Shifty

Curled up on the red couch, Nero was at the penthouse, feeling quite proud of himself.

That will show him! I can do anything without Alto!

While playing with his star pendant, an old gift from Mrs.Masai before she died, he remembered that the penthouse was owned by Alto, and again, the stupidity of his actions set in slowly, settling heavily on him, pushing him into the couch, crushing him.

Sitting up, looking at his hand where the rings once were, he felt naked, only taking them off if he had to wash blood off of his hands.

He couldn't leave Alto. He had no money, Alto owned all their property, and the only reason Nero was able to carry out his revenge was because of Alto's connections.

Without Alto, he was nothing but a broken man who couldn't take care of himself, had an eating disorder, couldn't read, definitely couldn't write , and his only talent was starting fires and fucking.

He told himself, well at least I can drive.

He could not, he parallel parked twice, and believed he needed no license.

He was still in his bathrobe from earlier, none of his clothing in his own room fitting him, hungover, exhausted, and wanted to sleep. He was afraid to sleep, afraid another surprise gift would come out of his mouth, but all the stress, all the trauma was more effective than melatonin.

Nero fell asleep on the couch, another message received.

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Nero stood outside the castle gates, watching the younger him be sent off, and it was different than most of his dreams. The pain was new again, seeing how small he was, believing that someone would help him because people wouldn't do things like this, and yet they did.

Mint had an iron grip around his wrist, and in her other hand, a suitcase. Leofric came to the gates with a skinny man in chains. He could barely walk, and there were sores on his feet. Leofric forced him to continue walking by smacking him with a cane whenever he started to slow down.

Nero found it odd that he was being smacked with a cane. He didn't remember that happening, instead, he remembered Leofric pushing him with his hands. Looking at all of them now, warily walking forward, he noticed that something wasn't right.

Mint was not an ugly woman, but she was much prettier in this dream than Nero had ever envisioned her. The younger version of himself had no face , and Nero assumed that his memory must be changing the dream, but he couldn't understand why he was watching it, an unwilling audience.

When the horrible memories returned, he would re-experience them, not watch them.

Leofric's face was changed as well, a large, singular, cyclops eye, and Nero balked tensing up whenever he spoke, and he realized it was like before. He tried to wake up, but he couldn't, he was forced to relive it all, but it was a gross facsimile.

Trees at the front gate were scribbled in, with crayons, screams were heard in the distance from the castle, and Nero did not remember the screaming, the wails. Castle Hearst sounded more like a haunted house. The moon was a crescent moon, but it was scribbled in as well, jagged at the corners.

The farther away from the spot they were speaking, the less defined the memory was, forcing Nero not to leave, afraid that he would blend into the background, turning into a horribly drawn stick figure.

He noticed that some things stayed the same as he tried to pay attention to the badly recorded memory instead of the horribly rendered background.

Mint was crying when the shackled man arrived, her son being tortured, barely hanging on to life.

"My Tamuz," she cried. "Please stop. You already took two sons from me!"

"I brought it as promised. We don't want it anymore, we're letting it go free, " Leofric sighed. He was bored, his cyclops eye glancing back at the castle, wanting to go back, listening to the screams, his moment of glory stolen by Godiva.

The words meant nothing to Tamuz, as he was gaunt, and barely able to stand. He could not comprehend the words from Leofric's mouth. Mint gave Aelfric to Leofric and grabbed her son, sobbing and stroked his hair.

"My love, I am so sorry. So sorry."

Nero was pained that the words were not directed at him, but at the man.

"You still can't leave," Leofric told Mint. "Godiva tells me you do fine work, no one else able to press her clothes as you do."

Mint didn't fight it, because she knew they would find another way to keep her silent. Aelfric cried for his mother as Mint left with her son, and suddenly the memory was much different than before.

Nero did not see himself get into the car with the mysterious man, he did not see the horrible things he did to him inside of the car that he would not understand until years later, the various drinks he plied him with and told him he was mature enough to handle .

Instead, he faded away and Nero followed Mint and Tamuz as they shuffled away.

It was not his memories, but the ones of someone else.

Mint and Tamuz walked several yards over to a patch of trees, whispering to each other, trying to find out what to do next. There would be no decision to make as Leofric returned, he changed his mind.

The woman who had so lovingly dressed him, and told him he was so smart for a child of his age was pulled by long brown hair. She didn't smell like cookies, instead, sweat and fear, screaming, her head smacked against the trunk of a tree repeatedly.

Nero screamed, unable to help, the murder had long occurred, years ago, this part of the memory much more defined than earlier. Mint was quieter now, whimpering, limp, blood trailing down the left side of her body, soaking into the bark, nourishing the tree.

The one-eyed monster let go, threw her body to the ground, and pushed Tamuz.

"You'll die out here anyway," Leofric barked. "Have fun watching her bleed out."

Tamuz, too weak to even cry, sat next to her corpse, unable to help, more distant shouts coming from Hearst Castle.

A chorus of lights could be seen, the runes glittering all over the castle. The physical and emotional pain of everyone inside would be enough energy for months, no more power shortages for quite some time, the noblemen and women in the surrounding area would be very pleased.

Leofric left, to find more people inside the castle walls to eliminate and finish his personal vendettas and grudges aired that night. Once he left, Tamuz opened his mouth, speaking slowly, but instead, the voice of a woman came out.

She spoke very carefully, slowly, enunciating her words. After many failed attempts of trying to send a message, she realized that it was always appearing flipped, a mirror image on the other side, and she had to speak in reverse so the message would be known.

"Aelfric," Tamuz whispered, with the woman's voice.

Nero said nothing, closed his eyes and hoped that if he ignored being addressed he would wake up, but no, that did not work. Again the voice of the woman repeated, saying his name, until he opened his eyes again, still standing in his fuzzy white bathrobe next to his dead guardian and her son.

"Aelfric," Tamuz repeated. "I...am..yrros…"

"What, what are you," he asked."

"Sorry. Sorry."

The woman piloting Tamuz's body tried to use shorter words and phrases, as the memory was ending, fading, the background less defined.

"Leo is coming," Tamuz said. "Run."

"Sorry. Sorry. Love you."

"Run."

"Come home."

".arimnuS"

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Awake, staring at the white ceiling, Nero was silent, and a little thankful his headache was gone, his hangover lessened.

"Someone is fucking with me," Nero whispered. " Someone."

He knew he was lying to himself, sitting on the couch, in the dark, shaken up, refusing to move until Adonis came out of his room, and informed him they were late.

"Late to what," Nero mumbled.

"We're meeting someone who has info on Enemy's bank accounts, right? Are you okay," Adonis replied.

He leaned over the side of the couch, and Nero shook his head no.

"Did, did you get bigger?

"Yeah. I got bigger and now my husband is leaving me. Someone is sending me creepy-ass messages in my dreams."

Adonis sighed, and Nero was now angry because again, he got the look. He could tell that Adonis was giving it to him, even wearing his mask, able to understand his facial expressions from his eyes.

"Don't look at me like that," Nero said. "Everyone thinks I'm crazy but I'm not."

Adonis held out his arms, asking him, can I, and Nero said yes, and he hugged him.

"You're the only person who usually asks," Nero mumbled. "I like that. Everyone is too touchy."

Adonis grunted in approval, and he wondered what getting bigger had to do with getting a divorce, but said nothing, slightly relieved that possibly they would finally leave each other, but then a bit concerned about his employment options.

With nothing to wear, Nero borrowed Adonis's clothes. He did not mind, because he didn't much like the clothes, a gift from Diamond, the top a horrible white and black cheetah printed shirt.

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Standing outside, the night air slightly cooler and thankfully less humid, Adonis had no idea how Nero was ever arrested, always wearing flashy clothes and being loud at every single thing he did, even the act of walking was loud, as he paced the curb impatient and upset.

They were downtown, and Adonis felt quite silly standing next to him, dressed like a tourist, with a visor, a backpack, sandals, sports jersey, and shorts. Another parade was going on, this one celebrating the meeting of the friends of the sea and the land.

From the east, out of the ocean, the Kana, friends of the sea came, fish-people more fish than people, their water umbrella pouring out a steady stream of water to keep those that were bi-pedal wet.

Downtown had two sidewalks for whenever they came from undertown Atlaan, one for those who walked upon the land, the Naki, on the outer part closer to the street, the inner part a two-inch deep trench filled with water.

The parade cultivated right at an intersection downtown, a circle surrounding the meeting point, and the performers were dancing around, stomping their feet, painted bodies shaking and announcing their war cries.

Adonis was enamored, while Nero was too focused on why their informant was late, and he couldn't enjoy anything until he arrived, but once he did, he wasn't pleased.

A small child appeared with a young woman, his mother, and Nero was confused because the informant was supposedly a man. The young boy had brown, curly hair, green eyes, and was wearing green trunks to match, sporting a red cap and a backpack shaped like a frog.

"Hi, my name is Jack of All Trades," he declared.

"Lady, get your kid away from me," Nero grumbled. He turned his attention away back to the festival, the main part occurring, the princess of the Kana had appeared, her body beautiful, and human, yet her entire form liquid.

Nero's eyes couldn't be pulled away from the strange sight until he was jerked back, pulled by his long hair.

"Control your kid, lady," Nero barked.

"I am not a child," Jack huffed. "I came as agreed. This woman is my wife. "

She nodded, Nero and Adonis grimaced, because this was not the sort of crime they were okay with breaking.

"I can change shape, and this form is the best to take while in public," Jack explained. "No one stops a kid with his mom."

Adonis and Nero traded disgusted looks and still were uncomfortable with the entire setup. Jack rolled his eyes, held up the back of his hand, and flashed The Mark of an Enemy.

"Someone's fucking with me again," Nero shuddered.

"Nope. I came to help you get back at them. I saw what you did on TV!"

"Where did you find this guy," Adonis asked.

"Alto recommended him," Nero mumbled. "I don't think we should trust him. Shapeshifters are shifty. What's in it for you?"

"I want Enemy to pay for what they did to me as well. They took me as a child for my ability, forcing me to change into whatever they wanted, selling me for a higher price."

"So if you can turn into any person, what do you really look like," asked Nero.

"I only let her see that," Jack giggled, gripping his wife's hand.

"Gross. You really shouldn't say things like that, looking like that. "

He shrugged, causing more visible disgust from the two of them. His wife squatted, opened the frog backpack, and pulled out several papers, and gave them to Nero.

It was nothing but complete gibberish to him, and he mumbled, mmm, yes, I see, yes, the same thing he said when he didn't understand something. Adonis sighed, put the papers in his own backpack, cash was exchanged, and Jack left with his "mother."

While discussing whether or not they should possibly call the police for the first time, the police had already arrived.

Nero was easily identifiable in a crowd, with his flashy clothes and bright hair. Captain Peter Forthright was soaring through the air with his small task force of only two others; it was all he needed. His partners were there to arrest the arsonist in town, showing no remorse and gallivanting about at the most popular parade in town.

Peter Forthright was there to kill Nero.

It was long past the point of talking.