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Perhaps the gentle touch had calmed her down ever so slightly. The ghoul's hands slowly dropped to her sides, leaving a small trail of red in their wake. She was mumbling something about a book, but most of it was just garbled nonsense.

That is, until Hel stepped in rather violently.

Riyo didn't fight back. In fact, she was almost like a rag doll. Her head cocked to the side and down. It was like her vision wasn't processing Hel. It was seeing right through her.

'Shut the ******** up.'

'You are worthless.'

Worthless...

Worthless.

"Worthless. Adjective. having no real value or use... Or, of a person, Having no good qualities; Deserving contempt."

You're worthless to me, Riyo.

"Mother. I'm sorry I left you alone here. I thought for the longest time that if you were somewhere I could always find you, I wouldn't have to live in fear of hearing your heels click across the 147 plaques of dark oak hard wood we have in the living room. I counted them all just to avoid looking into your eyes. Your eyes scare me. Those blue eyes. What do you look like now? It's been so long. Almost 8 years since I've seen your face, though I never paid close enough attention to really see anything but those eyes." Her voice turned from a sharp, almost jagged spur of words to something soft and child-like. "I still read the dictionary. I know every possible derogatory word you can call me and the implications of it now. Too much? Are you going to hit me now? Okay. That's fine. We'll have plenty of time for that."

And Riyo hung there with dead eyes, waiting for the feeling of pain. Failure. Failure. Failure...

Hunters. Hunters. How had they been so careless? They should have expected--

--no, there was no point in dwelling on what was already happened. Deciding that her tiny natural form was not nearly as threatening as was necessary in this situation (granted that her human form was only slightly better), the baku dug her skull pin out from the little satchel that she kept around her neck.

The creature disappeared, giving way to a very familiar looking ghoul. As she pinned the skull onto her plain black nightgown, she turned to scan their new surroundings, pink eyes narrowing slightly at the sight of the Hunters beyond the clear walls. She said nothing to them--Titus had already answered them--and so Xiu instead turned her attention to her friends.

..."Riyo?" Again, it was clear that there was something wrong with the bakeneko. And then--was Hel alright as well? She shot a desperate look towards Mot and Titus--the two team members who were still seemingly calm under the circumstances--and then back towards the ghouls.

She moved very, very slowly, and very carefully, stopping beside them. Almost timidly, she reached out and touched a hand to Hel's shoulder, letting it hover there uncertainly. "Hel? Hel, please let her go...? The most important thing right now is finding a way out of here."

The hissing noise caused Xiu to look up, eyes wide as she scanned the cage. What was...?!

With the sudden exhaustion came realization. She should have known that the Hunters wouldn't have been pleased with their answer. Xiu fell onto her knees, trying desperately to stay awake despite how futile her attempt was. Her eyes felt heavy, so heavy--

Before she knew it, she was passed out.

)8

Rollin Rollin Rolllin

RAW HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIDE!!!!

Titus was getting nothing. The creatures on the other side of the glass were filled with indifference. He took a step back about to try his hand at slamming into the clear hard surface when he heard the hissing. Something much like a massive group of snakes but when he looked up that's not what he found.

"Gas?" The word just managed to leave his lips before his vision closed in around him and his legs gave out. It was involuntary nap time apparently.

When Titus next awoke he was once again blindsided by the bright lights in the room. Did they really need to have it so bright? His wings were tucked in close to his body as he pushed himself up to look around. They were confined but in a smaller cage this time. He growled his discontent but noticed one key thing after a once over of the occupants.

One of them was missing.

"Where's, Ms. Boil?" Titus had been rather calm through this adventure but a sort of panic struck him when he realized their tall blonde feline was missing. Immediately he was on his feet searching the room until he found her not far off in her own cylinder containment. What were they doing with her?

"Hey! Hey you bastards what the ******** do you think you're doing?"

He had only a moment to pace before there was a new light and Riyo let out a scream. The demon could see the tears from here. She was scared...terrified even and there was nothing he could do. And that look she was giving him. It confused him...it even made someplace in the cold dark area he called a heart hurt.

"Riyo..." It was probably the first time he has said her name but it was in a whisper. No one would have heard it.

When the feline started to scream louder Titus threw himself against their own containment. "RIYO!" They would hear it this time, anger radiating from him. But in a short moment Riyo was gone and replaced with....something else. When the men in the white coats approached with their threat.....

"One of you will be next if you don't answer our questions. Where have you come from?"

Titus only growled through the glass. He wasn't about to say a word. In fact, he spit even if it would only land on the glass it made him feel better. But why was he suddenly filled with this sinking feeling of loss? His eyes darted over to where Riyo had been hoping it was some sort of trick. Maybe it still was? Why was he inwardly pleading that it was?

Xiu emitted a little groan as her eyes fluttered open, a hand flying up to clutch at her temple. Where was she? They were...in a cage...and then the gas...

The baku's head jerked up when she suddenly heard Titus and Mot yelling from beside her. Pushing herself up to her feet, she reached out, looking puzzled as her fingers met a smooth, solid surface. Another cage of sorts? She glanced over towards the boils, and then followed their gaze to--

"RIYO!" And then Xiu's panicked voice joined the others, pink eyes wide as she peered out at the bakeneko. Her heart clenched at her friend's expression--her terrified expression--and she drew a hand back, bringing her fist down on the transparent surface that separated them from Riyo's cage. She ignored the shock of pain that shot up her hand, pounding on the surface again, and again, and again, and--

That cylinder. That must have been what the others had been talking about, what some of the students had witnessed during the last field trip. The cursed machine that distorted Halloweeners, warped them, turned them into what were essentially slaves and mere objects for the Hunters to wield. The weaponizing machine that, to their knowledge, was impossible to revert.

And now Riyo was in that machine.

She brought her fist down more violently on their cage when their friend began to scream, her own voice growing louder as she shrieked Riyo's name and begged the Hunters to just stop this already. But they didn't--they wouldn't--and their team was forced to stand there and watch this all happen.

When Riyo's screaming finally faded, she was already gone, replaced by some kind of object. Xiu's eyes were blank as the Hunter made their way towards their cage, but pure, unbridled rage flared up in her as the man had the gall to ask them for information.

She had an angry reply ready, but it never left her lips. Instead, the baku's face crumpled as she broke down into sobs.