[IC] The Demon Inside: Unleashed

[lantgreen]

"That day still haunts me. I don't know how much longer I can hold out."
"You need to relax, there will be a time-"
"TIME FOR WHAT?!?!"
"..."
"I've been trapped here with you for three years and all I can think about is the day they took her. Just look at my body, it's lost all control and sanity that it’s ever known. How am I supposed to return to that?"
"...we'll find her."
"HOW FERDIA? HOW? I'm stuck here and you're stuck with me, you can't even break through this damn thing...I just...want it all to stop."
"Perhaps...she will find us. It is a possibility, it's been three years maybe she escaped and is looking for us right now...looking for you."
"I doubt it. How would that even work? How am I supposed to recover such a worthless bag of meat?"
"Liam, she will help you, she will be here. You are stronger than this, rest and ease your thoughts."
"Fine, I guess I can wait a little while longer."

It has been exactly three years, two months, eleven days, and fourteen hours since the last time I saw her face. They took her, and they took me, in that instance of horror I could no longer feel my arms, being held by some metal restraint. Though I didn't care about my body, I focused on seeing her, Sarina, my savior, my goddess, the one who protected me through my dark thoughts and nursed me back to health. And now she's gone, forever, as I seemed to convince myself. I could only close my eyes and picture her face with that sweet smile of hers that held so much joy and wonder, but day by day the picture faded, now it's nothing but haze with slight color. I didn't know how long I was going to be trapped but I knew it would be a long time and I didn't want to come out crazy if I had been released. I tried my best to keep my mind in check by remembering my favorite movies and books, talking to myself in my head and replaying sweet memories like a projector on the walls.

Though my body at the time was reverting back and forth to my personal Demon, Ferdia, he was trying to break free for me, but the way my arms were held and constricted like a strait jacket, and the fact that there was this iron maiden like contrapment that held around my torso, every time he tried to revert to his form, before my body reached full size it was stabbed by the thorns within, keeping him at bay. I took the pain of those thorns constantly day by day hour by hour. Ferdia tried to grow specific parts of my body like just my arm or a leg, anything that could help break free but it would instantly give out and return to my original form. Though he never gave up, my anger only boiling and it fueled him to keep trying.

We both had an equal goal, to escape and be free. He worked hard at my body while I worked to keep remembering her and keep my sanity. Though both of us were losing. I began to forget letters and words, numbers all the same. I lost all feeling and emotion by the end of the first year. Though I could still think and talk to Ferdia as a soul, my body was lost. It could no longer comprehend events or understand the difference between light and dark, nor even realize there was a difference. It had forgotten just about everything that was embedded in its mind. The body had taken on a similar feat, the legs forgot how to walk, or even move. The arms couldn't be felt anymore from not being able to move them for so long, if anything, the body forgot how to function all together. Yet Ferdia was still trying to break through at every passing hour. I don't know how much longer I could stand this torture.

~~~~

Liam has been trapped for three years inside solitary confinement, his body held together by an iron maiden like chest piece that also restricted his arms like that of a strait jacket. He was forced to stand on his shin and knees while four chains held the iron maiden in the center of the room. The boy had lost his sanity and could no longer, talk, read, write, comprehend, but there was a fading amount of thought that still remained in him. The lights were on during the day and off during the night, though later on he soon forgot the difference. He barely slept, maybe ten minutes at a time every week or so. His body running on the fuel of his inner Demon. From time to time the attendents would come to get him, grabbing long steel poles and bashed them against his thighs to break his bone so he couldn't run, they would attach the poles to his collar and drag him out, to clean him up so he wouldn't die or stink the place up, at the slightest movement he made they would zap him with a long stun rod like an animal. To them he was a monster, a beast, something not of this world and it needed to be killed or put in its place, but they had orders. They would leave his hair the way it was, afraid he'd try to bite at them if they came too close, and then they would return him to the cell. Food would be placed just outside of reach away from him, forcing him to endure the pain of the iron maiden just to eat off the plate like a dog.

His inner Demon would always try to break free, trying to revert the boy’s body into his own only to be stabbed back into place. This was like the boy's work out, muscle constantly growing and contracting day by day, hoping to break free but to no avail. The anger boiling within Liam only grew, he wanted nothing but to murder those who hurt him and to find the one he cared most about, that was all he wanted, but nothing in the world would let him have it. Soon he would give up and his body would rot like a bag of dead meat.

Liam now is on the verge of life and death, his soul having a small fraction of hope to see her face once again, but he had forgotten it. There was nothing left to do but give up. That is until the small door for the window at the door slid open. There stood the face of a woman, peering in and staring at the boy who fought hard against the chains every second, screaming like a demon wanting to be free only to become mute once his eyes landed on her. They held a hunger for murder when he stared at her, but slowly changed as Liam's mind began to collect itself slightly. He did not know this woman, but he thought he should have known her, she seemed important to him. Having this thought he wanted to be with her, to be free. He became calm and relaxed only staring at her till the door to the window slammed shut quickly. Liam's eyes widened in disbelief, he began to think if it was the girl he wanted to be with all these years but denied it so and became more furious and abrupt against the iron maiden and the chains. Using every ounce of strength to break out and be free. With a final piece of hope restored and a fraction of a chance she would return, he kept fighting.

[StarBoi]

I could feel it, his hands wrapping around my throat and squeezing as tight as he could. My eyes closed tightly and I felt like I was going to die as he forced the life out of me. I couldn’t let myself die there, as terrified as I was, even if I knew I would die right then and there, someone out in the world was waiting for me. Quickly I reached for the knife at my belt and pulled it from its sheath, what happened next left me scarred for quite a while. I ended the man’s life before he could end mine. It was what my mentors would have want me to do, to survive by any means necessary. Somehow I had to keep myself alive, I would continue to learn and grow stronger. I would do whatever it took to find my best friend, even if in the end, it would cost my life. All I wanted was to see him again. I only wished… that I had proof he was still alive…

I was lying on my side, crying hard, gasping for air at the same time. That was only one of my first experiences with pain and extreme fear. If that was what it took to become stronger, I would deal with it.

Don’t worry, Liam… I will find you, no matter what it takes.

---

Normally, a person having a nightmare would jump up in a cold sweat, breathing heavily. However, Sarina was not very normal anymore. She had seen too much, gone through too much. Her eyes snapped open and she glared at the ceiling, why did she keep dreaming about being hurt? Beside her, Jayoden Moretti, a close friend, sat in a chair next to the bed watching her sleep. He looked skeptically into her eyes when she turned her head to look at him. “You are strange, you know that?” He told her.

“And you aren’t? You are watching me sleep. You think that is normal? Okay, maybe for you”

Jay smirked and reached out his hand to help her sit up. She willingly accepted his kind offer and allowed him to help her. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t help it, you’re always so fascinating when you sleep, I can only imagine what kind of crazy stuff goes on in your head” Halfway through his sentence he dropped into lazy Italian speech. “Also,” He added in his first language, Italian, “you’re always squirming and calling for Liam like he is dying before your eyes… he’s not dying in your nightmares is he?” His tone became slightly worried, Sarina didn’t need to see such things, she didn’t need to suffer any more than she has without her best friend.

The nineteen year old responded in Italian, “no, Liam doesn’t die in my head; I can’t let myself think like that, especially since we are so damn close. No, I’m usually the one dying in my nightmares, or at least, I almost die. Fun right?” She couldn’t help but laugh at herself for being so pathetic in her mind, like she used to be on the outside.

“Right… come on, we have work to do, the sun is going to go down soon” He looped one of his arms into hers and pulled her out of bed. “Soon, Sarina, very soon.”

---

Sarina stood before the building tucked deep within the maze of the city called Venice, Italy. It took her all this time to find it, and finally now that she was confronting the place, she was almost afraid. Jay stood behind her, leaning on his orange Harley Davidson that was being held up only by its kickstand. He placed a hand on her shoulder and spoke quietly in Italian, “You can do this”

Slowly she nodded her head without looking back at him. “I know, I have to do this. For him”

Without another word the young woman headed toward the asylum where they were keeping Liam for three whole years. It was time to put her plan into action. When she got to the front entrance she knocked with the hefty door knocker and waited. The small rectangular window on the front door slid open and a voice spoke heavily accented Italian.

“State your business here.”

“I’m here to see Subject Nine” She replied in perfect Italian.

“What? That beast, you must be an exorcist, I can think of no other reason you would want to see that demon”

Sarina held her tongue; rage burned inside of her, and that was only the beginning of their hurtful words toward her friend. “You might say I am an exorcist of sorts, now allow me to see him or I shall bring the leaders of the Vatican down upon you”

The door creaked open. “Please remove whatever metal you have on you, exorcist” The man somewhat demanded. She sighed and removed her katana from her back and her kunai belt from around her waist, placing them by the door. “Anything else? We have a metal detector miss”

Her plan had worked, almost flawlessly, but she would have to go in without Jay’s help. She removed her communication device from her ear and placed it with her stuff. “Alright, that’s it” Nothing could stop her now. Sarina followed the guard into the darkness through the halls and down into a corridor deep underground.

Along the way, people had given her strange looks and whispered things about the demon boy she was going to see. All she could do was ignore it since she didn’t have Jay in her ear telling her to stay calm.

At the end of a corridor was a thick, steel door with nothing but a small window at eye level that opened and closed to peer in, just like the front door. Inside she could hear screams like howling in pain and anger.

“I cannot allow you to enter; he is dangerous, even for an exorcist. He is like the devil himself”

Her blood boiled, how could this man speak about Liam that way, someone so sweet and gentle. What was worse, how could they keep him in this horrible, dark place for so long. She wanted so desperately to blow up the door and free him from his suffering. What had Liam done to deserve this?

Sarina inhaled and exhaled sharply before moving her hand to open the door to the small window. What she saw she could not have expected, despite what Jay had told her to prepare for.

Liam was in a metal strait jacket and chained up in the center of the room. But that wasn’t the worst part, he looked nothing like his former self. When the struggling boy looked up to return her gaze with her, there was something inhuman in his eyes. She saw his horns for the first time and it made her stomach churn. Sarina could see him calm down for a moment when he saw her, but something told her that that wasn’t Liam anymore. She was too late.

“Liam…” Her hands balled into fists. He didn’t seem to hear her whisper his name. The man who had led her to Liam’s cell quickly closed the door to the window.

“You are no exorcist are you? Out with you! This boy is a threat to all mankind and you are not to upset him further with your presence, if he were to escape only God knows what would happen!”

God? What god was there if they let this happen to the boy I loved so dearly? Her thoughts swirled mercilessly in her head. They destroyed Liam, he was not who he was before, he may not ever be recovered, but she wasn’t going to leave him there. She still had a plan to see through.

A nearby guard helped the other guard somewhat forcefully see her out of the asylum.

“And don’t come back!” The man said as they threw her out into the dirt along with her things.

“All go according to plan?” Jay asked as he walked over and helped her off of the ground. “I mean for the most part” He added with a slight smile. “You found Liam right? He’s in there?”

Sarina carefully dusted the dirt off of her clothes and nodded. “Yes, he is in there, what’s left of him. He isn’t human anymore Jay… His eyes, there was something dark in them… but we aren’t going to leave him in there, I will do whatever it takes to set him free, and try to return him to how he used to be” By now tears started to slide down her cheeks. “Damn it!”

Before she could wipe her tears away, Jay wiped them away with his thumbs. “It’s okay; you know you don’t have to be strong all the time. We will save him, and we will bring him back to his former self. Only a bit more waiting to do”

[StarBoi]

That night would be the so called big night. It was the night her and Jay were going to free Liam from his wrongful imprisonment. That way Liam and Sarina would never be separated again. Sarina would be able to protect Liam for the rest of her life; she would never let him get hurt ever again. The young woman stood outside of the building once again, by now, she had changed into a jumpsuit that would allow her to move freely and it wouldn’t get caught on anything or drag behind her like other clothes. That and her lightweight, tactical boots would help her sneak in and out swiftly and quietly without being detected.

Jay stood behind her with his hood up hiding his orange-colored hair and most of his face. “You ready for this, Sarina?” He was nervous for both of them, but mostly her; if she got caught she would end up imprisoned like Liam, or worse. He would probably just end up getting killed. As much faith as he had in her, there was no knowing what could happen, especially with Liam in the state he was in. “I mean, I know you are, but make sure you keep your focus, I’ll be right behind you the whole time.”

Sarina said not a word but nodded her head, she then simply headed towards the door, stopping only to let Jay knock on the door so there plan could be set in motion. Jay’s fist met the door, knocking quite hard on it a few times, instead of using the doorknocker. The door’s window opened and a different guard with a more gruff voice spoke.

The asylum guard spoke Italian in a deep voice. “Who are you? Why have you come to this place?”

“We’ve come for the boy”

When the words left the young man’s mouth, he and Sarina switched places. Her hand moved across the open window, held loosely and leaving a faint glowing trail of light behind it as she whispered, “dormeo.”

Dim light illuminated the man’s eyes as her hand passed the window, once the spell had been cast the man dropped to the ground, in a deep sleep. In that moment, she placed her other hand close to where the lock would be on the other side of the door. A glowing orange orb developed from her palm and began to melt the thick metal. Despite the seriousness of the situation, Sarina couldn’t help but smirk at her ability to use magic; she never imagined it would help her like this to save Liam. It seemed magic wasn’t just for fighting after all. Don’t worry Liam, we are coming, just hold out a little longer

She and Jay rushed into the place when the door creaked open; the hallways were dark and empty as Sarina led her friend and partner through them to get to where Liam was being held. It didn’t seem anyone was around, except for the restless souls in their holding cells that made noise as the two passed. The point of her entering the asylum before was simply to be able to learn the layout of the place, and enable her to know how to get to where she now knew Liam was being kept.

“Hey!” A voice called out from behind the two. Someone had come from an adjacent hallway they had just passed. With anger in her eyes, Sarina turned, dashing forward, and drawing her sword, placing the tip of her blade at the person’s throat. The girl who stared, wide-eyed, at Sarina was only slightly older than Sarina and Jay. “I-I’m sorry I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Jay stopped when Sarina had; he spoke to the newcomer in Italian since they were, in fact, in Italy and no one spoke English. “Who are you? A caretaker here? Speak quickly or I might not be able to stop my friend from harming you.”

“My name is Rose. I am a caretaker here. I mostly take care of the boy that she came to see today. He told me once his name is Liam. He doesn’t speak to me anymore, I can hardly go near him” Her face seemed almost sad as she told the duo about what had become of Liam. “Please believe me when I say I want to help you!”

“Quiet down!” Sarina hissed at the girl. Her sword made a clicking sound as she secured it back into its sheath. “I believe you, you wouldn’t dare cross me, would you, girl?”

“No, no please, let me help you. There are two men in the boy’s cell, if you just burst in they may harm you, but I have a key” She held out a rusty old key with a rusty, once golden, key on it. “Take this, surprise them. Please just take him out of here so he doesn’t have to suffer any more.”

What Sarina saw in the woman was something she had seen in herself at one point, innocence, and a deep caring for Liam. But she couldn’t let herself get soft now, she couldn’t let her guard down. Swiping the key from the woman’s hand she nodded her head in appreciation and kept moving quickly and quietly to Liam’s cell. They arrived a minute after encountering the woman.

“Deep underground, a demon waits to be freed by his angel.” Jay whispered jokingly beside Sarina. She shot him an angry glance and shook her head, moving forward to open the door with the key. “Sorry… you go left, I’ll go right. Be careful”

Together they pulled the door open and darted in. Sarina moved toward one of the men who was harming her friend, the one on the left side, and leg swept him. Once the man was on the ground she drew her sword and stabbed it through his chest, kneeling beside him to glare into his eyes until the life left them. Jay flicked his wrists and his hidden blades came out, with a sadistic smirk on, he only needed to take two quick steps forward to repeatedly stab the man in the stomach with his assassin weapons.

Once they were dead, Sarina took to kneeling before Liam. Jay stood in the door way, making sure no one came.

“Liam, I don’t know if you can hear me… or if you’re even there.” She stared into his eyes full of hatred and bloodlust. “But I’m going to get you out of here, now. No more pain, I promise” By now she had dropped into English, hoping he would understand his first language. But it didn’t seem to faze him at all, he just stared blankly, like a doll. With a heavy sigh, and an even heavier heart, Sarina stood and used her blade to cut the chains and the bolts that held the iron maiden around Liam’s torso. “There… you’re free”

[lantgreen]

That night, by usual schedule and bodily activity of Liam, he was suppose to sleep his ten minutes before his rage continued, is only nap every week, and the employees had it down by the day and time. Is body was still fighting against the iron maiden, continuously getting stabbed by the sharp steel thorns inside. Being in the state that he is in, most of his touch sensory is gone, but if he could feel, the floor would be like ice, a cold concrete surface freezing his feet where most of his bodily warmth is escaping. The iron maiden would also be cold, its dark greyish color glimmering slightly with the small light that's been dimmed due to the hour of the night. The boy could feel the pulse of his demonic heart, pushing the blood through his injured body.

His body was slowing down, in movement and anger, his eyes closing slowly but his arms still fighting against the contrapment and chains. His voice becoming quieter and his actions becoming still. He finally drifted into a sleep like rest, the chains fell limp and his muscles relaxed, becoming still and only his smoke like breath escaping his lips was the movement in the room. That is until the two guards showed up, they knew the exact time he would pass out and rest the demon inside of the boy. They opened the door and turned on the light to its brightest level. They smirked at each other, each holding a steel pole about a yard in length, "No ones around and he deserves it for putting us through all this trouble," one says to the other. "He get's this punishment every week, we won't let him rest, he doesn't deserve it." "Hell he doesn't even deserve to exist," the two spoke back and forth to each other. "Well lets get on with it before his ten minutes are up."

Liam was resting well, recovering as quickly as his body could before jumping into rage again, a rage fueled by anger, pain, and hate. But before any real progress, a sharp strong pain slammed into both his thighs, His eyes opened in anger with the intent to kill while the chains instantly became tight as they were stretched as much as they could go while the demon tried to break free and attack. The two guards laughed and smiled as they swung their poles as hard as they could into the 'patients' thighs, shattering his femurs and keeping him from ever being able to walk, if he even had the chance to escape.

His screams echoed throughout the halls of the building, his strength growing ever slightly and fighting against the chains more and more, but sadly getting nowhere. He took the beating for few minutes before the door flung open and two people attacked and killed the guards. Liam, filled with anger, looked at the orange haired one first and immediately had the intent to kill him, but as his head turned and his eyes met with the girl. He froze, he remembered her from earlier, the same calm feeling came over him, his body still and his mind running aimlessly through memories but couldn't find anything. But for some reason he felt like he should know her, that she was important. He stared at her with empty eyes still filled with a murderous anger, before looking down at the floor, not knowing what todo anymore. His chin lifted up once the girl started speaking to him, she spoke in english and stared right at him, deep into his eyes targeting any soul of Liam that was still in there. He could do nothing but look blankly back at her. Like a puppet with no strings, he had lost control of his body and could no longer fight to escape. She cut his chains and the bolts to the iron maiden, his body landed on his heels and his arms fell from his back. His body relaxed even more and he stared at his hands as black claws were where his nails used to be, his hands, arms covered in his blood, so old its a maroon like color. Staining his skin and the inside of the iron that now lays before him on the floor. His eyes still empty and he couldn't comprehend what had happened. He couldn't stop staring at his hands, having not seen them for three years. He looked at the bruises on his legs and felt the pulsing pain from the guards attacks.

After a short silence he was lifted off the ground and carried out of his cell, the two were working hard to escort and transport the heavy body. Weighing more than they remember, the escape wasn't as easy as they thought. Liam still could not think or even act, his mind lost in a trance of confusion. He has never felt free like he does now but he can't move, he lost his strings. Once they arrived in the car there was not much left to the plan but to drive away. Liam looked over to the girl and the blank expression remained, though his eyes could not lose the appearance of bloodlust. After a couple minutes his body gave up on acting and even thinking, his eye lids hung low and he drifted into the sleep that he needed.

[StarBoi]

“What are we going to do…? He’s a mess…” Jay’s voice could be heard as Liam drifted in and out of consciousness in the back of the car. They were sitting in the car outside of the small apartment they had been renting in Paris. There was a silence. “I told you, I’ll take care of it.” Sarina replied as she looked back at her best friend who was passed out in the back seat. His physical condition was not at all good. In truth, he wreaked of sweat and blood, among other things. His hair was long and unkempt in many places. Silence again as Liam lost consciousness once more. “Alright, it’s going to be hard to get him upstairs… let’s do it.” Jay gave a tired smile and got out of the driver’s seat with the keys in his hand. Sarina jumped out of the car and went to the right passenger’s side door, slowly opening it and peering inside. Her heart ached for her friend, but at the same time she was filled with joy that he was back with her. With a deep inhale the teenager wrapped her arms under Liam’s and pulled him out of the car, Jay rushed to her side and grabbed Liam’s legs, making sure he did not fall onto the ground. “Easy there” He slammed the door shut with his foot and they began struggling toward the stairs to their apartment. “He’s gotten heavier. And dirtier. Are you really going to clean him up, we can send him to… I mean, never mind, heh” Jay looked away in embarrassment at almost saying something to hurt Sarina’s feelings. Hidden by the cover of darkness they took great care with getting Liam up the stairs and into the apartment. Between the two of them they decided to rest him in the bathtub. “Jay, I’m going to start taking care of him. I need you to go out and get me some things.” She almost demanded, but he understood the tone of her voice. “What do you need?” He asked while standing next to her beside the tub. “I need a good pair of scissors, some guy razors, a hefty nail file, rubbing alcohol among any other medical supplies you think we would need.” Sarina thought for a moment, reaching out from Liam’s side to push some hair out of his face. “And anything else you think he’ll need. My money pouch is in my nightstand. Thanks, Jay” Jay nodded. “Will do. You’ll be okay, right?” Truthfully, he was concerned Liam was going to wake up and try to kill her. The demon boy was just as bad a mental state as he was physical, Jay didn’t want Sarina to be hurt. “I’ll be fine, you think I can’t handle him if he wakes up?” Sarina looked up at him with a disapproving glance. “Okay, geez” He reached down and ruffled her hair before scurrying out of the bathroom. “Liam.” Gently Sarina removed Liam’s pants which was all he was wearing, at first she had to turn away out of embarrassment, but in her mind she knew this was something she needed to do. With the warmest water on that she could handle she waited until the tub filled up halfway and then pretended to be a mama bear bathing her cub. He was kind of like her child, she was always his caretaker. With soap and sponge in hand she began to scrub all the grime off of his skin. It was difficult cleaning his unconscious body, she was glad he was unconscious however, so it would be less awkward when she cleaned his private parts. Despite the embarrassment, she was glad to be helping her best friend, she loved him and was willing to die for him, bathing him was no trouble at all. After a good two hours and several times emptying and refilling the tub, Sarina finally got him as clean as he could for the time being. Now she would have to wait for Jay to return with the other things to finish the job. Even after he was clean she didn’t recognize him. It had been three years, he had grown a lot. He had long curly hair on his head and a full beard and mustache. The best she could do for him until Jay came back was drain the water and wrap him in several towels. “I missed you… I really did. I hope you can forgive me for letting them do this to you. You’re so inured, so lost. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry” Her eyes welled up with warm, salty tears that burned. Before tears could slide down her cheeks Jay quietly entered the apartment with arms full of bags. “Sarina, I’m home!” He whispered loud enough for her to hear from the bathroom. Sarina gasped and wiped the tears from her eyes quickly. “Help me get him out of the tub so I can finish grooming him” Jay came in after setting the bags on his bed and helped her lift the unconscious Liam into a chair she had brought into the bathroom. “This could take a while. Can you get me the scissors and file please? Oh and razors too” The Italian did as she asked and stayed in the bathroom with her in case she needed his help. “You know how hard it was to find all this stuff in the middle of the night? Practically nowhere was open. Luckily I know some places in the black market that happen to always be selling stuff, they’re a lot pricier though. That’s okay right?” “Yes, yes, whatever, thank you, Jay” She ruffled his hair as he had done to her. “I need a bit more time with him, I’ll let you know when I’m done then you can help me get him dressed and into bed.” “Sure thing boss” He smiled sweetly at her and headed out. “If I pass out, feel free to wake me, I’m always willing to help” Another few hours passed, this task was just as hard as bathing Liam. She had to cut his hair, trim other areas and shave his face. It was something she’d never done before, on top of all the hair ordeals, she had to file down his monster nails. Those things were terrifying and could rip her throat out if he woke and simply moved his arm. Eventually, with much awkwardness and such, she got the job done. He was finally starting to look like himself. Underneath all the hair, she could see his handsome face and finally could admire the rest of his body without being distracted by his mop head or demon claws. He was toned from all the struggling he did all those years, he was also still very injured and she needed Jay’s help to patch him up. It took them the rest of the night to wrap Liam’s wounds, considering he had stab marks all over the upper half of his body and two broken femurs. The two conscious teenagers could only imagine how much pain Liam was in. When they were finally finished, Liam was lying on his back on the bed, his torso and arms wrapped but otherwise barren, his legs completely straight in complete casts, how the two had managed it was easy enough. Jay had studied as a field medic before when he was working with the exorcists it tied in with his assassin persona. Both a killer and a healer. “I’ll be in the bedroom, asleep, holler if you need me, or y’know… come wake me up. Whichever, I’m exhausted” Jay trudged off into the bed room to plop down onto the bed and pass out. Sarina lay beside Liam in the front room bed, she took his hand in hers and fell asleep beside him.

[lantgreen]

"I told you that she would be here," a deep voice spoke, it came from a demon, one known as Ferdia. He stood at a great height with the legs of a goat covered in black fur, his torso was that of a mans, rugged and ruined by war, yet held the strength of a thousand men if not more. his back held large wings, resembling that of a crow, and what laid atop his head were large charcoal toned horns. Next to him was a boy, shy of six feet tall and matched with his weight. The boy was much smaller than the demon but did not show fear in his presence. He had shaggy brown hair and eyes to match. Ferdia looked down to the boy, "Liam?"

"I don't know what to say, all this time I thought she was gone forever and here she is, RIGHT THERE." He pointed down to the couple laying in bed. The Demon and the boy were above the two as ghost like aspirations. Liam's feelings were mixed and confused, he didn't know what to do or what to think. "She rescued me..."

The large clawed hand of the Demon laid on the boy's shoulder, "She did, and now its time to continue living your life, bring your relationship back and make memories with her. Don't forget though, you need to bring her up to speed to what we've talked about over the past couple years, we could really use her help. If she doesn't, then I don't know what I would do."

"Right right, remind me again just so I have it down, I wanna make sure I don't leave out any details." He started to imagine a life with his lost friend. Something that has been gone for years has finally returned and they can continue to be happy with one another, hopefully to never part again.

"If we're going to save Lilim, then we need to do something soon. She'll forget everything she has ever had, including me. I need to save her but I can't do it alone. With your help, and that of Sarina's and her make shift demon Shado, the four of us can bust her out. It would be dangerous for sure and we might run into the Devil himself. If we're lucky and everything pans out, we won't have to deal with him." The hulking beast started to show a little sorrow in his face as he remembered the face of his lover, waiting for their reunion.

"I'm sure she'll help but Shado might be a problem, we'll work it out when the time comes. First, we need to heal my body down there and reconnect it with all my memories. Right now, I don't even know how to walk, how do I fix myself?" Liam was clueless where to start, hoping his body wouldn't stay like that forever.

"Start by saying hi," Ferdia smiled at him and vanished in thin air leaving a small amount of an ashy smoke.

"I guess that's a good start," his soul vanished too and returned to the resting body. He tried his best to wake up and move but could only drag his arm a couple inches towards Sarina. His mouth opened and nothing came out, he wanted to speak but his lips and tongue couldn't coordinate yet.

[StarBoi]

She had been quick to fall asleep due to the fact that she was completely exhausted when she was finished grooming Liam. However, she woke up once after a dreadful nightmare and decided to stay awake beside Liam, wanting nothing more than to protect him from the creatures of the night. They had been separated for too long, and she would do anything to make sure they were never separated again.

Sarina lay on her back beside Liam, staring at the ceiling, her right hand gently holding his left. “Nothing will ever hurt you again, nothing” She whispered quietly. As hardened as she was since he was gone, seeing him again brought back some of her sweet and innocent nature. Her eyelids were heavy from being so tired and keeping them open for so long, but she wouldn’t allow that to stop her from guarding him.

In her head, memories of old times swirled around like clothes in a washer. She could remember the battle in Italy that she caused, because she was weak and was captured. There were memories of when she first met Jay and how kind he was to them. Then there were memories of the Vatican, yes she had been there, and she had even met the Pope. Of course, then she was in a guise, trying to find out information about her best friend. Jay got her in, but they were thrown out for their questions.

“You know he didn’t miss you that much right?” A voice asked in the back of her mind. Sarina simply smiled tiredly, ignoring the voice for a little while. “You’re rather silly, you know that? Of course he missed me that was the only reason he kept on living, if you’re trying to make me upset you should know that doesn’t work anymore”

The voice was that of Shado, Sarina’s demon. She was always trying to get Sarina down. Ever since she was defeated by Liam and Ferdia, Shado had disappeared. But then, Sarina brought her back, taking a lot of time to learn how to control the beast. Now she had Shado’s strength, her skills, and could even summon her weapon if she wanted too. The only downfall was it took a lot of Sarina’s strength to keep the demon at bay whenever she used her power.

While she was thinking about her demon, which was always there, waiting to break free once more, Liam’s hand moved ever so slowly toward her while she was holding it. Sarina blinked slowly in surprise and turned her head to stare at Liam. “Liam…? Are you awake? Can you hear me?” She released his hand and sat up, leaning over him but not touching him. “Liam??”

[lantgreen]

Her quick movement would have startled the boy but then again it was hard to move and think. Recovering was going to be hard and it was going to take a long time. Liam opened his eyes slowly only to stare up at a beautiful angel hovering above him. Sarina had a worried or curious expression upon her face, he wanted to say something but didn't know where to start. After a couple seconds of solid eye contact he noticed that his body had a different aura to it. Though he still couldn't feel that much, he noticed his weight was lighter, his face was clean and his body no longer covered in dirt.

'Had she cleaned me?' Liam thought, 'oh god, that means she saw me naked, fuck I hope this doesn't end up awkward or anything.' He focused on her and did the best he could to make his body smile, 'come on, do something,' but the body refused. 'I can't give up, not after being so close, I was able to move my arm, I'll try that again.' The arm moved a little bit more in the direction it had gone before. He tried to move the other arm and it did as well, not as much but it moved just enough to reassure the both of them.

Next was his lips, Liam continued to think that if he could do something as simple as slide an arm across the bed, then he could move his lips. 'Come on you piece of shit, say something to her, say hi.' The boy's bottom lip barely moved at all and then started quivering as if it were cold. Movement was slowly coming back but not at the rated he wanted it to. The tongue moved a little bit but still no sound. Liam started pounding his fists on the ground of the abyss in his head, 'come on, say something, say hi for christs sake' the body still refused. Tears started to run down his cheeks, 'please, just say something to her.' Silence.

Liam couldn't handle the fact that the girl of his dreams was right above him, she saved him and cleaned him up, and he couldn't even say hi. He sat depressed in his head and what felt like hours was only seconds, he collected himself and focused on a different task, moving. He focused on moving his arms again and it worked, he could at least move his eyes so he was able to look down and watch his hand raised a little bit before falling onto the bed. He could move but his body was weak. 'Okay good, progress, something else now' He knew he wasn't going to get the body to speak but maybe he could move the jaw. He focused hard and his mouth was able to close and open, opening it wider was hard but still capable of doing it. He stared up at her, taking a break from trying and just wanted to hear her speak, he missed the sound of her voice, it always calmed him down.

[StarBoi]

Sarina watched with much concern as Liam was trying to move his arms and mouth. The progress slow, and she noticed he couldn't get himself to speak. She wanted above all else to hear his voice again, it'd been so long. "It's okay Liam, you don't have to try so hard... I don't need you to speak, just to see your eyes open and know that you're alive and... well... it makes me feel good" Now wearing a calm expression, Sarina moved her hand to pet his fluffy hair.

Even after she had cut it, she left enough length to wear it was long enough to curl and poof. Something she'd not seen on Liam before but she like it. "You're hair, it's curly and poofy now. I gave you a new look, from... how I remember you I mean." That was when she realized she was still hovering over him, her cheeks flushed red and she sat down next to him, looking away. "Sorry." When she finally looked back at him her blush was gone. "You've changed. I mean, a lot. I hardly remember these little horns on your head" Her hand reached out to touch the horns on his head, cutting his hair had been a bit of a challenge with those things sticking out like a multicorn. "They look silly, I mean. Sorry... my social skills obviously haven't gotten any better since we last saw each other"

Despite that fact, it felt good to see his face again in daylight, and be able to talk to him like old times, even if he couldn't talk back. It was how it was supposed to be, they were still best friends, they were both alive and ok, and it was like two teenagers talking in a dorm room or something, just perfect. "And your um, muscles. Everywhere." She was definitely not referring to his junk. "You can't see it now, but when your arms and legs are healed, you will" Her head nodded slowly, unconsciously as if agreeing with herself. "And man have you gotten tall. I wish you could see it, Liam. I wish you could stand again and see how tall you've grown" Without noticing, tears welled up in her eyes and a single tears slid down her cheek.

Oops. Sarina rubbed the tears away with the back of her hand. That wasn't tough at all. "How old are you now? 19 almost 20? Holy crap you're old. Well I suppose I'm not far behind." With a cheeky smile she rubbed the back of her head. (n_n) "Heh, puberty was kind to you... I bet your voice is all deep and manly now" With a heavy heart Sarina got out of bed. "I'm sorry for rambling... You should go back to sleep, I'm sure you need it"

"I'm sure you need it as well, you were up longer than I was and you hadn't slept for 2 days before that" Jay said from near the front door. "Why don't you both go back to sleep, I'll have food made when you wake up" The Italian said sweetly with a hint of concern. "No, I don't want to sleep, I can't watch over Liam if I'm asleep" Sarina turned her head to look at Jay who was standing there with his hands in the pockets of his hoodie. "You don't think I could handle any baddies that come in here?" His accent thickened as he said this, sometimes he just got lazy.

Sarina now spoke in Italian to Jay, somewhat irritably, "I know you could, but that's not the point, Liam is my responsibility." Her gaze went back to Liam. "Isn't that right?" She continued in Italian, knowing he understood her.

[StarBoi]

Liam didn't respond to her, of course not, he didn't have the ability to speak yet. With a sad smile Sarina laid back down next to Liam, placing one hand under her head and propping one leg up. "Fine, I'll sleep, but only lightly" Sarina spoke, now in English once again. "But if anything comes and I miss it, I'll blame you"

“Right thanks, sleep. I’ll wake you when I’ve made lunch, its noon you know” Jay said while pulling his hands out of his pockets and placing them both behind his head. Sarina looked shocked. “It’s what?!” She nearly jumped out of bed. “Its noon” Jay repeated himself with a curious expression, wondering why she was freaking out.

“How much sleep do you think I need??” Sarina shook her head in disagreement and covered her face with her hands. She didn’t want to admit it but she was still tired from not sleeping for two days. “Shut up, I’ll sleep” With that she closed her eyes with her arms covering her face.

Jay smirked and nodded slowly, “Alright.”

He decided not to wake her to eat for lunch, but did feed Liam like a brother would for an injured sibling. Luckily the boys jaw still worked and sitting up at the right angle he could eat anything just fine. But Jay decidedly fed him soft things that wouldn’t be too hard to chew.

By the time night fell, Sarina and Liam were both fast asleep. But once the sun was all the way down and the moon was already halfway up in the sky, Sarina lept out of bed in a hurry. “I’ve got to go” She didn’t explain but Jay already knew what she was up too. “Don’t tell Liam, please” Sarina grabbed her katana and headed toward the French windows open wide. “I’ll be back in the morning”

“Please be careful”

“Please don’t let anything happen to Liam. I’m trusting you Jay” Her eyes locked onto his in the moonlight and wouldn’t turn away. “Trusting you” She emphasized.

“Alright, alright, just go”

[lantgreen]

Liam tried his best to smile at her, hearing her voice was all that he wanted at the moment. He could understand her pretty well, it was the talking back part that was hard. She talked about his hair and how old he was becoming, 'I'm not that old come on.' He wished he could at least have said something but there wasn't any response coming from his body. 'Puberty was kind? In what way?' he smirked in his head knowing she had seen him naked but only meant the thought to make her blush and as a joke. Liam continued to listen to her until she said it was best to get some sleep. SHe was right, he needed the sleep to help recover and heal his body.

After a short time he fell asleep and his body started to heal itself at a rapid rate, thanks to Ferdia. During his sleep Liam had a small talk with his demon. "The steps have begun, I'm so happy that I'm finally with her, if only I could say something."

"Give it time, you may not be able to speak for at least week, but then again, you might say something the second you wake up," Ferdia was glad that his vessel was starting to recover and regain his mental and physical strength, this would benefit both of them so they may continue their fight against Hell.

"I hope it will be sooner rather than later, there's so much I want to ask her." Liam relaxed and thought to himself about the different things he would do with Sarina once he was fully recovered. Before he could say another word to Ferdia the Demon left and Liam was gently awakened by Jay. Who had food, he tried his best to look over to Sarina and saw that she was still there sleeping. The body did its best to smile but it was not successful. Jay had brought a spoon, close to Liam's mouth which he was capable of opening and closing. The chewing and swallowing part was going to be hard. Once the hot food hit his tongue he knew exactly what it was and closed his eyes at the flavor.

It was a brown cinnamon oatmeal, soft, thin, and full of flavor, something he hadn't had in years, even before being imprisoned. He managed to control his throat well and swallow. His body felt the warm texture flow through his body and into his stomach. He opened his eyes slowly and looked up at Jay, his lips slowly forming the shape of a smile. The moment was enjoyable, and he ended up finishing the entire bowl before drifting back to sleep. He wanted to say thank you to him but he was pretty sure Jay knew already that he was quite grateful.

As the night continued on Sarina had left the bed without waking the Demonboy. As the hours ticked by Liam suddenly woke up, noticing that she was gone and Jay was sitting in the corner. He had what appeared to be a faded worried expression, wondering where she had gone and if she was okay. He looked over to Jay hoping he would know what he meant to ask if he could speak.

[StarBoi]

The moment Jay saw Liam work up to a smile, he knew the boy was going to be A-okay. That night, while he was changing Liam's chest wrappings, he could tell the wounds had already begun to heal rapidly, it must've been his demons doing. But it as good, the sooner he healed the sooner he'd be on his feet again. Jay sat in a chair against the door, reading a book a book by one of his favorite American authors. Though sometimes he couldn't understand some terms used, he could still read English just fine.

"So, Liam" Jay brought his book down to look at Liam, unsure if the boy was sleeping or not. "I've been taking care of Sarina for three years and I thought you should know how much she missed you and cares about you. I know you can hear me so you need to listen and listen well. I care about her just as much as you do and if you hurt her in any way, you and I are going to have a problem. What I'm saying is, keep your claws, horns, and demon too yourself." Jay wasn't trying to be mean, but he was always concerned about Sarina, and any threat to her was something that he wouldn't tolerate.

He lowered his tone a little and began to speak in Italian, "I just need you to cooperate, that's all I'm asking. I don't mean to be a jerk... hopefully you know by now that any friend of hers is a friend of mine, and since you're like a brother to her... or even more than that, so you're like a brother to me" From behind the shadow of his hood there was a smile. "I'm going to take care of you, for all of our sakes, and soon, you'll be up walking and talking about, I promise you that"

After he was done with his speech Jay went back to his book as if it hadn't happened. He just wanted to be sure that Liam knew what was up. That he wasn't playing around and if he hurt Sarina, he'd have to pay.

-----

She was out late, later than usual, even after the sun had risen she wasn't home. When she finally came in through the 3rd story window where their small apartment was, she was covered in blood with a few scrapes, bruises and a black eye. "ciao , Jay come stai" She said hello and asked him how he was in Italian. Jay peered over the top of his book to look at him. "What the hell happened?!" He replied in his native language.

"You think this is bad? You should see the other guys" Sarina laughed, rubbing her bad eye gently and wincing at the pain. "I asked how you were, you've been reading in the dark again haven't you, I told you not to do that!" She moved over to the bed to stare down at Liam. "Hey buddy, I'm glad to see you're safe, myself on the other hand... but it's no matter, anything to keep you safe" With a gentle pat of his headed to the bathroom to shower off. "Thanks for watching him and for keeping the window open for me, Jay"

"You keep this a secret, Liam can't know" With those final words she left to take a shower and rinse off all the blood.

[lantgreen]

"Recovery seems to be going well."

"I agree, though you still have not spoken, I wish your body would at least be capable of speaking."

"I'm not worried, I was capable of forming a smile, perhaps I can do more tomorrow."

The Fallen Angel nodded and vanished into an ashy cloud, and once more the boy fell back to his resting body as it continued to heal progressively. Liam grew tired of laying around all the time, he had todo something, he had to stand. At least he could speak with movement, knowledge comes with time and he was willing to wait if he could at least talk through motion.

~~~

While Sarina was beginning to take a shower Jay was prepping for the meals of the day. After taking close examination of their stock he realized they didn't have much left at all. Taking a quick glance at Liam, the boy was still sound asleep, seems like nothing would wake him up. He walked over to the bathroom door, knocking loud enough for her to hear over the sound of the shower, but just quiet enough not to wake Liam. "I'm running to the store for some food, Liam is still sleeping so I'll be right back." With that said he left with his bag in hand and some cash for the quick trip.

~~~

The heavy eye lids of the possessed boy began to slowly open, his mind becoming conscious once again, leaving a dream behind. He looked around realizing no one was around, but he heard the shower running, someone was at least home. Sarina was no longer by his side in the bed, where could she have gone? Maybe she was the one in the shower. Without realization his head had lifted off the pillow to examine the rest of the room, what was above and behind him. His arm lifted instinctively to scratch at the bridge of his nose, that's when he realized he could move more than he could yesterday, far more. He looked at his other arm and was capable of lifting it above his to touch his hair. His eyes widened, he hadn't felt his own hair and years, nor did he know how soft it was. He clenched it before letting go and smiling to himself.

He became curious at what more he could do. He wanted to stand, 'I have to stand, I have to be able to walk again, I remember, I swear I remember how, come on just do it.' His leg twitched a bit but suddenly his knee lifted a few inches. He pulled his leg back further and used his hands to feel his toes. He smiled and breathed as if he was laughing, he was completely engulfed in joy. He moved his other leg just the same. Now knowing he could lift his legs maybe he could set his feet down. With his best effort he used his core muscles and tried to lift himself up, bring his chest to his knees. He held his legs close in a fetal position, happy that he could move. He looked towards the ground to his left, the floor seemed so far away, he grew scared but quickly became determined.

He lifted one leg away from him and turned his body to face the floor, he set his foot down before quickly pulling it back up, the floor was cold and it stunned him. He gently put his foot down following with the other. Both feet were now firmly attached to floor, its chill sending it throughout his body. He then positioned his hand on the bed at his sides, ready to push off and stand up. With much effort he was albe todo so, his body stood tall and his arms extended out for balance. 'Come on I can do this,' he lifted one leg to take a step forward, quickly loosing balance and falling forward, crashing into the ground. His body let out a grunting sound. He laid there for a few seconds before standing up again. This time it was easier, he smiled to himself before trying to walk once more. His leg landed successfully about a foot ahead of him, he moved the other leg passed his foot and completed a full two steps. He stood with his feet together before scanning the room. He could a small mirror hanging on the wall above the kitchen sink. He had to get a glimpse of himself.

He slowly made his way over, using his hands to brace himself against his destination to keep from falling once more. His hands laid at each edge of the sink, his eyes looking downward. 'Come on you can do this, just look up, I know you're scared but we have to find out together.' Before long his head slowly looked up till his eyes met with his own through the mirror. 'This is me, the new me.' he as he examined his horns, his hair, his eyes, his everything. That's when he noticed he still had bandages all over his body. He started with the tab at his shoulder, slowly peeling it away revealing no blood or lacerations. Finally his torso was bare, nothing but toned muscles and scars from his past wounds.

[StarBoi]

The water was cold as it rushed over her body. It was just the way she liked it. Not frigid but not warm either. Sarina allowed the coolness to flow over her in the shower. It felt so good on her aching body. She had taken quite a beating from the demons and few exorcists she fought. The demons fought to kill, the exorcists not so much. But they still wanted to bring her in, so she had to take them out. Her fingers ran through her blood splattered hair. The black blood dripped off of her as the water diluted it, the watered down blood splashed across the whiteness of the tub.

It hurt when it touched her face for she had been whacked pretty hard by a massive demon arm at one point, but at the same time it soothed the rest of her wounds. “Mm…” Tears streamed down Sarina’s cheeks and it agitated her to no end. Although hardened by all of her experiences, there was still a young girl inside of Sarina that wanted so desperately for things to return to the way they were before everything. Before the change of Liam, before his capture, before they even ran away in the first place. He was haunted before yes, but things were so much easier back then. Liam was safer then…

However, it no longer bothered her that she had to fight demons every night. Before it was to find Liam. She would interrogate whoever she could find lurking in the night, whoever else was searching for Liam. But now, her purpose was to protect him. Whoever came close to the hotel was destroyed, if it happened to be an exorcist they were merely beaten, not killed. The young girl refused to kill an exorcist because they were on the more just side of things. Even if it was their fault Liam was imprisoned in the first place.

Sarina brought her hands to her face and covered her eyes. “What have I gotten myself into…” Was a question she often asked herself. It didn’t really matter anymore. She was a stone cold veteran, sworn to protect her best friend no matter what. As she was deep in thought the girl was scrubbing her body with her luffa that she had received from Jay a while back. He was always thinking of her and ever since she’d been coming home covered in blood it had been useful to her.

Outside the door there was a soft voice, “I’m running to the store for some food, Liam is still sleeping so I’ll be right back.” It was the voice of her good friend and partner, Jay.

“Alright.” She responded in an equally quiet town, just loud enough for him to hear her over the shower. “Hurry back.” Now that she had finished cleaning the blood off of her body she could focus on cleansing her hair. With her shampoo and conditioner combined into one bottle she washed her hair slowly, continuing to think on things.

Would Liam ever be able to stand or to move again… to speak again? Would he ever be able to communicate to her with more than just a few blinks? These thoughts consumed her and more tears went down her cheeks. Stop crying!! She scolded herself in the back of her mind. At last she finished lathering and rinsing her hair and got out of the shower. Immediately she wrapped a clean towel around herself and headed out the door. “Jay, you better have returned, you said you’d be right…” Her voice trailed off as she saw something she was not expecting. There, standing before the mirror above the sink, was Liam.

“Liam??” Without hesitation she ran into the back room to throw on grey sweatpants and an old, faded black t-shirt. After which she emerged from the back to stand across the room from Liam. “What are you doing out of bed? I thought you couldn’t move…?” Her eyes were wide and filled with tears of joy, water dripped down her back from her wet blonde hair which caused her to shiver a little. She was overwhelmed with emotion, mostly the joy of seeing him on his feet again. Sarina had been right, Liam was rather tall, at one point they had been the same height. “Does this mean… you can talk to me?” By now she was taking steps toward him until she was just a foot away from him. “Please say yes…”

[lantgreen]

Liam heard the bathroom door open, his eyes widened slightly, surprised someone was making their presence. I was more so expecting Jay over Sarina, he expected that she had probably left to get him something, but then again, she would never leave his side. He didn't know who to expect. His eyes remained at the mirror, staring into the person he had not seen in over three years. He smiled at himself, 'Well at least you are still good looking.'

The next sound in the room came from a soft voice which said his name. He knew it was Sarina and his mouth opened to respond but nothing came of it. He frowned in disappointment till she had returned. She spoke, surprised he was out of bed, talking as if he belonged there. He didn't like staying still, that bed was the last place he wanted to be, it was a place he would remember of the time he couldn't move. She came closer and he could feel her aura. This was new, he never felt someones aura before, he could tell how she felt, what her next move would be, almost as if he was predicting the future but more so as reading their intentions. He could feel that she was overwhelmed, a mix of emotions, nothing solid, but joy stood out among the rest.

He turned to face her, his head higher than hers, a small smirk formed on his face, though it quickly went away as he noticed she had a black eye. His frowned showed enough emotion that it probably worried her. He lifted his hand and brought it close to her cheek, he looked at black claws and frowned further till his knuckles made contact with her skin. He quickly pulled away, stunned by her cold skin and the sudden touch that he could finally feel after all these years. He approached her cheek once more, this time with his palm facing her. His hand landed on her skin and his thumb lightly rubbed the dark area. With a small smile realizing that he could touch her safely, he quickly pulled her close, a small tear escaping as he could feel her pain, he wrapped both arms around her, embracing her tightly.

He closed his eyes, overwhelmed with joy and happiness. He was glad his body could move like it used to, that he could finally feel her rather than having to be touched. Before long he had forgotten she asked him a question, realizing this he pulled away and stared at her in the eyes. 'No I can not talk, but I will soon,' He was speaking as his soul, but hoping that she could read his eyes, saying what he thought. The two have known each other for years, they could read each other like a book.

He smiled at her trying to make her not worry about it, he lifted his arm between them both looking down at the wrappings before looking back at her, as if asking her help. He wanted to see his body, his scars, his new form. Each time he saw his claws he worried about hurting her, but knew she would take precaution around him. Once the bandages were off he turned back to mirror, examining his body more, becoming acceptance of his new body. A new aura began to grow closer and closer to their position. After receiving this strange ability this morning, he didn't know who or what it was, he heard the sound of the door handle seconds before Sarina could. His left hand twitched and expanded, his fingers and claws straining with blood. Though the tense action was very minor and minimal detail, it still happened.

[StarBoi]

She closed her eyes when she felt his hand on her face, it felt so warm and almost hurt when he rubbed against her bruise. He couldn't find out about her secret going out at night, but at this rate it felt like he would. Being held by the boy of her dreams was a feeling that she had always longed for, or at least waited several years for. It was so different now, leaning against his muscular body and feeling his buff arms made her all warm and fuzzy inside. When he looked into her eyes she knew what he was trying to tell her, almost as if she could read his mind. Soon enough he would be able to speak, but not now. His lips smiled a bit and she smiled in return. The boy asked for her help with his eyes. Sarina moved to remove his bandages, they dropped to the ground and a gasp escaped as she saw the scars. "Liam.... You're body it’s..." Her words cut off as her thoughts wandered.

Her friend’s torso and arms were covered in deep scars. Nearly all of which were puncture wound scars from the Iron Maiden contraption they had him restrained in. Her teeth clenched and she reached out her hand to touch his chest. “I can’t believe they did this too you… Those bastards.” In the back of her mind she thought of her katana in its sheath that she had slid under the bed upon arrival. How she could make them pay with her mighty weapon and her deadly skills.

Sarina must have sensed it too when the new aura came close to the apartment, though she knew it was her friend Jay. "Jay's home." She moved away from Liam momentarily to open the front door. Jay stood there holding a few bags of groceries, his hand was out as if he had been about to open the front door. "Hey!" Her face lit up, momentarily forgetting the anger she felt when looking at Liam’s wounds.

"Whoa, your eye looks worse." He raised his hand to poke her underneath her eye where her bruise was. "Ow." The girl winced and pulled away. Liam got close, seeming to be defensive of her. "It's okay, Liam. Jay's a friend, you remember Jay right?"

When Liam didn’t respond, Jay spoke. “He’s on his feet!! And holy wow look at those scars!” Jay chuckled his accent thickening with his excitement, “you healed rather quickly didn’t you?! But I suppose that’s to be expected, right?” He moved past them and headed into the small kitchen to put the groceries away. “I hope you don’t expect me to pick up these dirty wrappings on the kitchen floor.”
At the mention of the bandages, Sarina went to clean them up, wrapping them up nice and tight before throwing them into the kitchen trash can.
“Liam. I...” She yawned heavily and drug her feet toward the bed.

“Looks like someone needs to sleep again. That’s a normal human thing you know, you’re not invincible or unsusceptible, you do know that right?” Jay nagged while finishing putting things up.

“I know, I know...” Yawning once more the girl threw herself onto the bed and brought the covers up and over herself. “Good night. Watch over Liam for me.” Normally she wouldn’t have left him like this, but this morning she was particularly exhausted. “Right! Of course, anything for you, Sarina.” Jay looked toward Liam and grinned, “looks like it’s you and me, bro.”

[lantgreen]

The door opened only to reveal Jay, he knew the young man, the one who cared for him while Sarina was either gone or asleep. He remembered their past, Jay was very protective over Sarina but he would never have the bond that shared between the close friends. His body relaxed, his hand no longer straining, his shoulders dropped a bit and a heavy breath escaped his lips. He moved away from the kitchen, allowing Jay passage to put the groceries away. He then mentioned the dirty wrappings on the floor to which Sarina picked up before he could budge to help.

She spoke to the demon boy and he knew she was tired, he wanted to go outside and explore but he would wait for her to rest till they went out. Jay commented about not being invincible or something like that, as if she was getting hurt often. He wondered if she was hiding something from her but didn't bother to dig into it at the moment, too much has happened to bring up drama.

The young lady quickly fell asleep and it left Liam and Jay alone. 'I don't know what to do, Ferdia what do I do, I worry for Sarina but I know I should not pester, but now it's just me and Jay, we have never really bonded.'

'Why don't you play a game, maybe some brain activity can help awaken your speech.'

'That's a good idea I guess,' He looked around the room before glancing at Jay. He didn't know how to communicate with him, he wanted to play a game with him but there was nothing around. His brain started working, he had an idea but now he needed an flat object. He scanned the room once more till his eyes landed on a wooden cutting board. A small smirk appeared on his face as he took it off the shelf and sat down on the floor with his legs crossed. He started using his claws and creating equal rows and columns of dots all over the board. He looked over to the Jay with a smile, he took his finger and carved a single line connecting only two dots. Liam's brain was working on a simple game of connect the dots, make as many squares as possible by taking turns with a player and making the last line for a square. He hoped Jay knew the game as well and would understand right away.

[StarBoi]

Jay watched curiously as Liam carved things into their perfectly good cutting board. He knelt down before the teen with one knee bent. "What're you doing?" He questioned examining the dots and the single line that the boy and drawn. "Is this what I think it is? You want to play a game?" Removing his knife from his boot the orange-haired teenager carefully took the wooden board from Liam and looked at the dots inquisitively. "Yea, yea it is! Awesome." He was most certain that he had played the game before as a child in grade school and would give it a try since Liam wanted him too. With his knife he carved another line adjacent to the one Liam had drawn, he hoped he was doing it right. "That's alright, yea?" He looked to Liam for a nod or a head shake.

When Liam gave him a nod, Jay smirked. "Great!" The boys took turns drawing lines and on the board and filling squares with either a J or an L. Once the game was over, Liam had won. "Heh, rematch?" Jay flipped the board over and started making the dots again. They played once more for quite a while, until their were no more spaces to make more lines. "You're great. I'm glad you're up and about and Sarina must be overjoyed. But you know, she just gets tired sometimes..." He looked toward the bed where Sarina was sleeping. "Yea... I have something. We could do. I mean, if you want." Jay did not wait for Liam to respond, he got up and walked to the bed and pulled something out from under it. It was a pile of three thin and long dusty old boxes.

"These are all old board games from a book store I explored a long while ago. We have: battleship, mancala, connect 4, and checkers. Sorry I don't have chess, Sarina told me you like chess but they didn't have it at the time." Jay set down the games in front of Liam and let the boy choose which one he wanted to play. The first choice was checkers and Jay set up the checker board with all the pieces on it. They played for a long time back and forth keeping score as each won several times over.

"Nnn" There was a soft groan from the bed. "Is it night time, yet?" Sarina muttered. Only a few hours had passed, it was noon now. "Jay?" She had forgotten that Liam was awake and out of bed. The girl felt around the bed for friend. "Liam? Liam!!" Sarina sat up and looked around frantically. Her eyes widened when she saw the two boys on the ground playing checkers. "What are you guys doing?"

"Liam's right here. We're playing checkers so as not to wake you." Jay spoke to her in Italian as they did very often, not that any one their could not understand. "Are you feeling alright?" The boy asked. "I think I sat up too fast..." Sarina put her hands on her head. "Nnghh. Liam are you okay?"

[lantgreen]

Liam grew excited as Jay became interested in spending time with him, his first choice of a game was rather simple and fun, a game Liam was very good at. After winning a couple times Jay got up and pulled out a couple more games, one of which he was not very good at but another stuck out. Both Ferdia and Liam had enjoyed checkers, though the boy had preferred chess to which Jay had apologize for not having. Liam simply responded with a smile and the two began playing checkers. The score between the two was pretty close, though the only matches that Liam had won was played by Ferdia, controlling Liam's mind in his place to have some fun.

A small noise came from the bed, he knew it was Sarina but apparently she had forgotten that Liam could move again. She looked over to him and asked if he was okay. He gave her a soft sweet smile and nodded. He tried to speak again, opening his mouth with nothing but air coming out, not a sound could be heard. He frowned and stood up from the floor from which the two boys sat upon to play their games. He walked over to her and gave her a light hug before looking at the door and pointing. He really wanted to go outside, he was done with being trapped by walls, any walls. He hadn't seen the outside world for years.

He looked around, trying to find something to wear to cover his torso, though with no luck he didn't succeed. He was aware of his horns and how other people would react if they saw them. His hands lifted to his crown and touched his small horns, he covered them with his palms and had the look of worry on his face, his eyes big as he stared at the two, waiting to see if they had an answer.

"Be careful out there now, you've been gone for three years, your people skills may not be what they used to."

"Oh please, like I can even talk anyways, I'm not worried, I just want to walk, to see, to feel and smell again."

"Even if you can't talk, do you remember the exorcists that used to hunt you before, they are still out there, and there are far more now that news has spread you escaped solitary confinement made specifically for a demon as strong as myself. Just be careful Liam."

"Right, I forgot about them, I'll keep a watchful eye, thanks." Liam vanished first before the Demon could turn to ash, he was in a hurry to go outside and enjoy himself.

[StarBoi]

He gave her a hug and she almost blushed but held back her feelings. It seemed he wanted to go outside and she sighed heavily. "You know it's dangerous out there, Liam." Sarina reminded him. "Exorcists and demons looking to take you down." She bit her lip, she didn't want him to worry so she added, "but don't worry I won't let anything happen to you, right Jay?" The young woman looked toward her friend for support. Jay put his hand on the back of his head and smiled. "Of course not, you'd never let anything happen to him that's why you-" He was stopped when Sarina spoke up once more, "that's why we rescued you!!" Obviously there was something she didn't want Liam to know. "So you want to go out do you, Liam?" Her best friend nodded his head.

"Alright, give me a moment and we'll get those horns covered." Sarina walked into the separate room and brought two things out. In her hands she held a black cloak and a square pouch seemingly full. The girl smiled and pulled a card from the pouch and slapped it somewhat gently against Liam's forehead. Jay stood up watching with a brow raised. "Indespectus!" Sarina whispered with her eyes closed. There was a moment of silent before Liam's horns began to glow white and then they disappeared. Sarina lept up and then hugged Liam tightly. "Yes, I did it, I knew I could do it! The effects will only last a short while, that's what this is for!" Excitedly she wrapped the cloak around Liam.

Liam reached up to feel his horns, they were still there, but they were invisible. "Yes, they are still there, but not there. Isn't it great?" Sarina smiled at him. "Come on!" Sarina took his hand and pulled him toward the door. "Sarina I think you're forgetting something." Jay grabbed Sarina's sword from under the bed and was about to bring it too her but the door closed in his face. "Uhm... yea, don't worry about it, I'll wait here."

They walked out into the hallway. "It'll be alright, just trust me." Once they were outside, Sarina stared up at the sky. "It's very bright. But um. Here we are. Outside. Nothing special."