[indent][u][b]New Year's Day, 2026
?????[/b][/u][/indent]

There were flashes, some of the time. Brief flickers of imagery. A man who wasn’t a man anymore, nor was he anyone’s father, but still conjured up feelings of familial affection, warmth, and safety. A house, full of loving people. A forest. A fire. Screams, and screams, and screams - so many people screaming. The worst was the giant figure, looming overhead before an object bigger than any one person descended, blacking out the sky and anything beyond it as it came closer and closer.

Mostly there was just darkness.

So when the darkness finally lifted, it was a very confused Joshua Christophe who was left blinking away the last vestiges of a very long sleep from his glowing eyes.

The first thing Josh noticed was that he was cold. How strange, considering after his transformation into [i]Demon[/i] he was never cold. The second was just how uncomfortable he was. Mr. Harris had made a nice cocoon hammock for him, so why did it feel like-

Oh. He was sleeping on stone. And … naked?

For a moment Josh could only stare at the stone slab beneath him in puzzlement, partially covered by a simple purple blanket, before slowly his gaze lifted to take in the room. It was dark, rather forbidding, and kind of creepy. He seemed to be the only one here except ...  A sharp inhale sounded in the room as Josh’s glowing white eyes took in the only other occupant of the room, a boy younger than him and surrounded by a glowing orange light. Yet to say he was a boy was … generous. He was mangled, badly, seeming little more than a pile of [i]meat[/i] in some areas.

Bile rose in Josh’s mouth and he quickly got up while tying the blanket around his waist, moving to the ‘bed’ of the boy.

[color=Skyblue]”H-Hey!”[/color] He called out, feeling both extremely silly and completely uneasy. Not to mention foolish. Surely the boy was dead. Yet as Josh reached out, touching the boy’s neck he once more inhaled sharply. There was a pulse there, faint but [i]there[/i]. He needed help, and so did Josh - where [i]was[/i] he?!

A giant figure looming overhead. Raising its great arms before bringing down an object even bigger than him, closer and closer and closer-

The demonic boy staggered back, a great blue hand raising to press against his head just behind the long horns jutting from his forehead. He was… He was with Mr. Harris, wasn’t he? No, Mr. Harris had gone to help another group of heroes, or to… go somewhere? And Josh, he had gone to try and help somewhere else, with another … another…?

Another … Titan?

… The Titans!

[color=Skyblue]”Oh, oh no.”[/color] The words came spilling out of Josh’s mouth as he quickly whirled around. [color=Skyblue]”I have to - where is every - MR. HARRIS?!”[/color] His voice echoed again, and the young man whirled around looking every which way. He didn’t know where he was, what was going on, but others were in danger and he needed to help! … And possibly needed help! Actually, he definitely needed help with the other boy - he wasn’t a doctor!

The door to the room bust open with a deafening boom as Josh rammed his shoulder into it - he had no time for doorknobs! - before taking off down the corridor. He had to find the others, had to get people away from the Titans, had to - had to -

[color=SkyBlue]”MR. HAAARRIIIIS!”[/color]

As if summoned by his panicked shriek, a bright rectangle of light appeared at Josh’s feet. Glowing like the hieroglyphs lining the walls, the air was filled with a gentle yet steady hum of power. A second rectangle then appeared, followed by a third and forth. Soon, they formed a clear path for him to follow.

[color=SkyBlue]”... That’s strange!”[/color] Was the panicked, [i]confused[/i] half-yell that emerged from Josh. Yet with his only other option being to keep wildly running about until he could find a plant to try and beg Mr. Green to get Mr. Harris, well, it seemed it’s what he was following. 

The light guided him down the corridor and through an open doorway that, as it turns out, lead to yet another lengthy stretch of hallway. More hieroglyphs adorned the walls, always unique. Down a third, fourth, and ultimately fifth passageway Josh would walk for what seemed like half an hour at least until he at last arrived in what can only be described as a vast--near endless, in fact--museum of strange and otherworldly artifacts.

Most were contained in large glass displays, while others had been carefully bound to the wall as if to prevent them from somehow escaping. Their myriad shapes and appearances were beyond description. Thankfully, the guiding light remained to lead Josh through the great maze.

Yet by this time Josh was now panting lightly, a few droplets of sweat gliding down from his forehead. In truth, it was a good thing that his transformation kept him as fit as it did, considering that whenever a drop of sweat dripped off of him it sizzled against the floor. Still, he felt weaker than normal. It was concerning, on top of everything else, yet the more pressing thing was wondering if that boy would still be alright in the time this wild goose chase lasted, and the ever pressing concern of… 

[i]Where was he?[/i]

The items didn’t help at all. He couldn’t recognize most of them, and those he did Josh was so far out of his element he almost suspected them to be traps. Still, it was in this room that his rapid pace finally slowed as he caught his breath, keeping a jog up as he followed the glowing rectangles further.

Another ten minutes of talking through the great chamber of artifacts finally lead Josh to a set of stairs that ascended to a great pair of doors that bared a golden thunderbolt. Before he had even reached the top, they began to split open, just wide enough for him to be able to comfortably fit through.

For a moment, Josh hesitated. Lingering at the bottom of the stairs he stared up at the door, trying to gather whatever courage he had left. He had to do this, to find Mr. Harris, to help against the Titans, to - to - stop tearing up, Josh! - to get out of this place. Taking a deep breath that shuddered in his chest, the monstrous being finally began to ascend. Step by step the dread in his stomach grew, and when he finally reached the top he began almost edging his way inside tentatively.

[color=SkyBlue]”... Mr. Harris …?”[/color]