I’m Back

Hey, everyone. It’s Kenny again. And I’m…more than a little embarrassed.

It turns out that Waif-chan was the Unnamed Child. And I hadn’t even stopped to consider that possibility.

Last wasn’t happy. He’s barely spoken to me since he killed her. It’s not even like he’s mad at me. He’s mad at Crimson and Gabe. He says they should have known better. With me, he just seems…disappointed. And I think I know why. He’s worried that this might mean I can’t be this “Hero” he’s looking for.

I never asked for this, though. I never asked to be roped into a war against the Fears. I just wanted to survive. It was easier when I didn’t have people counting on me or expecting anything from me other than trying to save my own skin. I’d be angry at Last for being disappointed in me, if it weren’t for the fact that…I actually feel legitimately disappointed in myself.

“I don’t know why it bothers me,” I told Phones the other day as we played a game of chess.  He tapped the table once to let me know he had me in check. “I don’t want to do this, but…I feel like I have to, you know? It’s tough.” He never listens, but that’s maybe why I enjoy talking to him. It’s just easier to get my thoughts out that way, even if he can’t hear what I’m saying.

And that’s where I am right now. Hating myself. Hating Last. Unsure of what to do or where to go.

The Unnamed Child

Last of the Last here again to fill you in on what’s happened.

So when we struck, we struck quickly.

I took Wraith aside, talked to him, and explained the situation. He actually said he was disappointed in himself for not catching it on his own. I have to admit that I wanted to be disappointed in him too, but the nameless kid’s good at working on people subtly.

We knew Gabe would be the biggest obstacle, which is why we decided to cuff him to his bed while he slept. And also yoink his meat hammers and lock him in his room. Problem solved!

The problem was keeping Magpie, Fang, Mantis, and Phones out of the way. We really didn’t have anything planned, so I couldn’t come up with a very good pretext to send them off on any sort of mission. Eventually I just decided on sending Magpie and Fang off on a food run and hoping for the best with Mantis and Phones.

Phones was easy. He had locked himself up in his room anyway. I tried persuading Mantis before we launched our assault. I explained as simply and directly as I could that Waif-chan was actually the unnamed child and that we were going to pop her ass. He smiled and nodded as if he got what we were saying.

So we went ahead and launched our attack on Kenny and Crimson. I could go into details, but the long and short of it was that we kicked their asses pretty easily.

And then Mantis started kicking ours. It turns out that we overlooked the fact that “hey, we’re going to beat this little girl’s ass” doesn’t translate to “we’re going to beat up two of our own.” So Mantis had no clue what was going on and it’s kind of hard to explain to someone who barely speaks English that no, really, there’s a totally good reason for it while they’re in the middle of going Jackie Chan on you. And Reaper, Wraith and I don’t exactly have a ton of hand-to-hand combat skill.

“I’ll hold him off,” Black said. “Reaper and Wraith have Crimson and Kenny.  We can manage between the three of us. Just kill that fuckin’ kid, okay?”

I ran for the room where Waif-chan was staying. If I could just get in there and end it quickly….

But of course it wasn’t that easy, because Gabe is a bear, and the bed and door were wooden. He snapped off the part of the bed he was cuffed to and broke the door off the hinges, just in to see me heading for the Unnamed Child’s room.

“I’ll kill you,” he growled.

“Gabe, listen! She’s the Unnamed Child! She’s a Fear, Gabe! Please, just think for a second—”

Even without the hammers, Gabe hits really hard. A single solid punch to the gut brought me to the ground. It was Phones who saved me. In a fight to the death, Gabe probably would have come out on top. Gabe is slow, but he’s strong and sturdy. But I didn’t need a hard hitter. I needed someone quick, who could distract Gabe long enough without taking a hit.

As Gabe recovered from Phones’ initial blow, Phones looked at me and pointed towards the Unnamed Child’s room. So apparently he knew exactly what was happening the whole time. Phones, if you’re reading this, I’m sorry I doubted you.

Waif-chan looked up as I entered.  She smiled at me, her facial features just a bit off. The face of an adult on the body of a child, maybe. Though even that’s not quite right. Her mouth was a bit too wide. The eyes a bit big, the nose a bit flat, the teeth just a little too sharp. It was almost as if she had the facial features of a cartoon, but on a real, living being, making the whole appearance a bit surreal.

“You’ve made it this far,” she said, smiling. “What now, though? Do you really think you can kill me?”  I pulled a gun on her. She laughed. “Don’t be stupid. You can’t hurt me with that.”

“Oh, no, of course not. I mean, you’re kind of an abstract concept. Maybe you guys can kill each other if you try hard enough, but this? I know I’ve got no chance of killing you with something like a gun. But here’s the thing: I know people. I’ve got contacts in high places. Very high places. There are even some Fears I’ve had some dealings with. One in particular I’ve been a…regular customer of, shall we say? Tall, cloaked, sort of a bookish fellow?”

She frowned. “I don’t see how that helps you.”

I kept the gun leveled. “You’re the Unnamed Child. But really, that’s only a title, isn’t it? You’re abstract, and that gives you power. But you’re also tangible, meaning that you really, in some sense, exist. And that’s your weakness. Because everything that exists is something. Means something. And when one is dealing with something who knows what that something is….”  I grinned in satisfaction as her saucer-like eyes widened even further. “That’s right. This gun? This can’t hurt you. But this can.”

“No,” she said, her voice a hoarse whisper.

Fun fact about the word “unnamed.” It doesn’t quite mean the same thing as “nameless.” Names are powerful things. And even the Unnamed child has one.

I spoke it aloud.

Naming her was all it took. All the power went from her. Immediately, I heard the scuffle outside the door cease. She looked at me, no longer a Fear. Just a little girl wearing the wrong face.

I pulled the trigger.

Two down.

Balancing the Scales

The bad news is that Kenny, Crimson, and Gabe are all still taken in by Waif-chan.  The good news is that Reaper, Boston Black, and myself can all clearly see that she’s the Unnamed Child, just  because we have one very important trait in common: we fucking hate kids.

This means that Wraith, Maggie, Mantis, and Fang are all kind of confused (leaving Phones as a wild card since I’m not sure how much he even notices what’s going on around him). This basically means that they can’t see that Waif-chan is a Fear and might have trouble believing it, but they still feel comfortable around her. She’s a subtle little bitch, and that’s what’s making it hard to see which way any of the Masks will tip. Two I can trust. Three I can’t. And that still leaves about half of us completely unaccounted for.

Mantis is the one of those I’m most worried about since he barely speaks English, but everyone speaks cute adorable little kid. She can put up a much more winning argument, since the shy smiles she gives him may very well look like sunshine and rainbows instead of uncanny valley. Wraith is probably going to be easiest to convince, since I think he’s genuinely pretty apathetic towards her. No bias. I can work with that. And Maggie…I dunno. She’s a girl. Maybe she likes kids because she wants them or something? Maybe she hates them actually? Fuck, I don’t know how girl hormones work. Might be worth a shot, but I have no clue what I could predict with her.

Okay. I’ve got a plan. I know what to do. Killing her’s going to be the easy part, since I’m pretty sure I know how to do that.

It’s making sure that we don’t kill each other that’s going to be the hard part.

Waif-chan

Hey, everyone. Last here. Kenny’s not going to be using this blog for a bit because he’s currently being a fucking idiot.

So it turns out that announcing your targets on your blog can totally backfire. We had expected some of this, but we have…a few workarounds for the problem. Mostly. It can be good to bait Fears out. Misdirect. Et cetera. But sometimes it really doesn’t work out.

Gabe brought one of his daughter’s friends along the other day. She’s apparently having some issues with an abusive family, and she’s been scared to go home. So Gabe’s temporarily taking her in.

As you might have guessed, this girl’s story is complete bullshit because she’s actually the Unnamed Child. She’s apparently decided to infiltrate our group.

She’s currently going by “Alice,” I guess. Alice Doe. If you need to give a name to blend in, you might as well choose one of the most stock names you can find. Kenny, meanwhile, has jokingly taken to calling her “Waif-chan,” idiotically removing the blatantly fake name she gave us and making her more “unnamed.” Still, she kind of is a waif, so the name’s accurate. And it’s stuck. So I guess she’s Waif-chan now.

As you may have guessed, he and Gabe, along with Crimson, are all completely taken in by Waif-chan, to the point where she’s staying in the base with us. Some of the rest of us are a bit ambivalent towards her. And she completely unnerves some of us. I saw through what she was immediately, obviously, so she completely repulses me.

I’m working on distracting everybody. Making the situation obvious. But Kenny, Crimson, and Gabe aren’t going to accept it nearly as easily. She’s got them in the palm of her hand. Kenny, timid little pacifist he is, would kill all of us to protect her. Same goes for the other two.

The good news is that, assuming no one else gets completely taken in, we could probably overpower Kenny and Crimson no problem. The bad news is that Gabe is a powerhouse, and being a single dad for years means he’s already got these inclinations. If things go bad, he will stop at nothing to protect her, and it could easily come down to a kill-or-be-killed scenario, and I can’t spare anyone at the moment.

So I’m keeping everyone busy and away from this blog as I figure out a way to break this fucking Mexican standoff the stupid kid’s forced us into. She’s a clever little shit to use her power like this; I’ll give her that.

I just hope everyone else comes to their senses quickly enough.

The Past Month, Part 2

More of what I’ve been up to lately.

Crimson’s Story

Crimson’s become a pretty good friend. I felt a bit awkward around him after I found out he was gay, I guess, but I’m getting better at it. I finally decided to ask him about his story.

“So, I mean…what’s it like, exactly? You know, being, um…?”

“Being gay?” He laughed. “Well, it’s a lot like being straight, only I’m attracted to guys instead of girls.”

My face got really hot then and I looked away. He laughed harder.

“I’m sorry, Kenny, that was maybe a little rude. In reality, it’s…it’s pretty tough. For me at least. You grew up in a small town, right?”

I nodded. “Well, not that small, but not big.”

“Then you can kind of see where I’m coming from, since I grew up in a small town, too. Homosexuality just…really doesn’t touch those places a lot. Most everyone was religion and homophobic, but…it’s a weird situation. I mean, I really did love that town and most everyone there. I sometimes think “how could such loving people be so hateful?” And the thing is…I don’t think any of them even know what they believe about homosexuality. They hear ‘being gay is wrong. Being gay is a sin.’ And they just accept that. They don’t know anyone who’s gay. They don’t have any reason to challenge that belief. Being gay is just something that happens to other people. Other people they can look look at shamefully from afar.”

“So…how did they react when you came out?” I asked.

“You know…I never did. I really wish I had so that I knew. I took off as soon as I got to college. Didn’t look back. I talk to my parents every now and then, and come home for holidays when I can, but they still don’t know I’m gay. Every time I think of them, I wonder: should I tell them? Would they still love me, or would they disown me? Would my community have changed their perspective and accepted who I was? Or did I make the right choice by keeping it to myself?”

“So…is that why the Red Cap is after you?”

He gave a wry little smile. “What do you think? If you spend almost your entire life repressing part of who you are because you’re scared of what others would think? Sometimes it’s still hard to admit to myself. Sometimes I still think ‘what if I’m wrong? What if it’s just some phase?’ And I think I’m always going to feel some sort of shame over who I am, despite my best efforts.”

Cards with Phones

I was up late one night, unable to sleep, wandering around the building we’re staying in when I found Phones sitting at a table alone, playing a game of Solitaire. His face was hidden in the darkness of his oversized hood like it always was, but he apparently saw me, because he beckoned me over. I tried asking him what was up, but he just shook his head and tapped the side of his head, his finger clacking audibly against his headphones. I guess he couldn’t have heard me anyway. Then again, he probably didn’t want to. I guess the music is the only thing that keeps the Choir at bay for him. I remember when I was traveling with Wayward, she would only listen to white noise. I wonder why it’s different for Phones. Last says it’s because of dimensional bleeding. Different Choir. Different MO.

Anyway, he scooped up the cards and started dealing them out. He kept his head ducked so that I couldn’t see under his hood. I wonder why he’s so dedicated to staying anonymous like that. I started to pick them up, but he placed his gloved hand over my own and shook his head, stopping me. After he dealt the cards into two even stacks, he flipped a card over on each. Three of clubs for him, Ace of spades for me. He gave a sharp exhale and shoved the card at me, flipping two more. It wasn’t long before I realized he was trying to play War with me.

I think we ended up playing for two hours straight before I beat him. At that point, he stood, shoved a hand into his hoodie’s pocket, and gave me a thumbs-up with the other one. Then he walked off, offhandedly waving goodnight to me.

I think he really appreciated it. He can’t really read or play video games or watch movies or anything that requires reading text or listening to voices, so he doesn’t have many options. Simple games that everyone already knows. Sketching. I don’t know.

Maybe I’ll play a game with him again at some point.

The Fantasy Triad

Last’s making sure that the Cold Boy, Wooden Girl, and Grotesque don’t try killing me in my sleep again. He’s been the one keeping watch most frequently, with Mantis and Gabe filling in—those two because, frankly, they’re the only ones willing to do so who I feel comfortable enough letting them watch me sleep.

Like you might have gathered, I’m still having some issues sleeping. They still show up sometimes. Not as often, but one of those three guys has shaken me awake in the night more than once. Sometimes I remember seeing them in the dreams. Sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I remember dreaming, but only vaguely remember things that might be related to the Triad. Last says that it’s because they’re getting better at hiding their presence. They’re trying less overt strategies. Fortunately, since I’m prepared, my subconscious is also detecting these anomalies pretty quickly. He thinks that, were it just the Grotesque, I’d be in trouble. The Grotesque can disguise itself in dreams perfectly. It’s the Cold Boy and the Wooden Girl who are actually becoming their own undoing by taking on an aggressive role. Either way, Last says that I’m making an impressive amount of progress in terms of dream-based mental defenses and even thinks I might manage to shake myself awake in the future.

Maggie

And then there’s what’s been going on with Maggie. We’ve finally had enough time to sit down and talk about things some.

“Look,” she said, “I’m going to be frank. I know you still love Lily. I know that, deep down, you’re always going to love Lily. And I don’t want to replace her. I just…you’re a really great guy, Kenny. I don’t want you to be stuck like this. Whether or not we, you know, have a chance together I don’t want to see you dwelling on the past like you are. It’s not healthy.”

“Yeah. I know.” It was weird talking to her about this stuff. She’s normally so upbeat and carefree about everything. But she was acting so…timid. Subdued. Scared, even. Scared of what I might say or do.

She was quiet for a while. “Kenny? Do you like me? And I don’t mean, you know…’do you want to start up some sort of relationship?’ I just mean…do you like me?”

“Yeah, of course. Why wouldn’t I?”

“I dunno. Because I’m annoying? Because I don’t shut up? Because I’m trying to force you to move on? Or, you know, because of that time I tried to kill you?”

“Well, you’re also easy to talk to. You’re always positive. You’ve got that memory thing going on, which is really cool. And you, uh…didn’t kill me. You weren’t seriously trying, were you?”

She grinned then, and she looked more like herself. “A little. If I’d been able to kill you, you wouldn’t really be worth liking, now would you?”

I grinned back and shoved her. “Hey, shut up!”

“It’s true. No bigger turnoff than a guy who lets you kill him on the first date.”

We joked and laughed like that a bit. “You know…I’m not mad at you for trying to get me to move on,” I told her, serious again. “It’s hard, but…I know I should. Drilling that through my head is more than anyone else is bothering to do for me.”

“Last’s training you to kill Fears.”

“Well, yeah, but…I honestly think this means more. Having Last force me into some scheme isn’t exactly making me a better person. But this? This helps. Gives me the chance to be a happier person. It’s just…the process is going to be hard.”

She put an arm around my shoulder. “Listen, bud. No matter what, I’m here for you, okay? I don’t know if you’ve noticed or not, but it’s not like I’ve got a lot of friends here. And you and Crimson are the closest I’ve got to fellow girls.”

“Hey!”

“Just calling them like I see ‘em, Kenny. But seriously. If you ever just need to talk, I’m here for you.”

“Yeah, but you have, you know, ulterior motives, don’t you?”

“Well yeah, no shit. Not gonna lie, you getting over Lily is a potentially good thing for me. But I’m not going to jeopardize one of my closest friendships for that.” She gave me a smile. “Seriously, Kenny.”

 

So that’s where things stand here from now on. Last says that he thinks that the Unnamed Child is a good course of action and thanks you guys for your suggestions. Also, if you’re wanting to help out at all, shoot me an e-mail (since Last’s hijacked mine for business purposes—not that I was using it for all that much anyway).

Stay safe, all.

Never quit.

The Past Month, Part 1

Don't worry, I'm still alive and fine.

I've been pretty silent lately. I'm sorry for that. I've been stepping away from the blog a bit to get my mind off of things. We've all been trying to get some R&R since we killed the Rake (or, more honestly, maneuvered the Rake into a position to be killed), and it's always nice to have the mental break that not blogging about the hell all our lives are provides.

Anyway, the past month has been mostly uneventful in terms of our assault on the Fears. Still, there have been thirteen people (though Gabe's usually at his own place) under the same roof for a month. There have been at least a few events worth mentioning.

The Aftermath

There's apparently been a fair amount of excitement over the fact that the Rake is dead. For some people, it's stayed dead. For others, not so much. When I mentioned that to Last, he told me to stress this the next time I wrote a post: there is absolutely no guarantee that the Rake is dead for you. Maybe it never died at all. Maybe it just died temporarily. And maybe it did die. Dimensional bleeding is really weird like that, and it can be really indiscriminate.

Anyway, in celebration, Med sent us a little gift: medallions. Thirteen medallions arrived in the mail, one for each of us. They're metal, with these holes in the middle, like a washer or some sort of Asian coin. On one side, there's something that's a sort of a take on the "three hares" design, only it has the Rake, the Black Dog, and the Manufactured Newborn instead of hares. On the other side, it reads "TRIUMPHARE TIMORE." In all honesty, I have no idea what that means, though I'm guessing it has something to do with triumph. So thanks, Med. They're beautiful.

Also, apparently our raid on the Maenad compound lead to them eventually being massacred. I feel really guilty about it. I mean, they were our enemies, and I didn't know them, and this is war now, but...it seemed unnecessary. Last doesn't share the same sentiment. "The best Maenad is a dead Maenad," he said. "That's how it goes for all of them."

"Even people working for the Slender Man? People like you and the Masks?"

"Yes. But we're different, Kenny. Never forget that. This is only temporary so that we can kill him. I don't want you to dare compare us to the rest of them again."

Janie

I finally got to meet Gabe's daughter. She came over a few days after we got back. Apparently he brings her along sometimes when Last calls a meeting and he can't get ahold of a sitter, though I think he's been bringing her more frequently for my sake. She's a cute little girl with a really rounded face and black hair. The first time she came over it was pretty long, but she must have gotten a haircut because every time since it was pretty short. I can see a bit of Gabe in her, and I wonder every time I see her what his wife must have looked like. I've been afraid to ask him, though. I get the sense it would have been a sore subject.

Apart from Gabe, Crimson and I seem to be the ones who spend the most time with her. Crimson's really good with kids. He's really fond of them, and he told me that one day, if we manage to succeed and he finds a guy he wants to spend his life with, he'd love to adopt. After seeing him with Janie, I'm sure he'd be a great father. 

She's a really big fan of animals and has all sorts of these animal toys. She really likes My Little Pony, The Littlest Pet Shop, and Pound Puppies and has a lot of toys from there. Crimson and I have played with her enough to pick up on what toys act like what. I already had a vague sense of her pony toys, but I prefer playing with the others. It was Jenny who showed my My Little Pony, and her name even sounds really similar to Janie's. It sounds stupid, refusing to play with pony toys because of that. But they remind me of Jenny, and by extension, Ryan and Dumas and everyone else I failed.

The Plan

At this point, I think I'm going to just leave you with the course of action we're going to be pursuing. Last says we're not strong enough to take down the Four Horsemen or the Fantasy Triad, and we're still using the Magi's help. He's also got plans for a lot of other Fears. Right now, the biggest options are looking like the Mother of Snakes, the Smiling Man, or the Unnamed Child. So I guess that any information anyone has on any of those three would be absolutely great.

There's more to write about the past month, so I'll see you soon.

The Rake, Part 2

I shuffled over to where Fang and Alicia were already gathered. Fang was shoving some throwing blades into his waistband. Alicia was loading her pistol. She looked at me. “This might be a good time to grab your weapon or something.”

I glanced at Lily, which was still in my hand. “Uh, yeah. Okay. So what’s the plan?”

“My plan is to shoot anyhing that comes too close. Simple, really.”

Fang pointed to the grocery store a few blocks away. “Over there. Hopefully there’s a fair amount of people in there. More people, more commotion, more chance the Rake will show up.” He shook his bangs out of his eyes. “Let’s go.”

Alicia nodded. “More slaughter too. All right, let’s get going.”

Fang pulled out some flechettes as we entered, throwing them at the nearest cashier. I think they killed the guy. I’m not sure. I saw the people and froze up, ducking into the closest aisle. I heard gunfire in the aisle nearby. Alicia, probably. I don’t think any of them carried guns. Sounds of footsteps and running, then shouting and the sounds of a scuffle from a corner of the store. Someone had jumped Alicia. Yelling from further away the direction Fang had gone. I glanced around the shelves to see that he was trying to hold off two guys. He was holding his own, but just barely.

That’s when I heard the gunshot. A bag of chips a foot away from me exploded and I ducked back behind the shelves.

“I know you’re back there, kid!” the maenad called. Silence, another gunshot.  “Come on out, kid! Makes it easier for all of us!”

I froze, panicking. Alicia and Fang were both pinned down and in trouble. Someone was shooting at me. I was hiding back behind the shelves like a coward instead of helping them.

Raggedy’s words from his email came back to me then: “pick your moment.” I’m not brave or a good fighter or anything, but I knew that if there was a moment, it had to be now. I had to push through the fear.

I grabbed a few packages of food off the shelf and chucked them out of the aisle. It sounds really stupid typing it out now, but I figured it would work as a diversion at the time. I took off in the other direction, sprinting to where Alicia was. I didn’t hear footsteps. A woman had Alicia pinned to the floor. Taking a deep breath to steel myself, I brought my staff up and down on her head. She crumpled immediately, and Alicia pushed her off herself.

“Come on out, kid!” he was still on the other end of the store for whatever reason. Was he as nervous as I was? Was it part of some strategy? I don’t know. I’m not sure I want to know.

“Get down,” I whispered to her, gesturing down the aisle. “That guy’s got your gun.”

“Well fuck,” she said, already rolling towards the shelves. “Don’t just stand there, get behind some cover before he blasts your head off!”

“Fang’s got some guys pinning him down,” I said. “I’m gonna try to help him out.”

“Fine. Guess I’ll do this the fun way.” She cautiously raised herself to a crouch. “I’ll try getting my gun back.” With that, she ran off. I ran in the other direction, towards Fang. It turns out that all he really needed was a diversion, since as soon as I showed up and the others turned to face me, he dispatched them handily, pulling out a pair of knives and slitting their throats in one smooth motion. I gagged a bit at the sight, but managed to keep my lunch down. He nodded me towards the entrance, where Alicia was already waiting, the man who had grabbed her gun unconscious or dead (I don’t know which) on the floor.

“That should be good,” Fang said. He pulled the walkie talkie from his waist, radioing Last. “We’re good.”

“Great!” came the response. “Bring it on back.”

Fang nodded, turned to us. “Let’s go.”

We ran back to the gas station to meet up with Last. Maggie, Phones, Reaper, and Mantis were already back.  His face lit up when he saw us. “Second group back. The others should be back any second now….”

As if on cue, Gabe and Boston Black appeared from behind the corner, sprinting down the street. Angel followed a few seconds behind them, pistol drawn, firing at something. The Rake turned the corner behind them.

The Rake was…really grotesque looking. The worst part about it was that it looked human. It had the build of one. But it ran on all fours, had long, sharp claws, was completely naked and hairless (though I don’t think it had any sort of genitalia), and had these beady red eyes. The skin color was off, like it was rotting or something. Overall, it just looked wrong.

“I believe that’s my cue,” the Inspector said. He was calm and composed as he stepped forward, keeping a steady, unhurried pace. The Rake slowed as he approached. Gabe, Black, and Angel managed to reach us.

I had known he could confuse the Fears or something like that, but the extent of his powers surprised me when I saw them in use. One moment, it was charging at us at full speed, the next it had stopped and started wandering around, like it couldn’t even see us.

Last turned to Fang. “Okay, this is going to sound cheesy and kind of like a long shot, but we need the Black Dog now. I need you to focus on your deepest, darkest secrets. You know, the ones you’ve only told me. And then I need you to picture them getting out. Really feel the fear flow through you.”

“You’re right, it does sound cheesy. Is this what your plan hinged on?”

“Just do it, or I’ll tell them all for real.”

Fang’s face darkened. “Fine,” he said. He closed his eyes. The rest of us watched the Rake. It was stumbling around, but it looked like it was starting to regain its senses. Like it would charge at us any second.

The Black Dog showed up before it could happen, leaping out from an intersection and tackling the Rake. It pinned the creature to the ground, trying to bite at its throat. The Inspector was suddenly gone, then beside us the next moment. “Now we let nature take its course,” he said.

“That was fast,” Last told Fang.

Fang nodded. “It was easy. Too easy.” Last grunted in agreement but said nothing more.

The two beasts fought for dominance, their blood spilling on the ground as they clawed and bit.  After a minute that felt far too long, we heard a mechanical whirring.  “Aaaaand here comes the Newborn,” Last said. “Right on cue.” The Manufactured Newborn showed up a few seconds later and joined the fray. It had changed since the last time I had seen it—quite a bit, actually. While it had previously just been a small orb with four legs, it now had six, as well as a crude head.

The Black Dog grabbed it between its teeth as it approached and effortlessly tossed it aside. The Manufactured Newborn collapsed in a crumpled heap before picking itself up and scurrying off.

“Aaaaand there goes the Newborn,” said Last. “Wonderful.”

The battle raged on for a few minutes, and none of us could do anything other than stand far out of the way and watch. It was a really odd mix of extremely boring and downright terrifying. They were both taking a lot of damage, but the longer the battle wore on, the more obvious it was that the Rake was gaining the upper hand.

“You can’t do anything to help?” Last asked the Inspector.

“I would rather not be that close to the conflict,” he said.

“Doesn’t really matter which one of them dies, does it?” Fang grumbled. “One of them’s dead either way.”

That’s when the Manufactured Newborn returned. Changed. At the ends of its legs were long, metal claws, and its head had been modified to include powerful steel jaws.

“It’s learning,” Crimson mused. “It’s learning from them and modifying itself to compete.”

The Newborn latched onto the Rake from behind, digging its claws into its body to hold it and biting down on the neck with its jaws. The Rake struggled, and it looked like it was breaking free. That’s when the shot rang out. The Rake collapsed and the Black Dog and Manufactured Newborn were on it instantly, ripping it apart, destroying the body completely.

Last grabbed his walkie talkie. “Nice shot, Wraith.”

There was a pause before Wraith responded. “That wasn’t me, boss.”

“Then who…?” He looked around and swore. We all followed his line of sight. The Archangel stood on top of a roof in the distance. He lifted his sniper rifle and hoisted it over his shoulder as he turned to us. Then he tipped his bowler hat and disappeared.

Gabe tensed up. Angel Cross started screaming. “You took my ears, you bastard!” she yelled, firing at where he had been. It surprised me, considering how composed she’d been.

“So the Archangel is Angel’s archenemy,” Crimson said, half to himself, a smile tugging at his lips.

“Boss,” Gabe said, “Boss, what’s it doing here?”

“I don’t know. Awful big coincidence it showed up, huh?” He folded his arms.  “And there are no coincidences.”

*

And that’s the story of how we killed the Rake. Angel, Alicia, and the Inspector have left. I don’t know if the Rake has stayed dead for them, but it was still nice to feel at least something close to a victory. We all went out to celebrate afterwards, and we’ve been slow at getting back into things. I’m sorry it took so long to get it all written down.

But it’s only one Fear we’ve managed to kill. There’s still a long and dangerous road ahead, and there are a lot of worrisome questions. How we’re going to take out the other Fears, for example. Why the Archangel showed up, for another. The last time I saw him, it was when I was leaving the Hostel. He helped me out then, too. Why? What’s his motivation?

I’ll keep you guys posted as more information comes in.