Balls of white-hot light spurted forth into the night. It shattered my mind within, echoing through the crevices as it shattered into minute shards. I awoke with a sudden gasp, perspiration trickling idly down my burning face. My breathing subsided to a calmer pace, yet still rasping for air in a desperate manner.
In another instance, my eyes were barred and my body shaking rapidly. My bed vibrated violently, creaking uncontrollably. Images shuffled past in a prolonged momentum, the profound horror revealed beneath the façade.
Scene after scene. Enigma after enigma. Cry after cry. Scream after scream.
Pause.
Slowly… slowly, my eyes fluttered open. The leaking tap could be heard with exact preciseness. Drip…drip…drip. Involuntarily, my mind reminisced the images, etching them into my memory.
Drip…drip…drip. Horrifying disorder. Again. Body shaking. This time more forceful. I felt myself on the brink of insanity…literally. My head flew wildly in all eight directions, hair slicking across my damp profile. The shutters of my eyes erupted open and shut. Gaining momentum and power. Sensation heightening upon sensation until…
Frozen silence. But only for a…fraction…of…a…second.
Drip.
My body sprang upwards in blinding white light, rotating with incredible velocity. Oblivious to my eyes was the blurred surrounding. Because once more I could see the images, flashing through with velocity matched to the horizontal rotation of my body. Each cycle completed, each image repeated. This time, the horror deeper, the detail enhanced. And the scene…altered.
One element more. One element changed all. One element caused the final result. Only one.
Myself.
My eyes flickered slowly open. The white light skittered painfully against the dark accustomed vision. Eyes flickered, again and a few more times until they have adapted to the new atmosphere. A blurred silhouette advanced into focus and there seemed to be small movement rippling the stillness. I sensed rather than saw. It could have been because the hair adorning my body had raised up almost instantly. My mind attempted to untangle itself and piece by piece started to dawn understanding upon the situation. A kidnap. No. A Lure. A betrayal… I felt as though the chambers of my heart had shattered from within the deepest crevice, scream after scream echoing the blemished walls. The impact fell so sudden. So deep. The realization so personal... My mind refused to further the thought. But beneath the façade, the truth lay below, caressing the thin surface. I knew.
Almost desperately, I tore my mind away to the figure looming above. Words leaked out of his lips, stumbling along the thread to my ears. "Chiharu, look into my eyes. Do you see what I am?"
I couldn't, couldn't face the fearful truth eye to eye.
"Do you visualize my soul? I am what I am. My fate is sealed. Chiharu, this is my life." He cupped my face with his hands and willed me to understand.
"I'm sorry… Chiharu…" He withdrew a gun and raised it. Inch by inch it edged into my vision. The profound horror mirrored in my eyes. I tried to release myself from the ropes bounding me. I tried. Strived all that my life was worth. But God didn't perceive. Ropes lashed taut, my body lay encased. Could be forever. I closed the shutters of my eyes, signalling my defeat. Memories. I wanted so much to relive them. I wanted so much more.
"No…" I whispered soft like the morning breeze, despaired like the moment before death. I whispered with hope lingering. I whispered because I heard. The click of the trigger, resonating and swirling. It encompassed my mind. A shadow of whispers. I almost heard… almost felt… it tear my world from shred to shred, breath to breath, flesh to flesh… and a wistful whisper.