Alam stared at Fitz's menacing aura raging in the night, the red glow flickering like a wildfire trapped inside a human shape. The air around Fitz warped with heatless waves, the kind that made Alam's skin prickle and his stomach twist.
"Rakshasa? What's that?" Ewan muttered to Alam, his voice barely audible over the thundering in Alam's ears.
"A demon," Alam whispered, voice still trembling. His breath fogged in the suddenly cold air.
"He's just a teenager, like us," Ewan said casually, though his eyes darted nervously.
"You don't see that evil aura around him?" Alam asked, heart pounding so hard it hurt.
"What?" Ewan questioned, confused.
A sharp voice cut through the tension.
"What are you two b**ches whispering about?" Fitz asked, annoyed, his silhouette swelling with that unnatural red glow.
"Nothing, Fitz. We'll just go back to our rooms," Ewan replied, nodding to Alam.
"Nah, see… Alame here was on a timeout, and you freed him," Fitz said coldly, stepping forward. The gravel under his shoes crackled like it was recoiling.
"Yeah, no one gave you permission," Ledga said.
Alam glanced at Echo, who stood there staring in silence, his expression unreadable, his shadow trembling in the flickering courtyard lights.
Fitz stepped forward. "We're gonna have to teach you—"
A sudden pop of a text alert sliced through the tension.
A soft melodic song, you'd hear in the opening of a romance anime, blared from Fitz's phone:
Pop, pop, cherry pop, I'm a cherry pop~
The absurdity of it clashed violently with the dread in the air.
"What the?" Alam questioned in disbelief.
"Shut it, Clubbie," Fitz said, reaching for his phone. He read the message. "It's my girl. Her thirsty a** is always begging for the D," Fitz boasted, casually, chuckling. Ledga joined in laughing with him. Echo remained silent, jaw tight.
"Can't-talk-now-pwning-some-noobs-by-the-fountain," Fitz mouthed as his bulky thumbs awkwardly input text on his tiny phone.
"There, now where were we?" he said, tucking his phone away.
"You were saying how we should get back to our rooms," Alam said, waving his hand like he was attempting to control Fitz's mind.
"Ha! Good one, Clubbie. But no, I was about to punish you idiots," Fitz said flatly.
"Screw you, Fitz!" Ewan shouted, head held high.
"Oh, look, this one finally grew a backbone. How's it feel having a large bone rammed up your backside?" Fitz asked sarcastically.
"I don't know, why don't you ask your mom?" Ewan replied.
"What'd you say to me?!" Fitz snapped.
"I think he just inferred your mother's a sultry woman," Alam said.
"Oh, that's it!" Fitz said, enraged.
He unhinged his jaw and began gagging. The sound was wet, guttural, animalistic.
"Wait, Fitz. We don't have to do this," Echo pleaded, stepping forward slightly.
"What's happening?" Alam questioned, stomach twisting.
"Yeah, we do, we need to teach these fools a lesson," Ledga said.
Half a dozen dodgeballs came spilling out of Fitz's mouth, covered in thick, glistening saliva. They hit the ground with wet thuds.
Alam's eyes widened. "No way…" he said in shock.
"Dodgeball! You two noobs versus us," Fitz said, mouth smeared with drool.
"Dodgeball?" Alam questioned, staring at the balls in disgust.
"Come on, Fitz, we don't have to—" Echo started, before Ewan cut him off.
"You're on," Ewan said confidently.
Fitz brandished a sinister grin, saliva dripping from the corners of his mouth.
"How in the heavens am I supposed to play dodgeball with this foot?" Alam said to Ewan.
"Sunny aga," Ewan said awkwardly.
Alam looked puzzled, then he recalled teaching Ewan the phrase Santuy aja.
"Oh," Alam said with a soft chuckle.
"I've got a secr—"
A dodgeball whizzed past Ewan's head, slicing the air with a sharp whoosh. He rushed over to pick up a dodgeball. He tossed it to Alam, then picked up two more.
Fitz and Ledga each held a dodgeball. Echo stood silent, watching, his eyes flickering with conflict.
Ledga threw a dodgeball at Alam. "Easy money," he muttered as the ball flew toward Alam's head.
Ewan leaped in front of Alam, blocking the ball with the two balls he was holding. The impact echoed like a gunshot.
"No fair!" Ledga protested.
Ewan launched one of the balls he was holding at him, barreling through Ledga's face like a wrecking ball. He crashed to the ground and sniffled. "You cheated," he said, holding his head.
"Whatever, loser, just take the L," Ewan said.
"You can't just let them do that, Fitz," Ledga said.
"Shut up, you're an embarrassment, get outta the way," Fitz replied, his voice sharp enough to cut through the cold air.
Ledga picked himself up, wincing, and shuffled to the side. Gravel crunched under his shoes.
"You just gonna stand there, or are you gonna help?" Fitz asked Echo.
Echo looked at the dodgeballs scattered across the ground, their glossy surfaces reflecting the courtyard lights. He glanced at Alam—bruised, breath shaky—then at Ewan, then silently walked over to join Ledga. His footsteps were slow, reluctant.
"You're both so useless. I guess I gotta do everything myself," Fitz said.
He began gagging again—wet, guttural, animalistic. The sound echoed off the stone walls. A dozen more dodgeballs splattered onto the ground at his feet, each one slick with saliva. The stench of spit and rubber mixed unpleasantly in the air.
Fitz had an unnaturally wide grin on his face, drool oozing from every corner of his mouth as he leered at Ewan and Alam. His eyes gleamed with feral delight.
"Really?" Alam questioned, shocked.
"Sunny aga, I got this," Ewan said with confidence. A flash of lightning glinted in his eyes as he poised himself to run, muscles tensing. Echo slowly shook his head at Ewan, a silent warning.
"Never mind," Ewan said, lowering his head.
"What do you mean, never mind?!" Alam asked. "He's gonna obliterate us," Alam added, voice cracking.
"Sorry, bruv, made a promise, can't break it," Ewan responded casually, though his hands trembled slightly.
"What the—"
Alam was interrupted by a dodgeball barreling into his stomach. The impact knocked the wind out of him, pain blooming like fire. Another followed, crashing into Ewan's face with a sickening thwack.
Both boys held the point of impact in pain, gasping.
"Alright, it's over, you won," Alam said, voice thin.
"Quiet, Clubbie!" Fitz snapped. "Did you forget this was a punishment?" he asked.
"Wha—"
Two more dodgeballs came flying at the boys, slicing through the air with sharp whistles.
"It's OVER when I SAY it's OVER!" Fitz roared, spitting out several dozen more dodgeballs. They rained down like a grotesque hailstorm, slapping the ground with wet, heavy thuds.
"That's enough, Fitz! Leave 'em alone!" Echo shouted, voice cracking.
"Shut up, or you're next!" Fitz snapped, throwing several more dodgeballs at Alam and Ewan, each hammering into them with bone‑rattling force. The impacts echoed through the courtyard like distant thunder.
"Screw this! I'm outta here," Echo said, storming off. His footsteps were sharp, angry.
"Fine! I didn't need you anyway," Fitz said. "And don't bother running back when it's time to eat," he added.
Fitz continued his onslaught; they managed to dodge some, but the majority of the balls hit with brutal, punishing force. By the time he ran out of balls, Alam and Ewan were on the floor—exhausted, bruised, gasping for breath. The cold ground felt like ice against their backs.
"Sky's End… What are you guys doing to them?" a familiar voice questioned.
Alam looked up, vision blurred, to spot Cindy rushing over to him. Her perfume hit him first—sweet, floral, floating in the cold night air, painfully out of place amid sweat, dirt, and saliva.
"Stay away from us," Ewan said, struggling to get the words out.
"Oh my gosh, are you alright?" she asked Alam, kneeling and placing a hand on his shoulder. Her touch was warm, but her eyes were cold.
"W-We're fine," Alam struggled to reply.
"That's too bad," Cindy said callously.
"W-What?" Alam said in shock.
"I tried to tell you about her," Ewan said, out of breath.
Cindy casually walked over to Fitz and kissed him. He grabbed her by the waist and gave her a long, passionate kiss. Their silhouettes merged under the courtyard lights. She looked back at Alam, still lying on the ground.
"I love it when my big, strong man crushes pathetic little worms like you." She mocked him coldly.
At that moment, a wave of memories came flooding back:
The first time he mentioned Ewan to her:
"That jerk got what was coming to him."
That night in the Gym:
"Fitz and Cinderella at each other's throats again."
"I've got news for you, A-lame, you're just some sad cripple she feels bad for."
"You're wrong,"
"Every year, she picks a pet project to pour her time and energy into. This year, that's you!"
When he asked another student where she was:
"You mean Cinderella?" Julio replied.
"Cinderella?" Alam repeated.
"Yeah, she's basically queen of the school. Everyone treats her like royalty."
Alam chuckled softly. "If she's the queen, who's her king?" he asked.
How she disappeared on him that night:
"I saw that person in the mask knock you out, and I ran to get help."
"Help came, didn't it?"
When he screamed for her while he dangled from the flagpole but she never arrived:
"Help! I know you're out there, Cindy!" Alam shouted.
"You think Cindy's gonna come save you?" Ledga mocked.
Ewan's recent words:
"Everyone around here basically treats him like a King."
"I tried to warn you about her."
Then the note Ewan tried to hand him that he crumpled up without reading, and the other:
Trust is currency that few can afford to waste, and even fewer can repay.
The first words the figure in black said to him:
"Don't waste it on those who cannot repay…"
All the times Cindy's face lit up at those random text messages:
"It's my girl. Her thirsty a** is always begging for the D."
Alam got a splitting headache, and he began groaning in pain. The earth began rumbling violently beneath him, cracks spiderwebbing through the dirt. Dust lifted off the ground in trembling waves.
"Calm down, Alam, you'll bring the whole school down around us," Ewan said gently.
"What the? An Earthquake, again?" Fitz said, stumbling.
Everyone lay on the ground to brace for the quake. It was too violent to stand; the world shook like a beast trying to break free.
The Academy's PA system blared across the campus, the speakers crackling.
Dean Āsama's voice: "Attention all students, this is not a drill. Please immediately return to your rooms and hunker in place. I repeat—"
Alam's breathing slowed, and the quake subsided. The ground stilled beneath him.
"You alright, Alam?" Ewan asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"What just happened?" Alam asked, voice hoarse.
"I'll explain everything, I promise. But we need to get somewhere safe," Ewan said.
"Why?" Alam asked.
"Listen," Ewan said.
The PA message continued blaring, echoing through the courtyard.
"Should we go?" Cindy asked Fitz. "Something's obviously going on. I'll call my mom to find out."
Fitz pulled out his phone and called his mom while everyone came to their feet. "Mom, what's going on?! What's all that screaming?! Hello?! Mom?! Mom?!"
"W-We have to go check on her," Fitz said, stammering. His hands shook.
Ledga looked away, scared, avoiding eye contact.
"Screw you guys, I'm going to make sure she's ok," Fitz said, storming toward the Administrative building.
"Fitz, wait!" Cindy chased after him.
They hadn't even taken ten steps before a low, animalistic snarl tore through the courtyard, followed by the putrid stench of decay.
"No f**king way, man," Fitz said in disbelief.
Cindy screamed hysterically.
"Z-z-z-z-Zombie!" Ledga screamed before dashing away, feet slapping the pavement.
Ewan helped Alam to his feet. "Come on, we gotta go."
"T-They can't be real, they just can't," Fitz muttered, voice shaking.
"Sky's End…" Alam said in disbelief.
The creature stared at Fitz for a moment, tilting its head side‑to‑side. It had dark gray skin and glowing orange eyes that glared with feral hunger. Then it dashed at him, growling and hissing.
"Run!" Ewan shouted.