Who's Killing Us?

Chapter 12

When you woke up you could feel that something was wrong. A sense of dread hung in the air. You walked over to the bathroom and took a quick shower and changed into your day clothes. You couldn't help but wonder what exactly was wrong, so you looked around. You saw your lusus by your bed, all coiled up. A lump formed in your throat. Your lusus was always gone when you woke up. It always went hunting for breakfast. You made your way over to it and touched its head. It was cold. Cold and dead. Tears stung your eyes and you hugged the body of your lusus.

You picked up your cell phone and called Kankri.

"Hello? _______?" He answered the phone.

"Kankri?" You asked.

"_______, what's wrong?" He asked.

"My lusus is dead." You said.

"Don't get rid of the body." He said.

"What? Why?"

"You can bring it back by programming your kernalsprite with it. Keep the body there." He explained.

"I can do that?" You asked, confusion evident in your voice.

"Yes." You heard him take a deep breath. "Everyone's lusus are beginning to die. It's a signal that we should be starting the game soon."

"Well, aren't we starting it in a few days?"

"Yes, well, probably tomorrow now that the lusus death is starting."

"What? Okay, well, I should start getting ready. What should I do?" You asked.

"Make room for large appliances. And you have your ancester's weapon? Yes? Hurry and follow any instructions she has left." He replied.

"Alright. I love you." You said.

"I love you too." He hung up.

You decided to call Gamzee.

"HeLlO?"

"Gamzee, we're starting the game tomorrow. be ready." You said.

"Oh, HeY sIs, AlRiGhT. SeE yOu LaTeR. HoNk." You could hear his smile in his voice.

"See you later." You hung up. Now to finish prepping for Sgrub.

You ran downstairs and sat on your couch, picking up The Apprised's journal and picking up where you left off.

"Now that you have my scythe and read the letters, I can now tell you about the pen. I know it seems like just a random artifact, but I can assure you that it is not. That pen never runs out of ink. It can also correct anything that you write. So, say that you were to try to write a story about the future. It would influence you to write what would actually happen should the events that you are testing transpire. If stolen, it will also lead the person who stole it to doom. Please, use this power in moderation. Leave at least some things up to chance. Life can get boring if you know exactly what will happen. Trust me. I know. I left the rest of this journal blank so that you can use this pen on the go. Just please, keep what I said in mind. Good luck. -The Apprised"

You set down the journal and looked at the pen. You sighed and stood up. It was time to take what Dualscar said seriously. You needed to get some discreet armor. You grabbed your wallet and left for town, hopefully there would be at least something.

You walk around, looking at several shops when one catches your eye. You walk in and see many odd things. Most of the things in the store were showy and very ostentatious, but you browsed anyway. You finally found something that might suit your needs. It was a bullet proof vest, some finger-less gloves, a mask that covered half of the maniquin's face, and some padded leggings. You looked at the price tag. It wasn't as bad as you thought it would be, so you tried it on. It actually looked pretty good on you, so, you bought it. You also got some baggy cargo pants that fit over the leggings and a black jacket that was thin enough to not be extremely hot, but big enough to conceal the vest.