In the early evening, a young man of above-average height stood before his mirror, adjusting his tie to align with his suit. He combed his hair into a side part and took another look at his suit to check for anything that stood out. As he checked his mirror, his reflection flickered, shifting to show the man dressed in a combat suit with his teeth bared and eyes bloodshot.
The man facing the mirror shook his fists, the memory of that event washing over him in a cold sweat. The man in the mirror kept hyperventilating looked downwards with his hand over his face. The man looked at his terrified self in the mirror and stuck out his hand, prompting his mirror self to at least pay attention. Nevertheless, he curled his open hand into a fist before pulling it back and looking away.
"Corbin!" yelled a voice from outside. Corbin looked away from the mirror upon hearing his name.
"Yeah?!"
"Are you almost ready?!"
"Give me a sec!" Corbin looked back to the mirror, only to himself as he currently was. Corbin rattled his head and took a deep breathe, stepping out of his room. A middle-aged man wearing green, fancy clothing encountered Corbin, relaxing him.
"You ready for this, kiddo?" he asked. Corbin couldn't help but smile as the man tousled his head. His hands trembled and his fingers were erratic. "I'll take that as a yes," he said. In the following second, Corbin closed the distance between them, his arms wide open as he enveloped the man in a tight embrace.
"Thanks, Alvin. I appreciate you letting me live with you. Oh man, I can't believe this is happening!" he exclaimed.
"Hey, what are friends for? Now hurry up with that interview and knock their socks off already." Alvin remarked, patting Corbin on the back.
"Just make sure my training doesn't go to waste. The Convocation is a tough law-enforcement organization and I'd hate for you to die from a lack of preparation." requested a voice from the hallway. Corbin and Alvin turned toward the voice and found Alvin's butler.
"Don't worry, Ernest. Thanks to your teaching, I should be able to handle myself," he assured.
With a final squeeze, Corbin released Alvin from his embrace, left the mansion, and strode towards his car. The engine roared to life and he drove off. He finally arrived after what felt like an eternity and exited his vehicle. Once he looked up to observe the structure, his fingers trembled. He tightened his fists, drawing upon his resolve and silencing the disorder inside him. He took a deep breath, grounding himself in the present, and proceeded towards his objective.
Stepping through the entrance, Corbin's will surged within him, propelling him forward. His gaze landed on a small figure. The man in question stood exactly one foot below him. The man's hair shimmered like liquid mercury, a striking contrast against his red and yellow conquistador-like attire. Corbin's eyes locked with his, and at that moment, all he sensed was a profound solemnity inside them. His expression fixed, and Corbin met the man's gaze back.
The short man's glare pierced Corbin's resolve and unsettled him. Corbin looked away and went to the elevator, going inside and blowing in the air. When the doors slid open on the fifth floor, he strode down the dim hallway while licking his teeth. Room five-hundred thirty-seven beckoned him, its door a portal to his ultimate test.
Inside, a red-haired woman in green sat poised at a table, her attention consumed by a newspaper on her phone. The soft glow of the screen had cast an ethereal light on her freckles. As the door creaked open, she shut her phone off and paid full attention to Corbin once he entered. Rising from her seat, she towered over him by two inches and advanced towards him.
"You must be the recruit, Corbin Violette. I’m Kiara Galvani. Let's get started," She stated. "Let me guess. You altered your Convocation uniform to look like that, didn’t you?" she interrogated, her eyes narrowing.
"Given how our uniforms work, I figured it was much easier than picking out a wardrobe for myself. I'm sure I'm not the only one here with that idea in mind," Corbin said, eliciting a curt nod. They took their seats at a table, sitting across from each other.
"Before we begin, I should clarify something. I’m not the leader, but I’ve been given this responsibility regardless. Also, I was told to 'not go overboard.' Whatever that means. To kick this off, let’s talk about your Factor. I know what it is, but not how it works. Could you enlighten me?" she probed.
"Simply put, I manifest darkness by absorbing light in my vicinity. Watch," Corbin desired. He opened his palm, absorbing light in the room and generating an orb of darkness. Despite being as black as night, there was a violet tinge and a glossy texture. Kiara reached out to grab his smooth and sleek creation, admiring it.
"Interesting. You said your Factor worked through the absorption of light. Sounds useful. In the event we encounter enemies with Photo Guns, you'll be like a lightning rod. Can you control pre-existing darkness?"
"Not exactly. That's a little... trickier, so to speak. Without any light, I'm no different from a Recessive. Well, I guess excluding my perfect vision in darkness."
"As interesting as your Factor sounds, that’s not the main focus of this interview. I took the liberty of asking your teachers at the Supernova Academy all about you. I questioned your attitude in class, your performance, and your interactions with the other students. Regarding your classes there, you excelled in Field Awareness and ended decently on Martial Aptitude. But you fell short in Factor Techniques. In fact, Professor Kapela said your creativity was 'more inflexible than tree resin.' Why is that?" Kiara asked.
"When I was a kid, I looked up scientific facts about darkness to see if I could do them. But as you can imagine, looking up scientific facts isn't the same as being able to actually do them. And it's not like I had anyone who could teach me. Unless you know someone who teaches people how to control darkness." said Corbin.
"I suppose that makes sense. My Factor is more understandable compared to darkness. I've never even met someone with your Factor. That aside, you graduated with an eighty so you're qualified to be an agent. However, even a perfect score wouldn’t guarantee your place in this group," she continued. "What do you hope to accomplish being an agent? What is it about this company that makes it attractive to you?" she queried. Corbin smiled a little and straightened his posture a little.
"To put it simply, joining this company will give me the leeway to dish out some much-needed punishment. There are people in this county who are" Kiara put her elbow on the table and rested her head on it, peering deeper into Corbin.
"And what's that supposed to mean?"
"Do you know how painful it is, the feeling of powerlessness? The inability to fight back, no matter how much you want to? I know that feeling far too well. The Convocation is a law-enforcement organization that specializes in neutralizing and detaining criminals. In other words, fighting back isn't just allowed, but encouraged. Joining means I'll no longer have to pull my well-deserved punches."
"What situation requires you to restrain yourself in the first
"Well, that certainly sheds some light on your motives. So, you got to meet our leader well before we did. Lucky you. That said, I can't imagine being saved by our leader was all that pushed you into joining this company. Surely, there was more." she pondered. Corbin covered his irises in darkness before answering.
"There is. Before that incident, I was a bit more ...passive. Not by choice, mind you. That probably would've been preferable. See, there was a bully in my class who could abuse whoever he felt like for free. It could've been a student, teacher, or staff member. If he was in the mood, someone would be crying.” Corbin spoke through clenched teeth.
“I'm actually supposed to believe that? Come on.” Corbin smirked, but there wasn't a trace of happiness in it.
“No one could stop him because his family donated the most money, meaning if the school didn't cater to his desires, his parents would pull him out and stop their donations,” Corbin explained.
"You're telling me this school was so desperate for money that they just let him do as he pleased? I didn't realize your school was run by a prospector."
"It's not like he stayed long. After the first semester of second grade, he was kicked out. The principal decided the donations weren't worth the constant complaints from students, teachers, and parents. One the first day after winter break, each class held a week-long party." Kiara's face loosened up and she lightly chuckled after hearing that, placing her hand over her mouth and nose.
"Ok, then. I suppose your story makes sense now. But what's the point of it?"
“The point is, that experience made me realize how much I hate being a wallflower. Your leader saving me helped me realize I don't have to be like that. Now I know how to fight back." Corbin exclaimed, the darkness fading.
"Well, that sounds interesting but what will you do if you encounter a criminal you can’t arrest? Someone untouchable either due to their status or manipulation of the law?" she asked. Corbin broke eye contact and sat in silence for a while, struggling to breathe at a constant pace.
"I don't know," Corbin bemoaned. Kiara crossed her arms and legs and looked down, contemplating the interview. In response, Corbin moved his fingers greater than when he arrived.
"Ok, then," she said. She stood up and extended her hand. “Welcome aboard. We’re called The Papiyon,” she delivered. Corbin stood up to accept her handshake.
"Thank you so much, Miss Galvani," Corbin said.
"Just call me Kiara. I'll add you to our group chat. It’s standard procedure, that way we'll be able to communicate when necessary," she pronounced.
"Wait, how do you have my numb- Oh right, I gave it to the Convocation when I signed up," said Corbin.
"Well, if you have no more questions, you're free to go," she replied.
After exiting, Corbin went to the bathroom and entered a stall, requiring privacy for what was to come next. Though no sound came out of him, Corbin mouthed himself screaming. He raised his arms and shook them as if trying to release all the excitement out of his body. He could feel the vibrations layering his hands as he got out his phone to make a phone call to Alvin, who picked it up.
"Alvin! I did it! I'm in! I can't believe it! This feels so unreal, but it's happening! I don't even know what to say!" said Corbin softly.
"I can tell that you're trying very hard to contain your excitement. You know who's interested? Irene. She's at the Promenade right now and wants to meet with you," Alvin said. Corbin put his hand over his face, smiling like a kid.
"Alrighty, tell her I'll be there in around twenty minutes. Later." Corbin said before hanging up. Once he put his phone away, Corbin changed his clothes. Their supernatural properties allowed him to alter their color and composition, altering the movements and organizations of the many textiles and threads of the uniform.
After hanging up, Alvin and Ernest rushed to the storage room which was filled to the brim with party decorations.
"Alright, It's about time! Let's hurry up and get it all ready!" squealed Alvin. Ernest chuckled at his boss' enthusiasm and started taking stuff out.
Irene sat on a bench, staring at the full moon. She got up to stretch and took a look at the Promenade, an open-air upscale shopping center in Coconut Creek with many businesses next to each other. The darkness of the night stood in direct contrast to her clothes, colored like the bright sky.
Corbin spotted Irene and made his way to her, excited and grateful to see his cousin. Instead of his original outfit, Corbin wore a more casual outfit to the occasion. Irene went up to Corbin and gave him a big hug that he returned.
"Hey, Corbin! I'm so glad you got in! That must have been tough." She suggested.
"Kinda. Still, I am so excited for this. I just hope I can rely on them. But for tonight, it's just you and me. So what do you want to do?" wondered Corbin.
"I want to take a walk around the place. It looks so beautiful," she said, twirling in sight of this busy environment.
"Sounds good to me. Let's go." Corbin declared. The two strolled around the Promenade. Irene gazed at how it was lit up, providing a sense of wonder to even places like an insurance store. She took in the chatter from many people as a different form of music as they marveled at the many palm trees outside.
"Why did you bring a change of clothes for this place?" asked Irene.
"I didn't. This is my Convocation uniform, you know, the one I got after graduation." he answered. Irene looked puzzled at his response. He chuckled at her confusion and took her to a spot with less scrutiny. "Let me show you what I mean," Corbin said. With a mere thought, he colored his right hoodie sleeve from red to blue and changed its material to leather. Irene touched both sleeves, amazed by the difference.
"Neat, right? And the best part is, our uniforms are packed with this material, meaning I can also do this," he said. Corbin added two extra pairs of sleeves to his hoodie. He even summoned some threads of the material above his wrists and forearms, creating gauntlets made of metal. Irene stared in utter bewilderment at what Corbin did.
"Oh, wait! Isn't this that special fabric? What was it again? Camofab, am I right?" Irene asked.
"That's it. Another cool thing is, I can wear this for twelve weeks straight before ever needing to wash it," he said.
"So, in other words, you're never wearing any other clothes again, right?" Irene asked, laughing as Corbin returned his clothes to normal. They resumed their walk and sat at the edge of a fountain.
"Enough about me, how've things been at The Dove Foundation?" asked Corbin.
"It's the same as before. Nothing special has happened. But maybe that doesn't have to be the case. Should you or your teammates ever arrest some criminals, can you ask them to seek help from The Dove Foundation? They don't have to accept, but an offer would be nice." Irene proposed.
"Yeah, sure thing," answered Corbin. Irene wrapped her arms around him in a loving squeeze. "I appreciate the hug, but can you let go now? Little hard to breathe," he said. Irene let go as soon as possible.
"If you can't even handle me, how on Earth are you gonna apprehend lethal criminals?" she joked before letting go. "Still, there's one thing that kinda confuses me. Since you graduated from The Supernova Academy, that means you were already an accepted agent. So why'd you have to talk with one of them to be part of the team?" asked Irene.
"That's because I requested to join them. Agents are supposed to be assigned to teams at random, however, agents can ask to join a specific team they want. But if you do that, they have the freedom to reject you. And man am I glad I nailed it. This is so cool!" said Corbin.
"Ah, that makes sense. said Irene.
While they sat at the fountain, Corbin heard a commotion in the Promenade and ran towards it, Irene following suit. A man wearing ocean-colored leather clothes with plants covering his face was near a bar holding a little girl hostage. He held the girl with one arm wrapped around her and used the other to brandish a switchblade to her face.
The little girl had tears flowing down her cheeks, trying to break away from his grip. The nature of the situation made Irene turn her face away.
A whirlwind festered inside Corbin, though no one could tell from the look on his face. With everyone focused on the hostage situation, he changed the color and getup of his clothes and placed darkness over his face, desiring no recognition from anyone. He used Tentabres, manifesting a dark tentacle to grab the man's hand holding the switchblade and had another one smack his other arm, only for his grip to remain firm.
"Who do you think you are? My orders are clear: the girl comes with me. Complications are a luxury I can't afford." snarled the man, sounding furious. Corbin unveiled his eyes, delivering a cold look to him in response and the crowd scattered away, trying to escape a potential escalation.
"You must be either brave or foolish to look at me with such arrogance." the man said. He started to transform, becoming something other than human. His muscles enlarged, murky green plants and vines started to form from his skin, his teeth and nails grew brown, and his eyes became like a burnt shade of red before he turned into a swamp monster, commanding a presence of seven feet. However, his face still resembled a human's. Following his metamorphosis, he leaped with the girl into the air, hurtling at breakneck speeds.
As he soared through the winds, something smooth and sleek coiled his leg. His veins almost burst when he realized the stowaway was Corbin, hanging on via a dark tentacle. Dirty water secreted from his leg that caused the tentacle to start slipping. The stench of decomposed vegetation infiltrated Corbin's nose, making his breathing shallow and erratic. With his hand covering his nostrils, he formed another tentacle in no time, looping it around the monster's stomach. When the creature covered his body with that same rotting water, Corbin just decided to tie it around the little girl and the beast's hand together.
"You want to stick around? Fine. Just don't blame me for what happens next." he growled. He looked down and spotted a construction site, featuring an eleven-story, half-completed skeleton frame, composed of steel girders and concrete pillars with each floor reaching twelve feet in height and twenty feet in length. Vines exploded from his wrist to wrap around one of the pillars, decelerating his movement.
After letting go, they both landed on their feet in the middle of the site, surrounded by construction vehicles and small dirt mountains. With the little girl still in the monster's hands, vines emerged from his palm to bind her throughout her body, tying her up and placing her near a truck via his extended arm.
After returning to his human form, the man scowled at Corbin, closed his lips, and contorted them into a sinister smile, teeth exposed.
"The name's Match, underboss of the Beauvoir Crime Family. I can't let you get away with making things harder for me. Otherwise, it'll just encourage you to keep mucking up my business," stated Match.
"Business? Is that what you call kidnapping innocent children? Just part of your job? Your boss must reek more than you did a few seconds ago." insinuated Corbin.
"Well, you should know, I chose to do this myself. After all, I figure she'll make for a great bargaining chip to use," explained Match. Looking at the little girl reminded him of looking in his mirror.
"Using innocent people for your own means. It's the same story all over again. Hey, kid. Look away from this, I don't want you to see what'll happen," warned Corbin.
"For some reason, you care a lot for this random kid." taunted Match.
"Someone like you can't understand, but I've been in her situation before. And there's no way I'll just let that happen if I can stop it." declared Corbin.
"You're right. I can't understand something pathetic like that." Match said. He put his left foot forward, raised his arm, and tucked his elbows in.
Corbin absorbed moonlight to let loose Foule Sombre, an innumerable amount of dark energy bolts, towards Match. He weaved through them all, moving his limbs, body, and head away from them all. Once Match lunged forward, he caught a lightning-fast punch towards his face, his lips curling into a smug smile. Match struck the underside of Corbin's right wrist, resulting in sharp, acute pain that made him hop back. Corbin kept his eyes from widening, but that was easier said than done.
Even though his breathing was sharper, Corbin directed a punch to Match's face with his left hand, which closed around his fist. Following this action, Match stepped on both of his feet with as much force as possible before kicking his right shin, widening his eyes in response.
Corbin charged darkness in his caught fist. Though Match retracted his hand, he still couldn't help but wince and wave his hand, his fingers trembling from the attack. Corbin's teeth were bare as he punched Match square in the jaw with all his might, twisting his body in conjuncture. Corbin's lips couldn't help but form into a psychotic smile. Match stumbled backward, waving his arms back. After regaining himself, he rubbed his lip and glimpsed some blood, chuckling.
"Not bad for a lucky shot." taunted Match. Corbin used Tentabres, hurtling three tentacles toward his foe. Match spun around them as he closed in on Corbin. Match delivered a straight punch that Corbin blocked with his arms, leaving him vulnerable to a right hook that sailed over Corbin's defenses and rushed toward his face.
Match refused to relent and struck his other shin with his foot before uppercutting and smacking him to the floor. Once Match changed his arm to grab the little girl with vines, a dark tentacle popped up to envelope Match's ankle and throw him far away from the site. Match tried to use his vines to grab onto a pillar, only to fail, stretching at just twenty meters. After getting up, Corbin spotted the little girl and ran towards her, his right eye closed and his breathing sounding like coughing.
He used a narrow dark beam on the vines tying her up, snapping them like matchsticks, and grabbed her, hastening to the elevator. After setting foot inside and pressing the button to the seventh floor, he dropped down and panted, relaxing and wincing in pain.
"What the actual hell? I mean, I figured he'd be tough since he's a criminal, but he hasn't even used his Factor against me? I need to call Kiara. With any luck, she can do something." Corbin thought. Once they reached their floor, Corbin and the little girl left the elevator, but not before he pressed the button to the fourth floor. He whipped out his phone to call Kiara, darting his fingers around the screen.
"Corbin, what's this all about?" Kiara asked.
"Where are you? Please don't tell me you're occupied with something important." Corbin begged.
"I'm at home. What's wrong?" Kiara wondered.
"I'm at a construction site trying to hide from an underboss who's kidnapped a little girl to use as a bargaining chip. Right now, she's with me and we're safe. I managed to throw him away from us, but he's too much to handle and I'm not doing too well. My shins, feet, and wrist are killing me. And I'm pretty sure he's coming back soon." Corbin uttered.
"Alright, where are you?" she said. Corbin went to the GPS on his phone to find his location hurryingly.
"Ok, I'm located on one thousand one hundred twenty-eight Southeast Headley Street in Tamarac," he uttered.
"Give me a second." she advised. Kiara went to her GPS app and put the address to find the distance she'd have to drive. She scowled at the results and put in a different address in place of hers. "Ok, I'm too far from your location to help you, but I can send someone else to assist you. The GPS says the distance is only 12 minutes so you'll have to hang on until then."
"Very well." After hanging up the phone, Corbin paid attention to the little girl. "Hey, did you remember to look away?". When she nodded, a sense of ease washed over him. He caressed her shoulders, his eyes searching hers for any signs of distress. "Don't worry. I've called for reinforcements. You'll be reunited with your parents soon. Got a name I can call you? 'Kid' won't cut it for me." wondered Corbin.
"My name is Fernanda," she answered.
"That's a nice name. Ok, all I need to do is buy some time for my backup to arrive. Now the only question is whether or not I can actually do that," he speculated.
"I think I can help with that." she chimed in.
"Really? Do you have a Factor that can slow him down or something?" he pondered.
"Not exactly. Watch this." she urged. Fernanda created a one-meter energy field and clapped her hands, but Corbin couldn't hear anything. Once she extended the field to about five meters with him inside, the clapping sound became audible to him.
"Create tentacles like you did before and bang those two poles together." she guided. Corbin made two tentacles that went out of the silent field and grabbed two metal poles, lightly banging them together without being able to hear any trace of sound.
"Woah." he exclaimed.
"And I can even do this." she continued. Fernanda wrapped her arms around Corbin, reducing the size of the silent field and making it a silent aura. Corbin chuckled a little from witnessing this.
"Something tells me we might make it out of here in one piece. I have a plan." Corbin guaranteed.
Match's blood was like fire upon returning to the site when he realized his opponent and hostage were a dust cloud. He looked around the place, using vines sprouting from nearly every corner of his body to feel them out. He explored every nook and cranny of the area with his vines trying to unearth them, turning up empty every single time. Unbeknownst to him, he was scraping his fingers against a dump truck.
"Why can't I find them?" Match muttered under his breath, frustration tinging his voice. "No way he left with those injuries. No transport, no escape. What the hell's wrong with me? Some punk like him wouldn't even make it at the Academy, and somehow, his eye isn't hanging out of its socket." He paused, eyes narrowing as a realization hit him.
"Wait," he whispered, his heart quickening. Match darted to where the elevator should be and saw the indicator showing the fourth floor. He activated it, tapping his foot like machine-gun fire as he waited. The sound of the elevator whirring filled the silence, heightening his anticipation.
As the doors slid open, Match transformed back into his human form and stepped into the metallic interior, taking a deep breath. He jabbed the button for the fourth floor, his mind slowing down.
"He's too battered to mean anything. All that matters is the girl. I need to stop wasting my time on him." muttered Match. Once Match used the elevator to head to the first floor, he repeated this process, snaking his vines throughout each floor trying to find Fernanda and growing more frustrated with every failed attempt.
The elevator's ding at the seventh floor notified Corbin, prompting him to launch a charged ball of darkness at Match once the doors slid open. Only by instinct did Match block the attack, allowing him to mitigate the damage. His defenses weren't perfect as he needed to take a deep breath to steady himself from the numbing ache.
His eyes were attacked when Corbin stopped absorbing light from the nearby spotlight, flashing Match out of nowhere. His instincts drove him to put up his arm, but the sudden illumination still blindsided him. He stumbled back as all he could see were on-and-off white flashes of light that kept flickering.
With snappy judgment, he scooped up Fernanda behind him to leap off the skeleton building, her aura blanketing the two of them and masking his footsteps' sound. As the wind rushed past the duo, Corbin looped a dark tentacle around a pillar on the fifth floor as tight as possible, ceasing his descent. Like a fishing line unspooling, Corbin lengthened his tentacle down to ground level.
Match unveiled his mouth to let out a roar but fastened it the second following that. He recovered from the unexpected brightness thanks to his limited exposure, only to look down and see Corbin trying to hide behind one of the vehicles. He hopped down like lightning and landed facing his quarry and her protector.
"I'll admit. You're a slippery bastard. But that doesn't mean she is." he said. Match erupted vines from his palm to grab Fernanda. Corbin held on and resisted Match's attempts to rip her away despite the intensive pain, only for Match to take her away and pull Corbin towards the floor. "A nosy punching bag like you shouldn't have given me so much trouble." Match lifted his leg above Corbin's head and plummeted his foot down to crush Corbin's skull.
Before his head could be caved in, an intense, blue stream of fire arrived from Match's right and burned his leg, causing him to roar in pain. He hopped back on one leg and soaked his burnt one in water, causing lots of steam to emerge from that area. Corbin looked to the right and saw a blonde woman with white and blue clothing, sticking her arm out from launching that flamethrower.
"I don't need to bother with another Convocation Agent. One of you was annoying enough." Match fired a water stream at Corbin that she blocked with a flamethrower, creating a moderate steam cloud. During that small timeframe, he leaned on his better leg and jumped away from the site with Fernanda in hand, crossing a large distance in no time.
After the steam cloud dissipated, the woman picked Corbin up and put his arm on her shoulder. She summoned blue fire around the arm holding Corbin, startling him until he realized he felt no heat at all. The fire spread to his wrist, shins, and feet, making the pain around them even more excruciating.
"I know, I know. I'm sorry." Once it was over, Corbin let go of her, grabbed his previously injured wrist, and moved it around perfectly fine. He shook his legs and pronounced his steps in the sand with no problem before looking back at her.
"Man, your Factor's weird. Though, I get the feeling everyone else finds it useful."
"Natalia Seppanen. Figured it'd be pretty rude to leave you all battered when I can patch you up." she said, sticking her hand out. Corbin grabbed it, his face growing murkier.
"Corbin Violette. Thank you for showing up when you did."
"Clearly, I needed to." Corbin looked at her and grimaced.
"Yeah, I realize." Natalia opened her mouth and eyes a little and retracted.
"Look, I'm sorry. That was out of line."
"Not the first time, anyway." he grumbled under his breath.
"What was that?"
"It's nothing." Natalia watched Corbin look away and stare at the ground and sighed, keeping her distance.
"Look, Kiara told me about how that little girl is being used as a bargaining chip. Chances are, she's still alive. So if you want to save her, all this pouting is unnecessary."
"Of course she's still alive, but I don't know for how long. The only thing I do know as that I won't let her die. I'll do what I'll need to so she can see her parents again. And the bastard who took her, he's gonna prefer a world of hurt over what I've got in store for him."