Warning for thoughts of suicide
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
Another turn. Another stretch of empty hallway. A left turn this time. There's nothing here. Not anymore.
Only memories.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
"What do the stars tell you?"
"They tell me the past and the future."
"Will you teach me how to read them?"
"No, you will have a life beyond this temple. I will be the last guardian of the mountain."
"Do you see that in the stars?"
"...Yes."
"What if you didn't do what they say?"
"Something terrible would happen."
I'm not sorry that I lied to you. I refuse to let you travel down the path I was bound to.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
"Dunamis!" Titi woke up with a start, the guardian's name leaving him in a cry.
"Ughn...Titi? Are you okay?" Yuu groaned sleepily from his bed. Titi was staying with Tsubasa and Yuu until he could return to the mountain temple. So he was sleeping on a futon in Yuu's bedroom, as there wasn't a guest room in their apartment.
"We need to go see Dunamis. Now!" Titi scrambled out of bed. He didn't really remember his dream, only hazy remnants of terror and the convictions: Dunamis was in trouble, and Must hurry.
"Huh? Titi! We can't go now; visiting hours don't start till-"
"We have to! Please! He needs help; I can feel it." Titi half sobbed as Yuu attempted to calm him.
Suddenly the door banged open, revealing a messy-haired Tsubasa, clad in only boxers and holding his launcher and bey in ready position. "What's going on? I heard shouts."
"Tsubasa!" Yuu was relieved. Surely the older boy would know what to do. "Titi says that Dunamis is in trouble and that we need to go over immediately."
"What? We can't go there now. It's two in the morning!" But Tsubasa took one look at Titi's watery eyes and felt his resolve waver. Well, it wouldn't hurt to just check in at the hospital...
He sighed. "Come on then, we have to get dressed before we leave."
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
There were breaks in the walls now, crumbling holes that yawned even wider as he passed. Sometimes he caught a glimpse of colour and movement in them. Sometimes he saw only darkness.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
"Yuu says that Tsubasa is like a brother to him."
"Did you have a brother?"
"No...but I have one now."
No, you aren't my brother. I only bring death to my family. I will not kill you.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
The traffic was terrible. Tsubasa could see the dark, hulking silhouette of the hospital from here, but his car was currently locked in place between an ugly truck and a minivan that kept honking irritably.
He could hear sirens begin to wail.
In the backseat, Yuu and Titi watched as a plume of smoke began to rise from the hospital.
...~*~..~*~...~*~...
There was a flicker of crimson at the corner of his eye. There was the familiar roar of dried wood being set aflame. He stared at the rapidly deteriorating wall, at the dark burns spreading across the blank surface. Flames licked through.
He turned and ran.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
"Dunamis, do you know why my parents left me? Can you see it in the stars? Even though it might hurt me...I want to know the truth."
"Titi..."
"Please! I want, I need to know why they left me alone."
"The stars are not all-seeing. I'm sorry."
Another lie, another lie. You wished for the truth, but I only gave you lies.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
Alarms were ringing.
The curse walked casually up the stairs, hearing shouts and pounding feet behind it as the hospital personnel attempted to get the patients to safety.
Once it arrived at his destination, it deftly broke the lock with a concentrated jab of writhing shadows. It opened the door and stepped through.
Behind it, there were screams.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
There were tongues of fire leaping through the cracks, and he was running, running away.
Because he didn't want to hurt.
Go back. The flames hissed. Wake up!
He didn't want to return to the other side. He didn't want to hurt anymore.
But the fire was burning and too bright and there was searing ash and he was tumbling through a gaping maw in the wall.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
Dunamis was at the top of the building, the same roof as before.
Something was different. It was as if he was staring through dusty, red-tinted lens. His head ached.
He stared dully down at the crawling dots of light below, a traffic jam at its finest. The wind plucked at his clothes, running frigid fingers through his hair. He was at the very edge of the roof.
I could end it all with one step. I could...
The curse crooned at the back of his mind.
Sleep. I'll take the pain away. I'll take everything away. Sleep...
He fell. It was cold. It was dark.
He slept.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
He walked along the passageway, his steps not leaving a single trace along the dust-coated floor.
There was something to be found. But he did not want to find it.
There was somewhere he needed to go. But he did not want to reach it.
The walls were disintegrating.
So was he.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
It was chaos.
"Osamu-san! Osamu-san!"
"Everyone please remain calm and walk in an orderly fashion to the nearest fire exit. All hospital personnel, please report to your assigned stations and help the patients." The intercom blared over the alarm.
"Aahhhhh! I'm too young to die!"
"Everyone, please follow Emergency Plan C. Thank you for your compliance."
Dr. Kobayashi was suddenly knocked over by a red-headed nurse.
"Osamu-san! I can't find him anywhere; he's missing again!" She cried, worry evident in her panicked voice.
"Calm down Reina-san. What are you talking about?"
"It's Dunamis!" She wailed, "He's gone!"
Osamu felt another headache coming on. This day could not get any worse.
The emergency sprinklers clicked on.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
Tsubasa stood amongst the teeming crowd of onlookers, holding tightly onto both Yuu's and Titi's hands, so as not to lose them in the press of people. They watched, horrified, as the firefighters rushed to put out the fire that had started up on the higher levels of the hospital. Patients and the hospital staff filed out in an orderly line, much to the relief of everyone.
But they didn't see Dunamis.
While Tsubasa and Yuu combed the throng for the Jupiter blader, Titi fixed his attention on the roof of the building.
A figure stood there.
He screamed as Dunamis fell.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
Black chains trickled with a from the wide gashes on the wall, slithering across the floor, wrapping around his ankles, and crawling up his calves. The cold manacles were strangely viscous-feeling.
Dunamis stumbled as a sudden numbness began to travel up his legs. He ignored it and pressed on.
The chain's links stretched endlessly behind him.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
For a moment, time seemed to freeze for Titi.
Thump thump. Thump thump. His pulse pounded in his ears, and he stared as the figure plummeted towards the unforgiving ground.
And then the sky exploded into darkness.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
The chains were heavy weights dragging on his limbs. He was numb. He was hollow.
Dunamis dreamed of wings.
...~*~...~*~...~*~...
A/N: Sorry if this chapter seems disjointed, it's supposed to reflected how confused Dunamis is feeling now. So basically he doesn't want to face reality and he's hiding in his mind, but part of him knows that he needs to stop the curse from wreaking havoc. That side of him keeps showing him memories of Titi to try and get him to wake up, and when that doesn't work, draws on his most traumatic memories of his father's cremation. ^_^' Poor guy...
If anyone's confused about the curse's power, I'll explain it in the later chapters. :)
Also, if anyone is interested, please check out All That is Hidden in the Mist. It primarily focuses on Dunamis, and also Gingka. The first chapter is just introductory, and the action really starts in the next one, which I'm almost done writing!
Also, please vote on my poll. Right now it's 50/50. Which does not help me very much...
Edit: So there's been some confusion. An belated explanation is called for:
There are basically three distinct types of scenes going on- the "hallways", Dunamis's memories, and the real world. (I'll expand on how these spaces impact one another in later chapters.)
But basically, the hallway system that Dunamis is in represents his mind. The memories (italicized) are projected by part of his subconscious. And the real world (including the rooftop scene) is...well the real world. XD