We followed Ethan, even though he ran like a headless chicken. His head would turn erratically, as if he was hearing something we couldn't. Eventually, he freaked out again.
"Marcus!!"
He ran some more and shouted again, desperately calling.
"Marcus!! Marcus!!"
He stopped again and glared at a wall, like he could see through it.
[Your Constellation Sponsor hopes you are suspicious of him.]
"Come on! Follow me!"
We ran through the halls, took a right, and approached a heavy classroom door. Ethan grabbed the handle and tried to turn it, but it jiggled in place.
"What the hell? Why won't it open?!"
"Calm down," I said. "It's a door that locks from the inside."
"Why?!"
"Two words," Aliana said nonchalantly, "school shootings."
"Oh, screw it all to hell!!"
Suddenly, an influx of scathing heat began emanating from Ethan.
"What the-?"
Aliana and I stepped away because it was so unbearably hot.
Ethan grabbed the doorknob with his left hand, and the metal handle morphed into slag. He balled his right hand into a fist, and-
-!!BAM!!-
-punched the door open. He stormed the classroom, and I hesitantly walked in. As I did, I noticed the metal drippings pooling on the floor.
"Oh, hell no!!"
I turned to look and saw-
"Wow, she's going for it."
-Alexa pinning Marcus to a couch. He was sprawled, lying on his back, and Alexa was trying to tug his shirt off.
"Wha? What the hell? Get out!!"
Ethan stomped over and grabbed Alexa's hair, clutching her blond locks in his fists.
"You mewling quim," he seethed.
After saying that, Ethan grabbed her by the throat and threw her off Marcus. As if a switch was flipped, Ethan began talking gently.
"Hey, Marcus, dude? Can you hear me?"
Ethan shook Marcus's body, trying to rouse him. He didn't respond. Ethan stood up, paused, and inhaled repeatedly, trying to calm himself down.
"You fuckin' bitch."
It wasn't enough. Ethan pulled a knife out of his jacket pocket; it was a jagged, pointy, serrated thing.
"Gwah!!"
He pinned Alexa to the wall and shoved the knife against her throat.
"What did you give to him!?! Tell me!!"
"O-okay, okay. Specter powder. I gave him specter powder. I slipped it into his drink."
Ethan let her go and went to Marcus's body. Marcus looked asleep and appeared fine, but I knew he wasn't.
"Let's go. Aliana, grab his legs."
"Fine."
As they did, Ethan paused again.
"W-wait. No."
He glared at Alexa, and I looked at her too.
"You wouldn't."
Alexa Demin just smirked.
"She's just a girl!!"
Ethan threw Marcus onto the couch and ran to another classroom. I didn't know what to do, so I stayed close to Marcus's unconscious body. My held my arms across my chest, and felt my heart beating quickly.
(Ethan's going to give me a heart attack one day.)
***
When I opened that door, I saw Alexa ready to assault Marcus.
"Oh, hell no!!"
"Wha? What the hell? Get out!!"
As I grabbed a fistful of Alexa's hair, I checked her status information.
+
[Character Profile]
Name: Alexa Demin
Age: 16
Constellation: Seductive Ensnarer
Personal Attribute: [Popular Personage] (Rare), [Flexible Athlete] (Uncommon), [Sexual Predator] (Uncommon)
Personal Stats: Strength Lv. 37, Stamina Lv. 36, Agility Lv. 43, Mana Lv. 21
Stigma: [Seductive Effect]
Personal Skills: Quick Kicking Lv. 10, Grabbing Lv. 10, Crowd Control Lv. 6, Disarming Charm Lv. 8, Social, Manipulation Lv. 5, Fake Smile Lv. 5...
Overall Evaluation: A young woman who marketed themselves as a popular, likeable person. In reality, they are highly manipulative. They are fairly athletic and strong, partially due to their Constellation. Lately, their predatory tendencies have begun to emerge.
+
"You mewling quim."
I scowled at the Character Profile. There were some minute changes, like the stats increasing and the overall evaluation updating its description. Although, the most noticeable difference was her [Sexual Deviant] attribute. It evolved to [Sexual Predator.]
Attributes have the potential to evolve into different pathways, and people would sometimes lose entire attributes depending on their growth. An angry, disgruntled teen could lose their [Edge-Lord] attribute if they became a calm, collected sage.
It was not the case in this situation. It seems Alexa pushed the boundaries of her attribute and it evolved into something sick. I threw her off Marcus and attended to him.
"Hey, Marcus, dude? Can you hear me?"
He wouldn't respond as I shook his body. He was drugged, and I had my suspicions. I stood up and tried to calm myself, but my rage boiled over.
"You fuckin' bitch."
Alexa was reeling.
"Gwah!!"
I pinned her to a wall and shoved a knife near her throat.
"What did you give to him!?! Tell me!!"
"O-okay, okay. Specter powder. I gave him specter powder. I slipped it into his drink."
(Oh god.)
If Marcus was trapped in the Illusionary Pleasure, what would he see? How strong was the dosage? I'd have to work quickly to neutralize the effect. If he was conscious, it'd make it easier to treat him. I released Alexa and called to Aliana.
"Let's go. Aliana, grab his legs."
Aliana was disconcerted but she complied and said, "Fine."
As we grabbed Marcus, I received another system notification. My Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint was still activated. I stared at the message. I was still using my Stigma, but my blood ran cold.
"W-wait. No."
I stared at Alexa Demin, my rage vanishing. Only anxiety, disgust and fear remained.
"You wouldn't."
The bloody whore just smirked. My hatred returned.
"She's just a girl!!"
I placed Marcus back on the couch and bolted out of the classroom. The surrounding air pressure shifted as I ran, leaving a rush of wind behind me. I didn't care who saw my true speed. I needed to get to her quickly.
(Max.)
Her full name was Maxine McFarland. She was the daughter of my enemy, but a character I grew to care for. She was born in unfortunate circumstances and led an unfortunate life. Her life was tortuous before the Fall and it became worse when the scenarios began. As a reader, I wanted to change that. I just wanted the characters I knew to be happy.
Even if it meant I had to be miserable.
-!!BANG!!-
I kicked open a door, causing the lock mechanism to fly from the frame. I entered the empty classroom, and burning anger coursed through my body, gathering in my neck and head.
Jace Demin was pinning Max to a table, holding her by the wrists, stretching her out before him. Jace's face was inches from Max's, and her expression was clouded.
No word, no screams, only action. This situation must seem paragraphs long, but it only took a few seconds. Before Jace could look in my direction-
"Oof!!"
-I grabbed him by the arm, dragged him off of Max, and threw him into a wall.
"Ah!! Shit!!"
Jace's back slammed into a whiteboard as he fell to the ground. I looked at it and saw cracks running across it. I heard him gasp and inhale, so it meant I knocked the air out of his lungs.
I reached down, grabbed him the throat, sat him up, and began choking him.
"You sick bastard," I seethed.
My fingers clenched harder and spittle flew out from Jace's lips. I wanted to crack his neck until it was limp and purple. His eyes bulged as he tried to wrestle from my grip.
[Anger Lord is activated.]
It didn't matter how much strength he had. Due to my attribute, my strength was multiplied by three. I could rip him apart if I wanted to.
(I should.)
[St op.]
[Fragment of the 4th Wall is calming your rage.]
[Fragment of the 4th Wall is soothing your stress.]
An unnerving amount of levelheadedness entered my mind. It was such a contrast from my previous emotions, I was left reeling.
(Fraggy!! Why?!)
[Y ou got ta sa ve th em for la ter.]
I remembered. I wanted the Demin siblings to be the main event. If I killed them now, I couldn't perform my show later.
(I don't care. Not after what they did to Marcus and Max.)
"Go to hell."
I dug my fingernails into the flesh of his neck; I wasn't content with suffocation. I wanted to rip his esophagus out, I wanted to see his blood-coated vertebrae, and I wanted to see his ripped head dangling from his body.
[Constellation "Abyssal Black Flame Dragon" is interested in your next murder.]
[Constellation "Secretive Plotter" is bored from the senseless violence.]
[Constellation "The Black One, Lord of Muspellheim" wants to see the Incarnation burn to death instead.]
I was about to commit, but my motivation was killed by the incoming messages. I didn't want to kill this bastard to satisfy or displease the Constellations. I wanted to kill Jace and Alexa on my terms. I wanted to complete the murderous fantasy I'd been contemplating for years.
I released Jace's throat as I backed away. My hand felt numb and tingly, and I believed it was from disgust. I can't believe I got so close to that piece of shit.
I walked to Max, who seemed somewhat lucid. With her dilated eyes, she stared at me earnestly.
"Eee-than?"
Her speech was slurred, but at least she was conscious. Or maybe that was worse. How traumatic was it to be controlled by someone else, unable to escape and be aware? I gently brushed her brown locks from her face.
"It's okay. I'm here."
I grabbed Max and held her in my arms.
[Fragment of the 4th Wall is shaking from the immersion.]
For years, I've read about Max's character. Before TWSA came to life, she was nothing but digital words and sentences. Now she was a flesh and blood human, fragile as everyone else in the world. Perhaps more so.
I turned my back to Jace, ready to walk away but I stopped.
"If you come anywhere near Max, or anyone else I know," I whispered. "I'll kill your sister in front of you."
I glanced behind and saw Jace staring at me. His eyes showed a mixture of resentment and fear. I wasn't finished with my threat, though.
"Then I will shove my hand into your chest and rip out your heart. I will crush it into a pulp, and shove it down your throat as I parade your body. Do you understand?"
I didn't care if Jace did or not. I just wanted him to know.
"Ethan!"
Alicia and Aliana entered the doorway, carrying Marcus by his arms and legs.
"Come on, we need to get out!"
[Constellation "Maternal Harbinger of Eternal Night and Chaos" is pleased with your actions.]
[Constellation "Maternal Harbinger of Eternal Night and Chaos" has sponsored 1000 coins.]
I silently processed that message.
"Let's go," I said.
We carried our respective friends, but I felt panicked. What if there were guards ready to stop us?
"We can't go out the way we came. There are guards."
"Well, this was your idea, Ethan," Aliana said sharply. "You better have an idea."
"I do. Let's go to another classroom."
I checked a classroom and saw some mild PG-13 content. It was only teenagers doing drugs. We silently entered and crept through until we reached a window. Although, it was disgusting. I think I saw some people practically cooming their pants.
I popped open a window and felt the smoggy air seep in.
"What are you doing?" Alicia whispered.
Instead of answering, I jumped from the window.
"Oop, there goes gravity."