Chapter 27: New friends and a missing wallet

Peril Harbor - A few days before the attack at the End of the World

Dali and Leo held hands and walked slowly down 22nd Street. It was one of their regular walks that they used to take. In her other hand, Dali carried a plush white rabbit named Mr. Paka, whom she had grown very fond of.

When they reached the end of their street, they turned around again and went the other way. Leo was letting Dali decide on this one; if she decided to go further than their street one day, he was going to follow her.

Leo glanced at his sister, who was clutching Mr. Paka and running her eyes over their surroundings. Leo was very worried about his sister because, despite coming from him, her intelligence wasn't good after being turned by the Border Mist, and if they weren't connected by strings, she wouldn't even be able to say a complete sentence in a row.

Leo, on the other hand, was only slightly changed mentally and intellectually after his transformation, but without his sister, he would have lost the ability to move again, and his body would have broken down into its component parts.

"Brother," Dali spoke and paused. She gestured with her hand. Leo looked up and looked to the end of the street where he saw two people standing.

No, they weren't people, but children. A boy and a girl like them. The boy was older, maybe thirteen or fourteen. He was rather lanky with brown hair, dark blue eyes, and slightly brownish skin. He was wearing the ordinary linen clothes of lower-class kids—faded brown pants, a grayish shirt with a pale blue loose sweater.

The girl next to him could have been around twelve and had messy short blue hair, grey eyes, and pale skin. She wore a brown skirt with tights and a white shirt. The two children stood on the street corner looking at Dali and Leo, looking embarrassed.

Dali and Leo looked at them calmly before Leo looked at Dali. "What do you want to do?"

"Ask." Dali answered, and though she didn't say anything else, Leo understood her, and they made their way to the kids.

The blue-haired girl poked the older boy and nodded her head. The boy poked her back, but after poking each other a few times, they made their way over to Dali and Leo across the street.

"Um. Hi!" The older boy raised his hand in greeting. "Hey," the girl also greeted and smiled.

Leo and Dali stared at them for a moment. "Hi," Leo replied, and Dali hid behind him, peeking out at them. The four kids stood there in awkward silence for a few moments. Finally, the girl cleared her throat. "I'm Kafi, and this is Brandon. We live two streets over and so... there aren't a lot of kids in the neighborhood, so when we found out other kids had moved in... well, we wanted to meet them."

Brandon looked past Dali and Leo to the street. "But your folks are probably crazy. Moving into a murdered street? Aren't they afraid of a killer?"

Leo tilted his head and thought. "That bad mister..." Dali muttered behind him, but Leo put his hand on her head to stop her. "Some local gang took care of that one. It's been a while." Leo replied instead.

Kafi punched her clenched fist into her palm in a sign that it made sense. "Aha! So that's why it's been quiet for so long. That's good! I'll tell my parents at home that they don't have to worry anymore." She then cleared her throat. "Um... so... do you want to be friends?" She changed the subject quickly.

Leo didn't answer and looked at his sister, who was slowly coming out of hiding behind his back. "Friends?" She muttered shyly.

Brandon nodded. "Like we said. There aren't many kids here, and there aren't many games to play with two." He scratched his hair. "Plus, it's better when there's more of us. Then Ludwig will be more careful who he bullies. Ow!" He yelped at the end when Kafi elbowed him in the side.

"Don't scare them!" she scolded him.

Brandon rubbed his side and grinned. "Damn, those sharp elbows of yours! Like what? They were going to meet him sooner or later anyway. They better be ready."

Leo forced himself to blink. "Who's Ludwig?"

Kafi sighed. "'Little bugger. He's part of some gang, and he's bullying all the kids in this neighborhood. He steals from them and even beats up the weaker ones. The adults know about it, but they can't do anything either because they're afraid of the gang's revenge."

"I'm sure he'll show up soon. Until now, everyone avoided this street because of the killer, but now that it's been quiet for a long time, he'll probably come here to check it out." Brandon added.

Kafi clapped lightly. "But let's leave it at that for now. Shall we play a game?" she smiled.

***** 

The next day, Brandon and Kafi came to play with Dali and Leo again. The two of them teased and teased each other once more. Brandon was actually at an age where he could be considered almost an adult and didn't enjoy playing childish games much, but Kafi was his best friend, and he grew up with her, so he was worried about her.

Kafi had more courage than common sense, and even as a young man, he noticed that Kafi was becoming a pretty girl and was worried that something might happen to her. Kidnappings were a common thing here, so instead of rushing to find a job, Brandon endured his parents' nagging and went to keep an eye on Kafi.

Having other kids around was good for Brandon because he couldn't avoid responsibility forever, and once he got a feel for the two new siblings, he could leave Kafi in their company and go look for work on the docks.

They reached the house where Dali and Leo lived, and Brandon knocked. Soon they heard footsteps, and the door opened. Brandon and Kafi fell silent, and then their gaze traveled up, up and higher! They both rolled their eyes at the impossibly tall, elegant man in the top hat, and both their chins dropped.

"Yes?" The man asked in a deep voice, his hidden gaze falling on them.

Kafi quickly snapped her mouth shut. "Ah! I'm Kafi, and this is Brandon, hello! Are Dali and Leo home?"

"Well, it's very nice to meet you, young lady. Young man. Are you the new friends of our Dali and Leo? How delightful! Those kids already needed friends their own age. Thank you for looking out for them. Come in." The man stepped to the side and let the children in.

Kafi and Brandon were a little nervous about the strange adult, but they looked around curiously anyway. Of course, their eyes were first drawn to the family picture that was across from the door.

"I'll call them right away." The man said and made his way up the staircase to the second floor.

Brandon leaned over to Kafi. "They have two fathers."

Kafi blinked her eyes. "And where's mom?" She hesitated. "Can men have children?" She asked.

Brandon slapped his cheek desperately. "Of course not! One of them is a father, or Dali and Leo are adopted. Don't you know how babies come into the world?"

Kafi pouted her lips. "Mom said babies are carried by crows."

Brandon sighed and ruffled Kafi's hair. This was why he couldn't leave her alone!

Leo and Dali appeared at the top of the staircase. "Hey." They greeted Brandon and Kafi in unison.

"Wait!" They heard a new voice, and a red-haired and red-bearded man appeared behind them. "If you're going to ruin my clothes, at least wear them! Dali, raise your hands." The man ordered. Dali dropped Mr. Paka and reached her arms out; the man then put on her brown vest, which he also buttoned up.

"Leo, here." He then turned to Leo and handed him a small wallet. "In case you want to buy something. Be nice and don't go too far. Avoid suspicious alleys and people. And if there's any trouble, run home right away."

A tall man also appeared with a tap on the red-haired man's shoulder with his walking cane. "You worry too much." He then looked at Dali and Leo. "They know what to do. Don't bother them anymore. Can't you see their friends are waiting for them? You kids better go."

All four children soon appeared on the street. Kafi turned to her siblings. "Your parents are so cool! Especially the tall one! How high can he throw you?"

"Throw?" Dali repeated, furrowing her brow thoughtfully. "He could probably... throw me through a wall? "

Kafi and Brandon looked confused. "Dali doesn't understand. Mr. Hellcage and Uncle Marik don't throw us in the air," Leo explained calmly.

Brandon ran a hand through his hair. "I see. So they don't play with you?"

Leo thought for a moment, remembering Mr. Hellcage letting them play with the bad man and Uncle Marik chasing them around the house after he and Dali made new clothes. "No, they're playing with us. Mr. Hellcage lets us play with our food before we eat it, and Uncle Marik plays tag with us." Leo smiled slightly as he rephrased their playing into something that sounded a little normal.

Kafi sighed enviously. "They let you play with your food? I'm jealous! My parents always tell me not to play with food because there's not enough of it."

Leo suppressed a chuckle, but said nothing. "What are we playing today?" Brandon asked.

"No," Dali spoke up, and Leo looked at her. She tugged on his pocket where he'd put his wallet. "I want candy."

Leo nodded that he understood and looked at their two new friends. "Let's go get some candy."

Before they exited 22nd Street, Dali paused for a moment, and Leo waited to see how she would decide. Eventually, though, she stepped out, and they made their way slowly to the market.

Leo then slowly turned his head, and his blood-red pupils focused on the person hiding from them in the shadows on the street corner. Leo's fingers twisted unnaturally for a moment before he relaxed them again and turned away.

***** 

The children arrived at the market looking for sweets. There were lots of adults everywhere and occasionally some teenagers, but there weren't many little kids like them. If anything, it was more like babies that mothers carried in a sack on their chests.

Leo was holding Dali's hand tightly, and his other hand was holding Kafi's, who was again holding onto Brandon. They secured each other so they wouldn't get lost in the crowd or someone would try to take them away.

Soon, they found a stand that sold simple candy, so Leo bought something for everyone. Brandon and Kafi refused, albeit weakly, as their family could rarely afford sweets, and eventually, they gave up. Leo didn't care for Shlik, so he had no problem spending on others. Eventually, they stepped aside to enjoy the sweet in peace. Kafi sucked on the candy with her eyes closed as if she were in heaven. Brandon's face bulged as he sucked on a large bonbon, Dali was biting the caramel bear's head off, and Leo pocketed his candy to give to Dali later.

Leo was the only one who immediately noticed the boy approaching them. Leo fixed his red, unblinking eyes on him and took a good look at the boy. He was dressed a little better than Kafi and Brandon; he had brownish mousey hair, blue-grey eyes, his face was adorned with some freckles, and he had teenage pimples growing on his chin.

Leo took one look into the boy's eyes and knew immediately that he didn't like him.

"Well, well, well, what do I see here?" came the skipping voice of the boy, whose voice had mutated heavily.

Leo stood up, and so did Brandon, who quickly spit out the candy and frowned at the boy. "Ludwig, what do you want?" he asked, wiping his mouth.

"What kind of welcome is that? Can't I come say hello to old friends?" Ludwig smiled.

Brandon stood up to cover Kafi, and Leo copied him so both girls were hidden behind them. "We're not friends." Brandon might be older than Ludwig, but even he had to be wary of this little bastard who had the backing of a gang.

"Hah? We're not? Are you sure? Maybe you should reconsider. And anyway, what are you guys standing around for? Move." Louis shoved them.

Crackle Crackle

Leo slowly turned his head and glared at Louis, his fingers curling again, his fingertips uncurling to reveal razor-sharp knuckles. He began to slowly raise his hand, his eyes glowing red. Right now he wanted to stab the boy's head and crack his skull open.

But he paused in time, glancing briefly at Brandon, who had his jaw clenched, not taking his eyes off Ludwig, who was grinning at Dali and especially Kafi. Then he looked around, but no one was paying attention to the group of kids. Leo lowered his hand again, and his fingers became normal.

Dali watched the new boy without interest and continued to nibble on the caramel, but Kafi paled and averted her gaze from Ludwig.

"Hey, Kafi." Ludwig greeted her.

Kafi looked around. "Hi. Brandon, Leo, Dali, let's go back home." She said and stood up quickly.

Ludwig grinned and then looked at Dali and Leo. "Ah, right. New kids. Have you introduced them to the rules yet?"

"That you're a fucking shithead?" Brandon muttered.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing."

"Hump! Fine. So, you know what and how, right rookies?" Ludwig turned to Leo and brought his face close to his. Leo didn't move a muscle and returned the look.

"Money! Give me your money!" The boy snapped angrily.

Kafi looked worriedly at Leo, and Brandon clenched his fists. "Ludwig, that's what their fathers gave them if they lose it right away..." Brandon tried to intervene, though he would have preferred to hit the boy's chin with his fist.

"Hah? Fathers? Hahaha! Their parents are faggots? Poor bastards! Won't they catch it from them?" Ludwig mocked.

Leo frowned, and Dali raised her head as well, not knowing what he was saying but sensing it wasn't a nice word.

"Ludwig!" Brandon growled.

"It's okay." Leo finally spoke and then reached into his pocket to pull out his wallet. Louis didn't even wait for Shlik to pull it out and just snatched it out of his hand. Leo blinked. "No. Give me my wallet back. Just keep the Shlik." He wanted his wallet back. It was a gift from Uncle Marik. After they'd fiddled with his clothes and he'd calmed down, he took the scraps of fabric and made them into some trinkets. Like this wallet.

Louis pulled away and grinned. "Then what am I supposed to carry them in, huh? I'd rather keep it."

Then Dali spoke up. "I don't like him. Let's kill him."

"Huh?"

"What?"

"You brat, what are you talking about? You want me to beat you up?!" Everyone was surprised, except Leo, and Ludwig threatened Dali with his fist. Leo stood up in front of Dali. "She's small. She doesn't understand things." He explained.

"Hmpf! I'll let it go just because you've already paid. But remember, if you don't want anything to happen to you and your daddies, you have to give me money or stuff every month, 'kay?"

He turned and looked at Kafi. "Ciao." He said goodbye and walked away.

They were all silent before he disappeared from their sight, and Brandon sighed, bending down and picking up a spit-out candy from the ground. He grabbed the small bag of water he had at his waist, cleaned it a bit before putting it back in his mouth.

"Little bastard. That's Ludwig, please. A little cockroach trying to act like a big shot."

Kafi looked sadly at Leo. "Sorry. We made you lose money."

Leo and Dali didn't look at them, though, still staring in the direction Ludwig had gone. "It's not your fault," Leo finally said.

***** 

A little later, Leo and Dali returned home and waited for Mr. Hellcage to come back. Leo waited for Mr. Hellcage to finish his regular prayer to their Liege before addressing him.

"Mr. Hellcage."

Hellcage stood from his kneeling position in front of the altar and looked down at the boy. "What's wrong?"

"Is it wrong to kill when you're not in danger?" Leo asked.

Hellcage was silent for a moment before he grabbed the boy by the shoulder and went to sit with him at the table. "It depends. From my perspective, there's nothing wrong with it as long as the death has a purpose."

"Purpose?" Leo was a smart boy, and he was already twelve, or however old he was before he was cursed and turned by the mist.

Hellcage tapped the table thoughtfully with his long fingers. "Purpose implies a higher meaning. I don't think it's a good idea to kill for little things, like someone giving you a nasty look, or taunting you, or just because it feels good. Even our Liege doesn't like that kind of behavior. If you want to kill someone, there must be a reason. Some kill for hunger, some for revenge, some for ritual, some to protect others. There can be many reasons."

Leo thought about it. "Revenge is a purpose too?"

Hellcage nodded resolutely. "Of course."

"And protection too?"

"Of course. But, Leo." Hellcage leaned toward the boy. "If you're going to do this, you need to make sure you do it properly. There can't be any witnesses left in our case. And make sure Marik doesn't find out."

"Yes, Mr. Hellcage."

***** 

The next day, Ludwig met with his gang members in the early evening. He was the youngest of them; there were still a few young adults, but most of the gang members were adults.

"Here's the money, boss," Ludwig said politely while handing over the money to an older man whose face was covered in a beard, and his nose bore the signs of having been broken several times.

"Hm. Pretty good, Ludwig. You got more this time," the man complimented.

"Hehe. Some new family moved in, and they have money, so it's better now." Ludwig was pleased with the praise and stroked the back of his head.

"Good job, keep it up, and the promotion will soon be yours." The boss patted him on the shoulder. "Thanks, boss!" Ludwig smiled and then walked away with a bow. When he straightened up, he stopped smiling, and his evil, calculating eyes looked around at the gang members.

Their gathering wasn't anything big; they were just a small gang, so they met in one backwater, dead-end alley where they always built some fires and dealt with gang business or just hung out, drinking cheap alcohol or getting high on light drugs.

Ludwig was just a kid, so he was relatively clean from these things, but he was slowly starting to use alcohol to appear more mature and match the more senior members. After looking around for a while, Ludwig found the one he wanted. "Baras. Hey, man!" He made his way over to the thin man, who already looked ill at first glance. His skin wasn't the right color, and the spots on his skin indicated that there was something wrong with his organs.

"What's up, kid?" The man growled.

"I think I have another flower to pick." Ludwig smiled.

"Huh? Tell me."

"She's almost thirteen. Pretty, very pretty. She gets prettier every day. Blue hair, pale skin, definitely innocent." Ludwig described.

"And the background?" Baras wondered.

"Not much. Poor parents, no siblings, no important relatives. I thought I would wait a bit longer, but the boss is in a good mood right now, so I want to take advantage of it quickly."

Baras guffawed. "What a little beast you are!"

"Hehe! I learn from the best, don't I?" Ludwig grinned. "I'll give you the address later. But I guess you'd better be careful. There's always a punk hanging around her. Guess you'll have to zap him. Although he doesn't look too bad either."

Baras scratched his arms and nodded. "Guys with a pretty face are selling well these days, too. We'll see."

Ludwig talked with him for a moment longer before saying goodbye. He slowly made his way home, shaking uncomfortably when he was out of sight.

He was getting the creeps from these guys. They were no strangers to anything. Ludwig wasn't really as cruel and mean as he pretended to be, but as an orphan, he must have been tougher than everyone else. It made him sick, but if he wanted to survive he had to adapt.

Ludwig walked forward thoughtfully, looking at the ground. As he passed an alleyway, out of the corner of his eye, he saw two pairs of red eyes staring at him.

"Huh?" Ludwig froze and looked back quickly. He reached into his pocket from which he pulled out a switchblade and took two steps back to peer into the alley. But no one was there.

Ludwig was not immediately reassured and looked around carefully, but saw no movement. After a moment, he turned and went on his way, but he did not let the knife leave his hand.

Ludwig suddenly had the unpleasant feeling that he was being watched, and his knees buckled. He was still a boy after all, immune to cruelty but not to fear. "Hurry home..." He muttered to himself.

Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap

Ludwig heard a sound of rapid movement that reminded him of too many feet moving at once. He quickly looked around and gripped the dagger with both hands in front of his body.

He turned back and stared into the motionless red eyes. "AAAAHH!" He shouted and peed a little in his pants, quickly stepping back and stabbing the knife forward. The knife crashed into his body but bounced harmlessly as it hit a hard obstacle.

"Haa... haaa." Ludwig gasped as his brain began to work.

"No... no... is that a... doll?" He sighed in relief. Papenka may have looked scary, but it was still just a doll swinging harmlessly back and forth on a string.

"Damn. What kind of stupid joke is this!?" Ludwig got angry, mostly because he peed his pants a little as he got scared. He raised his hand and was about to punch the doll, but then he looked up and froze. His raised fist shook strongly, and a wet spot spilled on his pants.

In the air between the houses was a wide-spread creature with many legs to keep it up. A human head with black hair and red eyes looked down coldly and cruelly at Ludwig.

"Fuc..." Ludwig wanted to turn and run, but the tight feeling around his neck stopped him.

The doll's lifeless face was pulled up to Ludwig's cheek. "He he..." It laughed as it clutched his neck in the iron grip of its small hands. He tried to wriggle away, but the doll's hands didn't even flinch under his efforts.

The creature above began to move, began to lower itself down. As it got closer, the face became more and more distinct. Ludwig's eyes opened wide in even greater shock, while tears fell from his eyes as he stared at the face.

"Where's my wallet?" The creature asked.

***** 

Back in the dead-end alley where the gang was loitering, Baras took a big drink from the liquor bottle and then coughed. He noticed someone approaching. He was already intoxicated, so he had to squint, but he soon recognized the small figure of the boy.

"Heehee. Boy, what are you doing back there? You're a little young to be so drunk you don't even make it home anymore!" Baras laughed and staggeringly made his way over to the boy.

In his drunkenness, he hadn't noticed that Ludwig was moving a little mechanically and unnatural. The boy nodded his head up and down that he understood and continued to walk forward with his head bent down as if watching his feet as he walked.

Baras walked up to him and patted him on the shoulder. "Haha! Are you going to sleep here then? Hm? Hey, you know some guys act weird when they get drunk..." He wanted to warn the boy that he'd better not stay here to avoid being bothered by guys, but the boy suddenly raised his hand upwards without looking up. It almost looked like his hand had a will of its own and moved from side to side before Baras had time to react.

His drunken eyes blinked stupidly before widening and spitting out blood. "Blegh!" A stream of warm blood shot from his throat. He quickly grabbed his throat, but quickly lost his strength and fell to his knees.

Ludwig didn't look up to Baras and, his head still bowed, walked around him to the other men. The men didn't notice that anything was wrong until Ludwig approached one couple having fun. "Hm?" The older man turned his head towards him, but at that moment, a dagger went through his eye and into his brain, death came quickly before he could even cry out.

"WHAT?! Hey! Ludwig, you bastard!" His friend jumped up and yelled, immediately pulling out a single cubit long dagger and lunging at the boy.

At that moment, something strange happened. Ludwig's body jerked to the side as if on a string, avoiding the angry thug. "What the fuck?" Thug blinked, wondering for a moment if he was dreaming.

But then he looked back and shouted at the others. "Hey, Ludwig went crazy and killed Mufes!"

"What?" Everyone started to get up, and even the boss stood up; they began to draw their weapons.

Ludwig stood there with his head down, slightly swaying his body back and forth. The boss came closer with a frown. "Ludwig? What the hell is that supposed to mean? What are you doing?"

Ludwig stopped rocking, and his head slowly rose. The gang boss's face paled. "Fuck! He's possessed! Kill him!" He yelled.

Ludwig's face was twisted in a horrible smile, and each of his eyes stared in a different direction. The hand in which he held the knife rose high, and with a strange smile, he was jerked forward as he lunged at the band of thugs.

***** 

Some time later, two children entered the alley. They surveyed the lifeless bodies. Ludwig lay on the ground among them, bearing numerous wounds on his body.

Leo and his sister then walked over to the gang boss, who had a dagger lodged in his throat, staring lifelessly into the sky.

Leo searched him for a while before finding what he wanted. He pulled out a small wallet, which he wiped carefully and examined for a moment to check for any damage. Then he turned and took Dali's hand. "Let's go home."

***** 

When the children left, a tall figure in a top hat stepped out of the shadows, and a cloak twirled around him like a dark shadow. "Hm. So this was your purpose?" Hellcage commented quietly as he surveyed the carnage.

"Marik would have been pleased. I guess," Hellcage rubbed his chin. "It wasn't bad, but they made a bit too much of a mess. Well, they're still kids." He waved a hand, and several dark spots on his body glowed with white teeth, and he sent them to clean up after the kids.

Then he slowly made his rounds while the sounds of munching and crunching echoed through the place. "Hm?"

Hellcage stopped when he noticed movement. "Haaa... what did I tell him about witnesses?" He sighed and bent down to pick up one of the bodies from the ground with one hand.

Ludwig was unconscious and badly injured but still alive. "But maybe I can still use you." With that, he tossed Ludwig into the darkness of his body.