[ABANDONED] Another Series of Oneshots

A Kidnapping

I woke up in darkness. The digital clock was blank, and the sound of the highway was overwhelming. I could barely make out the pile of stuffed viruses in the corner of my room and the shelves filled with science projects from years past.

I wondered why I was awake and almost went back to sleep when I heard it: soft tapping at my window.

Maybe it was just the tree branch? But the tapping came again, just a little louder. Sighing, I sat up and threw off the covers.

"Grim, I swear if that's you..." I whispered to myself and got up. I pushed away the curtains and lifted the blinds.

I almost screamed at the face in the window.

I dropped the blinds, my hand over my mouth, and backed away. I didn't know whose face it was, but it certainly wasn't Grim's. I thought about it, and realized Grim probably couldn't even climb the tree in my front yard.

But there was someone who could, and their face was right outside my window. What was I supposed to do? Go back to bed, I supposed. The face knew I was awake, though, and I figured it would have been rude to ignore someone who came to see me. So, I opened the blinds.

It wasn't only a face, but a head, neck, and a pair of arms holding the creature up. I could only make out its outline and a pair of glowing blue eyes that stared back at me. Behind it, the streetlights were dark.

The creature lifted a third hand I hadn't seen and lightly tapped its knuckles on the window. It pulled its hand out of a slit in the window screen and I realized it must have sliced open the screen. Throughout all of this, those the creature didn't break eye contact.

Hindsight is always 20/20, and in retrospect, I should not have opened the window. The creature quickly crawled in and I backed up as it tumbled onto the floor. It spoke in a strange language as its outline grew a full seven feet tall.

"Ah, English?" the creature asked. I could make out the outlines of two pairs of arms and a long, segmented scorpion tail. "That's a doable language."

"Who are you?" I asked, backing toward my door. "What are you?"

"You don't know? You called for the best incubus in the city, and my little community knew to defer to me.

"They call me Raz Aghas," He held out one of his hands. "And you?"

"I'm just Tess," I said quickly. My mind spun. Neither Grim nor I thought the seance worked. I wanted to tell him to come back in the morning, so Grim could see too, but something about Raz Aghas made him seem like the kind of demon you wouldn't want to get angry. "Why are you here now, instead of when we actually did the seance?"

"Well, Tess, I was a little bit busy with a couple of clients," he shrugged with both pairs of arms. "In fact, why don't you come with me, and I'll show you why."

I shook my head and backed away. I felt the door behind my back and said, "No, I'd rather stay here. Maybe in the morning?"

"Hmm, I was afraid you'd say that," he replied. "I don't want to take you by force, but if I must..."

He lunged for me. I grabbed the doorknob and twisted it. Raz Aghas pulled me away and shoved me onto the bed. The door slammed against the wall and I screamed. A hand pushed my face into the covers.

"Easy, easy," his voice was gentle, despite the iron grip on my head and wrists. "We don't want to make a scene.

"If you aren't going to come quietly," he continued and I felt something sharp poke into my arm, "then my venom will ensure you do."

I tried to struggle out of his grip, but something slowed me down. Raz Aghas lifted me up, and his eyes swam in circles. I tried to push myself away, but my arms felt full of molasses and my head full of helium.

A light turned on in the hall, and shadows stretched into my room. The incubus picked me up and carried me to the window.

My eyes were starting to close, but I could still see just how high up we were, until everything faded to black.