Anne and Nina arrived at the address. The moon and stars shined brightly above them. There were no street lights for miles. The address led them to an old toy factory in the outskirts of the city. Everything around was rusty and abandoned.
They scouted around the building without entering. Neither of them sensed any Night Demons nearby. Anne wanted to just enter and fight her way through if it was a trap, but Nina didn't want to just jump into anything without backup. So, they waited atop a nearby building that overlooked the factory.
Some spiders hid in the dark watching them. Each one with the same mask and signature, but too small to see from their view.
Then, Anne noticed a shadow peeking from inside the warehouse. As soon as she saw it, she recognized the silhouette. It was Kira. But the figure hid back into the shadows. Anne knew that Kira was dead, but the sight of her made it hard for to think straight. She knew that it must have been her imagination or some kind of illusion.
But Anne was tired of waiting around. She wanted to find out what it was and get it over with. She jumped down as Nina followed trying to stop her.
"Let's go, Nina," Anne said.
"What about Jack and Mary?" Nina asked.
"We don't need them. I know you're worried that we might end up falling into a trap, but I don't care. We're doing this, now," Anne said without looking back.
Nina couldn't argue with her and decided to reluctantly agree.
"Fine. Let's get this over with," Nina said.
They went inside the toy factory side-by-side. They had their weapons ready for anything except for what they were about to find.
As soon as they entered the whole room was brightened with magical colors and rainbows that streamed throughout the walls and ceilings. There were bats hanging with their feet nailed to the ceiling, and their wings have been replace with butterfly wings. They chirped out slow orchestral music.
There was an arch and an entrance way down. A sign above the arch said: "Welcome to Annie's Art Gallery."
And there was a girl standing in front. She dressed with a fancy, long, white dress while holding onto a golden rod. She bowed elegantly and said, "Welcome, Nine and Anne. I hoped that you would get my invitation. My name is Annie Weldsfield."
Nina and Anne raised their weapons against the girl. They had a serious glint in their eyes. Nina didn't know anybody by that name, but Anne did remember a long time ago hearing that name, but she couldn't put her finger on it.
"I don't sense anything, but I'm sure this is the work of some Night Demon," Nina said.
"Oh, you mean my fantastical landscape. Don't worry. This is not the work of some evil entity, but all my own. And there is much more for me to show," she replied as she made a welcoming gesture towards a stairway leading down deeper into the ground.
"Don't be coy. I know what I saw. Where is Kira? What did you do to her, Night Demon?" Anne angrily said. Nina was surprised that Anne saw Kira, but made sure her emotions were in check. They both still thought that the world around them was a mere illusion created by a monster. They were half-right. It was no mere illusion. Everything was real. But they were right about it being made by a monster. Annie made sure that she was calm and elegant throughout the whole ordeal.
"Kira? Ahh, yes," Annie replied, "You will find what you're looking for further down into my gallery."
Nina raised her blade up against Annie, but she didn't flinch or feel fear.
"You first," Nina said.
"As you wish. Follow me," Annie said as she walked down the stairs maintaining her innocent smile.
Nina and Anne remained cautious as they followed her down.
When they reached the bottom, their eyes were met with an entire new world. There didn't seem to be any walls or ceiling. It looked like a recreation of a city. The road was only one-way, but everything seemed too real and yet dream-like. There weren't any people and the buildings were filled with many different kinds of paintings. The space was occupied with what looked to be surreal statues of bizarre creatures. They were of varying sizes and colors. Each one very different than the rest. However, when Nina and Anne looked at them, they felt like each one looked back at them.
They kept their guard up around the place even though they didn't sense anything. No matter how much Annie would assure them that it wasn't, they still suspected it to be some kind of Night Demon's power.
"Please. Enjoy your visit. Walk around and explore. If you have any questions about my art, please feel free to ask. However, I would like you to keep an open mind. Art is subjective with no real right answer," Annie said.
Anne retorted, "Enough of this! We know this is just some illusion. Kira is dead. And I'll tear apart the creature that brought us here to try and deceive us."
"If you would ple-" Annie said, until Nina interrupted.
"If you want to help us, why don't you just show us to what we came for. We won't be playing whatever game it's playing. If you can't show us, then we'll just leave," Nina said.
Annie bit her lip, but maintained her smile.
"Good grief. I was hoping to show you that last, but if it will keep you here, I guess I can make an exception," Annie said, "Follow me further in. What you're looking for is in the next section of my gallery. We can just start backwards."
They walked past the exhibits that Annie worked tirelessly to put together, but didn't feel any ill will towards the girls. She knew exactly why they came, so she expected them not to really appreciate the art that surrounded them. But she was sure that they would appreciate her latest work. Annie snapped her fingers and the world around them began to break apart.
"You know what. I'll save you some effort. I'll just show you now," Annie said.
The sky was filled with dark red paint and bright blue stars. The whole unraveled revealing the next section of the gallery. Paints swirled in the sky like a torrent of color. But Nine and Anne didn't come to look at the art. There were still plenty of statues placed all around. Some looked to be floating in mid-air. Yet, all of them looked monstrous and terrifying. Both big and small.
They just prepared themselves for a fight while wondering why they couldn't sense any Night Demons nearby. They still didn't believe anything that they were seeing was real, but Annie wanted to rectify that.
They walked a bit further until Annie stopped.
She said, "I will bring the piece you want here if you agree to at least take a look at my other works, too."
Nina and Anne didn't plan on keeping that promise, but nodded anyways. They assumed that the girl was going to bring out a Night Demon to fight and readied themselves.
Annie smiled and snapped her fingers.
All of the seemingly still statues came to life. They scurried away to the surprise of Anne and Nina. Each one of them were alive and acted like Night Demons, yet neither of them sensed it. They seemed like Night Demons, but Annie knew better. There were so many of them all huddling around each other and crawling on the sky. Each one unique to the next in shape, size, and colors.
Then, vines began to grow from beneath the ground in front of Annie without Anne or Nina sensing or seeing it. The two girls stood side-by-side ready to fight all of the creatures, but they wouldn't come.
She turned around to face Anne and Nina who were in shocked by the number of monsters around them. But the creatures had no plans to attack without Annie's orders. Each one stayed far away just watching.
Then, the ground beneath Annie slightly shook. The ground opened up like a mouth with rows of wooden teeth. A rose larger than many constructs grew out from underneath. It hadn't bloomed yet, but Annie was waiting for the perfect time. It's elongated thorns shined like a diamond. The scent of the rose filled the room with an ambrosial aroma.
Anne and Nina focused on the giant rose that appeared before them. Both of them regretted not having Jack and Mary to back them up, but it was too late now. They knew that they fell right into the trap that they knew they'd spring. They just didn't know what kind of trap it was.
It towered over all of them. Annie walked over to the side of the rose and a large vine grew from underneath her feet. It carried her over to the closed petals. She rubbed her soft hands over the smooth, yet overpowering petals.
And with a small pinch to the petal, the rose bloomed as elegantly as Annie wanted. It acted just like how she wanted.
And when the rose opened up, both Anne and Nina were shocked and disgusted at what they saw.
They saw Kira's body roped up to a wooden stake by sharp vines. Her arms replaced with tree bark that attached to the ground. Her bulging eyes forced out with metal wires holding back her eyelids. Her wounds sewn shut and filled with writhing plant life. It groaned and muttered with her open mouth, even though it looked like it had been loosely sewn together with black wire. Her red eyes scanned the area with erratic motions. Veins popped out of her eyes and as those unblinking eyes remained open, tears flowed out of her sockets. On the back of her neck was Annie's signature branded in gold.
Both Nina and Anne were left speechless by the monstrosity. Their friend hung up like a display. Nine began to shudder. Anne clenched her fists angrily.
Annie smiled at their reaction. She hoped that it would get a reaction like any good art. There was so much emotion. Alas, Annie didn't want to break the silence, but felt the need to.
Anne said with a broad smile, "As you can see, the art piece you have waited for. I call it 'Kira's Rose'."