As the morning sun rose up in the sky of Haven Marine, Erion started to wake up, looking at the window of his room, and breathing deeply. He stared at the window as he puts his bandana on, before going and putting his clothing, his tail hidden in his pants. He breath deeply. Some days he wished he could just run along without this god dang bandana and without hiding his tail, but he knew full well that this would not happen. People would look at him strangely and would not treat him as if he was human. He though about it more. The fact that he heard about weird thing happening happening in this town would not help much anyway. He breath deeply, looking up at the sky, the clouds moving from the winds. The tree branches were being pushed around by strong winds, leaves falling on the floor. It was autumn, getting slightly cold, but not too much. A feeling of peace was felt this morning. Silence except for the sound of nature all around. A feeling so strange and weird for him of just going out the window and jumping in the nearest tree. Why the heck would he even do that.... what was he, a animal. Even if he did have some... animal parts, he had to resist going and acting like that. He breath deeply before moving downstairs in his home, going to the kitchen. His mother was already awake, making toasts for the family. She looked at him.
"Good morning Erion...." she says as he sits down at the table.
"Morning mom...." he says before relaxing a bit, before feeling a kiss from behind on the side of his cheek.
"Morning little foxy bro." his step-sister then said. Erion looked at her.
"How many times did I tell you not to call me that." Erion said to her, only to have her giggle slightly.
"Not my fault your fox ears looks cute." she says. Erion breath deeply. Cassie... that was he name. Ever since he had these dang ears and tails, she kept calling him foxy bro. It was not his fault if he had those animal parts. Another strange part was that they were all white. His hair was also full white, which was highly unusual. As the toast were ready, Erion took some strawberry jam and a small knife, smearing it on his food and then eating, He breath deeply. As breakfest was done, Erion got up, thinking a bit more. He did not have a job, even when he looked for one. He had done and finished his studies on programming, but did not go in university, knowing full well he would have problems integrating himself in if he were to try to get higher ranked jobs. And it did not help that people saw his bandana first and not who he was. Sometimes he just wished he could remove his bandana in a job interview, but that would reveal his dang fox ears and then people would think of him as a freak. No.... he could not do that. His mother then spoke.
"So.... gonna try to get a job again Erion?" she says. Erion breath deeply.
"Ya... i guess... Gonna need to do some searching again." he says before getting up.
"Going already?" she asks.
"I need to take some air.... going to the forest." he said before moving and exiting the house. His step-sister looked at him as he go.
"Again... he seems to really take a liking in the forest." she says. Erion's mother breath deeply.
"Let him go with that.... I guess he always was strange. I really wonder where he actually came from." she says.
Erion left the house and went towards the forest near his house for a bit, wanting to take some time to relax. The leaves around him were cracking as he walked. Autumn... a session that was rather calm for him.

Maybe I should have never come here... I think as I get up and notice some strange shadows just outside my window. This place was testing my sanity, and testing to see just how much craziness I would put up with for a decent job. I wouldn't put it past this place to do exactly that, as, even my parents seemed to be effected, but, just like me, whenever they asked about it, no answer was given. Nobody would tell any of us what was going on here, or what strange creatures they might be hiding from us. This was supposed to be my final home, the last time I'd ever move, but... I was beginning to think that it was a mistake coming here. I make my way to my dining room and see some white-haired guy wearing a bandana walking out towards the forest for no apparent reason. Normally, that would weird to me, but, he fact that he was human instantly made that guy one of the most normal things I've seen today. Maybe I HAVE gone crazy... but if so, then how? When? Did I even make it to Haven Marine, or is this some sort of coma-dream? I ask myself as I finish my breakfast, and notice two more individuals. They appeared to be talking, and one of them was holding a briefcase, of sorts. I opened my back door slightly so I could hear them, and what I heard was "...yeah, and make sure there aren't any humans listening in on us," that was odd, but right after that, the 'person' without the briefcase sniffed the air, and reported "Hm... there shouldn't be any humans nearby, sir... though, there is an odd creature, and another demon. I think we're safe to talk," I smirked, knowing now that I was safe, that is, until they said that there was another demon... well, more importantly, that there was ANOTHER demon, implying that these two were demons of some sort, or at least, were crazy people who thought they were demons.

No matter what the case, whatever these two punks were or were doing would most likely explain all of the oddities that have occurred up to this point. Though... another thought came to my head... that guy with the bandana was still close by, right? All they said was that there was another demon, and an odd creature... what in the heck IS that guy? I listened in some more, and they started to explain "That's right, as long as they keep fearing us demons, they'll keep buying our ineffective 'repellant', and keep earning us more money!" The one without the briefcase then added on "And, what, exactly, ARE they buying?" The briefcase-carrying demon replied with "Water. fifteen dollars for a spray can filled with water, now, this guy's my biggest customer, so, give him a scare, but, make it seem like you're actually afraid of the stuff," Well, I guess you should leave it to a demon to come up with a phony business, huh? I think, chuckling a little bit at the thought, but, soon enough, the briefcase-carrying man gave his briefcase to the other one, who changed into some sort of giant snake creature, and headed off into the house, breaking down the door as if it were made of Styrofoam. The snake creature presumably gave the man a show, and then slithered away, pretending to be afraid of what I now knew to be water, and nothing more. The briefcase-carrying man then walked off to his next destination, well, given his stubby legs and physique modeled after a bowling ball, he might have actually been running, either way, I had to follow, that is, I had to follow after I took my pistol out of its safe... just in case. Today was one of the few days I had off in the week, and I really had nothing better to do anyways. I just made sure that they didn't see me as I followed... though, since I passed right by the bandana guy, I was pretty sure that he saw me.

The continue walking until they reach some old warehouse in the bad part of town. Obviously, the snake thing (whatever it was) became a human again, though, for some reason, this time, he looked completely different. Last time, it was some short kid who looked like a stereotypical bully, but now it was a tall, skinny man who didn't look a day younger than forty. The eyes looked similar, at least, with blue being an apparent theme, but, why would he change his appearance so much? Was there something wrong with how that bully looked? The fat man who no longer held the briefcase, apparently disgusted with the other one's new form, said "Eugh... you could have at least picked a human who showered, and, I don't know, had a place to live!" The other man then responded with "It was on short notice! You can't expect me to sneak into a house and possess its owner in five minutes!" He seemed thoroughly annoyed with the fat man, who laughed, and said "That's right... I forgot that lesser demons like you don't have someone you can just possess over and over again. Ah... what a luxury, not having to worry about how my next host will look, smell, or be expected to act," they then entered the building, and I just started pacing back and forth, not knowing if I should follow them... apparently, they can and will possess humans, which, of course, put me at risk of losing my free will to that snake thing, the thought of which sent shivers down my spine. Maybe if it wasn't just me, I'd be able to do something, but... well... I think as I continue to pace. To go in, or to wait? I can't just rush in, headfirst, I'd get beaten down and possessed within a minute, however, if I waited too long, they might finally figure out that I'm here, and then I'd get beaten down and possessed... hm... maybe I'm just in over my head.

Sun just rose on the sky, as dawn began. Single rays gone through the window, leaving bright stripes on the darkness in the room. One of them happened to viciously land on Alvar's face. He wanted to rest a little more, but in the end guy knew he has to wake up. With sudden move, he threw aside the bedsheet and quickly stood up. Moving aside curatins to let more light in, Alvar stretched himself before beggining to dress up in his palto-like attire and leather pants. In the middle of dressing up he heard slow, hard steps heading for his room. He closed his eyes with a deep sigh, as his hand-like talons shone with pale blue light. He smoothed his face, which in matter of seconds turned into tanned human face. His hands followed soon, turning into typical handscovered with fingerless gloves, and with them he tucked his tail into special pocket in his pants. But when he was about to change his feet, someone entered the room. It was Granny, or so she wanted to be called. She was somehwere around 5'3'' with short, dark hair with big strands of gray and was wearing red bathrobe. She allowed Alvar, or rather Marco to live in her house by doing simple housework and entertaining her grandson. Her eyes were as sharp as his own. She smiled before pointing at his feet which became human-like, and then at his face.

"No need to change yourself, boy. My Sonny isn't here, you can keep your beak and talons."

Alvar listened to her wit little embarassment, before both them burst into laughter. He removed his illusion, showing his mixture of white and gray fur and feathers, as well as his yellow, almost golden talons and beak. His deep blue eyes looked at her face, as he put his glasses on. He yawned just as he was back in Rahjani form. He focused and began levitating, to stop after a second. Granny wasn't even suprised, she knew what he could do. Before he could say a word, she quickly said just right before him.

"Breakfast will be soon on the table. Take care of youself quickly and come while it will be still hot !"

Saying that, she left the room, closing the door. Alvar took a deep breath and relaxed himself. He began to chant something quietly, letting his 'hands' shine with magic, as he was preparing himself. After this he began a check up on his things. He took his compacted Spear and hidden it in robe, Grimoire ended up attached to the wide, silken belt, so did the pouch. he put on his bracelets, ankelts etc. on their right places. To be sure, he chanted the words again. Soon, when he was done, he yawned once again and then stepped out of the room. His stomach rumbled, as he headed for kitchen on request of Granny, his steps were slow, bouncy, almost skipping. He was happy, although hungry. He needed to eat something before going anywhere. A great mind can't operate properly with empty fuel tank ! He sat at table, and awaited what she could serve him.

The dull, amber radiance of the great ball of flame known by humans as 'the sun' seemed to burn ever so mercilessly through the comforting haze of unconsciousness that blanketed his indolent cognizance. Reflexively, his five-fingered appendage moved to cover his visage from the vexing flecks of bright gold that sneaked through the thick folds of velvet curtains that draped the generously glassed windows. A groan slipped through his mouth unbidden as the man known as Darius Blackwood clammed his eyes shut and stirred in the cozy confines of his Queen-sized bed, shifting his body ever so slightly as to evade the probing beams of sunlight, but to no avail as the brightness only grew in brilliance and warmth. With a languorous sigh, Darius propped himself up, his hands and elbows sinking deeply into the liberally cushioned bed underneath him, as if it was seducing him back into their soft embrace. He closed his eyes again, soaking in the ambiance of his surroundings: the well-furnished room, still chilly from the night, lightly lit by the yellow spears of light that stabbed through the gaps between the curtains which was growing warmer by the second. For a moment, he seemed to have fallen asleep again, his features so serene and peaceful but then his eyes suddenly snapped open, any and all traces of sleepiness gone.

The well-toned muscles in his svelte body rippling, he slipped out of and made his bed, his movements smooth and fluid despite the lack of proper illumination, the result of habitual practice. A frown framed his regal face as he stood back to consider his handiwork; the uneven slice of sunlight that splayed out on his bedsheet seeming to mock his effort, its very presence an incongruous element that marred the perfection that he covets. Grumbling in his mind, he grimly took note to fire whoever it was responsible for their incompetence. A soft knock at the door announced that arrival of the housemaid and as he shot a glance at the brass grandfather clock that continued to tick time away, the man was late by 3 minutes. "Come in." His voice came out as a rich baritone with a hard edge that brooked no disobedience as he slowly turned to greet the housemaid.

The housemaid, a well-dressed Caucasian male well into his mid-thirties, stepped in, a tray of food expertly balanced in his right hand with a stack of papers clutched in his left. Darius cast a cursory eye over the other male whilst scouring his mind to match a name with the face, noting the slight dampness accumulated at the base of his neck and around the edges of his cufflinks as well as the rise and fall of his chest. Without a word, Darius pointed to a table, wrought from solid oak and beautifully carved to depict a quadruplet of serpentine creatures as each of the legs with their backs as the tabletop. The faint smell of burnt tobacco tickled his nose as the other man went past him to set the things on the small table. "These are —" Darius interrupted the man before he could complete his sentence. "I know what those are. I was the only who asked for them yesterday. And I also know what breakfast is. No need for you to tell me. I've yet to lose my sense of smell, despite being stuck in this backwater hovel. Oh, and by the way..." Darius clapped the older man on his shoulder and leaned forward to whisper in his ear. "You're fired."

The housemaid's look of indignation and surprise was expected and so was his voiced disapproval. Darius merely ignored the fool as he eased himself into a chair. "Hey, you can't just fire people like that, what did I —" Darius cut him off with a raise of his hand and ticked off his fingers as he spoke. "Firstly...you are late. 3 minutes late." "But—" Cutting off any interruptions from the man with a glare, Darius continued. "Secondly, this is not the first time you are late, and I doubt allowing you to stay on would have any effect on your tardy behavior." The man seemed like he wanted to object but Darius only ignored him and continued on. "Thirdly, you reek of sweat and tobacco and no doubt have been thoroughly wasted on alcohol the night before in some seedy, disreputable bar. Your horrid breath gives it away. The fourth..." Darius pointed to the man's shoes, one of which the laces had come undone and both seemed to need some slight polishing. "Well, I doubt I need to say it as I'm pretty sure you can see for yourself. So, thank you for your services thus far and good bye."

The man was livid. "You can't fire people just for that! And what I do with my time off is none of your concern!" In contrast to the man's fiery anger, Darius was impeccably calm as he spoke whilst leafing through the stack of papers, blatantly disregarding the seething older man before him. "Au contraire, I can and I will. Will you comply or do I need to get security to escort you out?" The man swore out loud and swung at him. Darius, unperturbed, merely tilted the chair slightly back and watched as the man's swing went wide, losing his balance in the process. A light push to the man's shoulder sent him crashing into the wooden frame of his bedpost, a dull thunk indicating the impact of head against sturdy wood. With a dramatic sigh, Darius rose from his seat. "Now, I'm sure that wasn't necessary at all. After all, you can't blame your employer for your inefficiencies." The man only replied with a frustrated roar before charging at him again. Darius stood still, his eyes staring coldly at the rampaging ex-employee. "Seems like you need to be taught your place."

Side-stepping the man at the last moment, Darius kicked out his foot and tripped him but not before grabbing ahold of one his arms. With the momentum from the man's charge, Darius swung him towards the bedpost which he crashed into again. Flipping the groaning man over with his foot, he stared at the man until he caught his eye. Releasing the reigns on the spellwork which he was crafting, it blossomed outwards and encompassed the whole room, its energies unseen by those without magical powers. It was a simple illusion spell, weaved by intertwining and manipulating the shadows which would would allow normal mortals to see some part of his true, draconic form. Darius smiled and imagined how he must've looked like from the poor man's perspective. It would be as if his employer was cloaked in the shadows...no, had merged and became one with the shadows himself, growing larger yet becoming more indistinct and insubstantial. Darius could almost see it reflected from the man's dilated pupils. A smile that was all too wide and not at all human split his once-handsome face, the formerly orderly teeth now sharp and pointed, his humanoid body murkily fused with the faint shadow of a reptilian skin and form, a melding and undulating amalgam of ebony scales and bronze skin.

Suddenly, it clicked in his mind. He remembered the man's name and the edges of his lips curled up in another smile, causing the pitiful victim to cringe and whimper. When he spoke, it wasn't with his human voice but with the guttural growl of a large beast. "You are inapt in fulfilling the responsibilities given to you, Mr Greene. Therefore, you are fired. Now do I make myself clear?" The man nodded furiously, his face pale and sweaty from the dreadful sight he beheld before him. A wave of nausea flooded over Darius as the strain of maintaining the spell caught up to him. With his goal of scaring the daylights out of the obstinate ex-employee accomplished, he released the spell and the man gasped audibly as Darius's human form greeted his eyes once more. He had started to feel rather lightheaded from the depletion of magic and the sensation of nausea threatened to buckle his knees and drop him to the floor and destroy the feeling of fear he had so carefully planted and nourished in Mr Greene. Gritting his teeth through it all, he spoke, his returned human voice filling the silence in the room. "You're dismissed now, Mr. Greene. I trust you can see yourself out the door?" The man never answered and bolted out of the room instead.

Darius waited until he could no longer hear the muffled thumps of hurried footsteps on the carpet before he collapsed into the chair, the effort of putting up such a show for less than 3 minutes taking a toll on his body and mind. He chided himself for his weakness, making mental note to train up his magical abilities as well as maintaining his bodily strength before he turned to his breakfast and wolfed it down, caring little for the chill that had set in the food during the little 'incident' that had occurred. Darius worried little about the stories the man would tell. After all, the Blackwood family was famous was being unnatural and even if something big did happen out of it, such things can be easily covered up by the company's influence and money. Finishing the last of the bacon strips, he breathed a sigh of relief as he slowly sipped his morning cup of coffee whilst carefully going though the papers brought in.

~The Doctor and the Nurse~

Another unpleasant night passed by with a never-ending conglomerate of bills and random unpaid loans taking over the supposed aristocratic doctor instead of having his traditional readings of carefully picked novels regarding general scientific research or police intrigues. The pharmacy doctor Heinrich Stiglitz had put up as a cover up for any unorthodox things he was executing down at "The Basement". It wasn't like anyone could hear the screams of the nearly dead specimens he was performing autopsies jobs on for various governmental agencies. Autopsies? More like euthanasia accompanied by dubious methods of dismembering a living being which usually appeared more human than it should have according to the later reports made to sugar coat what was really going on to the more sensitive bureaucrats handling all this bullshit. But still, there needed to be a reason for such high accumulations of various medicine coming in from delivery trucks every three days or so, a pharmacy did great. The business itself wasn't the bad part, but rather any form of payment the good doctor was left to handle by himself, notably renovation fees, were gabbing his balls pretty tightly.

Early in the morning he was awoken, face on his paper infested dining table, by the neighboring rooster in the hen cage owned by a couple next door. It would never shut up for one morning, always waking Heinrich when he was actually enjoying his sleep. The blond man woke up, turned on the archaic coffee machine he had a few meters away from the dining table, and made a quick visit to his lab as the machine ran. Upon checking various computers set in the clean, white space filled with sterilized equipment, he noticed one of his scanners had picked up not one, nor two, but three noticeable readings. What was this scanner? The machine he was thoroughly tinkering with after seeing the information it was transmitting was what a common man would call "A Magic Radar". It used methods similar to Heinrich's electric spell to detect parallel sources of power, which was proven to work with tests conducted with his nurse.

Speaking of the nurse, Elenor Stiglitz was already outside, even before the sun rose up, raking the many colored leafs from the damp grass of the front lawn. Her movements were perfect and wouldn't falter an instant even if strong wind currents hit her. She would only stop her activity as she noticed her "father" stepping out of the house with a rather anxious look on his face. He had dressed in a black trench coat and for once combed his hair in a presentable way. After all, if he was going to go incognito for a little scavenging, he may as well avoid giving off this eccentric look for the time being. His pants were of matching black and his shoes were cheap knock offs of the higher class types businessmen would wear at their work times. Elenor on the other hand was dressed like the average woman in the country, a red checked shirt with blue jeans and cowboy boots. Her hair was loose and slightly messy due to the wind, but nonetheless her perfected skin and eyes made her appear unnaturally pretty despite that factor.

"Doctor Heinrich, what is the matter? Is the coffee machine malfunctioning once more?"

She asked with a delicate yet very monotone voice while keeping a cold stare at her creator. She always had that look which often scared off many customers while others usually tried to get her on a date while completely ignoring the complete lack of personality in that thing.

"Nein, that piece of scrap metal finally worked. Or at least picked up nearby signatures. Three to be exact occurred in near simultaneous instances. There's a powerful signature near that old, crappy warehouse while there's a couple scattered in select houses. You're going to the warehouse, you know the rest."

The doctor seemed a bit agitated, or maybe was he excited about this. This radar he had created was indeed the fruit of his hard work regarding his complex studies on spells, basing most of it off his electrical properties. He felt proud that it worked, for once, but would have liked it if he could make it more compact. There would be easy ways to go about this, but he wasn't too motivated to move up to innovation before realizing the effectiveness of his machine. He marched off with his mind drowning in daydreaming sessions. The plan was to have Heinrich to visit one of the weaker readings while Elenor's brute force and abilities could handle stronger readings or escape relatively easily if need be.

Heinrich had stopped at a nearby house, a large one at that, which actually reminded him of his life back at Argentina, when he was still united with his family. Wasting no time, he stepped up to the entrance of the house, lifting his fist up to knock on the large door right before him. But as he commenced the motion, another man bolted out with a frightened expression on his face. He didn't look too young and his condition surprised the scientist. That old man looked like he had just taken a beating and was evidently terrified of something. That was a good sign, at least for Stiglitz it was, as the elder man left with only giving Heinrich a stare, walking out in a fast pace as if he escaped a haunted house. Anyway, the door was wide open and Heinrich simply let himself in at that point.

"Hello? Mister Blackwood? It's your local pharmacist, Doctor Heinrich Stiglitz, and I'm here to inform you of changes in our protocols as we are obliged to do with everyone of our customers. Due to the urgency of this case, we prefer to address this directly in person."

Of course, Stiglitz had looked up who lived in the residence he was bound to stumble upon to find the source of power that manifested itself recently. The house indeed belonged to Blackwood, but the medicine was for his now retired maid, thus validating his visit, in a way. He remained stiff at the entrance, just barely inside. His right hand was holding the typical doctor case while his left one hid itself behind the man's back. He was either expecting a warm welcome or some generic rich asshole, but either way Heinrich was going to get what he wanted, and that did not include any form of killing. After all, dead supernatural creatures were abundant with his current position.

Elenor had purposely hooded herself with a white hood so she could hide her easily recognizable face and stare while keeping mot of her generic clothes concealed as well. She was fast when it came to moving unnoticed as she simply parkoured through house roofs until she reached the area surrounding that warehouse she was asked to investigate. Standing on a nearby building, she could notice another individual nearby who appeared to have an interest in the area too, or more precisely whatever was inside the warehouse. The nurse didn't take too long to figure out that whatever interested everyone was inside the warehouse. Charging strength in her legs and accumulating magical power, she launched herself as an arrow would to the roof of the warehouse, hopefully she'd do this unnoticed as she minimized the sound hazards. Walking up to a glass pyramid at the center of the warehouse, she could see through it and thus have a good position to see what was going on. Now, she waited for the right time to execute what she had to do without being too hasty. She also had to figure out what they were doing here to start with.

My name is Miles Hall. Damn, I didn't expect to myself in such deep shit in a little town by the lake. The only thing that let me sleep at night was a pistol by my bedside. Smith-something-Wesson MP, issued by my police department. I was supposed to return the thing, but I was in a quick rush out of Detroit. Never liked those bastards once they began eying me like some damn snake. That 'innocent until proven guilty' bullshit didn't help me one bit, not to a city where almost anyone could be a criminal. I certainly wasn't... well, at least I never got charged for any felonies, even as a kid. That was my definition of a 'crook.'

I drove around Michigan, and even into Indiana, enjoying sights and getting wasted. I was pretty sick and got drunk at a few bars, wondering if my work even mattered at this point. It seemed like old memories of my mum had come back, as well as those of my dad dying and that house fire... it wasn't a nice sight, and I was sure as hell pretty disappointed after five days on the road. Key marks were evident on my car door, and my car smelled like stale beer. I figured if I didn't get somewhere to stay immediately, I'd end up resurrecting my old mum in the backseat of my car. Sure as hell didn't need the smell in the first place, and my bank account wasn't going to fill itself up with money soon.

Eventually, I came back to Michigan. Didn't know why since I was rejected by virtually the biggest city on the block. I just figured there was some shady town by the lake, which could probably settle my mind down... for some reason. Maybe supernatural forces were at work, maybe I was just drunk again and took a U-turn back to hell. It was probably the latter, but at least the drab town of Haven Marine didn't hurt my eyes from a distance. Haven Marine was a strange name for such a town. For one, it was a haven at first, with a lake cabin proving cheaper than my old, run-down flat. The community was nice, and I could maintain contacts with friends back at Detroit. Heck, I was even in line for a possible job working as an officer again. But, for two, it seemed less like haven as rumours became news. You didn't hear about monsters in the night, you would see the monsters of the night. If you were lucky, they'd find your remains in your own house. You also wouldn't have government officials visiting the area and claiming to be crude FBI agents... I knew, from that day forward, that I was in for deep shit. Nothing ever came easy for me, so why would life give me a break?

Every night since I moved to Haven Marine, I would stare at my ceiling, wondering... just about anything with my life. My room smelled like fresh water, and I could hear trees rustling with the occasional gusts of wind at night. The glass windows didn't seem to exist, though strong winds bending them reminded me they were there. I was supposed to buy some curtains about a month ago, so that I could actually lie on my side and not see shapes in the dark night. My neighbour (a doctor in... I guess cardiology) complained about the shapes in the forest too, buying his own curtains and shutting his trap up. I figured I ought to just look up at the plank ceiling and go to bed, rather than spending money on some curtains. At least you didn't get shot at, if you looked out of your apartment window in Haven Marine (that really did happen... well, because I pissed off some jackass thief the other day in Detroit).

Things got worse in the morning. While mornings were notoriously horrible, I didn't imagine my morning getting worse than that.

It was Friday. And I still hadn't found work. The sun burnt my frickin' eyes, the blinding effect made worse by the reflection of Lake Michigan. I had turned sideways and towards the damn lake during my sleep. I just realised at that point I couldn't keep forgetting to buy curtains, or I'd go blind within two weeks. Groaning, I shuffled around in my bed and faced opposite from the lake, preferring to get sunburns to my back rather than blinding my eyes. I sniffed hard, breathing out as I figured I'd be out of money soon. I had groceries to buy, curtains to put up, and a mortgage to pay off. Nothing ever came easy.

"Nothing ever comes easy." I declared in a raspy voice, clearing my throat and swallowing my spit. This wasn't Detroit, and therefore I couldn't spit anywhere I wanted to. As annoying as that was, it saved me a lot of time in cleaning hours. "Oh boy..." I rubbed my face before reaching out for a cup on a wrinkled box. Vivid as my vision was, I could feel the cup and grabbed the rim, bringing it to my dry face...

"Fuck." It was empty. I was thirsty. That didn't go well. Sure enough, I left my bed as the sun cast a shadow on all my box furniture. Yeah, that was how much money I had. The cabin was new though - polished walls, warm indoor climate, and charming windows. If only I could have real furniture, then I'd stop tipping over boxes and spilling clothes everywhere. So, I lifted blankets off myself as I did just that - in the mangled mess of clothes, I'd find the usual wear that would suit me, since I'd be too busy looking for other clothes. Blue, green, red, my eyes couldn't tell the difference once blinded by the damn sun.

Usual things to do in the morning: have breakfast, go outside, relax, maybe find work, get back home, go to sleep. What I did was instead: go outside for breakfast, fight an impossible fight, get work, get back home, go to sleep. I'll now demonstrate.

Outside, trees still rustled, albeit not as much as last night. I had a small fenced lawn outside, and so did the other cabins around here. My lawn was like Mother Nature's stubble, and everyone else'. "Morning, Doc." That was a nickname given to the doctor next door. I would walk out into a rather cold atmosphere, with a black gravel road begging to be driven over. My car was the same as always, having a few nicks and being a sedan from around the start of the 21st century. Doc wasn't outside, tending to his sunflowers. Fearing the worst, I jumped the fence and rushed to his door. His cabin was identical to mine, though you could tell it was much older than mine.

The door was locked. I was just beginning to knock on it when I saw Doc walking by his cabin to his car. Of course, I had worked in the police force, and... well, naturally, I was paranoid. Doc didn't notice me at all, as he left for his clinic in his Ford. I looked down and ruffled my hair, sighing at my actions. I swear to God I would've kicked the door down, just to make sure he wasn't dead. When I thought about things as I skipped the fence back to my own car, I realised it wasn't just paranoia as a police officer. It was also the paranoia of knowing something was out there, killing people in unimaginable ways... the more we tried speaking out about it however, the more blank our rumours get. Something was definitely covering up the current situation.

Since my head would probably try to link the US government with aliens sooner or later, I figured it would be a good idea for some breakfast. On the way there, I could try to visit the police station for some work. I needed money soon for just about everything, after all.

Within minutes, I hit the road with my gun in the glove compartment, driving off and appreciating the landscape... it would be deceitful later on.

Erion had been walking for a while now, having passes a man that felt a bit weird. He just did not know why.... He also felt like something was brewing not too far, but he knew full well that it might be a bad idea to go see. He continued to walk, going to the front of the forest, before staring up. He wanted to go up and climb, but he knew full well how that might end up. Once before he climbed up too much and had been stuck in a tree for a hour until he was able to get a better grip. He had been like a cat in a tree.... and that was ridiculous. That dang wild sensation.... it was probably his dang fox ears and such wanting him to act wild. He then looked back towards where he came from, and kept having a nagging feeling that he had to go look what was happening. He was too curious and intrigued. What could be happening back there.

He moved towards where he came from, thinking about it. This town had been so weird ever since they got there. Rumors of strange sighing and such.... A town that could be considered like a town full of mystery and myths. He breath deeply, before looking at a distance towards a old warehouse. His parents had told him that this place was too weird, that they had slightly already enough of him having those fox ears and tail for weirdness, but they knew they had to stay here. The government would not just go and try to get Erion here: There were much more weird things then Erion, so why would they need him anyway? Seriously, he heard of creatures flying in the night sky, kidnapping people. Nothing of the case had happened near Erion's place though. It seemed as if any weird things did not want to get to him.

As he moved forwards, his fox ears perked up under his bandana, hearing something about demons and such. He looked at the other guy from before, and moved to the other side of the werehouse door, hiding and giving a sign to stay quiet. He looked and listened more, hearing more about what the demons were saying, how they had been possessing people. Erion shivered a bit from that, before hearing about the profits they were making from this so called demon repellant. He wanted to act, but knew full well that if he did, he might get beaten up, but he did not have any weapons or anything. He looked at the other guy. He seriously was thinking about waiting that those guys would leave, talk to that other guy first and then fallow those demons from a distance maybe, trying to find a time to strike. He just did not know when that would come.

As Alvar sat beside the table, Granny served him breakfast. In fact, Bacon and Eggs became already boring meal, but still it was better than seeds and vegetables. He took fork and knife in his talons and began to eat. Granny kept looking at him. He didn't noticed when did she changed her clothes. She was now standing in a pink long-sleeved shirt and blue shorts. This all became weirder and weirder. She knew that he wasn't human in one day, and then she kept pulling off all these creepy tricks on him. When he was done eating the half of his food, he looked at her with his keen eyes. In a moment he tipped his glasses as his eyes changed from deep blue to a deep purple color. He snapped his finger-like talons and pointed at her projecting an image of perfect, half purple half orange circle with different sumbols and inner circles. Granny didn't had a chance to react. She felt a pain spike on her arm, and noticed a cut on her shirt, as well as on skin, where freshly opened wound started to slowly bleed. Without a time to waste, Alvar started reading what was written here. In a matter of seconds he was done. He gazed in her eyes.

"How long would you hide it ?"

Granny crossed her arms, but Alvar was in middle of is complaint, effectively making her silent

"I knew there was some weird magical anomaly when I came to stay in a few days. But I did not expect that you are a hag."
"Sonny, don't call me a hag. Witch sounds better"

Whatever. Alvar sighed, and stood up, magically bringing his items to himself. He knew that was a bad omen. When his rucksack came into his hand, he checked his things. It took him few minutes. He then made some food for himself. He had to keep supplies for his next days of wandering. In a while he packed few plastic bottles of Cola and water, as well as few sandwiches. Granny came to his side and packed few apples. She wasn't mad at him that he discovered who she was. Someone other than her grandson who stayed in her home without fear. he then pointed him at the door. Without a doubt he gone in the direction of the, and gone outside.
Hearing clicks in the door, as she locked them, Alvar parted his ways with Granny. T'was a bit sad, becausee he wanted to thank her, but he felt they might meet in the future. Activating his illusion, Alvar headed from the countryside to the town. His mind was fully aware now, now that he left her side. He was concerened with people disappearing. He knew it was work of demons. They were possesing the people, and leading them away for their own purposes. But Granny was a witch. She wouldn't be possesed that easily. With this thought he carried on and headed for town. He stopped after few steps. He looked in the direction of the warehouse. This place... It seemed to be weird since he descended upon earth. But now he felt extraordinary lifeforces around it. He tipped his glasses, as he imbued them with his magic. They started to magnify his vision. He looked around the rooftop, to notice a girl in a common clothing and hood, jumping on the rooftop. This was no ordinary jump. He knew she used some kind of power source or machinery, but most presumably it was magic. He then set his sight on the other side, seeing a guy in a bandana closing in to the building, as he was eavesdropping on the other guys. If he would want, he could scan all of them right now, to prepare himself for the future. But that would give his position away and calling danger upon him. For now he remained in his position as a stationary observer. It was good that there were no people at all. Because in case of emergency he could use his powers unnoticed.

After a while of pacing and not really doing anything to accomplish my current goal of taking down this possible demon and finally figuring out this whole ordeal with the town, I see some random lady jump up onto the warehouse from some other roof... wait... how the heck did she jump that far? That, and, why was she heading into the demon's den? Was she some sort of superhero, or was she working with them? Either way, it seemed as though this backup of mine wasn't coming any time soon... so, I just had my pistol and whatever intimidation it might bring... oh, and, maybe a call to the cops wouldn't hurt either. Unfortunately, I forgot to charge my phone, so, I couldn't do the smart thing and just stay near these bushes, nope, I had to run right in there, and maybe injure some demons. I hesitated for a moment, and after taking a deep breath, and looking behind me to see that weird guy again, I run right into the warehouse, which was easy to get into mainly due to the fact that they didn't lock their front door. "You!" I shouted at the two 'people' in a hate-filled voice. I then add "For the short time that I've been here, I've noticed some strange things... nobody believed me, of course, and now, here YOU are, the cause of all of this," the two laugh until I pull out my pistol. Apparently, the 'hobo' thought I was more accurate than I really was, because the first thing he said after that was "I ain't a fighter, I'm an actor... an actor who isn't paid enough to get shot in the head," he then jumped up onto a few crates until he got to the window and promptly escaped.

That left me, possibly that weird guy, and that possible super hero. Normally, I wouldn't think that super heroes are even remotely possible, but with what I've seen recently, I wasn't too quick to assume anything's impossible. The fat businessman shouted "Coward!" as his friend left the area, and honestly, I let him because actually shooting at anyone would quickly reveal that I'm a horrible shot, and I wouldn't look anywhere near as intimidating after that. For a while, I just stood there with my gun pointed at the man and him grinning from ear to ear as if he's figured something out... and of course, the giant crates of who-knows-who-cares surrounding the place. Due to the fact that the place had more than enough lights, the area was surprisingly well-lit, and above? The weird lady who just randomly decided to jump to this particular building... well, okay, I'm sure it wasn't random, and she was also interested in whatever was about to go down. The demon just smiled, as if he knew that I wasn't really able to shoot him with any kind of accuracy. He laughed, and said "So... you know of my tiny secret, then? Fine, that just means that I'll get to kill you in my true form," the man's face then showed an expression of pain for a moment, and something dark seemed to leave his body. That 'something' soon formed into a creature that looked like the man, save for the fact that he had purple skin, black scales on his arms and legs, batlike wings, a short tail, and two small horns... yup, he was certainly a demon. I didn't waste any time after that, and shot... or, rather, tried to shoot the demon between the eyes, however, I failed miserably, and hit a nearby crate, which caused some packing peanuts to spill out from the crate and onto the cold, gold-colored, tiled floor. This was just about where I really wished that the others followed me in...

Normally, I'd dismiss rock music, though U2's new album kinda pleased my ears as I drove through the tranquil landscape. Not much though, but supposedly listening to music after a month or so suddenly seemed so soothing.

The lake faded from my rear-view mirrors, shrunk to a line as pine trees began cropping up on the sides. I could see occasional dashes of the calm lake as I turned on my left, appreciating the view and getting away from Detroit. A bit of mist added some mystery while clouds were splashed onto the sky, looking somewhat unnatural and linear as they rolled in...

The whole atmosphere turned rather cold and dark. Perhaps morning didn't rise that quickly, or that was my perception to urban environments. As I drove further alongside the blue lake, suddenly it stopped reflecting the light as the first few buildings came to sight. Several large houses built onto the sides of the hills I passed seemed more like carved, glass bunkers. New age architecture. I thought, rather... well, somewhat in between queer and annoyed. Eventually, the thin pine trees, which were integrated into the housing areas at first got phased out, in favour of several shops, pharmacies and even several statues. Haven Marine wasn't exactly a big town, kinda something like trying to find Hawaii on a world map - sometimes, it was just cut off the map. Though, the place kinda seemed big, because you could see a long distance of all sorts of buildings from here to the edge of a steep, rough hill. You could see lights were still on and bright, despite the sun passing over the sky and peeking out of the clouds at times. Glittering stones on the lakeside suddenly seemed rather pale and matted. Almost like a ghost town, there was little commute around the place, with people pacing at times before walking normally. Maybe they were paranoid just by looking at the sky... oh yes, I've heard of their ghost stories. I figured it might've been lead poisoning, or just inbreeding. Either they, that didn't stop me from getting the creeps at times. The statues that seemed to be placed at almost every corner of town were quite intimidating in their own might, glaring down at people and... well, you'd get the feeling they'd keep an eye on you as you drove or walked along. To add to that, there didn't seem to be any graveyards around... while it seems unusual for me to mention graveyards, the church only has about five graves or so. That's definitely something to talk about, especially if you feel like you're in a different world around the church. The forest itself was quite eerily - already I snapped my eyes away from a tree, 'cause I though a Canadian was sneaking across the border by climbing up on a tree. You know how desperate they get, right?

As I slowed down, I scoffed sarcastically at the road, returning to my previous, unfazed facial appearance. There was damn construction on the road, busy annoying pedestrians by drilling and hammering their ears out, with their frickin' vests warning everyone to pretty much shoo off. Apparently, after complaining to a worker about a lack of signs, one of the pipes burst from simply caving in. Yes, there were sinkholes around town, but they happened quite frequently. Perhaps that's why barely anybody drives, 'cause they're afraid of the devil dragging them to Hell through holes in the floor. What a town.

Originally, I was going to get a job at the police station. Unfortunately for me, they blocked off the entire Goddamned road, while the police station was just across from here. So, I got back in my car, parked it by the sidewalk (since I found out the hard way that they didn't have public parking where police station was), and began walking casually along the long way to the police station. It didn't help the whole place still felt cold and a bit eerie. While the place was ideal for a typical sunny, lively lake town, the town looked gloomy since I had moved here. I kept my hands in my pocket, and on my gun. I was perhaps a little paranoid, though these days in this America, anything can happen. From terrorists to daylight robberies to gun expos... nothin' like freedom.

The wind blew in my face, almost deliberate to annoy me. I kicked a few scraps of yellow newspapers, before plucking them from the sidewalk and chucking it into a paint-flaking bin (I'm not a fan of pollution). Typically, the words in bold happened to be 'sightings' and 'myths' and 'half life 3 confirmed.' I was conspicuous, sticking out against the walls of the town's amenities and boutique stores. Normally, I'd try my best to hide myself amongst the dark shadows of Detroit, though I had left the police force a long time ago. I hated my colleagues of course, thinking I really did spare my good friend of a cartel... well, I did. If they actually had fucking friends, then they'd know about guilt and hesitation. Was it really the right thing to do? For all I know, he's still in Goddamn Cuba, drinking cocktails all day long while I walked on the path of malice, and probably the end of my career in Detroit. Now, I still haven't heard back from that bastard, not even a single cent or thank you card. I'm still walking, just on hard concrete and an unknown world ahead of me.

I noticed the lake behind me started to shift, almost like sea... something definitely wasn't right. I didn't have a blue sense or some crap like that, but there was something brewing in Haven Marine. As I looked up from kicking the concrete and in fact walking away from the distinct police station (somehow), I witnessed an abandoned concrete brick warehouse, edge of town - and oddly one of few buildings in town actually abandoned - suddenly gathering activity from around. I was probably hallucinating again, though just by feeling the weather on my face, that jumping jack didn't seem like no hallucination. What's more, there was a car parked improperly outside - of course I wouldn't give it a parking ticket. I was talking about why the Hell someone would park like that. Was a secret early Sunday market going on inside, fresh with deals? Or a casual drug market instead, fresh with all sorts of chemicals?

Either way, I gripped my gun. "Brr." I hated the weather at this point. It wasn't going to rain, but it was feeling a little rough around here. Strikingly, when I looked out at the lake, it seemed sunny and the light was clear... perhaps this was some sort of area effect, or really the clouds cleared. But, things got more suspicious as a man in suit somersaulted out of a window and bolted into a thick bush. I'd pursue, but... that was a pretty thick forest ahead. I wouldn't bother. So, denouncing this place as a drug cartel gone wrong in my head, I began jogging towards the warehouse. I nearly got run over by a swearing old lady, and fuck, someone ELSE was driving in town?!

I was at the entrance when I heard a rather high-pitched and nervous voice, trying to make an impression on some assholes in need of a real beating. Rookies. I thought to myself, rolling my eyes. I hesitated actually entering the building, figuring by the rotting posters stamped on the walls that this was a police operation, and I couldn't just enter... but, in the end, I never really agreed with police rules. I shrugged and brandished my gun, slipping it out of my pocket and examining my pistol. A little dusty on the sides and a bit scratched, though obviously that wouldn't jam it or anything.

Carefully, I poked my head through the door, hearing further commotion... a box getting bashed against, in fact. I nearly retracted my head, though I kept my cool. Relax. You've handled Detroit, home of America's most (exaggerated) crime-infested city. Just go in like you did when dealing with the Clothespin gang - they're just a bunch of pretenders, especially in this town of nothing.

I was decently surprised. That kid was really just a kid with a nearly-invisible stubble, not even a part of the police. He was gonna get himself killed against the fucking... shit. Not even human, and he represented everyone in capitalism - a demon (with cyanosis or something), right before my damn eyes. I tried to retract my head back into the shadows, but this thing I was dealing with wasn't stupid.

I found myself almost blinded by a dust cloud, caused by the concrete wall I was hiding against exploding. Well, fully blinded. So much so I didn't even realise I was blinded in the first place, because I was knocked out from the sheer force of the explosion. Nothing ever comes easy, especially when dealing with Hell.

As Erion saw the other guy enter and going to confront those demons, he growled at this. Seriously.... why the heck would he just blow our cover like that. Where was the element of surprise. When the guy actually shot and missed completely, it made him feel as if things would go even worst from there are the demon laughed at the puny shot that the guy just did. Erion shook his head and entered quickly, before throwing a light bolt at the demon, hoping that this would actually hurt him. Seriously, it was a demon, so naturally light should hurt it... right? Well.... what he saw was more like his attack hitting, but making the demon just flinch slightly in surprise by the sudden attack. For him, it felt as if it was a mosquito bite, which seriously did not do much to that demon. Great... Erion had to go and enter a fight with something that was way stronger then him. And god knows how this was going to end badly. The business demon then formed fire in his hands, which made Erion flinch from the sighed.
"Annoying pests.... Say hi to death from me." the demon then says. Suddenly the demon started to throw jets of fire towards him and the other guy's, making Erion scream in pain from this, using his other kind of magic to form a slight barrier to protect himself, only to feel the same heat around him, making him fall on the ground, his cloth having burnt marks on them. Erion was still conscious, but extremely week, unable to do much then use just a bit of magic, which would probably not do anything right now seeing how he was easily beaten by that fire. Why oh god why did he even decide to go and fight against a demon like this.... It was one of the stupidest idea he ever had, that might actually end his life. But he knew he had to survive... he had to find a way though.

Out of nowhere, this guy calls us pests, and somehow creates fire in his hands, only to quickly throw it at everyone who was opposing him at this time. I panicked for a moment, thinking that it was real fire, but, when it actually hit, I found out that it was nothing but an illusion, some sort of magic trick. "Ha! Your illusions won't fool me. I've seen about a million tricks more believable than that," I say to the man, though, this was before I took a look at my now-fallen bandanna-wearing ally. Some of his clothes looked burnt... but... how? If this wasn't all a trick, then why wasn't I effected by the flames? Well, either way, it sure worked to my advantage, and he seemed absolutely stunned that someone in this group wasn't even hurt by his attack. Making myself sound like some sort of leader, I say, with some sort of confidence, "Your days are numbered, unholy one. I'll reveal your little scam to the world once I'm done smashing your face against the floor," I really sounded more confident than I was, and, after a bit of thought, put away my gun, and give the demon an uppercut... something that didn't require quite as much aim, and, I was actually able to pull it off. However, this wasn't anywhere near the end, as he simply took the hit as if I used a balloon to hit him or something. "Hmph... calling me unholy, and yet you weren't even hurt by my flames... shows how little you know," he mumbles to himself as he pulls out a giant, golden hammer.

I honestly didn't expect him to use that thing with as much speed as he did, and before I could even say 'crap', I was hit, and basically thrown against the wall from the force of the attack. I landed next to the rest of this group after a short fall from the wall to the floor. I was just barely awake and just barely alive... and worse, I could still feel the pain from the attack. The short, fat demon stood over us, the only way he could, with all of us lying down on the floor, utterly helpless, and, at least for me, possibly bleeding out. The situation just went from bad to worse... I never should have tried to figure out what everyone was hiding from me... they were obviously hiding it for a reason. Everything was starting to go dark, and I could hear some heavy footsteps, which caused the demon to flee instantly. Everything was blurred, and blurry, so I couldn't tell if anything actually happened after I was hit with that hammer which had about the speed and weight of a truck... well, okay, that was an exaggeration, but the attack was obviously superhero-caliber, as nothing normal could swing a hammer, much less a golden one, with that much speed... which of course, led to more momentum, which led to more force, which led to me nearly becoming wallpaper. After that, I simply passed out, the pain from my obviously broken ribs being a little too much for me at this point... I just hoped that I would actually be able to wake up again... that I wasn't dead... but... what kind of hope did I have so far away from anyone who might just witness the even and call 9-1-1... this wasn't looking good.

As the heavy footsteps moved closer, a man looked walked to where Erion and Robert were, as well as Miles, before looking around for anyone else that witnessed the demon. He then called out in a rather strong raspy voice to people that were near.
"You have seen what this town suffers, how the demons and creatures invades our homes and lives, ruining them by abusing their powers against everyone. To anyone that want to change this, fallow me, or if you are too scared to fight, stay back, I don't bother." he then says in a harsh tone before leaning down to Robert, Erion and Miles and looking at their pulse. He then strangely casts a healing spell to them, to make sure they would not die from their injuries. Then one by one he lifted them and brought them to a small car outside. He places each of them in the back seat. He then looked back for anyone else that wanted to come and gave a motion to fallow, starting the car and going slowly so that people could fallow him. He drove until he arrived at a large church. He looked up at it before getting each person out of the car and bringing them in the building and moving downstairs to a large room with stone pillars and candles around the room as well as a lamp on the ceiling. He places the unconscious people on rather cheap beds that seemed to be really clean though small. It seemed like they were military beds. As he places the boys after going back and forth, he start to observe for any more damage or injuries on each of them, sensing their magic slightly.

"Oh, Jesus. This is the worst pain I've felt in a while." I wasn't joking. Despite the hardship of being an officer, I had never felt genuine flames from Hell. I was groaning when I woke up, since I was slammed into the wall behind me. I felt alright, aside from the splitting pain in my shoulders, legs, back and a sharp feeling of nausea. I felt like I needed to puke, but that wasn't a good idea when suddenly a... priest, or clergyman, or whatever the heck they were called came into the building. He didn't seem to notice the destruction of a wall, the threat before and an obvious disregard of human laws. He didn't seem religious at first, though the twinkle of his necklace with a cross indicated otherwise. The figure white hair tucked under a flat cap, as well as a scruffy white beard. While breathing hard and tripping onto a charred crate, I noticed he looked quite old and seemed as if he'd already seen the world at its worst. Determination in his face was mixed with apathy and disappointment in his face. I smeared the soot onto the even, concrete floor which was chipped in several places, losing thought for a second until I saw the kid and other odd guy getting lifted up. The smell of flames lingered and a dull ring still lingered in my ears. Breathing was difficult at first, though fresh air could enter my lungs again after some green rings surrounded us all. Regardless, I still felt like death and let the old man take me to his car. Last thoughts included: fuck you construction crew, and my car's gonna be pretty far after this.

And then, I woke up on possibly the shittiest bed I have ever slept on, even worse than the one I had in my old apartment. Everything ached, though at least I could breath and see without getting a headache. That, and my nausea was gone. Thank God. "Argh... what a dream. Some cartel's kidnapped me, right?" I mumbled to myself, sitting up and seeing I was the only one actually awake. "Oh, fuck me." As soon as I saw the ritualistic candles, dark room and everyone else in stiff beds, I sighed and rubbed my head. "I still need a job." That was the least of my worries.

After hours of that same fight being repeated in my head endlessly, and, of course, if my body still worked, I would be tossing and turning around on the floor, but then something crazy, and unexpected happened. I woke up. It was amazing that somehow, through some sort of miracle I wasn't dead... though, I suppose that if I was still thinking, I had to still be alive, right? Either way, that dream, let alone the fight that came before it all felt like some sort of eternal torture. Those other two guys were there, and only one of them was awake. This was about the time that I noticed just how horrible and stone-like my bed felt... obviously, I was too busy being amazed at my continued survival to notice such a detail earlier, but now that the wonder of that fact has passed, I groaned, and said "Ugh... I mean, I'm grateful for being alive and all of that, but maybe our savior should have gotten a bed that wasn't made out of solid rock," I then sit up, almost forgetting that a few hours ago some of my spine and all of my ribs were shattered... or something like that. Oddly enough, it didn't even hurt to move, which was appreciated. I finally get a good look around the place, and notice the unlit candles everywhere, as well as the general darkness of the place, and the fact that the room appears to have been carved out of stone, which just made me more suspicious of the bed I was now sitting on. Now that I wasn't getting destroyed by some sort of demon, I finally had time to ask the other guy "So... what's your name?" I kinda figured that I should know, given that we've both been thrown in this place, and given that he tried to help out that last time when we were nearly killed.

I noticed what could only be described as a 'window' behind the man, though, it didn't seem to have any glass, making it more of just a hole in the wall. Either way, said hole in the wall revealed that it was somehow very late in the night now, of course, that was accompanied by the cold, which I didn't notice until recently. It was a very cloudy night, but it didn't seem to be raining, thankfully. The view was that of one of the nearby lakes, I couldn't tell which one just from looking at it, though, and there didn't seem to be any buildings between this random place and the lake which was kind of strange. I then tried to figure out which building had a view like this, but after a while, I couldn't come up with any results, though, that seemed to be more or less due to the fact that I couldn't tell which lake was beyond that hole. I then notice a small table at the end of each of our beds that has a strange, glowing rock on it... though, I didn't say anything about it, and figured that the others will notice it soon enough, as well.

As the man looked as the people he brought started to wake up. He breath deeply, looking at each of them before looking at Erion, who was still not awake.
"I see you are starting to wake up.... facing a demon like that without proper equipment or anything... Do you know you could have died back there!" the man says in a rash tone, before looking at each of them.

Erion was still not awake. He was dreaming... dreaming about a large forest that he was walking to, but could not look at himself, as if his head was stuck in spectator mode or in fps mode where you usually only see your arm and nothing else in games. As he continued to walk, he saw something pass by the trees, a whitish coloring running and passing by quickly. Erion turned his head to look at it, but it was then gone quicker then he could react. He then heard a weird giggling from behind him. He turned around, only to see what seemed to be a fox with large green eyes looking at him before going to hide again. Unable to control his own body, Erion started to run towards where he heard the thing, wondering what it was, too curious to look back. As he advanced his vision started to blur slowly as his vision moved downways, making him see that he had... whitish paws?

Erion suddenly woke up, in a big jolt and then looked everywhere, breathing deeply.
"What... who... where am I?" he said quickly, before having the man look at him and chuckles just a bit in a deep tone. The man looked at him.
"Rise and shine sleepy head. Your lucky I sensed that demon back there. You all could have just died horribly." he then says, Erion looked at him, perplexed by all this. As his eyes started to adjust more, he looked at the man. The man seemed to have a large body with what seemed to be rather beat up cloths with something that shined under his beat up cloth. Has he looked more, it seemed to be some kind of chain mail. The man looked at everyone again.
"Now that you are awake... I will get down to why I brought you here and what these stones here are... if you accept what I am about to say.... But I will let you take a bit of time to wake up from all this. Names Alexander by the way...." he says. Erion looked at the man, breathing deeply.
"Names Erion...." he says, his ears perked up a bit under his bandana. The man looked at him, seeing the small bumps, but didn't say anything about it. Not yet...