[Worm]

UPPERSIDE

"So here we are." Rin stood at the entrance to Upperside. His body was still pale, still scarred, but he now had a look of desperation. He no longer wished to be a hunter. This was his last spoil.

"Do you think Val will actually be there?" Drishe teased. She was also unchanged, for the most part. She liked to tease people's shadows and fears. All that had changed physically was her shade of purple, now more red. Once in a while, she would have outbursts - they started after the big feast.

"They have to be there." Rin sighed, tired of his own reluctance. "We can't have done this for nothing..." And he pushed the door open. It was suctioned shut. It made a squeezing sound before slamming open. Steel hit steel and white light poured into the entryway. Rin slid his goggles down, barricading his face with arms. Only now did he realize that he hadn't been Upperside in months now.

He felt a nudge at his shoulder, Drishe pushing past. "Well, c'mon then." She smiled. Soulless. She was a soulless creature.

Rin nodded and followed her through the door. Nothing remained. Doe-eyed and confused, Rin held a hand to his brow to examine the space. But there was nothing. No trees, no buildings, no anything. He flipped to Josef. The only one who might remember what this place used to look like. "What the hell happened here?" He turned back. The ground was white and cracked. There were small tracks where the check-in station used to be. Had he finally gone mad?

"What's the matter, tough boy? Never seen a nuclear fallout before?" Drishe grinned devilishly. She strode backwards now, taunting him. Maybe the rumors were true... Maybe, everything he'd once known was gone. Rin looked back to the entrance of the SBM. It seemed tantalizing, like a world separate from reality. A buzzing filled the air. It was silence.