• Private Robert Johnson was a simple man with simple goals in life. He simply wanted to finish his tour of duty, get home to his loving wife, and maybe get to work on his third child.

    'Heh... Wonder if I can get her to wear that sexy dress I love,' he thought to himself as he continued his patrol of the militia base alone, his partner having gone to take a leak in the bushes. That was his last thought as a blade was rammed into the base of his neck, seperating his third and fouth vertebrae and killing him instantly. He dropped to the ground soundlessly, revealing his assailant, who was dressed from head to toe in black, with the exception of a white porcelain mask painted with the visage of a wolf.

    "This is Night, targets neutralized, area secure, over," the assailant muttered into his headset, cleaning the blood from his blade on Johnson's shirt while listening to the static on the other end.

    "Good work Night, proceed forward as planned, over and out," answered the voice on the other end. Night simply nodded as he dashed into the base, moving from shadow to shadow with the utmost ease, eliminating all he encountered with the same quickness and efficiency as his first victim.

    He finally reached his destination, the commander's quarters. He almost cursed loudly as he saw the extreme number of guards surrounding the area and tapped his comm. link.

    "This is Night, we have a bit of a problem here... They were expecting us and have the place locked down tight, over," he said.

    "Understood, releasing restrictions, forego stealth and eliminate the target at all costs, over," came the reply. He couldn't resist the sinister grin that crept across his face beneath his porcelain mask.

    "Roger that, over and out."

    He reached into The pouch strapped to his waist and pulled out a bottle of ink and a small paintbrush before painting a small seal on the ground where he stood before rushing off to repeat the process in four other strategically placed areas. He grinned as his voice echoed eerily through the militia camp, a foreign tongue that seemed... inhuman spilling from his lips.

    "Tozsylz ab swy Oxuzz, dyfk ty uail zslyfrsw. Lyopw blat uail nefrkat ab swy zwokaqz ofk zwaq uail haqyl sa swazy qwa ka fas xydeyjy:"

    "Shadow Art: Hands of the Abyss"

    Suddenly, the seals began to glow a sinister red before each was connected with a beam of light the same color, forming a pentagram with the commander's quarters directly in the center. The guards of the building began to panic as the ground below them began to turn completely black, despite the lights that shone on the ground. Then came the roar. It was the roar of a creature imagined only in the darkest nightmares of the deranged. Of a beast that could shake the foundations of even the strongest men.

    Then, the hell truly began. From the inky blackness below the building, a pair of gargantuan arms rose, bloody dripping claws tipping long, gangly fingers. The hands slammed down onto the ground, crushing any unfortunate souls that may have been in th areas, and gripped it before pulling, as if trying to tear it in two. As the hands pulled apart, the ground split and an unearthly howling could be heard.

    The ground continued to tear, ripping under the building, which began to sink into the howling chasm. Night's grin threatened to split his face in half as he listened to the men's screams join the wails of the souls already thrown into that damned place.

    Then, as suddenly as it all began, it ended. The hands released the ground and the demonic gateway slammed shut with a resounding crash. The disembodied appendages then slowly faded into nothingness along with the pentagram of darkness, leaving no trace that anything had been in that area, aside from five blood splatters, the men who were crushed by the chasm's first opening.

    Night giggled giddily as he tapped his comm. link once again.

    "Target nuetralized, mission complete, over," he said, barely keeping his now cheery demeanor from showing through his voice.

    "Roger that, good work Night, come on home, over and out."

    Night sighed happily at that and stared up at the blood red moon above him, just as a large aircraft passed in front of it. He grinned again before fading away with barely a whisper.