10:00 P.M.

Thomas did not have a good night when he was about to shoot down a bunch of thieves that are wandering around the place, trying to find him.

Thomas was on his way home after noticing that it is nighttime, and puts on his overcoat in order to hide from anyone that might notice him. His guns in the bag, as he walks back home without having to get caught by anybody. But as he walked...he noticed something in the corner of his eye...or at least...he thought he soaps something. He shook it off, believing that he is simply just hallucinating, and nothing more that is about to attack him. But than...he noticed sounds...voices...coming from an alleyway that is next to him. Thomas was curious, but he slowly goes to the alleyway, and does not dare go into the alleyway. He than reaches it...and noticed that...it was a bunch of thieves, the same ones that Thomas, William, and Drystan have to deal with regularly, and luckily not on a daily basis.

Thomas snarled in hate and disgust, not forgetting how some of them even tried to attack his sister just to her her object. Luckily, the Object of Dreams manage to grow enough protection to now hide his sister from whatever it is that the thieves are using to track down those with the objects in their hands. But still...the sight of them is very disgusting in his eyes.

"Tch...I am going to shoot these guys down, so that I do not have to go through this form of trouble more."

Thomas spoke out to himself as he took out his Rifle of Accuracy, and points it at the Thieves, and prepared to fire at them. But unfortunately...something even more worse got in his way: a blackout.

Thomas looked...and he stepped back. His eye began to twitch at the unfortunate circumstance that has now just occurred.

"Are you serious?"

Thomas was silent for an entire minute, before he finally shouts out.

"ARE YOU GODDAMN FUCKING SERIOUS??!!!!!"

Thomas shouted out loud, as he raised his hands in the air, balled into fists, as he got extremely enraged of what had just happened right now. Out of all the bad luck that has just happened, a power outage, a blackout of all things, it just had to happen right then and right there. This made Thomas extremely livid, that this has to happen at the worst possible time.

Thomas snarled, as he knows very well that he cannot chase the thieves if there is no light for him to follow and go to. So...he than decided to retreat. Thankfully, his iPhone has the flashlight function, and so....when he goes forward, he turns it on, and began to head home as fast as he could, because his sister is worrying about him.

Thomas does not stop running for a single bit, and kept on running as fast as he can, as fast as his legs to let him run. He should not stop. He must not stop. He will not ever stop running back to his home. He will return to the place that he belongs to...no matter what it is that is in front of him.

Later...

"You idiot!!!"

His sister shouted, as he slammed her hand out Thomas's chest, and hugged him at the same time. Isabella apparently has been worried sick about Thomas, and thought that he was going to die outside. Thankfully, that did not happen, and Thomas came back safe and sound, although he was gone for an entire hour, and it made Isabella very scared for her brother's life.

"I'm very sorry, Isabella. I never meant to worry you. It happened at an extremely bad time, you know."

Isabella takes many deep breaths, and spoke out.

"Haaaaa...I know that, Thomas. But I can't help but worry you most of the time. I thought that someone is going to kill you!"

Thomas smiled gently at his surer, and began to ruffle with her hair, as he spoke out.

"Well...nobody isn't going to kill me that easily, you know. I am way more tougher to kill than even they can realize. Besides...I still have my guns to protect myself...and my guns to protect you, sis, which is why you matter to me most than anyone could ever imagine.

Isabella sniffed, and smiled very happily, as she spoke out.

"I know...which is why you're the best brother I've ever had."

Thomas hugged his sister a little more gently, and Isabella hugged into him even more, before separating from him.

"Well...it's a little past late, Isabella. Maybe we should go to bed right now, the both of us?"

Isabella nodded, and Thomas used his phone to lead Isabella upstairs, and his sister hugged her brother from behind, so she does not accidentally fall down. They continue to reach upstairs, until they finally arrived at Isabella's room, which has what seems to be purple walls, and silver lines going down, with some flower-shaped patterns scattered all over the room's walls. There is a white desk with a mirror attached to it, so that Isabella could see her her hair and face looks like, in which she can fix the problem of what is making her entire head look like it is a type of disaster area of some sort.

Thomas than pulls them covers away from the bed, and Isabella went into the bed, as Thomas covered her body with the covers, and Isabella spoke out.

"Good night, Thomas!"

Thomas smiled, and ruffled her hair once more.

"Good night, Isabella, and sweet Dreams."

Isabella smiled, as Thomas quietly gets out of his sister's room, and closed the door very quietly.

Thomas than creaks through the hallway from upstairs, as quietly as possible, and than finds his room, before opening it.

He goes inside, checks the floor to see the Bone Flute, which he grabs, and he goes to the bed. He than began to play it, which gives him a familiar calm feeling of what it means to be at home.

He plays the flute for about a minute, before he finally stops. He than lays his head onto the bed, as he gets under the covers.

"This was a disaster. I can't hunt for the thieves if I am inside of another blackout if any kind. I need to find a way for me to get them without having to be blind by the darkness that could happen in another goddamn blackout.

He than looks down, his fist clenched, as he needs to think of a plan for him to help him out in this. He than used the flashlight of his phone, and looks around the room, and sees the book on the floor. Clenching just fist, he goes up to it, picked it up, and than goes to the bed. But the thing is, he accidentally tripped on something, and he fell down. Thankfully, not in the floor, as that would cause a racket. He simply fell down, face first onto the bed itself, as his face has a landing that is comfy for him. He than scrambled back up on the bed, and began the floor through the pages for him to find an object, so that he can use it just incase another blackout were to happen again. The page he landed on, is page 173, and this page is about someone that is known as the Holder of Shadows. Thomas holds the book tightly, and starts to read it very, very carefully.

Next Day...8:30 P.M.

Thomas is now sitting on a bench, waiting for someone to arrive in a open park area, and today is Thursday, which is the day that the trial should start.

He brought his 2 guns, the Widowmaker and the Gravebringer, and his rifle with him, for the task. Although it is said in the book that he must carry it to shoot himself in the head, should he fail in anyway, Thomas is not going to fail in the way he sees it, because he needs to survive and stay alive got his sister.

So...he is waiting for something to happen...and than...he sees that there is someone coming to the area. A man in his early 30s, seeing a coat, and has his hood on. Standing up, he goes up to the man, and pats his hand on the shoulder.

"Excuse me..."

The man turned around, looking very curious at Thomas. The man turns, facing Thomas, and spoke out.

"Yeah, what is it, man?"

Thomas than spoke out.

"I need to find someone called 'The Holder of Shadows."

His made the person freeze, and his skin had turned pale, as if he had seen a ghost of some kind.

Than Thomas looks up...and he sees something coming down from the sky.

Thomas sees that there is snow beginning to fall down, and Thomas, remembers the warning about what happens of the snow were to ever touch him, and hopefully, only his skin, because his overcoat is covering as much of his skin as possible, and luckily, he has pockets, so that can cover his hands.

'Do not allow yourself to be touched by this snow, or you will be frozen for eternity, a silent sentinel of ice and flesh, never again to feel the warmth of the sun.'

Thomas knows that he should not let the snow touch him, or else he will be done for. Another part of the trial, is that...when the snow happens to come down, than he must run up to the nearest residential house. Thomas looks around, and sees a house that is large enough to possibly have a basement present in this place, and yet...it is pretty far away, which will take 10 minutes to run by foot. So...with no time to lose, he than ran up to the residential house as fast as he can, and not talk to anyone.

He kept on running, and running, and running, and he feels that there is something chasing him, but he does not dare turn around to see what it is that is chasing him from behind. So he kept on running as fast as he can, as quick as his legs can carry him, as fast as he can go, until...he finally reached the house, and stopped in front of it. Thomas remembers another part of the trial that he had to do. He needs to knock on it 3 times. He cannot do it more than 3 times, or less, or else he is going to die. Having nobody answer is going to kill him as well.

So Thomas immediately knocked 3 times, very fast, and does so very hard. And Thomas intertwines his hands together, and prays that someone can answer the door. Thomas than heard the sound of the door creaking, and saw the door opening. Not wasting any time, he goes inside, and looks around the place to that he is in.

It resembles a normal house, with some furniture, such as a couch and a chair and a table present... it there is also something suspended in the air. It looks like some sort of...sphere of light, except that it does not look physical at all. In fact, it looks like a ball made of gas has began to glow as bright as a nightlight.

Thomas looks as though he is drawn by the light, as he began to step forward towards it without him realizing what he is doing...until he does snap out of it 30 minutes later.

He shook his head, and opens his eyes wide, as he looks into the light...and than...he remembers another thing. What he is supposed to do with the light, in this part of the trial.

According to the book, he needs to destroy the light that is hanging onto the ceiling of the house. If he does not do that, than he is going to run the risk of a creature made of shadows to try and tear him apart. Which is why he needs to take action. And luckily for Thomas...he does have something that can help him: his guns.

Thomas than reached behind his back, takes out his rifle, and fired a shot at the ball of light, which then shattered the sphere that is in the air. Thomas immediately than began to run into as many room as possible, as the rooms that he is going into...they are now beginning to blacken into pitch black darkness. This is another part that is very dangerous for Thomas, as he needs to find a door to the basement, in order to survive longer in the trial. He can't go outside, because the Holder's beasts are waiting there, ready to tear him to pieces, should he try to run out of the door. And if there is no basement...well...than that will be the end of Thomas.

"Come on, come on, come on!! Where is the goddamn door to the basement?!"

Thomas shouted out, as he tries to look around to try and find the door to the basement, if it is here. It is beginning to darken even more, and the flashlight won't work, as the shine of the lightbulb begins to die out, possibly as a way to make the trial seem more...'fair.'

Thomas had ran into the living room, the kitchen, and than...ran into the T.V room. But than...he ran into a place of 3 doors, which means that one of the doors has to be the one that will lead him inside of the basement.

Thomas looks through one of the doors, and it is a bedroom. He than looked at another door...and it is a bathroom, which has a very putrid smell. Shaking his head, and pinching his nose, he than goes to the final door, and quickly opens it, only to see a set of stairs, and they are going down. He than goes to the stairs...and he somewhat slips

"Woah!!!!"

Thomas shouts, as he began to hit the stairs, and he began to roll around, as he fell down the stairs. He kept hitting the steps of the stairs, until he finally fell down face first to the soft floor. Blood began to leak out of the wounds that are on his head, and thankfully...the wounds aren't very bad, and is in fact, a little descend sized.

Thomas stand up, although he has a hard time doing it, and he began to walk stop the basement he's in. The entire basement...it is so dark. And the weapons...they fast way more darker shadows than even the room itself. The shadows looks as though...he is in a lightless void. It is so dark that he feels like he is going to fall down through the floor soon, and end up in a place that he does not for himself to be in.

Thomas was frightened, as he shakes when surrounded by the shadows that are covering him, the shadows...that are consuming him. But Thomas knows that he must not show any form of fear on his face, and immediate holds himself together, and tries the best that he can to keep a stoic face, so that he can get through the trial without any consequences of failing it. But just than...Thomas notices something on the ground. It was an axe. He doesn't know why...but he feels like that he should touch it. Clenching his fist...he walks up to it...and grabs the axe off of the ground, raise it up, and close his eyes. As he did...he can feel the shadows around him lessen, disappearing from the room, second-by-second. He than...also feels...something coming through wards him from behind. So...acting on instinct, he than immediate swung the axe as fast and as hard as he could towards whatever is coming towards him.

His hands...it feels as though his hands are passing through water so cold, that it could have given Thomas frostbite on both of his hands. As he did that...he than heard something. It was a scream, and it was not human at all. In fact. It is not from any animal. It was beyond horrifying, almost like the scream is high-pitched and demonic, and is getting sucked into a vortex. Thomas is a little reluctant, but when he opened his eyes to the direction of where he has swung his axe...he saw that a shadowy creature is on the ground, looking furry and muscular like, with 7 sets of eyes on its head. But he does not catch a glimpse of the shadowy creature's whole appearance, as it dissolves into mist and smoke, and slithers away like many snakes.

As he looked...suddenly, he feel his hands in immense pain, like he is holding on a red-hit metal bat of some kind.

"Ow!!"

He than dropped his weapon, and looks to see that the axe is starting to glow white hot with heat.

"What the fuck?! What just even..."

The axe than began to burn through the ground, before it finally sunk in, and Thomas looks through the axe-shaped hole, as it continued to sink down into the Earth, with seemingly nothing that can stop it on the way down. Most likely, it will sink down until it reaches the center of the Earth. Thomas looks a little bit at his hands to see if they are injured, and thankfully, his hands aren't too badly hurt. But as he looked at his hands...he notices something at his feet. He gets his hands off of his face, and noticed a black object. He bends a down, he picked it up, with the pain of the hit metal gone, and observes the object that he is now given.

It looks like a dark crystal, and it is as black as the starless night. And...it feels quite snug in his hand, as if his hand is the perfect size for him to have. Smiling a little bit, he than turns around...and notices the door behind him. Thomas smiles to himself, as he finally gets to see that it is the end of the trial. Sighing in relief to himself, and holding the dark crystal in his hand tightly, he than walks out of the door...and back into the human world.

9:50 P.M.

It was now nighttime, and Thomas was outside, holding the crystal in his hand, while still in the middle of the blackout. Looks like the repairmen are having way more trouble fixing the problem than he thought. But the crystal...it's working. His vision...it is like he is still in the daytime, and can see just as far as it would be if it is daytime, even though the sky looks like it is still night.

Thomas looks at the crystal in his hand, a smile is present in his face, as he now has an easy time, using his crystal to finally shoot at stuff in the dark. The only problem with this...is that he needs to shoot his gun, and he cannot hold the crystal at the same time. But that is a problem that he William is for another time. For now...he is going to take a little break from the whole ordeal, and go to sleep inside of his house, and...after all, he dies not want his sister to realize that he is outside of his house, which would lead to a rather embarrassing talk with her.

But the darkness...it will not scare Thomas, nor will it hold him back anymore, as...at thus very day... he will, now no longer bow down...

...TO THE SHADOWS.