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By the pricking of my thumbs... [Open]
Carmen woke up.
It didn't alarm her that the room changed, not right away. The apartment building she once lived in held many secrets. She once heard Eddie, the janitor, say that the fourth floor only appeared after the second floor was blocked off. By what, Carmen never found out, but she suspected it might be a kind of poltergeist so powerful it made her demon landlord pause.
It was alright that the windows were gone. She never had much of a view on 667th and Fane anyway. The metal walls were an odd choice, particularly since the floor was exactly as it was. Carmen took for granted the fact that she didn't recognize what kind of metal they were made of, or how they radiated a comforting heat. There was so much the sheltered young woman didn't know.
All her things were as she left it, even Findlay's bird cage. That was the moment she realized Findlay was gone.
The bird was a hunter once, and universally hated in the building. No one should have been able to enter Carmen's room: that was in the lease, which she suspected, had all the weight of a demonic contract.
"Findlay!" she called. No one answered. Findlay might have escaped, but she didn't think the blackbird would be able to open doors or windows. Carmen stepped out of her room only to notice the circular hallway.
"Finlady!" she called again. The doors looked identical on the outside. Carmen went back inside her room, took out a sharpie pen and wrote a large 'X' on her door. Hopefully the marking wouldn't disappear. She tried knocking on a neighboring door.
"Frank?" One of her neighbors. Surely he'd still be around.
Pause.
"Keller?" she asked, knocking on another door.
Pause.
"Leah? Eddie? Someone going to tell me what this is about?"
Carmen was dressed in all black and white and looked vaguely like a door to door missionary without the name tag. There were a few light magical charms sewn into her black trench coat -- the coat had been Findlay's once -- but the most powerful trinket she carried was a cross made of blackened bone hidden under her white knit blouse.
"Danill! Hiram!" Eddie should have answered by now, if no one else. Leah was always watching and sent her minion out to deal with anything she didn't feel like. She kept walking down the circular hallway, searching for stairs that didn't exist.
It didn't alarm her that the room changed, not right away. The apartment building she once lived in held many secrets. She once heard Eddie, the janitor, say that the fourth floor only appeared after the second floor was blocked off. By what, Carmen never found out, but she suspected it might be a kind of poltergeist so powerful it made her demon landlord pause.
It was alright that the windows were gone. She never had much of a view on 667th and Fane anyway. The metal walls were an odd choice, particularly since the floor was exactly as it was. Carmen took for granted the fact that she didn't recognize what kind of metal they were made of, or how they radiated a comforting heat. There was so much the sheltered young woman didn't know.
All her things were as she left it, even Findlay's bird cage. That was the moment she realized Findlay was gone.
The bird was a hunter once, and universally hated in the building. No one should have been able to enter Carmen's room: that was in the lease, which she suspected, had all the weight of a demonic contract.
"Findlay!" she called. No one answered. Findlay might have escaped, but she didn't think the blackbird would be able to open doors or windows. Carmen stepped out of her room only to notice the circular hallway.
"Finlady!" she called again. The doors looked identical on the outside. Carmen went back inside her room, took out a sharpie pen and wrote a large 'X' on her door. Hopefully the marking wouldn't disappear. She tried knocking on a neighboring door.
"Frank?" One of her neighbors. Surely he'd still be around.
Pause.
"Keller?" she asked, knocking on another door.
Pause.
"Leah? Eddie? Someone going to tell me what this is about?"
Carmen was dressed in all black and white and looked vaguely like a door to door missionary without the name tag. There were a few light magical charms sewn into her black trench coat -- the coat had been Findlay's once -- but the most powerful trinket she carried was a cross made of blackened bone hidden under her white knit blouse.
"Danill! Hiram!" Eddie should have answered by now, if no one else. Leah was always watching and sent her minion out to deal with anything she didn't feel like. She kept walking down the circular hallway, searching for stairs that didn't exist.