Darkness in the City

 “Lumos Duo.” An intense beam of light shined in the tip of her wand. This is it.

The silence of the street gives her creeps but she had to do it or else whatever ruined the beauty of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania will ruin her city too. Clutching to her wand, she slowly walked through the darkness of the town where the plaque had started, as the rumors had said. No signs of human activity or inhuman activities, if she do say so herself. Her long black wavy hair swayed with the cold air that sways through the silence of Pittsburgh.

It’s been 10 years since she last visit this city. She’s still not used to the eerie silence of Pittsburgh; this was supposed to be a busy city considering the population. When the plaque started the people of Pittsburgh started to leave the place one by one until it became a ghost town, isolated place, name it. The plaque, it was unexplainable. One day, the people woke up with an unexplainable sickness that the Doctors can’t even explain. Leaving the city was the only thing they can suggest.

“Alya Morgado.” She nearly screamed when she heard someone called her. She looked around to find where that voice came from and saw a guy beside one of the abandoned houses standing. He was tall and firm. A total god, as she thought. She didn’t know him but it seems like he had been watching her for a while now.

“Who are you?” she pointed her wand at him. In case he’s planning to do anything to her, she got a hundred spells to protect herself. Sectumsempra is a good idea right now. That thought lingered on her mind.

“I know your intentions in coming here.” He started to take steps towards her.

“Stop or else…” She pointed her wand to him with force this time.

“What? You’re going to curse me with your little wand? Haha. So sweet, Morgado.”

“Incarcerous.” She shouted with a wave of her wand and the unknown guy was tied with ropes that caused him to fell on his back.

“Fine, fine. I’ll tell you who I am just get me out of this stupid rope.” He negotiated.

“Hmm. Okay. Try to break your words or I’ll use unforgivable curse against you.” She smirked when she saw the uneasiness of the guy. She immediately did what she was told to do.

“Mean. Okay, I’m Aiden Gray. And I’m a wizard too. We’re looking for the demon too.” He stared at her, confused when he saw her stifling a laugh. He raised his brows at her.

“I’m sorry. Your name kind of reminds me of Fifty Shades of Grey.” And she laughed. Hard. Lowering down her wand while laughing. There’s something in him that she couldn’t pinpoint at the moment. He was somewhat easy to be trusted considering her trust issues. There might be something wrong with her right now.

“Hmm. Well, I’m not Christian don’t worry.” He laughed too. He was clearly becoming intoxicated with the girl in front of her. Well, she likes his humor.

“Good book, to be honest. But wait did I heard you say we? And you’re looking for the demon too?” She asked and Aiden started to look serious. It doesn’t suit him by the way.

“Yes, I’m with my brother, Trevon. We have a lead of who was doing this haunting here in Pittsburgh.”

“Really?”

“You can’t tell her Aiden. It’s too risky.” A deep voice said behind her, startling her.

“You scared me.” She muttered while steadying her breathing. She studied him, he was muscular yet handsome like Aiden but she can sense a bit of seriousness in his posture. Must be strict. He was holding a shotgun. Dangerous. As Alya thought.

“Didn’t mean to.”

“Alya, this is Trevon, my brother. Unfortunately.” He joked making Alya laugh.

“He’s not a wizard but he’s a hunter, demon hunter. That will do right?” Aiden continued. When she remembered what Trevon had said a while ago she frowned.

“Wait, you’re not telling me who or whatever started the plaque in here, do you?”

“This case is a bit dangerous Miss Alya. You’ll just harm yourself if you come with us.” Trevon.

“I’m a witch. I can handle it.”

“If you say so.” Trevon said with annoyance in his voice.

Aiden felt the tension between the two. He decided to continue what they’re supposed to be doing before he saw Alya. The legendary Alya Isabella Morgado, the witch of all time. She wasn’t a pure blood; she was a muggle-born to be exact but her unbelievable intelligence made her outstanding. Her beauty was also a great plus on her popularity being born as Cuban-American, not a wonder.

“Alya, we’re looking for the demons’ hideout. We have to destroy them before it destroy the whole Pennsylvania.” Aiden explained.

“Okay. That will be easy considering they leave sulfur in the whole place. The more sulfur is present the larger the activity of demons is you know. That will lead us to something.”

“That’s right. We need to separate, any signs of activity just—shout. Whatever.” Aiden

The three of them goes to separate ways, Aiden walking to the left side of the city, Trevon on the right side and she continued to walk in the path she was taking before Aiden spotted her a while ago, in the middle of Pittsburgh, where the City Hall, Church and other important places in the City is located.

She walked faster than ever did, her wand as her source of light. Her rapid breathing and footsteps was the only noise she can hear. Too much silence scares her to be honest but she have to finish this.

“Sulfur.” She muttered when she smelled that vexatious scent that the demons created. She stopped her tracks in front of the City’s Church. The smell was strong in that part of the city. Ironic, churches supposed to be a holy place where demons can’t manifest but look. This must be the demons’ hideout, time to let Aiden and Trevon know.

“Lumos Maxima.” She waved her wand and point on the sky. A ball of light came out of her wand and it flown to the sky. That’s enough to let the two guys know that she found the place.

She pushed the large doors of the church only to find that it was locked in the bottom. “Alohomora.” With a wave of her wand the doors is now unlocked. Perks of being a witch. She smirked at her thoughts. Being a witch helped her a lot considering her laziness she really needed her wand in her life. Her wand made her life easier.

The church’s structure was still the same except for dusts and spider webs across the ceiling. Roman paintings of Jesus and some images of saints was all over the place. A typical church but there was one thing she didn’t notice, the inverted cross above the altar.

Once she noticed the inverted cross she manage to get near it as fast as she can. But something creaked before she can even get near the focus object. She looked below her, she was standing above a carpet but why did it make a creaking sound if it was only a carpet considering the flooring of the church was concrete. There’s only one way to find out what’s under the carpet. Curiosity is something she couldn’t control from the beginning. It is by far one of her biggest weakness as a witch, same reasons why she always got into a lot of trouble when she was at the special school for wizardry.

“Alya.” She heard Trevon said behind here. She didn’t even notice his presence because she was eager to see what’s below the carpet but nonetheless she faced the guy.

“Hey, Trevon. Where’s Aiden?”She asked the expressionless guy in front of her but instead of answering he move closer to her. He was really close that if anyone decided to move their nose would be touching.

“What are you doing?” Her breath hitched when she looked at his eyes. There’s something wrong. Trevon supposed to hate her because of her cocky attitude.

“You’re not Trevon.” He smiled at her. An evil smile.

A hard object hit her head that cause her to pass out.

The first thing that she notice when she woke up is she’s not in the church anymore. She can’t guess if she was in a room or somewhere because it was really dark in there.

“Ugh.” She groaned when she tried to move her body. She was tied on chair. “Great!” she shouted out of frustration.

“Shut up, Alya” A low voice said startling her. “Damn, Aiden? Is that you?” “Yeah.” He groaned. Alya concluded that he was in a severe pain because of his heavy breathing and groaning.

“It wasn’t Trevon who took me right?” “No, it was a shapeshifter.”

“Good, because I don’t want to use the unforgivable curses on him all at once when I see him.”

“That will not happen. He’s dead. They killed him right in front of my eyes Alya. They killed him.” She heard Aiden’s subtle sobs and it hit her like a bullet.

“Huh?”

“Once the shapeshifter copied you, it will get all your memories, skills, intelligence—everything. It’s like an exact duplicate of you. And it will kill you to replace you in the real world.” Her head was spinning. Too much information, her brain still wasn’t in state of absorbing things.

So, that’s the reason why when she looked right into Trevon in the church she couldn’t find the annoyance in them like when they were talking before they decided to split up.

“Some of the people who leave Pittsburgh were shapeshifters. --- They got our wand. They’re going to kill us any minute now.”

It was strange. Aiden’s words should send her panic and grieve. She’s going to die. But she felt nothing like she was accepting her death or maybe the opposite. She didn’t say anything to Aiden. She continued to think things deeper and tried to keep death out of her mind but it wasn’t working. Nothing’s working.

“Are you crying?” She heard Aiden asked but still she didn’t answer. She heard footsteps and a creaking sound. Next, she heard Aiden’s chocking sound. “Aiden? Aiden?! Are you okay?”

“Please, Please don’t kill me.” Aiden’s frightened voice echo through the whole room sending Goosebumps to Alya. Alya, who is in state of panic and losing her sanity, cried.

“Who the hell are you? Don’t hurt him please.” She begged the stranger.

“Not gonna happen.” She felt herself freezed. It was a girl and it sounds like her.

Next thing she heard is a loud thud from something falling and something hit her feet afterward. She tries to adjust her eyes in the darkness so she could d see what hit her. Shock took over her when she realized it was Aiden. Aiden’s head!

She didn’t hear anything from Aiden after that. He’s dead, he’s been beheaded. The thought of Aiden without his head sent her over the edge and passed out right there and then.

“Alya Morgado.” She nearly screamed when she heard a familiar voice called her. Sounds like a déjà vu. She was actually sprawled in the middle of the street of Pittsburgh.

First thing she did when she sat up was to check her own body. No bruises, No cuts, No soreness or anything. She was fine. Was everything that happened to her, Aiden and Trevon a dream? Then she was glad. Aiden didn’t die and Trevon too. She was smiling like an idiot when someone touches her on her shoulder. She instantly looks back with terrified expression but relax eventually when she saw who it was.

“Damn, Aiden. You scared me.” She spat immediately.

“What? You know me?” confusion was visible in his face.

That statement confirmed her conclusion. It was only a dream. Everything was. But it’s better than having Trevon and Aiden dead.

“I may sound strange but I had a dreamed about us. No, not just the two of us but also your brother Trevon.” She tried to explain. Hoping Aiden will believe her.

“Oh. That doesn’t sound strange. Not at all, but maybe a bit.” He shoots her a fake smile. He was still confused.

“Where’s Trevon? Can you take me to the hospital? I’m kinda dizzy right now. I think I’m gonna pass out.”

She lied. She doesn’t have any other choice but to do it or something will happen to the two guys. She can’t risk losing the two even though they don’t know her personally they were important to her. They wait for Trevon for a bit and they immediately left Pittsburgh without second glances to take Alya to the hospital. They left Pittsburgh without even realizing that the three of them was once a shapeshifter. The real Alya, Trevon and Aiden were in an abandoned building, lifeless. Hmmm, it seems like Pittsburgh will remain a mystery to everyone.

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Credits to J.K Rowling for the spells.