Author's Note: Konichiwa my fellow Otaku's, CosmoK13 here! We are back again with YouTube Outcast Legends, season three! I'm sorry this took so long, but I hope it's what you've all been waiting for. Now, before we begin this next section of the story, there are a few things I want to say, which explains why this season took me so long to get out. (I mean, I had other projects to do, but that was only one of the reasons). Now, as you know I started this series because I was inspired by Monakaliza Arts on YouTube, who did an animatic of Dark and Anti. I loved the art style and narrative so much it inspired this story, and it still does. For a while, I followed Mona to see where this lore was going, and I was planning on incorporating that narrative and lore from that, with my own twists. Unfortunately, something happened and well… Mona and I aren't on friendly terms anymore. Long story short, a character that I created for her demon server was with an oc of hers, and without telling me or warning me, she killed her oc off and said 'it was for the best for me'.
That devastated me because I loved the pairing so much, and for her to just do that without a warning or consulting me, was insulting and hurtful. But it wasn't just that which made me view her as a bad person. My own friends, who I met on that discord server, had their problems with her. She would say hurtful things to them, and all of her mods on that server would step over them and insult them. To the point one of my friends felt so bad that they cried. I won't give out names because I want to respect the privacy of my friends and the mods. Needless to say, I lost faith and trust in Monakaliza due to her favoritism and the mess that her server has become. I haven't even seen her interact with it that much even years later. Now, I know that she is human and has her own issues to deal with in real life. Still, I won't say I completely forgive her, but I also won't hold it against her either. I've given up on that relationship and have chosen to move on.
I also want to make it clear that I have nothing against the story that Mona has done, I still love her work and am waiting to see where she takes her demons. However, I had to rethink this series that I am writing, and how I am going to shape it into something non-toxic. I want to still incorporate some of Mona's characters into this story, since she has some more of her own and I will credit her, due to her giving me permission for it back then. But as for the main casts: Dark, Anti and Glitch (dark Pewdiepie), I will be planning on revamping them in my own version. Different powers, different designs, and of course different backstories as well as personalities. So they won't be Mona's versions, more so mine to avoid confusion. That aside, I am still trying to figure out the lore of YOL. I have an idea of where I want this story to go, and how to set it up, but I need more time to plan it out and get it all settled. It most likely won't be fully explained until season four or five, but I'll still give out little hints now and again.
Also, I will be changing the main character, Kate Leer, as well. Admittedly when I started out this story, I made the main character a self-insert but over time I have been thinking of making her her own separate character. She will have many traits based on me though, but I rather change certain aspects about her that aren't too much like me if that makes any sense. So, from now on, the main girl will be named Kaetlyn Sommer but I will still have her go by the nickname Kate so it won't be too confusing.
On another note, I am also working on a comic version of this! I'll most likely post it on my Tumblr account, the Cosmos Blog. There's going to be some differences to that one, mostly from season one and two. Nothing too major, but the comics for the first two seasons will be more updated and canon. However, things from this point on will be smooth sailing now that I know where I want this story to head. So be on the lookout for the comic on my tumblr. I do also want to voice-act it on my channel on Youtube, but if anyone wants to dub over the comic of their own accord, I will allow you so long as you ask me first and make sure to give me credit in the description. Also, from now on these stories won't be in first person, but in third POV, starting this season. Mainly because with more characters, it will be easier to describe their actions. That's more or less what's going to happen for the future in regards to YOL. Still some work in progress, but I will get it to you guys I promise. One more thing to note, this season will have three sections, and will tell you which section you are on once it begins. That's all I'm going to say because I'm sure you are waiting to read the next parts of where this story is going. So with that out of the way, let's dive right in!
Part 1: Don't Mine at Night! Chapter 1
They say that time can heal many wounds, but in retrospect, those that say that haven't experienced certain agony. For a young girl, Kaetlyn Sommer or Kate for short. She had been through quite a lot. The loss of her parents at the age of 19 was only the beginning of her nightmares. The blond woman going on 20 was currently one of the three occupations at the house her parents bought when she first started high school out in this suburban area. The other two were demons, beings that were possessing people who were famous for their content on a website called YouTube. The first one she brought to her house went by Darkiplier, an alter ego that belonged to Mark Edward Fischbach, or as many called him: Markiplier. After helping him heal up from a battle in the woods, and 'stealing' his ring, he trapped her in a dream state where she was in a manor surrounded by the Iplier egos. Characters Markiplier made for skits on his channel, most of them 'dying' due to the setup Dark constructed. In the end, they made an agreement where in exchange for killing the monster that tore apart her parents, she would give herself to Dark and have him do whatever he wanted. What the entity planned for the young blond, she didn't know.
The most recent resident she had gotten was Antisepticeye, an ego that was created by an Irish man known as Seán William McLoughlin, or Jacksepticeye as he is called on that platform. Anti kidnapped Kate from her house in the middle of the night, and somehow transported her to where his host once lived in Ireland, a small cabin out in the middle of the woods. Dark managed to find her, but they were cornered by creatures, which Anti dubbed as HellHounds. After such a fight, the trio managed to get back to the house in the US. Now, Kate had to deal with two demonic roommates while trying to finish up her college class and family life. It may not have been an ideal situation, but the young woman gave up on a normal life long ago.
It was May 20th, a Sunday in the year 2018. The night before she arrived back home with the two men and they slept in the house, trying to recover from their battle. She cooked them a big breakfast, which they devoured. Well, Anti and her ate like animals. Dark was decent enough to use a fork and knife. Anti made a remark about how pompous he was acting, but Kate didn't care. Once breakfast was eaten, the woman told the two that she was going to head to her college campus and do some research. She only had eleven days until classes were over and it would be summer, so she needed to get the rest of her projects taken care of.
As idiotic as it was for her to leave the two alone, at the time she needed to focus on her work. Of course, that was just an excuse for them. Kate pretty much had most of her work finished, and while she was initially planning to do some final edits, she had her own research to do. Usually, there weren't many classes on Sunday's on the campus. However, the doors were open to the students if they felt they needed to do some projects in the college. With her ID, Kate was able to go in and head to the library and looked over some of the sections. Most of the books were texts related to classes that people took, where students could buy them. She had to do a great deal of searching, but managed to find at least two books of what she was searching for.
Once she got a seat at a computer, the blond opened her notebook and took out a pencil. From then on, the young woman began to take notes while thinking over what she had learned. So much has happened in the last few months, but it went farther than that. At least Kate assumed that, while writing it all down. "Alright, let's see what I know so far…" She thought to herself. Even though she was alone in the library, she didn't want to be too loud in case someone overheard. The woman needed to be careful with what she said. "Alright, I met Darkiplier on April 18th, and went through that illusionary world for a few nights… then on May 18th I was kidnapped by Antisepticeye who wanted to use me as bait to lure Dark out. I must have been in that dream world for at least a day, since I woke up in the afternoon in that cabin." She recapped while writing the dates and the events down on the paper.
"I know those two were fighting when I first saw them… they were after something. But what?" Neither Anti nor Dark told her why they were attacking one another. Was it just out of spite? Given their history, at least what the fandom gave to them, it might not be a stretch. Still, there had to be more to the story than what was said. "And last year, on August 23rd, my parents were killed by that creature… a Scavenger as Dark called it." She still could recall the naked creature, with beady red eyes and sharp teeth that were lusting for blood and flesh. To think that it managed to escape during the Fundraiser event. Her sisters would have been its next victims, if Dark had not been there and scared it off. Kate shuddered as she knew it was still out there, and only Darkiplier was willing to kill it and would be successful. A deal she made with him, at the cost of her soul at this point.
Speaking of Dark and Anti, there were some smaller notes she needed to take. Her pencil danced across the paper as she wrote down her thoughts. "Dark seems to get his powers from that ring, while Anti's originates from his earrings. Most likely the gemstones themselves…" She drew a picture of the jewelry that the egos wore constantly. "They got them from a pax convention, which they were invited to during early Fall of last year… according to Sean." Kate remembered when she asked the Irish YouTuber about the convention and how he along with Mark and many others were gathered there. Sean also mentioned that he and Mark got their souvenirs from some girls who made them just for the YouTubers. And as far as Kate was aware, chances are those two weren't the only ones who left with such pieces.
Kate also remembered that Dark and Anti seemed to have gained more power when they were exposed to the Blood Moon, a lunar eclipse that has been happening every time a full moon occurred. She did a bit of research on the matter to find when the first Blood moon happened. News and astrology articles had written about the Blood Moon appearing the night of February 11th in 2017, the same year that Pax and the Scavenger events took place. Ever since the Blood Moon on that date, there has always been such a lunar eclipse during every full cycle.
"The Blood Moon on February 11th… the Pax Convention in early Autumn, and the Scavenger attack late August. All events took place in the same year, 2017." Kate concluded as her paper looked like a giant web with boxes of information and pictures. So far, the coincidences were too close together for her to not see a connection. Even so, there were still pieces of the puzzle missing, Kate was sure of it. The young woman decided to dig deeper into one of the events on the notes. She turned on the computer and hit the web browser, then started to look for any information regarding the Pax convention that took place in August 2017. Her eyes stared at the screen, determined to find as much data on that event as she could. Fingers typed on the keyboard and hands were on the mouse, dragging the cursor to the sites. Despite nearly twenty minutes, she came up short handed.
"That's weird…" Kate muttered to herself. "How can there be no information on the 2017 Autumn Pax?" She didn't understand, maybe because it had happened long ago and the site took it down? But surely there would be some vlogs from the YouTubers and social media influencers who were there? Maybe she should try that next? Surely since she knew who got invited to the event, those people might have made some vlogs or short videos about the experience?
"Excuse me?" Kate nearly jumped out of her seat from hearing someone speak behind her. She believed it was a facility staff that tended to the school on the weekends, just in case the students do need to do projects these days and an adult had to be present. To her relief, it ended up being another student. A girl with long black hair and rim framed glasses to cover her sky colored eyes. She was a small girl though, shorter than Kate as the blond was only 5 '7, but the person before her appeared to be 5 '3 at least. "Woah, sorry, didn't mean to scare you." The other girl told the blond.
"Oh.. uh, no, you didn't. Scare me I mean." Kate reassured, a bit nervous for two reasons. The first was that she was worried this student would see what she was doing, worst case she would think Kate was crazy or call her out for using school property for non-class related work. Secondly, she found it difficult to interact with people, mostly strangers, for a long period of time. "I just didn't think anyone would be here. I mean, I didn't see anyone else in the library, so I assumed that…you know…"
The dark haired female raised a brow her way, staring at the jittery one. "Well, I'm here with my group to finish up our final project for our coding class."
"Oh? A-are you in engineering of some kind?" She asked.
"More like encoding and digital design. We're trying to create mods in a video game, to showcase how we have managed to alternate the game's code where it makes it seem like it's not hacked at all. A mod means modification."
"Y-yeah, I know what mod means. I play video games." Kate told her.. "I mean, in my free time. I don't have a career out of it like some Let's Players…"
The dark haired one giggled. "Heh, you sure get nervous easily."
"Oh… yeah, I uh… not good with social interactions…" Kate admitted. "But only with strangers! And I can be a bit blunt when I shouldn't…"
"Let me guess… you're on the spectrum?" Kate raised her brow at her, becoming slightly defensive. She had learned that when people ask that, it was usually to make fun of her for her mental disability. The other student must have noticed this, as she held up her hands. "Hey, I'm not judging you. I don't think there's anything wrong with being mentally handicapped. I mean, it's not like you asked to be born with such circumstances and you can manage to work on it at an early age. Plus, my nephew has ADHD, so I can relate."
The blond did feel a bit better after that explanation. "Yes… to answer your question I am on the spectrum. But I'm on the higher end, so I can still function with normal tasks for the most part. And I'm also good when it comes to studying and grades, though that mainly depends on the subject."
"Well, you sound better off than other people who have such disabilities. Especially with how well you seem to be in school." She mused. "Oh, by the way, I'm Jenna." She held out her hand towards Kate, a friendly gesture.
The blond woman smiled and shook that hand. "I'm Kaetlyn, but you can call me Kate." She felt calmer knowing who this woman was and getting to hear her name. It helped her be more open in her approach.
"Oh, you're that girl who was paired up with Ashley in the animation class." Jenna realized.
"Ashley?" Kate repeated, trying to remember since she knew the name was familiar. It took a while until her brain found the file of said memory. "Oh yeah, we were trying to make water movement on our first semester project. Is she in your coding class as well?"
"Yeah, she's helping me with our final project. We got paired up together. But she told me some things about you."
"O-Oh?" She wondered what kind of things Ashely told Jenna about her. Then again, why would she care? It wasn't as if they were close friends. Of course, she didn't want to look like a fool either.
"She told me you have great story ideas and your character models are also interesting. Albeit a bit cartoony…" Jenna admitted.
That was actually fair and a high compliment for Kate. "Well, I was going for a more anime or manga approach, stylized in Japanese media. But, I think I've started to steer away from that so I can try and find my own style."
Jenna shrugged at the response. "Hey, whatever makes it easier for your process. Everyone has their own style, and it can take some time to fully flesh it out." Kate merely chuckled at that remark. "So, do you want to be an animator then?"
"Actually… I'm more interested in story telling than anything. But I have been pondering the idea of doing comics instead of just books. I just wanted to give animation a try since, if I can animate, then making still figures should be a breeze."
Jenna had a perplexed look on her face when Kate gave that explanation. "Well, whatever you want to do, I guess." Kate couldn't tell if she was actually judging her, or if she was sincere. Maybe she was reading too much into Jenna. "So, is that what those notes are?" The black haired student pointed to the papers that Kate had written her findings on. Immediately, the blond pushed them under her elbow to try and hide it.
"Oh… uh… those are ideas for… my final exam for my creative writing class." Kate explained, clearly lying but she had to play it safe. "Ideas for where I want the story to go. Plus, I wanted to look into a few things for research purposes. Just to… make sure I'm accurate with my references."
Jenna looked at her, still having that confused expression upon her face. Still, she didn't seem to question it, so maybe she bought it or perhaps she didn't want to insult Kate? Either way, the less questions she would have to answer, the better. Though, since she was desperate for her own findings, perhaps it wouldn't hurt if Kate asked an actual person about the Pax. "Say, Jenna, I know this may be a bit weird to say but… have you ever been to a Pax before?" She tried to bring it up casually while not seeming suspicious.
"Pax? You mean a Convention?" Jenna tried to clarify.
"Yeah… large events with panels of people. There are products you can buy, and even sessions you can attend." She explained in detail.
Jenna crossed her arms over her chest while taking that all in. "I… never been to one personally. But my older brother goes to plenty of those. Even spends money on tickets to ones that aren't in this state."
"Really?" Kate's hopes began to rise, but she had to be calm and collected while asking these questions. "By any chance, did he go to a YouTuber Pax convention last year in the fall?"
"Uh… yeah. He heard about it from some of his favorite YouTubers, so he decided to get the information and attend it. Good thing he did, because it was an only time event and the place was pretty cheap. Even admission was only five dollars per person, which he said was a rarity for those kinds of conventions."
"Really?" Kate repeated as she raised a brow. "Now that you mention it, I heard that it was far more expensive. People would spend thousands of dollars on it, or so I was told."
"Have you ever been to one?" Jenna asked, finding herself amused with this conversation now.
Kate shook her head before answering with a sad smile. "Unfortunately no, I would like to but there aren't many that happen here in the Midwest."
"Yeah, that's why my brother goes out of state for most of those events." Jenna admitted. "Why did you ask?"
"Well… I was told some of my favorite social media artists were there… and I didn't get a chance to see them. I tried finding videos and stuff about it online but I haven't had much luck." To be fair, she wasn't lying that time. "I just wanted to hear about it from someone, is all."
Jenna rubbed her chin as her eyes darted away from Kate for a moment. She wondered what the student was thinking, and it made Kate nervous as she waited for the response. Did she think she was being too pushy? She was desperate for information, but she didn't want to seem like she was forcing it out of someone. Especially a stranger no less. "I would have to call him…" Jenna began. "What do you want to know about that pax?"
What did Kate want to know? The blond didn't have much in terms of information about the event. Other than certain people who attended and the fact that Markiplier and Jacksepticeye got pieces of jewelry that was possessed by Dark and Anti. And most likely other YouTubers that attended and got such souvenirs as well. Maybe she could learn about who else was there and who hosted the event? That would be a good start, and the rest should fall into place about who else got pieces of jewelry and who were the people that made such attire. "I… guess everything really. Mostly who threw the event and what kind of stores were there."
Jenna shrugged upon the request. "Alright, I think I got that information." Hearing that made a gleam appear in Kate's eyes. The more research she got out of this, the closer she would be to solving this mystery. "How about you stay after classes tomorrow? I can tell you what my brother saw, and in exchange, maybe you can help me with my homework?" Kate didn't expect this to be an exchange of favors, but she was asking this woman a lot already. Not only would it seem fair, but less suspicious as well. With that, it was an agreement.
After Jenna left the library, Kate gathered her stuff and placed them in her bag. With that side project taken care of, she decided to use the rest of her time to work on her final project. She decided to look over her ten page short story and see if the events lined up well for transitions and showcased character growth and development. While she was reading over her work, she took some notes on what parts needed the most touch ups. "Hmm… Page five can probably be condensed down with how many words I use to describe just one room. I can also remove some dialogue on page three, since a lot of it is them repeating the same things. Oh! And check the grammar on page seven. I don't know if I spelled 'unconscious' and 'palpate' correctly." She made notes on where to change the pages and what to add. She could probably do the edits tonight so she would turn it in early and not have to worry about spending the rest of the week with her final project.
Kate packed away everything in her bag and stood up from her seat. A sense of accomplishment washed over her as she managed to get a lot done in a few hours. "I think that's all I'll do for today. I should head home, I don't want to keep the boys waiting for too long." She told herself, already exiting the room and heading down the halls. The young woman picked up her feet, the last thing she wanted was to leave Anti and Dark unattended for too long. After all, the last time they were alone, they broke into a fight. Surely Kate believed that they would be civil for the few hours she was away. Oh, how wrong she was.
The bike ride was almost an hour away between the school and her house. She would be grateful once the school was closed so she wouldn't have to go there anymore during the summer. One more week, she told herself, just had to stick it out. She pedaled down her street and went up the driveway to her house, where she opened the shed and parked her bike inside. Checking her phone, she looked at the time to see how late it was. "Only 3:30… not too bad." She noted to herself as her feet carried her to the front door. "I'll head in and get a quick snack. Forgot to eat something while I was at the campus. Then again, I don't like spending money on cafeteria food, no matter what kind of school." She mused while digging her pockets to look for the keys. Once she found them, she placed them into the lock and was ready to turn them.
Before she could reach for the knob, her ears picked up a sound within the house. It was hard to tell what it was, but it sounded loud. Fearing the worst, she quickly flew open the door and was in the entryway. Her eyes looked around, trying to figure out what had happened. To her horror, she noticed burnt marks upon the walls, as if fire had hit the foundation. The shoe holder in the alcove in front of her was turned over with the footwear in different places. Thankfully it wasn't broken.
"Will ya stop moving so I can hit you?!" The woman felt all blood in her body freeze upon hearing the voice of the Irish demon. Her feet carried her up the steps, going to the living room on the second floor. The furniture and walls were in the same state as the entryway. Smudges of ash on the paint, toppled over couches and chairs, even some pictures that were hung had fallen with the frame and glass broken. Kate's blue eyes went wide as they locked onto the causes behind this mess. The tall, black suited man with gray skin and sleek midnight hair, holding up a flaming ball of fire within his palm. His void eyes staring right at the other man, pale with no shirt with extended claws and teeth. He growled as he seemed ready to tear the fancy one apart.
"If you believe that your enemy will give you the advantage and allow themselves to fall in battle by your hands, then you are more dimwitted than you appear." Dark retorted.
"At least I can kill up close, unlike you who has to rely on stealth and petty tactics!" Anti argued.
"And yet, I was able to keep the weaker ones down while your egos had to die twice. Most of them were not even by your hands…" Dark reminded him.
That caused a growl to be heard from the feral. Anti's fingers were spread out, long nails ready to cut and slash at Dark. The Entity increased the heat of his fire, ready to blast at Anti with a full on ball of blaze. Of course, neither of them got the chance as the one who was human shouted. "What do you think you're doing?!" Her screaming made it to their ears and their eyes glanced over to the blonde. Kate was literally fuming, as she had to come home to find her living room torn apart by these animals. Their hands disperse the powers they were showcasing, then let their arms fall to their side.
"Well, it is about time you returned to your residents. Do you realize how long you kept us here?" Dark questioned, as if he was not at all guilty of the crime he committed.
Kate of course, was not having it. "Do you have any idea what you and Anti did?! Look at my living room!" She gestured to the area, showing the marks and debris of the damages. The other two looked around the place and realized how much their fighting had taken a toll on the house. Anti's expression showed that he understood what the damages he caused were, but Dark still seemed nonchalant.
"There is no reason for you to throw such a tantrum. Nothing is broken and everything can be patched up." The gray one reassured.
That was not enough for Kate to lower her anger. If anything, it only increased it. "It is taking every ounce of my strength to not hit you." She said through gritted teeth, while she pinched the bridge of her nose. In hindsight, she shouldn't have left them alone for so long. Three and a half hours was clearly enough time for them to go at each other's throats. Considering their past history before Kate entered the picture, she should have been more cautious that they would attempt bloodshed. At least they didn't succeed, but a disaster was created regardless. "You know what, I think we need to set some ground rules."
"Ground rules?" Anti repeated, raising a brow.
"Surely you jest." Dark remarked. The look that Kate was giving them proved otherwise. Instead of using her vocal cords to yell at either of them, she was saving her strength and used it to turn over the couch back where it was. Her finger pointed to the cushions, while her eyes kept their focus on Dark and Anti. Thankfully, they both took the hint and placed their behinds on the furniture. They tried to keep the distance, and not look at each other.
"Now, I know this is not an ideal situation, but until further notice the people who are going to be living in this house are you two and me. Which means, we need to set boundaries so we can keep the peace." Kate explained. While she usually had trouble saying what was on her mind, she had no trouble being brutally honest in certain cases.
Dark rolled his eyes at the notion. "May I point out you were the only one who allowed this creature into your walls without my consent?" His fingers pointed to Anti, which made the shirtless one growl.
"I'll remember those words the next time you get your ass handed to you by those HellHounds. See if I save you then." He crossed his arms over his bare chest and looked away.
Their interaction alone uttered a sigh from Kate in response. They may be in the bodies of late twenty year old men, but they were acting as children. Surely they weren't this difficult in their canon form? If so, then that meant she was in more than she bargained for. 'It's everyone's fantasy until they live through it…' She thought to herself. Attempting to not get a headache, she started to figure out what the basic rules would be. The simpler they were, the easier it should be for them to follow. "Look, you may be demons, entities, or whatever you call yourselves. But you are living under my roof which I pay for… Well, okay technically my siblings and I pay for it, but that's besides the point. There's plenty of space in this house for three people, and while we're living together, we need to establish do's and don'ts to follow. First rule of this house: No using your powers within these walls. That means no fire or shadow manipulation, no ear-piercing scream that can deafen my ears, and whatever other abilities you two have. I don't want to spend any money or answer any questions if you somehow burn the house down or tear open a hole in the foundation."
Kate thought that would be a fair enough rule, plus that meant without powers they wouldn't have a chance of killing each other or pulling any sneak attacks. Dark glared at the blonde. "That does not seem fair to us."
She glanced over at the gray man and raised a brow. "What do you mean?"
"This rule only benefits you since out of the three of us present, you are the one without any sort of powers or inhuman properties." Dark reminded her.
"Well, I am mortal and not possessed. And it isn't like you need those abilities to live your daily lives." Kate pointed out. "I'm pretty sure you can make a meal without your shadow manipulation."
Dark merely looked away at the remark, at least he didn't try to fight it any further. However, Anti called out his own question. "Well what if we need to use our powers for emergencies?"
"Such as?" Kate urged him to go on.
"There's an intruder in the house like another HellHound, a burglar or someone worse than the two of us."
Kate listened and took his question into consideration. It did make her ponder the thought. Of course, they never had a break in before, especially not out here in the suburbs. However, with her history of the Scavenger, Dark, Anti and even the HellHounds, it wouldn't be far off to believe an event like that could occur again. After all, it had only been a few days when Kate herself was held hostage by Antisepticeye. And now that there was proof that other people are getting infected and becoming vessels of other entities, she could use all the protection she could get. Sure, her house might become damaged in the process, but better to have a busted house than find yourself dead in a puddle of your own blood.
"Alright, if and when there is an intruder, then you can use your powers. But only if they are creatures not of this world or they have weapons on them. And when I mean intruders, I mean people who enter the house without my consent and aren't related to me in any way. So no attacking my family and friends when they come here, but anyone or anything else is acceptable." Kate stated.
Dark hummed at the notion and rubbed his chin. "I suppose with that addition to the first rule, I shall not complain much more." A smile graced Kate's lips, pleased that they weren't trying to fight this system she was attempting to create. "Although," Dark sat up on the cushion. "Since we are establishing guidelines within this domain of yours, I request to put in my own rules."
Kate didn't trust this, but knew that going against him for so long would not get her the best results. "And what kind of rules do you want to include?"
Dark elaborated. "I would request to add the rule that prohibits us from one another entering our bed chambers, especially doing so without that person's consent." As he spoke, his pupils went over to Anti's direction. The shirtless one silently hissed as a result before turning his head away. It made Kate wonder if this was the reasoning behind the fight that ensued while she was gone. Admittedly it was petty, however she could relate as her parents would always barge into her room unannounced and give her a heart attack. Not that she had anything to hide, aside from embarrassing things every teenager would hide from their parents like descriptive drawings. Still, it seemed like a fair request for the most part.
"Well… I suppose that can be added to the rules. Alright, the second rule is not to go into each other's rooms without permission. Unless it's an emergency like a burglar breaking in." Kate explained.
A satisfied smile was placed upon Dark's features, as if he had won a prize of sorts. Anti bared his teeth, growling a bit as he kept his eyes away from either of the others. Kate, however, noticed how Anti was feeling and didn't want him to be left out. So, the blonde moved closer to the Irish glitch and asked, "Anti, are there any rules that you want to add?"
That grin was lost upon Dark's face, while Anti perked up and looked over at the woman. She kept her expression neutral as she asked him, but wondered if he actually had any rules he would like to enforce. "Well, since you are asking," now he was the one with a beaming smile, showing off his sharp teeth in the process. Kate started to regret her choice but it was too late to back out now. "I want to request that we can use the appliances around the house. The kitchen for us to cook, the gaming systems for us to entertain ourselves, just stuff to keep us busy."
"You want me to allow you permission for something you could have used before?" It wasn't as if what he was asking was impossible. Kate didn't care if they used such devices, so long as they didn't break anything.
"Not only that, I want to ensure that when we are using such appliances, no one else can just steal them away from us." Anti's eyes darted over to Dark when he said that, catching a glimpse of the entity's harsh expression. In other words, Anti was trying to claim possession of the house so that Dark couldn't get them. Once again, it was no different than having children.
"Okay, no one is claiming anything for themselves. We can all use the appliances around the house either for ourselves or for entertainment. However, we all have to ensure that we take turns and don't hog anything to ourselves. That being said, if you guys want to play any games on the Switch, go ahead. But only the games that I have, you can't purchase any games online unless you either plan to buy them yourself or I get them." Kate stated. "And if you want to use the kitchen to make food for yourself, you can, as long as you clean up after yourself. I am not going to play house maid to you two just because of your status. But, if you want to make meals for your own stomach, I won't be against it either."
"So that is three rules of this household now… what else is there that we can and can not do?" Dark pressed.
There was still a lot of ground to cover, but for now Kate would only give them the basic rules and add more later. Last thing she wanted was for them to try and rebel. "Alright, another thing to consider is that you can't be here when my siblings and friends are here. None of them know that you guys are staying with me or the reason why. And we can't let anyone else know that you two live here."
"Why's that?" Anti questioned.
Kate couldn't believe he would ask that, given how obvious the situation was. Still, she elaborated. "Because you may be Darkiplier and Antisepctieye, but you are possessing Markiplier and Jacksepticeye's bodies. Just because this suburban town is not as big as the cities in England or LA, doesn't mean that we aren't up to date with social media platforms such as YouTube. My friends are all aware of the YouTubers that your hosts are, and considering that they haven't posted anything in a while, they would naturally be worried. So imagine how freaked out they would be upon learning that those two are staying at my place. Even if I told them the truth and they believed me, it would cause a panic and you two may end up behind bars… or worse."
"HA!" Anti laughed as he leaned back against the couch. "They can try, but I'll bust out of there and leave a blood path from where I walked." He stated that confidently, and Kate believed him. She saw first hand what they can do and how much power they held. She wouldn't be surprised if they could overthrow an army with just the flick of their wrists. Yet another reason she didn't want anyone else to know about them as it would cause more destruction than anything.
"Still, you two can't leave the house nor can you go onto other social media where you have to log in with an account. The last thing we need is your fanbase being drawn to your attention." Kate tried to be reasonable as she explained. She didn't want to keep them cooped up in a single house forever. Mostly since she believed they would get antsy and attempt to associate themselves outside where they will draw a crowd. In which case, she would have to find ways to keep them occupied so their boredom would not be the cause of anything calamitous.
"I must admit that you do bring up an accurate point." Kate and Anti turned to Dark as he spoke. The former was a bit surprised by how calm he was as he continued. "I prefer not to have many people within the house, and gaining the curiosity of my host's fanbase would interfere with the deal we made…" His void eyes looked over at the woman, as she stood her ground but kept her mouth shut. "In which case, I will cooperate with such a rule so long as it means nothing will hinder what we agreed upon."
That was new, again Kate didn't believe that he would take such a rule lying down. Then again, he did seem like the loner type and was more responsible with not being seen, unlike Anti who tended to announce his arrival every chance he got. Since she did know Dark longer and he had been with her a month more than the shirtless demon, he already had his routine figured out. Anti was another story, but he had only been here for a day now so she couldn't expect him to fall in line with their system in such a short time. "Well," Kate began. "I don't want to keep you here forever. I know it may get boring, but I can't let you go out in the way you are… possessing noticeable people that is. I think if we can get you both disguises then you two can head outside without drawing anyone's attention. I'll work on that but for now, you'll have to entertain yourselves with games and movies."
"What, you plan on getting us sunglasses and face masks?" Anti questioned, a hint of a giggle at his end to showcase how humorous this situation was.
"May not be an ideal outfit, but beggars can't be choosers." Kate shrugged. "I think that should do it with the rules for now. We can add more later but until then, can you two follow said guidelines?"
"Please, we are not children. We can handle being civilized. Well, I can at least." Dark looked over at Anti as he stated the last sentence. Once again, Anti bared his teeth at the entity, but didn't say anything. Kate noted the hostility and realized she needed to ensure one other boundary for the sake of her house and sanity.
"One more rule," she began while gaining their attention. "You guys are not allowed to fight with each other as long as you are under my roof. We're going to be roommates until further notice, so we should try to tolerate one another and not kill each other or destroy the house."
"So you expect us to play house in this make-believe scenario?" Dark questioned as he was unamused by this condition.
"Look, after I'm gone and you two find a new place to settle, then you can beat each other up to your heart's content. But until then, no fighting with each other in or around the house. And especially not out in the open where people can see you. We need to keep a low profile to ensure we don't attract awareness." She wanted to be reasonable while explaining the situation. "So no attacking each other while I'm out of the house."
Anti and Dark looked at one another as she said that. They turned away and crossed their arms over their chests, but neither of them spoke up to protest against the rule. That was good enough for Kate, so she would leave it at that. "Don't worry, this is my last week of college before classes are out for the summer. Then I'll be at the house while working from home so I can look after you two and we can figure out how to get you guys out of the house without being spotted. But I just need this week for myself, so I can finish up my final project, okay?" Anti and Dark looked at her, seeing how gentle she was in terms of pleading. She knew it was a lot to ask of them, but she was making sacrifices as well. In the end, they all had to agree with this arrangement given they were the guests and Kate was the landlord.
"Tell you what, to show how much of a good sport I am I'll cook up whatever dish you two want for dinner. Do you have any preferences?" Kate asked.
"Pizza!" Anti jumped up, excited about the idea.
"I myself am craving chicken and dumplings." Dark admitted.
Kate didn't expect them to be so jumpy with the response, but she was pleased to see how well they were taking this. "I guess we can order both. Though I'll have the pizza myself." She admitted.
"Awesome!" Anti raised his fist in the air. Kate rolled her eyes, yet still remained surprised that the egos picked the favorite foods of their hosts. Perhaps that meant that Mark and Sean weren't completely lost after all.
It was one-thirty in the morning as Kate was on her computer finishing up the final touches for her short story that needed to get done. The deadline was Wednesday, but hopefully she could submit it a day or two early. Then that would be one less thing for the young woman to have to deal with. Kate had to focus on Darkiplier and Antisepticeye now, and find a way to expel them out of Mark and Sean's bodies. So far, the research she collected only helped to connect the events together, but they didn't explain how they occurred or why. Kate thought back to that conversation she had with Jenna earlier that day. Everything that happened with the YouTubers had to have been when these creatures and possessions started. All the blond could do was wait for answers tomorrow, hopefully Jenna would be able to get her brother's belongings and tell her more about that Pax last autumn.
As of now though, the final project was doing fairly well. She edited the parts that needed fixing, now all that was left was to read it over three times to make sure it sounded professional. After nearly six hours of her work, she felt that it was time to take a break. A yawn escaped her mouth as her eyes were watery from staring at the screen for so long. "I think that should do it tonight. Staying up any longer will make my eyes go blurry." She started to wrap everything up, continuing it tomorrow. She wanted to get some decent sleep so she could head to the campus early. As she was shutting off her programs, she was unaware of someone entering her room.
"Hey, Kate?" The blond jumped as she turned her attention to the door, only to calm as she saw Anti standing there as the door was opened.
"Oh… Anti. I thought you would have been asleep by now." Kate admitted, taken off guard by him coming in.
"Well, my host is a night owl at times. Why do you think he drinks coffee?"
"Because it's an Irish thing?" Kate responded. The glitch merely stared at her, as she realized how racist that must have sounded. "Hey, I'm not against it. I started getting into coffee as well. Though I like mine ice or blended, never hot since I burnt my lip the one time." Kate admitted, her nerves were unhinged as she stared at Anti.
"I mean, I'm not against coffee, but I'm not addicted to it as my host." Anti confirmed.
"I would have thought all of the septiceye egos would be coffee drinkers." Kate said, her nervousness settling as the conversation kept going.
"Well, a few are, but not all of them." Anti admitted. "Though speaking of all nighters, what are you still doing up?"
"I was just finishing up my school project. I need to get it done before Wednesday so I can get my final grade before I'm done with college for the summer." Kate explained. "And it's not that late. I've stayed up way longer before."
Anti looked at her computer which had just finished shutting down. He then glanced back over to the woman as he went on to talk. "I would have thought you'd be more tired, given recent events."
Kate knew what he meant, the house meeting today and what happened in the woods only a few nights ago. "Well, can't really sleep when you have to deal with two demons wanting to tear each other's throats out. No offense…"
"Hey, I hate Dark on that level as he does me, so can't be offensive if it's true." Anti shrugged. It was surprising yet refreshing to hear how honest Anti was, and even calm despite the events that happened over 24 hours ago. To Kate, she believed this was better progress than what she was dealing with in terms of Dark. "Speaking of the suited guy," Anti changed the subject. "I saw him head outside from your deck and ran off into the night. Does he do that all the time?"
Kate heard what he said and processed it. Since it was this late, of course Dark would be on the hunt by now. "Oh, yeah he does that every night." She admitted. "But it's part of our agreement long before you came here."
"Agreement?" Anti repeated.
"Part of our contract that we have with one another. I thought I told you about it." Kate explained.
The shirtless man shook his head. "I guess you may have but… a lot has happened so not all of the information processed with me." That seemed to be a fair statement, and one that she could relate to as well.
"Oh… well, you know how Dark and I met, right?"
"Yeah, after the two of us fought out in the woods, you found him the next morning and took him to your place. Then you ended up patching his wounds and stole his ring. Then something about trapping you in a manor with other odd characters that shared his creator's face, you escaped, fought a Scavenger together and that was all I remembered…" Anti admitted, managing to get most of the details on point.
"Yeah, well… he left after I… stopped him from killing that Scavenger. Only because I wanted him to aim his attack at some debris that would have killed my sisters. So… he came back to my house later that night. Needless to say, he wasn't happy when I took his ring."
"Hate to admit it, but I'm on Dark's side. If that had been me and you took my earrings, I would have gone after you as well." Anti admitted nonchalantly.
"Fair," Kate agreed. "I don't even know why I took that ring, and when I saw it in my luggage, I forgot I took it. But he got his jewelry back, so I thought that would be enough. Only it wasn't."
"I'm surprised he didn't kill you on the spot." Anti noted.
"I thought the same at first." She laughed nervously. "Actually, I convinced him to make a deal." Anti perked up as she elaborated, becoming more invested in the story. "In exchange for him killing the Scavenger, then I'll let him do whatever he wants to me. Which I guess to him means putting me back in that manor and having me get a mental breakdown."
Anti stared at her, his eyes wide as he sat down on the bed across from her desk, so he could be at eye level with her. "When you say deal… Did it involve a contract? Like a paper and signature?"
Kate thought back to the night she made that agreement with Dark. How he summoned a contract paper and had her sign with her own blood. It was as if she sold her soul to the devil, or at least Lucifer incarnated. "Yeah… he did. Why?" She asked.
Anti hummed as he got his answer, before giving Kate one. "So, he made a Contract with you."
"Yeah… but why are you asking about that?" Kate asked. "It's just a Contract."
"Well, to us it's more than that." Anti tried to explain. "Contracts are basically agreements we make with other mortals."
"So it is like a deal with the devil?" Kate asked.
Anti heard this and gave a shrug. "Kind of, but there are certain guidelines that have to be followed. The Contract has to benefit both mortal and Outcast, meaning both sides have to gain something for the transaction to be fair. In your case, you would give up your own being just for Dark to be a hitman on the monster that attacked you and your family. However, this also means the Contract has to be specific."
"Specific how?" Kate questioned.
"Well… let's say someone made a Contract with me. In exchange for their personal belonging, I would make them rich. That would be an invalid request because 'being rich' isn't specific, since there isn't a true definition of it. What do they want to be rich in? Money? Health? Love? Rich is more than just about getting wealthy. And even if they do ask for cash, they still didn't say how much they would want to make them rich in their own version. Maybe I would give them enough money to buy a house, since they would be rich enough to afford shelter. Or I would think they would want to be richer than someone who is unemployed and homeless, and would therefore conjure up five dollars. Which technically means they are more wealthy than said homeless person."
"So, you need to be specific in what you want for the Contract to be valid. In your example, the person has to specify how much money they would want." Kate realized.
Anti nodded. "Of course, they would have to offer up something that is of equal value to what they want. Usually it's themselves, but oftentimes it can be them helping the Outcast out with something. Perhaps the Outcast got injured and in exchange for the human saving them, the Outcast would have to give the mortal something in return as a way to pay back that generosity."
Kate was taking mental notes on this topic. She never would have thought to receive such information from an original source. And she was learning something new about these… Outcast, which she assumed were what Dark and Anti considered themselves. An odd name, but it had to be a type of demon, right? "So, since I saved your life and allowed you to live under my house, what do you think I can get from a Contract with you?" Kate asked, obviously she was playful but curious regardless.
Anti responded with a chuckle before speaking. "As grateful as I am to you for sparing me from Dark and letting me into your home and eating your food, I wouldn't be able to give you a Contract. Since you still have an unfinished one with Dark."
Kate perked up when he mentioned that. "Wait, you mean I can't have two Contracts?"
"Yeah, it's part of the rules. When a mortal has a Contract with an Outcast, the mortal can't make another Contract with a different Outcast, since they need to complete the previous deal. So, since you made a Contract with Dark, you can't make one with me unless that deal has been delivered."
Kate nodded slowly. "That does seem fair. So, how many Contracts can an Outcast have at a time?"
"I think it's one if they have a mortal already. And they can only make one Contract per person. So if you had a Contract with Dark and both parties get what they want, you can't get another one with him. You've already used it up." Anti explained.
"I never would have thought the system would be so strict." Kate admitted. "You know, I know a lot about Darkiplier and Antisepticeye, but… I don't really know what you two are. Entities, demons, alter egos… what exactly are you?" Even though she had a bad feeling that prying too far into the subject would be dangerous, she needed to learn what Dark and Anti were in the hopes of expelling them from their hosts. It wasn't as if she had anything to lose, given her own life had already been sold to one of the devils.
When Anti heard that question, he merely looked up and watched her ceiling fan go around. The blades twirled at a slow pace, as he didn't meet her eyes while he began to answer. "We're… Outcasts. That's just what me and Dark are."
Kate wasn't satisfied with that answer, mainly because it only raised more questions. "But… What is an Outcast?"
"I dunno…" Anti answered honestly. "That's just what I am. I only know about the Contracts because… somehow I do. It's like… I know these things but, I don't know why or how. That make any sense?" He looked over at her, to ask his own question.
Kate stared at him, blinked twice as she tried to wrap her head around his wording. Yet she failed to truly grasp what he was saying. "To be honest… not to me. But… I don't understand it either, so I guess we're on the same boat."
"Sorry I couldn't give you any more than that."
Kate waved her hand. "Honestly, you gave me more answers than I started out with. I have a bit more of an idea of what's going on." It may not have been much, but she was willing to take anything at this point. And now she truly understood the gravity of that contract her and Dark signed. "I guess this means that I'm really at Dark's mercy once he completes his end of the deal…" She looked at the ground, being reminded what she would give up in exchange for him killing that Scavenger that murdered her parents and attacked her sisters.
Anti noticed her expression, seeing how gloomy it was as opposed to her curiosity moments ago. He bit his lip, wanting to ask more about the deal her and Dark made, but figured it wasn't his place. "Hey… I'm sorry…" Anti began. "For… putting you in this mess. You know, the whole kidnapping you and using you as bait to lure Dark out. It wasn't anything personal." The woman looked back up at him as he was sheepishly trying to explain that. Kate did have to give him credit for trying, and he was being more humble than Dark, she would give Anti that. "And, sorry for attacking Dark while you were away and kind of messed your house up. If it's any consideration, I helped patch up the spots after you moved the furniture back."
"Really? How did you manage that?" Kate questioned.
A playful smirk appeared on Anti's face. "Those septiceyes I summon don't just heal wounds."
"Ha, they really are your little helpers. Just promise you won't make a habit of summoning them too often. I don't want to find one of them in my bed one morning staring at me. I think I would jump right out of the sheets." Kate stated.
Anti shrugged. "Fair enough. So, when will Dark be back?"
"He's usually back around by sunrise. How that guy doesn't get tired I'll never know." Kate muttered. "For now, I better head off. I have a lot of work to finish tomorrow, so I want to get some sleep and head to the campus early enough to finish my final project."
"You gonna be okay sleeping by yourself?" Anti asked.
"I don't sleep by myself…" She mused, pointing to her pillows where Anti turned back to see a black mass of fur and a smushed face looking up at the shirtless Outcast with brown eyes.
"Was he always there?" Anti asked, staring at the black pug, Oliver.
Kate chuckled and went over to pet her dog's head, who snorted in response. "He likes to sit on top of the pillows. Why he does so, your guess is as good as mine."
Anti got up from the bed and watched Oliver roll onto his side, a slight giggle came from his mouth. "Well, at least you have someone to sleep with. I'll leave you two alone then and head to bed myself. Trying to avoid Dark's attack and summoning those septiceyes really takes a lot out of you."
Kate rolled her eyes, but gave a smile his way. "Night Anti." The Irish Outcast nodded, heading out of Kate's room to go downstairs to his own bed. The blond sighed, sitting on her mattress as she had to process everything he told her. Even so, more questions were still spiraling in her mind as she tried to make sense of what she learned. It seemed Kate had much more research to accomplish before she would even have a slight idea on what Dark and Anti truly were, and what they were capable of.