9 Days Before

Fast-moving clouds formed above the school. Students, getting out of their class early, paused in their tracks, fixated on how the clouds were forming. Others went towards their friends or the closest person not observing, pointing at the skies.

"Look at that 'sick' looking cloud," one gasped.

"Trippy," another said, adding to the brewing pot. Other observers lost interest and went about their day. Finally, I would be free from summer school, they thought as they left.

Dedicated examiners stuck around, wondering if there would be another occurrence like the last storm.

"Do you think it'll happen?" A student with folded arms nudged someone else.

"Like what?"

"I don’t know," the student shrugged in response, unfolding his arms and putting his hands in his pockets.

"Do you think it could be a severe stor-"

The sirens went off, warning anyone outside to take shelter of the approaching storm.

"Looks like it," The rest of the students went into classrooms or ran to their homes, trying to beat the clouds from dropping gallons.

One of the students watching the storm caught the eyes of Mr. Clark, dragging a boy with him into classroom 102, Mrs. Kois's room. As he caught interest, he saw the other three tailing behind them.

Doing a pretty bad job of not being noticed by anyone, the student thought but joined the queue as they all went into the classroom.

---

Lin had been busy with his studies before the door swung open, the doorknob hitting the wall, puncturing a hole. He and the rest of the classroom perked towards the door. The shine from outside only showed Opel trying to hide, but the other familiar silhouette nudged him into the classroom.

Lin caught the eye with Opel, and the two had a sudden spark of thought between them. Images of dark fog spewing from the skies entered Lin from Opel.

Lin pushed back in his chair, standing up from his spot. The chair stumbled onto the neighboring desk. The figure entered the room, and the door closed behind them.

"What's up?"

Lin looked ahead, seeing Kel standing before him, his skin pale, almost casting gray tones.

"A successful one...?" Lin talked to himself, the words holding a different - muddled meaning, as if the words had come from somewhere else - someone else.

"A what?" Kel questioned with a chuckle, his eyebrows raised, his head nodding slightly.

Lin was still shocked at seeing him 'alive'.

"I'm sure you remember that night, Lin. I, on the other hand, can't get it out of my damn head," he hit his head with his palms, trying to jog the memories out.

"We shouldn't have left like that," Lin said, looking down at the floor. The classroom bewildered, with some taking out their phones hoping to capture a brawl.

The air raises with tension on the three friends.

"Fight, fight, fight!" One of the classmates antagonized the scenario, trying to pull any strings to record a fight.

Another classmate joined the chant, looking at the leader, flipping their phone out to record another angle.

"There's not gonna be a fight!"

Mr. Clark, Kel's father, stepped into the classroom, Tay in hand.

Tay pointed to Kel, "You see, Mr. Clark, I told you I sa-"

"Not now..." He stopped Tay, the other students tailing behind him.

"Where have you been!?" his face tightening as the air changes around them without a response from Kel, and the students gasp off the drama folding in-front of them.

"I'm talking to you, Son!" Mr. Clark grabbed his son's shoulder, twisting him around for a lecture, but froze as he saw his child's face for the first time in two days. For him, Kel was standing before him but wasn't his son anymore. His son reacted towards his touch, making who he was a distant silhouette.

"What's been going on, Kel?" his father asked with concerned eyes. However, Kel's eyes seemed to be clouded, staring off to the side of him.

His father gave him a shake on the shoulders, not knowing what to do.

"Son?"

"What is going on with you? Answer me, Kellic," The words fell faint within his ears. His father peered into the clouded eyes, and the concern grew as the teacher, his father, couldn't break him out of whatever spell he was in.

The students behind him made their way into the classroom. The three students who made the tail observe the commotion, and the other two also saw Kel's eyes worsen, a clouded vision even noticeable from the students distance.

"...son!?" He gave another shake but to no avail, the students fixated.

"Kel...?" Lin spoke up, his father glanced at him, then gave a long look at both of them before asking Lin about any news. After all, these three (Mr. Clark looked at Opel.) We're stuck like glue, a little family his son had said.

The other students who entered pondered to see if they could break through his clouded vision, asking Mr.Clark for an attempt.

"What's happening to my son?" he asked the two, searching for more answers, but they simply shrugged. Kel stood lifeless in his father's arms.

"We're gonna take you home and figure all of this out," Clark said, grabbing his son's wrist - the skies opened up, and the sirens went off.

One warning before, the current for the storm is here.

More kids from outside entered the classroom to escape the sudden heavy downpour, causing a blockade between Clark and Kellic to leave home.

"Excuse me, guys, making our way through here," Clark said, Kellic still in his grasp. The tail and the additional students from earlier tried to make way for him and his boy but got blocked again.

Enter Xiel.

"Oh - hey, Mr. Clark, how's your son?" He smirked maliciously, pointing at the doll that they called Kellic.

"Didn't the freak tell you what he did?" looking at Lin with a glare, getting ready to pounce at any moment.

Clark placed his hand on Xiel to stop him, obstructing the chances to cause any problems within the classroom. Sensing a potential unwanted outcome.

"Look, if you have any issues with Lenny, then you two can settle it after school."

"You look, I'm gonna relax because the sky is opening up out there," the teacher halted, having a sense of perspective, yet eyeing the delinquent.

"Don't do anything; I'll be the stand-in teacher for now until this storm has passed over, or until your home room teacher gets back." he tried to see Xiel halfway, then eyeing the whole room as he finished his sentence.

The troubled student, Xiel takes a seat in the corner of the classroom, trying to gather an army, so it seems. Leaving Lin and Opel to their thoughts, seeing if he somehow knew something about that night or if it's solely a personal matter that Xiel is projecting, it wouldn't be the first hat Xiel has harassed Lin or the group.

Kel got dragged by his father, impersonating a robot on autopilot, his father placed him in the teacher's seat - trying to get his son back to reality.

"Can you hear me, Kel? Come on, Kel," he snapped his fingers above his forehead and tried to jostle him enough to cause any sort of reaction. Mr. Clark even tried to talk to him by his old "superhero nickname" back in preschool, but to no avail.

Lin tried to help Opel, who, Lin, was trying to avoid him. Opel waved him off, saying, "Don't help me up - killer." Chemicals raced to Opel's eyes, and his head jolted from saying such.

"Bullshit," Lin smacked his waving hand. Xiel looked up from the posse he created by 'smooth talking' as he called it, but Lin disagreed with that statement. It was more manipulation than anything.

The two friends put distance between each other, Opel sitting closer to Mr. Clark, who was still trying to wake Kellic up. Lin sat by the windows, his back facing them, observing any movement that indicated Xiel and his posse closing in on him.

Lightning within the clouds generated, causing consistent turmoil above the school, accompanied with its roar of thunder.

Clark, Opel and those alike look up towards the ceiling following the howls of thunder. Opel gets an abnormal sensation reaching around him, the nap of his neck starts to fizzle as if goosebumps were there. Kels father redirects his gaze back onto his son to continue the effort.

Another outcry of thunder breaches inside the classroom, quality inside the room gradually decreases in temperature.

The dark heavy clouds had spread their fingers across, enveloping the entire school within moments - Kellic began to shiver, his breath becoming noticeable. Clark becomes increasingly impatient, he swiftly flips out his phone to call for emergencies.

"Maybe they can help us." dialing numbers, the little tacs of the buttons speak to the classroom, having some curious gazes latching onto the scene; a nearby student takes his place as Clark eludes for them to take over.

"That can't be right." his face morphing to puzzlement, being greeted with an automated voice on the other end. "Out of service..?" his muddled voice circulates the classroom.

He tries again, but the automated message returns.

The existing atmosphere within the classroom dilates, having a student reach into his pocket for his phone, taking it out, he dials the same number.

Mr. Clark looks up from his phone, his concern etching on his face, causing the anxiousness of the students to attempt as well.

A cascade of collected tacs reverberates around the classroom.

Within moments an automated voice breaches, the student from before gazes at his phone with disbelief, the other students glance at the student then back towards their phones.

The classroom falls silent, as an automated choir sings throughout the class.

They all look at each other, palpable distress combust the classroom, simultaneously, a torrent of thunder crosses the skies.

Hysteria breaks the classroom, "Everyone! settle down, it's just a storm and it will pass!" Clark speaks to the students, hiding his own affliction.

Students gradually settle down from Clark's efforts. Light wearing fits hunched over, trying to fight the cold as they sink into their chairs.

An ice finger formulates on the windows within inches, making slow creep toward Lin, concerting Kel's seeable breath within the classroom.

Xiel got up, eyeing daggers towards Lin. His posse joined him.

From outside, the clouds were forming a denser field, blocking off any sun rays. Casting a dark shadow over the area, the rain formed to hail.

Xiel moved - lightning struck outside, striking the classroom and crossing the window. Faint screams could be heard from the neighboring '52' classroom.

His posse got into a stance, creating a makeshift boxing ring around the two. Clark tried to get engaged in the commotion, but as he let go of Kel, he started to shake violently.

Making him hold onto his son, for some reason, kept his son calmer. He looked at Opel and insisted on him going outside in the hailstorm to grab some blankets and to get the nearest teacher for aid.

"I can't stop the fight and protect my son at the same time!" he grunted, waving Opel off, but he was too hesitant. He wanted to help, which he had done multiple times for teachers before, but whatever this was, it was keeping him from going. His sight reached for Lin.

Xiel was about to throw a fist, and Lin glanced over at Opel. He was in shock - this was what happened before, and he got caught.

"Shit -"

"Get a move on, boy!" Clark screamed at Opel, who was still frozen.

Xiel threw the first blow as lightning struck, flashing the window with illumination, lighting the classroom up with a purple-blueish hue.

Lin, surprisingly fast for Xiel, dodged the first solid jab. It went nowhere, as Xiel tripped him.

"Get a move on!" Clark continued to yell out to Opel. Opel's legs shook, his eyes squinting in pain. Unable to move, even if he could, he was trapped there.

Xiel connects, Lin flinches from the punch, Xiel goes for more blows. However, Lin successfully dodged the series. A kick interrupted, sending him back. Xiel smirked, stomping towards him.

He kicked again, this time blocking the kick. Xiel went for an arching jab, however Lin blocked it again, feeling giddy.

The cold embrace now lessened as the build-up of electricity moved throughout the school, turning the hail into slush pellets.

"For fuck's sake, kid. Get a move on before this continues!"

Kel twitched with each pitch. cringing as he did it, a shock of cold struck the teacher's hand, making him flinch away. Kel fumbled to the ground, his mouth foaming, and the foam was slowly coated with frost.

The entire classroom slowly got enveloped by the cold touch. The students making the ring halted their chanting, starting to shake themselves, stopping completely as a group struggled to stay warm.

Xiel screamed at them, making them flinch as more huddled together. Some students started to cry, and the cold fingers started to ripple within the tears, freezing them as they came down, making them stick to their faces. Causing more students to be alarmed, the classroom's hysteria started to return.

Lin was about to take this as an advantage, though it came to a halt as faint screams from neighboring classrooms started to make a chorus.

Lightning swelled within the sky, lunging outwards, connecting to several classrooms, and the neighboring 52 classrooms burst open. The ceiling gave away, rubble from the roof was melded together by the lightning, creating tendrils reaching up toward the storm.

The intense storm grew, surrounding the city, stopping vehicles, sliding them by, citizens on the streets held themselves, blocking the cold embrace from reaching any further.

An umbrella fell to the ground, getting pummeled by the heavy slush, the citizens held their hands up, a nearby building opened up, and another individual rushed them in. Tightly closing the door, lightning struck the pavement in front of the buildings, creating the same reaching grips.

Lin's mind raced as the chaos unfolded, thinking to himself, 'It's happening.' Kellic's father grabbed any cloth he could to keep him warm, tearing pieces of bags, and other students' baggy clothes, laying them on Kellic.

The other students whose clothes had been cut in half started to scream at the teacher, although it went unnoticed. His goal was one, and that was to keep his son safe.

Xiel gave up on fixing his makeshift boxing ring to continue fighting Lin.

"Why are you fighting me!" he dodged.

"At a time like this!" He got clocked in the jaw, stumbling backward on the window sill, lightning crackled down, bursting the window open. The shards connected, molding together and reaching for Lin.

This is when Opel finally reacted, closing in on Lin and pushing him aside as the glass tendrils pierced Opel, creating severe cuts exposing it to the cold.

Xiel punched wounded Opel, knocking him to the floor. Lin had had enough of this insane senior student who is way too out of control.

The room got colder, the cold sheet thickening, expanding itself onto desks. The students huddled together and cried out. Lightning hailed above, flailing within the skies, mocking Kellic's now worsening convulsions.

His skin deteriorated, revealing a blueish-gray-toned skin. His father panicked, holding the spot with his combined hands.

He looked at Opel, getting ready to yell when he noticed him collapsing to the floor, with a wound that was turning the same color with tints of red.

He screamed out in frustration, looking at Xiel now bending over to hurl a fist at Lin.

"Stop this right now!" his voice shaking, lightning that was boiling up above came down within branches, destroying classrooms around them, the ground molding together, reaching above thirty feet in the air, lightning twirling around the newly formed structures' fingers, getting any leftover material.

The sleet transformed back to heavy rainfall, and the students within the classroom began to sprint to their homes, discharging into the streets, yelling for their parents as the torrential downpour weighed them down with every hit.

Other people aimed them inside, while others were lucky enough to find somewhere safe.

Those who didn't make it tried to hide from the downpour, lightning silhouettes concealed the terrified face of a tucked-away Velern.

The illumination shone on the structures within those who looked, imprinting on their minds.

They felt turmoil within them, causing their lungs to slowly collapse, bringing them to gasp for air, having the back of their throats meet with an icy burn.

The clouds around the structures illuminated, lightning snaking within the storm's wrath.

The cold returned, just right for it to.

"Snow," a Sheltered Dealix said to himself, Chandra taking note of this. Seeing it lightly flowing above, seeing it go down with grace. Dealix's eyes became fixated. His dreams came back to him, and the memory of it all reached out to him like the snowstorm above, cascading over the section of the city.

---

"Please remain indoors. If you live in these areas, we're seeing a traumatic change in weather conditions. We'll get more information as it unfolds. However, news outlets can't make it into the neighborhoods." The buzz of the television glowed in the dark room. Gray light protruded through the cracks of the window blinds.

"It's starting." The figure perked the blinds open, seeing a thick fog masking the neighborhood that was there.

The figure put on a leather jacket, padded with 'winter-blockers' the individual 'bought' from the mall over the black hoodie, lifting the hood over their messy black cow-licked hair.

Looking at themselves in the mirror before taking action.

Dark bags hung below his eyes, not majorly - but just enough to see he hadn't slept in days. 'Weeks,' some said to him. The black leather jacket hung comfortably around his shoulders and the old hoodie he had since freshman year complemented it. He took a look at his pants, seeing holes.

"Probably need to patch those up if I'm heading out… you know, to the cold, dark, scary place." He said, trying to lift any comfort to the matter. He flopped down on the sofa, quickly doing a bad stitch job to his pants, creating makeshift knee braces of folded cloth.

He dusted himself off over the leftover fur that accompanied cats.

'I'll be back; you stay safe, you hear?" He talked to his cat, which meowed in response, giving him a wave of his tail.

"Crowley~," a distant voice stretched his name. Coming from the seams of nothingness. He jolted his head, trying to figure out the direction of the voice.

"Leave me alone!" He shouted, grunting towards his bag, gripping his medical case and twisting it open, fumbling out two pills. Popping them both without any hesitation.

"That won't help you for long… we are -" the voice faded as he drank water. Coughing in a fit.

"It's getting worse." He said to himself, his cat looking at him with worried confusion on why his owner was acting strange lately.

He exited the room, going downstairs and out onto the streets.

---

"It looks like the storm will be getting worse; the Tower guards will -" the TV cut off in flickering static. It popped, startling the cat, and making it run into Crowley's bedroom. The windows and the glass bong began to freeze slightly. Leaving a small sheet, a 'present' for when he gets back.

Looking out the window, Crowley looked left and right. Bolting across the street and into a park, his hands in his jacket pocket. Strolling to the entrance into the mesmerizing fog.

His figure slowly emerged into the fog. Visibility became zero as he fully entered.

---