***

"This woman that took Rachel can't be too bad if she brought her here." I stated as we walked across the parking lot towards the arcade. This seemed like an odd place head to when you've kidnapped a child.

Those were the first words that Dick and I had spoken in almost an hour, and there was something liberating in not being locked up in a long car ride with him. I could feel his resentment towards me, even though he was clearly trying to hide it. But as I looked at him now I realized that I couldn't see the boy that I knew before. 

"Come on let's go." Dick simply replied as he led the way into the arcade. For it being the beginning of the week I was surprised at how busy the place was. However, considering that the woman that we were looking for has specific characteristic she wasn't very hard to find. Her magenta hair sticking out like a sore thumb in a sea of ordinary people. 

"That's her." Dick stated as he walked over to the woman not wanting to waste anytime. "Hey. I gotta talk to you."

"Yeah, take a number." The woman stated not bothering to turn around and look at us. Dick, however turned to look at me with a look of surprise that was so comical, it almost  pained me not to laugh. 

"About Rachel." I stated firmly as Dick still seemed to be recovering. "Where is she?"

She finally turned around, and although she looked human there was something about the color of her eyes that stuck me for a moment. Everything from her bright magenta hair to her height towering over Dick and I who would already be considered tall was striking. "You're Dick from Detroit." 

"Where is she?" I asked again finally tearing her gaze away from Dick.  

"Follow me." The woman told us, and without another word she walked off into the crowd of bored parents and children excited to get to the next arcade game. 

On the other side of the Arcade a girl with dark purple hair was intensely playing on a pinball machine. Although I couldn't see her face I knew it was Rachel. She was talking excitedly with a boy with dyed green hair, and I began to wonder if there was a trend I've missed. Considering that almost everyone we've encountered has taken a liking to dying their hair vibrant colors. 

Without a moment of hesitation Dick approached the pair of teenagers in a less than aggressive way. "Hey, come on. We're going."

"What are you doing here?" Rachel asked, with a look of both anger and hurt in her eyes.  

"Rachel we have to go." He insisted. 

"Why are you here?" 

"Maybe not here Dick." I whispered seeing that now we were beginning to draw to much attention. But, I also didn't fail to notice the glances that Rachel kept making towards the green haired boy she was talking to. She was clearly embarrassed. "Rachel, we just want to get you somewhere safe."

The girl didn't say anything before making her way towards the exit of the arcade, leaving the three of us to follow her silently. Finally meeting Rachel, and seeing how young she was only emphasized why she shouldn't be in this situation. That she should be in school right now, being a normal teenage girl. Instead she was running away from people who killed her mother and were now trying to kill her. 

"Who is she?" Rachel asked as she looked me over with uncertainty. "Another one of your ex-girlfriends?" 

"Another?" I questioned, slightly amused at how direct this girl was. "To answer your question, no. I'm just a friend."

"Really?" She replied seeming skeptical, but regardless extended her hand towards me. "I'm Rachel."

"Cheyenne."

The second my hand touched her's, a strange look came over her face for just a second. Immediately replaced with one that seemed both amused and annoyed. "Right, just a friend."

I didn't know a thing about this girls powers, only that she was extremely powerful. But I knew enough to know that she saw something that she wasn't supposed to. 

"Do you know who sent that weird family after her?" Our mystery woman asked us, as she followed us through the parking lot. 

 "Who the hell are you?" Dick replied instead clearly having expected this woman to be out of our way by now. Though it should have been obvious that this woman wanted something, because she didn't seem the type to help tormented teenage girls out of the kindness of her hear. She needed something from Rachel. 

"I don't know." The woman replied honestly. "But somehow Rachel's the key to me figuring me out." 

"Is that why you kidnapped her?" 

"Kory didn't kidnap me. She saved me." Rachel exclaimed, a clear look of resentment in her eyes towards Dick. And in that moment I realized that he must have  How's Dawn? I read what happened online. Is she gonna be okay?" 

"Who's Dawn?" Kory asked in a bored tone, and I began to wonder what role she played in all of this. Why was she involved? Nothing about what was happening to Rachel made any sense. 

A  look of guilt came over Dick, but it was gone in an instant. "I really can't talk about this right now, okay? The cops are looking for you. They think you killed your mom."

"That's news." Kory replied sarcastically.

Dick sighed as he turned towards Kory, now visibly irritated. "I may have failed to mention they're looking for you, too. Assault on multiple officers. Arson. And not to mention kidnapping."

"Like I said, she didn't kidnap me, she saved me." Rachel insisted, and I couldn't understand why she would say that. From what Dick told me had done everything to try to protect her up until the rooftop accident with Dawn. "When you didn't."

"Well, that's technically true." Kory replied a smile tugging on her lips. "Dick."

Dick rolled his eyes, having heard that play on his nickname many time before. "Gee, that's a new one."

"I'm not going without her." Rachel stated confidently stepping next to Kory who seemed pleased with the way that events were unfolding. 

"Mmm." Kory muttered with a smile as she stepped beside Rachel. "What she said." 

"We're trying to help you Rachel." I said seeing as this discussion was going absolutely nowhere. "That's all Dick has been trying to do."

"He left me." She stated as she looked at Dick with what almost seemed like hate.

"No, I didn't." Dick replied immediately though from the look of guilt on his face it was true. 

Rachel shook her head starting to seem more angry and agitated by the second. "You might as well have. You were going to."

"Rachel, I wasn't..."

"I read the note." Rachel explained tears beginning to build up in her eyes. "You were just gonna leave me with them?" 

Dick looked at me, I didn't know what he wanted to convey to me with this look. It was hard for me to read any emotion from Dick anymore, but it wasn't hard to assume they he could still read emotions from me as easily as he could before. However, I wasn't doing much to hide the fact that I was greatly annoyed that Dick failed to tell me some parts of what was happening. "I just needed time to figure things out." 

"Stop. "

"Rachel..."

"Stop lying!" She yelled her blue eyes instantly turning black, in a way that she no longer seemed herself. A burst of unseen energy radiated off of her causing the windows of all the cars in the parking lot to shatter, setting off their alarms. "I need to go back to the Sisters!" 

For a moment I felt a sense of fear, but the the fact that people had now began to leave the arcade to see what had happened to their cars. I snapped back to reality as I took a hold of the girls arms and began to lead lead her to Dick's car. "Okay. It's okay. Come on, let's go."

***

It was almost an hour since we brought Rachel back to the convent, and she still hadn't left the chapel. I didn't know anything about Rachel, or what she's been through. Yet, the torment and self-hatred in her eyes couldn't be hidden.

"You should talk to her." I stated beginning to grow bored of sitting and doing nothing when we could be using this time to keep investigating.

Dick shook his head looking down at his hands. "She hates me." 

"She's hurt." I corrected as I turned my body to face Dick who didn't seem to want to meet my eyes. "Talk to her.

"I should have told you everything." Dick said instead. "About wanting to leave Rachel with Dawn. I guess I didn't want you to think I was a coward for wanting to leave her." 

His words although meant to make me feel better accomplished the exact opposite. Guilt seemed to take over, and so did the need to tell Dick the truth. But I pushed back that feeling, only intensifying the guilt I felt. Dick was being honest with me, I just didn't know if I could do the same. I was the coward. 

"I could never think that."

Dick finally looked up to meet my eyes and I froze as he moved closer to me on the bench we were sitting on. "Chey, I..."

Instinctively I stood up and gestured towards the chapel doors. "It's now or never. Go talk to her."

"Right." He muttered before getting up and going through the chapel doors. Standing there in the middle of the hallway like an idiot, I ran my hands through my hair in frustration. 

"Lovers quarrel?" An amused voice said and I turned around to find Kory with her hands on her hips looking at me quizzically. 

"You don't know what you're talking about." I replied feeling irritated of the fact that she was still here and that she thought she had any right talk about my life. 

She folded her arms over her chest as she studied me, and I held her gaze not willing to show her anymore weakness. "I may not know the story. But I'm not blind either. There was something between you and Dick."

"That's not any of your business." I stated as I took a step towards her. "So stay out of it."

"It is my business if your feelings get in the way of what we're doing here." She said firmly, and as much as I hated it. I knew she was right.

"Again stay out of it." I repeated. "I've been doing this for a long time and know how to keep it professional. You have nothing to worry about."

She smiled satisfied with my response. "I'll take your word for it."

I watched as Kory walked down the hall and out of the building. An unexplainable frustration began to build up now that I was alone, and I started to wonder if it was a good idea to have accepted helping Dick on this mystery for Rachel. But I remembered what I had just assured Kory. That I could keep things professional.

And that was exactly what I was going to do. 

With a a sigh a sat back down on the bench and attempting to focus on attempting to understand what exactly was happening with Rachel. I looked up as the doors of the chapel opened and watched as Dick stepped out.

"So does she still hate you?" I asked as Dick took a seat beside me again. But the answer was clear considering that he seemed much more relaxed. 

"I thought you said she was just hurt?"

"Hurt can easily turn into hate, can't it?" I replied as I looked up to meet Dick eyes. And before I could completely think over what I was about to say the words slipped out. "Have you ever hated me?"

"I have been hurt, but I could never hate you Chey."

I sighed, wishing that he would have said that he hated me. It would have made everything much easier. "Well, you should."

"Chey you have to know that I..."

However I didn't get a chance to know what he said as the engine of a familiar Porsche rang through the building. Dick and I immediately stood and ran through the front doors as we watched the car drive off.

***

As we walked through the rows of storage units in silence, I wondered what Dick's opinion on Kory was. Regardless of the fact that we knew absolutely nothing about her, I still got a sense that she could still be trusted. However, the fact that she ran off without as word made be question my judgment.

Although Dick hadn't said much on our way over here I could tell that he was angry at the fact that his car was stolen. 

"There." Dick muttered as we approached a storage compartment that was open with a silver Porsche parked not to far from the unit. He didn't waste a moment before running into the unit to confront the woman that stole his beloved car.  "Hey! You stole my car." He claimed as Kory faced us with a look of astonishment. "I like my car."

"How did you find me?" She asked, her confidence never faltering. 

"There's an app for that." 

While Dick continued to argue with Kory about his car I began to look around the compartment in awe. The place was covered in photos and newspaper clippings. Not a single spot on the wall was free from any what looked like evidence from an extensive investigation. 

"Is this place yours?" I asked interrupting the argument that was occurring in the background.  

"Think so." She replied her confidence faltering for a moment. And then I remembered that she claimed to have absolutely no memory of her life, up until a couple of days ago. 

"How long you been looking for Rachel?" Dick questioned as he too began to investigate the odd scene that was surrounding us.  

"A few months, I thought."

"Seems like a lot longer than a few months." I muttered looking around the storage unite. Everything from the strange writing to the newspaper clipping and photographs tapped around the walls is seemed like a scene out of a horror movie. 

"You think?" Kory replied, a hint of fear in her voice. 

As Kory looked through some papers written in a script that I had never seen before, she began to read the words in a language that sounded anything but real.

"What does that mean?" I asked knowing that was not a language.  At least not from this planet. 

"Where did you say you were from again?" Dick questioned as his eyes 

"I didn't." Kory replied as we all continued to study all the drawings and articles that covered the walls of the storage unit. "Raven is the first species of birds to be mentioned in the Torah."

"A man came after Rachel." Dick muttered slowly as his mind was probably working rapidly attempting to piece together all the clues. "He had a raven tattoo on his back."

"Rachel's birthday the mortality rate spikes every year on that day. Ever since she was born, over 200,000 additional dead worldwide." Kory stated, before whispering something in an unknown language. "She's part of a prophecy."

"A prophecy about what exactly?" I asked, since I met Dick I was no stranger to crazy. Many times having encountered cults who believed in ridiculous prophecies, however there was something about Rachel that simply didn't feel right.

"She's the Destroyer of Worlds."

"We should go." I stated, an unsettling feeling coming over me. If any of this had some degree of truth to it we made a horrible mistake leaving Rachel out of our sight. "Now."

We all seemed to come to a mutual unspoken agreement as we quickly exited the storage compartment. Kory quickly locked up the unit, but before we were able to make another move a large explosion rang from a couple miles away. Turning towards the direction of the explosion the only thing visible was a large cloud of smoke, coming from the direction of the convent. 

And it dawned on us that we were too late. 

***