The shrill ring of the final bell was still echoing off the lockers when Ethel dashed through the hallways of St. Benidict''s High School. Panic gripped her heart; as the last of the buses pulled away. Her breath came in ragged gasps as she searched for a hiding place, The school was all but empty.


    "Ethel!" a familiar voice called out down the hallway, and she raced toward it, turning the corner to find a large, muscular teen, Bruce. He grabbed her hand and led her to the school auditorium. As she slipped inside, they heard a group of people approaching. Bruce gave Ethel a worried look.


    "I''ll lead them away from here," He whispered, but Ethel froze, knowing exactly what that meant for him. His hand reached out, pushing her away just as the exorcists rounded the corner.


    "There''s one" A commanding shout brought attention to Bruce''s location. Pablo, flanked by Father Bill and several others, began to surround the sixteen-year-old.


    Bruce pivoted to face them, his eyes shifting to a dull blue. "Stay back," he growled, claws extending from his fingertips.


    "Out of the way, boy," Father Bill warned, raising his rifle. He aimed at the vessel, Pablo stood beside him, and he seemed amused by the teen''s will.


    A shot rang out, stark and final. Bruce crumpled, his eyes flickering before the glow faded from them. As Ethel held her breath on the other side of the door, Father Bill knelt beside the young vessel, while Pablo tucked away his smoking gun. "He killed two of ours," he stated coldly. "We need to find the girl now. That''s the Code."


    ---


    "And how exactly does that story help us find Ethel?" Ashley murmured.


    Kyle ignored her question, turning back to Rob. "Ethel escaped that school along with another vessel girl, Mary." He finished, sitting back on the faded leather sofa.


    "I''m with Ashley on this one," Rob stated as he paced the floor. They had met in the safe house Ethel had prepared for her covenant''s escape. "No one has seen Ethel in days. We need her so we can come up with a plan to stop Greed,"


    Ashley sighed, shifting in her seat. "He just wants to waste our time,"


    "I would never," Kyle seemed almost offended by that remark. "I am trying to help you. If you want to find her, then you need to really know her,"


    "And you really know her?" Ashley raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms.


    "You forget that before I was Gluttony, Ethel''s family and mine were very close," Kyle looked over at Rob, who shook his head in agreement. Kyle smiled, arms crossed, and he continued. "Ethel is at a place next to impossible to find unless you know her story,"


    "We know the story about the fire," Ashley said, she was getting restless. "Abby set it, her family was killed in it, and then you tracked down and killed Abby."


    "Her whole life isn''t a single story," Kyle pushed himself off the couch, standing up decisively. "This is the story of the time she killed someone."


    "She''s killed people before," Ashley retorted.


    Rob’s gaze narrowed, scrutinizing Kyle as he hesitated. "This is about the first time she took a life isn''t it?" he asked as if he was revealing a deep dark secret.


    "Yes" Kyle began, as he paced the room, "she wasn''t always all business. She used to think she could live a normal life,"


    "Ethel wanted to be normal?" Rob echoed, arching an eyebrow.


    "More than that," Kyle interjected, leaning against the wall with deceptive casualness. "She was once like Zack; unbearably romantic, profoundly narcissistic."


    "Ethel was a romantic?" Rob blinked, taken aback. "Ethel?"


    "Her world revolved around one boy," Kyle continued, a trace of a smirk playing at the corner of his mouth. "Changed her. Forever."


    "And how would you know this, Kyle?" Rob pressed, skepticism lacing his tone.


    "Because I was close to Tara," Kyle replied, eyes unfocused as he shifted through his memories. "Tara and I... we shared much."


    "Shared much..." Rob repeated, giving Kyle a look.


    ---


    In the Palliative care unit at Grand River Hospital, Zack stood before Pablo, who was now confined to a wheelchair, his blacked veins clearly visible beneath his skin.


    "Before I tell you Greed''s weakness," Pablo rasped, his eyes gleaming with a mix of pain and cunning, "you''ll alleviate some of my suffering. A taste of your abilities, Zack."


    "Fine," Zack said tersely, extending his hand, palm down, hovering above Pablo’s chest. The exchange was silent but for Pablo''s sharp intake of breath as the pain visibly receded from his features.


    "That''s enough," Deb said, she pushed Zack''s arm away, as she looked down at Pablo. "You''ll get more of his aura after you talk."


    "You really would have made a great exorcist," Pablo began, his voice stronger now, "But yes, I know Greed. Not just as a sin but before that."


    "You knew him as a human?" Zack was surprised.


    "Danny was never human," Pablo corrected a wry smile returning to his lips. "He really has been around for hundreds of years, but he''s only spent a few decades as Greed."


    ---


    Back at the safe house, Kyle continued his story, the rhythmic bowing of a cello was interrupted by the distant echo of a basketball''s rhythmic pounding back when Ethel was in high school. Rowan''s concentration was broken by the sound, he huffed as the bouncing threw off his timing.


    "Enough!" he exclaimed, bolting from the music room to confront the source of his irritation. A young woman dribbled the ball in the empty hallway. Rowan ran his fingers through his auburn hair, "Can you please take that to the gym?"


    "Why don''t you make me?" Young Ethel taunted, the ball spinning on her fingertip. "It''s a free hallway, I don''t have to listen to you,"


    Rowan tried a few half-hearted lunges, failing each attempt to take the ball from her, only to be met with Ethel''s mocking grins.


    "You''re childish," he muttered, turning his back on her, and heading back to the music room.


    "Wait," Ethel called after him, following into the music room, tucking the ball under her arm. "Look I''m sorry for being a jerk back there. I just got a D in Mr. Warren''s class and that just got me going you know. Can we start over?"


    "Sure we can start over if you can play any instrument in here," Rowan replied, his back still turned, a challenge in his tone.


    Ethel scanned the room briefly before producing a triangle from a bin by the window, striking it with precision to emit a single, clear note. Rowan couldn''t help but smile for a moment at the choice.


    "Rowan," he surrendered, finally facing her.


    "Ethel," she offered, holding out her hand.


    "I know who you are," Rowan replied, shaking her hand, "Led the girls basketball team to victory two years in a row,"


    "Planning on making it three this year," Ethel quipped, a playful smile tugging at her lips, as she noticed Rowan''s grey eyes for the first time and the way they glistened under the lights.


    This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    In the present, Rob had settled on the couch while he listened. He turned to Kyle, who was leaning against the far wall.


    "Wait stop the story," Rob suddenly called out. "You said this happened like twenty years ago, but Ethel is only a few years older than us,"


    "Correction, she only looks a few years older than you," Kyle replied with a noncommittal shrug. "Age is a relative term to someone born a vessel."


    "So wait you stop aging as a vessel?" Rob''s mind raced at the thought of the implications.


    "Don''t be stupid," Kyle glared, "It simply slows down, we still age."


    Rob nodded slowly, processing. "So Zack is going to slowly age too?"


    "Zack''s aging is the least of our concerns," Kyle said dismissively, steering the conversation back to Ethel''s romance with Rowan. "They had their secret spot, an abandoned shack in the woods. A secret space few knew about."


    "Sounds idyllic," Rob commented dryly.


    "The pair were inseparable," Kyle spoke smoothly, eyes avoiding Rob''s gaze. In truth, he had followed the couple into the woods, spying on them as they picnicked on the old wooden porch.


    ---


    The sterile light of the hospital room felt more like a prison, Pablo breathed heavily as he prepared to speak. He glanced at the unimpressed faces that surrounded him.


    "So you killed a vessel," Zack said, crossing his arms. "Shocker,"


    "Ah, but this was the catalyst," Pablo rasped, eyeing the young man. "We didn''t know it at the time, but we had just started a war,"


    "Don''t you mean you started a war?" Deb interjected.


    "Semantics," Pablo croaked, his eyes gleaming as he recalled the killing. "It''s surprising what lengths people will go to eliminate threats. Even those like Danny... or you."


    "Zack isn''t a threat," Deb corrected, she glared at the man.


    "Oh, but our friend Zack is one of the biggest threats. He threatens our very way of life," Pablo continued, gesturing vaguely at his aged visage. "A vessel that fights for human and supernatural alike, unheard of,"


    "I don''t believe that," Zack said, leaning forward, his patience fraying. "You lumped Danny in with me, he reminds you of me doesn''t he?"


    Pablo fixed him with a deliberate gaze. "You do share certain traits,"


    Deb rose, her frustration palpable. "Like their ability to outsmart you? this is a waste of time, let''s go,"


    "Wait," Pablo called, his voice suddenly clear, commanding. As she paused at the doorway, "Danny never outsmarted me, he tried and failed. It all started with that stupid meeting..."


    In the past, a group of covenants gathered at nightfall in the woods. "Another covenant''s loss isn''t my concern," Amanda spat.


    "The exorcists don''t make distinctions between covenants," retorted one of her vessels, eyes dark with shared grief.


    Duncan''s anger was palpable as he pointed to the rope, frayed and swaying softly in the breeze. "Here," he growled, "is where they left him for me to find."


    "They killed one at the school the other day," another vessel murmured, the weight of their collective losses hanging heavy in the air. "His only crime was defending himself when two of them attacked him the night before,"


    "They are taking risks they don''t normally take," Danny whispered to himself, watching the other covenants as they voiced their concerns.


    "He''s not dead, at least not yet," Duncan informed them, his voice trembling with rage.


    "Where is he?" A vessel asked as the group began to mutter.


    "He''s at the hospital, they won''t let me see him," Duncan''s eyes started to well.


    "Family only," One of his vessels informed everyone, as he tried to comfort Duncan.


    "Family?" Duncan roared. "He *was* family!"


    "The local police are getting involved," came a calm interjection. Tara had arrived, her posture both authoritative and relaxed. "We''re working on this, Duncan. But you need to step back."


    "You know they can''t do anything," Duncan spat, but he stepped away, unable to control himself any longer.


    ---


    "Wait did exorcists ever actually follow a code?" Zack murmured, drawing a sardonic laugh from Pablo.


    "Think of the code more as a loose set of guidelines," Pablo replied. He leaned back.


    "Maybe for you," Deb retorted.


    "Says the girl breaking the code as we speak," Pablo said, "Forgive me, but the rules are pretty clear on what happens when you choose to leave. You''re supposed to stay out of this world,"


    "The vessel you killed was Duncan''s?" Zack asked, trying to change the subject.


    "I didn''t really care who he was, but his death did change Duncan," Pablo explained, his gaze distant. "Losing a vessel... It''s like losing a part of your soul when you are a Supreme."


    "So a part of him died that day too," Deb lamented, looking down at the floor. "No wonder he became so angry at the world."


    "It was his own fault, he should have trained his vessels better," Pablo coldly, shrugging off his guilt. "A good Supreme teaches their vessels to control and how to hide. Duncan failed to do both."


    "So that gave you the right to kill a teenager?" Deb retorted.


    "He risked exposing the supernatural world," Pablo tried to justify, he began to cough and reached for his inhaler, taking a deep puff from it.


    "Duncan wanted an eye for an eye," Pablo said, as he looked back on his memories. "It''s why he called the council of covenants together that night, he needed permission,"


    "The council of Covenants?" Zack asked. "How come I''ve never heard of it."


    "They had a bit of a falling out I''m afraid" Pablo smiled to himself, "It happens when three of the four covenants have their Supremes turn on them and the fourth burns."


    "I take it you had someone on the inside listening in for you," Zack answered, his tone solemn. "That''s how you know this."


    "Nothing slips past you," Pablo said sarcastically.


    "So skip ahead to the war part," Deb said, locking eyes with Zack. "Tell us how you defeated Danny so we can do it too."


    "All good things come to those who wait," Pablo looked up to the clock, Deb and Zack followed his gaze. "Visiting hours are almost up for the day."


    ---


    Rob leaned back against the faded leather sofa, his eyes narrowed in suspicion. Kyle watched him and Ashley, a smug look playing on his face as he spun his tale.


    "See, Tara was busy trying to calm her covenant''s fear," Kyle smiled, his voice oozing faux empathy, "Which meant Ethel had all the time in the world to be with Rowan,"


    "Sound''s like normal teenage behaviour," Rob remarked.


    "So she loved a human, big deal," Ashley muttered from her perch on the armrest, her gaze flicking between the two men.


    "It was a big deal," Kyle pressed on, giving her a sideway glance, "One of the first things vessels are taught is to hide, how can you hide from the person you spend every day with? She was petrified of the thought of Rowan discovering what she was..."


    "Scared he would think she was a monster" Rob interrupted, thinking about how Kenzie had reacted to Zack.


    "Spot on," Kyle said, offering a sly grin. "But you see it was my sister, Mary, who had come up with a brilliant idea."


    "What was this brilliant idea?" Ashley asked, her brow furrowing.


    "Well my sister was part of Tara''s covenant," Kyle continued, weaving his tale. "I may have told her about Ethel''s love interest. And she thought that if Rowan became a vessel, then Ethel wouldn''t have to hide that part of herself,"


    "There is no way Ethel would agree to that," Rob protested, crossing his arms.


    "That''s assuming Mary asked her permission," Kyle chuckled. "My sister was rather spirited."


    "She turned Rowan without telling Ethel," Ashley muttered under her breath in shock.


    "As you know a mere vessel doesn''t have that ability," Kyle admitted with a shrug. "Only a Supreme or a sin can change a person into a vessel,"


    "Why would a Supreme agree to change a random teenager?" Rob observed.


    "There are a variety of reasons," Kyle said quickly, drawing their focus back to him. "The person had a strong aura, or, I Don''t know... recently lost a vessel or two and were looking for new recruits."


    "Who''s covenant was Bruce a part of?" Rob asked, realizing what Kyle was implying.


    "You''ve actually met this person," Kyle spread his hands wide. "Bruce belonged to Duncan''s covenant,"


    "So your sister went to him to turn Rowan," Ashley said ominously, her eyes fixed on Kyle.


    "Why would Duncan do it though," Rob asked, glancing around the room. "I mean seriously, Mary wasn''t even his vessel"


    "Your right," Kyle said, a touch too hastily. "but she was Tara''s,"


    "What makes Tara so special," Ashley retorted.


    "She was head of the council, she had the final say on what the covenants would do," Kyle mused.


    "Like green light a plan for revenge," Rob agreed, "Just like Duncan wanted."


    "Do a favour for Tara''s covenant," Ashley suggested, "Earn her favour,"


    "Now you get it," Kyle said with a grin.


    ---


    In the past, the damp air of the cave clung to their skin as Pablo and Father Bill navigated the dimly lit space, their flashlights illuminating the jagged walls. The crude symbols smeared in a dried, rust-like substance demanded their attention.


    "Blood," Father Bill murmured, her voice echoing slightly. "Seems like it has been here a while," he traced a finger over the darkened stone, his brow furrowed in concentration.


    "We aren''t here for cave paintings," Pablo said, his gaze locked on the path ahead of them. "We''re looking for those covenants"


    "I know why we are here," Father Bill said with confidence. "But this place... it feels different like there is a dormant energy here."


    "Oh please, it is an old cave with some pictures in it, not everything is special," Pablo finished.


    "You need to learn to slow down," Bill said. "If you did you would know these symbols are Wiccan, making this place connected to the supernatural world in some way."


    Fast forward to the present, Deb leaned against the sterile wall of the hospital room, arms crossed as she followed along.


    "We had tracked their movements, we thought for sure at least of few of them had taken up residence in that cave," Pablo explained.


    "But it was empty," Deb''s voice was rough, as she watched the time they had left tick away. "So why bring it up?"


    "It was far from empty, we just had it wrong," Pablo coughed. "You see we had actually been seeing the younger vessels using it as a hideout,"


    "So you waited until they came back?" Zack asked, getting angry. "How many did you kill?"


    "Relax," Pablo raised his hands in mock surrender. "Our goal was to find where the covenants were meeting, we had no interest in their offspring,"


    "Did you find it?" Zack asked. "Is this how Danny became Greed, because of something you did?"


    "Zack, I am offended by the mere suggestion," Pablo placed his shaky hand over his chest.


    "What happened to Danny was his own doing," Pablo chuckled dryly. "He tried to play the exorcists and he lost. Or did he win? I mean look at how powerful he has become since,"


    "His thirst for power is the reason so many vessels are dead," Deb muttered.


    "Oh, he is responsible for so much more than that," Pablo countered, his eyes gleaming. "Why it wouldn''t surprise me if both your problems have the same solution,"


    "What exactly are you implying?" Deb moved forward, kneeling in front of the man so they were on the same level. She scanned his wrinkled features for an answer.


    "Greed shows up and then Lust just happens to follow?" Pablo looked right into her eyes. "You truly believe that it is just a coincidence?"


    "I believe you''re, trying to stall... I just don''t know why," Deb threw back as she got up, Zack stood quietly in the corner, taking everything Pablo had said in.