Chapter Text
In the middling little town of Hillglows. One cannot say that the inhabitants of this cosy place they all called ‘Home’ was the most peaceful area to really make a proper living in, regardless of its picturesque fields and trees that dotted around their small houses and cottages.
For you see. It was unfortunately the main victim to many hostile individuals that wanted to cause chaos and destruction in the town for whatever reasons that may be. And that wasn’t even counting the many natural disasters that seem to come right out of nowhere to ruin anyone’s day, regardless if they deserve it or not.
But. Many of these incursions into the town have never ended in outright annihilation. Mainly thanks to the few unique heroic residents that live side-by-side with the rest of the town, who always come in to help deal with the threat and stop it with their unique collection of powers and skills that set them mostly apart from the more normal inhabitants in Hillglows. (And even beyond!)
Regardless of what one thought about living in the town and the interesting events that seem to almost happen regularly in it. At least you can never say it’s a dull moment in Hillglows at the most.
And this one particular night upon the town was to be no different.
While most of the residents have called in for the night to rest upon their warm beds and neatly made coffee drinks. Something in one corner of the town near an alleyway, was starting to become restless.
An unusual dark spot near the end point of said alleyway was slowly starting to shift and grow over the walls and ground in it, as though the shadows being cast by the surrounding bins and various trash littering the place had taken a life of its own.
For a while. The ‘Shadows’ only continued to move and crawl silently within the darker, yet darker spot without much changing or growing within it. But then suddenly, the spot had started to emit what looked to appear something akin to a black smoke, that was highlighted in white near the edges of it. Which then quickly started to overtake what remaining clear view one could have upon this alleyway. Once everything in the alley itself had turned into a smoking blanket shadow that not even the brightest touch could hope to recover on what this area used to look like.
Something then started to form out of the pitch blackness.
A formless limb had burst out of the darkness in a slow manner before it quickly gained a proper form that resembled a mimicry of a hand that had four long thin, bony fingers and what appeared to be an odd white hole within the centre of it.
The hand then proceeded to move upwards to reveal the rest of the connecting thin pointed arm that appeared to also have its full edges highlighted in bright white as well. Similar to the smoke that dotted the air above it.
Another identical hand and arm on the right side had also burst forth from the darkness at a faster rate than the previous one did beforehand.
Both of the limbs had now moved their hands to touch the non visible ground in a manner of pushing themselves to stand up, and soon enough. What appeared to be the head and chest of whatever creature this was, had finally shown itself.
It hasn’t taken long for this unknown being to move the rest of its body out of the darkness it had formed itself out of, and what a form it was.
The floating shadowed being appeared to be a humanoid creature that was covered in the nearest extent of what you could say was a sort of armour it was ‘Wearing’ and appeared to be filled with not only the same black shadowy makeup that the alleyway was covered in. But had that same white outline on its whole body too that helped to make it stand out from the rest of the covering darkness surrounding it.
Its head, or helmet was expanded into a vague pointy shape with two added long sharp antler-like structures atop on its helmet, while having a white, almost glowing thin visor in the lower part of its face.
It’s chest didn’t have much detail to it as well, beyond being wide and having two jagged shoulder protrusions on both sides of its upper chest, with two extra smaller ones sticking out of the bigger shoulder ones on the bottom. (Something that their arms also had on the end of their elbows as well)
The legs were similar to the arms in the sense of being mainly thin as a wooden stick, and ending with just a pointed spike with nothing resembling a proper foot at the end of them whatsoever.
The most eerie element to this Knight next to everything else about it. Had to be the ever constant fading after-images it emits from itself in a manner that almost gives the Knight a ghostly quality of a kind. It floating above the ground too, didn’t help.
The Knight stood still in pose for a few seconds as it took a glance around the dark blanketed alleyway, before then tilting its head below until it suddenly stopped and quickly bringing its arms and hands up towards itself, while it’s visor started to flow and morph into a single outline of a small eye, as it move around in a frenzy upon looking at its arms and the rest of its body. You wouldn't be mistaken for thinking that the Knight looked almost... Surprised at their giving shape.
But just as quickly as it reacted to it's own appearance. Its eye flowed back into its visor appearance and it's arms were slowly lowered back down into a static position. It then moves its head upwards toward the fresh night sky and the glowing moon stabbed right in the middle of it, and couldn’t help but stare head-on at it for a few moments.
It then started to move its body into a crouching position which quickly changed into their whole form shapeshifting into a rolling orb or ball of sorts. A mixture of black and white contrasting within it while still having those same after-images effect tailing behind itself.
The orb then processed to fly out of the darkened filled smoke alleyway and into the night sky high up top. Clearly wanting to explore what this new world had to offer to it, regardless of whatever kind of destination they had in mind.
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Meanwhile, In a different part of Hillglows near the outer limits of the town itself. What looked like to be an anthropomorphic rabbit, was busy taking a nice stroll around a walkway littered with all unique and wonderful types of flowers and trees, enough that someone would probably get a headache trying to list all of them down at the same time.
This was Jack the rabbit.
An average tall grey and peach fur guy who wore white gloves that had sharp yellow lines that dotted all over the end point of them, and black trainers with two patterned orange zig-zag lines on them as the only form of clothing he wanted to wear.
His rabbit ears were styled in the manner of someone having spiky hair of sorts, and had a somewhat flat muzzle on his face next to others of his own kind, but not enough that it would outright look like one belonging to a human though.
To anyone looking at him for the first time. They’ll think he was just a normal, if somewhat cocky guy with some oddly drawn tattoo black lines that seem to come upright from the rear and front ends of his legs and arms. But to everyone else who lived in Hillglows and the lands beyond it?
He was their hero!
Out of every individual who has helped this town in their own unique ways. Jack was considered to be in a league all on his own. What with how many times he has saved Hillglows from strange beasts, evil folk and what have you, time and time again, thanks to his light based powers and oddly strong physical body he had on him. And that’s been the case ever since he first arrived at this place only a few years ago.
But at this unique hour of time right now? Jack just wanted to relax and take a stroll throughout the town he has come to grow a fondness for, as he walked over to a small, wooden bridge which had been built over the town's own river line that started in the centre of the settlement and carried onwards into the wider forest area without any sign of it stopping until you hit the coast line of Radian itself.
It wasn’t anything too special next to other ones out there in the wider world per say. But, it has a unique simple charm all to its own that spoke to Jack in a way that made it more meaningful to him, as he started to lay his arms onto the rails of the bridge and look down to the water itself, while his own reflection stared back at him under the soft lighting of the fireflies moving abound freely in the garden. Making for a wonderful crisp and calm atmosphere.
(''Man! I am not too sure what kind of pounds these gardeners are getting exactly, but it clearly has to be in the thousands at least, if this place has anything to say about it, heh.'')
Jack couldn’t help but idly think to himself as he stole a glance at the whole garden's front view that stood before him. Then he turned his gaze back onto the river once more.
His fluffy, peach chest fur striking out to him in his reflection was a bit amusing to the rabbit before the wide grin on his face, then started to slowly move into a smaller and simpler smile as he looked back onto the main reason why he was even out here in the first place.
''... Hm, but it’s not enough to keep my mind off track about that weird nightmare I just had though...'' He said in a quiet whisper to himself.
''Seriously. I know that I don’t have the most pleasant dreams out there, but none of them were as... ‘Vague’ as this one turned out to be.''
''Best thing I could gather from it, beyond it somehow being darker than my own basement. Was some odd looking black smoke that popped up from time to time in it and that really odd looking, white eye or visor(?) staring at me from the darkness… I wonder what it could all mean...- pff!'' He snorted to himself on how odd he must look to anyone overhearing his muttering.
''Look at me! Getting all work up over a nightmare of all things haha! I dealt with worse stuff in my sleep anyhow, and besides. At least that dream give me the good excuse to get me off my bed (''Not that I barely sleep in it half the time anyway.'') and to see all of the good work folks in here have done so far in this place.'' Jack happily said out loud while gesturing his hands and arms around the whole garden and forest surrounding him.
But just at the corner of his left eye, he saw something in the water that instantly turned his head right back towards his reflection, downright glazing at it even. He knew what he saw for a quick sic, but a part of him still couldn’t quite believe just yet, until he was sure that his eyes weren't playing tricks on him.
''Either my eyes are finally starting to go out on me, or I just saw something from my recent dream that just show up in that refection...'' The remaining words left his mouth as he saw what appeared to be one tiny black smoke, highlighted in white as it moved upwards across said reflection from behind his body.
Jack then turns his full body around from the water and yip.
Same black smoke that was slowly moving randomly across the night sky. He could even see a few other ones showing up from somewhere across the town itself.
Some of them vary in size or how long they lasted until dissipating into nothing, but they didn’t seem to be causing any sort of trouble. If the lack of screaming was any indicator... Yet.
''Whoa... I’m starting to think that maybe that ‘Odd dream’ of mine, has a lot more to it then I first thought...'' Jack said as he looked upon the strange smoke spilling out from some buildings between them if he had to guess.
The rabbit’s expression shifted from slight concern to an eager one with an added smirk for good measure.
''Ohhh, this is starting to get real interesting now!'' (''While the walk around the town was nice to do for a bit. I’m always more down for a good mystery to solve! Especially if means I get a good fight or adventure out of it.'')
With that last thought in mind. Jack moves his legs and arms into a position of someone readying themselves to jump. And sure enough, jump, he did.
As he proceeded to launch himself high up into the air without much effort, thanks to his unnatural strength he has in his legs. (More specifically, the bones in them)
He landed on a random house’s rooftop at barely a moment's notice, before quickly jumping again to another house's roof. Though this time grabbing onto the top of a chimney with his right hand, while raising his left hand over just where his eyes laid, as he started to pinpoint on where the strange smoke was coming from, and it only took a few seconds for him to see where the main source of it was.
The alleyway.
Least. He gathered that it used to be an alleyway, before it had seemingly been replaced by what only Jack could describe as a black abyss where that consistent dark smoke was coming right out of.
''Damn... What in the world happened to THAT place?'' (''And not too much of a shocker that somehow, no one in town has seen or come up towards this darkness yet.... You just gotta love Hillglows sometimes, haha!'') Jack thought to himself amusedly before refocusing his attention back on the matter at hand.
''Hmm. This doesn’t match any M.O of my ‘Villains Gallery' (''Is that what I’m really starting to call that lot I deal with now?’’) exactly. So I can pull them out of that long list in my head, and no one else I know or pals with, could pull something like this off either… Eh, maybe it’s best that I take a more closer look at it.''
With that last word uttered from his mouth. Jack adjusted both of his feet and legs on the chimney in preparation for his next jump. It truthfully didn’t take that long for him to get below on the street and towards his destination, considering it was only a few seconds away from where he had been at. Though, Jack was never the type to skip out on a chance to work out with his legs regardless.
The grey rabbit looked upon the entrance towards the dark void he was only one step away from entering, with a mix of curiosity and some anticipation. Though, beyond that same black smoke still coming out of the topside of this darkened alleyway? Nothing much else to note about it really.
He still couldn’t see any form of objects and the like in it, even up close. Jack didn’t feel any strange feeling or force coming out of said darkness either. It was truly both numb in appearance and any sort of power it would have given off to anyone with powers like him.
Jack moved his right hand upon his face and started to move one finger into a tapping motion near his mouth, similar in pose to someone deep in thought.
(''Rightttt, what should I do now? I’m not quite sure what this ‘Void’ thing is meant to be exactly, but I’m not getting any cold shoulders from it so far. So standing a mile close to it, isn’t getting drain me of my lifespan anytime soon...'')
Jack’s face suddenly brightened up with an idea that just came into his head.
(''Wait, my powers are light based in nature and stuff. And this black void is as close as you're likely going to get to any sort of ‘Force of Darkness’ in terms of being an opposite to my Lighten based energy I have on me here. So what the heck!? Let’s see how a little dash of my power might interact with this little void here, heheh.'')
Having made up his mind on what he wanted to do now, regarding this matter before him. Jack lowered his right hand from his face and then started to point towards said void, in the manner of someone pointing a gun at something. Then, a form of power had began to grow on his pointed finger. A small, glowing yellow light filled with energy, had started to take shape on the tip of his finger.
It slowly grew more and more, until it was bigger than half of that finger in only just two seconds alone.
The light was moving in an electric manner, twisting and turning like it was eager to be let loose and sure enough. Jack proceeds to fire it out of his finger into the oncoming darkness.
It blazed in a quick flash! Leaving a thin trail of fading light in its wake, it rushed into the pitch blackness and managed to light up the alleyway just enough that some outlines of a few objects in it were appearing themselves before Jack.
Well. It did for only a few milliseconds that is. As the little blast that Jack had just made, got snuffed out in the darkness without much fanfare.
Upon witnessing it. Jack’s confident expression shifted into one that conveyed confusion and slight curiosity on what just happened.
''..... Gee, looks like I might need to put in a little bit more effort on this front then, hm.'' Jack said to himself as he realised that he was going to have put in a bigger douse of his power into this void that stood before him.
But, when Jack moved his gaze upward towards where the shadows seem to stop near the surrounding rooftops. He noticed that the endless line of black smoke that was coming in from the covered alleyway, seemed to have... Lessen in numbers now, last time he checked with it. Only a mix of five seem to be forming out of the void next to the previous ten from earlier.
(''So, that little shot of mine did seem to have somewhat of an effect on this dark spot then! Guess that’s a good sign as any on what I need to do next with this.'')
With a smirk now returning to the rabbit. He widened his fingers out on his left and right hands, which started to glow with that same force of energy he had made from just earlier. But this time around, the ethereal glow of it was much stronger and brighter now, with little dots of yellow sparks forming in and out near the orbit of this power being shown off. You could even start to hear a hissing sound coming from them, something akin to steaming water of sorts.
Jack looked up towards the night sky and its brightly lit moon and felt his smirk widen a little bit more. Confirming to himself that he wasn’t in danger of losing a big chunk of his light power source over something that he considered to not be that big of a deal.
Though, it was always safe to check just in case. He wouldn’t have made this far into life if he was reckless with his abilities.
''Ok then bud. If that’s how it’s going to be? Then let’s see you try and eat this big buffet for size!''. And with that last statement. Jack put both of his hands together and combined the two light sources into one, and then he let it all out upon the void.
The effect was immediate.
Instead of an energy like bolt being sent to the void again. This time, a greatly bright light in a pitch up yellow tone, had started to slowly come out of the rabbits hands like a flashlight getting turned on.
It moved towards the darkness without much pushback and quickly envelope the entire area in less than a second flat. The sheer brightness of it all would have made anyone blinded before they could even blink at it.
But to Jack? He just stared right into it with that same confident expression he had upon witnessing this unknown force of darkness invade this tiny part of the town, just a few minutes beforehand.
After a minute into it. The overwhelming flashing light had started to slowly tone down a bit until it was entirely gone.
Jack moved his arms down to his sides as he looked to see the end result of his attempt to get rid of that strange void, and he was not disappointed to see what his fruits of labour had brought forth.
Where once was a endless scar of a void that had grown between two buildings, had now been replaced with the normalcy of your typical alleyway. Filled with bins, trash and some dry graffiti on the walls. Barely, if any, hints to the area that would have once suggested its previous state of form it had used to bear.
The grey rabbit took a long look at the area before him, in order to make sure that no leftovers of that darkness were still hiding from him. He even decided to walk into the alleyway itself for a closer look at things.
(''Hmm, good thing that big flash of mine did the job on getting rid of it. But it never hurts to be 100% sure that there aren’t any small leftovers lying in wait around in here though.’'')
After thinking that. Jack’s eyes and pupils started to brightly glow with a slightly deeper tone of yellow to them. They glowed brightly enough to start instantly highlighting a part of the alleyway, akin to a soft lightbulb if you will.
Once that was finished up with. Jack started his deeper investigation into this place for any leftovers or reasons on why this ‘Void’ had even shown up at all in the very first place.
He first checked around and underneath one of the bigger bins in this general area. Nothing in that spot beyond some leftover pile of moss hiding under the bin that give Jack a very odd desire to consume it for some reason??
''..... Either I’m somehow that deeply hungry to eat anything by this point, or my sleeping schedule has gone REALLY out of hand more so then I could ever imagine...'' Shaking his head at the odd feeling he had gotten over this plant of all things. He continued searching around the place.
The rest of the bins had bore little results on finding anything either. Even with his glowing eyes to help illuminate any dark spots that might have tried to hide something in them. The remaining walls and ground to check had also nothing to give for Jack either, beyond some funny graffiti and doodles on said walls, but that was about it really.
Seeing this. The strong glow in Jack’s eyes had disappeared and returned back to normal, while the rabbit had walked out of the place with an expression that showed him deep in thought on what to do next.
He stopped in place around the middle of the street. Hands on his waist and his left ear parroting someone scratching their head in a questioning manner, while Jack made sure that his right one moved slightly away from the other, so as to not awkwardly ruin that little action he was doing right now.
''Eh, while I guess it is good that I did get rid of that odd looking void thing in the alleyway, so that no poor guy can stumble upon it without any warning... But, I still haven’t gotten a clue on where it even came from in the first place!''
Jack turns his gaze towards the moon in the distance once more. He couldn’t see any remaining black smoke or anything else odd out in the night sky as of yet.
''... Why did I even have that dream of that darkness and smoke in the first place anyway? The fact that it even managed to show up here in the real world at all, has gotta mean something deeper is going on with that. But if that is indeed the case. Then why didn’t that white visor and those sharp antlers in my dream, pop up alongside the other former two then..?''
He turned away from the moon to look down on the road. His left and right ears having shortly returned to their normal upright position. His face blank with any real expressions on his face to speak of.
Jack closed his eyes and a small smile had taken hold over him.
(''Welp. Not like I’m going to achieve much on this by just standing around and looking sorry for myself hah! Better make sure that no more of those ‘Dark spots’ haven’t pop up around more parts of the town here.'')
(''Besides. Gives me an excuse to avoid going back to my bed too! Can’t forget that.'')
He opened his eyes with a determined look in them now, as the rabbit moved his body and legs back into that same pose of readying himself to make a giant leap forward once more.
''But what direction in the town to go towards, first..?'' He muttered as he stuck out his tongue from his mouth in a silly way, while moving his right arm and hand forward into pointing at whatever direction he was going to pick for himself to go to.
''Hmmmmm, I never picked north beforehand exactly if I’m remembering that correctly....? Eh, whatever. You can’t always have full certainty on where you life is going to take ya on next if you ask me!''
After saying this, Jack moved his tongue back inside his mouth and lowered his legs a little more for the upcoming jump he was about to make. And sure enough. He let them loose and he found himself right back into the wide, open night sky before him once more. Laughing out loud to himself as he experienced the wind blowing through his fur and face.
Regardless of whatever was going on in Hillglows this time around or why that strange dream of his seemed to be breaching reality itself in some way or form. That didn’t change the fact that he was sure that he could handle this without having to pull anyone else into this situation yet.
Hopefully, none of the townsfolk or his close friends would awake to something much worse popping up before he could nip it into the bag quickly enough.
Besides, whoever was behind this, might end up being a fun person to end up fighting with! Well, if they turn out to be a bad guy anyhow.
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In the northern part of Hillglows itself. There laid a single wide building that was stationed near a big car park to its left side. The other side was towards the outside woods themselves, as folks with their family would come and place their cars into the park and then go out for a nice stroll within the forest itself for the evening.
For others not interested in such an activity or just looking for a place to get a nice drink after having said walk. This one building would be their best bet on going towards, since it was a bar establishment of a kind itself.
It’s name was ‘Roden’s mixtures of beers and wine’’ and it was pretty much what you expected from your usual tavern. It served all kinds of adult drinks and the like.
Beer, Wine, Liquor, Energy drinks? You name it. This bar had it all, and it helped that the place had a pretty big open space for many customers to go and sit in as well. So it never felt too overly cramped to be in with other people drinking in it alongside you.
The owner and also bartender who first founded this establishment, was a male anthropomorphic rat named Roden Wardsky and he had been living in this town for over three years by this point in time.
He had first arrived to Hillglows for the promises of moving his business to a well stable landscape that didn’t have much competition in it, (Or no competition at all more accurately. Due to being the only real bar restaurant that existed in this town) and as well for some peace and quiet in his life, now that he was past his younger years and going well into middle age.
Just unfortunate for him that this past year just alone, has been the completely opposite of that by now, ever since that one grey rabbit (He didn’t seem to prefer going by the title of his race ‘Leporos’ for whatever reason he could think of) Had first shown up to this town. Things have gone straight to the very depths of hell itself in his opinion.
Monsters attacking the town out of nowhere. Fights happening in this community for whatever dumb reason they had behind them, and what have you! To Roden, it really felt like the whole world just stopped making any logical sense the second some nutter with an unholy Christmas obsession, started to throw explosive candy cans at some poor bastards who happen to be in the wrong place, at the wrong time....
At least he can still do his day job on giving drinks to people for not only money purposes, but also to just simply help some townsfolk get through those kind of days sometimes as well.
Inside of the bar while the night still hung high. We see Roden Wardsky himself in the bar top, clearing some of the cocktail glass that still had some leftover spoils of some wine and the lot in them.
His main fur was coloured in a goldish/brownish mix of sorts, while having a couple of white spots that appeared mostly on his chest and legs for the most part. His face was pretty much what your typical rat’s one looks like. Having a long muzzle with short, black thin whiskers on the sides of his light pink nose.
As for the teeth. He had the same buck type teeth as the rest of his kin had. Though he’s right one did look more broken in shape enough that you almost mistake it for something that came out of a canine’s one instead.
His ears were rounded and had more of a lightish brown tone in the deeper parts of them next to the rest of his main fur. And his tail wasn’t anything too noteworthy to write home about. It was exactly how you thought a rat’s tail would end up looking like.
As for the clothing. He wore a brown apron over his white shirt that had marked black, thin lines covering it all over it. And had darker brownish trousers on him, alongside some black boots with bronze buckles for the final touch on his getup.
He was the only person still left in the building by the time he had to close shop down at 7pm. Not only cos he was the sole owner of this establishment, (And didn’t have any other workers employed to help him run the place) but it also served as his own personal home too. He had a bedroom upstairs that he slept in of course, and it helped that most of the room supplies were just a door away from where he rested at. So it made it pretty useful to wake up in the morning and check in those rooms first to see if all was in order for the day.
Regardless. None of that was on his mind right now. He was mainly focusing on cleaning these cocktails as fast as he possibly could, mainly so that he can go to bed before half of the night was done with.
''... 15345, .... 15346.... I think that’s most of them done by now…'' Roden said softly to himself, as he saw that there were only three drinks left to finish with. His counting tick habit whenever he was clearing a drink, was something that he liked to do, back when he first started his little pub all those years ago in his early 20s.
''Right, let’s get you three sorted out now, eh..?'' He muttered under his breath as he finished the last three drinks before putting them and any remaining cocktails that were still laying around on the bar top, into the cabinet behind him, where all different types of drinks and cups were stored until they were needed once again.
Roden locked the key into place within the key hole and took it out placed it back right within his apron's main middle pocket section. The bartender rat sighs to himself before taking a long glance around the whole bar.
It was all neat and tidy after an hour or two with clearing up the whole place once all of his customers had left.
The tables were clear of all leftover crumbs and various spilled liquids. The chairs were put back into their proper place, and the floor and walls have all been clear to their fullest extent.
A job well done if he did say so himself. (Regardless if it left him feeling like he could sleep throughout the whole blasted week)
''I can finally get myself some sleep, thank the lord, hm.'' He uttered in his deep, dry voice as he couldn’t help but notice how the moonlight casted itself into his pulp, almost giving the whole place a sorta... otherworldly feeling to it all, now that he thought about it. Especially since it was devoid of any life here beyond himself of course.
Eh, maybe he really should get to bed now if he was starting to think of random stuff like that all of a sudden.
(''Ok, time to take off this apron I’m wearing here and I’ll be mak- ..... What the hell was that?'') His thoughts crawled to a stop, upon seeing something outside the front windows to his restaurant. It was only for a split moment, but he could have sworn that he saw some kind of… black and white circle ball thing flying out high in the night sky for some reason??? It also seems to leave a trail of images of itself that had a see through effect to them before disappearing as fast as they form into being from the looks of things.
Frankly, It left him a little spooked upon seeing that. Maybe he worked a little too hard on cleaning everything in this place enough that he was starting to hallucinate strange images or something like that at least?
''Pah! As if.'' Roden corrected himself before those thoughts led him down to a trail of madness and paranoia. Definitely something he didn't need to deal with right now in the middle of the night.
''I'm s-sure that this is somehow related to that grey rabbit guy and his friends... again, ugh. Really hope that this stays far away from my establishment this time around...'' (''I do NOT want to go through that whole nightmare with the mayor and his construction crew on repairing this building all over again!'') Roden couldn’t help but voice to himself on this.
''Hm, better check around the place again just to make sure that there’s nothing ill placed or wrong in here.'' He whispered to himself before walking out of the bar top and starting to recheck the whole area again. He looked and peek at every single corner or spot he could think of, for anything unusual that might pop out to him. Hell, he even checked the jukebox to see if there was something wrong with it, but nope. It looked the same as ever, and it still functions as it was intended to, with no skips or odd errors to be found in any of the music tracks that Roden played for a very short bit.
''Ok, ok. I REALLY need to stop wasting time like this and go to sleep already. I got to stop letting this fear of mine, control me like this honestly.'' (''Especially with what I just said from earlier with my paranoia and all that.'')
(''Besides. I’m sure that Jack fellow can deal with whatever outside those windows of course! I’m just wasting my time here.'')
And with that last, nervous thought in mind. Roden took off his apron and left on the counter as fast as he could, before walking rapidly out of this section of his home and into a nearby wooden staircase that led upwards to the rat’s own bedroom.
He had just about started to climb the first few steps before he stopped himself in place, and heard some kind of muffled noise from upstairs that seemed to sound like something he could only really compare to a reactor core going into critical meltdown of all things.
A noise that was definitely coming right from his own bedroom...
(''W-What’s that noise coming from my bedroom!? Can’t be my alarm clock freaking out, since it’s never made that kind of noise before… so it can’t be that.'') He thought to himself before a sudden stray fact had him realise he was forgetting something very important.
(''CRAP! What if someone broke into my room so that they can get to my supplies in those other extra rooms of mine?? I gotta get up upstairs NOW!!!'')
And with that last thought in mind. Roden broke out into a run across the staircase as fast as he could. He’s mind a frenzy of different kinds of horrible scenarios going through his head on what this intruder could be doing right now in his bedroom or either the supply rooms as well.
He reached the door to his bedroom and tried to quickly grab onto the door knob and twist it open, however. While in his panic rush. Roden failed to notice the strange pockets of small blackened smoke rising out of a mid-long shadow that was being cast from underneath the door itself.
So, when he opened the door, instead of looking at his own room and the stranger in it. All Roden had found was an endless, dark abyss that stared right back at him with dark smoke in white outlines blaring out of the doorway in an increased manner and force that it started to quickly cover up most of the ceiling in the blink of an eye.
The bartender rat took a few steps backwards in fright at the sight that laid before him. He could feel his back coming into contact with the handrail itself, while noticing the now much longer shadow from under the doorway was fading in and out in an eerie manner that just added to the fear Roden was now experiencing in his heart.
''W-W-What happen t-to my bedroom...!?'' He couldn’t help but shout out loud on what he was seeing, regardless if there was no one there to answer him.
(''Did that person who broke into my room, throw some kind of new smoke bomb that I haven’t heard of yet or something!??'')
(''..... I really should call the police right now on whatever the hell is going on with my room there honestly....'') Roden tried to reason with himself, but his legs never once moved an inch from where he was standing at.
He could feel his tail and ears move in irritation, and his rapid breathing didn’t help matters with the idea that maybe he should be getting the hell outta here. But for some reason... he also didn’t want to leave either.
''Ok Roden, just calm yourself for a quick sic, and think about this whole thing logical for a bit.'' He steady his eyes towards the inner darkness where his bedroom used to be. It didn’t stop the growing sweat appearing on his forehead per say, but it was better than nothing.
(''... Right, so I could either leave my home and let the police deal with this crap. But that means that I’ll have to wait for a bit for them to get here, and who knows what kind of damage this guy might do to my restaurant and my various supplies up top by then?'')
(''Ehh, screw it. I’m not letting some lowlife kicking me out of my home! And it’s not like I wanted to live too long anyhow, so what the hell?'')
Having made up his mind on what course of action he wanted to take now. Roden looked towards the darkness in his bedroom with a now determined expression on his face and hands colliding into tightened fists.
He leaned off from the handrail and started to walk towards the void coming from his room until he was just one step away from the door itself. The Rat couldn’t feel a single thing or odd force coming from his ‘Bedroom’ but.... It didn’t stop his stomach from twisting itself in knots over being so near towards this unnatural darkness that stood before him.
Though, he couldn’t help but randomly thought to himself that the black smoke that covered the ceiling right now, hasn’t been filled in towards the rest of the upstairs in here and staircase down below for some odd reason.
In fact. He could have sworn that the dark smoke above him, seems to be getting.... Smaller in quality?
''No. Wasting too much time with forcing on that. This is now or never Roden.'' He said to himself quietly. No more wasting time with this.
So, Roden Wardsky took a deep breath within himself. And then walked right into the doorframe and the endless void itself with no hesitation to speak of.
Stepping right into it. Roden’s first thoughts on this was that he could still oddly feel his shoes touching down on something he recognizes as his carpet floor surprisingly enough.
(''Huh, well it is making my theory on this being some new type of smoke bomb getting unleashed in my bedroom more likely at the very least. I’ll take that over dealing with any magic like crap instead, Hmp.'') He noted to himself before taking a look around for anything in this deep darkness that might give away to anyone trying to hide within it.
He couldn’t hear anything beyond a very faint howling of the wind from both behind him and oddly from his right side as well. The best guess he could make for the latter part, is that maybe the intruder left his bedroom’s window wide open and hasn’t bothered to close it yet?
He looked back towards the doorway he came in to see if maybe the intruder was trying to sneak outta of this room.
Nope. No one there running off to any of the other rooms or the stairs themselves, though he couldn’t help but make note of the black smoke from earlier, now seem to be barely on the ceiling that much anymore from where he was looking at in his room.
(''Ah, thank god! It seems that this smoke thing is starting to really calm down now. Hopefully that means this darkness in here is going to start disappearing as well soon enough.'')
But as he was just turning around to have a look around this darkness once again. Roden suddenly stopped mid-turn and looked down on his legs and feet. He had seen something that made his heart stop in beat and his blood freeze in fear.
''What... t-the h-h-hell..!?'' Roden couldn't help but shout out loud at what he was seeing, regardless if it gave away his position or not.
He could see his trousers and boots were changing in colour from their original dark brow and black colour scheme into bizarre reddish tones on them instead! Or, they were trying to anyhow, since they keep flashing in between that and his normal ones in a steady, but slow length.
Even his hands, arms and whole body (Fur was shifting back and forth from his goldish and brown tone to an orange hue) was changing colours in the exact same way as his bottom half was, hell! Even his clothes were outright changing to bring new ones as well apparently. He wasn’t sure what they look like though, due to suffering from the same ‘Condition’ that his colours were dealing with for the moment.
''I-I don’t u-understand, what’s h-happening to me?'' He shakily says to himself, while looking down at his chest and seeing that a new apron of some type, (Looked like something a craftsman in a shop would wear) work was trying to form itself over him to somewhat of a failed attempt.
If things couldn’t get any worse for Roden. He started to feel a strange sort of.... breathing being uttered by something in the same room as he was in. It sounded hazy and seemed to echo all around him in an uncanny manner that sent chills down his spine.
But, at the same time. It also just made him more angry at this home invader daring to come into his place and try and ruin his life’s work he’s been at on for so long at this point in his left.
Letting out a snarl from his mouth. Roden looked away from his changing body and looked to the front from where that breathing was coming from, so that he could give them a piece of his mind.
''OK YOU PRICK! Fun’s over with and I know you're hiding in this smoke crap or whatever it is, so come on out so that I can give you one hell of a..... Beating...?''
The bartender's words started to trail off upon the sight on the front that had now appeared before him in the shifting darkness.
It was a long, white, softly growing line that curved upwards by each end tip of its... mouth? Eye? Honestly. It reminded him more so of a knight’s visor they had inbuilt into their helmets. It was something that his younger self was interested in, back when reading those books about Knights and their adventures they would forth on, so long ago.
But this wasn’t the time for a trip down memory lane. As the white ‘Visor’ seemed to be getting closer to him now that he was paying attention towards it. The strange breathing that seemed to come from this odd sight in the dark, was starting to get more and more oppressive by the minute. While a faint white outline was slowly starting to appear over the visor that looked like some kind of humanoid body shape of some kind and some sharp antlers on both sides of it’s head as well. It looked like it were wearing some kind of armour of sorts, that was also emitting some kind of after-images effect from behind its body as well, eerily.
(''Is that guy?... thing? Wearing some kind of knight armour ther-'') Suddenly. His thought process was cut off, as the ‘Knight-like’ figure had quickly moved towards him in a fast flash right up towards his face, while it’s right hand shot up and grabbed a hold of his neck into a chokehold that nearly cut off his breathing from his lungs.
Roden was completely caught off guard by this action, and the only thing he could do now was useless try to move his hands onto this dark figure’s arm and to somehow push it off of him, which wasn’t exactly working out to say the very least. It felt like he was touching a solid, hard glass of all things strangely enough.
''Ack, s-stop, hurk, w-w-what a-are y-you d-d-doing...?'' Were the only words he could spit out before this Knight person slightly tightened it’s chokehold over him, taking him off from the ground and holding him in mid air. Shutting him up for good.
The pitch black void of this... creature of some kind, only continue to stare at the struggling rat trying its hardest to claw at their arm or use his feet to kick them to no avail. It’s visor shifting fluidly from left to right, as it appeared it was examining him for whatever reason that Roden didn’t know. It's almost like this ‘Visor’ worked more like an eye than anything else.
Soon enough. It’s visor then moved to the centre of it’s head or helmet, and processed to expand itself into a big, wide diamond like shape instead. Its soft glow was almost seeming to brighten in a way he couldn't explain, even if he tried to.
Absentmindedly. He took note of the fact that it seemed that whatever kind of force was keeping this darkness in his bedroom, was now starting to fade away. As he could start to see some spots in his room being cleared of that void now, and it only seemed to be spreading in a quick manner, as more of the darkness was unveiling itself. Though the Knight didn’t seem to care all that much on what was happening around it.
It was only focusing it’s one ‘Eye’ on Roden and him alone with.
(''CRAP! My vision is starting to fade away....'') He thought to himself as he was barely hanging onto to staying conscious by this point. Roden could feel his body starting to get weaker, as his arms had failed by the wayside and his legs had shortly given up on kicking the Knight away at this point.
The creature then started to lift its left arm and hand near to Roden’s grimacing face, as it moved it’s fingers away from their hand to expose a white coloured circle that was placed in the middle of their palm. The only thing the bartender rat could do now, was simply watch as the palm’s white circle started to widen its form and then a bright, purple light had started to come out of it.
Flinching weakly away from it. Roden shut his eyes and prayed that it was all just a bad nightmare that he’ll wake up from, any minute now.
Instead of that happening to him. Someone out there would hear his wordless cries for help in a way Roden couldn't have predicted in the heat of the moment.
One second. He was on the verge of being unconscious by this otherworldly Knight’s hand. And the next? Roden heard what sounded like glass shattering onto the floor and something getting impacted with a short screech being uttered for a short sic, before being followed by a hard crash that was akin to a wall being knocked down. Some other noises were heard more distantly, like a second impact on another wall, and some sort of glass falling to the ground in various successions.
By the time all of that had taken place.
Roden was now laying on the dry yellow carpet floor in his now messy bedroom. Eyes now open wide and breathing rapidly, as his pupils moved lazily all over the place. Questions littered his brain on what the hell had just happened, as he noticed that most of the darkness in his room had now fully disappeared from view, with barely, if any, traces of it left to speak of now.
''Ughhhhh.... What just happen- ''
''Heya there, my guy! Are you looking alright there..? Sorry I didn’t come in soon enough to deal with that shadow person choking ya for who knows how long. I guess they must have REALLY liked the wine you were making in here, haha.''
Roden immediately shot up forward from the floor to quickly find where that voice had originated from in the room, and it didn’t take long to find out who it was. As his eyes laid upon a grey rabbit who wore white cloves and black trainers for clothing, while he was kneeling down to the rats level of sight. Offering a helping left hand towards the bartender with a soft smile on his face. Eyes burning with confidence and concern in him.
Roden couldn’t help but show how relieved he was at being saved by the hero of Hillglow’s before whatever that Knight intruder would have done to him. With a short smile appearing on his face. He was ready to take up that hand offer from Jack, as he shakily started to move his legs off from the floor.
''Ugh, t-thank god that you got rid of that weird knight figure trying to choke me there and all-..... wait, what the hell did you do to my bedroom!?'' He shouted in alarm upon seeing the state that his room was now in, as he stood up fully and ignored Jack’s offer to help him to get him off the floor.
It was a mess.
There was a big hole on the left side of his room’s light brown wall with dust and rubble covering half of his floor, alongside his chest and bookcase near his bedside. And that wasn’t even mentioning the fact that his window class on the left side of the room had been broken in from the outside, judging from how the tiny class shards on the floor were all laid out like.
(''Aw crap, that bloody young rabbit just had pushed that Knight thing into one of my supply rooms! Sigh, I can’t catch a fricking break, can I?'') Roden annoyingly thought to himself as he sent a glare towards the now fully standing and sheepish looking young rabbit in question, who couldn’t help but scratch behind his head at the damage he helped to unintentionally make in here.
''Heheh, yeahhhh, sorry for breaking parts of your bedroom here and all that, but hey! I’m sure that the mayor’s construction crew will help fix up your room here in no time! Besides, It was either that, or whatever that dark shape guy was planning on doing with you and this good old restaurant you worked on for who knows how long?''
Jack said with a renewal smirk on his face as he moved his arms around the whole room in a gesturing manner to help prove his points to the bartender rat, and to give the benefit of the doubt. Roden couldn’t entirely dismiss the rabbit’s claims on this matter.
Still made him want to chuck him out of his window though. Just a little bit...
''Sigh...., fine. I guess I can’t fault you too much on saving me back there, hm.'' He mutters as his scowl shifts into a more thoughtful expression on his face.
The rat then turns his head away from the rabbit and towards the wide broken hole in his walls that led to one of his supply rooms. More specifically, the one where he puts all of his extra empty glass drinks and other related things into. (''Looks like the lightbulb in there was taken out when that dark Knight had crashed through, what with that room looking pitch black now.... I wonder if there been knocked by this point...?'')
And since he heard a whole bunch of glass getting shattered after Jack had kicked that Knight into that wall there. Well, better hope that he had a long broom on standby, (Since he couldn’t quite remember if he brought a new one in, after breaking his old broom by way of a car running it over.... Somehow) since he was going to be busy until that crew arrived.
''Well. I guess I’m never getting that sleep now anytime soon now...'' He dejectedly said to himself.
Jack looked on with a slight worry in his gaze at the miserable rat staring at the broken wall.
''...Hey, you don’t have to clean all of those failing shards by yourself there Roden or um, Mr Wardsky? I’m more than willing to help ya out on this, once I check in to see if our best pal in there is still awake or not of course.'' He said to Roden while taking a few steps closer to the broken wall near him. The grey rabbit shot him a kind smile, as to reassure him that he wasn’t lying to him on this.
Roden just stared at him for a short bit, until he closed his eyes and formed a slight attempt at a thin smile on his face.
''...Ok, if you're sure ya want to lad. I wouldn’t mind having some help on this anyhow, especially since your the one responsible for making such a mess of things in here.'' He said that last part in a cheeky tone as an attempt at some light humour, after all that just happened in here.
Jack looked back at him with a wider grin on his face. Clearly recognizing what Roden was going for with that last sentence of his. And not wanting to miss out on the fun. He shot back with one of his own.
''Hah! Fair enough old man. Not like I was doing all that much outside anyway, so I won’t mind lending you a helping hand on this! Though can you keep up with me once I go all out on clearing these broken shards?'' He issued a challenge towards the bartender rat.
Roden’s thin smile widened just a tiny amount from the response he was given and couldn’t help but roll his eyes, before deciding that he might as well give in to what this hero wanted.
''Hmm, sure. I guess it would do these worn out bones of mine a good workout honestly. And please. You can just call me Roden here. None of that ‘Mr Wardsky’ nonsense you're blabbing on about! I don’t need to feel even more old then I already am pahaha!'' He laughed to himself.
Jack let out his own chuckling in response. Before then suddenly cutting himself off out of nowhere. His head twisting right back towards the broken hole so fast that Roden would have thought that he had twisted his head almost 360% degrees.
The young rabbit’s body seems ever so slightly to get more tensed up. His ears twitching a bit and facing forwards to something that Jack had overheard. His fingers spread out as though he was ready to grab hold onto something.
To say that Roden was confused and worried about the unexpecting shift in tone with Jack, was an understatement.
''Whoa, are you alright there young lad? Is that strange Knight wearing person still awake in there??''
Jack only slightly moved his head towards Roden and only whispered to him, as though worried that someone else would overhear what he was about to say.
''I don’t know for sure, but I do hear something moving in that other room I kicked that dark figure into. Can you hear it as well...?''
Roden moved his gaze to the hole in his left wall and then started to pay close attention to whatever sound that Jack claimed he could hear from it.
At first, he didn’t hear much beyond the sound of some dripping liquid that likely came from the spilled leftover drinks that still had a bit of wine left in them. (''Ugh, great. Something else I’ll have to deal with once everything is wrapped up.'') But just then. He could hear the sound that Jack was referring to.
Some form of feathers or something similar to it, was moving around in the supply room and touching the ground in a dreadful manner that reminded him of a bat flying in a dark cave....
Suddenly! Before either of the two could react. A burst of a dark, winged beast with antlers on its head, had come flying out of the hole and hitting Jack with one of it’s ‘Wings’ at full force enough that the young rabbit didn’t have much time to avoid it, beyond letting out a shocked noise that got cut off, as the strange creature then flew right towards the shattered window. And thanks to it’s big size and wide wing span, it burst right through the remaining structure of it and the close surrounding brick wall alongside it as well, with a big crash that made Roden’s ears flinch with pain. As he was pushed to the wayside by the combing force for this beast and the resulting collapse of a big chunk of his right place wall now too. Knocking him out cold
The only thing remaining of that struggle was a couple of fading after-images of the ‘Bird’ itself before disappearing just as quickly as they appeared.
By the time that he had woken up and gotten up from his failing position. He looked on in despair at another new broken hole in his bedroom to deal with now, ugh. The rat stumbled forward towards the new view of the outside world that said hole provided for him.
He felt the fresh wind of the night brazing through him as he watched outside to see any real hints towards where that young rabbit fellow and that odd black bird thing had gone off to.
........ Nope. He couldn’t see any real traces of either of them, beyond some broken and cut down rows of trees out into the wider distance of the forest, that he was pretty sure wasn't there a few hours beforehand exactly.
(''Well, nothing I can do now with those two gone for the time being.... Hmm, I hope that Jack is handling that whole thing, fine on his own...'') Roden couldn’t help but think to himself, as he felt his body getting colder from just standing so close to the night’s breeze and he hadn’t even stayed that long near it.
He turned around to look around at the big mess that his bedroom had now turned into, in only what felt like just five minutes at the most to the bartender rat.
''.... You know what? Screw clearing all of this up on my own. I clearly deserve to have that sleep now after dealing with all of this crap. Besides... Better to wait for Jack to come back and clean up all of this mess with me, once he sorts that knight creature thing out.'' Roden muttered to himself quietly while he was walking towards his bed.
He set himself down on it and laid his head on one of the dried, goldish coloured pillows. It was more comfy then he remembered it being, but such thoughts were pushed away before he could dwell on them. As he felt his eyes slowly starting to close in as sleep had taken a hold over him at long last.
(''What a day this all turned out to be...'') Was the last thing he uttered in his mind before drifting off to a peaceful sleep.