Such a rare reaction from Mom. After she tossed the coin across the room, she didn’t want to talk to me anymore. I could tell that she was emotionally distraught. Something about that piece of copper freaked her out, and she refused to tell me why. At her request, I gave her some space. She wanted to reconvene and talk to me on the phone tomorrow morning, but truthfully, I was planning on paying her a visit instead.

I just wanted to make sure that she was all right…

Brushing off the entire ordeal wouldn’t be easy, but I managed for my sake. Worrying would only stress me out during my date, so I changed my attitude and convinced myself that it’d be smooth sailing from here on out. Quick shower, fresh clothes, and my dad’s cherished silver Corvette— man, it’s been a while since I’d seen his precious baby out of the garage, the refined sports car putting a big smile on my face already.

I swung by Sasha’s place, which wasn’t too far from my own. On the ride there, I noticed a white cat underneath a street light sitting there staring at me as I waited at the traffic signal. At first I glanced at it, but then I did a double take, realizing it had vanished from the corner of my eye. Hmm, I must have been seeing things. My mind’s playing tricks on me...

I hit the gas once the light turned green and continued driving down the next street before pulling over to the curb. The pretty florist lived with her mother and her little brother; her father MIA since she was ten. Sasha worked three jobs since her mother became disabled. Car accident. Between paying for a caretaker, paying the mortgage, and taking care of her little brother, she needed those three jobs. Safe to say that Sasha was the breadwinner of the family, and probably had about enough time to herself as I did.

So this date was a nice break for the both of us.

After I parked, I stepped out of the car trying my hardest not to limp. I rang her doorbell. Not a second later, Sasha stepped out, dressed in something casual—a gray knitted long sleeve crop top and a plaid short skirt with thigh high stockings.

“Isaac! You came! For a second, I thought you’d stand me up.”

I smiled. “I wouldn’t ghost you, Sasha. You look great.”

She giggled. “Thank you. So do you!”

My senses started to twitch, the smell of something off wafting under my nose. I took two hard sniffs as I poked my noise in the air, then asked Sasha, “What’s that smell?”

“Oh, nothing!” she said, quickly shutting the front door behind her.

“Smells like rotten eggs… mixed with—”

“Oh no!” she shouted. “What happened to your head?”

I brushed my fingers along my hair, trying to figure out how she knew I had stitches there. Before I’d stepped out, I’d removed the bandage wrap and brushed my locks over the wound. Was there a noticeable bump? If there was, it wasn’t one I’d seen before I stepped out.

“Did you get hurt?”

I smirked. “It’s nothing, really. Just got into a scrap with some guys from school, that’s all. I’m fine. Honest.”

She stared at my head a bit longer than I thought she would, almost mesmerizingly. Her reaction was a tad off, maybe a little awkward, but I didn’t say anything that’d make her uncomfortable. “Egm, Sasha?”

She jumped, snapping out of her daze. “Oh! Em—s-sorry for staring! I’m just glad you’re okay!”

“It’s not that bad, is it?”

“Not at all!” She reached her hand over my head and brushed down my hair. “See? All gone! It’s just a little bump.”

I chuckled. “All right. Let’s get moving, then. According to your text, we have a lot of ground to cover.”

After she hopped in the car, we made our way to the Village Square, an area with a bunch of shops, boutiques and eateries for a fun Friday night. The area was always packed during evening hours, even more so on a weekend. Our first stop was at this cutesy boutique store that reminded me of the stuff from my mom’s old Hello Kitty shrine closet.

Everything was so unapologetically pink and perky. When I made a quick look around, I noticed that I was the only guy in a store packed with women. Girls young and old huddled among the shelves, Sasha pulling me along to gauge my opinion on an eye-shadow kit.

“Your complexion is closer to my mother’s. I have more of an olive skin tone.”

I felt a sweat drop hit my temple. “Wait a minute, what are you suggesting there, Sasha?” I asked playfully.

She gave me a mischievous grin, and in a second, I found myself being a model for her makeup kit gift for her mother.

Not as bad as I thought it’d be, honestly.

After we had our fun, I wiped my face with one of those make-up removers and Sasha insisted we picked somewhere I wanted to go next. I was a huge gamer, so we went to Game’n’Go. Sasha saw an adorable Corgi keychain and I bought it for her. In exchange, she got me an indie FPS I’d never even heard of. There were chibi bunny rabbits on the cover, a solid choice in her eyes.

All I could do was laugh. I appreciated the gift either way.

Next, we went to the movies, something with strong antidotes of horror and thriller. Her choice. It was nice to see that she was well balanced—cutesy and edgy, playful and dark. There were a lot of scenes where I expected her to jump up and spill all of that popcorn on us, but she was tame throughout. She even leaned over my arm on the gory scenes with a happy smile on her face.

Heh, okay, Sasha was definitely more interesting than I thought.

After the movies, we went out for sushi. The place had a 4.7 on Google, and as soon as I bit into my yellowtail roll, I knew why. Everything was so fresh, and the price for their all you can eat was unbeatable, too.

“Mmm…” Sasha moaned, the satisfied girl going cross-eyed as she ate her spicy tuna roll. “It melts in your mouth…”

“Yeah, it’s definitely five star worthy. You haven’t touched your Boba tea. Don’t like it?”

“No. I just don’t want to wash the sushi taste from my mouth yet. I want to relish its juicy flavor.”

I laughed. “Hey Sasha, I’m glad you asked me out tonight. Whatever happened the night before, I’m happy it did. You seem more comfortable in this new perspective of yours. A lot more outspoken, the improved persona slipping on you like a glove.”

She blushed. “So I take it you’re enjoying yourself?”

“Yeah, I am. And I’d like to do this again real soon…” Maybe mom was right. I needed to get back out there. Socialize, make friends, get a girlfriend. I couldn’t let this curse ruin my life. I’d go crazy trying to push everyone away. It wasn’t worth it. “It’s about time I stepped out of the box, too…” I whispered to myself.

“What was that, Isaac?”

“Heh, nothing. How about we go for a walk after? The park is only a few minutes down River Pass.”

“Sure! Someplace nice and quiet. Sounds romantic.”

Sasha volunteered to pay for dinner, the florist adamant about dropping money on me tonight. I felt terrible, the only thing I brought for her on our first date being popcorn and that Corgi keychain. She strapped it on her tote bag, flaunting the accessory like it was her new favorite thing in the world. I guess it didn’t really matter, as long as she was happy and having a good time. And I could tell that she was, Sasha walking along with me to the park with a pep in her step.

We talked about our favorite pastimes, our guilty pleasures, and how she’d always wanted to visit the Great Wall of China. If she had the money, she’d travel the world, meet new people, and learn new languages. Sasha was a lot like me—free-spirited, open to new adventures, and a bit on the daring side. She made a terrible bet about crossing the convex bridge railing from one end to the other without falling. The winner gets a kiss. The loser gets a spanking. On top of being totally drenched in water, I was determined not to fall, being the first to take on the challenge with flying colors.

“Wow, Isaac! Your balance is flawless!” she chortled.

I admit, I was showboating. Keeping my hands in my pockets, making it harder for me. I was beginning to get more comfortable around Sasha, letting my worries melt away the longer I kept her company. I showed her more of my funny side, Sasha enjoying every minute of it.

I walked along the curve of the wooden railing no problem, and once I reached the end, I hopped off, and gestured my hand for Sasha to go next.

“Your turn.”

“Okay!”

She did a good job so far, about 2/9th of the way across. But then she started to wobble a little at the halfway mark, her balance being challenged by the sudden breeze coming our way. I didn’t think it was strong enough to tip her off, but it did, and I reached over to catch her in my arms, Sasha tumbling into me with a bubbly laugh. “Totally unfair! Mother nature had it in for me!”

I chuckled. “Seems like she was team Isaac from the start.”

She blushed. “Are you going to spank me now, Isaac?”

“Tempting. How about a kiss instead?” Sasha beat me to the punch, leaning toward my lips as she cupped my face to leave me with a sweet and gentle kiss.

“I like it when you hold me in your arms like this. It makes me feel safe. Ether City could be a scary place. So many counts of missing people, twice as many reports of homicides and cult activity. At least when I’m with you, things don’t seem so bad.”

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“I won’t let anything bad happen to you, Sasha,” I said seriously. “I promise.”

She insisted we close the night by heading back to her place for some tea. I was a big fan, so of course I was on board. It was edging midnight, but I’d cleared my schedule for her. After our perfect date, I expected to do some readjusting with my time. If I put a pause on streaming for a while, I could spend more time with my fun florist.

“Stay in the den, okay? I’ll be right back,” Sasha said as soon as we stepped into her house. She walked me over to the den and then made her way to the kitchen. “Remember, stay only in the den. All right?”

I smiled and nodded as I took my seat on the armchair. “Sure.”

“I’ll be back in a flash!” she promised, before closing the den door behind her.

Sitting still wasn’t really my strong suit, but I stayed in place. I looked around the den, pictures of Sasha’s family on the walls, over the fireplace mantle, and framing the patio door. I’d never seen her family before, but she’d talk about them all the time. Sasha adored her little brother, who happened to be sixteen. She loved her mother even more. The girl was real big on supporting and protecting family, her caring soul always willing to go above and beyond for them.

It was strange that I didn’t hear them around, though.

What was worse than the unsettling silence was that familiar smell again. My nose picked it up earlier in the beginning of our date, and again now. It was stronger, more pungent. To be honest, the rotten egg smell was making me feel nauseous. So I got up and searched around, trying to figure out where it was coming from.

“It’s getting stronger toward the family room…” I whispered to myself, walking down the short hallway and making a sharp right into the next one. I was swept with fear and a morbid chill running down my spine. That other smell from before was blood, the strong metallic scent making my stomach churn. No sooner did I snoop down the halls than the sight of red on the walls caught my attention. It was too much to have been an accident, streaks of blood along plaster looking like handprints of an escape. My breath was lodged in my throat, my legs starting to freeze up on me. Everything in my body was telling me to turn back around, but my curiosity got the best of me.

And what I found in the family room would scar me for the rest of my life…

I was having the hardest trouble processing everything as I stood in front of two cold corpses on the Persian rug. That of her little brother, and that of her mother. The thought of Sasha savagely murdering them couldn’t register in my brain. Nice, sweet, shy Sasha… there was no way! She loved her family! She cared for them! There had to be another explanation, another reason why Nicolas’ head was decapitated, and Mary’s bloody body was shredded inside her wheelchair.

The horrifying crime scene had my heart pumping. Despite all of the adrenaline running through my veins, I couldn’t move. I heard soft footsteps, my chest tanking at the idea of being her next victim. When I turned away from the blood bath, I saw Sasha standing there innocently, with a long smile on her face, and a black leather BDSM outfit on.

“I thought I told you to stay inside the den, Isaac?” she said normally, as if she didn’t see the bodies on the other side of me. She had her hands behind her back, like she was holding something she didn’t want me to see.

“Sasha, what is this?! What happened?!” I struggled through a terrified breath.

“It was such a sweet date, Isaac. My first one ever! I had a lot of fun. Too bad we stuffed our faces with so much sushi that we didn’t get to have dessert…”

“S-s-sasha…”

“Luckily, I brought home a doggie bag!”

Run. Save my ass first, everything else comes after. Except that I’d boxed myself in, Sasha blocking the only exit out.

No, there were a couple other exits along the back walls, three windows, with one already open.

I bucked it as fast as I could on a limp, pushing along the tossed furniture while nearly slipping on Mary’s intestines on the floor. My chafed panting breath was all I could hear as I struggled to escape, sensing Sasha not too far behind.

“Oh, I love it when they run!” Sasha boomed excitedly. “Hunting my food, what a treat!”

As soon as I grabbed the window sill, I felt a blunt force hit my limp knee. I went down faster than a sand bag, holding my leg in intense pain.

When I glanced up to Sasha, she was standing over me already, with a metal mallet in one hand, and rope in the other. “Mmm, you look even tastier when traumatized. See, I was going to beat you up like a dirty dog, wrap a leash around your neck and make you beg for mercy, but you’re turning me on, Isaac. Such dirty thoughts you’re giving this girl!”

She dropped the mallet and the rope before leaning into me. I sprung, ignoring the pain in my knee to grab her weapon and use it against her.

My last hope of leaving here alive came and went. Sasha was quick, swatting the mallet away from me with one hand and grabbing me by the collar with the other.

The strength she had to toss me in the air like a rag doll was insane! I caught so much air, Sasha throwing me into the flipped couch, my head buried in the armrest.

“Opportunist, I like that,” she whispered mischievously, kicking the couch to stand up right. “Makes me wonder why you didn’t ask her out first…”

Her?

Sasha?

What the hell? Why was she talking about herself in third person?

I had bigger problems to worry about, one being my lack of mobility. When I looked down at my knee, I realized how bad it was, Sasha tearing through the cap, fragments of bone oozing out of a huge bleeding gash.

Miss. Murder Instinct lunged right over me like a cat, her bare breasts clapping against each other between my legs. She crawled on top of me, the malicious glint in her excited eyes gawking me down like I was food. The hunger on her face left me speechless, this side of Sasha something I’d never expect. Was this the new perspective she was talking about? Being a fucking serial killer?!

She strummed her fingers along my rib, making me wince. Sasha enjoyed causing me pain, wedging her thumb into my skin and pressing against my bruises. “Those bullies did you up pretty good, didn’t they? All nice and tenderized for me. How kind of them.”

“Get the hell off of me!” I growled.

“Why? Isn’t this the position you had in mind when I brought you here? Wanted to seal a good night out with a good fuck? She wanted it too, you know. She might be screaming inside, but being on top of you is certainly getting her juices flowing.”

This bitch liked to hear herself talk! Good thing too, because she was distracted long enough for me to reach underneath the seat cushion to pull out a knife. I remembered her telling me a few months ago that she had protection against robbers there, a hiding spot provoked by the number of break-ins around her neighborhood. For me, it was a desperate option to get out of this mess, but when I stabbed her right in her gut, Sasha didn’t budge off.

She gasped, taking it like a mere flesh wound. In fact, she had a carnal smile on her face, as if she enjoyed it…

“Ohh yeah… the pain feels soooo good,” she moaned. “My turn.”

“AGH!!” I cried, Sasha pulling the knife from her side and plunging it into my shoulder.

“There, there, puppy. Sit still. I want to watch you bleed, hear you scream…” She pulled it out, and then went for my other shoulder. Stab after stab she went, picking other spots in my body to abuse me. She was obsessed with opening wounds down my arms, and as much as I tried to buck my hips up and push her off, this homicidal nutcase was bent on keeping her legs straddled tight around my hips.

She laughed deliriously, the flush on her face showing me how turned on she was getting. A real sadistic piece of work! I was seething with anger, my rage making me bleed out faster. My chest heaved in and out, my body about ready to explode. I hated the fact that I couldn’t return the favor, Sasha cutting down tendons to limit my retaliation.

“What a masterpiece!” she sighed with exhaustion. “All of that hard work is making me hungry…” Sasha tossed her hand over her eye, cackling with unbridled laughter. “I told myself that I’d savor this one, but I can’t help it! You just look so fucking appetizing!” Then suddenly, she winced, Sasha hunching over me as I bled out. “Please stop…” she struggled through her teeth. “Stop hurting him!”

What? What the hell was happening? Was she having an episode?

“I’m sorry, Isaac! She’s making me do this!”

“Sa-sasha…” I whispered faintly, confused. Was this some sort of act? Did she get off pretending to be some sweet adorable girl?

“This isn’t me, Isaac! You know me! I’d never do this! Not to you! Not to my family! SHE MURDERED THEM!” she cried out at the top of her lungs, panicking. “The demon inside me, she killed them!”

A fucking demon?

“Sasha, you can fight it!” I shouted, trying to motivate her. “You can fight this darkness inside of you! Help me get out of here, and we can get out of here together! Sasha!” I wasn’t convinced, the idea of a demon possessing Sasha still not registering in my head. Of course, Ether City had its bouts with cult activity, but nothing I’d ever experienced myself. It was difficult telling myself that this was real, the fact that demons were walking among us. Either way, I needed to get out of here, so I played the part, hoping that I could get out of this with my head on my shoulders.

“Isaac, it’s—it’s—”

“I believe in you! Come on! FIGHT IT! Are you going to let that bitch win? After what you saw her do?!”

“Isaac, she’s taking me!” she strained, with her fingers digging in her head, her body tensing up the longer she tried to resist it.

“Sasha!”

“Shut up, would you? Can’t you tell Isaac and I are having a moment?” a deeper voice… she was back.

Hell, what was I saying? Was I actually buying this demon bullshit?

“Seems like you’re not as weak as I thought you were,” she said, as if talking to herself. And then, she looked down at me with a vicious smile. “I better wrap this up quick, then! Too bad, I really wanted to take my time with you. Have you play with her juicy tits…” She leaned into me, my chin smothered between her breasts. “It’s her fault that you’re going to miss out on these. She’s being so very difficult with me…”

An actual demon?! Shit, please tell me that I was dreaming!

I wanted to pinch myself awake, but this demon gave me a bite. I gritted down on my jaw when I felt fucking fangs sink into my skin, tearing at my neck! Everything shut down inside me—my bravery, the fire to my spark, my hopes of getting out of this body pit intact—all I did now was beg for mercy, the thought of an actual demon eating me terrifying the complete and utter shit out of me!

She ripped out a chunk of flesh, the demon pulling back with my skin lodged between her sharp set of teeth. I stared back at evil, holding my breath hostage in my throat. I couldn’t speak, not right away, watching as she chewed on me as my blood oozed down her chin.

“Please, stop!” my breath shuttered. “You don’t have to do this!”

“That’s where you’re wrong, sexy. Demons need blood for power. It’s less of a guilty pleasure and more of a necessity. How else could we defend ourselves from other demons? Don’t even get me started on those pesky angels!”

I stared back at her terrified.

“Besides, the rise of feeding is the best feeling in the world! It’s like ecstasy times ten! I’m sure your girlfriend could tell you. It’s how she copes with all of the stress in her life. Such a druggy she was!”

“You get the hell out of Sasha!” I fumed. “You killed her mother and brother, isn’t that fucking enough?!”

“It’s never enough!” she chortled, her cold grip snatching my neck. “I can’t tell you how crazy it was to hold back when I smelled that blood rolling off your stitches! I thought it was going to drive me insane! I swear I was going to break! But now, you’re all mine! ALL FUCKING MINE!”

She bit clean into my stitches, and then bit clean into me… those jowls, strong enough to crack through a human skull. I was done for—there was no holding onto hope or begging for mercy. I was going to be her third victim, and I just had to accept it…

The sound of hearing my own brain being chewed by a vicious demon was something I wouldn’t be able to shake off even in the afterlife. The monster possessing Sasha made sure to leave a lasting impression. Demons. I felt so stupid for being so damn gullible. I should have taken the smell earlier seriously. I should have seen the signs—Sasha was acting different, adamant about me staying in that room. It was clear she was hiding something—no, that demon inside her was hiding something. And if I wasn’t busy floating on cloud nine from our date, I would have been able to put two and two together.

Everything was fading into black. I couldn’t keep my eyes open any longer… After a while, I stopped feeling her feed on me. She tossed my body off the couch, where I joined Sasha’s brother and mom on the floor. More trophies to her ever growing collection. I think she walked off, the blur in the room humming a tune as she made her way down the hall.

I should have stayed inside my box… the box was safe, the box was warm… unlike this cold and lonely death…

“What?” I managed to croak, noticing something small and fuzzy move toward me. It was the cat, the same cat I saw when driving to Sasha’s earlier.

It started to lick my face, taking my blood on its tongue. “Quit it… can’t you let me die in peace?” I mumbled, before a screen opened up, with text scribbled on it.

Reawakening In Process…

Samael, Underworld Prince of Darkness

Missions Loading…

Bloodlust Bar: 30/100

What the hell was I seeing just now?

Forget it. Why bother worrying about it? I was going to die anyway…