Some Galahs Go On An Inky Mission: Chapter 5

A Dangerous Encounter: Chapter 19

11 years ago...

"What's going on?" Nine-year-old Scylla asked her grandmother and uncle. Why were they so mad? Why were they looking at her like that? She's done nothing wrong!

"I don't know, do you want to explain the death of your mother?" Helios asked gruffly, in the wolf language. Scylla cringed and opened her mouth to explain that she didn't do anything, but gasped instead when she saw the bloody body of her mother lying on the floor. She covered her mouth as tears sparked in the corners of her eyes.

Carefully and cautiously, Scylla gently walked over to the body and began to stroke the now-bloody blonde hair, like her mother used to do when Scylla had nightmares. It was almost like she could wake up the dead if she made the wrong move. Scylla choked down her sobs and softly asked, "What happened to her?"

"YOU happened!" Diana screeched, her tone filled with rage and hatred, making Scylla flinch. She's never done that before, and Scylla certainly has not done anything to make her family that mad. She didn't understand.

Scanning the overly-large scratches on Helias's body, Scylla whispered, "But I-I d-didn't do anything..."

"LIES!" Helios shouted, slapping Scylla across the face. Scylla recoiled, reaching to touch the emotional wound. They aren't in their right minds.

"I'm being honest, I was in my bedroom, sleeping like Mom wanted me to. Please, you have to believe me!" Scylla cried.

"Why should we believe you?" Diana asked, her face neutral. "After all, you're an EXE, not a normal girl, not even a soul, just a husk." Scylla opened her mouth to point out the scratches, but closed it instead in fear of punishment.

"That's what we thought," Helios grinned. "You're grounded for a year."

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Present day

"Oh, thank goodness you're back!" Aite shouted, slicing a Soulless in half and running towards Scylla.

"I got your message." Scylla glared at Diana in the distance, causing the werewolf to stare at the ground guiltily. Turning back to Aite, Scylla asked, "How are you doing?"

"I'm doing alright," Aite replied, "Sonic should be over there... Somewhere over there." Scylla looked in the direction Aite was pointing, the exact direction in which the Soulless were pouring out of. Scylla set her jaw.

"I'll go. You hold back the Soulless with the others. If all goes according to plan, I'll get us out of this apocalypse one and for all." Scylla ordered, before turning to her Soulless slaves. "You will fight alongside my pack. So unless you want to die, I advise you to follow their orders." She told Aite, "Take great care, and I'll be back soon."

"But what are you doing?" Aite asked.

"I'm doing what I should've done beforehand." Scylla narrowed her eyes. "I'm rescuing the innocent."

Aite nodded. "Good luck!" Aite put the Soulless slaves into chains and dragged them into battle, leaving Scylla to her own devices in the war. Scylla closed her eyes, and grinned, the sparks of evil glinting her senses. Using her Chaos Spear to move quickly and cut down as many Soulless as she can in one sitting, earning herself shrieks, screams, and yells on the battlefield until finally, she reached the city.

At the port, she sees Zielo standing near the water and meditating. Scylla fought back a growl of irritation in hopes that she can sneak into the Eggman base without getting spotted.

So that's what she's gonna do.

But would she get spotted, or will she succeed? That is the question.

An Apocalyptic Christmas

(Author's Note: I'm sorry to anyone that don't celebrate Christmas, I don't know very much about Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and other holidays that many cultures enjoy during December. I promise to make a holiday-related story every December. Happy Holidays!)

"Hey, Scylla?" Sophia asked, startling Scylla out of her thoughtful gaze at the falling snow.

"What's up, Sophia?" Scylla asked. Sophia seemed both nervous and excited, as she showed Scylla an old poster, filled with scribbled-out words and pictures. All but one word: Christmas.

"What's Christmas?" Sophia wondered.

Scylla took the poster and chuckled. "Oh, it's my favorite holiday. Usually there's decorations, presents, caroling -" Scylla paused, sighing as she looked at Sophia. "But obviously, not in this universe. Here, there's nothing but a wasteland." Scylla looks at the snow. "I used to enjoy celebrating it, but once my adoptive mother died, I had no longer the privileges of honoring the holiday, besides opening gifts." Sophia had tuned out Scylla's words at this point, making a snowball. Once Sophia was done, she threw the snowball at Scylla, who dodged and laughed. "You'd have to do better than that." she said.

Sophia growled in fake frustration. "Oh, you're so ON!" she laughed, rolling up multiple snowballs and throwing them at her opponent.

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"Hey Scylls?" Adam asked, peeking through the watch post's door.

"Come in." Scylla answered, not turning around as she mapped out some areas of Mobius.

Adam creeped in, being sure to shut the door so the cold wouldn't sneak inside. "So, uh, while you were working, Sophia told us about the whole... Chrysler holiday -"

"It's called Christmas, but go on with what you were saying." Scylla clarified.

"Oh, so, as what I was saying, Sophia was telling us about Christmas, and then Aite got this brilliant idea to make some snow angels and stuff -" Scylla turned around, a puzzled look on her face. She gestured to Adam to keep going. He continued, "And now we have a surprise for you." Scylla shrugs.

"Alright, show me. I've done enough work for the day." Scylla replied. Adam led the alpha outside, twisting through many piles of snow and trudging through more than ten miles of snow, and after about....six hours of walking through the snowy parts of the desert, Adam and Scylla reached a tree sparkling with twinkling light spells, colored royal violet and cobalt blue. Underneath the tree was Sophia, Aite, Ajal, and Diana with faded choir lyrics. Scylla stared in wonder, her eyes sparkling with childish delight as memories of past years of Christmases flashed through her mind. Adam eventually had to ask Scylla if she was okay, to which she looked at him and replied, "Did...Did you guys do all of this? For me?"

Adam smiled, saying, "Of course! We wanted to celebrate Christmas with you. Why would we do this otherwise?"

Scylla brightened, instantly exclaiming, "OH, THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANK -" She took in a deep breath, steeling her emotions as she cleared her throat. She said formally, "I mean, thank you for making this extraordinary surprise for me, I appreciate it." Diana burst out laughing, while the others hid their chuckles. Scylla tilted her head slightly, confused when she asked, "What?"

"I-It's nothing, I promise." Aite stuttered as Diana died on the snow, laughing herself to the point of wheezing. Scylla shrugged, thinking about how the gesture of kindness was extremely sweet, but unnecessary, due to the fact that there was a current apocalypse going on! 

"Let's get straight to the caroling!" Sophia cheered.

"Caroling? But there's going to be Soulless around anytime soon, so we need to -" Scylla protested.

"It's fine, Scylla. We've got this, really!" Ajal deflected, waving the worried EXE to a seat.

"Okay..." Scylla said nervously.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"I TOLD YOU!!!" Scylla shouted as she burned down the area with violet flames. They had gotten into a fight with a group of Soulless a few hours into the caroling.

"I know, I know, but it was worth it!" Aite rolled her eyes. "At least you enjoyed it!"

"Zielo's got a crisis going on." Sophia muttered, causing Ajal to chuckle.

"What's so wrong with this dimension that he has to create semi-sentient zombies?" Diana asked.

Scylla mumbled, "That bastard's got so much wrong in his head, I'm surprised that he can even think through his master plan." The flames extinguished as soon as they reached the snow. Adam rolled his eyes, murmuring something like:

"Where's our heroes when you need them?"

Scylla froze, rushing through the memory of the last time she..."observed" the Sons of Heephis, as to say.  Scylla whipped around, her eyes blazing with a surge of sorrow and a hint of anger as she said, "We don't talk about them. When they come back, THEN we can talk about the Sons of Heephis." Adam gulped, fearful of Scylla. When she gets like this, they don't argue with her, otherwise she'll somehow put the fear of God (pun intended) into the Gaia pack. Adam eventually nodded his agreement.

"Adam, you knew better than to mention them in front of the Gaia leader." Ajal hissed.

"It was a slip up! I promise!" Adam protested.

Scylla starts to walk away, Diana and Aite following as Sophia called out, "OI! YA BETTER GET A MOVE ON, OR YUR GONNA BE LEFT ALONE TOGETHER!!!" She turned and ran to catch up with the others, Adam and Ajal following behind soon afterwards.

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A flurry of gifts were given in a matter of minutes.

It's Christmas, so there was a lot of drama. No peace was found as Scylla broke up what she had felt was a hundred fights within the past few hours. It was that exhausting.

Eventually, it was time for opening presents. What Aite, Ajal, Adam, Diana, and Sophia had gotten made them ecstatic for Scylla opening her present, for some reason. It all made sense when she opened it.

In the gift, Scylla had been given a pair of locket earrings, both bearing engraved images of the Gaia pack. Tearing up, Scylla whispered, "Oh...You didn't have to do this for me."

"We know, but we wanted to." Diana replied.

Scylla wrapped her family in a hug, telepathically hissing gratefully, Thank you so much, but the best gift right now...Is with you.

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"Scyllie?" Young Ashley asked.

Scylla smiled gently, wiping away stray tears from her face. "Yes, Small One?" she wondered.

"Why are you crying?" Ashley said curiously, tilting her head. The kind of tilt that made Scylla laugh even if she was crying.

"I...I just miss your parents, aunts, and uncle, th-that's all." Scylla replied, looking at the Christmas tree in the room, instantly thinking back to the sparkling tree Aite, Adam, Diana, Sophia, and Ajal had created years beforehand.

"Can you tell me what they did during the apocalypse, Alpha?" Ashley pressed, using her bright, pleading, puppy-dog eyes that Scylla rarely ever refused against her.

Scylla chuckled. "Alright, alright, but you need to sit down to hear the story. Can you call in the others?"

"OKAY!" Ashley shouted, speeding through the house to summon the rest of the children.

Once the six children arrived (including Ashley), Scylla sat them all down and began, "Once, during the apocalypse...." She told the Christmas story to the younglings, who, one by one, fell asleep.

It was a peaceful Christmas that year.

The Blizzard: Chapter 4

(Author's Note: Short chapter again. It was worth it!)

"My glass shoes are miiiissiiiinnnng!" The woman on the phone sobbed, making Demetria's mood drop. The one day she was supposed to be hanging out with her aunt has been interrupted and hands-down ruined by this one customer. But fake it 'till you make it, right?

So Demetria faked a cheery voice as she replied, "Ma'am, we're a hotel, not a detective agency. If you're not booking a reservation, please look for someone else."

"B-b-but I asked all the other detective agencies in town b-b-but they w-w-wouldn't heeeeeelp!" the wailed, nearly bursting Demetria's eardrum.

In a desperate attempt to save both her eardrums and her sanity, Demetria finally said, "Fine! Fine, we'll help you, just pleease stop whining like you're a bull calf!"

"Thank you! I'll be right over!" The woman said, hanging up quickly.

"Who was that?" Sylvia asked as she came into the office. "I can feel your annoyance from the pool."

"Some woman kept screaming about her glass slippers being missing, so I told her that I could help." Demetria replied. Sylvia's face paled. Demetria sighed and asked, "What did you do? Did you steal those shoes?"

"Ididn'tdonothingIgottagobye!" Sylvia ran.

"HEY! RETURN THOSE SHOES RIGHT NOW OR-"

Mango's Adventures in Angst Land: Chapter 1

(Author's Note: This chapter is connected to The Blizzard. Please read The Blizzard if you haven't read it yet.)

"What?" Kiui whispered.

"Demetria knows me, and I know her. The only time something like this happens nowadays is when she's experiencing a nightmare." Mango said. "I'm going after her."

"Mango, wait -"

"MANGO MOCHISOLAR, COME BACK -"

Mango tuned them both out as she ran the door, grabbing her winter coat. I know the forest better than anyone, Mango thought. If anyone can find her, I can.

It felt like hours before Mango found Demetria, and what Mango saw was terrifying.

The forest around her felt dead, and Demetria was encased in an icy cocoon. The heart of the blizzard was right above them, causing the temperature to drop every second Mango stood there.

Mango rushed over to the cocoon, banging on it with her fists. "Demetria, wake up, it's just a nightmare." Nothing happens. "Fluuuuuuff." Mango whispered, her tears turning to ice. "Come on, please, don't leave me." Mango pleaded.

Without thinking, she extended her claws and attempted to slice through the chrysalis ten times, each scratch digging deeper into the ice each time, until finally -

CRRAACK!

The cocoon cracked open, the ice revealing the unconscious and frostbitten form of Demetria. Mango gasped in horror, her ears going up in shock. She quickly took off her coat and carefully wrapped it around Demetria. Mango transforms into the form of a ginger cat with wet, orange scales peppering random spots on her body, and picks up Demetria carefully, gently setting her on the cat's back. Carrying Demetria away from the horrid, frozen sight, Mango hissed, "Stay with me,  big cuz. You gotta be strong."

A Dangerous Encounter: Chapter 12

The Ini Pyramid crumbled.

Sonic had cut off a large piece of Zielo's quills.

Scylla woke up to see Adam, Sophia, and Diana worriedly staring at her. Scylla touched a feather on her face; which was located near her eyes.

Scylla panicked, asking urgently, "Where's Aite and Ajal? Are they here?"

Adam shook his head. Diana answered timidly, "Aite and Ajal went to the Ini Pyramid. When the pyramid collapsed, they didn't come back."

Scylla's eyes widened, and she sat up quickly, only to feel the blood rushing to her head. Scylla turned towards the destroyed Ini Pyramid and growled, "Then we need to get over there quickly. Aite and Ajal may be in trouble."

Sophia asked, "But how are we going to get there without the Soulless spotting us?"

Scylla thought about it, sparking a tongue of fire in her hand. Looking into it, Scylla smirked.

Extinguishing the flame, Scylla said, "I think I have an idea."

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Scylla made another illusion, but this time, it was of a couple of demigods engaging in battle with the Soulless. Before the Soulless could come to the scene, Scylla, Adam, Diana, and Sophia ran toward the ruins quickly.

As they reached the wreckage, Scylla saw a mix of violet cinders and blood on the ground. Signaling to the others to stop, Scylla knelt down, trying to drown out the doubts, fear, anger, and despair that welled up, pricking her tears with a dangerous guilt as Scylla tried to blink the tears back. Her eyes were blurry, and she felt like she was going to burst into flames.

Please be okay, Ajal and Aite. Scylla transmitted, not expecting anything to happen.

"Scylla, we should be helping with exterminating the Soulless." Adam gently whispered, helping Scylla up.

Scylla nods. "Their deaths won't be – ACK!!!!"

Scylla held her head, feeling dizzy, but she felt something coming from the north. It felt familiar, but she was in too much pain to walk towards it.

"Scylla, are you hurt?" Adam asked.

"Are you okay?" Sophia asked urgently.

Diana started, "Maybe we should take her to the -"

ENOUGH!! Scylla transmitted.

Mango's Adventures in Angst-Land: Chapter 12

(Author's Note: I'm ready to actually get to the arc of the comics I made. Tis the chaos in my head is gonna break me someday. Welp, here goes nothing. *Hands over the next short chapter* Enjoy!)

A few moments after the fight (in which Queener broke up), Scylla said as she smiled, "Alright, fine. I'll go home, on one condition."

Mango crossed her arms, her messy fur sticking out as she asked in a sassy voice, "Then what's your condition?"

Scylla turned serious. "Let me bring the Abstractions."

"HUH?" Kiui asked in alarm.

Mango raised a paw to rest on her cheek as she thought about the deal. "Hmmm..."

Kiui growled. "Just say yes!"

Mango sighed, making up her mind. "Well, I've made my choice. I've decided that you can -"

Some Galahs Go On An Inky Mission: Chapter 7

Third Person POV

"We'd better find the baby boy again or I'll destroy everything on this floor." Audra muttered.

"I believe there is something special in all of us."

"What the hell?"

"Who are you?" Audra asked.

"Especially you two."

"Fffuuuck yooou." Alinta cursed. "Hi, Joey Drew."

"That's Joey?" Audra asked. "I thought he'd be in a business suit, not look tasty for me to eat."

"Audra, don't you dare." Alinta growled.

"Come on up! Let's take a little walk. There's something I want to show you." Joey said.

"Oh shit. Oh shit!" Alinta muttered darkly as she climbed up the ladder. Audra had used her air magic to get up there.

Once everyone was gathered, Audra asked, "So, meat loaf, what did you want to show us?"

"There you go! Follow me." Joey said.

"Oookaaay, that's weird." Audra acknowledged.

"But mind your step."

"Oh, because the building is old and there's goddamn forsaken hellspawn ink creatures everywhere?" Alinta asked. "Sure, we'll watch our step."

Cue the Slicer jumpscare.

"Aaaa!" They yelped. Well, except for Joey. He was busy walking away.

"That little piece of shit!" Alinta growled.

"This old place is full of surprises." Joey said. "I should know. I've worked here for a long time."

"And you created these monsters that you call art." Alinta growled.

"But what is this place?" Audra asked.

"An ink-filled hell made for those unlucky enough to be caught in it." Alinta barked.

"It's a cycle." Joey replied. "An ink-stained nightmare forever stuck on repeat."

"That's one damned way to say it." Alinta muttered.

"With just a pencil and a dream..." Joey continued. "...And a little help from the Gent Corporation, it came into being."

"And because of your STUPIDITY, we have Lost Ones and Searchers who didn't want to be that way." Alinta argued. "Fuck you and your stupid company!"

"Alinta Helias Revanche, watch your mouth!" Audra scolded, slapping Alinta on the back of her head, making her yelp.

"From what I gather, it exists in parallel to the outside world." Joey theorized.

One of Alinta's veins popped. "Whatthefuckdidyoujustsay???"

"But completely removed from the march of time." Joey said.

"Hold on." Audra hissed. "Backtrack to that comment, food. Did you just say that it's parallel to the outside world?"

"That means it'll leak, fucker." Alinta growled. She had the urge to bite his face off. "You little son of a bitch, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?"

"And like a record, played over and over again." At this point, they have reached a door that said, "There is ALWAYS HOPE." Joey says, "It's begun to crumble, wear down."

Alinta's eyebrows twitched as she angrily retorts, "But it's still leaking into the real world, Joey."

"Can I eat him? Please?" Audra begged.

"This studio is a monument to choosing the wrong road."

"Coorrrection, it's a monument of YOUR mistakes, Mr. Sunshine." Alinta said.

"Now whether it was built for revenge or regret, I don't know."

"It's both, dumbass." Alinta remarked.

"Alinta, what did I just say?" Audra hissed, jabbing Alinta with her elbow.

"That's my riddle to solve."

"UuuuuuggghhAAAAA-" Alinta screamed.

"Come over here for a sec." Joey beckoned.

"Why?" Audra asked as Alinta started to tear at the walls in her frustration. No answer from Joey. "Fine. Come along, wolfy." Audra said, dragging a somewhat feral Alinta near a too-calm Joey. "Now, why did you want us to come here?" Audra asked again.

Joey turned around and explained, "The truth is-"

"No, no. EXPLAIN." Audra interrupted.

"Someone out there is messing with what's in here."

"Well, obviously! Otherwise I wouldn't be on this mission." Audra responded.

"Bad things have begun to emerge from the puddles."

"But you made these creatures, right?" Audra prompted.

"Wicked creatures that never came from my pen."

"Oooooh. Well, um, dang it." Audra said.

"The worst ones call themselves Keepers. Dangerous, deadly folks."

"So... That means we need to find Kaiso. Quickly." Audra noted. "Got it."

"They've taken over the old Gent Workshop, just beyond the sewers." Joey says informatively. Audra gulped. Alinta was currently destroying the room they were in. "Trying to bring what they call order to this world."

"Riiight. As if the cycle really needed it." Audra said. She glared at Alinta sternly. "So what can we do to help?"

"Freezing the cycle in place! Changing the script!"

"Sir meathead, we get it. Just tell us how to help get it back in motion." Audra said seriously.

"Whatever answers you're looking for, you'll find them there."

"Joey freaking Drew, answer my gosh-darn questions!" Audra roared. Her patience was waning. Joey didn't answer. "Not again!" Audra forcibly pulled the feral Alinta near Joey and growled sharply, "Why can't you just fix it?"

"Look, above all, never forget."

"Joey-"

"You're here for a reason. There's always a reason."

"Yeah, and it's to fix the cycle!" Audra hissed.

"Even if you can't understand it."

"...Where in the world is Kaiso when we need her?" Audra wondered. "Why couldn't you just fix this world?"

"Because I'm not the man. I'm just...the memory." Joey pulled his arms into a mummy-like cross and floated through the door. The door opened, revealing a grave for Joey Drew.

Audra and the finally-calm Alinta stared at it, open-mouthed and shocked, confused even. Alinta spoke first. "I-I thought he'd appear to someone else instead."

"I can't eat him." Audra said in disappointment. "He's already dead."

A Dangerous Encounter: Chapter 20

7 years ago…

There was a break-in.

Scylla didn't know how it happened, it just happened.

She was downstairs, sweeping the dust off the shelves when she heard her grandmother shriek and smelled blood. Helios closed his book, eyes widening. "There's an intruder!"

"What?!" Scylla gasped, dropping everything and teleporting into the room upstairs to see Diana's dead body. Her claws were painted with someone's scent - she'd put up a fight, Scylla realized. Shaking with grief, she used a blanket to cover the body, so at least Diana can be warm.

Something snapped in Scylla, something that forced her out of control of her body. Sniffing the unknown blood, Scylla tracked it to a person wearing a violet cloak. She attacked. As they fought, one of the daggers missed Scylla and hit…Helios.

The fight ended as Scylla threw the intruder onto the wall behind her and zapped them with lightning for good measure, before rushing to Helios's side and doing medical procedures. "You're gonna be okay, uncle, j-just don't leave me." Scylla whispered. "Where's the -"

"I'm not going to make it." Helios grimly told Scylla. She froze.

"No," Scylla hissed. "You're going to live. I'm not going to let another one of my family die on my watch. I-I wouldn't live with myself if I had."

Helios's heart broke for the thirteen-year-old, but he said, "That dagger, it was poisoned with a toxin that is incurable."

Scylla grit her teeth, growling as she replied, "Then I'll work harder to save you."

Helios shook his head. "I love you." He whispered, then fell limp.

Scylla felt her uncle's soul leave his body. She sat there, processing the death of her family. She shook, tears dripping onto Helios's cold chest. Fire licked her power reserves, begging to be released. So she let it out.

She'd let her past burn.

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Present

She wasn't able to sneak past Zielo.

Scylla knew she should've expected this, but honestly? He looked so peaceful that she couldn't possibly bear to bother him (that was a lie, of course).

"Trying to steal from me?" Zielo asked.

Suppressing a groan, Scylla asked, "Well, hi, Mr. Baddie, are you trying to break my spirit?" She smirked as she turned to face Zielo. "But really, what do you think I'm stealing from you?"

Zielo's face stayed cold and unfeeling, but Scylla could feel the waves of annoyance coming off of him. It made her giddy with excitement. "My spark." Zielo simply replied.

Scylla laughed at him, taking a few seconds to calm herself down. With a shrug she said, "Oh, Sonic? Yeah, he's not your puppet, nor is he the 'spark' you're claiming him to be. He is his own person, and you shove up an apocalypse up the world's nose, expecting the hedgehogs, no, the world, to bow down to you."

Zielo snarled, "DON'T DISRESPECT -"

"I disrespect whoever I want, bucko. Guess what? You wanna stay a god? Act kinder." Scylla snapped.

"APOLOGIZE!"

Scylla growled, "Fine! I'm sorry that I will not treat you like a god. Is that what you want me to say? I'm sorry that I won't treat you like the 'perfect' person you claim to be, like all your followers do!" Scylla chuckled. "I'm just an inconvenience to you, a pest, a PROBLEM to you!"

"How dare you!" Zielo tried and failed to break Scylla's soul in half.

"Do you want to know something?" Scylla glitched behind the god. "I'm a god, too. But I'm a demon, a computer virus, and it hurts to not feel recognized, doesn't it?" She chuckled, glitching away from his swipe at her. Scylla transformed into her EXE form, hissing, "Well, I shouldn't have to justify what I'm doing to you, and I won't make it up to you, you low-class ruler!" Zielo lashed out at Scylla, trapping her in his telekinesis. Scylla cut through it easily with dark magic. "Well, I'm sorry that an abomination like me exists!"

"Scylla!" Sophia called out, taking Zielo's next attack, which was to grab her by the neck and lift her up.

"Sophia!"

A Dangerous Encounter: Chapter 1

Scylla Raven sold another handmade voodoo doll to another Mobian customer. It was a normal, boring day in Tin-Can, at least until she smelled blood. Fresh Blood.

Scylla's body tensed, fighting the urge to find the reckless person and do something horrible. A blue blur ran past her shop, causing all of the voodoo dolls to fly. Scylla quickly caught all of the merchandise before they hit the floor. As she set the voodoo dolls back in their proper place, Scylla tried to reassure herself that the blood scent and the blur was just the wind.

In her raven's-eye vision, she sees a crack in the ground, seemingly ready to explode. Scylla quickly looks around, quickly spotting another Mobian walking towards the volcanic-looking crack. Without even thinking about what she was about to do, Scylla jumped out of her stall and pushed the Mobian out of the way as the crack exploded, knocking Scylla to the ground.

Time seemed to slow down. Tin-Can was in chaos. Fire engulfed the buildings. Men, women, and children were rushing to evacuate the area. Screams echoed in the air. Too many scents of blood reached Scylla's nose, making her slowly lose her mind. Within the chaos, strangely without anyone else there to notice, Scylla slowly got up, letting her EXE form take over.

Scylla's eyes slowly turned blood red, while black blood spilled out of her eye sockets and dripped down her copper cheeks. Her hair was as black as a new moon. Blood-stained claws grew out of her fingernails. If anyone noticed her now, they'd call her a monster. Scylla's urge to kill someone grew larger, but she ignored it. Now was the time to leave the the scene of destruction. Scylla touched a certain ring on her finger. The Miraculous of Assimilation. She'd promised someone she'd loved that she would keep it safe.

Scylla clenched her fist hard. In the corner of her eye, she saw people standing on the highest hills outside of the town, where the explosions didn't reach them...for now. Smirking, Scylla actually admitted to herself that it was a smart move to head to the hills. A female scream of pain jerked Scylla of her thoughts. Her instincts tracked the scream to the woods nearby. Cursing internally at herself, she ran out of the now-destroyed Tin-Can to find the exact source of the scream.

A specific scent of blood wafted in from the west of where Scylla was in the forest. Scylla turned around, only barely missing a bump against a red blur that had sped from behind Scylla, toward the scent of the blood. Realizing that this streak might bring the EXE to the source of the scent of blood, Scylla tried to follow as quickly as she could without having to fly after the blur. Scylla quickly got lost in a maze of trees and fires.

"Curse this fire!" Scylla distortedly growled as she looked around. "If it weren't for this maze of light, I'd have been able make my way around this blasted forest!"

Transforming into a seemingly normal raven, Scylla flew into the flaming sky, reaching a height higher than the burning forest. Scanning between the flames and trees, she spotted a red light that seemed to shine brightly. Tucking her sleek, black wings against her body and diving towards the harsh glow, Scylla remembered an old quote her adoptive mother used to say countless times, but she refused to acknowledge it.

If Scylla's raven eyes could naturally narrow, they would have been slits by now. Suddenly, the red light disappeared, making Scylla stop diving and open her wings to glide through the air. She silently cursed, but only stopped when she felt a ripple of magical energy in the fabrics of reality. Turning to a floating island - the ONLY floating island in the sky, called Angel Island, Scylla spotted much light on the land, and what feels like blue eyes and purple outlines of people walking on the island like guards.

Mentally raising an eyebrow, Scylla flew to the island to investigate. Her thoughts felt like they were swimming in a bath of honey and matcha tea. Scylla felt the energy around Angel Island were darker than normal, drawing more concern from her than it should've.

Scylla took how her instincts reacted to the island as a red flag. As soon as she landed on the island, Scylla transformed back into a "regular" copper-skinned human, with the intention of investigating the fire.

"What happened here? I thought this island wasn't supposed to be inhabited." Scylla wondered. Dodging falling trees and avoiding the strange Mobians and humans, Scylla eventually saw two hedgehogs getting attacked by these strange creatures. It made her blood boil, so, she made a mistake. She grabbed a Mobian - with cyan eyes and a strange purple mark on their hand - and punched him. Hard. Smelling blood, Scylla shapeshifted into a wolf and went insane, Harming the humans and Mobians acting strange enough to be considered a threat.

Then, Scylla was knocked down to the ground by something - or someone.

Soo... Since Snugglebunny's schedule's a bit whack...