"We've been here forever/ And here's the frozen proof/ I could scream forever/ We are the poisoned youth".

-'Centuries'.

:/:

Lottie was completely oblivious to what was happening outside of the almost cell-like structure she now inhabited. The Sight Mirror was the only glimpse she had of what was happening around her, and she was now regretting having not taken it off the wall and bringing it with her. Currently she had been teleported out of the first 'puzzle room' and was now walking the tall, stone corridors of the Puzzlebox. There was hardly any difference between each wall and the next - it was a maze after all. It did occur to her that Louis was likely to be here as well, so she decided to leave a message for him. Something that would clear his conscience from Dance framing him. Taking out a knife, she carved into the stone the words: "It wasn't you", then stood back to look at her handiwork.

"Lotts?" she heard someone shout all of a sudden. It wasn't Louis, his accent was more British with overtones of Middle Eastern, but this was strongly Welsh.

"No..." she whispered softly to herself. "Please don't let him be in here too". She looked over to where the voice was coming from and there, in the middle of the stone floor, was a single handgun. Curiously she edged towards it, knife outstretched in front of her, and picked it up. There was a single bullet in the barrel.

"Hello?" the voice said again, and she was sure it was Sackler, but what was he doing here? It wouldn't be in Tenebrae's favour to imprison him in here, so who was it? Nearing the corner, she curiously looked around to see Tom Sackler chained up to a wall, looking around panicked.

"Tom?" Lottie asked timidly, and he immediately turned to look at her with a small smile. "Is that really you?"

"Lottie! Yes, it's me. God, I've been here for weeks", he lilted. "Can you untie me?"

"Of course, Lottie replied, but before she could her eyes caught something scrawled on the wall beside him. It read:

"If I told you that was a demon disguised as the one you love, could you put a bullet through its skull?"

"So that's the game then", she murmured and raised the gun to Sackler's head.

"No. No, don't please. Lottie, you don't understand".

"You're not Tom. Don't use my name".

"They took us here, Tenebrae. They came to the building and took us. All of MIO. Me". Sackler stood up to face her, eyes tearing up slightly.

"Stay where you are", Lottie demanded, clicking the barrel into place.

"I'm not a demon, Lotts. Don't let this place trick you. Isn't that what it's designed to do?"

"I- I've got to ask you some questions, Tom. I'm sorry, I can't trust anyone in here".

"Don't do this. You know it's me. Don't let this place trick you".

"My brother's name".

"Tenebrae locked me in here. They're using me against you. I'm scared. Please, I'm so scared".

"Place where you promised to take me on a date".

"I don't remember. I'm sorry, I don't", he replied, and Lottie was near tears. Could she really take this risk? If that was really a shapeshifter, a demon, then she might lose more than a letter. She might lose her life. "Don't kill me because I don't remember!" Sackler cried out.

"You're a demon", Lottie said quietly, lowering the gun slightly.

"If you can unchain me, then I can prove that I'm not". Sackler was almost in arm's reach of her now, pulling on the chains around his wrists. "I can prove it. Please".

"You're not Tom", Lottie whispered and raised the gun again. Sackler stepped back, bemused.

"Oh, God, you're going to kill me".

"Tom, please".

"You are. You're going to kill me. I love you", he said quietly. "I forgive you, and I love you". Pressing his chained hand around Lottie's, he raised the gun to his forehead and closed his eyes. Lottie felt tears roll down her cheeks; demon or no demon, the thought of shooting him dead sickened her to her stomach. Which, she supposed, really only showed that she had moved on from Tenebrae. God, if Dance had been pulling her strings then Sackler wouldn't have even had time to talk her out of it; he would be dead on the floor within seconds. Closing her finger around the trigger, she was about to shoot, but something stopped her.

"You win", she said quietly to Sackler. Taking a deep sigh, she gave a small smile, the tears running down her cheeks. "You win". She shrugged for a moment, chuckling just at how spineless she was.

"I know", Sackler responded, blank faced, then lashed out with clawed fingers. He knocked the gun out of her hand, then looked at his own scarlet limb with surprise. The red spread up his arms like wildfire, scaling in places, and he covered his face.

"Tom?" Lottie asked quietly, knowing full well that the creature in front of her was not in any way human. It roared, arms outstretched, and revealed a face that was far from Sackler's. It was a deep crimson, scaled down its cheekbones and crowned by two curled horns. Two black eyes stared back at her and long fangs hung over its lip, salivating blood-tinted drool. It fought against the chains that locked it to the wall, and Lottie hoped that they would hold.

:/:
"Spare me the speech, dear", Louis exclaimed. "I've been here before and have the scars to prove it". Evelina sat before him, eyes wide with fright. Her lilac dress billowed around her and her dark brunette locks cascaded down her shoulders. Her wings had gone; now just lifeless stubs protruding out of her back.

"But I came back for you", she murmured softly to him. "For the children".

"Answer me this then. How? How are you standing here? I saw Evie die. I was the one that has spent every day since missing her and trying to piece together what happened, blaming myself every time I think of her. I was the one that had to tell Lottie, and Olalla, and Robert that they wouldn't be able to see their mother anymore. I didn't put myself through that pain, feeling like my heart had been ripped out and buried with her, for you, some malicious demon scumbag to start pretending to be my own bloody wife". The creature paused for a moment, completely silent and in full knowledge of the fact that it had been caught out.

"I know you're going to shoot me, but hear me out first", it started, the façade it wore as a face dropping slightly. "There's a rumour, in the demon world, in Hell, that the portal to the human world will be opening soon. By a Hyde".

"Why are you telling me this? To gloat?"

"I'm just saying, you may shoot me, but more of my kind will come. The more you kill, the more will enter the surface world. And when they do, my brothers and sisters will hear of my demise, and they will come for the one that put me dow-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'd tell 'em to join a queue. You're not the only one that wants my name on a gravestone". The creature laughed, spitting black saliva.

"You don't deserve a gravestone", it cackled. "You will burn in the fires of Hell with the rest of your monstrous family".

"Oh good. I've been meaning to catch up with my father. It's, um... well it's been a while".

"Are you always this snide?"

"Funnily no. I guess it's just shapeshifting demons disguised as my dead wife that bring in out in me", he replied nonchalantly. "What's your name?"

"Why are you delaying the inevitable? It's obvious you are going to kill me, so why are you putting it off? Is it because I'm your wife? Am I bringing back unhappy memories, Mr. Hyde?" Louis didn't even want to start answering that question, so just ignored it.

"What's your name?" he repeated instead.

"Seirlihr. Why?"

"Just making conversation".

"Then let me converse also", she replied, her tone changing to ice cold and sharp. "How are you so moronic that you misuse power gifted onto you by Gods and demons on useless tasks, rather than rule as a king? How do you let some dumb angel that, by choice, falls from grace, rule your life even though she popped her clogs decades ago? And why are you such a sadistic, foolish, know-it-all?" With a small smile, he raised the gun and shot her dead. It was a demon after all, and probably a projection anyway. His theory was proved when the demon's body swiftly disappeared from view, leaving a letter 'B' burnt into the stone ground.

"Darling, I ask myself those questions everyday".

:/: