Jon and Miya spent another perfect day together. Starting with a day of clothes shopping at various stores, including one lingerie store where she wound up pulling him into the dressing room for a quickie. Afterwards, they got a bite to eat at one of their favorite restaurants. Miya ordered a sundae and Jon had to practically pry his eyes off her when she started dropping whipped cream on her chest just to drive him nuts. He made a mental note to make her pay for that later tonight.

The day ended with them hanging out in the park. There, Jon pulled out his guitar and played for her for a while. They spent the rest of the day cuddled up against a tree while watching the sunset. It was only when nightfall had nearly come that they finally decided to leave. The couple walked hand in hand towards the large ornate fountain in the middle of the park, the rays of twilight reflecting off the pool in the most beautiful way. Miya was still wearing the bracelet he won for her that day at the Fair. She never wore anything else on her wrist these days.

“I sure had fun today,” she spoke softly, leaning her head against his chest.

“You’re telling me,” he replied before kissing her cheek. “I’m still working on that song, by the way. It may take a while, but I promise I’ll come up with something good.”

She smiled up at him. “I’m sure you will.”

They continued to walk towards the fountain, with Jon simply basking in the serenity of the day and the gorgeous woman his life was blessed with.

He suddenly stopped, a pang of something dark surging through his being.

'Wh...what is this?' He thought to himself, dread welling up in his stomach. 'Why am I feeling anxious?'

She looked up at him curiously. “Is something wrong?”

“Miya…” He swallowed back his nerves. “...I’m getting it again.”

“Getting what?”

“The chill,” he explained nervously. “My sixth sense is kicking in.”

“Wait...so like...the one you get when you’re in danger?” she asked worriedly.

“Yeah, only...it feels different this time. Darker, somehow. I’ve never felt it quite this way before. Listen, I don’t know what’s going on, but just stay close to me, okay?”

She nodded and the couple continued walking, albeit far more carefully. Jon's eyes were now darting warily about the treeline, his grip firmly on the revolver at his side. He knew this would happen; that they would find him again. How could he have been so stupid? He let his guard down and now they were both in mortal danger.

But why now? Everything had been quiet for months, almost suspiciously so, now that he really thought about it. As his mind raced to come up with a possible answer, a thought suddenly occurred to him. Jon gazed down at the pocket where he’d stuffed that pamphlet.

“Jon, is everything okay?”

He nodded, plastering on a fake smile despite the tense situation. “Of course, Babe. Look, I promise nothing's gonna happen.”

“But you sound worried," she insisted.

He sighed angrily. “The thing is...I think I may have just figured something out.”

Her heart rate started to go up. “Oh really?”

Jon nodded. “Yeah...the truth is…” He stopped walking and looked at her.

“...I think a woman at my school might be behind all this.”

She didn’t respond, simply continuing to listen.

“There’s this girl,” he continued. “She has crimson hair and wears this club uniform for some sort of..."

“That’s Valerie Duval,” Miya observed. “She’s the President of that Occult Club on campus right?”

He nodded. “The thing is, she’s been talking to me since the two of us became a couple. I hadn’t thought about it until now...but I think she may be the one who sent that Doppelganger after you.”

“You think Valerie Duval is...one of those things? But I’ve seen her on campus before. She always seemed pretty normal to me.”

Jon shrugged. “I don’t have any proof. Honestly, I hadn’t even considered it a possibility until now given my sixth sense never kicked in around her. But after what I just felt…”

“Jon, what are you saying?” Miya asked nervously.

“I’m saying...I think she may just be masquerading as a student. I think…” He took a deep, shaky breath before continuing. “...I think she might actually be a Highborn disguising herself.”

Miya seemed to consider this information for a moment before looking up at him and smiling sweetly.

“You mean sort of like how I’ve been doing?”

Time stopped and the world fell silent as all his attention suddenly fell on her.

“Sorry...what did you just say?”

Miya slowly let go of Jon’s hand and walked backwards away from him towards the park fountain. Her face twisted into a sinister grin just as the last rays of sunlight fell and the Earth was plunged into darkness.

“It’s funny...” Miya spoke in a sardonic tone that sounded nothing like her. “...you’ve been so suspicious of everyone around you. Yet never once did you suspect me. Not even for a second.”

Jon, his eyes now filled only with horror and despair, shook his head in denial.

"Oh God, no…" He released the grip on his weapon as all strength left him.

A sharp pain in his chest followed, as well as the unmistakable sensation of warm blood soaking his clothes. His blood. Jon’s skin paled instantly. He slowly looked down to see a red spear composed of pure light sticking out of the spot where his sternum used to be. It had come so fast, he didn't even have time to react.

He looked back up, that same confused and disbelieving expression on his face, even as his vision began to fade and his legs failed him. Jon plummeted to the ground, gazing up at the figure standing in front of him, the woman he no longer recognized. Miya’s clothes vanished, replaced with a skimpy leather two-piece harness that seemingly materialized directly onto her body. In addition, a pair of large, black wings sprouted from her back.

That sadistic smirk never left her lips.

“I have to admit, it really has been fun, Jon,” the woman he no longer recognized spoke again. “Considering how naive and childish you make yourself out to be, these past few months definitely could have been a lot worse.”

There wasn’t any pain; his entire body simply began to go numb. He opened his mouth to speak but managed only coughs and the overwhelming taste of copper.

She giggled at him. “Now, now, don’t struggle. You’ll only fade faster, and you at least deserve a bit of praise before the end.” Miya bit down on her lower lip, slipping off into a little fantasy as she stroked the shaft of the spear still embedded in his chest. “Even now, when I think about how you rushed into danger and rescued me from that pesky henchman of mine, it makes my legs turn to jelly. I know it may seem counterintuitive to order my own kidnapping, but trust me, the sacrifice was well worth it, given just how close we became afterwards.” She then groaned in pleasure. “Not to mention just how good the post-rescue sex was. I mean, my God, Jon, you are such a good fucking lay. I honestly think that healthy stallion of yours will be one of the things I miss about you the most, Cowboy.”

His vision blurred, any attempt to move or even comprehend what was going on around him failed.

“And so sweet too.” She continued while holding up her wrist. Miya was still wearing the bracelet he had won for her at the fair. “All those gifts you got me. I especially like this one. Which is why I've decided to keep it as a memento of the time we spent together.” An even greater darkness formed in her eyes as she gripped the shaft of the spear firmly. “Nevertheless, I’m afraid it’s time for us to part, my beloved. Word from on high just came down, and your time is up.”

She yanked the spear from his chest. Jon convulsed violently, blood spouting from his lips as his breathing all but stopped. Miya proceeded to lower herself down to him and straddle his lap, leaning down until her chest was pressed up against him.

“I’m really sorry it came to this, Jon. The original plan was to keep you alive long enough to get the Blood Artifact you carry. But once we realized that wasn’t going to happen, we decided to play it safe and shift our plans to someone else. You’re too dangerous to be left alone, I’m afraid. Especially given what you just told me about Little Miss Valerie.” She leaned down until her hair touched his face before whispering in his ear. “If you want to blame someone, blame your own blood. Or better yet, blame God himself. After all, he was the one who gave you the Mark of the Great Beast in the first place.”

With that, she kissed him one last time. Moaning in pleasure before licking his blood away from her lips. “Goodbye, Heaven’s Revolver, and thanks again for the wonderful memories.”

His sight faded, the last conscious vision he had was of the woman he loved flying away in a plume of black feathers before all fell completely into darkness.

~~

He was falling, that much he understood. Where to, he had no idea. To be honest, Jon should have seen this coming. A beautiful woman who happens to accept him for who he is, crazy past and all, just happens to fall right into his lap? And he didn’t think it was the least bit suspicious? Jon had never felt like a bigger moron than he did at that moment. Of course it was all a setup. What else could it have possibly been? Since when did his life ever manage to crawl its way out of the muddy trenches?

Not that it mattered anymore. It was all over. And even though he would die never knowing why he was cursed with this mark or having the chance to figure out how to live that ‘good life’ his parents and Father Kyle wanted him to live, he could at least be content that he would not have to live in constant fear any longer.

He could finally sleep.

It was funny, Jon always thought dying was a much darker experience. But in that moment, all he could see was not black, but red.

Red.

Just like the color of her hair. A shade of red darker than any he had ever seen on a woman before. Long beautiful crimson hair.

Wait...why was he thinking of her? Moments before death and his mind had turned to a different woman? Hadn’t he been through enough of that already? What was more, it wasn’t just that he could picture her in his mind, he could actually see her. As if she was looking right down at him, appearing from a circle of red symbols and floating above his near lifeless body like an angelic being come from on high. It was cruel, he thought. If he had to die, why did it have to be in the presence of her pretty face? It just made the desire for someone to hold him as he went stronger. A wish he knew would never be fulfilled.

As if having read his mind, the crimson-haired being slowly descended upon him and cradled his body in her arms.

“Valerie…” He whispered.

“I have come,” she spoke gently. “It was you who summoned me, was it not?”

He didn’t respond, he didn't have the energy for it. Whatever was keeping Jon alive by this point, it was not of his own power.

“You are near death, Jonathan Hyodo. But this need not be your time,” she continued. “I can offer you an escape if you so desire….in exchange for your eternal soul.”

His senses were non-existent, yet he could have sworn he saw her sprout a pair of batlike black wings.

“Do you want to live?” she asked him in a deathly serious tone.

He didn’t respond.

“Do you want to live?” she asked again. “Please answer me. Yes, or no.”

Maybe it was fear that gripped him. Maybe it was the anger he felt, or the pain of his loss. Whatever his reasoning, be it madness or despair, one thing and one thing only stuck out clearly in Jon’s mind. He was not ready to die here. Not until he had some answers for all this shit. And so as she asked one final time, his head nodded ever so slightly.

A tiny smirk formed on her lips. “Then the deal is done. The pact is sealed.”

Jon’s body floated into the air as Valerie pulled the crystal amulet bearing a strange, arcane crest within its center she’d been wearing around her neck off and removed the chain. As she held the strange gem in her palm, it began to glow with power before floating out of her hand and descending into his open wound, whereupon the crystal began to burn like a fire inside him, stitching flesh back together and snapping bone back into place.

“From this moment forward you will live your life for my sake, Jonathan Hyodo. From now on…” She placed a tender kiss upon his forehead. “You. Are. Mine.”

His consciousness faded completely. As the world deadened around him, his wound sealed shut and blood began to pump through his body once more.