Chapter Four

1

 

     Why worry about death when you have no control over it?

 

     Heather wretched away from the chain and in the dim glow radiating from a swinging light she found a wall. Its gore streaked her fingers as she pressed against it.  She shook her head slowly. The world before her blurred though not for long. As her vision cleared she swallowed hard. Her fingers curled into her palms. They were cold and numb.

 

     In the heart of darkness stirs man and regardless of degrees he stumbles forth convinced he is worthy of life and should be given power over all other living things. Because of this arrogance he consumes vast amounts of life to sustain himself. He pays no care to the importance of equality because through his eyes there is no equality.

 

     She shuddered. Fog rushed over her with a gust of icy wind. Her gaze then slanted. Around the bend she ambled. Something else was guiding her, controlling her as she took one step after another and she was watching from within, unable to perform even the most mundane task until she came to a door.

 

     The world as you know it is a garbage wasteland. Why fight for it?   Are you ready to die again, Heather?

 

2

 

 

      Henry rubbed his forehead. Blurred images slowly came into focus as he strained to see through the haze. Warped cords of music expired in his ears as he stepped down from a flight of stairs. He staggered once his feet touched cement then realized it was not cement at all. He squinted as chipped tiles came into focus and slid against a wall whose cold damp exterior emitted a musty odor. It swirled within his nostrils, producing further recollections of a time not so long ago.

 

      He sighed, closed his eyes and paused. Before this he was laying on his bed. His new life started with the new apartment he rented far away from... He didn't want to think about it. Those memories were behind him now. They didn't need a second thought but as he tried to push them away they pushed back and he was forced to relive them.

 

      But this is only a dream, he told himself again. Dreams cannot hurt anyone.

 

      "Memories are not things to throw away."

 

      He spun around. The pounding of his heart echoed in his ears. Before him stood pure beauty wearing ivory skin that almost glowed. His chest tightened and butterflies swarmed inside his stomach.

 

      "Who are you," he asked, finding his voice strange in the ringing silence.

 

      "I am known by many names," replied the woman with porcelain features and huge sapphire eyes. "But you can refer to me as The Doll or...Dagger."

 

      She certainly looks like a doll, he thought.

 

      Her lips were a perfect ruby bow, her cheeks a delicate pink shade and as his examination discovered she was picturesque. Her flowing white garb cascaded behind her, concealed any mention of legs and as she moved from side to side she seemed to glide rather than take steps.

 

      "I don't belong here," he quickly said. "There must be some mistake. I have to be dreaming."

 

      "Why is it when you are in doubt you believe to be dreaming," she asked.

 

      He gulped for air. It didn't matter how much his lungs filled with it. He felt as though he couldn't breathe.

 

      "I am not sure what to say," he said at last. His knees weakened. "I cannot be here again."

 

      "Perhaps you are not here," she said. "Whether you are in fact dreaming or awake is only a question because humans never really sleep and are truly awake in a dreamlike way."

 

      Henry shook his head. Though air came more easily now, he still felt dizzy. He sank down into a crouch, buried his hands in his lap and as the gentle caress of her fingers swept through his hair.

 

      "I will guide you through the darkness," she whispered.

 

      As he looked up he saw her kneel beside. "I don't want to experience the darkness again."

 

      "But now darkness is back and about to revisit old quests in order to please Destra, his new mother and master," she explained. "I will be your aid. You must not fear this responsibility. You have great courage and strength. It saw you through the last time."

 

      For a moment he lost himself in her eyes. They sparkled like fantastic jewels in the sun. They were pure, perfect and nearly angelic, but then his view inched lower to her mouth. The thought of tasting her lips seized him. He never before had seen a pair so ripe and enticing.

 

      "I am not sure I can make it this time," he confessed and quickly broke his gaze. His fingers curled into his palms.

 

      "You will," she said. "You just need a little help along the way and you will never again have to walk this world ever again."

 

 

      Overhead a bulb began to flicker. He watched as it painted shadows along the floor. Though it dimmed it never gave way to obscurity. He looked up and then to the right where he remembered the hallway took a turn left. He was in the subway again.

 

      "Do I have to revisit the places I went to last time," he asked.

 

      "Not exactly," she replied.

 

      "You mentioned Destra. Who is that and what does it have to do with me?"

 

      "Destra believes she is the rightful ruler of Drayton Falls and she wants to recall those who survived its hell in an attempt to silence them forever, but what she doesn't realize is there is no realm for her to govern. This place and all the creature within it is the making of multiple mad minds. She and our sibling Krosnos will always carry a bitter rivalry with them wherever they go and this territory is one of many battlegrounds," she explained.

 

      "But what does it have to do with me? Are you really a family?"

 

      A smile sketched her face as she tilted her head to one side. "We are a family in a sense but like in most families we have the good and the bad. Where you come into play is simple. You have encountered it before and won. You can do it again."

 

3

 

    Lisa's knees buckled as the chaotic encasement dispersed.  His grip loosened.  She had grown accustomed to it and when his hand began to slip away she lurched to her feet, ready to remind him of her presence.  He hadn't said much since the room.  In a way his voice soothed her.  She wanted to hear it again.

 

      He paused.  As his mind mapped rock, wood and marble he counted the bodies.  Some resembled human features though distorted and pieced together in the wrong order.  He imagined their pain had been great.  No doubt some tolerated more than others, but in the end it was all the same.  They pleaded for death.

 

     "Dagger," Dyne called and acknowledged Lisa with a tug of her wrist.  "United at last."

 

     Emerging from fog and obscurity's womb Dagger pulled Henry by the hand.  His expression was worn, but as she gently squeezed his fingers his eyes brightened.  He didn't need any reminders rather than encouragement and as they shortened the distance between them he met her gaze with a smile.

 

     "Found him," Dagger/the Doll sang.

 

     Readily reading him Dyne asked, "You know she isn't really a child?"

 

     Baffled Henry peered beside him only to take a leap back and wonder who it was at his side and where the brilliant beauty who guided him here had gone.

 

     "And you aren't really a man," she retorted and stuck her tongue out.