She'd had this dream before.
Except this time it was 3:00 in the morning when Jada felt that shadow crossing her face. When something woke her in the night, tucked in her bed. Tore her away from dreams. There was a thunderstorm. The entire house was quiet, and the only sounds from outside were the sounds of branches scraping over the roof, the sounds of the trees blowing in a rough wind, and the rain pattering on the balcony outside her window and the roof above her head. The feeling of wrongness. This time, Jada stood, glancing down at herself- a white silk nightdress. It clung to her body like skin. Not the thing she wanted to be wearing to go walking in a thunderstorm.
Logically, she should have remembered that she didn't want to go walking in the rain.
Her hair was down, pooling around her body, strands clinging to the bare skin and tugging at the firm flesh. Normally this would bother her.
It didn't.
She didn't slide on the scarlet robe that was thrown quite dramatically over her balcony. Instead she walked the outside balcony of the large house. Red silk was outside every window, streaming down like ribbons of blood. Slowly, her eyes turned towards the place that the blood wasn't.
Red silk had hit the ground, and was pooling around her bare feet. It was wet and cool. Not hot like blood. It would stain her nightgown, she thought, illogically.
Red shouldn't be cool, she decided, and the red moved to a deep blue-black, and the house started crumbling into silken pools, stretching across the family property. Filling up the stone walls with silk, lifting her with it as it rose.
This was not the nightmare she'd had before.
It lifted her high, over the walls, until the blue was spilling over the walls. “Stop it.” she whispered, and it paused. She could see people freeze in their running from the silken scarves and sheets.
“Start over again.” her own voice came from behind her, and she turned to see Scylla. Their faces were mirrored, and as Jada lifted her left hand to make it stop again, Scylla's right hand rose with it.
“Don't do this.” Jada told herself. Her words poured from Scylla's lips.
“I want to.” Scylla told herself. Her words came from Jada's own mouth.
“Why.... what...?”
“It's now or never.” Scylla leaned in close to her, and as the other moved, so she felt herself moving. The senshi leaned in, her red lips pressing to Jada's own. The senshi's hands moved over her body, and Jada realized she was naked.
Then, Jada was drowning. Scylla watched her sink into the blue silk, and suddenly it wasn't silk. It was water, pressure, and she could feel something moving underneath her. The water was salty, stinging eyes she couldn't close. What was in the water was too big to be comfortable in the small pool it was within.
Too big to be confined.
Suckers wider than her entire body was long whispered past her as easily as she would move her arm in a light breeze. She couldn't move even an arm to fight for the surface. There was too much water rushing down on her.
Her vision was going dim.
Then she was watching herself sinking. She was Scylla, watching Jada's nude body falling to the deeps.
She was Jada, sitting bolt upright in her bed, gasping for breath, lips blue. She reached up, gripping her nightgown, and pushed out of bed, pulling on the white mesh robe at her bedside. On base feet she padded over to the balcony doors, pushing them open. It was still a thunderstorm, that was real. There was a man on her balcony, watching her. His eyes drifted over her body, and then she realized that this was the dream she'd had before. He stepped forward, and she didn't move, watching him. His jaws opened, and she could see that there was nothing inside of him. He was a shell.
She watched him move closer to her, one hand reaching out for her. She couldn't move. She could only watch as a clawed hand pushed aside her robe, sank into her chest. She gasped, she gagged.
“Use me.” Scylla moaned in her ear. “I can save us.”
Her vision was going dim.
Jada woke in her bedroom at Crystal, hands curled over her chest.
Except this time it was 3:00 in the morning when Jada felt that shadow crossing her face. When something woke her in the night, tucked in her bed. Tore her away from dreams. There was a thunderstorm. The entire house was quiet, and the only sounds from outside were the sounds of branches scraping over the roof, the sounds of the trees blowing in a rough wind, and the rain pattering on the balcony outside her window and the roof above her head. The feeling of wrongness. This time, Jada stood, glancing down at herself- a white silk nightdress. It clung to her body like skin. Not the thing she wanted to be wearing to go walking in a thunderstorm.
Logically, she should have remembered that she didn't want to go walking in the rain.
Her hair was down, pooling around her body, strands clinging to the bare skin and tugging at the firm flesh. Normally this would bother her.
It didn't.
She didn't slide on the scarlet robe that was thrown quite dramatically over her balcony. Instead she walked the outside balcony of the large house. Red silk was outside every window, streaming down like ribbons of blood. Slowly, her eyes turned towards the place that the blood wasn't.
Red silk had hit the ground, and was pooling around her bare feet. It was wet and cool. Not hot like blood. It would stain her nightgown, she thought, illogically.
Red shouldn't be cool, she decided, and the red moved to a deep blue-black, and the house started crumbling into silken pools, stretching across the family property. Filling up the stone walls with silk, lifting her with it as it rose.
This was not the nightmare she'd had before.
It lifted her high, over the walls, until the blue was spilling over the walls. “Stop it.” she whispered, and it paused. She could see people freeze in their running from the silken scarves and sheets.
“Start over again.” her own voice came from behind her, and she turned to see Scylla. Their faces were mirrored, and as Jada lifted her left hand to make it stop again, Scylla's right hand rose with it.
“Don't do this.” Jada told herself. Her words poured from Scylla's lips.
“I want to.” Scylla told herself. Her words came from Jada's own mouth.
“Why.... what...?”
“It's now or never.” Scylla leaned in close to her, and as the other moved, so she felt herself moving. The senshi leaned in, her red lips pressing to Jada's own. The senshi's hands moved over her body, and Jada realized she was naked.
Then, Jada was drowning. Scylla watched her sink into the blue silk, and suddenly it wasn't silk. It was water, pressure, and she could feel something moving underneath her. The water was salty, stinging eyes she couldn't close. What was in the water was too big to be comfortable in the small pool it was within.
Too big to be confined.
Suckers wider than her entire body was long whispered past her as easily as she would move her arm in a light breeze. She couldn't move even an arm to fight for the surface. There was too much water rushing down on her.
Her vision was going dim.
Then she was watching herself sinking. She was Scylla, watching Jada's nude body falling to the deeps.
She was Jada, sitting bolt upright in her bed, gasping for breath, lips blue. She reached up, gripping her nightgown, and pushed out of bed, pulling on the white mesh robe at her bedside. On base feet she padded over to the balcony doors, pushing them open. It was still a thunderstorm, that was real. There was a man on her balcony, watching her. His eyes drifted over her body, and then she realized that this was the dream she'd had before. He stepped forward, and she didn't move, watching him. His jaws opened, and she could see that there was nothing inside of him. He was a shell.
She watched him move closer to her, one hand reaching out for her. She couldn't move. She could only watch as a clawed hand pushed aside her robe, sank into her chest. She gasped, she gagged.
“Use me.” Scylla moaned in her ear. “I can save us.”
Her vision was going dim.
Jada woke in her bedroom at Crystal, hands curled over her chest.
