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Ceres threw the door open mid-pounding. The human pounding on the door had been leaning against it, and so stumbled into Ceres when the door flew open. Ceres, not having any of it, placed her hand over the man's face and pushed him back over the threshold, sending him into the wall opposite the door; he hit the wall and crumpled to the ground. She looked at the other humans in the hall, the four who came to support the first in their demand for information.

"What?"

The four turned their attention to the first who was picking himself up. They all waited while he composed himself. He then addressed Ceres, standing well back from the threshold.

"You know the rules, witch. No one is allowed to--"

"I know we have responsibility to protect any and all who we find who are not with them." Ceres stepped into the threshold and planted her hands on either side of the door's frame; the human stepped back, pressing himself against the wall as if he might slip through it and away from Ceres. "Or have you forgotten who our common enemy is? Need I remind you?"

"This is absurd," he said. "You know we can't just take in anyone." He turned to the others to garner support, but they avoided his gaze and shrank away from the door.

One of them spoke up without raising his head: "She's a witch, Mar. Just let her be, like we said."

Another spoke up, quiet and timid, addressing Ceres: "I'm sorry. We don't want any trouble. We're just afraid."

Ceres held out a hand to the timid one, who hesitated a moment, but gave her hand anyway. Ceres gently brought the young woman in for a hug, who settled into Ceres' embrace. The effect was instantaneous; the woman buried her face in the Ceres' shoulder and started crying.

"I don't know how much longer I can do this," she said between sobs.

Ceres cradled the woman's head with one hand while staring hard at Marcello, the man who had come a-pounding and demanding. Marcello wilted further, but remained steadfast in his purpose.

"We're all scared. And you just invite two strangers in from the roof." He spat and continued. "From the roof! How did they get up there? You can't keep them from us."

"I'm not keeping anyone," said Ceres. Her voice was hard but quiet, as she did not want to further frighten the woman in her arms. "I'm not the problem, Mar. And neither are these two strangers."

"We don't know that," said Mar.

Ceres' voice grew harder. "We would know even less with you in charge. We all know what happened with the last two people who stumbled upon us. Everyone knows what you did."

Mar looked at the others who outright turned away from him.

"I did what I had to."

"And for what, Mar?" said one of the others.

"You went too far," said Ceres. "There is no one in your little group who doesn't think so. And now they follow you around like mice, because they're afraid they'll be next." Ceres released the young woman and moved her into the room, placing herself between the woman and Mar. "I said I would guide you across the city. I did not agree to be party to your cruelty."

"You British Bitch, what do you know of our struggle here?" Mar was heated and growing bolder.

Continued after the break

Ceres rushed Mar, who attempted to scramble up the wall to get away. Seeing his desire to rise, Ceres helped him by grabbing him by the throat and lifting him off his feet, pinning him to the wall. Her voice became low when she spoke.

"Did you forget this problem is global?" Ceres pulled her helmet off with her free hand and licked her lips. "Everyone everywhere is struggling. You're not special. But I can make you feel special if you want. I can make you feel like you made those poor travelers feel when you were ... questioning ... them."

Mar struggled to breathe under Ceres' grip who watched fear bloom behind his eyes. Ceres grinned. The fear always came when they realized they were no match for her. The others grew bold, watching him struggle under the apparent ease of Ceres' control of him.

"I ... only ... ckh, nghg, ack ... did what I ... hcktch ..."

"There's a line, Mar," said one.

"You went way over," said another.

"You killed them, you monster," said the woman behind Ceres.

"Maybe we leave him for the monsters, since he wants to act like one," said the first.

Ceres released him, and he crumpled to the floor once again. He began to climb to his hands and knees. Without taking her eyes off him, she addressed the others in the hall.

"Why do you follow this worm?" She kicked him in the gut as she said it, causing him to fall back to the floor. The others watched without responding. She looked up and caught each of their eyes, one by one. "Some monsters are human-shaped, and worse than the monsters you flee." Ceres gave Mar another solid kick, sending him right back to the floor during another attempt to get up. She then kneeled down next to him.

"Just so we're clear, I brought those two in myself to protect you and your people. Maybe next time I'll just let you deal with them."

"Who are they?" One of the others in the hall glanced at the open door as they spoke, angling their head to see around the corner but unable to see past the woman in the door.

Ceres stood and looked at them.

"They're old friends. I daresay they'd be willing to help, but doubtful after this welcome." She turned back to Mar and kicked him again, sending him back to the floor a fourth time. "Just fucking lay there, you shit, until someone decides what to do with you."

"What are we supposed to do?" It was the same person who asked about Edgar and Isabelle.

Ceres kept her eyes on Marcello. "You make sure he's no longer a problem and I'll keep my word and get you through the city." She then looked up and around at the humans and said, "You leave this dipshit in charge and I leave you here, now. You can find your own way out."

Mar coughed, spat, and shouted: "And who's going to help you all once you're through? You'd all be dead already if it wasn't for me."

The three humans in the hall and the woman behind Ceres all looked at each other, unsure of how to proceed. Ceres addressed them while staring at Mar.

"Go ask the others what they want to do if you're unwilling to make a decision right now. You have until the sun sets to decide." She snapped her fingers and her thralls slipped around the woman in the doorway to stand beside Ceres. "Tie him up and put a gag on him for now. Keep him in the room, where he'll stay until they've decided what to do."

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