Town Chapter Six Alice, Alex And Malice

 Alice 

The girl woke up. It was the following day after she had gone to the clown. She was still dressed in the same clothes from the night before. She noticed that the only difference was that her clothes smelt of smoke. She remembered nothing about the day before, yet she knew that the clown was dead. However, even though she did not know how he was killed or who killed him, she knew. Almost like it was an instinctive knowledge. 

She knew that she was fourteen yet she did not feel like it. Her mind felt like that of an infant or a young child. At a time when she believed in pure and good princesses and handsome princes. It seemed like everything was bright, shiny and new. With the world filled with positivity and light.

She then looked throughout the very blue room, filled with marine mythological creatures and Alice the doll that sat on her chest of drawers. 

It could do with a little bit more pink. She thought as she slipped out of bed. She walked up to it and gave it a hug as she chuckled to herself. She stretched it out and danced around in circles as if Alice was her handsome prince that she was dancing with and not a Doll who’s name she liked the name of.

She looked at the wardrobe. She found a dress that was part of a school uniform. She took off the smelly clothes and put it all on.

“Melinda?” Jaden asked.

She looked behind her. She had a strange simple innocent look in her red eyes. She smiled as she took out a brush. She brushed her hair before she brushed Alice’s. 

“I’m sorry. I’m no longer Melinda.” She said as she started to brush her hair again, humming as she did.

Jaden frowned yet could not hide her wide eyes filled with alarm.

“Then who are you?” She asked, desperately trying to keep her voice calm.

“Alice!” She said with an innocent care-free smile.

She soon finished brushing her hair. She then took out a ribbon.

“Like your doll?”

She looked at the doll as it looked as if it was looking back at her then she gave it to her.

“Yes! She is so beautiful. Have you not noticed?” She sang while putting her hair up.

“Personally, I find her creepy.”

She frowned.

“Why is that?”

“She seems… I don’t know… too lively.” She muttered. “Where did you get her?”

“From Mrs Wonderlust. She was really nice.”

“You do realise that she’s keeping everyone here against their will?”

“How is she doing that?” She asked with a frown.

“She has a book with everyone’s names in, which keeps everyone in here. They can never leave unless they have her permission.” She explained as she rubbed her eyes. “Anyway, never mind that, I have to ask you, did you see the clown?”

“Yes! He did a soever good performance! It was memorable. I hardly think that I will ever forget it!” She exclaimed. “There, how do I look?”

“Beautiful. Now come!”

She soon made the girls some breakfast.

“Thank you!”

Matilda looked at the girl with shock. Yet she looked away.

“You visited the clown did you not?”

“Yes! How could you tell?”

“Idiot! You should not have done that. Do you not remember when I was-never mind.” She huffed, burying her face in her hands.

Alice looked at her with a frown as she ate. They cleaned their teeth. While Matilda watched her closely. They soon set off for school. Once there, she held her hand as they walked in.

Things seemed to go smoothly and there seemed to be nothing wrong. In fact things seemed to be going well, aside from the fact that she had become almost a teacher's pet and a goody two shoes.

Nothing seemed to be wrong so Matilda thought that she was worrying over nothing. Yet that all soon changed when noon came. 

Alex

The girl changed again. She noticed that she was in a dress and her class was going to lunch. She looked in her back and found a pair of grey trousers in it. She pulled them out and slipped into the ladies room and put them on. She was about to put the dress into the bin until she found herself folding and rolling it up then put it into the bag. She rolled up her sleeves as she then went to eat. She carried a determined and serious look in her eye.

“Alice?” Matilda asked.

“Alex!” She corrected with a firm time to her voice.

Her eyes narrowed as a frown appeared on her forehead. Yet she kept her features hidden.

“What?”

“Nothing!”

She huffed. 

“Look, you don’t have to be so concerned about me! I’ve already forgiven you for what you did. You weren’t in your right frame of mind. So you don’t have to hold yourself responsible! Okay!”

She looked down and nodded. She bit her lip.

“It still matters. It still does nothing to change the fact that I did those things.” She said as she looked at her hand. “It still does not change the fact that there is blood in my hands.”

Alex let out a groan as she ate.

“Look, I know. But you can’t let it hold you back! You are not the same girl as the twins. I can tell you that much.”

She soon spotted a group of people looking at her.

“What are you looking at?”

They looked down as to not draw too much attention to themselves.

“Yeah, I thought so!”

She then turned her attention back to her food and soon ate everything. They soon were out in the playground, where Alex sat on the benches and took a nap. She did not wake until a group of girls approached her. 

“What do you want?”

“To tell you that we don’t like you.”

“Oh? Good for you!”

“And I don’t like your attitude either.”

She rolled her eyes.

“Then go away.”

“You know I don’t think that I like Matilda either.”

“Then leave her alone.”

“No. Maybe I should-”

I don’t have the patience for this anymore.

She then punched her square in the jaw. She flew back and landed on the ground. She let out a cry as she caressed the place where she was punched. She looked at the girl in disbelief. Alex haf hit her. She actually hit her! She looked up and cowared.

“What happened here?” Snapped a teacher with brown eyes and brunette hair with a pale skin tone and freckles.

The girl pointed at Alex.

“She hit me! She actually hit me!”

“Is that true Melinda?”

“Yeah so? Also it’s Alex!”

“Well in that case you will have detention!”

“Whatever!”

“Well if that’s your attitude, come with me now.”

She shrugged.

“If that’s your attitude then you will not have any break time.”

She rolled her eyes as she followed the teacher to his office. There she spent all her lunch break. For the rest of the day she went through her class. All she found unbearably boring. She then took her place to carry out her detention. There she took a nap until it was over.

“I expect you will be back tomorrow.”

“Sure.”

She soon made her way to her house. There she took a nap until she ate her tea and slept until nightfall. 

Malice

When midnight fell the girl walked upstairs and went to bed after playing The Legend Of Spyro. She pretended to sleep until she knew that all were asleep. She silently slipped out of bed and put on a black shirt and jeans. She put on a pair of black boots and opened the window. She looked left and right for Danté. Upon seeing that he was nowhere to be seen she knew that she was ready. 

She was not like the other two. She remembered the other two and remembered who hurt them too. She formed a twisted smile as she thought about what she was going to do to them. Just like she enjoyed killing the clown.

She jumped down. She landed and looked in the house next door. She wanted to make sure that Damté was asleep. Somehow she could sense that he was. She then ran along the fence. She soon landed outside of her house. She ran down street after street.

She soon found what she was looking for. She walked up to the house and knocked. None answered. She knocked again. None answered. She did it again. None answered. She did this again and still no answer. She then saw the light being switched on. She smiled to herself as she looked at the door.

Soon it became hot. She continued to increase the heat. She then heard the fire alarm go off. Yet she continued to make the handle hotter and hotter. Soon she heard him run down the stairs. The moment that his hand touched the handle she heard him scream. She calmly placed her hand on the handle and pushed. 

“Melinda? What-”

“No, no, no, no, no. Not poor, poor Melinda.” She sang as she walked in.

“Get out.”

She looked at him in his eyes as she raised the temperature in the man’s body. She held his hand and she closed the door. She made his body become hotter and hotter. She then saw that he was sweating. Yet she continued to raise his heat. He soon opened the door to push her out, but the moment he reached his hand out was when his hand became so hot that he had to retract the hand.

She smiled.

“What’s wrong? Too hot for you?” She cooed.

His eyes widened then narrowed them in confusion. Yet he felt hotter and hotter. He looked into her cruel red eyes. His eyes dropped to her sadistic smile. This told him that she was, somehow, behind this. His throat became dry. He was soon panting as he ran to the phone. He picked it up and soon felt it melt in his hand!

He let out a scream. His heart beat faster and faster as he looked back at the girl. Her wicked smile became wider and wider. He saw no other option. He ran to her and she hit him in his loins. He curled over as she kicked his face. 

She kicked his loins again and again. She continued this again and again until his hands were bloody and crushed. She then kicked his feet with a crack. He let out a scream. She let out a laugh as she stepped on his throat. She put her weight on it. She let him choke until his face turned purple. Then she stopped.

“Who are you?” He croaked.

She let out a long and whild laugh, like her body needed to release it. As she did it was like all of her dopamine was rising up and overflowing with laughter.

“Malice.” She replied as she stomped on his throat again and again until he coughed up blood.

She walked to the kitchen and melted the handle, sealing them in. She walked to the front door and did the same.

She returned to the man. She looked at the printer and at the paper. She walked up to it and crushed it into a ball. It caught fire as she dropped it next to him before she left through the window.

She hopped out and by the time she was back in bed, the teacher along with his home was nothing but a pile of ash. 

The Observations

Danté had become quite concerned about Melinda. She had not seen him for an entire day. Yet he knew, even though she had her troubles, mainly brought about by the town, she would always find some time to pay him a visit.

So, in the morning, he looked at her through the window. The first thing that he spotted that was out of place was she was wearing a dress. With any ordinary girl he would not have bat an eyelid but with Melinda, the only times she ever wore a dress was when Vytautas put one on her and the second was when she was in the hospital. The second red flag was the pink ribbon in her plated hair. It had been half a year and he had still yet to see her anything pink. So he decided to ask her about this.

He knocked on the door, knowing that it could not be avoided, and Jaden answered.

“Good morning Danté.”

He had to suppress the rising happiness he felt within his chest every time he saw her.

“Good morning Jaden. Tell me Mel, are you alright?”

She looked up at him and gave him an apologetic look.

“I’m sorry, sir. I’m Alice.”

This was the final red flag. Yet he made sure to mask his alarm.

“Tell me. Where is Melinda?”

“She disappeared, sir!”

He nodded.

She must have visited the clown. Although, I can hardly blame her. I would have done too if I was in her position. 

“Do you know anything about the clown?”

She looked down and frowned.

“No. Sorry, I don’t. But if I find anything, I will let you know!”

He smiled.

“It is quite alright. I hope that you have a nice day.”

“Thank you, sir!”

She soon left. He left. He jumped up and flew. As he did he noticed that her mannerisms had changed too. Melinda would usually wolf everything down, but no, she seemed to mind her manners and acted like a well behaved child.

While she was at school, he watched her the entire morning. There seemed nothing out of the ordinary. The girl seemed better off. The only thing that made him concerned was a group of female bullies walked up to her and tormented her until she cried. Yet there seemed to be a strange tension in the air. One that he could not put into words.

Then came the news, one of the teachers had burnt to death last night. He was found as a pile on the fly when his house burnt down.

This rattled the girl slightly. Yet all was normal. Then lunch came. She went into the ladies and changed into a pair of trousers and her hair hung loose. She has an edgy look in her eyes. Almost like someone who would do what she wanted and could not care less about the consequences. Like a juvenile delinquent.

She went about her day. Yet the moment that the bullies walked up to her he knew something was going on.

“Is it Alice or Alex?” One with blond hair and brown eyes.

Danté’s eyes widened.

So she has seen the clown!

“Who’s Alice?”

“Your other half? Didn’t you know?”

She rolled her eyes.

“So that’s why I keep finding myself in a dress and ribbon!” She exclaimed.

“Yeah. I loved bullying her! Now tell me, how would you like it if I made Matilda cry? After all, she does have a lot of blood on her hands. I bet she feels so guilty. Maybe she was the one who offed-”

Alex hit her in the face. She gave another punch and another and another. The other girls ran to her. She then turned her attention to them and punched one after the other. None of them stood a chance.

“Detention!” Shouted another teacher with grey hair and brown eyes.

The other girls smiled. She noticed this as the leader stuck her tongue out at her. She rolled her eyes as she made her way to the teacher. She remained in detention for an hour and then she left.

He noticed nothing out of the ordinary for the rest of the day. Then nightfall came. He thought that he could take a quick nap until he heard the window open. He saw Melinda dressed in all black in the corner of his eye. She ran over the fence like a cat. He then followed her until she saw the girl approach the group of bullies from earlier.

“Alex? Or is it Alice?”

She let a wicked smile on her lips.

“Neither.”

“Oh? Then who are you?” The blonde asked mockingly.

“Malice.  She said as a ring of fire rose up around them.

They all looked around. Some screamed. Then they looked at her, who was beaming with nothing but malice. Yet suddenly the ones that screamed stopped and frowned.

“What? What’s going on?”

Malice chuckled.

“What? Can’t handle a little fire?” She laughed.

“What? Are you- you FREAK!”

At this she chuckled as the ring of fire decreased in size.

“I’m a freak?” She scoffed with a cold tone. “Who was it that was bullying Alice? Who was it that made her cry? Who was it that threatened to do the same to Matilda? Who was it that played victim when you finally got a well-deserved beatdown from Alex? What? Don’t you ever get any discipline at home?”

At this they charged at her. She kicked one in the stomach and grabbed the girl by the throat. She twisted her hand and threw her to the others. She punched them in the throat. One pulled out a pocket knife. She went to strike her but she bit a chunk out of her wrist. She caught the knife and slit her throat before she could have time or chance to scream. Then the curtain of fire rose high blocking his view. Danté then heard more screams.

“You can kill the others! Just don’t kill me! Please, I’ll change, I swear!” He heard the leader scream. 

Then the fire dropped. There was nothing but Malice and several piles of ash. She was about to notice him when he ran.

He knew that he had what he needed to. If he stayed any moment longer, then he too would be a pile of ash. What was clear was one, she had gone to the clown, two, she now has three personalities; Alice, a pure of heart kind of girl, Alex, a tropical juvenile delinquent and Malice, an evil sociopath. Finally Alice and Alex knew nothing about each other. The only one that seemed to be aware of the other two waa Malice.

He knew that he needed to get to Jaden. He had to tell her as soon as he could. He felt something give way beneath him and all went black. 

The Fight 

When morning came Alice woke, she felt cold despite the fact that the heating was on. She felt strange, tired and nauseous. However, even though she wondered if she got enough sleep last night, it did nothing to affect her positive outlook. She could only remember what happened in the morning and nothing else. She wished that she could remember more. Although she felt like whatever happened was not important as she put on her school uniform.

She went through her morning routine. Nothing happened that was out of the ordinary. Yet, despite the fact that she tried to keep her head down and kept to herself, she was approached by a new group. This was a small group of boys all of them were looking at her with an aggressive anger.

“Do you know what happened to my girlfriend?” The guy with brunette hair and a nose and cheeks full of freckles and green eyes asked.

“No. Why would I, sir?”

He smiled as the others laughed.

“Because she is missing and the last person that remembers seeing her and her group, which also are missing, was you.” He shouted as he punched her.

She let out a scream and started to cry as the pain spread throughout her cheek and head.

“Why? I don’t remember anything that happened in the afternoon. I promise!”

He rolled his eyes as he walked to the others and they dived to her and grabbed her arms. They drove her upper body to the brunette. He then gripped her by the chin.

“Then beauty, you better remember!”

“I don’t! I can’t!”

“Dillon!”

He let out a groan. 

“Let her go!”

“We will continue this later.” He snarled, leaving her crying. 

Then lunch came, Alex came out and changed her uniform and he took the ribbon out of her hair. She ate her food and Dillon and his gang approached her.

“Are you ready to tell us what we need to know, weeping beauty?” 

He folded his arms as he cocked his eyes as he saw her trousers.

“Wet your pants, did you?”

“Who are you?”

He scoffed.

“What do you mean? We were talking to you this morning!”

She shook her head as she frowned. She went to walk away only to be grabbed by the group. He then punched her.

“Don’t you dare ignore me!” He snapped. 

Yet she looked up to him with a deficiency in her eyes. 

“What was that for?”

“Ignoring me. Now, tell me what happened to my girlfriend now!”

“I don’t know, all I know is that I beat her up!”

At this he hit her in the gut but she jumped and kicked him in his loins. She then kicked the gang that was holding her. They kept their grip but she bit into one of the boys hand and they soon let go. She bit the other's hand and he let go too. The ones behind ran in and she threw out a punch to their throats before they had time to react.

Then Dillon ran up to her and threw a punch to her face. She dodged and went to hit him in his throat. He caught her wrist. She jumped and threw out her right foot to his temple. He caught her ankle. This gave her the opening. She threw a kick right in his face. He let go. She landed and was able to hit him again in the loin. She then went to punch him in the throat but the other gang members grabbed her wrist. She circled up and hit them all square in the nose. Rhey soon let go. She saw two more throw a punch at her. She ducked and as they hit each other she threw out her palms to their throats. She then ran to another group of the gang. She jumped and then down then hit them in the gut. They both curled over as they clutched their stomachs.

She looked up at Dillon as the last one standing. They both were about to run at each other and fight.

“Detention. Both of you!” A teacher shouted at the top of her lungs.

They were soon in the room. The teacher called Jaden and told her about what happened.

Yet what set alarm bells off was Jaden’s strange response.

“I know. I have been told about the three of them. Just do not keep her until the sun goes down.”

Jaden hung. She found herself crying in Danté’s arms, who was holding her gently but tightly.

The Murder 

When Malice woke up she knew that she could not return home. Not this time. No, Jaden and Danté would get in the way. So she waited for Matilda to go home before she made her move. She ran away. She looked in her backpack and saw the clothes that she was looking for. She took them and left the bag there. She ran down the alley and changed into them. She then put Alex's clothes away. She ran to where Dillon and his bullies were.

“What do you want, freak?”

She smiled and giggled.

“Why don’t you follow me to find out?” She mocked as she winked with a mock kiss as she ran. They soon ran after her.

She ran down street after street and alley after alley. They followed her and ensured to steady their pace. They wanted her to tire before they got their revenge on the girl.

Soon she stopped in the middle of a field. She turned around and looked at them. She had a wicked smile on her lips. This soon told them that they had made a mistake. This told them that she was neither Alice or Alex. No, this one was different from the other two. This one was completely and pure evil.

“Well we kept-”

Then the fire rose all around them. They looked at her. She seemed unaffected by the spontaneous rising wall of flames. In fact, she seemed to be enjoying herself. Dillon looked at her in horror. They all let out a scream.

“Dillon! What’s going on?”

“I don’t know! What are you doing you freak?!”

“Don’t worry. I have complete control over the flames.” She sang as the walls decreased. “See?”

He looked at her with even more horror as it quickly dawned upon him that this is what his girlfriend must have seen too. This sparked anger in him as he suddenly realised that she had killed her. He then ran to the girl and threw a punch at her. Only to feel something in his stomach below the ribs. It was painful and sharp. He looked down at her twisted smile as she pulled something out of his side. He clutched his side to feel blood in his fingers. He looked at her and saw the knife in her hand. He knew that they were not getting out of this alive. 

He then rose up and felt a cut in his stomach. He let out a loud scream as he clutched his right arm. He heard several screams coming from behind. He looked back to see that his gang was cut off from him by another wall of fire. He then felt another cut coming from the back of his neck and he collapsed. He was so scared that he was incapable of screaming. He was so utterly helpless as she lifted him by his hair.

He then could do nothing but look in horror as the flames decreased around them. Then they suddenly collapsed too. They all screamed as flames erupted from their bodies!

“Stop it! Please! Just stop it! Just let us go! Fine. You can have me, but please, let ‘em go! Please, just stop it okay! Please!”

He then felt a knife in his back. He screamed out in pain.

“No. Although, I have to admit that you are far more selfless than your girlfriend. She never begged for her friend’s lives! No, she begged for hers! ‘You can kill the others! Just don’t kill me! Please, I’ll change, I swear!’ she screamed before she died.” She laughed.

At this something broke in him and he wanted to throw another punch at her. Yet he could not throw a single punch. He then had to look as his friends all burnt to death before his very eyes.

She then dropped her attention to him. She put her foot under him and rolled him over. He felt nothing but despair. He was utterly broken. She rolled him over and over. He let out a scream as his fingers hit the fire. Once he was in the fire he screamed, knowing that none was coming to save him. When the flames dropped he was nothing but a pile of ash being blown away in the wind.

She walked away. Her work was not yet done. There was still someone who she had her predatorial eye on. So she walked back into town. She soon found him. He was alone in his home. He was marking some of his pupil’s work. He looked up at her. He looked confused as he looked at her. He wondered what he wanted. Yet he had to time to think about or pay any attention to her. He went back to marking his pupil’s work. 

Suddenly he smelt smoke. He looked to his left to see that the exercise books next to him suddenly burst into flames! He jumped back and ran to the kitchen. He filled a bucket with ice cold water. He ran back and threw the water at the flames. This put the flames out, but the exercise books were beyond recovery.

“No, no, no, no, no. That just will not do.” Malice said, suddenly appearing beside him.

He felt a sharp knife in his side before he had any time to respond. He looked back at her. He went to the phone but she cut the back of his legs behind the kneecaps. This caused him to fall and hit his head. Yet, despite the confusion and pain, he soon staggered back up. He almost crawled to the phone. He tried calling the phone. Yet it was not getting through. He tried again but, again, nothing. He looked at the phone line. Only to see that it was cut. He looked back in horror, already knowing who did this.

She let out a childish giggle. He then felt another stab. He wanted to let out a scream but the blade was in his throat before he could let out a single sound.

“As much as I love the sound of screams, I can’t let you do that.” She sang.

Suddenly he heard something explode from the kitchen. Soon there was a fire in the corridor. She laughed as he suddenly realised that she was somehow doing this. She stabbed him again and again, laughing all the way through the brutality. Then the fire entered the room.

He felt the pain and his body became as cold as ice. He had lost too much blood. He raised his hands to her but his arm was far too weak. It fell before it even had the chance to even touch her. Soon the fire spread. The last thing he saw was her standing in the flames before everything went black.

By the time she left he was another pile of ash.

She made her way to the place where Matilda stayed when she was the twins. She quickly wrote a message to Alice before falling asleep. She was extremely tired. She had overdone it and she knew it. 

The Fever

Alice woke up feeling cold and weak. She was sweating and smelling of smoke with a sore throat. She then coughed as her eyes looked at what she was wearing. She could see that she was wearing all black and she saw that there were dots of dried blood all over her. She felt nauseous and she placed a hand on her forehead and noticed that she had a temperature. She noticed that her whole body was not just sweating but she was coated in sweat making her feel cold. She coughed and spat out some flem.

“Jaden! Help!” She moaned which hurt her throat even further.

Yet, despite how many times she called, she did not come.

“Jaden! Help! Please!” She shouted louder.

Yet she still did not come. Why did she not come? She started to cry as she called and called until the nausea and pain in her throat became unbearable. She had to get to the loo. Yet as she climbed out of bed she frowned. She looked around at a room that was not blue but steel grey. She looked down at a dirty off white bed. Which made her frown.

This isn’t my room. Why aren’t I in my room? Where am I? Why am I here? Why am I ill? Why is this happening? Where’s Jaden? Why isn’t she here?

She broke down crying as she realised just how lost she was. She did not know where she was or how she got there. She did not even know how to get home! As she saw a blur a white blur beside the bed that she was sleeping on. 

What’s that?

She looked over to it and wiped her eyes as she picked it up.

To Alice and Alex

You can’t go home! You can't trust Jaden or Danté

or Matilda anymore. You can never go back home

ever, ever again. They are bad now so you need to 

know that I am the only one you can ever, ever 

trust now and promise that I will protect you.

 I am the only one who can protect you.

Malice 

Her eyes widened as she read it. 

Oh no! What! Why? Why can’t I trust her anymore? Who is Malice? I don’t like the sound of her. Who’s Alex? Why is this addressed to both of us? Oh, mummy and daddy, I wish that you were here. Why did you die and leave me alone here? I don’t like this place. I wanna leave. I wanna run away from this horrible town and never come back! But I can’t! I have to stay as long as that book of names keeps me here!

She cried and cried as she clutched her stomach. She tasted the grim taste of acid in her saliva. She left the room and ran down the maze of corridors. She soon found the bathroom. She ran to the loo and threw up. She did not like the feeling of the food coming up with the grim taste of her stomach acid. She thought that it was over as she took a shaky breath. Then she felt her throat tighten and more came. She stayed there at the loo until she felt her stomach settle. She flushed the chain and washed her hands. She drank some water and washed her mouth. Then she needed to urinate and after her business was done she flushed and washed her hands again.

She became tired. She left the bathroom. She dared not to go anywhere near the kitchen. After all, she did not want a single piece of food in her stomach. She was afraid that she would only throw it back up again. She soon found and almost got to the bed until her weakness got to her and she fainted.

Alex soon woke up on an empty stomach. She wiped the sweat off her brow. She then saw the note. Upon reading it her eyes widened in anger.

Who the hell is Alice? Is she the reason why I keep waking up in those stupid dresses and that awful ribbon? Just forget about that!Who the hell is Malice? And what gave her the right to tell me what to do? What the hell was the whole ‘you can't trust Jaden, Danté and Matilda’ thing all about anyway?

No. None tell me what to do! No, I am getting out of here and I will ask Jaden who this Alice and Malice are. She must know. Then when I do, I will both them up. She thought in her foggy state of mind. 

She soon dived to her feet and noticed that she had a fever. She could feel that she was as cold as ice. She knew that she was ill and her mind was tired. So she climbed into bed. She soon went to sleep.

She soon saw out of someone’s eyes. She saw that it was a man. He had very handsome features. He had very narrow brown eyes, almost black and long brunette hair that was below the shoulders.

“Please no. Not today.”

He hit a woman with blue eyes and black hair with white streaks.

“I can do what I like, woman! After all, who else will have you?” He shouted as he hit her again and again until she cried.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’ll- I’ll be good!” She cried.

“Good.”

She woke up again. She did not understand what she had just seen and nor did she like it. However she knew that the lady needed saving. Yet she was in no position to do so. So she closed her eyes and hoped that didn't have to see what happened next.

She saw through another’s eyes. She saw that she was looking through the eyes of a vampire with long silver hair. He looked at a boy who was playing alone with his ball. He looked around to see that there was none around. He raced to the boy. Soon she was feeling the taste of iron. She woke up screaming.

It was too late to save the boy. Yet she knew that the vampire, whoever he was, had to be stopped.

She closed her eyes again, feeling nothing but dread as she was pulled back into sleep. She saw through the eyes of a woman with green eyes and her black hair. She looked at a man. She stroked his face. She felt a smile spread across her lips. She could feel the man getting colder and colder. He too had a fever. Yet sur was doing nothing to help her. Then felt his pulse stop. 

“Well that makes husband number eight.”

She woke up already knowing what she had just done. 

She fell asleep again. She saw a woman go to the police. She was crying.

“Please. My boyfriend…”

“He- he did this to me!” She cried revealing a deep gnash in the middle of a black bruise on her shoulder. 

They soon rushed off but when they left she stayed behind, revealing a little smile that none of them saw.

She woke up shocked and disgusted by what that woman did.

I can’t believe that she hurt herself to frame her boyfriend like that. She thought as she felt better than she had in ages.

She fell back to sleep. She saw a boy her age. He was throwing rocks at something. She did not know what until she saw a kitten with a patch of blood on its shoulders. He threw another at the little creature. It only managed to get away with a broken paw.

“What are you doing?”

“Trying to hit the kitchen mother!”

“And did you hit?”

“Just once.”

“Good.”

What the hell? Is there no justice in this town? Why do these people have to live here? She thought as night fell. 

A Series Of Murders

Malice woke up, she felt strengthened. She looked around and smiled. 

Good. Looks like my message worked. She thought as she put on her black clothes that now stink of dried blood and smoke. She then spotted a knife as she looked around. She remembered Alex’s last thought and shrugged.

If she wants justice then I will be happy to oblige!

She left the place and soon found the man that beat his wife. He held her firmly under his arm. She walked with a false smile and fear in her bruised eyes.

Looks like I’m gonna have to find a way to split those two up.

So she dropped to where they were. She looked at the woman and then the man.

“Excuse me.”

“What do you want with us?”

“Nothing much. Although, I would like to have a word with your husband, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh? And what business do you have with me?”

“I prefer to have it in private!” She shouted as she ran to him and stabbed him in the leg.

His wife screamed and she ran away from the group. He then ran after her. She ran down an alley then to a street and down another alley. She ran down a street and soon came to the beach area of the lake. She then looked back to see the man had followed. She smiled as she ran to the doc. 

“What is your problem? Why did you stab me?”

“I dunno. What’s your’s, wife beater?”

This caused anger to flick in his eyes.

“What has my wife been telling you?”

“Nothing. Alex saw you. We do have Mohan’s power after all!”

He looked at her with even more anger.

“Don’t you know who that is? I know he’s been dead for months but don’t joke about those things, kid!”

“I’m not.” She said as she chuckled. “‘Please no. Not today’!”

“Quit mocking me.” He shouted as he limped over to her.

She spun and sliced the back of his neck. Then he fell into the water. His limbs failed him. He dipped beneath the waves.

“One down.” She said as she walked away.

She thought back to the next dream Alex had. It was of the vampire with the silver hair. She made her way to where she had seen him. He let go of another child, a girl this time. He looked at her and smiled. He rose up erect.

“Tell me, you are Melinda Narcissa, are you not?”

“I was.”

He smiled.

“That fool that calls himself out king would be very angry if I killed you. Even more so if I turn you!”

“Would he?” She asked, cocking her eyebrow. 

“Little girl, you have no idea. So do not worry. I will not harm you so why do you not come over here? I will take you to him.”

She walked over to him. He then placed his hand on her cheek. His fingers then dropped to her neck. 

“You know, you smell so-”

The knife was in his heart before he could put his fangs in her neck. He was soon dust blowing in the air.

“Two.” She said as she left the scene.

She saw a woman walking out of a police station. She was crying as she left. She then dried her tears and smiled as she pulled out a cigarette then lit it. Malice tailed her, as she did she put out the women's cigarette. She stopped and relit it. She then walked on and she put it out again. She went to relight it again and she walked on. She put it out again. She went to relight it again, but Malice put out the spark on the lighter. She flicked it again and again and she put out each spark. She then flicked it again and Malice used the liquid in the lighter to make it explode.

She let out a scream as her hand was engulfed in flames. She waved it in the air yet she made the flames spread to the rest of the arm. She screamed again and again. Yet the fire spread further. Soon her body was engulfed in flames and she fell with the cigarette next to her. The flames were put out. 

“Three.” She said as she walked away.

She then spotted the woman. She was walking in a sling. She looked up and greeted her. She looked at her and tried to look upset and timid. Yet for Malice, it was too late.

“Urm, can I help you, kid?” She asked, trying to act timid.

“No, but can I ask you what happened?”

“My husband-”

“No. What really happened?”

“What-what do you mean?”

She let out a huff.

“Your husband didn’t do this to you. You did.”

“Wh-what?”

“Come off it! I have Mohan’s power. I saw you injure yourself.”

All pretence dropped. She pulled out a pen knife and ran to her. She dodged and pulled out her own. She went to strike her again but she blocked and thrust her ankle into her foot. This caused her to drop the knife. She thrust her knife into her skull. She let go and set the woman alight.

“Four.”

She then walked away and looked at the clock tower on the castle. It was twelve o’clock. Alice would wake in five hours. She had to get the final set done as soon as she could. So she got to the house. 

She closed her eyes and then focused all her power. This time she wanted to experiment. She wanted to know how large she could summon the fire and how fast she could actually spread it. 

So she focused her power to the centre of the house and willed the largest fire that she could. Then spread it as fast as she could. It eclipsed the house within seconds. She walked away, already knowing that by the time Alice woke, they would be dead.

So she walked back to that place and cleaned up. She washed her clothes by hand and took out a slip of paper.

To Alice and Alex.

Don’t worry, those clothes are mine. 

Alex don’t worry, all the bad ones are

dead.

Malice, your little helper

The Detective

Detective J. Stevenson looked at the bodies before him with nothing but disbelief. He put on the rubber gloves and tried not to itch while he looked at them all over. One was a drowned man, Jey Knives, he beat his wife, Josephine. Everyone around them knew but none could do anything about it, well not until now. After all, he had complete control over her and she would never speak out against him. So they found it frustrating on how little they could do in their case.

He made his way to her and he heard her tale and she had a strong alibi for the were at least for others that confirmed her story. After all, she was at the shop buying some cream. Yet there were people who knew who did it. Mainly because they had all seen it in their houses. 

Then there was Karin Verrety, she was a burnt corpse, only identifiable by her dentures. She has been married eight times and all ended up with the deaths of her husbands. He has long suspected that she was the one that did it, but he did not have the proof. Nor could he collect the evidence that he needed to put her behind bars. Until now.

The next was Jane Lane. She had an injury to her left shoulder. It must have been made by a hammer. Which must have been a day before the murder. He dropped to a wound that was under her chin. That must have been the killing blow. Yet she too was charred.

What’s with all of this burning? Never mind that, how is she even burning these people? Nobody is selling her the materials.

Then there was a boy and his mother. He had been known to throw stones at the local pets. His mother had been known to encourage this behaviour.

He looked at the knife. It seemed that it had most of their DNA. He was able to get a fingerprint from it. He has gone to his best fingerprint specialist, Wendy Wonderlust. Even though people always called her a witch and she was too much of a tree hugger for his liking, but, she did her job and did it well, so he didn’t complain. She was quickly able to give him the name of the one that it belonged to; Melinda Narcissa.

He looked her up and noticed that she was involved with the defeat of Mohan, the twins that became one again and returned to being Matilda, two dead hospital employees, the disappearance of a substitute teacher that had dealt with difficult students, Melinda being one and she was the last person that had seen the clown.

What am I dealing with here?

He rubbed his tired eyes, knowing that there was more to this case than what met the eye. He looked at the footage of one of them. He saw them talking then he saw what happened. After his eyes widened. Then, to his shock, the body seemed to spontaneously combust! 

Did I just see that?

His eyes widened in shock. He knew that she was doing it, however he could not believe it. Nor could he understand why, or what was going on.

So he set off. The first place he arrived at was Jaden’s. He knocked on the door. She answered and he could tell by the bags under her eyes that she was not getting enough sleep. He showed her his badge.

“Good morning. I am Detective J Stevenson. I’m here to talk about your daughter Melinda Narcissa.” He said as her face dropped.

“She’s not my daughter, she’s my sister from America. Come in.”

He did and she told him all she knew. He sat there as he listened with shock and yet there was a horror to it too. When he left he found that he could not blame Melinda for going off the wall like that. Yet he hoped that Jaden would be able to handle what he knew that he had to do.

He knocked on Danté’s door. He answered and sang the same songs as Jaden did. The man told him a great deal, yet it was obvious that he was hiding something. He was yet to find out what.

Once he was back in the station he looked at the other footage. He spotted that, to his horror, there were more; two teachers and up to twelve students. Yet he knew that there were more. So he walked to the circus and found the charred remains of the clown! 

This made him have to think about what he had just seen when he reached his phone. 

“Yes.”

“We have three more but a fourth one that was recorded.”

“What!”

“There are more.”

“Does this include the one that appears to be a vampire?”

“What?”

“She stabbed one and it turned to dust.”

“What!?”

“Yes.”

“So, that’s twenty five.”

“Seems so sir.”

What is going on in this town?

How many times had he wondered that?

He looked at them. They were all dust. He repeated the cycle. He did this until nightfall and soon found himself in his home and fell asleep.

He woke up at an early hour. Took a shower and got dressed. He ate his breakfast and cleaned his teeth. He was driving to work when he saw her. Melinda was on the street, crying. 

Detained 

Knowing that his job demanded that he should take her in right there and then. He was about to call the police when his curiosity stopped him. He put his phone in his pocket and walked up to her. He kept himself calm as he approached her with a kind smile on his face. He knew that he should arrest her on the spot, however his gut told him to find out more. It also told him that there was more going on. Just like with an old case with a kid, Bobby Joal, who had two different personalities, one Dillen was a thief and the other was Marric who was a serial murderer. Something told him that this was going to be a case like him. However another part told him that this one will be way more complicated.

“Hello.”

“H-hello sir.” She cried. 

“Why are you crying?”

“I-I-” She wept as she buried her head in her arms as she broke down and wept.

He put a hand on her shoulder.

“It’s alright. Take your time.”

She looked up and nodded.

“I wake up every morning and I do all that I can to be good, y-yet, at noon I-I-I don’t know anything past that! And- and the day before yesterday I-I-I woke up in a strange place… No, I woke up where the twins kept me!” She screamed. “And-and I wake up covered in blood and smoke!” 

He stroked her shoulder comfortingly.

“And- and I felt ill but- but there was a letter telling me that- that I- I can’t go home!”

“Why?”

“Be-because bad guys were there.”

He frowned and pondered. Was this really the evil heartless girl that he has seen kill so many people in ice cold blood? Could she really kill a child and his mother?

No, there had to be more as to what was going on.

Hold on, did she say that she has blackouts beyond every noon? What happens once that time comes?

She must have, somehow, developed multiple personalities. Just like Bobby Joal. One that I am talking to and the other that killed all the people whose murders were inevitable. 

“And who wrote the letter?”

“Malice and-and it wasn’t just addressed to me either!”

He frowned.

What? There’s one more?

“Who else?”

“Alex.”

Oh no…

“Anyone else?”

“No.”

He nodded.

“Well I think that you should come with me.”

She looked up at him like he was an angel and nodded. Yet as she did, he noticed that she looked ill. He noticed that there were deep bags under her innocent eyes. His hand moved to her head. He noticed that she was even running a fever!

“You’re ill! You need to get to a doctor.” He exclaimed.

She looked at him with terror as she started to tremble. She shook her head 

“No, please no! They’ll never let me go!”

His frown deepened.

“But you’re ill! You need to see-”

“No! They’re gonna hurt me again! They’re gonna hurt me again!” She screamed as she ran away.

He ran after her. Yet she seemed to run faster than any ordinary girl. He raced after yet and as he did he lost her. He kicked a can as he knew that he had come so close to closing this bizarre case right there and then. 

Why did she act like that? Did she have a bad experience with a doctor? I need more intel. He thought as he drove. Wait, doesn’t she go to school? So she must go to the same school as everyone else.

So that was where he made himself next. He met up with the headmaster. He told him who he was and what he was doing here.

“Right. Well Melinda has been doing all that she can do to keep up with her work. Despite all her complications.”

“Like?”

“There was the time when she was captured by the twins that disappeared. Then that led to her being hospitalised. She did well to catch up when she returned. However she was not one hundred percent right after that. The PE teacher noticed an awful amount of needle marks in her arm. Yet, admittedly, he said nothing about it to her although whenever someone brought it up she would become so pale and tense up.”

“What?!”

That was when he recalled how she reacted when he suggested that she needed to go to a hospital.

So a doctor did do something to her! 

“Anything else?”

“Yes, last winter, she disappeared for the weekend, yet when she came back, she became paler and a plaster in her neck. Then she disappeared again after we had to hire a substitute teacher. She re-emerged later, she seemed to do well after, yet… She had deep wounds in her neck that looked like a vampire’s bite.”

He looked down. He could not help but feel sorry for the poor girl. She had been through so much and after her parents had died no doubt, it only seemed a matter of time until she snapped.

“And recently, she seemed to be acting odd.”

“How come?”

“Well, in the morning, she would go by the name of Alice and, in the afternoon, she would go by the name of Alex.”

So that is who Alex is.

His eyes widened.

“Yes. However, as Alice, she would be well behaved. The perfect model student! Yet as Alex, she would be a juvenile delinquent. She even beat up two groups of bullies! In fact she seemed to be stronger than your average girl. It shocked us all!”

That could be a problem.

“Right. Thanks.”

He left and drove to his office. He then looked for Melinda in the afternoon. He found her by the time it was three. He tailed her for sometime until a woman walked up to her from behind. She bumped into her. The girl looked at her and noticed something.

“That’s mine!” She snapped as she punched her.

She was knocked back as she took a pencil case with Melinda Narcissa on. She looked up at her just as the sun went down. Her expression changed to that of one that could only be called sadistic.

“Stealing’s not nice!” She said as she grabbed the woman by her neck. 

She squeezed her throat to a point that the woman could not scream. She then took her hand as she did, she forced it back. She struggled to scream out in pain. She pulled her in closer.

“Do you want to know what would have happened to you if you were born in another time?” She asked as a car drove by.

She threw the woman in the direction of the car and she collided with it. He was about to go and rush to help until the car exploded. By that time he knew that he could do nothing. The woman was already dead. Along with the driver of the car.

This told him all that he needed to know. The following morning, he found Alice. She went to run away. He gestured that it was alright.

“I’m not going to take you to any hospital. I promise!”

This made her relax.

“I need to take you to the police station instead.”

Her face dropped.

“Why?”

“Because you are a key witness in a couple of cases of mine and I very much like to hear your testimony.”

She smiled and nodded and they walked to the police station. There, he put her in a cell. He let out a sigh as he walked away. Yet he knew that he could not relax. The hard part was yet to come; keeping her there!

“‘Testimony’?”

The Verdict 

The judge, June July, looked at Detective J Stevenson, read the report and looked at the girl in front of her. She put the girl, who was now Alice at the moment.

“Tell me, do you know where you were between the hours of five am and pm?”

“No sir!” She squeaked. 

He played the tape of the killing of people. Upon seeing all the people being killed by Malice, Alice screamed. Her face dropped as her eyes teared up.

“No. T-that can’t be me! Why am I -why am I- why-”

She fainted. June July was surprised that the poor girl could not handle what she had just seen. She did not wake until half an hour later, at twelve o'clock. 

“Where am I?” She snapped.

She did not carry the same expression on her face. This expression was stern and almost hardened, like the typical look of a delinquent.

“You are in court.”

“Why, some parents wanna sue?”

“No, Alice!”

“‘Alex’! Why did you call me ‘Alice’?”

“Because a moment ago you told us that was your name.”

“‘A moment ago’? What? Ahh! Never mind!”

“Well-”

“Hold on, is that me? What am I doing there? When did this happen?”

“At night. All of them.”

“‘All of them’?” She exclaimed, tensing her eyes in confusion.

They soon played the tapes all that they had. She looked at them in shock and horror. Her face was so drained of colour that she looked ill. The shadow on her face was grey and not a darker shade of peach. Yet she, unlike Alice, kept her composure. Her eyes dropped after seeing them.

“Lock me up!” She barely whispered.

"What?”

“I don’t remember the morning nor do I remember anything past sundown. And if that is me, and that is what I do, then lock me up!”

“Why?”

“‘Why’? Because if-”

Then her eyes widened in shock, as she just realised something.

“Malice.”

“What?”

She pulled out a slip of paper and handed it to the judge. She looked at it and then back at Melinda-Alex. She passed it to the lawyer. He looked at it.

“Please, lock me up! I don’t want Malice to kill again. So lock me up.”

“And what about Alice?”

“Who is Alice?!”

They told her all that they knew. She looked down slightly disheartened.

“I’m certain that if you told her what was going on then she would agree.”

“If that is the case, the. I am sorry but you are going to have to have the verdict of, innocent under insanity. You will be sent to Stardust Asylum. There you are not to leave until you’re sound of mind.” She said, hitting the hammer down.

“But what if she gets out? Lock me up and throw away the keys!”

“No. The asylum will give you the help that you need so you will become whole again. That way you will not hurt anyone else again.”

She was chained up and walked out.