A bombshell of a revelation was opened up from the words Natalia spoke to Madison as the two sat in a private booth at the most prestigious restaurant in the state, isolated from the other patrons casually dining away. The two had placed their orders for breakfast beforehand and that was when Natalia decided to spill the truth of her experience last night at Vincent's home. Madison's heart pounded inside of her chest, a hand covering her open mouth to conceal her shock but her eyes gave it away.

"I swear to you that is what happened. Every minute detail I included. The voice inside of me...is this outer-dimensional deity from a realm beyond the stars. And he allowed me access to his strange power to severely cripple that rotten terrorist's mind so he would confess everything he knew. I'm both nervous and curious about what my body is capable of after that experience..." Natalia finished up. She allowed Madison to finish taking in everything. "...deep breaths dear. I know this is a lot to take in at once. It was for me too..." Madison lowered her hand and extended it out, gently placing her palm over Natalia's.

"I-I just...why is this happening to you? To us? Has humanity truly ruined this planet to the point where some, primordial space god watching us from somewhere in the universe suddenly decided that enough is enough and is going to rain judgement down upon us by wiping us from the face of the Earth??" Madison asked, her body trembling. "Would God just let this happen to us??"

Madison was always a devout Christian at heart since childhood, growing up attending Sunday services until high school when her parents decided to stop forcing her to go with them, instead deciding that she should take her own path towards Christ. While she did feel some guilt about her feelings towards Natalia, she didn't take it to heart as she believed all forms of love were fine in the eyes of God. All of the knowledge she's consumed from Natalia regarding the fall, her role as a messenger for this coming apocalypse and the possible existence of primordial gods from beyond the known universe, one of which has harbored itself inside Natalia as a vessel, has torn her own beliefs apart after Natalia had convinced her that everything happening and will happen is true, not wanting her moral values and beliefs as a Christian sever her bond with her closest friend.

"Madison. I understand that everything I've been sharing with you has completely gone against your Christian beliefs. I'm agnostic, so I always believed something divine like your God existed and created the universe. But ever since meeting this...thing that calls itself' Nyarlathotep' that's been living inside of me...I'm convinced that whatever he was talking about...whatever was above the deity that commanded him to seek me out...could in fact truly be the one true God."

"It's scary how much the fall seems to be mirroring the rapture described in the Bible. An end-time that is counting down. Except, from the way you've made it sound...very few people will be spared. And you've even mentioned that Vincent fellow, who sounds like a believer too. But you said he and his followers worship something called, um-"

"Cthylla. I still don't know who that is. I haven't had any free time to research it, but he talks highly of it and is extremely devout to it along with his followers."

"What if it's similar to what you have? A primordial deity from beyond the stars? Unless this Cthylla is the, um, what was it called?"

"The great Old One. That's what he briefly mentioned. I wonder...if I can speak with him again and ask about that. But, I have my doubts. He told me his true name, so surely at that point, he would've spoken of his leader or whoever by name. But no. He simply called it the great Old One. Sounds like a god to me..."

"It almost sounds like he's a disciple or something along those lines. We already have two different names from you and that Vincent fellow. Are they connected at all? And if so, what is the real truth behind all of this madness?"

"I wish I could say, dear. Maybe tonight I..I'll speak with him again. I guess I really didn't get all of the answers I could out of him. He's a bit stubborn though, so I'm not sure if he'll reveal more to me at this moment. May have to wait until we draw closer to the fall, unfortunately...Oh, and keep all of this between us, please."

"Of course."

Natalia and Madison quietly ate their food while the atmosphere remained heavy in the air.

  The cold waters of Maine gently swayed while a gentle but chilly wind blew through the air. Perched at a dock was a small motorboat. The bearded man with a beanie man who owned it lead Victoria and Adrian to the dock from the shack just a few feet away on land.

"This little beauty here is it. Fits two people. Perfect fishing boat if I do say so myself. Whatever it is you're going to look for, I wish you two good luck. It's hella' freezing out on those waters, especially when you got the wind blowin' against ya' so take her gently. Waters are nice and calm today so you should be fine." The kind man explained. Victoria and Adrian both nodded in understanding.

"Gotcha' sir. Thanks. We'll bring her back soon I promise." Adrian stated.

"Hope so hah! 'Bout to go grab a snack with this here cash for loaning you the boat. Just tie her back to the dock when you're done. Good luck out there!"

The bearded man waved before walking away. Victoria and Adrian both took deep breaths and stepped carefully into the boat. Adrian flipped the ignition switch and the boat's small motor powered on immediately. He grabbed a hold of the control handle and started to take off. Victoria crossed her arms to keep herself warm as the chilled breeze hit them during their venture near the coast. As the motorboat glided along the waters, nothing resembling a cave was seen in sight so far. While Victoria was fighting the cold, Adrian embraced the breeze hitting his face, feeling a sense of euphoria. Victoria pulled her phone out to check the time. Eleven minutes had passed since leaving the dock with no success. A familiar sight started to approach beyond the light fog. The cliff side where the old house resided.

"Adrian look! It's the house!" Victoria shouted after pocketing her phone and pointing.

"I see it! Hoping we find what we looking for soon!" Adrian shouted back.

Adrian picked up the pace to help speed up the search, to Victoria's dismay with the breeze feeling more intense. As much as she resented the cold, she resisted it and didn't complain once. The two of them looked on as they started to slowly pass by the cliff where the old house stood like a decrepit doll house. Thirteen minutes had passed now. Victoria kept her eyes open when she reached over to tug on Adrian's sleeve and pointed up at a cliff they were passing by.

"Adrian stop the boat! I see a cave up there!" Victoria said. Adrian looked in her direction and sure enough, the mouth of a cave was barely visible as mossy vines had been covering most of the entrance.

"Shit I'm on it!" Adrian replied, pulling towards the shore. He slid the boat sideways and brought it to a stop, parking it sideways against the shore. "It should be fine here. With that motor weighing it down some, it ain't going anywhere. Let's go!"

Victoria lead the way as the two made their way across the shore for about a mile, reaching a natural rocky pathway that lead up the cliff side opposite of the cave and started running once they had reached the grassy terrain on top of the cliffs. Once they had reached the cliff with the cave, an old rope ladder leading down to the ground in front of the cave could be seen. They both had their doubts, as they thought that could've been the ladder Edward and Mary used all those decades ago.

"Shit. Those ropes will probably snap on us. Looks like our only options are to either parkour this shit and jump down while landing on our feet...or climbing down the mossy vines." Adrian said scratching his head.

"You idiot did you not forget that grandpa gave us a climbing rope? Him and grandma both did want us to be careful after all." Victoria snapped, pulling out the climbing rope from the small backpack she was wearing.

"Oh. Right. Totally forgot about that. Thank you oh wise grandparents."

"Just shut up and let me set this up." Victoria snickered as she threw the rope down and attached the metal stake to the ground, tying the tip of the rope to the stake with a strong knot. She gave it a good tug to ensure it was secure. "Okay. We're good. So you climbing down first or am I?"

"Let me do it first. I'll have to start cutting some of that moss away anyway with my knife." Adrian said, getting ready.

"Go for it then."

Adrian descended the rope with ease and upon landing, whipped out his hunting knife and headed for the cave to start cutting the moss away. Victoria carefully descended next and landed. She stood without speaking, watching Adrian cutting away and admittedly, finding it very attractive the way he gracefully swung his knife like an adventurer. Soon enough there was enough room for a single person to walk through the moss.

"Alright. Time to head in!" Adrian stated proudly. Victoria nodded and stepped forward, pressing her hand on his chest.

"I'll go in first." She said. He just nodded and held his hands up in a surrendering pose.

Victoria pulled her phone out for a source of light and slowly ventured into the cave. Adrian had his flashlight out and on following behind closely. The air inside the cave was dense and moist, the smell of the ocean still lingered even as they got deeper. The cave seemed to descend at a slight angle, with nothing noteworthy along the way. Their footsteps echoed throughout the narrow cave and bounced off the walls. The path started to curve towards the right.

"I cannot believe that members of my family once traversed through here...it's so eerie." Victoria murmured, running her hand along the wall.

"And that was so long ago too. Crazy to think about, ya' know?" Adrian added.

"I'm not seeing anything though. What about this damn cave made such an impact on Edward and Mary that it changed their lives completely?"

"No clue. Maybe it lies at the end of the cave like in the story."

"You're right. Let's keep at it."

The two of them started to pick up the pace some. The ground was flat and the cave was mostly hollow aside from a few small stalactites hanging from the ceiling in various spots, forcing them to maneuver around them. Adrian shone his flashlight down the path ahead, adjusting the tip so the light went from wide to narrow and could see a wall.

"I think we're getting closer. I see a wall down there. Unless there's a hidden path I didn't notice I think that's the end." He stated.

"Hope so. I really don't like being in here." Victoria sighed.

"Oh right, your claustrophobia. I don't like caves either. The thought of getting trapped inside of one fucking terrifies me."

"Could you not say that kind of shit right now?!"

"S-sorry!"

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Adrian kept his mouth shut while Victoria focused on ahead as the two found themselves reaching the end of the cave, no branching paths to be found. Just as described in the account of Edward and Mary, on the wall were a few old cave sketches centuries old and next to them...had Victoria in awe. A small circle with three smaller bean-shaped forms around it. Protruding out from the center of the symbol were two long, spindly forms vaguely resembling question marks like those from a book and an odd, shorter form shaped like a claw. The very symbol mentioned in the story. Victoria recounts from memory reading what had happened when they made contact with the symbol.

"Th-this is it...this is where it happened. That symbol etched into the wall was the catalyst for their experience." She said, swallowing hard and lifting a hand.

"I feel very uneasy about being here. Are you, thinking of touching it??" Adrian asked grabbing her shoulder.

"I..I just want to see if anything happens. Standing here won't tell us anything, so maybe this symbol will..."

Adrian clasped his hands together, heart racing while he watched Victoria kneel down to get a closer look at the symbol. While hesitant, Victoria held her breath and, heart pounding inside her chest, slowly extended her hand and pressed it against the symbol. She closed her eyes for a moment. At first, nothing seemed to happen. But in a flash, the symbol immediately started to glow this time, a bright yellow hue, causing Adrian to shield his eyes. Victoria felt a jolt of energy spike through her entire body. She let go and stood right up, dropping her phone and grabbing her head from a sharp pain and crying out.

"Babe are you okay?!" Adrian shouted.

"Adrian get out! Get out now! I-I don't know what's happening but I don't want you getting hurt! Go wait outside the cave!!" Victoria shouted in a pained tone.

"I can't just leave you alone!"

"I said go now damn it!!"

Adrian gritted his teeth and started running away. Victoria cried out in pain again, the headache pulsing and getting worse. She opened her eyes and turned around, backing against the wall in a panic breathing heavily as her vision began to distort and warp the cave around her. Another sharp jolt of intense pain hit her, causing her to grab her head and step away from the wall, screaming now. While struggling to fight against the sheer pain coursing through her body, Victoria felt something fleshy creeping on her shoulder. She glanced to see black tendrils wrap around her arms, followed with a tendril wrapping around her neck and pull her backwards. She screamed loud as the cave stretched out and warped into a black void of a tunnel. Her screams echoed until the tendril around her neck slid up to cover her mouth. Everything then went black.

  Natalia reviewed the forms she was handed by two men in suits regarding the imprisonment of Al-Shamar into solitary confinement. She nodded and handed the papers back to the men. A five-star general stood to the side observing.

"All seems to be in order then. Let that bastard rot away for the rest of his life alone. You two may leave now." Natalia said. The two men nodded and left the oval office. The general then approached her. "General, status report on the situation in Jordan." The general saluted her before speaking;

"As of right now most of our forces are cleaning up the remnants from the war and backing up their military forces to locate and take down any remaining insurgents dead or alive. So far it seems they've been surrendering. Must've really been a big hit to their morale having their one and only leader captured." The general stated.

"Good to hear. With time, the people of Jordan will be back to their daily lives without conflict. And as for the contacts we received from Al-Shamar. What's the word on that operation?"

"We currently have forces being deployed to the key locations on the mission briefing to track down and capture his associates and seize all supplies. Weapons, slaves, technology, anything we find we will confiscate. Three individuals in three countries so this operation will take some time."

"I understand. Keep at it. The sooner his colleagues are stopped, the sooner we stop any potential conflicts from arising and cease their own operations. The Middle East, what's left of it anyway, will finally be able to rest easy soon enough."

"Right. By the way, the monarch of Jordan wishes to arrange a meeting with you madame. He's busy gathering up all the members of the government who were enslaved by the insurgents and patching things back together with the prime minister's help. So perhaps next month would work best?"

"That's fine. Ask him what day he wishes to meet with me and I'll arrange my scheduling for it to fly out there."

"I'll tell the brass about that and get back to you. Anything else madame?"

"That will be all General. Thank you."

The General gave another salute before leaving. Natalia sighed and stood up to stretch her legs and go refill her cup with coffee from the nearby break room down the hall. Upon reaching the break room she quickly stepped back after seeing Madison and two other women standing around talking. She leaned against the wall to listen to what they were saying, hearing Madison start to speak after one of the women finished talking;

"Yeah I just...ugh I don't know what to do. I've been holding in these feelings for such a long time, way before she even became elected. I never had the courage to ask her out back when we were younger. She was always having these flings and I just remained secluded from dating because, well, I only ever was attracted to her alone. Things in our country are starting to look up and the people are becoming more hopeful so maybe that's taking some of the stress off of her shoulders so...so perhaps if the time is right, I can confess how I really feel." Madison explained.

"Exactly, just say how you feel. Who cares about your positions as leaders? Times have changed girl. Doesn't mean the whole world has to know, but if you keep your relationship on the down low, it'll be fine. Would make for one hell of a saucy story though. 'President and vice president eloping behind closed doors.' I just love that kind of stuff." One of the women said.

"I will. I will, but only when the time is right like I stated. We both are very busy and only have brief moments when we can enjoy free time outside of work. I...I need to mentally prepare myself too. She, has a lot going on right now that I can't talk about. Classified information."

Natalia felt bad for eavesdropping, but also a sense of happiness flourished inside her overhearing Madison's words. She decided to wait and grab more coffee later on, returning back to her office to continue on her paperwork for the day.

  Darkness. Silence. Once her consciousness seemed to return, Victoria opened her eyes. She found herself inside an endless void of stars like the night sky untouched by light pollution. She got onto her feet and looked around but saw nothing. When she got to her original position something was in the distance not there before. Two figures standing next to each other. Walking towards the figures and getting closer she noticed their hands clasped together in a praying position.

"Thou eyes have opened."

A voice spoke in a slightly deep tone, echoing throughout the void and in Victoria's ears at the same time. She stopped in place and looked around, seeing nothing else. As she got closer to the figures, they lowered their hands and turned around to face Victoria. Her heart felt like it collapsed. Standing in front of her, wearing period-appropriate garbs...were Edward and Mary Wintercroft.

"The progenitors lie before thou, child of the bloodline. Adventurous and daring, they ventured into the unknown, forming a pact that would forever shape the lives of them and their bloodline as time went on...eventually giving birth to the first and embracing death together in their final moment."

"Edward...Mary..." Victoria murmured reaching a hand out.

Before she could touch them they suddenly evaporated into a trail of stardust, flourishing through the air and spinning like a cyclone just a few feet over, forming another figure. A woman with long flowing blonde hair styled exactly like Mary's, wearing a long white dress. Victoria was feeling confused, head still spinning from what happened in the cave.

"The first of the offspring...Laura Wintercroft. Thy soul was pure, yet her heart shattered into pieces upon hearing news of her husband's death fighting in a great war that plagued the world. She had to raise her only child alone, remaining strong for their sake."

Victoria approached the woman only for her to evaporate into another trail of stardust that flew a few feet away and weaved yet another figure. This time a man in a black suit with a black fedora holding a suitcase. Victoria once again, moved closer.

"The second, Peter Wintercroft. A man destined for success, bearing two children with his significant other. Unfortunately for him, he had angered a man one day and found himself and his wife in the sights of that man, a leader of the mafia, who would bring an untimely demise to the two of them. While a tragic end, the children would carry on."

The process repeats itself once more. The man evaporated and the stardust weaved two more people, one dressed as an old soldier and the other a black mourning gown. Speechless, all Victoria could do was follow the stardust as it shaped people out of thin air.

"The third and fourth offspring, George and Linda Wintercroft. George suffered the same fate as the beloved one to Laura...a lonely man who perished in a great war brought on by the corruption of mankind. Linda worked hard, eventually bearing her own child into a world where rivers ran red and fields burned."

The cycle kept repeating, the mysterious voice leading Victoria on with these mirages of people all bearing her last name. Each of them seemed to share one thing in common; a tragic and traumatic life event that forever changed their lives. A wave of sadness began to shower over Victoria, her heart had sunken, a single tear streaking down her cheek as she had to listen to each of these life stories, watching each figure come and go. This went on until the next pair of figures was weaved in front of her. This was a man with a goatee, black-rimmed glasses, messy black hair and wearing a dark red suit with black shoes. Victoria dropped to her knees, tears welling up in her eyes, her lower lip trembling.

"D...Dad...?" She spoke softly.

Another trail of stardust weaved a figure next to him. A woman with long brown hair and red lipstick wearing a black fur coat and a long black skirt with purple leggings and black fur boots. The two of them smiled warmly as they both looked down at Victoria, tears streaming down her face.

"Mom..." She whimpered.

Victoria had broke down, letting the tears fall and splash on the non-existent floor keeping her afloat in the starry void. Her stomach was in knots and she didn't know what to think or do anymore.

"James Wintercroft...no explanation is needed for him...in a cold world plagued by the sins of mankind, found warmth in the love of his significant other...Valerie. Hardworking and caring, they were intertwined by love at a young age. As time went on, thou would be birthed into this world. They are your creators, bringing you into existence. Unfortunately life can bring surprises one cannot expect...such as the fate of James and Valerie, who would perish in a wreck on a rainy spring evening. This left you, their sole offspring, as the current bearer of the bloodline... The vessel which thyself has inherited."

Victoria wiped her eyes and ran towards the visage of her parents. The two of them opened their arms and embraced Victoria, sobbing into their chests.

"I-I miss you two so fucking much... Why did you have to leave? W-why did you have to be taken from me...?!" She cried.

"From the day Edward and Mary made the pact, I have been woven through your bloodline, traversing through each of you one-by-one after passing on. Thou own father was the last vessel which I had slumbered in until his passing...now I reside within you child...Victoria Wintercroft."

Victoria continued to stay in her parents embrace for a moment. But she knew that they weren't real, and that this void wasn't real but an illusion. Collecting herself and ceasing her sobs, she gave her parent's one last good look...and let go of them. The two of them waved before evaporating into stardust just as the others have. Now she truly felt alone, with only the mysterious voice keeping her company.

"So...you're the voice I've been hearing. You must be what's causing my mental stability to slowly collapse. The visions, the headaches, the nightmares...it's all because of you isn't it?" Victoria asked coldly.

"Now thou are putting the pieces together child... This is good. Thou shall embrace thy own existence. As thy own vessel."

"But why all of this? Why show me these people from my family's heritage??"

"You sought out the origin of the pact Edward and Mary had made. Awoken, thy was from this. Consider this a lesson in learning where thou's bloodline stems from and how thy came to be intertwined within all of them, and thou's own self. Thou also soon bears a message of great importance to thee."

"A...message?"

"Thou are not yet ready for thy to reveal thine own true form or thine name. Thou remained imprisoned in a prison of stone, until thy was released by those called Edward and Mary. As the current bearer of the bloodline, thy became a part of you. And you, dear child...hold significance. Thy will bring you to the endless void of stars again soon. And thy will reveal the message. It would seem thou hast overcome a great deal of sadness and sorrow, but also have been given great knowledge in return. Thy will now return thee to your world. Expect another visit soon, child of the bloodline..."

And with the voice fading out in an echo, Victoria started to collapse, clutching her head with throbbing pain and crying out. The void around her started to warp and distort with several black tendrils rising from the invisible ground she laid on and wrapped around her. Suddenly, the pain stopped. Victoria opened her eyes and looked up. She was on her knees inside the cave. Her phone laid on the ground with the flashlight still on illuminating the ceiling. She stood up and brushed her leggings off from dirt. She then grabbed her phone, letting out a sigh as the screen was cracked, and started heading out of the cave.

Outside the cave entrance Adrian paced back and forth anxiously until Victoria popped out from the darkness, pocketing her phone. Adrian immediately turned to face her and his eyes went wide. Before he could even say a word Victoria rushed to him and hugged him tightly. He hugged her back, clutching her close to him. The two didn't speak instead just held each other in an embrace, with the calming sounds of the ocean in the distance lifting their spirits. The journey was over. It was now time to head back.