Y/n's POV:

I felt my body sway slightly. It was a pleasant sensation, one I haven't felt in a long time.

I didn't understand what was happening to me...maybe, someone had taken me on the shoulders and was leading me to safety, away from the killer. Away from everyone.

It couldn't be the entity. I didn't perceive that strange sensation that dragged me upwards ignoring any physical law; well, it was really strange too...although I went up to the sky, I sank again into the hell of this world a few moments later.
Useless as stupid, I was such a fool to believe every time it could be different.

My hands grasped the nothing, as they were dangling. Who was that was taking me away? Jake? Of course, it wouldn't surprise me if he did...I believed his words when he said he would protect me. And that he would love me.

But the arm that encircled my waist was so strong and big; I felt safe, in a way, even though I didn't know its identity. My head hurt so much to think about it and as a result I couldn't open my eyes properly.

I was breathing slowly and badly, as I could smell the dust. And the blood.
Oh yes, the Deathslinger hit my head very hard earlier. What a son of bitch...

Fortunately, I was gradually regaining consciousness...or maybe because my spirit had detached from my body and I could remember the last moments? Was I really dead, anyway? Doing that was much more difficult than I thought.

Suddenly, my body slid down on a soft, almost comforting surface.
A bed? That was what I hoped for who knows how long...however, it wasn't the one in my beloved bedroom, in my nostalgic house.

I felt the presence of someone next to me; he intended to stay there even after laid me down, unaware of what he could do to me.
Not that I could care much in those conditions...the only thing I wanted to do was open one eye to see who he really was, even if it wasn't that hard to imagine.

...I could guessed the sound of his breathing even with my eyes closed.

- - -

Your body was there under his eyes. However, he didn't move any fingers.
Unless they were already dead, Michael Myers wasn't used to looking at his victim lying on the ground, helpless, he enjoyed more when they ran away from him screaming in fear.

He didn't wonder why he was in that place while another killer was called on the hunt, but when he saw the old man with a rifle hit you in the head and hook you immediately after, he felt his blood boil with anger.

For the first time, the Shape hit another killer, in the back with a single slash. It was enough to knock him out.
But when he looked up to find you, he saw you in Jake's arms...he hadn't hated a human in his life as much as that dark-haired brat, because was always trying to take you away from him.

In fact, when he grabbed Jake to stab him straight in the heart he couldn't help but smile behind the mask.
Only this time the boy had seen it clearly before he was hit to death...of course, the young survivalist wasn't afraid of the killer, but of what he might do to you whereupon.

You were finally all his. But he didn't want to wait for you to wake up and silently climbed onto the bed straddling you. He kept the knife close at hand in case someone came to interrupt him.
He tilted his head to one side; he was looking closely at your facial features, so young and gentle...he had never wondered before, but he was sure you were about his age.

When he touched your skin it felt like silk; his fingers lingered on your mouth, which had kissed it so many times and always in a stray way.

He raised your head slightly to bring your face closer. He felt that your hair was damp where the Deathslinger hit you, but there was no blood loss. You seemed to be sleeping peacefully.
He lifted the mask up over his nose to make sure he wasn't fully seen. Compared to his, your nose was really small.

With his thumb he opened your mouth and filled it with the tongue. He felt a pleasant and different feeling from killing only when he did that to you. And with no one else.
He groaned between kisses and annoyed him that he couldn't hear your voice.
In that trial, you were wearing a short-sleeved shirt with a pretty floral pattern, which gently stroked your feminine curves; however, Michael didn't care and tore it in two.

He grabbed both cups of your breasts and instinctively squeezed them letting out a little moan of pain from your lips.
They fit perfectly inside his palms and just feeling so soft had a repressed sensation inside the suit, which he had to immediately release.

He began to bite and pinch your neck as he descended on your generous chest. He wanted to tear that annoying fabric that didn't allow him to see your bare skin completely...
He kept touching you until he heard your first moans, although you still had your eyes closed.

Of course, he wanted more and also tried to get rid of your black jeans immediately. Until he stopped.
He turned in the direction of the noise, probably came inside the saloon. Then, he gripped the kitchen knife, ready to get rid of the intruders.

- - -

Nea's POV:

I glared at Ace who was silently following me. Why the hell had I decided to take him with me??

《Shit, be careful...!》  I yelled in a low voice after he dropped the door at the saloon entrance...well, that place was really run down and it could have fallen over our heads, at any moment. Except now.

After we found Jake's lifeless body, we learned that he had tried to save Y/n from the killer, but unfortunately without success.
I saw his wound in the chest, probably caused by the Deathslinger's harpoon...however, there was something left me perplexed.

When I saw Y/n carried by the killer, I was sure he was someone else! That's why I was there, to make sure of it. Moreover, I told Ace to finish the last gen but, as always, that fucking jackass wasn't listening...now, he was there with me and almost risked us being discovered.

《Anyway, did you hear it too?》  He said suddenly, but the only thing I had heard was the noise he had made.

《No, what?》  I stopped crouched behind the counter.

《Mmm I'm not sure, but they looked like groans, almost suffocated.》  And he added  《I believe they came from upstairs.》

At that moment, I heard it too.
《Do you think it's Y/n? But what the hell is she up there for??》  The situation was getting more and more bizarre.

《We have to go up to find out.》

Ace passed me and I followed him up the stairs leaning on the side wall. Those strange sounds came from one of the rooms.
There were two doors not very far from each other and we decided to separate to check them at the same time.

When I turned the handle, I discovered it was a nineteenth-century style bedroom; the dust was everywhere, even on the sheets and there was still the mannequin wearing one of those frivolous clothes of the time...stuff for the rich and definitely uncomfortable to wear nowadays, I thought.

For the rest, there was no one.

I went back and saw Ace peeking out from behind the other door. He was so still he looked like he wasn't breathing.

《Pss, what's up there...》

Apparently, he had found something, but when I slowly approached him I noticed that he was sweating a lot.

《Hey, let me see.》

When I tried to move him, he stopped me.

《I-it's better if you don't look, believe me.》

It was the first time he seemed really serious in his words. However, I had no intention of staying there doing anything and pushed him away with all the strength I had.

《Fuck it, I said I want to see–》  But I broke off as I was talking too much.

Anyway, I realized too late what Ace meant by that. I didn't believe it and I opened my eye to see better. Unexpectedly, there was another killer in there and was the Shape; moreover, he was on top of Y/n's motionless body and he was...no, there was definitely something wrong.

Then, I noticed her clothes were torn apart; distracted from the moment, I could have made any disturbing noise, but fortunately the killer didn't notice us. I had never seen such a thing and I certainly NEVER expected to see it, not in such a place, as shit as it was!

I searched with agitation for Ace's sleeve, without taking my eyes off.
《W-we have to do something now, before anything else can happen...》

《...are you crazy? He'll certainly kill us if he finds out!》  He seemed to disagree, but in reality he was just as shocked as I was.

For a second, I thought if it hadn't happened before...and it would explain why Y/n often behaved in a cold and detached way.

She couldn't react and the only people who could help her were us.

...I've done a lot of bullshit in my past life hoping that everything will go my way; although there had only been one time when the cops were really going to catch me, I still managed to get away with it, as I always did.
But it was still the same story. Everything I've done, I've done for myself, but for what purpose? Maybe I should have accepted the change and gone home, once and for all, but that too had gone to hell...

And here too, nothing had changed. Yes, I tried to save my teammates from a terrible end, but even here things didn't make sense...

Now, there were just two options.
Keep hiding or react?

It was time to make a choice...

- - -

Michael Myers had left his weapon there, on the edge of the bed, unattended. Nea told herself it was the right time for the second one.

Without saying anything to her teammate, she sneaked into the room. Nobody could do it better than her, anyway.
A few steps from the bed, she waited for the psychopath to lower his gaze to your body again, but he didn't; with both hands, he unzipped the suit to his waist.

His physical aspect was anything but human, because he was really muscular and evident it belonged to a young person.
Although his breaths were heavy, he still had no intention of removing the mask...in a sense, Nea was curious to know which face was hidden behind that white inexpressiveness.

When she made sure his hands were away from the knife again, with such courage, she slowly reached out for it; meanwhile, she had positioned herself under the bed, so as not to risk being discovered.
She touched the handle with the fingertips, but when tried to grab it, the knife moved further away.

《Fuck...》  She thought gritting the teeth and trying to control her breathing.

Ace was watching the scene, but suddenly he gestured to the Swedish girl to stop, as she was in danger of getting too noticed.
He tried to give her directions on how to move in order to get the knife and in several situations he had to make her retract the hand, as the masked man happened to inadvertently turn around...it seemed he was doing it on purpose, but the two survivors didn't notice.

Nea was on the right track. She could feel the knife with all five of her fingers and she lifted it just a little in order to secure the grip.

The blade was incredibly sharp.

It was no longer a simple kitchen knife, as it gave off a strange aura, probably because it didn't recognize its rightful owner.
At that point, there was no more time to waste; Michael had moved on your legs and caressed them with little kindness and a lot of desire.

Ace's mouth dropped open in disbelief as his friend slammed the weapon into the killer's shoulder, right at the neck.
Any human being, even a monster like him, couldn't have resisted an evidently fatal blow.

《Now Ace!》

Nea screamed in his direction and he catapulted into the bedroom; while Nea was busy watching the killer try to remove the blade stuck behind him, he grabbed you with both of the arms and carried you away from there.
He didn't wait for the other. For her part, Nea hadn't moved an inch, even though she wanted to escape right away. She didn't want to believe it, but the killer managed to remove the knife from him; the veins throbbed beneath his skin along with the blood dripping from his deep wound and onto the black T-shirt.

He repositioned the mask correctly, soiling it with his own blood. He got out of bed and stared menacingly at his attacker.
There was no escape now. The only thing she could do was close the eyes and wait for her end.

But that moment didn't come.

In fact, Michael walked past ignoring her completely. Nea crumpled to the ground with her heart racing.

《...who the hell are you...》

She said aloud, but she was left alone.

- - -

Ace's POV:

I didn't know where I was going, I was just running. As fast as I could.
I stopped shortly after, behind a stable, to rest and leaned Y/n on a wall. She was breathing regularly and was starting to move, but still didn't seem to realize what was going on.

Nea didn't catch up with me. Something must have happened, but I couldn't go back. The wind had risen again and with it also that annoying dust. Before long, there would be another sandstorm...

I took off my hat and sighed loudly; we were safe there for the time being, but there was no gen to repair.

At this rate, we would never get out of there. I had the impression the Luck had left me behind, or maybe it was just my pessimism...

I never had, anyway, because I was ALWAYS sure I would get away with it, until I had those damned loan sharks on my breath...

But remembering the past in such a moment didn't make me forget who I was...

No matter what happened, I had decided to keep betting, on others and on myself...I knew the Luck would never turn its back, not on someone as charming as me!

Nea was too smart and surely would get out of trouble.

As for Y/n, well, she always proved to be intelligent and determined, but I didn't think she was doing well.

Apparently, it wasn't just Jake who had feelings for her, but was it possible for a killer to have them? If this had occurred to me earlier, I would have tried it too with some woman on the other side, as long as they wouldn't have killed me!

Well, there was something different here, but I was getting a headache to think about it again.
When silence fell upon us, I went out to check the situation. Nobody was looking for us.

But when I came back, I heard something. I was sure they were footsteps, but the weird thing was that there was no one in front of me!

I started to go back, to where I had left Y/n and realized I had made a big mistake...I started to run to her, when something grabbed my shoulder pushing me to the ground.

I saw fogged for a moment, probably must have hit the head. I tried to get up, but a foot came right on my chest crushing me.

It was the Shape. He finally caught up with us, huh?

He had his knife with him again, stained with blood...there was a possibility that Nea's was there as well.

Unexpectedly, the killer left me there. Was it possible that his only target was her? If he had turned that corner, he would certainly have found her. Like the fool I was, I thought I would stop him by locking his ankle.

He looked down at me. I must have looked like a cockroach to him at that moment...

Well, better than he was, right?

- - -

Y/n's POV:

I started blinking a couple of times before fully reopening my eyes.
I looked around. This time, I was outside and sitting on the dust with my head aching against a wooden wall.

I raised my hands and they were shaking, but I managed to move. It was as if I had taken a nap, even though the headache wasn't over yet.
Apparently, someone had taken me away...I was completely stunned when I saw that my shirt was ripped in the middle, while my jeans were unbuttoned. It wasn't pure accident, I thought.

Soon after, I heard a groan of pain followed by a series of kick-like blows.
I got up and, on the other side of the corner beside me, I clearly saw the imposing figure of Michael Myers, kicking Ace in the face.

With his arms uncovered and blood covering his back, I thought he was the one who made me like this, but unfortunately for him he couldn't continue.

His blade was stained with blood, but he wasn't using it against Ace, but before he thought about it I sprinted in their direction.

My footsteps were enough to make them both turn. Ace looked at me painfully not expecting I would wake up, while Michael didn't move an inch.

《G-go away...》  The gambler said spitting blood from his mouth.

I couldn't leave him there, but where could I escape? In any case, I would be in Michael's clutches again.

It was a losing battle from the start.

- - -

Jake and Nea were probably dead, you thought, but Ace was still alive and you couldn't let him suffer like that.
Michael's profile was scary even in that unusual twilight and was staring at you with his black eyes. He knew that whatever you did would be useless, as you would be his again, but for some strange reason a twinkle appeared in your eyes.

So, he left Ace alone and walked towards you. You backed away without stopping to look at him; your defiance had caught his attention, but you had to come up with something if you didn't want to lose...or rather, you would have done whatever was necessary to give the other time to escape.

Michael would never kill you, but he would try to use his blade on you, if necessary.
Unbeknownst to you, he hit you on the legs causing you to lose your balance.

You fell on your stomach. Meanwhile, Michael pulled you towards him and then you felt the blade on your ankle. You screamed in pain.

You couldn't have run like that, not with a torn tendon. The pain was so bad that you felt like crying.

He left you there momentarily and walked back to Ace.

《Face me Michael!》  You had nothing to deal with and you couldn't even stand up now. Those words came out of your mouth empty...

However, Michael stopped. Hearing your voice calling him made his blood boil and the desire to hold you there became stronger...but he had to wait. The presence of the other survivor and the interest you had to save him at any cost made him want to kill him so much.

Ace had managed to get to his feet, but compared to him, Michael was practically a mountain.
Even you, despite the effort, you managed to get up; behind him, you clung to the killer's right arm with your crawling foot.

《I won't let you hurt my friends again!》  You screamed at his white face. But your angry expression wasn't enough and Michael began to get impatient.

He grabbed your hair from the back of your head making you lose the grip on him.

《R-run Ace, now!》

You screamed at the survivor, who had been watching unable to do anything...that rescue had been a total failure.

For the first time, Ace looked serious at the lightness of your words.

《What about you, are you really okay with this?》

《...yes, I'll be fine. We'll meet again on the other side.》  You tried to smile in that situation, but just to convince your teammate. It was better for you not to imagine what was going to happen to you...

Ace backed away before turning totally and running away. You were alone again. You tried unsuccessfully to get away from the killer by pushing against his chest.

This time, Michael Myers was furious. In pursuit of you, he refused to kill a survivor and even now because you stopped him.

He was tired of you and your constant rebelling against him, but he knew a way to change your mind...he would have been mean to you, to the point where he wanted to see you cry in despair.
After yanking you for a while, he threw you violently to the ground.

The dust got on your face and clothes making you cough. There was nothing you could use as a last chance to escape.
You didn't want to give up like that. Whenever you were alone with Michael, you weren't able to defend yourself and, even if you tried to escape, he would catch up with you no matter what.

Michael was on top of you, his feet were beside your hips. Now he no longer cared where he would do it, he just thought about how to punish you.
The knife tore through the rest of your shirt carelessly ignoring the cuts it caused on your back. You bit your lower lip to resist the new pain you were going through.

《You are like me now.》

He said as soon as the blood ran on you, just like from the wound that had been inflicted on him. You tried to ignore his sadistic attitude.

《I-I'll never be like you, Michael...》

Of course, you would never kill or torture anyone like he did, but also you didn't want to admit how good it was to kiss him...it would have been a huge mistake to do so.

Michael grabbed your chin and turned you towards him. Your eyes were so bright, like two crystal marbles and your lips were soft like the petals of a flower...how could he have killed such a beautiful creature?

You didn't understand why he had been staring at you. You wondered what he saw on the other side of the mask, out of the world in which he had confined himself.

《...why don't we get it over with and kill me?》  You said looking at him.

He could answer you, but you felt he wouldn't, because he spoke just when it suited him most.

《Do you think it's nothing you do to me instead of killing me?》  You added in a trembling voice  《I...I can't take this anymore, just tell me you hate me instead of hurting me like this!》

Michael didn't react, but he seemed to have listened to that. He approached so that your body was pressed between the dust and him, because even if you wanted, you wouldn't be able to get rid of him.

《Y/n.》

His voice touched your skin making it tremble wildly. His voice was so manly and beautiful when he said your name.

But you gasped when he said these words...

《I want you by my side.》

- - -

You felt ridiculous. Instead of feeling fear and disgust for someone like him, your eyes stared in bewilderment.

You wanted to grab his mask and throw it away to see his real expression...and to see if he was serious.

No, it couldn't be. It was evident that he didn't know what he was saying either; but then, he lowered the knife and grabbed the edge of his mask with the other hand.

《W-what are you–》

Suddenly, the white mask slipped out of the head revealing more of his face. Until it was fully uncovered.

His skin was pale and you immediately noticed some brown curls falling on the forehead; his hair was short, but not so much. You thought that unruly hair was really soft...
His face wasn't much different to the mask in expressiveness and his dark eyes looked at you as if there was no light in them. As you have seen in the past, his chin was slightly bearded, while the lips looked thin and almost worn, but they were surprisingly adept at kissing you.

You couldn't hold back and placed a hand on his gaunt cheek. You expected it to be cold, but it wasn't.
His pupils followed your every movement, moving first to the eyes and then to the mouth.

Meanwhile, he was waiting for your reaction...he thought you were disgusted to see him...

But maybe, you were crazier than him...you leaned forward to kiss him on the lips.

He didn't wait any longer and you both fell to the ground; Michael put his arms around your body as he regained control over your mouth.

《Why I'm doing this...》  You wondered as you closed your eyes.

《...whatever...it's so good that I can't think straight now.》

Michael noticed how you were holding on to him and he didn't let go; he realized you weren't afraid of him.
You stroked the tufts on his mighty nape with your fingers.

You knew you were making a mistake, that you shouldn't ignore everything he put you through, but you couldn't. When he kissed you, when he held you close and now when he looked at you with those empty eyes, as if he never knew what happiness was, it made you think he needed you.

You couldn't get those damn thoughts out of your head. You didn't even know if you were letting out loud moans and in any case the young Myers didn't seem displeased at all.

For his part, he had never felt so exposed as in that moment, without his faithful mask to protect him from all the uncertainties of the world and from corruption...but now, there was no voice tempting him, not even that of the Entity, if not only and exclusively yours.