Marcus Kadavy

I was worried I'd lose my poem, so I copied my journal entry to this page. There was a boy my age who came up to me and asked me if I had a light. I skipped out on my mom to sit in the parking lot, thinking if I had just done what she told me to, I never woule've met Marcus Kadavy. Expiration Date, May 2000 I'm pretty sure. We only talked for an hour, about life, about peace, the meaning of existence, everything down to his smoking habit and how it was going to be the end of him. heh. I guess I was wrong. A month later, about, he was in a car crash and a year later I'm hearing his name in church, a dedication mass. I had no idea what was wrong, so I asked the closest person I'd found there. Talk about post-mature realization. A whole year had passed. All this time I thought he was alive and he wasn't. I still think about him of course, cried once or twice. He was a complete stranger and I cried for him. People ask me why I felt so strongly about this. It's as simple as adding: Someone who was supposed to be there wasn't. MARCUS AND DANIELE chipper choir vocals And guitars I thought I found myself today wandering among the dreams of yesterday, living a life that doesn’t exist among pews and dusty hymnals and incense. Wondering if I would meet you again. Or at least the guy I saw last week whose eyes were the brightest blue and hair the darkest black in which my heart would’ve been his if only he didn’t feel intimidated by my beliefs. He wasn’t here. You weren’t either. I found out you were dead, quite literally. From sixty to zero, living to dead all in the accepting arms of strangers in a church whose arms were quite cold. Mr. Right would have to take a number in my heart. Mr. Marcus Kadavy, could you please step up? Church bells couldn’t drown your voice or cynical smile. It’s not my line, but, “Gotta light?” Normally that wouldn’t have worked. We’d been similar, sharing thoughts of good will and unity in a world which had everything but Family and friends didn’t understand. He had died a year before and I didn’t get to miss him. He shouldn’t have been dead. Were you drunk? Were you high? Were you laughing with your friends? We spoke for an hour what life was how it affected our ideas and motives. You were very bright brighter than people made you out to be. The sun came and went, disappeared behind the international symbol of Christian faith. I had no faith after the day I found you’d died. What a waste of beauty within. You left without a proper goodbye. All you had to offer was an hour. Too bad you couldn’t be here, joking and smoking while I wrote on the back windshield with dusty fingers "Peace" and “Wash Me” signs. Shit that no one thought we’d write. We talked about how smoking would kill him one day. What fools, what fools. You were a black walnut shell, tough and unbreakable on the outside amazing and a sight to behold on the inside reassuring me with a puff of smoke that if I took care of my city You’d take care of yours. Like superheroes. Goodbye Mr. Marcus Kadavy. See you in church.

What?

I say parts 1 & 2 because I apparently went back and added another character to the mix. He wasn't based off anyone, but someone I know thinks I did. Don't tell him or he'll be hurt. ^_^. Take the first part to the Disk and add this after. ~~~~ I woke up, and was in a Well-lighted room...big mistake. I went over to the window, and saw a level under it. I opened the window, and crawled onto the ledge. I made the mistake of looking down. Only then was the time that I feared of the future. I kept crawling until I reached the next window. I looked in, and saw a kid that I recognized from school. We have the same classes, and it always looks like he's following me. He was in there alone, so I knocked quietly on the glass, and he let me in. "Following me as usual, Derek?" "Callie," he whispered, "why are you here?" "That's funny. I was going to ask you the same question." "I'm a hacker." "I have a gun." "What kind of gun?" "Something new. My own creation, which has endangered me." "Oh. Well, all I've done was hack into the government's computer and steal some papers on the weapons, but that's a problem because Steve is the power hungry madman in this situation." "You're absolutely right, Derek." Steve said as he walked into the room. "I am the power hungry madman here, and you two have something I want." He came up to me and slammed me up against the wall, making me unable to touch the ground. "Steve, put her down!" Derek demanded, then stood up. The henchman behind Derek stopped him by putting pressure on his shoulders with his powerful hands. Derek plopped down on the bed. "Where is the disk, Cal?" "It's Callie to you." I said, punching him in the ribs. He dropped me, and I fell to the floor. He laughed, and punched me in the stomach. I fell to my knees, and held onto my stomach. Derek got loose, and stood in between me and Steve. Derek was actually very brave, even after Steve knocked him unconscious. "I want that disk." "I...don't...have...it." "So? We'll find it." "You'll find it without my help, that's for damn sure." "You think I'm going to let you go? Yeah, right. I'm not that inferior." "Oh, so you admit it." [A/N: Okay, what??] "You're starting to piss me off." "Finally. I was starting to doubt my abilities." "Put her back into the room." Steve came up to me, and punched me in the stomach. "Not again..." I said, falling to the ground, unconscious. ~~~~ I woke up, and I was in that room again. I looked around. I saw weird decor (funky colors) on the walls, floors, furniture, and just everywhere. I walked over to the window, and crawled out of it. I had no time to think, just act. [A/N: . . . really??] I walked over to a drain pipe that led...well, down. I looked into Derek's 'prison room,' and tapped on the glass. He opened the window. "What are you doing now?" "You want to go home, or just stay here as a prisoner?" "Fine. Lets just go quickly." We ran and separated at our streets. I tiptoed into my house, and went into my room. I crashed onto my bed, and slept. I woke up to a slamming of a door, a hard floor, and an engine revving up. I couldn't see anything just yet, because I was in a strangely dark vehicle. About a minute later, I saw Derek struggling to get free of the ropes on his hands. "Cal, you okay?" I crawled over to him and started undoing the ropes. "Your'e asking me?" All of a sudden [A/N: I'm NEVER using this phrase again], I felt someone grab my arms from behind and pull me back. "Callie," the strange voice said, "don't make this hard for yourself." "What is this? Exchange your hostages week?" "You could say that. Lets move." The van went forward and jolted into a speeding frenzy, which made me fall backward. "Let me go. I'm not going anywhere." "I'm not the one that lets someone get a chance to escape." He got something out of his pocket. They were handcuffs. He wrapped me hands together around the pipe. [A/N: pipe?] The he put a gag in my mouth. I looked at Derek. He seemed calm, like he was expecting this. I guess I was too, considering that I had a top secret weapon in my basement. We came to a stop, and someone removed the cuffs. I took the gag off. "Derek, you look like you're expecting everything that comes to you." I whispered to Derek. "I never panic unless I have a real reason, and he isn't it." "That's a good one." I whispered. The man came over and slapped me across the face. Derek stopped him from hitting me again by grabbing his wrist, and pushing towards the wall of the vehicle. Another man came from the front, brought out his gun, and pointed it at my head. "Derek, stop fighting me, or else Callie gets a one way ticket to the graveyard." "You wouldn't dare, because you want that gun, and you'll never get it if you kill her." The man retreated his arms, then Derek did. The man next to me then got out a bag, as did the other man. I was starting to feel better when they violently put the bags over our heads. I grabbed at my neck as they dragged us out of the van and into a building. They threw us into a room. I fell to the groun, and was breathing heavily. I looked around after they were gone. I saw no windows, gray interior, fancy gray carpet, and little decorations all over the place. "For some reason I like this." "I know. It looks right to me. Lets try to find a way out of here. Look for hollow spots in the walls." "I'll go with that." We started searching the room, and about five minutes later Derek found something. "Cal, I found the way out I think." I went over to him, and we investigated it. "That's a door alright. We need to find a way to open it." I went over to a chair, and picked it up. I walked over to the hollow spot. Derek jumped out of the way, then I threw the chair into the wall, and it went right through. [A/N: Man, someone needs to shoot the re modeler.] "Cheap wallpaper." Derek said. "After you." "I can't believe that no girl has ever went out with you, because you're just so damn charming." I walked into the tunnel, and he followed in after me. "Any idea where they took us in the first place?" "Not one clue, but I think we'll find out in a second." "Why" "Stop and look up, but look slowly." I looked up, and my mouth gaped open. "Shit. Where the hell are we? There is nothing like this in Caseate." "Keep going, I thought I saw something ahed." No matter how much I didn't want to keep going, I did. I was sort of curious. I walked until I got to a tri-fork in the road. I didn't know which way to go, but that thing we saw flew through one of those tunnels towards me, snatched me up, and carried me down another tunnel. [A/N: Where did ThAT come from?!] I"ll won't trust my curiosity for a long while. The thing that snatched me up stopped suddenly, and dropped me onto the ground. I sat up, and looked around. It was like a small hideaway, and I was alone, literally. No sign of any creature anywhere. "Could it have been a ghost?" I asked myself quietly. "Cal! Where are you?!" I heard Derek yell "I don't know!" I replied. "Why me!!" Then I heard an erie voice behind me. "You'll never find a way out of here." It said. ~~~~ "Says who? We're no ordinary kids." I said, searching for the source of the voice. "No one has left these tunnels alive." "Want to bet?" I asked. Derek walked into the cavern. "Who are you talking to?" "Theres some ghost saying that we'll never make it out of here alive." "It does look a little hopeless." "We can find a way out, in fact, I'm having some positive vibes right now. Lets go." I led us down a few tunnels, then I felt a draft, and I saw a little stream of water coming from the direction we were going. "You doubted me, didn't you? I felt it." We walked down the tunnel farther, until we saw a light at the end of it. We ran to the light, and saw a park. The same park I used to play in when I was young. Too bad I moved two states away later that summer, which was over seventy miles away. [A/N: seventy miles?! xD OMG that's rich.] "Oh crap." "What?" "The one thing that can go wrong went wrong. We're in a different state. Thats whats wrong." "You mean as in Nebraska or Alaska?" "Yes. Moved from here a while ago, and...run." "What?" He asked. I pointed to the men running towards us. "Run!!" We ran to the biggest piece of equiptment, the rocket, and jumped the stairs, then crossed the bridge. The one man followed us up the beginning, and the other one disappeared out of sight. I grabbed one of the chain-link walls, and headed up. Derek got onto the other side, and down below, there was a man slowly mgaining on us, so we picked up the speed. Derek went down the monster slide, and I went to the top. I started down the rocked, which was a spiral staircase, and when I got to the bottom, I felt someone grab me from behind and clamp a hand on my mouth. It was Steve. "Don't say a word, Callie." He removed his hand from my mouth and let go of me. "Down the ladder." I went down the ladder, and saw Derek being held at gun point by the other guy. I had to say something. "What the hell is going on here?!" "Sort of a competition for hostages." The man said. "Thats the most retarded thing I've ever heard in my entire life." Derek said. The man pointed the gun towards Steve, and shot. Steve fell to the ground, the bullet missed him. "DEREK, RUN!!" I yelled. We ran to each other, then we headed towards the road. The entire time we were running all we heard were Steve and the man gunning it out. Then we heard two police sirens coming out way. We ran to the road as soon as they pulled up. "Officer! There are two men fighting with guns over there." "Do you have any idea why?" "They're fighting for us." Derek stated. "Can we go home now?" I asked. "Where do you live?" "Oh, just Caseate Wisconsin." "Damn. We'll arrest the men first, then we'll get you two home." "Thank you." I said. After we got back to our homes, it was midnight, and we crashed onto our beds, fast asleep. I slept for a long time, but that was disrrupted when I heard my front door open and slam shut. The End [Or is it?]

Notes

This just tickles me. The word disk totally dates this story. Back when we had 3 1/2s out there, disks were The thing. Now as we need to do is change that k to a c and we're right back there. . . oh, but the story just makes you facepalm again and again. Why hold a hostage in a room, twice no less, where there are windows that open and escape routes. Why have shitty carpenters who don't even bother to build walls to dark and creepy tunnels? That ghost guy didn't really TRY, did he? Grammar aside, the story's showing some improvement as it goes. I'm rather surprised at how much difference there is between the two plots. The way these two interact with Steve in later versions and episodes becomes darker, with less talk and more show. And less commas.

The Disk, pts. 1 & 2

I actually had to drink some wine before starting. Didn't think it'd be this hard to type a story word-for-word. This isn't the absolute first story, that one's been lost since I began December 2, 1998 [not exactly sure if that's the one, but it's the thought that counts]. There are no fixed parts, no corrections, no grammar doctoring or punctuation jabbing. All wretchedness aside, this is a story that is the beginning of a shitload of stories that actually Don't suck. Without further ado, The Disk. [Part 1] ~~~~ "I won't go with you." I said. "Yes, you will." the man said, and he snapped his fingers. This henchman came up behind me, grabbed me around the waist, and lifted me up from the ground. "Man," I said, "today of all days. What do you want?!" "Well, I want the disk." he replied. "What disk?" I asked. "You know 'what disk.'" he replied. "No, I don't." I said "The probability of you not knowing about what is on that disk is, well, very slim, but if you want to play games with me, fine, the disk with the blueprints to the XB5000, you know, the biggest crime assault weapon man has ever known. Plus, if it got into the wrong hands, well, the world will bow down to us criminals, begging for mercy. So, hows that for right now, Callie?" He explained. "Pretty good." I said, "But one thing remains between you and that disk." I explained. "Oh, and whats that?" he asked. "Me." I replied. I kicked back my foot, and got the henchman in the groin. He let me go. I fell to the ground, then quickly picked myself up and ran. I ran a few blocks to the busy streets [that weren't so busy, but a good show]. I got the disk out of my purse and in hand, and got a pen out. I wrote on the sticker 'Get to Police.' Aftger that, I looked back to see if they were coming - they were. I picked up my speed, and ran across the street. The roads were busy and a whole bunch of cars came after I got across, the cars flooded through. I walked away, but had to get that disk to the police. I quickly scrawled my name on the sticker. My invention wasn't going to get taken like this. I looked back, they got across the street, and were running towards me. I saw something that I could do. I went to this grocery store, and the men were closer than I thought. One of the guys grabbed my ankle, and I went down. The door was pushed open, and the disc flew out of my hand and flew into the store out of sight. The guy who grabbed my ankle knelt up, and pulled my arms back. The main guy said his name was Steve, then he got out a rag, and swished some chloroform on it. I wasn't able to move, just struggle. The man put the cloth over my mouth, my eyes went wide, then it was over. [Back at the store] A person was watching from the inside. When the med left with me in hand, she was horrified. She saw where the disk went, picked it up, read it, and got her coat. But then she got smart. She went to the phone, and called the police. Ten minutes later the police were questioning her and baggin the disk [they'll look at it back at the station]. My father, Nathan, got the disk, recognized my writing, and plugged the disk into the computer. He knew what was on the disk, he just didn't know. I made a little intro I called the 'Big Kahuna.' It looks innocent, like a regular fun site. But when you go up to 'games' and there are about ten games, half are disk programs, he clocked onto 'Mine Sweeper' and played two rounds [this is how you get in], and he won both, then he started clicking on the flags, then he clicked on the last flag, and the screen went blank then the 'Big Kahuna' screen came back on, but he saw a little Icon in the left hand bottom corner, and clicked on it. From 'The Lion King' game, Timon said, 'It starts.' 'The Saint', Val Kilmer getting caught flashed into the computer, then it showed from the beginning when Val Kilmer jumped off the edge of the place. Then from 'Masterminds', the part where Patrick Stewart cuts off the mom and says, 'I'm sorry to break up this moment, but we now know you you are.' then Ozzy says, 'Mom, I won't fail you.' "Wait." Nathan suddenly said, "Get me security tapes here." He was upset and filled with sadness and anger, "I'll get you back, Callie." He stared at the screens, then he saw it. He saw the way the disk flew out of my hands when I got caught. Then leutenent Gable came in, saw his eyes start to well up, and she sat down next to him, and offered him a tissue, he took it. Then he said, 'She is the brains of the family. They wanted the disk. Her disk. Her invention. She didn't get it tested all the way, but it works. A sixteen-year-old-young lady, going to MIT next year.' Mom came in, and said, 'As soon as I found out, hon, I came as fast as I could.' The two hugged, and sat down at the computer, and watched the gun form and after it was done, it started spinning [to show the entire gun]. "We shouldn't have let her do that." Mom said. "We did the right thing, though." Dad said. "We let her grow up. She is smart. We trust her to do the right thing. We give her our support, so we just act confident about this." "I suppose you're right, but Nathan, she's just a child!" They hugged and prayed that she was okay. ~~~~ I woke up, and the I was tied up, but just on the hands and feet, and they were semi-tight on my ankles, but loose chain between the ankles and wrists. I got up, and went to the window, and saw the back side of the state capitol -- The Sower. I looked at the building across the street, one window was right across from me. I counted how many floors there were under the window - 5 floors under the window - and went to find my purse. I found my purse, alright; it was on the table, and my stuff was scatted all over the table, "The disk is gone!" I thought. Then I heard footsteps, and I tried to run to the bed, but the chains slowed me down, so I just slowed down with it the door opened, and Steve came in, "Hello." "Hi." "As you can see, we can't find your disk. . . anywhere. We even searched you when you were asleep." "I told you i didn't have it." "Well, you were lying then, but you had it." "Then I lost it." "You don't lose a fortune, do you?" "No." "That information is your fortune, and if we don't get that disk, it will be worthless to you" "Why must, you threaten me?" "Why shouldn't we?" "Because, my father is a state official." "All the more reason." "He'll find you and send you to prison." "But, if he doesn't?" "He will." "Then why don't we just ransom you for the disk?" Then he put duct tape on my mouth. I took it off because of the hand situation. "If you DO that. . . " "What?! You'll do what? You'll tell your Daddy?!" He stomped out of the room, slamming the door behind him. "Jerk." I walked back to the window. There was a ledge outside. I took a bobbypin out of my hair, and picked the locks on my shoes. "Pretty easy." I thought. Then I picked the locks on my hands, and I'm freed! "I'm going to open the. . . wait!" I thought. "There's a phone in here!" I picked up the working phone, then put it down. I went back to the window, and took a looks again: 5 stories up, building across the street same height, behind the state capital [sower], and street address, 4206 & Q [A/N: totally inaccurate! dm 12/9/09], if you're going south, I'll be on the right side of the street. . . Do I have my pager? Nope. The jerks took it. I guess I'll stick to the phone. But would I want to be more or less dependent towards my parents? They'd love me either way. "No." I thought, "I don't know!" I thought to myself. "I can't decide. If I do this on my own, I wouldn't really know where I was going, but I wouldn't be fetched, and I have a sort of a plan." I climbed out the window, and looked down. "Why do I suddenly hate this plan?" I remembered something, "Oh, my purse." I whispered. I walked back in, grabbed my purse, then started to go out again, then Steve walked in. "Going somewhere?" "Yes." "No." "Yes." "No." "Yes." "You're not going anywhere, because you're not holding the gun." "Point taken, but lets say that I try to get away, and you shoot me, its a lose-lose situation, you don't get the disk, and the state will be after you for the rest of your life, but as I said it before, a lose-lose situation." He put the gun away. "Follow me." he said. I didn't ask where I was, because I knew pretty much where I was. "Aren't you going to ask me where you are?" "No." "Why not?" "I don't want to think about bad things when something bad has happened already." "You know where you are, and I know it." "Why do you say that?" "Because of your lack of concern." "I don't want to know because I don't want to have a mental breakdown." I snapped. "Don't go there, Callie, but just in case you do know where you are, and right now I'm going to give you some time to nap." "You don't scare me." "Yes, I do." "N-no, you don't." "Wanna bet?" "Yes." "In here." I walked into a room, it didn't look like a small room, totally black, except for a single circle of light a little far of, "Stand in that circle and brace yourself." I was really cautious. I got into the circle, and all my shields were up. "If you're tense, you will be in more pain." he said, "which will be more fun for us." I stayed tense, because I have always been scared of the dark, and you never know what lurks in the dark. I was wondering what was going to happen to me, when I felt suddenly weak, I didn't know what was happening, I was using all my power to stay up, but it wasn't working. I fell to the ground, and the rest of my power went to opening my eyes, and A familiar face came into view. "Where's the disk?" "Huh? . . . " I said. "The disk. Where is it." "I don't know. . . " "Come on, wheres the disk?" "I don't know." "Yes, you do, tell me and I'll let you live." I shook my head slightly. He slapped my across the face, "You're gonna tell me where the disk is!" I shook my head again. He was handed a needle, and the man knelt down, and got really close to my ear, "See you in a few days. . . " He thrusted the needle into my upper arm. That was uncomfortable, my body tensed, and I felt the serum go into my veins from my arm, my eyes squeezed shut, and I was trying to fight it, but everything went black, and I got lost in all that blackness, then my mind went blank. I woke up, and looked around, 'How long have I been asleep?' I was in a bed, and had a headache, and why are there white walls and gifts in here? 'This is a hospital. Why?? Am I back with my parents or family? OR am I still with that creep?' A nurse came in, and she smiled, "Why am I here?" "I'll send somebody in here to explain, but all I know is that you got a bump on your head." "Bump?" "Yes. I'll be right back." She left, and then that creep came back. "You." "Yes, me." "Why?? Did you bring me here?!" "No. That was your parents." "Where are they?" "I don't know, and frankly, I don't care." "Why are you here then?!" "Revenge. . . " Suddenly my father came into the room, and jumped the guy, handcuffed him, and slammed him into the wall. Mom came in. "Callie, are you okay?" I nodded. Some other officers came in. "Take him away." "Let me guess. My pager was found, and you came to my rescue, got there, and sent teams into different sections, cornered the creep into a room, he then put a gun to my head, and threatened to shoot me when I was out then someone attacked him but he slepped out of the man's grasp, and hit my head with something, then ran off. You brought me here, unsure if I was alright, pulled an all-nighter here, and you know the rest." "She'll be okay." Dad said to mom. "I need food." A nurse came in with some kind of casserole, potato salad, yellow kello, and cherry koolaid, and I ate it down, "How long has it been since. . . " "Four days." "My goodness. . . what an adventure. . . I mean terrible tragedy, definetly." "Do you think you'll need help?" "No. Just need my homework delivered here or wherever I may be in the near, very near future." "Our teenage genious. What do you want to do now?" "Get me some college-rule paper and five number 2 pencils." "Why?" "I want to write a story about what happened in this past week." The End

Dancing Children, pt. 2

"Oh no you don't," she said, grabbing the instrument. She took his oversized collar and threw him up against a wall, making a point to put the pole against his voice box. "No music, no hypnotizing, and that's final." Hamelin began chuckling. His voice was almost as annoying as the damn flute, but it was infinitely more tolerable. That sound would keep her from falling asleep like, as he said, a giant.

"You think you're the first to come to and threaten me? You are one more sleeper, and your dear little sister is coming along for the ride." He was suddenly across the room, next to Kirsa and playing his tune again. The three were facing each other then and Maran realized that the man was playing to her sister, who was sporting a chipper smile on her face as she approached her elder. Maran's grip on the pole loosened for a second, even though the look was creepy as hell, and Kirsa took it easily into her hand.

Then it swung upwards. An impact on her chin. Maran fell to her back and Kirsa lunged forward with the splintered end coming down towards her face. Rolling out of the way at the last second, the sound of splintering wood followed as Kirsa's blow damaged the wood floors. Crap! On her feet again, Maran reached at the flailing weapon and caught it with a few of her fingers. Kirsa gleamed with happiness and pulled the post straight back, causing splinters to dig into her sister's hand. She let out a short howl and grabbed the smooth end of the stick, injury noted and surpassed. The pain was a reminder that it wasn't really necessary to stop when hurt. Kirsa slid away before Maran could punch her, being evasive with a playful streak. It wasn't a bad idea, just highly inconvenient for the older of the two. Before she could step forward again, the post came flying from the side, clocking Maran in the temple. She cursed and walked to the side of the room. The pain was immediate and prolonging and she wanted it to stop Now!

Her little sister began to walk to the back porch. When Hamelin's sound began to carry again, Maran punched the wall and began to lose feeling in her feet. Her body fell against the wall, sliding downwards while Kirsa stepped over her crouched form to skip out of the house. Hamelin began to laugh, his playing losing grip on her very slowly as his laughter turned to a hypnotizing song.

"Giant, giant, sleepy sleepy giant," he teased.

Fall asleep, hit the ground,

make sure you don't come around,

fight and cry and scream and wail,

let me know who's set to sail,

leave your homes and follow me,

right into the deep deep sea.

He trailed off as his laughter started up again, and the door slammed as Kirsa left the cooling house into the freezing outdoors. Maran knew she had to get up and follow, had to keep her sister from disappearing because of a crazy out in the world. Her legs were still numb and her head hurt like it should have, but she somehow found the energy to force their movement, staggering almost drunkenly to the back door to trail them. Her hand grabbed a blanket before bolting out the door, and something told her she would need it by the end of the night. If she were smart, she'd take the cell phone from her mother's den, but then again, if she were smart, she'd not try to call 9-1-1 and tell the police that her sister had been abducted by a magical creature bent on stealing her sister and doing who knows what.

The cell phone stayed in the den, she ran out the door at a dangerous speed. The short man, Hamelin, was turning out to be more trouble than he was worth, and as he led Kirsa away, two more doors shut in the distance. Who the hell wanted to leave their homes at this hour simultaneously? Stalker, pharmacologist, ransom, kidnapper, pedophile, tons of bad things to happen to innocent children in the dead of night, but this was a list of things Maran thought the man could've been.

But to explain the way the flute could stop her and remove kids from their homes—in this day and age!—still confused her. Maran knew with what she'd experienced so far tonight, her options were winding down and she'd have to accept a truth before the sun rose, be it an alarming discovery or a case of influenza. Kirsa began skipping East towards 7th & Maple, and the two who just exited their homes in order to follow the flutist music in a similar fashion. Maran had to know if she was facing something new, and as the cold air hit her face she had one thought going through her mind, Let the little bastard have the kid, it's too cold to chase after her. Part of her was completely fine with that one, only because she didn't want to go to the bay area, which seemed to be a highly possible destination.

She followed the small, cheering crowd down the street, and Hamelin appeared by a door. The door opened and a child answered with such enthusiasm. The music played louder, causing Maran to shut her eyes tight in order to concentrate. It was so intoxicating. She hobbled along after her sister, blind, and when the music faded so did the drunken feeling. Breaking off into a run, Maran pushed past a slew of dancing children that just appeared at a crossroad, Hamelin in the lead. She caught up with him in little time, trying to figure out the craziness of this situation before something bad happened.

They were heading towards the bay, and with mystified children unable to think on their own, it was probable that he was planning something massive to compensate for his loss, whatever that was. The water was well below swimming temperature, and Maran had to think fast before something drastic happened and they were all in deep trouble. There were things even she'd allow, like a joy walk around the city.

"Waitaminute. I need you to clear something up really quick. I can see you're a busy midget so I'll keep it to a minimum. You're a flutist who claims to have cleaned up an infestation and went unpaid. In response, you made the children of the city disappear. That's something out of a fairy tale. . . it doesn't happen in Real Life!" She grabbed his shoulder, turned him to face her.

"Of course it happens, giant, it's a true story."

"No it isn't! That had mystical crap and rats, a whole messload of people not paying up for something they saw coming. This isn't like that. You're just stealing kids and what? Training them to play follow-the-leader?" Hamelin giggled, actually giggled. Maran wanted to take a grip of his neck and squeeze as hard as she could. Why she didn't was beyond her but there was crazy logic all around tonight. When the laughter quieted down again, Hamelin approached her and drew her closer to his height with a wiggle of his finger. He made complete eye contact before whispering in a very low voice, different than from before with his laugh.

"The story remains that I didn't get paid. That's the moral. If you can't deal with this reality, what makes you think you understand your own?"

"She's just a kid!"

"And they were just rats." Maran froze. Kirsa tried to move forward, but the grip Maran had on her arm was vice-like. The air was cold and damp, and they were standing knee-deep in similar water, Maran breathing heavily but determined to win the situation. The Pied Piper was furious. And part of Maran had a fear of that look. The other part of her, the fighter, grew angry. Her hand came up and grabbed him by the face. Pushing him away with as much force as she could muster, she pulled Kirsa nearer to the shore. The music disappeared and she knew her chance had come. She grabbed her sister's other arm and turned her so they were face-to-face. While the music was still gone, Maran shook Kirsa as hard as she could. After a second, she went from limp to tense, her eyes opening for a second before she fell back and the music started again. Her eyes were open now, at least. Maran took that as her cue that she was in the presence of a sound-minded sister and turned to the Piper.

"You can't take the kids and you sure as hell haven't saved this city from any infestation. I still see the same scum everyday and the world isn't seeing anything worth changing for." Maran fell silent, shaking from fear, anger, and the cold. The Pied Piper of Hamelin said nothing, but he stared, his black eyes boring into hers. The cloudiness was gone, the music no longer bothering her. But those eyes, they promised suffering. Kirsa started to dance around, something frantic as she mumbled about freedom and whole families she could live with just beyond the waterfront, but that was several miles away, and Maran would be damned if she let her ungrateful sister drown herself.

"A pound of flesh I require! You're willing to make that deal?" the Piper yelled over the screams. Maran didn't say anything, but picked up her sister with as much force as she could and walked back to the shore. Setting the struggling, screaming girl of thirteen on the ground, she waited for her to balance before yanking the splintered post out of her grip. Her mind said goodnight the moment Maran swung at her stomach and winded her enough to cause unconsciousness.

"Sure." The laughter and song began to course through her once again, and the peace came back to her, promising the things she so desperately thought she could find with him. For the first time that night, she let herself think it was possible, and she faced the bay. The Pied Piper of Hamelin took his dues.

Kirsa woke up in the morning, groggy and her head pounding as the music faded. Stretching on the wet ground, her body rolled until she rested on her back. There were sirens in the background and she was pulled into a sitting position after awhile. The signals from her brain weren't reaching her limbs very quickly, she was so tired. "Kirsa? Answer me if you can hear me!" The person, a male, was trying to wake her up, and slowly the night came back to her. What was that sound, she asked herself as her body shook awake. Then she remembered cold water, eerie music, and her sister fighting some small man. Where was Maran? Kirsa remembered she was pulled into the water, and then what?

She remembered nothing then, nothing but the music. It lingered, and how it came after her. She couldn't scream, could barely talk when they asked questions. The sea called to her, like they had everyone else, but she was frozen in place from fear. All she could say was, "The music played, it played until they were all gone, it promised to take me away and I'd never felt so happy. But somehow the music stopped and I couldn't go too." She cried.

Dancing Children, pt. 1

Maran woke up to a strange wind that gusted through the house followed by a loud thud. She was awake, moreso than the rest of her family hopefully. In the chill of the night, it was possible there was a draft, but the old style of the Edenton was durable to stand the cold of winter. It could've been an opened door or window from downstairs, in which case the proper action to take would be to call the police and report a break-in. It would've been logical, but that wouldn't happen. She didn't really suspect a break-in. There was a window or door open somewhere and she had a feeling her sister had something to do with it, not a burglar.

Kirsa, her sister, had always been the restless type and her walking around in the dead of night was not unusual. When she snuck in the back door last time she had to intervene to give her sister the most subtle informative talk at two in the morning. Never before had she spoken to her about sneak tactics, but she managed to mention the back porch and ledge. Her sister was a bit of a slacker and Maran wasn't exactly daughter of the year, having slipped out at all hours of the morning herself until she was sixteen.

As a student, Maran found herself more immersed in her social activities than in her studies. It wasn't that she was popular—she wasn't—but that she fell in with a rather violent group and ruined her reputation with fights. Her mother caught her sneaking in through the back yard when working in the den. Up until that moment, her mother hadn't shown she suspected. A couple of months of intense therapy and some serious family time, she was a semi-model student. Now she was very well off their radar and into the proverbial melting pot of ignorance. She hated it, for the most part, but she didn't mind not being noticed. It was a sacrifice to let people think she'd converted to the social cult of America.

Normal people would've turned over and gone back to sleep. Maran in her old ways would've gone to shut the window before doing the same, but now her reaction was to go down and investigate somewhat. A likely scenario would be a midnight snack and paranoia and a positively embarrassing lecture from those awake.

But this felt different. Kirsa was usually quieter than this. There was no real possibility of drinking since she was more trouble when sober, but Maran needed to investigate. She sat up, ran a hand through her short brown hair to even it back, and pulled the sheets away. Her feet were itching to move, and it was driving her to leave the room in haste. Something about that wind was borrowing her for a moment, and she felt nearly entranced. The air was so thick she had to get to the door.

Then she heard it, the music. It was so faint that she had to concentrate to hear it. The eerie sound carried her away from her bed, getting louder as she gained distance. Almost to the door, her feet were moving alone to match the music coming from outside. It felt as though a warm blanket was being thrown over her, comforting her and lulling her into a deep sleep. Her body seemed to be in tune to the woodwind sound, but her mind was dozing too quickly for her taste. This shouldn't have been happening. She was in control of herself, she didn't need some outside force to try and exert power. The music suddenly became louder. Her arm shot out and grabbed a coat rack outside of her door, flinging sweaters and a hat into her mother's door. The woman could sleep through a nuclear blast.

Kirsa's door was wide open, and her curtains were billowing. Maran forced herself to concentrate on the cold in the walls as she dragged herself down the stairs and towards the front door, coat rack in tow. Her grip was painful, bringing her closer to what it felt to be awake. There was the choice to make now, whether to bring a weapon to the fight or play it by ear. She wasn't without any fight in her body, a mind of her own and several years in a karate class made her able to defend herself.

A voice appeared in her head, a soothing one with such an alluring sound that she found it hard not to listen. It was too calm and it caused her a headache because no one really sounded like that. The voice was promising her peace and quiet, things she desperately wanted, things Anyone would be foolish not to want so much. Grabbing the railing to the stairwell, she felt her feet almost fall into step and take her headfirst down the stairs. Peace and quiet, a place of her own where she could live. Away from the noise of the world she lived in. It was not far, and she could go with them and they could all live happily ever after. . . Maran scoffed then, her mind focusing on her hand gripping the handrail. Her body was turning to jelly about peace and quiet, but that was exactly the problem. Everyone wanted peace and quiet, so what was so special about that? The voice got quieter as she kept thinking, the fog in her mind disappearing as she became more skeptical of the sounds coming from inside her head.

Her body was back in her control. Finally, she thought. Now, lets see if we can find something worth going after.

She made her way down the stairs and peered into the living room. No one. There was a clear view to the dining room. That meant they were either in the dining room or kitchen, where there were tools of destruction. Maran didn't want to make herself vulnerable to attack. To meet an intruder without properly having something to bring to the fighting ring would be dangerous. The music began to fade, her senses returning to her. The post in her hand was snapped in half over her knee, which hurt at first but was a fade compared to the cloudiness from just now. Was there someone in the house other than the three of them? She made her way down the stairs quietly, dodging the creaky steps and holding her breath as she ventured towards the living room.

Then she heard mumbling around the corner. Kirsa was talking to someone in the kitchen, not begging or conversing like usual—which in her case was near yelling—but answering questions in an almost cheerful disposition. Kirsa wasn't a chipper person by any means, just like her sister. Maran's ears prickled a little at the mention of her name, and there was no secret about her position now. The splintered rod in her hand served well as a weapon, and she had every intention of using it on an assailant.

"She's overprotective, violent, and strong." Kirsa's voice. It didn't sound like her at all, more chipper and automatic, but the tone was not really unmistakable. When you lived with someone long enough, some things were automatic. Her hand clenched around the pole and she heard a male voice, accompanied by the returning music. This time it was louder than before, as though trying to convince her to fall back asleep. At first she thought it was a good idea, the sleep so calming it was sickening. It was a mellow light in the black. . . Then she heard her sister giggle. He giggled as well. His shrill sound pierced her eardrums, deadening the eerie tune again. Never again, she promised herself.

"She is a stubborn one," the male voice said again. He had an accent, possibly German, and why he was in her living room, Maran wasn't sure she'd find out right away and enjoy the answer if she did. "We'll have to bring her in to say hello." The music stopped altogether, but there was the opening of a drawer. Someone was going for something sharp. Crap, crap, crap. Maran's heart sped up and her grip loosened on instinct. She needed to get this one right. She also hoped that Kirsa wasn't going to let someone hurt either of them.

She just needed to stay completely quiet and strike when the opportunity was best. Then a voice whispered to her. "Psst. Who are we waiting for?" Maran tensed and saw spots. Turning, she found the broken coat rack gone from her hand and missing completely while staring into the face of a young man, quite a bit shorter than her. At five-foot-nine, Maran towered over many of her classmates and it helped with intimidation at times. The man was about four-foot-nine, and he carried something at his side. It looked like a recorder, but it looked so old. He wore a green shirt and tights, a belt holding his clothes up. Something told her he didn't belong from this region or even time, his clothes suggested. It worried her.

"Are you the sister?" His accent, so thick, was like an ice cube down her back. Her nails were digging into her palms, trying to grab onto the pole again that wasn't there. "I took away your little toy as good little girls don't play with sharp objects."

"Who are you?" Her voice cracked, it was so dry. The man grinned so wide his teeth glinted. His teeth were sharp enough to tear through leather, and that scared Maran. Many people were scared off by threats, idle or not. Maran's fears were based more on actual experience. Sharp things cut deep, and she'd been torn into before. The man looked so sure of himself that he could cut into her as well.

"Call me Hamelin. I'll be taking your sister. You're too old, a giant I'm afraid, but the journey specifically states that no giants are to be admitted."

"I'm not a giant. There are a lot of tall kids around. As I recall, you weren't able to hold onto me, not the other way around." There. The slight sneer and unwavering smugness he bore into her was moved just a bit.

"Either way, you're not a child by far, giant." The name he'd given her spiked her anger the slightest bit, driving away some of her fear. For a moment she could feel the weight of the post in her hand. She hadn't been aware of a cloudiness fogging her vision as she stood facing him. Her memory didn't feel like it was all there. Maran could hear her sister creaking up behind her, and turned to catch the hand sailing down to her soldier before it reached her. Kirsa had a knife and Maran had nothing. Thankfully Kirsa was also shorter and though she had a good right hook, she was no match for her older sister. Maran's eyes went wide as saucers when she spotted the look in those once dull eyes. They were green with excitement in the glow of the outside lamplight as she tried to push the knife down with incredible strength. The eldest of the two ducked under her sister's arm and twisted it back behind her, removing the blade from her hand. Maran had no idea what happened to her sister, whether she was in on this psycho's game or if she was hypnotized. She'd hurt the kid if she had to, but only with the intent of knocking her unconscious.

"And neither is my sister. What do you want?"

"A short time ago there was an infestation and I went unpaid."

"It's called an invoice."

"All debts are promises."

"Did you get shorted, then, Mister Hamelin?" He smiled again.

"In a manner of speaking, yes, so I'm taking my dues." Maran was confused. What dues could he possibly want that he'd have to entrance children to get them? She stared at him as though trying to step away and sweep the strange sense of familiarity into something discernable. It sounded somewhat familiar and it was on the tip of her tongue. Then it wasn't. The cloudiness came back and fought for some control over the thought process, taking her immediate line of thinking away. "As I said before, go back to sleep, giant."

He brought the flute to his lips and began to play. She didn't want to feel vulnerable again, and she knew what was coming.

Deities

A brisk wind, chill from the night, began its decent into dawn with one last caress over the grassy hills and plains. With a determination unseen by the human eye the fierce current blew, dancing and twisting as waves crashed upon the ocean front. With it were carried leaves, turning, rising and falling, untamed by invisible threads which seemed to draw from the Earth itself.

The air was salty, fresh on the ground as blades of grass worshiped with trembling chorus. The earth swayed. Shoreline approaching, leaves of gold and red swirled helplessly in the current only to be beckoned into a tight vortex. The Sun rose and in the glow shimmered the ghost of a figure, the leaves reflecting the sunlight with each passing second.

An undeniably feminine silhouette walked towards a precipice overlooking the ocean, dawn approaching within the half hour. With the brisk and chill breeze, Her body seemed to float over the dewy grass as morning approached. Time moved.

Grasshoppers had fallen silent hours ago, a soft symphony of nature to ease her mind. Through the silence she noted a stillness she'd not heard in ages.



Her gown fluttered in the wind. As though leaves had been embedded onto the hem and bodice, they clung to her form, brought color to her somewhat dull attire. She'd change it if the weather had been a little nicer in the southern hemisphere. Her fall colors always peaked out at the oddest times, her skin ever-changing. Despite the fact that she was in Spring weather of the East Coast, she was lacking the colors brought on by Spring, and was currently sporting browns, gold, red, and dark green. A few things remained, some dark butterflies that decided to latch onto her in order to travel north. They would live but turn with her in shades, mostly because she was ever changing and never aging.

Not physically, at least.

She was supposed to meet with Adrian in the evening. He'd asked for her to meet him privately and mentioned he had something important to tell her. Her stomach fluttered. How she came to love him, she will never know. All she knew was she was nearly head over heels in love with the Time Guardian. Perhaps she enjoyed his presence because of his control and gracefulness, but it was certain that she was the best thing in his life.

Although recently he'd been acting strange, disappearing from dinners at random times and showing up with artifacts. Usually he stuck to watching past events or pretending that he couldn't watch everything unfold while knowing the outcome already.

The guy was a jerk when at the movies, but everyone had their traits. He was responsible to say the least when it came to his job. He'd never been swayed in his time, at least that's what she'd been told. Why she had doubts now of all times she wasn't so sure. The wind felt different this morning. There were few moments when this was a sign of natural foreboding, and each occurrence left her emotionally distraught.

Why she thought so much on the topic of his professional manner always baffled her. However, it was smart to question when things were too good to be true. She would never have questioned if he hadn't made some strange decisions in the past few weeks. Her heart was all but his to hold but he didn't seem as committed as she was.

The winds were changing. She could feel it and was forced to act upon it. Time was grim.

A raven hopped up from behind her and she smiled, shaken from her reverie. "Jack, I see you've found me. Tell Frey I will be arriving shortly. Traveling in this world is hard without the right equipment. However, before you take flight, I request a boon from you. Seek me out should I suddenly become detained this week. I feel ill this morn. Many thanks, friend." She caressed Jack's feathers and he departed. The clouds churned as she stood there, and in her hand appeared a hat, a fedora. Dusting it off, her skin began to maintain a steady color. The magick within the object was strong, and on her head it went. Even the hat felt funny today. She shrugged it off as she continued her journey on foot to the bus station.

Her eyes looked out into the morning, ready for the day to begin. She smiled. This part never got boring. "Call me. . . "

"Lois, what was your distress? I didn't think you the paranoid type," said Frey. The woman in black and red took a bite from her burrito and continued walking with her autumn-clad friend. "Even Jack appeared concerned." The wind almost blew their hats across the food court, which could've blown their entire cover. The clouds were building, too. They were looking at a thunderstorm in the next few hours thanks to Miss Sunshine. Lois brushed a butterfly off her dress, the third one today, and sighed. Thinking back to her sudden change in appetite for beautiful weather, she realized her logic had won over. "Adrian has been so sweet these past weeks, and I feel a lack of concern right now. Logically, I would have been even the tiniest bit suspicious, but right now I feel so light."

"Jack mentioned some illness when he'd arrived. Perhaps he is planning something a little more permanent?" Lois looked up for a minute, as though something had occurred to her, but she shook it off.

"Nonsense. Adrian has control over time, what would he desire the weather?"

"Trust me, he has reason to want them. He's selfish like that. Having the power to harbor Time but not the control to change everything. He is just the Guardian, but he can't change anything. But just because he could have it, doesn't mean he would have the power to control it." Lois knew she was right. Even if Adrian wanted to control the weather, he didn't have the patience or the physical prowess to do any real damage. How she ended up liking a guy like him she would never know. These days she could easily conjure up a tornado that hit the scale at about four without making herself fatigued, but when she started out she could barely conjure a dust devil let alone an F4. Adrian had to use a different method to control time, therefore his powers would've been for moot if he actually succeeded.

She honestly could care less if he was after her. "That's why I prefer to keep everything simple. He could never control them even if he tried, and that's no exaggeration."

"I'm glad I stay out of relationships. I make it a point not to mix business with pleasure." Lois closed her eyes and laughed. Her voice carried and everyone seemed to fall into a daze for a second, as though her sound was a dream. The hats only filtered so much, so the utmost care was needed. Their disguises were bland but fair, the most important part being they could possess objects and tend to their worldly needs.

"How is Lucy? Still livid as ever?"

"He's out of his Hawaiian phase and now acting as the businessman everyone fears. His sense of humor is waning, though. Trade agreements this year, after all. I was lucky to get this time to shop, but he owed me." They fell quiet. Business was often the topic at hand, but they found their way around it to make it entertaining. "Once again, he's asking for 75/25, but it'll end up 60/40 just like last time and the time before that. He's a terrible finagler until someone asks for his help." Frey picked up a hair dryer and checked out the settings. Lois scoffed at the absurd quality of the machine.

"Hun, I could conjure a breeze that would tickle your spine and dry your hair for you."

"His Excellency wouldn't appreciate the favors you were doing me otherwise he would demand you do them for him as well. I'm better off just buying another one and charging him full price."

"I never understood what he was going for, 75/25. It must be a joke."

"He never fails to ask for that number, but I think he's just determined to keep most of them. He can never get over 60 percent." Frey didn't seemed phased by this. The Lord of Darkness getting over 50 percent anyway was a frightening but fair number, but there were things to factor into that number. The contract stated that the percentage of people they agreed on were the ones touched by either party. No prying into the business of the other party was allowed, and usually there was no problem in how they ended up so long as the numbers were right. Frey was calmer these days about such matters, and Lois knew it was just business.

Her contract was with the industrial world. With which company was she under contract? All of them. Since she began work, she'd been called upon to stop acting out against man's devices through the network. She would take out a small town for drilling into her kind and defenseless Earth for what they called "natural resources." She would drown a city that chose to exploit her resources over using the most reliable source of power-the Sun. After a few tries to destroy the balance of man over nature, she was forced to sign a contract with a band of mortals and gods. She was a deity. She had no use for contracts. If that were the case, then she wouldn't have needed to use these hats to get around on this plane.

But with the contracts came a level of rebellion, spurred by the masses and defended by those who lived solely on her. She almost despised them more, but appreciated those who treated her planet with respect instead of spite. The Wiccans had to be her favorite beings by far. They kept to themselves and enjoyed a lovely cup of tea every now and then. They were mellow when they came face to face with a deity.

"Lois, were you planning on hating my choice in appliances any time?"

"Just reminiscing, dear, no need to worry. I fear someone may be trying to disturb my realm this day and want to be on my best behavior when it happens. My contract was just renewed a couple of years ago. They were a snooty bunch and it made a connection somewhere down the line. I would hate to be me right now, who has to deal with the gods of civilized times. The new batch of mortals has sprouted from the ashes of their fathers.

Even if one survived, the contract remained in tact. The begin planning the next one for me to sign. I fear something bad may happen if I didn't real the contract completely this time. They added oil companies to the side, which was callous of them. Makes me wonder if they hid anything else in the manuscript."

"They've got their eyes on you, don't they. At least His Excellency has a bad reputation to keep up with, despite that three decade Hawaiian phase. Sandals, floral patterns, it was hard to keep his image fire and brimstone, but he managed to strike fear into everyone beside that. All it took was one laughing man to straighten the rest of the Underworld out."

Lois giggled. "You've been his secretary for how long? Four centuries?"

"Four and ten. It has not been easy. And his advances are borderline pathetic."

"Advances? You mean he hasn't been able to take you into his bed?"

"Trust me when I say in my years he has not once even forced me to join him."

"You've resisted the Pride Lord all this time? I've only heard of some of his exploits, but it must be hard to turn him down either way."

"He's a kitten, hun, don't forget that. Besides, I didn't value my body when I had it. Prostitution and drugs wore my body down and I regained all I had after I died. I made him laugh when I first told him I wouldn't become what I had before."

Lois thought about Adrian, how he'd been very patient. He knew time had to pass before she'd trust him like that, and fought the urge to be confusing when things needn't be confusing. Mortal or Deity, no difference in how either thought. Man could be more insightful than Deity, and Deities could be more so fickle as well. It was a spin of the dice at that point.

Adrian was sweet when he wasn't trying to be devious, she thought. Ever since she had put her hat on this morning, she'd been walking around and traveling the new way. Old-fashioned was flying around with trails of dust or glitter behind her. Sparkly. She almost missed the old ways, but then she remembered her first milkshake. That was when she stopped questioning the realm she was in.

Speaking of realms, Lois hadn't felt that connected with hers since she put on her hat this morning, and in thinking this, she turned to Frey. "I'm going to check to see if things are all right on my side. I'll be right back." Lois disappeared into the nearest bathroom and checked the stalls for feet. She didn't need anyone peeking in when she decided to return to her ever-changing form. It frightened more than one person on occasion, which was something she'd rather not repeat as far as experiences went. It was her usual several hour checkup, just in case she missed something. Frey did the same thing on the five hour mark, but all she had was a nosy boss to deal with.

Lois removed her hat, allowing the ever-changing colors to flush her skin and warm her body from the cold she'd been feeling on the back burner. Her hair was dryer with the Fall Season in the Southern Hemisphere, but she needed a little of her power to keep her warm. The Earth was getting colder under her feet, she never seemed to get warm, mostly because she was unable to use her powers to her own benefit. She was never charitable to herself, hadn't taken time to think about her needs first.

With her hair down to her waist, turning from brown to auburn to blonde to red.

She never could have black, just the darkest blue closest to dawn, but during the Fall Season she was graced with every color of the bold rainbow. She enjoyed the maroon almost as much as the forest green, but not so much the platinum blonde or near black.

The world was spinning just a little too fast for her. There was trouble stirring in this oblivious city. It was as though time was begging for her attention. Why would he want to take care of her, or want her power in any case? She should've been more careful somewhere along the line. She was listening to the whispers carried by the butterflies as they told her what the pit of her stomach already knew.

Someone was destroying her beautiful world. Someone close enough to hit in all the right places. This made Lois furious. Tree by tree, drill by drill, all of it was coming at her full force, and her knees buckled from the pressure. There was someone trying to get into her mind, someone close enough to cause her realm trouble. No one dredged into her realm and got away with it, she thought, sweat forming on her forehead. The pain was new at the moment, something she'd luckily avoided in her time. Running through her nerves, sensitizing every last one to the point that she wasn't going to be able to walk until they all stopped. It wasn't completely foreign to her, just out of the norm at this point in her life. It was her own folly that got her where she was. Her own heart.

Taking the time to lower herself to the ground, Lois decided to breathe in a few times, her chest hurting with every inhale. Tears formed in her eyes, she was sure she wouldn't be able to leave for at least five minutes after it stopped. So cold. . . "Hhuh. . . hhuh. . . " Her eyes were clenched and she was warm. She drew into the power of the Earth's core to warm herself, deciding that it was imperative to use it this once to help herself back onto her feet and cleanse her face. The water reached out for her, wanting to bathe her. She'd hardly asked anyone for any boon, never drew upon her surroundings for extra strength. Being that generous to the world made the world strive to make it the most comfortable for her was the most reassuring. She embraced the entity, the nymph's gentle touch, until she felt rejuvenated. That was her power.

"Thank you, my lovelies, be at thy rest now, I may call on you again."

Adrian was tired of her contentment to stay in one place, probably thought she could do so much with her power, but never tried. He wanted to put her power to work for him, and she resisted. She would continue to resist. She placed her hat on her head, feeling the shiver down her spine as the color left her body. The lack of color was cold, but her control was more important. Her reflection stared back at her. She needed to take care of herself should she become weaker in the next day. Perhaps this was the spur she needed to make things right. She finished washing her face, and dried her hands by waving them once through the air. Like warm towels against her skin.

She turned to leave the bathroom, and walked through the department store. The crowd was larger today, one of the reasons they were in need of disguise. There was something she loved about walking among the mortals, and that was that everyone had their own style. Much like the deities of old, Dionysus set the record for alcohol, and now St. Patrick set the record for most drinks in a single day. No one has heard him shut up since. It was the same with figures in this world. Celebrated political figures and celebrities walked the streets in disguises in order to avoid the masses.

She was Mother Nature, and no one thought of a bigger bitch. That was how people remembered her. She smiled as a wave of mischief swept over her. She didn't even do anything, just minded her own business while the rest of the world gave her credit for things that happened naturally. Yes, there were times when her attitude caused some problems, but these days she was pretty much mellow. A little restless, which is when she arranged for a friend to meet her on the mortal realm for lunch and shopping.

They never bought anything, who could possibly need anything of that sort?

Oh right, Frey and her absurd hair dryer. What a strange coincidence that she lived below the Earth's surface and had need for a machine made by man? Considering the weather conditions from whence she hailed, there had to be something that fueled her attitude. It wasn't too bad, from what she heard. Just a little hot, but other than that, it was pretty loud with the bars and fights breaking out. Honestly, it was no different than the night life in the mortal realm. Men just turned into monsters of their own thinking—people, they changed daily according to their beliefs in what made bad men.

But still, a hair dryer? It had to be a ploy to get out of the realm for some good-natured mischief.

She left the bathroom with a fresh trail of tan smoke behind her. She was happy to conform to the law of the fedora, only because the favors were less than reputable when she was found out by some imp who'd been trailing her since her teens. She'd be damned if she did any favors for anyone less than a high priestess these days. Mankind would never change in that aspect. They would always be wondering if there was another way, a shortcut to anyplace worth going. She always told the one who'd found her that their guess was as good as hers, but they were stuck in any case. Which was quite true. She just didn't mind keeping that detail to herself. Her time was longer than theirs.

When she approached her friend, Frey was getting a latté from a chain store. It must've tasted like Heaven after living in Hell. Hell made shitty coffee.

"Lois, what ails?" Frey handed Lois her favorite, hot chocolate. She was still cold and the liquid sweet made her tongue tingle. The ancients knew how to make chocolate, but this was close—cacao beans raw weren't too bad still, the additives made things unbearably addictive.

"A lack of tribute for old society. I tried to see the use in these pieces of technology, but every time there's something useful placed in the world, I hear about it first. It's draining, that's for damn sure. Every man looking for an easy way out, makes me mad. I'm the one who should be begging for an escape."

"You talk about making things easier, why not just conjure something for yourself every once in awhile? It's funny that you talk about doing one thing, then do something completely different."

"Only when it comes to myself. I can't spoil myself like that otherwise I'll get sloppy. My life is hard enough to deal with outside of these potential shortcuts. Sticking to the rules seems to suit me just fine."

"You might have to break the rules in order to rescue yourself if the shit hits the fan. It'd be your own fault if you let someone take your gift." Lois said nothing. She'd been feeling this for a few weeks, as mentioned earlier. She was grim that this happened, but she was ready for some of it. Time, after all, waited for no one, not even Adrian. A rush like none other crept into her stomach. She was smiling, and she hardly smiled. That was a gift she gave to very, very few.

"That feeling you just got, sister," Frey said. She'd grown her own set of horns.

"That's excitement. Nothing better than danger to bring out the deity in all of us."

"Don't try to provoke me, hun, you're the one with your afterlife virginity still in tact. I just need someone to watch me if I end up losing my cool."

"Which is appropriate, after all. You are a force to be reckoned with and the circumstances are right." Lois waited for the kicker they both knew was coming.

"However, the code would disagree with you. No one would take the word of a frustrated woman who just broke up with her ex."

"And here I was thinking we were still deities. My record would hold up better than his in any court. The only problem is that we aren't held up by any court here, and I'd miss out on my chance to humiliate him internationally instead of just on one plane. He'll come looking for me soon, try to corner me."

"Says the woman who talks to butterflies in the lavatory." It would end up in a bathroom, too. None of these fights ever took place in any dignified place, not since the weather channel began airing. Changes in temp and patterns were noticed. She'd not been looking for easier ways to take care of enemies, she thought the lines were clear since Murphy's Laws were written down. Nothing was sacred anymore, not even battle fields. Lois sighed, having lost her opportunity to fight long ago with her pacifistic ways. She never went to them, either, it was an opportunity to gamble among gods, and she was usually nowhere to be found in those times.

"I'll not have this going on tomorrow, Frey." And that was the end of that conversation. Frey was looking especially liberated with her finished latté, considering she only got one about once every ten years if she were lucky. The rest of the time, she had to imagine she was drinking coffee, when she was actually drinking the sludge scraped off the bottom of a two-hour old pot of joe from the employee lounge. It was the living she knew she'd rather have, so she let it go.

Possibly one of the most daring of the group but not the most laid back, Frey was chosen to be Lucifer's personal assistant. Before she was given this position, she was a meek woman who'd been thrown into the depths of what she believed was Hell from within. She'd been beaten, bruised, killed, then brought back to somewhat alive and kicking. She decided to become a little more responsible with her afterlife, and in doing this, she resisted any firm stances on how things were to be run. A side woman with no agenda, just what the guy wanted. She arranged meetings with potentials, monitored the surveillance system, and tended to the needs of her employer. Within reason, of course.

She was feared almost as much as Lucy himself, with her business apparel and tight bun atop her head. A clipboard in one hand, a cellphone in another, and a watch that had every timezone on its face. Not that she needed it after this long, but she'd request a location and have the appropriate time there. Most of the time, they were similar places, but His Excellency threw a wrench into her system once in a lunar eclipse.

Their day was winding down. Frey had her silly contraption, Lois had Adrian to deal with. Deities often stayed out of the business of other deities, so there was no confusion as to whom was causing her trouble. She'd been dating Adrian for a blip of time, cutting it off this early was something she wasn't terribly broken up about it. He was cute, young in a way. That was what he had, but he was a thief from the beginning.

Overlooking that small detail was kind of her.

Now she had to deal with his deception.

There, in the third stall from the end, was a pair of peculiar shoes. They were Adrian's shoes, and he had much to atone for. She'd caught him finally. He'd put a spell on her hat to make her suspicion disappear. Fortunately, her suspicions weren't based on something he was hiding, she just never learned to trust him. Turning, she walked back to the door only to find the door jammed somehow. She'd been set up. She feigned fear.

"Lois, darling, what is your hurry?"

"Adrian." Sure enough, the Time Guardian made himself known and walked to the sink. Lois had been right to distrust him as soon as she smelled trouble, and now she needed to take her leave. This was going to work out perfectly. She reached for her hat, but he stopped her. He was in front of her now. His hand came down from her head and he touched her nose as a parent would a child.

"I wouldn't do that. This room would surely react negatively to your change in form, as I'm sure you're aware. The magic is much too strong for what you're wanting to do. Destroying yourself is something neither of us desire."

"What deception is this, Adrian, that you can attempt to control me."

"Just want your power, sweetheart." He wanted her power, but he couldn't handle even the tiniest fraction of it. For a second, Lois pictured the world in chaos, somewhat like when she lost her cool and decimated a tiny shed in the Ukraine with lightning. Her mind didn't feel any change, though. She was ready to stop his threat.

"You'd never harness it." Her hat. She could usually control the weather with her disguise on. However, her powers were harnessed a bit to hold onto the plane. What was he getting at? She reached for her hat and realized he was watching not her, but her hand. His face was a little apprehensive. He didn't want her to remove her hat. In that case. . . she thought. With a smirk, she removed the hat, allowing the warmth to spread from her head to her toes. Her cheeks flushed, she was honestly a Goddess in its purest form. Her skin began to change tones, and Adrian became a little dazed. She was, without a doubt, in her most precious and invincible form. Even if Adrian had wanted to take her power, he would be unable to in this form.

"I. . . " Adrian's mouth fell open.

Adrian, if you were as in love as I was at one point, you would've known I'd be my own person, I wouldn't allow my work to play backseat to my relationship. Perhaps sidesaddle, but never backseat. Time, however. . . " The air dryer was behind her. The continual dramatic coincidence was upon her when she decided to use one to save her own skin. Oh spite, she drawled, poising her elbow over the activation nob.

"I don't love you. Believe me when I say you are one of the most difficult women to impress when I want something from you." He was begging? How unlike the men of old.

"I know this, dear. That's why I'm no longer pining for you as I once did. It's not nice to fool Mother Nature, and so I bid you adieu. You are no longer responsible for your power after today as punishment for destroying" It began projecting air onto her hand and she knew she had a moment for this to make the desired effect. She whispered a few words of encouragement, anyone could do that, but she was the only one with the language of the wind.

She stepped away from the wall an inch. The air swerved around her form, lifting her arms as pets would, and shot forward in a whirlwind. He was taken aback by the attack and was forced against the far wall, flat on his back. She was unaffected. Her mind recalled the words she needed to end this. It would be short and sweet.

"I did love you, Lois." She approached him as the wind held him down, and with the pressure she was exerting on him, she was in complete control of herself and him. He was not being crushed, merely held back so she could talk to him.

"You were trying to lure me into a sense of false security so you could take my abilities, but as you can see, I'm more capable of handling them than you are. You are better off walking away from this. If you resist, I will remove your burden and find someone more capable of handling them than you."

"You're not going to, though."

"I will if I have to. Taking anothers' ability is punishable-"

"I know, but you aren't using yours."

"I respect my abilities. They respect me in return. You, however, have forgotten yourself more than once." She didn't have long, machines were shifty like that. "Choose now."

"I still, and always will, want to use your powers to the point where they are no longer yours. To the point of abuse." Lois sighed. Those were the words. This might've been harder for her to face after all. Adrian had been a sweetheart to her, showered her with love and she had done the same. They knew they could live forever, but love forever might have only depended on their ability to tolerate one another for all eternity. There was only a handful of couples who had accomplished this, and they were probably the only tame ones of the masses of them. "Destroy me, if you can. I'll take a part of you with me."

"You had more when I loved you." The words left her mouth, words of a different language, old tongue. His eyes strained back into his sockets and the wind broke around them. She was sorry to have broken their bond, but he wasn't happy with his gift. The only thing she could do was relieve him of it. He would not die, just be reborn as someone new, perhaps the next Time Guardian, any could tell. Sometimes it was a matter of time spent on the mortal realm to remind him of his actions and make him a better person. His powers would go to her, and she would have to transfer the power to another with the mindset for it until they could extract it into someone more responsible. There were backups for this, and in a few years, he would be given a chance if he proved worthy.

And he disappeared in a wisp of dark blue dust on the wind. Lois breathed in the smoke and coughed. The pressure was back and she grabbed onto a bathroom stall to keep steady. Her lungs, ready to burst, sent spikes of pain through her body. Spasms of fear and uncertainty shot through her but the decision was clear. She needed help to get back. As she lost all feeling in her arms, a pair of feminine arms caught her before she fell. Darkness.

Lois stood on the precipice with arms outstretched, overlooking the ocean at near sunrise. The air was moist with the night's frost soon to be turned to dew in the spring morning while the brisk chill fought to remain the strongest element in her presence. Nighttime was her time to settle down and collect her thoughts. The frost from the night would wear soon, as all things had a place in time.

She felt betrayed, but she would live. The darkness wasn't her favorite place to be at the time, and she was cold. The Earth would keep moving. Time was with a temporary Guardian, and they were contemplating the fate of the one reborn. Samuel Terrace, South Carolina, age fourteen. Born into a family recommended by the majority of neutral deities and in good understanding with their views concerning responsibilities that mattered the most to the council.

Her position was in question as well, but their evidence was vast against the Time Guardian and it was her own fault for trusting him enough to get herself into such trouble. She took full responsibility for her actions and they checked her records for any marring that would effect their decision. They found none.

Though she was now among her element, she felt a tiniest bit alone. She'd never asked for help from her elements. They knew this to be a kindness, and treated her well throughout the conflict. She was strong and willing to move on, and that was enough for now.

Lois smiled for the first time since she left him behind, and remembered that time waited for no one.

Fin.

abecedarian

Adrienne saw it first. The twitching hand of a dead man. An ambulance and several squad cars were on their way. Most of the grocery customers were outside, but she'd needed to vomit first. They told her to join up afterward and make it fast because she looked like hell. Looking into the mirror after flushing, Adrienne went to the mirror and her eyes bulged out.

Her face had blood splattered over her cheek and nose, and she reached for the automatic sink and a handful of soap. Slathering the liquids over her face, she washed her skin as hard as she could without scratching her skin. Five minutes later she was starting to fight the shock and come back to herself. Her breathing was first to come back. She hadn't realized she'd stopped.

She was okay, at least on a physical level. Emotionally, she was a little shaken because the customer was now dead. There was something to be said about her calm, how she seemed okay after having seen someone die in front of her. She took herself out of the bathroom and started towards the exit. The man was in a different light in the quiet store with no audience.

He'd come in ill, sweating and breathing heavily while he grabbed a few cold waters and several boxes of painkillers. Money didn't seem to be an object, but she wasn't sure he cared about the debt at that point since he seemed so close to the grave. But now there was doubt of his sanity as well, and her blood ran cold at the thought of being so close to someone so sick.

The man was dead now, but there was something different about him. . . other than his lack of life. His chest was moving. Her eyes widened but she shook her head clear of the paranoia. No one came back from his kind of dead. Was he just sleeping? When her feet led her to the body again, she forced herself to stare. About to leave and declaring her disgust in herself, she noticed his fingers twitching. A muffled cry later she bit her tongue as hard as she could.

The dead man moaned. Adrienne found herself standing outside of herself while staring down at the twitching hand. This was bad, Very bad. She had to run. She was suddenly that girl in the cheesy horror movie where the idiot went to open the door to find the murderer on the other side. This made her step back.

That, and the dead man's hand started reaching for her. Adrienne screamed when he suddenly grabbed her ankle and she pulled away only to tear open her skin. She ran to the door, losing more blood than she cared. The air tasted so stale that the only option she had was to get outside. She started seeing spots and her bosses came to see her. They asked her if she was okay and if she needed a doctor and she agreed to be taken to the hospital. Paramedics laid her down on a gurney and put her in one of the ambulances, and doped her up to stop the pain.

The doctors couldn't understand why she wasn't stabilizing, why her fever just wouldn't break. Hours later, she was in the general ward, sleeping with a shallow breath.

Her hand twitched.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Rational Compulsive Decision-Making Sufferer.
by
Daniele Marx
~~~~
The Calculation
listen whilst reading, please.
~~~~

Dana struggled to sit up, being so exhausted. What was wrong with her? The man beside her under the sheets must’ve worn her out more than she remembered. A smile tried to reach her lips but only fell as far as her eyes. A tickle in her throat kept the luxurious feeling of euphoria at bay. She was in love, there was hardly any point in lying to herself any further. Alan rested so peacefully, deeply. She didn’t really know that about him. He hardly even moved. Such a change from last night.

Her arm was a little moist, but it was too dark to tell anything but that Alan must’ve also drooled whilst lying partially atop her. That brought a smile to her lips at last. Then her headache, quietly lurking in the background, came full force and knocked her forward. Her trembling body pulled the covers off and yanked her to the dark bathroom, fumbling in the dark for the aspirin. She knew this place well enough that light wouldn’t have helped much. Dark was good.

After gulping down five or six--honestly, who counts anymore?--200mg, she stumbled back into bed but slid off the silk sheets to the floor. Boy, she loved silk sheets, and there was probably a lot of enjoyment on a regular Saturday afternoon for these babies with whom she secretly called ‘her man.’ Alas, it was Wednesday morning. This had to be atypical for a weekday, even, especially to those who worked customer service. And what a week it was for them. Valentine’s Day. She then decided, as the first one up, to make the complimentary coffee. Maybe the caffeine would help her pounding head. Something just lifted the hairs on her neck this morning, but that’d have to work itself out after a night of hardly any sleep.

She got up after much struggle and lost all control of her motor skills about halfway to the armoire. Her arms didn’t catch, but her legs began to ache as well, and she wondered why she was having any trouble at all. This was really starting to scare her. She jumped when Alan’s alarm went off, the morning news flooding the room like an ugly haze. Someone was blurring in her eardrums, but after a few moments it became more distinct. The voice was talking about people falling ill all over the metropolitan area, and the word ‘epidemic’ was thrown in a few times. This, she decided, was serious and much scarier than her headache. Then ‘airborne,’ ‘death toll,’ and ‘thousands’ struck a note.

Dana’s heart was pounding in her chest, and she scrambled for the light. She needed to know--Alan always said that was her worst flaw, the constant desire to know what was going on. Her hand found the dimmer and she fumbled for a second before the overhead came up in a rush. There, on the bed in a pool of his own blood, was her lover. He was dead, and the blood had come out from everywhere, eyes, fingertips, mouth, nose, ears, everywhere she could see, as far as she could see. Abrasions were all over his skin and then she torn her eyes from him to inspect herself, knowing there was hardly any use in going for help if the word airborne came into play.

First off, she was covered in blood. Alan’s, hers, whatever. Tears fell down her cheeks and she couldn’t stop herself. The pain all over her was just getting worse. Her feet carried her back to the bathroom, to the medicine cabinet. Ten, twenty, nobody counted anymore. She took them all, and went back into the room with her lover, her man. The Valentine’s Day Pandemic, Dana shakingly slid back into bed, and carefully positioned herself for as much comfort as she could muster. The horror, her mind was completely blank. She had no words, no thoughts. Her hand touched his slightly warm one, and pulled it to her lips, kissing his bloody fingers, and held it to her chest. The other hand rested on his soft hair, and she sat there, letting the tears fall.

Teri Hatcher -- Lizard Woman from TV Guide

Not only is this weird lady a shoe-in for the next Harley Quinn/Joker Girl, but I noticed she only has twelve teeth on her top row. This is what I do with my time.

If I didn't know any better, and if I believed everything on the internet, she almost seems. . . lizardish. She could pass for a lizard person. I was actually waiting for her tongue to come out all forkish and such.

Don't let her escort you to the next room with the lights dimmed and the shades drawn,you might find she's the last to see you alive.