Kelly

My hair soared through the wind as I flew down the Silonian streets. The townspeople became a mere whizz in my peripheral vision as my eyes stayed locked in front of me, locked on the road and on the world ahead.

I had never driven a motorcycle before. For me it was just one step below driving.

I had turned fourteen that day and I was delivering for Mona's Pizza across town with a little assistance from my new gift from Roman.

It was slowly becoming later in the evening and I was just making it to the other side of town. The buildings on this side of town are built so that they curve around the mountain side. It's just one part of town though, Silona has lots of mountains and different areas.

It being built on such a rugged terrain is what inspired most of the architecture in this specific area. Rather than apartments, the houses had to be built in the form of compounds. It was more stable that way.

When you're riding a motorcycle this high above the ground, all the orange rooftops in Silona's valleys look like a maze. That with the lingering smell of pasta and croissants, all the greenery on the mountains, and the Euroan Sea below, it was like a luxury travel guide come to life, except I lived there.

Before I knew it I was at the address and the sun's light had slowly faded, and it got really cloudy all of a sudden. Which was weird...

Regardless, it was a standard delivery. I gave them the pizza, took the money, handed him the change and It was done just like that. Things had went well just as I hoped and I continued to smugly ride back with pride.

If only the kids back in Boarding School could see me now...

Then I ran into road construction.

Great, I have to ride near the friggin' countryside alone at night while people left and right are practically dying...

I switched down to the 5th gear and sped along the dirt road, still minding the growing winds and the heavy clouds overhead.

I hated getting caught in bad weather, especially in my good clothes with my hair let down and flying all over the place like this, so switched further into 6th gear to try and beat the storm before it hit.

I never won that race though, before I knew it huge blasts of wind were barreling towards me and swaying the trees.

Soon the wind began to throw me off course. As I tried to steer away I only threw myself more off balance and in a few short seconds I had spun off the road and tumbled into a patch of grass. I grumbled to myself.

Honestly I was just glad it wasn't wet.

As I picked myself up and brushed myself off I noticed something. As thunder roared on I couldn't help but keep squinting in the direction ahead of me.

Something big was falling off the city walls. Dropping one by one. I had a thought, an inkling that this was somehow related to the events, and an undying curiosity.

Every fiber of my being was telling me not to look, not to investigate, to stop being so damn stupid and to get the hell out of here.

Then I remembered Kario. The promise I made.

"I promise we'll figure this out. There's no way I'll stop until we do."

I took a deep breath and plunged into action.

I ripped through the bushes and stepped over twigs, pushing forward at my own risk. The winds grew stronger and my hair flew at its mercy. I took two long frontal locks of hair that hung at my ears and tied them back, restraining the rest.

I continued to duck under heavy branches and through the damp woods as the taste of a putrid odor plagued my mouth, searching for the spot where I believed the things I saw had landed.

The smell got stronger and stronger until it was practically unbearable.

Why the hell am I DOING this?!

The smell intensified to the point where it was just cruel. I couldn't tell what it was. It smelled like musk, it smelled like rotting meat, it smelled like straight shit.

Then I found it.

People. Dead people.

Everywhere.

A rush of icy numbness shot through my fingers and up my entire body, paralyzing my heart and lungs within my chest.

In the center of this small yet thick patch of forest were nothing but corpses, some visibly more rotted than others.

I looked at one of them and had a notion. A notion I couldn't help but satisfy.

As I crept closer it all became disturbingly familiar. I used my foot to turn the body over. As it rolled over my heart started to burst with every horrifying second. I looked the corpse from its feet to it's head.

The body was dressed in open toed shoes, blue jeans, a white blouse, and a cream jacket, now saturated with blood.

That was the same outfit Carol wore on the day she left.

No way.

I looked again.

No way, No way, No way, No way, No way.

I denied it profusely, but that would never change anything. Her limbs were sprawled across the ground, mutilated and beaten, but her face was the scariest part.

Maggots infested the girl's rotting flesh, squirming through her nostrils and within two red hollowed out sockets pierced through with thick needle-like objects that secured her head to the ground. Streams of foul blood had dried on her cheeks like gruesome tears, her jaw hanging open as if her screams could still be heard.

I couldn't deny it. I didn't need to see the girl's eyes to know that it was Carol. If she was still in those clothes, then that means she had never made it to the College. She probably died as soon as she made it past the city walls.

As my paralysis subsided my eyes made their way to the sign around her neck.

SEE NO EVIL.

I began to panic, and desperately gasped for air. My heart was pounding so hard I could feel the blood pulsing all over my body.

Suddenly everything was dangerous, every gust of wind, every branch that rattled, every twig I stepped on would send me into a gut wrenching panic.

I finally tore my eyes from the scene and ripped through the dense foliage, dusted myself off, and put my motorcycle back on the road. By now it was nearly pouring, but I didn't care

I had to get back home.

I needed to tell everybody what I just saw.

Travis

We all stood there, shocked at Kelly's explanation of what happened. Thomas just stood there, his pupils shrunk as the storm continued to rage outside.

He took a small piece of paper out of his pocket and opened it calmly.

"Travis... I dunno what it says, but a man gave this to me at work."

As he handed it to me the others swarmed to read it.

I know what you do, it makes me sick. You should all just rot in hell.

I wish you would all just die... No, I'll make sure you wish you were dead. Enjoy your final moments on earth, you've done nothing worthwhile in your life. I'd tear the limbs off of each one of you filthy cunts and watch you beg for a damn bullet.

I dream about it every night, Travis. The thought of everyone you know being dead and then seeing you turn around and find me standing there to see the fear in your eyes. That makes me happy.

I want all of us to be happy.

You don't deserve to live in this world. Perfect, innocent, flawless people die every day, but the scum of the earth like you gets to live? Screw that. That is about to change. No one likes the fact that you are alive...

The handwriting changed.

Especially you...

Fat bastard.

I know you have suicidal tendencies. I've seen you cut yourself. I hope you try again... but this time go through with it. I know it's because you think you're ugly. You think you're weak. You believe you're worthless. And guess what? You ARE! Funny right?! Even today you sneak out at night just to CRY. You don't understand why nobody likes you... You're the shit stuck under our feet. We intend to keep it that way.

Some people forgive... I don't. I can't wait for the day I get to piss on your grave, and if you don't put yourself there, I'll be glad to. Just do us all a favor and do it soon.

I'm so damn tired of you acting like a faggot and being scared all the time! Just fucking kill yourself already! Stop putting everybody through HELL and do it!

I'd be easy to just blow your head off, but I'd like to see you suffer. I wanna see you bawling your eyes out and begging for someone to help you and spare your pathetic life. I want to see the blood drain from your disgusting body while I ram a knife down your throat and everyone cheers me on.

I'm not the only one who wants this, we all do. We all hate you.

I felt empty for a moment.

Suddenly the mood went from surprised to depressing beyond words.

Why... Just why, Thomas...

"... Thomas?"

He stood completely still as tears leaked from his eyes.

I reached out to him. "Thomas..."

His nostrils flared. "Don't TOUCH ME!"

As I got hold of his shoulder he snatched it away, forcing me to tear the fabric. Everybody stood there, shocked at the cuts and scars covering his shoulders and arm.

His angsty look faded, and the look in his eyes became violent. I backed away, nearly trembling in fear as he stepped closer. At a loss of what else to do, I clenched my jaw tightly and cringed.

He bolted out of the door.

"THOMAS!" Kelly shouted. "Get back in here! Are you TRYING to get yourself killed?!"

I slapped Kelly's shoulder and twisted my face into a nasty scowl.

"Right..." She said. "My bad..."

That night Kelly waited in the bakery for hours waiting for him to return, insisting that I go to bed and rest up. He didn't return until almost 4:00am, and by that time Kelly had fallen asleep in her chair.

I stayed awake to watch him return, although I pretended to be asleep when he did. I had no idea what was going on in his head but he had begun to act so strange after that, nobody did.

A Month later

The service had just ended. Gina was devastated and more spiteful towards us than ever. It was so bad we couldn't even stay for the burial without her lashing out at somebody.

Thomas and I were sitting in our room. I don't know why but that day just felt so empty. I was so drained by everything that had happened and there was nothing to do.

I just sat there in bed hoping that maybe if I watched Kawaii Senshi Shiyoka I'd regain some joy, but even the theme song felt empty and drab as if it had lost it's charm.

The world was dark and empty, nothing to do, nobody to help. I've never felt so dead, so over before.

Meanwhile Thomas sat over on his bed looking equally depressed, it's like all the colors and flashing on TV didn't faze him in the least. I couldn't blame him though, after all he had been looking over that note ever since we got back.

"Travis..." He sighed. "How do you think about me?"

"Thomas you're my friend." I sat up, turning towards him. "We've always been friends."

"Yeah, I know but I mean... What do you really think of me? Do you think I'm just here to cry and tag along with you guys? Do you ever pity me?"

"No. I mean... Sometimes..."

He looked like she was about to stomp me.

"NO! That's only because I feel bad you went through so much. It wouldn't change our friendship if I didn't."

I swear if I could word that differently I would. I felt like an idiot. I should have just left it at no but then I'd be lying... I just wanted to be honest with him...

He sighed. "...If I wasn't here right now... Would anything be different?"

My mouth gaped a little, "Thomas I know what you're getting at. Listen, it's not good for you to talk or even THINK like that. You're none of the things that note said. I know you must be going through a lot right now but doing something like that isn't the way to go" I said "I know I may not get it completely but just trust me on this one, okay?"

He turned away from me.

It's times like that where I really wish I could empathize with him, but there was no way I could get what he was going through. I knew that he's had it the worst out of the three of us, mostly because of the way people bullied him.

I'm not good at psychology but that just does something to people. They're never the same.

Aside from him, nothing could erase the recent trauma. One funeral and I was done for the day.

Night or not.

Fausto

It was well into the night. Gina was still crying, although I'd intended to leave hours ago, I stayed for my sister.

She had dreams of watching her daughter graduate and enter a career in architecture like she and her mother had always dreamed. They'd become famous among many others that originated from this famous art capital.

Yet all of those aspirations and hopes had shattered suddenly with the gruesome, sadistically cruel death of Carol.

She sat there sobbing profusely over her daughter's death to the point where she had used almost an entire roll of tissue within half an hour. Although one could say this was an improvement to her violent bawling just hours earlier, I had never seen my sister in such a state my entire life.

"She's gone... I-I can't believe she's actually gone. I can still see her standing in the door, smiling, waving... I even remember her when she was younger. She was just so bright and happy." Her voice began breaking. "H-How could she j-just die like that?"

I felt a weight of deep agony in my chest. "It's a shame that she left before her time..." I said, holding her close.

She took a sip of Merlot. "And it's all because of those damn children..."

I knew she'd never forget. How could she? Everything Gina did was centered around Carol. Whether she took up more than one job, worked late, quit jobs, or stood in line at the cathedrals every sunday to feed her, Gina would do any and everything. Carol was her world.

"Gina, I understand your pain, but we can't keep blaming these children."

"How can we NOT blame them?! Could you even hear your own son? He told you why we're suffering like this! It's those three children that put us and everybody in Silona through hell!" Gina said.

"Three?" I said "You realize I found Liza among them too, right?"

Gina grimaced. "That girl is angelic, she didn't do a thing. All she does is behave while those three always wind up in some sort of dirt. It only makes sense." She said, "You know the type of place they come from."

I heaved a heavy sigh. "Gina, they're just kids! They didn't plan this. They're just as shaken about this as we are, if not more!"

Gina looked away. "I see," she muttered in a low tone. "You'd rather side with a bunch of deplorable rugrats, outsiders! Than your own damn family!"

I shook her, "You aren't even listening to me!"

She stared at me for a second.

It wasn't normal where I would actually put my hands on someone. I knew I destroyed the only slim chance I had of getting her to understand. The look of anguish on her face said it all.

She pulled away from me and turned around "Fine then, I don't need your pity anymore."

"Gina I-."

"GET. OUT. NOW!" She smashed the bottle of wine and pointed it at me. "Or I will make sure you go in bandages."

As I left, she slammed the door behind me and murmured to herself within earshot.

"I'll exterminate these damn pests..." she said.

Exterminate.

That word stuck with me.

As I paused I began to hear talking behind the door, I held my ear to the cracks and listened as she finished making a call. Within mere minutes the weight of knowing what she did, what she tried to do crushed me inside.

As I walked to my house it devoured my conscience and immediately I can't help but take action. I never knew it would come to this, I never knew that I would be in this position.

No later than tomorrow... That's all I have.

In the afternoon of the next day

Travis

"Here you go." I said as I served a delhi platter.

"Wow," the girl said. "That got here fast."

"Thanks but it's nothing."

She smiled. "Well here's something," she handed me a fifteen euro bill.

It was pretty often when I got tips like this. Usually I'd make almost more money getting tips than I get on my paycheck.

I guess just goes to show that hard work pays off.

The phone rang and I answered.

"Hello?"

"Travis, it's me Fausto. You need to come home."

"I need to check with-."

My boss was a young, hairy guy. Strong brow bone, slick hair and a sloped nose. As I eyed him he nodded.

"Okay."

I got home and Thomas and Kelly were there. We sat and waited, wondering why we were here.

Did he see something? Was someone else threatened? Is Liza okay?

He came back into the room and dropped our bags on the floor. The old bags from Kamarion that sat there, unused ever since we began living here.

"I know this is unexpected, and I know it isn't something you would want to do, but this is how it has to be."

Thomas spoke. "You're kicking us out?"

"It isn't something I wanted to do, but you just aren't safe here anymore. It's not that I..." He let out a sigh, "Last night I was at Gina's house. She is still mourning over Carol and she blames you three."

"Three?" Kelly interrupted, folding her arms. "What about Liza?"

"Gina won't part with her. She believes she's not the same as you three."

Kelly rolled her eyes. "Whack ass..."

Fausto sighed. "I understand it isn't fair to you but please try to be sympathetic. As I was saying, she wouldn't listen to me so she kicked me out, but I heard her making a call so I listened."

He took a deep breath and wiped the sweat from his brow.

"Please don't panic. This is where things get a little heavy," he said.

"Gina outed you to all of Silona."

"What?!" I said.

"She told them everything. Everybody knows that you are the reason why so many tragedies have been occurring. She told them about how you guys got here, what you were involved in, who these people are, why they're here."

"What. The. Hell." Kelly pounded her knuckles into her palms. "That BITCH!"

"She's managed to convince Silona that if you are dead the attacks and killing will stop."

He cleared his throat.

"Gina is leading a lynch mob to this bakery at dawn tomorrow."

Kelly clenched her fists. "What the HELL doesn't she understand?! I get it. It's not easy to lose someone so close to you, but what the actual-."

"She knows it isn't right." I interrupted. "But she's convinced it's the only way, and apparently so does everybody else."

Thomas didn't say much at all, although I don't really think there's a good way to read him. He's been in pieces for months now. He barely talks, leaves out on his own without letting anybody know where he's going, and sleeps constantly.

By that I mean more so than usual.

Kelly folded her arms. "So exactly what are you saying, huh?"

"I'm saying you have to leave. Out of this bakery, out of this city, on your own." Fausto said.

"How are we supposed to handle ourselves?"

"You're fourteen." Fausto quipped.

"We're still kids! Thomas doesn't even turn thirteen until November!" Kelly argued.

Fausto's voice deepened. "You're a smart girl! You HAVE get through this!"

"HOW?! I don't know where to go! I didn't even leave the first time! Travis started that shit!"

"Well YOU should have thought about what the world is really like!" Fausto yelled. "You keep saying it over and over. 'I've been through hell!' 'I've seen shit!' What the hell were you expecting?! The world outside you isn't ANY different. If you're so unsure of yourself then you should have stayed across the GODDAMN ocean!"

Kelly gawked at him, relaxing her defensive position. I'd never seen Fausto like that before, ever.

After catching his breath he continued "This isn't an option. It's a quarter to seven already, and if you don't go now you'll be dead before Liza gets up in the morning. Shower and eat before you go, and..."

Fausto turned around and dumped the contents of a cardboard box on the table.

He walked up to me with two pistols. "Should anything happen, these will protect you." I felt shivers as the cold metal touched my hands.

My mouth hung open, "Are you seriously giving me guns?!"

He ignored me. "If anything ever happens to those you have this." He handed me a stun gun, and left me there staring at the weapons in my hands.

He walked over to Thomas. "I've seen you lift boxes almost as big as you!" He grasped an aluminum bat in his hands, "I've never seen a boy anywhere as strong as you are. You'll be able to do more damage with this than I could."

Thomas' eyes widened and began to dart around as if he expected to find Gina hiding and waiting to jump out as a part of some sort of prank.

I guess I can read him sometimes.

Fausto turned to Kelly,. "I didn't have much time to prepare for this but I know you'll do well."

He walked over to Kelly and handed her something similar to brass knuckles. They took the appearance of fingerless black leather gloves plated with sharp jagged blades and brass on the knuckles.

"You say you fight well. I hope that's true."

Kelly tried them on and began making fists, boxing the air as if she were dealing with a real opponent. "... I could work with these."  That's when she stopped. "Wait. How did you even get all this stuff?"

"I haul things, remember? Most of these things are just objects people normally acquire; guns from a gun store, modified gloves, a bat from a sports equipment depot."

"I know this is serious but..." Kelly examined her gloves. "This stuff is pretty badass!"

"Just know violence isn't always the answer," Fausto interrupted. "Sometimes the best option is to run, or maybe cause a diversion of some sort." He dug in the box and fished out a sash of explosives.

"Wait..." Kelly raised a finger. "Are these...?!"

"Smoke bombs and flash grenades," Fausto said. "Just keep your distance when you throw these. Breathing in these fumes and chemicals could very easily suffocate somebody."

A look of disbelief fell over Kelly's face. "We really need all this stuff to get out of here?"

Fausto looked out of the corner of his eye in her direction. "Knowing your luck, you would barely survive." He handed Kelly a wad of bills.

"Here, your last paychecks all rolled up into one. I suggest you make sure you check and see if you want to take anything before you leave."

~~~

A/N

It's time to buck up. Murderous cults, countless deaths, and an enraged town stand in the way of these young teenagers... Do they even stand a chance?