The sound was coming somewhere from under the debris. Someone was crying for help. Not being aware of my action, I rushed to the source of the sound.

"Darsy, where are you going?" Jackson shouted.

"Stay with children! I'll be back soon."

"No, Darsy!" but I already was not listening.

Driven by a strange feeling, I ducked under the fallen beam. There was little room inside, but I managed to crawl. Water was flowing from somewhere and rubble was crunching under my feet. Perhaps, one of the mall fountains was still functioning, creating a small waterfall. And this would be another problem – bare wires and water was not the best combination.

The sound was amplifying, and now I clearly understood that was the child cry. The dust was eating my eyes out, but I crawled to the sound until a small hand grabbed me.

"Help me!" the eight- or nine-year-old girl cried.

"I'm here for this. Please, don't move so nothing falls on you. What's your name?"

"Amanda," the girl groaned. She was scared and covered in blood, but I had no idea if it was hers.

"My name is Darsy! Tell me, Amanda, are you hurt?"

"No," it could be lie. People often did not feel pain in the state of shock.

"Amanda, are you stuck?"

"My leg is stuck!"

"Okay. Let me see. Just don't move. Deal?"

The girl nodded vigorously. Trying to get to the child's clamped leg, I asked some question to distract her.

"Who were you with?"

"With my Mom. We wanted to buy me new shoes."

I felt sorry for the girl because her mother was probably under the debris of the second floor. Although I did not rule out the possibility that the woman was simply thrown aside and managed to get out. Thus, now the woman was outside frightened to death and suffering of the grief for the missing daughter, or soon the child would learn that she became an orphan.

The leg was pressed by one of the sculptures placed around the perimeter of spacious halls. I tried to move it with my hands but failed, and the slightest movement made the girl scream in pain.

"Amanda, I can get you out, but you have to cover your eyes with your hands to protect them from dust. And do not open your eyes no matter what you hear. Okay?"

"Okay.

She obediently closed her eyes. I concentrated, lifted the statue and a part of the wall easily with the help of the matter, as if the piles of stones weighed nothing. I grabbed the girl with my other hand and lowered the debris, which fell to the ground and formed a cloud of dust.

"Hold on to me, but don't open your eyes till I say so."

Amanda wrapped her arms around my neck, and I crawled vigorously down the way, removing the falling rubble by the Force. We got outside within minutes, and a crying woman rushed to us. She took the girl in her arms, and they both began to cry.

"Thank you!" she looked at me.

"Take care of her!"

Meanwhile, Jackson was heading to me. He was furious.

"Are you out of your mind? Why the hell did you go there? What were you thinking? Are you Captain Marvel or something? Or are you that stupid?"

I heard Jackson talking like this for the first time in my life, especially to me. He had never been so angry. And as offensive, as it sounded, he was right. After all, it was impossible to explain to him that it was much safer for me than for the rescuer. Several people would die trying to get the girl out, or she would die before I even used my powers. But Jackson did not know that. He saw this as a pointless risk and a miracle that I was alive.

"I'm sorry but I couldn't stop, when I heard her cry!"

I hugged my boyfriend to stop him from saying things he would regret. And when I stepped back I saw my mother, who looked at me with her eyes full of tears. How did she manage to get here? As we approached, she hugged me until my bones crunched and said,

"Don't you ever make us worry like this again!"

Doctors wanted to examine me but I refused and escaped. Soon after our return home, my mother took the children away, saying almost nothing in the end. I was sure she would not bring them here anymore. It was a hell of a day.

My parents were never happy about the idea that I would move to live in a big city with an incredible number of dangers that I would not be able to handle alone. My Mom saw herself the proof of her fears. It was strange that she had not yet tried to persuade me to return to a country town, where not fresh fish from the local supermarket was the only danger. My younger brothers and sister would not soon be able to escape the protection of my parents. And all this was because of the ill-fated trip to the mall.

I wonder was it a coincidence that this happened in the place where I was, or my presence caused it.

While I was thinking it through, I was put to the bed and treated with a cup of melissa tea.

"I'm fine! Really! I'm not shocked or wounded! I was born under a lucky star."

"I would say you've been born in a life suit," Jackson tried to be funny.

When the tension eased, he felt remorse about his words at the mall.

"Hey!" I stroked his short hair. "It's okay! You don't have to apologize. I'd have scolded myself for something like that, too. I don't know what has happened to me. I can't even imagine what it was like for you at that moment. I'm sorry I did that."

"Baby, I don't know what I'd do if I lost you!"

Jackson laid his head on my stomach and hugged me. I was caressing his head, trying to calm him down.

"I'd like to take a nap. Will you wake me up by 10 p.m., so I can read a bed-time story for Mary?"

Jackson nodded, and I leaned back on the pillows, blissfully closing my eyes. This was quite a day before the beginning of the academic year.

I had nightmares for a long while. I saw people dying of injuries on their way to the hospital or during surgery. Or was it real?

At 11 p.m. I was waiting for Eugene at the set place, and he did not show up. By 12:30 p.m. I started to get nervous. What if I was in the wrong place?

I sat down straight on the pavement and wondered aloud,

"Eugene, where are you?" I heard a sigh, and when I closed my eyes, I saw him.

It was not some fantasy but a real image of Eugene. He was fighting with a few demons or something. There was nothing else around, but the red ground and dim light – no moon, no stars. The terrain looked like a catacomb or something. I had not studied Tartarus yet, but he might be there.

Eugene selflessly swung his sword, striking the enemy with his weapon, and the tattoo on his face glowed bright red. His expression was stern and focused, his eyes blazed with bright flames. When there was only one opponent left, he looked up, as if he knew I was watching.

"Wake up!" he just said, and I returned to reality.

It was just in time. Otherwise, I would have been eaten by two disgusting creatures just in a second. It would be more logical for me to feel fear, but the first emotion was disgust. These creatures had hands, legs, body, and head like humans but they were not humans and not even Nefarious ones. The grey color of their skin differed much from ours. Moreover, their entire body was covered with mucus. They had no eyes and nose on the face, but swollen vertical holes instead, and the mouth was like a bulldog mouth with sharp long teeth. Their hands were longer than humans, with terrible black claws.

The attackers had hair neither on the head nor on the body. But the most striking thing was the complete absence of the navel and genitals. They were not concerned about wearing clothes. I got the impression that these creatures crawled out of the sewerage. I could feel their terrible stench everywhere.