“So what do you think of her story?”

Amethyst colored eyes met emerald ones, a sigh escaping the latter as they turned to look through a one-way window. The pink-haired girl on the other side sat alone at a small table in the room, staring soberly at her hands that rested on the surface.

“Ih was hard tah believe ah firs’ buh-” The emerald eyes relaxed in their gaze, the owner of them holding up a file to their companion. “She doesn’ seem like she’s lyin’. Still, is strange dat dere is no record of her, aye? Nothing whatsoever.”

“Yeah, that is pretty weird,” agreed the amethyst eyes, watching the pinkette. “But from what I’ve asked around and at her workplace, she’s a good kid. No criminal record in Glimmerport, at least.” A pause, the amethyst orbs turning to gaze at the emerald. “Nessa, this wasn’t what you were looking for, was it?”

“Aye… I did hope dis would give me some lead abou’ da other missing person cases, buh ih looks like a disgustin’ murderer is ouh dere, preying on children. And from wha’ I’ve seen of da child’s home, ih makes sense dat she was an easy pick. Dat area is basically near da outskirts - dere aren’ many warden stones tah protect da people who live dere.”

“So that basically means we’ll have to investigate the area near her home and the edge of town, I’m assuming.”

“Yer a smar’ one, Nyx. If da police force here agrees tah it, we’ll see abou’ sending some of our men here tah help in finding da murderer.”

Nessa would turn away and open a door into the small room that held the quiet Amaris, the light of the room revealing a tall woman with dark auburn hair, emerald eyes, and clad in black armor.

“Alrigh’, young one, sorry tah keep ye waiting here so long. Ye understand, aye? Dat we were jus’ making sure ye weren’ a suspect and all. One can never be too sure in dese lands,” Nessa explained, Amaris gazing up at the woman with a little surprise that she was suspicious enough to be a suspect. Well, considering she found the body, she supposed she couldn’t be ruled out entirely as a culprit.

“Yeah, I get it,” the pinkette assured, nodding. “I’m just… I just wish I had gotten there sooner to catch him before he did that to her.”

“We all feel da same way. Now, come. Yer being released from dis cramped up room. Ye can go home now.”

“Thank you.” Getting up from her seat, Amaris stood up as Nessa stepped to the side to allow the girl to walk out, the light in the next room turning on thanks to Nyx. Nyx was a woman as well, shorter than Nessa but a bit taller than Amaris. The woman was clad in black hooded jacket, her face cover pulled down to show some of her facial features, bits of blonde hair poking through the sides. Her pants were dark and form-fitting, combat boots with steel toes going up to just below her knees. Though, it wasn’t really the dark garb that caught Amaris’ attention - it was the nicely tanned skin and Nyx’s gorgeous purple eyes. Something about it was somewhat familiar… Where had she seen those features before?

“You take care now,” Nyx told her, offering a small wave to the girl. Amaris gave a small smile before walking past her, following the hallway to the front door of the police station. It sure had been one big day, and not in the way she expected either. What was meant to be a fun day off in the city ended up as a police investigation of a supposed child murder. As she pushed the front doors open, she was greeted with a sun hanging low in the sky, a small chill in the air from the ocean breeze. All that investigation and talking with witnesses took up almost the whole day. It looked about two hours left of sunlight now, Amaris crossing her arms over her chest to rub at her upper arms.

However, as she started to walk away, her right arm brushed against the underside of her chest, feeling a slight shift of the pronged core in her brassier. She softly sighed and lowered her arms, gazing at the road as she made her way home. How could she tell them the entire truth of what happened to Emilia? There was no way they’d believe some interdimensional monster charmed and kidnapped a child to feast on her energy, right? Even just hearing that in her mind sounded too much like the ramblings of a crazy person. It just wasn’t believable, and she wouldn’t dare to tell this to the young girl’s mother either. It’d end up looking like she was making a joke of the child’s death if she did… She couldn’t do that to a grieving mother.

It almost felt like everything that happened in that strange realm was part of a dream. It was surreal, and it surprised her that she ended up in a place like that to begin with. What even was it, exactly? That dimension and that monster within it? Maybe one day she should look into this at the library or something, it could help with the investigation going on and it could help prove the existence of the creature. The pronged core didn’t seem like enough to prove that it once belonged to a dangerous beast, so there had to be other ways.

Amaris turned a corner and found herself on that familiar dirt road, the one that led to her home. Right now, laying in bed and getting some sleep sounded so pleasant… As for dinner, well, she didn’t feel hungry after all that. Sleep was all she needed. Once she walked onto the patio, she quietly opened the door and stepped inside, greeted to the sight of Mr. Barrett and Kat prepping the table for dinner.

“Amaris! You’re back,” Kat called, waving her hands, with forks and spoons in her little grasp, in the air.

“Just in time for dinner too,” Mr. Barrett chuckled, smiling with plates in hand. His smile wavered and turned to a frown, noticing the quiet and solemn expression on Amaris.

“Did something happen in the city,” he asked with concern, setting the plates down on the table.

“No, but… I’m sorry, I’m just really tired right now,” Amaris replied with a frown, shaking her head. “Other crazy stuff happened while I was out. Is it alright if I tell you tomorrow? I’m not feeling up to it right now.”

“Ah, yes, of course. Whatever it is, you know we’ll be here to listen to you, Amaris. Go on and rest up, I’ll talk to the missus to let her know you’re back. She’s finishing up making dinner.”

“Thanks, I’ll feel better tomorrow.” Amaris smiled weakly at him and Kat before heading upstairs, Kat staring worriedly as she watched the pinkette leave. She glanced at Mr. Barrett step away from the table to head into the kitchen, undoubtedly to tell Mrs. Barrett of what just happened. The young girl quietly set the forks and spoons on the table, in front of all the seats in the proper way her mom showed her how. Looking at Amaris’ empty seat, she hoped the pinkette would come back downstairs to join them for dinner.

And if she didn’t? Kat thought about this carefully, not wanting to be too nosy and ask Amaris what was wrong. No, her parents taught her better than that. Well, in that case, she should make a get-well card then! She was positive that Amaris would cheer up once Kat gives her one! And if Amaris had work tomorrow, then it’d be an even bigger surprise once she got home. Okay, she’ll just have to bide her time and be as sneaky as possible to keep it secret until she can give her the card.

With a little chuckle, Kat rushed into the kitchen to help out some more before settling down for dinner. As for Amaris, she went into her room and shut the door quietly behind her, approaching her bed and dropping onto it with a small thud. Her legs dangled off the side of the bed, the girl lazily using her feet to slide her shoes off before settling onto the bed more. Rolling onto her side, she reached into her shirt and pulled out the pronged core, staring at it a moment between her fingers. Groaning from slight irritation, she moved and reached for her night stand, pulling open the drawer there and dropping the core into it. Shutting it close, she then pulled her blankets over herself and got comfortable, staring at the nightstand. She didn’t have it in her to change into her pajamas, and she wasn’t even sure if she’d be able to sleep despite how much she wanted to. Not when Emilia was on her mind.

Next shipment. She had to unload it as fast as possible! After all, they had to show that Glimmerport was the best when it came to all the port cities, right? “Okay, where’s the next ship at? Is it import or export,” she called to her crew, who happened to be sitting to the side to rest and staring at her with some bewilderment. Charlie, the man who defended and helped her the day the girder fell on her, stood up and approached her with an unopened water bottle in hand.

“Easy, Amaris, that last ship was it for the time being. And you unloaded and loaded it almost all by yourself,” he said to her, amazement in his voice. “It’s like you’re firing on all cylinders today!”

“I can’t help it! I was gone for a day, I have to make up for that time I was out,” the pinkette protested, bouncing on her feet as if she was about to take off at any second.

“Yes, to recover from a day when you could have died,” he pointed out, Amaris stopping her bouncing. Her expression was uneasy as she crossed one arm over her chest as she lowered her gaze to the ground. “And we did hear about the officers coming by yesterday to ask about you regarding a child murder. We know you had nothing to do with that but-” Charlie quietly sighed and then offered the water bottle to her. “Take it easy, kid. A lot’s happened to you in just two days. I’m pretty sure that even if you were taking a slower pace, the boss would understand after all that.”

Amaris’ eyes were on the bottle when he held it out to her, hearing his words and then reaching out to accept the bottle. “Yeah… I guess you’re right, Charlie.”

“I know I’m right, kid. Now go take a break, you’ve done more than enough already. You gotta leave something for us to do, too, you know.” His boisterous laugh made Amaris chuckle, nodding in agreement with him.

“Okay, I’ll sit out a bit. I’ll leave the rest to you,” she said back, stepping around him to walk toward the closest dock. Reaching the end of it, she sat down and let her legs dangle over the edge, looking out to sea.

I guess I really was working too hard. But if I don’t, I’m just going to end up thinking about what happened to Emilia.

She opened up the water and drank, sighing in relief as her hair swayed with the breeze. Hearing approaching footsteps, she turned her head to look over her shoulder at a man walking toward her, the very same one she saved two days ago. He was wearing a white tank top shirt, soaked from sweat, his expression hard yet not as intense as it had been the last time she saw him.

“Oh. It’s you,” Amaris said with some surprise, not expecting for him to willingly accompany her after it seemed like he didn’t like her.

“Just call me Sterling,” he muttered, sitting down beside her with a respectable distance between them. “Anyway, something’s gotten to you, hasn’t there? You’re not spacing out randomly or being annoying as usual.”

Aw, jeez, even he picked up on that?

“I guess you didn’t hear about it then, huh? About.. The kid that was murdered,” she replied back in a low voice, earning a curious gaze from him. “I found her… Her body yesterday. I was helping her mother look for her and…” She trailed off, moving back a little to bring her legs up and hug them close to her chest as she stared at the horizon. “I didn’t make it in time.”

“How is that your fault, though? Even if you had been there, what makes you think-”

“I could have stopped him!” The sudden outburst actually made Sterling visibly jump out of surprise, staring wide-eyed at her. Though, what was equally surprising was that look of anger on her face, those blue eyes feeling like they were piercing into him. “You don’t get it! She was still warm in my arms when I found her! If I had just been a bit faster, I could have done something to stop him! A kid.. A kid doesn’t deserve to die like that in the hands of some monster!” Her hands gripped the fabric of her pants as she averted her gaze, focusing on her knees.

“Every time it gets too quiet around me or I stay still for too long, the image of her face pops up into my mind,” she continued, voice shaky. “I barely got any sleep last night. I kept thinking about her, thinking about what I could have done differently to save her.” Pressing her face against her knees, she shut her eyes tightly, body shaking some from her breaths as she held back her tears. The silence between her and Sterling, save for seagulls in the air and the waves below them, was too unnerving for her. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to just say all of that to him. They weren’t even friends to begin with.

“I think I might have a way to help you,” he finally said, Amaris quickly lifting her head to look at him with wide eyes. “I got my job here thanks to a bartender in the city, in Shimmercrest, who happened to overhear some people talking about looking for more help at the port. She might be able to help you track down who the culprit is since she overhears a lot of talk in that tavern. It’s called the Awful Battleaxe, and her name is Mei Saito. You can’t miss her - she has fox ears and tails.”

“Fox ears and tails?” Amaris had seen the occasional wolf and cat person, who pretty much looked human save for having those little traits of their respective animal. But she had yet to see a fox one. It soon dawned on her that Sterling went out of his way to offer some help, Amaris quickly wiping her watery eyes with her hand. “Th-thanks, I’ll keep that in mind if I go to the city.”

“Don’t misunderstand - I’m only doing this to pay you back for saving my life. I know it doesn’t compare, but it’s the least I can do for now,” he said off-handedly, drinking some of his water.

“Right… Thanks anyway.” She gave a small smile and lowered one leg over the ledge, focusing back on the horizon. There was some hope after all - she might be able to find out what that monster really was.

It was a little past midday when Amaris was released from her day shift, the pinkette rolling her shoulders to ease her sore muscles. She really pushed herself a bit too far during most of her shift, at least until Charlie and Sterling spoke with her about her change in attitude. In all honesty, Sterling was the last person she expected to have vented and explained the situation to first. She intended to save that for her family, like she had told them last night. Well, emotions couldn’t always wait, could they?

Turning a corner to walk onto that familiar road, she smiled as she looked up and spotted the house. The truck was parked out front - did Mr. Barrett return home early from selling at the harbor marketplace? Or maybe he was using today to tend to the farm so he could sell tomorrow? Well, she should pick up her place and go help out! Amaris broke out into a jog to get home faster, only slowing down once she was close to the patio. Once he reached the front door, she opened it up and stepped inside, wiping her boots on the doormat.

“Hi, I’m home!”

No answer.

Amaris raised a brow as she realized just how quiet it was in the house, stepping away from the door and heading for the kitchen. She was greeted to the sight of sandwiches only half prepped on the counter, three in total. A jar of mayonnaise was near them, a butter knife inside of it. Seemed like whoever was making the sandwiches had only gone as far as to spread the mayonnaise onto the bread, a thin slice of ham on them at most. Yet, a block of yellow cheese, leaves of lettuce, and a jar of pickles were also left out.

The pinkette stepped closer, her eyes noting the heavy condensation on the outside of the pickle jar, the counter wet under and around it. She reached for the jar of mayonnaise, feeling that it was warm.

It’s only half full too. It’d have to be in the fridge to keep it fresh.

Furrowing her brow, she set it down back on the counter, finding this odd that the sandwiches were left out for so long. None of the three in the family would waste food like this.

“Hello? Anyone home?” She still expected an answer, hoping to hear any one of their voices. Walking through the kitchen, she approached the back door and opened it, only stepping out and standing beside the doorway as she gazed at the rest of the farm. There was no one around, but they could be tending to the crops or the barn, right? Urgency creeped into her, urging her to run to find someone.

“Kat! Mm.. Mom! Dad! Where are you,” she called out as she ran, heading for the fields first. Most of the crops weren’t exactly tall, the only one to worry about were the corn stalks. But even that wasn’t a giant field of them, even if they did take up most of the back of the farmland. She’d have to run through them to make sure they weren’t in there and simply couldn’t hear her. Every part of her hoped they were in there, that she’d gaze down a row of corn stalks and see the three of them, inspecting the crops to ensure they were healthy. Yet, as she ran down the lanes between the corn and called out to them, it slowly became apparent they weren’t out here.

She had to stop and catch her breath, sweat beginning to form at the sides of her face, near her hair. Resting her hands on her knees as she panted, she gazed up and looked around some more from where she stood, eyes settling on the barn. They could be in there, the cows and horses making it hard to hear, right? She pushed herself to run for the barn next, panting as she approached the large door. However, it only took one look at the door to realize that the door bar was still in place, locking the barn. They couldn’t be inside if that was still there, her hands starting to tremble.

Holding her hands together to calm herself, her breathing loud in her ears, she almost missed the sounds of the cows and horses inside. They sounded like they were distressed, Amaris grabbing the bar and lifting it off, pushing open the door and peering inside. The horses and cows really were restless, pacing around and skittish. What was setting them off like that? Whatever it was, it couldn’t be good, and she knew she had to find her family soon. Locking up the barn again, her eyes settled back on the house, specifically onto the window on the second floor. Her bedroom window. She hadn’t looked up upstairs but.. It was still strange no one answered her when she was inside.

Taking a breath, she did a short jog to the back door of the house, opening and running in as the door slammed shut behind her. Rushing through the house, she stopped when she reached the bottom of the stairs, breathing heavily as she gazed up at the top. “Mom! Dad! Kat! Are any of you up there!?” Her ears strained to hear any noise from above. There was nothing… Until she heard a crunching sound. Eyes widening, she swallowed and reached for the railing by the stairs. Part of her hesitated, perhaps afraid of what she might find up there. Yet another part urged her forward, drawing her in. Wait, this feeling… It’s the same as when she was in that monster’s dimension.

Her legs moved on their own, taking her body up the stairs until she reached the top. The crunching was louder now… And coming from her room, the door wide open. As quietly as she could, she stepped through the hallway until she stood in front of the doorway. The sight inside was something that will forever be burned into her memory. Blood was all over the floor, her bed stained with it as well, some handprints could vaguely be seen among it. The walls had large holes in them, a shotgun on the floor with blood around the handle and grip, a torn apart apron stained crimson from the pool of blood it laid in, a boot with a bone snapped and poking out from it and…

A butterfly-shaped beast standing beside her bed, a small hand sticking out of its maw of sharp teeth. The crunching echoed through the room as it chewed on the bone, the creature turning slightly to see Amaris. Its body was grayish-purple, head elongated with tendril-like horns, more yellow tendrils emerging from its back, and its wings looking tattered. Unlike before when she met the creature before, it had pointed legs now along with that new mouth full of sharp teeth, Amaris’ eyes on that small hand. Until the creature swallowed it whole, glowing yellow eyes on her.

I must thank you.. For providing me with fresh bodies to regain my strength from. They were just filled to the brim with joy.