"I'll get 'em," dark volunteered, dashing out of the room.

What is happening?

A head ache started in my head, immediately getting much worse. I closed my eyes tightly, clenching my fists. I brought my tight fists up to my temples and applied pressure to try and remedy the pain. I yelled in pain and I felt something hot come up my throat. I coughed, and flecks of the liquid flew to the floor infront of me. The droplets sizzled and started to burn into the floor.

"Where the hell is dark?! SHE IS LITERALLY COUGHING UP LAVA FOR GODS SAKES!!!" jack shouted, which did not help my head ache.

I coughed some more, and more molten lava left my system. My head, throat, eyes, scars, everything burned. My tears irritated my face, and my skin was now the color of ash. I heard pounding footsteps, then dark and ice came into my blurry view through the tears. Everyone kept their distance and I felt utterly helpless, not able to move, my whole body shaking.

"ICE, THE FUCK YOU STANDING AROUND FOR?! HELP HER!!!" dark shouted at ice. Ice sent a cooling beam my way.

It was momentary bliss, but the ice he encased me in melted at record time, leaving me still burning. I shreaked again as the pain came back tenfold. Ice asked the other men to leave the room, and despite their reluctance they all exited the kitchen space.

Ice seemed to focus for a moment, and then he started to encase the room. He sat on the floor and bowed his head, as if praying to an unseen entity. I sat as well and matched his position. Soon the whole room was just a big ice cube, with two air pockets where ice and I sat. He still focused hard, and I was still melting the ice, but not rapidly enough to melt the whole room. I focused as well, going to an inner place in my mind. Imagining a new world.

I did this quite a lot when I was small, escaping to a world brighter then the previous reality I had been in, but in this case the usually familiar and bright surrounding area of my world, was now dark and twisted. Cheerful periwinkle and rose skies were now black and red. Cotton clouds were now stormy and gray, even the grass was a moody and wilted gray. I observed my previous safe haven, now quite the opposite. I guess I haven't been here in awhile, not since I was about 12.

That was the first time these mood swings, sad thoughts, melancholy feelings, broken dreams, had clouded my mind. I never cared to go to my other world, because I would just get sad that it wasn't my reality. I looked over to the carnival I used to imagine, back before I feared them. It was now broken down and abandoned, it was once where my imaginary friends would go to have fun with me. Isn't that sad? I had to imagine people wanted to hang out with me and do things. I had to imagine multiple people, I even imagined fun places I would like to visit, but never got to. I stood and walked a beaten path, leading to the forgotten and neglected carnival and circus. Rusty old grimy rides stood grimly, some eroded, some just broken. As I strolled past a confections stand, a reached smell flooded my nose. The stink of rotten and expired foods. I hurried past it. A giant feris wheel rested stoicly, multiple chairs missing. The grass around it was infested with weeds and vines of all kinds, ivy climbed its base. Once cheery and colorful depictions of clowns and circus performers took on a new light, now grotesquely morfed. Fuel of night mares. I hiked past all the attractions, heading to the big top, the tent I used to imagine multiple circuses passing through.

I peeled back the canvas tent's door and stepped lightly into the main tent. I remember some of the acts I used to dream up, the traipse, the lions, the clowns, all the usual and unusual you could come up with. The tent's red and blue stripes were very faded, and stains covered the old materials. I looked towards the center ring, then to the bleachers. Half eaten stale bags of popcorn rested on the raised benches, some knocked over.

I wandered through the rusty metal bleachers towards the center ring. It was too quiet, the air dead and musty, not even a slight breeze. The air in here felt evil, repelling even. I deiced it was time to leave the big tent to search on. I stepped out onto a graveled path, as opposed to the plain dirt one before. This lead out of the circus, and back to a village. I'm guessing this was where all my "friends" lived. I crept past the decaying cottages that lined the gravel rodes, now this was the set of a horror flick if I've ever seen one. I heard a creek and a shuffle from somewhere near by, but was too freaked out to check it out. I walked faster.

In the middle of the village was a market, though this is not how I remembered it. Many pigs hung by their backleggs from a slaughter hook. Their stomachs dripped venomous deep dark blood down their seemingly fresh and diseased corpses. There were boxes full of different limbs for sale, signs indicated that the fingers were 50% off. Sticky blood and bodily liquids painted the gravel disgustingly disturbing muddy colors. As I looked around, for the first time I realized something.

Why was everything so tall compared to me?

I looked down at my hands and outfit, and realized I was wearing the orphanage supplied clothing, and my hands were small and thinner. I hurried over to the closest reflective surface, (a clean bucket) and made out my refection. I was my twelve year old self. That would only make sense, I haven't been here in awhile. I shook it off and kept wandering through the village, till I found a deep and vast valley.
The valley dipped low to its center, where there stood a statue.

It was gray, and very well kept which I didn't expect. She held two bowls, one balanced on each hand. After playing video games for too long I decided to dig in my pockets to see if there was anything to place in the bowls. I found two pennies, and set one in each bowl. I heard a click, and a steady stream of water started to flow from two slits under the statues eyes. They drizzled down to the statue's base, and an inscription started to appear.

Thank you for your kindness.

I stepped back from the statue of the girl and headed on my path. Across the deep valley was a forest, the trees were withered and gnarled into wicked shapes. Something pulled me to the tree line, a strong desire to see what the weathered trees had to offer.

Just then a burning sensation filled my head, and I fell to my knees.

I woke up on the kitchen floor, the ice no longer filling the room. I gripped my hair and curled into a ball, feeling the forgotten heat once again return. Ice was on the other side of the room, but there was someone next to him.

Fire.

I saw him smirk, and he stepped over towards me. He knelt by my face and studied my huddled up, burning body.

"Rise and shine sleeping beauty!" he muttered into my ear.

"What? Can't take a little heat?" he asked, standing up. He placed his foot on my rib, then applied pressure slowly and steadily. I screamed in pain, and his smile only grew wider.

"DARK! MARK! JACK! ANTI!" I screamed, hoping they could hear my pleads.

"Oh! they aren't here hon," he replied in a sly tone.

"Don't. Call. Me. Hon." I demanded, grabbing his leg and rolling so he fell and hit his head on the kitchen tile.

There was a thump as his body hit the floor harshly.

I rose to my feet, ignoring the pain, my wings now full ten foot length above my head, I felt my black finger nails grow into claws, my eyes still black, my skintone still resembling ash and charcoals. My teeth growing and sharpening. I stood upright, chest out, chin up, shoulders back. I felt a sharp pain in my forehead, so I reached up and felt two horns now rested atop my head.

Fire got up and looked at me, anger being replaced with fear. But then his anger returned. He also grew wings, and his fangs and claws grew and sharpened.

He lunged for my throat but I flew up into the air, dodging his attack. I hovered momentarily before swooping back down on him, attacking from behind. I barley scratched his back before he also flew out of harms way. I knew I was open, so I quickly twirled and threw up a wall of smoke to hide my position before he counter attacked. It was silent for a moment before a huge ball of fire hurdled itself through my smoke screen. It skinned the left side of my torso before I moved. I darted through the smoke and conjured some lightning, I spread it through the smoke, turning it into clouds. I heard a shriek and assumed that was fire trying to touch one of the now electrified clouds.

I flew outside for more air space, but he must have followed because I heard angry yells from behind me. He flew close and I flew higher. Soon people walking on the sidewalk looked like ants, and we were at the same height.

I summoned the firey smoke hand I had made earlier, and he engulfed his fist in a giant ball of bright blue fire. I ordered the hand with my mind to grab him, and when he conquered that one I summoned many all at once. Making it a point to overwhelm him, it worked. I eased up a bit, but my error was soon realised when he came back with a smash.

He punched me in the chest with a flaming fist. I fell a few hundred feet before regaining my ability to take flight. I stopped myself and launched at him with all my strength, flying through the air like a bullet. I hit him head on and we collided. I scratched his neck and he scratched my arm.

We basicly got into a cat fight in mid air. Biting and scratching, kicking and punching. We both started to drop, not focusing on staying afloat anymore, just trying to best the other. I had to win. I couldn't give him the satisfaction of winning! He detached himself and few up, we were only a few hundred feet above ground. I was falling fast, so I made a big dive and swooped back up. I flew back up to meet my opponent, not even acknowledging the crowd that was gathering to watch this battle. I heard faint chants and shouting below. I flew up to his level, casting some bolts of electricity on the way up. One struck his wing and he fell, seemingly knocked out. He increased speed, so I started a hawk dive.

At the very last second I caught him, swooping up, then gliding back down. I set him on the ground, then fell to my knees. I lifted my hand above his agape lips, and felt a faint breathing from his lungs. I checked his pulse, and though a bit weaker than usual, it was still regular. He was still alive, just unconscious. I studied myself, seeing what wounds I had acquired in the skirmish. My body was bloody, covered in burns, scratch marks and bite wounds. My wings where still the giant span, and my horns still appeared to be there.

I cracked my neck and knuckles. I flapped my wings to see if they were still in good condition. Some people in the crowd that had gathered started cheering, but others just left. It seemed like they were betting on who would win. Just then a large group rushed out of the house towards me. I stepped out of the way, shadow, ice, and JG all went to fire's side and lifted him, carrying him back into the house. Dark was the first to approach me, along with anti and the host. I'm guessing they were the only ones not mesmerized or scared to approach.

"(Y/n).... Is that you?" dark asked, curiously.

Just then my teeth shrunk, my wings reduced in size, my claws retracted into finger nails once more. I felt another sharp pain in my forehead as my horns vanished. Suddenly everything hurt.

I felt all the scratching, the biting, the burning. I screamed in pain as the sun burnt my skin once again. The host grabbed me quickly and teleported inside. It was in the hidden dirt room I had discovered before. He teleported away again and I laid down on the cool dirt floor, the room had a cool draft. All my burning turned into being warm. It still hurt, but less. Every time I drew in a heaving breath, I felt all the scars.

I won.

(HOLY MOTHER OF GOD THAT WAS LONG!!! 2244 WORDS AHHHHH!!! I TRIED TO MAKE IT ACTION-PACKED, I HOPE IT DIDN'T COME OUT RUSHED. ALSO I DREW THE HOST BECAUSE I HAVE NEVER DRAWN HIM EVEN THOUGH HE IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE ALTERS AND DOESN'T GET ENOUGH CREDIT.  yeah I'll stop with the caps. Hope you're having a good day/night! tschüss!)