(I'd like to say Angel launched into the story, but he didn't. At first I had to pry with questions. Each one pulling one new fact. Eventually though the information began to come without my prodding. He slowly relayed the emotional turmoil he'd endured since we'd last seen each other. I paced silently in front of him as he relived pain he'd hoped to lock away from himself forever. Bad memories are like that. You hope that over time they'd fade and lose the emotions tied to them, but quite often that isn't the case. What you thought was an emotional scar was merely burned shut and is now tearing open once more. The world is a shitty place, I won't deny it. Still, there are worse places. I know.

Each detail he describes threatens his very sanity. Probably like it did when he went through it, but not to the same degree. Every chilling nuance is revealed in yet another pathetic love story gone wrong. By the time he finishes this morbid tale that has haunted him since he experienced it I can see the water that fills his eyes as he tries to hold the pain inside. Once again I see the scared, confused man I was on the run with months back. The vulnerability displayed under my watchful eye is endearing in some ways. I can see every line of agony, every trace of bitterness. I see it all as if it is a road map on his body. Now he sits there in silence. His tale's journey ended. I'm left with sorting through what he's been through and what he's done. Liz being taken by demonic forces. His mercy killing of her. The burning of her body. Angel thought that would end it. It hasn't. Something is still here. I can feel it in my bones like a harsh pulse coursing through the solidified calcium. I stop pacing and kneel down in front of him so that he'll look into my eyes. My voice is gentle and soothing, but I have a sense of urgency I can't shake.)

If only it had ended there...but it didn't. Something is still here. I think you should have just burned the house down. Just to be sure.

(He's less than enthused by my words. What'd he expect? Was I supposed to hug him and tell him nothing is wrong and everything is fine? Was I supposed to then tickle him and give him a balloon and a cookie or whatever it is people do to console each other? I wouldn't know anything about it.)

Should've could've would've. What's done is done. And there is something here. It can't be....but it must be. You and I both know it. We know what's here....This just needs to end.

(I do understand Angel. More than you know, but we don't have the luxury of just letting things be so that you can be secure in the house that has protected you from the world and it from you. My tone is grim when I speak next. I can't help it. This situation may be worse than we both think. We have to do something soon.)

We can burn it now. There will be other homes. This isn't a home now. It's a haven for evil. You know that. I know you can see it.

(My eyes plead with him. I now realize how much I care for him. Damnit. I'm almost disappointed by the fact I think I may no longer want to kill him. I don't have time to worry about that shit right now though. He of course doesn't listen. Why are people so attached to material things like houses and cars? They are just things. Nothing more. I understand it means something else to him other than just something he owns, but he's investing energy into something that in the long run isn't important. He can find another safe haven from the world anywhere else. Just not here.)

We're not fucken burning it! End of discussion!

(Rising to his feet in frustration I'm pushed away so that he can pace. I stand up, but off to the side of him. After a moment words spill forth from him in lightning quick fashion.)

I can't. I can't just....burn it down. For christ's sake Eclipse....we don't even know what's in here. It could be something...it could be nothing. I just can't burn down this house on the whim of a feeling. I'm not sure you understand that. I dunno if you've ever had someplace to call your own...or at least somplace that you actually enjoyed being. I don't know where you came from, but I'd bet you'd be willing to burn it in a matter of moments. But that's not reality. This is reality. This is my home. There has to be another way.

(Damn him. Maybe he's never listened to a fuckin word I've said to him during the entire time we've known each other. If that's the case, what the fuck am I doing here. I find myself frustrated once more by him. Shock and fuckin surprise. I can't help but be angry with him. With his callousness towards the things I've told him about myself.)

I told you back in the fuckin barn where I came from!

(I take a deep breath to try and gather some composure after my angry outburst. Sighing I start again.)

Don't speak to me of reality. You're the one in denial here. This isn't just some whim. After all you've been through you still can't even figure out what reality is. After all we've been through I can't believe it turns out you don't even listen to or believe anything I've told you in the past. I told you about my past. I opened up to you. And for what? What the fuck are we even doing?

(Screw this. What am I even doing here? It's enough. I'm out of here.)

I'm going back to my father's. I'll leave you to your demons. Inside and out. You build your own reality. It doesn't need to include me.

(With that I turn and start towards the door. It's not long before I hear him angrily yelling at my back as if that will accomplish something.)

And what? What exactly have you told me about you? I suppose "dark demension" constitutes as an in depth analysis of where you're fucken from!

(Well I sure as hell wasn't going to describe the place to him at the time. He wouldn't understand. He wouldn't believe. He already doesn't. Stepping in front of me he blocks my path. Getting out of my way would be a good idea. I can already feel I want to lash out and draw blood so that I can be on my way. Staring into my eyes for a long moment he just stands there. Then his hands come to rest on my shoulders before he speaks again. This time his tone is less harsh.)

Is that what I'm supposed to base reality off of? A "dark dimension?" Is that what I'm supposed to base this relationship off of? I don't know you. I don't know anything about you. But I'm willing to try...willing to listen and believe everything you tell me. But I need more. You have to give me something to go off of.

(Exhaling with yet another deep sigh, I relent with my attempt at making an exit. This is making me insane and getting us nowhere. What can I say that would even make him get it? The anger I had fades as I remember the hellish dimension I was stuck in for most of my life. The daily struggle to survive. The complete darkness. The lonliness. I can feel the bitterness inside, but I try not to dwell in it.)

You'd have to see it to understand. I don't think words can cover it. Complete darkness always. Carnivorous predators hunting you constantly. No one to interact with...

(I just drop the topic and look away from him. I don't want to describe this. It'll only make me bitter and angry. That's not going to help.)

Look, talking about this right now isn't going to help anything. There really is something here. For once I'm only trying to help you.

(By the way he looks at me I can feel he's trying to understand. Some part of him understands some minute part of it from the way it makes me feel. It's a start.)

Help me? Not many people can. But I see you have your heart set on it. So let's--

(Stopping mid sentence, it's obvious he's feeling the same thing I am. The taint I felt has now increased in magnigtude amd intensity. It's almost overwhelming. We both look around as if we'll just be able to see the source of the chaotic, palpable energy around us. That's when the temperature decides to drop more degrees than could be considered natural. Visible vapor is seen from our breath making contact with the cool air.)

It...can't...

(He can't even get the three word sentence completed. I barely noticed the words as the ground beneath us shakes violently. It's hard to maintain our footing. We hold onto each other as the house ripples like a storming sea. It's hard for us to maintain our bearings. I wonder if the whole thing is gonna come apart. Damn he should have let me burn this place down. Angel looks as if he's going to make a move to do something. I'm not sure he even knows what. Then as suddenly as it came on everything stops. The shaking. The freezing cold. Everything. I work to pull myself together quickly. I'm very thrown off by this. A little shaken, a little scared, but I'm not in a full panic. I have my senses about me still.)

What...the fuck...was th--

(He's cut off as a demonic, primal scream rips through the house. It's so powerful I almost feel like I could drop to the floor. I grip my head to keep my brain from wanting to explode. Anger and sorrow hang thick in the air, accompanying the scream like buzzards accompany those soon to become corpses. Then suddenly Angel yells.)

DUCK!

(Then I see it. Something white, cutting through the air towards me. I barely manage to dodge it. Its wake actually displaces the air enough to send my hair blowing in the direction it flies to. It shatters sending debris everywhere. Before I can recover to prepare myself for what might happen next the temperature drops rapidly once more. I feel like we're in a walk in freezer. Our breath hanging heavily in the air.)

We have to get out of here now! This place has to burn!

(We step towards the door, but are stopped in our tracks as locks beging turning on their own. He grabs the door but can't manage to get it open. He pulls his hand off the knob as if it just but him. A cacophony of noise follows as windows begin violently shutting while the other doors lock. I look around as the house takes on a life of its own. It's only going to get worse from here. He yells over at me.)

Windows! Go!

(Without hesitation I dart around the couch while he hurdles it. We've got to put some distance between us and this place. Enough distance to purchase a whole lot of gasoline. The air around us seems to shatter as another throaty, demonic scream explodes around us. It sends a demoralizing chill through both of us. Soon a symphony of disorder follows it as furniture from other rooms bangs repeatledly. The noise is deafening. Before we can get any further glass is flying through the room. Angel ducks and manages not to disected. I watch as a drawer opens and a knife levitates. It dances about for the briefest of moments. Then points at us. Immediately it takes off in our direction.)

Watch out!

(I watch it as if it's in slow motion. The angry blade cruising past Angel's face and towards me in an effort to make me its victim. I duck and watch it go by. Wasting little time we both move towards the window again. That's when we see...it. Frozen in our tracks we watch as the outside world mirrors the insanity in here. Powerful winds, lightning, and rapidly moving, black clouds. None of that is what has stopped us. No, what has haulted all forward movement is what the wind is carrying. A huge mass of black ash streaks through the trees, across the yard, does a slight circle, and then forces itself through the window in front of us. We both step backwards, but in slightly different directions. Angel recognizes what he feels from the ash. Or he recognizes the ash as being that from her corpse that he burned. Either way he calls out with a question composed of one word.)

Liz?

(The ash stops being one elegant, clustered mass. It stops dancing before us hypnotically. Instead it opens up and spreads apart. It's many grains jutting in all directions. Soon the only thing I can see is it. It's as if I'm all alone...in a very dark place. Different from the dimension I grew up. I could see somewhat in the darkness there. Here a physical force blocks my view at every turn. All the noises stop as if smothered out by animated ash. I lose track of time. Of where I am in the house. Of everything. I'm so alone. So sad..bitter. I can't help but wonder if I really feel these things or if I'm just taking on the emotions of the ash. All my scars and healing wounds feel as if they burn. As if each one was being re-inflicted at once. I grunt and force myself to stay on my feet. It's difficult, but I won't give in. I refuse.

Just when I think I can no longer stand the pain fades. The ash forms into an odd pattern as grain after grain slowly begins to clump together. It spins as more grains join the clump. It begins to take a form. I've got a bad feeling about this. The clump is no longer just a clump. It begins to take form. A form I've seen before. Liz...The scared, sweet girl I had met back when Ruen killed the escaped canibal in this house. She had been an innocent, benevolent girl. That's far from the case now. Pulsing gray lit eyes stare at Angel with malice. He has to force his next word out. This is not something he's going to cope well with.)

Liz...

(At first he looks as if he shrivels before her, but something sparks in him. A rush of courage? Of anger? Who knows? Stepping forward he's met with a piercing, multi-layered scream that stalls his momentum. Liz explodes violently, sending grains of ash everywhere. The black mass once again swirls. This time though I can feel its rage. Her rage. I fight to keep it separate from my own. It's hers. Not mine. It's not my emotions that I'm feeling. Don't give into them. Soon the house has kicked into high gear again. Banging, slamming, glass breaking. Yeah, she's a bit pissed. The swirl suddenly spirals like a tornado funnel and plummets towards me threateningly. Before I can react Angel jumps in front of it. The funnel splits apart and rejoins the rest of the ash that spins about the room. He couldn't have just burned the place when I told him to in the first place. We have to get out of here before one or both of us gets destroyed.)

Liz! LIZ! STOP! I'm sorry! I'm sorry for what I did to you! But you have to stop!

(The house gets louder as if trying to drown out his words. She doesn't want to listen to him. He yells as loud as he can to make sure she has to hear him.)

You're fucken dead now! Do you hear me! You're fucken dead! I can't do anything for you anymore!

(Standing firmly in front of me he continues yelling at the demonic spirit of his ex-girlfriend. Suddenly something wraps around my throat and begins to tighten. My hands shoot up instinctively to try and pry it from my neck. I fight with it. I look over to Angel, but I'm unable to call out for him. I think I hear him say he loves me to the spirit, but I can't be sure. I don't exactly have time for heartwarming moments. Though his words do cause a moment of hesitation in me that I can ill afford. I grunt hoping desperately that it will get his attention. Eventually it does. I thrash violently as the cord continues to tighten. My rage fills me. I lose all sense of the more human side of myself. The feral monster takes over. Thrashing and ripping at the chord I can feel my nails tear and shred the flesh on my neck around the cord.

Hot blood runs down my throat and the cord. I can't speak. I can't get free. I'm getting light headed. If I don't get this off soon I won't have to worry about making any future plans. There will be no future. Angel runs over to me, then behind me. I hear him grunt and things break. Dust and debris fly into the air and soon there's a large amount of slack. I fall forward, gasping for air that I can't get into my lungs fast enough. I grip my throat and choke hard. The kinda choke that causes blood vessels to break in your eyes and cause you to see sparkles all around you. I barely notice him help me unwrap the cord from my neck. He immediately starts yelling, but I can't make out his words. I'm too busy trying to re-teach my body how to breathe. The only thing I can understand is his tone. Such fiery anger.

That's when it stops. All sound stops. I look up, wondering what will come next. What form will our supposed destroyer choose to take now. The mass of ash descends slowly till it's level with Angel. He seems transfixed by it. Almost hypnotized by it's terrible beauty. Slowly he stands, but his eyes never leave it. This is not good. It begins to take a shape again. Stop looking at it Angel. Stop! I tug at his jeans, but to no avail. He doesn't notice me anymore. To him there is nothing but the ash. It is his world now. He speaks aloud with words he doesn't even know he says. Chanting. He chants to Liz's ash composed body in front of him. A wicked smile crosses her grayish black freatures. Then she bursts into a comet of ash and slams into his chest. It takes him off his feet and slams him against a wall as it penetrates his skin. I force myself up to my feet and watch in horror as his features darken and change. This does not bode well for either of us. I have a feeling I know what's coming next. He's about to become a hand puppet of the demon. His eyes change. They don't glow red or anything. No instead they get pale yellow with dark edges around them. The whites of his eyes look extremely irritated. I can see the crazed bloodlust in them. I don't bother calling out his name to see if he's okay. It's obvious he's not himself right now. Angel has stepped out. What stands before me is an abomination. She laughs, therefore he does. Slowly, he stalks towards me. I guess she thinks that by inhabiting his body I won't do anything because it will hurt him and she'll be able to hurt me. Wrong. If I have to I'll put him down and torch the house with both of them inside it. I'd expect the same to be done for me if it came down to it.

Instead of waiting to be attacked by the wild eyed man I step forward. Seconds later his fist is flying at me. I block it with my forearm and crack him in the face. We trade a couple of blows before he grabs me by the shirt and throws me against a wall. I hit hard and feel the wall shake before I fall to the floor with a thud. Yeah that hurt a little. He stalks forward, I stall him with a kick that does little other than buy me some time and space. Getting to my feet I nail him in the jaw with an uppercut before before immediately bringing the elbow from the same arm down into his sternum. He backhands me causing me to stumble backwards. Blood runs down from my lip. Well being posessed has made him quite a bit stronger. Not good for me. Still I can't help but feel a certain thrill from this. The challenge, the violence. It feels kinda good. The only bad thing is is that Angel's life is at stake. I let a smile play across my features as I look at him. I decide not to bother speaking to him, but her on the other hand, well I think we should have a little girl talk.)

So Liz, is this how the power you could manage? Pathetic. No wonder Angel killed you. Guess he needed a real woman.

(Yeah that should kick things off nicely. Let's see if I can get the bitch to respond from inside his body. Oh yeah, that did it. His eyes blaze with a fiery evil as the house begins shaking as if in a major earthquake. The floors and foundation groan in protest. A horrible, deafening roar erupts from Angel's mouth causing me to grab my ears in fear of my eardrums bursting under the pressure. Unfortunately it was a diversionary tactic. I look up to see him rip me off the floor with both hands and send my flying across the room. I have no time to attempt to brace myself for the fall. Unceremoniously I crash through the coffee table. Glass and wood are sent scattering in an explosion of debris. I can feel a little glass in my back.

He screams in triumph because she does. I try to gather my wits as he lifts me to my feet with the ease of demonic strength. I stare at this thing in him and realize that if I lose he'll be doomed to exist this way till his body gives out. I can't leave him like that. I have to free him. Even if it means killing him. Emotions swirl within me. I can feel the churning. The acidic burning of darkness filling my stomach before it surges through my veins. The agony bringing me an odd sort of primal pleasure as I feel the power surging within me. My vision contorts as my madness brings forth the true power I contain within my shell. The surge of energy overwhelms me as I completely give into it.

I shove him with all my might causing him to stumble backward rapidly. Then I slam my head forward into his. Our skulls collide. I see both black and red before my vision returns to normal. I love that. With both our heads now bleeding he falls back into the wall. I step forward with a twisted sneer. The smell of the blood urging me on. It's time. Part of me manges to push a word out through my clenched teeth.)

Goodbye...

(My arm cocks back. Fingers gnarl in a way that they resemble a set of claws rather than a hand. Time to end this. Once his throat is in my hand it'll be done. I thrust forward and right as I'm about to rend flesh and create a corpse a flash of light bursts from him and threatens to blind me. The room fills with a mass of pure light. I smell something burnt. I think it's the ash. The light envelops everything in the room then fades away leaving thousands of tiny little lights sparking everywhere. I watch as the minute little specks of light dart about the room over my head.

Then the lights go out and I see that it's the ash from before. They flit about before disappearing one by one in tiny flashes of light till all is gone. I look back at him. My fingers pressed against his throat. Part of me wants to continue and tear the flesh from his neck. It'd be so easy. It would sate my hunger for violence...well for the moment. My more human side begins to surface though, and wonders if Angel is still posessed or not. I watch as his eyes shift from that horrible yellow and red to their normal color once more. He blinks repeatedly as if waking up from a long slumber. Looking up at me, blood running down both our faces he says only one thing.)

E..clipse...

(That's all he needs to say.)