“At least spill the beans—what was Cal’s moment she totally ‘Calypso’d’--?”

“I literally reach into the depths of my black heart—and you spit in my face—” Calypso squinted, unassumed with Sal, as the latter chuckled lowly.

“You’re probably familiar…” Natalie gestured towards Sal. “Makes a smug statement—cue karma rushing in like a freight train—and Gale of all people calls her out. Out of respect for our friendship and—well, my ribcage since she’s right next to me—I’ll keep it as vague as that~”

Calypso squinted at Natalie. The squints that defined their previous, heated relationship—as Gale giggled in the background.

“You, like…” Gale waved her head, Calypso could see her trying to find the words. “Joked about it, but I’d be soooo down for Truth or Dare. I’ll get to find out so many things about her from you. Maybe the source of all that meanie energy so I can make it better—"

“Cal is the most saddest mean girl I’ve ever met~” Sal smirked as she finished the line.

“And yet I haven’t made fun or put any of you on trial how you are right now--!” Calypso couldn’t help but whine undignified.

“So mean—”

“You’re meaner! You used to yell and pick fights with people--!”

“So meeeeeeean~! And yet I never judged nobody like ya’ do,” Sal purred practically, toying with her prey. “I never judged nobody havin’ a phone--!”

“OH MY GOD!” Gale raised her hands into the air, before directing them towards Sal. "Please, we only just met and all, but surely you have the backstory for that, right--?!”

“Wait hold the phone—” Natalie then dope slapped herself for the pun. “—But you—Cal, you’re telling me you don’t have a phone--?”

“Look you vultures—” Calypso was exasperated, clutching her head in semi-genuine, but put-upon disbelief that this was happening. “Just give me the floor for TEN SECONDS!”

“I’m countin’ in my head~” Sal chirped, putting her hands behind her head.

Calypso looked about, as the trio stared back, before sighing.

“I just—truly an advancement of technology, has made our society more connected, legitimate tool… But I’m just. Waiting for the pop culture zeal to die down at the very least, so they can be not just commonplace, but BORING. Something that just works and I don’t have to use it as some status symbol--!”

“Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrriiiing~”

“sally, I’m gonna strangle you—” Calypso dejectedly said, knowing that she still wins regardless.

“Why wait until they’re boring, Cal?!” Gale earnestly argued, even that was still goodhearted. “Especially when there’s an iPhone now! A-and like, it’s gonna get to a point where you can put music on that too--!”

“I just need the thing to call people, Gale!” Calypso waved her arms about. “No futurist touchpads and 'apps'—the only way I’d be remotely interested is if they put entire books on there—and the kind of books I read, which I assure you, will never happen—!”

Sal was just evilly chuckling away, now arms crossed with her head thrown back to highlight the bombastic nature of it.

Calypso turned to Natalie, who had her entire face leaned into her palm, before snapping back.

“Look—” she casually dug into her pocket, pulling out a phone—a small, flat one at that. Coated in black with red trimming that even extended to the keyboard. “You’re the new owner of Natalie’s Spare Phone Pocket… Wonder Emporium—”

“Woah!” Sal corrected herself, looking at Natalie. “I know yer daddy’s the rental car owner, but ya’ got yerself two phones like that?”

“Hey. I’m a vapid teenage girl—I rightfully begged for this second phone and I’ll beg again claiming that I lost it but hey don’t can the plan and stuff—this isn’t totally sketchy or anything—and neither is the fact I wanted a second phone to begin with, no I don’t want you to use your phone to call the police over—I won't tell you where the bodies are—”

Calypso burst into laughter. Despite it being short and concise, it brought a smile to her face.

“Yep,” Sal gave an unimpressed look, but her bemused smile offset the negative connotations. “I thought ya’ were pretty levelheaded an’ responsible—now I know why ya’ friends with Cally.”

Sal proceeded to point at Gale, “I like you way more than I already have: you keep these knuckleheads honest~”

Gale sheepishly laughed, while rubbing the back of her neck. “I’m just a gal~ If anything, they make me… Not useless. But they can only help but so much with that—"

“Ah-ah-ah. None of that—yer the only light in here an’ I won’t let ya’ blow yerself out. In fact, we promise to trade style secrets, yeah~?”

Gale proceeded to squee while clapping her hands.

“And on that note…” Natalie quickly threw an arm around Calypso, smiling wearily. “I’m gonna show her how the devil machine isn’t gonna steal her soul—that and showing her the number and stuff.”

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

“Doin’ God’s work, Ms. Noel,” Sal saluted before turning her full attention to Gale.

Natalie quickly snapped back to her spot again, tossing Calypso the second phone as she pulled out her main one.

Somehow, her typing was faster than her talking speed—hitting the last key in the space of Calypso blinking at her in confusion four times.

The phone buzzed in Calypso’s small palm, pressing the buttons to view the text message.

There’s no way Cassie died in that right?

Calypso wanted to take Natalie by the shoulders and kiss her cheek. She was such an evil genius in stealth and common sense.

Calypso hunched over to chip away at her new phone. Trying to withhold the sigh, which admittedly added to the bit that Natalie set up. But eventually, she send her response. Thus, began their thread.

No way. It’s practically impossible. But the way the Subsumed screamed is very suspect.

Maybe sympathy pain for not reaching the deadline? At their new leader failing?

Wow you type how you talk it’s kind of amazing

But to the matter @ hand maybe? It just seems too easy for me

It is. But I can’t really rack my brain at what it could possibly be.

Has she ever talked with you about the plan?

I was basically a contractor all but in name, dude

She found me in the woods when I was desperate and had to do my thang of being a bitch to survive and all that

She seems to have a habit of doing that…

Finding Consumed and/or Subsumed to do her bidding, I mean.

Regardless, if Scarecrow boy is right, the Fates or whatever aren’t happy with her fucking up

so maybe

Fate said “anyone that was in league with her, you’re done”?

True… But she would never take that lying down.

Like you said. It’s too easy and we all feel the dread.

Somethin

Calypso couldn’t complete the text, because her body was suddenly on fire.

Dropping the phone into her lap, she hugged herself. Did a quick glance at the window, to see the night has finally settled in.

She clutched her gemstone. Doing what Moses instructed… Feeling the pain—despite not having much choice in the matter… And channeling it into the gem.

And after those agonized seconds, the flames began to dissipate. Calypso could feel the ache being raked away, down into her arm, and her gemstone oddly heavier.

Now that she had the ability to move again, she looked toward Gale and Natalie. Gale of course tried to laugh it away, holding her necklace that hung in front of her, while Natalie lifted her face from her hands, wearing her trademark goggles… Which, one of the lenses was brighter than the other.

“…The hell happened to y’all?”

Calypso turned to Sal. All that relief from the heaviness she just thrown away, not only returned but added 20 more years to her face.

The skeletal monster girl looked downwards. “Still get occasional aches and pains… And it’s uh. Most of it at least is born from our sick minds. That’s right, I found other people that are just as mentally compromised as I am. I’m sure it all makes further sense now, I guess…”

Sal pulled Calypso into a one-armed hug, “Jesus, Cal… Ya’ been in not one, but TWO terrible events in ya’ like. Three, really. I-I know I’m hard an’ make fun of ya’… But that’s only because ya’ need some fire in ya’ life. Ta’ remind yerself that hey, yer allowed to laugh an’ be mad an’—be alive. It ain’t a sin fer ya’ to be alive…”

It was Calypso’s turn to take her pause. Crushed under the greatness of her family.

“An’ that goes for y’all too!” Sal pointed at both Gale and Natalie. “Ya’ look after her, meanin’ I look after y’all! Them’s the breaks an’ the rules!”

“We wouldn’t have it any other way!” Gale chirped, opening an eye she had closed due to the pain.

Sal laughed heartily, squeezing Calypso tight, as the latter silently remarked upon her. Seemingly able to push through and summon the energy she needed at the moment, despite being the one that has a “darkness infection”. Able to push through anything…

What was stopping Calypso from having a heart-to-heart? To ask her cousin herself, to get a conversation going—to stall as she not only keeps her transformation at bay, but gain a new way to hold it back?

It was only her. All she had to do was… For once in her life, to be honest.

But she felt Sal let go of her.

“…By God,” Sal said. “W-what’s all that…?”

Calypso turned her head towards the open, for her eyes to widen at the sight.

Crimson, dark, and blood-red archaic “words” brewed within the dark skies like lightning.

The skeletal monster girl’s heart fell into her gut once she remembered where she saw the phenomenon the first time.

Then the runes began to swirl above Willow Reverie. Turning into a maelstrom of building energy, before the terrifying shape broke apart, with the runes arching across the town, raining down with bolts.

Calypso only had a few seconds to force Sal onto the ground, as one of the arches propelled itself straight onto the roof.

The duo fell onto the floor, Calypso breathing a quick sigh of relief as she heard an “eep!” after a series of two thuds.

But she couldn’t stew in the relief for long. With a burning flash, she watched the entire attic transform. The paint molded and rotted away. The wood swelled with infection and splintered due to the weight of such. The already snug space bent in such a way to increase the limited space, as the sheets turned a deep yellow as if decades have passed.

“W…What’s—What on God’s green Earth…?” Sal sounded so shaken. So lost.

Only for impish cackling to answer her.

The long, deep shadows from the corners slid out before the girls. Writhing, tensing, taking shape before becoming vague silhouettes of what could be generously called humanoid. Four of them, surrounded the girls.

They broke their heads apart to smile wickedly.

“Finally finally finally!” one of the Subsumed chirped.

“No more pointless talk!” the other finished the previous thoughts.

“We get what we came for! Violence! Violence and flesh!” another spoke out.

Sal hugged Calypso. She could barely hold her, due to the trembling she was doing.

“I’m gonn—” Sal tried to swallow as she leaned in. “We’re gonna make a break for it, get the hell outta here. I’m gonna make sure y’all get out of here. Ya’ here me, Cal? Cally--?”

It was too late.

It was just too late.

Calypso yanked herself away with speeds and strength her cousin could barely imagine her performing. But was overwhelmed with so much pain, she could crawl away a few feet on her hands and knees, before the bones exploded from her frame.

Screaming. Tearfully screaming. But the screeches from the gemstone drowned her out over time.

That meek frame became fuller, and vicious. Muscles tore themselves apart, only to reform much thicker than before. Her spine not only shot out of her back but forced her to keep growing until it was done morphing. The spikes that were erected from said pulsating flesh connected to form armor that highlighted how monstrous and drastic this change was. Short, neat brown hair became a wild magenta mane and pasty skin became rose pink.

Calypso as Sal Grimes knew her was no more, as she radiated steam while she breathed heavily.

All Calypso could do at that moment, was look back at her with crimson tears streaming down her mournful face.

But looked back… Was a thousand-yard stare. Paired with a misshapen smile, mouth agape, with a brow that was formed in fear.

The unbreakable Sally was finally undone.

Calypso just hung her head forward, shaking it with such a bitter, coarse chuckle.

“You fucks couldn’t let me be happy…” the monster growled from the base of her soul. Not talking about the dead Subsumed before her.