They come and go. They come with questions whose answers only he knows. From his stony throne, he looks them over one by one. And from his elevated stones, his icy graves, he drops each commuter a small hint that only teases and worsens their hunger. Oh, he does this smiling every time and it is no doubt that he takes pleasure from their curiosity and his secrets. Yes, he prides himself on his infamous tale that was written in blood over a year ago and is remembered in scars on the hides of so many. Perhaps his misfortunes with a certain doe were blessings in disguise for, surely, his pride had not been wounded irreparably when he was laid to rest beside the boulder tombstones and was forced to leave his host.

Host? Host indeed for love there was not. Nay, he held none for who the doe was, only for what she provided. And what was it she provided? Nothing he could not find anywhere else. The loss of her was a little thing, but he held his grudge nonetheless - she had been the only one to expel him and he did not take well to evictions. But, personal vendettas had no place in this hour. Such matters required finer details and privacy.

The beast smiled to himself and to the navy doe that now approached him. His pin-light eyes traced her features, noted the way her emerald feathers framed her face and how a thin glow hovered just around the rim of her left eye. There was a scar across her throat and an array of others elsewhere - pink scars that littered her hide and told of her past silently. A thoughtful bubbling sounded from somewhere within Akuji's seeping body and when the feathered doe stopped before him, he waited for her to speak with impatience. He knew what she would ask.




“But have you not heard? I am a parasite through and through.
I feed on your feelings and nightmares; I make them come true.
It is I who might infest the darkest corners of your mind,
I'll find all of your fears and, in time, unlock each one of their binds.

Step closer now, I will tell you all;
I will tell you I like to watch all fall.
I have learned a secret, see:
Love can cause weeping cacophony.
And I am a master of puppet strings,
it is easy for me to cause sufferings.”

And then he leaned back and crossed his front limbs which promptly melded together, leaked into one another and made a spattered mess of each other on the gray sediment upon which he laid. His smile, though still very plain beneath his stark, white mask had dimmed somehow and lost its smug distinction. There was a very serious edge about him now.

They are dead.

You stood there and watched it happen-
watched the life drain out of them
along with their blood.


Traitor.
Coward.
Murderer.






Their ghosts lead the others to you, Kody.
They know what you did and they want their revenge.

They will come with chains to hold you down
and sharp, steely knives to cut you open.
They will bleed you, pain you, make you suffer.

Nothing and no one can help you now.

splinter





Wake. Run.
Quick, before they shackle you and hold you down.
There is no love for you, now.






splinter





Wake. Run.
Swift, before they make a sieve of your flesh.
They want your heart for a trophy.






FRACTURE





Haha!
Well done, but we've only begun.
Be free, Kody. I enjoyed the fun.

He has another.

She is delicate and long-legged
Graceful and beautiful.
It's no wonder he prefers her
when she has a face like that.




She is always at his side.
You are abandoned.




The rest are crazed.
Your mate won't save you.
Their hooves are ready.
Their tines are lowered.


They know you are weak.

They will drive you until you can run no more.

You are not wanted any longer.

^{Umay, Kody, Pandora, Corell}

splinter





Rise. Run.
They are only here to skewer your heart.
They are sickened by your feelings.

^{Umay, Kody, Pandora, Corell, Cay Lynn, Crucio}

splinter





Rise. Run.
They call you 'mistake'.
They will erase you from their history.

^{Umay, Kody, Pandora, Corell, Cay Lynn, Crucio, Windsor}

FRACTURE





Encore!
Have back your darling Shineri.
I'll take another for my fee.

They are maimed.

They should be dead
but through their torn flesh
and broken ribs their hearts are

pounding
pounding
pounding.

You can't escape the sound
or the rasping chill of their breath.[/]




Look to your feet now.
The water rises.


The pond- it has become a spring.
The water has nowhere to go but
up.

You will drown.

^{Shineri, Kody, Benjimin, Kaoori, Crucio, Leviathann}

splinter





Rouse. Run.
The living corpses have surrounded you.
Bowels and bones float on the water.

^{Shineri, Kody, Benjimin, Lume, Kaoori, Leviathann, Illrose}

splinter





Rouse. Run.
Liquid is creeping into your lungs.
Rotting blood and putrid vomit pollute sour your tongue.

^{Sineri, Kody, Illrose, Corell, Leviathann, LittleNo}

FRACTURE





Excellent!
Breathe fresh, dry air Umay.
There's one more mind I'd like to flay.

You are forgotten.

A fog has rolled in and just as it clouds the air, it clouds their minds
and they don't remember you and all you've done for them.

They greet you cordially
and smile, but the question
is clear in their eyes:

'Who are you?'


But wait...       
This one knows you
and you know her.
She is very dear.

You go to her,
hopeful
and in need.


She steps away from you.
Her expression becomes disgusted.
She turns her back on you.

You have been rejected.

^{Umay, Lume, Pandora, Crucio, Kaoori, Fay, Ryuu}

splinter





Stir. Run.
They crowd around you with curious stares.
You are a sideshow on display.

^{Crucio, Kody, Jorogumo, Kaoori, Henna, Tieff}

splinter





Stir. Run.
They look down their noses and sneer.
They whisper cruel gossip and lies.



^{...you are not running...}

^{Crucio, Kody, Jorogumo, Kaoori, Henna, Tieff, Jokerman, Harley}

FRACTURE





Enough!
Ahha-ha..!

It's good to know the denizens of this forest still have their strength and wits!
I've not had so much fun for a very long time...

So now you know what I am.

You have seen first hand what I can do.

Of course, nightmares are not my only speciality...

...But there was no better way to wish you all a

Happy Halloween!






Take your rest now, dear friends... I know you need it.