Duncan's POV

Stirring, I groan, holding my head. Sitting up, everything was dizzy for a while, the room spinning round and round. I squint and my eyes widen when I remember what happened.

"Kim! Kim..." I start to shout, when I see her lying near me, also beginning to wake up. "What..." she moans, propping herself up and trying to focus. "Where is Tia?" I ask, beginning to panic, whipping my head around.

"Right here" she says, leaning off the counter. I glower at her-she looked unharmed. "What the hell happened?" I snap, stumbling up. She grabs my arm, helping me regain my balance. "Lewis and Simon tried to knock me out, I pretended to be unconscious and when they were least expecting it I stabbed Lewis in the arm" she shrugs, helping Kim up. 

I study her closely. She was lying, you could tell. If she was telling the truth, she would of put more emotion into it. "You're lying to me" I snarl, glaring at her. She glances at me and sighs. "Fine. They knocked me out and took me to Ridgedog" Tia admits, going over to the kettle and clicking it on. Stomping over, I slam the switch back off.

"Forget about your damn coffee for just five bloody minutes will you? What did you do at Ridgedog's house?" I shout. God, she really pissed me off sometimes-it was like she had to respond in either a cheeky, tired or sarcastic way. I haven't seen her smile properly for a long time.

She rolls her eyes, and I clench my jaw. "We had some tea and coffee and just talked, then I left" she tells me, looking out of the window. "About what, exactly?" I ask, fuming. She always acted stupid, then complained that I was the stupid one.

"I don't see how that was any of your concern" she replies, staring at me with wide, innocent eyes. I'd fallen for those, once, those childish eyes that promised the truth. But I learn a long time ago never to trust anyone. Especially Tia.

"I see how it is my concern, so you tell me right now or-" I yell back, but I was interrupted by a knock at the door.

"Or what?" she murmurs, stalking out of the door, and going to the front door, opening it.

"Ah Detective Rythian, come in, come in." she says from in the corridor, and I whirl round.

I hadn't seen Rythian for ages, ever since Zoey disappeared. I swallowed nervously, running a hand through my thick blonde hair. I'd loved Zoey, loved it when she came round to question me. I knew how to make her giggle, how to make her blush. Rythian hated me for that, that I was attempting to court his partner. But I wasn't blind-he loved her a lot, more than I thought was possible. Her disappearing mysteriously broke him so severely I'd heard rumours that he had killed himself. But here he was, strolling through my kitchen door, a scowl probably hidden behind his mask. His mystical purple eyes flicker edgily around the room, and I can sense the magic in him, that overpowering, protective magic that he always had.

He would be the strongest in this town, if it wasn't for Zoey leaving him-love was his weakness. That, and the Dog Father.

I shudder. No one knew what Ridgedog used. It was a type of magic that I had never heard of, Rythian too. The strongest kind, no doubt.

"Duncan" Rythian says stiffly, disrupting my thoughts. "Detective Rythian, what a surprise. Why are you here now? Trying to frame me for another murder charge are we?" I sigh, leaning against the kitchen sideboard. I wave Kim and Tia away, and they disappear out of the room.

Rythian ignores the question, glancing behind him at the girls as they leave. "Oh, look at you. One little wave of your hand and girls come and go. You think you're on top of the world here, don't you" he grunts, seating himself down.

"On the contrary, we live in a slum on the edge of the city. I don't think I'm on top of the world at all, and neither are you by the looks of things" I retort, looking him up and down. He looked rough, dressed fast, I presume, and judging by his bloodshot eyes and trembling hands, a late night with a hangover. 

"You can't call this a slum, with your fancy ass science lab downstairs. Bet you wasted all of your money on that thing" he sniffs. "I didn't waste money at all. My research has payed back double in profit over the last two ye-" I begin to bite back but he waves a hand at me lazily. "Yeah, yeah whatever. But can your science conjure up objects out of thin air?" he sighs, flicking his hand and a knife appears in his open hand. 

"No." I reply. "Exactly" he says, smiling thinly. "But it tires you out. You won't be able to do that for the next few hours" I smile back. He narrows his eyes, waving a hand over the levitating knife so it disappears. "How the hell did you know that?" he snaps.

"Zoey told me. Back when she was questioning me" I reply, my smile fading. 

He trembles even more, looking away, those purple eyes becoming even more darker. We stay quiet for a while. 

"Rythian-" I start. He looks up to glare at me and I bristle, leaning on my other foot. "I know you had something to do with it" he spits, and I frown. "If you think I kidnapped her or something, then you're wrong, my friend" I sigh.

He steps forward, scowling fiercely. "We are NOT friends. Never have been" he snaps. He fiddles with the edge of the mask, and peels it back.

The mutilated ender flesh had covered more of his face now, the twisted, black veins roaming around his cheeks and chin. His mouth was black, so black it looked like scales. He quickly adjusted the mask back on. I swallow, looking down guiltily.

I was the one that caused that.

We had been acquaintances, once. He was eager to learn the ways of science and he became my apprentice, my first ever apprentice. I was 18, and so was he, and we were on the verge of a breakthrough, finding the energy that might have led to the mythical End realm. I decided to test what it would do, this energy. I promised Rythian he would get amazing enderman powers, and he agreed-he trusted me more than anyone. I shut my eyes. I still remembered that night, the way he flinched when the needle went into him, the way he screamed, and curled up on the floor. I had given him every painkiller I knew, trying to stop the pain. When it was done, his face was black. I managed to make most of it go away, to cover just his chin. 

He fled after that. He wore a mask, and gradually, it began to cover more and more of his face. Today, it looked 10 times what it had looked like before, but the hatred still burned brightly in his mystical purple eyes.

"I told you, I'm sorry" I say calmly. "Sorry doesn't take this all back!" he yells, drawing upon his powers. His talent for magic had come with the enderman power-he had the power to teleport short distances. This had fascinated him, and he became a detective, able to catch even the fastest criminal just by teleporting. He had practised his ways of magic, and had excelled so well I always thought the black mutilated enderman flesh was fine-I mean, everyone wants to use magic, and he was one of the only people who could! Surely having strange flesh wouldn't matter?

A ball of fire, bigger than a bowling ball, circled in his hand menacingly, and he was panting with the effort. I watched it warily, waiting for him to strike. Behind him, a figure shifted in the shadows-Tia, of course. There was a knife in her hand, a 10 inch curved one-Tia only used a gun when she needed it, or if she couldn't be bothered to use one. 

"Think about what you're doing" I urge him, not letting Tia's position go. She slowly crept towards him, silent as a cat-the only thing Tia was good at was the element of surprise-without that, she wouldn't be able to kill easily.

"Oh I've thought about it" he says stiffly, lowering the fire in his hand till it quenches and I breath out, relaxing. He waves his hand, letting smoke drift from his fingers. "I won't kill you now, scientist, but mark my words, the next time I cross you, I won't spare you" he growls, turning round and jumping when he sees Tia right behind him, knife poised in the air, centimetres from his throat.

"I think your little visit has ended, detective. Please show yourself out" she says softly, almost a purr. Rythian glowers at Tia, but stomps out, muttering obscene curses under his breath.

"Thank you" I mutter, rubbing the back of my head.

"You don't need my help. You can fight your own battles" she sighs, sheathing her knife in her hidden pocket. I squint at her.

"What happened to the good old days, when you and me were partners in crime? We used to do everything together, and now look at you, acting like a moody teenager with your coffee and serial killer friends" I spit. "Yeah, 'cause all the teenagers have serial killer friends" she snorts.

We both stare at each other, before laughing loudly. Tia smiles as she does so, and it's the first time I've seen her properly smile for months.

"You don't smile anymore" I frown. "Neither do you" she replies. 

We stand in silence for a while, weighing up the responses, but we find none. Tia exits the room, leaving me to go click the kettle on-I needed a drink after all that.

"Make me one" she calls out from the corridor, and I roll my eyes, smiling.

Ridgedog's POV

Stepping towards the window, I rub my hands with glee. So far, so good.

"Excuse me sir, can I get you anything?" a high pitched voice says from behind me. My smile grows wider.

"I'm fine at the moment, my dear. You can go back to your room. I'll call you when I need you" I tell her, not taking my eyes off the window. The pitter patter of light footprints grow quieter as my servant leaves the room. 

Well, I wouldn't class her as a servant, as such...more like my hostage.

I let out a large breath of air, blinking slowly as I gaze at the sun. It was nearing the afternoon now. Briskly, I turn round, rummaging through the various piles of paperwork until I find the right one.

Tia's schedule.

According to the piece of paper, Tia would go visit her family, who had shunned and disowned her when she joined the criminal ranks. I grimace, my eyes scanning further down today's objectives. She would go get the food from the supermarket, since Duncan was always so busy-boring. Nothing ever went wrong when she did that. 

Ah.

A smile raises up on my face. Knife lessons. She taught herself, after hiring a small, private room in a flat without so much as flickering Duncan's suspicious mind. I'd been inside, seeing the various targets with pockmarks in them. One of them, funnily, had my name written on it. I tried not to take offence to the amount of knifes still stuck in me. I had removed them quickly before I had left, and the next time I had come, there was a note nailed to target:

Don't come here again or I'll slit your throat -Tia

I smiled at the memory. She always knew it was me. But she knew even with the most powerful knife, she could not kill me. I guess she could afford to throw around insults like that.

The door opened behind me and I shut my eyes. I would go to her whilst she taught herself. She would dislike my company, but soon she would learn to love it.

"Excuse me sir, there was a knock at the door" the girl says behind me.

I smile.

"Thank you, Zoey."