《Thoughts Tinged Crimson》 Prologue Balthazar was close, he was so close... but his vision had already darkened at this point ''I guess this is it'' he sighed, but there was no bitterness. Truth be told, these past few hours had been the best in his life, he''d never felt more alive ''Just wish I could¨C''
Health: 0/1345
You are dead
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.The last thing Donovan remembered was a feeling of weightlessness and oh, screaming his lungs out, as he fell to the cellar floor, landing with a dull ''thump'' There wasno pain, only a sense of numbness, which was more of a comfort than anything else. But then,quite suddenly he seemed to be somewhere else altogether, surrounded on all sides by a blue light. ''Where am I?? How did I get here??'' his hands and feet were sluggish, virtually non-existent. ''Is this... The sea??'' he wondered, it looked exactly like one of those documentaries he''d seen on TV, though he couldn''t be sure. His current state (no pun intended) was quite unique, low enough such that he had no hopes of making it back to the top, but not so low as to reach the sandy sea floor. He was literally stuck in between, floating in limbo¡­ everything went white, then the white gradually turned into the darkest of blacks ''Mom, Dad... I''ll be seeing you soon'' he felt a little consoled at the thought, as he allowed the darkness to consume him. Chapter One ''Where... am I??'' darkness still surrounded me but I could clearly tell that I was still breathing, which left me at a loss ''Didn''t my Health hit zero??'' I remembered reading the message, yet here I was alive and breathing, whereverherewas in any case. The air was stale and had quite a bit of dust mixed in, ''A dungeon??'' the rest of my body was still quite numb, so I couldn''t move, I couldn''t even tell if all my limbs were fully intact. ''Regardless, I somehow managed to survive... so that means'' I began laughing inwardly ''Ha!! Just you wait,little Gorgo-'' but a stinging pain caused me falter, I felt my body convulse and the numbness I''d been feeling since the beginning, slowly began to recede. My back felt cold and stiff, I concluded that I was probably lying on a stone floor, uneven and hard. I also made another discovery, the blackness I saw around me was because my eyes were closed,I struggled to open them, hoping against hope that my sight wasn''t impaired. Though I wouldn''t put it past them to poison me, just out of spite. It took a few tries, and no small amount of effort but I finally managed to get them open, only to stare blankly at the ceiling above me. It made of rough unpolished rock and was covered in cobwebs, ''Those damn snakes!! They had the nerve to-'' I grit my teeth, the pain from before had suddenly magnified tenfold, almost as if someone had dropped a Warhammer upon my head (not fun, I speak from experience) It took me a good while to reign in the pain, which simultaneously drove out the numbness from my body. I shakily brought up my arm to my head, from where the pain originated, and my fingers brushed up against a warm and sticky liquid ''Blood... Must''ve been quite a hit, if I''m still bleedingthis ba-'' I frowned, glancing at my now darkened fingertips. Something was wrong here, but it took me a while to realize what''What inHelheim is going on?!'' I cursed,my fingers and my entire palm for that matter, was smaller than I knew them to be and they were shaped differently as well. There were too many variables ''Why was I brought here?? What happened to me?? And where exactly am I?!'' Add to all of this the constant throbbing of my head, and it was all I could do to keep myself from screaming out ''It wouldn''t do to draw attention... When there''s so much I don''t know'' I repeatedly told myself, taking in a few deep breaths. The air around me was manaless ''Figures..'' I grimaced. Now I had an additional thing to worry about, I was injured pretty badly, I didn''t know where I was nor did I know who my captors were, not to mention their motives (though I would venture a guess, that it wouldn''t be good for me) and to top it all off, I couldn''t use my abilities. So I had no way of healing myself, talk about an impossible situation, I grimaced ''No... moping will do me no good!!'' I pushed such thoughts from my mind, secretly glad that I''d ranked up my resistance to pain, which was the main reason why I was able to maintain such a rational train of thought. ''Okay, first things first'' I needed to know how badly my current condition was ''Status!!'' Nothing happened... "What the-!?" I failed to note the change in my voice "Status!!" still noting, no familiar blue screen appeared in front of me. I won''t lie, I was freaking out at this point, I''d been through a lot of tough situations, but none where something likethis happened. "Status!! STA-ahhgh" the pain suddenly magnified, and my head felt heavier for some reason, so much so that I almost passed out ''STATUS!!'' I inwardly yelled, ignoring all else. This wasn''t happening, something like this couldn''t happen, I''d never heard of such a thing ''STATUS'' I yelled again. A few nervewracking milliseconds later, a blue screen popped up, I sighed in relief.
NAME: Balthazar RACE: Wood Elf AGE: 654 years
HEALTH: 5/1345 STAMINA: 1/1205 TITLE: ?????
MANA: 0/735 STRENGTH: 3/875 SKILLS: ?????
''Huh??'' before I could even go through the entire screen, let alone begin wondering about the question marks, a crack formed on the lower edge. I watched in open shock, as it rapidly propagatedand could only stare blankly when quite suddenly, the screen shattered.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. Another screen popped up a few seconds later.
Error...
"WHAT!!" that was when I noticed the change in my voice but I dismissed it, there was a much more pressing issue at hand "Status!!" I tried again. Luckily, the blue screen appeared once more, but there were even more question marks now!!
NAME: ????? RACE: ????? AGE: ?????
HEALTH: 5/????? STAMINA: 1/????? TITLE: ?????
?????: ????? STRENGTH: 3/????? SKILLS: ?????
This was as far as I got before the screen shattered again, and the same message appeared once more.
Error...
"What the FUC-" another message popped up just then.
Compatability issue, reconfigure??
YES NO
I hardly had any time to think it through, half the screen was already covered in cracks by the time I was done reading and something told me it wouldn''t appear again, call it a hunch or simply just a ''bad feeling'' either way, I didn''t want to take any chances ''Yes!!'' just as the screen shattered yet again.
Reconfiguring (1/3) - Inputting remnant memories
''Made it...'' I grinned, only for my eyes to widen ''Wait, wha-'' a series of images played through my mind just then, leaving me disoriented (Gave me quite the headache too) The events seemed to span over a few years (well, few by my count anyway) and they were all from the perspective of the same person ''Donovan Greystone...'' I abruptly began laughing. The body of a once proud Elf named Balthazar, was probably being marched around the city of Durabenin shame while his consciousness,my consciousness (or soul, for lack of a better word)had somehow transferred itself into the body of a human who had coincidentally, passed at around the same time!! If I were able to move my body, I''d probably start rolling on the floor!! I had almost laughed myself hoarse, by the time the next ''notification'' popped up. I had come to terms with the fact somewhat and was thus, trying to incorporate some of their more convenient words, though a few mirthless chuckles still escaped me.
Reconfiguring (2/3) - Removing all unusable Abilities and Skills
''I guess that makes sense'' I was mentally praying that ''Pain Resistance'' wasn''t one of them, a few tense minutes passed in speculation ''Safe...'' I reasoned, when there was no viable change, the pain would have otherwise proven fatal, even for an Elf like me. The original owner of this body had passed with barely any pain, and for that I was thankful, he was barely a fledgling by my standards. He had been trying to outrun a few of his kind, though from my understanding they were of a subspecies he identified as ''Bullies'' quite the troublesome bunch to deal with. They hunted in groups and primarily targeted those that refused to make the regular offering of ''lunch money'' every day (money was the term these humans used to refer to their form of currency) and I say ''these'' humans because they clearly differed from those I knew from Midgard, they wielded no magic and hardly had a tenth of the strength an average Midgardian possessed.The planet they lived in was similarly called the Earth, to these humans ''science'' and ''technology'' werewhat ''Mana'' and ''Magic'' were to the Migardians well, more of that for another time. Coming back to young Donovan, he failed miserably at trying to outrun the group. So in a last-ditch effort, he sprinted into the nearby forests surrounding the ''school'' (a place of learning) heading for an old abandoned villa, that was rumored to be frequented by a specter, but my thoughts were interrupted by another pop up...
Reconfiguring (3/3) - Modifying all usable abilities and skills to the current plane
The notification left me wondering what I''d be allowed to retain, I knew that I wouldn''t be able to use any of my mana and magic-related skills and abilities. But hopefully, I''d be left with something that would help me out of this situation, time trickled by as I waited with bated breath.
You have learned an additional skill: Scan
''Wasn''t expecting that'' I checked the skill''s description, this was a skill I''d never hear of, though I suspected it functioned the same way as one of my previous skills calledAppraise.But once I''d skimmed through its description, I knew I was wrong. ''This... could just be what I need!!'' Chapter Two
Scan:This skillcasesthe user''s surroundings and/or allows the user to observe the stats of a particular individual or article.
Anything and everything that serves, or may serve as a means to attain that which the user currently desires, is highlighted. NOTE: Pre-requisite condition or target must be specified beforehand.
''Talk about convenient...'' I inwardly whistled, thankful that I was still able to use the ''System'' as they referred to it here, though no other person seemed to possess one as such. The concept was confined to a form of entertainment these humans came up with, called roleplaying games or ''RPGs'' I sighed, Donovan was quite fond of them ''To have died so-'' I shook my head in guilt, I would mourn him later, but I had to focus on recovering first ''Status!!''
NAME: ???? RACE: Human AGE: 12 years
HEALTH: 5/10 STAMINA: 1/12 TITLE: The Bullied
STRENGHT: 3/8 AGILITY: 4/14 SKILLS
INTELLIGENCE: 175 CHARM: 5
LUCK: 130 ABILITIES
I had prepared myself, but I still couldn''t help but cringe at the sight. My stats were beyond dismal, even worsethan before I''d started training to become an Explorer (and I mean way worse) In addition, the entire screen had become smaller, not to mention the loss of all my hard earned titles ''The Bullied?? Seriously?!'' even my name was unspecified, which I figured was probably because of the System''s reconfiguration. On the other hand, Luck and Intelligence had largely remained the same, though I''d lost a couple of points in the latter ''Probably due to the lack of mana'' I reasoned. Mana had a variety of uses, aside from combat, once you had a good enough control over it. You could use the Mana to help heighten your senses, or such as in my case, help you process information at a much faster rate. ''Please be there, please be there, please be there!!'' I concentrated on the skills option, it expanded to reveal a list of skills I currently had.
LEVELLABLE These skills can be improved upon as the user''s experience, and/or knowledge regarding the same, increases. COMBAT Stealth (Intermediate)
NON-COMBAT Cooking (Intermediate) Musician (Advanced) Dismantle (Beginner) Lying (Master) Scan (Beginner)
STATUS These skills, directly affect the user''s stats, theireffectiveness cannot be improved. Vigor Rampage Dash
LOCKED The user does not currently meet the conditions to use these skills. Riding (Proficient) Elven art of War (Intermediate) Disguise (Master) Swordsman (Intermediate) Gunslinger (Proficient)
NOTE: In some cases, the name and/or functionality of a particular skill, upon getting unlocked, may change to meet the rules of the current plane.
''Fuck!!''I''d initially thought that only those skills that were mana related would be removed, boy was I wrong, not even a quarter of my skills remained. Thankfully, the skill I was looking for was still there, and it wasn''t locked (I think my luck stat came into play there) ''I wonder what abilities I still have??'' I wondered somewhat fearfully, I knew that pain resistance was one of them, but as for the others ''Maybe I should che-''
Excessive bleeding... HEALTH -1
''Crap!!'' now wasn''t the time to be worrying about that!! ''Vigor!! Cost two!!''
Skill activated successfully...
HEALTH -2
STRENGTH +1
STAMINA +1
The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.I immediately felt strength course through my (Donovan''s) body, everything seemed functional ''Okay!! time to get out of-'' the world spun around me as I tried to sit up, prompting me to empty the contents of my stomach ''I guess it was a good thing Donovan skipped lunch'' I grumbled, as I waited for the nausea to settle. Vigorwas always a handy skill to have ''And it seems to function the same...'' I opened up the skill''s description just in case.
Vigor: The user sacrifices health in order to momentarily gain strength and stamina.
NOTE: Amount gained equals half the amount of health sacrificed.
''Yup, no changes there..'' I took in a few deep breaths, while my eyes wandered around the ''Dungeon'' I''d thought I was trapped in. Towards my right was, what looked like a flight of stairs, presumably leading into the villa above. I was currently in an underground room called the ''cellar'' which, save for some a solitary wine rack at one end, was otherwise empty. ''Well, here goes nothing!!'' I''d mentally prepared myself for the worst, it was true that I had a pretty high luck stat, but I''d learned the hard way not to heavily rely upon it ''Luck only takes you so far...'' I shakily got to my feet. ''Condition: Health regeneration!! Scan!!''
Skill activated successfully...
I looked around the cellar once more, though my body had already tensed in case I had to go with the alternative plan, which involved running out of the Villa and heading for the local ''Hospital'' I wasn''t very fond of the idea, then again I didn''t have much a choice. Nothing happened, signifying that there wasn''t anything I could use to heal myself ''Well, here''s to hoping I won''t run into any of those Bullie-'' I abruptly turned towards the wine rack which I noticed, from the corner of my eye, was glowingly dimly. How''d I missed it before?? Well, it wasn''t glowing then. And more importantly, the light didn''tseem to come from the rack but from the wall behind it, so it was partially hidden from my view. Additionally, the glow wasn''t green like I''d expected, it was a dull shade of red ''What''s that supposed to mean??'' and I walked towards the rack, momentarily forgetting that I was quite short on time. I noted that the borders of a particular stone brick, on the wall, were glowing ''Was there something behind it??'' I grabbed a wine bottle (I figured that it was probably worthless, else why would anyone leave it behind??) and promptly smashed it against the rack, its contents spilt on the floor. I hardly paid heed to the echoing sound of breaking glass, tracing around the stone with a particularly sharp shard of the shattered bottle. The walls were lined with what looked like dried earth, I had to jiggle with the stone for a while before it finally budged and seeing as I didn''t have the strength to lift it up, I let it fall to the floor. The crash that followed, nowthat was loud... I coughed, at the amount ofdust dislodged in the process, and stared blankly at the cavity that was formed. There was no longer any glow since the skill had already timed out ''Here goes nothing...'' I tentatively reached in with my arm. I couldn''t help but shiver when my hand brushed againstsomething hard and cold''A box'' I realized, one which I pulled out immediately. Itwas simple in design and smooth to the touch, made of wood that had grown black with age.Unfortunately, the metal latch was corroded beyond use, which left me with no choice but toforce open the lid. A single vial set securely on a ruined velvet cloth, that was all the box contained, causing me to wonder if the System possibly got it wrong ''It''s alright, I still have time fo-''
Excessive bleeding... HEALTH -1
Fuck it, all or nothing now... ''There has to be a reason why it showed up when I used the skill!!'' I grabbed the vial, it was barely the size of my palm. I set it as the target and used ''Scan'' once more,a screen popped up instantly.
Blood Vial: Contains blood essence of unknown origins...
NOTE: Possible effects upon ingestion include stat updates and/or addition of new abilities and skills.
''That explains it...'' I grimaced ''Can''t do much else, can I??'' I was frankly surprised that such a thing existed in this plane ''Seems there''s more to this world than what meets the eye...'' it was a gamble, but I had nothing to lose either way. So, I chugged the freezing dark liquid held within the vial, in one go. A series of notifications popped up, which I quickly dealt with. They majorly consisted of alerts, telling me that aforeign agent that had entered my body and prompts, asking me if whether I wanted to change my bloodline (hell yeah!!) it was only when I saw that last one, that I paused.
Merge with the user completely. Merge with the user gradually over time. Controlled merging
Blood essence is exhausted immediately. Blood essence is suppressed at the heart, allowing user''s body to slowly adapt to the new bloodline. User can specify the amount to be merged and/or suppressed.
Largeincrease in all stats, possible addition of new skill and/or ability... No immediate change, but better overall stats and higher blood purity will be achieved, high chance of acquiring new skills and/or abilities... Stat increase and bloodline purity correspond to the amount merged/suppressed respectively, moderate chances of acquiring new skills and/or abilities.
''Under normal circumstances, I would most likely go for the second option'' getting stronger gradually and steadily, was always the best method, but given my current state...''Suppress ninety percent and merge with the rest''
Merging process beginning in 2:00 minutes
NOTE: The user will be rendered unconscious for the entire duration of the process...
I sighed, throwingthe empty vial against the wine rack.Itshattered, and the pieces mixed along with those already broken on the floor, making one indiscernible from the other. My limbs were already starting to feel heavy,so I leaned against the wall and sank to my feet''Donovan Greystone... your dreams and aspirations, I will realize them in your stead'' I vowed.The corner of my vision started to go black, but unlike the darkness that surrounded me, there was nothing within it. ''Rest in peace youngling... and may you find solace'' I finished, just as the timer hit zero. Chapter Three I sawSelanawaiting for me with her arms stretched open, her seductive eyes gleaming with anticipation. My heartbeat quickened as I approached her "I defeated him!!" I brandished the key in my hand with triumph "You''re finally fre-"
Merging complete, re-evaluating stats...
''Huh??'' I was still groggy and my thoughts were a little jumbled up, so I couldn''t quite recognize where I was ''Oh... that''s right'' I smiled, somewhat bitterly, when everything came back to me ''I died in my old world, and somehow took over the body of a human named Donovan'' my back felt sore, causing me to wonder how much time had passed since the process had started (Donovan''s watch had broken during the fall) ''Well, at the very least, I''m not in pain...'' I shakily got to my feet, the image of my (Balthazar''s) late wife still fresh in my mind, I sighed ''Even after so many years-''
Newability,Healinggained.
I shook my head ''I am no longer Balthazar, but Donovan Greystone!!'' I firmly told myself.
Assigning Username: Donovan Greystone
You have gained a new title,Soul of Retention
''Ohkayyy...'' I wasn''t expecting to gain a new title right off the bat ''Status!!''
NAME: Donovan Greystone RACE: High Human AGE: 12 years
HEALTH:20 STAMINA:15 TITLE: Soul of Retention
STRENGTH:10 AGILITY:18 SKILLS
INTELLIGENCE: 175 CHARM: 12
LUCK: 130 ABILITIES
BLOODLINE PURITY: 3.01%
"Damn..."two-thirdsof the essence I''d set for merging hadbeenusedup completely ''Talk about a waste!!'' I cursed, but what was done was done, I could only move on ''You never know, there might be a way to restore the amount I''ve lost...'' I tried to comfort myself. Putting aside the thought for another time, I scrutinized the screen once more. All my stats, except for health and charm, had only increased by a marginal amount. I expected this, since I''d chosen to suppressmost of the blood essence, my body wouldn''tget a serious revamp (which would have been the case, had I chosen to completely exhaust it) so although my overall potential for growth had increased after the change in bloodline, my stats had largely remained unchanged. ''I guess these are the permissible limits, my body can currently handle...'' I could detect changes, but my body structure hadn''t been changed. A suitable comparison would be that if one were to shift the contents of onebowl, to another which was simply bigger in size to the first, the water currently in the bowl wouldn''t change, what differed was the amountof water that could be contained within it. Simply put, I had the potential of getting a lot more stronger now, though it would still take time and effort on my part. The significant increase in health surprised me, as did my charm stat for that matter, which had gone up drastically ''I guess, my outer appearance had changed as well...'' I had no way of checking at the moment, hence I inwardly prayed that the said changes weren''t too eye-catching. ''Never draw attention if you can help it...'' that was the policy I''d lived by for many a century. ''Hmmm, High Human... never heard of that before'' I opened up the race''s description...
High Human: Individuals whose stats such as strength, stamina, etc... are/or have the potential to grow, well over the norm of an average human being.
NOTE: User''s race may be subject to change and/or evolve as bloodline purity increases...
''So the true nature of my bloodline... is still unknown'' I grinned in anticipation, moving on to look at my titles, both old and new.
Soul of Retention: To live in remembrance of the departed, to finish what they left unfinished... go forth traveler, for that is your purpose.
Effects: Mental fortitude increased.
The Bullied: Run!! Run with all your might, best not let them catch you, lest your money gets stolen and you get beaten to a pulp!!
Effects: Agility marginal increase.
''Not bad'' even though the latter was a bit... embarrassing, I dismissed both the screens and finally focused on my abilities.
LEVELLABLE Pain Resistance (Greater) Healing (Lesser) Farsight (Lesser) Mental Fortitude (Greater)
PERMANENTS Night Vision Steady Hands Speaker of Tongues Calm Mind
Yup, some serious downsizing here as well, but it was better than the skills page ''I gotta let it go...'' I sighed, dusting myself off. ''I wonder, how much difference a single stat point can make on this plane'' I approached the fallen stone brick and grabbed it with both of my hands "Wow!!" I almost overbalanced.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. The stone was light, I was able to lift it easily, a feat which would have taken the old Donovan quite a bit of effort, even when he was at full strength. ''Bullies, you better watch yourselves now!!'' I replaced the stone and picked up the box, analyzing it once more. Even though it was pitch dark in the cellar, I was able to see everythingclearly uptil now, thanks to myNight Vision ability. ''Nothing...''I sighed, no clues whatsoever pertaining to the contents of the vial, thought there was a symbol embroidered onto the velvet cloth, which I memorized (an easy feat with my intelligence level) ''Well, I guess it''s time I left this place...'' I wiped away all traces of my presence (Blood as such) using the cloth from the box, which I''d hid under my uniform''s coat. I looked around the cellar for the last time, before I began walking up the stairs which, like most parts of the cellar were made of stone as well. They were unevenly hued, so much so that someone might easily trip on them if they weren''t careful, and poor Donovan was in such a haste to get away that he was anything but careful. He''d tripped on the very third step, and his body''s momentum had done the rest, I sighed the kid had led quite a hard life... His parents had split up, a few years after his birth and neither of them wanted anything to do with him for, and I quote "He was a constant reminder of their pastmistakes..." luckily, one of his Uncles had offered to take him up. He''d practically raised Donovan and the latter considered him more of a father than anything else. But in the recent years due to the nature of his work Tobias, his Uncle, had to travel overseas quite often and was away for long periods of time. In fact, it had almost been a year since Donovan had seen his Uncle in person. He had been left under the care of the ''kind'' old landlady whose apartment Tobiaswas renting (and I say ''kind'' because she was only ever kind to Donovan when he was around) The money that Tobias had sent from him was mainly used up by her, and that drunken excuse of a husband she had, both of whom had threatened the poor kid repeatedly, with bodily harm and starvation if he were to so much as make mention of it to his Uncle. My fists clenched, I had all of Donovan''s memories so I knew just how badly he''d been treated ''Theywillpay for this... dearly'' I grinned, I wasn''t called ''Demon Elf Balthazar'' for nothing. I''d already scaled the stairs and was now in a room that seemed to be the Villa''s kitchen ''Looks like the Bullies will have to wait...'' the sky outside was already dark. I slowly made my way to the back door, the woods were eerily quiet and I was thankful once more that my Night Vision abilitywas retained. I quickly made my way towards a nearby stream, having heard the sound of moving water from quite a distance away ''Seems some of my senses were enhanced as well...'' I mused, picking up a few stones and stuffing them into the wooden box, which I then flung into the slow-moving waters of the stream. The box sank with ease and was soon lost from sight, the reason I did as such was to prevent the chance of it getting washed up somewhere else later on. ''Well... since that''s taken care of, time I headed home...'' Iactivated myStealthability out of habit and, after splashing some water on my face to remove all possible remnants of blood, I walked back into the woods. ''Best I head back to school and go home from there...'' the path was quite familiar, plus I wanted to retrieve Donovan''s treasured bike, which he was forced to leave behind at school. It had been a gift from his Uncle, so no way was I leaving it behind, potentially letting it get stolen. I saw the treetops lightening up ahead and hastened my pace, instinctively closing my eyes once I''d cleared the ring of trees, it took a while for them adjust to the change. I had just stepped into the well-lit, but deserted parking lot of the High school, adjoining the Middle school Donovan went to. "It doesn''t seem to be too late..." I surmised, seeing that a few lights were still on, in the building in front of me ''Probably around half past seven at the most'' I walked to the end of the parking lot towards the Middle school stands, the bike was still there "I''m pretty sure Tyler has my bag" Tyler was one of the few friends Donovan had managed to make, and it was because of him that he''d found out about the Villa ''Though in retrospect, that didn''t turn out too well, huh??'' I grinned sheepishly. Anyway, I couldn''t get the bag now so I unlocked the bike, with the key Donovan always kept in his person, mounted it and began pedaling homewards. My thoughts were filled with how I''d bring hell to ''Moneygrubbers'' as Donovan liked to dub them "Ready or not... here I come!!" Wait, was it me or did my voice seem more... guttural than before??
It was well over Midnight, and most residents of the town of Westholt had settled in for the night. There were, of course, a few exceptions... a group of middle-aged men drinking their way intoa stupor at the local Bar, and the late night visitors at the twenty-four-hour Diner, truck drivers, and travelers who chugged their cups of coffee with the same gusto as the former group with their bottlesof beer. And then there was the third group, who met up in secret at specified rendezvous points, spread across town... one of which, leads us to a car parked down a dirt path, somewhere in the woods. The headlights were off, as was the engine, but one could easily tell thatthe car was occupied. Faint voices could be heard coming from it, and in addition the car, for lack of a better word was shaking. The voices were low and but one was clearly female, and she seemed to be talking with someone over the phone. "Yes... Yes, Mom, I underSTA-" the girl quickly covered her mouth, in an attempt to muffle a moan. She was currently in her birthday suit, balancing over her lover''s lap with her legs spread open, while he pounded her from below. "Slowly..." she muttered, before bringing the phone back to her ear "Yeah, Mom... no that was just... Daisy" "Hang up..." he whispered, his hands now tormenting her mounds. "Mmph!! Yeah Mom, no... yeah, we''ll not stay up too late... yeah, promise!!" she felt his lips trail down her neck, biting and kissing her tender skin. "Mmhmmph!!" she pursed her lips, grasping the seat in front of her for support "Mmm... yeah... alright" she struggled to keep her voice steady, the pleasure nearly overwhelming her "Aaah Mom?? I gotta... go, Daisy wants to watch a Movie..." she stifled another moan "No... nothing-like-thAAT!!" her back arched and she shuddered, nearly dropping the phone as she sank into his embrace. "Yeah... yeah, you know how bad the signal is at her place, yeah... goodnight..." she disconnected the call and lay panting in his arms, her body shuddering weakly "Meanie..." she mumbled, upon catching her breath. He laughed wickedly and claimed her lips once more "Ready for round two-" only for her to give a deafening screech. "Wha-" "Th... there''s someone there!! Outside!! S...someone was watching us!! I saw something move" she got off his lap and clutched his shoulder in panic "Caleb, what if they¨C" "Shh" he soothed her, "It''s probably just a fox or something Vi" he continued "It''s so dark outside that your mind plays tricks on you, letting your imagination run wild" he finished knowledgeably, but nevertheless he put on his boxers and grabbed his phone from his jeans pocket. "Don''t worry..." he assured, "If someone is out there and they''ve been spying on us... I''ll make sure he regrets it!!" "B... be careful!!" she warned, as he stepped out of the car. "Damn it''s cold..." Caleb shivered, inwardly regretting his choice of clothing, he quickly used the Flashlight function on his phone and swept the area, making a loop around the car. "See... told y¨C" his eyes widened in shock for, upon turning his attention back towards his girlfriend, he saw her slumped against the back seat, the state of her clothes making it evident that she was still in the process of getting dressed. "Vi!!" he tried to shake her awake, breathing a sigh of relief when he saw that she was still breathing "Vi!! Violet!! Viole¨C" his vision suddenly turned black. Caleb''s body fell forwards, landing on the already unconscious Violet, the echoes of his frantic calls fading into silence...