Hm they say the devil is in the details. And here I am.

She couldn't get rid of him. So here she was. This...pile of rubble. How she'd gotten here she didn't know. What it was she couldn't remember. But within the rubble was a prison, still standing, perfectly in tact.

"Well now that didn't take long did it, dearly. Humans need sleep after all. And I've kept you up."

Lana swallowed. It was real? He was real?! No. No. She hadn't slept. Couldn't sleep.

"Ah...don't doze. Wakey-wakey, sweetheart," he quipped, his voice like thunder. "After 72 hours humans go clinically insane. How you do feel...Lana?"

"Like you're a sleep paralysis demon and I need to be medicated."

A deep chuckle came from the darkness in the cage.

"It can all go away. I want what's best for you," he cooed. "And that pretty little neck. Just open the door. There's not even a lock."

"If there's not a lock why don't you just walk out?"

It went silent. "If you say something else smart to me, I may rip out your throat, and play baseball with your tongue. Open...the door. Lana. Now."

Unleashing whatever this was definitely wasn't an option. Not even in her nightmares.

"I haven't even given you nightmares yet. You cannot begin imagine what I will do to you, Lana. And only you. No one will see me, no one hear me, feel me— but you will." His threat is low, sure, and sickening.

"They will lock you up. No one will believe you. They will lock you away. They will lock you with me and I...I have eternity. All you have to do is open the door...and walk away."

Lana edged closer before throwing her hands up and turning around.

"That's white people shit though!" She proclaimed in frustration. "This is so obviously...I mean could anything be more menacing! There's no light in that cage, and the bars are like...an inch apart!"

The monster went quiet again. "Lana?"

She looked up, finding those eyes.

"Lana, Lana, Lana, dear sweet, very—are you stupid, Lana? Are you mentally deficient."

She frowned with a pause. "No. I think if I was mentally deficient I would've caved."

There was a lull once more. "Lana. Didn't you want to bring someone back?"

She glanced up. "Bring someone..."

She looked up at the building. "What even is this place?"

"You tell me. You're the one who found me."

Lana frowned. Found...found? She didn't remember doing anything like that. Where was she? She looked around. Her head aches. She was so very tired.

"I see...it must be so hard for a human like you to keep your head up. Rest dear."

Lana fought the sleep, frowning. "I'm not...sleepy."

"Why of course you are. I know what you desire most right this moment. It's rest your head and forget. About this terror. The loss. The crushing expectation to go back to normal. You can forget it now. Sleep. Rest, Lana. I'll look over you."

His fangs gleamed in the cage as her eyes forced themselves closed.

"I'll watch you very carefully."

• • •

Lana opened her eyes coming face to face with nothing.

A face full of nothing. No discernible feature. Just fangs, those eyes and a crooked smirk.

She glanced behind the figure. She was closer to the cage than before.

It was opened.

"Ah...you didn't see that coming, did you deary? Probably because you had your back turned."

He stood up, his full height, dwarfing her. She scurried back on her hands, huffing. "How did you? Did I?"

"Well now, I was cross with you?" He let his palms raise to the sky as he dramatically shrugged. "For ignoring my passionate pleas after you so rudely awoke me from my millennia long sleep, but I've decided to let by gone be bygones."

He turned around. "I have some...entities that need dealing with, end of the world nonsense, apocalypse, end of times, doomsday yadda-yadda—all very boring— it wouldn't interest you. Ha...can't forget this," he picked up a piece of the rubble.

Lana was frozen in fear. She wasn't hallucinating. He was real. And he was...other.

He held the piece of rubble to the sky, examining it in the moonlight.

"So I suppose I'd be best be on my way. I don't like to eat so late in the evening, not good for one's immortal figure but I suppose I'll have your soul...Hm as a snack to go."

Lana's eyes widened, she jumped up, starting to run as fast as she could. Holy shit holy shit holy shit. Did she just free a fucking demon in her SLEEP?

"I wouldn't call myself a demon. I actually find it be a bit of a...slur. Actually. Quite offensive. But you look funny when you run so I'll overlook it. I'm so benevolent," he grinned, taking two steps, striding beside her as she ran at full speed.

"You're being much less chatty than you were when you thought I was imprison. Is it me? Am I falling short of your expections, deary?"

She was too winded to speak but she wouldn't stop running. He just kept walking, his lips pressing into a line as he became more and more impatient.

"All right this is no longer amusing. Stop."

Everything in her body rattled to a halt.

"Not breathing, you dolt. Ugh, seriously do you have tell humans everything?"

She took a breath, wheezing as she did. He strolled past her, grinding the rubble between his fingers into what seemed like gold before it disappeared.

"Alright then Lana I'm off. I'll have to catch you for a snack at a later date, hopefully before I destroy this planet, but we'll circle back, match up calendars yes? Keep your evenings free would you? And remember!"

He turned his head at an natural angle, his fangs on full display red eyes glittering.

"Never have your back turned."