Rei ran down the street as fast as she could. Setsuna called her saying something was wrong with Hotaru right after she had started feeling very negative vibes. Even as she ran, she could feel them getting stronger as she turned the corner and ran up the steps to the Outer's house. She found the door open and ran it, only pausing slightly to catch her breath.
"Guys?" she called out, and heard Michiru yell to her from what sounded like upstairs. She ran up the stairs almost running into Setsuna who gave her a worried glance as she ran to fetch more cold water in a bowl. As soon as Rei stepped into Hotaru's room, she felt her stomach lurch forward, sensing something really wrong in the room. She almost collapsed as the feeling of sickness overcame her, but after pushing those sensations away, she walked over to Hotaru's bed.
"My goodness…" She said, looking at Hotaru. Hotaru was glowing with a black aura around her, and was still caught in the dark realm of her nightmares. "How long has she been like this?" Rei asked a she tried to rouse the sleeping Hotaru.
"We found her like this about a half hour ago, but who knows how long she's been like that before…" Haruka said as Setsuna returned with cold water and cloths.
"There's someone in her mind attacking her." Michiru said quietly. Rei just gaped at her.
"Someone else? Someone really dark? And inhuman by any chance?" Rei asked, and Michiru just stared and slowly nodded. "Crap, then we've gotta find a way to get whoever it is out, before it seriously hurts Hotaru."
"I thought it was only a dream, though. It can't possibly hurt her-" Haruka began.
"Oh yes it can. Just look at her. It has." Rei said as she turned back towards Hotaru. The girl was lying on the bed, blankets wrapped around her tightly. Hotaru hid her face in the covers and pillows, but one could see tears running down her face and eyes shut tightly. On her face and arms were numerous scratches and burns, and she held her arm as if it was broken.
*****
I was running again, away from everything. Why can't I
wake up? This is just a dream! Out of the blackness, rotting corpses were
following me, and they kept coming in waves. Out of the ground, around corners,
they came from every corner of this bloody hellhole. I had numerous gashes on
my legs and arms, and a long cut on my forehead somewhere. I kept running
faster, but I was tiring, and a moment later, a thin, bony wand grabbed my
shoulder and threw me up against a pole. I tried to move away, but more hands
held me there. I felt a sharp pain in my wrist as I heard something crack, only
to be replaced by a dull throb that grew more painful by the moment. Before I
knew it I was tied to a crucifix, hundreds of what seemed like lost souls
screaming from all around. The voices rang like accusations in the air, and I
could feel the negative influence eat away at me. Suddenly, everything else
disappeared, leaving me all and utterly alone. Paranoia clawed at the edges of
my mind, and I started to panic as I saw a ring of fire appear around me.
The fire crept up along the ground until it reached my
feet, and as I struggled to get away, I looked deeper into the fire. It wasn't
real fire, I realized as the flames licked my feet. The flames weren't hot, nor
did the burn like a normal fire. What the… Rei! She must be nearby! I screamed
her name out with all my strength, and the flames seemed to flicker in
recognition. They grew until they completely surrounded me, and the flames
burned the ropes holding me to the cross. I fell to the ground, landing in a
puddle of water. Water? Oh, come on, what the hell is water doing here? Oh.
What's next? A great gust of wind? I laughed for a second to myself; dreams can
be so predictable.
If Rei and Michiru can get into my dream, there must
be a way that I can get out! But how? I was freaking out so bad I could hardly
think straight. How the hell was I going to get out of here???
Suddenly, Rei's flames flickered down, almost extinguished. Another dark aura was coming near, and there was no way that I was going to run away this time.
*****
As Rei tried pressing deeper into Hotaru's
consciousness, she saw a vision of thin, bony hands pushing her up against a
cross. The arms tied her up against the wood, and Rei could make out the look
of fear, frustration, and pain that cross Hotaru's face as she struggled
against the overwhelming numbers to break free. As she neared her, she noticed
that she had taken the form of fire. She ran along the ground towards her, and
she saw Hotaru gaze intently at the flames. She heard her scream out her name,
and Rei tried to burn through the ropes that held her. 'She must have realized
that it's me!' Rei thought as the ropes fell away and Hotaru dropped to the
ground. Suddenly, Rei felt herself being pushed away, by something powerful,
but Rei fought back to stay inside Hotaru's mind.
Rei stumbled back from Hotaru's bed as the connection was finally lost, and Haruka caught her before she fell to the ground.
"What did you see?" Michiru asked as she helped her up and sit on the bed.
"Oh god, it's worse that I thought. He… he's inside her mind right now, and she's fighting for control. "
"Who? Who is it?" Setsuna said urgently as she leaned over Hotaru.
"I… I thought at first it was Pharaoh 90, but… it's different. Like him, but not… I don't know. It's not just the energy force that Pharaoh 90 was, though… it's as if it's conjured itself into a form… or something." Rei said with a sigh. She held her head in her hands as she tried to clear her mind, but found her thought process at a standstill.
"Pharaoh 90? But he was completely destroyed! I double-checked that last time! There's no way it can be him!" Setsuna said with urgency.
"I didn't say it was him… just felt a lot like him." Rei said grimly as she held her head.
"Like… family, a-lot-like-him?" Michiru said in a dead whisper.
*****
I stood facing a tall, dark man, the same one that I had seem earlier. He had short, dark hair, black armour, and those same soulless, evil eyes that scared me beyond belief. I felt unbelievably helpless, but I tried to focus and push those fears aside for now; I had to get out of here before I lost my sanity.
"Who are you?" I said in the bravest voice I could
muster.
"Do you really not know who I am?" He said in a deep, baritone voice. If not for the fact that he was evil incarnate, I could have thought he was striking.
"Should I?" I said, becoming angry. I wanted out of this place, and was prepared to kill… well, maybe not kill, just, severely mutilate… to leave.
"We're old friends… well, at least until you killed my
brother. Very sad, really. I almost cried." He said mockingly, wiping away a
fake tear. "Well… enough chitchat, what say I just kill you right now? No, what
would be too easy, wouldn't it? We'd have to bring your friends into it, too.
Bring the mice straight to the cat,
I could feel my blood boiling, and could feel power surging through my body. I wanted to lash out at him right now, how dare he threaten me like that, but instead, I focused that power to break free of this nightmare. The dark nothingness around us seemed to tremble under my power, then I could see the air crack. The man seemed impressed with the turn of events.
"Well, it seems I've underestimated you. Rest assured it won't happen again." He said resentfully, as the world around me suddenly crumbled away, and him along with it. I felt someone shaking me, and I screamed out trying to rid myself of the unknown assailant.
I bolted upright, narrowly missing Setsuna who was apparently the one trying to rouse me.