NGRI

  "Open the Security Box." ordered Jeffrey. The one with no face inserted the key into the box and

brothers to escape.

  Cody felt the soft sand beneath his hands. The sky was clear, with almost no clouds to speak of.
Adam was near him. His fat body worked as a cushion and made him able to wake up quicker. The
man in the bear mask saw a pack of gum on the sand. He took it and threw it back at Cody. He
catched it, got one out and popped one in his mouth. "What now?" Cody asked amidst his chews. Adam
pointed forward. In the distance, there was a door with the word "Entrance" scribbled on it in blue
paint. Cody chuckled dryly. "So you want to make a run for it? Again? Last time, they caught us and
threw us in the Minus Floor.". Adam crouched down and wrote something in the sand. Cody got up and
walked over to him.

  "'This time it's different'? In what way?". Adam continued. "'This time, you remember who you
were.'. I also knew who I was beforehand. My name is Cody and I did unspeakable things. Out of my
own accord? That was never set in stone. She controlled me when I did it.". Adam growled and
wrote another message. "'If that's what you think, then we're closer to the truth.'. I thought we were
past the riddles. If you're all so smart, then just tell me all the answers.". Adam groaned and started to
walk towards the door. Cody looked above at the monolithic building he had been stuck in for the past
decade. So many memories. All bad. He looked at the place he and his brother blew out off and noticed
the calendar. 2016 was now leaking a blue color.

  Cody caught up with Adam and continued through the desert. No matter which way he looked,
there wasn't a single thing in sight. The amounts of times his colleagues looked on hopefully at the
outside world made Cody's stomach turn. Adam was focusing intently at the door. They both knew that
the door would lead them to the outside world. But they first had to pass a test. What that test was is the
question. After a few minutes of wandering, the door was within their reach. It was a dirty, silver
door embedded in the ground. There wasn't anything behind it, yet it had 'magical' properties, so opening
it would lead you somewhere else.

  "I know what my nightmare is. I don't know about yours." Cody said while looking away. Adam
nodded and allowed him to go first. "See you on the other side. I hope.". Adam and Cody shook hands
before Cody grabbed the door handle and twisted it. The door opened and Cody put his foot within the
endless dark void. The nightmare was about to start. Especially since he could feel her presence.

  "Another A!?" Cody's mom said with a huge smile on her face. Cody sat at the diner table,
blushing. Adam was eating his noodles while Cody's dad stood near the table, like a statue. His color was
monochromatic, his face distorted into a grimace. Cherie was behind all them, her gaze fixated on the
one she's meant to protect. "That deserves another round of sweets!" Cody's mom said. Adam was still
eating his noodles, seemingly unaware of what was happening. Cody looked at his dad. His eyes could
cut flesh if they could. The way he stood was unnatural, with his arms twisted backwards, his legs
snapped in different directions and his neck being elongated. The skin on his face was torn off at the
forehead, revealing a metal plate. The room was dead silent, as if the father was saying something
and the kid listened. Whatever he said, it made Cody even happier. He looked behind himself and saw
Cherie clap her hands.

  A little while after, Cody and Cherie were in his bedroom. "Wanna play some football?" asked Cody.
Cherie was sitting against the dresser, reading some comic books. Her eyes instantly flared up when she
heard Cody's question. "Sure!" Cody put the ball down and kicked it at Cherie, which kicked it back
with her massive finger. It has been a few months since the 2 met. Cherie would help Cody deal with
homework, chores, schoolwork and anything he needs. Cody himself was also no longer being
picked on at school. Since Cherie could control what he was saying, she came up with some truly life
shattering comebacks for the bullies. Evan was the only one unaffected, which was to be expected. It
was basically his job to pick on Cody so he wasn't going to quit that easily.

  Cody did have some doubts however. As much as he loved Cherie, he didn't fail to notice how angry
she gets when Cody talks to anybody else. His family was a slight exception, but even a teacher
talking to him made Cherie scowl. "I may get jealous from time to time, but I don't want that to
affect you. From now on I won't get angry at others. Pinky promise?" Cody beat himself up internally.
He has a tendency to forget that she could read his mind. He did nod to her offer and got their pinkies
together in a hug.

  Cody's life was going fantastically. At first, there was a part of him that said that Cherie was just
an imaginary friend, but here he was graduating middle school with her standing right behind him.
He must have looked strange, constantly looking behind him at her. He was the top of his class, as to
be expected. He had to give a short speech, where Cherie came into play. While he let her do the
talking, he imagined the future, where he would be an biomechanical engineer or an astronaut. As long
as Cherie was by his side, it would all be fine.

  Then the day the crooked seed was planted came. Cody was a sensation at his high school. All
the girls were swarming him, the boys were asking him for advice and he even landed in his dream
football club. But one negative was still constant in his life. What was left of Evan. Since Cody was now
so beloved, Evan was now the outcast that didn't fit in. His hatred for Cody reached a breaking point
when he was left out of the football team in favor of him. Something in Evan snapped and he got inside
his pickup truck. Cody was walking home for once instead of using Cherie for a speed boost. He took a
detour around the forest side of his neighborhood, wanting to witness the leaves fall before the start of
winter. Loud veering resonated from behind him as Evan drove at top speed towards him. Cody didn't
have time to dodge and was rammed into a tree.

  Evan got out and fell onto the floor of dead leaves. He let out a few coughs before getting up.
He grabbed a baseball bat from his glove box and walked over to Cody, who was pinned against the
tree. His lower body had large blood stains covering it. His eyes were wide and blood was oozing out of
his mouth. "You thought you were so perfect didn't you? An Apollo? A goddamn epitome of a guy who
had everything! But let me tell you something, Cody…" Evan readied the baseball bat. "...you've
fucked with the wrong guy. I don't know what black magic shit you're using, but it ends here. Have a nice
afterlife, you prick!"

  Cody shielded his face as Evan brought the bat down. A painful surge burst from his heart and Cody
caught the bat with his hand. He tightened his grip and shattered it to pieces. Evan backed off in shock.
Cody then pushed the pickup truck away from him. Evan witnessed how Cody's squashed intestines and
bones healed and his skin stitching itself back up. Cody's mouth was opened wide, a toothy grin made
Evan try to run. Cody hopped through the tree branches and landed in front of him. Cody delivered
a punch that spun Evan around and made some of his teeth fly out. Evan bumbled back. With a mighty
roar, Evan pounced at Cody with his fist ready. Cody kicked him in the shinbone, snapping it 2.
Evan screamed bloody murder while he tumbled onto the dead leaves.

  Cody suddenly felt freed. He fell to his knees to catch his breath and hold his stomach. He didn't feel
anything, but hearing Evan yell made him shiver. Seeing his worst enemy wiggling in pain would
have theoretically been a fantastic experience. Yet Cody was horrified and wanted to go get help. The
blood spraying from Evan's leg was coating the ground in red. Cody looked to his left. Among the
large trees, with a crooked neck and bright red eyes, stood Cherie. Her fingers moved up and down and
Cody was back under her control. Cody grabbed the baseball bat and stared at Evan, who was a sobbing
mess at this point. Cody smirked and began to bash his brains in.

  Cody ran home as quickly and as quietly as he could. His window was on the second floor of his
house, but he climbed the sides of it and got inside. "Why?!" Cody screamed suddenly. Cherie was
standing outside. "I was trying to protect you!" she responded. Cody put his hands on his face. "Killing
someone is not protecting me! You can't go around killing people!" Cherie was confused. "But he tried
to kill you first!". Cody shook his head. "Listen. That situation could have ended with me healed and him
in jail. Now he's laying dismembered in the forest." Cody sat on his bed, trying to calm himself. Cherie
was looking at him through the window, unsure of herself. Cody then got up and opened a drawer. A
pack of cigarettes was inside. He took one out and walked to another drawer. There was the lighter. A
few clicks and the cigarette was lit. Cody took a deep breath and exhaled a large cloud of smoke.
Cherie was thinking over her actions. She noticed the cloud of smoke and bashed her hand through
Cody's window. She grabbed his arm and squeezed, shattering his bone and nearly tearing it out of its
socket. Cody collapsed in a teary mess, while Cherie scolded him. "Smoking is bad for you.". Cody's arm
healed to its fullest, but the shock was still there. "Go away!" he yelled. Cherie was taken aback by
his outburst. "But then who will..." "I don't need protection!" Cody yelled again. Cherie's eyes started
to water and she walked away from the window. Cody felt a bit of guilt, but he knew he was in the
right.

  Jeffrey sat in his chair, watching the events back and forward over and over again. Cody was a unique
case. He was granted a gift many could only dream off, but he wasted its potential on mundane activities
and education. "Wretched." he mumbled. Faceless then walked in. He was carrying several items from
Cody's room. He put them on a table and clapped his hands. Jeffrey turned around, analyzing the pieces of
paper with numbers and characters on it. "He seems to have quite the imagination. What's this one?" He
picked one drawing up and looked at it. "'Monica Schwartz'. Seems like he was a fan of writing. He
made his own false people.". There were entire novels worth of story arcs and biographies for each
individual character. "Can this lead us to trap him somewhere?" Faceless tried to ask. Jeffrey shook his
head and pointed at the monitor. "I think the army of employees we've sent after them is enough. That is,
if they do fail we always have a human's worst nightmare at our disposal. Darkness."