Everything began to fall apart and then back together. In Marianus’s mind was a collapsing building that rebuilt piece by piece, psychically. Like telekinesis, the pieces floated back into place of their own accords, magnificently reforming and rebuilding. The last piece topped the structure off with a click, like a cherry-shaped epiphany.

  Marianus realized how his father had changed ever so slightly when he returned from that trip to Japan three years ago. He realized why contact with him decreased in greater intervals and why important interactions were limited to phone calls. He realized how he himself made it this far alone and remembered many suspicious points in his investigation where the evidence seemed almost perfectly lined up, just for him. He realized why no large efforts have been launched against such a suspicious, off-the-grid organization and why they were able to maintain such high secrecy. He also realized that the chief of investigation probably knew about this, about his father being involved.

  That trip to Japan was instigated by the chief of investigation. Marianus later learned that there was heavy conflict between both chiefs and nothing more. They, among many others, argued about a particular case. Neither spilled information when asked.

  The distinguishing detail that stuck out to Marianus three years ago was that his father felt… strange. It was as if a ghost possessed his body. That may have been hindsight bias, but it was actually true.

  “You knew it was strange, didn’t you?” said Marianus’s father. “How one woman would show strange signs after a particular hike, only to change completely, and disappear. This happened many times.”

  “It did,” Marianus agreed. “I spoke with one of them, before they passed away. No…” Marianus glared. “Before they were murdered.” He tugged at his chains in a useless attempt and then gave up. “They were like night and day. She didn’t even feel like a woman anymore, certainly not the same one. Different habits. Different routines. Holes in their memory. Then, she disappeared.”

  “You must be talking about Caroline,” Marianus’s father said, knowingly. “She’s been taken care of by one of the other overseers.”

  Marianus twitched. He wasn’t feeling doubt this time, but anger. “Who killed Caroline?”

  “Oh? Did you share a special relationship with her?” Marianus’s father tapped the ground with his long, bony fingers. It was an unhurried tone, a patient rhythm .

  “Of course not. She still owes me a hundred dollars. The journal doesn’t pay me enough, you see, so every cent is important.”

  Marianus’s father smiled a resigned smile. “She isn’t dead. She’s a functioning member of the cult now-”

  “I’m not talking about her body. I’m talking about her soul.” Marianus sounded pained, though he tried his best to regain control of his own voice, his own body.

  Marianus’s father was deep in thought. He spoke very neutrally, with no particular undertones. “It is unfortunate,” was all that came out.

  The two of them looked at eachother. It was like a cruel staring contest. Marianus lost.

  Marianus’s father got up. He dusted his suit off and made his way toward the door.

  “Hey,” Marianus said. “Why are you telling me all these things?”

  “Because you’re my son,” Marianus’s father said.

  “I still have many other questions for you,” Marianus continued. “Why won’t you answer those?”

  “Because I cannot betray the cult.”

  “Ah, I see. I’m going to die in the end anyway, so further information is useless. In the end, you’re going to kill Polly and me. So much for your family.”

  Marianus’s father turned around. He glared daggers into Marianus. Marianus, normally courageous, couldn’t help but shrink for a moment. Just a moment. Then, like a switch, he flipped on his cool. He tried to, at least.

  “Marianus. I treasure you and Polly. I mean that. Your former father gave himself up to the cult for the two of you, and your mothers. He was foolish, however. He was not aware of the scope of the vision, of the hidden powers of us overseers. In the end, he ended up a soulless puppet.”

  Marianus’s father cuffed his mouth, as if nauseous. At that moment, both father and son held their breaths in tandem. Marianus’s father turned back around. Marianus gazed at the long, emaciated back in front of him. Not only was his father a puppet, but a neglected puppet.

  “This is the treatment I spare only to you two. I’ve come just to see you off. Like you said, it matters not. The third phase of the plan… The final phase of the plan…” Marianus’s father paused and spoke his next words with a fearful heftiness. “... promises complete unification.”

  Marianus didn’t react to those words. He doesn’t fear what he doesn’t understand. What truly scares him is fully comprehending a terrifying situation, a situation only he is burdened to understand with his cursedly gifted mind.

  “When this body fails,” Marianus’s father spoke, his voice filled with a longing euphoria, “I will simply fit into the next family. That is all.”

  “Hey… Father…” Marianus didn’t understand why he kept calling the thing in front of him his father still and he didn’t care. “Tell me. You aren’t going to kill us yourselves?”

  Footsteps. Step by step by step by step. Marianus could hear them clearly. It was a very specific click, a very particular clack. It wasn’t quite heels, but something more comfortable yet still stylish. It wasn’t the type of shoes to wear for a hike. If one were to hike with those, they would bring a running spare.

  Marianus, the moment he heard those footsteps, trembled violently. His switch was broken.

  “BASTARD!!!!!!!!!” he screamed uncontrollably. His voice could shake the entire quarters, however large it was. It was a shout that encompassed all of the controlled rage, anger, and fear. It was pure negative emotion, a raw, uncontrolled wail to the depths of heaven and the heights of hell.

  “I will not be the one to finish this. I can’t do such a thing. I will not kill you. She will.”

  Marianus’s father pointed towards the woman who walked in. She stood in a seriousness very unlike herself. She lacked her usual charm. She lacked her playfulness, and instead stood in the form of a different person.

  Marianus’s father walked out.

  Marianus hunched over. He understood, and he feared.

  …

  Why she was here, Marianus knew. She was but a puppet now. What he knew of her was practically gone. It took only a quarter of a second to figure that out. Marianus could bet that even monkeys could figure that out. He laughed at himself.

  He laughed loudly and wildly.

  “Who else did you take, you bastards? Do you think this is funny?”

  “Ha. Not particularly-”

  “WHO ELSE DID YOU TAKE!”

  Marianus smashed the ground with his fists. At that moment, he looked like the perpetrator, and the woman looked like the victim, if only their positions were switched. Marianus pulled and tugged and with all his might he couldn’t free himself of his chains. If he could, he would lunge at the fake Sascha with all his feelings of confused betrayal.

  Sascha looked and smiled.

  Oi… Oi oi oi oi oi! Don’t smile with her face! Not Sascha’s face..!

  Marianus cried when he saw that smile. He knew it did not belong to the woman that loved him, that sheepishly asked him out but was denied. It was funny, because to any other person Sascha would appear as domineering and confident as… well, Sascha. She was her own standard. Yet, all that crumbled when it came to him. Her whole facade was instead replaced by something made of honey and clover. She was undeniably cute, sweet, and deserving of something really genuine.

  Why did he stick with her for so long? It was not out of pity, or any other tasteless emotion. He simply treasured her. She held a special place in his heart. It was not quite romantic love, but it was a love far more special, reserved only for her.

  As the only person who willingly dealt with his antics, she was a true companion. Marianus was the ultimate “nonchalant”. Yet, he was great at his job. Unfortunately, when it came to personal relationships, he was subpar. When he thought of Sascha, for a moment he felt like he was the best in the world when it came to having true relationships. She made him feel more than subpar, even though most of what came out of her mouth were insults towards him (when she was feeling especially confident and daring).

  This person that he treasured was effectively gone. What replaced her…

  “Speak, you damn cat.”

  “Oh, so you knew? Impressive.” Sascha leaned on one leg and held her hips. “How did you know?”

  “Who cares how I knew. Did you take anyone else from me?”

  “You’re assuming that your beloved girlfriend is permanently gone?”

  “I’m not assuming, I know. Now answer the question.”

  Sascha smiled, and Marianus despised her more and more.

  “I am Eucalypso, the sixth overseer of the Cult of Unification! As a special favor I shall grant your dying wishes.”

  She bowed. Marianus was bordering upon murderous intent. He still held himself back, however, with whatever powers of self-control he had remaining, which was barely enough to fill a bottle cap.

  Eucalypso craned her neck unnaturally far to the side. She rubbed her palms, invitingly, as if preparing to tell a delectable story. Marianus felt like spatting.

  “We have the blood of your direct family, that is, your two mothers and your little sister over there. In fact, I have the child’s glass right here.” Eucalypso pulled from somewhere a small vial filled with warm, red blood. It glittered.

  “We intend to target nobody else directly related to you. It is not necessary. My final target is this woman’s father. Then, preparations should be complete for the next phase.”

  With the chief of police already controlled, all that’s left in terms of a meaningful resistance is the chief of investigation. Now, they had a pathway towards taming that threat. Marianus figured that out.

  “It wasn’t our intention for things to end up this way. It’s partially due to what you call your ‘father’s’ fault. His leading and sparing of you allowed us to get a hold of a valuable vessel.” Eucalypso smiled and ran her hands down her body.

  “She will be of great use to us-”

  Marianus lunged forward, the chains ripping at him, containing him. He struggled violently towards Eucalypso. He couldn’t close the gap. He couldn’t do anything.

  This was all a trap to lure her.

  What went wrong? What mistakes did I make?

  Was I doomed from the beginning?

  How can I escape? How do I trick the cultist?

  What are they up to? Can I negotiate with them?

  What’s the plan?

  Marianus’s mental chatter ceased. That’s right. The plan, he thought to himself.

  “You killed my former vessel,” Eucalypso said, gritting his teeth. “A gunshot to the chest… Do you know how much that hurt, you bastard?” Eucalypso grabbed Marianus by the jaw, and gripped him mercilessly. Marianus was unperturbed. They looked at each other with murderous intent, their appetites deep. “Fortunately, I was able to get a good bite into her side. Just a little bit of blood is enough, just a taste.”

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  Eucalypso craned her neck. It looked like at any moment, her neck would snap and fall and roll towards him. “Things worked out,” she said satisfied.

  Eucalypso stepped out for a moment. She returned with another cold, hard object. It was long and blunt, shaped perfectly to hit leather hide balls.

  It was a metal bat… A metal bat… A metal bat…

  Memories flowed like a river into Marianus’s mind. Of course! He remembered. Right after saving the girl, after getting his own wounds cleaned, after chatting and preparing to move out, Sascha complained about her head hurting. She paused, picked up the bat she used to beat the hell out of the cat, and smashed Marianus’s head in.

  That was the extent of his memories. This was yet that same metal bat.

  The bat used to knock the hell out of the possessor was wielded against Marianus, then and now.

  Marianus held his breath. He noticed something glint in the far corner. He didn’t remember it being there the first time. It was familiar. He thought back to his father, that monster, and then he had a plan.

  He smiled devilishly. The gift left behind was his ultimatum. Let’s play a game, Marianus thought.

  Eucalypso held the bat for a strike. He swung for a home run.

  …

  Marianus ducked. The bat smashed the wall above him. Eucalpyso didn’t expect Marianus to slide under him. The chains stopped him halfway—he didn’t slide fully through.

  With a kick, Marianus knocked Eucalypso back. Marianus had his reservations. He was now attacking the body of his dear friend. He imagined a cloak over it, just like the previous cultist, and that helped a little.

  “That body of yours!” Marianus screamed while dodging more attacks. He ducked, he turned, and sometimes he blocked. He was somewhat successful. Eucalypso launched a volley of blows, half of which hit. They were hard, and a couple of them almost came close to killing. Eucalypso wasn’t taking him seriously. He was enjoying toying around with Marianus’s life.

  Despite having the clear disadvantage, Marianus was holding his ground. That was due to his previous combat experience. He chased many criminals on the run, and learned things the hard way. Yet, despite that, he was still clearly handicapped and very much in trouble.

  “That body of yours!” Marianus yelled. “The one in the forest! That wasn’t your true body either, wasn’t it!”

  Eucalypso paused and stepped back. “It wasn’t.” Then, he rushed forward again, his strikes fewer yet heavier.

  Marianus tried all sorts of tricks. He was stalling, and it was working. Though he received considerable damage in the form of painful bruises, he held his ground. He fought and defended and let himself be shamed. He stalled for time, and got it.

  Then, he executed on his plan.

  “Who… Who is that? The first overseer?”

  “KING DAIGON!”

  With those words, Eucalypso turned around but saw nobody. It was exactly what Marianus predicted—she was the type of person that held hierarchy and position dearly. He had a hunch that she would react in some sort of manner to those words. He was spot on. She turned for just a moment, and the decisive swing missed.

  Instead, Marianus guided the blow towards his chains, and, letting it strike the weakest link, he effectively freed himself.

  Marianus took off.

  He stumbled, picked up something, and ran ahead, past, far and long down the hallway. He ran without looking back. The girl was still there, he knew, but he couldn’t waste this moment. He had an opportunity to escape. Just maybe..!

  Marianus was disappointed. He thought he had an opportunity to escape. He reached the end of the hallway that turned out to be not quite long after all. The iron barred door revealing stairs was locked. He had nothing on him to pick at it.

  Marianus turned around and braced himself, smiling widely in fear. Eucalypso was already there, walking slowly, dragging the bat against the floor. Metal against concrete—an irritating sound.

  Eucalypso walked forward. Step by step by step she walked. She closed the distance. Marianus didn’t move. Eucalypso moved very close to Marianus. She did not smile.

  “You dare fool me…” she said softly. “YOU DARE FOOL ME!” she screamed.

  It was Sascha’s painful voice, yet not her words.

  Eucalypso screamed right in front of him. She was close enough for a kiss. How laughable of himself to imagine that, Marianus thought. In her other hand was a pair of handcuffs, the same ones Marianus used to restrain her in the car. It was one of many that Marianus owned. He brought that pair specifically for the hike, because it was the same one he used on her at the party the first time he handcuffed her. The one he used at the police station the second time he handcuffed her was in his pocket, courtesy of his damn father.

  Old reliable—he dubbed them. How laughable of himself to call them that, Marianus thought. He stared the demon cultist down. He did not back away. He was sweating a cold sweat.

  “You wouldn’t hurt Sascha, would you?” Eucalypso teased. “I know you wouldn’t, even if you knew it wasn’t actually her.”

  Marianus stood his ground. “That’s right,” he admitted. “I wouldn’t. That’s why…”

  He quickly restrained Eucalypso in one clean motion. He stripped her of her weapons, took her handcuffs, and used them to chain her to the iron bars of the locked door blocking the escape route. She had no time to react.

  “I’ll resort to restraining her,” he finished.

  It was a smart, quick decision. But, trouble wasn’t over for Marianus.

  Eucalypso laughed. “First you fool me, and now you restrain me. Once the first overseer hears about this, you’re as good as dead.” She smiled like she had lost. She smiled like a criminal on death row. Criminals on death row don’t smile, nor do losers.

  Marianus trapped her. She had no weapons on her. She ceased to be a threat.

  Marianus spoke. “Now that I have you here, why don’t you answer a few questions for me? We have the time, after all.” Now that Marianus was relaxed, he realized how terrifying the situation was. He mourned for his friend internally. He didn’t show it.

  Eucalypso smiled, revealing again Sascha’s beautiful, abused teeth. “You idiot,” she said playfully, imitating someone... Marianus froze, fond memories of his former friend saying those exact words over and over replaying in his mind. In that moment, the bat that he held in his hands as a means to threaten was stripped from him, and he was pushed away.

  “Don’t! What are you doing!”

  “A mental lapse! You really are a softie, aren’t you!”

  “Stop it! I know what you’re going to do, stop it!”

  “Oh, don’t you? You know everything don’t you? I’ve heard it well from your father, the third overseer. He takes great pride in you, despite being oh so fake. But I shouldn’t be talking.” Eucalypso laughed. It made Marianus horribly uncomfortable.

  Marianus ran toward Eucalypso but in one smooth motion she pulled out the vial of Polly’s blood and drank it. There was but a sad drop left.

  Marianus didn’t make it in time. Eucalypso warded him off with the bat, swinging in self-defense.

  They both were at a standstill, though one was chained and the other anxious. Marianus breathed a deep, stress-relieving breath. It helped just a little.

  Eucalypso laughed wildly. “To shame such a high ranking player such as myself. I will have you pay. You thought it was difficult fighting your dear girlfriend, didn’t you?”

  Eucalypso craned her neck to the side in that disgusting way distinctive of her. She stretched herself as far as she could, wielding the bat. Yet again, she closed the distance, getting dangerously close to Marianus, but not too close, held back by the handcuffs. Marianus froze again. Looking into the eyes of Sascha, he couldn’t help but freeze.

  Marianus was invincible. His only kryptonite was the people he cared about, and here the cult had the perfect advantage.

  Eucalypso held the bat up high, right over Marianus. Marianus didn’t brace himself. Instead, he lunged at Eucalypso, reaching desperately for the ba. She kicked at him and…

  Instead...

  She…

  Hit herself in the head.

  She knocked herself out.

  She killed herself.

  She killed Sascha.

  Marianus broke out of the spell. First, his father. Then, Sascha. Now, Polly. In a mere night, this cult that Marianus suspected and even cautioned himself from caused much more damage than he could’ve ever imagined. It wasn’t damage in the conventional, impersonal casualty sense. It was extremely personal, and extremely effective.How did things end up this way? How did he end up this way?

  His fatal flaw was neglecting Sascha, both in the forest and in the cellar. He could’ve stopped her from drinking the blood somehow or killing herself. Some part of him allowed it, he had to admit. Some small part of him… For she was dead anyway…

  Had he not made that assumption, could he have changed things? Marianus was left alone, locked somewhere, with his father out and about and his dear friend Sascha dead on the floor. And now… Now..!

  Polly was gone too.

  He smiled. His emotions were gone. He was void.

  Nonetheless, he thought to himself, the plan resumes.

  The plan resumes.

  Marianus made his way back to the room. He examined the girl, still lying unconscious… or sleeping. She appeared dead, and he thought maybe she was, until he felt her pulse. It was a good sign. It was a small shred of reassurance.

  Marianus had two choices. He could leave and figure something out himself, abandoning the girl. That was the wise choice. After all, what could a defenseless little girl do? Can she overturn the cult or expose their schemes? Can she even escape? He didn’t have much confidence in that.

  He looked at her face. He examined her sleeping, innocent, bandaged face. He couldn’t unsee it. He didn’t have his wallet on him which held an old photo of her. He was disappointed he couldn’t compare how she’s grown and changed.

  Fortunately, Eucalypso hadn’t possessed and taken over Polly yet. Maybe because she was knocked out, he hasn’t taken hold of her body yet.

  Marianus sifted through his memories once more, the memories that have returned. Shortly before Eucalypso knocked him out with the bat in the forest, Marianus examined the fallen cultist. He was shot, bleeding badly, but not dead. A pulse remained.

  A pulse remained then, and a pulse remained here.

  He confirmed what he needed to confirm.

  Marianus laughed casually to himself. He laughed betraying all seriousness. It would be his last laugh, after all, and he did his best to enjoy it.

  Marianus had two choices. He made his decision with foolishness and strength.

  If everything was to Marianus’s expectations…

  If what he knew was indeed correct…

  Then the plan was finished.

  Marianus didn’t spare any more time. He chomped on his right hand hard, hard enough to make him scream. Blood dripped and gleamed. He poured blood into Polly’s static mouth, enough to fill two vials, just to be safe. He invoked a gag reflex, and she swallowed. She looked like a mini vampire with the blood all over her lips.

  Marianus jogged back down the short hallway to Sascha’s dead body. He mourned for her, held her surprisingly heavy body. She did do judo, after all. He did not cry. His tears have already left him. He instead honored her memory.

  Marianus searched her body. As he expected, there was a key. He thought about escaping for a moment, but that route’s a dead end. They had his blood, after all.

  He grabbed the bat and went back to destroy Polly’s chains. It resounded a thorough crack. He found the sound amusing. He thought such things as he planted the key in her small pocket. The key was safe with her.

  The final measure was left. From his pocket, he pulled out the handcuffs his father confiscated from him, but also left in the corner. He didn’t bother saying a phrase of gratitude towards him, whatever his intentions were. Marianus thought it instead.

  “With this,” he declared. “It’s over.”

  He looked at Polly. “You’re our hope,” Marianus said, with a tinge of whimsicalness. He hugged the corner, a safe distance away from Polly, and handcuffed himself to the bar.

  He smiled triumphantly, then lost himself.

  …

  Polly woke to the sounds of screaming. She was afraid. She looked up to see Marianus, writhing in pain, foaming at the mouth. It certainly wasn’t the kind man that she saw before. She knew what had happened to him, for she had seen it happen many times.

  She hugged the wall opposite to Marianus in a desperate attempt to keep distance, to keep safe. The used-to-be Marianus noticed her and squirmed violently.

  “OH EIGHTH OVERSEER! RELEASE ME AT THIS MOMENT! FREE ME OF THIS HUMILIATION! I, EUCALYPSO, THE THIRD OVERSEER, MUST BE FREED OF THIS SHAME!”

  It was distinctively Marianus’s voice and body, but it wasn’t his words. Polly was horrified. She slowly crept out of the room, keeping her eyes on the sad, former investigative journalist.

  She didn’t have a clue as to what exactly happened, but she felt the kindness of the deceased man. She knew it must’ve taken ingenuity and a large amount of courage to trap an overseer like this. It wasn’t an easy task—she knew this herself. She knew something terrible had happened, and it had happened for her.

  Polly didn’t understand the strange man and his sacrifices for her. She was prepared to die and pass into the next body. She was afraid of losing herself, for she had never died before, unlike the rest of the overseers. She didn’t understand many things, but this she knew—a man had saved her.

  Was it necessary? Polly didn’t care. She was given an opportunity.

  “WAIT! DON’T LEAVE ME! PLEASE! I CAN’T DIE LIKE THIS! THE FIRST EXPECTS MUCH FROM ME. MORE IMPORTANTLY, I DON’T HAVE ANY MORE BLOOD ON ME!” Eucalypso screamed, terrified. “OH EIGHTH ONE—NO! OH POLLY, THE BELOVED ONE—PLEASE GIVE ME SOME OF YOUR BLOOD!”

  With those words, Polly got the gist of what happened. Marianus must’ve figured out the trick to the powers. He exploited the loophole. While she was unconscious, she forced Eucalypso into his own body by having her ingest the blood. After all, it wasn’t death that forces possession, but unconsciousness. She wiped the dried blood from her mouth in a cruel admiration.

  He was a smart man, and she was amazed. How could he let someone like her exist, in her poor, useless original body? If the sixth overseer found out that she had died, all they would’ve done was double her torture. It was unbearable, but it was the price to pay for being careless, and for attempting escape too.

  Polly left Eucalypso behind. He could hear his screams echo. His voice haunted her, reminding her of all the days and months and years spent enduring… She endured a lot.

  She cried. Not for long, however. She forced herself to stop, for this is not what young girls should be doing. They should not be crying. They aren’t supposed to, Polly believed.

  “PLEASE! DON’T LEAVE ME HERE! PLEASE! I HAVE A DUTY! I HAVE A DUTY! I HAVE A DUTY!” Eucalypso repeated these words, until he got sick of hearing them himself. Then he kept screaming how scared he was. Polly felt bad for him, but she knew someone would come and get him eventually. It may take a few days, however, but he should survive…

  Probably…

  Polly ran across Sascha’s dead body. She stared at it until she fell to her knees, weak. She clenched her heart. She screamed, but no sound came out.

  Polly confirmed she was dead. She prayed for the woman, and the possessed man. She didn’t know much about them. She was simply grateful.

  Here was a window, a window to escape.

  She made the decision to follow another chance.

  Would she survive? She hardly knew.

  In the end, what mattered less to her was her survival. Instead, it was the sacrifices these two strangers made for her.

  She did not know Marianus was her real brother. She knew only that he looked fun and kind.

  She did not know Sascha was Marianus’s dear friend. She knew only that she looked very beautiful, even now.

  She did not know that the sixth overseer was her own father. She knew only that he was not his original self.

  She pictured Eucalypso’s creepy crooked neck. She shuddered, not because of him specifically, but because of the others who were much more terrifying. She hoped to avoid them, but that was impossible. She would face them soon.

  With the sounds of despair echoing behind her, she pulled out the key in her pocket, and unlocked the cell.

  She ascended the stairs up into hell with a hardiness matched only by the key she gripped in her soft, pale hands.

  The key was slightly rusty.