Can't find them

We've been looking for Ben and Eight for a while now. I heard from Isaac that he had seen Eight earlier, but he had vanished before they could approach him.

We're hiding out in a giant knight piece right now. Crow released a few of his birds- sorry, Convocation- and sent them to circle the sky. Apparently there's an open gash on his left palm, which he covers up with a glove soaked in rubbing alcohol. Gross.

I'm getting really stressed out. Hey, I didn't know Alexander to do that. I thought crows were supposed to be annoying and loud, but Alexander is chirping quite beautifully.

It's peaceful. Soothing. Man, I'm drowsy. When was the last time I slept? It can;t have been that long ago. So why am I so tir

Searching

Well, my hunch was right. Ben was possessed by the Dying Man. He ran away, with the Eight Of Clubs chasing after him. No clue where they are. So now I'm left alone with Sound and Lotus, plus a nest named Andrew "The Crow" Miles, and an SMSC agent going by the alias "Algeria Touchshriek".

The Illusionist contacted me earlier. He said h's convinced Ren to help us out for now. I've been placed in charge of these clowns. We're going to go search for Malkator. I don't know what's going to happen when we find him. The Illusionist and Ren are going to search elsewhere. They'll try to contact us if anything happens.

I'll update this blog when I can, and Crow will be updating Malkator's blog every now and then. I'm holding onto Malkator's book. I won't let anyone look inside. Malkator obviously didn't want his secret getting out, and I won't let it.

Not Himself

This isn't the Malkator I remember. He's actually enjoying all the bloodshed.

Well, long story short, we found him and his group.

We've been travelling together for a little while. We were attacked by the Naga's servants, and Malkator decided to brutally slaughter all of them before devouring the bodies. It was frightening, and he just laughed maniacally the whole time. Eventually he calmed down enough to post on his blog.

He's becoming mad. It almost as if... no, it couldn't be....

Entry

This is the Butterfly. I guess the Illusionist stole the password to this blog from my head while I wasn't paying attention. Anyway, I'm on the Board right now. Me, Sound, and Lotus are all together. We were separated from the Illusionist earlier, and Gamer's leg hasn't recovered yet.

We left this morning. Master came to us and led us through the path. He followed him for three hours. He led us down several forks, and I soon realized that the Path of Black Leaves didn't just connect to the human world; It was linked to every domain in existence. Including the Board. He stopped after a while and opened up a gate. We all stepped through.

I was shocked by what happened to Slender Man when he entered the Board. An instantaneous transformation came over him. He became shorter. About six feet tall. He grew black hair over his scalp, and he had a face. A face. I was actually used to seeing him without a face, so the sudden appearance of one was startling for me.

"I don't enjoy this feeling," He said, looking down at his hand. That's right. He was actually speaking. "Being human is terrible. I cannot fathom how you people deal with it."
"You get used to it when you've been one your whole life," The Illusionist said. "How long will you be this way?"
"This world suppresses my power," He replied. "It could take months to regain my full strength. However, once  I leave this world, I will instantly regain my power. You're on your own from here. I have other matters to attend to. Your mission is to protect Malkator and prevent him from encountering the Game Master."
"What is the Vision," The Illusionist asked as Slender Man returned to the portal.
"She is none of your concern," Slender Man said. Then he was gone.
"What did you mean when you asked about the Vision?" Lotus asked.
"Master has had me keeping an eye on the blog of Daniel Ferris," The Illusionist said. "In the blog, Daniel claims to have encountered our Master, and an unknown force caused him to say that 'The Vision still exists, within the Demi-God'. I'm not sure what the Vision is, but the Master did let one thing slip just now.:
"And what would that be?" I asked.
"Whatever the Vision is, it's a girl," He said. "Or at least, it was at one point."

That conversation was cut short when another figure burst through a wall a few yards from us. It was Ren, the Tree-hybrid.
"Where is he!" He demanded. "I know I felt the Slender Man's presence!"
"He's left," The Illusionist said.
"Very well," Ren said, summoning a giant thorn in his right hand. "I'll just have to settle for his servants."
The Illusionist drew his glave and said "I the rest of you to leave. I'll take him alone."
"But your powers have been restricted, haven't they?" I asked him.
"So have his," He said. "He's regained some of his strength, but not all of it. Besides,I'm smart enough to work with what I still have. Now go!"

With that, he charged at Ren and engaged him in battle. The rest of us ran.

This place is like a labyrinth. It's not a full-blown maze, but it's easy to get lost in. It will be hard to reunite with the Illusionist. Good news is, I saw a bird circling the sky earlier. Not just any bird though; It was a crow. It must be Alexander. We're getting closer to Malkator.

New Mission

This is O'Zalia. Myrir is busy making preparations as well. She's excited. I can't blame her. I'm also eager for the chance to see Malkator again. But I'll get to that later.

We've managed to track down and kill all the Campers in the area. I learned their master plan by reading their minds. Their goal was to contaminate the local water tower with ink. They hadn't accomplished this yet, so we managed to prevent a rather sticky situation from occurring.

When we got back to the hotel after eliminating the last of them, we found that Master was waiting for us. He had gotten a clue to the connection between Malkator and the Game Master. He didn't tell us what he found out, and I'm not stupid enough to ask.

Our new mission is to infiltrate the Board and try to prevent Malkator and the Game Master from meeting face-to-face. We set out tomorrow.

I'm looking forward to this. It feels like it's been too long since our last meeting, my friend. Here's hoping our next fight won't be as inconclusive. Heheheh.

The Truth About Isaac

He decided to let me meet his family today. I was a little shocked to learn his parents were still alive. I kind of assumed the Slender Man made his servants kill their parents. I guess that's not always the case. They seemed nice, but I think his mom thought we were a couple. Yeah right. He's my team's leader, and nothing more.

I also met his little brother. A little 10-year-old named Adam. They had an interesting conversation when they saw each other.

"Hey, Adam," Isaac said. "How you been?"
"I've been doing great!" Adam replied.
"How's school?" Isaac asked.
"It's going fine."
"Are your grade good?"
"Yep!"
"Anyone bullying you?"
"This one guy was for a little while, but the teacher made him stop."
The next question was where it got weird.
"Have you seen the ghost lately?" Isaac asked.
"No," Adam replied. "He left for some reason."
Isaac smiled. "That's because big brother told him to scram."
"Yeah!" Adam said excitedly. "Even the ghost has to do what you say, because my big brother is a super hero!"
"Yeah," Isaac said, starting to seem a little sad. "A super hero. Right."

Isaac explained it all to me later, while we were drinking coffee.
Slender Man was stalking my brother before, He said to me in thought speak.
I figured that was it, I thought back.
I was always a really smart kid, He explained. I got excellent grades, I learned things quickly, I had excellent logic, but there was a down side to all that.
And what would that be? I asked.
I was also born with a heightened awareness of the supernatural, He said. I could see Slender Man when no one else aside from Adam could. It didn't take me long to figure out that he had taken an interest in my brother. I didn't know exactly what he wanted though. Then one day, I saw a youtube video called "Concrete Giraffes."
Concrete Giraffes? I asked.
Yeah, He replied. It was a parody video made by Littlekuribo
Little what? I asked.
He's the guy who makes Yu-Gi-Oh the abridged series, He explained. Don't judge me. Anyway, I saw the ghost in that video, and for the first time, I learned his name. Slender Man. So I did some research, and I learned exactly what he was and what he was after.
So what did you do? I inquired.
I offered myself to him, He explained. He agreed to leave my brother alone, provided I do every thing he asked of me. And so I became a proxy. I followed all of his orders. When he says "Jump", I say "How high?". Then, on day he started the Enhancement experiment. The process was painful, and the proxies who volunteered for it often lost their lives. Those who didn't die gain extraordinary strength and speed, but their lifespans became severely short. One day, he asked me to become an enhanced. I didn't like the idea, but if it would keep my family safe, I was more than willing to put my life in danger.
What was it like? I asked curiously.
The worst pain I could ever imagine, He said. I'm not sure how I managed to survive it. More curious was the nature of my abilities. Rather than my body, it was my mind that became en-


He was cut off by Adam's scream coming from the next room.
"It's Master," Isaac said. "Adam saw him outside."
We went to Adam, and I think Isaac wiped his memory, because when his parents asked what was wrong, he seemed convinced that he had seen a coyote. Isaac and I agreed to go investigate.

And so we went outside to where Slender Man was waiting by a patch of trees.
"You agreed not to come near my family," Isaac said angrily.
I have more orders for you, He responded.
"You couldn't wait for us at the hotel!?" Isaac demanded. "You said you'd leave them alone! You know my brother's terrified of you!"
It is not your place to question my actions, He replied.
"But what about our deal!?" Isaac almost shouted. "You shouldn't be here!"
Slender Man quickly wrapped a tentacle around Isaac's throat and pinned him against a tree.
That's enough, Slender Man said angrily. There is a large group of campers in the area. Find and crush all of them. If you refuse, you can say goodbye to your brother.


So yeah, we now have a new mission. Kill campers. If there's a large number in this town, then they must be up to something. We'll have to watch our backs.

Another worrying thing. Isaac had a pretty bad coughing fit while we were at his parents house. I think his time might be running out.

Vacation

So Isaac decided that we're all going on a vacation while we wait for new orders. Apparently, we're going to his home town. He took us all to Iowa via the Path, and he got us a bunch of free hotel rooms by brainwashing the manager. Crystal and I are sharing a room, Jerome and Gray have the room next door to us, and Isaac gets his own room right across the hall. I know I should be grateful to be getting a break from all this craziness, but this is the infamous Illusionist Isaac O'Zalia we're talking about. I can't help but think he has hidden motives for bringing us here.