Azail

Preal Kent, is the guys name. The one we rescued from the Panopticon. He says he doesn't remember anything about the Fears. Which means that the mind linking gizmo they use works. I've told him about the Fears, but he didn't believe me at first. Not until the magic dead guy phased through our hotel wall to check on us. Seriously, Marshall? You can't give us a bit of a heads up that you're dropping by?
So, yeah. Preal believes us now. He's also agreed to stick with us, at least until he figures out what to do from here. I think he might have been a runner. And Marshall has informed us that Isiore is still alive. I'm not sure how he knows that, but he didn't say anything else on the matter. At least Keursio found it reassuring.
Anyway, we left Tennessee to check out Bill Dawson and Angelo Nox's base. We were standing outside when a guy a few years older then me approached us.
“They aren't there,” he said.
“What?” I asked.
“Angelo and William,” he said. “They moved. They knew you were on to them, Tony. So they saw fit to relocate.”
“How do you know my name?” I asked.
“Been reading the blog,” he said, smiling. “Duh.”
“And how do you know that they moved?”
“I've been looking into them too,” he said.
“Who are you?” I asked.
“Someone you can Trust,” he said.
Something about the way he said that made me think of “Trust” being capitalized. Anyway, I guess he was trustworthy. Or, at least nonthreatening. I don't know, but he didn't seem like one of the bad guys.
“What's your name?” I asked.
He chuckled a bit.
“You can call me AJ,” he said.
“All right, AJ,” I said. “Where'd they go?”
“The breadcrumbs shouldn't be hard for you to follow,” he said.
“What about their backer?” I asked. “Do you know where I can find him?”
“Well, no,” AJ said. “But I know how you can track him.”
“How?” I asked.
“Well, he's funding those guys, and probably several others,” AJ said. “He must be getting the money from somewhere, right?”
“Yeah,” I said.
“And where is he getting it?” AJ asked.
“Either he's already rich, or has a very high paying job,” I said.
“Or?” AJ pressed.
I thought for a second before realizing where AJ was going with this.
“I need to look into disappearances,” I said. “Robberies. If there's anything in the news about stolen money, then he might be involved.”
“Bingo,” AJ said. “Listen, I gotta go, but here's something else that might help.”
He handed me a large book, wrapped in tissue paper.
“Ta-ta,” he said, turning to leaving.
As he walked away, I opened the tissue paper carefully. It contained a large, demonic text. I've been looking into demonology a bit, but haven't found anything useful. But seeing that book, I just knew I was holding the answers I needed in the palm of my hand. That guy, AJ, was extremely helpful.
I got back to our current hotel and started pouring over the text. I've been reading it for about three days now. I haven't read all of it. Far from it. But I've read everything about Azail The enabler.
Of the ten Daemon lords, he's the only one who doesn't keep servants. As his name suggests, he embodies the sin of enabling. While conventional demonology only uses 7 sins, this one lists ten. Azail is known to allow those around him to spread wanton destruction and war as they please, despite the fact that he could easily stop them. He even forges the weapons they use to do so. He is one of the oldest of the Daemon lords. While most Daemons are monstrous, and wage war for no other reason then their own enjoyment, Azail seems to show little interest in violence. That's not to say he isn' dangerous. As a Lord, he is exceptionally powerful, and could level armies of other Daemons if he chose to. He's just less active then the other Lords, apparently.
The book also has instructions on how to summon Daemons. It even has a list of precautions to keep them contained. However, there is a warning. The book says never, under any circumstances, should a mortal attempt to summon one of the Lords.
Reading that warning, I thought of Daniel. I thought of what he would do in this situation. I can't say for sure what he would do. He's not always predictable. But I can guess. Daniel would ignore the rules. He would stare death in the face, without backing down. He would stand up to an enemy he stands no chance against. He would draw he sword, and announce that he's not afraid. And that's exactly what I plan to do.
I'm going to summon Azail.
God help me.


-Tony Helioson, signing out.

Puppy Dog

I've been out for a little over a week now, and I apologize for that. Some crazy shit happened, but when does it not? It all started while I was out walking to the mall with Kyle and Seraph. I had gathered some information on the Fears activity from the runners, but not enough. I had taken to wandering the city in hopes of bumping into something. Anyway, I was walking next to Seraph, with Kyle walking a few paces behind us. I kept looking to the sides occasionally, keeping an eye on our surroundings. It was silent for a while, before Seraph spoke to me.
“Why are you scared?” she asked.
“I'm not scared,” I replied. “A bit paranoid, yes, but I figure that should be understandable.”
“I wasn't referring to the frequent glances in every direction,” she said. “I was talking about you and me.”
“Wha?” I asked, a little dumbfounded.
“Whenever we're together, you act distant,” she said. “Hesitant. Why? Is it me?”
“What?” I said. “I'm not afraid of you.”
Which is rue. Yes, she's an ex-servant. Yes, she is a scaly snake girl. But I've never been afraid of her.
“Then what are you afraid of?” she asked, stopping me. “Something's bothering you, and I want to know what it is.”
I didn't say anything for a few seconds.
“Daniel?” she asked firmly. “What is it?”
“It's nothing,” I said, sighing. “Don't worry about it.”
“Daniel,” she said sternly. She had on an “I'm about to give you such a scolding” expression.
“Um, guys?” Kyle said. “I don't mean to interrupt your conversation, but have you noticed that-?”
“We're being followed?” Seraph finished for him.
“For at least two miles now,” I said, giving a slight nod. See, there's a reason I was paying so much attention to our surroundings. There were eyes in the bushes and trees, watching us as we walked.
“Okay, good,” Kyle said. “So I'm not crazy. So what's our course of action?”
“Same as I usually do things,” I said.
“Wait for them to make a move?” Seraph asked.
I nodded.
“Then get your Nightwing on?” Kyle continued.
“No,” I said. “This time it's Deadpool. I'm getting my Deadpool on.”
“You could never be Deadpool,” Seraph said, cracking a mocking grin.
“Yes I could!” I insisted. “I could totally be Deadpool!”
“Let's face it Daniel,” Kyle said. “Deadpool is more badass then you'll ever be.”
“Shut up!” I said.
“Seriously, though,” Seraph said. “It looks like trouble's about to start.”
She gestured behind me and I turned slightly. There, emerging from the shadows across the street, was Mute. That technopath I fought earlier.
“Mute,” I muttered.
“You mean the Technopath you fought earlier?” Kyle asked.
“Yeah, him,” I replied.
I turned to look down the street behind us, and before I knew it, a snide grin was creeping across my face. Another familiar figure was approaching us.
“Puppy Dog,” I said, letting out a chuckle.
“Um, Daniel?” Seraph asked, but I wasn't paying attention anymore.
I summoned my sheathed sword to my hand and began approaching him as well. He was a tall man, a couple inches above 6 feet if I had to guess, but I'm pretty sure he's at least a couple years younger than I am. He was dressed in a black hooded sweatshirt, with the twin triangles, the symbol of the Archangel painted across the chest. He had dark hair that was died gray in the front, and his eyes were a bright blue. He had some stubble on his square chin, and he was decently muscular in stature. Across his back he had a sword, and in his right hand he carried a metal baseball bat. He had a combat knife clipped to his belt, and a sawed-off shotgun was holstered on one thigh, with a bayonet on his other thigh.
I was somewhat acquainted with this man. I don't remember our first fight very well, which I'm pretty sure is do to some mental manipulation. I know that I woke up afterwards in a church, having taken a beating. A series of burned cuts, arranged in the shape of the twin triangles, had been etched over my heart by this guy. Although I recovered from the other wounds he inflicted, those scars still remain. And when we met again, I made sure to give him a good ass-whooping.
We now stood a few feet apart from each other.
“Devil Killer,” he said, a little spitefully.
“Puppy Dog,” I said, returning the greeting.
Okay, I don't think that's his real name, but that's what I decided to call him, and he hasn't corrected me yet, so whatever.
“Daniel!” Kyle called to me. I turned to look at him and Seraph. Mute was standing a bit away from them, but he didn't seem hostile at the moment.
“You should be good,” I said. “It's me they want.”
As I said that, I looked into Seraph's eyes, tilted my head a bit, and twitched my cheek. She returned the signal. I was confident that they wouldn't get harmed, but I had given them warning to not take any chances and to make a break for it if things went downhill, and in the worst case scenario, to fight back. Seraph's more than just a pretty face. She's an ex-servant. She could hold her own if she had too. And Kyle had practiced a bit too.
“So, we doin' this or what?” I asked, turning back to Puppy Dog.
Instead of answering, he gripped his bat with both hands and entered a fighting stance. Then we attacked each other. I didn't unsheathe my sword at first. Instead, I kept it in my off hand and used it to deflect his first few attacks. Then I forced his weapon aside and punched him in the face. Then I gripped the hilt of my sword and swung it, still in its sheath, at him. He parried, and tried to hit me again. I dropped my weight quickly, so his attack passed over my head, and I smacked my sheathed sword into his knee. Then I shot back up, shouting “Dragon style, bitch!” and smacked him in the jaw with the sword's hilt. Then I spun around and swung my sheathed sword at him, but he managed to block that one. He drew back his bat, preparing to swing it. As he did, I slid into a stance, gripping my sword's sheath in my off hand, and the hilt in my main hand, and I proceeded to get my Virgil on. I've been practicing Iaijutsu a bit, and I've gotten fairly decent at it. As his bat came at me, I quickly drew the sword and slashed with it in one fluid motion, hitting his attacking hand and knocking the bat out of it. He stumbled back a bit, clutching his hand. I hadn't cut his flesh, but I still hurt him by doing that.
“So?” I asked, raising my sword. “You gonna stop holding back?”
“That depends,” he said, drawing his sword. “Are you?”
The sword this guy uses is a khopesh. It's an Egyptian bade, and is basically the closest you can get to wielding an ax without actually wielding an ax. The uniquely curved blade gives it a lot of an axes power without sacrificing the light weight of a sword.
We started swinging our swords at each other, repeatedly parrying each other's blows. It went on for a while before we somehow managed to disarm each other. I willed my sword to return to me, and it reappeared in my hand. I raised it to Puppy Dog's throat, then I heard something hit the ground over by the others. I turned my head to see that Mute had let his heavy coat fall to the ground to expose his gear, and he had extended his claws. He seemed ready to fire them at me, but he didn't get a chance. Seraph was on him too quickly. I don't get to see her fight much. It's a little scary when she does. She had him pinned to the ground in moments. I heard Puppy Dog moving, so I turned my attention back to him. He had drawn his shotgun and was about to take aim. I swung my sword at his shotgun, keeping it away from me. He pulled the trigger as I did, and a spray of shrapnel burst from one of the barrels. I had pushed the gun away just in time, so most of it hit the ground beside me, with a few fragments grazing my leg. He drew his bayonet and tried to slash at me with it, but I blocked with my sheath and kicked him hard in the chest, knocking him down. I returned my sword to its sheath and drew my own gun. As I did, he hooked the bayonet to the end of his shotgun and stood back up. We stood there for a second with our guns aimed at each other. We both froze, as a new presence filled the air.
Ten figures in dark clothes surrounded us. I didn't get a good look at all of them, but I could feel them.
Back when I had powers, I had a really strong sixth sense that came with them. I no longer had that sixth sense. Or, at least, it wasn't as strong any more, so I can't sense the Fears like I used to. But these people... The felt like a being I hadn't seen in over a year. A being that was supposed to be dead.
They felt just like the Archangel.
And they were standing in a circle around my friends and I. I had to act quickly. I threw myself to one side and fired my gun to the side of Puppy Dog's face, intentionally missing him. That had the effect I had hoped for; he was startled so badly he accidentally shot off (tee-hee) the other barrel of his shotgun into the empty space I had just been, rendering his weapon empty. It would take him a bit of time to reload. I quickly slid my gun across the ground over to Kyle, who dashed to pick it up, then I called Seraph's name and threw her my sword. Now they were at least armed. I then reached into my pocket and pulled out my brass knuckles, which I slipped onto my left hand. I then flipped open my new knife. I turned to keep my eyes on Puppy Dog while addressing the new-comers.
“Who the hell are you guys?” I demanded.
“Do not mind us,” Said a man, who I'm guessing was the leader. “My name is Adon, and we are the Apostles.”
“Apostles, huh” I said. “Never heard of you.”
Which isn't completely true. I had seen an Apostle Yu-Gi-Oh card once, but that's a story I don't care much for telling.
“That is how we prefer it,” Adon replied.
“We're a bit of a covert group,” another Apostle said.
“Even the Archive has little knowledge of us,” said another.
“So why make yourselves known now?” I asked.
“Ugh,” Puppy Dog sighed. “Because you forced their hand, you ass!”
“Hey, dude,” I said. “Language.”
Puppy Dog turned to address the Apostles.
“Stay back!” he demanded. Then he turned to me, allowing his shotgun to fall to the ground. He drew his knife, holding it in a reverse-grip before him. “He's mine.”
There was something off about the way he said that. Like something in the air shifted as he did. Something that made me wanna fight just as much as he did.
“Of course,” Adon said. “For now, we are just spectating.”
“But if you screw up, we'll kill him for you!” said a rather enthusiastic woman in the group.
“Please calm yourself, Lasciel,” Another man said. “The boy has got this.”
Okay, I know for a fact I've heard that guy's voice before. There was some strange power behind it.
Puppy Dog and I faced each other, and the fight continued. Now, there's a pretty big difference between sword fights and knife fights. You see, swords are big. Even shortswords are relatively large in comparison to daggers. Because of this, the can be countered easily if you know what you're doing. Knives are small. Which means you can't parry them nearly as easily. Additionally, their light weight makes them faster and easier to maneuver. Knife fights end quickly, because blocking them is hard as hell. Someone usually lands a finishing cut or stab pretty quickly.
We went at it, and we both got slashes in at each other's arms and chests, but the fight ended when I managed to plunge my own knife into his side. He cried out in pain, and I slammed my knuckles into his chin, knocking him out. I don't think the stab was a fatal one, but the blow to the jaw would keep him down for a while. The key to winning any fight is to be more aggressive then the other guy. It worked for me this time.
I took a few steps back and caught my breath. Adon nodded to one of the other Apostles, who stepped forward and knelt over Puppy Dog. He took a damp clothe and used it to apply pressure to his wound. Then, he slit his own thumb on Puppy Dog's knife and let a few drops of his blood drip into Puppy Dog's mouth.
I approached Adon, and as I did, I reached into my sock and drew the derringer I had tucked in there. None of the Apostles moved as I did. I stood a few feet away from Adon, and I took note of a few things. First of all, he had a large, curvy sword across his back. It gave off a sinister feeling that I've encountered before in three other swords. Well, technically two. Time travel shenanigans and whatnot. Secondly, he had a pendant in the shape of the twin triangles around his neck. Third, he wasn't breathing. At all. Fucking weird...
I shrugged all that off and looked Adon in the eyes.
“Look,” I said. “I don't want things to get any more violent then they already are. I'm sorry about what happened with the Archangel, but you have to understand that he was a monster. He attacked my friends. And my family. I did what I did to protect them.” I clutched the handle of my derringer. I had a feeling this speech would fall on deaf ears. “Are you really going to condemn me for that?”
Adon remained quiet for a moment, before turning to one of the Apostles, the one who I've heard speak before.
“Matthew,” he said. “If you will.”
The man nodded, then turned to me.
“Drop your knife, and your knuckles,” he said, that same power in his voice.
I did. The knife and brass knuckles clattered to the ground.
“Daniel!” Kyle said.
“Don't listen to him!” Seraph cried out.
“Tune them out,” Matthew said.
They continued to call out to me, but all I heard was dim background noise.
“Now, I want you to raise that gun to your temple,” Matthew continued.
I slowly did, and the background noise of my friends grew louder, more urgent. I tried to listen, but something wouldn't let me. I couldn't make out what was being said to me. Suddenly, I felt the familiar wooden sheath of my sword in my free hand, and I gripped it. I hadn't summoned it, but sometimes it acts on its own.
“Drop that sword,” Matthew said. “Now.”
I couldn't. My hand just gripped it tighter, rebelling against the order.
“Very well,” Matthew said. “In that case, pull the trigger.”
My index finger found the trigger. The sounds my friends were making were louder then ever, but I still couldn't quite make them out. I started to gently squeeze.
“Master. Your will is stronger then this.”
A single voice had broken through. I looked past Adon, and saw it there. A muscular, spectral being. It's form was blurred, and difficult to make out, but the glowing red eyes were clear as day. I could see them in impossible detail, despite the being's distance from me. It was the spirit of my sword. I had heard its voice a few times, but I had only seen it once, right before I killed Red Daniel. Now I saw it again, and common sense suddenly screamed “WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING WITH THAT GUN TO YOUR HEAD!!!”
I narrowed my eyes and glared at Adon. These motherfuckers were brainwashing me! Oh, hell no.
Adon's eyes widened in shock as I turned my gun to him.
“Embrace whatever's left of your master!” I hissed.
I pulled the trigger, and the bullet hit him right in the forehead. His head snapped back, but to my surprise, he didn't go down. His pendant began glowing with a red light, which began to crawl over his body. He turned his head back up to face me, and the bullet wound closed up instantly. The red light faded away.
“No one has ever ignored Matt Onre's orders,” he said. “What are you?”
“You know damn well what I am,” I said, to everyone there. I was pissed, and I made sure they knew by my tone of voice. “I am Daniel Xavier Ferris. I am the man who killed the Archangel, your god! I am a  god damn Devil Killer! I am-”
Before I could finish my badass boast, a portal of red light split open several yards behind Adon, and a few feet up in the air. I had seen such a portal before, and I knew exactly what would be coming out of it soon.
“I am so fucked,” I said.
A man riding a solid steel bike shot from the portal, skidding to a halt in the middle of the circle of Apostles. He wore clothing that was stained red by human blood. His long hair and eyes were red as well, and a pair of glowing pentagrams were etched into his pupils. A massive falchion was strapped across his back, and a satanic looking goatee was growing from his chin.
More portals began opening, and creatures began coming through. I didn't get a proper headcount of them, but there were quite a few small goblin-like creatures, a handful of goats with bat wings, a couple large snakes with hedgehog-like quills growing from them, and one creature that looked like a lion, with massive, boar-like tusks, and golden, lobster-like armor coating its back. Denizens of Bloody Hell. They began engaging the Apostles, who were now fully distracted by the legion of monsters the Biker had brought with him.
“Hello, Daniel,” the man said, stepping off his bike and facing me.
“Hey, Damien,” I said, sporting the cockiest grin I could pull off at the time. “The evil beard's coming in nice.”
Damien Monroe. The Bloody Biker, and ruler of Bloody Hell. He was human, once, but some Archive experimentation combined with power given to him by the Game Master had made him a super-powered demi-god. Amongst his abilities, he had super strength, super speed, a large amount of metal that he had control over, and the ability to rearrange his atoms however the fuck he wants. Oh, and apparently he's immortal. I shot him in the head once. And about a year ago, I discovered he survived, and I've clashed with him twice since then. Barely survived each encounter. He also has a thing for rivalry, and can invoke it in others. Which would explain why Puppy Dog an I were so intent to fight each other uninterrupted. He had turned up the heat on our rivalry.
“I'm a little disappointed you resisted that guy's control,” he said. “You could have learned just how painful a bullet to the bloody head can be.”
“Oh, you're not still upset about that whole thing, are you?” I said. “I didn't shoot you that hard, did I?”
“You've upped the snark a bit since last time,” he said. “I hope you've said your goodbyes, cuz I'm about to send you to see our old friend Benny.”
Oh, yeah, he used to Malkator's archenemy. Long story.
He fired an energy blast from his hand, which I dodged by a hair.
“Since when do you fire energy blasts?” I asked.
“I've gotten a bit better with my powers,” he said.
His eyes glowed, and beams of crimson light fired from them. I drew my sword, which caught fire, and deflected the beams with it.
“Lasers from your fucking eyes!” I shouted, losing my cool a bit. “Are you freaking kidding me!?”
“Sod the hell off!” Damien exclaimed, drawing his sword and charging at me. I engaged him, but I had already worn myself out quite a bit. Out sword fight ended pretty quickly, with me being knocked to the ground. He stood over me, falchion in hand.
“It's over,” he said, smiling cruelly.
Then the tip of PR24 nightstick erupted from his solar plexus. He gasped in pain, then looked over his shoulder. I got to my feet as fast as I could to see that Abdalin had appeared directly behind Daien and plunged his nightstick through him from behind.
“Oh, well hello, Abdalin,” Damien growled.
“Goodbye, Damien,” Abdalin said, pulling his nightstick back out and smacking Damien with it. Damien went down, but before he fell unconscious, he fired another energy blast. I failed to dodge this time, and was thrown backwards by the force.

The first thing I remember after that was water. I was lying on my back, in about three inches of it. I opened my eyes to see nothing but white above me. I sat up slowly. I was in a strange place. The sky was like an empty white canvas, and the ground, as far as I could see, was a sheet of cold metal with a few inches of water on top of it. A number of giant katana blades grew from the ground, reaching up into the sky like huge spires. I brushed my shoulder to try and get some of the water off, only to find that it was completely dry. Not a drop of water on me. When I stood up, I saw that the water, instead of clinging to my skin and soaking into my clothes, simply drip right back to the ground. Weird...
I looked around some more and I saw the spirit of my sword floating a few yards from me, just watching.
“Oh,” I said. “It's you.”
It nodded.
“So what is this place?” I asked.
“Me,” it answered simply.
“This place is you” I asked.
It nodded again.
“Seems a bit wet for a fire elemental, doesn't it?” I asked.
It cocked its head, as if it didn't understand me. I shrugged and started walking until I reached one of the giant blades. I placed a hand against it. It was cold, like touching an iceberg. I'm not sure what kind of steel it was made from, but I'm guessing iron. I turned back to where the spirit was floating.
“So who are you?” I asked.
I cocked its head again. I tried another time.
“What's your name?” I asked. “What do I call you?”
It looked to the blank sky, as if looking for an answer. Neither of us spoke for several minutes.
“How about Burner?” I asked.
It looked back at me when I said that.
“Burner?” It asked.
“I have to call you something, don't I?” I asked. “Burner seems fitting, right?”
It remained silent for a little while before giving a slow nod.
“So, why am I here?” I asked.
It cocked its head without speaking.
“Okay, well, can you at least tell me what you even are?” I asked. “Why the sword can catch fire, or teleport to me when I need it?”
Still no answers. It just kept its head cocked and stared at me. I slumped down, leaning against the flat side of the blade.
“Do you even know what you are?” I asked, a little exasperated.
“I do not,” it said.
“Well, that answers that,” I sighed. “Do you know who might?”
“The old one,” it said.
“Do you mean the Blind Man, or the Lovecraft old ones?” I asked.
It gave me another confused head cock.
“I'm just gonna assume you mean Blind Man,” I said.
It would make sense, considering the Blind Man is the one who gave me the sword. I continued to ask it questions, but I didn't get any answers other then head cocks and the occasional no. Eventually, I just stopped talking, and just sat in the cold water, letting the time pass. I soon became aware of another presence there.
“Who's that over there?” I asked, pointing to the new figure. It seemed to consist of an almost humanoid cloud of smoke, with a flickering mask hoving where the head should be. It just kind of wandered around, not really paying attention to either of us.
“Guilt,” the spirit said. “Pain. Remorse. Sadness. Entrapment.”
“Real helpful answers, bud,” I sighed. I mentally decided to call it Flicker, for now, for lack of anything better to call it. I just sat watching the smoky figure for a while until it wandered off beyond the range of my vision. Then I continued to sit there, until I woke up.

I was lying in the backseat of my new car, which was in motion. I sat up, and realized I was still holding on to my sword. Seraph was driving the car, and Abdalin was sitting in the passenger seat.
“How long have I been out?” I asked.
“Oh, thank god,” Seraph breathed. “We were worried sick about you.”
“Well, she was,” Abdalin replied. “You've been in a trance for about a week now.”
“So where are we now?” I asked.
“On the move,” Abdalin said.
“We had you at Kyle's for a few days,” Seraph said. “But we figured we should probably get a move on.”
“In case Damien or the Apostle's came back,” Abdalin said.
“And we're bringing Seraph along?” I asked.
Okay, I know Seraph can hold her own, but I didn't feel good bringing her along with me when there could be danger.
“I'm not staying behind this time, Daniel,” she insisted. “I'm coming with you."
“Okay,” I said. “That's fine.”
I sat up and checked my inventory. I had all my weapons back. Guess the others had picked things up.
“So what are the Apostles?” I asked Abdalin.
“Trouble,” he replied. “I don't know much about them, but we should try to avoid them.”
“Great,” I said. “So, where do we go from here?”
“For now, we keep moving,” Abdalin said. “We'll figure out where to go later.”
“What about Damien?” I asked. “Where'd he go? What were those things with him?”
“He got away,” Seraph said. “Slipped back into Bloody Hell.”
Bloody Hell's his domain, which he sort of usurped.
“Those things were monsters from Bloody Hell,” Abdalin said. “The humanoid ones were Greenmen. They normally look after themselves, but they can be bullied into servitude. William...”
He hesitated for a minute.
“William used to use them, sometimes,” he finally finished.
“And the other things?” I asked.
“Goatbats and Porcupine Snakes,” Abdalin said. “I think he had a Leocoyr too.”
You mean the giant lion thingy?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Abdalin said. “That.”
“We're gonna have to stop for gas soon,” Seraph said. “Why don't you relax for a bit?”
“Yeah, sure,” I said. “Get me a soda when we stop?”
“Diet Dr. Pepper?” Seraph asked.
“That would be nice,” I replied.
“Sure thing,” she said.
So yeah, that's what happened. Gonna sign off now. I need to think some more.

The Angel's Best

I sat in my room, meditating. It wasn't long before I received an unwanted guest.
“Is this a bad time?” asked a cocky, malevolent voice from the other side of the room.
“With you, Jack,” I said, opening my eyes, “It's always a bad time. The fuck do you want.
“Wish HELLFIRE was here,” he said softly. “Anyway, would you like to know something of the flare your other self ignited?”
“What spark?” I asked.
“A group of individuals, who up til recently have remained hidden from the public,” Jack said. “A covert legion which has been forced to play their hand.”
“Who are we talking about here?” I asked.
“The Angel's best,” Jack said. “You might wanna go find the other you. They're about to kill him.”
“Where?” I demanded.
“Not telling,” he said, grinning like the smug asshole he is.
“You know, in my timeline, you die,” I said.
That got a small frown out of him.
“Can't wait to see it happen again,” I said, before vanishing into the Godsway.

I arrived in Murrieta, next to Kyle's house. Daniel wasn't there, and neither were Kyle, Abdalin, and Seraph. I tried my parent's house. Or, Daniel's parent's house. Whatever... Weren't there either. Tried the place Daniel used to rent a room from, and Tony's mom's house, and Daniel's hideout. Not at any of those places. At a loss for anywhere else to check, I went to the church. Going there gives me a chill. A lot has happened to Daniel there. A lot more is still to happen. I remember. Things go worse here. That destiny is unlikely to change.
No one was there. I stood in silence for a while, before I heard something. The sound of a clip being loaded into a machine gun.
I turned just in time to see a man holding a sub-machine gun taking aim in my direction. I vanished before he started firing and reappeared behind him. He turned right as I appeared and opened fire. I vanished again, appearing inside the church. 
I hadn't been quick enough. 3 bullets had tore through me, and I was bleeding. I sucked it up. They hadn't hit anything important. I could live. I just had to close the wounds. I slipped off my coat, then I tapped into the Bride's power, setting my hand on fire. I grabbed at the bullet wounds, burning them shut. Hurt like all hell, but they wouldn't bleed out. The man with the machine gun stepped through the door, and I was read for him. I shot the largest burst of flames I could conjure right at him. But he was ready too, apparently. An inky blackness slithered over his skin as the flames hit, and they did nothing to him. He slumped down a little, as if tired, but his body was completely unharmed. He rose his gun again and squeezed the trigger. I teleported above his head, but before I had stepped into the Godsway, he had already drawn a sidearm and turned a bit. As I appeared, he aimed the pistol and fired, hitting me in the shoulder. The impact threw me off, and I hit the ground next to him. He turned and aimed the machine gun. I teleported beneath us, into the cavern's below the church. There was a bit on light coming from a trapdoor a distance away from me leading up to the church stage. The remnants of an alter, which had been slashed in two with a sword, stood a ways away from me. I cauterized my newest bullet wound and stood up. I was suddenly standing face to face with another man. He grabbed me by the throat and dragged me into a world of blackness. We weren't there long, as we soon ended up back outside the church. The man holding me released me as the man with the guns took aim. The man from the caverns raised a hand to stop him.
“I'll take it from here, Joseph,” he said.
“Whatever,” the other man, Joseph, said, putting his guns away.
“Who are you people?” I demanded, raising my sword.
“Well, I'm Nick Wells,” the man from the cavern said. “That there is Joey Krell. We're here to kill you till you're dead.”
“Kinda guessed that,” I said.
He swung his weapon at me. It wasn't a normal weapon. It was some kind of circular blade, fixed to a golden chain. Sort of like a whip. Now, whips aren't that easy to use as weapons. It's not as easy as Indiana Jones makes it look. You need a LOT of practice to work with them. This guy must have practice a ton. He used his weapon expertly. He cut through my left bicep with his first swing, embedded it in my gut with his second swing, then yanked it out and lassoed me around the throat the third time. As the circular item at the end wizzed by my face, I caught a glimpse of what was on it. It was the twin triangles. Shit. These were the people Jack mentioned. The Archangel's best. 
I was in pain, but I fought through it and focused. I was surrounded by a swarm of razor edged petals, that cut through the chain like it was silk, and I yanked off what was still around my neck. I thrust my sword at him, but he caught it in his hand and wrenched my arm to the side, striking me in the gut, where his weapon had hit before. I went down.
He picked up the pieces of his chain, and an orb of glowing light engulfed them. When it faded, the chain was whole again. Weird, but I tried not to let it distract me. I lifted my hand and fired a burst of flames at him. He ducked his head into his coat as I did, and he was swept off his feet by the blast. He landed and got back to his feet, brushing the fire off his coat like it was nothing.
“Fire proof clothes,” he said. “We know all of your tricks.”
His chain coiled around my sword arm as he dragged me toward him and kicked me in the gut.
“That's why Joseph could predict your moves,” he said.
He smacked me in the face, knocking me down.
“We are the Apostle's,” he said. “We're ready for whatever gets thrown at us.”
I vanished. Going through the Godsway with that many injuries is painful, but I had few options. I appeared out of range of his chain and focused on a chunk of the churches broken wall, lifting it into the air with my mind.
“You ready for this!?” I snarled, preparing to hurl it at him.
I was silenced when a bullet tore through my chest. Joseph had drawn his sidearm and shot me. I fell down, and let the stone fall. It hadn't been a kill shot. It had hit me right below the heart. I would bleed to death. Slowly.
“I had that,” Nick said, annoyed.
“Saw a shot,” Joseph replied. “I took it.”
“Well, at least he's still alive,” Nick said. He approached me and grabbed my hand. “I can have some fun while he bleeds out.”
He broke my fingers. All of them on my right hand. Fuck. At that point I decided screw this, I'm out. I slipped into the Godsway, painfully, and returned to my room. I could barely move. Both my hands were next to useless, but I tried using them anyway. I reached under my mattress and grabbed my Medicine. I bit the cap off the syringe, with some effort. I tapped into the Red Cap's power, making my pain somewhat bearable. Then I plunged the syringe into my leg and injected the Medicine into my bloodstream.
My entire body began burning. All I could feel was pain, and no amount of Masochism could save me. I didn't pass out fast enough. I stuck in screaming agony for a few seconds that felt like an eternity before I was finally caressed by sweet comatose.
I awoke several hours later, still in pain. The first thing I did was call Daniel, to see if he was safe from the Apostles. They're unlike anything I've fought before. Cold. Skilled. Efficient. Deadly. I can't believe I'm saying this about humans, but they scare me. 
Daniel didn't answer. And he complains that I don't answer his calls... I'm gonna go out and look for him once the Medicine finishes its work. It'll take a while before I'm back to full strength. Until then, all I can do is hope he's all right.
Another thing I feel I should mention. When I woke up, I found my discarded sword and coat folded on my mattress, with a note saying Don't leave things lying around. You may need these later. The note was signed with two words. The Backer. I don't know who that is, but I have a feeling it's not gonna be good.

The Panopticon

Sorry it's been so long. Haven't felt like updating. So Keursio and I made it to Tennessee and started staking out the Panopticon building. You'd think they'd pick a better place to set up business then God damn Tennessee...
Nothing happened for a long time. After a while, Keursio decided to watch the building herself while I went down to Kentucky to look into that kid's missing mom. I got to the town, and investigated what I could. The Sam's Club and the McDonald's didn't have much to go on, but I did find the graffiti he mentioned. There was a very large symbol, shaped like a stylized A inside of a circle of ruins. I snapped a photo, and I'm gonna see if I can find anything about it. I couldn't find anything on the Camper though. I'll have to call around, see if anyone knows anything.
I drove back up to meet with Keursio, and returned to staking out the building. She's being surprisingly patient for someone who's sister went missing.
It wasn't until a week ago that something finally happened. While we were watching the building from a discreet hiding spot, we watched a van pull up. It was late, and no one else was out. The driver and passenger unloaded a young man, bound in a straight jacket and under the influence of something, out of the back of the truck and escorted him inside. I told Keursio to wait while I went in. No one was standing guard. I just went in and stuck to the shadows, following the three men. The Driver and Passenger escorted the drugged man into a small room. They left the door open a crack. I peered in. I wasn't prepared for what I saw.
They strapped the young man down to a medical table, like something you'd see in a Frankenstein movie. There was some kind of machine on a table next to him, and sitting behind him was a new man. He was at least mid-thirties, with gray/blonde hair and twinkling eyes, and very slight age lines on his cheekbones. He wore a white lab coat.
“Hello, Mr. Kent,” he said to the young man. “My name is professor Meilleur Monde. I would like to speak to you about the things you've seen.”
“You mean the monsters?” Kent asked.
“Yes,” Monde replied. “I'd like you to tell me about them.”
“There's... there's this dog!” Kent said. “It has these eyes. They're bright red. No, they're dark red! Nott bright, but dark! They see. They See!”
“Please,” Monde said. “Continue.”
“The bug,” Kent stammered. “Too many. Too in sync. Too orderly to be actual bug!”
“Go on,” Monde urged.
This went on for a while. Over that time, Kent described no less than twelve Fears. He even described one I had never heard of. Something about a forest. At the end of it, Monde sighed calmly and smiled at Kent.
“Well, Mr. Kent, after everything I've heard from you, I believe I have some good news,” he said.
“R-Really” Kent said.
“Of course,” Monde said. “You see, these monsters are nothing more that hallucinations.”
“What?” Kent asked.
“Why don't you tell me about your past,” Monde said. “Your relationship with your parents. Past lovers. Role models. Many elements of your upbringing could influence your mind, causing you do develop various forms of psychosis.”
“No,” Kent said. “They're real! I know they are.”
“But they aren't,” Monde said. “It was an event in your past that causes you to imagine these phantoms.”
“That's not true!” Kent screamed. “They're real! I saw them! I Saw them!”
Monde sighed.
“I was hoping I wouldn't have to resort to this,” he said. “Put the Diadem on him.”
One of the other men grabbed a high tech head circlet that was hooked up to the machine by them, and tightened it around Kent's head. Monde grabbed an identical headset and put it on himself.
“What is this” Kent demanded.
“A link,” Monde said. “Between your mind and mine. You are going to stop believing these nonsensical fairy tails. One way or another.”
Holy. Fucking. Shit. He was gonna wipe Kent's memories. Brainwash him in order to suppress the knowledge of the Fears. I had to stop him. I opened the door, tazer drawn, and charged in exactly like Daniel would. Unfortunately for me, I wasn't aware of another man standing just inside the door, who stuck his leg out and tripped me on his way in. I hit the ground pretty hard, and the man who tripped me grabbed me by the arm and forced me to my feet. Monde was completely un-phased by what had happened.
“Hold on, Mr. Helioson,” he said calmly. “I'm almost done with this appointment.”
Kent began struggling, then convulsing against the table, before fainting. Monde took his circlet thing off and turned to me.
“You're gonna do the same to me, aren't you” I asked. “You're gonna make me forget the truth.”
“What truth?” Monde said, smiling. “Surely you don't believe any of the things that have occurred.”
“Fuck off,” I growled.
“You must know that Daniel has been lying to you,” he continued. “Everything was just a game he created to fool with your mind. He looks down on you.”
“No he doesn't,” I said adamantly. “I've seen enough to know it's real. Malkator, Isaac, Estren and HELLFIRE...”
“All accomplisses of Daniel's,” Monde said. He contacted them years ago to take part in this elaborate prank of his. Those superpowers you've seen were all an act.”
“As if!” I said. “You haven't see the things Daniel is capable of!”
“Cheap theatrics,” Monde said. “Anyone with the right resources could accomplish those things.”
“I watched Benjamin Malkator eat people!” I snapped. “I've had Isaac O'Zalia inside my head! Explain that!”
“Have you honestly fallen for smoke-and-mirrors?” he asked me. “Such simple deceptions? It has all been a lie.”
“You expect me to believe that Daniel's invested this much time and money into an elaborate prank like this?” I demanded.
“Is it really so hard to believe?” he said. “Didn't you two start off as enemies in middle school? It wasn't until you came to him and extended the hand of friendship that he accepted you, and even then, he never saw you as a friend. It was just a game to him. You're nothing to him but-”
He was interrupted when a loogie that may or may not have come from my mouth hit him directly in the eye. He stopped mid sentence and wiped it from his eye.
“Strap him up,” he ordered, without breaking that annoying calm of his. The man holding me began pushing me toward the machine, and the other two got Kent off the table. At this distance, I could see the company logo on the side of the machine.
“Stop it!” I demanded. “Let me go!”
“I'm sorry,” Monde said, as I was strapped to the table. “But you must learn that the Fears do not exist. We live in the best of all possible worlds. There is nothing supernatural about it.”
“All right then, you French dickhead,” said a familiar, distorted voice from the far side of the room, opposite the door. “If that's true, then explain me.”
A ghostly man stood there. He was at least thirty in appearance, with long hair that seemed to be devoid of color. And I don't mean black or white, I mean that color literally didn't exist in his hair. He was dressed in 13th Century garments, and his left eye was an orb of color-shifting light. His right eye was completely missing, replaced by a vertical, badly healed scar. The ghost of thew Ace Of Chaos, Marshall Smith, had joined us in the room. Everyone except for Monde was startled by his presence. He began walking forward, his feet remaining a few inches above the ground, and he spoke to Monde.
“Am I but an optical illusion?” he asked. “A product of prestidigitation? A seed of insanity? Light reflecting off of fog Tell me,  Meilleur Monde, what am I, and more importantly, why are you listening to me when you should be paying attention to the sorceress who just walked through the door?”
On cue, Keursio ran in and in a flash of movement and light, she knocked out all the men except for Monde, who for the first time that night displayed a look of genuine surprise. Keursio freed me from my bonds, and I immediately picked Kent's unconscious body off the floor and tried to support him underneath one of his shoulders. Keursio got his other side, and we lifted him up.
“Get out of here,” Marshall told us sternly. We didn't need telling twice. We bailed.
On the way out, I heard Monde yell “It's all a lie! Daniel can't be trusted!” at me. I ignored him and kept moving.
We got in the car and started driving, with Kent in the back seat. We drove in silence for a while before Keursio spoke up.
“You don't believe what he said about Daniel, do you” she asked.
“No, I don't,” I said.
“Because I spent 300 years in a literal hell!” she said. “The thought that anything that's happened could be some guy's idea of a prank is just plain bulls-”
“I know!” I snapped. “Daniel's my friend, and I trust him! I know Monde's lying.”
“I'm sorry,” Keursio asked. “It's just that you were so quiet. I thought he might have gotten to you.”
“No, he didn't,” I said, gripping the wheel a bit too tightly.
We stayed quiet for a minute before before I said anything else.
“You know what I find funny?” I asked.
“What?” she replied.
“Why would Dr. Welric, a scientist who's company focuses on the construction of unique weaponry, build a machine to link two people's minds together?” I said.
“What?” she asked.
“Sound's dad,” I said. “He built the Sonic Swords, and all kinds of other stuff. His company's logo was on the Panopticon's machine.”
“Really?” she asked.
“I've looked into them before,” I said. “Stirem Inc.”
“That company built the Panopticon's machine,” she said thoughtfully.
“Not to mention Dr. Welric was one of the Game Master's men,” I said. “Think there's a connection between him and the Panopticon?”
“I wouldn't rule it out,” she said.
“Neither would I.”
We got back to the hotel. I palmed the piece of chain in my pocket. I needed the feeling it gave me. We picked up Kent and carried him to the door, trying not to be seen. We opened the hotel door, and a breeze came in. I had been looking over the pictures from Drake's room on the desk, and the wind slid them around a bit before we shut the door. We lay Kent down on the bed. He's woken up since then, but hasn't spoken much to us, other then a polite thank you and some short sentences. I hoping he'll open up soon. Anyway, after setting him down, I went to straighten up the papers. That's when I noticed something.
As I mentioned, the papers are thin enough that you can almost see through them. So, if you stack two papers on top of each other, you can see what's on the bottom paper, provided the light's right. The way the wind had blown them, the numerous papers were arranged so that the lines and curves on them almost formed a symbol. I adjusted them a bit until they resembled a somewhat crude drawing of the graffiti A symbol I had snapped a photo of before. Now I knew it wasn't a coincidence.
Keursio looked over my shoulder, and took a deep gulp upon seeing the picture.
“Do you recognize this?” I asked.
“Yes,” she said. “From when I was in hell.”
“What is it” I asked, nervously.
“The symbol of Azail the Enabler,” she said weakly. “One of the ten Daemon Lords.”
The words of HELLFIRE and Myrir came back to me.
“Go to hell. Maybe they'd have an answer there.”
“Demonology. Look into it.”
It was then that I realized exactly how fucked I was. I wasn't about to jump to conclusions without more facts, but if my suspicions are right, then Drake Thorne and that kid's mother weren't kidnapped by Fears, or even servants.
They were in the hands of a motherfucking Daemon.

-Tony Helioson, signing out

Happy Birthday

So, after Abdalin and I finished getting everything ready to go a few weeks ago, I called up Kyle to let him know I was heading back into town. As soon as I told him the news, my girlfriends, Seraph, snatched the phone from him.
“Daniel!” she said. “I need you to not come back until the day after Valentine's Day!”
“You mean my birthday?” I asked.
“Yeah, we'll see you then!” she said hurriedly, then hung up on me.
“Hey Abby!” I called.
“Yeah?” he said from the other room.
“Change of plans,” I said. “We're going there on the 15th.”
“You mean your birthday?” he asked.
“Yeah,” I said. “We'll see them then.”

So, on my birthday, Abdalin and I teleported back home. After stashing a bunch of our stuff at my hideout in Temecula, We grabbed our backpacks and went to Kyle's place in Murrieta, right on schedule. There was a note on the door saying “Let yourself in, Dan.” I rolled my eyes and turned to Abdalin.
“Brace yourself,” I said.
“I am braced,” he assured me.
I opened the door, and we were greeted by several shouts of “SURPRISE!!!” I looked around.
“Lots of cake and balloons,” I commented casually. “How much did Pinkie Pie charge you guys for all this?”
Seraph walked up to me, sighing, and said “You could at least act surprised.”
“That's hard to do when you're totally expecting something,” I said.
I looked around. Kyle was there, as was JP, Jose, Luke, Alex, and Ariana. A bunch of runners Kyle had met through his drug deals. They've been hanging out with him a lot, and I've been giving them what advice I can to help them with their various Fear related problems.
Kyle walked over to me and gave me a bro-hug.
“Welcome back, man,” he said.
“Thanks,” I said. “Everybody, allow me to introduce the Black Joker, right hand man of the Game Master!”
Everyone except Kyle and Seraph stepped back in alarm. I had told them all about the Game Master, a man who had been responsible for a shitton of human suffering, basically killed one of my friends, and almost destroyed the world.
“FORMER right hand of the Game Master,” Abdalin growled, giving me a dirty look.
“Yeah, he's turned himself around,” I said, laughing. “You guys can relax.”
Everyne calmed down a bit.
“So, has anyone noticed any Fear acti-” I began, but Seraph quickly slapped a hand over my mouth to shut me up.
“Oooooooooh no!” she said. “Not today! It is your birthday and you are going to enjoy yourself!”
I moved her hand out of the way and said “But-”
“Damn it, Daniel!” she snapped. “I demand that you take a day off from your Fear bullshit and enjoy your damn birthday party!”
“Okay, okay,” I said. “I'll take a day off from my Fear bullshit.”
And so we partied until night time, and everyone started getting tired. Everyone ended up going home, except Kyle, Seraph, Abdalin, and me. Kyle went to sleep in his room. Abdalin and I took on the couches, and Seraph had a little futon-thingy set up that she slept on. I waited until Abdalin and Seraph were asleep before I got up. It was 3 a.m. I tiptoed out the front door and started walking. I hadn't even gotten to the end of the driveway when I heard Kyle's voice.
“Visiting it again, huh?” he asked.
I turned around. He was leaning on the garage door, smoking a joint.
“Hope you have your card on you,” I said. “It'd suck if the wrong people saw you smoking without it.”
He flashed his medical card at me before returning it to his pocket. He got that thing because of some knee and hip problems he inherited from his grandpa. He also has insomnia and a chlorine allergy. The guy buys Palomar water, because tap causes his skin to dry out, and he won't touch Splenda or any other chlorinated sweeteners. He's kind of a health nut, but he's still a cool guy.
“Seraph's still asleep, isn't she?” he asked.
“Yeah,” I said, leaning against the door, next to him. “You aren't gonna rat me out to her, are you?”
“She'll figured it out on her own,” he said, passing me the joint.
I took it from him and hit it. Yes, I smoked some weed. Deal with it.
“No need for me to tell her,” he said. “Besides, I understand why you gotta go.”
I handed him back the joint, which he took a puffs from before speaking again.
“Tell him I said hi,” he said.
“If I can,” I replied.
“Oh yeah, got you a present,” he said. “Not much, but here.”
He handed me a car key, and pointed to a used car at the end of the cul de sac. I'm not sure what kind of car it was. I'm not good at identifying them.
“How much was that?” I asked.
“Oh, it was a steal,” he said.
“Kyle?” I said sternly.
“Relax,” he said. “It was cheap.”
“You know I don't have a license and have little driving experience, right?” I asked.
“Then don't get caught,” he replied.

We said our goodbyes and I went to the card. Before starting it up, I looked around the dashboard and glove compartment a bit. Apparently, the car wasn't my only present, as I also found a pair of binoculars, a set of handcuffs with a key, leather gloves, a hunting knife, some road snacks, and a four-bullet derringer. The derringer was a bit surprising. I tucked it into my sock and covered it with my pant leg, and pocketed the knife. Then I started it up and pulled out into the street.
It wasn't easy at first. I haven't had any practice driving for years. I kind of gave up on trying to get my license. Mostly because it's so much work and I am very lazy. Also, with all the Fear stuff, I haven't had the time. I managed to get the hang of it (more or less) after about five minutes of driving. By that point, my phone had started ringing. I slowed down so I could pull my phone out and slide the answer thingy and then hit speaker so I could keep both hands on the wheel. I recognized the voice on the other end instantly.
“Daniel,” Myrir said. “Don't go there.”
“I'm going there,” I replied, hitting the END button. She called back a second later, and I answered.
“You're walking right into a trap!” she said.
“I know,” I replied, hanging up a second time. She called again, but this time I ignored it.
I arrived at my destination and got out of the car. Before me stood an old church. It had seen battle, having a great deal of its windows shattered and most of the roof broken into pieces that littered the interior and the surrounding grass. From what I could see of the inside through the broken door and windows, it looked like the interior had suffered some damage from the weather. I stood outside the front doors for a long while. This is where it all started. Five years ago, a good friend of mine, Justin Ferin, joined the Timberwolves. He didn't know that they were servants of the Archangel at the time. Neither did I. We thought they were just some gang. I tried to talk him out of it. Told him he was being an idiot. We ended up having a fight. No real winner, we kind of just got pissed at each other after a few punches and went our separate ways. Not long after that, he was shot and killed by a group of unknown men, who I later learned were Slender Proxies. Right here at this church. According to the news, there were three other bodies with him, identified as Terrance McCleary, Ciel Potomac, and Gregory Garland. All four of their bodies had smiles when they were found there. Which sounds odd, thinking about it. Justin told me himself that their deaths had been unpleasant.
So, that obviously wasn't the last I saw of Justin. The Archangel claimed his soul, and used him as a vessel to interact with me. Pissed me the fuck off. I ended up fighting the Archangel here. It was the first time my powers came to the surface. Also the first time my sword burst into flames. Anyway, I pulled a miraculous victory over the Archangel, and unintentionally stole Justin's soul from him. After that, Justin lived in my subconscious. We patched things up, and eventually I took more of the Archangel's souls, so I guess he has company now. Unfortunately, since I lost my powers, I can't talk to him any more. Which sucks...

I knelt down, and started talking to Justin. I don't think he can hear me any more, but I don't care. I always feel like if I'm here, at this church, I can still be near him.
“Hey, man,” I said. “Been a while.”
Silence.
“I hope you're doing well,” I said. “I'm okay, I guess. Still trying to give the Fears hell. It isn't easy, though.”
More silence.
“I wish I could still talk to you,” I whispered. “I mean, you helped me a lot. I think some of this would be easier if-”

I stopped talking and threw my body to the ground. A trio of metal things attached to cords went wizzing over me and hit the ground. I rolled over and rose to my feet, stomping on the cords so they couldn't move. A teenage kid was standing not far off. The metal cord things were attached to a device strapped around his left wrist. He had an identical one on his right arm, but the cords were fully retracted, and three wolverine-like claws extended from it. I turned slightly to look at the metal objects attached to the cords I was standing on. More claws.
“You know, you're less surprising then the party,” I said turning back to him.
Now that I was really paying attention to him, I could see a very large coat laying on the ground behind him, and several pieces of tech were clipped to his person, including a speaker system at the front of his belt. He raised his right arm and fired the rest of his projectile claws at me. I threw myself to the ground and performed a roll, coming back up in front of him. I heard a whirring sound, and the cords retracted, pulling the claws back into their wrist mounted places. Before he could jabbed me with them, I summoned my sword to me and rammed the end of the hilt into his Adam's apple. He stumbled back a bit, and I swung my sheathed sword at his head. One of his armored forearms came up to block it, and he swiped his other claw at me. I drew my sword a few inches from its sheath to block, then I caught him with a surprise kick to the solar plexus, forcing him away from me.
“Wolverine claws “I asked. “Really? You can at least try to be original.”
He glared at me, and then I heard this weird humming noise coming from his claws. I could see the hair on his arms start to become rigid. Electric Wolverine claws. Well okay then...
He charged at me, swinging the claws, I kept my sword sheathed and used it to deflect his attacks. He was an okay fighter, but all that machinery he had one wasn't doing much to improve his speed. I managed to get behind him and slammed the hilt of my sword into the back of his skull. E went down, but not quite out yet.
“So who are you?” I demanded, stepping on his lower back so he wouldn't so anywhere.
A scratchy sound came from his belt, and then a distorted voice spoke from it.
“I am Mute,” it said. Okay, guess this guy speaks through his belt. Weird.
Then he plugged his ears with his fingers. I saw what he was doing and threw my hands over my ears, dropping my sword in the process. I wasn't quite fast enough. His belt emitted a deafening feedback sound, giving me a headache. I stumbled a little bit as I tried to protect my fragile ears. That gave him the chance he needed to roll over, kicking my legs out as he did. I fell down, and he got on top of me quickly. He pulled back his forearms, preparing to drive his electrified claws into my chest. Be fore he could, I wrapped the edge of my coat around my right hand and summoned my sword to it, smacking his left elbow with the sheath as I did. That startled him a bit, and I drew the sword quickly, knowing that my next move was gonna suck. He turned his attention back to me. He swiped one claw at me, and I angled my sword to catch the attack. As I did, a spark ran along my sword. Fortunately, the coat I was holding and the swords wooden hilt stopped me from being electrocuted to death, but I still got some heavy tingles from it. I focused and angled the tip of the sword a bit, so that it touched the exposed flesh of his upper arm. I jumped back, as he was hit with this own voltage. Not enough to do any lasting damage, but it stunned him.
I threw him off of me and got up. I drew my concealed gun from my waistband and aimed at him. Once he stopped convulsing, he saw my gun and froze, obviously smart enough to not attack me again.

“Nice one,” I heard from a few feet behind me. “For a second there I was worried I'd have to intervene.
“I had everything under control, Valerie,” I said.
“Not from where I'm standing,” she said.
I turned around. Valerie, a.k.a. Wildfire, was standing there. She's a woman, bout my age, with ling blue hair and pink irises. She was dressed in a purple hoody and jeans, and I could see that she had her left-handed claw gauntlet on. She's a former Emissary of the Game Master, but she's on our side now. I teamed up with her back in... June of last year, I think I don't remember. But we're friend. I guess.
“So, what brings you here?” I asked.
“Got a tip you were about to get in a fight at the church,” she said.
“Myrir?” I asked.
“Myrir,” she confirmed.
I had a funny feeling. A feeling I get a lot when Myrir comes up in conversation. I'm not sure what it is though.
“Well, you can tell her I can take care of myself,” I said. “I'm a big boy.”
“I know,” she said. “I don't care what she says to be honest. I just came cuz I wanted to tell you something.”
“Oh really?” I asked.
“There's something going on with the High Blood,” she said. “They're planning something. I don't know what it is exactly, but they need some kind of weird book to pull it off.”
“What book?” I asked.
“I don't know what it is exactly,” she said. “They call it Bleeding Crest, and I think that...”
He hesitated.
“What?” I asked.
“I think the Game Master knew about it,” she said.
“So, it'd be where ever he used to keep his books?” I asked.
“Unless the remaining Aces moved them, yeah,” she said.
“Great,” I said. “I'll look into that. Marshall might have some ideas, but contacting that guy is a pain in the ass.”
“What about ParaDan?” she asked.
“If he ever answers any of my calls, I'll ask him,” I said. “But I ain't getting my hopes up.”
Without warning, I kicked Mute in the face, knocking him out.
“What was that for?” Wildfire asked.
“I'm heading back to Kyle's,” I said. “Don't want him tailing me.”
“If you see Kallaway-” she began.
“Tell him you said hi,” I finished for her. “I know. Later.”
Then I went back. Seraph woke up before I got back and chewed me out for leaving, but she understands the whole “Visiting and old friend's grave” thing, so we're still good. I'm gonna wrap this up here.

Happy Valentin's Day

I crept along the dark, rounded hallway, keeping to the shadows so that the occasional floating eyeball sentries might not notice my presence. The walls were all brick, with mold and blood staining them at different points. There was noise behind each door I passed. Screams of torment, moans of sadistic pleasure, the whirring of various tools, animalistic growls and hisses. The Screaming Tower is never a pleasant place to visit.
From the outside, it looks similar to the Temen-Ni-Gru from Devil May Cry three. But the inside is much more complex than the level designers team at Capcom could possibly imagine. I peeked into a room briefly to see if it was occupied. Upon confirming it to be empty, I slipped inside and pulled out the map Marshall hand given me. He had already told me not to rely on it too much, as the rooms and corridors of the tower occasionally shifted and rotated, but it was a useful reference.
After studying it for a few minutes, I left the room and continued down the hallway. After a while, I found what I had been looking for; a stairway. I began ascending it. It was long and round, and after several minutes I stepped off onto a new floor. I consulted the map again briefly before continuing. If the map was right, I was still two floors below my goal, and the best was up was a stone ladder on the outside, next to a balcony. I kept moving, turning down a different hallway after a minute, then turning down another own a couple minutes after that. I was the doorway to the outside a few yards away and approached it.
I stepped out onto a short balcony overlooking a maze of plants. Different kinds of bizarre plant-life grew in that garden, ranging from bushes that repeatedly retracted and extended their thorns, to oversized, mutated fly-traps, to giant flowers that dripped acid and venom from their drooping petals. I felt a surge of sympathy for the poor men and women I saw wandering around in it, with chains tied to their ankles, dragging large balls of steel behind them. Most of them looked starved. All of them looked tired.
I shook my head an began looking for the stone ladder. I had a goal to focus on. Mercy could come later.
I found the ladder. Or, what the map described as a ladder. Several feet from the right edge of the balcony was a curved wall of stone, broken off around the edges, that looked like it had been glued to the outside of the tower. It stretched up several stories above me, and looking up, I could see the balcony above that I was supposed to reach. Looking back at the wall, I could see that it was covered in bulky rocks, much like a practice rock climbing wall.
On any other day, I could phase into the Godsway and reach the wall effortlessly. But I'd had enough trouble entering this realm without the Wooden Girl noticing me. If I went and used my Devil Killer powers here, in her domain, she had ways of sensing it, and she would find me almost immediately. The only way to reach it was to jump. I gulped. I'm an unaging, super-powered fencing master from the future. But there are still moments when I fear for my life. Especially with the disturbing forest of death and madness beneath me.
I took a few steps backwards, then ran forward and launched myself off the edge. I reached out, and just barely wrapped a hand around one of the jutting rocks. I hung there for a moment or two, catching my breath and giving the adrenaline some time to settle. Then I realized it wasn't a rock I was holding. IT wasn't quite hard enough, and there were patches of soft, wet material clinging to it. I took a deep breath and looked, then I came very close to emptying my stomach. I now knew for sure it wasn't a rock. Embedded in the wall of stone was a skull, of some kind of large feline. It was fresh, too. Bit of muscle were still attached at points, and it still had an eye in one of the sockets. Through the other socket, I could see there were still scraps of decaying gray-matter on the inside. I struggled to keep hold and keep my lunch simultaneously as I looked up. It wasn't just this rock. It was all of them. Skulls of various animals, even people, and been worked into the wall as makeshift hand and foot holds. The Wooden Girl has a sick taste in exterior design.
I pulled myself together and started climbing. I kept my eye on my destination above. Reaching it wouldn't be easy, and of course, the tower decided to make it harder. The chunk of wall I was clinging to detached itself from the side of the tower and began floating upward, and away from my target. I passed above it, but I was too far to the side now, and getting farther. I let go and drew my sword. The chunk of wall moved away, and I stabbed the blade of my rapier into the outside of the tower, barely stopping my fall. I was in one place now, but I was too far away from where I was headed now.
I suddenly heard a shriek of surprise from the other side of the wall. Someone had taken notice of the tip of my sword from the other end. I heard another shriek from behing me, and I turned to see one of the Tower's flying guardians soaring nearby, watching me. It shrieked again, and was answered by another creature higher above, then by more creatures in every direction. So much for stealth... Now she definitely knew I was here.
Which meant hiding my powers was pointless now.
I pulled my sword out of the wall and flung myself at the distant flying creature. It began flying at me, as if accepting my challenge. My body changed, becoming semi-corporeal, stuck somewhere between fluid mass and pure energy. Gravity ceased pulling me, and I simply soared in a straight line at the thing in front of me. It noticed the change in my being a few seconds too late; it was too late for either of us to change our flight path and avoid the other. I melted through it, passing through its skin and infecting it. I melded with its nervous system, and entered the depths of its mind. I could feel its madness, its instability, its desire to serve its master. I could feel its will, and I forced myself against it. As a being made to serve, it didn't have the strength to fight back against me. Its will was pushed to the back. I was in control.
I guided the creatures body toward the opening I had been trying to reach via the ladder, and crash landed on the floor, unintentionally breaking its neck in the process. I was ejected from the body, and rolled across the floor painfully as I became solid again. I rose to my feet. My body resisted. I felt fatigued, and weariness took hold of my mind. I shook myself awake and began moving. This was a terrible place to pass out.
I hadn't gotten very far down the hallway when a group of people stood in my path. They were visibly in pain. Their mouths were sewn shut by Her strings. Their eyelids had been stretched open, the top ones sewn into their brows, and their bottom ones sewn into their cheekbones. I couldn't see it, but I could easily imagine the threads running through their bodies, pierced into their muscles and bones, forcing their bodies to move as she wanted, whether they liked it or not. Puppets. The unwilling servants of the Wooden Girl. And they were lined up to stop me.
I raised the blade of my sword to my lips and whispered to it.
“Blade of darkness, deliver mercy to the wicked,” I spoke.
Then I charged. Every Puppet that came near me had their life ended abruptly. I slashed throats, pierced hearts, impaled organs and opened intestinal tracts. IT only took a minute for me to kill them all and get to the other side of their gathering. Killing them wouldn't stop them, of course. Even in death, the Wooden Girl still had control over their bodies. But I had accomplished two things. First, I had saved them from another moment of their suffering. Two, I had moved past them. Now I just needed to outrun their lifeless bodies.
I kept moving. I didn't have time to check the map. Instead, I decided to check behind every door I passed as quickly as I could. I'd need help with that.
“Shadow!” I commanded.
My shadow rose from the ground beside me, taking an almost solid form, gliding an inch or two above the stone and moss floor.
“Open!” I ordered it.
It flew ahead of me, twisting all the doorknobs and flinging them open faster than I ever could. As I passed each one, I glanced inside, for a couple seconds each, to see if I could find my target. At the 14th door, I stopped. It wasn't what I saw on the inside, but what I could feel. I stepped inside. In the center of the pentagon shaped room was a table. The legs were made from human bones and strips of muscular tissue, bound together with countless strings, and the table top was made of broken pieces of wood, glued together with what appeared to be coagulated blood. Sitting on the morbid table was a chipped wooden music box, with faded carvings depicting some kind of olden fairy tale I was unfamiliar with. There were words along the lid, written in what I think was French, or maybe a similar language. I opened it up, and the rusty gears began moving, producing a soft tune, that might have sounded beautiful when the box was new, but in its old age, the melody had grown scratchier, and distorted, do to the poor conditions of the internal mechanism.
This is what I had come for. The next piece Marshall had sent me to find. This makes 8.
I felt a presence behind me immediately after I shut the lid on the box, and the door slammed. I could feel the eldritch power of a Fear. I gripped my sword and spun around, expecting the Wooden Girl to be right there.
“You!” I exclaimed, upon seeing who had arrived.
An old man stood before the shut door. His clothes were old and musty, but still seemed to have some antique charm about them. His hair was thin, and clunk tight to his wrinkled scalp, and a pair of dark glasses concealed his eyes, or lack thereof. In his gnarled hands he held an old, decrepit book. His withered lipped curled into a gentle smile.
“Paradox,” he said.
“What do you want” I demanded, lowering my sword a few inches.
Now, don't get me wrong. I hate the Fears. The Blind Man is no exception. It's just that... well, in my timeline, he was important. He has a purpose, and I don't want to finish him until its been fulfilled. But if he crosses any lines, I won't hesitate to kill him with the others, purpose or no purpose.
“I've been made away of what you and the Chaos are up to,” the Blind Man said.
“What of it?” I demanded.
“It is a foolish idea which will likely end in the deaths of you and countless innocents,” he said. “That being said, I can tell you exactly where the next piece is.”
He told me before I had a chance to question him on it. Then he turned and opened the door.
“Why would you tell me if you have such a dismal idea of how it will end?” I asked.
“Because a certain mortal may balance the scale,” he said. “Oh, and you'd best leave before She sends more puppets.”
“What about-” I stopped myself before finishing the sentence.
I was gonna say “What about the Puppets she already sent?”, but then I became away of another presence on the floor. Someone powerful, wreaking havoc further down the hall.
“The Fury is here?” I asked.
“Don't get in his way,” the Blind Man said nonchalantly. “He's in what Martyr Beta refers to as 'the Zone'.”
With that, the Blind Man vanished. I stepped out into the hall. I briefly considered going to confront the Fury, but I didn't. It wasn't his time, and it wasn't my duty. The Fury was someone else's to deal with. IT would have to wait.
I stepped out onto another balcony, overlooking the maze of terrible plants, with its numerous victims wandering endlessly in it. I fought back a few tears and raised a hand toward the ground below me.
“Who will find more peace in Hell,” I said, and orange flames accumulated in my palm, “then in this nightmare she has created for you.”
With that, I unleashed the inferno and set the garden ablaze. The plants went up in flames rapidly, far faster than ordinary foliage would ignite. Screams echoed beneath me, and I turned away from in, feeling sick. I stepped through the Godsway and reappeared in my hideout, dropping the music box amongst the other pieces I had gathered. I crashed on the torn mattress and closed my eyes, trying to stamp the images and sounds of death out of my head. It wasn't easy.
It never is.

The Chain

I picked up my phone and started making calls. First was Estren.
“Sup?” he asked me.
“Hey,” I said. “I was wondering if you could help me with something.”
“What is it?” he asked.
“I have this piece of chain, and I was hoping you could help me identify it,” I said.
“Seriously?” HELLFIRE asked, taking over. “That's why you're calling?”
“It's not normal,” I said. “It's made of some kind of gold mixed with red, and it gives me this weird feeling.”
“So what?” HELLFIRE asked.
“So, figuring out what it is might help me find someone I'm looking for.”
“Go to hell,” HELLFIRE said. “Maybe they'd have an answer there.”
Then he hung up. No help there...
I called up David Kallaway next. Asked the same question.
“I dunno,” he said. “Sound like a piece of jewelry to me. You sure it's special?”
“I'm not sure,” I said. “There's something about it I can't put my finger on.”
“Well, I'm afraid I can't help,” he replied. “Sorry.”
“It's fine,” I said.
We hung up, and I tried calling the Black Crow. I got a lot of people's numbers off of Daniel's old phone. He didn't answer, so I just left a message asking him to call me back. I called up Daniel and Kyle too, but they didn't know anything about the chain either, and Abdalin wouldn't say anything. I'm not sure if he didn't know, or was just hiding what he did know. I tried Isaac next.
“Hello?” he asked.
“Hey,” I said.
“Tony!” He said. “What can I do you for”
“You're a smart guy,” I said. “I was hoping you could help me with something.”
“K,” he said.
I described the chain to him.
“Hmm... I dunno,” he said. “Maybe the chain that bound Prometheus?”
“I don't think so,” I said. “Even gods couldn't break those chains, and this one I've got has definitely seen some damage.”
“Maybe the ones used on Fenrir?” he suggested. “Or some other significant mythical prisoner? I dunno. I've always been better with science and math than history.”
“Right,” I said. “Think it might be connected to a Fear, or maybe another layer of reality?”
“The Brute, maybe?” he said. “Fetters of Ferratis and all that jazz?”
“Idon't think so,” I said. “The Brute's the Fear of war and a creator of conflict. I'd think something connected to it would be... a bit more violent, I guess.”
“What do you mean by that?” he asked.
“Well, when I hold these chains, I don't really feel anger or anything,” I said. “I kind of feel... peace, I guess. Doesn't seem like something Brute related to me.”
“Good point,” he said. “Hold on, let me ask around.”
He started talking with the runners he helps about the chains, and if they might know anything. After maybe twenty minutes, he put someone else on.
“Um, you're Tony Helioson, right?” Said the voice of a young boy, maybe 8 or 9 years old.
“Yeah,” I said. “What's your name?”
“It's Gray Nicholas,” he said.
“Do you know something about the chains?” I asked.
“I found one like it before Isaac picked me up,” Gray said.
I sat up.
“You did?” I asked. “Where?”
“It was in Hearmein Kentucky,” he said. “Underneath a table in a McDonalds. I picked it up because I thought it looked cool. I like it. It makes me happy when I hold it.”
No doubt about it. These were the same type of chains.
“Did you see anything else near the chain?” I asked. “Anything unusual?”
“I don't remember,” he said. “But there was some graffiti on the table.”
Some of the Fears had their own symbols. It was a shot in the dark, but I decided to asked.
“Were there any unusual symbols there?” I asked.
“There was one,” he said. “It was hard to make out though. Kind of like a big A. I can't describe it really.”
I sighed.
“Well, thanks kid,” I said. “It's something to go on, at least.”
“Um, you're a detective, right?” he asked.
“Yeah,” I said.
“And you find people?” he asked.
“I try to,” I said.
“Do you think you could find my mommy?” he asked.
Damn it. Damn it damn it damn it! Why do frightened children always hit my weak points!?
“I can try,” I said. Damn kid sounded too sad and scared to say no too. “Can you give me a description?”
I put the phone on speaker so I could jot down what he said about her. Blonde hair, just past her shoulders, baby blue eyes, slightly overweight, liked to wear green and red. I'm a little surprised a kid could give a description like that, but I'd bet Isaac used his telepathy to jog the kid's memory or something.
“And where's the last place you saw her?” I asked.
“It was in Hearmein, a couple weeks before I found the chain,” he said. “She left for work and never came home.”
“Where does she work there?” I asked.
“At the Sam's Club,” he said.
Damn. I need to get a membership if I wanna investigate properly...
“I'll see what I can do,” I said. “One last question. What is it you're running from?”
He was silent for a while. I heard Isaac say something, maybe giving some kind of encouragement. Then, after a little while, the kid spoke.
“A bunch of people,” he said.
“Can you tell me anything about them?” I asked.
“They're really creepy,” he said. “They talk weird, like their all the same person. And they're always wet.”
Crapbaskets.
“Do they call themselves anything?” I asked.
“They said they're the Camper,” he said.
EAT. The Fear of obsession. A being that possesses people who ingest its water-like ink. They gradually become part of its hyper intelligent hivemind, the Camper. It's fond of evolution, and is constantly trying to improve upon humanity through its servant.
“I'll do what I can,” I promised, before he handed the phone back to Isaac.
“You're really gonna look into it?” he asked.
“I have to go to Tennessee soon anyway,” I said. “It's nearby.
“Be careful,” Isaac said. “For all we know, his mother could already be-”
“Don't,” I said, silencing him. “I get the picture. But it's still worth checking out.”
“You be careful,” he said.
“You too,” I replied.
We hung up. I still had some time before Keursio came over. I slumped back in my chair and began fiddling with the bit of chain. I sighed. I couldn't think of anyone else to call. I tried to relax a bit. I put up my feet, but I lost my balance and the chair almost fell over. I steadied myself, and in doing so, I managed to knock the phone over. It hit the ground with a loud noise. I sighed, and picked it up. I put it up to my ear to hear the dial tone and make sure it still worked. The annoying sound of the tone filled my ears.
My eyes widened.
Annoying sound.
I reached into my desk drawer and pulled out my phone book. I shuffled through it, and found a number I had written down, but never had any intention of ever calling. Now seemed like the time to.
I punched in the numbers and waited for the response. It came. A voice answered.
“Who isssssssssss thissssss?” it hissed, drawing out the S sound way to much. It was really raspy, like Gollum with a throat cold.
“Hi, Jerome Welric,” I said. “This is Tony Helioson.”
“Oh, it'ssssss you...,” he rasped.
Jerome Welric, better known as Sound, is a servant of the Slender Man. He's also a mutant bat person, with wings and claws and shit. He weilds an arsenal of dangerous, sound based weapons. He's the one Daniel got his Sonic Sword from. And as a Slenderproxy, he's not the kind of person I would normally try and get help from. But who else could I ask right now?
“I need to know if you can help me identify something,” I said.
Once more, I described the chain. He let out a weary sigh from the other side.
“Sssssssssssssssstop wassssting my time,” he said, and hung up.
I slammed the receiver down, ticked. Jerk...
It rang a few seconds later. I picked it up.
“Who's this?” I asked.
“My name is-,” said a female voice on the other end, but I cut her off.
“Myrir Serena,” I said.
She was an ex-Archivist, and a current Slenderproxy. She also used to be Benjamin Malkator's mentor, and lover. She's the reason Ben's son, Little Isaac, exists.
“What do you want?” I asked.
“I heard what you said to Jerome,” she said. “I have a word of advice I'm willing to trade to you.”
“What do you want for it?” I asked.
“Daniel Ferris's new phone number.”
“Call me back in five minutes,” I said. “I'll tell you if we have a deal then.”
Daniel had gotten a new phone over his year long absence from the blogosphere. I'm one of the few people who knows his new number. I called him up and explained the situation.
“Fuck it,” he said. “Give it to her. I don't care.”
“Alright,” I said. “I'm expecting her to call back soon. I'll talk to you later.”
“Sure thing,” he said.
She called back on schedule. I gave her the number.
“So,” I said, “What's this advice you have for me?”
“Demonology,” she said. “Look into it.”
Then she hung up. Great. Real helpful. Bitchface...
Anyway, Keursio should be here so, so I'd better go. We'll be leaving for the Panopticon base in Tennessee soon. Honestly, I think they could have picked a better State. I fuckin hate traveling...

-Tony Helioson, signing out.