The small group of five stood across the open grass field. Katie and the men looked from side to side, frequently snapping pictures of those around them and uploading them to the Ghostscanner App.

“So are we just going to stand here?” After a while of idleness, Katie finally got bored. She was here to have fun, not to take pictures like a damn tourist! “Something tells me this is not a long term solution.”

“Yeah, something is probably going to happen soon.” Gadreel replied quietly, his eyes moving from side to side as he answered. This was something he has been thinking about for a while. “If something goes wrong, we need to turn to Plan B.”

“Awesome!” Katie clapped. “And...what is Plan B?”

“Find ourselves a ride out of this campus. Hopefully, that will buy us enough time until the movie ends.” The Angel replied.

“Got it.”

“Ok...but if we can leave, then why are we still waiting here?” James, on the side, couldn’t help but cut in. “I mean...what’s stopping us from leaving now?”

“Well, we are in a movie, right? It is clear the producer of this movie intended for it to be played out on the campus. That’s what happened in the original film.” This time, Katie did the explaining. “If you’re fleeing the campus at the end of the movie as survivors, fine. But have you ever seen a horror movie where the protagonists suddenly jump out of the setting half-way into the film? That’ll ruin the entire plot.”

“And likely destroy us. The producers will not let us ruin the plot so easily.” Gadreel said seriously. Oh...he just needed more information!

“Yeah, so all we can do now is live as long as possible.” Katie turned to James with a grin. “Got it?”

“Yeah…” James whispered with his head lowered.

The group dispersed, and the five continued to stand around and watch in alertness. As she was standing guard in mild frustration, Katie suddenly found herself approached by James. But unlike before, the boy actually appeared nervous in front of Katie.

“So, uh...you doing alright?”

Katie turned and stared at James with an ‘are you kidding me’ look. Which part of me doesn't look alright? Yeah, I’m playing with the edges of my t-shirt in boredom, but how is that bothering you?

“Hmmm...what am I supposed to say?” She shrugged.

James grinned, his eyes landing on a man slowly approaching in front of him. He quickly took out his phone and snapped a picture of the man. Good. The man looked human in the photo he received.

“That is...so impressive.” He continued. Admiration was in his voice as he spoke to Katie. “I...I can’t understand how you are this brave with all of this happening around us. This...peaceful. I mean...my friends and I are pretty much wetting ourselves. But you...how?”

Katie didn't quite know how to answer James. What could she say? Oh...this? This is nothing compared to what I’ve been through. Plus, I can’t die anyway! You people can all burn in hell and I’ll still be perfectly nice and alive! That seemed a bit cruel to say, even for her.

Someone else in her position probably should’ve put up a play, but Katie never bothered with faking things.

All she could do was remain silent, but that didn't stop James from continuing.

“I can never be as brave as you are. The way you’ve been acting since arriving here, and when you went to check on Luke…” He sighed. His voice was low and solemn. “I have known Luke for such a long time. I have even met his parents a couple of times. You know...he didn't come from a wealthy family background. He was the first generation in his family to get into college...and he was so proud of it!”

“I remember Luke telling me that after he graduates, he’ll get a good job with a decent compensation package and buy a big house for his parents...bigger than any house they have ever lived in!”

“We even cheated together…” He suddenly smirked softly. “He would help me with my coding projects. I would help with his mathematics proofs. It was…well, we almost got caught a few times. I guess...I guess that’s the least of our worries now.”

Katie bit her lips. For a moment, the girl showed an odd amount of respect.

“But when something happened to him...I should’ve been the first to check on him. To make sure he’s alright. In fact, I wanted to go with him! To help make sure everything’s gonna be fine! But...” He froze, his voice shaking. “but I didn't. I was scared. I didn't want to put myself at risk, and...and now he’s dead.”

He looked to Katie.

“You said he blew up or something?”

“Yeah…” The brunette nodded slowly, her fingers slowly running across her short brown hair. “That’s right. It was quick as far as I can see.”

She didn't bother with too many graphic adjectives or a cheerful tone, as she would no doubt do in most cases.

James’s brows darkened. “If my father knows I let a friend die because I’m too afraid to intervene...he’ll despise me.”

“I’m sure he’ll understand.”

“No he won’t.” The boy shook his head. “He was in the Military, and so was my grandfather. Marine Corps. They see honor before anything. To run away from fear...to show weakness. To get a friend killed because of cowardice. That is unacceptable.”

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

“They are soldiers. You are not.” Katie bit her lips as she did her best to comfort James. Oh...she really wasn't good at this! “Your parents don’t decide who you are.”

James gave her a soft smile. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

The two stood there in silence for a while before the boy suddenly spoke up once again.

“So, how are you parents, if you don’t mind me asking?” He added quickly, as if afraid of being seen as too intrusive. “I’m just curious. That’s all. I don’t mean anything.”

“Oh...my parents? They passed away.” Katie replied casually. She hadn’t seen her parents since a long time ago. In fact, for most of the duration of the games, she stayed in Caitlin’s home. Apparently, Mr. Isaac killed them, but she never verified that. “Their names…” She paused, the casualness all of a sudden gone from her face. Wait, what even were their names?

That was when it suddenly struck Katie how little she, deep down, cared about her parents, and it was far from normal. As far as Katie remembered, her parents raised her since she was just a child. They stayed with her from as early as she knew things to when Mr. Isaac initiated his games. And they were far from negligent caretakers either, so...so why did she remember or care so little about them?

And Katie wasn’t exactly an ungrateful person either...at least not that ungrateful. Perhaps she wouldn’t be all heartbroken by the death of her parents, but she shouldn’t really be shrugging off the message as if nothing happened either.

The brunette shook her head and tossed those thoughts off her mind.

“Anyway, they died. That’s all I’m gonna say.”

“Condolences.”

“Thanks.”

James stood there for a few moments before speaking up once again.

“You know, Katie...at first, when I first saw you in front of this cursed cinema, I was being nice...well, I was being nice because you’re cute.” He said apologetically. “But now...I have to admit I actually like you. A lot. If we live through this...do you mind actually hanging out with me?”

Katie snapped to James, and from the eyes of the young man, Katie saw a level of respect and favor she hadn’t seen in a while. She knew that, across the span of a few hours, the man has developed some feelings for her. Perhaps it was how cool and collected she was. Perhaps it was how she, somewhat, comforted him just then.

Ultimately, James had a crush on Katie.

But Katie was far from flattered by the show of affection. In fact, she was furious. Furious...and a little scared.

“Listen to me, kid!” She suddenly raised her voice, her tone turning to anything but polite. “I know what you’re doing! You want to get close to me? You want to be my friend? You want to sleep with me?”

James was taken back by the outburst, startled. He didn't know why his sudden move of friendship set off the powder keg that was Katie, but that didn't stop Katie from continuing.

“Here’s the thing! Being my friend...getting close to me...that is pretty much a death sentence! In fact...everyone I came across, except for one lucky bastard and a bunch of supernatural entities, is dead!” The brunette took a step forward, getting uncomfortable close to James and forcing him to back off. “My friends. My parents. They’re all gone, and I assure you, they didn't bite the dust either quickly or peacefully. No...they died in horrible ways you can’t even imagine!”

“And my girlfriend…” Her voice trailed off. “She died with my Knife in her chest, and an entire arm missing. Tell me...James…” With one swift move, Katie grabbed onto James’ face. “Do you want that to happen to you? Tell me!”

The man gulped. The body Katie was in right now wasn’t her original body that could crush Chaos Descendants in one strike. James could break free of her grip, but he didn't dare move. As he stared into Katie’s eyes, he saw nothing but cold fury. He was just a college student. He hadn’t killed anything before, not even a chicken. The woman holding onto him, on the other hand...the amount of blood she had shed could fill entire swimming pools.

Finally, as the others were turning to the two and wondering what they were doing, Katie released James.

“Don’t follow me, or I promise you that wraiths will not be your cause of death.” She declared quietly before moving to the other end of the field, leaving behind a horrified James.

Even as Katie moved, her hand was shaking.

One common misconception was that Katie was a sheer beast who dreamt of blood and pain 24/7. Well...that wasn’t entirely false, but despite her completely skewed moral standards and brutal desires, she wasn’t a machine. She was still a human being, and she still had her emotions.

These were the emotions that, when Zach selflessly tarnished his own image in the eyes of Caitlin, made Katie pay respect to the boy. These were the emotions that, when Katie encountered a helpless Mira, prompted her to save her. Most importantly, these were the emotions that made Katie stand with Caitlin despite her urges.

After Caitlin died, Katie gave up. She overwhelmed her emotions, her sense of right and wrong, with her sadomasochistic pleasures. She treated everything as a game. She treated everyone, innocent or not, as just another toy she could play with.

This was what allowed her to shoot that hostage boy back in the bar not long ago. She just didn't care. In her eyes, the boy was no different than the beast holding him hostage. Just another toy to play with and break at her will.

But emotions weren’t something Katie could just block out completely. She didn't quite have much sympathy, but what she did have was respect. Respect for those with certain attributes that she liked.

James was far from a perfect character, but he was forthcoming with his own flaws and fears. In this utterly desperate situation, he did his best to be brave. And the things he said to Katie...while previously, Katie could simply think of him as just another meat sack that could scream for her pleasure, now, she was seeing him as a fellow human being. Someone worthy of her care.

He respected her, and she felt obliged to return that same respect.

Make no mistake. Katie didn't love James. Not at all. She only loved one woman, and that woman was dead. What she did feel was a sense of connection with the man.

It was the same as raising a farm animal. Most people would be fine with eating pork, but if they raised a pig since it was a newborn piglet and watched as it grew up...and if they even gave the pig a name, would they still be fine with slaying that animal, that pet, and then feasting on its flesh?

But at the same time, that thought terrified Katie. Katie knew very well that James wasn’t Gadreel. Gadreel was an Angel who was perfectly capable of defending himself. When Katie first met him, he was carving a bloody path through dozens of his kind, killing all that threatened him. He was more than capable of surviving, which meant Katie was fine with yanking him into danger whenever she felt like it. Plus, Gadreel wasn’t exactly the most innocent being out there, so...

But James...he wasn’t an immortal masochist, nor was he an Angel. As far as Katie knew, he wasn’t leaving this movie alive. Katie’s immortality meant she herself could never die, but that didn't mean those around her wouldn’t as well. It was a fact she was all too well of.

Simply said, Katie didn't want to get attached. Not again.

Guilt could empower her, but it was hardly something that Katie enjoyed.

At the same time, not far away, things have finally taken a turn for the worse.