The Horrorscope - Episode 53: Eclipse No More

Say something! Mary says towards Kei as he shakes him. He barely opens one eye and looks at her. Don’t die! Hang tight, we’re getting help, says Mary. Everyone is in place? asks Wasa. Yes, they shout.

Arm…

Charge…

Fire! Wasa orders. The police men in hazmat and astronaut suits pull the levers on the EMPs creating a wave that quickly turns into a tsunami o similar actions all over the world in the span of a few seconds. The call interrupts abruptly. What happened? asked Ram. The EMPs worked. The reset should be ongoing right now. And hopefully they can move the satellites into place to launch them as fast as possible, explains Wasa. But what if we still won’t have control? asks Pincer. I doubt we won’t. In cases like these the system won’t boot back into its original state, but rather directly into safe mode, since most operating systems these days can detect whether it was an outside event or not that made it crash. Even our system here is the same, says Wasa. Weren’t they spying on us through our security cameras? asks Ken. They were what? asks Mary. Yeah, I wouldn’t worry about it. We shot them down, says Wasa. But what if they’re spying on us through our system and knows what we’re doing? asks Mary. I wouldn’t worry about that either. There’s not much they can do. And even so, I doubt they have time to keep an eye on us right now considering the scale of what they’re doing, says Wasa. Wasa’s phone rings. We’re back and we’re getting ready the satellites, explains one of the captains. Good, we’re in your hands, says Wasa before hanging up.

Ironic… A blackout trying to stop an eclipse… It all came full circle, says Kei as he puts his hand over his eyes. Glad to see you’re still alive, says Ken. Barely… Everything… Hurts, Kei says as he rubs his forehead. We need to find a way to find out what they did. How the stone played a part in this. What they were sending through the satellites. Who these individuals were. And how they did all this. That besides trying to catch them all, says Wasa. And all this after we’re trying to stop this and help everyone we can, says Phenos. Indeed, says Wasa. But what if we can’t? asks Pincer. Then we can’t, says Wasa as he sighs. Then what if they’ll try again? asks Pincer. They… Won’t… I think, says Kei. Why? asks Ram. Because their plan is flawed and what we did works, then they’ll have to think of something else, says Kei with a whisper. The computer next to Wasa starts ringing. Yes? answer Wasa. We’re ready to launch the satellites, says a Captain. Do it! Launch! Now! Wasa commands. Yes sir! They all respond as they launch the satellites. Well, everyone. Let’s hope these satellites are some useful projectiles that will save us before they manage to kill us all, says Wasa. We’ve also strapped whatever explosives we had on them. Hopefully they’ll explode on impact or once the 5 minutes are up, explains the same Captain that called Wasa. Let’s hoe for the best, says Wasa.

Is there any feed of the stone? asks Wasa. Yes, says Mary. Where? asks Wasa. Here, I found it earlier. Seems to be still up, says Mary as she hands Wasa her phone. Ken collapses to the ground. Ken, Mary screams. Are you okay, man? Ram asks as he turns him on his back. Ken shakes his head as he holds his eyes tightly closed. What is happening? Kei asks. Ken collapsed, says Mary. Fuck… Just don’t die before I do, buddy, says Kei as Mary gently taps him on the head. Sorry, says Kei. Look! Look! There’s a whole in the eclipse, says Wasa all excited as he jumps out of his chair. We did it! exclaims Phenos! You hear that? We’ve won, says Kei as he tries to reach Ken’s claw. You hear that, Ken? We’ve won, says Mary as she holds his head…

A FEW DAYS LATER…

I am very sorry, a doctor tells Kei. No, it’s fine. It’s not like this is your fault, Kei says laughing awkwardly. Everything okay? Telum asks Kei. It’s what I thought it would be, Kei says as he bursts into tears. I am sorry to hear that, says Telum. No, no, it’s fine. I was always curious about death, at least now I’ll be able to experience it. If there’s anything beyond, I’ll tell you, says Kei trying to laugh in between tears. Who knows, maybe you’ll meet Ken there too, says Telum. Maybe, says Kei. Through Telum’s radio Mary’s voice is heard. Calling all units. Calling all units. We need you all on site at the villa of the terrorists that took people we loved and the lives we’ve had, says Mary. Take care of the days you still have. We’ll be here for you. I gotta go, says Telum. Who knew we were too late for so many. So many of us died, so many more will die. But hopefully those that will come after, these new immortals, will treasure life a bit more than we did, says Kei as he looks at his hairless arms.

See you between stars…

Thank you for reading The Horrorscope. This was an awesome experience to write. These characters, I love them all so much and one day I hope to return to this world in what I think will be it’s best form, a comic book. Thank you all who read this story. Thank you all those who supported me through out this year. It meant a lot. And I hope that the story for next year, Anthology of a Young Wizard, Jack will blow you away with amazement. And I promise to bring even better stories to the Pilot Program 2022. So, hope you have an awesome new year.

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The Horrorscope - Episode 52: Eclipse Part 7: End of it.

Kei! Kei! screams Ken. What is happening? asks Phenos. Sorry, sorry. I just felt weak suddenly. I don’t know what is happening, says Kei. It’s the eclipse, says Mary. Look, the satellites seem to cover in darkness more and more the stone, she continued. So, it really is an eclipse, says Wasa. Kei tries to stand up but his knees feel weak. I can’t. Just leave me down here. I can’t even look up, I feel bad, real bad, says Kei. No, please, Kei, says Ken. Well, if you don’t want me to fucking die, how about… You… Do… The, says Kei as he hangs his head down and gesticulates with his left hand weirdly as he collapses to the floor. Kei! Kei! Ken shouts. Kei gives him a thumbs up as he turns around on his back. Go get the first aid kit, call an ambulance, do something, Wasa tells Ken. Ken rushes out the door with the phone in his hand. Pincer, Ram, Phenos, go find call everyone. Mary, take care of him. I have to setup the weapon, says Wasa. Ken rushes back out of breath he looks at the room. What? asks Mary. Everyone is down, their sick. There’s no help coming, says Ken. What? asks Wasa. Everyone is down, says Ken as he falls on his knees. You okay? asks Mary. No, I feel weird, says Ken. Not you too, says Mary. No, no, I am fine, says Ken with hardly breathing trying to get back up. Don’t force yourself, says Mary. I’m not going to die before I bring to justice those that killed a billion and killed my partner, says Ken frustrated as he stands up with his claw piercing through the wall behind him.

Wasa’s phone starts ringing. It’s Niles, says Wasa as he answers with a sigh and puts it on speaker. What do you want? asks Wasa. Do you what is happening outside? The sky is purple, it rains. People are fallen down on the streets. Planes have fallen all from the skies. Thousands of accidents and no one to help them. We’re stuck in basements looking at what is happening outside. And it seems to be affecting everyone this time, not just a billion. It seems that everything the light touches, it kills,, says Niles. It doesn’t. Or at least I’m not dead yet, says Ken. I see you are optimist even on death’s door, says Niles. Is that why you called? asks Wasa annoyed. I just wanted to thank you for what you did. It was noble. You could’ve not cared for my safety or anyone’s, and I couldn’t’ve blamed you. So, I just want to thank you on behalf of myself, my family, and all of the UN, says Niles. You are too much of a worrywart, says Wasa. What do you mean? asks Niles. We’re going to put an end to this, now, says Wasa. How? asks Niles all giddy. We’re gonna blow it all up, says Wasa. Blow what up? asks Niles. That eclipse that is killing us all, says Wasa. How? asks Niles. Do you know what an EMP is? asks Wasa. No, says Niles. For the sake of keeping it brief, we’re going to do a hard reset to everything, says Wasa. But will it work? asks Niles. I don’t know, but we don’t have any other ideas, says Wasa. Well, it was a pleasure. Good luck and hope to hear from you, says Niles before hanging up.

How can I help? What can I do? asks Ken. Stay by your friend’s side. If this doesn’t work, we have failed everyone and everything. And they’ll really win this time. Whatever sacrifices were made, whatever death came ten years ago, it will all a disappointment, a tragedy. A story no one will hear about. We will be forgotten and whatever we build, said, did, lost forever to time, says Wasa. Did Niles rub off on you so quickly? Can you not be so melodramatic? asks Mary. Well, the death of a species should be something to be melodramatic about, says Ken. Okay, everyone is in place, says Phenos. Are they ready to deploy more satellites? asks Wasa. As ready as they can be, the satellites are from a safe distance and they’ve prepared the spare parts to repair whatever damage the EMP will do, says Phenos. Good. Thank you all, says Wasa. Shall we call the conference? asks Phenos. Yes, we don’t have time to waste, says Wasa. You’re good to go, says Phenos. Hello everyone. It is nice to see you all still fine. Niles was right to keep away from the light, says Wasa as a bunch of people in hazmat and astronaut suits appear on the screen in front of him. Are we ready? asks Wasa as they all say yes. Then let’s blow up this eclipse and bring an end to this! Wasa screams.

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The Horrorscope - Episode 51: Eclipse Part 6: Totality

It could mean the death of all of us, says Kei in a panicked voice. What do you mean? asks Wasa. I mean it was there all along. The giant stone in the ocean is what gave the first ancestor of our kind eternal life and this curse of the horoscopes, where we gain the part of the body or ability of the twelve signs. Of course then that if you want to take it all away from people you block the biggest transmitters of them all, what is now a giant stone ocean in our ocean. And how better to do it then with satellites. Oh no, I don’t feel so well, says Kei. But you’d need a lot of them, says Wasa. How about a million? asks Kei as he pulls out his phone. What are you looking for? asks Phenos. Here, there are already news outlets that report a darkness occurring over the stone, says Kei as he shows the articles to the people in the room. What the fuck, says Ken as he takes Kei’s phone and turns on the volume. Thousands of satellites are being launched today, says the news caster. Kei snatches the phone in a panic and mutes it. That means that they’re not done yet. That means that we still have some time to try to stop them, says Ram. Or we’re too late. We can’t take them down, says Kei. What about finding someone to overwrite the system? asks Phenos. And where are we gonna find someone like that? asks Kei. I don’t know, says Phenos. That’s the problem, says Kei as he is pacing around.

We have everything we need, says Mary as she interrupts everyone. We have bigger problems, says Kei. What if we get to them before they can complete whatever they are trying to do? asks Ram. And then what? It’s not like there’s one key to breaking all this, right? We need to figure out a way to tear it all down, says Kei. So was all the work I did for nothing? asks Mary. No. But we’ll have to catch them after we deal with whatever they are doing now, says Wasa. An officer bursts through the door. The guy in the infirmary said he wants to talk, says the officer. Please go, Wasa tells Kei. Okay, says Kei as he nods.

As he enters the infirmary he sees a bunch of officers sleeping and recovering from the explosion. At the end of the room, there is N, looking out the window. Hey, says Kei. Who are you? You muse be new here, says N. You don’t know me, but I know you. I’m Kei. And around here, you’re known as N. But might I ask for your real name? asks Kei. My name is of no importance. N is fine by me. Do you remember ten years ago? Because for me it’s like it was yesterday. I lost everything that day. My daughter… My father… My voice… My sanity… I thought I was dying. My body was in immense pain. I thought I’d join them in death. Yet at the end, I couldn’t remember anything but that nightmare of a day. I still can’t remember my birthday, my full name, how to write, what I was. It was all so confusing. And here came this man that beat me, because I couldn’t remember anything but that day and the death of the people I cherished most in my life. And even them, I can’t remember their faces well anymore. I can’t even remember my own face or how I look like. I know that you’re looking for answers. And I know you’re trying to prevent what happened ten years ago, again now. But, I can’t help you. All I remember is getting a phone call about my father, then seeing my daughter suddenly drop to the floor on the pavement and an immense pain shooting through my body. That key of death thing, was something my daughter had found on the floor. The paramedics came and took her, and I couldn’t go with her, because I couldn’t speak anymore, says N. I’m so sorry to hear that, says Kei. Can I be alone now? asks N. Yes, says Kei.

As Kei enters the room everyone else is in they turn towards him with the biggest smiles on their faces. We have an idea, says Ken. We know how to stop this, says Wasa just as Kei collapses.

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The Horrorscope - Episode 50: Eclipse Part 5: Stone Ocean

This really is the worst luck, says Wasa. Fuck! says Kei. You keep tracking that van. I’ll try to track their movements from the sewers to where they came from, maybe I can find some answers like that, Since the pictures with their covered faces doesn’t help, says Mary. You do that, says Wasa as he keeps tracking the van and Kei keeps pacing around behind him. A blood curdling scream is heard from down the hall. You two stay, Wasa tells Ken and Mary. As him, Phenos and Kei start running towards the scream that just won’t stop. What the fuck, says Ram as he sees Telum standing over N, as N keeps screaming. What the fuck did you do? Wasa asks Telum. I’m sorry boss, but I had to do something, I couldn’t just sit in that room anymore, says Telum as he stretches his arm out with a bloody neck in the palm of his hands. No wonder N couldn’t speak, he had the throat of a pig, says Telum. What the fuck, says Kei. But then why wouldn’t he write? asks Wasa. If you were to beat me, I wouldn’t tell you things either, honestly, says Telum. But how? It doesn’t make sense? says Kei. Maybe whatever they used ten years ago to kill a billion people changed the whole structure of your body, and with him, it just failed or misfired, says Telum. But how did they target it so specifically? says Kei. You’ll have to catch whoever killed a billion people ten years ago to find that out, says Telum.

Take him to the infirmary, Wasa tells Phenos. Do you have anything to tell us before Ram takes you to a cell this time, and rip someone else’s head off or rip their throats out? Wasa asks Telum. No, not that I know of, says Telum. I need you to talk to N, once he is healed, okay? Wasa asks Kei. Okay, says Kei as they all head back to check on Ken and Mary. Pincer meets them at the door. All calls done, says Pincer. Good, says Wasa. I found something, says Mary as she opens they open the door. What did you find? Wasa asks. I tracked them to one of their apartments. And from there I went and followed the other one to her place and now we have both their addresses. But nothing that would ID either of the two kidnappers, says Mary. That’s great, says Wasa. No, it’s not, says Kei. Why not? asks Phenos. Because we still don’t know shit, Kei says as he paces around frantically. But we do. I followed the van and we have a third address and this time, we have two names with it. Because I got camera footage of its license plate and because it was a house it went to, says Mary. Okay and? asks Kei. And I got to know everything about those two names. Their workplace, hobbies, past records, love life, everything we’d need to track them and take them down. And I think we’ll figure out who those two are that way too. But for that I need more time, to go through his socials, says Mary. You do that, says Wasa.

I think I found something, says Ken. What? asks Wasa. I looked at transmitters and quickly found some. And I noticed how they had the same pattern of movement every day for a week. But when I looked back at today, it’s like they haven’t moved at all. So, I looked at the position they were stuck in. And they are all pointing in one specific direction. I looked up the number to the closest dish to us, we can call them to see what’s happening, says Ken. Please, says Wasa. Come, we need to finish tracking those two, says Kei as he tugs on Wasa. Okay, okay, be patient, says Wasa. As they follow the two in the van around, Kei suddenly remembers something. I know this zone, says Kei as Wasa pauses. What do you mean? he asks. There is something here. I know I just visited this place. I just can’t put my finger on it, now, says Kei. Got it, says Ken. What? asks Wasa. It seems that I was right. Their system got overwritten yesterday during their normal maintenance hours. They tried shutting it all down, but it seems that they’re completely out of luck. Even cutting the power to it is a no go, says Ken as he gets interrupted. But what is the direction? asks Kei. It’s this, says Ken as he puts the coordinates into the computer. Of course that’s the answer. It’s the stone in the ocean, says Kei.

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The Horrorscope - Episode 49: Eclipse Part 4: Bracing for Totality

Even if we find them, what if they’re on another continent? We can’t move that fast or gather enough forces to take them down, says Ken. We’ll have to figure that out later. First we need to figure out who those that kidnapped the criminal were, where they went, what they were doing and how to stop this before a billion die today, says Kei. I’ll message Niles to get me the numbers for other captains for them to be in standby if we need them, says Wasa. I’ll help with the calls, says Pincer. Me too, says Ram. What should I do? asks Mary. When we get the people involved in the kidnapping, try to find their names, addresses, everything of the sort, says Wasa. We’ll then try to figure out where they went afterwards, says Kei. I’ll look into the satellites and transmitters, says Ken. By the way, I heard that you guys upgraded to filming capabilities with your satellites, says Kei. Who told you that? asks Wasa. A birdie, says Kei. Don’t look at me, Ken tells Wasa. A guy approaches Phenos and whispers something. Phenos turns towards Kei. The forensics are done. They said that the blood was that of the criminal. And whatever was in the bag was not much of worth either, sadly, says Phenos. So that means that if this doesn’t work, we’re fucked. No more leads, no more chances, nothing more than another billion dead, says Kei. Then go! Let’s get moving, says Wasa.

To death and beyond, says Z as he holds up a glass of water. They all look in awe at him. Brothers, sisters, wives, friends and foes, today is the day we’ve been working on for twenty thousand years. Today is the day we’ve won. No matter the mistakes we’ve made along the way. No matter the disagreements we’ve had. One thing was always there for us and tied us in this dream of ours. Death! The need for death. The love of death. And the pain of living with these ungrateful, selfish, frustratingly hypocritical bastards! As soon as these twenty four hours end, we will have achieved something that no one will ever be able to take from us, replicate or undo, says Z as the thirty members get up to applaud him. I want to thank you all for your effort, your patience, your time and the fact that you remained by my side. And I want to especially thank the one, the only genius, the man that brought us this glorious day, Perses! says Z as they one more stand up to clap. Oh please. If it weren’t for what you, we wouldn’t have been able to pull this off. Especially after what happened ten years ago, says Perses. It was a miracle what happened ten years ago, says Asteria. To death! exclaims Z as he toasts with his glass of water..

Niles sent me the phone numbers, I’ll forward them to you. Please explain the situation to them nicely, says Wasa. Ram and Pincer look at their phones and quickly leave the room to make the phone calls. We found them, they are three in total. One criminal and two kidnappers then, says Kei. Where? asks Mary. There. Ken, come over here. Can you make out if there are any video cameras from around here? We need their faces, says Kei. Ken leans over to look at the monitor. I’ll look, give me a minute, says Ken. I’ll come with you. I’ll take over once you find me a good picture with their faces, says Mary. How far can we follow them for? asks Kei. For as long and wide as you want, says Wasa. You guys are creepy. I understand why you built this. But at the same time, I still don’t agree with it, says Kei. Does it matter? We’re about to save another billion lives, says Wasa. It matters, says Kei as they follow the two with the kidnappers. It doesn’t. Otherwise this wouldn’t be one small room in the basement of this precinct with three computers, says Wasa. Do you recognize that building they went in? Kei asks Wasa. I do, but that doesn’t make much sense. It’s just a regular apartment building, says Wasa. I’ll speed it up, says Kei. Nothing, just one van and they didn’t come out, says Wasa. There’s a laundromat there, says Phenos. Oh no, that means that the van is what drove them away. That means they know about this, says Kei. Found them, says Mary. Oh no, this is getting worse, says Kei as he looks at their photos.

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The Horrorscope - Episode 48: Eclipse Part 3: Second Contact

Imber bursts through the doors of the precinct in a hurry. It’s… It’s happening again, says Imber exasperated. What? asks Phenos. The crashes, the people being ill. It’s just like ten years ago, says Imber. But I don’t feel anything, says Ram. Kei looks out that the iridescent light outside the precinct. Maybe this time is different, says Kei. What do you mean different? asks Pincer. I mean, what if their goal isn’t death this time? asks Kei. Then why emulate the exact same situation? Pincer asks. Another crash is heard as car alarms start blaring in the streets. Not just that, but it doesn’t add up. Why kidnap criminals last month, somehow, kill an officer two days ago, manipulate these idiots into terrorism? What were they trying to draw our attention from? It doesn’t make sense, says Kei. And who can do that? asks Pincer. Kei looks at X and Yellow like something clicked in his mind. You! Kei exclaims as he points at X. How did you organize? You must have had some method to your craziness, right? asks Kei. We did, but we aren’t gonna tell you, says X. What happened to your mannerisms? asks Kei. We’re about to die, I don’t really give a shit about keeping up appearances, says X. Fair point, says Kei as he turns towards Pincer. Do you guys still spy on people? Kei asks. I’m not authorized to tell you that, says Pincer. Fuck your authorization! Another billion people are gonna fucking die! Kei screams at him before turning towards Imber. And you. Did you bring the thing we left with you? Kei asks Imber as he nods. He hands them to Phenos. Go take them to forensics, Kei tells Phenos.

Go home, get to safety, Wasa tells Niles. Everyone scattered on the streets and they seem to be on edge, Ken tells Wasa. There’s nothing we can do about it now, says Wasa. What are you gonna do? asks Niles. Just as you said, it’s their decision. We’re gonna go back to the precinct. Something feels wrong, says Wasa. Niles leaves in a hurry as Ken gives the order through their radio station. Wasa signals Ken to follow him to the car. As he turns on the car, the computer comes online and on the screen an immense number of phone calls and distress calls appear on his screen. What the fuck is happening? he asks himself. Let me check, says Ken as he pulls out his phone and Wasa starts driving. It seems that there are a lot of people outraged about the UN council, there’s a lot of debate regarding that. But there are also people saying that what happened ten years ago, is happening today again. Posting pictures with the weird light and saying that there are people that are feeling ill. Let me see… Says Ken as he keeps scrolling. Car crashes… Looting in some places… It really feels like it’s a repeat from ten years ago. But no deaths, yet, says Ken. One death, says Wasa. Ken’s face starts turning red as his breathing becomes accentuated. Fuck! I did nothing for him! He died alone, and now more people will die and in ten years… I managed nothing… Ken says as silences fills up the car. If that’s true for you, then it is true for every living being. You don’t have to take it all on your shoulders, Ken. We each have a responsibility towards those that died and those that live. And if we fail, we all fail. There’s no one hero, nor is there just one villain, says Wasa as they reach the precinct and see deserted cars that were crashed into each other on the street.

I’ve identified them all, says Mary. That’s great, says Kei as Ken and Wasa walk through the door. Do you still spy on people? Kei asks Pincer again. Officially? No. Off the books? Yeah, says Wasa. Why? he asks? Because I think I have an idea how to find whoever did this. For how long do you keep the recordings? asks Kei. Three months, says Wasa. Perfect. That means we can look at the tapes to see who kidnaped the criminal. But, even if you had the records for one week, it would’ve been enough. Because we need to look at any suspicious activity in the past week on rooftops, big dishes or any big equipment that can transmit messages, waves, whatever. And this is the important part, we don’t need receivers, we need to look for transmitters, explains Kei. Why? asks Wasa. Because for a large operation like this they need a global reach. And what better way to do that than with a satellites, duh, says X. Exactly, says Kei. Who’s that? asks Wasa. Long story, we don’t have time, says Kei. Is it still underground? asks Kei. How did you know? asks Wasa. Well, let’s just say I don’t owe Ken a big favor for nothing. But that’s besides the point. Whatever these guys are doing, are clearly having an effect on the atmosphere or at the very least the ozone layer. Otherwise the light to be so weirdly colored doesn’t make sense, right? And correct me if I’m wrong, but, if I’m not mistaken there are over a million satellites orbiting the planet. And you use those to spy on us. From our location, to our communication, and even through our walls. So we’re gonna use that to find them and stop this eclipse, says Kei.

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The Horrorscope - Episode 47: Eclipse Part 2: Still First Contact

A strange glow besets the skies as people in the streets murmur and talk about the revelation that there was no actual governing body keeping the piece. Then who made the laws? Someone was asking. I mean, there must have been someone that looked at our actions and decided which laws to pass, right? Asked someone else. What the fuck is even happening? Ask a few more people. What are we to do? Asks a woman panicked. We need to do something! Someone shouts. What exactly? Someone shouts back. I don’t know! He shouts again. Niles pops up on billboards, TVs, phones and radios. Dear people, I know that the revelation that the UN council hasn’t been active in thousands of years comes as a shock to most of you. But we here at UN, believe that democracy isn’t about what we think. It’s about what you, the people, think, feel, want. It is your responsibility to make yourself heard, to keep yourself informed and make an informed decision. It is your interest at play whether we build roads, trains, planes, hospitals or housing. You have informed all of our decisions when you answered our surveys, when you protested, when you cried out on social media, we only listened. And look around. It worked. We’ve had piece for thousands of years. It is time to decide again what you want, Miles ends the broadcast as people remain speechless in the streets.

What’s the eclipse? asks Pincer. They all look in disbelief at Pincer. What do you mean this is an eclipse? Pincer rephrases his question. We’ve been staring in the fucking sun trying to find the truth, yet we’ve been blinded, because there’s clearly something getting in front of the sun. And it’s the thing we haven’t considered thinking about! So it’s an eclipse, explains Kei. Okay, fine. But what are you talking about? asks Pincer. These aren’t keys of death. They’re distractions. These idiots didn’t even inspect them and we didn’t have a chance to do so, says Kei as he slams it to the ground and it breaks into pieces. It’s a fucking toy. It’s nothing, says Kei. No, nanoparticles, no nanomachines, no anything that could kill anyone, frustrated Kei looks at X and Yellow. Then what the fuck were we doing? asks Yellow. Playing dumbass, says Kei as N regains consciousness. Are you okay? Ram asks. N nods as he sees one of the keys of death broken on the floor and starts panicking. What? What’s wrong? asks Ram. N points to the key being broken. Kei turns towards N. Don’t worry, these aren’t real, Kei tries to reassure N. N shakes his head and he points towards the sky outside the precinct. They turn to see the orange tinted sky. What? What is it? Pincer asks. N covers his head as he crawls to the ground. Wait, I get it, says Kei. Whoever wanted us distracted, did fulfill their plans, says Kei…

What do you remember about ten years ago? asks Kei. I remember planes crashing down, accidents. people simply falling to the floor, says Pincer. I remember those too. I was in an elevator when a couple of colleagues died right next to me. As the elevator doors opened, a car came crashing through the front door of the office building, crushing another couple of people, says Kei. It also rained, said Phenos. Yes, but everything had this weird tint to it, remember? asks Kei. No, says Pincer. I don’t think any of us want to, says Pincer. Kei pulls out his phone and starts looking up clips from ten years ago. Look, he says as he points the phone at the them. Do you see how weird and unnatural this purple light is? And look, it’s in all these videos from ten years ago. That can’t just be a coincidence, says Kei. So what? asks Ram. Look outside. Look at what N is pointing. There is a weird orange tint in the air. It’s unnatural, says Kei. And you think this has something to do with what happened ten years ago? asks Pincer. Exactly! exclaims Kei. How? asks Phenos. It’s clear that someone set them up. Whether it’s the keys of death, the rumors, someone knew exactly what they were doing manipulating them, says Kei. What about the UN then? The missing criminals? N? asks Ram. You have to ask Wasa about the first one. The rest is still just a mystery. But my guess is that N knows something we don’t. And those criminals, were probably test subjects, says Kei. A big crash and an explosion is heard outside the precinct. What the…

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The Horrorscope - Episode 46: Eclipse Part 1: First Contact

As the doors open, the people flood in and stop to see Ken, Wasa and Niles. An air of silences envelops the room. Hear me, people! Niles raises his voice as a few start streaming what is happening inside the room. There is no council! There is no justice to be found here! If you wanted justice, you should’ve looked for it ten years ago, not today! Today is too late to find out what happened ten years ago! Niles continued. Everyone looks baffled at the situation as they look around with no idea what to do. You’ve ruled yourselves how you saw fit for thousands of years. The choices you’ve made became law of the land and sea. Your behavior became the bed you slept upon and that you will be sleeping from now on! We are a united nation on this one planet and we choose our destiny! We choose how we respond to those that try to separate us! It is our duty as individuals to choose what we want and to act accordingly! If you want justice for what happened ten years ago, start looking today for the wrongdoings that are happening now! Correct that which you can! Because once it is past you, you can never go back and fix what’s been broken! Niles declares as the room echoes with his words. Slowly the people start leaving the building and the streets peacefully yet shocked at what they discovered.

Whose are the keys of death? How did you find out about them? Kei asks X and Yellow. Cooperate and you might get a lighter sentence, Pincer tells the two. X looks at Yellow and he nods. By complete coincidence. We were looking for answers to what happened ten years ago and there are a lot of conspiracy theories. We’ve found some friends that were very like minded and we tried to go after those claims to either prove them or disprove them. We called ourselves Task Force M, for myth busting, says X. Wait, those guys are you? asks Kei. You know about us? asks Yellow. Yeah, I’ve seen your work, thought it was interesting. But you guys fell from the face of the planet at some point, says Kei. Because we found this theory about they keys of death. It was saying that there had to be these devices that can kill anyone, but what happened ten years ago was a misfire. And that there had to be those that died holding the device, so there must be these devices spread all over the place. So we started looking and after a while we started hearing these rumors that the police here might have on such device. And then we saw you and your friends going to a mortician that worked on the case ten years ago. So we wanted to come ask you a few questions, but you ran. And then your apartment exploded in flames, so we hurried to follow you, says X. Wait, you guys didn’t blow up my apartment? asks Kei. No, we were just following you and we wanted to ask you something regarding the case, says X.

But that doesn’t make any sense, says Kei. What about your plans? he asked. We didn’t lie to you. Anyone would feel safe and powerful with the keys to death in their hands. And we do want to make them pay. Those that didn’t learn anything after a billion died, those that killed that billion, explains X. Okay, but then who blew up my apartment? asks Kei. And how did you get your hands on this key of death? asks Pincer. I don’t know who blew up your apartment. And to how we got that key of death is a whole other story, says X. Get with it, fast, says Pincer as Kei starts pacing around the precinct. We got it sent to us in a package without anything written on it. There was only a not inside saying this is a key of death, use it wisely and your wishes might come true, says X. You morons! Kei explodes with anger. What? asks Yellow. How didn’t any of you catch on this? You seemed quite intelligent until a few seconds ago. What the fuck? asks Kei. What? asks Pincer. They were used! They’re a distraction! Even the protest at UN is a distraction! exclaims Kei as he turns towards X and Yellow. Let me ask you this. You guys didn’t start kidnapping criminals this month, now did you? asks Kei. No, what? asks Yellow. Why would we do that? asks X. Exactly. Fuck! exclaims Kei. What is happening? asks Yellow. Don’t you see? You were used as a distraction. Someone sent you this and planted that rumor to distract us from what’s about to happen! exclaims Kei. Are you okay? Hey! Hey! Ram asks N as he drops to the floor. Oh no… It’s starting, says Kei. What is? asks Pincer. The Eclipse…

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The Horrorscope - Episode 45: A Scythe to See

Drop your guns, says Telum as he holds Yellow in a choke hold at gunpoint. Drop it, Mary too screams as she holds X. X and Yellow start laughing as the others start shooting them. Telum and Mary let go of X and Yellow as the two keep laughing. If you’re gonna threaten us, at least do a better job at it, says X as Mary and Telum fall to the ground. You do understand that you can’t just bluff like that, right? asks Yellow. Fuck, says Kei. Now, where were we? asks Yellow as he gets up. A few grenades roll towards their feet. What the… says X. They explode with smoke, filling the precinct floor as footsteps are heard surrounding them. What’s happening? asks Yellow while coughing. Hands up! screams a familiar voice. We have you surrounded! screams the same person. As the smoke begins to dissipate, they all look around confused. Surrounding them was Pheno, Ada and the rest of the police force. Yes! Big fish lips guy! explodes with happiness Kei. Pheno? What are you dong here? asks Ram. Wasa called us in, since they left for the UN headquarters, explains Pheno. X and Yellow together with their goons drop their weapons. You have some explaining to do, says Kei as he looks down at X. What do you mean? asks Pheno. They were here looking for this, in order to redo what happened ten years ago, explains Kei. How? asks Pheno. That’s what we’re about to find out, says Kei.

Explain this to me, Ken screams in Niles’ face. What do you want me to explain? It’s quite self-explanatory, says Niles. Where’s the council? asks Ken. What council? asks Niles. The council that was supposed to be… Ken is quickly interrupted by Niles. To be what? To do what exactly? Be a figure for peace? Hate, for some? Or the deciding force behind it all? Niles asks. I don’t know… says Ken. Exactly. No one really knows anything. The council didn’t really do much, they stuck around for five years and then came together once in a while to smile and wave at people. But the people ruled by their own rules. Lived by their own accord. They didn’t need the council. They just needed someone to unite us all. We just needed someone to finally tell us that we don’t need countries, to put our petty differences aside and unite, says Niles. That explains why they didn’t do anything about what happened ten years ago, says Wasa. Even if there was a council, what would you have them do exactly? The people mourned their deaths and did nothing else. As such, the will of the people prevailed and everyone tried to move on from the tragedy. But it seems that after ten years, people are waking up. Yet the problem remains, says Niles as people are hitting the door. They are barking at the wrong tree, he explains as the doors burst open.

You’ll never escape this, Kei tells Yellow and X. Ten years ruined by one simple misjudgment, says X. Who are you? Ram asks N. Oh, I know who that is. Keep him safe, says Kei. Telum, please come back with me, says Pheno. He looks down at the ground as he sighs and nods. I’ll take some photos so we can identify them, says Mary. Want me to hold their heads up? asks Pincer. Please, says Mary. So? How did you want to use these keys of death to recreate what happened ten years ago? asks Kei. We didn’t want to recreate what happened ten years ago, explains X. Then what did you want? asks Kei. To hold to world hostage at gunpoint? asks sarcastically Yellow. And then what? You guys really didn’t think this through, did you? Death can be painful, but once it’s accepted as part of life, there’s no reason to fear it, says Kei. Exactly, some might even embrace it, says Mary. Have you guys never read any books? There’s tones of philosophy and fiction on death and what if we weren’t immortal, says Kei. Or studies on how we responded when a billion died, adds Mary. X hangs his head down in shame after Pincer let’s go. We wanted to make them pay and we wanted to feel safe and powerful, says Yellow. And what? Create an arms race to see who could replicate your keys of death? asks Kei. They aren’t ours, says Yellow. Then how do you know about them? Why were you searching for them? Whose are they? asks Kei.

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The Horrorscope - Episode 44: Doors of Death and Truth

We want justice! We want justice! The crowd explodes as they pull on the doors of the UN Headquarters. I’m going up, says Niles in a panicked voice. What the fuck, says Ken. Men, listen here! Once the people enter this building we need to contain the chaos to this building! So you all should evacuate! Now! And once outside, surround the the people and contain the madness! screams Wasa. Yes, sir! they respond. What will you do? asks Ken. We need to keep that moron Niles safe, at least, says Wasa. And what about the doors? asks Ken. Let them come. All that matters is the safety of the people. We can’t let them trample themselves to death out there, says Wasa as they get into an elevator. What do you think is up there? asks Ken. I don’t know, but at this point I do have a suspicious feeling that it’s something that we already knew, says Wasa. Which is? asks Ken as the doors open. What are you doing here? asks Niles. We’re here to keep you safe, says Wasa. Safe from what? asks Niles. The mob that will come up here as soon as they breach those doors, says Wasa with a smile on his face. Why? Why did you let them in? asks Niles. Because at some point the truth will come out, no matter how hard you are trying to protect it, says Wasa.

Do you recognize this? asks X. Yes, says Kei. Do you know where the other one is? asks X. Which other one? asks Kei. Wait, what? asks X. Is there more than one? asks Yellow. No, says X. But that’s what he’s implying, says Yellow. What the fuck, says X. What did you mean? Yellow asks Kei. I meant what I meant, says Kei. Tell me what you know, or I’ll make your pal Telum, bash this guy’s head in, says X. Why would there be more than two keys of death? asks Yellow. I don’t know, but we ‘re about to find out, says X as he points his gun at Kei. A key of what? asks Ram. It’s that device they’re holding, says Kei. What do you know about it? asks X. Not much. Well, until you opened your mouth just now, says Kei. I’m gonna fucking do it! screams X as he turns his gun towards Telum. I didn’t know what they were called. I only saw one from Captain Wasa. I didn’t know what it was. I promise, says Kei. So there are just two? asks X. I don’t know, I just saw the one I told you about. And even so, I don’t think the Captain would tell me, says Kei. What about you guys? asks Yellow. Ram, Pincer and Mary shake their head. What about you? Yellow asks Telum. No. Not that I know of, says Telum. What the fuck is happening here? asks X exasperated. Mary pushes Kei into X, Telum pushes N into Yellow, as they both start running towards the two to take their weapons away. Gun shots are heard from inside the precinct…

We want justice! We want justice! the people are heard crying from inside the building. This is all your fault, says Niles as he points at Wasa. My fault? What did I do? asks Wasa. You failed them! screams Niles. How? asks Wasa. You’re the police. You’re supposed to protect and serve. And what did you do in the past ten years since a billion died? They should have your head on a spike! says Niles. You do understand that a billion died from all over the world, not just here, in our city, right? What was I supposed to do? Multiply myself? There’s only so much a few men can do., says Wasa. The cries of the people are heard getting closer and closer. You both can just admit that you failed the people, says Ken. What? asks Niles. Well, you should’ve know what was happening in the world, Ken tells Niles. And you, should have given the people an answer sooner, Ken tells Wasa. And what answer would have that been? One of no hope? One that would’ve let people know that if it were to happen again, we couldn’t do anything about it? People were grieving, Ken. We still are. Especially after the death of your partner, says Wasa. Wait, a new death? Like dead dead forever? asks Niles. Yes, says Wasa. Oh no… Not again, says Niles as the elevator doors and the door to the staircase open and people start flooding into the top floor. Quick, inside, says Wasa. No, says Niles. I don’t care, says Wasa as he opens the door and pushes Niles inside as Ken follows to close the doors behind them. What the fuck, says Niles as he looks around.

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