The Aurian Chronicles Chapter 5: The Sonata Silver lining

 Silver sighed in frustration at her studio as she tried to get her model to hold still. "Do you WANT to look like a melting frosted cake in these dresses?" She demanded while channelling aura into her string, the fabric of the dress seemed to adjust to the form of the young woman. The model had Pink dyed hair worn in a ponytail and a skinny frame from self-imposed malnourishment. "No ma'am." She said meekly as she lowered her pointed chin. 

Silver's attitude softened and she grunted at the recognition of her own coldness. "I'm sorry dear, some of that was due to the last-minute time crunch." She told her as she eyed her over. "And what did I say about starving yourself? For the last time, my dress's beauty will shine no matter what you weigh, you're no use to me as a model if you pass out on stage, I'm giving you money for a burger and fries, I EXPECT you to be in better health next time!" She demanded. The young lady made an 'eep' sound and nodded as Silver pulled out a twenty-dollar bill and gave it to her. "We're done for the day, now go eat and get some rest!" She said as she headed to her office.

As she closed the door behind her, she looked at all the awards and framed dresses she had made over the years. While she hated looking at her old work with her mind always on the future, she had to admit how great it felt all those years ago when Darkness had given her a start-up fund and told her to put her work out there. She even had his advice engraved in silver on a plaque on her desk 'If you honestly think your work is so good, then not sharing it with the world is your biggest crime' She looked at it and smiled. "Stupid supportive sappy dork." She said as her cheeks formed a shiny ruby-red blush while she smiled.

Thoughts of Darkness were interrupted by a text from the man himself. She giggled and gazed at her phone. 'Hey Silver, I think something's wrong with Lyte, she Saw what happened on the news and seemed to lock herself in her room when I told her what he-' She stopped reading the rest and Jumped into her Army Green Jeep, Speeding home and dodging traffic. She swore in Spanish as she ignored every red light she saw.

A bit of time passed as Silver pulled into the Garage of the Sonata Family's house. She ran upstairs and slid out of her dress and into a pair of light blue Lingerie she used for house clothes. In their room, Darkness was casually folding clothes until Silver grabbed him from behind. "What did you tell her?!" She demanded as Darkness jumped in surprise. "What?" He asked as Silver shoved him. "WHAT DID YOU TELL HER?!" She demanded again.

Darkness just shrugged. "Nothing about us! She asked who would kill Albert, I just said that he was a murderer and rapist and she's been in her room since!" He explained. Silver's eyes widened and she pursed her lips before dashing to Lyte's room. "Lisa sweetie? Please come out, it's okay, I'm here now!" She said as Darkness followed her. "Am I finally going to get an answer for what the hell I Did wrong?" he asked. Silver just looked at him sadly. "Darling I love you... But it's not my place to tell you, please respect Lyte's wishes!" She exclaimed.

Darkness winched a bit at the desperation in her voice. "I Just want to know why she's ignoring me! Does she hate me right now or something?" He asked out of concern. Lyte finally opened her door with a slam. "HOW COULD I HATE YOU?! I barely even know you anymore... We used to be... so close! But then you got back from the war and just... Sat around our old apartment without ever talking to me! Last night was the last time I had seen Derek Sonata since I was a little girl... You used to always help me when I was struggling, you accepted me no matter what... And now we only ever say a few sentences a day..." She said as tears began sliding down her cheeks.

"So what? Am I just not good enough to talk with anymore?" She asked bitterly. There was a long pause in the hallways as Derek struggled to move his mouth and form words. He was able to recognize that Lyte had been holding onto this for a long time. "Lisa... I never meant to make you feel like I didn't want to talk to you, I just... After what I did a few years ago... I didn't know how to relate to anybody.. it wasn't just you."

Silver's eyes widened at the last part of Derek's sentence as he also realized what he said. Lisa's raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Derek? What did you do?" She asked as she watched him recoil, but she walked forward. "Derek? WHAT DID YOU DO?!" She asked louder. Derek just sighed and stood up straight while his Bright green eyes stared into her Dark blue eyes. "I... Shot myself.... in the head." He finally admitted.

Lyte's eyes raised as wide as they could as she began panting rapidly. She began scratching rapidly at her arms while she hugged herself and tensed up as hard as she could before her arms finally hung at her sides. "I don't feel so Lyte..." She said as she walked backwards into her room and closed the door. There was an audible click and the sound of the Door being barricaded from behind.

Silver pressed into Darkness and squeezed him tight. "Sweetie, are you okay?" She asked as Darkness's aura seemed to fade away, leaving him in a panicked state. "I'm exhausted." He admitted to her. Silver nodded and guided him to the master bedroom. "We'll try to talk later... I know of a place she likes to go when she's feeling down... right now you both need to process everything." She said calmly.

After about half an hour. Darkness' aura slowly came back as he looked at a half-open bottle of Tequila. "You know... it's the funniest thing, I don't really want this right now." He said with a sad chuckle. Silver returned it as well. "Considering I've how much I've watched you consume, that IS funny. " She told him with concern as she sat in his lap. Darkness smiled and slid her lingerie off and pressed into his head into her chest. "She doesn't hate me right?" He asked worriedly, Causing Silver to hold his cheeks.

"No hun... she's just now processing YOUR stuff along with hers... I promised I wouldn't talk about what she's going through until she does... I know it's hard, but I'm going to have to ask you to hold that off and wait... and no more talk about the crimes of the people involved in business okay?" She asked. Darkness just nodded and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Deal." He told her with a nod. She smiled and slid him out of his clothes. "Now if we're all done, I need some venting of my own, if you'd be so kind?" She asked while batting her eyes.

Darkness just rolled his eyes and smiled as black tendrils wrapped around his wife's arms to hold them behind her back as two more tendrils parted her legs spiraling around them to keep them held apart. "Yes dear..." he responded as he pulled her in close while the two lovers enjoyed themselves for the rest of the night, hoping they could at least forget the stress of the day if only for just a little bit.

The Aurian Chronicles Chapter 4: You and I drink poison from the same vine

Lisa smiled softly as Class ended, She grabbed her backpack and skateboard and left the classroom. On her way out of high school, she adjusted her black t-shirt and Tattered green pants while she reapplied her scene-girl style makeup. While checking herself out, she noticed a boy in a jersey and jean shorts approaching her. he had a nice short black haircut and a gold chain around his neck. "Hey there Lisa, how are you doing today?" He asked as he looked down at her.

Lisa smiled up at him and gave a wide grin. "Hiya Tommy! I'm good! just about to hit the halfpipe before I finish my Algebra homework!" She said as she went to move around him, but he put a hand against the wall in front of her to stop her from leaving. "You know Lisa, I've seen you dancing in your free time. You're REALLY pretty, it's a shame I never got to know you..." He told her with a grin of his own, one that Lisa didn't like.

"Oh... Thanks, Tommy. Maybe we can hang out sometime, later okay?" She asked uncomfortably as she tried to back up, but Tommy boxed her in. "Maybe I want to know you better now." He said as he kissed all over her face. "TOMMY NO! What are you doing?!" She asked as he began reaching under her shirt and pants, painfully squeezing whatever he could touch. "Oooh, you are nice and soft!" He told her as he reached around to squeeze at her buttocks making her scream loudly.

Fearing they'd be caught, Tommy reached through the neck hole of her shirt to put his hand over her mouth to keep her from screaming out while she tried to push his head away from her placing her hands over his eyes. The constant struggle and high emotions in Lisa caused her hands to glow before shining a super bright light directly into Tommy's eyes. Tommy let out a blood-curdling scream as Lisa got free. "Tommy! I'm sorry!" She said as she tried to help him, only to see his eyeballs were gone.

"What did you do to me, Lisa?" He asked in an eery calm voice. Making Lisa recoil. "You're a freak, your brother will hate you, no one will love you, your powers are a gift and you hurt everyone you love with what you've done." He continued, causing Lisa to crouch in a fetal position and place her hands over her head. "I didn't mean to." She said while sobbing as the world around her turned black while she rocked heavily, wishing it all would stop.

Lyte's eyes shot open as she gasped and breathed heavily, she noticed her body reeked of sweat and she had thrashed out of her clothes in her sleep. "Just another bad dream..." She told herself as she grabbed a couple of THC-infused edible gummies and an energy drink from her mini fridge. Waiting to process the world around her as her pupils dilated.

She looked around at her room from the house Darkness bought in New York City. Unlike her room at the warehouse in Long Island, this one was much bigger. It had a bunch of posters of various bands she liked, a plethora of video games and consoles scattered on her entertainment center, and a bigger disco ball a with built-in lightbulb attached to the ceiling.

"Back home? Dang that party drained me more than I thought! Oh well, shower time!" She said as she swallowed down her negative thoughts and went to the bathroom. As she cleaned herself off, she began singing to herself and making funny little DJ scratching sounds, not noticing the rainbow color of her Aura flowing off of her. When she was nice and clean, she struck a pose and flashed the peace sign in the mirror. "Highlyte of my day baby!" She said with a wink before getting dressed.

When she went downstairs, she noticed Darkness was sitting at the living room chair while eating a taco and sipping a bottle of beer. Lyte noticed it was a little bit past noon, she had slept past breakfast. "Little early to start your drinking eh bro?" She asked. Darkness just looked at her. "My boss' Daughter made tacos, and you KNOW I love beer with tacos." He said as he smiled at her.

Lyte rolled her eyes and sat down while grabbing a few from the tray she noticed on the table. "Why DO you like tacos? Ever since you got out of the military you eat them a lot more." She asked while munching one. Darkness swallowed the bite he took and took another sip of beer as he looked at his beer bottle. "Back in the day... used to have Taco Tuesday with my buddies... Fuckin Truck and Golem, they used to compete in eating contests with each other... I guess to answer your question, I miss my friends." He said with a sad smile.

Lisa reached over and tried to tickle him gently, causing him to raise a brow. "What on earth are you doing Lisa?"he asked as Lyte looked up at him. "When I was Little, you used to do this to me when I was feeling down, and eventually I'd forget why I was sad!" She said with a wide grin. Darkness just patted the top of her head and hugged her close.

"That doesn't work for me Lisa, I'm not ticklish in the slightest, but thanks for trying, I'll always have this sadness." He told her, causing Lyte to frown. "Nuh-uh! No one can be sad all the time, ya just gotta find something that gets ya happy!" She told him. Darkness pinched the bridge of his nose and grunted. "Lisa.. just like how not everyone can be sad all the time, not everyone can be HAPPY all the time either! The heck did you get a silly idea like that?" He asked.

Lyte just scratched her left arm. "If I'm not happy... I'm alone with my anxiety.... I hate that." She said weakly. Darkness just nodded. "If you want to drop it for now, we can talk about it later... I'm sorry Lisa." He said as he flipped to the news, which was covering Albert Farley's murder. Lyte frowned and shook her head. "How AWFUL! why would someone do such a thing?!" She demanded.

Darkness flinched and cleared his throat. "I mean he was a pedophile who raped and murdered children, someone had their reasons..." He answered. at the mention of rape, Lisa began to tremble and hold herself as her make-up smeared down her eyes. When she felt the tears flowing, she quickly looked away from Darkness so he couldn't see her. "Thanks for lunch Derek, I got some music stuff I need to do, Jam with me later okay?" She said as she grabbed some tacos and a soda before heading back upstairs to her room.

"LYTE WAIT!" He called as he reached out, but it was clear she needed space. He wasn't sure what she wasn't telling him, but it was clear that she needed time to herself, and pushing the issue would only push her away further. "I hope I can one day get you to trust me as much as I do little sister." He said sadly.

Lyte was leaning against her door as she tried to take her mind off her memories. "He didn't know, he CAN'T know!" She said as she looked at her powers. "Never again, I can only use them for GOOD!" She promised herself while looking at her soundboard. "Time for DJ LYTE to STRYKE back baby!" She said as she put on her white kitty cat ear headphones and got to work on her music.

The Aurian Chronicles chapter 3: CROSS roads

It was Nine in the morning in New York City the next day. A young Asian woman with her hair tied into a regulated bun walked into the reception area in the NYPD with a coffee in hand. She inspected her Police uniform in the mirror and plucked a stray piece of fabric off of it before heading to her office, where a rookie police officer nodded to her. he was a handsome young man with light brown hair and green eyes. He was also incredibly well built, his muscle detail was visible even through his uniform.

"Good Evening Ma'am" He said awkwardly as she fought the urge to chuckle. "It's morning Officer Matthews, those kinds of details will make paperwork hell for you if you mess up." she said as she sat down and took off her shoes while going through some paperwork he left on the table. He just lowered his tone. "Can you just call me Dom? I thought we were much closer after we..."

"After we had sex Dom, and no we are NOT! Had I known you were not only another Officer but one coming in under me, I would not have agreed to it." She said as she looked at him. Dominic lowered his head. "Sorry Amanda." He said softly. "It's Lieutenant Cross right now thank you, I would like to keep things professional while in uniform thanks... Now why are you here?" She asked as she popped her toes with a tight curl.

"Yeah um... The other guys thought it'd be better if a rookie broke the news to you... Albert Farley was reported murdered last night." He told her. Amanda shrugged. "Oh wow, such a shame, I'll have to send roses... To former Sheriff Donald Bradley!" She said as she remembered the look on his face when Albert was bailed out of prison. She was still reeling over his early retirement and the separation of his wife. New York lost a good man and replaced it with an unstable Alcoholic that day.

Dominic scratched the back of his head and looked down at his feet. "About that... Donnie was found dead by his own hand in his home in Long Island last night as well" He started, causing Amanda's eyes to widen as she cupped her mouth. "Apparently after emptying his entire savings account and applying for a huge loan... We're guessing he hired someone to finally end Albert's life over his son, then committed suicide by gunshot." Finished Dominic as he let out a shaky sigh over having to tell someone they had just lost a friend.

Amanda took some time to reflect but saw Dominic was still a bit shaky. "Steady that resolve rookie, You're going to be doing this a lot in your career! Now... any clues on who the killer was?" She asked patiently. Dominic shook his head. "No, we asked the bartender, but he said he couldn't get a good view of the guy, however, we DID see him getting talks of repairing his bar from someone mentioning Mr. Capryse."  Responded Dominic, causing her to look at her coffee cup, which read 'Capryse Coffee' on the side. She held up the cup and pointed to it. "This Guy? The hell is he doing repairing some bar in Long Island?" She asked curiously.

Dominic shrugged a bit and cleared his throat. "He's been doing that in places that get too damaged. Heck, a strip club called 'The Peppermint Pole' was just repaired with his funding just last month." He said casually. Amanda was pulling up pictures of Mr Capryse on her computer. It showed a young-looking man with crystal blue eyes, and messy brown hair in a brown three-piece suit with a solid gold tie smirking while sipping a cup of coffee. 

"THAT'S Antonio Capryse? He's the founder of my favorite brand of Coffee! My PARENTS drank that brand... how is he so HANDSOME!?" She asked as she blushed when she realized what she said. "I mean... young..." She said meekly. "Not so professional now are we?" Asked Dominic with a light chuckle. Causing Amanda to narrow her eyes at him. "Traffic duty for the next week, then you're on detail for 'shop with a cop' the week after, how's THAT for professional? Now get out, I'm busy." She told him, causing him to grumble and leave.

As the door closed behind him, Amanda stared at Mr. Capryse. "So Capryse... I guess I'll just have to see for myself how 'Good' your intentions are." She said though she was unaware of the blush still on her face. She couldn't explain it, but something about his eyes was sucking her in as she gazed at the photo.

After she had everything she needed, she left her office and took an early day from the office to plan her meeting. Which meant setting a time, a date, and even a line of questions she mentally prepared herself to say. "If it's true, and he IS a criminal... That'd honestly be a shame though, He's made my life so much more tolerable with his Coffee..." She said with a worried grunt, but she swallowed it down and gritted her teeth. "BUT THE LAW IS THE LAW!" She said loudly to herself in her car as she headed home in her car.

The Aurian Chronicles Chapter 2: Lyte up your life!

 Darkness sighed softly as he parked his car in a parking lot near a huge warehouse. The car flashed with Neon lights that read "Sound City" on a rainbow-flashing LED screen. As Darkness and Silver stepped out, Darkness saw a homeless person wearing an ACU pattern poncho sitting by a telephone pole breathing cold air hiding their face in the hood to keep the air off their face. Feeling bad, Darkness grabbed a stack of hundreds from his briefcase in the car and headed over to them. "Listen, it's like thirty degrees outside, why don't you get yourself a nice hotel and-" He started, But Darkness was cut off when the person took off a hood to reveal their disfigured face. 

Darkness recognized the undisfigured part enough to remember someone from his past. "H-Hood?" He asked. The woman just nodded. "Hello, Sergeant Sonata... heard it was First Sergeant before... you know." She said as she cupped his cheek, The purple in Darkness' hair turned black and his pale skin showed signs of permanent sun damage, his eyes sagged and wrinkled from too many nights without sleep as well. Darkness swallowed hard as he began to hyperventilate in the cold night air. 

"L-listen, just uh, take this money, get you a hotel, maybe treat yourself a bit, and see if you can get back on track huh?" He said nervously, Causing Hood to laugh. "That's too much money at once... I waited Sergeant.. I waited for the VA like they said... all I got was a minor stitch job and painkillers... can ya believe that?" She asked as she hugged him tight. "Thank you for worrying about me.. But I'm already dead... I'm just waiting for the body to match the spirit." She said as she took only enough to survive a couple nights and walked off. Darkness had so many questions he wanted to ask, but his brain wasn't able to cope with the stress.

Silver's eyes widened as she recognized the signs of Darkness having a panic attack and pressed her back into his chest, putting his arms around her. "Shh Shh Shh, Derek, breathe.." she said softly. After a few minutes, Darkness cuddled into her tight and closed his eyes. His breathing returned to normal as did his hair and skin. "Thank you, Silver. I REALLY needed that." He told her. Silver nodded, "I Can see that. So who was that woman? Someone you served with?" She asked. Darkness just nodded back at her and pulled out his old Dog tags, attached to it was a secondary tag that read 'I will always place the mission first, I will never accept defeat, I will never quit, I will never leave a fallen comrade'

"Her name was Barbara Hoodington, but we all just called her 'Hood' because she liked wearing a Hood, even indoors, many a time did I make her do corrective training for not adhering to uniform standards... She got sent home after an IED went off and damaged her face beyond repair." He said as he slowly walked to the club with Silver and gripped her close. "To see that she's like this... Hurts... I want to try and help her later if I can... If she's willing to help herself that is." He said. Silver smiled up at him and nodded. "Of course Derek...  if you want we can discuss it privately. For now, let's go see Lisa!" 

Darkness winced a bit at the loud booming of the speakers as he and Silver walked into the club. He never said it out loud, but ever since he had gotten back from the war in the Middle East, loud booming speakers reminded him of all the noises he heard in combat, and gave him sensory overload, but this meant a lot to Lisa, and he cared more about her support. Both Darkness and Silver scanned the area until they saw A young woman with long blonde hair at the bar. She was wearing a White tube top with White daisy dukes and a Rainbow fishnet bodysuit. She was currently barefoot, but her white light-up boots were underneath the stool. Hey Lisa!" Said Darkness as he walked up to her.

As she looked up and saw her big brother, Lyte lit up and hopped on his shoulders. "HEY BIG BROOOOOO!" She said excitedly as she hugged him. Darkness just chuckled and rubbed her legs "Aren't you a little old for this?" He asked. Lyte laid her chin on his head. "Aren't YOU a little old to be making fun  of me for being short?" She asked. Darkness full-on laughed and looked up at her. "NEVER!" He shouted over the booming music. "Well, there you go! grab my boots, we can head to the back room before I go on stage." She retorted. Darkness nodded and grabbed her boots as he carried her to the room in the back of the warehouse. 

Lyte grabbed a soda from the refrigerator and sat in her chair as Darkness just looked around. "Nice place! I can't believe you got your own livable set-up back here!" He said in astonishment as he admired the white room, it had a Disco ball with a flashing rainbow laser pointed at it to turn the otherwise white walls into flashing rainbows. There was even a twin-size mattress in case Lyte partied too hard to get home. "Yeah well when I bought the place, I figured I'd make it my own ya know? Streets around here are dangerous... Maybe if you tried playing guitar again I could let you bring a band back here?" She offered hopefully.

Darkness' smile soured as he let out an audibly loud sigh. "I thought we moved past this conversation... that door is closed, Lyte." He told her. Lyte's smile seemed to fade at his expression and words as she narrowed her piercing blue eyes. "No, it is NOT Derek! You think it's gone, but I can SEE  the spark of a musician dying to burst out of you... Your excuse as a teenager was not being able to find people for your band? Well, guess what? I KNOW people, I could get you some up-and-coming talent to rock out with! Please try to consider it?" She begged. 

Darkness threw his hands up and relented. "I'll think about it Lisa... but whatever you see in me isn't all you think it is." He told her, Lyte leaned in. "No matter what it is, it's better than whatever you're doing now for Mr Capryse, I don't always know what that guy has you doing, but I know what he's known for.`.. you should out there trying to make people happy! Not profit off their misery!" She said as she drained her soda. "You wanna see how fun it is? CHECK THIS OUT!" She said as she attached LED Lights to her fishnets and headed to the stage. Darkness and Silver gave each other a shocked look and went to watch her.

The stage of the warehouse began blowing out a fog as laser lights rained down from seemingly nowhere while a heavy Bass drum began pulsing to the rhythm of a heartbeat. Lyte swayed her hips seductively as she walked out onto the stage towards her equipment and winked at the crowd. "LONG ISLAND NEW YORK! IS EVERYBODY FEELING GOOOOOD?!" She said into the microphone, a huge crowd screamed out and pulled out their glowsticks, some of them throwing them on the stage at her feet."GOOD! BECAUSE WE'RE GONNA LYTE UP NEW YORK BABY!" She said while blowing kisses. Heart-shaped Rainbow prism lights blew out into the crowd. As her Lasers hit them, they seemed to reflect off each other in a spectacular light show.

Lyte began playing her music and scratching her discs with her nails as she chanted into the microphone, she placed a voice-changing device to her neck. "When a hottie with a body's feeling naughty at a party and she steps into the light, better make a move or dude you're gonna lose WE ARE ALL SLAVES OF THE NIGHT! A little ravin' is what I'm cravin' feeling brazen til your ragin? Satisfy my plight! You can't be feeling lonely when I'm the one and only SOURCE OF ALL YOUR LYTE!" She sang, letting it echo throughout the club, the smiles of all her fans made Lyte's smile grow, she even seemed to levitate from the positive energy she was feeling.

Silver by now was swaying and dancing to the music, resisting the urge to go wild in the pit only because she was watching from the staged area. Darkness raised his eyes at all the hype of the crowd. He could practically see all of the aura coming off the crowd, only to squint as he saw a flash of blue. It was brief, but he could see a ghost of a man in an old-looking brown suit with long black hair, his eyes covered by shadows, smiling at Darkness. Darkness felt so many emotions as his own purple Aura seemed to radiate off him, whether we wanted to admit it or not, Lyte's music had gotten to him, causing his heartbeat to match Lyte's song.

As the Concert played out Lyte, watched Silver and Darkness when she could while smiling. She didn't quite know what Darkness was going through at the moment, but right now none of it mattered. Darkness had been to many of her concerts, but now for the first time, Darkness was watching with his entire being, and that had her ecstatic. 'More where that came from big brother.' She said as she continued playing for the crowd.

The Aurian Chronicles REBOOT Chapter 1: Voidwalker

It was a usual cold night in the latter half of the year in Long Island New York. A dive bar near the shore of the Atlantic Ocean was packed to the brim with both Drunkards and locals looking for a good show. Tonight's viewing was an exotic-looking Hispanic silver-skinned woman with white hair pole dancing while spinning upside down and letting her golden top fall from her body. While most of the men Oogled the beautiful woman, a Man in dark clothes with purple hair was knocking back a full bottle of 1800 brand Tequila he casually plucked from the shelf.

As he drank, the bartender approached him. "I Saw that... Listen, buddy, between you and me? Whatever you're running from isn't at the bottom of that bottle, what say you go and enjoy the show with the pretty girl eh? For a newbie, she ain't half bad!" He offered as Darkness put money for the bottle of tequila on the table. "I'm not HERE for the show." He responded as he kept drinking. The bartender just looked at him with a stern look. "Then go see the sights? Regardless, I'm cutting you off, nobody who drinks that much that fast is looking out for their health!" He replied. The man nodded. "Well, when you're right you're right... Truth be told I'm actually here for that guy." He said as he nodded his head toward a morbidly obese man with messy blonde hair snickering at some pictures.

"Albert Farley, real piece of work that one... Just got out of the slammer early after the molestation and murder of a six-year-old boy... All on Daddy's money, they say the cops can't touch or pursue him legally." He finished as he looked at the bartender while pointing a Colt .45 behind him. "But I can," he said as he fired instantly into Albert's shoulder, watching his blood spill. The bodyguards near him pulled out their guns, only for the dancer on the pole to reach under the floorboard for a pair of silver-plated submachine guns and open fire into them while their backs were turned.

The man chuckled and nodded to the dancer as he walked over to Albert, who was crawling away. He put a barstool over Albert's head so that he was trapped between the legs and took a seat. Black tendrils sprouted from his back and held Albert's arms and legs out tight. "Hello there Al, my name is Darkness... At least that's what I go by... You've been a VERY bad boy, haven't you? Couldn't just keep your hands out of the cookie jar... so someone put a mouse trap in it." He said as Al began to scream. "PLEASE! ANYTHING YOU WANT! I'M GOOD FOR IT! WHOEVER SET THIS UP I CAN MATCH AND DOUBLE IT!" He begged frantically. Darkness chuckled and shook his head. "Sorry buddy, this one ain't about the money..." He responded as he opened fire repeatedly into Al's Torso until the body went limp. The tendrils on Darkness' back faded away as he got up.

Darkness put away his handgun and grabbed his tequila bottle while calling for the dancer who hopped in his arms and smiled. Darkness just looked at the shaking bartender who cowered behind the bar. "Sorry for the Damages man, I'm sure you know Mr. Capryse? Give his people a call, they'll settle ya up nice, plus a bonus!" He offered while heading out to his Purple 1970 Dodge Challenger. The Dancer hopped in through the passenger side window and slid into a sky-blue dress and a pair of white heels as she reapplied her make-up.

"So, Where to Derek?" She asked as she looked into the vanity mirror. Darkness just sighed and shook his head. "Silver if you're going to come along on these, it's DARKNESS When on mission." He said. Silver reached over and bonked the back of his head. "I'm your WIFE! I'll call you what I like! Besides it's just us! Who's gonna know?" She asked as Darkness rolled his eyes. "Much like you treat all guns like they're loaded, you treat all secret identities like they are secret." He explained, causing her to shake her head. "Yeah yeah yeah, let's just finish up and hit the Club! I don't want to miss Lyte's show!" She exclaimed. "Don't you mean Lisa?" Teased Darkness as he laughed when Silver smacked him harder.

It was about nine in the evening as Darkness pulled up to a nice light blue-painted upper-middle-class suburban house. he walked through the white picket-fenced gate and through the door. Darkness headed to the dining room and noticed that the beauty of the outside of the house had been deceiving the inside, there were clothes scattered, the smell of stale cigarette smoke and alcohol filled the room, and frames of pictures of a nearing middle-aged, slightly overweight man holding his young son were all punched through. "It's done." Said Darkness calmly to a man drinking a bottle of scotch. A briefcase was slid over to him. Darkness reached out to grab it before the man grabbed his wrist and turned to face him.

What was once the man in all of those pictures was now a beyond-overweight man. his eyes had sagging dark circles under them. and he was dressed in a sheriff's outfit. "Six years ago, I'd have arrested you for what you did... Yet here I am now, paying the very thing I swore to protect this city from... Truly god has abandoned me." He said as he let Darkness go. Darkness just grabbed the case and sighed. "I can't heal the past, We can only look to the future." He responded as he walked out the door, the sound of a gunshot echoing inside the house. "...Well... I can" He said somberly while walking to the car.

As Darkness drove, he looked at the briefcase. Even after all the jobs he had taken, ones like these made the money feel heavier. Silver just put a hand over his shoulder. "Come on dear, let's hit the club, I'm sure your sister will provide better entertainment than that musty old bar." She said as she kissed his cheek. Darkness nodded and kissed her back. "Thank you, Silver. I love you my Flawless one." He told her, causing her to giggle as they drove off to enjoy the night.

The Aurian Chronicles: A brief guide in all things Aura

Accessing Symphony in the Sky database file 14-05-91 Code Name - THE AURIAN CHRONICLES 

Welcome to the Aurian Chronicles, a series of tales involving Action, conflict, and the subject of today's little lesson, AURA!

The earliest traces of knowledge concerning Aura were traced sometime around the Renaissance era. Sources indicated that a young man [NAME REDACTED] was gifted with a serious dedication to the musical arts. Sources claim that he believed he was unable to think due to all the music he was writing in his mind, he could barely comprehend his own name during casual conversations if he wasn't talking about music. Sources also indicated this to be the reason his name was stricken from the files at his own request. Henceforth, He shall simply be called "The composer."

Fearing for the man's sanity, his friends and family recommended he use the money he made from his music to travel abroad. Trails go dark during his travels, but files indicate that he had spent almost his whole time alone in the Scandinavian wilderness. As he continued his work, local musicians started referencing what is now known to be Aura and multiple files list this Composer as the man behind its discovery. For more information on The Composer himself, please Access the appropriate files after finishing and closing this summary.

Going forward, we will be discussing Aura, and the trigger of its activation. While once referenced as "The power of music" By the Composer himself, We now know it to be the awakening of the body through a phenomenon known as "Transcendence"  What triggers it? simply put The spine. The composer originally discovered his own Aura through another phenomenon known as "Musical chills" A feeling many get when they hear music that resonates with them on a personal level. While we now know that to be one of many ways, at the time The Composer insisted this to be the sole way to experience Transcendence.

While not much can be properly discussed at this time due to security risks decided by Administrator Derek Sonata acting in accordance with his Ancestor's wishes, we can at least talk about the many ways Aura users are different from average sentient beings. When in use, Aura consistently uses one's spinal fluid to ignite the calories from within the being's own body to generate forces that act within the realm of said user's powers. The powers seem to be on a genetic case-by-case basis, though all noted users seem to share some memory in the form of an "Awakening" Further study of this awakening and its effects on the body must be studied and researched in greater detail at a later point.

Research compiled by the Composer himself notes discovering the possibility of using Aura as a fuel source, (Administrator Darkness admits to using these studies to build special engines for his Car and his Spouse's Jeep)  The Composer used his research to build... this very island in the sky. It is at this time we will now be discussing the set-up for how this very island came to be.

The Symphony In The Sky was intended to be a place built by musicians, for musicians. Bought in a hefty sum from a military benefactor by the Composer. Production of the musical hall went swimmingly, but when pressured to build an Aura-powered weapon, the Composer was forced to build a device known as "The Symphonic Requiem Cannon" A weapon that to this day has never been used due to the feared power it could wreck on the land, especially when the Composer began to notice the effects the constant waves of aura began to have on the land after it had achieved flight. Water and plant life began to change at a molecular level, and even local Fauna evolved in different ways (See also the Panther tribes of the Amazon) 

Files get harder to access on the incident, but videos show the Benefactor using his men to slaughter staff and personnel, saving the Composer for interrogation... When the Composer declined, he too also joined his fallen friends in what is now known as "The Silent Free Fall." The island fell from the sky and crashed a few hundred miles off the coast of Florida, where the Symphony in the Sky rests to this day.

Since its rediscovery, the 'Pureshot Rebel Enterprise' Team has rebuilt the Island and constructed a giant base to house its many soldiers, acting in accordance with the Administrator and his friends. this ends the history of the Symphony in the Sky itself... You are missed every day my creator, may your shining soul cast its harmonic melody upon the heavens above.

If any information further is gathered on Aura, it is to be logged and stored in the database after a properly scheduled debrief. Thank you, and welcome to the stories of the administrator. These are, "The Aurian Chronicles."

A Verdant Hawk Crossover: Aftermath and a Heart to heart

Darkness woke up the next morning and rubbed his arm where Blood Angel had shot him with a blood spike. He wasn't surprised that it was healed, but he still knew that he let two dangerous killers live to see another day. He shook his head and went downstairs to see Deimos and Tristan having breakfast together. He chuckled and grabbed an iced coffee from the bridge. Tristan narrowed his eyes at him in concern as he saw Darkness looking down. "Everything alright Derek?" He asked. Darkness shook his head and sat by him. "Just peachy..." He muttered bitterly as he looked to Deimos, "Thanks for the healing... Sorry, I was too out of it to say it last night." He muttered as Deimos nodded.

Tristan sighed and looked at him. "Something is clearly on your mind, anything you'd like to share?" He asked politely." 
What are you, my therapist?" Asked Darkness as he glared at him, Causing both Deimos and Tristan to glare back. "Well excuse ME for showing concern for your well-being... should I get you a complimentary wine instead? Or some other alcohol to appease your unending habit?" He said in an icy tone. There was a brief stare-off between the two, and it was clear Darkness had a snappy comeback, instead, he powered down and let his hair turn back to jet black as he relaxed. "That's fair.... I'm sorry Tristan." He admitted, causing Deimos to raise his eyes in shock. 

In the time that Deimos had known Darkness, he was always keeping people at arm's length emotionally, and rarely did he power down unless he was asleep. "Something about last night happened to bother you didn't it?" He asked as he looked to Darkness, who just nodded and looked at them. "Twice now have I fought two dangerous killers who hurt someone close to me... and now TWICE now I let them get away... What if they actually... Kill someone close to me?" He asked. Deimos studied him as Tristan nodded. "Listen... Derek.." He said with a pause as Darkness let him call him by his real name with no qualms. "I understand your concerns, and I KNOW what Percy is like... But you have to know you aren't in this alone." He said calmly as he put a hand on Darkness' formerly wounded shoulder. "If you were, you'd be in the hospital for that right now, with Celeste worse off." He said with a warm smile.

Derek sighed and breathed a puff of air and powered back up. "You're right... I can't wallow in this... lemme Irish up this coffee!" He said causing both Tristan and Deimos to lower their eyes as Tristan put a hand over the coffee. "Why DO you drink so much anyway?" He asked. Darkness just let out a sad chuckle. "You wouldn't believe it if I told you..." He admitted, causing Tristan to roll his eyes. "I can freeze an entire room, you can walk through walls, and Deimos just healed borderline mortal wounds last night, do not tell me what I will and won't believe." He said firmly.

Darkness just let out a genuine smile. "Very stern, I like that.... Alright Tristan, Deimos I'll tell you." He said as he leaned back in his chair and looked at them both before draining his coffee. "When I was overseas, we didn't have much in the way of venting stress... Go to your job, do your job, go home, go to sleep... day in, day out... It was a mess. But when your job requires you to stay up past your limits, function on barely enough food... And of course, kill people... Something needs to take the edge off... So my higher-ups just kept shoving booze in my face... eventually, it took control." he said slowly, causing Tristan and Deimos to lean in. "So that's why you drink now?" Asked Tristan. 

Darkness sighed and shrugged. "Somewhat... when I drink... I remember a lot of people I've gotten drunk with, my comrades, my brothers in arms. Sometimes, it's like I can see them again, but other times, I just want to forget how close we were to ease the pain... And other times I just feel like drinking." He admitted, though his voice trailed off at the end. Tristan winced a bit as Darkness started to stare at the wall. "You HAVE to know there are healthier vices you can turn to though right? It doesn't HAVE to be alcohol every single time." He advised. Darkness chuckled and nodded. "You sound like my sister... yeah I'm still very much into music.. but at this point in my life, I'm just not willing to stop. I appreciate you trying to help, but you can't save everyone... Thanks for the listen though, it's more than I got overseas. He told him with a nod.

Tristan sighed. "Well, we AREN'T overseas... You have people in your life who are perfectly willing to help you. And I'm going to prove it right now." He said as he grabbed a phone, causing Darkness to raise a brow. Tristan dialed in and put the phone to his ear. "Hello? LISA! Bonjour! I'm calling to see if you'd be interested in planning a party at my house!" He said with a smile on his face. Darkness tried to grab the phone, but Tristan froze his fingers together as he kept talking, freezing Darkness' mouth for good measure. "Why YES! Your big brother will be there! Bring Silver if you like!" He added as he casually pushed Darkness away while setting up a New Year party at his house with Darkness' little sister as the planner.

After the party was officially planned, Tristan hung up the phone and unfroze Darkness, who was glaring at Tristan. "Why the HELL would you do that? ANY of that?!" He demanded. Tristan just glared at him right back and snorted. "Because what I heard was you acting like you have nobody to lean on when times get tough, That's insulting to your friends, and it's ESPECIALLY insulting to your family, how you've gone this far in life with social skills this poor I'll never know, but that stops here! New Year's party at my place, I have you under contract via Deimos, you will act like a social human being for once, and you WILL mingle... you can still drink if you want, but only if you're talking to someone, AM I CLEAR?!" He demanded hotly. Darkness and Deimos both raised their eyes before Darkness nodded. "Crystal." He answered. Tristan nodded and got up.

"Come on Deimos, we have outfits to pick out!" He said happily. Deimos smiled and followed behind him. Darkness watched them both open the door. "Hey Tristan!" He called. Causing Tristan to turn back to him. "...Thank you... I'm not always the best with social cues... but at least you put the tools in my hand to help me fix myself." He told him. Tristan smiled back at him and nodded silently as He left with Deimos, He had a party to get ready for after all!

A Verdant Hawk Crossover: Team VoidHawk vs. Team Gravity Angel!

 The morning sun shined down on Pink Top City as Darkness groaned and slowly stirred awake. "mmph, had that to be the best sleep I've had since I got here" He said while Yawning and sitting up. Celeste did as well as she grinned "You cuddle in your sleep." She said with a grin, causing Darkness to fly up out of his bed. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING IN MY ROOM?!" He demanded. Celeste just leaned back in a pair of black leather pants and a purple tank top as she put her hands back behind her head. "Deimos said He and Tristan are gonna be out for the day and gave me two tickets to a wrestling event nearby, I don't know anybody else interested so I'm taking you!" She said with a grin. Darkness just narrowed his eyes. "And if I say no?" He challenged "I'll show everyone the picture of you cuddling me... and for extra security, I'll steal all the alcohol in the house and tell Lazaros no more Mexican food!" Replied Celeste casually. Darkness sighed and just got into his usual clothes. "Fine... but put on your jumpsuit, I have a job to do and we need to check on the gang later!" he advised her, she jumped up and gave him a peck on the cheek as she ran out, causing him to roll his eyes.

A few hours later Darkness and Celeste loaded up on snacks and beer as they watched 'Tanky Tawna' take on 'Ballistic Britta' at the Pink Top City sports arena, with such a sold out crowd, Darkness was surprised Deimos managed to snack front row seats Celeste perched on Darkness' shoulders as she cheered on Britta "COME ON BRITTA! DISMANTLE THAT TANK!" She cheered happily as she nommed a giant soft pretzel. Darkness just sipped his beer and chuckled. "You really like this stuff huh?" He asked as he looked up at her. Celeste just nodded. "Hell yeah! I do so much violent stuff in the real world, it's nice to watch people look like they're doing stuff just as brutal but don't have to die... it's like a little reprieve from reality ya know?" She asked. Darkness froze for a second and thought about all HE had done. "Good point..." He replied as he watched Britta hit Tawna with a bridging 'Northern lights suplex' for the win. Even Darkness had to admit the move was amazing. Britta stood at about Five foot six with Tawn easily clearing six feet with twice as much muscle. "Christ I need to watch more television" Said Darkness as the show went on.

"So'd ya have fun?" Asked Celeste as she walked alongside Darkness, Who just nodded and sported a rare genuine smile. "Honestly? yeah! I don't usually watch TV, I just have a few beers and let Lyte do her thing, which is often gaming... I guess I gotta get more into wrestling." He admitted as he looked down at her. "Yeah! I can totally catch you up!" She told him as they both looked around. "Hey, Celeste.... the show just ended right?" He asked, the smile gone from his face. Celeste reached for her Beretta. "Yeah... so where's the crowd walking back to their cars?" She asked. Darkness reached for his Composer's baton, turning it into a scythe while they scouted the shadows.

"Well well well! So observant! Said a familiar voice as a man in a white suit stepped from the shadows. Darkness recognized from the white hair and blood-red wings that Blood Angel had followed him to Pink Top City. "Not this freak again." He muttered as Celeste noticed another thin lavender-haired man had emerged from behind him. "Percy...." She said with a sneer. Percy bowed and showed off his floral patterned Red Shirt while looking at the both of them. "Bonjour my friends! I hope you had a MAGICAL Day!" He exclaimed with a wild smile. "It'll be more 'magical' when you leave." Replied Celeste while glaring at him.

"My pretty warrior princess! OH, HOW YOU WOUND ME SO!" Exclaimed Percy dramatically while holding his heart. "Especially after My new friend and I went out of our way to prepare this fantastical series of events for you!" He said with a grin. Darkness just glared and crouched low in his predatory stance. "Figures you two asspukes would be working together!" He snarled. Percy just chuckled and nodded. "The enemy of my enemy is my FRIEND  Mon Ami!" He replied as Blood Angel smirked. "Well then.... shall we dance?" He asked as Percy smiled and threw knives in volleys at Celeste. Celeste ducked behind a car as Darkness Voided through it to join her. "Fuck he stocked up didn't he?" Asked Darkness as the knives followed them.

"SHIT!" Exclaimed Celeste as she yanked Darkness out of the way. Darkness noticed something on the knives. Celeste just kept her voice down as the two attacks both scouted the area. "How the fuck did Percy do that? He can't control his knives!" Whispered Celeste. Darkness sighed. "I don't think he IS! I saw something red on the knives, I think Blood Angel is using his blood powers to guide the knives Percy throws." He answered. "So that Angel can control blood? GROSS! So what do you think we should do?" She asked. Darkness sighed. "He can harden blood into blades and shields... My best advice is to not get cut." He answered, Celeste just rolled her eyes, "Thanks for the advice..." She answered Sarcastically as they separated.

Celeste went for Percy, who was quick to intercept her with a knife as he slashed at her, scoring a cut on her cheek, which Blood Angel stole a bit of blood from to fire into Darkness' Shoulder almost cutting deep enough to cause him to lose use in it. "FUCK CELESTE! WHAT DID I JUST SAY?!" He asked as he fired a bullet into Percy's knife while Celeste shot off Blood Angel's wings, causing both of them to retreat into the shadows. Darkness grabbed his shoulders. "They're going to attack together." He deduced. Celeste nodded and glared, "So we DEFEND together." She told him. Darkness nodded and saw the knives standing at attention. "Do you trust me?" He asked. "More than I do trying to fight solo." She said as she looked into his eyes. He nodded and put away his weapons and holstered hers for her as he gripped her hands. "Shall we have this dance?" He asked.

Percy laughed maniacally as he threw volley after volley of knives as Blood Angel coated them in blood. Darkness and Celeste looked into each other's eyes as they seemed to glide away from the blades. Percy glared as Blood Angel made the knives follow them, starting to lose control. "We need to make them BLEED!" Exclaimed Blood Angel. Percy sneered. "Well mister red stuff! Do something!" He said as his accent slipped. Blood Angel glared as the knives surrounded Darkness and Celeste, approaching them from a Three-hundred-and-sixty-degree radius. Darkness and Celeste nodded to each other and pulled out their guns, skillfully shooting them out of the air as they came, rapidly reloading, when they went empty, Darkness scooped the rest of them out of the air with a swing of his scythe and launched them at Percy. Blood Angel tried to stop them, but was too tired from the Aura usage, Percy just chuckled as he swatted a bunch of them away, but took one to the stomach and fell over. As soon as he was down, Darkness rushed in and kicked Blood Angel in unison with Celeste, putting him through a concrete wall. 

Darkness sighed and panted. "Good work Celeste!" He said as he gave her a thumbs up, not seeing Percy throw a knife at him from behind. "GET DOWN!" Screamed Celeste as she pushed Darkness, taking a knife to the right side of her chest. Luckily, her body suit took some of the flack, but it got deep enough to cut her. Darkness quickly rushed in and punted Percy in the skull, knocking him out. "Piece of shit... Dammit, I don't have time for this!" He said as he got Celeste to his car.

Deimos sighed as his talk with Tristan was interrupted by the sound of screeching tires he saw Darkness speeding home in a panic waving as the car stopped. "How was the-" But he was cut off by the sight of Darkness bleeding from the shoulder and pulling out an even more bleeding Celeste. "What the hell happened to you two?!" He asked. Tristan quickly went to apply ice to Darkness but he just batted Tristan away and just shook his head. "No time, she got it way worse than me, ya gotta help her!" He begged. Tristan grabbed Darkness and held him still. "BREATHE! We can heal her, but Deimos can only heal one at a time, and right now you need to calm down, you're strong, but you can still go into shock... okay?" He asked.  Darkness just nodded and watched Deimos get to work healing Celeste. "I'm just gonna close my eyes Deimos, I'm tired." Said Darkness as he laid back. "Fine, but I want answers!" Demanded Deimos. Darkness just nodded lazily while he sighed and finally closed his eyes, happy to be safe at last. Darkness knew this wouldn't be the last they'd see of Percy and Blood Angel, but hopefully next time, they'd be ready, they had to be if they were going to protect their friends.

Deimos and Tristan laid Darkness and Celeste on the couch. Darkness held Celeste protectively and slowly powered down, sleeping soundly. "I'd almost call that adorable if not for the fact they just came barging home and in critical condition." Said Deimos with a shrug. Tristan chuckled softly and nodded as he placed a hand on Deimos' shoulder. "never a dull moment with us is there?" He asked. Deimos smiled at him and kissed his cheek. "No... I suppose not, We'll talk with Darkness tomorrow, but for now? Let's finish our cake in the fridge before Celeste wakes up!" He offered. Tristan chuckled again and nodded as they went to the Dining room.

A Hellbent Crossover: LYTE IT UP!

 Blake sighed softly as he angrily wiped the sweat from his brow. It had been two weeks since he and Ashley had kicked Maxx out of their home, but the Damage he'd left behind made it feel like he was still living with them. "That little fucker never ceases to amaze me with how much he can wreck a home. There are the clogged drains from the sheer amount of skin treatment supplies, and our backyard foundation is screwed up because the idiot thought he could build a stage to play his non-existent music on with his non-existent band, for his non-existent groupies... And to top it all off, I'm seeing water damage that he caused from the spare rib incident..." He ranted with a sigh as he grabbed a beer from the fridge. 

Ashley just sighed and retreated into themself. "I'm sorry I let that monster clown into our home Blake, I feel so stupid for ever believing he was my friend. They said as they looked down. Blake just rubbed Ashley's back. "You're not STUPID Ashley, you have a very trusting soul. But that much trust led to naivety and I thought Maxx would be the lesson you needed to learn... Unfortunately, as we can see, that lesson proved to be very costly.... We're gonna have to find some way to get back in the green with our budget." He said with a sigh. Ashley nodded and got to work on dinner.

"You know... with Maxx gone, we could always open his room back up... this time we rent it out to someone willing to pay a month upfront for rent!" Offered Ashley as they served up some Tacos. Blake nodded and grabbed a few tacos. "Not a bad idea Ashley! I'll put some ads up near our house and see if we can get something going!" He said while digging in. Ashley nodded and smiled at having been a help as they also loaded their plate.

A couple of weeks later a ring of the doorbell came and Blake answered the door. A Young blonde woman smiled and waved at him. She had dark blue eyes and was wearing a white tank top with white capris and rainbow-colored sandals. "Hello! I'm here about your room for rent!" She said as she held up a flyer. Blake nodded and invited her in. She had a light skip to her walk as he took her to the dining room, where she perked up at the smell of fresh cookies and sweets. Blake just eyed her up, in a lot of ways, she reminded him of Ashley. She was cheerful, she liked sweets, and she was a bit bubbly. "So... I assume you have the first payment?" He asked with a brow. She nodded and pulled out a briefcase. "I Have the first three months upfront!" She said as she slid him some money. His eyebrows raised as Ashley came down.

"Oh, we have company? Who's your new friend Blake?" They asked as the woman smiled and waved. "Hiya! My name is Lisa Sonata, but my friends and Fans all call me Lyte!" She said as the siblings looked at her. "Fans?" Asked Blake. Lyte nodded and pulled out a flyer of her own. "DJ LYTESTRYKE Baby! Here to Lyte up Australia!" She said happily. Blake and Ashley both had a grimace that made Lyte frown a bit. "Not music lovers I take it?" She asked. Both Ashley and Blake put a hand up. "It's not that.... it's just that the last 'Musician' we let stay here was a huge mess." Said Ashley.

Blake just scoffed, "Let's be real, he wasn't even a REAL Musician, just a poser with a fake band who wailed into any microphone that he could get his hands on." He said with a bitter look. Lyte just nodded and bit her lip at the harsh vibes she felt. "Well, I can assure you I'M no fake! In fact, let me sweeten the deal! On top of three months' rent, how bout free tickets to any and all events! Starting tonite! We're gonna party til we drop baby!" She said as she handed them tickets. Ashley smiled and looked to Blake, who after a few seconds nodded. "Deal." He said as Lyte went to get her stuff.

"So... What do you think of this girl so far?" Ashley asked Blake as they headed to a club a few miles out. Blake focused on the road and shrugged. "She's a MASSIVE improvement over Maxx... a little too extroverted in my opinion, but I think she'd be a good enough roomie." He said with a nod that Ashley returned. "She liked my sweets, and giggles at my cat puns! So she seems to get on just fine at the house." They said as they arrived at the club. it was about the size of a warehouse, with neon lights that seemed to give color to the clouds in the skies above and said 'The SPIN CLUB' on the front. "Now to find out how different from Maxx she REALLY is." Said Blake as they both walked into the club after showing their I.Ds and tickets to the bouncer.

Blake and Ashley both felt a bit out of their element when they looked around. There were people all over the place with different outfits from different cliques, and they were all talking at once about vastly different subjects from each other. if anything it was a bit noisy. "Maybe we should get some sodas or drinks?" Offered Ashley. Blake just nodded, ready to do anything to get out of the center of the club. Both of them sighed after a soda. It got a bit easier to tolerate the club once they got used to it, but the overstimulation was still a bit irritating. "She must be popular to be in a club like this." Stated Ashley. Blake shrugged, "Maxx had rich parents, you never know... Honestly, I'm going to be nice, even if this turns out to be a wash, as long as she pays regularly and cleans up after herself, I will still tolerate her more than I did Maxx." He answered as all eyes turned to the glowing stage.

Lyte grinned as she stepped out in a white sports bra, A pair of white daisy dukes, a fishnet bodysuit with glowsticks taped to it, and a pair of Knee high white boots. "SPIN CLUB! ARE YOU READY TO SLAVE TO THE RAVE?!" She asked. The crowds rushed forward as Lyte turned on her soundboard and got to blasting colorful music while she scratched her records. Ashley Just smiled and watched while Lyte not only played music, she put on a cool rainbow laser light show with pyrotechnics. Blake just chuckled and watched, Truth be told he didn't care much for Lyte's kind of music. But it was easy to see her appeal, she was every bit as much of the show as her music was. Unlike Maxx, she was trying to make other people happy, not just herself. "I think I got my answers... welcome to our home Lyte." He said to himself as he watched the show with Ashley.

The next morning, Lyte yawned as she came into the dining room smelling freshly baked cinnamon rolls. "Oh that smells GOOOOOOD" She said with a bit of drool forming. Ashley just chuckled and served her one. "Help yourself!" They said as Lyte dug in. "Didja like the show?" She asked as Ashley grinned. "The club was a bit noisy, but I loved your Light show! Very Psychedelic!" They said as they sat down with her. "Yeahhh I used to get nervous in places like that, but something about my shows making people happy... makes ME happy ya know?" She asked. Ashley just nodded and grinned. "That's what I wanna do with my food! I wanna open up a place where people can enjoy my food, and maybe even help the stray cats around the city!" They said. Lyte lit up at the mention of cats. "I LOVE CATS! You gotta do that Ashley!" She said excitedly. Ashley giggled and chatted with Lyte about both of their favorite cats.

Unbeknownst to both Lyte and Ashley, Blake just grinned and sipped his coffee. "well that's the Room for rent situation down... Still gotta fix up the house though... But we've got time." He said as he grabbed his cinnamon roll and tools before heading out to the backyard, feeling a lot more at ease than he did in the past few weeks.

The Aurian Chronicles Chapter 14: Learn your place, Learn yourself

Amanda sighed softly as she found herself a willing captive as she joined Saryn at a local Italian cafe. The cafe was small in comparison to the neighboring buildings, yet business seemed a lot more booming than the chain coffee shops nearby. Saryn giggled and adjusted her blood-red floral as her cappuccino was served to her, Amanda looked down at her cup of her black houseblend and sipped it when Saryn sipped hers. "So... what did you wish to discuss with me?" She asked uncomfortably while Saryn sipped her drink. "I felt it to be unfair to you in this game if you tried to run in guns blazing without knowing the facts!" Said Saryn with a polite smile. Amanda just raised a brow and looked at her. "And what types of facts might that be?" She asked while looking at Saryn who smirked. "Well for starters... your place!" She explained with a deep laugh. Amanda began to glare.

 "...Elaborate Mrs. Capryse..." She challenged. Saryn nodded as placed a foot in Amanda's lap "Alright little one, what are the 3 branches of our Government?" She asked while Amanda stiffened at the foot in her lap. "Legislative... Executive... And Judicial of course! I'm no child!" She responded indignantly. Saryn just leaned back and nodded. "Right! And what do they all have in common?" She asked as Amanda tried to think, but just as she opened her mouth, Saryn leaned in. 

"Money and power run them down to the very core... But do the people lining them really know how to use them? No, the average American just trusts those people to know... these politicians... These CEOs, these elected officials.... They don't know how to use money, they only know how to SPEND... Spend it on power that is.... and IN that little they amass debt... Debt my foolish husband learned long ago how to collect!" She said with a grin. The foot in her lap started to feel heavier as Amanda began to sweat. "So what? Is he conquering the country? Cool story... And what's YOUR place in all this?" She asked. Saryn just giggled. "I may not look it sweetheart, but I'm something of a CEO myself! Pure mind solutions... My silly husband can play his little games all he likes... I'm more interested in unlocking human potential... And so far, Darkness is my Favorite test subject" She said in a sing-song voice. 

Amanda began to swallow uncomfortably as Saryn locked eyes with her. She felt smaller, Saryn felt taller, and her eyes began to dilate. "What... What is this conversation about?" She asked worriedly, only to tense as Saryn giggled and rubbed the sweat off her sole onto Amanda's NYPD uniform. "This Conversation is my friendly way of stating that my foot feels nice along your fresh uniform... but you go out of your way to harass and disturb my favorite test subject... and I'll be seeing how my bottom feels against your lips little pet...." She said with a stern voice. Amanda tried to look away as she stared into Saryn's eyes as if she were hypnotized. After five seconds, Saryn let out an audible laugh. "You're so easy to tease darling! You really should lighten up! Do swing by our home if you ever want a non-formal chat between just us girls! I'll be wearing something far more casual!" She said as she kissed Amanda's cheek before she strolled out of the shop and back to her car. She blew a kiss to Amanda and drove off into the Long Island traffic. Amanda began to breathe heavily. "Is... was that a threat? Can she even do anything?" She asked herself as she tried to control herself. "Why do I want to find out?" She asked herself before looking at herself with her camera phone before narrowing her eyes. "Because she doesn't scare me... And it's my JOB to bring criminals to justice! You want a war? GAME ON!" She said as she got in her car and drove off.

Meanwhile Silver pinched the bridge of her nose while Lyte and Darkness still sat in shock. "So wait, you two idiots have just been using aura like oogedy boogedy magic? You both are Michelle Sonata's kids! She didn't teach you how to properly take care of yourselves?!" She asked. Darkness shrugged, "I never really had aura, so she didn't bother with me as much. Lyte was taught more about developing her aura, but she was still only seven when our parents were gone remember? You can't really expect too much can you?" Asked Darkness. 

Silver just rolled her eyes. "Some of this isn't even AURA related! It's common fucking sense! Oh my god, it's like giving a monkey a loaded machine gun! Sure the monkey is more powerful than the other monkeys, but then it runs out of ammo! then what?!"  she asked as she gently bonked both their heads. "I hope when they talk and train you, they'll be more merciful than I will because, for the next couple weeks, you'll be going to the gym with ME!" She said, causing both Darkness and Lyte to give an audible gulp. Darkness remembered when he had the misfortune of ruining one of Silver's dresses, so Silver Made him do a thousand pushups, five hundred sit-ups, and a ten-mile run in heels as punishment, he was genuinely afraid of what Silver was cooking up.  

Silver crossed her arms and sighed. "Whatever you're thinking stop it, this isn't punishment... This is me trying to teach two dummies how to properly take care of their bodies with and without superpowers." She explained. Darkness nodded "Yes silver." He said as he eased up. Silver looked at him. "YOUR punishment will involve a step ladder, bondage rope and the next couple of nights all to myself, get creative with the rope or I will!" She told him, causing Darkness to blush as Lyte grumbled and tried to block all of the last couple of seconds that she heard from her mind. "Can you please take this seriously dear?!" Asked Darkness. Silver slid out of her dress and hung it on the coat rack neatly before sitting in Darkness' lap "I AM dear, but I love my husband all the same... Idiocy and all... I'll try to forgive you for abusing your own body willy-nilly like that, but do try to promise you'll grow from whatever those two church members teach you." She said as she kissed him. Darkness kissed her back and nodded. "It's a deal, my Flawless Love." He told her with a small smile, she turned a vibrant glowing red in the face and nodded.  The trio were about to head for their rooms when a hard knock came at the door. It seemed the day was only just beginning.

The Aurian Chronicles Chapter 13: You've been using it for WHAT?!

 "So this is the place... I see he's been doing well for himself..." Said Maximillion as he fixed himself up to look nice and professional. Bo just scoffed and flipped her hair over her eyes. while knocking on the door. "Oh please Max, he's just like any other guy." She told him with a glare. "Watch, as soon as he opens the door, I'm just gonna say-" She started as she opened the door, only to see Lyte in just her white nightgown and rainbow stockings. "Hi! can I help you?" She asked happily. Bo sighed sweetly and blushed, "Hi, I'm Bo! I was in the neighborhood and lost my number, can I pretty please have yours?" She asked in a begging voice, causing Lyte to let out a melodic amused giggle. Maximillion rolled his eyes and just pulled Bo back. "Hello there Ma'am, I'm Maximillion, and this is my friend Bo, we're of the Aurian church and would like to have a word with Mr. Derek Sonata if he's available?" He asked in a stern tone. Lyte looked at them both and nodded. "Of course! He should be up by now, I'll see if I can call him down for you! Name's Lyte by the way!" She chirped as she led them to a couch, Bo shamelessly checked out all of Lyte's beautiful features while imagining a future with Lyte in it. Maximillion finally had had enough and just elbowed her while they waited.

Darkness sighed and finally came down and looked at the two guests while he offered them a bottle of whiskey. At the shake of their heads, he took the cap off and began drinking from the bottle. "So... what can I do for you both?" He asked curiously. Bo sighed and finally looked him in, THIS was the chosen descendant of The Composer? The one gifted with Aura beyond Aura? He looked like he lost a war with himself and never found a way to successfully cope with it. After a deep sigh she stood up and shook hands with him. "You must be Derek... My name is Bo... My buddy Max and I are from the Aurian Church of the Composer" She started, causing Darkness to raise a brow. "Never heard of it." He said as he looked to Maximillion, who shook his head. "You wouldn't... and had the last few day not have happened, it'd have stayed that way." He said as he looked at him square in the eye. "You see Mr. Sonata, we try to combine the collected activities involving Aura into a Zeitgeist... so as to track and possibly deal with anomalies going on in the world... and we noticed your.... Void as you call it... went through a rather huge spike." He explained. Darkness nodded, "Yeah... I got in a fight with another aura user... I had seen him stab and critically wound my little sister... I guess I went all out and used a lot of aura at once." Said Darkness. Bo and Max just looked at each other. "So the rumors are true, you use your aura mostly just for fighting and killing... Is it at least for just other aura users?" Asked Bo. Darkness just shook his head. "Nah, mostly on whoever needs killing... it's been rather effective. There was a long pause before Bo and Max pinched their noses. "So basically anyone and everyone in the criminal underworld just KNOWS about you being an Aura user." Said Maximillion. Darkness just shrugged and nodded, Maximillion just glared at him. "So chances are they will know how to track that giant aura spike and record it as well!" He all but yelled. Darkness shrugged. "So? If they know I use aura anyway, what's that matter?" He asked. Bo marched up and got in his face. "BECAUSE DUMBASS! If they know a Dangerous Aura user is just killing normal assholes, they are going to stop sending normal assholes and start sending more AURA USERS!" She said as she looked at Lyte. "Look at her! I Can still tell she's recovering badly! Her aura is incredibly weak from healing her body!" She said angrily. Darkness rolled his eyes. "Shows what you know, she used her aura to reflect a bunch of bullets yesterday." He said with crossed arms. Both Maximillion and Bo's jaws dropped in honour before Bo slapped him across the face hard enough to stagger him. "YOU LITERAL DEFINITION OF A DUMBASS! AURA POWERS AREN'T FUCKING UNLIMITED! SHE COULD HAVE JUST AS EASILY GOTTEN HERSELF KILLED!" Screamed Bo as Maximillion quickly offered Lyte some sweet snacks, who after registering Darkness was okay, slowly accepted them. Darkness just glared for a bit before letting Bo's words process, "...Explain." He told her. Bo just sighed and calmed down. "Using Aura requires a lot of calories to maintain... even though she wasn't using her aura to fight beforehand... from the sound of things, if she was stabbed like that, the only reason she's walking is that her aura was used to heal her body at an accelerated rate... meaning her aura could have JUST as easily failed and she'd be swiss cheese right now.... I Can't believe you've never noticed this." Explained Bo. Darkness raised his eyes and just sat down "I guess I never thought about it... My sister only ever got a brief explanation of aura... I was supposed to wait until I discovered mine... and that was only a few years ago..." He said as he looked to Bo and Maximillion. "That's why WE'RE here, we'll be teaching you more than you ever thought about your aura, and how to master it well beyond where you're at now." Said Maximillion while he and Bo headed for the door. "We'll be at the nearest hotel, should be easy to find... Do try not to use a rocket launcher as a flyswatter in the near future if you would be so kind." He told him as they took their leave. Darkness and Lyte just looked at each other in shock, both of them sat there in silence as they tried to wrap their heads around an entire church taking an interest in them.

As Bo and Max left, Amanda smirked and adjusted her badge. "Finally we meet... Derek Sonata." She said as she got out of her car, only to see Saryn casually open the door to an unmarked Volvo. "Not just yet lieutenant,,," She said with a smirk as Amanda's eyes raised while her heart sank. "I ... You... NYPD will know where I am!" She threatened as Saryn let out a melodic giggle. "Oh please, I'm not here to kill you Ms. Cross, my Foolish husband doesn't even know I'm here.... please... accopany me on a little cafe trip... I feel just a brief introduction will help you understand the world you've walked into.... and THEN you can meet my little test subject proper! You might even be the biggest help yet!" She said as she casually placed an arm around amanda's shoulder, though something about Saryn Capryse's presence made it feel as though it could have just as well been around her throat as she walked with her to her to Saryn's Car. And so just for a little bit longer, Amanda's meeting with Darkness would wait, just a little bit longer.

The Aurian Chronicles chapter 12: Back to reality

Darkness sighed softly as he wrapped up his summary and just looked down. "After that... I spent the last three years making a name for myself as a contract killer... All the money, nicknames, and blood never stopped me from trying to be there when you needed me though, Lisa." He said as he looked at Lyte, who just hugged him close to her. "I know... Silver told me you pissed a lot of people off to make sure you were at a good chunk of my concerts... one thing that I want to know about your story... you said a drug made you kill a bunch of scientists... how on earth did THAT get covered up?" She asked curiously. Darkness just pinched his nose. "It's funny how coincidences work... turns out the drug developer... And the company... Is Mr Capryse's wife Saryn" He said as he laughed bitterly. "She had it all covered up seconds after Silver and I left... hell it's like she KNEW what the drug really did... totally not a coincidence at all." He added sarcastically. Lyte nodded and made a note to look into Saryn later. "I see... look as long as you stop this 'Derek is dead' bullcrap... I'll support you the best I can big brother, just try to be careful" She said as she and Silver got off Darkness' lap while Lyte got out of her hospital clothes and into a white Tank Top and matching Capris with glowing shoes. Darkness raised a brow at her. "You gonna be okay sis?" He asked. Lyte rolled her eyes. "You know damn well Aurians heal faster than normal people... I'll be sore and tender for a while, but I can still walk... some of these cuts can't even compare to a night in the moshpit!" She said proudly, Causing Darkness to shake their heads and laugh.

As they stepped outside the Hospital, Darkness raised a brow at the list of cars surrounding Silver's Jeep. A group of men in suits smirked as they aimed their guns at Darkness, Silver, and Lyte. "Mr. Farley sends his regards... vengeance for Albert Farley will be paid in full." Said one of them. Lyte looked to her brother with a raised brow. "Pedophile I killed earlier, his father is the one who paid Blood Angel to fight me..." He explained. She nodded and stepped forward. "Not here, not today, get the fuck outta our way." She said simply. The guards all aimed at her. "Walk away bitch, this is between us and the goth freak, but we won't hesitate to make Swiss cheese out of bystanders if need be." said another man as he watched her turn around. "Please, you couldn't handle my ASS if you tried!" She said as they glared and fired all at once, the bullets bounced off her body and went right back at them. Silver pulled her submachine guns out of the back of her dress and sprayed down the surviving guards. "Told ya so." Said Lyte as she took her place in the back seat behind Silver. Darkness just smirked and stood up behind the passenger seat while Silver turned the ignition, good to have ya both talking again." She said as they drove off before the police arrived. "You going to be okay with all that?" Asked Darkness. Lyte looked up at him. "I don't like killing, but I KNOW when to defend myself, big brother... Don't worry, I'll be fine" She said as she put her headphones on and turned up her music while she fiddled with her portable soundboard.

Amanda Cross lowered her eyes at the paperwork that had just popped up from both the hospital and nightclub incidents. Unlike everyone else in the station, she was in casual civilian clothes. A yellow T-shirt, blue jeans, and a pair of sandals. "We are all just little pawns caught up in a war we aren't possibly ready for." She muttered as she read through Darkness' files. "He has no crimes reported on his name... but an ocean of bodies in his past... He definitely works for Mr. Capryse... and I can't touch him without kicking a hornet's nest that'll either have me discharged or demoted...And the worst of it all is that he doesn't even know, or care who I am." She added while filling out her reports. She kicked off her sandals and curled her toes hard enough to pop them while she ordered takeout and made some calls. "Well that's just fine, I plan to fix all that." She said while pulling up every single incident that could have had any semblance of a link to either Darkness or Mr. Capryse.

Meanwhile, a boat docked down on Long Island. Two people stepped onto shore, A woman in an opened golden robe with a white shirt and red short shorts with combat boots flipped her half shaved on her right side bowl-cut purple hair over her right eye as she looked around. "So this is New York huh? nice! Hey Max! You comin' or what dude?" She asked as her friend dusted off his White Tuxedo and adjusted his red tie over his golden undershirt before combing his short Blonde hair. "I'm coming Bo, and for the last time, It's MAXIMILLION! I don't like nicknames..." He told her with a scoff. Bo just rolled her eyes. "At least you know to call me Bo! Now... I believe we have ourselves a descendant of the Composer to find... Purple hair, black and red clothes... shouldn't be too hard to find this doom and gloomy fuck." She said while they ventured out into the depths of New York. The boat they arrived on mysteriously vanishing behind them.