"I've already told you everything I know about it" Anti huffed, "It's a shadow creature THING that wants to KILL me!"

Jackie snorted and muttered to Marvin, "Tell me again why that's a bad thing?"

The magician shoved him lightly and rolled his eyes, "Hush." he addressed Anti, "So you don't know who you pissed off? Could it be some ego's doing? Or maybe you summoned a demon?"

Anti chuckled, crossing his arms, "I'm not a Satanist"

'Could have fooled me' Jameson brushed his mustache with squinted eyes suspiciously, 'But how do you know it's NOT a demon?'

Anti shrugged, "I don't fooking know, man. I just know I'm fucked if we don't kill this thing"

"Oh? We?" Jackie chuckled as he went to look through the fridge, "Why should we help you again? Pft . . .this is all just bullshit"

Anti rolled his eyes, "Oh cry me a river, bitch. You know very well Sean got you all whipped. . . . . Where's that girl anyway? I've been meaning to get back at her"

"Mia?" Marvin provided, "As if we'd tell you. Don't trust you THAT much"

"She covered my hair in glitter and pulled an airhorn right next to my ear. TELL me she doesn't deserve to get something thrown back at her. I think I STILL have glitter on my head and I STILL have ringing in my ears off and on!"

"Well that's a LITTLE concerning" Henrik piped up.

"Oh boo" Jackie spat back at him, "Cry me a river. She painted polka dots on all my masks, switched my protein shakes with nasty raw egg whites and drew temp tattoos with permanent marker all over my arms while I slept"

"What did you DO?"

Jackie swallowed but smirked at the memory, "Weeeeell . . . It's not like I didn't deserve it. She keeps a hidden stash of dark chocolate she gets from Darkiplier. I keep finding her stash"

Anti snorted, "Of COURSE she's friends with that pompous self-absorbed emo ass . . . ." he rolled his eyes, "Does she do this shite often?"

They all nodded in unison.

Anti actually looked concerned then for THEM, "And you LET her? Doesn't it get annoying?"

Marvin shrugged, "Eh, it's not like we don't get her back. I've cursed her shower a few times here and there to spray out confetti instead, switched some of her chocolates for laxatives, dipped mints in her orange juice. You know, normal prank stuff"

Anti nodded and glanced to the others, "What's she done to the rest of ya?"

'Switched my sock puppets for gloves and exchanged one of my bowler hats for a cowboy hat' Jameson signed, 'It wasn't so bad, though. The treats in her room are always worth the risk'

Marvin chuckled and made his own list, "She's put pink dye in my shampoo, drew on my masks, stole one of my bean-bag chairs . .. I just go in her room though and sit in it to annoy her . . . Oh! For Halloween that one time, she ordered everyone pizza and put plastic severed fingers in it! You guys remember that? Hehehe. . . she also likes to be dramatic sometimes and pretends she's hurt to scare us. One time she attached a fake bleeding arm into her shirt and laid on the floor with fake blood everywhere. That one was messed up but kind of funny afterwards"

"Fucking hell" Anti looked away, "Sounds like I have someone to compete with . .. What about you, doc?"

Henrik just shrugged, "The worst thing she's ever done to me is change my regular caffeinated coffee to decaf. . . . I'm not ignorant. I stay in my lane and purposely make sure I don't piss her off"

"Yeeeaaaah" Jackie nodded, "Hen's the smart one, here"

"Hm" Anti thought to himself that perhaps he might have to really think more carefully on how to go about things, "And what about Brody? Surely she's done shit to him, too?"

"Chase?" Marvin crossed his arms, "Uh . . yeah. You think the shit she's done to us is over the top. Chase and her have an all out war. . . when it's appropriate, that is. Stacey's forbade their pranks anywhere near their house. It can only happen here"

Anti nodded, "Interesting"

Jackie squinted at him, "What are you thinking about doing? I don't trust that look"

"What?" he asked so . . innocently, "It's nothing . . . . don't worry about it" he gave a small smile, took his mug of coffee and walked out of the room.

He had planning to do.

Meanwhile, Mia was in her room.

It was fun to prank Anti and she knew he's probably do something to get back at her but she wasn't too worried.

Her mind was elsewhere at the moment.

She was on her computer sifting through social media, listening to music and off and on playing some game mindlessly.

Sometimes, she'd get like this. She'd just stay in her room wanting to be alone. The others didn't know most of the stuff she thought about.

She didn't want to tell them. Worry them.

She was a young ego but pretty mature for it even though she liked to play games and tricks. It was . . . like a coping mechanism. A way to grab attention and she KNEW it. If they responded back to it, it meant to her that they gave a shit. That they cared. They'd laugh it off and prank her in return and she'd feel happy that they took time out of their lives to do so.

It was kind of messed up and she knew it but it was a habit by now.

All the egos had a sort of depression. This was her way of dealing with her own.

'Does Sean even know? . . . I mean how can't he? We're derived FROM him. And he has depression, too, even if he tries to mask it with that fake smile. Evelien's made him happier but still . . . .'

She wondered what it was like to have someone like that. To support them so much.

'My brothers are here for me, though . . . right?'

But Anti's words rang in her head once more.

He had laughed at her and she hadn't understood why, asking him.

"What's so funny?" he repeated, "What's so funny is that you're so fucking blind, you can't see it right in front of you! What, you think Stacey over there is Chase's SISTER!? She was created by Sean, too, ya know! Ya think their kids are born of incest??"

"Well . . no"

"Okay, that's enough" Jackie stepped in, "I think we all need to just calm down and-"

"Oh but hero-boy here just HOPES you finally see it one day" Anti continued and sighed, "Sean created you just as he did Stacey. Unrelated in the story! Ya get it now?"

"Hm" she hummed to herself, 'But what does it mean?' the more she thought about it, the more going down this rabbit hole frightened her.

She knew she was created to help the other egos. To make them stronger to be able to stand a chance against Anti. But what if she was created for even MORE than that?

Before she could delve further into her thoughts, though, there was a knock on her door.

She flinched and shook her head, "Uh . .. yeah? Who is it?"

"It's Anti. Open the fucking door"

Her anxiety built up, 'Oh hell no'

"Uh . . . . I'm not in here!"

Anti made a noise on the other side, "Open . . . the fucking . . . door. I promise I'm not gonna hurt ya . . . I'm calling a truce!"

"I don't believe you!"

"As you shouldn't! But I really am pulling a white flag for the moment. Now get off your fat ass and open the door"

Mia suddenly bolted at the door and opened it roughly, somewhat actually surprising him when she slapped him across the face, "FUCK YOU, ASSHOLE!"

Once again, Anti couldn't help but like her spirit and smirked, merely cracking his neck, "Knew that'd get you out. Anyway, what's your deal?" he pushed her a little, making his way in her room and in her own surprise, she let him, "I mean . . .. you seem like a smart lass . . . unlike the other egos Sean's created"

"I'm not really an ego . . . I'm just . . Sean just created me is all. Not a part of himself, though"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever" he slunk over to her desk and gawked at her computer, "Nice specs . . . . Who paid for it? Let me guess. . . Daddy got it for you? Is dear Seany boy wrapped around your cute little finger?" he teased and then started to open her sketchbook when she stomped over to him and shoved him away.

He just chuckled, "So angry. So confrontational. Just trying to start a conversation, love"

She just scoffed at him, "Yeah right. You want something. I'm not stupid, as you've so KINDLY pointed out"

Anti crossed his arms and shrugged, "Eh . . . . I just wanted to ask you something is all"

Mia rolled her eyes, "Yeah? Like what? About what it's like to be a literal steroid for my brothers against you? Why I'm always pranking them all? Or is it a question of how I actually FEEL about Sean and the others? Hm? What you wanna dish out at me this time, huh?"

Anti blinked at her, "Actually . . . . I KNOW why you prank them. You want attention and a feeling of power over them because you feel like a 'steroid' for them and they're just using you. Your last name 'Mayura' that Evelien came up with means illusion and you're desperately trying not to feel like one. Just trapped in their shadows or a ghost. Not even the community knows of you, right? They know about Stacey and yet there's nothing of you that Sean's released. You're just in their shadows like an illusion."

That one hurt but Mia couldn't interject as he continued.

"I KNOW what you feel about Sean and the others. You really do care for them but you're frustrated about what I said earlier and depressed. Of course you are, it's only natural to feel such a way when you discover you're only meant for one thing. . . . and suddenly that thing becomes meaningless when the person you're trying to help take down ends up living with you."

Mia didn't want to hear it, 'How is he in my mind like this? He can't possibly know how I feel! I-'

"And as for the first question . . . . I know what it's like to be used . . . . you feel . . . . filled with purpose but also . . .so fucking lonely at the same time."

Mia just wrinkled her nose, "You don't know what that feels like . . . you can't possibly-"

"Did Sean never tell you WHY I was created in the first place?"

Before she could say anything, Anti snickered at her, "Rhetorical question. You can ask him yourself. No, the real question I want to ask is . . . . . what the hell . . .possessed you . . . to accept chocolates from Darkiplier?"

Mia let out a sigh, "What?"

"I'm serious . . . do you have any idea how fucking weird the guy is? He's probably trying to court you or something"

She just shrugged, "Free chocolate"

He scoffed, "What if he laced it one day with some sort of drug and locked you away in his creepy void forever?"

"I'm pretty sure I'd still get free chocolate." she nodded at the idea, "And he'd have to take care of me and abide to my every whim. You know . . since he's theoretically so infatuated with me .. . . is this some sort of prank of yours or something? Trying to do something or say something to get back at me?"

"No" Anti bit his lip a little, "Just thought I'd ask . . . that and . . . .when I get back at you . . I won't be so obvious about it. You'll find out. Maybe I already did it, maybe I didn't. So I'm gonna leave! See you at dinner, bitch!" he saluted her and suddenly glitched out of her room, leaving her alone once more.

'And he says Dark is weird' she hummed curiously but went over to shut and lock her door again, 'Maybe I shouldn't be so chancy around him . . . I know a threat when I hear one. And I know he's not someone to take lightly'

Of course that way of thinking was already too late and she knew it. She was impulsive though and didn't think of the consequences ahead of time.

'I still saw some sparkle in his hair . . . he still mad about that? He got MOST of it out' she shrugged and crawled back up on her bed with her computer in her lap.

'Maybe I should play some Minecraft for a bit . . . that always seems to chill me out'

She had to get her mind off of him.

But little did she know, Anti hadn't exactly left just yet. No, no, it was all a ploy.

He stared back at her from the webcam of her computer with a smirk on his face.

'I'll get back at you and you'll wish you never crossed me. I may like her spunk and attitude but no one fucks with me and I'll make sure everyone knows it. I'm not afraid of hurting a girl. Least of all one of Sean's little toys'

Sean groaned on his couch, laying across it with BB in his lap, "Should I have left them? I shouldn't have left them, right? What if they need my help and Anti was lying all along?"

Evelien sighed, "Then you can go and see for yourself or call them"

This had been going on all day. For hours on end.

"But what if I just end up annoying them? Then they'll stop answering at all when I call! Should I really have let Anti stay there? I should have made him stay HERE, right? Or would that have been worse?"

"Definetly worse"

"Yeah, you're probably right"

"Why don't you just call Jackie? He always answers his phone no matter what"

"I don't know"

"Sean" Evelien pouted at him, "You won't feel better until you do."

"I know"

"So? What are you gonna do?"

" . . . . ." Sean thought about it and sighed heavily, pulling out his phone.

But before he could even unlock the screen, someone started to call HIM!

"Huh . . . . It's Pewds. I guess I'll call Jackie later"

With that, Sean answered the call and Evelien rolled her eyes, 'Always making excuses. But that's alright. I'm sure they're all fine anyway'

"So we're doing this?"

"Yeah, why not?" Marvin asked, "What's the worst that can happen?"

"Famous last words, man" Jackie rolled his eyes, "But for real, you think it's a good idea?"

"We need to figure out if Anti's telling the truth. . . . . And we've never gotten to see into his head BEFORE so . . maybe this could be the advantage we're looking for just in case things go sideways"

"You mean if he's really lying to us?"

"Yeah."

"I don't know"

Marvin rolled his head around dramatically, "Come on, man. All I gotta do is get close enough to him. You distract him and I'll get in his head. It's easy"

" . . . . . . . " Jackie didn't look enthused and didn't really trust this half-assed plan . . . but that didn't mean he didn't want to try.

"Alright. Let's do it"