The deeper you go

The dark it gets

The more you know

The more you'll regret

Some things should stay hidden

And never see light

If it ever escapes

Chaos ignites

Go away now child

From this corrupt abyss

Listen to your momma

Ignorance is bliss

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Jules gulped.It wasn't too hard to stay invisible with the Dealers on high guard of the outside and the Peccators focused on themselves. So far she had managed to sneak to the seventh floor.

She had been staring at the last staircase leading to the eighth floor. It was so poorly lit that only shadows could be seen at the very top, but she could detect the occasional sound of a squawk and the echo of flapping wings.

It reminded Jules of the story about the lust Dealer who got her eyes gauged out by the crows when she ventured up here. It made Jules shiver and slightly nauseous.

If the crows worked under Dixon and she was his so called "mate" as everyone claimed, then surely they wouldn't hurt her...right?

Jules took a deep breath. She made it this far, she couldn't back down now.

With one last prayer to her guardian angel, she ran up the last steps and covered her eyes. When no crows tried to eat her flesh, she lowered her hands.

She flinched at the sight before her. The entrance to the eighth floor was made of grey, stone walls with fire sticks lighting the pathway. She could barely make out the shape of a door at the end. However, the darkness was not her main concern. Hundreds of crows surrounded the room and stared curiously with calculating, red eyes. Her distaste for the color grew with the goosebumps on her arms.

She didn't dare move.

As if suddenly recognizing who she was, they parted like a black raging sea, creating a path for her to walk though, and lowered their heads.

Jules instinctively reached her hand into her pocket. She first felt the bottles of foundation and concealer she had borrowed from her mother. She reached deeper and let out a breath of relief when her fingertips grazed the familiar touch of worn out beads. She pulled out her rosary and clenched it tightly in her hand. Then she made her way forward. The crows kept their heads down and stayed silent so she could only hear the sound of her steps and the burning of the flames.

Before her imagination could get to her, she pulled at the metal rings of the door. She was met with a deafening screech.

Jules immediately gagged at the putrid smell that followed. There was a potent stench of rotten eggs mixed with iron. The smell was so disgusting that she began breathing with her mouth. She tried using her shirt as protection but the thin fabric was like holding a piece of paper to block a bullet.

The smell of death made her want to turn back around the instant it hit her nose, but she had to do this. If not for herself, then for the other Dealers and Peccators. Satan's trap needed to be destroyed before it claimed anymore victims. She would not abandon them like the world had.

While all the floors below were lavish, the eighth floor was unexpectedly like a dungeon. The hall was barely lit. Jules had to keep a hand on the cold stone wall to guide her. At the next torch that she passed, she took it down from the metal ring connected to the wall .

The farther she walked, the stronger the smell became. It was starting to burn her lungs and make her cough. She had to hurry before the rancid air suffocated her.

After minutes of walking aimlessly in the dark, Jules finally found a door. She wiped her sweaty hand on her pants before turning the knob and kicking the door open. Dust fell from the ceiling and irritated her eyes. She used her shirt to collect as much dust, sweat, and ashes off her face.

Jules felt a shot of anxiety flow through her veins as the torch's flame revealed the contents of the room. Countless white, dirty dresses laid scattered around the floor. They were stained with dirt, dried leaves, and splotches of dried blood.

Jules' hands shook as she picked one up. The fabric of the dress was ripped in many places. It was as if the person who wore it was dragged through a forest.

The way the long sleeves puffed out and the modest collar was square shaped, they looked like old fashioned night gowns. The style of the dress looked quite familiar.

Jules dropped the dress in realization. These were the same ones she saw in her vision the night Dixon came back. In her vision, the woman holding the baby and the women who surrounded her with knives in their hands all wore white gowns that looked exactly like the ones in this room.

How could that be?

It was then that Jules noticed something was drawn on the wall. She took shaky steps forward to get a better look. She faced the torch towards the image. She wished she hadn't.

The terrifying drawing was very sloppy and looked as if someone had created it with a bloody finger. She could see finger prints hidden and blended within the picture. In the drawing, there was a circle of women in gowns stabbing themselves. The blood from their bodies all flowed towards the center of the circle where it pooled around a baby with horns on its head.

Jules could feel cold dread seep deep within her bones. These images were uncannily similar to the vision she had before. This must be connected to Dixon's past.

Jules continued to walk around the room until she landed on another image. This time it was a boy holding a decapitated head above his face as he let the blood from its butchered neck drip into his mouth. His foot was on top of the beheaded woman's body.

The drawings seemed to wrap around the room with two images on each wall.

Jules walked to the next one. It was a gentle image unlike the others before it. There was a baby sleeping on a lamb. The only unsettling thing about it was the upside down cross in the middle of the baby's chest.

While making her way to the next image, a horrifying squawk scared her so terribly that she nearly dropped to the ground. The crow's painful screeches continued to ring in her ears.

Its screams were so full of agony that Jules' concern overpowered her curiosity and she left the room, forgetting about the other three unseen images.

She ran quickly until the squawks led her to another room. She opened the door and gasped. Smoke emerged and stung her eyes. She tried to fan the smoke away but it was still hard to see. This must have been Dixon's room. There was a bed with navy sheets thrown across messily. Jules didn't get to observe the room anymore than that because another sound of squawking led her eyes to fall upon a bird cage that hung below a fire in the middle of the room.

Trapped in the cage was the source of the painful screeches. Jules' eyes widened. It was the crow that had been watching over her outside her balcony. She had not seen him ever since he disappeared into Dixon's body during the mop incident in the cafeteria. She could recognize her crow friend easily because he was the only one without red eyes.

Jules ran to the cage and tried to open its door, but yelped in pain when it burned her fingers. She looked around the smoky room and grabbed the bed sheets. She wrapped it around her hand to use as mittens but the door was locked. The crow let out another cry.

She needed to find the key and she needed to find it fast.

Jules wiped at her burning eyes and coughed into her shirt. She ran around the room hastily until she found a desk. She rubbed her hands on the surface but felt nothing. The top drawers were also empty and just when she felt defeated, she opened the bottom drawer. There was a dried flower...It looked like a dandelion. Besides it was a small black key.

She grabbed it and ran back to the cage. It unlocked. She used the bed sheets and opened the cage's door.

The crow flew out immediately and flapped its wings against her head. She screamed and backed up at the sudden movement. It kept flapping its burnt wings against her head until she got out of the room.

She wasn't sure how but she understood. The crow was not trying to harm her but to warn her.

She was sure that if his squawks could be translated, he would be screaming something along the lines of "Get out! Now!" With that in mind, Jules dashed back towards the entry way.

However, her injured crow friend was unable to follow her and repeatedly hit the stone walls while trying to fly.

Jules turned around and picked up the bird carefully. She placed its light, soft body against her chest before continuing her sprint down the dim path.

By some miracle, she was able to run out and find the exit while barely using her sight. However, when she walked through the wave of crows this time, they were screeching angrily at her instead of bowing silently.

But she kept going. The beat of her heart was in sync with the thumps of her feet going swiftly down the staircase. She ignored the students giving her strange looks. Jules was sure she looked suspicious wearing a black hoodie and hiding something in her arms.

Even when she reached her room, she did not feel a drop of relief. She went straight to the bathtub and turned on the cold water. She held out the crow in her arms and checked to see if he was still breathing. The bird's chest was barely moving. He was very weak.

Jules grimaced at its burnt feet and placed him softly into the water. She hadn't realized how much he was bleeding until she saw the clear water turn into a crimson tint.

She needed to stop the bleeding. He was losing too much. Jules turned off the faucet and sprung up.

"I'll go look for bandages little guy. Please don't die on me."

The crow squawked weakly in response.

Jules ran back out. She didn't know where to find medical equipment but she was sure the Dealers knew.

Unfortunately, Jules was distracted while taking out her phone to call Jonathan that she did not see the group of Peccators tailing closely behind her.

As if she didn't have enough problems already, something was cracked on her head. A slimy substance began running down her face. And before she could process what just happened, more eggs were thrown at her. Jules turned around and paled at the sight of Kylie and her friends holding cartons of eggs.

"I knew Abby was lying straight through her teeth when she said you weren't here tonight. We wouldn't wan't you to miss out on all the fun. We would be such bad hosts if we didn't give you a personal welcome to hell."

Jules was ready to run away but a bag was suddenly placed over her head and hands grabbed at her harshly to carry her away against her will.

"Take her to the showers boys."

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The student council sat lazily in their chairs, each occupied with their own entertainment.

Randall was reading an article in the newspaper that praised him for all his donations around the city. Alec was sharpening his new knife set. Ellen was reading a book about a tragic romance. Jake was counting money. Ana was flipping through a cookbook. Simon was testing out a new pillow he just bought. Skye was browsing through a fashion magazine.

They had a meeting every night even when one wasn't needed. There was nothing important to discuss but everyone liked to gather in the meeting room to feel more productive.

Someone knocked on the door.

"Come in," Randall instructed.

Abby walked in and bowed. "Hello sir. How may I service you?"

"I need you to do me a favor," Randall placed his newspaper down, "I sent someone to go invest on a new student who is transferring to Dalmellington High tomorrow and they brought back the wrong file. I don't want to send another buffoon just to be disappointed. Since you are in charge of newcomers, could you go to that student's school and fetch it for me? It is about forty-five minutes away and the file should be located somewhere in the main office. You can take five guards with you. I'll reward you generously for this task."

"Yes sir. Thank you sir."

Randall handed her a key. Abby bowed once again and left.

Skye felt like she was forgetting about something important but she couldn't put her finger on it. She shrugged her shoulders and continued on flipping through her magazine. After thirty minutes, she had gotten into a rhythm.

Lick, then flip.

Lick, then flip.

Lick, then--

She landed on a page that had images of angel themed lingerie. It awakened her memory.

"Today is Wednesday right?"

Ellen turned around to glance at the calendar behind her.

"Yup, it is," she confirmed.

Skye placed her magazine down slowly.

"Aren't Wednesday nights when they haze new Peccators?"

Alec groaned. "Skye, you've been at this academy for years. Why are you asking dumb questions? Can't you see i'm trying to complete a very important task right now?"

Ellen frowned. "Alec, what did I say about being respectful?"

He flinched at the tone of her voice. "Ugh, fine. Yes Ms. Skye, the hazing always happens on Wednesdays."

Alec placed his attention back on the objects in his hands and the room was once again filled with the sound of metal scraping on a stone.

Skye was confused as everyone continued to focus on their own leisure once again. Have they still not realized?

"Isn't Jules a new Peccator?" Skye pressed on.

Immediately, Alec stopped sharpening his knife, Simon stopped snoring, and Ana stopped munching. The room became completely silent. Everyone stopped what they were doing and visibly stiffened.

"Nah," Jake waved his hand dismissively, "they won't dare haze her with Dixon as her Dealer."

Alec smacked him in the head. "The other Peccators do not know she belongs to Dixon dumba*s. We've been keeping that a secret, remember?"

"Oh sh*t, you're right."

"Guys, you all are worrying for nothing," Randall said calmly. "She has Abby by her side. Abby will probably hide her or something during the initiation."

Ana spit a mouthful of chips back into the potato chip bag so that she could talk.

"Didn't you just send Abby away with a two-hour-long task?"

All the council members slowly lifted their heads and stared at each other in unison. After a few seconds passed, the realization finally hit them.

"Sh*t."

Everyone got up simultaneously and ran out the room. Jake had to run back to pick up Simon. The scene of the council members sprinting crazily with widened eyes and opened mouths was just like the night when they rushed to Jules' house. Even though they weren't trying to save her from demons this time, fellow Peccators were a close second.

They ran like their life depended on it--well, actually--because their life depended on it.