The sound of metal striking flesh echoed through the alleyway of Demon Lake City. In one fluid motion, the man's wolf-like claws descended upon Omen, but his sword had already cleaved through the werewolf's skull.
Omen stood motionless, his black armor and blade gleaming in the crimson-tinted shadows. A faint mist of blood hung in the air around him.
"You think I'm merely a demon general by chance?" he said, his voice carrying a dangerous edge. "You think transforming into a werewolf would make any difference?"
He looked down at the decapitated wolf as it slowly reverted to its original form. The man's pale skin gleamed lifeless in the dim light, his eyes dull and sunken into his skull. His body lay crumpled and headless on the cold pavement.
Omen stepped over the corpse without a second glance and walked away briskly. He knew the cleanup crews would arrive soon enough. There was no reason to linger.
Meanwhile, in the heart of the city, Laid walked alongside Lila. His gaze fixed on a nearby building crowned with a large, crimson star on its rooftop.
"Interesting," Laid thought, his expression unchanging. "No other building bears a red star. This one is different."
He dismissed the observation and continued walking. Lila matched his pace, her green eyes scanning their surroundings with practiced vigilance.
*Hello there.*
*Hello?*
*Is anybody there?*
*Oh, well, I guess no one's here.*
*Maybe I contacted the wrong host.*
Words began forming inside Laid's mind. He couldn't quite grasp their meaning at first, but something—or someone—was speaking to him. The voice sounded feminine, omnipresent yet nowhere, as if it existed simultaneously everywhere and within his own thoughts.
"What is this?" Laid wondered. His cold, emotionless expression flickered for a split second, revealing a trace of curiosity.
Lila turned toward him, her eyes widening slightly.
"Did you hear that?" she asked.
Laid stared at her for a moment before responding, "Yes. I assume you heard it as well?"
"I did," Lila confirmed, her brow furrowing. "It seems odd."
*I'm odd? My apologies—I didn't mean to insult you both. Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is... well, I don't have a name. Would either of you mind giving me one? I'm technically connected to both of you, I guess.*
Both Laid and Lila heard the voice again, and its words startled them. The presence felt intrusive yet strangely vulnerable.
"It wants a name?" Lila said aloud, disbelief coloring her tone.
Laid stood motionless, his expression returning to its usual mask of indifference. "Give it a name," he said flatly.
Lila placed her hand on her forehead, her green eyes glowing faintly as she concentrated. "What would Amelia do?" she voiced in her mind, thinking of someone who might handle this situation with more grace.
*Amelia, huh? Well, hmm... seems good, I guess, but I mean, it could be better,* the voice said, its tone strangely emotionless despite the words.
Then an idea struck Lila. "How about Solis?" she said quietly in her mind.
*Solis? Yeah, I like it. Thank you. Also, your friend seems quiet.*
Lila turned toward Laid. He continued walking forward, as emotionless as ever, not saying a word despite hearing Solis's voice in his head.
"He's just like that," Lila stated, then added with genuine curiosity, "Anyway, why are you in our heads?"
*Well, I honestly didn't know where else to go. My master created me to assist anyone or anything in need. When I answered some other demons' calls, they... they didn't like it very much. They ended up killing themselves because they thought they were schizophrenic or something.* Solis's voice grew heavier with sadness. *I thought it would be the same for both of you, but apparently not. I just... I unknowingly killed a bunch of people. They could have had families, people who cared about them, and I just entered their minds without knowing the consequences.*
"Great. So now I have two people who actually care about people," Laid thought bitterly.
"Listen," he stated aloud, as if Solis were standing right beside him in physical form, "those people—those demons—might have had families, but what does it matter? Is it going to help you in the short run or the long run? If it doesn't concern you, then don't deal with it. Don't even bat an eye."
Laid's cold words made Solis go silent for a long moment. When she finally spoke, her voice trembled.
*I... I can't just do that. I'm not like you, Laid. I care about people. That's one of the main things I care about, and you just dismissed it like it was nothing.* She sounded as if she were about to cry.
"Of course I dismissed it like it was nothing. What else am I supposed to do? Fake my feelings? Lie to your face? No. I'm not going to do that. Just accept it, Solis. People are nothing. You have no reason to care about them if they don't help you in the short run, the long run, or at all. If they give you no benefit, then just leave them be. It's that simple. You shouldn't feel guilt over someone's death. You shouldn't feel guilt if someone's in pain. After all, you're not dead, and you're not in pain, right? So what does it matter?"
Something strange happened then—something that shouldn't happen with a disembodied voice. It sounded like Solis was actually crying, her sobs echoing faintly in their minds.
Lila glared at Laid, her jaw tightening. "How could you say that?" she demanded.
"It's the truth," Laid stated without hesitation. "She needs to overcome her feelings and stop being so emotional. You can't survive being emotional in any world. Being emotional gets you killed."
"You have a point," Lila retorted, her voice sharp, "but being cold isn't going to do you any favors either, is it?"
Laid's expression didn't change. "Exactly. You can't be cold all the time. Sometimes you have to show emotion—whether it's real or fake, it's emotion either way. As long as people think you have emotion, you're good to go. No one's going to bat an eye."
Lila was stunned. She had known Laid was cold and cruel, but she hadn't realized just how deeply his callousness ran. A shudder passed through her as she quickened her pace, walking beside him in tense silence.
At this point, both of them were aimlessly wandering through the city, doing nothing in particular, until several figures in dark armor stepped out to block their path.
"Both of you have been chosen for the newly built Demonic Academy," one of the soldiers announced, smiling as he raised his hand in a gesture of authority.
Laid spat on the ground, his jaw clenching. "Way to ruin my plans," he mumbled quietly. "But I don't have to go. If they force me, I'll just have to kill them."
No one could hear his words except Solis.
*Why are you being so mean?* Solis said, still crying a little.
"You just heard me, didn't you?" Laid said internally, irritation creeping into his thoughts. "I'm not used to everyone hearing my thoughts. Thanks to you, you're going to ruin all my plans."
He spat on the ground again, his frustration mounting.
"Why is he just spitting on the ground?" the guard beside the enthusiastic one said with a cold voice. "He's spat on the ground twice, hasn't said a word, and neither has the young girl beside him."
"Look, you two have been selected for the academy whether you like it or not," the man said, pointing toward Lila. "So please come with us, young lady."
"I'm actually twenty-six," Lila stated, as if she knew she was saying something absurd.
The guards chuckled and laughed. "You're not twenty-six. You look barely even in your teenage years. Stop lying and come with us."
"Better not start convincing them. It won't work anyway," Lila thought as she walked over to one of the men.
Laid remained rooted in place. "I'm not going," he said.
"You have to go, Laid," one of the guards insisted.
"I'm not going," Laid repeated, his voice firm.
"You have no choice," the man said, pulling out some sort of blaster.
"Are you guys that desperate to get me into an academy?" Laid spat on the shoe of one of them. "How despicable. Why are you so hell-bent on getting me into this academy? I should have a choice of where I want to go, right? So I say I'm not going."
Suddenly, Laid felt a hand grasp him by the throat. But just as quickly, an electric shock surged through the man, and he fell to the ground, convulsing violently.
A sharp voice entered the guard's mind. *If he doesn't want to go, he doesn't want to go. Leave him alone!* Solis shouted, continuing to pour an electric current into the man until he finally stopped moving.
*You're welcome,* Solis said. If she were a physical being, she would have winked at Laid.
"Thank you," Laid said, his voice softer than usual.
*You're welcome, Laid,* Solis replied, smiling—at least the mental equivalent of one.
Lila also heard Solis's voice. "Man, I didn't know she could be that brutal. Well, only one thing to do."
In an instant, everything rewound. The guard who had been convulsing on the floor was now standing upright. Laid still had his neck held by the guard, and Lila stood nearby, her expression calm.
"Good thing my power still works," Lila smirked. But when she tried to make Solis forget what had happened, she realized her ability had no effect on the voice.
*Interesting. You can make people go back in time,* Solis said, her voice curious. *But how?*
"How could you just bypass my ability like that?" Lila said internally, genuinely surprised.
Solis chuckled. *I'm a voice. I'm not a physical being—at least not yet, anyway. I'm not a physical construct, which makes me think your power can only work on physical things.*
It seemed Solis was more intelligent than any of them had anticipated.
"You're going to this academy whether you like it or not," the man said, tightening his grip on Laid's neck.
Laid pulled back his fist and swung toward the guard's face. The man dodged and grabbed Laid's hand.
"Don't fight back. Don't hurt him," Solis sent through both Lila and Laid's minds, then directed a current of electricity toward the guard.
The man felt Laid's neck tingle and quickly released him. He had felt enough electric shocks from monsters, people, and lightning in general to recognize the warning signs. He knew he would be electrocuted if he kept his hand on Laid's neck for even a split second longer.
"So that's what you're doing now?" the man said, his voice laced with irritation. "You're going to fight me with electricity? If that's how it's going to be, Laid..."
The man grabbed his blaster and fired at Laid's head. Electricity flew from the weapon, striking Laid directly in the forehead and knocking him unconscious. Before Lila could rewind time, a blast of light shot toward her and knocked her out as well.
*Hey! You guys okay? Wake up!*
*Hello? Wake up, guys! Are you there?*
Solis continued trying to contact both Laid and Lila, but it wasn't working. Panic began to set in, tightening around her consciousness like a vice.
"What do I do? What do I do? What do I do?" she repeated frantically.
Then, suddenly, her voice went silent.
*I... I...* She tried to speak, but no words came. It felt as though her voice had been severed from both Laid and Lila. Whatever had happened when they both lost consciousness had cut her off completely.
Solis was gone—not physically, since she had no physical form, and not mentally, since her consciousness remained intact. But she couldn't speak, couldn't reach them. Her voice was unable to connect to either Laid or Lila until they both woke up.
She was stuck, trapped in a void of silence, waiting helplessly for them to return.