Crystal

Jackie laughed a little. “I... really appreciate that, Ramram. A-and I really appreciate that you’re willing to stay behind with Michelle.”

“I can look after myself,” Michelle piped up. “I’m almost ten! And Ren showed me how to make instant noodles in the microwave! So I can make food.”

Jackie chuckled a little. “I remember. And I’m still impressed.” He glanced back down at his phone again, but no new messages had come in. The last one was from Marvin, reading, We’ll pick you up, Jackie. I don’t think we’re that far away. Jems says he’s okay to drive and he’ll honk when we get close. Jackie could’ve driven himself, but he wanted to leave the car for Rama in case of an emergency. So now he was just waiting for JJ and Marvin to show up.

Rama leaned over to look at the phone. “Didn’t you say that Jameson was getting a tattoo today? You know, you really should rest after that.”

“I know.” Jackie nodded. “But this is an emergency. I’m sure JJ knows what he’s doing.”

“I hope he does. Tattoos are essentially a bunch of really tiny wounds. And you’re a doctor, Jackie, you know how serious a bunch of wounds can be.”

“I know,” Jackie said again. “But...” He hesitated. “We might not get a chance like this again...”

“Uncle JJ has magic, he’ll be fine!” Michelle piped up.

Jackie smiled at her. “Good point, Michelle.” Jameson did have some form of healing magic. And these were magical tattoos he was getting. Surely he and Marvin knew what they were doing. Surely.

“Is there any word on Will?” Rama asked, concerned. Receiving a single text from Anti and no elaboration since then has really made the group worried about him. If something happened to Anti—which is extremely possible, given his text-based silence—then was Will alright?

“No, nothing ye—” Jackie started to say, but was interrupted by the swoop of a message sound. He glanced down at the phone in his hand. “Oh. Well, uh... speak of the devil...”

———————

Schneep had also leapt into action upon receiving the text, starting by asking countless questions that weren’t answered, as Anti seemingly disappeared right after sending the go message. He gave up on that once it became clear Anti wasn’t there anymore, instead directing the questions to everyone else. Do you even know what magic you need to use for this? he asked. The last I heard we still had not found anything actually helpful!

Admittedly no, Marvin said, speaking on behalf of him and JJ since JJ was driving the car. But Anti is in danger *now.* We have to try something at least, right? I have my cards on me, and Jems always has his magic, so we can improvise. You and Jackie just need to gather whatever supplies you need, too.

What supplies did they need? Jackie quickly volunteered to bring his first aid kit, but what did Schneep need to bring? He spent about ten minutes frantically searching through his superhero gadgets, testing them out and finding that most were broken from disuse and lack of maintenance. Ugh, just another thing that was IRIS’s fault! Though, the previous times he’d gone into the house on Aspen Street, he hadn’t run into any environments that would need most of these things... It was the inside of a house, there were no great heights that would require his longfall supports or climbing gear. And his shocking gloves were redundant these days. Maybe he could take his smoke bombs? But those were broken!

After a bit, he gave up on any of the gadgets. Most were useless, and the ones that seemed useful were broken. But there was one thing he did take. He rummaged around in his wardrobe, reaching to the very back, and found his hero costume. He hadn’t taken it when he’d left the city; the point was to lay low, so he thought he didn’t need it. That didn’t stop him from doing some stakeout work anyway (he just couldn’t stand by), which eventually led to him getting caught by IRIS. But he was glad he left it behind now. After all, if he’d worn it to that IRIS stakeout, they probably would’ve confiscated it once he got captured.

He barely managed to finish changing into his costume when the doorbell rang.

Schneep froze, still in the middle of adjusting the coat so it was comfortable. Who the hell could that be? People didn’t normally come up to his apartment, and he said he was going to meet the others near the house on Aspen Street, so it wasn’t any of them. Silently, he crept up to the door and peered through the peephole... but saw nobody.

Or at least, he didn’t see anybody at first. There was another knock on the door, and then a figure backed away from it, looking left and right in confusion. A redheaded boy—was that Will?

His instincts said this could be a trick. But... he could see through those illusions now. And even if he couldn’t, Distorter was probably busy with Anti. So Schneep opened the door and peered out. “Will?”

“Volt!” Will said, eyes snapping back towards him.

“Ah, no ‘Volt’ in the hallway,” Schneep said idly. “What are you doing here? Are you okay?”

“...I-I-I’m fine,” Will stammered... but Schneep could see the redness in his eyes, the sort that came from recent crying. “I—there was—Do you know the password?”

“The what?” Schneep blinked.

“Right, I-I guess Dad wouldn’t tell anyone else...” Will laughed a little, the sound wet. “Um, it’s Dad. That gray man, Distorter, h-h-he—” His voice hitched. “C-can I come inside?”

“Of course.” Schneep stepped aside, and Will hurried in. He was still wearing his school uniform and carrying his backpack. But most local schools have been out for at least two hours by now. “What happened? Oh, hang on, I have to let the others know you are here.” He took out his phone. “We were worried about you. Anti sent us a warning.”

“He did?!” Will’s eyes went wide.

“Yes, only a few minutes ago.” Schneep sent his message, then scrolled up to Anti’s. “At 5:01, apparently.”

“Th-th-that was probably right after the bus drove away...” Will said quietly.

“The bus?” Schneep prompted.

Will nodded, wringing his hands. He quickly stammered through an explanation of everything that happened, starting with how Distorter used a school staff member to make Anti think Will was in trouble, and ending with Distorter pulling a similar trick with a hypnotized bus driver, separating the father and son.

“That sounds awful, Will,” Schneep whispered. “B-but it is going to be okay. We have a plan.”

“Yeah, Dad... mentioned that a little bit...” Will said slowly. “A-are you... going to go after him?”

Schneep nodded. “Of course we are.”

Will slumped in relief at that. “Uh... your phone was beeping.”

“Oh, right.” Schneep looked at his text messages. It seems Jackie and Marvin had both responded to his message about Will.

Hes THERE?! Jackie said. How did he get there by himself?! Is he okay?

He would have told us if Will wasn’t okay, Marvin said. I think he’s safe, and thank god for that.

Schneep decided to quickly reply. He is fine, just a bit shaken. It seems Distorter found a loophole in our protection charms: controlling people other than ourselves. He gave a quick summary of Will’s story. Distorter lured Anti out of his flat by having someone else call him, and Anti pretended to be controlled. They went to the bus stop to get Will and Anti grabbed him and ran. Distorter chased, but they thought they lost him. Until Will got onto a bus and Distorter controlled the driver to take him away. It seems Anti told Will my address before then, so he found his way here eventually.

Jems says he’s very brave and clever, Marvin reported.

Im just glad hes okay, Jackie said. Rama said they could drive over to your place to pick him up, schneep. They can watch him and mich here.

Schneep glanced at Will, who was pacing back and forth during this whole exchange, trying not to appear as nervous as he was. “Are you okay with Rama picking you up and taking you to their house?”

“Yeah... I guess so,” Will said slowly. “That’s where me and Michelle usually stay while you guys do all this, huh?”

Schneep blinked. “Are you... upset that you cannot come, Will?”

“I... I’m just... worried about Dad,” Will said slowly. “He was really... freaked out. In like, that way that’s how he specifically freaks out. D’you know that?”

“I... think so...” Schneep said slowly. “But do not worry.” He put a hand on Will’s shoulder, squeezing it. “Anti is very strong, and with these magic charms, Distorter cannot influence him, or any of us. He will be okay. And so will you.”

Will nodded. He looked up at Schneep. “Promise to make sure he’s okay. And, uh, all the rest of you, too. You guys... you have to...” His eyes welled up. “Y-you guys have to c-come back soon, o-okay? I d-don’t want—I-I don’t want any of you to disappear suddenly again.”

In moments like these, Schneep was reminded that although Will was mature for his age, he was still a kid. He nodded seriously down at him. “I promise, all of us will do everything in our power to get back soon. Hopefully, we will be back before the night is over.”

“...okay.” Will let out a breath. “You promised. So I’m gonna remember that.”

“I would expect so,” Schneep chuckled. He turned back to the phone. Will is okay with Rama picking him up. Should I leave him here and hurry to meet you guys?

They debated over text for a bit, but ultimately, Will said he’d be fine waiting in Schneep’s apartment for Rama. “You have the magic protection thing here, too, right? I’ll be fine. You have to get to the house fast!” he said. And so, Schneep headed out, after quickly giving Will instructions on what he could and couldn’t touch in the apartment. Unlike the others, who had a car to get around, he was going to be stuck with walking and public transportation, so he had to hurry. He pulled a long dark coat on over his hero outfit and headed to the nearest bus stop.

———————

It was a short detour for JJ and Marvin to pick up Jackie. Part of it was probably because Jameson was driving unusually fast. He wasn’t a speeder by any means, but this was important! Once they arrived at Jackie’s house, JJ honked on the horn.

“It sounds like they’re outside,” Rama said.

“Yeah, sounds like.” Jackie took a deep breath. He walked over to Michelle and gave her a quick, tight hug. “I’ll be back by tomorrow.”

“...you promise?” Michelle asked, looking up at him with wide, nervous eyes.

Jackie smiled. “I promise. And when I’m back, we can watch anything you want. I know you’ve wanted me and Ren to watch that Supergirl show, right?”

Michelle nodded. “Yeah. Okay. W-we can do that!”

Jackie let go of her and turned around, and was immediately greeted by Rama. They looked at him, and Jackie gave them a hug, too, which they returned, squeezing him tight. “You be careful, Jackieboy,” they whispered. “Mi corazon.”

“I will,” Jackie whispered, leaning back. “I will.” He leaned in again for a brief kiss, then pulled back, double-checking his bag as an excuse to hide the worried tears in his eyes.

Rama squeezed his arm. “You got this,” they said. “Now go. Their car is probably blocking the drive, you guys have to leave first before we can go get Will.”

“Right, right.” Jackie nodded. “I... I love you.”

“I love you too,” Rama said. “But stop making this sound so final.”

Jackie laughed. “Okay, okay. I won’t say goodbye, then. Just... see you soon.”

“See you soon,” Rama repeated, smiling gently.

With that, Jackie hurried out of the house, making a beeline for the car parked in the drive. He opened up the back seat and climbed inside, looking up to see JJ and Marvin both turned in their seats, staring back at him. “Ready to go,” he said. “Hey, uh... how’d the tattoo appointment go?”

Well enough, JJ said, wincing slightly as he signed.

Jackie blinked, noting that. “It still hurts, doesn’t it?”

Yes, but this is an emergency, JJ said. Don’t worry, it doesn’t hurt THAT much.

“...it doesn’t?” Jackie narrowed his eyes.

Don’t you trust me to know how my own body feels? JJ asked.

“I do, but I also know that you’d push on regardless anyway if you thought you had to.”

Marvin laughed. “He’s got you t’ere, Jems.”

Jameson made a face. Well in this case, I promise I can manage. It smarts, but I can handle it. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need my hands to drive. He turned back around in his seat, putting the car in gear.

“Right, yeah, don’t let me stop you.” Jackie nodded. “We... we need to get there soon. Anti texted us like, what, forty-five minutes ago?”

“More like forty,” Marvin said, checking their messages. “But if he was over by his apartment when he wrote t’at, it’ll take him even longer t’ walk to Aspen Street. I doubt Distorter woul’ let him take th’ bus or train t’ere. So we’re still makin’ time. We wan’ to be t’ere before they arrive?”

“Ideally,” Jackie agreed. “Though I guess not necessarily? But the whole idea is to surprise Distorter, so... he might see us coming if we’re late...”

“We’ll hurry, t’en,” Marvin said.

JJ nodded decisively, stepping on the gas a little harder than he normally would have.

———————

They picked up Schneep on the way, arriving at the bus station in the suburbs just as the bus he’d come here on was pulling away. He didn’t say anything upon getting in the car other than a cursory hello. His expression was tense. Their upcoming mission must’ve been heavy on his mind. And, as the car started to wind further through the roads towards Aspen Street, it began to weigh down on the other three as well. Silence fell in the car as everyone began mentally preparing for what was to come.

Until... they saw something unusual on one street corner.

“Is that... Jack?” Marvin asked slowly. “And Stacy?”

Jackie and Schneep leaned to the side in unison. “Where?” Schneep asked.

“T’ere.” Marvin pointed. Sure enough, Jack and Stacy were standing right under the street sign for this intersection, with Stacy bouncing on her feet and Jack looking up and down the road. He spotted the approaching car quickly and began waving them down. “Uh, Jems?”

Jameson nodded, having the same curious thought Marvin was. He pulled to the side of the road and rolled down the window, looking at the two of them with a puzzled expression.

“So you guys were coming this way,” Stacy said with a sigh. “I was starting to get nervous.”

“What are ye doin’ out here?” Marvin asked.

Schneep rolled down his window in the back as well. “Are you two waiting for us? Did you know we were coming?” He took out his phone. “I am pretty sure Anti only sent the message in the chat with the five of us.”

“Anti sent you a message?” Jack asked, blinking in confusion.

“Oh, okay, you definitely didn’t get it if you’re that confused,” Jackie said.

“But t’en how and why are ye here waitin’ for us?” Marvin asked.

“Well, there’s a simple answer to that! ...sort of.” Jack held his pocket open, and Sam flew out. “We were just chilling at home when Sam jumped up and started insisting we had to meet you guys, saying you’d probably be heading to that Aspen Street house.”

JJ tilted his head to the side curiously. Really? Did they say WHY? Or did you just listen immediately?

“Of course we asked questions,” Stacy said defensively. “Me more than Jack, admittedly. I forgot about Sam’s, um... future vision powers.”

“It’s not really that,” Jack clarified. “It’s just that sometimes they get a feeling. Like, there’s a foreboding feeling, or whatever. They know when something bad will probably happen, and they know what to do to avoid that. They told me now that me and Stacy really needed to be here.” He tilted his head to the side and glanced towards Sam, who was flying in quick, tight circles in the air. “And now they’re saying that... we can... help you?”

“Help us?” Jackie repeated, blinking. “I, uh... I guess? Maybe? You guys don’t, uh, know what’s going on, though.”

“Not at all,” Stacy confirmed. “But you said something about Anti and a message?”

“Essentially, we are going to ambush Distorter,” Schneep said. “Anti is pretending to be under his control to hopefully lower his guard. When he heads into the house on Aspen Street, we will be there to... to stop him.”

“You... don’t sound too sure about that...” Stacy said slowly.

“Well, our plan is a bit shaky,” Schneep said. “I was expecting us to talk about it some more on the drive here.”

“You were?” Marvin looked back at him in surprise. “Why didn’ you say t’at?! I assumed you didn’ want to talk!”

“Yeah, me too,” Jackie said. “But I guess, uh, JJ wouldn’t have been able to participate much in that discussion anyway, since he needed to drive.”

Schneep blinked. “...ah. Well.”

JJ looked back at everyone. If we hurry, we can beat them to the house on Aspen Street. Then we can talk about what our plan is. We know time magic is the key, we can discuss from there.

“Time magic, huh?” Stacy blinked. “I’m not sure how much we can help with that, actually...” But Sam flew around behind her and began ramming into her, clearly trying to push her towards the car. “Whoa! Okay, okay!”

“Maybe ye can be lookouts,” Marvin suggested. “We’ll need t’ keep the car hidden.” He shuffled the cards in his hands. “I t’ink I have a spell t’at can help, but it’ll mean leavin’ some cards behind. If you two stay behind to keep an eye on th’ cards, and t’en maybe text us to know when Distorter and Anti are comin’... well, t’at woul’ be a real help.”

Jack nodded. “We can do that.”

Alright, get in, JJ said. Schneep, Jackie? You’re going to have to take off your seatbelts and squish together.

Jackie sighed. “Sure. It’s not safe, but at least we’re not that far away.”

Given what we’re going towards, I think the lack of seatbelts isn’t that much of a threat in comparison, JJ said grimly.

Jackie unbuckled his seatbelt and scooted over to the window. “..it’s still a threat,” he grumbled.

You’re undermining my dramatic moment, Jackie! JJ said.

“Good, I was trying to!”

Jack and Stacy piled into the car. The backseat was nowhere near big enough for four adults to sit, so everyone’s legs ended up overlapping as they all partially sat on top of each other. Sam flew into the car once everyone else was in, sitting in one of the cupholders. “Well, at leas’ we have Sam bein’ cute to emotionally support us,” Marvin commented.

JJ laughed slightly before turning his attention to the road.

...

...soon, it was upon them.

The house on Aspen Street looked the same as it always had. Always rundown, always dull, always seemingly lifeless. Nobody else knew that inside the house, space itself seemed to break as the environment turned against you. “You guys have to stick together,” Stacy said upon seeing it. “I-I don’t want to... y-you shouldn’t get split up like last time.”

“When ye came t’ rescue me, righ’?” Marvin asked quietly.

Stacy nodded. “Yeah. We all got separated.”

“Jems has told me abou’ his experiences in t’ere,” Marvin recalled. “It happens whenever ye step over a t’reshold, righ’?” He looked at JJ for confirmation, who nodded, parking the car on the street.

Schneep peered out the window, scanning the area. “I do not see Distorter or Anti,” he reported.

“Maybe they’re inside the house?” Jackie suggested. “Or... hiding in a bush?”

“Those bushes are not substantial enough to hide a person,” Schneep said. “Besides, Distorter would have no reason to hide in them, since he can disappear from everyone’s perception.” Except for Schneep’s, of course. “But yes, he could be inside with Anti. In which case... we will have to be prepared. We need to move fast.”

“And you need to stick together,” Stacy emphasized.

“We’re plannin’ on it,” Marvin said.

JJ turned back to look at everyone else. I think she means more than just... being in a huddled group. Right, Stacy?

Stacy nodded. “If you guys hold onto each other or something, it’ll probably stop the weird house magic from separating you guys.”

Schneep frowns. “That is a good idea... but we cannot hold hands all the time. I, for one, need a hand free to use my power.” His brow furrowed. “Verdammt. I should have brought some of my gear after all, I think the grapple cord could’ve come in handy here.”

You mean... a tether? JJ asked. I could try to connect us with my magic... He frowned. But that could disappear if I lose concentration, or... maybe it wouldn’t be enough. A magic rope seemed a lot more vulnerable to this strange separation than a physical rope was.

“Hmm...” Jack hummed. “Is everyone wearing pants with belt loops?”

Everyone glanced down at their pants in comical unison. “I think so?” Jackie said slowly. “Schneep, does your costume have belt loops?”

“It has loops for connecting various gadgets,” Schneep said.

“Close enough.” Jack reached into his pocket and pulled out a few metal loops.

“...why do you have climbing carabiners?” Schneep asked, confused.

“I bought some at a sports supply shop a couple days ago,” Jack said. “I read online that if you have a lot of grocery bags, you can use them for easy carrying, so I thought I’d get some for me and Stacy’s grocery runs. But I just left them out on the counter for ages. I put them in my pocket earlier so I’d remember to put them away, but then Sam started freaking out, and... well, here we are.”

“That’s perfect, though!” Jackie gasped. “How many do you have?”

“Five,” Jack said, spreading them out.

Marvin counted on his fingers. “We’ll only need four, if we want t’ connect in a line. You can keep the las’ one.”

JJ nodded. Schneep and I are our best offense, so we should be on either end, with Jackie and Marvin in the middle. Any objections?

“None at all.” Marvin began searching through his cards. “Jus’ give me one moment to make t’at invisibility spell...” It would mean he’s going into the house with less than a full deck of runes, but he could work with that. A small price to pay for keeping Jack and Stacy hidden.

They moved fast once all those details were sorted. Marvin’s cards made the whole car—and its occupants—disappear from view. When the four of them said goodbye to Jack and Stacy and climbed out, they didn’t see a hint of the car they’d come from when they turned back around. Quickly, they headed to the front door, where they paused long enough to take out the carabiners. Schneep took up the front, followed by Jackie, then Marvin, then JJ in the back. The metal loops were large for what they were, but small compared to a length of rope, so they were standing awkwardly close together.

Schneep grabbed the front door’s handle. “If he is in there, we cannot waste time,” he said quietly. “I know it is hard to move like this, but we have to stay coordinated.”

The others nodded, all of them getting ready to move.

“On three, I open the door and we run in,” Schneep whispered. “One...” His grip tightened. “Two...” He turned the handle. “Three!”

Schneep flung the door open and they all rushed inside—and proceeded to trip over each other, Marvin and JJ collapsing and bringing Jackie down with them. Schneep managed to stay on his feet somehow, leaving Jackie in an awkward hands-and-feet position. “Good job, everyone,” Schneep muttered.

“Maybe t’is wasn’ the best idea after all,” Marvin groaned.

“Well, at the very least, it seems our entrance did not leave us vulnerable to attack.” Schneep scanned the empty living room. “Distorter is not here. I get the feeling he has not arrived yet.”

JJ grabbed a coat rack by the door, trying to pull himself up. Marvin helped, using his cane for leverage, and Jackie got up from there. Once they were all standing, the other three looked around as well. “No sign of him,” Jackie mumbled.

He can’t be that far, JJ said. We took long enough picking everyone up on the way. He looked out the front window, seeing nothing. We should... get ready.

Marvin shuffled nervously through his cards, fanning them out and double-checking they were all there. “I guess we’re really doin’ t’is...” He tried to mentally recall any of the time spells they’d found... but they hadn’t really found much of anything. Fear began to creep into his stomach, and his breathing started to speed up. He was going to mess this up. He had no idea what to do or how to do it, and this was all relying on his magick cards, he was going to let everyone down—

“Hey.” Jackie put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. “Don’t panic.”

“Huh?” Marvin looked over. “I-I’m not panicking.”

“You are,” Jackie said. “I can see it. Just... take deep breaths, okay? Remain calm.”

JJ nodded. Yes... we all seriously need to remain calm. His eyes darted around the room. This place is a magical echo chamber, remember? Anything we feel will reflect off the space in here and bounce back on us. If we get scared, we’ll soon be terrified. We have to stay confident.

Schneep nodded. “We can do this. And we should all say that we can. Everyone. We can do this.”

“W-we can d-do this,” Marvin repeated.

“We can do this,” Jackie whispered.

We can do this, JJ signed.

“That is the spirit.” Schneep nodded. “We have time to figure out the plan. Marvin, why not discuss the things you think could be helpful?”

“...right.” Marvin nodded. He looked down at his cards, separating out the jokers. “T’ese are the time cards. I t’ink... I can buy us some time...”

———————

Anti’s legs were really starting to hurt. It wasn’t every day he walked across the city without using the bus or trains, but Distorter clearly wasn’t leading him towards any of those. And if he wanted to keep up this charade, he couldn’t question anything. Maybe Distorter was making him walk on purpose, as some sort of punishment for fighting so much. Ugh. This sucked. He wasn’t that out of shape, was he?

But now, finally, they reached Aspen Street. Distorter paused to look back at him, his ever-present smile seemingly filled with excitement. “Almost there,” he said. “You can do it.”

Though he wanted to glare at Distorter and his stupid fucking passive-aggressive mockery of support, he forced himself to just nod slowly.

“You’re probably wondering what we’re going to do when we’re there,” Distorter said, turning back around. “Well, I think with your help, we can get a little party together. With all the rest of your friends there. Wouldn’t that be great?” He giggled. “Maybe that’s what they were texting you about earlier. Maybe they were planning a party.”

His heart skipped a beat when Distorter mentioned those texts. The second he’d sent his warning in the group chat, people had started responding. He had to quickly silence his phone before Distorter had turned around, curious about what all those sounds were. But luckily, Distorter had only said “It sounds like your friends really want to talk to you, huh? Don’t respond. We need to get home first.” And then he turned around and kept leading Anti through the streets. He'd dodged a bullet there; god, why was his phone unsilenced then of all times? Distorter had heard it... and he hadn’t forgotten about those texts, either.

They approached the house, and Distorter slowed to a stop, tilting his head to the side. He looked around... all around, torso twisting one way, and then another, spine cracking as it went. His smile remained present, but Anti couldn’t help but feel that was just a mask. “Do you hear anything?”

“...no,” Anti said honestly.

“Do you see anything?”

“No.”

“Look around. Listen closer. Is there anything unusual around?”

Uneasily, Anti looked around. He really couldn’t see anything weird about this area. Aspen Street was always quiet—or at least, this area was, the few times they’ve been here. Though... there was a faint, weird warping in the air. Was that... magic? Anti quickly looked away from it. His heart was pounding out of his chest. Good, the others were here. Hopefully. “No, there’s nothing unusual,” he said, keeping his tone dull.

“Good.” Distorter nodded once. “Come on.” He began walking up the path to the house’s front door.

Anti followed, eyes darting all around, looking for—there! Movement in the house’s window, for just a split second. His chest soared, filling with hope. The others were here! That meant that, even if this went wrong, at least he wasn’t going to be alone in here. And they probably also found Will and made sure he was safe. So that was good. He could face whatever was to come knowing his son was alright and his friends were going to be at his side.

———————

Jackie’s phone dinged with the noise of a text notification. He took it out and looked at the screen... reading a text from Stacy. His breath hitched. “Distorter is down the street!” he hissed. “And Anti’s with him!”

Jameson gasped. But he nodded, trying to project confidence. Then it’s time. Marvin, do you need help with anything?

“Y-yes, help me set up the time stop,” Marvin said. He’d never done this before, but he was pretty sure this one combination of cards would catch Distorter in time.

The group gathered by the front door, arranging Marvin’s cards in a large circle, with only one out of place. Then they hurried to stand by the side, ready to pounce into motion the moment the door opened. The carabiners still meant movement was awkward—Jackie fell to the side and almost collapsed the whole chain before he managed to grab onto the curtains—but they didn’t dare unclasp them, just in case. “They’re coming!” Jackie hissed. “I saw them!”

“Brace yourselves, everyone,” Schneep muttered.

———————

Distorter grabbed onto the doorknob, waiting on the doorstop, making sure Anti was with him. His smile widened. “Let’s go.”

He opened the door, and stepped inside. Anti lingered back—

A blackened hand shot out and grabbed the collar of his shirt, pulling him through the door as well. Anti yelped, too taken off guard to fight back. Once inside, though, he regained his senses and wrenched himself free, stumbling to the side, eyes darting around

and seeing

nothing.

Just an empty room.

Nobody

Was there.

“...wh... what the...?” Anti’s eyes widened in surprised horror. Had he been mistaken? Had he not seen that movement inside after all?

And then Distorter began to laugh. Quietly, at first. But as Anti turned to stare at him, that laughter increased, growing louder to shrieking peals. All of it directed squarely at Anti. “Oh, I’m sorry!” Distorter said, tilting his head too far to the side. “It’s just so funny! The expression on your face! What, were you expecting your friends to jump me? Attack me with spells and lightning? Did you forget how this house works, Aodhán?! No space is the same! Especially when I don’t want it to be.”

———————

The floor began to shake. “What the—” Marvin glanced downwards, leaning onto his cane for support in this now-unstable environment. “What’s goin’ on?!”

Jameson summoned magic in his hands, the air around him lighting up blue as he did.

“Th-this has never happened before!” Jackie gasped. “I-is it an earthquake?!”

“With our luck? No!” Schneep glanced around. He lunged to the side, grabbing onto the archway that led into the kitchen—dragging everyone else along with him with surprisingly little effort. “Everyone hold on!”

“Hold on t’ what?!” Marvin gasped, looking around. “The furniture!”

The furniture, too, was shaking. And the shaking grew faster, and faster, loud thumps becoming even louder crashing. JJ winced, pressing his hands to his ears and dispelling the magic as he did. The furniture—the world was shaking so much that every item was leaving an afterimage. Half-formed blurred shapes of things breaking off and spinning into the air, multiplying rapidly.

SNAP!

Jameson looked down towards the sound. The carabiner connecting him to Marvin broke. One of the metal sides snapped right in two. “Jems!” Marvin gasped realizing the same thing. “Hold on!” He lunged towards Jameson—

SNAP!

The loop connecting him to Jackie broke. The sheer force of whatever shaking was going on caused it buckle and disconnect. Marvin fell to the ground... and when he looked up, Jameson was gone, only afterimages left behind in the shaking.

Jackie and Schneep saw Marvin struggle to get up, and saw as he, too, began shaking away into mere echoes. “Marvin! Wait!” Jackie cried. Marvin turned around to look at them, but the image of him disappeared before he could reach back towards them.

“Marvin!” Jackie screamed. He started to run towards the spot he’d been, but Schneep grabbed him and pulled him back. “Let me go, Henrik!”

“No!” Schneep shook his head. “Jackie, I think the house—its distortion of space is—th-the separation is in the rooms now! If you get too far from me, we will disappear from each other!”

Jackie looked back at him, tears in his wide eyes. “What are we supposed to do?!”

The floor gave a solid heave, knocking both of them to the floor. Schneep rolled over, grabbing Jackie and wrapping his arms around him, holding him tightly. “Hold onto me!” he gasped.

Jackie, stunned, could only do as he asked and wrap his arms around him, squeezing, holding onto what felt like the only solid thing. The floor—the walls—the ceiling around them seemed to break, but at the same time, the room stayed intact. It all began to shake away, and they could only make sure they had each other close.

———————

“This... this doesn’t make any sense!” Anti staggered backwards, away from Distorter, even though that just led him further into the house. “I just—we were—you couldn’t have—even if you guessed we were planning something, you’d never expect—I-I didn’t—”

“Didn’t give anything away?” Distorter asked. “You’re a very good actor, Aodhán. I’ll give you that.” He clapped sarcastically. “But you didn’t think I wouldn’t know my attempts to reach into your mind had failed? What, do you think Jameson doesn’t feel when his spells fail, too? These powers are part of us, stuff like that is as intuitive as knowing when you fail to grab something with your hand. And even if it wasn’t, your eyes didn’t start bleeding. That’s a dead giveaway.”

Anti’s mind was spinning. God, he was such an idiot. A failure. He thought he was playing along with Distorter, but he was only doing what this creature wanted him to. And now, his friends were in here... because of him. Because he sent that text. He led them here, into this trap... into his domain.

Distorter laughed. “Oh, I don’t need to see into your mind to know what you’re thinking now. Yes! This is all your fault.”

The world was spinning. No, the house was spinning, leaving streaks of itself in its wake. Anti couldn’t breathe. The very air of this place was pressing down on him. He fell to his knees—or was he pushed? Pushed by the weight of this house and everything that had ever happened in it?

“And now you’re all here!” That laughter rang out again. “With all my friends in one place...