There had been a long pause; nothing but the sound of their heavy breathing against the cool night air. Neither could see, neither knew their opponent, and both were at a huge disadvantage. The attempts at lighting the space were futile, only for the light to be stolen away, taking their hope with it. Noises were soft, sucked away by the vortex that was their prison. From the moment they became enveloped in darkness to now, they hadn’t once been attacked, but were the ready for one.
Tyler stood with a dagger at the ready, her other hand at the small of her back to draw another. She suspected her brother stood close behind her with his dagger drawn as well, possibly his sword. She could feel bronze against her back; it was icy cold and burned against the exposed skin of her shoulders. The feeling vanished. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words formed as she spoke. A shiver danced down her spine as the intensity of the situation wrapped around her. They were fighting blind. They had no sense of the terrain, no sense of direction, and no hope it seemed.
It certainly couldn’t help that Tyler was shaking with her fear. The dark terrified her. Ever since she was a small child. When she was young, she would break into hysterics without a light source. But she had very good reasons to fear the dark. Things came from the dark, horrible and hideous creatures would spring out to capture her. Often times, the dark would take over her light and then try to take her. She would scream until her voice broke.
How unsettling. Dain didn’t handle battling side-by-side with anyone, let alone someone inferior, very well; but tack on the fact that they were thrown into darkness without their senses. He hated this. The anger that swelled in him couldn’t be placed into words; how dare someone challenge him. It took him a few moments to register the slight motion behind him, it was Tyler. He gripped his sword tighter in his hand and dared to reach back to brush his little sister’s side. It seemed to ease her for the time, to know she wasn’t alone in this. That didn’t make it easier for Dain. Until these past few weeks, he had been dead set on dieing, and even in recent times he had been reckless. Though for some strange reason, he understood that this was not the way to go out, that he had something to fulfill.
Tyler wavered slightly, but quickly steadied herself by pressing her back to her brother’s, reassuring herself that he hadn’t left her for dead on this fateful night. She cursed herself; she knew it was too dangerous for them to go to Camp. Far too dangerous. But she convinced Dain to go anyway, she told him it’d all be ok, that they needed to go, that they needed to say goodbye to Clear. She had made it seem like it would be easy, even though they were both well aware that the threat of any number of monsters lurked around every corner and in every shadow.
But she pressed on. And her brother kept in good stride with her determination, it was easy for him. She knew this. Not only because they were children of Athena, but it took determination to put up with all of Clear’s mood swings and appearance changes. That would always take a real man. And Tyler was fairly certain that even though Clear was gone, there would never be someone strong enough to deal with her. She doubted Dain even filled the shoes, but she was well aware that he had tried. And he still tried. Even after he had managed to murder her and the unborn child that grew within her, he still managed to push himself to new levels, as if Clear was still watching him and he still had to measure up. She prayed to every last god, goddess, and nymph that Dain didn’t try some stupid heroic s**t tonight.
At that very instant, Tyler lost in thought and Dain listening too hard, pain seared through her jaw and Tyler tried to scream in response, but her jaw slacked and her body began to tremor. Several tense moments passed where she felt no pain, no reassuring touch against her, she felt nothing. Then she could feel something almost like a kiss against the pieces of her jaw, it started to throb. Warm liquid spilled down her neck in a rush and she felt her orange tank top sag against her chest with the weight of what she knew was blood. Her blood. As it curved into her navel ring and down the slight arch of her toned stomach, Tyler felt it all at once. The broken bones, the torn muscles, the shredded flesh, and the comforting warmth of blood; every emotion and feeling at that moment coiled around Tyler like a boa and took a death hold. A vicious grip of pain took her over and tears streaked down Tyler’s cheeks. She could see nothing. She cried with blind eyes as she came to the full conclusion of what happened to her.
That thing, whatever it was, had pulled its fierce claws right through the massive bone that made up Tyler’s jaw.
She whimpered and fell to her knees. The noise she made that could have resembled sobs was swallowed by the darkness. Dain felt her warmth disappear from his back. He turned to her, though he knew it was useless, this was his biggest mistake. A tough thud met his back with enough force; Dain would swear on Clear’s life that it was enough to break him. Maybe it did, maybe he had just become numb to all the physical pain inflicted upon him. He stumbled as it pushed harder, like a wall against his back. His ankles met what felt to him like leather. Tyler’s boots. She lay at his feet as he tripped. He hated the dark. He hated fighting blind. This wasn’t going to be easy. A new wave of anger surged through him as his cheek bone connected to the steel-like surface of their prison floor and caved in respectfully. He groaned, not able to really make any other sound as he picked himself up off the floor.
Rising to his feet, Dain growled insistently, challenging the beast. A thin wire wrapped itself around Dain’s throat, drawing a thin line of blood before he snapped it. It fell away before it could do any real damage. A thick rope-like object twisted itself around his legs and pulled Dain to his knees. Blades of grass spread between his fingers as he caught himself, the smell of summer rain and freshly cut grass overwhelmed his olfactory and the sounds of crickets and trees in the wind broke the eerie silence and shattered the void. The darkness began to fade and then abruptly disappeared to let in blinding light. Tyler made a noise similar to a scream as her retina began to burn. Her voice didn’t sound right though, almost as if her mouth couldn’t shape itself to shout. Dain closed his eyes against the light, but his eyes were still damaged from the sudden change.
Maniacal laughter filled the air, shrewd, high-pitched, laughter. Dain collapsed to the ground, letting the grass be his pillow as he began to slip into a new state of consciousness. Tyler removed her feet from under his legs and tried to move so she could check on Dain. No success. She soon followed him. Small white and yellow spores fell from the sky. A familiar voice broke the solitude they had, and just before either disappeared from this world, they heard Clear’s desperate call, “I’m nothing anymore. She stole it all.”
Tyler stood with a dagger at the ready, her other hand at the small of her back to draw another. She suspected her brother stood close behind her with his dagger drawn as well, possibly his sword. She could feel bronze against her back; it was icy cold and burned against the exposed skin of her shoulders. The feeling vanished. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words formed as she spoke. A shiver danced down her spine as the intensity of the situation wrapped around her. They were fighting blind. They had no sense of the terrain, no sense of direction, and no hope it seemed.
It certainly couldn’t help that Tyler was shaking with her fear. The dark terrified her. Ever since she was a small child. When she was young, she would break into hysterics without a light source. But she had very good reasons to fear the dark. Things came from the dark, horrible and hideous creatures would spring out to capture her. Often times, the dark would take over her light and then try to take her. She would scream until her voice broke.
How unsettling. Dain didn’t handle battling side-by-side with anyone, let alone someone inferior, very well; but tack on the fact that they were thrown into darkness without their senses. He hated this. The anger that swelled in him couldn’t be placed into words; how dare someone challenge him. It took him a few moments to register the slight motion behind him, it was Tyler. He gripped his sword tighter in his hand and dared to reach back to brush his little sister’s side. It seemed to ease her for the time, to know she wasn’t alone in this. That didn’t make it easier for Dain. Until these past few weeks, he had been dead set on dieing, and even in recent times he had been reckless. Though for some strange reason, he understood that this was not the way to go out, that he had something to fulfill.
Tyler wavered slightly, but quickly steadied herself by pressing her back to her brother’s, reassuring herself that he hadn’t left her for dead on this fateful night. She cursed herself; she knew it was too dangerous for them to go to Camp. Far too dangerous. But she convinced Dain to go anyway, she told him it’d all be ok, that they needed to go, that they needed to say goodbye to Clear. She had made it seem like it would be easy, even though they were both well aware that the threat of any number of monsters lurked around every corner and in every shadow.
But she pressed on. And her brother kept in good stride with her determination, it was easy for him. She knew this. Not only because they were children of Athena, but it took determination to put up with all of Clear’s mood swings and appearance changes. That would always take a real man. And Tyler was fairly certain that even though Clear was gone, there would never be someone strong enough to deal with her. She doubted Dain even filled the shoes, but she was well aware that he had tried. And he still tried. Even after he had managed to murder her and the unborn child that grew within her, he still managed to push himself to new levels, as if Clear was still watching him and he still had to measure up. She prayed to every last god, goddess, and nymph that Dain didn’t try some stupid heroic s**t tonight.
At that very instant, Tyler lost in thought and Dain listening too hard, pain seared through her jaw and Tyler tried to scream in response, but her jaw slacked and her body began to tremor. Several tense moments passed where she felt no pain, no reassuring touch against her, she felt nothing. Then she could feel something almost like a kiss against the pieces of her jaw, it started to throb. Warm liquid spilled down her neck in a rush and she felt her orange tank top sag against her chest with the weight of what she knew was blood. Her blood. As it curved into her navel ring and down the slight arch of her toned stomach, Tyler felt it all at once. The broken bones, the torn muscles, the shredded flesh, and the comforting warmth of blood; every emotion and feeling at that moment coiled around Tyler like a boa and took a death hold. A vicious grip of pain took her over and tears streaked down Tyler’s cheeks. She could see nothing. She cried with blind eyes as she came to the full conclusion of what happened to her.
That thing, whatever it was, had pulled its fierce claws right through the massive bone that made up Tyler’s jaw.
She whimpered and fell to her knees. The noise she made that could have resembled sobs was swallowed by the darkness. Dain felt her warmth disappear from his back. He turned to her, though he knew it was useless, this was his biggest mistake. A tough thud met his back with enough force; Dain would swear on Clear’s life that it was enough to break him. Maybe it did, maybe he had just become numb to all the physical pain inflicted upon him. He stumbled as it pushed harder, like a wall against his back. His ankles met what felt to him like leather. Tyler’s boots. She lay at his feet as he tripped. He hated the dark. He hated fighting blind. This wasn’t going to be easy. A new wave of anger surged through him as his cheek bone connected to the steel-like surface of their prison floor and caved in respectfully. He groaned, not able to really make any other sound as he picked himself up off the floor.
Rising to his feet, Dain growled insistently, challenging the beast. A thin wire wrapped itself around Dain’s throat, drawing a thin line of blood before he snapped it. It fell away before it could do any real damage. A thick rope-like object twisted itself around his legs and pulled Dain to his knees. Blades of grass spread between his fingers as he caught himself, the smell of summer rain and freshly cut grass overwhelmed his olfactory and the sounds of crickets and trees in the wind broke the eerie silence and shattered the void. The darkness began to fade and then abruptly disappeared to let in blinding light. Tyler made a noise similar to a scream as her retina began to burn. Her voice didn’t sound right though, almost as if her mouth couldn’t shape itself to shout. Dain closed his eyes against the light, but his eyes were still damaged from the sudden change.
Maniacal laughter filled the air, shrewd, high-pitched, laughter. Dain collapsed to the ground, letting the grass be his pillow as he began to slip into a new state of consciousness. Tyler removed her feet from under his legs and tried to move so she could check on Dain. No success. She soon followed him. Small white and yellow spores fell from the sky. A familiar voice broke the solitude they had, and just before either disappeared from this world, they heard Clear’s desperate call, “I’m nothing anymore. She stole it all.”
