4th Chapter ♣ The Abducted

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"Celestes are capable knights who fight against demons and defend the world and its prople. They're the symbol of power and honor since the ancient times."

CHAPTER FOUR ♣ THE ABDUCTED

Valeriana was approaching a week after the incident with the demon, the lady, and her best friend. Luckily for her, when she had come home from the airport several days ago, her mother had gone to work and her brother was playing his video games in his room so no one noticed her arriving. She remembered grabbing the medicine kit from the kitchen, rushing to her bedroom, and attending to her wounds after throwing over a fresh set of clothes.

Still, she could not hide her wounds completely. Lily's motherly instincts kicked in and she found out before Valeriana could say poop. She withheld the incident with the thief and lied about falling down the stairs. After all, Lily knew Valeriana's tendencies of being horribly clumsy.

"You really don't have to do this, Valery." Her mother told her, feeling concerned.

She felt guilty having lost some money to the thief and so she found herself hunting for a part-time job to replace it.

It was scary how perceptive mothers could be. Lily must've already sensed her daughter's distress and discomfort in the past few nights, and who wouldn't? Valeriana had bags under her eyes and her complexion was pallid. She looked worse than she did when she came home a few days ago.

"Mom, I already told you, right?" Valeriana blew her bangs out of her face.

"The summer just came around. It won't be a problem for me at all."

"But you need to fix your registration to the university first before everything else!"

"There's a lot of time for that, alright?" she told her. "Besides, I think it's time I do this . . . experience is good after all."

"Why don't we do it this way?" Lily offered. "I'll let you continue your search for that job, but you enroll yourself at the university first."

She sighed at her mother's insistence, but realized she made sense. "Okay. Fine."

"Thank goodness."

"But I'll do it tomorrow."

Without further ado, she left the house in a hurry. Lily breathed out tiredly as she watched Valeriana go.

"Really . . . that kid makes me crazy."

As soon as she headed out, her annoying stalker was on the move as well. Valeriana was becoming ever wearier of being followed by someone she couldn't see

At first, it was scary. However, the stalker never really made any move to hurt her. As much as she was concerned, he maintained a certain distance and observed her from a well-calculated location.

She sighed.

Her foot still hurt, but she was able to walk straight now.

Valeriana inwardly hoped that she would be able to find the job she was after, but after trying her luck with five stores, she lost hope. She was ready to explode.

"Agh! Why am I so freaking out of luck?" She released an upset, guttural sound from the back of her throat as she punched a nearby tree. "Can't I find at least one job? One job! Why is the universe so against me on this?"

"Valeriana," a familiar voice echoed behind her.

She punched the tree one more time so hard that she even hurt her fingers. "Crap. Why does the bark have to be so rough?"

"Valeriana."

She cringed, and then turned to meet the person who was calling her earlier. "What?!" she screamed.

Passers-by gave her inquisitive looks.

Valeriana felt slightly embarrassed, but was shocked when she saw the mysterious stranger from a few days ago standing in front of her.

"It's you!" The girl raked her eyes over the woman, unable to hide her disbelief. "What are you doing here? I can't believe it!"

She was silent for a few moments.

"Listen to me," Seraphina told her, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her along. "As you already know, demons have escaped into your city. If they are not caught soon, they may do considerable damage and take the life of your people."

"So what do you expect me to do?" Valeriana asked her, her tone dripping with sarcasm. She was still feeling annoyed. "Help you kill those?"

"Just help me find them. You leave the battle to me," she replied. "I lost sight of the others while in pursuit of one earlier. Even though I have managed to kill the first few, I am not very familiar with your city, so I'm in dire need of your help."

The girl could only look at the stranger in disbelief. "Wait! No way am I going near those things again!" she exclaimed, pulling her limb free from Seraphina's grip which then caused the both of them to stop walking. "It almost cost me a foot last time."

People shot glances their way.

Valeriana looked around, feeling conscious of the stares. She leaned forward and began to whisper. "This is not exactly the best place to talk about this. Besides, why exactly are you asking me? And those clothes! You're standing out too much!"

Seraphina looked down at herself. "It cannot be helped," she answered. "But you do not understand. You need to help me find those demons."

Valeriana crossed her arms. "Demons. As in with s. You're saying there are more of these guys?"

"Like before, I had to hunt at least a dozen of them," Seraphina answered. "But this time, I have no idea where to look."

"Well, that's your problem and not mine. You managed to do it before, you can do it again," she answered. "I have my own problems I have to mind too, you know! I still haven't found a summer job." She sighed.

"Then, let us make a deal," the lady offered. "If you help me hunt these demons down, then I will help you hunt for a . . . summer job, you say?"

Valeriana gazed at her challengingly. "Really. You seriously think you can help me?"

"There is nothing impossible for a Celeste."

"If there's nothing impossible for you, then go hunt your demons on your own. I do not want to go near those guys ever again!"

"I beg you, Valeriana. I swear upon the name of the first king, I will not let you get hurt," Seraphina pleaded, but the look on her face was calm. "On my own, I do not know how to navigate around this complex maze you call a city. And my unfamiliarity with the surroundings makes it dangerous for me as well."

Valeriana played the scenario in her head. "Okay. Fine. I'll help you. I don't want anyone freaking out seeing a woman randomly swinging her sword."

Seraphina's face broke into a relieved smile. "You do not know how very grateful I am for this, Valeriana."

"So um . . ." the girl trailed off. "How exactly are we going to look for those things?"

"Demons feed on the negative energies. Their first priority is to strengthen their power. My guess is they are somewhere where they have what they need."

"What negative energies?"

"Energies caused by fear, panic, jealousy, and among other things," Seraphina answered.

Valeriana's face wrinkled as she wracked her mind for the right place. "I can't think of any place . . ."

Two, teenage girls passed by the two of them, giggling to themselves. Although they were whispering to each other, their voices were still loud enough for Valeriana and Seraphina to overhear them talking.

"Oh my gosh. It's really really romantic, I tell you!" The first one squealed. "I'm telling you it was perfect! Even though the whole place was so scary my knees were shaking, clinging to Jason was perfect! He's like my knight-in-shining-armor!"

"I really should consider taking Robert there." The other sighed dreamily. "I mean, even though there are ghouls everywhere, it'll probably be the best summer experience."

An idea clicked into Valeriana.

"That was convenient." She snapped her fingers. "Looks like luck's on my side on this one. Hooray for Joseph and Robert! Whoever they are." Valeriana reached for Seraphina's wrist and towed her along with excitement.

"I think it is supposed to be Jason," Seraphina corrected.

"Never mind. Let's go."

"Where?

"The Horror House. Where else?"

-*-

As they walked, Valeriana had decided to tell Seraphina about the way her world worked, and that those creatures she was supposedly hunting down were nothing but a mere myth to her and her people. This made Seraphina wistful.

"How peaceful. No demons to fight. No battles to be fought." The woman sighed as she observed her surroundings.

"That's our definition of normal," Valeriana told her.

"They won't believe you even if you tell them?"

"Hey, no one's crazy enough to believe anything that can't be explained by science," she pointed out. "Wanna see?"

Seraphina gazed at the girl questioningly. Valeriana pulled a random passerby into the scene, a local kid with tousled brown hair and brown eyes. Freckles covered his cheeks and in his hand, he held a cup of soda. Just an ordinary, wimpy-looking teenager.

"Do you mind if I tell you something?"

"W-what is it?" the boy answered.

Seraphina looked panicked when Valeriana started talking. "What are you—"

"This lady with me hunts creatures called demons," she told him bluntly, catching the woman and the boy in complete shock.

"You're kidding, right?" he asked. "Is this some sorta . . . what? Cosplay?"

"See?" Valeriana then ushered him off, thanking him along the way. "He looked at me like I was crazy."

After watching the poor kid run away, Valeriana realized what she just did and started snickering to herself.

"You humans are strange," the lady finally said.

"Anyhow," Valeriana covered her mouth and wiped the smile off her lips. "The Horror House's just around the corner."

They strolled down the sidewalk. The buzzing noises that permeated the air and assaulted their ears were strange to Seraphina so she could not keep calm as Valeriana did. The environment felt very foreign compared to what she was used to.

A small girl wearing pigtails passed by in front of them, holding an ice cream with her left hand while gripping her mother's fingers in the other. Seraphina's eyes followed the food she was licking so happily, her brows scrunching as she wondered how it exactly tasted.

Valeriana saw her reaction. "Have you had any ice cream before?" she asked.

"Ice cream?"

The woman almost seemed like a child by the way she was taking in everything. She fought back the urge to laugh at her as the questions fell freely from her lips.

"We can drop by the ice cream shop and buy you one so you'll know how it tastes like. My treat." Valeriana grabbed Seraphina by the wrist and dragged her towards the nearby ice cream parlor.

"But I—"

"You know you want to," she retorted.

Despite her protests, the girl managed to pull her into the shop anyway and buy her an ice cream. Seraphina's eyes twinkled childishly as she gazed at the treat she was given, almost like a child granted a whole jar of cookies.

"Do you not want any?" Seraphina asked, offering her ice cream to Valeriana.

"No. I'm not really fond of sweets."

With that, they left the shop and continued on their way. Having to lick her food seemed a very foreign thing to do for her that it was almost funny.

"So . . . this world you're talking about?"

"Valemnia," Seraphina said, slurping.

"Right. Valemnia. Tell me about it."

"It's far different from to this city," she answered. "But when it comes to beauty, it will never lose."

"Great . . ." she answered, thinking her answer was just way too vague. "I really can imagine what it looks like inside my head." Her words carried a hint of sarcasm as they rolled off her tongue.

The woman merely smiled in return. Seemed as though she was holding back. She still did not trust Valeriana that well.

Seraphina's smile faltered and was replaced by a suspicious frown. "Are we here?" she asked her.

"Yeah, sure." Valeriana nodded and motioned towards an old-looking building to their right.

The front yard was full of weeds and patches of wilted grass. The wooden fences needed intense repairing. The gate needed to be oiled and the lopsided sign had creepy, crooked letters carved on its surface.

"Okay . . . this is pretty convincing," Valeriana muttered. "I will actually think it's a house of demons if it weren't for the sign."

On the other hand, the house itself appeared half-destroyed. The walls had gigantic holes that one could see the inside. The atmosphere that surrounded it looked very gloomy, giving it the haunted feel.

A high-pitched scream echoed occasionally.

Valeriana felt the hair on the back of her neck rising as a dark figure passed by the window. "That's just . . . scary. I don't think I can go in there now. I'm already scared just by standing outside."

Seraphina shoved the ice cream into Valeriana's hands and walked through the gates as though under a trance.

"Hey!" Valeriana ran forward and caught up.

"I thank you for leading me here, Valeriana. I can go in on my own."

"Wait a moment! We have to wait in line!" She looked down reluctantly at the ice cream, not knowing what to do with it. Even though she really hated wasting perfectly good food, she didn't like eating sweets so she threw it away and ran after her companion.

They both stopped before a queue of people by the entrance.

"This is still a horror house, so we have to wait to get in."

"I don't think I can wait at all," Seraphina answered.

With that said, she pushed past the people waiting for their turn at the entrance. They reacted harshly, complaining about how they waited for hours to get where they were. However, their whines fell on deaf ears as Seraphina proceeded calmly without looking back. Valeriana could only walk after her, feeling embarrassed and uncertain.

"Seraphina!" she whispered loudly. "Hey!"

When they were right in front of the door, a man stepped in their way. "I'm sorry. Do you—"

The piercing gaze the woman shot his way made him shut his mouth and back off. With a slight push, they brushed past him and walked into the horror house without any trouble.

Valeriana looked back and saw the man helplessly standing in the entrance, scratching his head.

"You have got to teach me that."

Seraphina swept aside the black, silky curtains and entered without answering. Valeriana had to lift her leg as there was a hump. While her companion looked unperturbed, Valeriana was already regretting ever going in.

They stepped into a dark, abandoned hallway. The utter quietness made their steps echo eerily. The atmosphere and silence felt unnerving.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Valeriana exclaimed.

Seraphina had her hands around the hilt of her sheathed sword—a weapon that fortunately nobody noticed—and was bent slightly on a pose that signaled her readiness for any kind of attack.

"Valeriana, if you see something strange, alert me immediately."

"B-but, how am I supposed to know? There are all sorts of scary things in here."

"We should check this door." Seraphina walked towards the door to their right and placed a hand on the knob.

"W-wait, I don't think you should."

The lady slowly pushed the door open, letting it hit the wall.

"Holy mother of—" Valeriana broke into a loud scream. The sight was so gruesome and horrifying that could not hold back her reaction even after landing a mere glance.

On the couch was a dying woman covered in her own blood. Crimson had dried off around her mouth and even more seeped through her painted lips. There was another character in the scene, feeding on the innards of her open stomach. The monster's appearance was barbaric, with a pointed set of teeth stained with blood and bits of flesh falling out from his mouth.

"H-help . . . me . . ." The woman reached out to them.

When the monster saw both girls, its blood red eyes glistened with bloodthirstiness and started running for the two. Valeriana jumped from where she stood and grabbed the knob instinctively while Seraphina drew her weapon. With a loud bang, she shut the door close and took off running with the woman in tow.

Her heart was beating so fast it felt like it would burst from her chest. Her hands, as well, were racked with uncontrollable trembling and her knees felt unbelievably weak.

Even after shutting it close, the monster kept banging on the door.

"Why did you leave her alone? We should help her!" Seraphina exclaimed.

Valeriana focused on calming herself. "Listen," she told the woman as she took in deep breaths. "None of that was real."

"But . . ."

"You won't believe how great special effects are," she paused. "That woman had great acting too. Really. I felt like I just died a gazillion times."

"It wasn't real?"

"That's the point of a Horror House—to scare, but not harm people. It's for past time and entertainment." Valeriana wiped off the sweat on her brow while panting. "So you have to keep in mind that you can't just draw that thing out recklessly or you'll probably kill innocent people who're just doing their job."

Valeriana pointed to the fully drawn, gleaming sword Seraphina held with her two, swift hands.

"You have to promise me that you will not use that thing here—at least, on people. I didn't lead you here to murder someone after all. Now, for Pete's sake, please put that away."

Seraphina seemed disappointed and troubled as she sheathed her weapon. Once it clicked in place, Seraphina released a huge breath and began to contemplate how on Earth she would distinguish demon from human.

"I'm going to have to proceed without drawing my weapon against anything at all then. I'll try not to unless I am sure who my enemies are."

Valeriana nodded at her statement in satisfaction. "Alright. Now we're clear."

"Let us go."

Valeriana tried to keep herself calm as they continued checking out numerous doors which led to plenty of different terrifying scenarios. They sent her screaming and running for her life—at least, she tried to. A few more minutes and she would sure scream out her throat, her brain, and her soul. This Horror House truly wasn't something for the faint of heart.

"W-where the heck are those demons you're talking about?" she asked. "Can you just find them and get it over with already?"

"Although I appreciate you taking me here, Valeriana, seeing no sign of them makes me think they aren't here at all."

"What? You kidding? I went through hell coming with you here and they aren't anywhere around?"

"Perhaps this door," Seraphina told her, opening the one they were facing.

They were greeted by the sight of a beast chained against the wall, lying helplessly on the floor. His breath was heavy and soft growls escaped through rows of narrow-edged teeth. A few steps away from him was rotting meat.

Valeriana stared at the beast in silence, intimidated by the aura about him.

It roared so suddenly, eliciting a shriek from the girl as a result. It pulled on the chains cuffed around its arms and feet as it attempted to lunge for the two.

"Close the door! Close it! Close it!" Valeriana cried.

Seraphina hurriedly did as Valeriana said and took a deep breath as the door slammed shut. "I have seen things worse than this, but I have to admit that your people are quite convincing. It is somewhat unnerving." She trembled, probably from aversion. She looked far

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