The sun cast a warm glow over the Waterloo campus as Zack returned from winter break, his breath visible in the crisp air. He couldn't help but smile at the familiar sight of the dormitory building where he and Rob shared a room. As he approached the entrance, the door swung open to reveal Rob's grinning face.
"Zack! You're back!" Rob exclaimed, pulling him into a friendly embrace.
"Good to see you too, buddy," Zack replied, returning the gesture. They made their way up the stairs and into their room, their conversation filled with laughter as they recounted their uneventful holidays.
"Can you believe it? The whole break without anything supernatural happening," Zack said, flopping onto his bed. "I'm excited for things to stay normal this semester."
"Speak for yourself," Rob retorted, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "I wouldn't mind some supernatural shenanigans. You never know, maybe Gluttony left behind some unfinished business with those vessels he turned last semester."
"Ethel said she would take care of that," Zack reminded him, his tone firm. "We've got enough on our plate."
"Fine, fine," Rob conceded, holding up his hands in mock surrender.
Meanwhile, Boon unlocked the door to his private dorm, his thoughts consumed by the events of the previous semester. He knew that he had power now, he could feel it coursing through his veins.
"Alright," he muttered under his breath, eyeing the bed before him. "Let's see if I've got super strength." He bent down, his fingers curling around the frame, and strained to lift the bed. To his frustration, it didn't budge an inch.
"Damn it," Boon growled, kicking the unyielding bedpost. The sting in his foot only served to amplify his irritation.
"Come on," he whispered to himself. "There has to be something I can do."
-----
Back in Zack and Rob's room, the conversation shifted towards their upcoming classes. "Let's just focus on our studies for now," Zack suggested, trying to reassure himself as much as Rob. "If something comes up, we'll deal with it together."
"Agreed," Rob nodded, but the lingering curiosity in his eyes betrayed his true thoughts.
Zack sat at his desk, the dim light of the lamp casting a warm glow over his class schedule. He traced his finger along the list of courses, trying to focus on the details of the semester ahead. But as his gaze unfocused, the memory of a conversation from winter break resurfaced in his mind.
"Jessica, please," Deb had pleaded, her dark eyes wide with worry as Jessica gripped Zack's arm tightly. "You don't need to hurt him."
"Deb, this is important," Jessica replied sternly, her brown curls swaying as she pulled Zack towards St. Jerome's Parish. "Both of you need to understand the risks involved."
Inside the church, the air was heavy with the scent of incense and the weight of their decisions. Jessica had laid it out for them - Deb, an exorcist-in-training, and Zack, a vessel touched by the supernatural world - they couldn't be together anymore. The danger was too great; Zack could be killed if their enemies discovered their connection.
"Fine," Zack had agreed reluctantly, his blue eyes filled with pain as he looked at Deb. "We'll stay apart, to protect each other."
"Promise me, Zack," Deb whispered, her voice cracking. "Promise me you'll be careful."
"I promise, Deb," he murmured, knowing that keeping that vow would be more difficult than either of them could imagine.
Back in the present, Zack's phone buzzed on his desk, its screen lighting up with a new message. It was from Deb: "Can't wait to see you 😘" A small smile tugged at his lips. They had sworn to keep their distance, but their secret meetings over the break proved how impossible that was. Love, it seemed, was more powerful than fear.
-----
Meanwhile, Rob entered the sterile environment of Grand River Hospital, his footsteps echoing on the linoleum floors as he made his way to check on Ahmed. The memories of the winter formal and the attack that left Ahmed hospitalized were still fresh in his mind.
"Hey there," Rob greeted a nurse, flashing a friendly smile. "I'm here to see Ahmed."
"Room 305," she replied, pointing down the hall. "He's resting right now."
"Thanks," Rob said before making his way towards Ahmed's room.
As he passed the gift shop, Rob's gaze fell on a small plush turtle perched on a shelf. It seemed like the perfect get-well-soon gift for his friend. He quickly purchased it, cradling the soft toy in his arms as he continued down the hallway.
"Hey, buddy," Rob whispered, entering Ahmed's room and setting the turtle down on the bedside table. "Got you something to cheer you up when you wake up." Ahmed's face was pale, but his injuries were healing well - a testament to his strength and resilience.
With Ahmed asleep, Rob retreated to the waiting room. As he sat in one of the stiff chairs, his thoughts turned to whether Gluttony's curse had really turned Ahmed into a vessel or not.
-----
Ahmed's eyelids fluttered open, the sterile scent of antiseptic and the faint beeping of machines stirring him from a restless sleep. His body, although healing, still ached as he swung his legs over the side of the hospital bed. Despite the lingering pain, he knew he couldn't spend another minute lying there – he needed to use the bathroom.
"Mom, I'll be right back," he called out weakly as he shuffled toward the door, unaware of her absence.
His mother was standing in the hallway, deep in conversation with Kenzie, who was busy with her nursing duties. She turned to face her son, her eyes filled with concern. "Ahmed, are you feeling better?"
"Much better, thanks," he replied, doing his best to sound reassuring. He had always been sensitive to his mother's feelings, even when he was the one in need of comfort.
"Who sent all the gifts?" Ahmed's mom asked Kenzie, gesturing toward the impressive pile of packages in the corner of his room.
"Rob sent them," Kenzie explained, pointing down the hall where Rob had disappeared earlier. "He's been worried about Ahmed."
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"Such a good friend," she murmured, relief softening the lines of worry etched on her face.
As Ahmed continued toward the bathroom, he couldn't help but feel grateful for Rob's unwavering support. It was a much-needed reminder that he wasn't facing this nightmare alone.
-----
Meanwhile, in Deb's dorm room, Zack pressed her against the wall, their lips locked in a passionate embrace. His heart raced, not just from their illicit rendezvous, but also from the knowledge that they were defying Jessica's orders. As much as he hated being dishonest, something was thrilling about sneaking around like this.
Zack's senses suddenly went on high alert, picking up the unmistakable aura of Father Bill approaching Deb's dorm. Panic surged through him – they couldn't be caught like this.
"Deb, we need to stop," he whispered urgently, disentangling himself from her grasp.
"Zack, what's wrong?" she asked, confusion and concern mingling in her dark eyes.
"Father Bill's coming," he said, rapidly activating his demon abilities. With a fluid leap, Zack catapulted out of the open window, using his psychic barriers to cushion his fall. The adrenaline coursing through him fueled his escape as he landed safely on the ground below.
Back in the dorm room, Father Bill barged in without knocking, his eyes sweeping the space for any signs of impropriety. "I heard another voice in here," he accused, searching Deb's closet only to find it empty.
"Must have been the TV," Deb lied smoothly, praying he wouldn't look out the window and spot Zack's retreating figure. She knew that their secret meetings were dangerous, but she couldn't bear the thought of losing Zack completely.
"Keep your window closed, or you'll catch a cold," Father Bill warned her before leaving, none the wiser about the close call they'd just had.
As Zack raced back to his dorm room, his heart pounding with equal parts fear and exhilaration, he knew that he and Deb were playing a risky game. But sometimes, love demanded that kind of sacrifice. And if there was one thing Zack had learned from navigating the treacherous world of demons and exorcists, it was that they needed each other more than ever.
-----
Ahmed's fingers slipped through the warm water streaming over his hands, his eyes momentarily transfixed by the tendrils of steam rising to fog the mirror above the sink. The reflection staring back at him was hazy and indistinct, as if he were viewing himself through a clouded veil.
"Everything is so... strange," Ahmed murmured, the words almost lost in the gentle lapping of water against the porcelain. His thoughts seemed to drift, like dandelion seeds on a breeze, pulling him further into the trance-like state.
In the hallway outside the bathroom, Rob was engaged in a battle of wills with a stubborn water fountain. "Come on, you stupid thing," he muttered under his breath, jabbing the button repeatedly until, without warning, a torrent of water shot forth, drenching him from head to toe. Startled, Rob stumbled backward, arms flailing for balance, only to collide with a cart full of food trays that clattered loudly to the floor.
The sudden clatter jolted Ahmed out of his trance, and he glanced down just in time to see the rotting hand emerging from the sink drain. "What the--" he gasped, stumbling back as the grotesque creature pulled itself free of its watery prison, rivulets of muck dripping from its melting form. Its eyes burned like twin embers, radiating an otherworldly menace as it loomed over Ahmed.
"Get away from me!" Ahmed shouted, his voice cracking with terror. But before he could move, the creature lunged, and his scream echoed through the hospital corridors.
"Ahmed!" his mother cried out, her maternal instincts guiding her toward the source of her son's distress. Kenzie and Rob were hot on her heels, their faces etched with worry, their hearts pounding in unison.
"Where is he?" Kenzie demanded, her piercing blue eyes scanning the room for any sign of Ahmed as they burst through the door. The window gaped open like a wound, and water cascaded from the overflowing sink, but there was no trace of Ahmed.
" I'm so sorry," Rob whispered, his gaze locked on the place where Ahmed had been just moments before. He felt a terrible weight in his chest, a gnawing guilt that told him he should have done more to protect the kind-hearted young man who had become entangled in a world he never asked to be part of.
"Where could he be?" Ahmed's mother sobbed, panic seeping into every syllable. "What happened here?"
"You can't just vanish," Kenzie said grimly, "we're going to call the police. And we'll find him too. I promise."
-----
A frigid gust of wind pierced Zack's coat as he ambled along the snow-dusted path back to his dorm. He couldn't help but let a small grin form on his face, thinking about the stolen moments with Deb in her dorm room. The air was crisp and sharp, as if it carried the knife edge of secrets.
"Help!" The sound of Ahmed's scream shattered the peaceful night, slicing through Zack's reverie like broken glass. It seemed ghostly and amplified, an unnatural sound.
"Ahmed," Zack whispered, the name like ice on his lips. He broke into a sprint, his heart pounding like a frantic drumbeat in his chest. Panic clawed at him, reminding him of the supernatural dangers that lurked just beneath the surface of their seemingly ordinary lives.
-----
Back at Grand River Hospital, Rob stood outside Ahmed's empty hospital room, gripping a small plush turtle in one hand and Ahmed's watch in the other. His dark brown eyes were haunted by the echo of his friend's scream. Deb hurried up to him, her breath visible in the cold night air.
"Rob! What happened?" Deb asked urgently, her dark eyes filled with concern.
"Ahmed's gone," Rob replied, his voice barely more than a whisper. "He just vanished."
"This isn't good, if the exorcists find out they will hunt him," Deb muttered angrily. "They'll probably try to kill him if they find him first."
"Hey," Zack said as he jogged up to them, his breath coming in heavy pants from his run. "I heard Ahmed scream. What's going on?"
"Ahmed's missing," Rob explained, holding out the watch. "But I might have a way to find him."
"His aura," Zack realized, taking the watch from Rob's outstretched hand. "I can sense his aura from this. We'll be able to track him down faster than those exorcists."
"Then let's go," Deb said, determination etched on her face. "We need to find him before it's too late."
The three friends set off into the night, guided by the ghostly echoes of Ahmed's presence. As they walked, Zack couldn't shake a feeling that gnawed at his mind like a vulture picking at a corpse: the sense that this would not be an ordinary search.
"There was something else in that hospital room," he confided to Deb and Rob as they trudged through the snow. "I can feel the energy radiating from the watch. It's... otherworldly."
"Like a vessel, you mean?" Deb asked, her voice tinged with worry.
"Maybe," Zack replied, his gut churning with dread. "But there's something else. I've never felt anything quite like it before."
"Whatever it is," Rob grimly interjected, "we'll figure out a way to beat it. Just like always."
"Right," Zack agreed, his blue eyes steely with resolve. "Together, we'll find Ahmed and bring him back."
-----
Ahmed's feet carried him through the frost-laden streets, his mind ensnared in a foggy trance. His chocolate brown eyes were glazed over, unfocused on the world around him. He hummed a haunting melody, one that seemed to resonate with the darkest corners of his soul.
"Quite a night we're having, isn't it?" A passerby remarked, pulling his coat tighter against the biting cold. Ahmed didn't acknowledge the man, too captivated by the strange and powerful force driving him forward.
The abandoned house loomed before him, its paint peeling and windows shattered like broken teeth. It was a carcass of a building, long forgotten by the living. But there was something inside that called to Ahmed, drawing him closer like an iron filing to a magnet. He pushed open the door, its hinges creaking in protest, and stepped into the shadows.
"Hello? Is anyone there?" he asked, his voice little more than a whisper. The only reply was the scurrying of rats and the distant drip of water from somewhere within the bowels of the decaying structure.
Ahmed made his way to a door at the end of a dimly lit hallway. Heavy chains and padlocks secured the entrance, as though to keep something terrible from escaping. There was a palpable energy emanating from behind the door, like the thrumming heartbeat of a slumbering beast.
"Who are you?" Ahmed murmured, his curiosity piqued. He could hear shuffling and low growls on the other side, but instead of fear, he felt a strange kinship with whatever creature awaited him.
Driven by this inexplicable connection, Ahmed searched for a key among the debris strewn about the floor. The rusted metal felt cold in his hand as he inserted it into the first lock, turning it until the mechanism clicked open. The creature behind the door stirred, its movements more agitated with each released chain.
"Almost there," Ahmed whispered, his fingers trembling as he worked on the final lock. He could feel the urgency radiating from the other side, as though the creature was just as desperate to be free as he was to release it.
With a final click, the last padlock fell away, and the door swung open. Instead of fear or revulsion, Ahmed felt a sense of relief wash over him. He turned away, compelled by some unseen force to leave the house. As he stepped out into the biting cold, four vessels -- previously trapped within the basement -- burst forth into the night, their newfound freedom both exhilarating and terrifying.