“I, wait” said Aletha apologetically and soon the fires that surrounded her turned off.

“Hmph, you still have no control over your powers?” asked the man with a mocking look.

Aletha nodded. The man looked at her but soon his eyes shifted towards Jessica’s unconscious body and the blue orb. His eyes turned back towards Aletha. 

“This is awkward…So, what’s your name, girl?” asked the man.

“A-Aletha” she said without putting much of a thought into it. But she was quick enough of to ask back:

“What’s your name then?”

“Kailu” 

It was a strange name. Aletha couldn’t tell what country the name was related to.  

“Well, girl. You really do put up a fight. And I feel too guilty to cut your throat cause of your crybaby face and cracking voice. And I'll leave your pops alone. I'll charge up my energies from another soul I guess” said Kailu sarcastically.
        
“Charge up? That’s what you were doing?”

“Yup, I’ll die within a week from now if I don’t suckle on a soul that doesn’t fit me” said Kailu with a smile.

“R-really?” asked Aletha with suspicion.

“Yeah, You’re not the only person who can come up with guilt trips” said the man.

But his smile became much more sinister and he started crying out loud:

“Isn’t it tragic! Even tho I don’t want to hurt others. Even if I just want to stay alone and do my own shit”

Kailu's facial muscles tightened. He gritted his teeth, whirled around in one space and yelled out to the universe: 

“This world, this body won’t let me be in peace. It wants more energy, it wants more…blood. Curse you, whoever that has thrown me into the shambles. This unfair reality must be PUUUURGED”.

When he turned around to face Aletha she was not there. A voice sounded from a little farther away.

“Jessica, Jessica. Please wake up!” said Aletha as she shook her friend’s body.

“Girl, listen closely when an edgelord is lording their edges, okay?! You damn pretty birds are after some pretty boys. But ugly bastards like me are the ones who speak the truth about how we live in the society”  said Kailu angrily.

“Shut up and cancel whatever you did to her!” yelled Aletha.

“Girl, chill chill. She ain’t dead. She’ll wake up in time, when the venom runs out of juice” said Kailu without a care.

A wry smile appeared on his face soon enough.

“But here is the deal. You help me find another soul I can devour. Or I will seriously consider killing you two and eating up all the sugar from your daddy? You get it?”         

Aletha looked at Kailu with scorn. But she needed to calm down and think about this rationally. She couldn't beat him all by herself, it was wise to play along so she nodded.

“Good good. It’s good that you understand. You’re not much of a blockhead I thought you were” said Kailu.

Aletha ran towards the blue orb and grabbed hold of it with both hands. She could feel it. Her dad, he was still alive. Even if all his life was sucked away, he made it. In the vision of her mind, she could see her father had opened his eyes. The usual world's Aletha was crying and soon wrapped her arms around her dad’s neck.

The dream world's Aletha gladly sighed and turned around. But her eyes fell upon Kailu who had pressed his head upon Jessica’s back and was nibbling on it. Immediately something sparked in her and she dashed towards him with anger.

“Get your filthy face off of her, you jerk” yelled Aletha as she pushed him away.

“Jeez, woman. I was trying to make her wake up!” grunted Kailu as he got up and wiped his clothes from the dust that gathered from the fall.

“Jessica, Jessica!” said Aletha as she shook her body.

“Ughh”

Jessica opened her eyes and looked at Aletha with a surprised face. Aletha raised her friend from the ground and hugged her tight. 

“I sucked out all the poison Crawler had stung her with. You happy now?” asked Kailu with a condescending tone. 

She looked at him but she did not thank him. After all, he was the one to sting her in the first place.

“So, a promise is a promise, right?” said Kailu. 

“What promise?” asked Aletha.

She didn’t have a memory loss. She knew what he was referring to. But playing dumb had its joy to it.

“You little vixen. You deprived me of my food and you must pay for it. Feed me!”

“Find your own food. I’m not your ma!” cried out Aletha.

“Yeah yeah sure” said Kailu and immediately he sprinted towards the blue orb. Aletha’s body burst in flames and with a single speedy dash she got in Kailu’s way. He looked at her and laughed out loud.

“I’m joking, I’m joking. Sheesh. I am a man of my words, okay?” said Kailu with a devilish grin. But his eyes become much warmer when he uttered his next sentence:

“You better protect that soulorb if you care about him that much. Other bastards who have similar soulnature to me might end up taking his life”

Aletha hastily nodded, ran back towards the corner and wrapped her arms around it and raised the orb off the ground. She turned around and snobbishly walked away towards the pathway that led out of the alley. Jessica followed her and so did Kailu.