9:38 PM, Wednesday Night, New York:

 

The ticking of a clock was all that could be heard within the small, two-room apartment. A man was seated at a desk situated within the small living room. Smoke from a lit cigarette danced about as it rose into the air around him.

 

“So it was Mirror... “ A man muttered to himself as he fiddled with a rune in one hand and held a cigarette in the other. A paper was before him that had words which were drawn with magic on it.

 

‘I should... consult Enyo.’ He was a bit troubled, and also reluctant, to have finally come to this conclusion. However, he decided that he needed to get a second opinion as to what he should do.

 

He placed the rune into a brown box that was on the desk and then pulled a phone out of his pocket. He intended to call his boss, someone he feared, but also respected greatly.

 

After dialing in the number he patiently waited for his boss to answer.

 

“Hello?” After a few seconds, a woman’s voice answered the call.

 

“Good evening Enyo, my apologies for disturbing you at this late hour; but I fear we have a bit of a situation at hand…” The man’s voice was clear and straightforward, but his body was slightly shaking. He was nervous.

 

“Oh? What’s this problem you speak of?” The woman’s voice was without any hint of worry, she sounded quite pleasant in all honesty.

 

“It is a situation that involves Mirror. I was recently contracted to do a bit of overwatch for a drug deal from Red Veil City, just a simple job, really, but there was a bit of a… an anomaly. As I was watching, I was suddenly rendered incapable of receiving a clear picture from any of the men I had contact with. It was as if a sudden haze had overcome their eyes and their minds were operating at an extremely... loud level.” The man paused his words for a moment and calmed his nerves.

 

“... And you suspect Mirror interfered?” The woman asked, she sounded intrigued, but at the same time, the man knew she was most likely getting upset at how roundabout his words currently were.

 

“Yes, I believe so. I am not all upset at the interference, in fact, I do not mind at all. It’s just… the aftermath is beginning to be quite troublesome for him.” The man explained, his voice was no longer as straightforward and confident.

 

“Interesting… So what does all this have to do with me?” The woman asked in a curious tone.

 

*Kuhum* The man cleared his throat, “After I informed my current contractor of the sudden interference, he stated that I should look into it, found out who might have caused this. I took the liberty of looking into Mirror’s whereabouts, just to confirm, and came to find that he is in Red Veil City. I obviously cannot betray a fellow member of our group, and I will, of course, refuse to eliminate him.” The man made sure to state that fact to his boss as soon as he thought of it.

 

“However, my contractor, due to his character, will likely try to find someone else who will be willing to take up the task. The reason as to why I am calling you is to ask if I should eliminate my contractor and cover for Mirror, or if I should just hand out an alias to give Mirror time to get clear.” After he finished speaking he picked up his drink and quickly downed it.

 

After the man spoke, the woman remained silent for a few seconds.

 

“Who is your contractor?” She finally asked.

 

“Federico Beretta, the Italian Mafioso from Red Veil City.” The man responded immediately, he then picked up his cigarette from the ashtray and began taking in the bitter taste.

 

“Hmmm,” The woman thought for a second, “Give him Mirror’s real name.”

 

“What?!” The man exclaimed in shock, dropping his cigarette on the floor. “I, uh-... My apologies, Enyo. Forgive my outburst.” He bent down and grabbed the cigarette and placed it back into the ashtray as he exhaled the smoke.

 

“To give out his name… I would be betraying one of our members-.” Before he could finish his protest he felt an odd sensation from the back of his neck. He froze in place.

 

“Give. Him. Mirrors. Name.” The woman spoke in very clear and distinct words then hung up the call.

 

The man sat still for a good few minutes, that odd sensation… It was something he had only ever heard of.

 

It felt as if it was the closest he had ever been to death in his entire life.

~~~~

 

9:42 PM, Wednesday Night, Red Veil City:

A black-haired woman in very plain, casual looking clothes was staring outside of a large warehouse window, looking at the ever-busy Red Veil City streets. She placed her phone into her pocket as she fixed a slight smile onto her face, contrasting the grave look from a moment ago.

 

“Parker,” She spoke as she turned back around and walked towards the chair she occupied a few moments ago, “It appears you were right. Banshee called, he just-”

 

“I heard the entire conversation, Enyo.” A voice that could only be described as grotesque sounding came from a figure clad in a black cloak that covered every inch of skin interrupted the woman.

 

The woman, Enyo, just smiled and leaned back into her chair, “Well then, let’s get back onto our previous topic. If you are certain you wish to go down this fairly uncertain route and allow your infection to get worse…” Enyo paused as she then chuckled lightly, “ Heh. There is no need for me to protect you or your identity any longer. It was a pleasure working with someone as talented as you, Parker, and I wish you peace as you cross over the threshold in a few weeks.”

 

Parker just nodded at her words and maintained his silence.

 

Enyo just smiled and released a sigh, it was filled with regret. She then stood up and began walking out of the warehouse.

 

“Actually… Just a quick question before I go,” She paused her steps and spoke, “This detective, why him?”

 

Parker did not move, he remained seated in the chair as if he was a statue.

“Because he has something… Something which once belonged to me. I intend to make him bleed for taking it from me.” The figure responded in a slightly aggravated tone. It did not blend well with his grotesque voice and caused an unpleasant sound to fill the mostly hollow room.

It did not cause Enyo to react negatively towards him in any way, however. That smile she wore was still as clear as a summer’s day.

 

“I see,” Enyo responded as she nodded her head, “Take care, Parker.” She waved goodbye and walked out. Her steps were fairly carefree and she hummed quietly as she left. She was a naturally cheery person if one could make a basic observation.

 

After she left the empty warehouse once again fell silent. The figure which was still seated in the chair was now alone.

 

His breathing was unsteady. He began coughing violently for a moment and quickly brought his hand to his mouth. As he took his hand away from his mouth, he observed it.

 

The skin which once covered his hand was mostly peeled away, leaving only a thin level of tissue covering his veins, but the most noticeable thing which covered it at the moment was the black blood all over his hands.

 

The figure laughed slightly as he continued coughing.

 

‘I still have time… More than enough time.’ He thought to himself as he used his more than abundant amount of magic power to ease his current suffering, even if it was just for a bit.

 

‘I have enough time to make you bleed… We shall begin shortly, Charles.’

~~~~

*Author’s Note*  

 

Uploading another chapter in a few days, I had to cut the outline this chapter is apart of in half. Had an accident when writing this chapter and ended up losing all my work. I am sorry if this chapter is not up to scratch in terms of quality, but I did not want to not upload this weekend.