Runaway (first 8 chapters)

Chapter 2

 "So, our little Benjamin has decided to run away with his...boyfriend." Marilyn barely whispered the word, gagging in disgust. "That gay bastard," she almost said, but she didn't want to slip up in front of her close friend. "Well, with all the connections you guys have, can't you simply search for him?" "Our team has looked everywhere!" Marilyn sighed dramatically. "He's just disappeared from the face of the Earth!" Suddenly, her phone started buzzing. She answered the call and held the phone to her ear. "Hello? Oh, Grace! What's been going on? You parents still haven't gotten the record deal? Tell them to hurry the funk up then." Mia was a little surprised by her friend's slip in dialogue. "Oh, of course you'll get your happy ending, Grace. We'll be there right away." Marilyn cut the call. "She's supposed to be Benjamin's girlfriend, but change of plans!" she grumbled, throwing up her hands. "Come on, they're all the train station. Let's go retrieve my son! Get in my car!" By car, she meant long, sleek, white limousine. It had a lot of room inside too. Mia could even see a small fishtank off to the side in the back. She sat shotgun while Marilyn drove, of course. "I'll get you back, Benjamin, whatever it takes," the blue-haired woman seethed, but Mia heard her. She was starting to have seconds thoughts about leaving her studio.

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After almost being cornered at the train station, Benjamin and Picon were forced to go on the move once again, deciding it was safe to stay at the abandoned mansion for another night. And guess who had thought the same thing? "Huh? You two are here again?" the Picon growled, distrustful of the pair. "Hi misters!" the Spookeez said in unison. "Woah, they look-" "-Just like us!" Psump exclaimed, finishing Skod's sentence. The two had stumbled upon the abandoned mansion one night and were currently spying on its inhabitants just for fun. There were two boys, one looking like a dangerous thug with the dark green hood and skull mask and everything, while the other wore more pastel clothing and looked like he was about to burst into tears at any moment. There were also two kids who had an uncanny resemblance to the Halloween duo themselves. "Come on, they even copied our looks," Skod grumbled from his hidden spot behind one of the stained glass windows which had surprisingly not shattered over the many years. It was hard to see inside, but the two could still make out the main figures inside. As the blue-haired boy and the copycats were getting ready to rap battle again, much to the dangerous thug's disapproval, Psump noticed something strange. "Hey Skod, I think there's someone else in the room too." "Really? Let me see," said Skod, pushing his friend away to get a better look through the colorful glass. "Under the stairway," Psump confirmed, and when Skod looked that way, he did indeed see something out of place. A dark shadow, a pile of dark black, mismatched with its surroundings, almost like it was slightly extending the darkness out of the underspace of the stairway. "What...is that?" Skod gasped. He felt light-headed just from looking at the thing. "I don't...know," said Psump, his eyes wide. "Let's go investigate." Still in his state of shock, Skod was skeptical, but followed his friend as they snuck around the building to find a secluded entrance that wouldn't alert attention. Whatever he had seen, he had a strange feeling it wasn't good.

It was only during the second match of singing between the humans when the Lemon Demon caught the two new intruders and pulled them closer to the darkness. They looked almost exactly like the Spookeez, and maybe they could be the replacement he was searching for. "Yes...come to me..." he whispered. Skod and Psump couldn't stop themselves from slowly stepping towards the underspace of the stairway. They knew they were dead meat as soon as they set foot in the shadows but...the Lemon Demon was able to grab control of them nonetheless. He grinned to himself. Finally, he could start recollecting sad soul emotions and hopefully be free by next Halloween. "You will listen to whatever I say, understand?" he rumbled. "Yes, you are our leader," the two friends said mindlessly, their voices monotone, their eyes dizzy with power.

"These humans are becoming a regular on my property!" the Lemon Demon growled. "I forgave them at first, but they are here again? It appears I let them off too easy!" He thought to himself for a minute. "But I can take petty revenge. Skid, you're up." He had even named his new henchman after the old ones. Skid, his name really being Skod, stood up straight and alert, ready to carry out his master's next order. "Hmm...I like his paintbrush. Very colorful, the thing," the Lemon Demon mused. "Skid, go steal it for me. I will keep for my...collection, that I have yet to start." Skod nodded and slinked through the darkest parts of the room, making sure not to be seen by the humans. The Spookeez illusion had disappeared, and after a third round of singing, the bluenette was spent. He got ready to sleep on the hard wooden floor again, laying out very old, stained matresses his partner found somewhere inside the mansion. Skod waited until he was sure the humans were fast asleep before sneaking towards their still forms, his arms outstretched for the paintbrush. He had to tug it with a bit of force, as the painter's fingers were wrapped tightly around the object, but he managed to hold it in the air victoriously. Before he could make his retreat, however, a low voice startled him. "I knew we were being watched, you sleazy bastard." Skod turned around to see the dangerous thug fully awake and standing, holding out his can of spray paint with his pointer about to press the trigger, aimed directly at the thief. "Give it back then." The Lemon Demon's words resonated through Skod's ears. He gently threw the brush to the human, who caught it easily one-handed. "I'll let you go this time," he snarled, watching with narrowed eyes as Skod quickly made a run for it. The human didn't follow him, much to his relief, as he hid in the safety of the shadows. "What was that?" Psump shouted, slapping the back of Skod's head. "Ouch!" "You're nothing like Skid," the Lemon demon sighed. "Fine then, new task. When they wake up, we shall collect as many sad soul emotions from then as we can. And by we, I mean you two. For now though, let's have some more fun. I trust you'll be able to handle it, Pump?" He gave a pointed look towards Skod, who grinned sheepishly. Psump nodded and did a mock salute. At least these two substitutes almost had the same amount of spunk the Spookeez did.

Skod and Psump gaped in shock at the huge wheel the Lemon Demon pulled out. "This," the evil entity grinned maniacally, "is the wheel of misfortune." It was an illusion, but after his Spookeez ghosts had beaten the singer and his accomplice twice, he had used those soul emotions and was just able to make his illusion almost physical. "Spin it and see which of all 16 tortures shall be chosen for the humans." "They shouldn't have stepped foot in here," Psump smirked. "Well? Who's going first?" Skod and Psump both looked at each other. "It's only fair you go ahead, I already went for the paintbrush and...failed," Skod winced, stepping back. Psump gladly stepped forward, lifting his hand dramatically and thrashing it down on the side of the wheel, letting it spin around and around at a fast pace, so much so that the little pictures on each section were blurring together. The wheel slowly came to a stop, the dial at the top clicking past slice after slice until..."Ah, red 14." A picture of the Lemon Demon's lemon head rolled into the middle, the dial pointing there. He paused, watching with glee how his new lackeys paid close attention, begging with their eyes for him to continue. These kids were a lot more obedient than the Spookeez, that was for sure. But that's what the demon loved about the singers. Love? Hah, he had never known love his entire life and despised it as one of the world's most uncontrollable forces, though far weaker than the dark side. "This means skip your turn." The Lemon Demon chuckled as Psump realized what that meant. "What? You made a skip your turn piece? Seriously?" Skod couldn't stop laughing at his friend's misery, which earned him a light punch in the shoulder. "Well then, Skod, why don't you give the wheel a try?" The Lemon Demon tried to hide his smile, knowing what was coming next. "Of course. Unlike the pumpkin here, I've got gaming skill," Skod winked, pushing Psump back to spin the wheel with equal voracity. Around and around it spun once again, making him dizzy. The dial stopped on yet another headshot of the Lemon Demon's classic killer smile, but the slice was green with tiny yellow dots along the edges. "10, green," the Lemon Demon mused. "That means it's my turn now." "W-what? I knew it! You were cheating!" Psump yelled, pointing an accusatory finger at the monster. "Don't you know its rude to point?" "It's also rude to steal," Skod mumbled, but a quick jolt of pure fear had him fallen completely under the spell again.