Julia found herself in an old stone building. The walls were covered in colorful mosaics, and judging from the art, it seemed to be a temple. A heavy layer of dust covered everything. That was just what the afterlife was like, though. Dust and ash. For as far as the eye can see.

She let out a sigh as Trill appeared next to her. “How am I supposed to find Mackenzie in this mess?”

“Through shared pain,” he replied. He held out his hand, and she took it. Now that she was dead, his skin didn’t feel as leathery as it had before. “It is still possible to find her within this chaos.”

He led her through the building and to the outside. What greeted them was a city of stone buildings, each seeming as old as the temple she had been in. Unlike the temple, there was no color here. Everything was tones of gray, except for the sky, which was a pitch black. It made Julia wonder how anyone saw anything down here.

What surprised her was how crowded it was. The city was populated with nude individuals, who were wandering around pretending to have a daily routine. Everything about them, to the way they moved, to their expressions, was listless. Occasionally, one would stoop down and scoop dust into their mouths, but that was as exciting as it got.

“How long before I become like them?” Julia felt tense, wondering if it were better to transform quickly rather than slowly. None of these people cared at all that they had gone full zombie, and that seemed to be working for them.

“You will stay by my side as my traveling companion,” replied Trill. He put his hand over her heart. “In here beats our heart. I will not let it die.”

“That seems like you’re just fighting off the inevitable,” she replied.

“We exist,” he said with a hiss. “As long as I do the ritual, as long as those who have been paid spread the ritual, we will continue to exist.”

She looked up at him and gave him a nod. “A full year before Mackenzie begins to fade?”

“To the point where she is unrepairable, yes.”

“Then what can I do?” She stepped in front of him as he attempted to carry on. “Tell me what it is that I can do.”

He raised his snout slightly in the air and gave off an aura of superiority. “This is a city of billions. If you somehow know of a way to filter through it within a few months, I will gladly hear your idea.”

She didn’t. “And your sure that Kara is going to be okay?”

“No, she is in horrific danger. Her opponent is clever, and will no doubt decipher what has happened.” He patted her head as her face became streaked with panic. “It will work itself out.”

“You say that, but that normally means that people end up dead!”

“Whether they live or die matters not to me. Not as long as you and I exist,” he replied flatly.

Julia’s hands formed into fists. “Then I’m going back there and I’m going to find a way to help her.”

“Your true desire is to be with your love again, thus I cannot help you in that endeavor.”

“Which is what you have said countless times, yet you were more than willing to help me when…” When he was able to drink her blood, which was a resource that she was lacking in at the moment.

A faint hint of a smile spread on his lips. He put a hand on her shoulder, and they were whisked away to the world of the living. There were three teenagers in a backyard, and they were setting up the ritual.

“Not now…” Julia shook her head. They had to be around the same age as her. “They’re to young, aren’t they?”

Trill began to circle around them. “Though I do not work with children, that does not mean that I do not value potential.” He gestured to the only boy of the group. “What is his desire?”

More training… Whatever. It kept Julia’s mind off of the bleakness of the underworld. “He wants to cure his mother of cancer.”

“Those are his surface thoughts. Dig deeper.”

Julia tilted her head slightly. “He… His mother was abusive to him and his sister when they were younger. His sister… She ended up in a bad accident due to their mother’s negligence, but she was never blamed for it. He wants her to die because he believes that’s what she deserves for ruining his sister’s life.”

“And this one?” He gestured to the taller of the two girls.

“She doesn’t get as much time to practice the cello as she wants to but wants to be skilled enough to make a career out of it. What she needs is the talent to make it into a musical program.” Julia then looked to the last girl. “And she wants to not be allergic to dogs so that he dad can get a therapy dog for his PTSD.”

Trill nodded. “Not all desires end with the ritual participants dying,” he muttered. “For the boy, we do what we can to repair his sister while allowing his mother to die of her illness. We rid this girl of her allergies, and bless the other with the gift of being a savant.”

Julia agreed and hid in the shadows while he performed his work. He then took her to a hotel room. This one was less extravagant than the one they had stayed in before. “We’re not going back down there?”

“No.” He brushed aside the curtain and looked down at the busy New York street below. They appeared to be near Times Square. “I only return there when it is necessary.”

“I don’t blame you,” whispered Julia.

“There was a time where she and I had a temple of our own,” Trill spoke in a distant tone as he continued to stare down at the street. “I would travel the deserts in search of those seeking to cure their desires, and my days were spent hidden away with her.”

Julia went to stand next to him. She immediately became fascinated by the scene below. “I’m sorry. I know you miss her.”

“She gave me her heart,” Trill whispered. “I felt it heavy and still within my chest, and knew I had awakened in a world where she was no more.” He glanced at her before looking back at the street. “But you gave life to that heart again. She beats within you, and I will continue to fulfill my duties in order to make certain that it will not stop.”

“... What.”

He turned to her and lifted her chin slightly. “You are my god now, Julia. My loyalty is yours and yours alone until the day comes where I am no more.”

Julia slapped his hand away. “Are you crazy?!” She said to the literal demon. “I can’t be your god! This was… I only offered you some blood! You weren’t supposed to do anything other than drink it! I never agreed to this!” He stared at her as though he didn’t understand. “Why would you do this?!”

“Because I had the opportunity to,” he replied.

“That didn’t give you the right!”

“Your sister died without her desire being fulfilled,” replied Trill, “and you, Julia, would have died shortly after, regardless of if you had summoned me or not. I knew this from the moment I had been summoned by your sister’s group.

Rather than let your sister remain unfulfilled, I opted to plan something advantageous for myself.” Trill walked over to the large mirror in the room and placed his hand upon it. The image rippled and shifted to Britney, Eli, and Kara at their summoning ritual. It was focused on Britney. “I started by lying to this one about how her powers work.

No matter what I said, she would become paranoid and murder your sister in order to steal her status. I told her that her power is based on trust. Rather, it works based on how likely it is for those who are more likely to follow the latest trends. She would be most popular among those her own age, but outcasts and older individuals would be unaffected.

This began to breed a paranoia in her as she mistakenly believed that those around her, such as her mother, did not trust her completely. Once your sister was dead, the male of their group lessened her influence in the world out of fear of retribution, and the popular one had forgotten she had done the ritual in the first place or the fact that she had killed your sister.

From there, I needed to place the ritual someplace she would see it. She, who had lost her best friend, would realize that her sister would be desperate enough to try it, and she had someone to boss around who wouldn’t use the ritual against her. This provided another problem.

You were always destined to perform the ritual, and it would result in your death. Either I allow the boy with lost memories induct you, where he would quickly realize his mistake and murder you, or I allow the popular one. Either, you had forgotten about your desire, but your soul still hungered for the touch of your lost love.

Because of that, you needed to kill that boy of lost memories in order to regain focus on your desire. I would switch you and your sister, enabling you to join your love in death. That was the plan. I would then be able to grant your sister’s desire and be done with my work.”

Julia continued to backstep away from him until her back was against the wall. “You were going to leave me dead?”

“I had originally planned to do so.” Trill’s hand moved slightly on the mirror, and it showed the two of them sharing a kiss. Actually, it was when he forced himself on her, and there was blood dripping down from his mouth and chin as he did it. The sight made Julia’s stomach churn. “I became attached.”

“... Why?” He dealt with so many of those who were willing to use him for his services. What made her any different than them?

“I am not certain.” He removed his hand from the mirror, leaving it to return to its silvery state. Step by step, he crossed the room until he was where she was braced against the wall. His hand went on her shoulder, pinning her in place as he examined her closely.

Julia gulped. “What are you doing?”

The bunny-like ears of his mask turned downward as he became troubled. “Julia.” He tilted his head and began to sniff at her neck. “Julia… Julia…”

She ducked down and went around him. “I’m not… I’m not comfortable with this. Please stop.”

Trill’s ears continued to remain down. He glanced at her over his shoulder as she moved to increase the same between them. His tail was limp behind him. It was like all joy and motivation evaporated for him at that moment.

“How do I make sure my sister stays safe?” Julia settled on keeping a table between them as they spoke. If he tried to approach her again, she could easily circle about it in order to keep him on the other side.

“You don’t. You are dead.” He slowly turned around and leaned against the wall.

“That isn’t good enough for me. I had the ability to stop Britney before, but Kara is defenseless.” Julia clutched her arms about herself. “There has to be something that can be done.”

“There was, but those fools rushed and demanded the two of you be switched sooner rather than later.” He grinned in a wild manner. “And they will pay for their impatience through their suffering.”

“That isn’t good enough for me,” she replied.

“You do not understand.” Trill vanished in ash and reappeared next to her. As she moved to step away, he grasped her painfully by putting one hand behind her head and the other on her waist. “You are in my realm, Julia. I am the reason you are able to exist. You will become my god, I will serve you, and you will reward me by granting me what I desire.

You have no right to refuse me.” His smile grew all the more crazed and wilder. “Not after everything I have willingly given you. You and I will continue on till the end of mankind. Do not trouble yourself with those who have burdened you in life.”

“I’m not going to do any of that.” She attempted to push him away, but he was overpowering her.

“You will come around in time, Julia. Deny it as much as you want, but you belong to me. Now and forever.”