A/N: As usual, I would recommend putting the video on loop.
At once, lights, at max power, switched on. All four of them backed together as they shone their lights over the area. It was silent around them with the exception of their quickened breathing, and they suspected that the creature heard their pounding hearts too. Deidre wanted to curl up next to her friends and just forget that they were in the current situation, which had morphed into the worse possible outcome. The twenty-two-year-old woman could hear Nick muttering to himself in a hushed, horrified tone. Everything he had assured himself of was crashing down around him, and she noted that he was having trouble staying calm for so long.
In the beginning of discovering that the creature was among them, he had managed to maintain his composure. At least from her perspective, he had, but she knew that memories of Cankerfell were beating down upon his mind. With her free hand, she reached over and squeezed his right upper arm to comfort him, but he didn't look back to her, which was understandable given that they had no idea where the creature was around them. The squeeze also helped settle her down even if it only was by a fraction.
"Where is he?" Chris muttered, anxiously. Her flashlight beam hovered around the area to their left, but the creature didn't fall into the light. In fact, none of their flashlights could pinpoint him yet.
"Everyone begin to move. You know which way," Nick ordered, his feet starting to guide him to his right and towards the platform. The other three followed his lead, and not one of them broke off from the formation. That was the case until rushing footsteps were heard. His right arm covered his eyes as his bare feet raced towards the four of them.
Ren saw the creature first. "Move!" he yelled. Everyone switched their attention to behind them. With little choice, they split apart as the creature bolted down the center of them. Chris and Ren jumped to their left while Nick and Deidre to their right. Groans could be heard from the four while the footsteps of the creature halted, and he seemingly vanished into the darkness again.
Before Nick could check on anyone, a scream echoed out through the tunnel. Nick's head shot to his left and towards where he had seen and heard Deidre land. Her flashlight was cast aside, and the creature lifted her up from the back of her shirt. Swiftly, he shone his flashlight at the creature, causing a harsh hiss to be emitted from him. Deidre was thrown forward, and her right hand grabbed her discarded flashlight in the process. She rolled before she managed to pick herself up.
Meanwhile, Nick noticed something even more terrifying about the creature before him. The black dress shirt was a first clue in since (f/n) never had mentioned the creature wearing such clothes, but the creature's hair was different too as was his facial structure. He looked taller as well, about six feet and four inches. All in all, he noted the creature before him was not the creature from before unless he had been able to afford major surgery and grew about three inches.
As his light stayed on the creature, Nick saw a sickening, malicious smirk form on the creature's lips. "Hello, Nick," he spoke in a voice far off from the other creature's. It was lower and filled with a sense of seeing someone for the first time. "You are Nick Calamiss, aren't you? I've been ..." The creature dodged a blow from behind as Ren swung his flashlight through the air and towards the being. An annoyed look crossed the creature's expression, and Chris pushed herself and Ren to the floor when the creature's left hand swept through the air. They tumbled down, and the creature scoffed before he glared. "Irritating. I don't want to talk to you two." His attention shifted back to Nick, and his very pale blue optics narrowed against the extreme light; he barely could stand it, and it hurt like a volcano exploding inside his flesh. "We'll talk later. For now ..."
Jumping to his feet, Nick helped Chris and Ren up before he raced off with them. "Deidre!" he cried out as they ran away, much to Callest's annoyance, but he didn't bother chasing them. There was no need, but he did hate being interrupted by a human. Nick would earn a similar treatment to (f/n)'s, but it would be quicker, much quicker.
"Nick!" she called back, trying to rejoin her friends. Callest, however, stepped forward in the darkness. Over their noise, they didn't hear him approach. Nick, though, shone a light back towards him, and he hissed again as curses streamed from his mouth.
"Come on!" Nick urged Deidre as they all climbed up onto the platform. Deidre was just about to get onto the platform herself, but the creature dealt with the light once more. He charged towards them, and his left nails swiped through the air with an intense ferocity. His nails didn't hit, but Deidre had to leap back away from the group.
Brown optics widening, Nick went to hurry towards her, but Callest stood to his full height and met Nick's gaze. A sadistic grin fell upon his lips, but it was worse than the creature's; there was no element of playfulness to it. Callest didn't play; he tortured, killed and ate humans. Unlike Ether, he knew the worth of humans; he didn't raise them up to be equals. "Either you or her," he mentioned with a scratchy chuckle.
Callest and Nick stared off as the other three noticed the difference in description of the creature too. It didn't take long for them to come to the same conclusion as Nick. A new creature was before them, and none of them knew anything about him, which only heightened the gravity of the circumstance they were in. Nick remained silent before he stepped forward. His legs shook, and he gripped his flashlight. The creature didn't quirk a brow or seem impressed. "Very well," Callest stated as he faced Nick fully.
In the process, however, Callest heard darting steps behind him. Deidre ran into his back, and his balance was nearly lost. "Go!" Deidre exclaimed, fear radiating off of her voice like it was a ticking time bomb. Nick froze and shook his head, but Callest already was averting his attention towards the younger female. "Now! Get out of here!" she cried out, clearly scared for her own life, but she didn't wish to watch her friends get brutally murdered either.
Almost, Nick fell back. "No," he mumbled and shook his head, but Ren and Chris grabbed his arms.
"We'll get her back," both of them reassured even if they doubted their own words. Callest didn't wait around. Rather, he stared down at Deidre, who backed away. He could hear every heartbeat of hers, and his left nails tapped against each other in anticipation of meeting fresh flesh and bone.
No warning occurred. Callest bolted forward, and Deidre jumped to her left and dodged. She rushed to her feet and raced further down the tunnel. Her light became dim as she grew out of sight. The creature followed after her at a slow pace, his eyes not shifting towards the other three. Nick couldn't divert his gaze from the scene as tears began to form. "It's happening again," he whispered.
"Nick," Ren urged, tugging on his one arm a bit more. "She's not dead yet. We're going to get her, and this isn't your fault. You had no idea that there was a second creature."
"But, he knows me."
"You were on the news. He might've seen it. We know that they're not always cooped up," Chris mentioned, tugging too. "Come on. We can fix this. Lean on us; we're your team. We're not abandoning you for this." Nick hesitantly met her blue optics, and she smiled to him. His lips parted, but Ren and Chris set him upright on his feet. "Let's move. We can get help. It sounds like he won't kill you yet, and he might use Deidre to lure you back to him."
That possibility was grim, but there was little else to hope for with regards to Deidre's survival. He nodded slowly before he forced himself to wipe away his tears; he needed to be composed for them. "Right." Nick nodded firmly, and they turned away from the tracks and towards the hall that led back to the entrance. Unfortunately, the hall was blocked by a locked door. No doubt, that creature had performed the action.
"We might be able to go back the other way," Ren offered before Chris shook her head and pointed up to where there was a small opening at the top.
"Lift me up. I can crawl through since I'm small enough and unlock the door from the other side," she spoke quietly in case the creature still could hear them. Ren glanced over to Nick, who gave a confirming nod. With no more hesitation, Ren allowed Chris to climb onto his shoulders. Her hands reached up, and she pulled herself through the opening at the top of the door. Carefully, she managed to position herself in a proper way before she jumped down to the other side. "Sh*t!" she softly yelled, and both males heard the handle jiggling. "It needs a key on this side too."
"He must've modified the lock at some point. All of the locks here should've been locks separate from the door and held on by a chain. Not this kind," Ren muttered, frustrated and terrified. "He might've stolen one from one of the homes or something and installed it." He was tempted to roughly comb his fingers through his hair. "And, we don't have any lock pick gear."
"Chris," Nick started, attempting not to panic, "keep going. We'll have to head back the other way. Breaking the lock with something around here might take too long. Meet us at the entrance. Do not stop for anything." Nick received a confirmation call from her, and both males heard her run off. As for them, they began to race for the tracks once more.