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Darien opened his eyes and found himself surrounded in white. The light hurt his eyes and he squinted trying to look past the brightness. He was in a room. It was completely white. There was no color anywhere. There was no entrance to the room and certainly no way out of it. He circled the room examining the walls fighting the overwhelming feeling of oppression they caused.
"I came to help," said a familiar voice behind him. Darien spun around and saw a man dressed in black. Darien could not take his eyes off the sudden spot of color. It soothed his eyes and calmed him at the same moment the felt a shiver of fear run down his spine. Darien looked up at his towering, older brother and flinched at the disappointment he found there.
"How can you help me?" whispered Darien softly.
"The folks I worked for looked into you. We are ready for a volunteer."
"A volunteer," stated Darien.
"It's nothing I can't reverse. Trust me."
"Yes, trust me, Dahrien," stated another voice from behind. Darien spun around to find Claire standing there wearing light blue. The color was not as soothing against the white but it produced a longing inside Darien. She did not tower over him the way Kevin did but he still had to look up to meet her face.
"I don't know," he answered uncertainly. "I don't want to be a lab rat or a slave."
"It's better than throwing your life away," answered Kevin as though he was asking a reasonable thing.
"You have a gift, mate," replied Claire.
"Why should I trust you?"
"Because you don't have much choice."
"Trust works both ways."
"Do you promise it will be OK?" he asked innocently looking up at the two of them.
"Trust us." Slowly Darien's hands reached out and carefully took their hands.
"I trust you." As the words left his mouth, a door appeared in the wall of the white prison. Smiling he walked with them into the long red hallway. The walls pulsed with the bright red color. It glistened and shimmered as though it was wet. A faint metallic scent filled the area. Suddenly Kevin stopped and let go of his hand. Darien looked at him silently begging him to stay. Kevin turned and walked back down the hallway his steps echoing in the silence. Kevin reached the doorway and shut the door behind him as he left.
Darien wanted to chase after him but Claire was walking forward and he was compelled to continue on. Silently they traveled for a few minutes, or a few hours, or a few days. Infinity became finite and their destination stood before them in the form of a silver metal door. It slid open behind Darien as he turned to face Claire. She smiled at him as she met his eyes. She stepped forward gently herding him backwards until he reached the edge of the doorway. Still smiling she placed a graceful hand onto his chest and pushed. Down he fell. Falling. Falling. Plummeting into the darkness. The blackness consumed him.
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"Nooooooooooooooo!" screamed Darien breaking the stillness of the night. He bolted upright in the bed panting. The darkness surrounded him. His unwanted companion for all eternity. A searing agony tore through his soul mingling with the remnants of betrayal from the dream. Never had he felt such hopelessness, loneliness, or sorrow. A single dream took every wound he had ever suffered and opened them. From a distance he heard a voice that he vaguely recognized as his own. "Nononononononono." Strong, gentle arms enveloped him giving him a careful squeeze.
"It's OK. It's just a dream," came the soothingly deep voice. Hands stroked his hair brushing away the dream fragments. Slowly he calmed falling silent simply allowing himself to be rocked. The trembling that he had not been aware of eased.
"They promised. They told me it would be OK and I trusted them," he told the other man brokenly.
"It was just a dream, Dare."
"I trusted them," he said simply. "They promised. Why did they lie?" he asked innocently turning his wet face up towards Mike.
"I'm sure they didn't mean to lie," he answered stroking the ex-agent's back. "I'm sure they did their best."
"I shouldn't have trusted them," yawned Darien. "Can't trust anyone," he mumbled snuggling back into the covers. "Just me. Just me and Hobbes. Always Bobby."
With that Darien fell into a dreamless but restless sleep. Mike continued to sit beside him watching over him. He was very protective of his charge and he wanted to be there to keep the dreams away and comfort him when he woke.
AN: I know a lot of people have already read this but could I have a few reviews from the ones who haven't? I'm starting to get a little paranoid here.