Nightmare.

That was the only thing Cris could think of. David had been having them, so it only made sense. Cris' brain had just been influenced by his friend's complaints and he was getting a nasty taste of what David had been going through.

Nonetheless, Cris didn't want to be ripped to shreds, even in a nightmare. So as the monster leapt at him, he dove to the side, hearing a crash like nothing he'd heard before as the creature struck the door.

Wake up, Cris told himself, squinting as he tried to see what was attacking him. It wasn't just that the room was dark. This monster seemed to be partly made of shadow. Cris could see what must've been a body, but it was wispy in areas. Nonetheless, the growling noise he heard, along with the sound of what must've been claws lightly scraping the floor, were certainly enough to make it clear some kind of physical presence was there.

Tck tck tck skreeeeee!

Cris winced at the screech. It was haunting. If death had a particular sound associated with it, it would sound like that. He leapt to the side again, seeing the shadowy creature preparing to attack once more. Yet again, there was another crash, a pile of David's few belongings being scattered across the floor, including an old cellphone of his that no longer worked, which slid to Cris' feet.

He grabbed it, holding it up as though it was something he could throw at the monster. Whether this was a nightmare or not, Cris knew he wasn't going to last much longer if he stayed in this room. He needed to get back to the door.

There was a soft thud behind him, and Cris whipped around, wondering if another monster was there. Instead, he found himself nearly throwing up, seeing David's body sliding somewhat from where he'd been dropped by the creature.

"David…"

For some reason, seeing his friend like that confirmed it for Cris. This was no nightmare. It was real. Even his twisted mind couldn't manufacture something so dark. Those lifeless eyes, limp arms, the pool of blood and the gaping mouth from what was likely David's final gasp or scream of terror.

Cris pocketed the phone and clenched his fists, turning and glaring at the shadowy being across from him, blinking tears from his eyes. The beast clicked and growled at him, the sound as haunting and terrifying as before. Nonetheless, Cris held his ground this time, even as he noticed the creature preparing to leap again. He didn't care if he ended up dead, too. He was going to get his pound of flesh.

Grrr skreeee!

"Bring it on, motherfu-"

CRASH!

Cris had often wondered when the small cracked window at the front of the room would break. It had never looked particularly sturdy, even ignoring the crack. Sometimes he'd thought the grime all over it was the only thing keeping it together. Regardless, it wasn't held together anymore, and Cris and the monster were both distracted as glass shattered across the floor.

Fortunately, Cris was used to things breaking, and he quickly recovered, diving for the largest piece of glass he could find. The monster leapt at him as he did so, narrowly missing him. This time, however, Cris was able to go on the offensive himself, and he sliced outwards with the piece of glass, striking the monster's body underneath the shadowy substance that covered it.

Little seemed to happen from the attack, but the monster screeched in frustration nonetheless. Cris used the opportunity to run for the door, whipping it open and slamming it shut just as he emerged outside. About a second later, a shadowy claw exploded through the top, missing Cris' head by inches and he quickly backed away, gasping and holding his shard of glass up, ready to fight with more open space.

Before the monster could emerge from the apartment, though, Cris was grabbed by something else, immediately feeling himself getting pulled away. He yelled in surprise, swinging his arm around and thrusting the shard of glass towards what was holding him. He only just barely stopped himself as he noticed it was no monster.

"Finn? What the-"

Finn Murphy looked a little startled, eyes on the shard of glass held to his throat. Cris also realized he'd managed to twist Finn's arm around, locking him in place. Cris had no intention of releasing the boy, though, still sensing danger.

"W-We've gotta…g-get out of…here," Finn managed to gasp out, eyes wide as another thud was heard, the creature slamming at the door once again.

Cris glanced behind him, dropping his arm and releasing Finn. "What the hell are you talking about? Do you know what's going on?"

Finn gulped, lightly rubbing his throat and wincing as he glanced at his arm. "Yeah," he said weakly. "I-I'm sorry. I'll explain, but-"

SKREEEE!

Cris nodded, gesturing for Finn to get moving. As soon as they took off, another crash was heard, and Cris glanced back to see various pieces of the door flying out onto the street. There was another loud screech as the shadowy creature leapt out, turning in their direction. Without hesitation, it took off after them. Cris couldn't help but notice the already weak street lights going out as the monster passed them.

"You've got…to tell me…what that thing…is," Cris yelled out to Finn as they ran, Finn rounding a corner as he noticed the monster following them.

"It's a demon," Finn answered as they turned another corner. Cris figured he was trying to shake the monster off their trail. "A creature from Hell."

Cris wasn't sure how to respond to that. He'd obviously heard about demons and Hell before, but the way Finn said those words made it clear he wasn't talking about a horror movie or some biblical story. There was no reason not to believe him, though. Demons were essentially monsters, so that tracked with whatever this thing was.

"I'm sorry," Finn then added, glancing back at Cris briefly. It was somewhat alarming seeing the often mischievous boy looking so…defeated. "Your friend…I…I was on duty. It's my….it's my fault."

Cris felt a stinging in his eyes, but pushed his grief away as much as he could for the time being. He and Finn were further from the main streets now, rows of houses up ahead. Still running, Finn pointed towards a road that led towards a convenience store that Cris sometimes went to. It wasn't usually very busy, but Cris supposed Finn was trying to keep regular people out of the demon's path.

"Explain that to me," Cris demanded as they continued. The demon was no longer visible behind them, but the screeches could still be heard in Cris' head. "You were lurking around the apartment. What's up with that?"

Finn didn't answer for a moment, his pace slowing as he grew tired. "It's hard to explain. You aren't even the one we wanted. I don't think so anyway."

Cris narrowed his eyes, reaching out and grabbing Finn to pull him to a stop. The other boy yelped in surprise from the forceful yank, before looking at Cris with widened eyes. "What the hell are you talking about?" Cris growled. "What is it you wanted?"

Finn swallowed nervously at the look in Cris' eyes. "Look, you must be able to see I can't get into all of this right now. I'm guessing you've never seen a demon - agh!"

Cris shoved Finn, knocking him backwards. There was another screech from the demon a moment later, though, and Cris immediately pulled the other boy up. He didn't let go, however, twisting Finn's arm once more. "My best friend is lying dead back there, you little shit. I want some kind of answer now." His words came out almost like the demon's low growl.

Finn swallowed nervously. "I-I understand. But-"

Skreeee!

Finn made to move, but Cris held him there. There was a crash behind him, and he glanced back, seeing the demon on their trail again. "Maybe I'll give that thing a snack."

Finn's eyes widened. "You sick son of a-"

"Run!"

Despite his frustration, Cris shoved Finn and the two of them took off once more. With the demon close again, there was no chance for talking. There was barely a chance for breathing. Cris knew he'd been stupid holding them back, especially since he hadn't gotten an answer. Still, he was pretty sure Finn had gotten the idea that he was serious about getting one at their nearest opportunity.

Cris did learn something as they neared the convenience store, however. Demons were fast. At least, this one was. But, it wasn't agile. Finn's changes in direction shook it off fairly quickly once again, and before too long, they had a straight route to the store with nothing directly behind them. Of course, the demon could still sense them somehow, its screeches echoing in the air as it tracked them.

"Can it smell us or something?" Cris asked, their sprinting now turning to a jog.

Finn glanced back, biting his lip nervously as he slowed a bit. "Something…"

Cris narrowed his eyes. "Meaning?"

"Dude, you're not going to understand any of what I tell you. If you can just-"

"That demon might not kill you, Finn, but I sure will." Cris started to reach out to grab Finn, but the ginger-haired boy ducked quickly, darting out of the way. "Just tell me something!" Cris yelled. "Why the hell am I running from a goddamn demon?!"

Finn clenched his fists, and for a moment, Cris thought the other boy was getting ready to fight him. A moment later, though, he sighed, the two of them continuing down the road. "It's spirit energy," Finn then said.

"What?"

"The demon. It senses spirit energy. It…feeds on it. Sort of." Finn shook his head. "It's hard to explain. Mr. Rainier will be able to tell you more."

"Spirit what now?" Cris glanced behind them as another screech pierced the air. "And wait a minute…Mr. Rainier? The guidance counselor?"

"Like I said, man, this is not the time for the rundown on all this crap!" Finn said pleadingly. "Just-"

Skreeee! Grrrr!

"Oomph!"

Cris fell back as a dark shape slammed into Finn right before his eyes, the boy flying through the air as shadows seemed to grab hold of him and slam him into a tree. Despite his fear for himself, his grief for David and his frustration with Finn, Cris didn't want to see the guy get shredded to death. His eyes widened as he stepped forward, calling out in concern.

"Finn!"

"Agh! D-Don't worry…about…run!" Finn weakly tried to call out, appearing as though he was rolling around, fending off the creature. This one was smaller than the one that was in the apartment, meaning there were more than one of these monsters after them.

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Cris liked to think of himself as tough, but he had to admit, when Finn told him to run, he was extremely tempted to take off. It wasn't like Finn was his friend, and if the demon was dealing with him, Cris might have the opportunity he needed to get away. And with the other demon still after them, he couldn't really afford to wait around or get into a fight with a different creature.

He raised the shard of glass he still had and ran forward, feeling a heat well up within him as he set his sights on the creature clawing at Finn. It was hard to focus on it, Cris' vision almost rolling off of the creature, the shadows difficult to focus on. Channeling his anger and grief, however, Cris was able to keep his focus for just enough time, leaping forward and slamming down on the demon's back.

SKREEEE!

Unlike with the other demon, the glass cut into this one, and for a moment, Cris was sure he saw a white glow near where he stabbed the creature. The screech was almost dizzying, but fortunately, the demon wasn't able to act as Cris and Finn clutched their ears and rolled away. Instead, it writhed around, almost appearing to be reaching around for the wound Cris had inflicted. Apparently it was a great deal more damaging than Cris had thought, and a moment later, the beast seemed to explode into dust and a wispy smoke.

As Cris stared blankly at the spot where the creature exploded, Finn managed to recover a little faster, standing and pulling out what appeared to be a slingshot. He ran towards the spot and picked up the glass Cris had stabbed the creature with, testing it out with the slingshot for a moment, before turning to Cris. His eyes were wide, almost like he was more scared of Cris than what the demon had been trying to do to him.

"Dude, how did you…this is just a regular piece of glass!" Finn scratched his head, appearing quite perplexed.

"I'll stab you with it, too," Cris snapped. "Don't think it matters what kind of glass it is when you get something sharp jabbed into you like that. Guess I got it in a good spot."

"No, you didn't kill it. Just scared it enough for it to cross back to Hell."

Cris didn't even bother trying to get confirmation on what that meant. He heard the first demon screeching again and looked back, seeing it emerging from further down the street. "Can you hit that thing with your slingshot?"

"I don't think I can channel enough spirit energy into it for enough damage," Finn muttered. He pulled a metal ball from his pocket and then tossed the shard towards Cris, who scrambled to catch it, noticing there was no blood on it. "We can't keep running. We'll fight," Finn said darkly, aiming the ball with his slingshot.

Skreeee!

Cris winced at the sound, seeing the demon closing the distance on them. He knew Finn was right. They couldn't keep running. His legs burned, and every breath was painful. Nonetheless, he looked at the other boy like he was crazy. How they can go from thinking even being in the vicinity of this demon was a sure death to thinking they could fight it was completely insane.

"Just do what you can," Finn said, narrowing his eyes as he watched the demon. He was making a bunch of clicking sounds as he aimed. "We'll get out of here."

Cris swallowed nervously, but nodded, readying himself as the demon closed in on them. And a moment later, Finn fired the first shot, the metal ball whipping through the air, seemingly glowing for a moment, before slamming into the shadowy beast's head.

Grrraaaarrrr!

The cry was higher pitched, the creature falling immediately and rolling across the ground. Unfortunately, it didn't explode like the last one, immediately getting back to its feet and screeching once more. Cris could see that Finn was still preparing another shot with his slingshot, so ignoring the insanity of it all, he ran forward, swinging out with his piece of glass, aiming for the shadowy area that must've been the demon's neck.

"Agh!"

It did nothing, bouncing off the demon and causing Cris' arm to slip to the side, leaving him completely open as the monster kicked out. He felt a pain like nothing he'd felt before as he was struck in the stomach, and he felt his body lifting high into the air. About a second later, he felt another pain in his back as he slammed into a tree, sliding down to the ground after another moment and hitting it with a hard thud.

"Cris!" Finn yelled in a panic. Cris couldn't quite see straight, his vision blurry and pain searing across his back and his head and stomach throbbing. Fortunately he didn't seem to be bleeding, the demon's claws not out during the strike, but regardless, he didn't think he was going to survive as he noticed a shadowy shape emerge in front of him. The demon appeared to be preparing to finish the job.

"Hyah!"

But the blurry, dark shape in front of Cris wasn't attacking him. Instead, it moved away from him, and a second later, Cris could see what appeared to be yellow. The shape darted forward, jumping up and spinning, and Cris heard the demon screech as a slicing sound was heard.

"Yeah! Nice one, Elsa!" Finn then yelled, his voice full of relief. Cris blinked again, looking in Finn's direction, seeing him release another one of his attacks with his slingshot.

Skreeee! the demon screeched again, as a thud was heard upon impact. Cris blinked again, vision clearing up a little more as he noticed the shape from before, now realizing it was a dark-haired girl in a yellow shirt and black skirt. A familiar looking girl at that. One who sat next to him in math class.

"Hyah!" Elsa Hale shouted once more, kicking off the ground hard and whipping through the air. She spun as she approached the demon, blades on her shoes glistening in the limited moonlight. Cris' eyes widened as he saw the creature's head fly off, Elsa giving the demon one last kick as she spun and landed behind its now prone body.

"What the…" Cris slowly struggled to his feet, watching as the demon's body smoked, bubbled and crumbled. It was different from the other one that he'd stabbed with the glass. There was what appeared to be a finality to it. This demon was now dead.

"Holy shit, Elsa!" Finn called out, walking up to the remains of the demon and observing as the smoke drifted away and the foamy substance bubbled into nothingness. "Thanks for the save."

Elsa nodded, turning her gaze to Cris. He was still trying to get his bearings, and this wasn't making anything easier. "Is it him, then?"

Finn glanced at Cris, biting his lip nervously. "I…er…maybe? But David…he…er…"

"David's…dead," Cris said shakily. "Th-That demon…it…"

Elsa's eyes widened, her sharp gaze suddenly much gentler. "What?"

"It was there already when Cris got back," Finn said. "It attacked during the day, Elsa. He wasn't even fully Awakened and it attacked him in the day."

Elsa appeared quite shaken, but she still kept her gaze on Cris. He was trying not to show it, but hearing Finn talk about David hurt. His best friend was gone. They would never eat chocolate bars for lunch after skipping school again. They would never sneak over to their foster families' homes and steal cash again. They would never curse the world and their enemies together again.

"Cris…I…" Elsa clenched her fists. "There's a lot to tell you, but now's not the time, okay? There are probably more of these things around, and we need to get to the rest of the group. And something's going on that we don't understand."

Cris nodded. He wasn't going to bother fighting for answers. He knew these two weren't his enemy. Finn had fought for him. Elsa had saved him. That was enough evidence for now. They just had to get out of here and then he could get his answers.

"Fair enough," Cris muttered, wincing as he felt his back throbbing from striking the tree. "Where are we going?"

"Mara and Heidi are close, keeping civilians away," Elsa said. "Mr. Rainier was tracking two demons near the school."

Cris gaped at her. "Mara Keres and Heidi Engel? They're involved in this stuff?!"

Elsa nodded. "Yeah."

"You've gotta be fu-"

"Let's go, Parker!" Finn snapped. "We'd better find them."

Cris was still fairly woozy, and Finn wasn't a hundred percent either. Regardless, without a demon directly on their tail, they didn't need to run quite like they did before. They reached the convenience store before too long, and as they did, Cris was surprised to see the lights off. Other than a couple of dim streetlights, it was quite dark in the area. Those lights were the only thing that kept Cris from slashing out with his shard of glass when Heidi emerged from the shadows, eyes almost appearing to glow for a moment.

"Cris! Ohmygosh! I'm so glad you're okay!" she cried out, running towards him and hugging him tightly.

Cris didn't push her away, despite the fact he normally would have. Rather, he closed his eyes for a moment, letting himself forget the horror that had been inflicted upon him that night, even if just for a moment. Still, he stepped back once Heidi was done, making sure to maintain his standard scowl.

"Guess this is what you've had Rainier on to me about, huh?" Cris guessed. He hated the fact his voice shook with the question.

"I…" Heidi's eyes glistened, tearing up slightly. She shook her head. "I'm sorry about David. We…we failed you. Especially me."

"How do you know about him?" Cris asked.

Finn stepped forward at that, making the clicking sound he'd been doing earlier. As he did so, Heidi winced, pulling what looked like some kind of styrofoam ball out of her ear. "Ouch! Finn!"

"Echolocation," Finn explained quickly, ignoring Heidi's complaint. "I can send messages and these devices will pick up the sound waves I send out. They're set up to…er…translate."

Cris raised an eyebrow. "I guess you're not going to explain that any further?"

Finn nodded, holding his hand up for silence. "Just helps you understand what I'm doing here." Once again, he began making clicking sounds, manipulating his mouth so the clicks appeared to be aimed in different directions. "Mara's okay, I think," he said after a moment. "Keeping people away. Rainer…is on his way. We just need to hold out until…oh shit!"

Elsa immediately stood up straighter, eyes darting around, while Heidi held Cris' shoulder, pulling him back towards the wall of the convenience store. Apparently she wasn't a fighter, and she seemed to think Cris wasn't either.

"What is it?" Cris asked, pushing away from Heidi slightly.

"Two of them!" Finn said, readying his slingshot, while Elsa clicked her heels together, releasing the blades from her shoes. "Out of nowhere!"

"What do you mean out of-"

Skreeee!

Cris couldn't finish his question, stumbling back against the wall as another shadowy creature appeared before their group, striking from the air. This demon was winged, and despite the shadows around it, Cris was sure he could see a beak full of fangs and dark orbs where its eyes should've been, full of rage and hunger.

Thump!

Skreeee!

Finn's ball struck the beast in the side of the head, knocking it off course and sending it crashing into the wall of the convenience store. It was nowhere near close enough to killing it, but it was enough for Elsa to charge forward and leap into action, spinning and slicing into the creature's neck.

Cris almost gagged as he heard the gurgling from the demon, the shadowy, blood-like substance spurting from its neck as it tried to take flight once more. It lashed out once with its talons, though, striking Elsa along the chest before it fell to the ground, crumbling away like the last one Elsa had killed.

"Elsa!" Finn shouted, running forward as she fell to the ground, clutching her chest.

"Agh! I'm…I'm all right!" she shouted. "Get ready for the other one."

Finn hesitated, eyes widening as he turned, trying to pinpoint where the other one was. Then, in that moment, something seemed to warp in the air next to him, and a large, clawed hand lashed out, slicing along his side.

"Ahhh!" Finn screamed, collapsing immediately as blood sprayed around him, the demon emerging as though from thin air. There was a clattering sound as a metal ball fell from Finn's grasp, rolling back towards Cris and Heidi.

"No! Finn!" Heidi screamed, terror in her eyes.

Cris felt her grip on his shoulder, hurting him somewhat. He couldn't believe what was happening. Elsa had dispatched the demon that had killed David in seconds. Finn had fought it off well enough as well, along with the one Cris had stabbed. They'd each been wounded in a flash.

Elsa wasn't down for the count yet, though, struggling to her feet, appearing woozy as she did so. She pulled out a dagger and staggered forward, positioning herself between the newest demon and Heidi and Cris. Heidi also moved, trying to get in front of Cris, despite her shaking in terror.

"R-Run…" Elsa muttered. "I'll…hold it…off…"

Heidi glanced back at Cris, appearing torn on what to do. "I…but…"

Grrr reeeet!

The demon growled and squealed like some kind of haunted pig. It slashed down towards Elsa, her dagger weakly coming up to meet it. She held strong for a moment, but the beast's power was too much, forcing its strike through and slashing her in the stomach and tossing her aside like a rag doll. She hit the ground with a low moan and lay still.

As the demon turned to Cris and Heidi, there was one last stirring from Finn, his arm weakly raising up and grabbing at the beast. Cris felt a lump in his throat as the boy was kicked away, crashing through the window of the store. It was just Cris and Heidi now, and it didn't seem like Heidi was much of a fighter.

"Cris…I'll…I'll hold it off. Just run." Heidi shook as she stepped forward. "Mr. Rainier is near the school. Mara will be nearby." She clenched her fists and held them up, the demon growling and licking the blood on its claws. "P-Please. If we get you out of here…it won't be for nothing."

Cris was tempted. He was very tempted. He'd seen David's ruined body, felt the strength of these demons and seen two fighters taken down within seconds. Of course it made sense to run. If he could reach Mr. Rainier, maybe he would survive this night. Maybe he could get away if he let Heidi sacrifice herself like the others had done. These people had lied to him anyway. He owed them nothing.

Cris bent a knee, preparing to run, and Heidi smiled in relief.

"AHHHH!"

Cris plucked the metal ball from the ground that Finn had dropped and kicked off, running past a stunned Heidi, straight towards the demon. The monster roared triumphantly, slicing upwards with its razor sharp claws. Cris ignored the searing pain in his gut as he was impaled, feeling the claws pierce through him and exit his back.

Gritting his teeth he held the metal ball tight, remembering David's lifeless body, Elsa's weak block with her dagger and Finn crashing through the window. He thought of Heidi, shaking and telling him to run.

"GAAAHHH!"

He punched forward with everything he had, heat pooling in his impaled gut and spreading throughout his body. The metal ball glowed within his fist and it burned like the sun. He sank his fist into the demon's head with all his might, shattering its skull or whatever it was demons had. He felt the shadows burn away as light radiated from the punch and saw steam billowing from the wound as the demon's head bubbled and foamed.

SKREEEE!

"GO TO HELL!"

Cris kicked out, an unknown strength sending the creature's dissipating remains staggering backwards, its claws exiting from his gut. He hit the ground with a thud, vision immediately going foggy. Nonetheless, he smiled, hearing the hiss as the demon's body withered away.

"CRIS!"

He blinked, barely feeling it as something touched him, shook him. He was drifting away. Falling asleep. His body was going numb and his vision was fading. He wasn't stupid. He knew this was it.

"Miss Engel, out of the way!"

"Sir! Two of them…out of nowhere…appeared…Cris…jumped in front…killed…"

"Just stay back! There's still…just need…"

"Cris! Cris!"

Cris fell into darkness.