Work Text:
“I…will prove…once and for all…how wrong…you are…” Black Sheep panted with each step she took. She was grateful for the headphones that left her hands free to push off her knees as she climbed uphill.
From the other end of the phone call, Player’s typical laugh sounded more tense than usual.
“Sounds like the ‘highest part of the island’ is a little higher than you bargained for, huh?”
“You just…shut up.” Black Sheep quipped pathetically, trying to get her breathing under control. She’d been practically all over this island, including to the summit on a handful of occasions. Player had insisted that the highest parts of a landmass were hot spots for activity.
But, she’d never been here at night. She’d never felt like her every movement was being watched. Every journey across the island was usually accompanied by feelings of boredom. Shadowsan had always insisted it was important to get acquainted with the spirits of their environment by making peaceful trips and humble offerings. Black Sheep had always loved the stories, but the day-long walks had been grueling on her little legs as a kid.
Besides, the other instructors would always pull her aside to remind her stories were just stories. They warned her to take Shadowsan’s stories with a grain of salt and to always stay deeply rooted in the real world. So Black Sheep had listened to the rest of them, and stopped all the silly rituals she used to do.
Honestly, it had been a while since she’d taken a proper walk around the island. Her ambitions of being the world’s greatest thief one day had overtaken the childish interest in old stories.
“I used to make this trip all the time.” Black Sheep boasted aloud as exhaled a ragged breath. “I’ll make it to the top and back down in no time with no proof of your so-called UFOs.”
“I’m sure the aliens will implant simple memories like that after they abduct and experiment on you.” Player’s voice was wavering with suspense, though Carmen couldn’t tell if it was purposeful or not.
Black Sheep snorted “Yeah right.” She swung her flashlight across the lightly-worn trail, illuminating nothing more than rocks, sand and damp grass. “You just keep your eyes peeled. According to books I’ve read, the tunnels you’re going through are incredibly haunted with all the souls who’ve died in the river.”
“Oh, but of course.” Player responded sarcastically, though he was sounding less confident as their phone call dragged on. “ Gotta be super focused to see something that doesn’t exist.”
“You’re gonna regret those words, Player. And you’ll owe me an all-expenses paid vacation to Ontario–” Black Sheep stopped suddenly, whipping her head to the right. She could've sworn a twig had snapped somewhere in the brush. Were the shadows moving?
Black Sheep shivered and pulled her sweatshirt more tightly around her. Stupid Player and his stupid conspiracy theories had her out in an untamed tropical forest before the sun was up. Though, she supposed the trade off was that he was currently exploring one of the most haunted tunnels in Niagara Falls. Alone. At night.
Served him right for not believing in ghosts, despite Black Sheep’s insistence. She’d talked at length for hours about the stories she’d been told. Shadowsan had taught her to embrace the supernatural. Ghosts, spirits, lost souls…anything trapped between this life and the next was all real. Not only that, they often contained immense power that could be stolen and reused if done right.
It was easier to discuss the supernatural than the main purpose of the classes she’d been taking. Player had told her before he was convinced she was either hiding something or a pathological liar. As he simply put it: “ ghosts don’t exist.”
So Carmen had challenged him to a good old fashioned dare. Player readily agreed, determined to disprove her before she could disprove him. Some people just had to learn the hard way. Which is exactly why she was trudging up to the highest peak of the island in search of aliens that certainly weren’t there.
“Hey, uh… Black Sheep?” Player’s voice was suddenly much more timid. If she didn’t know better, she’d say it was shaking, too.
“Find something, Player?”
“I-is it normal to see–” the audio cut out, turning to crackling static louder than the phone’s volume allowed. It got louder, and louder, eventually sounding like the shrieking terror of a young boy. Black Sheep winced and pulled her headphones out in an attempt to save her hearing.
Even with the headphones removed, though, the prolonged cry of her long-distance best friend was clearly audible.
“GHOST!” Player’s voice was full of terror and empty of breath.
Black Sheep ripped the headphones out and put the speaker to her mouth, warnings from her mentor flooding through her head. “Player! Don’t run! Ghost’s don’t–”
His feet slamming against the ground were almost as loud as his voice. “I gotta get out! There’s water filling everywhere! Black Sheep––!”
“Player!” Black Sheep called again, helplessly glued to her phone. “You can’t let the spirit catch you!! Vengeful wraiths have a tendency to curse the living!”
The only response was another blood curdling scream. It ended abruptly by the disgusting sounds of someone choking on water. Black Sheep’s phone began burning an unnatural blue color, becoming as cold as ice in her hands.
She dropped it out of instinct and watched in horror as the screen cracked and the call fully dropped.
“Player!” Black Sheep dropped to her knees, moving to grab her phone to reconnect. She hadn’t meant to send him to his death! It was just a ridiculous bet! She hardly believed in Shadowsan’s musing anymore; nothing was supposed to happen!
Player’s fear had sounded so real, though and he was notoriously bad at lying to her. He wouldn’t joke about this, would he?
Before Black Sheep’s hand could grab her phone, a wire cable shot out of the darkness and ensnared her wrist. She yelped in surprise, then in pain as it wound tighter and tighter, effectively slicing through her skin.
Another cable caught her other hand, then one for each ankle. They all pulled taught, forcing the girl to her knees with her hands behind her. Black Sheep grunted with anger as a final one wrapped around her throat and pulled her head back, allowing her neck to be fully exposed to the…oh crap.
One–three– five figures surrounded her, all of them awful simulacrums of an average human being. But their eyes were wrong, glowing and mechanical. Their smiles were unnaturally stretched to the edges of their faces and none of the proportions were right. It was almost as if some external species had made their best guesses as to what passed as a human and called it a day.
No… no, this couldn’t be happening. Aliens?!?! They weren’t real! There was no such thing! They–they were… right in front of her. Not only that, they’d rendered her useless in a matter of seconds.
One stepped forward with an unnaturally poised hand. It turned its whole head towards her, the neck shifting on the shoulders like a machine. “A unique specimen.” The creature’s hand peeled back, revealing an awful array of what looked like torture devices sticking out of its wrist.
Another stepped forward, wielding the same variety. “Delivered to us, as if intentional.” It looked towards what Black Sheep assumed was the leader. The one in the center said nothing, simply held up its hand. A hole in the center of its palm flashed like a camera.
The world flicked to black. If her eyes weren’t open, Black Sheep would’ve assumed she blinked. Then the light returned and her surroundings were entirely different. The forest and sounds of the ocean were gone. Blackness stretched endlessly in every horizontal direction. There seemed to be a ceiling made of light, but that’s all she could see.
Black Sheep felt herself fully restrained to a metal table. A band even stretched across her forehead, keeping her head in place. She was suddenly thankful for deciding to wear a thicker sweater and joggers to stop the cold of the clamps from seeping into her skin.
The five creepy figures were still surrounding her, all of their palms facing towards her. Some had plain hands and others had tools Black Sheep had never seen before. She’d assumed it was a dream, but even her imagination couldn’t create something as horrifying and alien as what she was seeing now.
“Shall we commence dissection?” The one closest to her spoke.
“NO–” Black Sheep choked out and fought against her restraints. “Don’t you touch me!” She couldn’t fight back, she couldn’t free herself.
Whirring blades moved closer and Black Sheep could only watch helplessly as the creature moved towards her throat. All of her training, all those years spent studying, wondering what other wonders existed in the world, and this was it? She was going to be killed by something she’d always laughed at?
Some sick part of her wondered if being abducted meant she’d technically left the island. Too bad she wouldn’t have the chance to see any of the amazing places she’d studied. She’d die as unknown to the world as she’d been born.
Black Sheep closed her eyes in desperate anticipation. She didn’t expect her phone to start ringing and vibrating on the side of the table. Everyone froze, caught off guard by the sudden sound. Black Sheep snapped her eyes back open and stared at the screen of her device, easily noticing the vague contact name she’d assigned to Player.
Good, if he was calling her again, it meant he was probably fine. Except…phones weren’t supposed to leak water like that, were they?
“What is this?” The leader’s gaze blessedly moved from her to examine the device. He bent down, folding directly at the hip to put his face closely towards it.
The phone exploded like a geyser, falling to the floor. An impossible amount of water shot out, blasting the main alien back twenty feet. He slammed into something solid and the endless black shattered like a tv screen. Good to know this space was limited after all.
Black Sheep turned her attention back to the geyser just in time to witness the single worst thing she’d ever seen.
In the blink of an eye, body parts were cracking and stretching out of her phone’s screen. Every arrival brought another gush of water and soon her clothes were soaked with freezing cold water. As more limbs emerged, they brought a crooked and broken body with it that was unlike any possession Black Sheep had read of before.
Upside down in a crab walk, the shoulder and hip joints were all fully dislocated. The skin of the creature was blue and dead, like a drowned and bloated body. The only recognizably human feature was the half of the creature’s face that hadn’t been fully taken over yet. A boy with brown hair and brown eyes screamed in pain as his body and voice contorted with power he couldn’t handle.
“Player!” Black Sheep screamed. She couldn’t help him like this.
The reply was only partly his voice. “Y-you were right. Ghosts are r-real!” Water poured out of his dead, glowing eyes, out of his nose and mouth as he spoke, muddling his words even further than the spirit squeezing his vocal cords. His voice warped and changed until it wasn’t his anymore and all signs of Player were replaced with something horrid and haunting. “And they’re furious!”
“A new specimen!” A mechanical voice shouted behind her. That was all it got out before the cursed boy lunged like an animal towards it. The sounds Black Sheep heard couldn’t be described. But whatever was going on certainly didn’t sound like it was panning out in the alien’s favor.
There was a whirring sound, then a blast, and suddenly the cursed creature was visible again, pinned to the wall next to its first victim, as if held there by some imaginary force. Player’s face was half visible again as he strained against the countless vengeful spirits attempting to commandeer his body.
“Hold that one for later examination.” A metallic, ragged voice breathed beside Black Sheep. It limped up beside her, its exterior disguise torn to reveal a species unlike anything Black Sheep had studied. Another one appeared on her other side, its hand extended towards Player, keeping him pressed to the wall.
“Player…” she laughed pathetically. “You were totally right.” They were both screwed.
“I shall continue with dissection.” The same one spoke, turning back to Black Sheep.
“Leave her alone!” Player’s voice clearly shrieked above the rest of the noise. “I always thought aliens would be cool, but you guys suck!”
Black Sheep fruitlessly ran through her options. Anger surged through her as she thought of all her stolen opportunities. What gave these stupid creatures the right to hold her down like some helpless victim? She was Black Sheep – the youngest student in VILE history and would-be greatest thief.
Nothing and no one could stop her.
She took a deep breath, remembered Shadowsan’s endlessly frustrating techniques and released every ounce of spiritual energy she had in one breath. She imagined the stupid aliens dissecting themselves instead. She imagined letting her and her friend go free.
For an instant, everything was silent. The next moment brought explosions.
The world around them shattered and flickered. Just as she’d imagined, the machines posing as humans burst into thousands of pieces, littering the ground in bolts, screws and random panels. The restraints once holding her down were just…gone. Even the table and walls dissolved around her, as if she existed in space entirely reserved for her.
And here, anything she thought was reality.
Black Sheep felt amazing. Her body was practically sparking with energy and power. Whatever limits she’d hit earlier were gone and the entire world was her playground. Black Sheep jumped to her feet and laughed with glee. Nothing could stop her now.
With a single shove of her hand, the remains of the alien machines were thrown from the path and smashed against the wall of screens. Black Sheep made a crushing gesture with her hands to the sky and the sides of the room began crumpling like wet paper around her. She laughed again, drunk on her own power.
“You’ve got telekinetic powers??” Player had dropped to his knees near the floor. He held the sides of his face as if he were keeping his head from splitting apart. Most of his face and body were still twitching with haunted energy. Honestly he looked like he was fighting a losing battle.
“I knew you were hiding something!” Player’s voice screamed, harmonizing with the spirits inside him. Rage boiled in his words and she watched in horror as what remained of Player’s face was taken over by the spirit possessing him. His form fully changed, shimmering and glitching like a reflection coursing through a river. He morphed into a terrifying half-demon, its wrathful eyes set on the only remaining target.
“Uh oh.” Black Sheep couldn’t even move before the beast was on her, pinning her to the strange floor. Its frigid finger and toe nails cut into her skin and water poured off its form like an endless waterfall, re-soaking the girl beneath it in an instant.
“Player!” Black Sheep sputtered, keeping her face turned to the side to avoid inhaling all of the water. She had to reach him –– the real him. “Pull yourself together! Fight it!”
“I’ll drown you!” The ghost shrieked back at her with dozens of voices, only the weakest layer sounding vaguely like the boy Black Sheep had spent so long listening to.
“Let him go!” Black Sheep wrenched her hand free and placed it directly on the demon’s face. She used the chaotic energy flitting around her to solidify and do her bidding. All of her mental energy went into expelling the spirit from the body of her best friend. She wanted nothing more than to take him and run far, far from here.
A churning cloud of resentment exploded out of Player’s back and swirled in the air above him. The boy, seemingly back to himself, collapsed against Black Sheep and continued coughing out water. Pure malevolence and resentment hung in the air, two eyes and a leaking mouth materializing like a vision. It spoke, pouring more water over the floor.
“You think you’ve outrun us?” It’s combined thundered through the air as if they were sitting beneath the falls themselves. “You’ve experienced only a fraction of my power.”
Alarms blared around them. Something was banging on a wall somewhere, sounding like it wanted to break into whatever this room was. Black Sheep felt nauseous, like a bad flight on a helicopter. Was the UFO crashing? Had she done that much damage to it?
Player rolled off her, coughing so hard it sounded like he was retching. He looked…dead honestly. The pallor of his skin was slightly unnatural: a grotesque mix of blue and gray. Bright geographic lines traced along the edges of his face, all leading to his eyes, which were glowing a painfully icy white color. He was still struggling to breath, spitting up an impossible amount of water with every attempted breath.
“What??” Black Sheep sat up, unsure what emergency needed her focus most right now. “He’s still cursed?”
“We’ve taken something of his.” The spirit almost smiled, then closed its eyes and inhaled easily. Its breathing still sounded wet, but even Black Sheep had to admit it sounded like an improvement compared to Player. “It’s been so long since we’ve had a lung to help us breathe.”
Black Sheep’s eyes went wide. “You stole his lung!? !” What did that mean for her best friend? Could a person live normally without something so important? “Give it back!”
The cloud turned from blue to nearly black, as if the river had no bottom. Hundreds of moaning, screaming, agonized faces pressed against the surface of the water like they were trying to escape but couldn’t break the surface. The main eyes and mouth split open, revealing an uncomfortable amount of teeth.
“If you want it back, fight me in my own element.” The spirit roared at her. It laughed a thousand times, dissolving into a singular maniacal screech.
And then it was gone, disappearing back into her phone. It was as if nothing had happened.
The aircraft creaked and moaned underneath them. Black Sheep knew nothing about this ship, but knew that couldn’t be a good sound. She needed to get them out of here before it either crashed or shot into the sky.
Finally, Player seemed to stop choking up water. He sagged against the floor, his wet bangs slopping onto the illuminated surface. “This sucks so much.” His eyes were still fiercely white, his skin unnaturally blue. Even the ends of his hair looked like ripples on the surface of a lake.
“Hold on, Player, I got you!” Black Sheep turned her newfound power on her friend, able to sense the haunted aura locked on to his soul. She imagined squishing the corruption to something much smaller. She kept going, putting more and more effort into it until the curse was nothing more than subdued, mote of power.
Player’s appearance returned to normal. The glowing lines across his face died down, allowing his eyes to return back to their normal brown state. Or…what Black Sheep assumed was normal. She’d never actually seen her best friend before. Only now did that realization hit her.
He coughed raggedly, trying and failing to get to his hands and knees. Black Sheep knelt next to him for support and he leaned on her heavily. “Th-thanks, Red.” he murmured. “I’ll ask you how you did all that later.”
“Red?” Black Sheep questioned.
Player made a vague gesture towards her that could have been indicating either her hair or the random red sweater she’d thrown on before leaving the school. Black Sheep suddenly felt embarrassed, realizing she was wearing a lot of the color.
“We-we gotta get out of here.” Black Sheep quickly returned back to the task at hand. “Shadowsan was totally right about all this spiritual stuff. Maybe he can help you get rid of the curse. The best I can do right now is suppress it.”
Player groaned and pushed up to his feet, still staggering slightly. Black Sheep was at his side, keeping one arm over her shoulders. It was difficult, though, considering how short he was. Player had never mentioned how tiny he was for his age. Or were all 14 year olds this size?
Black Sheep had never met someone even close to her age. She’d also never met aliens or ghosts. Tonight was certainly a night for firsts.
“Why don’t you use your––” Player waved his hand limply in the air. “Mind powers.”
“I can’t!” Black Sheep’s reaction was instinctual. But then again, it did feel like all the power in the universe was just beyond the reach of her finger tips. Maybe she could…
“Woah!” Player gripped his best friend tighter as their feet left the ground. “Y-you can fly!?”
Black Sheep was focusing harder than she ever had in her life. It was less like flying and more like she was extending her arms out to lift the two of them up. But this way, she could easily maneuver around the room. There was a small hole in one of the walls that seemed to lead outside.
“Hold on!” Black Sheep yelled, focusing on rocketing the two of them towards the wall as quickly as she could. They’d need a lot of momentum to fully break through. Once they were outside, she could hide them in the island brush until the aliens left.
As her focus switched, Black Sheep felt the curse slip from her grasp. The consequence was immediate. Player’s body cracked and bubbled, becoming something grotesque and horrible once more just in time to slam full force into the wall, cushioning the hit for both of them.
“Sorry!” Black Sheep screamed as they were suddenly airborne. She hugged Player with all her strength. She couldn’t focus on keeping them aloft and containing his curse. “We’re gonna crash. Do something!”
It was a desperate plea. Black Sheep had no idea if Player could hear her like this, but she desperately hoped some of that feral power he’d had earlier could stop them from splattering against the forest floor below.
Something like determination glimmered in Player’s icy eyes and he stabbed his sharp fingernails into Black Sheep’s arms. The girl yelped in anticipation of pain, but nothing ever came. Instead, her entire body went numbingly cold and insignificant. She nearly lost consciousness, feeling her skin, muscles, blood and bones turning to nothing more than water.
Player appeared watery, too. She could even see the ground through him, approaching faster and faster.
The two of them impacted, water splashing onto every nearby tree, bush and blade of grass. Once again, there was no pain to be felt. She was completely and totally liquefied.
Black Sheep instantly focused on the curse, forcing it to shrink once more. As she did, both their liquid bodies drifted back together. Once complete again, Player abruptly shifted back to a solid and brought Black Sheep with him.
The two of them lie on the ground, panting and coughing out more water. Black Sheep rolled to her hands and knees, shaking as she vomited. But, strangely, there was no taste of salt to accompany it.
“Niagara Falls is…fresh water!” Black Sheep couldn’t help but laugh. She’d never experienced anything other than the sea surrounding this island. She was coughing up fresh water!
Player (human again, thankfully) was laying on his side, cradling his head. “The-the aliens, Black Sheep. We gotta hide!” His voice was small and hoarse.
Black Sheep quickly reached out with her energy and pulled him towards her, then hunkered beneath the shadow of the nearest group of trees. They stayed deadly still, attempting to quietly breathe through the water in their windpipes. They watched the unstable UFO silently buzzing through the sky. For a second, it looked like it would crash.
Then in a brilliant burst of light, it was gone. There was nothing more than starlight in the sky.
She and Player remained frozen for a number of minutes, terrified to break the sudden stillness of the night. Black Sheep could feel her friend’s heart racing through his back as she held him tightly, continuing to focus on keeping the right consciousness in control of his body.
Adrenaline rushed through Black Sheep’s veins. She could hear her own pulse in her head, trying to focus on one thought at a time. Despite everything that had just happened, she felt a giggle bubble up from her chest.
“That…was… crazy.” Black Sheep breathed out in amazement. She’d never thought she could experience so much excitement in one night.
Player whipped around to look at her incredulously. “We almost died! Like, multiple times! In multiple, horrifying ways!”
Black Sheep gripped his shoulders gleefully. “But you’re here , Player!” She pulled him in tight again, finally able to hug her best friend after so many years of only knowing his voice.
“I got cursed, then possessed!” Player yelled into her shoulder, fighting the embrace. “You got abducted and then got…psychic powers and completely saved me.” He deflated into the hug, weakly bringing up a hand to grip onto the back of her red sweater. “Black Sheep….thank you.”
She enjoyed the relieved feeling of safety for as long as she could. Then Player punched her.
“Ow!” Black Sheep released him, rubbing her shoulder. “What was that for?”
Anger bubbled in his eyes again, but this time it was all his. Teenage innocence and all. “Why’d you send me to such a cursed place? This is all your fault!”
Black Sheep was quick to quip back. “Well that’s what you get for not believing in me! I told you not to run, too but no . Someone didn’t want to listen!”
“I don’t feel bad that you got abducted!” Player yelled. “You manifested the worst aliens because you ignored all the evidence of the good ones!”
“What good ones, Player?” Black Sheep was appalled. “That was your first alien encounter too, wasn’t it?”
“I–” Player grumbled and turned away. He seemed to lose all his steam. “What are we gonna do? I can’t go back home like this. I might hurt my parents if I lose control.”
“You won’t lose control.” Black Sheep assured him and placed a hand on his shoulder. “And even if you do, I’ll be there to stop it.” She shakily got to her feet and offered a hand down. Player took it and let her pull him up.
“Where do we go from here, though?” Player looked around, eventually landing on the moon in the sky. “Where is here, anyway? Is this where you live?”
Black Sheep’s pulse spiked again, realizing she was going to have to share more of her life with Player. There was no reason to keep anything hidden anymore now that he was here. The excitement at finally getting to share her schooling with Player blocked out any of the worries she’d had earlier.
“Welcome to VILE academy, Player!” Black Sheep grabbed his hand and began walking down the trail, back to the headquarters. “We need to talk to Shadowsan. He’ll know what to do about all of this.”
“Who? Wait, VILE? That sounds like some creepy evil villain organization.” Player spluttered, tripping over every rock and root his best friend expertly avoided.
Black Sheep was giddy. She didn’t care about the danger anymore, or the fact that she couldn’t lose focus on Player’s curse. All of that faded to the background as she realized she finally wasn’t alone anymore. Her first friend was here. Black Sheep would do anything to keep it that way.
“Don’t worry, we’ve got some of the smartest and most powerful people in the world at our disposal.” She tightened her grip on Player’s hand, turning around just enough to flash him a greatly genuine smile. The concern he shot back at her was entirely lost on the girl.
Things were going to change. She had a friend now.
“You’re going to love it here, Player. I promise!”