If eyes had the capability of generating fire, then the contract paper in Pristine's hands would have burnt to ashes.

Her eyes blurred her sight as tears brimmed them, flooding her thoughts. She was not scared or worried, but angry. Wrath obscured her consciousness, debarring her limbs to move, making her senses immobile to any kind of stimuli. Agitation reigned its powerful regime through her subconscious, nourishing poisonous seeds of homicide.

I have already been accused of a crime I did not commit... Why not make their allegations true?

The devil inside her cackled out loud, applauding her intrepid decision.

The world doesn't deserve all the goodness you give. To sustain in this realm of immorality, you'll have to use a thorn to remove another one.

Steadying her feet and focus, she decided to depart from the killer's room and meet the obnoxious boy who had saved her. Clenching the paper harder, she wanted to show this piece of crucial evidence to Alan and fling it on his face, making him irrevocably speechless.

As usual, she began braiding delusions where Alan stood dumbstruck, shocked by the truth and dormant due to her abrupt behaviour. Little did she notice that the back of her hair was being parted as slender fingers reached for the golden clasp of her necklace. As the fingers moved towards unbolting the clasp, the tingling sensation suddenly disrupted Pristine's delusions.

The golden vial that fell from her neck on unlatching was deftly caught by the slender hand that untangled it.

"See, Avril! I told you! Papers don't fly on their own, atleast not in Caperwood," a girl jeered.

Pristine turned behind to see the two people she only had wished to see dead. Avril sat on the linen couch, crossing his legs as he spread his arms, reclining his neck. Beside him was the notorious shape-shifter, Romine, spinning the necklace like a car key.

Pristine's feet froze, horrified by the encounter as her eyes forgot to blink and hands forgot to remain still. Moreover, she felt bare, naked and exposed as there was no shield of invisibility guarding her.

Her body quivered; her guts that had been valiant for barely a second hid themselves within her trembling body.

"This was why I got selected for being an agent, despite my young age. Though my family had a proud legacy of being shape-shifters, I was gifted with the ability to see invisible things. I could have pursued my career as a potion brewer focusing on invisibility, but family pressure landed me here. Also –"

"Romine!" the gentle stern from Avril silenced her vaunt, "We have a guest to attend and you are here talking about your history? Why do you want to bore them?"

Romine snickered as she glared at Pristine, who now had gone two steps behind.

"Welcome, Pristine!" Avril sprang up, his iris turning dangerously black, "I have always wanted to meet you."

"Avril," Pristine's voice wavered as she attempted to appear strong, "I know it's you. You will meet your end soon!"

"Aww, look who's all brave now?" Romine derided as the magenta shade of her hair gradually camouflaged to gray, her face taking the appearance of a very familiar figure, "My dear child! You are so beautiful when you try to be brave!"

Pristine flared, her eyes grew in turmoil. She couldn't stand the sight of the same old woman who had hypnotized her into witchcraft.

"You!" she clenched her fist, gritting her teeth as her mere attempt to punch was received by a cacophonous laughter.

"Of course!" Avril squealed, wiping the tears, "A killer is surely brave, Romine! We should be scared of her!"

The two youngsters swam into the sea satire as they chortled mirthlessly, raising the perilous flames of insecurity around Pristine.

Since the day this infernal, ruthless duo had entered her life, crying had become a measure with infinity at its end, never ceasing her destroyable depression.

Pristine remained on a desolate island, hunger for hope and thirst for freedom bound her bones to weakness. Watching the murderers laugh callously, Pristine made sure that she would never reveal her anxiety.

You only lose, if you reveal your fear.

Her mom's radiant advice instilled strength in her deprived body. She will not lose to some puny idiots, worthless to live.

I will determine their end.

"Oh, Pristine!" Avril exclaimed, "Please sit down! We don't let our guests stand!"

Romine took his signal and began, "Avril! Can't you see? She has something in her hand. She'll only sit after handing it to you."

"Shut up!" Pristine flinged their drama, "I am not giving this! This evidence will be enough to make you both romantically count the bars in prison!"

"Wow!" Romine jeered, "Nice idea! What do you think, Avril? A date in the prison?"

Avril let out a chuckle as his fierce eyes warned Romine to remain shut.

Look at her, she thinks she's a hero.

The satanic voice criticized, earning a smiling nod from Avril.

Does she deserve to live?

It questioned, teasing his turpitude. Avril responded with his head shaking wildly.

"Are you scared, Avril?" Pristine grinned, hoping she had ridiculed him. Unknown to her was that she had disturbed their conversation, making the demon manifest his ultimate plan.

Then what are you waiting for?

It growled, sending Avril to shudders.

Kill her.

It was neither a request nor a suggestion. It was an outright command; an order that Avril had no way but to abide by.

Avril advanced towards Pristine, who suddenly drained all the confidence and turned pallid on seeing him approach. She kept walking backwards, until her back came in contact with the wall. A chill ran through her spine as Avril neared her, cornering her shivering figure.

"Scared?" Avril roared.

Pristine shifted her eyes anxiously; trepidation burgeoned on her skin upon hearing him speak.

It was not similar to his previous tone – a harsh piercing voice that came from the depths of his throat frightened her wits.

It was not Avril speaking. It was the demon.

Avril felt a tight knot in his throat. A very strange reaction took place within him, making him sense something erupting. He sensed the change in his voice; a guttural, demanding tone. This made him grin wider.

Welcome, my friend...

This time, it was Avril's real voice, inviting the demon, who had activated its form.

Pristine panicked as she noticed Avril's veins bulging through his neck. Large ebony flames emanated from all parts of his body, turning all the bursting veins to a deadly black shade.

He's not a human....He's something else!

Her lips quivered incessantly as her mind sensed the arrival of possible seizures. Her pupils trembled on seeing Avril's towering body, that cast blazing roots of wrath.

Avril discerned his body being overtaken by the mighty force within him. He chortled as he felt himself fuse with his counter ego, joining to become one infernal power, capable of swallowing the entire goodness of the world.

"Do you know how much I struggled to land in this position?" Avril growled, "How many plans I had made to avoid the cops or the Etherials from targeting suspicion towards my home? And you invaded my house casually, thinking you can leave from here alive?"

"You – you killed Andrei," Pristine stuttered.

"Because he deserved it!" Avril bellowed, making Pristine's face ashen.

"And you deserve it too..." a sly smile escaped his firm face as Avril raised his fingers. His hands exuded dark flames; his fingernails grew longer and darker, making them look inhuman as he reached for Pristine's neck.

In no time, Pristine wailed in agony as Avril clasped her neck, tightening his grip. His fingernails strived not to tear the pale skin of her neck as he took delight in seeing his victim gasp for air.

She's weaker than you. Everyone is weaker than you, Avril. You are invincible.

"Avril!" Romine's warning echoed as he disregarded it with a sneer.

"Le – leave me!" Pristine managed the words of plea as his fingers suffocated her breathing. Her pale skin reddened as the raging heat penetrated her thoughts, preparing them to face the last phase of her life.

"Avril!" Romine spoke louder, compelling the fierce demon to pause its entertainment.

"What do you want?" Avril snarled, observing her fear.

"There's a kid in this room.... she's – she's invisible."

***

There was exactly one hour left for dinner, yet his stomach grumbled as he sat on the garden swing.

Darkness had gobbled up the sight of the silky sunset, making the sky devoid of its impeccable beauty. However, to compensate, the flickering stars had come in enormous numbers to aid, serving a pleasant view that calmed its viewers.

Alan had felt empty the whole day, despite overeating during his meals. An empty void had formed within his body, making him feel the dearth of energy. He knew it wasn't his stomach that grumbled; it was his heart. It ached the whole day, making him culpable of his behaviour.

She must have gone now...

He was aware that there was no way of stopping her decision. One thing he had learnt from her was that she was adamant and stubborn when it came to matters of guarding her pride.

As the empty void within him blamed his insensible actions, he barely noticed that someone had sat beside him.

"You seem so upset today," Arabella curled her arm around his neck, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Alan sighed.

"Hmm."

I had seen her. Arabella took photos with her and she had shown me.

Pristine's firm statement resonated through his mind. Her eyes had flared in certainty and took pride in solving the mystery. He realized that he had never seen her this optimistic for the past few weeks. The guilty force within him urged to break the truth.

"Ara," he tried to maintain his posture, "Do you have pictures from Pandora?"

Arabella raised her brow, silently demanding the reason for the sudden inquisitiveness.

"Please?" A simple word with glittering eyes was enough for Arabella to give in.

She took her phone, searched through her hidden albums and handed a few selected photos to Alan.

"This was at the entrance," she explained as Alan tried hard to look awed.

"It's grand and majestic; there's a whole banner explaining its legacy!"

"Cool!"

"And then, this is the inside look. It's more like a mall, right?"

"Yeah!" Alan chimed as he swiped to view the next photo, without realizing that his breath would stop soon.

Alan gaped at the picture of Arabella posing with a girl, who was very much similar to Avril's girlfriend. Arrows of guilt pierced his conscience, as he nervously asked, "Who's this?"

"Oh! She's my friend, Romine! She's a super sweet person and.... Alan! Where are you going?"