The Siren's Mourning (Dice Changers)

"After the cult self-destructed, the survivors went their separate ways. The Dice Changers tried to hunt down the cultists as the police had to root out those who weaved their way into the department. I was 12 when it happened. My dad was the leader of the cult, and he died trying to summon a demon from the same world that Kamoss and all the other Kolorain heroes are from. I studied every religion just so I could learn what the truth was because I trusted my father, and I knew not everything he said was false, but I needed to know for myself. Months later, several of the cult survivors came to my new home and said that they had finally found a compound that was owned by a sex trafficking ring. My foster parents were reasonably terrified, but I joined the cult again, because I wanted nothing more than to purge all the evil in the city, then the state, then the region, and finally the nation. It was my father's goal, and it became mine. Anyway, I led the cultists to the compound, and we killed several of them; they killed some of ours. The police tried to arrest everyone, but they were not prepared for the chaos. Because plot twist: we were not the only ones trying to take down the cult. The Dice Changers appeared, and I tried to instigate a rematch, but they weren't there just for justice and to bring freedom, but to free one of their own. After most of the survivors were found and the sex traffickers were dead or cuffed. The rest of us went back into hiding. I later joined the Dice Changers, and well, you were there for the next part," said Jack as he slowly dissociated from the room, his voice softening as he slumped into his chair.

He and Siren had been together after the Dice Changers killed the rest of the sirens. The sole survivor later joined, and to both of their surprise and disgust, after the angel of the game store told them they were soulmates. That was 9 months ago.

"Wait, your dad was the cult leader? Why didn't you leave religion after being lied to for so long? I mean, you said you studied all the religions, but what made you think your dad was partly right, rather than completely wrong?" asked the siren as she snuggled under Jack's arm.

"He told the truth before replacing it with a lie. All the cult's doctrines were like that. 'We must kill evil for none have died chasing good people.' or 'We must not fear sin, only by looking at and feeling the same anger as God does will we make progress.' stuff like that. Also, I saw the lives that were changed for the better. I saw drug addicts set free. Sex trafficking victims got justice, and people who had no family finally found it. You cannot falsify the joy, the healing. You just can't," answered Jack.

"Huh, at least your parents were loving mine, never really cared. They would just ask that I was eating, passing classes, and making sure I was alive. They were too busy working or cheating on each other. Hence why I was an absolute slut before meeting you and why I joined the Sirens. I liked the attention, the feeling like I was a part of a group that was high on the social scale. It's funny now, I never thought I would be dating an actual Bible nerd, yet here I am," chuckled the siren.

"I find it funny that I'm dating a half-demon girl, in a game store owned by an actual angel. Who is basically our youth pastor. Oh, and he trusts us with dice that hold the souls of people from a fantasy world, so yeah, my life's weird," said Jack, amused.

"Wait, but didn't the cult own some of the dice sets?" asked the Siren.

"Well, yes, but I fought Nick and Arron, and they beat me up so much that they literally knocked sense into me. They almost killed me, but for some reason, they spared me. Now Kamoss and I have a second chance to get things right," said Jack.

"Just like me. Which is why Nick said what he said when you and he found me in the bathroom crying. Huh. That's quite the coincidence, don't you think?" asked the Siren, thinking she was onto something.

"That's not a coincidence; that would be God's mercy and justice colliding in a subtle yet powerful display. However, what I do find funny is that he was the one who stood up for you. I would've thought he would've killed you. That was until I saw his face. The face he showed you was the same one he expressed to me when he spared my life," said Jack.

"Then again, he did try to teach the fact that within every group there are those whose hearts are begging for redemption and mean it," continued Jack as if the pieces were finally being put in place.

"Oh, boy, you're getting lost in thought," said the Siren.

"I need to ask Nick something," said Jack as he stood up and marched over to a long table where Nick was sitting across from Arron and Mia. Nick and Arron were playing a card game while Mia was on her phone watching short videos. Jack walked up and stood beside Nick.

"Hey, Nick. I need your thoughts on something. You spared my life and later spared my girlfriend's. So, in a way, you are the reason we are even alive and together. Now, here's the question: why did you do it, and would you do it again?" asked Jack.

"What kind of question is that? Of course. Oh. Wait. Why did you ask that? That's so random," said Nick, confused as his focus was completely diverted to Jack rather than the game. Arron seemed to be paying attention, but not enough to look like it. Mia's attention was also caught, and she began looking like she was watching reality TV.

"Sorry, but here's the thing. You still have that demon trapped in you, right? Is it possible that the siren and I are key to finally defeating it? Because you saved us when we needed it most. So now, when the time comes when you need to be saved, we will be there to do so," said Jack.

"I mean, I guess that makes sense, but how does that make any sense? Kamoss is an Arcane magician, not Divine, so it would be incredibly hard to fight a demon who is resistant to half of your power set," countered Nick, still confused.

"Man, I wish I could. You know what, screw it. The demon is going to lose anyway. I, or in this case, I mean Kamoss, will fight the demon with Siren's abilities. Plus everyone else's. That should weaken him so that Sheeren could take back your body or soul and excoriate the demon from our world," said Jack.

"An interesting theory, but you may need to ask the angel if that's the correct path," said Nick.

"Hmm, I mean, I could do that. I just wanted to jump scare the demon with that info. Anyway. Sorry for bothering you," said Jack. Just then, the siren appeared beside Jack as he left to go find the angel.

"I'm sorry, but has he always been like that?" asked Siren.

"Bruh, we're all like that. If anything, it shows that he's either become one of us or he's finally becoming his true self," answered Arron.

"True that," said Nick.

That was roughly 3 months ago, and now the worst has happened: Nick was now standing in the open parking lot being puppeted by the demon as he stabbed Kamoss over and over with a black goo demon sword. The siren could only watch helplessly, but her fear and shock started to become something else, something explosive, pure rage. A lover's rage. The siren began screaming not in song but in pain and fury. Her angel form, which had two white dragon wings covering her face, and four much larger white dragon wings, with her skin becoming golden and scaly, and armour that was also golden but on fire. Those wings contorted and fell and became black bat-like wings; the wings around her face morphed and became horns. Her hands grew larger and tipped with long, thin nails. Her screams became shrieks as she fell to her knees. Then, once she eyed the demon, she lunged at him, pinning him to the ground and tearing into him with her claws. Blood and guts were spread overall. This gave enough time for the rest of the Dice Changers to finish the banishment ritual and create a portal to another dimension. The siren flew up and launched the demon into the portal. The siren landed in front of Jack and coggled him, in her arms, as he was bleeding out. "No, no, no. You can't leave me, you jerk. DON'T YOU DARE!" she cried, her wings went from surrounding the couple to stretched out.

"You looked terrifying and amazing," said Jack as he coughed. Yayben, Wav-Ta, Goldleaf, and Angel came around. Yayben and Wav-Ta were out of spells, and Goldleaf didn't have any healing spells that could bring Jack from the brink of death. The angel stood there, tears following uncontrollably. The Siren looked up at them. "HEAL HIM! HEAL HIM! PLEASE!" pleaded the Siren, her tears following uncontroably. Yayben and Wav-Ta shook their heads as if in shame. "PLEASE, ANGEL! PLEASE DO SOMETHING! PRAY TO GOD TO BRING HIM BACK! PLEASE BRING HIM BACK!" cried the siren again. "I. I can't. He's. He's meant to die. It's all. Part of the plan," said the angel. Jack's hand caressed the siren's cheek.

"It's fine. I'm heaven-bound," said Jack softly as he died. His arm became limp, His eyes rolled back. His chest stopped moving. The Dice Changers changed into the teens: Trevor, Arron, and Mia. They all cried and mourned. The siren then looked at Arron. "Why? Why did you stall Goldleaf? Why did you choose Nick over Jack?" asked the siren with each question dripping with hurt like venom. Arron stumbled backwards. "I. I didn't. Didn't want Nick to die," whispered Arron. "You're a coward. I should kill you, too," scorned the siren as she stood up holding Jack. "It's your fault that the one man who taught me about love and sacerfice is now dead. I hope I never see your face again, or I'll give you a scar far deeper than what I have," said the siren as she took off in flight carrying Jack's body.

A short time later, Jack's funeral was held. Buried beside his birth mother. In the weeks after that, the siren visited Jack's foster parents. Mostly Jack's foster mother. "I find it ironic, coincidental, that we both didn't know Jack that long," said the siren, holding a coffee cup full of warm tea.

"I know. At first, I was scared when he first brought you to our home, but now I know I couldn't have asked for a better woman for him. You made him come out of his shell in ways I struggled to. You made him happy. I think his real parents would be proud to," said Jack's foster mother, holding a different coffee mug.

"I don't know, his mother might say that, but I doubt his father would have accepted me at all. Especially after what I tried to do," said the siren as she became disgusted by the memories.

"I don't blame you; you didn't know any better, and by the time you did, you were trapped. But now, I think Jack would want you to help people. The way you've done when he was by your side," said Jack's foster mother.

"I don't know if I can. I hate Arron too much. I can't even stand him when I see him at school, much less at the game store," said the siren.

"Don't let your hatred for him stop you from fulfilling Jack's dream," said Jack's foster mother as she held the siren's hand. "You might need to go in solo for a while, but don't let your anger blind you when you're fighting the bad guys, and if you feel like you can't handle it or if you need help. My husband and I will be here," said Jack's foster mother.

"Thanks. I guess it would be cool to be the 'City's Dark Guardian Angel.'" chuckled the siren. Jack's foster mother also laughed.

A knock was then heard. Jack's foster mother and the siren went to the door and opened it to see Trevor, Arron, and Mia standing on the porch. "Hey, siren. We. Um wanted to let you know...Sheeren has been reaching out to several people, saying that a fey is trying to crossover to our world and wants to destroy it. " And we're trying to find all the people whom he contacted, and we figured that you may want to help us, " said Arron, shy, awkward, and pathetic. The siren stood there. Anger swirled. She wanted to say a thousand slurs and obscenities, but chose not to. She simply stood there and stared in anger. "I will join you, but not to free Nick, but because that is what Jack would've wanted," said the siren as she went back into the house, gathered her things, and walked past the trio to the car, found a seat, and climbed in and unrolled the window. "Well. We going?" she asked. The trio gave each other looks, nodded, shrugged, and climbed into the car and drove off. The siren looked out the window, impatient to fight evil. The way Jack would've wanted.