September 23, 2001 - Joshua first meets Isaac, who bonds with the boy over a shared taste in music and troubled family life. All the while, Joshua suffers from strange, cryptic intrusive thoughts.

September 16, 1991 - Someone calls the cops when Joshua fails to show up to kindergarten for several days. Officer Andrew Peters, who is verging on a nervous breakdown because of the string of "animal attacks," is sent in to perform a wellness check. Sgt. Jessie Simmons decides to come along to keep an eye on him. They walk into a bloodbath, discovering that the parents have been torn apart by something. Sgt. Simmons goes into Joshua's bedroom, only to find the boy alive and unharmed. The same thing that killed Joshua's parents corners Officer Peters, and Sgt. Simmons makes the difficult decision to prioritize saving Joshua. As she attempts to comfort the shocked, silent toddler, Sgt. Simmons can hear Officer Peter's dying screams.

February 11, 2005 - During a grocery store run before trying out LSD for the first time, Isaac notices Joshua sneaking around to the back of the store for seemingly no reason. After following the boy into the nearby woods, Isaac finds out Joshua is homeless and living out of an abandoned car. Isaac offers his parents' house for shelter, which Joshua begrudgingly accepts. Joshua begins staying with the Hawthorne family - his most stable living situation yet.

May 15, 2001 - Rachel comes home in tears to Leah, accompanied by her older friend Amir. Amir told Rachel about the Iowa devils, and now she thinks her imaginary friend Mr. Hatty is one and she's going to die. Leah doesn't believe in devils, so she offers to show Rachel around the woods behind their house to comfort her. During the hike, Leah loses sight of Rachel, hears a scream, and follows a blood trail until she finds the inhuman culprit. In tears, she runs home and tells Amir what happened. He calls the cops, who obviously don't believe Leah.

May 17, 2001 - At school, Leah's homeroom teacher announces that Amir moved away. During the walk home, Leah's younger friend Madeline suggests she do the same.

June 27, 2007 - Leah gets an email from Joshua, who claims to be a devil hunter and wants to help her with exposing the truth about devils. Surprised anyone else believes devils exist, Leah agrees to hear him out.

March 13, 2007 - Madeline confesses her crush on Joshua to Leah after the boy records another advert at Zeke's radio station. Joshua overhears this and tells Isaac, who is thrilled and tells Joshua to ask her out. Though he's apprehensive, he decides he has nothing to lose but his pride.

March 16, 2007 - After taking Isaac's advice, Joshua goes on his first date with Madeline. The experience, thought not entirely unpleasant, is made all the more intensely awkward by an inopportune battle with his intrusive thoughts.

July 14, 2007 - Isaac calls Madeline in a panic after Joshua cuts himself so severely that he has to go to the hospital. He mentions that it didn't seem like an intentional suicide attempt.

July 21, 2007 - Joshua is released from the hospital and is contacted by Madeline over AIM. He opens up the slightest bit about his mental health before his pride and intrusive thoughts get the better of him. What few details he reveals give Madeline an idea.

July 28, 2007 - Madeline comes over to Isaac's house so they can clean out Joshua's depression nest in an attempt to ease his burdens. Meanwhile, Joshua and Leah tentatively reconcile to officially debut Red Dragon Project. When Joshua comes home and sees what Madeline and Isaac did for him, he doesn't feel any better since he knows he has something to lose.

January 27, 2008 - Isaac gets turbo stoned off dark web shrooms and Joshua is stuck covering for him. He fails, and Joshua takes the blame for Isaac's drug use so as not to lose access to the money Isaac's rich dad gives Isaac.

February 3, 2008 - Joshua ends up living out of an abandoned hotel for a week until he decides to call Madeline and ask to be her roommate.

August 30, 2007 - Joshua takes Madeline along for a devil hunt. They're staking out what Joshua was told was an abandoned house, but it turns out to be a Diane resident's summer home when said resident returns. Thinking Joshua and Madeline are squatters, the resident chases them off with a gun. Despite the initial fear, Madeline finds the experience thrilling and she falls even harder for Joshua's fearlessness.

June 6, 2006 - Jessie, after being in communication with Zeke for a while, decides to report the Devil that killed Andrew to the BSA. It's clear she's onto the true nature of said Devil. Seemingly in retaliation, the entire Nox County Police force vanishes overnight, which is reported by Zeke.

January 3, 2009 - Zeke is relistening to the broadcast to try and figure out what happened. He decides to pay the mysterious, abandoned St. Michael's a visit to look for clues. He's confronted by Luce, who kills him with a gruesome aneurysm to keep him quiet.

January 3, 2009 - Joshua wakes up from a nightmare vaguely recapping how his breakup with Madeline went down. He wakes up a severely hungover Isaac, who tries fruitlessly to quell Joshua's frustrated anger. Their friendship has been strained ever since Leah snitched to Diane PD about Joshua's thievery, and he and Isaac have been living out of the same abandoned hotel ever since. Just as a fight is about to break out, Joshua gets a call from a client named Caleb Stone, who wants him and Isaac to check out an abandoned house before he tries to sell it.

January 4, 2009 - The boys stake out the house Caleb requested. While exploring the house's backyard, Isaac finds oversized hoof prints alongside tracks neither he nor Joshua can identify. The entire time, Joshua is continuously distracted by how familiar the house seems, though he can't figure out why. That night, Joshua stays up later than Isaac, and sees something large with too many limbs entering the house. He tracks its path, armed with a shotgun, but finds nothing.

January 5, 2009 - The boys go into the house and the freaky House of Leaves/EverymanHYBRID stuff happens. Isaac, tired from hours of walking, wants to bail, but Joshua is tired of false alarms and wants to confront a real devil. Understanding where Joshua's heartbroken rage comes from, Isaac agrees to another night.

January 6, 2009 - The boys go in again, and Joshua spots the silhouette of an impossibly large goat creature. He realizes he's seen it before: it's the same Devil that killed his parents. Isaac is frozen in fear and begs Joshua not to get himself killed. Their most vicious argument yet breaks out. Isaac calls Joshua a broken orphan, and Joshua snaps and hits his now former friend. Isaac, at his own breaking point, leaves Joshua, forcing him to face the goat Devil alone. Joshua ends up lost in the house for hours in his pursuit. Exhausted and hungry, he decides to go find Isaac. Meanwhile, Isaac almost hits someone due to his erratic driving, forcing him to pull over. He finds out he didn't hit a person, but the same goat Devil he saw earlier. It attacks him, but stops just short of killing him and vanishes.

January 6, 2009 - Isaac, freezing and half blind, follows the road and is found by Jessie, who was running errands. Jessie takes him to her hideout within the Nox police station as he tells her what happened through his tears. Meanwhile, Joshua finds the abandoned SUV, Isaac gone, and blood staining the nearby snow. He texts Leah as he warms up, informing her that "something got izzy (sic)," and then he drives back to the hotel. The car radio suddenly turns on and starts rapidly skipping channels, but he thinks nothing of it. Upon returning to the hotel, Joshua tries to use his MP3 player to de-stress. Suddenly, "Caleb's" voice starts overlaying the music. Joshua throws his earbuds out, and in a burst of static, Cairyx appears. He informs Joshua that he can't run from his fate anymore, and Joshua painfully reverts while his connection to Legion and memories of being a devil instantly return.

January 8, 2009 - Madeline goes to the Nox police station to file a missing person report for Joshua and Isaac, only to find it abandoned save for Isaac himself and Jessie. After convincing Madeline that he's not a ghost, he finds out Joshua told Leah he died. He returns to the hotel with Madeline to fight Joshua, but they find the hotel empty. Meanwhile, Joshua is being tortured by Luce and Cairyx body horror style as he refuses to cooperate with them.

January 9, 2009 - Jessie finds out Zeke died almost a week ago from an aneurysm following a mental breakdown in front of St. Michael's church. That night, she finds a note on the front steps of the station with a Diane address on it. She assumes it relates to Joshua's disappearance, since he lived in Diane the longest. After a small argument, both Jessie and Isaac visit what turns out to be a run-down shack. They find Joshua reverted, and are confused because devils never take human forms. Isaac manages to confirm that the devil is Joshua, but before they can leave, Joshua's limbs start snapping under an invisible force.

The moment there's a break in the torture, Jessie steps in and fireman carries Joshua to the car. As they drive back to the station, Isaac tries to lighten the mood, leading to yet another fight with Joshua. Jessie breaks it up, and questions Joshua about what happened in the shack.

January 10, 2009 - The three arrive at the station at the break of dawn. Joshua's limbs have reset enough that he can walk again, albeit with a limp. Jessie properly interviews Joshua, but he still struggles to remember certain things and is constantly fighting off Legion's demands for blood. Isaac suggests they all rest since they've been up for 24 hours. Joshua suggests they chain him up in a holding cell in case he loses control. Luce visits him that night, only to be told to fuck off again. Luce promises to show Joshua the real meaning of torture as he leaves.

January 11, 2009 - Isaac goes back to the hotel to retrieve Joshua's belongings. He's called by Leah, who's trying to comfort a distraught Madeline who thinks Joshua's still missing. Isaac accidently reveals Joshua is at the Nox police station, prompting him to race back to the station before Madeline gets there. Once she arrives, Isaac and Jessie try to talk her out of seeing Joshua, but only Joshua can get through to her. She leaves, assuming a devil attack horribly disfigured him. Joshua and Isaac seem to reconcile somewhat that night, only for Isaac to startle awake and experience a panic attack as he hears Luce making good on His promise.

January 12, 2009 - Jessie wakes up and is first to check on Joshua. She finds him in a state of shock - his legs violently ripped off and only able to speak through a spirit box. As Jessie helps him return to reality, Joshua admits he remembers everything and decided as a child to side with humanity over Hell. Once he can speak normally, he asks to speak with Isaac. Though both boys are uneasy from all their prior arguments and the severity of Joshua's situation, they manage to comfort each other. That night, just as Jessie assumes things are looking up, Cairyx informs her through her transceiver of all the gory details regarding how Joshua lost his legs.

January 13, 2009 - Leah calls Isaac saying she wants to see Joshua, since she thinks she figured out what happened to him. Upon arriving at the station, Leah explains that she figured out Joshua's a devil since he couldn't have survived the snowstorm on the 6th for as long as he did. Isaac lets her see Joshua, who's still regenerating his feet. They have a heart-to-heart and Leah gets some closure. Though Joshua's just as despondent as ever, he notices Legion panicking because he's still refusing to submit, and is even trying to protect his friends. This gives Joshua an idea.

January 14, 2009 - Isaac is woken up from a nightmare by Jessie, who just found out about Legion's worries. The three regroup at the front desk to figure out a plan. Joshua wants to use himself as a distraction to give Isaac and Jessie time to evacuate. Neither Jessie nor Isaac want Joshua to be tortured again. Just as Jessie suggests contacting the BSA, Cairyx teleports through the station's intercoms, revealing to Jessie and Isaac that he can move through any electric current. Joshua tries to fight him, but Ciaryx vanishes. His planning session with Luce then plays over the speakers, revealing that Joshua is only one of 6,666 humanoid devils.

January 15, 2009 - Leah and Madeline decide to move to New York, since Amir has given Leah a deal on an apartment. Before they leave, Leah offers to take Isaac and Jessie along. Isaac refuses, wanting to stay by Joshua and Jessie's sides and face his fear. Once the two girls reach Rochester, Madeline calls Joshua to make sure he's still alive. Just as they're returning to friendly terms, Luce shows up. Joshua hangs up and faces his fate, comforted by knowing Madeline and Leah are safe.

In the middle of the night, Sam comes home to Delilah mid-reversion. She's only one of the 6,665 other devils who are reverting across southeastern Iowa.

January 16, 2009 - Isaac and Jessie wake up to another bloodbath. Before Jessie can calm Joshua down, he demands they listen to a radio. She and Isaac find out about the mass reversion of what the BSA are calling Cael devils. Isaac returns to Joshua after finding out. Joshua has regenerated enough to sit up, showing his exposed, skinless chest. Isaac and Joshua apologize to each other for what happened in the house. Just as their friendship is rekindling, Jessie returns from a call the BSA sent out. They're going to nuke Nox County, and they have 2 months to evacuate Nox, Hemera, and Diane. To make matters worse, Cairyx returns that night to kidnap Joshua, and he succeeds despite the fight Joshua puts up.

January 17, 2009 - Isaac and Jessie discover that Joshua's missing. Jessie finds a bloodstained, black hoodie next to a security camera, and realizes exactly what took him. Though Jessie fears the worst, Isaac refuses to give up on his friend ever again. He calls everyone he can think of: family, friends, and even enemies. No one's seen Joshua, and none of them want Isaac to stay his friend.

January 18, 2009 - Isaac drives to the abandoned hotel, only to find a Tenebrae devil lurking around the property.

January 25, 2009 - After exhausting all other options, Isaac demands Jessie tell him the Diane shack address. Jessie is hesitant, seeing the same obsession that killed Andrew and Zeke in Isaac, but she eventually relents on the condition that Isaac rests if he still doesn't find Joshua. At the shack, Isaac finds Joshua's suicide note from his reversion and evidence of his numerous attempts. Cairyx speaks over the radio, detailing Joshua's imprisonment in the Nightmare Sand Pit by way of a fairytale. Isaac stabs the radio in sheer frustration and heartbreak, realizing he can't get Joshua back.

January 31, 2009 - The BSA announces that Cael devils aren't a threat to humans, and are allowed to evacuate with their human companions. News of the reversion goes global online.

February 1, 2009 Leah gets a call from Isaac, who's on the verge of suicide after he and Jessie have been tormented by knowledge of Joshua's imprisonment and torture all week. Leah successfully talks him down, reminding him of Joshua's resilience. Madeline overhears everything and is heartbroken. After more comfort from Leah, Madeline is called by an unknown number which replays Joshua's screams of agony. Before she can do anything impulsive, the real Joshua calls her and reminds her that she's safe. At this, Madeline finally realizes Joshua is a Cael devil and is surprisingly unbothered. Afterwards, Joshua uses the mental link to remind the Cael that Luce can't take on all of them at once.

March 2, 2009 - Isaac has returned to his parents' house after he finished helping Jessie with the evacuation. After dinner, he smokes some weed and talks with Leah and Madeline in Tinychat. Isaac takes up Leah's offer to be her roommate and all three reminisce about their relationships with Joshua. As Isaac goes to bed, he notices that the moon is red. He's abruptly woken up in the middle of the night by a call from Joshua, who tells him to go to Zeke's radio station.

February 1, 2009 - Joshua is tortured to the point of passing out after he reaches out to the other Cael. He dreams about his arrival on Earth, and Jessie rescuing him from the Atkin house, blissfully unaware of his true nature.

March 2, 2009 - Joshua is further beaten and cut up over the course of the month: by Luce, Cairyx, other Goetic Devils, and even others of Cairyx's kind. He's eventually visited by Andrew, who was informed of Joshua going rogue by Rachel. Andrew admits that, while he resented Joshua for being the reason Jessie left him for dead, he understands where Jessie was coming from now and wants to help Joshua. He explains that Joshua has shapeshifting abilities like Cairyx but his humanity is holding him back. Joshua gives up its humanity, becoming a nameless devil and freeing itself from its barbed wire restraints. It then reaches out to Isaac, telling him to go to Zeke's radio station.

March 3, 2009 - Isaac says goodbye to his parents before returning to the Nox police station to take Jessie with him to the radio station. Jessie warns that it could be a trap, but she realizes they're both out of options. During the drive, the two speculate about the unusually dark sky. At Zeke's studio, Isaac notices an analog TV Zeke used for playing home videos is turned on. The static triggers a flashback to the Atkin house incident for Jessie. Isaac offers to stay inside and investigate while Jessie waits outside. Eventually, the nameless devil begins communicating with Isaac by writing inside the screen. It tells Isaac to draw a particular sigil and take it to St. Michael's, where it'll provide further instructions through the spirit box.

The nameless devil narrowly escapes a retaliatory attack from Cairyx, though its leg is severely broken in the process. Meanwhile, Madeline wakes up from a nightmare, and as she & Leah discuss it, they mention that all of the Cael have been forced to hear the nameless devil's torture. At the same time, Isaac exits the studio and finds that the sky has become pitch black. As Jessie takes him back to the station to get the spirit box and his knife, she reveals that she knows a lot more about the true nature of devils than she lets on.

The nameless devil rests in an abandoned cave for a moment while Isaac goes to the church. At the church, the cause of the darkness is revealed to be a blood-red eclipse. Isaac pushes through his fear of meeting the same fate as Zeke as he enters the church. The nameless devil talks him through setting his intention for the sigil at the altar. Meanwhile, the nameless devil is forced to run from Luce again. It tells Isaac to bleed on the sigil. Isaac hesitates, but remembers how much Joshua is risking and cuts his palm with the hunting knife. Growing weaker by the second, the nameless devil tells Isaac to stab the altar. Just as he does so, Luce catches up and attempts to kill the nameless devil the same way He killed Zeke. Before the nameless devil bleeds out, the spell succeeds, freeing Michael. As the archangel gets his revenge, the sheer power causes an earthquake in Iowa. Barely clinging to life, the nameless devil tries to return to Earth. Isaac sees its disembodied hand among the pews and pulls it through with his still-bleeding hand. The same sigil he used earlier burns into both their palms. Isaac carries his friend back to Jessie's car on his back. Once inside, Isaac and Jessie are horrified by the extent of the nameless devil's wounds.

The trio begin their drive to Rochester, briefly stopping at a convenience store to buy batteries for the spirit box. Before returning to the road, Jessie removes the stitches in the nameless devil's mouth. After one more stop for food at a Denny's, the trio arrive at Leah's apartment, scaring the shit out of Amir. Leah is also shocked by the state the nameless devil is in, and she lets it use the shower while Isaac tries to explain what happened. Isaac breaks down in Leah's arms before he can finish. Moments later, Madeline comes home from a job interview. At first, she's relieved her ex is alive, only to become confused as it cowers from her and its friends. The nameless devil confesses that it gave up its identity as Joshua, as it feels it can never be anything more than a weapon or a mistake. All of its friends disagree with this. Madeline explains that its skin feels identical to that of the Joshua she knew. Isaac says he can't separate the reverted Joshua from his childhood friend Joshua. Leah states that the behavior she observed from reverted Joshua is too human for it to be a threat. Jessie reminds it that it told her Joshua Atkin was its only name. At their reassurances, Joshua finds his voice again, and states that he still wants to be Joshua.

March 10, 2009 - Isaac, Joshua, and Jessie stay at Leah and Madeline's apartment to comfort each other as the scheduled nuclear bomb drops on Nox. Right as it does so, Joshua falls to the floor, screaming in pain along with all the other Cael. Then he laughs as he realizes he can't hear Luce, Legion, or any other devils in his mind anymore.

March 10, 2010 - Joshua goes out without his sunglasses or beanie hiding his horns and eyes for the first time per the request of his BSA-assigned therapist. Isaac comes along for emotional support. Joshua takes the bus home so he can chat with Jessie, as he can let his guard down a little more around her. When he gets home, he, Leah, and Madeline brainstorm about the new direction for Red Dragon Productions. While Leah makes dinner that night, Joshua tends to his herb garden. He and Isaac talk for a bit about what their future might be, given the many debates still surround the humanity of Cael devils. Despite this, Joshua feels genuine gratitude for his new life, and feels truly comfortable in his identity as Joshua Atkin.

June 6, 2009 - Joshua suffers from a particularly grisly nightmare which causes a flashback when he wakes up. Though Isaac does his best to soothe Joshua, the devil still storms away to the balcony to cry.

June 7, 2009 - Madeline and Isaac brainstorm about how to help Joshua with his recovery. After Isaac informs her about the debates online surrounding the humanity of the Cael, she gets an idea. Meanwhile, Joshua and Leah have a heart-to-heart while she makes lunch, spurring her to offer to show Joshua how to cook. When Madeline and Isaac return home, Madeline gives Joshua a present: a honey brown rabbit plushie. Madeline explains the similarity between the two: though both are imitations of other beings, those around them care very deeply about them. Though still grouchy, Joshua accepts the rabbit and the analogy. That night, Isaac discovers Joshua can purr as he finally feels safe enough to do so.

CONTENT WARNINGS: death threats, period typical language, gore, torture, electrocution, mentioned self-harm, PTSD flashbacks, non-consensual drugging, blackmail, amputation, suicidal ideation, internalized homophobia

word count: 58k

Complete ✅