"E-Ebony," I stuttered. He tilted his head to the side, lost in thought.

"I don't believe we've met before, Miss Parker." How could he not remember all we've been through? I smiled as tears blurred my vision, threatening to fall.

"Don't you remember Drake, and Harley--" I said, motioning to myself, "--and Zerriki."

Ebony's head snapped up at the mention of Zerriki. "He is still living, as far as I know, in Lokar's Bane. Do not try to fool me with things you do not know, human."

I shook my head, wanting to strangle him. "No, he's dead, Ebony. Don't you remember?"

Ebony shook his head, standing up from his chair. He started backing away, and his voice shook as he spoke, "No, no. How--?"

He suddenly emitted a strange noise, almost as if he was being strangled. Then I noticed his hands were around his neck, squeezing and pushing in. I gently shook his hands away, reminding him lightly, "You are already dead. This accomplishes nothing." Then, I did something that I can't explain.

I leaned into Ebony, staring at the place where his lips should be. And strangely, Ebony did too. The next thing I knew, I felt Ebony's soft lips graze over mine, and I felt like the greatest person on Earth. When the sweet kiss was over, Ebony smiled wistfully and then fell, unconscious, to the floor.

I gasped, and shook Ebony over and over again, hoping that he would wake up. Darkness engulfed my vision, and I sunk to the floor. I dully remember the door pounding open. Voices shouted random things, but the one thing I heard over and over again was, Kill them.

I smiled weakly to myself, thinking, we're already dead. We're already dead. My eyes slowly began to roll upward, as the last thought in my mind surged forward.

But I'm not.

A faint buzzing echoed in my mind, reminding me of a bee. I peeled my eyes open, looking around me in confusion. We were back outside, but the beaches looked different. Rather, we seemed to be on a different plane of existence.

I searched frantically around me for any sign of Ebony or Drake. I dug up the black sand, only pausing to glance back up at the blurry gray sky. Everything was monotone. Grays, blacks, and whites surrounded us. They swirled together, making me dizzy.

I shook my head, and moved back to the upturned sand. I bent my nose close to the sand, beads of sweat dripping into it. Suddenly, a hand stretched out from under the sand, and pulled me closer. I felt sandy lips touch mine, and I smiled through it.

He released me, and I pulled him up. My smile faltered a little when I realized it was Drake. But then, it was back in full force as I finally came to a decision between the two boys.

"I choose Drake," I muttered, more in hope that Asylum would hear. I was in desperate need of some women on this trip.

Drake cocked his head, and whispered, "What did you say?"

I waved it off, and continued to search for Ebony. Even though I chose Drake, Ebony is my closest friend. Finally, I saw a nose poking up over the sand. I dug around the nose, revealing more of Ebony's body. I pulled him up, but he seemed to be unconscious.

The memories came flooding back to me. I bent down next to Ebony, trying to feel for a pulse. A faint thump, then another. I sighed in relief, but froze as Ebony began to stir. He woke up, holding his head in pain.

"W--Where am I?" I shushed him, but he waved me off, and continued on, "wha--no. No. No, no, no, no. We can't be."

"Ebony, do you remember anything?" He looked at me, confused. But his face suddenly changed into one of comprehension.

"You mean they tagged me?" We stayed silent.

"T-They tagged me?"

"W-What do you mean, Ebony?"

He sighed, hanging his head in his hands. "Every time we venture out into the real world, when we come back, we must be tagged. They erase your memory, basically. They do this out of fear. They only want us to be content in the Vengeful world, to have no memory of any other world 'more perfect' than theirs."

"Ebony--" I began quietly, "--why are you so afraid to be in this world?" I gestured all around us, waiting for his answer.

He smiled, and chuckled a little. "Oh, dear child. This is no ordinary world." I bent closer to him, intent on hearing his answer.

"This is Lithaniel. We are now one of the Banished."