part one
m e n t i s p r e h e n s i o
(obsession)A girl lay in a field filled with tall blades of grass. Her hair was deep blue, and it formed a frame around her white, heart-shaped face. A soft, content smile marked her features, her eyes closed, her long, thin arms folded behind her head. She was dressed in a pure white sundress, which clung to her body as a cool wind blew around her. Reve stood, just outside the plane of her subconscious, watching the dream that was being played out inside it. He liked dreams like this. Bright dreams. Happy dreams. The rubicund sun that shone in the sky above the girl glowed, as if it were beckoning him to enter and bask in its warmth. The wings of the butterfly he had just captured fell from his hands, which were still dusted with the butterfly’s fragile scales. The girl didn’t move. Reve licked the scales off the pale skin of his fingers, stepping inside the girl’s subconscious carefully.
The sun washed over him, and he closed his eyes as the sweet warmth flowed through his body. The warmth fled from him a few moments later, however, and he opened his eyes to find that the world had grown dark. The sun had disappeared, the grass had died, and the girl was sitting up, her face contorted with a look of surprise and fear. Reve felt his stomach churn.
"Who… who are you?" she said, her British voice trembling. Reve didn’t reply, instead standing there, frozen to the spot. He let out a rush of air, and the girl gave a little cry of fear.
"L..leave me alone!" she said, her light blue eyes widening.
"Please…" Reve whispered. He held his hand out to her. She stood, moving farther away. Now the dead grass had faded, leaving just empty blackness in its place, a cold void that caused a knot to form within Reve. He tried again, taking a step closer.
"Please…"
The girl squeezed her eyes shut, and suddenly Reve was back on his former plane of existence. The dream had ended, and he had been forced from her subconscious. Tears pricked at his eyes, but he brushed them away and plucked a butterfly from the still air around him. A few minutes later, he tossed the remains of its body over his shoulder, then took the wings and arranged them carefully at his feet. He looked at them, at their edges, tattered from where he had ripped them from the butterfly’s body, and at their colorful velvet surface, which was still sprinkled with some soft white scales. Reve reached out and rubbed the scales off, leaving the spotted wings clean. A small smile formed on his face.
"Perfect." He thought to himself, relaxing. He was content again—for now.
Azura sat up straight in her bed, cold sweat dotting her brow.
"Oh, god…" she whispered. "Who was that man?"
The wind blew in through her open window, rustling her light blue curtains as if in answer. Azura brushed a lock of her hair away from her face, exhaling slowly. She slid out of bed and padded across the floor to her bathroom, flicking the switch and turning on the faucet. The cold water felt good as she splashed it on her face, washing away the sticky perspiration that clung to her skin.
"Was just a dream…" she murmured as she dried herself with a white hand towel. She turned off the light and the faucet and started to climb back into bed, pausing as she watched the wind continue to move through her curtains. Shaking her head, she closed the window and locked it, after which closing the curtains, ignoring the nagging voice that whispered "paranoia" as she crawled beneath her covers.
"You look a little out of it, Az," Lani said, popping a baby carrot into her mouth."Yes…" Azura said, glancing down at her untouched lunch tray. "I didn’t sleep very well last night."
"Ohhh? Heehee… Did you have a nightmare? Ooooo…" Roan grinned maniacally, her wild eyes widening.
"Well, yes, actually," Azura said, frowning. "I was having this nice dream, you know, the relaxing kind where you’re in a field and such and it’s nice and sunny, and all of a sudden, this strange man appears…"
"Strange man?" Jada grinned a little. "L.J. would probably be getting pissed if she were here…"
Azura reddened. "He was frightening. He had this long blue green hair that went all the way down to his waist and these odd lavender eyes and maroon markings on his cheeks and across his nose… And he wore the strangest clothing, as though he were from eighteenth century Europe or something like that, but I don’t believe he was much older than seventeen or somesuch."
"Sounds kinda cute," Jada said.
Azura rolled her eyes. "And he was standing there, holding his hand out to me, saying ‘please,’ like he wanted something…"
"Heh heh… bet I know what that was…" Jada smirked, prompting Kiera to slap her lightly on the arm.
The red on Azura’s cheeks deepened to scarlet.
"Jada!" she hissed. "Honestly. Your mind is always in the gutter."
"He doesn’t sound that bad…" Kaitlyn interrupted. "Maybe he just wanted to say hello."
"You’re such a sap, Kaitlyn," Jada rubbed her head.
"I’m not a sap," Kaitlyn made a face. "Giving people the benefit of the doubt doesn’t make you a sap…"
"You’re right, it makes you a gullible sap," Jada said.
Kaitlyn stuck her tongue out, crossing her eyes.
"Nyah."
"I don’t know, I guess you’re right… but, still… there was just something…disturbing… about him. Not quite right." She said, sighing. "I suppose it’s stupid… but…"
"Noo.. dreams… dreams are very powerful, mm-hmm," Roan nodded emphatically. "They can tell you things about yourself that you never knew… sometimes things you might not like…" her bright orange eye gleamed. "Or… or they could be premonitions… yess… premonitions of good things… or wicked, evil things… heeheee…"
"Premonition?" Azura bit her lip.
"Yesss… although I can’t imagine what seeing a strange little man like that would foretell…" Roan mused, rubbing her chin. "But… it’s probably nothing to concern yourself with unless he appears to you two more nights in a row."
"Yep," Kaitlyn nodded. "I saw on television that if you have the same dream three times, it means something really important."
"Television is not exactly the best resource for concrete knowledge," Kiera said, speaking for the first time that period. "Dreams are manufactured from your subconscious. They are visual manifestations of your innermost thoughts and feelings; things that are kept locked within during waking hours. The difficulty is that it’s nearly impossible to tell a dream of substance—one that may mean something pertinent to your conscious—from a basically meaningless dream, which you may have had because of anxiety in your waking life or perhaps even some sort of happiness."
"Great…" Azura said, just as the lunch bell rang. The noise level in the cafeteria heightened to a roar as everyone jumped out of their seats and tossed the remains of their lunches into the garbage disposals, struggling to get out of the cafeteria before they were crushed by the crowd that was quickly filling the hallways.
"Don’t worry about it," Kaitlyn said, giving Azura a little hug as they walked out the side door of the cafeteria. "After all…It was just a dream."
The words in Kaitlyn’s Chemistry book were beginning to run together. She rubbed her eyes as the ink on the pages bled and mixed, stringing together formulas and theories and the names of people that died long ago."I’m so going to fail this test tomorrow…" she muttered, laying her head between the pages. She glanced back at her bureau, sighing as she looked at the empty space once occupied by Umi’s small fishbowl. It had been lonely around her apartment with him gone—there was no longer anyone to greet her when she got home, no one to argue with over life’s petty details. She raised her head, clapping her Chemistry book shut and tossing it on the carpeted floor. Thinking about her loneliness only made it worse.
"Etienne is just down the hall…" she thought, rolling over on her bedspread and promptly eliminating that idea when she saw the red numbers of her alarm clock flashing ten thirty. She imagined he was either asleep or in a drunken stupor about now. Kaitlyn crawled beneath her covers miserably, closing her eyes as she rested her head on her pillow, her subconscious slowly gaining control.
She was sitting beneath a tree, possibly the largest she had ever seen. Its thick based covered almost the entire length of the island it sat upon, and its heavily leafed branches extended for what seemed like miles, completely blanketing Kaitlyn in shade. She relaxed against the tree’s moss covered trunk, looking out at the calm blue green lagoon that surrounded the tree’s island.
Green robes covered her slender body, and a necklace fashioned of shimmering emeralds rested on her pale collarbone. Silver cuffs encircled her wrists, and a round emerald sparkled on her forehead, partially hidden by her green bangs.Reve hid within the tall ferns that were clustered around the tree, watching her as a soft breeze played with her long green locks. He clutched the soft, velvety leaves of the giant fern, holding his breath as he admired her silently. Nervousness and excitement coursed through his veins, his hot blood jumping as she brushed her hair from her exquisite face. Enthralled, his thought processes lost all sense of logic and he moved forward, the leaves crying out as they brushed against each other. Reve’s heartbeat quickened as he froze, clasping his hands together. Seconds later she was before him, pushing back his leafy camouflage.
"Hello," she said, smiling at him. Reve’s eyes were squeezed shut, but at the sound of her melodic voice they slowly opened, their lavender irises filled with wonder. The dream had not turned into a nightmare! The realization was magnificent. He was still here, and she was not afraid. He decided to take the second step.
"H… hello," he managed, not moving from his place among the foliage. She held out one of her beautifully crafted hands to him, and the feeling of warmth that surged through his body when he took it was almost too much.
"I’m Kaitlyn…" she said, as she carefully guided his still shocked body to where she had been sitting.
"That’s… a nice name," Reve said, smiling a little as he sat down next to her, beneath the shade of the tree.
"Thank you…" she said, smiling back. Reve’s fingers curled, his hands clutching the fabric of his overcoat. Her face alit when she smiled, her deep blue eyes half closing and her cheeks reddening as her lips pulled back, gently creasing her soft features. He took the image in front of him and placed it in the back of his mind—a pretty thing for him to take out and look at when loneliness took hold of him.
"Do you live here?" she asked.
"I… I exist here…" he murmured, wringing his hands a little. Kaitlyn blinked.
"Is there anyone else here?"
"No…" he said, looking down at his pallid hands. "I see lots of people, though… but they don’t usually see me 'cause if they do they get scared and they leave and I’m lonely again. You’re not scared, though, it doesn’t seem like you are. You’re not, are you?" he looked up at her, his plaintive face filled with a feverish hope.
"Of course not," she said, wrapping her arms around his thin body. Reve’s eyes widened as he felt her fingers sink into the black velvet of his overcoat, and the beautiful warmth of her body as she pressed against him. He exhaled, closing his eyes and reveling in this wonderful new feeling, still dizzy after she had pulled away.
"What… was that?" he said, his mind reeling with happy intoxication.
"That?" Kaitlyn said. "It was a hug… you’ve never been hugged before?"
Reve shook his head.
"I’ve seen it before, I think… I didn’t know it felt so nice…" he said, a lopsided smile plastering his maroon stained face.
Kaitlyn giggled.
"You’re silly," she said, touching his long blue green hair gently.
"Hee…" Reve smiled. "You’re nice. Most people, they’re not nice. I don’t think. But not you. You’re nice. I like you."
"I like you, too," she said, pulling him against her, patting his thick locks. "You poor thing.. you must be awfully lonely."
Reve was almost too overcome to reply. He drank in the warmth of her soft skin as he huddled against her like a needy child, clinging to the silk fabric of her robes. Such beautiful heat! He was dizzy, drunk with happiness. He looked up into Kaitlyn’s gentle blue eyes and felt a sense of delicious contentment swell up inside him, spreading throughout his heart and mind and the very fibers of his soul.
"Thank you…" he whispered, burying his face into the warm silk. She kissed the top of his head.
"You’re welcome," she said, but as Reve continued to gaze at her adoringly, he noticed that she was slowly becoming more and more pale. The dream was almost at an end. He clung to her.
"Don’t leave me!" he whispered frantically, tears pricking at his eyes as he felt the warmth begin to drain away.
"Goodbye, Reve…" Kaitlyn said, her smile not wavering as her image and the scenery around them began to fade. Moments later, it was over, and Reve was returned to where he had been before, the cold nothingness of the dreamworld. He drew his knees to his chest and shivered, wallowing in self pity for a few minutes. At length, he raised his head, his eyes devoid of emotion.
"Kaitlyn…" he whispered into the cold, swirling nothingness. A butterfly alit on the formless ground beneath him, and he covered it with his palm, trapping it. He closed his eyes as he ran his fingers over the butterfly’s soft, colorful wings, calculating. He would see her again… and next time…
"She’ll stay forever…" his eyes opened suddenly, his fingers tearing apart the tiny creature in his hands as he spoke.
Forever…
"Mmm… what a nice dream…" Kaitlyn murmured, hugging her pillow close. Morning was poking through her blinds. She slid out of her bed to let it in, smiling as the sun’s rays warmed her cheeks. It was Saturday, the best day of the week. No work, no school… nothing to do but laze around and relax."Actually…" she said, plucking a book up off her bureau and crawling back into bed, "I think I’ll hang out here for a while."
Etienne stumbled out of bed, dragging himself into the bathroom to run a brush through his wild black hair. Unlike Kaitlyn, he did have to work today, and his body was not particularly looking forward to it. It wasn’t that he didn’t like his job at the bookstore; on the contrary, there was nothing he’d rather do.
"But I think I’d prefer to just stay home today.." he muttered to his reflection as he put away his brush, pulling on a black shirt and jeans. He slid his boots and a pair of black socks over his bare feet and straightened, examining himself in the mirror."You’re looking colorful, as always," Etienne said, smirking as he brushed a wisp of his dark hair away from his pale face. He headed for the doorway, pausing to grab his car keys and pocket his (black) wallet before walking out to face another day.
"Ahmm…" Kaitlyn was waning. The bed was so warm and soft… she lay back on her pillows, her heavy eyelids closing."Mmm.. I’ll just have a little nap…" she murmured as the book slipped from her hands.
He smiled as he pressed against her, clinging to her soft skin. For the first time since he had been cast into this place, he felt happy. Happy… he pondered the word for a moment. Was he happy? He looked up into Kaitlyn’s gentle face and then lay his head down again, closing his eyes. Yes, he was happy, and now that he had locked her into a state of sleep, he would never have to let go of that happiness again.
"Hey, Etienne, I’ll take it from here," Xin’s light, feminine voice brought Etienne out of his thoughts. He blinked, raising his head and looking around with a vaguely confused look on his face."Asleep on the job, I see," Xin joked, smiling.
"Ah… business was slow so I figured I’d take an unscheduled break," Etienne said sheepishly, standing and moving around to the front of the café counter, holding the small, swinging half-door open for Xin. The younger boy settled himself on the stool Etienne had previously occupied, leaning over on the shiny white counter.
"Y’want something before you go?" Xin asked hopefully, trying to delay Etienne’s exit for as long as possible.
"No, that’s alright…" Etienne glanced at his watch. "I want to stop by Kaitlyn’s before it gets too late…"
"Oh," Xin said, his smile faltering a little. "Well, um, tell her I said ‘hi,’ okay?"
"Send her my regards, as well…"
Etienne turned to find Aegis standing behind him, wearing a half-smirk on his placid countenance.
"Aegis," Etienne said, his voice hardening. "How nice to see you, but I really must be going now. Kaitlyn’s waiting." He moved quickly out of the bookstore, jamming his hands into the pockets of his black jeans angrily as he disappeared into the evening.
"Hmph… I don’t know what she sees him," Aegis said, leaning against the counter.
"You just make him nervous, Aegis," Xin replied, keeping his head down as he tidied up.
"Yes. …perhaps I shall drop by and say hello to Kaitlyn as well…" he turned away. "Care to join me?"
"No…all I want is for Etienne to be happy… and he seems that way when he’s with her…so I’m not going to meddle," Xin said.
"Besides," he added, trying to sound cheerful. "I’ve got work."
"Mmm… you have such a warm heart, Xin," Aegis murmured as he began to leave the store. "I envy it…"
Xin stopped cleaning, his pale cheeks flushing pink as he watched Aegis exit.
"Aegis…"
*
Etienne frowned. He had knocked on Kaitlyn’s door and rung the bell almost three times now. He knew she was here—her white car was still parked outside and according to the doorman, no one had seen her leave all day. Frustrated, Etienne twisted the doorknob, surprised to find it unlocked. Blinking, he stepped in, ignoring the tiny voice that reminded him that a lot of bad horror movies tended to start out this way. Inside, everything was still—the only light came from the sunset that was peeking through the windows, and the only sound was that of Etienne’s breathing and his light footsteps on the carpet. He entered her bedroom, feeling relieved when he saw her in bed. Kneeling by her side, his relief shifted to fear when he found her lying completely still, her breaths small and shallow. Clutching her wrist, he pressed his fingers against her warm skin and found that he could barely make out a pulse.
"Oh my god…" he whispered. "She’s practically comatose!"
Kaitlyn’s bell rang at that moment, and Etienne rushed to the door, grabbing Aegis and pulling him into the apartment.
“Aegis,” he breathed, leaning against him, “Kaitlyn, she’s…”
“Get a hold of yourself,” Aegis said calmly, attempting to free himself from Etienne’s grasp.
“But…Kaitlyn,” he babbled, stumbling into her room. He pointed at her body, which remained still on her bed. Aegis’s eyes widened. He took Kaitlyn’s hand in his, feeling for a pulse.
“It’s so faint…” he murmured. “What could have happened?”
“I don’t know,” Etienne moaned, burying his face in his hands. “I…I just came in and there she was, just lying there like some kind of statue, you know it was awful—“
Aegis resisted the urge to slap Etienne; instead he covered the other man’s mouth with his hand and glared at him,
“Didn’t I just tell you to get a hold of yourself?”
Etienne quieted, nodding slowly. Aegis removed his hand.
“I need a drink,” Etienne said meekly.
“Just call her little friends,” Aegis muttered, stroking Kaitlyn’s hair.
“Alright…” Etienne placed his hand on the phone next to Kaitlyn’s bed and then stopped, glaring back at Aegis. “Wait… why I am taking orders from you? And stop touching her! Mine!”
“Relax, Romeo,” Aegis said, continuing to play with Kaitlyn’s locks. “I’m simply brushing her hair away from her face…”
“Right,” Etienne grumbled bitterly, but he knew that now was not the time for a quarrel. Sighing, he picked up the phone.
Soft fingers threading through his hair…warm eyes and a gentle smile…Reve made a purring noise in his throat and clung to Kaitlyn. He had not thought it possible to feel this exultant. Every moment was spent basking in Kaitlyn’s warmth. He fed on her kindness like a starving child, absorbing every word that spilled forth from her lips. This was his definition of heaven. But in the quiet recesses of his heart, the knowledge that Heaven could not last long for someone like himself stirred. The thought of the moment settled itself in a corner of his brain, carefully chipping away at his sudden happiness. It caused a nervous desperation to form, creating a psychotic need to keep her with him.“Yes…” he murmured, staring at the soft, surreal blades of grass beneath his feet. She belonged to him, now. She would stay with him. Hold him. Tell him everything he had been waiting to hear for so long. Love him. And in return, his life would revolve around her. Reve could give her anything she wanted, for this was the dreamworld, and reality was what he made it. He thought about this as he buried his face in her hair, snuggling close.
“You’re so affectionate, Reve,” Kaitlyn said, hugging him. Color flushed his cheeks.
“I…Is that bad, Miss Kaitlyn?” he asked quietly, his lavender eyes enlarging.
“No…it’s sweet, actually,” she said, gently pushing a lock of hair from his face. He felt relieved, but he tensed a moment later when she asked,
“Reve…what day is this?”
Reve fumbled for an answer, trying to remember what the days of the week were even called.
“I knew this once,” he thought desperately, searching his memory.
“Reve?” she said, touching his cheek.
“I…” he began, wringing his hands nervously.
“Come to think of it…where are we, anyway?” she yawned, touching the leaves of a nearby palm frond.
Reve’s mind raced.
“I can’t let her realize she’s just in a dream,” he thought, balling his hands into fists and digging his fingernails into his skin.
“Reve?” she murmured again. He reached out and took hold of her, his first aggressive act since meeting her. Pulling her close, he pressed his palms flat against her temples and spoke into her ear. He didn’t like to have to upset her subconscious in this way, but he couldn’t think of any alternate solution.
“We’re wherever you want to be.”
“Hey, Xin,” Lani climbed onto one of the stools in front of the café counter. He glanced up from the book he was reading, a sudden grin spreading on his face when he saw her.“What’ll it be,” he said, leaning over the counter top.
“Ah, a Coke would be nice,” she said, kissing his cheek. “Anything interesting happen today?”
“Well, Aegis and Etienne were in the same area for more than five minutes… so you know how that goes,” he said lightly, filling up a styrofoam cup. She nodded slightly as she slid a few crumpled bills across to the cash register. He handed over the drink and rung up the sale, moving a stray lock of hair behind his ear as Lani said,
“What was it now?”
“What else?” he said, trying to keep the bitter edge from his voice. “Kaitlyn.” The look on Lani’s face told him he had failed miserably.
Lani bit her lip, supposing that he still had something of a crush on Etienne. She sipped quietly, afraid to speak for fear of sounding as jealous as she felt.
“Sorry, Lani,” he said. “Listen, my shift’s over in ten minutes. Do you want to..um..” he was about to say ‘get a drink’, but then remembered she was doing just that. He trailed off, feeling quite stupid until she finished,
“…get out of here?”
He smiled. “Yeah, that.”
She was about to respond when her cell phone went off, causing several others to turn their heads and give her evil looks.
“Dammit,” she thought, yanking it from her purse violently.
“Hello?” she said, keeping her annoyance restrained. Etienne’s panicked voice came over the line, and the fact that Xin’s eyes lit up at the sound of it did not help Lani’s mood.
“Lani, you’ve got to get over here right now Kaitlyn’s in a coma or something and Aegis is here and he’s petting her hair and making me call everyone hurry now please I’ve got to call everyone else bye!”
Disturbed, Lani stuffed the phone back into her bag.
“What is it?” Xin said, already out from behind the counter.
“Kaitlyn’s apparently not conscious,” she answered, speaking as if she weren’t sure of her words. “At least, that’s what I could make out…I…I need to get to her place.”
“I’ll come with you,” he said firmly.
“What about…?”
“So I’m breaking early,” he said, chagrined. “It’s an emergency, they’ll understand. Let’s go.”
“How odd…her pulse and heart rate have steadied, but she’s still locked in sleep…” Kiera murmured, her fingers pressed against Kaitlyn’s wrist. *
“Well, let’s wake her up!” Etienne cried hysterically, pacing at the foot of her bed.
“You can’t,” L.J. snapped. “Aren’t you supposed to be able to sense these things?”
“Sense what?” he whimpered.
“Calm down and try to think,” she answered. She was draped over the chair next to Kaitlyn’s bed, scowling up at Etienne. The others, who were crammed into various corners of the room, watched him expectantly.
“Okay…deep healing breaths,” he said, closing his eyes.
“Want me to rub your shoulders?” Xin asked hopefully.
“I think that would make him even more nervous,” Jada mumbled. She and Charon were sitting, leaning against one of Kaitlyn’s bedposts. Lani sighed heavily.
“She…it’s a spell,” Etienne said dumbly. “Someone’s preventing her conscious from asserting control over her subconscious…and since the body won’t allow the subconscious to be in control in the waking world, she’s still asleep…”
“Lovely analysis, Freud,” Lani said.
“You must enter her subconscious, then,” Omnes said, suddenly forming next to Jigoku.
“Grgh…don’t do that…” Jigoku glared.
“But it’s such fun,” Omnes grinned.
“I don’t believe the physics of this room will allow for any more people,” Kiera mused.
“So why don’t we get rid of some?” Omnes clapped his hands, causing the six girls present to disappear.
“Lani!” Xin grasped at air. “What did you do to them?!”
“Relax. They’re in the dreamworld now.”
Dim twilight greeted them as they reappeared in a vast, quiet void. They had the sense of standing on an indefinable plane, which extended on forever but lacked a tangible ground or sky. An unnaturally cold breeze blew past occasionally, and the air was filled with enormous, slow-moving butterflies. *
“Well that’s the last time I take crack after breakfast,” Jada fell over. Kiera rolled her eyes and dragged her friend back to a standing position.
“Obviously we’re in the dreamworld,” she said. “It reminds me of that time we were in the negaverse…”
“I bet that place didn’t have pretty butterflies!” Roan squealed, grabbing one and cuddling it against her chest.
“Oh, gross,” Jada made a disgusted face. “Don’t touch the insects, dude.”
“But they’re beautiful…” Lani said, enthralled. She wandered through the clouds of colored wings, smiling.
“Um…girls…” Azura said quietly. “Perhaps we should transform…?”
“Might as well…” L.J. said, clasping one hand over her collarbone. Her body shimmered as gold plates of armor replaced her shorts and tank top, and a sheath containing a long, thin dagger formed in her hand. The others followed suit with their transformation phrases, and then pressed on. They began to notice little transparent spheres popping up as they walked, each with a different set of events being played out inside. Large clusters of butterflies clung to the spheres, obscuring the images within.
“Those must be dreams,” Sylphid said, reaching to touch one. Shade caught her wrist.
“Don’t.”
“Why not?”
“How would you like it if a strange person suddenly appeared in your dream?”
“Not very much at all,” Undine answered, recalling the man she had seen a few days ago.
“I feel like I’m in a surrealist painting,” Lumina announced randomly.
“My favorite kind,” Salamando grinned, bounding along. She came to a halt suddenly, waving her arms.
“Hey everybody! Over here!” she yelled. “Dead insects!”
The others hastened to her, stopping cold at what they saw. It was a dream sphere, but all the butterflies around it were dead, their wings torn from their bodies. Thick clouds inside the sphere disallowed them from seeing what was happening inside.
“I have a really bad vibe going on here,” Lumina said nervously.
“I think this is the one,” Shade flattened her palm against the sphere, causing her body to begin to melt into the dream.
“Kiera!” Lumina cried, but the sphere had already absorbed her.
“Oh, ME NEXT!” Salamando grasped the sphere, followed by each of the senshi until only Sylphid remained. She sighed and touched the sphere.
“Sometimes being the cowardly one is really difficult.”
*
Light rain slid down their hair and skin as they reoriented themselves, glancing about their environs. A green lagoon surrounded the island they stood upon, and a tree with a diameter that was almost as wide as the island itself stretched to the sky before them. Ferns, bushes, and smaller, flowering trees attended this tree and poked out of the lagoon’s tranquil surface.
“Well, this is nice,” Undine said finally, starting to trek around the island. Two people eventually entered her field of view, and she shook as she recognized them.
“I…it’s Kaitlyn…and that man! That’s the man from my dream!” she said frantically, grabbing Salamando’s arm.
“Unhand me, woman,” Salamando said, shrugging her off.
“There, there, we’ll kill the evil pig,” Knight said darkly, drawing the dagger.
The man was pressed against Kaitlyn, his long, thin fingers resting against her sides and his head leaning on her shoulder. He wore clothing that recalled the eighteenth century, with a long black overcoat that had the sleeves of a frilly silk undershirt poking out at his wrists. His hair was long and blue green, and maroon face discolorations stained his face.
“I can just imagine what the look on Negaboy’s face would be if he saw this,” Jada smirked.
The man raised his head, catching sight of the trespassers. Panic flickered across his face, and he turned to Kaitlyn, touching his hand to her cheek. Her eyes closed and she slumped over, limp.
“Oh, God,” Undine squeaked. He walked to them, his lavender eyes wide with fear.
“Fear?” Sylphid thought, searching his expression for some hidden malice. But she saw that his hands, his body, even the irises of his eyes seemed to be shaking with anxiety. His fear was almost palpable.
“H…hello,” he said quietly. “Will you.. will you stay with me, too?”
“We want Kaitlyn back,” Knight grabbed the man by the ascot on his ornate shirt, almost tearing the silk fabric. “Now.”
He trembled in her grip, breathing rapidly.
“I’m sorry…I…I can’t…please… I want her to stay with me..”
“Well that’s just too damn bad,” Knight pinned him to the ground, clutching his throat.
“Stop it,” Sylphid said. “Can’t you see how scared he is?”
“Of course he’s bloody scared. We caught him with guilt on his hands,” Knight growled.
“Yes! Let us stone him!” Salamando cried.
“We haven’t got any stones,” Lumina rolled her eyes.
“Oh well! I guess he’ll just have to burn,” she giggled maniacally.
“Pl-please…” Reve said, crying. “It’s so lonely here…I…I just wanted her to stay…”
He struggled against Knight’s ever tightening grip, his nails digging into the dirt around him.
“_Stop it_!” Sylphid cried, trying to pull Knight off of him.
“You’re always getting in my way,” Knight glowered, shrugging her off.
“M…maybe she’s right,” Undine spoke up. “He’s really afraid…”
“Let’s see what his scream sounds like,” Salamando said, flicking her wrist. “Fire Bouquet!”
He cried out shrilly as the flames engulfed him, burning his coat and skin.
“Kill him,” Omnes urged. His voice reverberated in their brains, carving itself into their mind’s eye. “He’s only trying to trick you with this act…he just wants your sympathy. Don’t allow your hearts to be swayed… kill him.”
Reve had brought himself to his feet, but he felt his heart tremble when he saw the dark looks on all their faces. Suddenly, all at once, they attacked, viciously yelling their battle cries. Their magic rushed at him, overwhelming him with pain that seared him to his very core. He screamed, his eyes shutting as he covered his face with his hands, sobbing as the pain rocked his thin, frail body. The onslaught ceased after what seemed an eternity, and he choked as he tasted the red liquid that flowed freely from a cut on his lip.
"What’s this?” he said, swallowing thinly. Something warm and metallic coated his taste buds and he reeled back, sickened. He looked at his hands, his eyes widening as he saw that they were stained with the same liquid. Reve’s head throbbed, and he could feel the strength ebbing from his body. Dropping to his knees, he saw that his clothes were torn and drenched in the awful red substance. It trickled down his face, spattered across his chest, and dripped from the strands of his hair. And then, agony. He swallowed, tears pricking at his eyes as that metallic taste resurfaced in his throat. Raising his head, he looked at his tormentors, the ones who had caused the blood to flow and the pain to rip through his body, hot tears streaming down his pale cheeks. His hands shook as he held them up, whispering.
"Why did you do this to me?"
"Amazing…" the one with black hair said. "He did not even attempt to guard against our attacks."
Another, the one with purple hair, covered her eyes, unable to look at the bloody, shredded creature before her. But the two with red hair were grinning sadistically, as if they were reveling in his torment.
"You… you took our friend," the one with white hair said, her voice shaky as she watched him collapse. He lay there, trembling, his fingers slick with blood as he tried to pull the remaining shreds of his clothing around his thin frame.
"I just… I just wanted her to stay with me…" he was sobbing now. Bloodied locks of his hair fell into his face, and he found that he lacked the energy to brush them away. He wondered how much of this red liquid was inside him, and how long it would be until it ran out.
"I was so lonely here…" He spoke in between sobs and gasps for breath, his quiet voice ragged. "I wanted… I wanted someone to stay with me… and… and she was.. she was so nice to me.. she was so nice… no one has ever been that nice to me… so… I… I wanted her to stay…I thought… I thought this was the only way I could do it… I didn’t mean to do anything bad…" he curled into the fetal position, inhaling sharply as another jolt of pain shot up his weak body. "Please… please make it stop…"
"G… Give her back, first," the white haired girl said, her voice thin and small.
"Make it stop… make it stop, make it stop make it stop please… please…" he begged, saying the
words over and over again. The pain was blinding. He clenched his hands into fists, crying.
"Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease…""Forget him… There’s nothing you can do." Jigoku appeared, his expression stony.
"What will happen to him?" the one with purple hair said softly.
"I imagine he’ll bleed to death. Let’s go—the sooner we leave here, the sooner she will awaken. He is weak, and the spell is broken. You did well," Jigoku said, his voice devoid of any emotion. He looked straight ahead at the girls, not daring to let his eyes stray to Reve, who continued to murmur his pleas.
All but the ones with red hair hesitated, until Jigoku snapped, "Now."
Shaking, they did as they were told, taking each other’s sweaty palms and disappearing, leaving Reve alone with his pain. He closed his eyes and lay still. It would stop soon, he told himself. It… would all… stop…