Ethan sat across from Paige in a secluded corner of the school library, on the computer, searching through the disappearance records from the past week. His fingers drummed lightly against the desk, his mind racing through probabilities.
This creature's timetable was accelerating.
The disappearances weren't random.
Something was feeding off fear—and it was getting stronger.
Paige leaned forward, her voice firm. "We need to stop waiting. We gotta do something."
Ethan glanced at her. "We are doing something. We're gathering information."
Paige scoffed. "That's ain't action. You're stalling."
Ethan smirked slightly. "I prefer to call it caution. I don't have superpowers, so I like to play it safe as a result."
Paige crossed her arms. "Fair point, but sitting back and watching ain't working when people are vanishing left and right. What's next? Waiting til the whole damn school disappears?"
Ethan sighed. She wasn't necessarily wrong.
For once, he had no choice but to behave recklessly. Waiting wasn't an option anymore.
"Fine," Ethan said. "Let's find the pattern."
They mapped out the victims on paper:
A freshman girl who saw her reflection move on its own.
A sophomore who heard whispers in the dark.
A janitor who was briefly possessed.
Amy, plus another girl, has gone missing. Both were last seen minutes before school closed.
Ethan tapped his pen against the paper. "There's a clear escalation. First, whatever this thing is, it made people uneasy. Then, it started whispering to them. Then, it possessed someone. Now, it's taking people entirely."
Paige exhaled. "Amy and that other girl, Rachel, were the most recent."
Ethan nodded. "That means whoever's next… it'll be soon."
And he had a sinking feeling he already knew who. Since the janitor came after them, they were surely marked, so either he or Paige would be next.
Across the city, Felicia Hardy sat in her apartment, phone pressed to her ear as Peter Parker's voice came through the speaker.
"Okay, so I talked to Strange."
Felicia rolled her eyes. "About time."
Peter ignored her. "Bad news first—the book you found? It's not just a book. It's a gateway."
Felicia frowned. "Gateway to what?"
"To summon something called Nisanti. A demon or an eldritch force. Beyond human understanding, blah blah magic talk."
Felicia's stomach twisted. She had been holding that thing in her hands.
Peter continued, his voice more serious now. "Strange said something else. If you've opened the book, the demon has seen you. It knows you. So avoid doing that."
Felicia looked at the book sitting across the room on her table. 'Shit.'
She cleared her throat. "And the good news?"
Peter hesitated. "It can't be destroyed."
Felicia cursed under her breath. "That's your good news?"
"Wait, I wasn't finished!" Peter said quickly. "So, the book can't be destroyed. But if you find the original summoner, and say this exact phrase, Strange is sending me right now, it should break the demon's hold on this realm and send it back."
Felicia sighed. "Great. So I need to track down the idiot who summoned a demon and convince them to help me?"
"Basically."
Felicia ran a hand through her platinum hair. "This just keeps getting better."
Peter's tone softened slightly. "I'll be there tomorrow to help."
Felicia smirked. "Aw, Spider, you do care."
Peter groaned. "Yeah, yeah. Just don't die before I get there."
Felicia hung up, her eyes drifting back to the Door of the Black Gate.
This was no longer just a job. After this, she would track down whoever put her on this job and introduce them to her claws.
The next day, Ethan watched himself.
Or rather, his reflection.
He stood in the school bathroom 30 minutes before school would end, the place eerily silent, as if the entire world had been placed on mute.
His reflection didn't move in sync with him.
It tilted its head, studying him.
Then, it smiled. "You're different, Ethan Kane."
Ethan didn't react, his expression unreadable.
It's talking to me now. That means either this is the next step or it thinks I'm a threat.
His reflection's eyes darkened, the pupils stretching into inky voids. "You're smart. Smarter than the others. So let's make a deal."
Ethan pulled out his phone, typing without looking.
Message to Paige:
If you're reading this, I've disappeared.
Find Ms. Felicia Harper. Trust her. Tell her everything and show her your power, and she'll help you.
Good luck.
The reflection chuckled. "Still pretending you have control? Not afraid? If you don't make a deal with me, you'll die."
Ethan smirked. "I do have control. You're trying to bargain, which means you're the one at a disadvantage, and rather you're afraid."
The entity's voice slithered through the mirror. "Why refuse me? I can give you everything."
Ethan's smirk widened. "Oh, now that's funny. A demon promising me things I can take for myself? Tell me why would I need you?"
The entity twitched.
Ethan's eyes sharpened. "Tell me your name."
A pause.
Then, a whisper—
"Nisanti."
Ethan committed it to memory.
Now he had a name. A real name.
And names had power. Not that he had the ability to use it, but at the very least, he could text it to Paige to push her in the right direction.
The mirror rippled like water.
Nisanti's voice turned mocking. "Very well, then. I'll take you the hard way."
Ethan soon felt his body jerk forward, dropping his phone after texting the demon's name.
His reflection grabbed him.
And the next second—
He was gone.
Ethan woke up in darkness.
His eyes adjusted instantly.
He was still in Midtown High—but it was… wrong.
The colors were faded, washed out. The air felt thick, like breathing through smoke.
There were no students.
No movement.
Just a twisted, empty version of the school.
'A pocket dimension, maybe? It shouldn't be too big, so I should find Amy and that other girl.' Ethan stood up, brushing the dust off his jacket.
'Alright. Let's see how bad this really is.'
He took his first step forward, and the whispers began to crawl through the walls.