"On the count of three," Ping said, gently nudging me to stand up. I had spent the last five minutes rooted on the spot, kneeling below the cubicle walls. By now I could hear the daemon through the rows, the wet squish of its big eyeball blinking as it looked for me.

"There's no way I'm fighting that thing!" I protested.

"Well there's no way you're going to be able to slip past unnoticed!" Ping whined. "We've been over this, just trust me!"

I groaned. "Fine, what do I need to do?"

"Wear me."

I stared at Ping. "First off, what? Second off, how?"

"Not like that!" Ping said, smacking me with their tiny, mint paws. "I mean, I turn into a magical essence that you 'wear', we sync up, and you get the strength you need to beat up the bad guys!" By now Ping was doing kung-fu poses in-air.

I peaked around the corner into the nearest row of cubicles, and the tentacled beast was heading down my way.

"There has to be another way, couldn't we just take the elevator?" I hissed.

"And you're sure another one isn't coming up there?"

"Okay fine, but the stairs--" Out of the corner of my eye I could see, passing through the door, a second one of those tentacled eyeballs. It caught the attention of the one patrolling the office, exchanged a brief nod, then sunk back through the door. "Fine! There are no exits! Just-- what do I do?!"

"Okay! Okay! Just take a few deep breaths," Ping said. "That's it, in through the nose and out through the mouth. Then close your eyes and think... hopeful thoughts!"

"Like... I hope I'm not going to die?" I said.

"No! That's just wishful fear! I mean like... when you see someone inspirational and want to be like them! Or... your friend just quit their scummy job to pursue their dream! Or 'Wow, that cool green cat is going to grant me super powers!'"

I opened my eyes and glared at Ping. "Now's not the time!" Ping floated back nervously and did my best to try and make myself feel something, but nothing was working. "Nothing's working!" I said.

"Uhhh! Right, humans can't just make themselves feel things that easily!"

"And you can?!"

"Nope! Okay, okay new plan! Try to think of a time that you felt super hopeful! Or when you had a dream or ambition! And just... remember that as best as you can!"

I took another deep breath and tried, digging deep in my memories to childhood. Seeing a friend succeed... or maybe getting an "A" on a test... making my first friend after immigrating...

"You're getting there! Try and find something stronger!"

I paused. Maybe I was digging too deep? Or maybe there was something else. Think Sue, think!

I could remember high school. The art room that was just a converted storage space... cold, concrete floors and bare fluorescent lights hanging from the ceiling, making a constant buzzing sound. But I remember the calm that painting brought, I didn't think much of it... until...

"That's it!" I could hear Ping announce. "Now hold your hand over your heart, like that! Now here it comes!"

A bright, green light flashed around me, running circles until it engulfed me in a pillar of sparkling smoke. When the smoke and light cleared, I was standing now, feeling... well, feeling as strong and as fit as I ever had! I noticed something in my hands and saw a large staff. No... a large paintbrush. I was also a pink dress, somewhat like a smock but with frilled ends, poofed shoulders, a ribbon that was striped in ping, white, and a familiar mint-green. I glanced towards the elevators and could see myself in the reflection of mirror-finish metal doors.

"Oh that's CUTE!" I announced gleefully, doing a twirl and checking my outfit out at all angles.

"Now's not the time!" I heard Ping say, but where was Ping? "You just got noticed!"

I looked over my shoulder and the eyeball was basically glaring at me. I felt the blood rush from my face as the creature barrelled straight towards me, flailing its tentacles, grabbing onto the cubicle walls and pulling itself along to get over here faster.

"Attack it!" Ping said.

"How?!" I asked, ducking down as the creature closed the distance and swung a tentacle at me, then diving to my left as it swung two more.

"At least hit it!"

The monster turned to face me as I scrambled to my feet, gripping the large paintbrush in my hands and brandishing it like a weapon as best as I knew how. The daemon lunged and I swung, smacking the head of the brush across its eye with a wet slap. Bright pink paint splashed across the daemon, who screamed and reeled backwards.

"Did I do it?" I asked, opening my eyes that I had shut tight, only to see the monster blinded and groping at its eye to try and clear the paint. "I did it!"

"Don't celebrate just yet!" Ping said. And they were right-- the creature unfurled its bat wings for the first time and in one sweeping motion wiped the rest of the paint off. Once cleared, the creature glared at me with its one eye, tinged red and still speckled with paint. With one flap of its mighty wings it shot itself in my direction much faster than before, its bulbous body colliding into me and sending me flying backwards.

I don't know how hard I flew, but it must have been far as I crashed through a cubicle wall and into someone's desk. Rubbing my head, I blinked my eyes open and looked up at the worker who was sitting at was once his desk.

"Sorry! I'm so sorry!" I said, but then noticed the blank expression written on his face. His fingers kept moving in the air, like there was a keyboard in front of him, and acted as if nothing had happened. "What...?" But there was no time for questions. The winged eyeball was already floating over in my direction, brandishing its tentacles to finish the job.

"Ping?" I said, with worry in my voice. "Any more ideas??"

"Try focusing on the brush and swinging paint at it!"

"Paint?!"

"Look, it's magic! Just trust me!"

I nodded and gripped the brush once more. Before the daemon had reached me, I focused on the paint brush and pretended as if it were a part of me, though I'm not sure if that was helping at all. With all of my strength I swung the brush, and from its head sprayed a graceful, shining arc of red paint. The paint splashed all over the daemon, which let out another screech of pain. Smoke was curling from where the paint had hit.

"I think you got it!" Ping shouted, and as if on cue I could see the elevator doors just past the daemon open up. "Now run for it!"

Sprinting as fast as I could, I leaped over the smoldering daemon that writhed on the ground, letting off a smell that was like a mix of cooking seafood and house paint, and almost tripping on my feet I managed to stumble into the elevator and smack into the wall at the back of it.

I gave the creature no time to recover, hitting the button for the lobby and the "close door" button at the same time. It wasn't until the doors had closed and the elevator started moving that I let myself fall to my knees and let out a big sigh of relief.

What did I get myself into?