I begrudgingly stand up, feeling as though my body was put through a meat grinder. I walk over to the duffel bag and pick it up along with my clothes, my legs screaming at me to stop. My brain takes a backseat as I walk into the open sunny sky, past the metal gates of the amusement park, down the snowy streets, and all the way to my place. I must've been walking for the entire day because the sun begins to set as I arrive. I swing the door open, and Nis, who's sitting on the table, looks over at me.

"Kyne...what happened?" She asks worriedly. She's holding Mr. Buns close by and slowly standing up in alarm.

"I...I can't talk about it..." I say in a monotone voice, looking down at the ground, thinking of last night.

Nis frowns and runs over, wrapping her arms around me and hugging my waist. I tear up and drop the bag, and fall to my knees. She changes her hold so her arms are around my neck, and she hugs tightly. I start to cry as I place my hand on her back and nod.

"Thank you..." I murmur.

"Of course, Kyne. Remember, we're in this together, right?" She smiles, pulling back and pulling out the ring.

"Right," I confirm with a sharp nod, wiping my tears away.

At this point, Mr. Giles walks in and scans over my disheveled form. He walks over to the duffel bag, picks it up, and looks over at me. I nod to him, and he sighs, slinging the bag over his shoulder.

"Hey, can I use your car?" I say, still slightly sniffling.

"What for?" He asks.

"I need to get to the East side of town," I respond.

"That's fine, don't scratch it though," He responds and tosses me the keys.

I catch them and nod, standing up. Nis taps my hand and holds out Mr. Buns to me. I smile and gently grab him. She holds out her pinky, waiting for me to hold out my own. I comply and interlock pinkies with her.

"Promise you're not going to hurt yourself anymore, and promise me you'll come back, no matter what," She demands with a pouty face.

"I promise," I respond firmly.

"Then take Mr. Buns with you, and think of me," She smiles.

"Well, who am I to say no. I'll keep him safe," I laugh and rub her head.

"See you soon, Kyne," She steps back, and I salute her, causing her to giggle.

"Later," I wave and step out.

I walk to Mr. Giles car and hop in, grabbing the water bottle he keeps inside, chugging it all until it's empty. I set Mr. Buns in the seat next to me and buckle him in. I start the car and begin to drive towards the East, heading towards Emmalien's Constellation. I make sure not to park too close. I know they have a no-kill order with me, but I doubt they'd appreciate me being here at all. I wait for it to get dark out and grab Mr. Buns, looping his hand around my belt so he hangs on the side.

"Alright, let's do it," I nod and move his head in a nod.

I hop out of the car and make my way onto the hill, choosing to sneak past what appear to be guards on the stairs. This place doesn't seem as defensive as it was last time I was here. Well, good for me. I slowly make my way down the hill, pushing past the bushes and trees. I see the ship. I only assume he hid the money on the ship somewhere? I sneak around to the back, hearing some footsteps on the sand, and I quickly hide myself under the ship, where there's a small hole to climb in.

Two sets of footsteps approach, two flashlights following along. They stop in front of the hole, and one sighs. I take a quick peek to see two figures, a woman and a man, both holding what appear to be automatic rifles. I'm no gun nut, so I couldn't say the make or model, but they're intense, shoot first, ask questions never type of gun.

"So did you hear about the girl?" The man asks.

"You're going to have to be more specific than that," She barks back.

"No reason to be like that, the girl, the one the Patron had with him... according to rumor that is," The man says.

"Like a girlfriend?" She asks.

"Nah, like a little girl, a daughter or something," He responds.

"Sounds dumb. Why would a man like him ever have a daughter? I mean, you heard what he did with the Prophet, made him cut himself all psychopath like," She chuckles.

"Damn, really? That guy is a loose cannon, glad we got Mary and Coy on our side," He responds.

"Skill and Snatch too," She adds on.

"Eh, those two piss me off," He says.

"Yep, they have that effect on people. Here, want a smoke?" She asks, handing over a cigarette.

"Thanks," He says, taking it and sighing.

"Who do you dislike the most in the Organization?" She asks.

"Tough choice, I would say, Kay-... Err, I mean the Scout or the Keeper," He says, catching himself before saying a name.

"Yeah, I can understand that. Scout is annoying, and the Keeper is just too bubbly for me. I don't like the Prophet," She says.

"What? You never even met the guy, how can you not like someone you've never met before?" He asks.

"I just have a bad feeling about him. Come on, let's keep patrolling. Sher's gonna kick our butts if we stay here," She says, and they both walk away.

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding and waited for their footsteps to fade. I slip back out of the hole and continue to sneak around to the back of the ship. I quickly look around for any patrolling members and hop onto the ship. I venture further inside of its guts. If I were three and a half million dollars, where would I hide?

I step through a doorway and down into what appears to be a storage section. The odor down here is foul. I don't dare open any of these barrels. The last thing I want is another laundry basket scenario and a gap in my memory. I hear footsteps behind me and hide next to some barrels, what appears to be another section of the ship behind me. I reach back, and my hand finds a doorknob. I hear the door I came through open and close.

I panic and turn around to swing the door to the next section open, but stop when I realize the door is already open, and standing in the door frame is a woman glaring at me. She's wearing what can only be described as an old western outfit, fit with a duster and revolver at her side. I'd laugh at the absurdity of it if I weren't currently pissing myself.

"Hello, little bunny," She smirks and raises the revolver to my head, pulling back the hammer.

"Last words?" She sneers, her eyes drifting to Mr. Buns, her eyes soften a bit, but only briefly.

"Wait!" I scream.

"Sher! No!" A familiar voice shouts from behind me, a voice I never would've expected to hear again.

I turn around, and my throat goes dry. It's Zahla, she's nothing like what I recall, she's breathing heavily, and is looking terrified. She looks over at me with a look of pain and regret. She breaks eye contact and continues.

"Sher, that's Kyne!" She says, firmly.

"I don't care," Sher says.

"Kyne as in the Kyne," She tries again. Sher's eyes narrow at that.

"As in, the Prophet?" She asks.

"Yes!" Zahla says exasperatedly.

"You should've led with that then," She puts her revolver away and rolls her eyes, walking away.

"Prophet?" I turn to ask Zahla.

"It's your title. Mary decided it," She says, looking at the ground.

"Thanks for...ya know," I say awkwardly.

"I'm sorry, Kyne. About everything. I thought...maybe if I kept you in line...she'd leave you alone," She says, her voice slightly shaking.

"It's okay. Water under the bridge," I respond.

"It isn't. I hurt you. I know words are wind, so please let me prove it to you. I just want to change. Working for them is hell, you'll understand that. Most people are only here because Mary is holding something over our heads," She sighs.

"What's your story then? We never did talk about important stuff like that," I ask.

"My story? I don't want to bore you, Kyne," She says.

"I'm listening, go ahead," I respond.

"To give you the short rundown. My step parents forced me to do whatever they said for my whole life, and after their involvement with the revolution the Patron put into motion, they were killed for it, and it wasn't soon enough," She says, clenching her fists.

"You're happy they died?" I ask.

"Yeah, they...uh...hurt me a lot. My step mother was the worst out of the two. So after they died, I was brought fully into the Organization. Tragic as it may be, I was one of the luckier ones," Zahla sighs and sits down.

"Do you ever want to leave?" I ask, sitting across from her.

"Of course I do, everyone here does. Well, the ones who aren't totally psychotic anyway," She chuckles dryly.

"Nobody has tried since the Patron," I say, more of a statement than a question. She nods in response.

"He's the only one crazy and stupid enough to try that," She laughs.

"Yeah, that makes sense," I say.

"Sorry for what he did to you. I wasn't briefed on the injuries until after I was reassigned. Not that I could do much about it anyway, but I'm sorry you have been suffering. I wish I could tell you it will be better from here, but honestly? It will be worse. Whether you can learn to trust me or not, that's up to you," She says.

"I know how awful they can be, how awful Mary can be. I'm willing to accept that you're not who I thought you were," I respond.

"Friends?" She asks, holding her hand out.

"Friends," I nod, shaking her hand. All the tension in her shoulders relax and she wipes tears from her eyes.

"One more thing? Why are you here?" She asks.

"There's money I need here for the debt I owe," I respond.

"Your debt is paid off. Mr. Giles made the last payment. He said you brought it in a few hours ago," She says.

Damn, Patron, he paid the money directly to my debt. He never hid another suitcase or duffel bag here. He's cunning, that's for sure. That's definitely a weight off my shoulders. I sigh and drag my hand down my face and groan.

"So it's finally over?" I ask.

"No, not even close," She frowns.

"Oh, come on," I seethe.

"Mary wants to see you now. At Church Omega," She says.

"Church Omega?" I ask, raising an eyebrow.

"The one overlooking the ocean, yeah, at the top of the hill. She expects to see you exactly at midnight, happy New Year, huh?" She jokes.

"Oh, right, it's the thirty-first," I respond.

"Will you be okay by yourself?" She asks.

"Yes. I'll see you around, Zahla," I stand up and shake her hand again.

"See you around then, Kyne," She nods.

I exit the ship and walk over to the stairs. All the members look over at me and then look up the stairs. Coy is standing at the very top with a stern glare. I walk up and past him to the car. He follows me with his eyes, not saying a word. I start the engine and start the drive to Church Omega. I look at my watch, 11:47 PM. At the bottom of the hill, some grunts open the gate for me. I drive to the very top and step out of the car. 11: 54 PM.

The large doors swing open as I step into a hallway decorated with burning candles and religious artwork. The stained glass windows loom to the sides and above me. 11:55 PM. I push onwards, people dressed in maid and butler outfits bow their heads as I continue forward. At the very back end of the church lie two burgundy doors, adorned with golden goat heads as the knobs. 11:58 PM.

I knock on the door and wait for an answer. Beyond them, I hear a faint voice, it's both soothing and chilling at the same time. She only says one word, but it carries more weight than the entire world right now. 11:59 PM.

"Enter."

I hover my hands over the knobs. I could run right now. I could jump off the cliff and swim into open waters. Maybe they'd find me, maybe I'd wash up on an island without any memory of this ever happening. Like a bad dream. Then again, what would they do to Mr. Giles, Zahla, and most importantly...Nis. I take a deep breath and push the doors open.

The room has had all the pews and furniture pushed to the sides to make room for statues. Statues of people praying, all turned in one direction. The stained glass seems to reflect all over the room, although no sunlight is present. It feels like I've walked into a dream. The direction the statues are facing, there's a large ornate throne, and sitting on top of it is a figure. She wears a habit but no shoes. She doesn't look threatening, but I can feel the tension in the air. She steps forward, candle light illuminating her face.

My watch beeps, the bells on top of the church chime, welcoming in the New Year. I am not celebrating. My eyes linger on her face, her very painfully familiar face. My heart stops in its tracks, my blood runs cold. In this moment, the moment my brain registers her face, I want nothing more than to die.

12:00 AM.

It isn't just Mary, a psychopath in nun's clothing.

It's her.

Kilsea.

END OF ACT 1