The police station bustled with activity. Everyone found something to keep them busy, keeping an eye out for anything out of the ordinary. It looked like every other night at first, until around 1 am when they had a brief radio call from one of the officers before they lost contact. Police were sent to the scene, and something was brought back with them, something that raised questions about the severity of what plagued the town.

Herb walked down the station to the infirmary where two officers, Graham and Lars greeted him, holding their heads low and faces filled with sorrow. "Well?"

"Brookend and Teach are dead," Graham said.

Herb took in a deep breath. "Do we have their bodies?"

Lars shook his head. "Not sure what happened, but there was nothing left of them. In fact, we only identified them with their badges."

"There was also a huge mess there." Graham butted in. "I guess it was another victim. It's impossible to identify them."

"Another attack, with two dead officers to boot." Herb let out a sigh. "And as usual, we've got nothing to show for it."

The two then looked at each other. "Actually," They began but were interrupted.

"Chief!" A woman then came up to him. "You'll want to see this." She pointed at a bed, covered up by a blanket. As Herb went up to it, the two men remained where they were, trying not to look. "It was recovered at the crime scene." She put a hand over the blanket. "Brace yourself." She then took the blanket off quickly. Herb jumped back in shock at the twisted creature before him.

"The Hell..." He then slowly approached it. "What is it?"

"Well, I can't really call it human, but it is dead." The woman went in closer. "Seems someone..." she gulped involuntarily, "stitched this thing together by the looks of it."

"Stitched! What the hell does that mean?"

"There were four other's," Graham said. "Just... thinking about them makes me sick."

"Some of them even had weapons that were surgically attached to them, from sharp blades to a pair of scissors." The woman continued. "This one," she took something nearby and used it to pull back its lips, revealing shark-like teeth. "these teeth are metal, and the jawline was widened, as though someone designed it to bite its prey to death."

"Whoa whoa," Lars said. "Who in their right mind would do something like this?"

"Chief," The woman addressed Herb. "All the victims have had organs or body parts missing. Also, given how mutilated the bodies were... with stuff like this,"

"What are you saying?" Herb said, feeling a chill going down his spine.

"It's just a theory but...." She pointed at the creature. "This thing was put together by someone, using body parts that were stolen from all the victims so far. I think the serial killer is harvesting parts to make these... things."

"T-that's impossible!" One of the men blurted out. "You're seriously saying that this killer is making these Frankenstein monsters out of its victims?"

"I know how it sounds!" The woman retorted. "But this is the biggest clue we have, and as much as I don't want to believe it myself but all that's all I can think of!"

Herb looked at the creature once again. "I want a full analysis of these things." He said to the woman. "Get my anything you can that could help us track this psycho and quickly."

"Sir!"

"Hair, fingerprints, a label, even a receipt or make of the things attached, I don't care, just get me something!" Herb then left the infirmary, followed by Graham and Lars.

"Y-You don't honestly believe this do you?" Graham said. "This is something out of a horror movie. It's just not possible."

"At this point, I'm ready to believe anything."

New trouble

Allisa awoke to the sound of her alarm buzzing in her ear. Letting out a loud groan she slammed her hand on the clock as she slowly opened her eyes.

"Morning." Nel was by the window opening it. She then walked up to the sleeping Max, picked him up and walked him to the window.

"M-Morning..." Allisa said as she got up. She had forgotten her Avalon friends had just spent the night in her room. "What are you doing?"

"Waking him up." Nel then shoved Max out of the window. She then picked up Melvin, hung him out of the window, and dropped him on Max.

"Ow!" Melvin squalled as he hit Max. "What the?" he then looked around him.

"What's going on?" Max whined as reluctantly woke up. "How'd I get out here?" Yuki then landed on him.

"What the?!" Melvin jumped back, seeing Yuki lying on top of Max.

"Huh?" He groaned as he looked around.

"Get off!" Max then shoved Yuki off him. "Are we outside?"

".... What time is it?" Yuki yawned as he got off the ground.

"...... How'd we get out here?" Max asked, still half asleep.

"I know." Melvin looked up at Allisa's window, where the girls were looking down on them.

"Was that necessary?" Allisa asked Nel, leaning back in her room.

Nel ignored Allisa and got on the window. Allisa noticed that she had a serious look on her face.

"Something wrong?"

"Meet us at the pond at lunch." She said.

"What?"

"I'll explain there." Nel then exited Allisa's room, shut the window behind her, and leaped down.

"And there she goes." Allisa yawned as she picked up her clothes, laid them on the bed, and started to change. That look Nel had looked pretty serious. Did something happen to her last night?

"Allisa! Breakfast!" Alicia called back.

"Be there soon mom!" she called back. Why am I getting a bad feeling about this?

****

At lunch, Allisa made her way to the pond in the woods. Max, Melvin and Yuki were already there. "Nel's not here?" She asked.

"No," Melvin said. "She should be here soon though?"

Allisa took a seat on a long, taking out a chocolate bar from her bag. "Has Nel said what this was about?" She asked.

"Nope. We asked, but she said to wait until we're all together." Max said, sitting cross-legged on the grass.

"Must be something though. She had quite a serious look about her." Melvin said standing next to Max, keeping his eyes to the floor as he became lost in thought.

At that moment, Nel then arrived. As before, she had the same serious expression she wore that morning. Given how well Allisa knew Nel, she could predict something serious had indeed happened.

"So, mind telling us what this meeting's about?" Yuki demanded, leaning against a nearby tree.

Nel crossed her arms before speaking. "I'll cut to the case. Last night I ran into the serial killer." She announced grimly.

"What!" Everyone jumped with surprise.

"Hold on, last night!" Allisa interrupted. "Was my house attacked?"

"No. I sensed an unusual mana source nearby and went to investigate." Nel continued.

"Wait! Didn't you say that we shouldn't get involved?" Max interrupted.

Nel ignored Max and continued her explanation. "When I got the, I saw two girls being attacked by...by...." Nel thought of how to explain the creatures she encountered. ".... I'm not actually sure what they were," she scratched her head as she thought of the best way to describe her encounter. "They, they weren't human, or at least, not anymore."

"Not human?" Allisa said feeling a chill run down her spine.

"They had weapons attached to their bodies, and they were covered in stitchings. The best way I can describe them is an animated corpse."

"What? Animated corpse?" Melvin exclaimed shocked.

"Were they tough?" Max asked.

"No, they were slow and easy to dispatch," Nel replied, her expression looking grin. "But then I encountered something else."

"Something else?" Melvin repeated.

"A man, skinny and wearing a gas mask. But most importantly he could use mana. A wire ability to be exact." Silence fell over the group as they took in what Nel had told them.

"Y-You mean, he's from Avalon," Allisa muttered through her shock.

Nel was hesitant to reply. "He claimed he wasn't. But, he referred to someone called 'mother.'"

"Mother? Like his mom?" Max said.

"I'm not sure. But he kept referring to this mother over and over again. Almost like a child."

"Did you beat the guy?" Melvin asked.

"No. Unfortunately, he got away." Nel sighed. "What's more, he disappeared without a trace. In fact, I couldn't even sense his presence until he attacked. I'm not sure if he's suppressing his mana or something else's. Either way, his skills weren't normal for this world, that much is certain."

"So what you're basically saying is this serial killer is actually from Avalon." Yuki summarised.

"Most likely."

"S-Seriously," Allisa's head spun from the news.

"So that means," Max slammed his fist into his palm. "Since it's from Avalon, we can go after these guys, Right?" he said grinning.

"Don't look so happy," Melvin commented.

"Given what I encountered, it's probably a good idea if we dealt with this ourselves before there are other casualties. If there are others like that one it's likely we're the only ones in town who have a chance of stopping them."

"Whoa, hold on!" Allisa jumped up. "I can't go looking for a serial killer! I have school, a normal life! I can't just go out looking for this.... whatever you say it is."

"I'm not asking you to do anything yet," Nel replied. "For the time being I'll do some investigating while you guys sit tight." She then fixed Allisa with a serious look. "I understand how you feel, but this isn't something you can simply ignore. You said your father was part of the law enforcement. If he encounters those creatures I can almost guarantee he'll be killed."

Allisa fell silent. She wanted to argue otherwise, but seeing how serious Nel was, Allisa knew she had a point. In the end, she sighed in defeat. "I'm not doing anything until you find something." She said to Nel.

"I'll let you know as soon as I do," Nel said.

"Ok." Yuki then got up. "If this meeting's over I'm heading back." He announced as he walked off.

"I'll be off too," Melvin said as he followed Yuki with Max in toe.

Nel was about to leave when she stopped. "Allisa," She turned her head to Allisa. "Did your father make it back last night?"

"Yeah, Why?" She replied.

"Just wondering." Nel then departed. She decided to leave out the fact that two officers were cut down right in front of her.

Allisa remained behind, taking a lookout on the pond. She then walked over to the rock where she found Excalibur. The rock still had the crack where the sword had been implanted. She just thought that it was because she freed the sword that all this was happening to her.

Is this really my life now?

"Hey." Max came up behind her.

"Oh, hey. Thought you'd gone back." Allisa said to him.

"You seemed a bit down so I came to check on you. Is something wrong?" He asked.

"I'm.... not sure." Allisa looked back to the crack in the rock.

"Look, if you're not up for this then you don't have to-"

"It's not that." Allisa interrupted, leaning against the rock.

"...So, what's wrong?"

Allisa looked down with a weary smile. "I thought, I could just brush all this Avalon stuff off and get back to my life. But now," she sighed, "now I'm not so sure."

"...Sorry." Max bowed his head.

"Don't apologize, It's not your fault." Allisa rubbed the crack in the rock. "I know I haven't really acted like it, but I'm happy to see you guys again."

"Really?" Max raised his head again. "First thing you said was what we're doing here."

"Yeah, Sorry," Allisa giggled. "It was a shock to see you guys in my world and my home. But after that, I'm actually really happy to see you all again." Allisa smiled to herself. "I mean, besides Lucy, you guys are the only real friends I have."

"Lucy?"

"The girl who sits next to me in class." Allisa pointed to her eyes. "The girl with the glasses."

"Oh, right." Max scratched his head as he tried to remember who she was talking about.

"It's just," Allisa looked out to the pond. "It's not that I don't regret what's happened to me. It's just... something I need to get used to I guess."

".... I get how you feel."

Allisa looked back at Max, who put his hand over his scar.

"I know what I went through is different compared to what you're going through, but I know how hard it is to accept something like that." He clenched his hand tight. "That's why I'm gonna stay with you. No matter what, I'll always be on your side." He then punched his fist in his palm. "This serial killer or anyone comes after you, I'll be right there fighting alongside you."

"Max," Allisa giggled again. "Man, that was corny."

"W-Well, Speeches aren't really my thing," Max said blushing.

"I can tell. But, thanks. I feel better." Allisa smiled at him.

"Oh, no problem. But, I didn't really do anything." Max said, scratching his head.

"Haha.... You really are an idiot." Allisa giggled as she sat down.

"W-well I'm going back now," Max announced, quickly turning. "You coming?"

"I'm gonna stay here a bit longer. Go without me."

"Ok. See ya." Max then departed, leaving Allisa alone again.

She looked back over the pond lost In deep thought. She'd always had been a little against this. But since her awakening, most of that doubt that had plagued her had gone. If the serial killer really was from Avalon, then it was up to her and her friends to stop them. Although she wouldn't admit it herself, she was slightly glad, glad that her adventure wasn't over yet, and at the same time, this worried her. Time flew by as she delved into though.

So what's gonna happen to me?

Detention

"Oh crap oh crap oh crap!" the bell rang as Allisa burst through the door to the school. She lost track of time at her spot and was now late for study period. So, she raced down the corridors as fast as she could.

"Reed!!"

Allisa stopped dead in her tracks in response to the loud voice behind her. "Uh oh." She turned her head to see Mr. Stevens walking towards her.

"The bell has rung and you're running in the hall." He said as he stomped over to her, pulling out a notepad. "I guess detention wouldn't be the same if you weren't there, wouldn't you say?" he then tore off a piece of paper and gave it to Allisa.

"Yes sir." Allisa groaned as she took the paper.

"Now get to class!"

"Yes sir." Allisa then ran back down the hall.

"And no running!!"

****

"Great. First week of school and I get detention on the third day." Allisa said to herself as she walked down the corridors. "Not that that's anything new."

It was after school and most people had gone home, including Lucy. Allisa had to stay behind for detention, not that this was anything new to her. She turned around a corner and found Max, Melvin and Yuki in front of her.

"Oh, Allisa," Max said.

Allisa looked down and saw that each of them had a detention slip. "Can't say this surprises me," Allisa said. "So why are you here?"

"Apparently we were supposed to do those sheets last night," Yuki said.

"Yeah, badly yelled at us for not doing them," Max said.

"You don't say," Allisa said sarcastically.

"I accidentally walked into the girl's bathroom," Melvin said, immediately receiving hostile glares from his friends. "It's not what you think! This time it really was an accident!"

"This time?" Allisa said, glaring at him.

"Oh, you're all here." Nel then came up behind them.

"Nel, You too?" Allisa said.

"Looks like it." She replied.

"So what did you do?" Melvin asked.

"Well,"

Nel told them that she encountered the girl Cindy from the gym the other day with two other girls. After making not too friendly comments to Nel, about her performance at gym and about her scarlet hair, one of them took out a pair of scissors and tried to give Nel a haircut. On reflex, Nel tackled the girl to the ground, disarmed her before almost stabbing the girl in the throat before stopping herself.

"So, someone came up to you with a pair of scissors and you nearly killed her?" Allisa summarized grimly.

"It's how I always react when someone comes at me with a blade," Nel replied. "Lucky I held back. If not, I could have killed her." Everyone took a step back from Nel.

"Remind me never to come near her with a butter knife," Melvin said.

"I'm guessing a teacher saw you," Allisa said.

"Yes, and I was given this slip of paper." Nel held up the same piece of paper.

"You're lucky that's all you got!" Allisa pushed past the guys and continued to walk down the corridor. "Let's just go." She said exhaustedly.

"What's detention anyway?" Max asked.

"A punishment. We just sit around after school doing repetitive stuff." She explained.

"Punishment? What for?"

"Anything up to attempted murder apparently," Allisa replied looking back to Nel.

"It was self-defense." Nel corrected.

"You'll find out soon," Allisa said as they reached the classroom where detention was held.

When they entered the classroom, there were two other boys with them, both the same age as Allisa.

"All right! Take your seats!" Mr. Stevens boomed as he entered. "Do any of you know why you're here and not at your homes?" he asked.

"Cause I didn't do that scrap of paper," Max responded.

"No talking!" Mr. Stevens snapped back.

"But you asked," Max responded back.

Allisa, Melvin and Yuki slumped in their seats.

"You are here because you have no respect for the rules!" Mr. Stevens continued. "Rules are the foundation of society. With no rules, there is no society. With no rules, there is no future. The rules exist for your benefit. But they also act as restrictions for the good of society. For example,"

He then looked at Max. "I would love to pick you up, Mr. Colt, and throw you out that window. But I can't, because of the rules." Allisa had heard Mr. Stevens rule speech so many times she could recite it from memory. Sometimes she thought he took detention simply to give out that same speech. "Now!" Mr. Stevens slammed a stack of paper on his desk.

"To punish you for breaking these rules, each of you will write on these papers your crime, 100 times."

Nel then raised her hand. "Sir. I fail to see the point in this." Everyone turned to face Nel. "You're asking to write on a piece of paper our crime. I fail to see how that will improve our appreciation of the rules though writing pointless words on a piece of paper."

Why are you questioning our punishment? Allisa screamed in her head.

Mr. Stevens glared at her. "Miss Zepher had a point. You will write it 1000 times." everyone moaned.

****

On the roof of the building, a boy dressed in black walked across. He had black hair and wore a black cap. He carried a wicker basket alongside him.

"This should do."

The boy crouched, putting the basket on the ground, and reached into it. He then pulled out something and placed it on the ground, and watched as to then suddenly grew into a monitor. He then reached back in and pulled out another object and placed alongside the monitor, this time growing into a black box. He then pulled out a wire and plugged the black box into the monitor. He then sat up and looked towards the woods. Out of the cracks in the trees, the monstrous creatures started to converge on the school.

"Shows about to start. Still, think they picked the wrong guy for this one." The boy then took out a remote controller and sat down. "Oh well. Let the fun begin."

****

Can't believe I have to do this 1000 times. Allisa said in her head while she wrote pointless sentences. Thanks a lot, Nel.

She took a look at Nel who was next to her. She saw that Nel had stopped writing, and had a very startled look.

"Nel?" She said quietly.

Nel then stood up suddenly.

"Hey!" Mr. Stevens shot up from his desk. "Why are you standing up?" Nel then used quickstep to disappear. "Wha-"

Before Mr. Stevens could react, Nel appeared behind him and struck him in the back of the neck, causing him to collapse onto his desk unconscious. The two other boys shot up in surprise. Before they could say something Nel used quickstep again to get behind them and knock them unconscious in the same way. The others then shot up and faced Nel.

"We've got trouble." Nel took out her garment crystal, her clothes changing into garments Allisa very used to by now.

"What's going on?" Allisa asked.

"You better change." She replied taking out her dagger. Max and Melvin used their guise crystals while Yuki gripped his sword.

"Seriously, what's going on?" Allisa asked again.

"Yeah, what's this about?" Melvin asked, getting out his wand.

"That mana," Nel said quietly to herself as she slid the door open.

"Mana?" Yuki said, confused.

"Just follow me." Nel then slipped through the door.

"Might as well." Yuki then followed. Melvin then followed behind him. Allisa sighed then used her garment crystal. It felt strange to wear her Avalon clothes again, realizing how different they felt compared to her ordinary clothes. She and Max walked out into the empty corridor to join Yuki and Melvin. Nel stood in the middle of the corridor, looking around slowly.

"So, what's going on?" Max asked.

"Care to fill us in," Melvin said.

"Something's coming," Nel said.

"What exactly?" Yuki said. Allisa was about to say something too when she felt a chill go up her spine.

"Hey," Max started sniffing around. "What that smell?" Allisa looked up and saw something clinging from the ceiling.

"Above us!" Allisa warned as the thing dropped off the ceiling towards Allisa.

Before it could even reach her, Max punched it in the chest sending it flying forwards over Nel. It slammed against the ground twice before it righted itself and skidded to a halt giving the group a better look over what attacked them.

"Just as I thought," Nel said.

It was similar to the ones she encountered before. This one, in particular, had some kind of metal helmet attached to its head up to its mouth. It had four arms, each of which had long metallic talons, and legs arranged as though it was some kind of animal.

"Wh-What is that thing?" Allisa gasped.

"Leave it to me," Nel said stepping forwards. The creature scratched as it charged, walking on all six towards Nel. As it did, Nel used quickstep before it reached her. Bloodshot out from its back as Nel reappeared behind it skidding on the ground with her short blade drawn. She then rushed back and leaped on the beast as it thrashed around in pain, stabbing it in the head before leaping up off it. The creature then thrashed for a second longer before it ceased all movements. The others then cautiously approached the creature. Yuki drew his sword and prodded the creature to make sure it really was dead.

"What in the world...?" Melvin breathed, disgusted by what he saw. Allisa felt nauseous just looking at it. Max clenched his fists while Yuki remained silent.

"It's definitely the same kind of creature I encountered last night," Nel said. "It's different from the others, but it's a similar design."

"Designed? You're saying someone made this?" Allisa said, covering her mouth, feeling nauseous by the grotesque monster.

Melvin couched down to it, prodding the stitching with his wand.

"D-Don't touch it!"

"It's definitely someone's doing. Must be using some kind of magic in order to make them move." Melvin summarized, clutching his wand hard. "Who would do something so horrible?" He said quietly, trying to hold back his anger.

"Hey, Are you ok?" Allisa asked, sensing his anger.

"I'm alright." Melvin got back up. Then a horrible screech came to their left.

"We got company," Yuki said, facing in the direction of the notice. Down the corridor where the stairs were, emerged a lot of creatures all of varying different designs converging on the group.

"Looks like he had friends," Nel said.

"How many of them are there?" Allisa said, summoning her sword.

"I got this." Max stepped forwards in front of the group and took in a deep breath.

"Wait, what are you-"

Before anyone could protest Max let out a roar of fire, sending the destructive force of fire down the corridor, seeping the creatures up as it blasted through the wall, creating a massive hole in the side of the building.

"That idiot," Nel said quietly as the others were dumbstruck on the level of destruction Max had just caused.

The corridor was cracked and burnt in several places, the ground was destroyed leaving behind a mark from the attack all along the corridor, the stairs in front of them were completely destroyed with a massive hole open showing off the woods nearby.

"Problem solved," Max said rather cheerfully.

"Yeah, now a bigger one!!" Melvin yelled pointing down the ruined corridor.

"Do you have to destroy everything before you Pyro?!" Yuki yelled.

"We're gonna be in so much trouble." Allisa moaned holding her hands to her head.

"All the more reason why we need to escape," Nel said quickly.

"Escape?" Allisa turned round to Nel. "What do you mean?"

"I mean we can't fight these creatures here."

"Why not?" Max said.

"Firstly, if we fight here, the school could be destroyed completely," Nel said looking at Max in particular. "Second, the confined space will work in their favor."

"You got a point," Melvin said looking up where the first creature jumped them.

"Thirdly, if we fight in a public building, we're bound to attract a lot of attention. Not to mention the people who could be caught in the crossfire."

Allisa looked towards the classroom where they were previously.

"Therefore, we need to get outside and quickly."

"What about them?" Allisa pointed to the classroom. "What if those things get to them?"

"I'll take care of that." Melvin walked towards the classroom door. "I'll set up a temporary barrier. It should keep them out."

"Ok, so how do we get out?" Yuki turned to Allisa.

"The fastest way out would be to go down those stairs to the fire exit," Allisa pointed to the ruined staircase. "but that’s not an option now." Everyone glared at Max. "The other way is through the main entrance that way." Allisa pointed to the right.

"What if we run into more of those things?" Melvin asked.

"Then we'll just have to take down whatever gets in our way," Nel said. "They're slow so I doubt they will pose too much of a threat to us. That said if they swarm us while we're inside, we may be in trouble."

"Good point," Yuki said, looking at the corridor Max destroyed.

"Let's go." Nel ran ahead.

"Wh-wait." Allisa ran after her followed by Max.

"Are you going to be ok with this?" Yuki asked Melvin, who was standing beside him. "If not-"

"I'm fine," Melvin said clutching his wand tightly. "They're not living anymore." Melvin started to walk forwards. "Whoever made these abominations needs to pay for this." He spat.

Yuki said nothing and walked behind him.

Escape from School

Allisa never thought that she would try to escape from school, literally. Of course, escaping with a group of people from another world while running from crazy monsters was definitely not something on her mind.

"Something on your mind?" Nel asked as they ran through the corridor.

"Not really," Allisa said, shaking her head.

"There's something bugging me," Max said looking around. "How come we haven't encountered any of those things yet?"

"He's got a point," Yuki said. "Apart from that first group, we haven't encountered any so far."

Allisa then stopped causing the others to stop. They were almost at the main entrance and so far they haven't encountered anything. "Can you sense anything?" She asked Nel.

Nel shook her head. "It's strange though. I could sense them outside the building, but as soon as they entered, I lost track of them. It's as though something is making their presence."

"That means we could be walking into a trap," Allisa said. Everyone then started to shift their eyes around.

"Most likely," Nel said grimly.

"So if Nel can't sense them coming," Melvin said holding out his wand. "How can we tell if they attack?"

"Hey Max," Allisa spoke to Max. "You could tell that thing was hanging from the ceiling right?"

"Oh, yeah." Max touched his nose. "I smelled him."

Allisa didn't fully understand this, but Max had a powerful sense of smell, apparently the same of a dragon.

"Although I can't smell them until they're close."

"At least it’s something that will give us an early warning," Yuki said as he walked ahead.

"It's better than nothing," Nel said. "Stay close to Max until we reach the exit." Everyone then started to walk.

"Hey." Max said to Allisa. "You could tell where that thing was too, right?"

"Oh, um," Allisa scratched her head. "It was more of a bad feeling I got all of a sudden. Intuition I guess."

"Like a woman's intuition?" Melvin said.

"Probably not the same thing."

****

The group reached the entrance hall, with stairs leading down to the main hall below. They had reached it unopposed, which worried them greatly.

"Anything?" Nel asked Max who was sniffing around.

"No." He replied.

"Let's go." Yuki walked forwards down the stairs. "The exits just there."

"Be careful." Nel reminded. "They could still be around." They walked cautiously in silence as they reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Hey," Allisa broke the silence. "Doesn't this seem too easy?"

"Yeah," Yuki said, holding his sword ready. "Something's not right."

Max then immediately stopped.

"Something wrong?" Yuki asked him.

Again, Allisa had the same dreaded feeling as before.

"Up there!!" Max warned. They all turned and saw something floating in the air. It was a pale woman, with the same stitchings like the other morbid mostrocites.

"What the!" Allisa jumped back. "It's flying?!" The woman then lets out a horrifying shriek that echoed the entire room with an ear screeching sound, causing the others to cover their ears to keep the horrible sound out.

"Fire Bolt!!" Through the sound, Melvin launched fire bolts at the woman, blowing its head off and causing it to drop to the ground, its head still smoldering.

"Oh no." The moment the creature was killed, Nel froze.

"What wrong," Yuki asked.

"We've sprung the trap!"

Something then busted through the front door of the school. The creature in question was massive compared to the others, sporting large muscles, so big that its legs struggled under its own weight. Its face was as monstrous as the rest of them. Its mouth was stitched shut and had long brown hair flowing down its ugly mug.

"Whoa!" Melvin pointed its wand at the creature. "That's big!"

"Well," Max said, clicking his knuckles. "The bigger they are right." he was about to step forward when Nel stopped him.

"He's not alone." She said. Out of nowhere, the smaller creatures started to emerge, surrounding the group.

"There's more?" Allisa said, readying her sword as the others formed a circle. "Where are they coming from?"

"That thing Melvin shot," Nel said, reading her blades. "It masked the others' mana, which was why I couldn't sense where they were. My guess is that they were waiting for us to go to leave the building, then ambush us."

"Us in particular?" Yuki said. "You're talking like they’re specifically after us?"

"Let's think about this later," Melvin said. "How do we get out of this?"

"I can think of a way," Max said as he rushed forwards into the crowd of monsters. "Smash our way through!!" the creatures then went flying as Max burrowed through them.

"For once, the pyro has a good idea." Yuki then charged forwards, slicing his way through the crowd.

"Wait!" Allisa pleaded. "There's gotta be a better idea, right?"

"Unfortunately, that's all I can think of," Nel said.

"You're not serious?" Melvin complained.

"There weak enough for us to deal with. Try to take them out in waves. Don't let them overwhelm you." She said to Melvin.

"Arg! Are we seriously doing what Max suggested?!" Melvin then raised his wand and pointed it at the creatures. "Lightning Arc!!" he sent a wave of lightning through the creatures. Three of them, who was crawling on the ceiling, then dropped down, teeth and talons poised to devourer the group below.

Before they reached the bottom, Nel leaped up, sliced through a face of one, Kicked the other while spinning in the air and slicing clean through the other before landing on top of another one below, stabbing it in the head. Allisa, giving in to the others, then charged forwards into the creatures.

"DAMNIT!!!" she screamed as she leaped from the ground and cut through one of the creatures in half. She then turned and cut through another.

Screw it! Screw it All!! One of the monsters leaped at Allisa. Allisa turned and cut through the monsters. She turned and attacked another with a blade attached to its hand, shattering the blade and cutting through the monster, venting out her frustration.

I thought I could just forget it! Just get back to an ordinary life! But I'm through with it! This is the real me! This is my life now!

"LOOK OUT!!" Allisa heard Max's voice through the confusion. But just as she turned, a massive fist slammed into her, sending her flying into the wall, landing hard enough to crack it.

"Wha?" Allisa looked up and saw the massive brute standing before her. It stared her down before pulling back a fist.

"Oh crap!" Allisa tried to move but her body felt heavy. She tried but couldn't even lift her arm. As the giant fist came towards her, Allisa closed her eyes on reflex. There was a loud sound of it making contact, wind rushing from the force.

Allisa had her eyes closed, so she didn't know if she was dead yet, however, as she opened them, she saw she was still alive. "What the?"

"Close one huh?" A familiar voice said. As Allisa looked forwards, she saw someone in front of her holding the fist back with one hand.

Max? No. Allisa looked at her savior. It was a man with a large bulk and fair hair, which ruled out Max. There was something familiar about the man, as though she had seen him before. Then it came to her. She had seen him before. In fact, She knew him. "N-No way," she breathed in disbelief.

"Looks like I arrived in time. Lucky for you," The man turned and smiled at her. "Allisa."

"C-Cliff!!"

Her savior was none other than Cliff Gail, a man she had seen countless times going to the Comic book store.

The creature withdrew its fist and was about to attack again when Cliff punched it in the gut with incredible force, sending it flying backward, crushing several of the creatures in the process.

"What the?" Yuki said as he and the others gazed on the newcomer.

"Huh? Who's he?" Melvin said.

Nel kept her gaze as Cliff walked forwards. I didn't even sense him coming in through the confusion. I must be losing my touch. She then looked at the massive creature that he sent flying back. And that strength, He's as strong as Max.

"Hey!! You guys ok?" Cliff called out to the others. "Don't worry! I'm a friend!"

"Is Allisa ok?!" Max called out, sending several creatures flying with his flames.

"She's fine! Don't worry!"

"Hold on!" Allisa finally got up to her feet, still not understanding what was happening. "What are you doing here? And what did you just do?"

Cliff turned to face Allisa. "Sorry. This wasn't how I was planning to tell you."

One of the creatures then leaped on him and bit into his neck, and then withdrew with its teeth shattered, making no mark on Cliff's skin. Cliff grabbed the creature and threw it to the ground. He then pulled back a punch and slammed it down on the creature hard enough to break the ground.

"Let's get out of here first, then I'll talk."

Another one with blades then charged Cliff, who turned and punched the creature in the face, shooting it back through the herd. As though sensing the threat, all the creatures stopped attacking the group and immediately turned to face Cliff. Grinning, Cliff charged forwards into the crowd. Allisa watched as the creature was sent flying back.

"What's going on?"

"Allisa!" Max and Melvin ran towards Allisa, with Nel and Yuki watching the crowd before them.

"Are you ok?" Max asked.

"Y-yeah." Allisa didn't take her eyes of the spectacle before them.

"Do you know that guy?" Melvin asked.

"Whoever he is, he's awesome," Max said.

"His name's Cliff Gail. I see him in town sometimes." Allisa answered, still baffled as to what's happening. "But.... What the hell? He was the last person I was expecting to show up."

Through the crowd, Cliff punched his way through the creatures, knocking each one down in a seemingly effortless flow of punches.

"He's good," Yuki said.

"He's using mana," Nel said, looking with her Piercer eyes. "He's using it to amplify his strength."

"Mana? But that means,"

"That's right. He must be from Avalon."

As Cliff continued to fight, the giant creature then got up and slammed both fists into the ground. The other creatures then started to retreat, leaving the giant alone.

"Back for more huh?" he said to it cracking his knuckles.

The creature then forced open the stitching on its mouth. It then opened its mouth wide and screamed, bringing up both arms and forcing them down hard on Cliff. The impact obliterated the ground beneath it, sending rubble shooting up, obscuring it from view. The windows nearby shattered from the gust of air as it escaped.

"Cliff!" Allisa yelled.

"Big Guy!" Max yelled.

"Is he ok?" Melvin asked.

"He's fine," Nel said, looking on as the dust started to settle.

The creature was the first thing visible due to its enormous size. He stood at the center of the crater that had formed. It's fits were locked together. Beneath them was Cliff, blocking the blow with his arms and was completely unharmed.

"He..... Took that head-on." Allisa breathed in amazement.

"Not bad," Cliff said grinning. He then pushed the giant's arms off him and rushed forwards. "Now it's my turn!" He punched the creature hard in the gut again, causing the creature to stagger back. Cliff then stepped forward and punched the creature's right shin. A loud cracking sound came as its leg bone buckled and broke. As the creature fell, Cliff turned forwards and uppercut its face, launching into the air.

"Now," Cliff then pulled back his right fist as the creature turned in the air. "Your," He took a stride forwards. "FINISHED!!" He then punched the creature's face before it reached the ground, sending it flying back, smashing through the entrance before coming to a halt on the road.

"Whoa." Yuki breathed in amazement.

"That guy's awesome," Melvin said.

Cliff stretched his arm as he turned to approach the group. "You guy's ok?" Unable to speak, everyone nodded. "Good. You guys must be the Avalon group that came a few days ago, right?"

"You know who we are?" Nel said with a suspicious tone.

"Wait!!" Allisa then approached him. "Can you please tell me what's going on first?! What are you doing here, and what did you just do?"

"Wait, you know this guy?" Yuki asked, pointing at Cliff.

"Yeah, he lives at the comic book store! I've met him several times!" She said pointing.

"Like she said," Cliff said, raising a hand in greeting. "My name's Cliff Gail. You must be the guys from Avalon." He then turned to the now ruined entrance. "Follow me."

"Wait! You still owe me some answers!" Allisa yelled.

"Don't worry. I'll explain everything. Just not here. The cops could be here at any moment after those explosions."

"Just one question before we follow," Nel said, stopping Cliff. "You're from Avalon, aren't you?"

"Huh?" Allisa stared at Cliff, finding it hard to believe. "Is that true?"

Cliff turned and smiled. "That's half true."

"Half?" Nel said.

"Let's get out of here first, then we can do a Q and A all you want." he then turned and continued to walk towards the entrance.

"Well, let's go," Nel said nodding her head to the entrance.

"Wait, Just like that?" Melvin said. "We don't even know who this guy is and you want us to follow him!"

"I want those answers." She replied as she started to walk.

"Just when I thought my life couldn't get any weirder." Allisa moaned as she followed.

"Sure we can trust this guy?" Yuki asked skeptically.

"So," Max walked after Allisa. "That guy seemed nice."

".... Oh fine. Can't see this getting any worse." Melvin said as walked alongside Max.

"I think we can trust him," Allisa said unsure if she was telling the truth. "He's a good guy, though I have a lot of questions for him."

"You guys are just too trusting," Yuki said as he sheathed his sword and walked after the others.

****

Click, the boy took a picture of the people leaving the building with a camera.

"That was fun." He said as he looked over the photo. "Sharly's goanna be pretty mad when she realized how much doll's of hers I lost. Not that it was my fault Weedree didn't know about these others."

The boy then walked to the monitor and touched it. It then shrank enough for him to pick it up and put it back into his basket.

"Good thing I didn't go in. Those guys are crazy. I told them I was the wrong person for the job." He then took out something else, which grew into a vacuum. "Well, Better clean up before anybody finds the dolls like last time. What a pain."