Derrick saw himself in an oddly familiar space. The first time he saw himself there, it was when he picked up that weird prism. This would make it the second time.
He saw himself in a pool of blood, though it was like he was walking on it without sinking. The edges of the pool were lined with a variety of bones in no particular order. At the center of the pool, there was a throne made from skulls and a figure sitting haughty on it.
First time he had been there, he couldn't quite make out the figure that sat on that throne but this time, he could see it clearly. The figure took his features with a few modifications. Such as a horn on the left side of its head and black streaks that stretched out around the right side of its body.
"Oi." Derrick yelled angrily, "What the hell are you?"
The demon sat cross legged on its throne of bones while balancing his face on his right palm and staring at Derrick in disgust.
"Don't ignore me." Derrick yelled as he ran up to the demon's throne.
The demon flicked its left index finger in Derrick's direction and a large gash appeared on Derrick's chest. He fell backwards and clutched his chest which healed almost instantly, to his surprise.
The demon got up disgusted and walked down his throne slowly towards Derrick until it was standing just above Derrick who slowly tried to get up. It was at this moment that Derrick saw its gleaming red eyes perfectly.
"Seems I can't kill you inside here." Thanatos responded.
"And where is 'here'?" Derrick asked, confused.
"Just think of it as a mental landscape." Thanatos said passively.
"And how did I get here?" asked Derrick.
"When you forcefully regained control of your body, both our consciousness were worn out and your body was sent to suspended animation." Thanatos lectured
"And how long has that been?" Derrick asked
"Quite a while." Thanatos responded flatly. "You ask too many questions. It disgusts me."
"Well this isn't about you." Derrick retorted angrily
"Silence!!" Thanatos yelled as he waved his hand causing another large gash to appear on Derrick's chest.
Derrick clutched his chest and fell once more, howling in pain as the cut healed itself.
Thanatos turned his back on Derrick then walked towards his throne. Just before he reached it, Derrick got up with his chest healed fully.
"What the hell are you?" Derrick yelled, frustrated.
The demon stopped in its steps for a while then stared at its throne still with its back turned to Derrick. It then looked slightly over its shoulder and responded,
"A proud tyrant."
"I don't understand." Derrick responded.
"And it's not your place to understand." Thanatos retorted.
"Well it's not your place to live in my body and try to kill my friends." Derrick fired.
"If I hadn't shown up you would be dead." The demon retorted.
"Well. I'd prefer death to a life with you?" He responded after a brief moment of silence.
"I'll remember that." Thanatos said in a subtle yet belligerent tone. It then sighed in relief and said, "Any moment now you should be waking up."
"So, what does that mean for you?" Derrick asked.
"I'll just be here waiting."
"Waiting for..?" Derrick was curious to know.
Thanatos closed his eyes for a couple of seconds as though reflecting on his answer, then when he opened it, he responded to Derrick's question calmly with the word,
"Fate."
Before Derrick could ask any more questions, the scene before him dissolved into an empty void of darkness which was broken by a single ray of light. Suddenly, Derrick's eyes flung open to see himself in a small room with earthen walls and a tiny sofa. It was a living room.
On the wall by the door, he saw blood splattered across it and a man lying on the floor dead, probably the house owner.
"You're awake." He heard a voice say from behind him which startled him.
He turned around weakly to see a demon which was the same color as the walls around it as though the light reflected off its body in a strange way with curved horns that came down to the sides of its face.
"Umm. Who are you?" Derrick asked weakly.
"I am your abductor. They call me Code." The demon responded as it walked towards him in a weirdly excited manner.
"From one thing to another." Derrick muttered to himself.
The demon stared intently at Derrick for a while without saying anything.
"Is that all you have to say?" It asked with the disappointment evident in its tone.
"How exactly did you abduct me?" Derrick asked.
"It's all thanks to Shadow. He distracted that female hunter so I could escape with your body" Code responded.
"Who's Shadow?" Derrick asked with clear confusion displayed.
"One of the two demons originally sent to kill you." Code responded.
"Kill me? Why?" Derrick asked
"Because of the demon inside you." Code responded.
"This guy just keeps causing trouble," Derrick muttered to himself once more.
"If you wanted to kill me, why haven't you done that already?"
"Because, I want to see the look of terror on your face as I cut you up. I want to hear your screams as I detach flesh from bone." Code hugged itself as it squealed in excitement at the thought.
Derrick checked himself and realized he had no weapon on him to aid him in his fight. All he had were his fists. He was about to attack first when an important question popped up in his mind.
"How were you able to get me? There is no way you could have entered The Garden."
"We didn't. You had been moved to a medical center." Code responded.
"And how did you know?" He asked.
Code paused for a while to think. "A strange man told us."
Suddenly, a knock came at the door. Before any of them could deliberate on whether or not to answer it, the boor was blasted open and standing at the entrance was none other than Remus Finch.