Transcript: Runnin' Away From The Devil (The S.I.N.K Files)

The door bursts open. Akshar and Adriel are sitting at a desk, currently in a down-to-the-wire game of chess.

Akshar: Hey Laura, watch me be-whaaaat?

Laura is very visibly panicked.

Adriel: What seems to be the problem?

Laura: He's escaped, HE'S ESCAPED!

Adriel: Who's he? There are a lot of "he's" out there that could spell bad news if they escaped.

Akshar: Like Harvey Weinstein?

Adriel: No-well, yes. But you know what I mean.

Laura: It's a long story, a story zhat precedes even my mozher's reign as queen of zhe Otherrealm.

Adriel: Well, you should have time to enlighten us, right?

Laura: It began a long, long time ago, in zhe earliest days of the Otherrealm, when it was still in its infancy.

Flashback to the Otherrealm, as many Otherrealmians are being slaughtered by a cloaked figure, wielding a hammer made of bones.

Laura: One fateful day, a mysterious man showed up in zhe Otherrealm und began slaughtering all he saw. He was so vuthless in his killings that he even took on the first king of the Otherrealm und nearly von.

Laura: He vielded a hammer made of zhe strongest bone, und a dagger zhat could rip zhrough zhe barrier between zhe Otherrealm und Earth.

Akshar: Impossible...only the spirits of Earth that descended into the Otherrealm can travel freely between the two areas!

Laura: Yet, zhis only spoke volumes of how truly powerful he truly vas.

Laura: Fearful of zhe danger zhe Emmisary could spread across zhe Otherrealm, und potentially Earth, zhe first king of zhe Otherrealm made a decision. He summoned all of his most trusted varlocks, und ordered zhem to perform an ancient ritual.

Adriel: A ritual?

Laura: A very, very, visky vone. Vone that is reserved for zhe most dangerous und threatening individuals.

Flashback to 9 hooded figures creating a nonagon out of their magic, as blue flames erupt around the writhing Emmisary.

Laura: But luckily, it succeeded. Zhe Emmisary was sealed avay into a pocket dimension zhat was inescapable-or so we thought.

Akshar: Woah, what?

Laura: One of the warlocks betrayed us. By performing zhe spell at only 80% of his full power, he left a very tiny veak spot that Zhe Emmisary continued to chip at, day after day, veek after veek, month after month, year after year. Fortunately, zhis ritual enabled it so zhat every single Otherrealmian vith royal blood would have a premonition warning zhem of zhe escape. Und today...

Adriel: It happened to you?

Laura: Ja...

Akshar: Does the Board know about this?

Laura: I am unsure.

Adriel: Well, we should info-

Suddenly, Hologram Sam warps into the office, with a disdained look on his face.

Hologram Sam: So I take it you guys know why I'm here?

Adriel sighs.

Adriel: Yeah...

Hologram Sam: Follow me to the briefing room...

The three quickly walk out into the hall where many other agents are present. Laura shoots a quick glare at Hunter, who only hangs his head a little in response. The door to the briefing room opens automatically.

Hologram Sam: So..

Adriel: Hmm?

Hologram Sam: I obviously don't need to explain everything to you. It's fairly evident what the mission is. Eliminate the Emmisary by any means necessary.

Akshar: Well, we'll need to know where he is if we wanna do that.

Laura: Hrghh-

Laura clutches her head as a vision fills her brain.

Adriel: Uh...I think we're about to find out-

The vision shows The Emmisary slowly carving a hole in the barrier between the Otherrealm and Earth. He ends up in Austin, Texas.

Laura: Oh no..

Akshar: Did you find out?

Laura: Austin.

Adriel: Austin? Why Austin?

Laura: I don't know...

Akshar: Well, let's hope it's just to crack open a Stone Cold IPA and nothing else...

Adriel: Laura, are you able to warp us there, or are you too weak?

Laura: No, no, I can do it.

.Laura grabs the shoulders of the boys and begins to surround them along with herself in blue flames. They disappear in a wisp.

Meanwhile...

The Emmisary: What...am I...doing...here...must...continue...objective...

Random citizen: Jesus Christ, man. What the fuck are you wearing? It isn't Halloween for another 7 months.

The Emmisary: Don't...understand...

Random citizen: Oh, and now you're roleplaying or some shit? Kids to-GAK!

The Emmisary stabs him with the Spirit's Bane.

The Emmisary: Meet...him...you'll..see.

The citizen's body slowly dissipates away.

Suddenly, a blue flame warps into the middle of the street, surprising the few citizens surrounding it..

Laura: It's him.

The Emmisary: Who...are..you..

Adriel: He really doesn't sound all that threatening, Laura.

Laura: Trust me on zhis. He's a very formidable opponent.

The Emmisary: No....don't...understand!

Akshar: Don't understand? Understand what?

Laura: Forget it! Ve need to eliminate him.

The Emmisary: You....won't...kill...me!

Laura: Ve'll see about zhat! HRAAAAAAAAAGH!

Laura powers up with blue flames as two large skeletal arms begin to form along her normal ones. She quickly claps, sending a wave of Soulflame at The Emmisary. The Emmisary dodges quickly, pulls out his hammer, and races towards Laura.

The Emmisary: Away!

He slams his hammer onto the ground, creating a rumbling trail of bones. Laura narrowly avoids it.

The Emmisary: Please...stop!

He turns towards Adriel, cuts a portal through to the Otherrealm, and appears behind him, whacking him with the hammer and sending him flying.

Adriel: Uff!

Adriel quickly starts humming the Apache war song, awakening his totem animal and engulfing him in his hawk aura, saving himself with his wings.

Adriel: I don't want to hurt you. But I will.

The Emmisary: Me....too...

Akshar: Man, this guy is weird.

Akshar quickly uses his poltergeist powers to pick up multiple surrounding cars and lampposts and throws them at The Emmisary.

Laura: Vhat do you vant?!

The Emmisary leaps over the cars and slices the lampposts before they can hit him.

The Emmisary: Take...souls...for...him...

Adriel: Who is him?

The Emmisary: No...

Laura: God damn it!

Laura blasts multiple fireballs at The Emmisary. he dodges 3, but is hit by the fourth. Reeling, he cuts a hole through the barrier and escapes.

Adriel: Quick! The rip is beginning to close!

The three agents dive into the cut The Emmisary made. They end up in a mysterious, colorful, surreal void.

Akshar: Whoopee, the In-Between.

[S.I.N.K DATA FILE 44-3-F: THE IN-BETWEEN

The enigmatic world between worlds known as the In-Between is a place that has long befuddled even the brightest minds. Discovered by S.I.N.K scientists in the mid-90's, it was inferred that the In-Between was exactly that - an in-between space among all universes, locations, and worlds. Without it, it is possible that all of reality would collapse in on itself. The ability to be able to access and travel through the In-Between is called teleportation.]

Adriel: I won't lie. This place has always disturbed me. Knowing that, in here, every where is everywhere.

Akshar: Wordplay!

Laura: Look! I think I see him!

Akshar: Is that a Sigillaria tree? Those things went extinct in the Early Permian era!

Laura: Vell, it's about to go extinct again. He's cutting it down on his vay.

Adriel summons his green wings.

Adriel: I'll tail him and give him something to run from. You two can surprise him however you want.

Laura and Akshar: Right!

He flies off. The other two watch as he zooms and disappears in The Emmisary's direction.

Akshar: I'll try using Phantom Vision. If we can see where The Emmisary and Adriel are headed, it'll be easy to catch up to them.

Akshar's eyes suddenly glow a bright pink. Through his eyes, everything without a lifeforce begins to dim. The only things he can currently see are trees, some animals, and the faint outlines of Adriel and The Emmisary.

Akshar: There!

Laura: Alright, off ve go!

Laura engulfs herself and Akshar in Soulflame. Adriel is seen soaring across the In-Between, until he suddenly sees The Emissary leaping from rock to rock in a large chasm.

Adriel: This is Adriel to Team, I found him. Large purple chasm, under glowing minor star.

Laura: Got it! Headed your vay now.

Adriel rears his wings and blasts a few Mystic Feathers at The Emmisary. He notices and dodges them easily.

Emmisary: You...again.

Adriel: Surprise.

Emmisary: ...die!

The Emmisary makes three cuts into the In-Between. Suddenly, a large Ferralys emerges through and flies towards Adriel.

[S.I.N.K DATA FILE 56-8-H: FERRALYS

A malicious creature with fangs sharper then swords and torn yet ginormous wings, the Ferralys is one of the premier predators of the Otherrealm's food chain. Despite not having any eyes, a Ferralys has a highly enhanced sense of tracking movement based through its hearing. It is able to pick up on the slightest whisper, and sometimes, if in good enough shape, it can hear heartbeats. However, one thing a Ferralys cannot stand is Soulflame. A group of Ferrali is aptly called a slaughter.]

Adriel: Damn it!

Adriel darts and dodges around, trying to swerve the creature off him.

Laura: Don't vorry! CROWN OF SOULS!

A large Soulflame tornado erupts from under Laura and Adriel, protecting the both of them from the Ferralys' lunge. It recoils in anger and roars.

Adriel: You'd look good mounted on my WALL!

Adriel flies straight through the Ferralys, killing it. The Ferralys' blood slips straight off Adriel's green hawk aura. It gives off one last angry roar before plummeting to its death.

Emmisary: Just...gettting...started.

The Emmisary stabs Spirit's Bane into the ground, creating 4 giant holes where 4 giant replicas of it erupt from the ground. Laura and Adriel dodge it, but Akshar is hit.

Akshar: OW! YOU DICK!

Adriel: Aren't you dead?

Akshar: Yeah, and? It won't kill me but it still hurts.

Laura: This vill be your vesting ground, Emmisary!

Emmisary: Prinzessin...is...afraid!

Laura descends onto the ground where The Emmisary is standing and engages him in battle.Laura: Vhy vould I be afraid of someone like you?

Emmisary: Not...of...me...Prinzessin...is afraid...of her!

Laura: Wh-

The Emmisary takes advantage of her brief confusion by warping behind her. He makes a small cut in his own thumb with Spirit's Bane, revealing his blue blood. He then whips Laura around and violently presses his bleeding thumb into her head.

Emmisary: OF HER!

Laura: GAK-

Laura was projected backwards. Her feet left the ground. She floated, weightless, as if she had been transported in space. A warm, familiar laughter lulled her into a simpler time in her life.

*Laura: Wor...chester..shire?*

*??? laughs.*

*???: You'd think that'd be how, but it's actually "wu-stuh-cher."*

*Laura: What? Why?*

*???: Well...English is kind of a stupid language, seeing as it is the love child of like, 7 other languages, so it ends up also being the love child of the stupidity of said 7 other languages...it's weird.*

*Laura: Mein gott...maybe I'm not trying hard enough..*

*???: It's fine, English is tough. But you've already got all the basics down.*

*Laura smiles.*

*???: You know I'll always be here to help you, right?*

*Laura: Of course.*

She leans her head on his shoulder.

Laura lands on the ground violently. She gasps aloud, all air kicked out of her lungs. The back of her head hit the ground hard.

Emmisary: Of...HER.

Laura: You...YOU!

Laura explodes in Soulflame, her bone tiara manifesting around her head.

Akshar: Shit, it's happening again! ADRIEL!

Adriel: On it!

Adriel takes out an ancient Native American flute. He plays a calming melody, and it magically carresses itself around Laura, all while The Emmisary makes his escape.

Laura: Guhh...

Laura sees the flute in Adriel's hands and scowls at him.

Laura: WHY DID YOU DO ZHAT?! HE GOT AVAY AGAIN!

Adriel: I couldn't let your powers explode here, especially in a place so fragile yet important to reality. What provoked it, though?

Laura sighs.

Laura: I...I don't know how he did it. He cut his thumb, pressed his blood against my head, und I was...forced to remember something I tried very hard to keep sealed.

Adriel: Like a memory?

Laura: I...I don't know. It all felt so real. I could feel, und smell, und..it felt like I was actually reliving it...

Akshar: Mind-warping...he did this by pressing his blood on your forehead?

Laura: Ja...

Akshar: I've heard of those with mind-warping powers, but I haven't seen one with this level of magnitude, to the point where it felt real.

Adriel: I concur. The most I am aware of is completely shutting down parts of the brain...but to manipulate it into thinking it's smelling and hearing and feeling things it isn't...

Akshar: Are you able to keep going, Laura? You seem pretty shaken up.

Laura: I..I'm fine. All the more reason to kill zhis bastard for good.

Akshar: There she is. Let's keep trekking on...

Laura suddenly collapses again with another vision of The Emmisary.

Akshar: YOU JUST SAID YOU WERE FINE!

Adriel: Calm down, she's having another premonition. The Emmisary must have-

Laura: Entered the Otherrealm...

Akshar: What?! We need to stop him!

Adriel: We need to find some other way! Laura is in no condition to be teleporting us right now!

Laura: No, no, it's ok! I'll do it! Just hold on for a moment...

Adriel: Laura, I mean it. You are not in the right-

Before he could continue, he realized he had already been warped.

Laura: Zhere...see? I told you I could do it.

Adriel: Yes, but we're in the middle of the city. He's got to be headed to the palace by now.

Laura: Zhat is fine. Everyone should-

Otherrealmian: Preise Gott! It's the Prinzessin!

Otherrealmian 2: It is! She's come to save us!

Otherrealmian 3: She's brought Herr Adriel and Herr Akshar as vell! Ve're saved!

Laura: Vhat is happening? Has anyone been killed?

Otherrealmian 2: Zhe Emmisary has been slaughtering his way towards the Palace of the Lost! He's looking for Königin Giulania!

Laura: No...Mutter...

Adriel: Don't worry, Laura. The Königin is powerful. She might not be able to defeat The Emmisary, but he certainly won't be able to kill her.

Akshar: Yeah! So let's get a move on!

The three rocket into the air and fly towards the palace. They spot The Emmisary about to slay an Otherrealmian Peacekeeper.

Laura: YOU!

The Emmisary: Prinzessin...lives...

Laura: You're damn vight I live! But you von't in a second!

She rockets down to the ground and creates her Sword of the Forgotten. The Emmisary grips Spirit's Bane.

Laura: If zhat's how you vant to play it, auf der hut.

Laura lunges towards The Emmisary, who dodges and cuts a hole above her, several rocks falling from it onto her. Laura sets her hair on Soulflame and quickly whips it on the rocks, disintegrating them.

Adriel: We have your back, Laura!

Adriel activates his Hawk powers and unsheathes his two green glowing tomahawks and throws them at The Emmisary.

Emmisary: Hah...

He dodges them easily, but is caught off guard and is hit twice when they both come back.

Emmisary: GRAK!

Akshar: My turn!

Akshar telekinetically grabs a lamppost from the ground and whacks The Emmisary with it, sending him into a building. The lamppost dissolves into smoke and then reforms in the same spot it was in before it was pulled.

Laura: DIE ALREADY!

She engulfs herself in more Soulflame and flies right into the building on which The Emmisary landed in.

Emmisary: Heh...heh...

Laura throws a Soulflame punch at The Emmisary, who dodges it and pulls out his Bone Hammer, and whacks Laura straight in the ribs with it. Hard. She's sent flying to the other side of the room, and she coughs up some blood.

Emmisary: Master will...be pleased with...soul of...Prinzessin...

Laura: ...y-you...

The Emmisary makes another cut, this time in his index finger.

Emmisary: Prinzessin will die...because Prinzessin is afraid of her!

He presses his finger to her head. It takes Laura everything she has to resist.

Laura: AAAAAAAAAAARGH!

*Laura: VATER!*

\*

*???: It'll all work out, Laura. I promise.*

\*

*Hunter: I'm sorry...I wasn't-*

\*

*Laura: FUCK YOU!*

Despite the immense pain, The Emmisary was unable to sway her. Laura only experienced a few fragments of several memories.

Emmisary: What?...how?

Laura stands up, her bone tiara manifesting again on her head, and restrains the Emmisary in chains, making him drop Spirit's Bane. She holds out her arm and blasts it with Soulflame, apparently destroying it.

Emmisary: NOOOOOOOOO!

Laura: Maybe you're vight. Maybe I am afraid of her. Maybe I am afraid of me. I was afraid of who I vas und vhat I might be. But I can't do anyzhing about zhat. I vill always be me, until the end of time. And I have made peace with zhat. The only one afraid of me now...are those who aim to destroy this vorld. Those like you.

Laura grabs The Emmisary's face and burns him alive.

The Emmisary: WWRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGHHHHH!

The Emmisary is now nothing more than ash and smoke.

Laura: Schweinehund...

Akshar: Woah...

Adriel: I see we have completed the mission.

Akshar: So shall we head home?

Laura: Go ahead of me. I have somezhing to take care of, if that's ok.

Adriel: Of course. After everything that happened to you today, you deserve some respite. We will see you back at HQ.

Akshar floats away and out of the Otherrealm, while Laura puts her hand on Adriel and teleports him home. She then teleports herself to the Palace of the Lost.

Laura: Herr Gunther, Herr Ludwig. It is truly pleasing to be seeing you again.

The two royal guards quickly genuflect to their Prinzessin.

Gunther: And we you, my Prinzessin. We congratulate you on the successful elimination of The Emmisary. We were informed by palace watchmen.

Ludwig: If you are looking to see the Königin, she is in her room. I shall escort you up there.

Laura: My thanks, but there is no need, Herr Ludwig. I vould prefer to see her on my lonesome.

Ludwig: Of course, my Prinzessin.

Laura: Oh, just call me Laura.

Gunther: We cannot do that, my Prinzessin. It is against royal etiqutte.

Laura: Ms. Degenhardt is fine, zhen.

Gunther and Ludwig: Of course, Ms. Degenhardt.

Smiling, Laura walks past the guards and into her palace. She floats up the stairs and into the room of her mother, Königin Giuliana Evangelies Degenhardt.

Laura: Mutter? Are you in here?

She turns and sees her sitting on her couch, sipping a glass of wine.

Giuliana: Hallo, my tochter.

Laura: I...I vanted to talk to you about somezhing.

Giuliana: Is zhis about zhe Emmisary?

Laura: Vell...partly. It's just zhat...how did he manage to get his hands on Spirit's Bane? I thought it was locked away in the Vaults..

Giuliana's expression dimmed. Laura notices this.

Laura: Unless zhere is somezhing I am unavare of?

Giuliana: You see...the dagger was locked away for a little but...

Laura: But?

Giuliana: Zhe dagger vas never created by Otherrealmian varlocks...it was created by...

Laura: Mutter?

Giuliana: It vas created by your father.

Laura: WH- VATER?

Giuliana smiles sadly.

Giuliana: My Aryvn was quite the tinkerer...he saw Otherrealmian magic as his newest tool to create his magnum opus.

Laura: So...the Spirit's Bane vas his greatest creation?

Giuliana: Undoubtedly, yes. His demonstrations wowed the entire realm. But many others knew zhat. Zhey tried to take it away from him, claiming it vas dangerous. It vas, but many did not care. Zhey only vanted it for zhemselves. So he hid it avay, deep in the castle vaults.

Laura: So...how did he get it?

Giuliana: I do not know. I am sorry, my tochter.

Laura: So now he vill never be able to use it...I just vish I could give it back to him.

Giuliana: Laura...

Laura: It is alvight, mutter. I shall be heading home now. Ich liebe dich.

Giuliana: Ich liebe dich, mein Laura.

Laura teleports herself back home and onto her couch in her team's office. Soulflame engulfs her hand, and she holds the newly teleported Spirit's Bane.

Laura: I VILL give it back.

THE END