Unknown Darkness

He strained his eyes to see through the darkness.  He looked behind him to try to make out any figure, or anything, in that room.  But was it a room?  He didn't know.  It was too dark to tell.

For some reason this darkness seemed familiar to him.  Like if he had been in it for a long time.  Like if the chill that it sent down his spine was recognizable to him, like if the loneliness that surrounded him in this place, was something that he knew like the back of his hand.  He shook his head in order to rid himself of its uncomfortable thoughts.  But yet it still lingered in the back of his mind.

Drip.  He heard something.  Drip.  It sounds like water dripping.  It seems far though and it echoes through the darkness.  Suddenly his throat felt dry and he begins to feel very thirsty.  Drip.  That's it he has to find where that sound's coming from.  He heads in the direction of the sound.  He holds his hands out in front of him just incase he runs into something.

The darkness starts to fade away.  Colours of green and blue and yellow swirl around him.  And then they form a scene.  He's not in the darkness anymore.  He's now in a park.  There are trees in the distance and a lake just before that.  The sky is blue with out a cloud and the sun shines warmly on his face.  The newly cut grass makes' it easy form him to move.

"Matt!"  A light hearted cheerful voice shouts.  "Matt!"  He turns around to see a young boy running towards him.

"TK?"  He questions.  The little boy runs up in front of Matt and stands there with a big smile pressed across his face.

"Yep.  That's me."  TK, Matt's little brother, smiles at him.

Matt just stands there in question for a moment.  He finally finds his voice and asks, "What are you doing here?"

"Mommy told me to come.  Said the darkness can't come here," TK laughs.

"The darkness?  What's the darkness?"  Matt asked confusion written in his voice.

TK's cheerful expressions suddenly turned and twisted into a look that Matt had never seen in that face.  Seriousness.  Maybe, a bit of fear too.  " The darkness is always there.  It's with you even if you can't feel it.  It's that feeling you get when you're late for class.  It's the pricking feeling that you feel on the back of your neck when you hear someone say you name but no ones around.  And it's impossible to hide from it.  It always gets you in the end."

Matt didn't know what to think.  He felt afraid.  Afraid that it would get him, afraid that he will have to keep living with it.  And just afraid.

He backed up slowly.  TK just stood there with that expression.  He didn't want to see TK look like that.  He didn't want to be in that place anymore.  So he kept backing up.  He put one foot behind the other until his right foot didn't feel ground anymore.  He started to fall backwards.  He looked around him and he saw that he was falling into the lake.  But the lake seemed farther down then it had before.

He was standing on a cliff.  The air sweeping past him, trying to make him fall as he tried desperately to grab on to something as he was loosing his balance.  The gray clouds wiped through the sky.  He looked back to his brother and saw that he hadn't moved.  That he was just standing there like before.  On the now dirt ground covered with rocks, stones and pebbles.   Then he lost his balance.  He saw the ocean rush towards him and the large rocks below came closer and closer and closer…

Then he hit water.  That was weird.  He was just under water.  He didn't' die like he thought.  He didn't' even get hurt.  But how?  He swam upwards.  He needed to reach the top.  He wanted to.  Not like he was having a hard time breathing.  Infact he seemed to breath just fine.  But he just didn't like it.  He looked up and something seemed to block his path to the surface.

…A Dolphin?… What the… it passed by and that's when he noticed that there were tons of dolphins passing.  But then he realized he had to reach the surface.  He didn't know why, but he just had to.  So he continued swimming.

He finally burst through the surface of the water and took a deep breath.  "LOOK OUT!!!"  Someone shouted.  He looked to a person that was standing on the deck of the swimming pool.  She was pointing up and he saw a person diving and he was coming right towards Matt, so Matt swam back under water to get away.  He closed his eyes for a moment but then…

Darkness.  He was once again in the darkness.  His eyes were open though.  He looked around.  He thought that he escaped it.  He was wrong.  But he thought he was sure he got away.  The room then started to echo.  The darkness is always there.  But where did the echo come from.  It's with you even if you can't feel it.  He recognized the voice.  It's that feeling you get when your late for class.  That voice belongs to TK.  It's the pricking feeling you feel on the back of your neck when you hear someone say you name but no ones around.  Is TK here?  Now?  And it's impossible to hide from it.  No he's not here.  It always gets you in the end.  Because that's not TK who said that!

"WHO ARE YOU?"  Matt shouts.  Who-who are you-you-ou?  An echo as a response.  "ANSWER ME!"  Matt demanded.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."  Came a sort or mocking voice.  Matt seemed surprised that he was answered.  He wanted someone to answer but he would be lying if he said he actually expected it.

"Try me!"  Matt yelled with fury.

"I am the Darkness Of Dreams.  I come to those who feel down, depressed.  I am all those feelings that you have right now."

"I-I don't understand.  What are you talking about?"  Matt stuttered.

"You understand.  I know you do.  You just don't believe me because in your world you are taught to not believe such things.  Am I right?"

"No.  No you're not right.  I don't understand.  I'm not depressed.  Why would I be?"  Matt said not really believing himself.

"Your father is constantly working.  He always leaves you alone.  Your mother died when you were young and you practically parent your brother.  Am I not right?  Now I know what you must be wondering.  Why now?  Why did the Darkness of Dreams come for me now and not earlier?  Well, I'll tell you.  You've been failing classes.  You don't know what to do about it.  You got beaten up just the day before and now you're thinking about your life and wondering about a way out.  Am I right?"

Matt was silent for a moment.  How did this-this-this darkness thing know about that?  Is it obvious?  Does everyone know? He realized, then, that he hadn't given an answer yet so he said with sorrow, "Yes."  Plain and simple.  The one word that proves it all.  That proves he's depressed, that proves he hates it… that proves he can't handle it.  He did want out.  He already thought about the way to do it too but decided to sleep on it to make sure he was making the right decision.  And the thought just got more enticing.

"Well Matt.  I'm offering you a way out right now.  You can take it.  I will take you way from this world forever and to my own.  I can rid you of all your problems and your sorrows.  But of course people will wonder if you just disappear but don't worry about that.  Only in the mental state you will be gone.  To every one else you'll just be in a coma.  That's all your friends and family will think.  Now come with me."  Matt had his head down thinking about this.  He was actually considering this.  He couldn't believe it himself.  But it was what he wanted… wasn't it?

I mean the pain the sorrow the loneliness will all be gone.  But then why was it so hard to make the decision.  He then heard footsteps.  He looked up ahead of himself.  He saw a figure.  Yes he could make out a figure?  It had an eliminating gray glow to it.  As the figure came closer he could see that it was a man.  The man, that Matt had figured out to be the Dream of Darkness thing, didn't stop walking until he was no more then six feet in front of Matt.

The man was in his mid twenties.  He was closely shaved and had dark hair that was combed back and held it's place with gel.  The man had green eyes and was wearing a black cloak.  Under the cloak he wore leather pants and a kind of baggy shirt tucked in to them. The man held a smile that wasn't gentle but wasn't harsh either.

He held up his hand for Matt to take.  Matt thought about it.  If he left he would be leaving behind his brother, his father, who really did care but was just a workaholic, and his friends that stood by his side when ever he needed them.  Was he really ready to make the sacrifices?  What about them?  Would they miss him and want him back?  Of course they would.  He was apart of their lives and he needed them as much as they needed him.  "Take my hand and I'll take you away from all this.  Just do it."  The man persuaded.  But Matt just couldn't.  At least not yet.

Matt took a step back to show the man his choice.  The man didn't appear to be too happy about this.  "Why will you not take my hand?" The man questioned with fury.  "I offer you happiness and joy and you chose family and friends.  I'm granting you every thing you ever wanted.  Forget about them."  He said passing his hand through the air as if to show he was pushing something aside.  "It's you that you should worry about.  Not them."  Matt seemed surprised by this.  Then something hit him.

"Why do you want me to come with you so much?  You're telling me to forget about others and to do this for myself.  Obviously you go by your own teachings.  So… what's in this for you?" The man straightened his back again and stood tall.  He had a grin across his face as he chuckled.

"Your not as dumb as I thought.  Ok.  I'll cut to the chase.  You'll come with me if you like to or not.  When I do have you I'll slowly take you life's energy until your completely drained.  I had existed for centuries and will for centuries more.  But it takes energy and power to live this long.  I use others energy by taking it from them.  It's my unique gift I have to allow me to live a long, long life.  People that are depressed prefer having the easy way out instead of waiting for it to just pass.  They are overwhelmed with such a feeling that they can't bare with.  So I just happen to conveniently come along to help…"

"More like kill!" Matt snarled.  The man chuckled again.

"No.  I don't kill.  I survive.  That's all.  And it's your turn to help me survive."  He said.  His eyes turned dark and his faced twisted to an expression of anger and hate.  "No come here!"  He snapped.

"NO!  NEVER!"  And with that Matt turned and ran.  He ran through the darkness, not really knowing where he was going.  He was just running.  Yet again colours swirled around him.  But these colours were not the same as before.  These colours are darker.  There's gray and brown.  The scene in front of his eyes turned and twisted into an empty street.  He continued to run down it.  The brick walls of the buildings that lined the street didn't give Matt an option to turn another way.  Up ahead he saw a manhole that was bigger then he thought they could come.  He tried to stop running before he ran into it but with no prevail.  He fell through it easily.

He couldn't see where he was falling.  Everything seemed to be spinning and then he landed on the ground.  He sat up and looked around.  He was in a graveyard at night.  "Matt."  He heard someone say.  A pricking feeling touched the back of his neck as he turned around to see who had said his name.  No one was there.  He then got up and started to run again.  He wanted this place to go.  Then a white figure flew in front of him.  He closed his eyes as he forced himself to stop.

"HOLD ON!"  Someone screamed.  Matt opened his eyes as he felt himself being rocked violently back and forth.  He saw that he was on a ship.  A storm thrashed it back and forth harshly and he slipped as a wave came up and over the deck.

"UNDER DECK!"  Someone else shouted.  Matt forced himself up as men passed him to go under the deck.  He ran towards the door that would lead him there.  He was the last one out in the storm.  Just as he got to the door, the door was shut on his face.  He struggled and pulled for the door to open but it wouldn't work.  Tears started to pour down his face as he now started to bang for someone to let him in.  "PLEASE!  PLEASE!  OPEN THE DOOR!"  He said begging to be saved.  "Please… p-plea-ea-ssss."  He said falling to his knees in sobs.  The ship was then hit hard and it sent him flying into the air and over board.

"AHHHH!!!"  He screamed.

"SEE WHAT WILL HAPPEN IF YOU TRY TO RUN FROM ME.  NOW SURRENDER."  The man was right in his face.  Matt's facial expressions shown with fear, grief and left over panic.  He looked around and saw the darkness again.  The man was standing so close that he could feel his breath hit his face.  "SURRENDER!!!"    He screamed in Matt's face.

"No.  I can't give up everything, including my life, to you."  Matt said calmly.  Now clearing his face of all emotion.

The man took two steps back and said as he straightened his pose, "Why do you work so hard to deny what I have planed?  Please tell me."  The man looked confused as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"I do it because I know that I have people depending on me and without me they wouldn't know what to do.  My father works to pay the bills.  So if I'm not there he will have to stay home with TK instead.  And they will have no money.

"I do it also because my friends depend on me to help them get out of jams.  When they have a problem I help them with it and visa versa.  I can't just leave them.

"I guess I always could take retest if I don't do well on a test and I might have been beaten up just the other day but the marks will heal and all will be fine.  So you see I can't fall to you that easily because I have everything that I will need to survive…" Matt then narrowed his eyes on the man and said, "… Unlike you."  And, with that, a white light spread out in all directions from Matt.  The man backed up in fear as he saw it inching it's way towards him.

"No.  This can't be happening."  He said almost to himself.  The light spread out wards and started filling in all the dark spots.  Then it started to increase in speed.  It got fast and faster and faster.  Then when it touched the Dream of Darkness it shot through out the room and spread up him like a built.  "NOOOOOOOOOOOOooo!!!" The man said as he turned into a human sculptor of ash just before he exploded…

His eyes slowly opened as a new day came upon him.  He saw the sun cut across the bed and fill his room with new warmth that he hadn't felt for a long time.  He stretched as he smiled to himself on this full morning.  There was nothing he liked more then sleeping in on a Saturday morning.  He yawned and closed his eyes.  But no longer as he did he heard the door to his room open and someone jump on his bed.  He cracked his eyes to see his brother smiling at him.

"'Morning TK."  He said sleepily.  "How was your night?"

"It was coooool.  I dream that I was at the zoo and…" Matt listened intently as his brother recited his dream to Matt.  Matt smiled at his bothers innocents and thought to himself how could I have given this up…

THE END