Interlude: A Nightmare to Remember
"Heh heh heh…"
"Who's there!?"
"You… you are there."
"What?"
"I am you and you are I."
"Wait… you aren't…"
"Yes, I am. Heh heh heh…"
"What do you want? How are you here?"
"We destroyed them. We destroyed them all."
"No, you destroyed them. I had nothing to do with it."
"But I am you! Can't you see? We are one, whether you like it or not."
"No, I'm not you…"
"Sure you are! We both want the same thing!"
"The hell we do."
"We both want power… power to save those we love…"
"No, I want power to save those I love. You want power to destroy them."
"What better way to save them than send them to heaven? Just think… they won't hurt anymore or anything."
"Then why didn't you kill Jennifer when you had the chance?"
"What?"
"Back in the streets of Odaiba, before you killed Matt, you had Jennifer pinned to the street. You could have killed her right then, but you didn't. You tortured her."
"All's fair in love and war."
"Lust ain't love."
"Then what is it you have?"
"You're a sick, twisted, demented son of a bitch. Now get—out—of—my—head…"
"HA! You won't even admit your feelings for her. The one moment you overpowered me is because of her and you're too proud to admit it."
"Get out of my head…"
"You're slipping James. You're losing your hold."
"Get out of my head…"
"The ghosts of those soldiers and the digidestined will haunt you forever."
"Get out of my head…"
"You can't escape your guilt James. First you killed your brother and now you've killed enough to turn it into a statistic. One is a tragedy but…"
"Get… out… of… MY… HEAD!!!" I sat up squeezing the top of my head. The pounding headache was far worse than the pain in my arm or chest. Sweat poured from my face and my hair was drenched in it. My rapid breathing was restrained against the bandages around my chest and a dull throb followed every breath. Dim lights from the machines attached to me finally stabilized—they had become static and distorted just a few moments before. It wouldn't be the last time they'd act unusually that night.
"Oh God help me…" That was the longest night of my life.