"Mave!" Nalda pretty much screamed. She couldn't be happier at, well, hearing her sister. "What's going on!? And where are we!?"
Nalda felt Mave reposition her and land somewhere slightly soft and squishy. She heard Mave's disgusted grunt. "... We're definitely not home, I can tell you that much."
"What is that supposed to mean? Just tell me already."
"You're going to freak out if you find out."
"Come on Mave, what's worse than discovering a dead body and then having to live in fear of being next?" Nalda retorted.
Mave answer came quickly. "This."
'Arguing with her is pointless. She always finds a way around it.'
Nalda gave up, Mave's tongue was just too powerful. She sighed and decided to let everything over to Mave.
"What are you sighing for? I'm the one who's going to do all the work. I should be sighing." Of course Mave somehow decided it was time to comment on Nalda's sighing.
Nalda didn't reply because she was pretty annoyed that she wasn't getting any answers. Besides what was she supposed to say to that?
Nalda held on tightly when Mave began to move again. She had no clue what her sister was doing but it felt like she could fall out of her sister's arms at any moment.
Just then Nalda heard something break in the distance and a blood curling scream. Chills ran down her spine and now she was starting to understand what Mave meant with this being worse.
Her hands clenched at the thought that Mave was seeing everything happen. She wished that she could help but there wasn't anything she could do with her eyes closed.
She wanted to ask if her sister was okay but Mave probably wasn't and that answer would only continue to eat Nalda up.
There was another scream but this time it was closer. Nalda felt Mave sharply turn in another direction.
The frequency between the screams was getting shorter from the sound of it because just then another scream was heard but this time it was too close for comfort. In fact, Nalda could smell something similar to vomit and then she felt something wet and sticky drip on her forehead.
Mave seemed to speed up but it wasn't enough from the sound of her curses. She was cursing a chicken out for not coming in time.
Nalda couldn't help but open her eyes but she immediately regretted it. "M- Mave… What is that…"
"Close your eyes! Don't look at it!" Mave screamed besides Nalda's ear but it was too late already.
The being behind them was hairy. Incredibly hairy and worst of all, its hair was both black and dark gray.
Its legs were as long as its torso and its arms were not connected at the shoulders but somewhere in the middle of the torso. The arms were being dragged around on the ground.
It had a head that would normally have an oval shape but the top of its head was a dent that resembled the shape of a boulder. Its eyes were glowing gray and instead of a nose it had two holes. Its mouth was wide open revealing multiple sharp teeth that were as yellow as it could get.
It was so, so ugly that Nalda felt the urge to poke her eyes out. The only word that could describe this being was monster. No actually it was much worse. It was the embodiment of 'it's so ugly that I'd rather die than look at it'.
The being was even taller than most trees in a forest and the speed at which it was chasing the two sisters was nothing to laugh at. No seriously how was Mave keeping up?
Mave was cursing, Nalda realised but for some strange reason it sounded too distant. Nalda continued to look at the being that was chasing them while suppressing the urge to do something about her eyeballs that had seen it.
It was only then that she realised that Mave's hold on her had changed again and that she was being carried with one arm while the other was stopping her other arm from doing something. They had also slowed down which made that ugly monster get closer to them.
It was so close now that it could touch them. Its mouth opened in a disgusting way. First the upper lip rolled out of its mouth and then the jaw suddenly snapped and fell to the ground, creating a mouth that went from the lower part of the face all the way until right above its feet, or whatever those round things were supposed to be.
"Nalda, snap out of-" Mave was telling Nalda something but Mave didn't seem to realise that the ugly thing was behind them and about to eat them.
Nalda wanted to tell her but she found herself to be stuck staring at the being that was actively trying to gobble them up. Just like how the wolf in the little red riding hood did.
Just as they were about to be eaten, the world shattered and Nalda found herself staring at the ceiling of her bedroom.
She immediately sat up and wiped the sweat that was streaming down her face. She looked around her bedroom and found that everything was normal.
She immediately ran to the window and looked outside, only to see Mave grumbling at something while walking back home. Mave looked pissed off as she entered the house.
'What in the world just happened? What-'
Nalda was shocked out of her train of thoughts when the door slammed open. She got a sense of deja vu and wondered if the ground would disappear again.
Mave stood in the doorway with a complicated expression and when she saw Nalda's probably pale and sweat soaked state, her frown deepened and she became angrier. "I'm going to kill him someday. I swear I will kill him with my own two hands and then-" Mave's muttering were describing a murder. A very horrifying murder.
"Uhm, Mave?" Nalda asked hesitantly. She wasn't sure if disturbed her sister's thoughts was a good idea right now but she kind of needed more attention than this person Mave needed to kill or whatever. When Mave looked at her with a slight frown, Nalda began speaking. "Do you know what just happened to me?"
Mave looked at Nalda and narrowed her eyes. Nalda was worried for a moment that whatever just happened would repeat again for a moment but then Mave shrugged. "Do I know? Maybe, maybe not."
That obviously sounded like nonsense to Nalda's ears. "You know about what just happened to me." This time she made sure not to say it in a questioning tone but as a firm statement.
Just like she expected, Mave went silent at that. She spoke after a few seconds of silence. "...I'll handle it."
The answer wasn't what Nalda wanted to hear. She wanted to know what just happened and why it happened. "That's not what I asked." She replied to her sister.
Mave's frown deepened. Nalda was pretty sure that if her sister laid down and someone poured water over her race with that expression that little rivers would form on her sister's face.
"I… Some idiot thought it would be a great idea to do that. I'll beat him up for you." Mave said that with much reluctance. "Tell me how many punches you want me to give him in your stead." But the moment she spoke about beating this guy up, she began smiling.
Nalda contemplated for a moment. She still had the urge to poke her eyes out because of that being she saw even if it had lessened significantly compared to when she was staring at it. She wanted to hold the person who did that to her responsible.
"Seven." She eventually concluded while nodding to herself. "But hard punches not soft ones."
Her sister nodded with a proud smile on her face. "Seven hard punches on top of my beatings, got it."
Nalda suddenly realised something.
'Wait who is she even beating up? Huh? Did I just agree to beat some rando up?'
Nalda wanted to ask but the look on her sister's face told her that she wouldn't get an answer. "Okay, leave my room now. My head is about to explode." She muttered grumpily as she went back to her bed and pretty much collapsed on it.
Mave didn't leave instead she actually entered the room and closed the door behind her. That meant that she wanted to have a proper conversation.
Her sister sat down on the bed besides where Nalda was sprawled out. "You don't look so good." She commented.
"Really? I couldn't tell from the sweat on my forehead." Nalda answered sarcastically.
Mave's earlier grin disappeared as she stared at Nalda with such an intensity that Nalda almost yelled to get to the point. The reason why she didn't actually do it was because Mave spoke before she could. "What did you see?"
Nalda was about to answer but found that no noise was coming out of her throat. She frowned and then turned to look at the other side of the bed while laying on her side.
Yes she was avoiding her sister's question.
Nalda could imagine Mave frowning at Nalda's behaviour but just then someone knocked on the door. The door lightly opened when no one replied. A head peaked into the bedroom, it was their father.
He looked at his two daughters and then nodded towards Mave and out of the door. He was telling Mave to leave.
Nalda was grateful for this because her mind was quite literally a scrambled mess and having to go through a Mave interrogation wasn't what she was ready for.
Mave sighed and did as her father told her, on the other hand her father came into the room and crouched right in front of Nalda while patting her head. "Don't worry, you'll be okay." He comforted Nalda a little before leaving her alone as well. He closed the door before he left though.
Nalda relaxed a lot after hearing her father's confident tone about her being okay and slowly, without realising it, she fell asleep.
***
Mave waited outside the door of her little sister's room while her father comforted her little sister.
'Of all people in this household, he chose the person who's most sensitive to this kind of stuff.'
She couldn't help but scoff at what just happened.
Her father walked out of the bedroom with a weak smile. He seemed tired.
Mave was about to say something but her father raised his hand. "I know, I know, I don't usually overuse it but I needed to make sure your sister would be okay." He answered in a light tone.
"I have permission to beat that chicken up, right?" Mave chose to move the subject because her father probably wouldn't want to change his ways.
When Mave asked that he blinked in surprise. "If I hadn't been a mature adult who solves everything with words then I would've come with you."
That was all she needed to hear so she nodded. "A pity, I'm sure mom wouldn't have cared that much about that though."
She saw her father shiver. "No, no, it's a good thing that at least one of us doesn't immediately jump to fighting." Her father muttered out loud and then he froze. He suddenly looked at Mave. "Don't tell her. She might actually cause a mess."
Mave frowned for a moment. Isn't it better if there was a mess? Maybe then those idiots will learn how to behave themselves.
Then again, it probably wouldn't change much.
Mave looked at the ceiling of the hallway and sighed loudly. "I want to resign and burn that company to the ground."
Her father comforted her by patting her back. "Don't do that yet, your pay is still pretty good."
Nalda looked at her dad who was smiling and gave him an annoyed look. "Capitalist." She commented.
The expression on his face only became bright at that comment. "I won't deny it, I love money after all." He answered honestly.
Mave frowned at his reaction. She said that because she wanted to get under his skin.
Well her dad has always been strange. Of course, he of all people wouldn't bat an eye if people insulted him or called him names.
"Alright, have fun." He said and turned away to leave.
It seemed that Mave needed to leave now. She still had a chicken to catch and beat up.
20) Unexpected usage of brain
Nalda woke up the next day early in the morning. She must've been very tired if she slept that much.
She checked the time only to find that it is far too early for her to go to school yet or even get ready for school. So she did what every other seventeen-year-old would do in her situation, doomscrolling until it was time to get up.
Or well that was what she was planning on doing until the letters on her screen began to move on their own and form different letters.
Nalda was so shocked that she threw her phone away without even screaming. Her phone hit her closet with a sharp 'tak' sound and then it hit the ground with a thud.
She blinked at her phone that was still on and groaned as she got up. The letters had jumpscared her again. For a moment she thought that she had been hacked when in reality the letters were trying to say something again.
Now that she thought about it she hadn't seen the letter for a little longer than usual. Then again, she didn't actually know what was usual about the letters in the first place.
Maybe the letters had some strange habits? Could letters even have habits? Maybe her letters were special?
Nalda was very curious about the letters' origins. She wondered if the letters had a family.
She reached the phone and immediately ran back to her warm and soft bed. It was far too cold at four in the morning.
The letters on her screen were saying something very simple yet it felt very ominous.
'Do not question it.'
While at first glance it looked like the letters were talking about her previous thoughts but that wasn't right. The letters began to appear before she began questioning its origins. Obviously it would be referring to something else.
"You're… you're talking about your backstory, right?" Nalda decided to deny reality but when the letters didn't disappear, she sighed loudly. "You're talking about yesterday."
Only then did the letters disappear. Nalda suddenly had the urge to cry because how was she even supposed to not question what happened? It was the weirdest thing that happened to her and it had caused her a great deal of confusion. She wanted, no she needed an answer but now she was supposed to act like nothing happened?
She began to frown at her phone screen. "What if I say no?"
It was quiet for a moment. The letters didn't do anything.
Then they just popped into existence right in front of her. Unlike usual, she didn't see them form.
'Face the consequences.'
Nalda stared at the letters for a moment. She didn't really feel threatened but at the same time she had a gut feeling telling her that it probably wasn't a great idea to ignore the letters.
She suddenly remembered how the letters had erased any trace of itself out of Mave's memory a little while ago. She remembered the despair she felt that day.
'Maybe… I should just listen for now…'
When she thought about just acting like nothing happened yesterday, the letters suddenly disappeared, like they were waiting for her to change her mind. It creeped her out how they knew exactly when she decided to stop despite not saying anything out loud or changing her expression.
She decided that she's had enough of her phone and put it away. She crawled under her covers again and tried to sleep.
She closed her eyes and began to count sheep because what else was she supposed to do to fall asleep? Stare at the ceiling? That wasn't going to work.
But even after counting a hundred fifty sheep, she was still very much awake.
She glanced towards her phone and slowly picked it back up. Putting it on, sincerely hoping that nothing weird pops up, and finding that only half an hour had passed, she started to wonder how much hair she has already pulled out of her skull in the past week.
This made her realise that she needed to find another way to release stress. Preferably, something that had nothing to do with harming herself or other people.
She'll have to ask Mave for other ways to relieve her stress. Or maybe not because Mave would probably complain again.
She stared at the ceiling for a while and then she suddenly thought of something that she absolutely needed to do. She needed a plan to get that idiot, Max Davenport, back for all the mental suffering he brought her.
She really didn't understand what he meant by that he had no choice. Since when was murder something you're forced to do? She didn't really get the guy.
A part of her could tell how desperate he was but it was clear to her that he didn't regret what he did. He was only sorry because he got caught, not because he genuinely understood that what he did was wrong.
That's why she needed to get him back. While she had been bluffing at the time, part of the anger she showed him that day was genuine. It genuinely frustrated her to see the person that has not only hurt her but also her family just walk around freely and live a good life.
Now she needed to find a way to get proper revenge and make him regret ever coming anywhere near her or her family.
She already had a few ideas. First of all, give him a cake with rat poison as sprinkles. Second, find his deepest secrets and share them with the entire neighborhood.
'Don't these feel too mild compared to what he did…?'
Nalda frowned because it felt like she was giving him a lap on the wrist for destroying an entire neighborhood. It didn't feel like it was enough. Besides, both ideas wouldn't really work because she had successfully intimidated that idiot.
Then she remembered something that she had originally planned on doing but was interrupted by her father.
The day her parents had returned, she had been planning on running around in the neighborhood until she saw the serial killer. Couldn't she just bait the guy and lead him to somewhere dangerous? Maybe it will also coax his collaborator out as well.
As for where she'll get a dangerous place, well Big Thornstreet still existed and as much as she hated the idea, the old man that lives in house number 26 probably would help her if she asked politely. Maybe.
It was still dangerous and if she could trust the letters' information, people with superpowers are physically more fit than people without. It was clear who had the advantage but that was only the case if they were running in a straight line.
Nalda had a fairly good mental image of the streets she used to get to school. All she needed to do was to go in different directions and in different streets to expand that image a bit more.
While she's at it she'll also ask that old guy for help… or maybe not…
She shivered at the thought of talking to that old man. He really didn't seem like the most friendly person out there. She's already content that she didn't get stabbed by him.
'No! I need to muster up the courage! The letters are trying to help me create a certain mindset. That means that this probably won't be a one time thing and I'll get into even more trouble in the future… I'll need courage to face all of that!'
She didn't make the mistake of trying to hype herself up out loud again, lest Mave suddenly entered the room again. She wouldn't put it past her sister to randomly wake up at this hour just to scare Nalda.
She'll pay extra attention to her surroundings when she goes to school later that day. That's what she promised herself.
***
"Are you okay?" That was the first thing Irene asked when she saw Nalda.
The reason for that? Well Nalda probably looked like a zombie that went out for a swim in the ocean.
Nalda looked at her usually very quiet friend and narrowed her eyes at Irene's expression. Irene's brows were furrowed in concern and she looked a bit lost. It really wasn't a good expression on her best friend's face.
"I'm fine, I just woke up too early." Nalda answered curtly. She didn't have the energy to deal with anything even sitting in class and ignoring her teacher's explanations felt like her soul was being drained of everything it had left.
Turns out when you wake up very early in the morning it's better to go back to sleep instead of enthusiastically working on a plan to get revenge on a serial killer. Really, she knew this would happen. Why didn't she listen to her brain's warnings?
Irene seemed to suddenly understand something and her expression turned into something between pity and concern as she patted Nalda's back. "You can always go home if you're not feeling okay." She offered very kindly.
Nalda was very grumpy so kindness wasn't going to work, unfortunately. Instead of answering she just rested her head on her arms that were crossed on top of the desk.
Not even five seconds later and Mr. Comwell told her to sit up again.
She couldn't exactly say no to the teacher so unfortunately she sat up again and tried to blink the sleepiness out of her eyes. It was genuinely difficult to stay awake.
She blinked a few times and suddenly the bell rang signaling that it was time for the next class already. She could've sworn that Mr. Comwell's class just started.
She looked around her in confusion as everyone began to pack their stuff to leave. She then felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see the owner of the hand found that it was Irene.
She looked a bit tense as she looked towards the teacher. "Uhm… Mr. Comwell wants to talk to you…" She trailed off as if she was hesitating whether to add something or not. "Umm, stay safe…" She said quickly before leaving.
Nalda was very confused because why would she need to stay safe if it was just a conversation with a teacher? Still, Irene wouldn't have said that without a reason.
Sighing inwardly, she collected her stuff and walked towards the teacher who looked like he was deep in thought while staring at a wall.
Nalda cleared her throat very loudly causing the teacher to get startled. "Ah, yes, Nalda." He said, his expression becoming something between gentle and thoughtful. "You know our conversation from last week?"
Nalda did in fact not know which one he meant. "About atoms? Or about dinosaurs? Or about-"
"No Nalda, I'm talking about Monday last week." He cut Nalda off before she could completely derail the conversation.
At his thoughts Nalda thought for a moment before she remembered. "Oh yeah! That rich person!"
Suddenly she got the feeling that she'd get some ominous piece of information. She looked around to see if the letters had silently popped up again but she saw absolutely nothing.
There was only one source of information in front of her right now.
'...what is Mr. Comwell going to say?'
"Nalda, I'm being very serious right now, don't give me your usual answers." Mr. Comwell looked at Nalda with a very serious expression. He looked like he heard something that would leave him tossing and turning at night.
At the seriousness of the situation, her heart began to pump like crazy. It felt like it wanted to escape from her ribcage.
Gone was the laid back and patient teacher. Now he looked like he was about to deliver bad news. Very bad news.
She avoided eye contact. The look in his eyes was making her very uneasy and it only made that annoying sense of foreboding worse.
She then slowly nodded to show that she was actually taking this seriously.
"What did you do two weeks ago on Friday after school?"
That question made Nalda's heart drop because why did Mr. Comwell know about what happened that Friday?