transcendence-au - Tumblr blog

transcendence-au · 6 days

Text

The Comfort of Agony, Chapter 8

For the first time in his eternal life, Alcor had been bound. He couldn't leave even if he wanted to... so it was just as well that he didn't want to leave, right? After all, this was what Mizar wanted.

He didn't know what she was so angry with him for, but he probably deserved it.

See most updated version on Archive of Our Own.

Nxlar the Antithetical is from @gnomewithalaptop awesome TAU Dash Simulator!

______________________________________________________________

Piper had never in her life been so tired at eight PM. Her whole body felt so sore and clumsy and heavy, like lead was running through her veins. She was so tired she wasn’t even quite sure she was awake; she kept jolting up, opening her eyes, looking around the motel room as she tried to get ahold of herself… and then opening her eyes again. It was confusing, and half-formed dreams followed her into the waking world. She was sure there’d been a unicorn here, but she was…

She was drawing a circle. Or more aptly, Alcor was drawing a circle, with her hand. It moved smoothly and steadily, a focused presence sharing her body as it drew a complex array of symbols on the tile…

Piper jolted as she opened her eyes again. Had that been a dream too? No. That was real.

Stars, her neck was killing her. She cast a longing glance at the bed just a few feet away, and then slumped down to look at the mirror in her lap.

“Alcor…” she started. “When are we… when’s this done?”

“Nearly done with this binding circle.” He said, and she could feel her eyelids drooping lower. “I picked a more powerful demon to quickly ward off the angel, so the circle had to be a little more complex. Nxlar’s a good choice, she’s dangerous, sure, but pretty sensitive to…”

“…and that should hold her! You ready Piper? Piper?”

Piper sat up; there was a wetness on the side of her mouth. Eww, she’d been drooling.

“Jeez,” Alcor gave a sympathetic frown. “You really are tired. You wanna just go to sleep?”

“I’m…” she rubbed her eyes. “I can’t sleep until we do this, so let’s just do this, right?”

“I mean, I can do it alone,” he said, sheepishly. “I, uh, sort of have already been doing it, rather than telling you what to draw. If you just wanted to go to sleep while I, uh, use your body…?”

Piper gave a slow blink. She could tell he was trying to broach something to her… but she was fried. She just sat there fighting her eyelids as he made a few more quick markings.

“Uh, alright,” Alcor said, and had her stand up. “I’ll do the talking, then.”

Grabbing twenty three candles, he walked around the chalk, setting them down in a zigzag pattern on an inner and outer circle. Once that was done, he took a look at his work - and rolled his eyes a bit at the clutter of her circle. Twenty three candles? Alcor thought any demons with more than twelve were being a bit extra. And Nxlar - ever the contrarian - didn’t even want you to light them, so it didn’t have the pretty candlelight glow while you chanted. Not to mention all the intricate chalk symbols you couldn’t even make out in a dark room…

Alcor shook his head. Well, aesthetic concerns aside, the circle was done. Raising Piper’s hands up in the air, he began the summoning.

“O, Nxlar the Antithetical, O Great Mistress of Decay, I draw upon your darkness!”

The room seemed to drop ten degrees, and Alcor let out a subtle scoff that fogged the air. Putting ‘great’ in your own summoning chant - a little gauche, don’t you think? But a sickly rotting smell was starting to emanate from the circle, so he put it out of mind.

As he watched, the unlit candles started to sag and bloat at their bases; the white wax greyed and split, and a dark, stinking sludge oozed fourth and began to pool in the center of the circle.

As tentacles slowly took form, Alcor slipped the mirror behind Piper’s back, and opened her eyes. He watched a dripping maw form, and smiled as a rumbling, frustrated growl rattled the walls.

“A̷ b̶i̶n̸d̵i̶n̸g̶ c̷i̶r̴c̵l̵e̴?̵” Nxlar’s voice was a staticy echo. One of her tentacles snaked out towards the edge of the circle; it stopped short, and she hissed as she drew it back. “Y̷o̴u̶ ̸d̷r̴a̷g̴ ̸m̶e̸ ̶o̴u̵t̶ ̶h̴e̵r̵e̵ ̵w̴i̴t̶h̵ ̴n̷̬̚ō̴̺ ō̸̩f̸͎̎f̸͎̅ë̴͇́r̴̝̈i̷̠͆ṉ̴̀g̶͔̓,̶ ̷a̸n̶d̵ ̸t̵h̶e̵n̶ ̷y̴o̴u̸ ̶t̶r̴a̵p̷ ̵m̶e̵ ̵i̵n̴ ̶t̵h̵i̵s̵ ̴t̶i̵n̶y̸ ̸c̵i̴r̶c̴l̴e̸?”

“Tiny? Oh, please, it’s not tiny.”

Nxlar snarled. “M̵a̸k̴e̸ ̴y̸o̵u̷r̶ ̴d̴e̶a̶l̷,̴ ̴h̶u̵m̴a̷n̷!̵ ̸A̸n̴d ̵y̴o̶u̶ ̷b̸e̷t̶t̷e̸r̸ ̵c̷h̷o̷o̶s̵e̴ ̵y̵o̵u̷r̷ w̷o̵r̷d̸s̶ c̴a̶r̷e̶f̴u̵l̷l̵y̵ - I’̵m̸ ̸n̷o̸t̸ ̸f̴e̴e̴l̸i̸n̶g̸ ̴g̴e̷n̵e̷r̴o̶u̴s̵!”

“Actually, that’s the best part about this.” Alcor couldn’t hide a grin as he stepped closer. “I don’t need a deal at all.”

“W̸h̴a̷t̸?̴”

“I just needed to summon you.” To the demon’s astonishment, Alcor carefully rubbed out a compelling ward with his foot. “There you go, you can go now.”

“You - you don’t want a deal?” Nxlar’s tentacles began to writhe beneath her; the confusion was turning quickly to anger. “ Y̴̤̆ȏ̶̘u̵̥͠ fo̷͍͒r̵̘̊c̸̜͆ḙ̸͂d ̵̔m̴̺͌e̵͙̿ ̴͕̀tŏ̶̥ c̷̣̿ö̸̘́m̸̲͐ȩ̷̓ h̵̢̛e̸̡͐r̷̨͒e ̶f̵̹̂ȯ̶͖r̶̳̋ ̶̧͗ n̶͙̚o̷̯͌t̵��̓h̴̦͐i̵̢̕n̵̜̿g̸̹͆?̷̧̊”

“Yep!” Alcor gave a cherry wave. “You’ve been so helpful - thanks for coming!”

“̷Yo̷u - g̸o̴r̵e̷ ̴a̶n̵d̸ ̴m̶a̶g̵g̸o̵t̵s̴,̴ ̶I̸’̵m̴ ̴n̵o̵t̶ ̵g̴o̶i̴n̸g̵ ̴a̴n̵y̶w̴h̴e̶r̸e̶ ̸W̶̛̮̙̰͓̙̩̫̗͈̲͂̈́̾͗̐͊̊͒͝͠Į̷̱̖͐̌̏̒̄̓̔͒̄̔̓̏̕̕T̵̯̺͔̰̈́̔͋̿̌̄̅̑̄̾͌͝HO̶̞̼̖̣͚͉̻̻̪͒̇̀͌̆̾̔̂͗́́̈͛͛̕��͠͝Ṳ̵̢͚͈̳̠͒̕T̶̻̹̠͖͊̇̈̋͜ Ỵ̸͎̟͇̦̳͎͇̳̞̭̤̲̣͜͝ͅO̸̺̖͎̲̲̳̠̖̳̅̑̑Ṳ̸̗̬̐̉͆͘͜͜͠͝R̶̢̗̪͉̲͖͉͉͓̹̾̀̈̈́̃̃͒̕̚͘͠͝ H̵̨̘̩̫̖̻́̀̊̆̒́̓̆̔̀́̍̕͠͝E̴̡̢̥̝͚͉͔͚̦̦͖͎̳͌̏͆̎͑͊͒͝Ā̵̲͇̻̬̜͉̫̹̳̼D̷̨̡̛̰̰̳̫̯̱̜̳̀̈́̌͑̌͛̊̅̍͐̒̑!̶̧̢̡͇͚͇̖̭̯̹̗̫̥͛͑̉͛͌͒͂͊̌̀̔͌̽̕͝͠"̶͝

With a shriek, Nxlar launched herself right at him - she shrieked again as she bounced off, and started battering at the binding circle with her tentacles. Alcor stood at the edge with a cheshire grin; when her assault slowed, he gave a wink, and chuckled as she screamed in frustration and fought even harder.

“You can do that all you want, Nxlar, you’re not gonna get through. You might as well…”

Alcor felt something bubbling up in his throat; he had just a moment to notice it before it came up as a loud, ripping snore. He covered his mouth, but Nxlar paused, her four eyes frowning.

“̴W̶h̸a̴t̴ ̵w̵a̸s̷ t̶h̸a̷t̷?̷”̴

“Nothing!” Alcor waved her away. “Anyway, you should go, so-“

“No, that was a snore. Are you s̶l̶e̴e̴p̵i̶n̸g̸?̴ Or…” she peered closer, at the faint glow in his eyes and the mirror clasped behind his back, and realization dawned. “You’re no human. You’re possessed!”

“I… uh…”

“You’re Alcor!” Nxlar said, and recoiled in fear - but almost as soon as she did, she was leaning forwards again. “I can barely feel you! What happened to you?”

“Uh, nothing!” Alcor felt his face starting to burn. “Nothing, you should go, I-”

“Are you…” Her jaw dropped open, and her tentacles froze in place. “Are you bound?”

“No! N-no, I’m, I just-“

“You are bound, aren’t you? You’re bound to that mirror!” All the anger was gone; Nxlar was grinning with pure glee. “The mighty Dreambender, bound away and pleading for my help… this is the best day of my existence!”

“Pleading for your help? I’m not-!”

“Oh, just wait until the Midway Bar hears about this!”

“No, don’t tell the- ugh.” Alcor dragged a hand down his face. “Okay, fine, I might be kind of slightly bound right now-“

“Kind of? You’re more stuck to that thing than the last piece of flesh on a bone!” She cackled with delight. “Aww, little Alcor, don’t look so embarrassed! Getting bound happens to the best of us - or wait, what am I saying, of course it doesn’t!”

She then collapsed into a fit of laughter. Eyebrows drooping, Alcor picked up the chalk again.

“Okay, cool, we’ve had our fun. I’m just gonna draw a banishment ward now.”

“You’re a little - a little weakling!” Nxlar was wiping yellowed tears from her eyes. “A little human-born weakling, trapped in a mirror! How’d they trap you, did they pwomise to be your fwiend?”

Alcor rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, you’re very funny, Nxlar. Goodbye.”

He finished the ward and pressed a hand to it. Nxlar was still cackling away as it began to glow.

“Sure, I’ll leave!” A tentacle waved as she faded away. “I got such a story to tell at the Midway Bar - why don’t you come down there sometime? Oh, wait, you-“

And she was gone mid-quip, though Alcor didn’t think he was missing much. He pinched his nose and let out a low groan; there goes his reputation. He was never going to hear the end of this after he got unbound, wasn’t he?

Oh… well. That was a problem for another day. Staring down at the thick grimey sludge left behind in the circle, he was glad at least that he got what he wanted.

“Here’s our demonic essence,” he said through the mirror. “I’ll just spread this over the room, and then you can get some well-deserved sleep, okay Piper?” A pause. “Piper?”

No response, and after a moment, another snore broke through. Oh, she was out , and he didn’t blame her. He could feel her scattered dreams, her flashes of fear as the dangers replayed themselves in her mind… Alcor made a face, and touched the mirror to her forehead. He wondered if he could still do this. Concentrating, he sent a pulse of his power through the mirror, and into her mind.

He felt her dreams settle down, felt the edges smooth out into a soft, pleasant grey, and he smiled. Good. It was the least he could do for her. And this body was exhausted as well - he just had one thing left to do, and then he’d let it rest.

There were a couple plastic cups over by the motel sink, and Alcor grabbed them and started scooping as much sludge into them as he could fit. It was thick, disgusting ooze, and he shuddered as he stuck his hand into one. He started painting along the baseboard, moving beds and tables that got in the way, leaving a black, smelly continuous line through the entire room.

Once that was done, he stepped back, careful not to wipe his forehead. There. The angel wouldn’t be able to maintain a consistent hold on Mag in this room; if it was trying to keep him in the dark, it wouldn’t come in.

His face tightened. Mag… he was going to find a way to reach him. But for now, he couldn’t help him. He could only help Piper, and he swore, he was going to find a way to get her out of this mess.

He finally walked her body over to the bed, lay her down on the mattress, and pulled the covers over her body. He kept a hold on the mirror as he propped it up on the other pillow, adjusting his view until he could keep watch on the door.

“Goodnight,” He said, softly, and then he closed her eyes.

His own stayed open, a soft yellow glow shining in the darkness.

______________________________________________________________

It was a cultist. It was a cultist.

That was the first thing running through Mag’s mind as he came to. The wave of agony that crashed over him; everything, everything hurt. His ribs felt broken, he couldn’t breathe through his nose, he tried to move his arm and felt such a spike of pain it made him sick to his stomach - oh, that was dislocated. Ow. Ow.

“Oh my stars!”

Bright headlights were torture to his pounding head. Through his swimming eyes, he saw a silhouetted figure approaching him.

“Are you- are you okay?!” He watched them cup their hands over their mouth. “Oh my… d-don’t move, dude, I’ll… I’ll call an ambulance! Hold on!”

An ambulance, shit. Mag gritted his teeth, and dragged himself forward. Every movement was a herculean effort, and he could feel the little pebbles of the tarmac scraping themselves along raw and shredded skin. A car on the highway zoomed past so close to him - he needed to get out of here. He needed to get out of here now. Come on, he needed to heal!

“H-hello, 911? Yes! Yes, oh my stars! I-I found a man on the highway! He’s really hurt, you gotta send someone quick!”

It came slowly, reluctantly. Mag squeezed his eyes shut as his shoulder snapped back into place; there was a pop in his chest as his rib reset itself. He got to his knees, and the tattered rags of his clothes hung loosely from him as he got his feet underneath him.

“Y-yeah, I’m on the 101, exit… Oh, I don’t know!” The man had his back to Mag, peering desperately into the darkness as he approached. “I-I don’t, maybe I can drive to find the nearest one? O-or should I stay with him, he really needs help! I-I can…”

Mag’s foot scraped on the tarmac, and the man glanced back - glanced, and then turned around with wide, horrified eyes.

“I-I can…” His eyes traced up, up the filthy orange prison jumpsuit, all the way up to meet Mag’s eyes. He backed up against his car. “I… I…”

Mag could hear the 911 operator still talking in his ear. He reached forwards, plucked the phone out of his hands, dropped it to the ground and stepped on it.

“Sorry, man.” Mag said, and tried the car’s handle; it swung open. “And sorry about this, too. It’s a bad day for both of us, eh?”

Then he squeezed himself into the car and started the engine; the man, standing frozen in front of the headlights, quickly scampered out of the way. Stepping on the accelerator, Mag sped up on the shoulder before merging onto the highway. Hair was in his eyes - he shoved it back, then put two hands on the wheel and leaned forward.

“Come on,” he muttered. “Can’t lose her now. Hold on, Piper.”

His hands tightened on the wheel - tightened on the gun pointed at-

It was a cultist.

That voice… his voice, but not his words, he knew. And the memory that flashed in his mind now, the gun pointed at a hooded figure with a knife, it was blurry, surreal.

It wasn’t his own, he knew. The angel altered his memories sometimes; there were things it knew he couldn’t handle, things he could sleep better at night without. It knew what was best for him.

It was a cultist.

All he had to do was trust it, and it’d keep him safe.

It was a cultist.

It’d keep his family safe.

It was a cultist.

It’d show him how to bind Alcor away, and they’d work together to dismantle every sick cult that tore families like his apart, to make a world where what happened to Scarlett would never, ever happen again.

It was a cultist.

He didn’t need to think. He didn’t need to feel. He just had to give himself over, give himself completely, let himself become a hammer to be wielded, an instrument through which the angel could reach into the world and wipe away the darkness wherever it existed.

It was a cultist.

He didn’t need to think, and that was good, really. He wasn’t a smart guy - he never had been. He was a warm, mortal body, and that was all he needed to be. He just needed to trust in the angel, and everything would turn out okay.

It was a cultist.

He just needed to trust the angel. It knew what it was doing. It knew what it was doing.

…

Why was that giving him a pit in his stomach?

Mag grimaced; he could feel his arm pulsing. A cold presence was pushing itself into his mind, pushing him to the side. He closed his eyes, letting him swallow him up, and he thought no longer.

Glowing eyes opened in his place, and peered into the darkness.

There was a motel coming up on the side - the sign read ‘COZY JOE’S CHEAP MOTEL ROOMS’. It looked at the sign, looked at the long, squat building just off the side of the highway.

It looked… and it drove on.

#fic #dipper #piper #nxlar

12 notes · View notes

transcendence-au · 15 days

Text

The Comfort of Agony, Chapter 7

He didn't know what she was so angry with him for, but he probably deserved it.

See most updated version on Archive of Our Own.

______________________________________________________________

It was dark outside the store, but Piper swore she could feel the fluorescent lights beating down on her. She stood in line, shuffling slowly forwards until it was her turn. Dumping everything on the counter, she watched the cashier take a long look at her items before his gaze flitted up to her. The lights buzzed loud in the stretching silence - she tried for a smile.

“Hi,” she managed. “Uh, busy day, huh?”

“Hmph.” He grunted, and picked up a box of chalk. “You got a lot of these.”

“Yeah! Um - sidewalk party! We’re, uh, we’re all gonna draw on the sidewalk!”

“I see. Lot of candles, too.”

Piper laughed - it sounded way too loud. “Yeah… power outage? At my house?”

“Uh huh. And the sigil ink is for school, yeah? I hear that one all the time.”

“It’s… i-it’s, uh…” She looked at his raised eyebrow, and stretched her smile. “Look… I really need this.”

The man stayed still a moment longer… then, with a sigh and a shake of his head, he picked up the scanner. Beep, it went, and Piper tried to take a deep breath. She glanced down at the mirror in her purse, her heart pounding in her chest.

Beep. Beep. The man stuffed everything into two shopping bags and tapped his screen.

“Comes to, ah, one ninety seven, sixty six. Cash or card?”

“Card?” Piper blinked. “Oh, uh, I mean, card, yeah! Here you go - or wait, I scan it.”

After fumbling through the payment, she snatched up the bags, took her receipt, and hurried out of the store. The parking lot was dark, with glass crunching under her feet and the roar of cars speeding through the nearby highway. There was a shadowy figure smoking against the wall, and Piper tried not to look like she was walking too fast as she made a beeline for her car over at the gas station.

Once she was in, with all the doors locked, she tossed the bags onto the seat next to her and let out a huge breath.

“Oh, my stars,” she said, patting her pockets for her keys. “He totally knew what I was buying that stuff for. Do you think he’s gonna call the cops on me?”

“Probably not?” Alcor made a face. “He probably wouldn’t have sold it to you in the first place, but, uh… we should probably go. Quickly. Piper?”

“I’m working on it, where’s my- oh! In my hand!” A nervous laugh as she put her keys in the ignition. “Sorry, uh… getting a little tired, I think. Been a long day.”

“I know. We’ll be stopping for the night soon, though.” Alcor strained to peek over the dashboard. “We passed a motel a couple minutes ago, right? If you drive back that way, that’s probably the closest one.”

“Yeah,” Piper said, a little distracted as she pulled out of the parking lot. “Yeah, that’s… I’ll do that.”

It was quiet as she accelerated down the ramp, and merged back into the highway. The road stretched out endlessly ahead of her, the streetlights passed her by one by one by one; stars, she felt like she’d been driving for a lifetime. She shifted a little in her seat, rolled her shoulders, rubbed her eyes. Glanced over at Alcor, and made a face.

“So, uh,” she started, if only to break the silence. A few seconds passed as she thought of how to follow it up. “I still don’t get it. We’re summoning demons… to bind an angel?”

“Exorcise an angel, binding’s just a part of that.”

“Uh, okay?”

“It’s, uh, different.” Alcor took one look at her expression, and sighed. “I get it, this is way out of your comfort zone. But I promise, this is the safest way I can think of to get the materials. We’re summoning weak demons with strong binding circles, and we’re not even making deals with them, okay?”

“Okay…” Piper turned the wheel as she took a gentle turn. “Then, uh, what are we doing with them?”

“Nothing. We don’t need them - we need their chalk.”

“Chalk?”

She glanced at the shopping bag full of chalk they’d already bought, and he seemed to anticipate her question. “Chalk from a used summoning circle - it’s imbued with a low level of demonic essence. Once we get enough of it, we should be able to use it to trap the angel like normal chalk can be used to trap demons. We’ll need more complicated stuff later, but it can wait for when you’re not exhausted.”

“I guess that makes sense.” Piper said, slowly. “But why doesn’t normal chalk work?”

“It’s, uh, complicated.” A short laugh. “But basically, angels aren’t drawn to the physical world the same way demons are, so they can’t be bound in the same way. It’s not exactly harder, but the materials for it are different - not exactly stuff you can just buy in a store.”

“Okay…”

“The simplest way to repel an angel is with demonic essence. That’s why we’re doing this tonight instead of waiting for tomorrow - summon a few demons in your motel room and he won’t come near. You can sleep easy!”

“Sleep easy,” Piper echoed, rubbing her eyes. “I hope so.”

She was starting to feel warm sitting back in her seat; she shifted around again, turned on the AC and blasted it right at her face. She kept her eyes fixed on each road sign as it came out of the black and sped past her, waiting for that motel. Come on, she thought, any minute now…

She was so focused on the road ahead, she didn’t notice the dark figure of a car merging onto the highway and smoothly pulling up behind her. The lights came on in an instant; Piper jumped in her seat at the sound of a siren, and then her stomach dropped at the flashing blue and red lighting up her dashboard.

“Oh, shoot!” Piper gripped the steering wheel; she realised she’d swerved a bit out of the lane and quickly corrected. “Shooot… Alcor? What do we do?”

“The cops - dammit, this is the last thing we need.” Alcor strained to look out of the side mirror. “Uh, stay… stay calm? Maybe he’s pulling someone else over?”

The highway was empty but for the two of them; Piper made a face. “I don’t think he is.”

She flicked on her signal and started slowing down; Alcor blinked. “You’re pulling over?”

“Uh, yeah?”

“You can’t do that!”

“What do you mean I can’t do that?”

“You’re a missing person! He probably recognised your car!”

“Maybe he’s just here for the demonology stuff?” Piper eyed the plastic bags. “We could hide those somewhere, right?”

“It doesn’t matter where you hide it if he runs your plates, Piper!” Alcor watched in panic as they kept slowing down - he banged on the glass. “Piper! Piper, he’s gonna take you into custody! Piper-”

“What am I supposed to do?!” She snapped. “Run from the cops? I’m in a fucking Camry, Alcor!”

Alcor didn’t respond to that. Piper took a few short breaths as she turned onto the shoulder; her eyes were burning, and she rubbed them.

“It’ll be - it’ll be fine, okay?” She came to a stop, grabbed the plastic bags, and opened her glovebox. “We just act natural, right?”

“Piper-”

“We just act natural.” She tried closing the glovebox; she forced it up a few times as the plastic bags bulged. “It’s not like they can arrest me, right? I haven’t done anything wrong - I’m the one who got attacked! They can’t arrest me for getting attacked, right!”

“Piper-”

“Agh, stupid little- this is just perfect!” She slammed the glovebox one more time, and watched through blurring eyes as everything came tumbling out onto the floor. “What am I supposed to do?! I’m screwed! I’m screwed!”

Alcor spoke quietly. “You’re not screwed.” He said. “It’s gonna be okay, okay? Take a deep breath.”

Piper took in a shuddering breath, and pressed her hands to her face as she let it out. “I’m so fucking tired.”

“I know. I’m sorry. We’ll be on the road soon, okay?” When she glanced over at him, she found a reassuring smile on his face. “Once this is over, we’ll be at the motel, and you’ll be able to go to sleep. You’ve done a traffic stop before, right?”

“...Yeah.” Another deep breath, in, and out, and then she set her jaw. She looked behind her, at the blinding white headlights shining through her back window, then over to the glovebox again. “Okay. License and registration.”

“Yeah!” Alcor watched her dig through the papers that had spilled into the footwell. “I’ll dim myself, too. I’ll look like a normal mirror, but I can keep an eye on things, okay?”

“Okay.” Piper heard footsteps just as she found her registration; she sat up, and put her hands on the wheel. “Okay, okay.” Glancing over at the mirror, she found it blank, just as he said. Chalk boxes were still strewn around the footwell, but there was nothing she could do about them now - hopefully he wouldn’t notice. Nothing to do about it now.

“Okay, okay, okay.”

She could feel her heart hammering in her chest as a bright light came up to her window. She couldn’t see the figure well behind the flashlight; but a hand reached out and knocked on the glass, and she rolled it down.

“Uh, hi officer, I just-”

Click. Piper paused at a strange noise… and then froze as the cold, hard barrel of a gun pressed itself against her temple.

“Don’t move,” said Mag’s voice with an eerie echo, and Piper didn’t dare to breathe. From the corner of her eye, she could see the mirror light up again, could see a furious brickwork demon come roaring into view.

“Y̵̛̘̼͛̿͋̊̏̈͘ö̵͇͕͕̩̹͉́͌́̀̄̀͌̽̄͘͘͜͠ȕ̶̮̦͒͒͆̐͐̔̈̚,” Alcor snarled as the angel put away the flashlight; the pure glow of his gaze cast its own light into the car.

“Ȋ̸k̷͖o̷̮ẅ̸̘́w̴h̷̠̓ã̴̲t̵̞́ ỵ̵̆ȏ̷̠u ̷̻͠d̴͚͗ĭ̸̼d. Ŷ̸̈́͊o̴̰͛̂u̸̬̱̮̇̔̐ t̴̑̈́̈͐̀̎u̵̾̈͌͋r̶̛̯͋̅̑͌̍̈́ņ̷͓̓͐̀͘̕͠͠e̶͐d h̷̀è̷r̸͂ ̵͔̃͆̽͌̾͜͠͝ Ä̴̝͇̼̮̋̋͝G̷̡̱̜̩̮̥̼̍̾̍͆͋̏Ā̴̠̽̌̈́Í̵̡̥̙̱̯͕̪̃̒͊̀̃͜N̸̗͚̜̱̤̈́Ś̶̩̻͖̺́͆̍̎̀̒Ṯ̸̨̻͍̜̹̀͒͌͗̚͜ ̵̘̼̾̃̈́̀͑̍͆Ṁ̸̪̟̍̈́̿̏̏͘̚E̶̺̝̝̺̮͕̎̅! W̷̝̲͎̥̮̪̄͒H̷̨̞͍̜͓͒̆͋̆́̈́͐͗̽̈́͋̓̈́̽̄̚ͅE̵̡̧̨̱̜͎̟̠͓̪̯̓̋͐̈́̊̂̔̀N̶̡̨̢̧̥͙̪̝̘͇̹͈̜͕̓̉̔̽̅̌̃̋͐͂̕͠ ̶̢̛̬̤̪́̈́͋̔̍̇̚͝Ḯ̵̡̩̖̺̘̩͇̞̖̣̣͐͋͑̌̐͊́̀̌̊͌̕͜͝͝ ̵̨̡̨̫̤̠̯͈̫̥̩̈́̓̒͌͜ͅͅG̶̨̭̣̤̩̼̣̩̘̹̥̼̫͊͆̋͒̈̾E̵̡̡̹̞͈̫͕̭̥͙͈̩̠̰̟͗̀̊͂̄̅̄̐͆̅͂̓̀̏̒̚͠ͅT̸̡͔͉̥̂̍̊ ̵̨̡̣͈̦̻̺̽͑̐̃͗̑̅̕͘͝Ǫ̵̨̛̪͙̫̰̤̻̟̩̰͕̍͐͛͌̈̉̃͂͆͜͝U̴̮͎̻̬̝̙̟̪͕̼͇̩̱̱̗̐̎̓̃̏͒̈͑ͅͅT̴̨̧̤͚̲̩̗͖̞͉̼̉̂̒́́͜ ̸̢̱̞̜͉̈́̿͛͊̀̊͛͛́̒̋͝Ȫ̸̱̲̪̻͈̩̫͙̮̥̠̼͐̓͘ͅF̸̧̝̼̣̮̼̾͊͗̂̎̔̇̈̄̄͜͝ͅͅ ̴̧̡̛͈͖̞̞͙̙͓̂͆͒̂̊ͅH̵̛̱͖̒̈̔͗̏͆̄̔̔̿̏̀̈́̚̚̚Ȩ̸̢̛̥͈̳̠̦̫̩̹̙̩̼̅̒̔̅̉̇Ŗ̶̛͈͈̯͖͇̖͓̟̼͈̖͒͜E̸̢̙̱̯͙̙̣̘̤̟̹̲͊̓̉͋̈̈̿͗̏̌̀̿̈́̚͜͝ ̴͖̹̜̣͚̋̈́̌̓̍̐̈̀͗̈́̕̕İ̷̙̲̺͌͛̌̋͐͘ ̸̡̨̧̝͈̹̠̦̪̞̗͈̱̪̟͇̾̉́̈̅̄̎̓̽͒̒̓̕͝͝ͅẀ̸̢͍̞͇̻̙̱̳̃̑̔͆͛̈́̔́̈́̎̚I̸͈͖̘̬̲̥̮͊͑͂͊̍̈̔͂̐̉̔̓̓͜Ĺ̶̜̯͉̪̗͕̘̳̺͙͖̊̊͐͐͒̃͗̋͊̀̿͠͝L̷̢̡͖̞̯͇̳͔̻̤̜̖̤̈́̑̒̏̉̏̉͂͘͘͝ ̸̨̡̛͓̦̳̮̺̦͉͈̘̥̓̅͂̌̓̑͑̅̓̍͠͝T̸̨̨͎͇̮͓̰̖͖̙̖̟͗̾̂ͅE̶̡̧̪̗̿A̴̢̮̺̟̭̺̝͇̲̫͔̓̒̔̅̀̅͒̄̉̇̄̿͘͝Ȑ̷̢͚̳̳͍̖̱͕̺͔̆̈́̍͋̌̃́͛͊̌̿͛̀ͅ ̴͖̋̂͌̀́̅͗̑̕Y̴̛̛̞̬̺̞̠̩͉̹̜͎̟̆̈́̿͆͑͘͜Ò̵̧̡̡͈̹̮̩͊̿͆̀́̃̊̚Ǘ̷̡̧̜̤̟͓̞̼̮̦͖͖͓̗͔̯͒́̎̽̓̏̊̀̈ ̶̢̧͙̞͉̺̱͎̙͔̠̟̲̹̠̼͆͌̾̎̈̊̅̽F̴̡̦͉̦̠͖̭̹̘̥̉̈͑̌̑̌͜͝ͅR̸̞̗̫̒͠Ȯ̴̙̳̙̽̅̾̇̐͂̈́͗̈͌͛̈̋͘̚͝M̶̢̡̨̠͎̬͉̺͓͕͚̖̮̩̗̖̒̀̂ ̸̧̢̪̞͈͍͖̠̞̱̙͉̹̳̔̊̊̈́͘L̵̢̨̡̠͉̪̼̣̲͖̜̭̍͛̔̔͆̏̅͑̋͋̒̐̊̅̀͜I̶̢̨̲̼̤̭̘͖̭̼̻̲̘̥̰̋̈́͆̉̂Ṃ̸̡̢̖̲͎̱͍̮͓̱͓̰͓̆̈́̂̿̽͆̏̔̇͐͜͜ͅB̸̧̧̢̛̛̬͖̭̖͚̥̣̖̞͖̫͙̪͐̇͐̽̀͂̈͋͆͂͑͌͜ ̵̡̛̳̲͓̟̩͕̏̄̏̽̐̌͑̾̍T̵̯̗̝̘̬̙̐̈́̆̿̀̀̈́̀͒́̄̚͝O̴̼̯̊͐̅̌͛͘ ̶̨̛͚̘͎͉͛̊̍̔͒́̔̅̒̈́L̴̞̩̟̟̹͈̞̼̬̞̝͉̻̳͕̝͑̽̏̔͆̈́̾͒̓̽͘͘̕ͅI̷̡̳̜̬̠͈̭̥̥̙͖͚̫͔͌̄͐͐̃̆͋͜M̴͓̱̙̤̼̮͍͓͗͐̚͠B̶̢̲̖͙͕̊͛̇̐̀,̴̣̲͖͎̳͓̣̊̈́̽͗̂́̂͋̍́̾̈́̾ͅ ̶̞̟͖́̐̔̑Ǎ̷̛̜̻̥͚̲̫̲̩̥̗̘̩̳͇͍̇̂̈́̋͋̾̈́̕N̸̜͔͔͓̼̘̱͚̼͙̈̐̂̈̅͜͜G̶̻̘͖͙̣̃E̷̺͇̳̜̗̼͓̙̥̼̯̟̱̎͑͌͛̆̚͝͝͝L̷̰͓͛̅͊̏͆̓̋ͅ!̵̛̼̗̮͖̩͖̙̟̊͆̂͌̏̈͑̓͑̒̓͊̋͆̒͜͠ ̸̙͓̺͈͙̦͎̝̖̱͆̈́͜I̴̛̜͈͚̞̪͔͚͙̬͈̯͌͛͂́̉̈́̿́̊̈̚͝ ̸̡̧̨̫̞͈̥̳̠̰̰͕̙͚̺̈̊͗͑̇̾͊̍̈́̈́̾̑̄͛͝W̶̢̳͙̝͍͕̱͖̌̓͐̽̀̈́̕I̴̠̹͐̈́̐̎͑̓͐̈́̈́̚͝͝L̴̪̩̤͓̣̿͜L̷̢̛͉̪͍̾̿̀͊̏̓̌͊͊͗̇ ̸̮̫̺͙̹͉͖̺̻͙̤̙̜͖̋̂͐͛͒͊̅̅̐͝M̵̻̩̱̥̪̩͉̳͑̽͒̈́̅̏͊̔ͅA̸͓̱͇̫͛̂͊̑̃Ḱ̵̛͍̺͚̋͆̂̈́̀͗͑́̃̈́̒̚͝E̷̡͎͔͎̭̓̒́̕ ̵̪̠̘̿̆̀͂̈́̓̂͛͐̿͌̉̃͆̚͜Ỳ̸̢̛̼͕͈͙̟̩͓̼̣͇̹̀͛̍̔͑͆͊͋̑̚͜Ớ̷̧̠̟̺̘̜̖̼̫͇͔̣̣̦̫̥̝̏̈́͆̽́̔̊̿͆̂̍̕̕͠͝U̷̔́͒ͅ ̴̯͍͌̆͐̇̌͗͗͐̃̽̽Ẅ̷̧̢̢͔͖̳̤̳̜̦̖̝̱̺͖̲͔́̍̆̔̽I̶̛̩̫͈͍̬̤̗̹̽̚Ş̶̧̠̠̬̝̪̹͔̣̱͖̱̋̄̑́͝H̷͎̩͍͔̥̫̗̓̍̈́̄̉̉͂̀̅̏̾͗͐̓͜͝ͅ ̵̨̢͚̻̬̤̝̤̠̰̦̞̥̭̻͂̅̽̾̌͜͜Y̸̧̙̰͍̣̹͍̏̓̓͆͗̊̈́̇̈́̄̊̒͜͠Ō̵̞͔͈̜͙̂̅̅̂͗̏̀̂̑̕U̴̞͍͕̗̣͋̊̒͌͂̓̀̃̓͘ ̵̱͖͖̰͕̦̰̪͔̺̜̖̤̮̝̊̅̀̍͋̋̒̊̈́̋̔̓̕H̸̨̧̨̛̭̼̠̮̣̝̬̟̱̭͐̋̋̈͆̉̎͘̚ͅĄ̷̙̗͓̱̘̼̗͈̪̣͔̓͊̈̊̽̄̋̅D̵̠̝̗̖̱͓̋ ̵͕̞̪̎̐͛̒̀̋́̄̑̓̾͝͝N̵̛̛͙̮͙̠̗̲̥̙̬̻͔̱̘͍̐͛̿̾̎͗̅̎̎̎̈̃͝͝Ȇ̸̙͍̺̠̻̙̫͖̿̓͗̇̀̌̕͜ͅṼ̵̢̢̘̯̘̻̫̞̲͍̳̥͚̬̟͗͊E̸̘͚̣̲̱̭̪̥̱̗̔͌́̚͠͝͝͝͝R̸̘̜͇̈́͛̒ ̴̢̧͉̟̹͉̙͉͙̣͔̥͇͖̭̇̇̐̔̅͂̃̓͛̔̇͘̚͘͝͝͝B̵͇̬̮͚̟̤̹͕͙̫͒̀̐̃̏̽͊̇̕Ē̴̢̛͋̑̀̎̉̈́́͌͐̓͆̕͠͠Ę̵͍̟̭̬͋̒̔̇͝N̴̨̢̨̳̜̥͖̖̫͍̯̔̐̈́̉̋̓͗͐͑̊͑̑̅̀͆̑͊ ̴̠̟̖͓̞̲̊̆̈͗͛͂̄̌͑̔͘̕͘C̵̰̝̒̒̄̅̕R̵͕͇͓̫̭̘̯̦̙͖̱̱̬̙͑̋̿̓͑̌̌̈́̀͜͠͝E̸̲̰̰͙̼̟̼̥͂̅̽̋͌͗̋̐͜͝A̵̭̥͍͐͗̈́̐͋͝͝T̷̝̼̼͍̰̞͇̩̬̩̣͛̎̍̋͛̆̈̍̕͘ͅE̶̡̡͎̩̼͙͕̟̲̔̒̌̋̀̋͋̇́͋̆͗̽̌̋̕̕D̵̡̨̮̯̱̠͎̣̟̘̥̙͈͙̰́̇̊̓̍̏̔́̚ͅͅ!̶̛̤͙̖̌́̈́̌̌̐́̓̈́̿̕͘ ̸̧͕̫̺̠̣̘̥̫͖̹̐͌̊́̔͜I̷̺̼̪̲̥̣̘̎̾̇̿̄͐͘ ̴̫͔́̋͒̃W̵̺̊͐́͆̀̋̍̚͘I̷̛͓̝͓̖̤̬͕̣̙͚̊̆̒̑̇͐L̷͎̎͂̀͊̔̆̍͋͋̍̂̂̃̚͠͠Ľ̵̲̳͙͔̖̍̑̓̽̔̕͝͠ ̴̨͕̙̦̳̟͕̟̱̮̲̫̀̏̃̆̕͜͝͠H̶̟̥̤̖̐̓́̎͛͠͝ͅȖ̶̺̙͍̹͓̝͙̦̔̈͑́̋͝ͅǸ̷̹̼̪͎̤̞͓̝̦̰̿̍̈́͗͌͒̍̕̕Ţ̵̨̤͚̬̖̮̈́͊͐́̽̈́́̀̄̕͜͠͝͠͠ ̶̡͕̤̝̫͚̝̮͕͕͋̀̄͂̈̒ͅY̴͔͉̞͌̅̅̀̃͋̂̐͝͝O̴̢͑̉̒̽̒̍̿̌̌̇͛͆̌͠U̷̢̢̟̖͕͓̱̘̘̝̘̱͋̓͂̎̊̊͒̓̑̏̍͒͜ ̴͙̰̜̘͙̭̪͔̱̞̔͋̒͌́͛̂̈́͋̄́̐͗̕͜D̶̯̖̺̃́̈́̏́̈́͊͗̐͑̒̐̐̿̃͘͝O̵̧̳̟̜̳̞̐̐͋͊̈̒̇́͗̀̎͘͠͠W̸̧̟̱̹͈͇̰͔͈̥̠͔͔̔̐͌̈͗̓̀̈́̋̒͒̕͜͝͠͝Ṋ̴͕̩͌͋̒̅̚ ̶̧̛̩̝͎̗̘̊̐͒̂̃̍́͆́͝T̷̢̰̗̫͙̥͎̱͉͖͉̿͜͜ͅƠ̵͍̓̀̆̓̇̆͊̿͑̂̾̚̚͠͝ ̸̺̂͋̀Ț̶̛̠̰͈͕̗̗͚̭̜̈͐͋̈́͐͒̀̈́͘ͅH̸̛̻͙͚̱̪͖͚͚̟̾̈̓͆̇͌̍̎̊̍͝͝ͅÊ̶̦̝͖̪͖̗̻͚̼̥̓ ̵̧̮̻͚͚̪͛̊́͒̃̅͑͐̈̅͊͗̈́͝Ě̶̢̝̳̟̬̫͚̗͓̖̱̮̳̳͓̑̒̓̋̽̈́N̶̢̪͚̣͓͎͇̪͕͉̗̏̀̈́̑̂͑͘͝D̸̛̛̛͇̈̾̍̑̽̀̐̏̀͒̓͘͝S̴̡̨̡̛͕̰̼̠͉͇̗̥͇͖̳̈̽͌̒͗̎̾̈̒̇͊̋͝ ̸̲͈͎̄́̉̋̎̂̈́͘͘͠͝Ǫ̵͚̬̮͉̻̙̭̦̠̘̞̦̉ͅͅF̴̢̧̫̤̘͚͚̟̊͗͗̈́̓͛̀͜ ̶͚̲̲̓̏̀̂͛͆Ţ̴͙̦̞͇͔̹͎̝̲̳͖̗̳̲̇̔̾̊H̴̡̻̺͖̘͈̩̭̦̤̪̱̭̭̙͇̿̂̉Ę̶̛͖̱͎̜͉̗͔̗̱̜̭͛͑̏̈́͛̎̈͛̐̋̔ ̴͍̟̘͈̩̞̩̄͒̋͊̍͑͋͆̊͒̆̋͒̓̈́̚E̵̘͗̃́̌͂A̴͍̳̩̪͖̠̭̼͔͍̳͐͗͝ͅŖ̵̪̙͔̲̱̀͋̒̾Ţ̸̨̛̫̬͕̾͂͆͐̈́̔̚̚͘͝H̴͓͍̗͗̾̈́̀,̴̧̼͕̪̦̘͚̦̺̹̼͈̣́̂̓̔̒̈́͝ ̶͖̺̈̇̈́̐̊͑̚̕

Piper squeezed her eyes tight as Alcor descended into a furious static - she could smell the burnt plastic of the car seat, could feel his words tearing at her eardrums. And the gun to her head… Oh, god, she thought. Oh, god, oh god, oh god. This couldn’t be real. She was dreaming. Please let her be dreaming.

But when Alcor’s fury finally died down, the gun pressed harder.

“Open your eyes.” Mag’s voice was flat. Emotionless. “Look at me.”

Her heart was beating like a rabbit. She couldn't get enough air in her lungs. Oh god oh god oh god-

“Look at me or die.”

Those icy words cut through her panic, and she opened her eyes, looked into the pure white light of the angel’s gaze. Mag’s face was completely obscured by the brightness; all she could see of him was the tattered orange jumpsuit on the arm holding the gun. A terrified whimper escaped her lips; she wanted to cover her mouth, but she didn’t dare move.

The angel stared at her for a moment, its alien gaze raking down her form. Then it spoke again.

“This is the end of the chase.” It said. “I let the air out of your tires. I cut your brake lines. I have total control, and I will kill you the second you step out of line. Do you understand?”

Piper could feel a sob welling up her throat. She just nodded.

“This is how you survive. I will tell you exactly what I want you to do, and you will do it immediately. Look at me. Do you understand?”

Piper looked at it, looked at those terrible eyes. And as she did, she realised she could see just the barest hint of something underneath catching its glow; she could see Mag’s lips, twisted up into a garish smile.

A smile. It was enjoying this.

“Do you understand?”

Piper swallowed back the bile rising in her throat, and nodded. From the corner of her eye, she could see something move in the mirror.

“Piper…” Alcor started - but what could he say? The barrel of the gun pressed ever harder against her temple, and he fell silent.

“The plastic bags.” said the angel. “Wrap them around the mirror, but do not touch it. If you touch it, I will kill you.”

Piper was terrified - terrified of the angel, and terrified of a hot, reckless anger building in her chest. Calm down, she thought. Don’t get yourself killed, she told herself.

(Like it’s not going to kill you anyway, it whispered back. You’re just another Scarlett.)

“Do you understand?”

Piper struggled to look at those eyes. She bit her lip, and nodded.

“Good. Do it now.”

The barrel pulled back a fraction, and Piper worked quickly. She dumped everything out of the plastic bag, spread it over the mirror, and turned it inside out to fit it in. Alcor watched her worriedly.

“Piper?”

The handle was still sticking out. Piper emptied the other bag, and pulled it tight over the handle. The plastic bulged a bit at the point; she picked it up, and looked back at the angel.

“Good,” it said, those eyes moving as it nodded. The gun was still pointed right at her head. “You may redeem yourself yet, child.”

(Redeem herself, snarled a voice inside of her. The fucking audacity.)

“Now hand it over, and I will let you go.”

“Piper?” Alcor’s voice was high and panicked as she started to move. “Wait, Piper, you can’t! Please, he’ll kill you, he’s lying! Piper, please!”

Piper paid no attention. The plastic crinkled as she presented the mirror to him, handle first.

“Piper, think of your Dad! Think of Mag!” A hand was coming forwards, reaching for the mirror. “Remember what he did to Scarlett, you can’t hand me over! Piper!”

Piper held the mirror steady as the hand came forwards, forwards, milliseconds passing like minutes as the blood pounded in her ears. She waited, waited until the hand was right over the mirror, waited until the fingers were curling around the covered handle and take him away from her forever - and then she moved. In the blink of an eye her hand tightened on a fistful of the plastic bag and she wrenched it back with all her strength; the bare handle pierced through the bottom of the bag just as the angel’s hand grasped it.

Demonic essence. For a terrifying instant, Piper thought it hadn’t worked; he didn’t burn, but after a moment his whole body tensed up like he’d touched a live wire. He stumbled back with a strangled yelp, tearing the mirror from her hands and dropping it on the tarmac as his hands moved up to grasp his head.

Piper didn’t want to get out of the car, but she had to; she opened the door quickly, scurried over to the mirror, picked it up, and rose to her feet just as-

“Piper?”

Mag’s voice. Mag’s voice, and when Piper looked up at him she saw his eyes, wide and confused, shining only dimly from the light of the moon.

“What…?” He blinked a few times, frowning as he tried to make sense of the situation. His arm was still extended, and the confusion shifted to a growing horror as he realised he was holding a gun, pointing it right at her. “Piper? I don’t- agh!”

His eyes flashed, and he dropped the gun and went down to his knees. Piper stood there frozen, but she could feel a spike of urgency from the mirror; Alcor’s presence was pooling into her whole body, not taking over yet but standing ready.

“We’ve got to go,” he said. “Now.”

She didn’t need to be told twice. She bolted towards her car, jammed herself into her front seat, turned the ignition and felt it roar to life.

She stomped the accelerator, and the car started going; but only at a crawl. The engine revved loudly - the dial went into the red - but it struggled to pick up speed.

“Piper!”

“I’m going!” The car shuddered as she turned it back to the highway. “Something’s wrong with it, I don’t know-”

A hand slammed down onto the side of the window. Piper caught a glimpse of furious white; a gun aimed right for her face, but she made it onto the tarmac and picked up a burst of speed. BANG! Her ears rang, her windscreen shattered, and the angel was dragged off its feet, hanging onto the door by his fingertips as they made it to fifteen miles an hour.

“Oh, my god.” Piper said, but she couldn’t hear her own voice through the ringing. She glanced to the side and saw him still hanging on as they broke twenty. “Oh, my god!”

His hand was over the open windshield; she tried to roll it up, but he was too heavy for the motor. Twenty five, and the whole car was shaking and juddering - she didn’t know how much longer it was going to run. They needed to get away from him before it gave out.

Alcor was saying something. She couldn’t make out his words, but it made her look down at the mirror. She grasped it firmly, raised it up above her head, and brought the edge down hard on his fingers. They slipped but held; there was a cry of pain, and another BANG that felt like it was tearing right through her eardrums. She cringed as she raised the mirror again, and brought it down with all her strength.

This time, the angel was dislodged; Piper felt the car pull hard to the left as the weight fell off the side. She struggled to correct it - nothing happened when she tried to brake, but she had just enough room to turn away from the guardrails and right herself.

And there she was. Alive. She stared forwards, eyes wide, chest heaving, heart hammering in her chest. Her knuckles were white on the steering wheel. The whole car was shaking; she could see broken glass from the windshield shuddering off the dashboard and falling onto her lap. The display was a flashing mess of warning signs.

She sat there for a moment, stunned. A sign passed them: COZY JOE’S CHEAP MOTELS - 5 MILES

A blink, and then a blink again.

Piper stayed there frozen for another moment, and then reached forwards, and turned on her hazards.

#fic #dipper #mizar

14 notes · View notes