rolling to a stop overtop of her.

"Ena!" Scrum cried, waddling over to them as fast as his stumpy little limbs could carry him.

"Zak!" Syx exclaimed, gritting his teeth and turning to the encroaching monster. "Enough of this."

The jagged plates covering [D5H]'s eye snapped open, its pupil flaring to life with terrible light. Since he'd first gotten his Stand, Syx had been training, honing its abilities while out in the field. While he could only make it so accurate, focusing exponentially more intense gravity only in set increments of area, he had improved his affinity to the extent he was now able to summon far more intense gravity fields than he had during his 'initiation' with Red.

Pops approached, belt in his crude, bulbous fist. "YOU HER PIMP, FIRETOAD? MAYBE I'LL FIX YOU, TOO? BE THE POPPA YOU NEVER HAD."

"I'll pass," Syx snarled, summoning his power from deep within. "If my old man was anything like you, I'm glad I never met him."

"SHITTALKER. I'LL FIX THAT," Pops growled, fist and belt raised over his deformed, hateful head. "A POPPA'S WORK IS NEVER DONE."

[D5H]'s pupil flared, a purple circle one-meter in diameter appearing on the beast's head and upper torso. A second later and everything covered by the circle was hurtling toward the ceiling at supersonic speeds, the chunky mist smashing holes clear through the reinforced concrete. The shockwave of the sudden acceleration rippled throughout Pops' body like gelatin, his bulging torso exploding in a shower of fleshy red chunks. The lower half of the body tottered for a moment, stumbling forward a step or two before falling over backwards with a splat.

"Fix that, asshole." Syx spat, flicking a strip of steaming red flesh off his coat lapel, noting curiously that the texture of the stuff was more like warm plasticine than meat.

"Holy shit…" Dew muttered from across the splattered common area, stunned.

"Whoa!" Scrum exclaimed as he fretted over Ena, his stumpy little arms waving about. "Mr. Syx, that was incredible! How'd you even do that?!"

"It wasn't easy," Syx replied, dropping to one knee, panting, sweat standing proud on his brow. "I-I've never… gone that hard before. G-gotta push myself harder more often."

"Helluva push…" Scrum muttered, turning back to Ena, wiping Zak's blood off her face. "You're gonna be okay, honey. Y'hear?"

Syx shuffled over to where Zak lay, his red face now a pale pink, tremors of pain wracking his body. "You okay?"

"N-No…" Zak croaked, trying to twist his grimace into a smile. "But I'll live… believe it or not, I've had worse. But Syx, what's going on? How did you do that? What was that thing?"

"Ena's Pops," Scrum replied, sadly. "Or, her clearest memory of him. When she drew parents to take her and Dew away from the 'Donna, she only had them to draw on, and she don't got no notion of what parents are supposed to be. So he's what jumped off the page."

"I know I hit my head earlier but…" Zak said, pointing. "Is that a fucking talking teddy bear?"

"What happened?" Syx asked, looking at Ena. "Before they came here?"

Scrum shook his head, sighing deeply. "Ena doesn't remember a whole lot from those times, at least not consciously, but I do. I used to live in her head, y'know? Pops was a boozer, and a mean fuckin' drunk. Every day he'd come home it was a coin toss if he'd drink himself stupid or drink himself mean. When he got mean, well, he'd get after Ma, a sweet, gentle lady. That's where Ena gets it from, y'see? Sometimes he'd be happy just makin' her cry, other times, well…" Scrum looked up, pointing at Dew as the boy stood over the remains of his 'father', glowering solemnly. "When he was done with Ma, he'd move on and start gettin' after Dew. But even back then, Dew was too mean, too stubborn. Too much like him. He'd never cry, never stop fightin' back. That bastard beat the wrath outta Dew more times'n I can count, but he never got what he wanted outta him, never saw him break or cower. Every time Dew'd spit at him, throw something, cuss him out, you name it, and he'd get it right back until the old fuck got too tired or sober to keep goin'." Scrum gingerly stroked the tranced-out girl's frizzy hair, brow furrowing in sorrow. "Ena never let herself remember much of that. If she did, she'd realize he did it for her. Takin' all that, every time, just so Pops'd keep his hands off her. He soaked up all that meanness so'd there'd be none left over. She was only 4 when it happened…"

"When what happened?" Zak said, hoarsely.

"He got fired," said Dew, walking over to them, scowling. "Fucked up a maintenance job one time too many and got kicked from the garage. He came home blitzed. That wasn't anythin' new, but this time was… different. This time, he didn't stop."

"Dew…" Syx said, quietly.

"I don't need yer fuckin' pity, Syx." Dew snapped, shaking his head as tears welled at the corners of his eyes, a furious snarl on his face. "Once he was… done with Ma, he moved on to me. I knew he wouldn't stop with me, either. I knew if I didn't stop him, he'd get to Ena, so I let him think he finally cracked me. I ran. The dumb, drunk sonuvabitch took his time stumblin' up those stairs, enjoyin' the sound of his own voice. I charged him at the top, hard as I could. By the time we reached the bottom, my arm was busted about as bad as his neck. A week later, we walked into the 'Donna. Been here ever since." He turned to Scrum, his expression softening the second his eyes landed on Ena. "Does she know?"

"Know what?" Scrum replied, hugging the girl's arm.

"Know it's my fault we're in this shitheap?" Dew said, his voice dangerously close to cracking. "Does she know I couldn't save our Ma?"

"Dew," said Syx, stepping up to him, reaching out. "You were nine. You couldn't have–"

"Don't touch me!" Dew roared, his Stand's arms flaring to life. "I told you I don't need your fuckin' pity!"

"Uh, guys…?" Zak said, hoarsely, pointing with a trembling finger.

"What's your problem, asshole?!" Syx snapped, [D5H] shimmering into view. "I'm not pitying you, I just want to help! You think you're the only one who's had a fucked up life? Well, you're not! You think you can get through it alone? You can't! None of us can! Belladonna Kids stick together, remember? That's 'cause we all remember when we needed help and had none!"

"Hey," said Scrum, button-eyes wide. "Fellas?"

"Oh, can it, lapdog!" Dew snarled, balling his fists, both sets. "Stop pretendin' like you give a shit about any of us! Struttin' about, tellin' everyone what to do, actin' like a big shot just because you're some fuckin' Faller's favorite pet! You just get off on bossin' us around!"

Syx bared his teeth, [D5H]'s eye snapping open. "What the fuck are you talking about, you obstinate ass!? Screw your head on straight right now before I do it for you!"

"I'd like to see you try!"

"Syx! Dew!" Scrum shouted, leaping up onto Dew's shoulder, forcefully turning the boy's head. "Pops wants another beer!"

Syx and Dew turned to see the huge figure staggering to its feet, its torso a pulsating mass of red matter, the chunks scattered all about slithering towards the central lump. Arm-like protuberances extended from the torso, a spheroid bubbled up from the newly-formed shoulders slowly, all settling into their former shape.

"Syx, think you can do that 'blow his entire body off' trick again?" Dew said, readying his arms.

"Not for a bit," Syx replied, still panting softly. "Grab Ena and Zak and run. I'll hold him off."

"Fuck that!" Dew cried. "He's my poppa! That means I get to kill him!"

"Ena's more important than killing your dad again, Dew!" Syx snapped back, shoving his shoulder with [D5H]. "Go!"

Dew glowered at the blind kid, balling his hands into fists for a moment before relenting, heading over to Ena, Zak, and Scrum, hoisting them off the ground with his phantasmal arms. "Once she's safe, I'm comin' right back!"

Syx said nothing, readying his Stand as the giant's form finally settled. Pops shook out his head and shoulders, glowering at the single blind imp Standing before him, raising his fist over his head, the belt dangling, glinting in the light. "NOT BAD, LITTLE PIMP. ALLOW ME TO RETORT."

The belt swung down, too hard, too fast. Syx braced for impact as [D5H] prepared to defend. A shimmering form streaked through the air as a loud, musical 'cling'. Hovering in the air before the imp boy was the armored form of [Titanium], the belt wrapped around its forearm.

"Setty!" Syx exclaimed.

"One sec," Setty replied, her voice echoing from within her armor.

"MORE FRIENDS, ENA?" Pops growled, pulling the belt taut. "GONNA HAVE TO–"

Setty's sharp armored high-heeled boot smashed into its sternum in an upward ax-kick, carving a raw trough of flesh out of its chest and face. Setty grabbed the belt and streaked backwards, hauling the stunned creature off its feet, swinging it around through the air like a lasso before phasing through the belt around her arm, sending it crashing into an array of bunks in a shower of sheets and steel.

"Got your text," said Setty, quickly, setting down on the ground next to an exhausted Syx. "Rundown, please."

"Ena has a Stand that makes drawings come alive or something," Syx replied, jabbing a thumb over his shoulder before pointing at the creature rising from the rubble, the wound already filling in. "That's her dad."

"FEISTY LITTLE WHORE," said Pops, cracking its bulbous, malformed knuckles. "NEEDS CORRECTION."

"I like him already…" grumbled Setty, adopting a fighting stance. "So, what's the play?"

"It regenerates, whatever it is." Syx flexed his might, levitating a dozen shards of jagged metal and pieces of concrete from the floor and arraying them around him. "Right now, our job is to keep it from Ena until we can think of something."

"Smash?" Setty asked, hopefully, her taloned gauntlet twisting into a fist.

Syx almost smirked at the vicious smile he could hear in her voice. "Smash. Hi-lo."

"Gotcha."

With a grunt, Syx sent the debris hurtling at the creature's upper body in a staggered barrage, with Setty streaking forward, hovering close to the floor before slipping into it. Pops' belt lashed and cracked as it deflected the relatively slow debris, only to grunt and double over as Setty popped out of the ground at its feet, unleashing a double-fisted uppercut into its gut. She phased through the giant, popping out of its back before wrapping her arms around its waist and hauling them both into the air, flipping the creature upside down and pile-driving his head into the floor. Pops' head crunched into its torso, which bulged and smeared like a lump of raw dough on the concrete. Setty flitted out of the way as [D5H]'s eye opened and flared. A glowing purple circle some 3-meters in diameter shone around the creature for an instant before it at everything within were crushed flat, punching a pulverized circle into the concrete.

Setty settled down next to Syx, who was stooped over, huffing and puffing. "Hey, take it easy with that trick! You know it gasses you out like nothing else!"

"The more damage we do, the longer it takes to reform… I think?" Syx panted, his red skin slick with sweat. "I'll be honest with you, I have no idea how we're gonna beat this thing. It just keeps getting back up!"

On cue, the flattened red mass at the bottom of the crater shifted, pooling together before rising up in a towering fleshy pillar, the putty-like material flowing and rippling into legs, a torso, arms, and finally a head. Its lumpy, rippling surface settled into textures, changing color, forming clothing, skin, and finally features. No matter the damage, it kept getting up faster and faster!

Pops' glowing eyes narrowed to fiery orange slits, fanged maw pulled into a frustrated snarl. "YER JUST MAKIN' THIS WORSE FOR YOURSELVES. MAN UP AND TAKE YER LICKS, BRATS."

"You remind me of a few of my old regulars. Fuckers didn't even tip," Setty snarled, a savage smile clear in her voice as she cracked her knuckles. "Also, I've just had, like, the shittiest week. So, I hope you won't mind if I work out all my issues on your face!"

Pops smirked at this and beckoned. "THREATEN ME WITH A GOOD TIME, SWEETHEART."

Dew ran through the alleys between the bunks, Zak and Ena's weight somehow not burdening him in the least. The ruckus of the battle for the common area carried on, echoing through the huge space of the Bunks. Syx was really giving Pops a run for his money! He felt a pang of guilt and shame, recalling his outburst. He didn't really mean what he'd said to Syx, that was just angry talk. It was always like that when he got his blood hot, he'd get his back up about something and would just shout out whatever he felt would get the target of his ire to go away, to break off the conversation. Why was it he could only talk normally when pissed? Why could he only say what was on his mind when the only words that came out would hurt someone? Always hurting the people around him, always snapping, always shoving others about. Why? Why'd Ena get to be so much like their Ma? Sweet, loving, tender Ena. Why'd he have to be so much like–?

He heard Ena whimper softly and felt her go limp as something surged out of her.

"Ena?" Scrum cried out, jostling her. "Ena! Ena! Wake up!"

Dew sighed in relief as they turned the corner, seeing the exit. Standing there was an imp, Kabby, propping the mangled Bangarang up against the door. Dew sprinted over to him and set a groaning, barely conscious Zak down on the ground, gingerly cradling his little sister in his real arms. She was warm, like she had a fever, her rosy skin now pale, flat, shining with sweat. Scrum was clinging to her, futilely trying to rouse her.

"Dew!" Kabby exclaimed, running over to them, looking down at Zak. "Aw Satan, what's goin' on?"

"It's Ena," Dew grunted, nodding at her, brow furrowed. "She's got one of these Stand things now. She accidentally made a monster or some shit. You know a lot about these things, what's happenin' to her?"

Kabby processed the information for a moment before shaking his head, examining the ailing girl. "Dunno. She looks sick? Or really tired. Where's Syx?"

"He's fighting the monster, Mr. Kabby," said Scrum, turning to the imp. "Setty, too, now."

"How do you know that?" Dew asked.

"I dunno!" Scrum exclaimed, throwing up his arms. "I just do! We's both constructs of her Stand, it's like… I know what he knows? They're really beating the shit outta him, but he keeps pulling himself back together!"

"That's it!" Kabby snapped his fingers, pointing to Scrum. "You and that thing, you're projections of her spirit! Every time they beat that thing down, it pulls more energy from her! That's why she's gettin' weaker!"

"Yeah, that makes sense…" said Scrum, contemplatively, before turning to Kabby, offering his stumpy little paw. "I'm Scrum, by the way. I used to be Ena's imaginary friend or something."

"Kabby," he replied, taking the paw and shaking it. "Pleased t'meetcha, Scrum."

"You're awfully chill with this whole…" Scrum said, gesturing broadly at himself, "…situation."

"Stand bullshit," said Kabby, shrugging. "You get used to it."

"Hey…" Dew said, eyes narrowing. "Smashin' that bastard is doin' this to her, right?"

Kabby nodded and then gestured so-so. "That's the theory? The good news is that the damage isn't being reflected on her, like with most Stands. Why?"

Dew looked around for someone, brow furrowing. "If you're here, then where's…?"

Kabby paled as the realization took hold. "Aw, fuck."

"Get up, Pops!" Setty roared, hovering over the recovering creature. "I ain't done working through my quinceañera on your ass yet!"

"BAD GIRLS NEED–"

Setty's armored knees smashed down on its sternum. Her fists were a blur of glittering metal as she unleashed a machine-gun-rapid punch rush on its upturned face, turning its huge, bulbous head into a glistening red crater in the floor. She relented for a moment, examining her work. The red splatter rapidly flowed back together, Pops' grinning, leering face appearing a second later.

"DISCIPLINE."

The belt streaked out, catching her across her helmeted face with the power of an artillery shell, denting and scuffing the armor. Setty grunted in pain as its watermelon-sized smashed into her side, sending her bouncing across the floor, tumbling to a stop at Syx's feet.

"Setty!" Syx exclaimed, helping her to her feet. "Are you okay?"

"This chump's got nothing on Steppenwulf. I'm fine." Setty hissed, rubbing her cheek and spitting blood. "But this thing's definitely getting stronger. Faster too."

"Any ideas?" Syx asked as Pops stomped towards them, shoulders bunching. "Can't you, I dunno, get him stuck in the floor or something?"

"If he was as dense as he feels when you hit him, maybe," said Setty, pointing to one of the stray sludgy bits that had come loose from the construct. "But he's not. He's all squishy and spongy. I ghost him into the concrete, the density differential would spit him right back out!"

"Density differential? Syx said, amused. "You've been talking to Arby again, huh?"

"Shaddup," snapped Setty, adopting a fighting stance. "Here he comes."

"You got that right," said Syx, relaxing his posture. "Take a breather, Setty."

Setty turned to the confident boy. "What? What're you doing?"

"Me?" Syx smirked, folding his arms across his chest. "I'm gonna enjoy this."

"THAT'S RIGHT," said Pops, looming over them, belt hand raised. "JUST SIT STILL AND TAKE WHAT'S COMIN', YOU LITTLE BASTARDS. POPPA'LL FIX YOU REAL GOOD."

Pops bellowed and swung down at the two with all its might. Setty streaked out in front of Syx, arms raised in a guard, bracing for impact.

Nothing happened.

"HUH?"

Setty relaxed her guard, opening her eyes. Pops stood before her, stooped over, recovering from its follow-through. The arm wielding the belt terminated at the elbow, the wet end of the stump a dripping shredded tatters.

"WHAT?"

"A belt?" A familiar voice called out, the words singing with quiet outrage. "You were going to use a belt… o̵̴̷̺̝̅̈́ͧ̇̀ͅn̼̯ͧͨ̑̀ mỹ̂ͭ k̵̴͉ͤͥ͜i̘d̞͛s̨̨̲ͭ̚͠?̴̴̰͚͙̒ͬ͢"

Pops turned around to see Red Nightmare standing before it, a huge severed forearm in his grasp. The Sinner examined the limb before looking up at the taller monster, frowning.

"Oh shit, asshole," said Setty, chuckling. "You just fucked up real bad."

"FUCKIN' FALLER," Pops snarled, looming over Red with all its 12-foot bulk. "GONNA–GLLLRK!"

Red streaked forward, too fast to see, driving the forearm into the creature's gut, shoving it upwards. Pops gurgled out a scream as its own fist tore through its gullet and erupted from his mouth in a spray of teeth, belt still firmly clutched in its fist.

"That was yours, wasn't it? Figured you'd want it back," Red said, eyes glowing. "Gracious. What atrocious posture you have. Here… let me fix that."

Red's arm looped around the construct's waist as though in a ho-down, his other arm reaching up to its chest. With a crisp, gristly snap, the Sinner folded Pops in half. The sea-demon reached down, grabbing Pops by the ankle, before hoisting the enormous creature into the air over his head, bringing it down with a seismic slam, the construct bursting open like a trash bag full of crimson paste.

"Damn!" Setty whistled, clapping. "That was a good one!"

"Yes, well. Sir, let that be a lesson to you on proper disciplinary practices," Red said, turning back to Setty and Syx. "Rundown, please."

"Ugh, here we go again…" Syx muttered, shaking his head. "Ena has a Stand now. Brings drawings to life. That's her dickhead dad."

"You mean it was," Red said, smirking. "Now, where's–YOW!"

Red yelped as a hard, metallic belt buckle cracked across his rump, causing him to leap forward, clutching his smarting cheeks. Pops chuckled thickly, rising out of a chunky puddle.

"GONNA FIX YOU, FALLER," Pops gurgled. "FIX YOU GOOD."

"Also, it regenerates," said Setty, taking her place at Red's side, adopting a fighting stance.

"Thanks for the heads-up…" grumbled Red, rubbing his rump, glancing at the kids. "What are you doing?"

"Helping you," said Setty, matter-of-factly. "Duh."

"No…" Red said, shaking his head, hands on his hips. "You two are getting out of here."

"But Red!" Setty cried. "You might need us!"

"She's right," said Syx, pointing at Pops. "That thing's been getting stronger and faster every time we've smashed it!"

"That's all the more reason for you two–" Red said, left hand flashing out over his right shoulder, grabbing the belt buckle with a thunderous crack. "Sir, do you mind? I'm trying to have a conversation with my k–er, employees."

With a mighty yank, Red hauled Pops off his feet. A Seraphim Steel gauntlet flashed onto his right arm as he swung it backward with a roar. The metal-clad fist impacted Pops across the midsection with a flash of heat and light. The construct rippled outward with the explosion, expanding like a bubble before bursting outward in a wave of reddish mist, the bunks around them shook as the foundations shuddered with impact.

"As I was saying," said Red, turning back to them. "I–"

"He's back already," said Setty, pointing.

Red turned around to see the dispersed motes of the creature coalescing into a mass on the floor. "Oh, for the love of…"

The Bunks shuddered as an enormous shockwave split the air, rattling all within. Ena gasped and whimpered, trembling.

Kabby rushed forward, setting a hand on her forehead. "Aw Satan! She's burnin' up!"

"Do somethin'!" Dew cried, pulling her close to him. "I can't lose her! Not Ena!"

"What can we do?" Scrum moaned, hopping about in despair. "So long as Pops is out, he'll keep on eatin' her energy!"

"I don't get it…" Kabby said, snapping his fingers in Ena's face. "Usually a Stand vanishes once the User is unconscious, but she's out like a light!"

"We're independent," said Scrum, pointing to himself and then out to the Bunks. "We ain't part of her no more!"

"This is bad," said Kabby, hand to his head. "If this keeps up, she won't have anythin' left to give!"

"So call 'em off!" Dew roared. "They're gonna kill her!"

"So will Pops! He'll never stop comin' for her unless–" Scrum said, pausing. "Wait… That's it!"

"What's it?" Dew said, turning to the bear. "What're you lookin' at?"

"It's you, Dew," said Scrum, pointing at him and then Ena. "The only one who was ever able to stop Pops was you. Everyone else is just punching a ghost! But you? Maybe you can stop him!"

Dew shook his head, gesturing at his Stand-arms. "I musta hit that sonuvabitch a hundred times and he kept gettin' back up!"

"But your Stand isn't fully formed yet," said Kabby. "Maybe if you brought it out fully, let your true self out, that'd do it?"

"I'm hearin' a lotta 'maybes', here…" Dew grumbled, glaring ruefully at his barely formed Stand. "I dunno how I'm even supposed to shit this stupid thing out!"

Ena let out a weak cry, panting and gasping as ever more power was pulled from her tiny form. Dew's eyes widened, panic flashing across his face before being replaced with steely resolve. He handed the waning girl off to Kabby, who gently set her down on the ground, before turning back to the bunks.

"Call 'em off before they kill her," Dew growled, glancing at Kabby over his shoulders. "I'm goin' in."

Kabby nodded, pulling out his hellphone and sending the message. "Good luck, kid."

Dew said nothing, turning to head off for the battle when Scrum called out. "She doesn't blame you!"

Dew stopped dead in his tracks, not turning around. "…What?"

"She knows, Dew. What you did. On some level, she's always known." Scrum gently stroked Ena's hair off of her sweaty forehead. "She doesn't blame you, Dew. Not for landin' her here. Not for not savin' your Ma. She never thought about forgivin' you because there's nothin' to forgive. She loves you, Dew. More than anythin'."

Dew paused, fists trembling at his side. "And I love her more."

Without another word, he sprinted into the fray, leaping and bounding over rubble and felled bunks.

Kabby and Scrum watched him leave in silence, broken only when Kabby turned to the bear. "Imaginary friend, huh?"

"Yep."

"How's, uh, howzat treatin' you?"

"Pretty good so far," said Scrum, shrugging. "Not lookin' forward to the existential dread what's comin' once all this shit dies down. Got any booze? I need a fuckin' drink."

"Ha!" Kabby laughed, pulling out a hip flask and passing it to the construct. "You're alright, Scrum."

"Stop hitting yourself," said Red, holding Pops in a headlock, smashing its severed fist into its face. "Stop hitting yourself. Stop hitting yourself. Why're you hitting yourself? Stop it. Stop hitting yourself!"

"Brutal, yet juvenile," said Syx, nodding approvingly. "I like it."

"I gotta try that one sometime," sniggered Setty, her phone buzzing along with Syx's. "Hm?"

Kabby was messaging them, it read: 'stop fighting pops its killing ena.'

"Shit!" Setty pocketed the phone, looking up to Red, his angel metal-clad knuckles rasping away Pops' scalp like a supersonic cheesegrater. "Red! Stop! Fighting this thing is killing Ena!"

Red stopped, looking around at the ribbons of energy flowing into the creature from all around, carrying disinterred chunks of flesh back into it. "…But of course it is…"

The Sinner hurled the crude bulky form across the common area and leaping back over to the kids, fists raised. "Any more intel?"

"No, that's it," said Setty, showing him her phone. "The fact this thing's still around after all that must mean the damage isn't being reflected on Ena, right?"

"That's right," said Syx, pointing to himself. "When I was fighting it, she seemed fine. Well, shellshocked, but physically fine."

"Something cannot be created from nothing," said Red, grimacing. "Every time we tear that thing apart, it comes back stronger, but it must be getting that energy from somewhere. Ena's its powersource, a living battery, drawn directly from her lifeforce."

"How're we supposed to beat this thing, then?!" Setty exclaimed. "Shit. It's getting back up."

Pops chortled, a thick, clotted sound, as it rose to its feet, shredded flesh mending, its arm reattaching. "AIN'T NOTHIN' GONNA STOP YOU GETTIN' WHAT'S COMIN' TO YOU. I'LL WHIP YOU INTO ALL INTO SHAPE, EVEN IF IT KILLS YOU."

"Hey!" A voice called out from behind it. "Asshole!"

A steel bracing streaked through the air, impaling the thing's head. Pops grunted and pulled out the metal bar, wound healing instantly. It turned around, eyes narrowing over a gruesome smile. "DEW."

"Yeah, that's right," said Dew, standing in the rubble-strewn alley between the bunks, ghostly arms hovering over his shoulders. "How's the neck, geezer? A little stiff?"

"YER MOMMA ALWAYS TOLD ME YOU WAS MINE." Pops set off towards the comparatively tiny boy. "WHORE'D SPREAD 'EM FOR A SANDWICH. BUT I GOT STUCK PROVIDIN' FOR YER WORTHLESS ASSES, ANYHOW. BUT ENA'S MINE. HAD TO MAKE SURE MY GIRL NEVER TURNED OUT LIKE HER MOMMA. BUT YOU NEVER LET ME DO MY DUTY AS A POPPA, YOU LITTLE WHORESON."

"Tch." Dew fearlessly strode up to the immense golem, staring him down despite the six-foot height difference. "That was always it, huh? You got it in your head Ma was messin' around behind your back? Hurt your pride, didn't it? Well, I got news for you, old man. I'm all yours. 100%. Always have been."

"MAYBE," said Pops, chuckling thickly. "MAYBE THAT'S WHY I ALWAYS LIKED FIXIN' YOU."

Dew glared up at the giant, eyes blazing, aura flaring red and orange like fire. "I killed you before, Pops, and I'll do it again."

Pops chortled, raising the belt over his head. "NO STAIRS THIS TIME, WHORESON."

"Maybe not," said Dew, his dour face split by something between a grin and a snarl. "But I got somethin' better now!" The belt swung down, breaking the sound barrier. Dew's aura flared like a small sun, filling the common area with blinding light, the shockwave kicking up clouds of pulverized concrete. "[REBEL YELL]!"

An immense red hand flashed out, grabbing Pops' wrist, stopping it dead as a chain-wrapped fist the size of a basketball smashed into its face with an artillery report. Pops hurtled backwards through the air, trailing teeth and streams of black incubus blood, crashing into an array of bunks in a cloud of debris. The construct stirred on the ground, hand to its face, grunting in shock at the fresh black essence on its palm.

"W-WHAT?" Pops gurgled, feeling its missing teeth with its tongue. "HOW? WHY AREN'T I…?"

"Whoa!" Setty exclaimed from the sidelines. "He's not regenerating!"

"But why?" Syx pondered.

"Because Dew is Ena's big brother," said Red, smirking, arms folded across his chest. "He's her hero."

Dew strode from the curtains of dust hanging in the air, his form alight with a lashing flame-like aura. Hovering behind him was a towering, immensely muscled figure, its red body bare save for a scale-armor loincloth and bundles of chain wrapped around its hands and bulging forearms. In appearance it resembled a ferocious, snarling hellion with polished silver backward-curved horns, its crown and neck encased in a brilliant mane of dancing blue-white flames, its eyes the color of white-hot steel.

"Holy shit…" Setty muttered, her eyes wide behind her helm. "Badass…"

"LITTLE SHIT!" Pops roared, hurling itself at the boy, fist cocked.

"MORI!" [Rebel Yell] bellowed, its fist meeting Pops' with a thunderous crack. Blood squirted from the construct's knuckles as bones cracked. Pops yowled and recoiled, clutching its wrist, only to catch another fist across the cheek, snapping its head to the side, then another on the opposite side. Then another, in the gut. In the face. The chest. Blows rained down on the construct's body, so swift and powerful they appeared to be landing simultaneously, over and over, faster and faster, harder and harder. All while the Stand bellowed its battlecry: "MORIMORIMORIMORIMORIMORIMORIMORIMORIMORIMORIMORIMORIMORIMORI! MOOOORIIII!"

With a final uppercut, Pops was sent somersaulting up through the air, crashing into the ceiling, crushing the cross bracings and cracking the concrete. The pummeled form peeled off of the ceiling and plummeted back to the ground. Dew effortlessly leapt into the air with his Stand, grabbing the falling figure by the wrist and spinning it about, faster and faster until, with a final roar, hurled it at the ruined common area, consuming it in a huge blast of dust and debris.

Dew set down in the epicenter, standing over the crumpled, broken form amidst the rubble, [Rebel Yell] looming, its fists ready. The form stirred, groaning, whimpering, as a hand raised up, trembling, open in supplication. It wasn't the malformed paw from before, but an actual hand and arm, coarse and calloused from a lifetime of mechanic-work.

"S-stop…" A voice said, not the booming monstrous timbre from before, but the voice of a mere man, middle-aged and coarse from drink and cigarettes. "Please. I-I can't take any more… I'm-I'm sorry, okay?"

The rubble shifted, revealing the bruised and battered form of a middle-aged incubus, his swollen face dusted white with stubble, his robustly built form clothed in a sweat-stained white sleeveless undershirt and dingy blue coveralls, rolled down to the waist.

"You're sorry?" Dew spat, eyes blazing. "You made life a livin' nightmare for me and Ma! Humiliated us! Beat us! You killed Ma! Tried to kill me! Tried to kill Ena! Just because you could! Because you were stronger'n us! But now it's someone else doin' the fixin' you're sorry?!"

[Rebel Yell] snarled and wound back a mighty fist. Pops cringed, whimpering and raising his hands futilely. Dew prepared to put this thing out of his misery once and for all when movement caught his eye. He looked up to see a figure stumbling through the hanging banks of dust. For a moment, he swore he could make out the silhouette of a woman, the familiar form of someone he'd thought lost all those years ago.

"…Ma?" Dew whispered as the figure approached, his eyes wide.

Out of the dust bank shuffled Ena, color slowly returning to her pale cheeks, her eyes wide. "Dew? Where's Poppa? Is he gone?"

Motion from the ground drew Dew's attention. Pops was looking up at him, grinning, his eyes glowing as his form suddenly grew. The belt lashed out, wrapping around Dew's throat, pulling tight. Pops rose from the debris, immense and malformed once more, his huge hands fastening around Dew's shoulders and neck, his crude face pulled into a cruel grin.

"YOU WANNA KNOW WHY I WHUPPED YOU, WHORESON?" Pops rumbled, cruel joy dripping off every syllable. "YER SOFT. JUST LIKE YER MA. AT FIRST, I THOUGHT I COULD BEAT YOU INTO SOMETHING WORTHY, LIKE WHUPPING SCRAP INTO STEEL. BUT AFTER A WHILE I GUESS I JUST ENJOYED IT."

"Poppa…" said a small, soft voice. "Leave Dew alone."

Pops turned around to see Ena standing in the common area. "WHAT DID YOU SAY TO ME, YOU LITTLE BI–?"

"I said…" Ena growled, her frizzy hair shifting and flowing as her aura flared pink and blue. "Leave! Dew! Alone! [PAPER PLANES]!"

A glowing red sketchbook with golden trim flared to life in the furious girl's hands. It flipped open, disgorging dozens of sheets of paper that carried about through the air as though on a gale. The sheets folded themselves, over and over and over, forming origami tigers, wolves, and hawks, flashing with energy as they came to life. The tiny constructs roared and screeched ferociously, lunging at the hulking figure. Pops cried out in pain as the wolves' and tigers' jaws snapped shut on his flesh, teeth and claws shearing bloody chunks from his form. Hawks swarmed in the air, swooping and diving, their razor-sharp talons, beaks, and wings slashing innumerable long, deep gouges in his flesh, black blood squirting from a dozen lacerations all over his body. Pops cried out as a hawk streaked by his head, across his eye, slashing the socket into bloody tatters.

"YOU LITTLE BITCH!" Pops roared, swatting at the creatures with one hand, throttling Dew with the other. "ONCE I'M DONE WITH THIS BASTARD WHORESON, I'LL–"

"HE IS NOT A HORSIN!" Ena roared, sending another flurry of paper sheets. One jinked and jerked on a psychic breeze until it was over top of the brute and his captive. The sheet folded on itself until the shape of a humanoid holding a sword, shimmering for a moment before coalescing into an origami samurai.

"Yooo~" The paper warrior crooned, sword raised over his helmeted head. "KIAIIII!"

The tiny paper samurai streaked past the hand holding Dew, sword a glinting blur in the fluorescent lights. The samurai skidded to a stop on the ground, flicking tarry blood from its blade and sheathing it with a 'click'. An instant later Pops' hand blew apart in a spray of black blood and cleanly cut angular chunks. Dew dropped to the ground, gasping and coughing raggedly as Pops bellowed in pain and outrage, clutching the bleeding stump. The screech of jet engines filled the air as a squadron of paper planes streaked overhead, spewing tiny vapor trails as they did. The planes banked hard and commenced their attack run, nose-mounted autocannons roaring as they unleashed a barrage on the giant, peppering its body with thousands of miniscule high-explosive shells, each one blasting a thimble-sized crater in his flesh. The jet fighters each dropped a pair of paper missiles, a dozen rocket engines hissing to life as they streaked towards their target. The jets airbreaked and banked away as the missiles found their target, Pops' knees vanished in a series of crackling explosions. The construct howled in agony as its legs buckled, the joints a bloody ruin of oily blood, scorched flesh, and exposed bone.

"THIS CAN'T BE…" Pops moaned, kneeling on the bloody ruins of its legs, its right hand a ruined stump. "HOW CAN YOU BRATS…?"

"Do us all a favor…" A voice said.

Pops looked up from its wounds and into the eyes of its 'son'. Dew glared down at him, silent. [Rebel Yell] manifested behind him, hand curled into a claw.

"MORI!" It roared, thrusting its open hand into his chest with a wet crunch.

Pops wheezed as Dew dug about in its chest, spasming and jerking as he did. With a snarl, [Rebel Yell] withdrew, a black pulsating mass clutched in its fingers: a heart. Dew held the spasming organ up to the boggling construct, its crude face a mask of horror and disbelief. With a flex, the hand clenched into a fist with an explosive crack, obliterating the heart in a burst of gore. Pops slumped, its eyes flickering dark like a broken lightbulb. Dew scoffed and kicked out with his own leg, toppling it backwards.

Dew sniffed dismissively, flicking his nose as he stood over the corpse. "…Stay dead this time."

The construct burst into blue and white flames, its form vanishing like burning paper, ash breaking off and fluttering away before vanishing into nothing. Seconds later, all that remained was a single sheet of paper, bearing the forms of a man and a woman. The woman was shortish, slender, with frizzy silvery hair, a wide smile shining beneath a furrowed, worried brow. The man next to her was tall, brutishly built, wearing a mechanic's outfit, on his face a sour scowl, a belt in his hand. The drawings caught fire, burning away from the paper in hissing blue flames. The piece of paper fluttered, swirling about through the air before returning to Ena's sketchbook along with the rest.

Dew turned to face his sister, seeing all the energy Pops had pulled from her returning in flowing, shimmering ribbons of light. He rushed over to her, kneeling before her and pulling her into a tight hug, tears streaming down his cheeks. Ena's face broke, tears welling in her eyes as she returned the hug, clinging to her older brother, sobbing.

"I'm sorry, Dew…" Ena whispered, voice hitching. "I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm so so sorry!"

"Sh-shaddup," Dew replied, his voice thick and cracking. "Don't be sorry for a damn thing, Ena. Not ever. I'm the one who should be sorry… s-sorry for–"

Ena reached up and took his face in her hands, sternly staring into his eyes. "No."

Dew's eyes went wide, shining with tears, before pulling his sister back into a tight embrace, sobbing uncontrollably. He flinched when a hand settled on his shoulder. He looked up to see Syx standing over him, a small smile on his face. Setty pulled up next to them, casting her arms around the two. Dew tensed for a moment before relenting, both him and Ena casting their arms around her and pulling her in. Looming over the tender moment was Red Nightmare, smirking at the two new additions to his operation, green eyes glittering.

Red adjusted his cufflinks as the children comforted one another. He surveyed the damage: the Bunks were an unqualified shambles, ruins of metal and bedding ringing the small gravel pit that used to be the common area. He silently thanked fate or whatever capricious entity that guided his life the area had been almost entirely deserted. The few witnesses to this boondoggle who weren't currently present could be easily silenced, one way or another.

"Ena?" A gruff voice called out, a teddy bear(?!) rapidly waddled towards them, leaping into the hugpile. "Ena! Dew! You're okay!"

"Is it over?" Kabby asked, following closely after, looking about. "Fuckin' Belphegor's buppies! Looks like a warzone in here!"

"It's over," said Red, strolling through the ruins. "After a fashion."

"I, uh," said Setty, getting to her feet. "I took care of the Surf situation, and all the Stand Users San made are in your office."

"For all the good that does us!" Kabby exclaimed, gesturing at the ruins around them. "How the fuck're we supposed to explain this shit to Bella?!"

"How indeed," Red said, examining his talons. "Setty, where is San right now?"

"Well, I told her to wait in your office with the others, so…" Setty turned around to see San happily hugging Dew and Ena, an anxious-looking Patty looking about at the destruction. "…Yeah, she's right here."

"Good. San," said Red, nonchalantly. "Clean this mess up, will you?"

"Huh?" San said, cocking her head in confusion. "How am I supposed t'do that?"

Red reached down into the rubble, producing a baseball card, still in its package. He blew the dust off it and, with a flick of his wrist, lodged it between San's lips. "It's brand new."

San spat out the card and examined it for a moment, confused, before her eyes lit up. She shot to her feet, standing straight and shooting him a salute. "Aye-aye, Cap'n Nightmare! Private San on clean-up duty! Private Patty, gimme some perspective!"

Patty shuffled over and touched her, the two of them vanishing into the Second Dimension and scurrying up to the ceiling. Once there, San leaned out of the Second Dimension from the roof, her Stand manifesting in front of her as she held up the baseball card.

"What the fuck is goin' on?" Kabby moaned, head in his hands. "How can these kids–?"

There was a sound not unlike an entire avalanche played over the course of a single second. When Kabby looked up, the Bunks were restored. No, not restored. Pristine. All the sheets and pillows and mattresses were clean and white and fresh smelling. The concrete glinted in the overhead lights, smooth and unblemished. Even the rusted, rickety bunks were restored in full, factory-fresh paint on their new joists and tight bolts. "Whoa."

San and Patty reappeared at Red's side, boggling at the state of the Bunks.

"Wow~" San whistled. "So shiny! So chrome! It even smells nicer in here! Oh, here's the card back!"

The young baphomet handed the tattered, ruined remains of the card back to Red, who took it and immediately tossed it away. "San, you ever walk the line between 'liability' and 'indispensable'."

San beamed at this, a furrow of confusion in her brow. "I'll take that as a compliment?"

"Yeah," grumbled Syx, brushing past her. "Don't."

"So, uh…" Setty said to Red, looking around. "Did we do it? We in the clear?"

"That remains to be seen." Red turned to face the kids before him, his eyes twinkling. "In the meantime, Setty, Syx, I have a job for you."

"Yes, Red?" Syx said, glancing at Setty.

"Whatever you need," Setty said, resolutely.

He reached out and set a hand on their shoulders, squeezing slightly. "I need you two to put a team together. I can't know who you choose or why. Do you understand?"

"No?" Setty said, brow furrowing in concern. "Not really? Why do you–?"

Syx silenced her, setting a hand on her shoulder. "I understand, Red."

"Good…" Red smiled, patting their shoulders. "Now! Nonchalantly as possible, return to your duties, all of you. Except for you, Dew, Ena. You get the rest of the day off."

Dew wiped his eyes and sniffled, nodding as he took Ena's hand, leading her back to her bunk.

"Mr. Nightmare!" A voice called out from below. Red looked down to see a crude rendition of a teddy bear tugging at his pant-leg. "I-I just wanted to thank you. For helpin' and, like, my existence, I guess. I take it that Arrow is yours?"

"It is," said Red, arching an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Here," said the teddy, reaching behind his back and producing the Arrow, extending it to him. "I saw this in the rubble. Figgered you'd want it back."

"Syx," Red said, gesturing to the Arrow in the living toy's hand. "Take that, will you?"

Syx walked over and plucked the damned thing from the teddy's crudely rendered paw. "Thanks, Scrum."

'Scrum' nodded and scurried off after Ena and Dew, clambering up onto the girl's shoulder and hugging her.

"Was that…?" Red sighed, turning to Kabby, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Was that a living teddy bear?"

"Ayuh," grunted Kabby, shrugging. "His name's Scrum. He's Ena's imaginary friend or somethin'. He's chill."

"Of course he is…" Red huffed, smiling wanly. "Kabby, do you remember when life made sense?"

"Ha!" Kabby barked, shaking his head. "Feels like ages."

Red's phone buzzed. It was a message from Belladonna: 'Red. Office. NOW.'

Red sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "So, it begins…"

You said it, Red.

Next installment will be the last, with a short epilogue following after. Thanks for sticking with this story, all you wacky readers! It's been a blast to write!