A/N: Special thanks to Carolyn and Lum for reviewing and giving great support/advice.
I think somewhere in the back of my mind I knew she was a tennis player but I didn't actually think about it until you mentioned it. I wanted to use the name Serena and I picked Williams because I thought it sounded pretty good. At least now I know why it sounded so good. Hehe. : )
I was thinking of pairing her up with Abe but I'm still not sure if I want them to go further than just friends. Perhaps in a sequel? Gasp! Dun dun dun! It would probably be a century from now before I could come up with a half decent plot for a sequel. Thanks for the advice! I'll keep that in mind. ; )
Now, enjoy what I think is the longest chapter I've written (for this story) so far. Grr! For some reason the little bar things won't work! Curses!
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As the World Falls Down
Chapter Six
"What the hell were those things," asked Hellboy as the team, plus Serena sat in the library. They all had seats in overstuffed chairs, save Abe who was perusing a book he had taken off one of the many bookshelves
"I believe," he said without looking up from the book, "they were harnines. A strange combination of harpies and canines which remain dormant as statues until someone awakens them. They are then under the command of that person."
"What were they after," asked Myers looking puzzled, his brow furrowed.
"Me." Until then, Serena had been quiet. Her legs were pulled up to her chest so she had curled up on the chair. Her head rested against the wingback and her eyes were closed. Lifting her head up slightly, she looked around at the assembled group with weariness. "They were after me."
Before Myers could ask her to explain, Abe cut in. "She's right. The harnines were there to take Serena back to their master."
"Do we know who that is," asked Hellboy, rolling his cigar between his fingers.
Abe slid the book back onto the shelf he had gotten it from and joined the circle the rest of the group had made. "The reading I got from the harnine was short but I did see a face. Nothing more, nothing less."
"So, no idea why the kidnapper is doing this," stated Liz, quietly. This earned a nod from Abe.
"Our one lead and it's a dead end." Myers sighed and sat back in his chair. "Now what?"
"We run his mug and see if our database turns up with anything." Hellboy got up from his chair. "And I'm gonna hit the sack."
"Red is right," added Abe, sensing Myers' doubt. "There really isn't much else we can do tonight."
The group dispersed, each person retiring to their own room for the night. However, not all of them slept. Liz went through the motions; change, brush her teeth, climb into bed, lay there. It was like this most nights. She would lay in her bed, listening to the noises of the B.P.R.D. headquarters and wondering about the occasional muffled echoes that she heard whenever someone walked by her door in the hallway during midnight hour.
She wouldn't admit to anyone, but she was afraid to sleep; afraid that she would lose control in her dreams again and burn down the entire building, killing everyone. Like she had before. So, Liz would go through the motions like all the others but it was always in the wee hours that she did finally fall into a light, dreamless sleep.
Tonight, however, Liz's mind strayed to the telekinetic that was sleeping just a few halls away. All day Liz had been thinking about whether or not she should ask Serena about the haven. Would they accept her or was she too old? Hadn't Serena said most of the people had been there since childhood? If they did let her go, would she be able to leave Hellboy again?
The thought caused Liz's heart to twist painfully. After all they had been through, she really couldn't stand to leave him again. On the other hand, though, she couldn't keep living on so little sleep, always afraid of killing her friends.
With a heavy sigh, Liz threw the blankets off and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. Unable to bear laying and thinking, she decided to get a glass of water.
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"Catch me if you can, Serena!" A tall girl of about ten stood at the top of the long stone stairs. Her long, straight, brown hair was wind blown and her dark brown eyes looked teasingly down at the shorter girl who scrambled up the uneven steps, trying to reach her.
"I'll get you this time, Joy" Serena yelled back, as she neared the top of the steps were the path veered off to the right and led up a small hill. She was only nine and her hair was still pin-straight at her prepubescent age. Her bright green eyes danced merrily in the afternoon sunlight. "You can't run forever!"
"Yes I can!" The ferns and other lush green plants that grew along the stairs and path rustled in the breeze as Joy astral projected. Her body seemed to be in two places at once, and before Serena's hand could tag her leg, the part of Joy that had been standing atop the stairs was further up the path.
"Hey!" Serena pouted slightly. "No powers! That's not--" her sentence was cut off, turning into a strangled cry. Her green eyes widened in terror and her mouth made a perfect "O" as her foot slipped on the smooth stone step. She flailed her arms for a moment, trying to regain her balance, but failed.
Down she tumbled, further and further. Her frail body bounced off the steps as she fell, head-over-heels, backwards. Serena's mind had temporarily gone blank and she couldn't feel the pain.
With an "Oof!" she landed on the dusty ground at the foot of the steps, rolling slightly. For a moment the wind was knocked out of her and she panicked, trying to regain her breath while the pain exploded all over her body. She could barely move and she was more afraid than she had ever been in her short life. What if she was paralyzed!
Taking a weak, shuddering breath, she began to sob. She was completely unaware of what was going on around her. Serena couldn't hear Joy calling her name, or the panic of one of the older kids as the entire island began to shake and rumble. All she knew was that she was hurt and she was scared.
"Serena." The voice was soft, calm, and soothing. "You're not paralyzed, child."
Opening her eyes, Serena could see Sophie kneeling beside her. The small child managed to put her arms around the older woman's neck, crying on her shoulder. "I-it huuurts!" she sobbed.
"I know," soothed Sophie. "It never tickles when you take a tumble." She stroked Serena's hair. "Now, stop crying. Do you remember what I told you about controlling your emotions?"
"Uh-huh." Serena's voice was still shaky but she had stopped sobbing. Tears still ran down her cheeks.
Looking over the small child's head, Sophie observed the island. Everything had stopped shaking but the damage had been done. Serena had completely destroyed the stone steps. They were crumbled and worn, as though they had been there for centuries more than they actually had been. The most disturbing part was the large, gaping crack that jaggedly split the steps in half, ending a mere inches from where Serena had landed.
Clearly the child was powerful. Powerful and dangerous to others as well as herself. Sophie was relieved that she had started training Serena before her powers could develop any further. Now, she'd be able to teach the child to hold back. If she were to develop further without a guide, and without knowing how to control her abilities… Sophie had to suppress a shudder at the thought.
"Look around you, child," Sophie said quietly. "And see why you must always keep your feelings in check."
Turning away from Sophie and letting go of her neck, Serena stood up. For a moment she was shocked to see that she was grown-up. Looking up from her longer legs, Serena gasped and stepped back.
She was in a stone dungeon. Her friends --Martina, Dulcie, Joy, Sybil, Morissa-- all of them were tied to tables or chained to the walls. They were all crying out in pain, their tears mixing with the blood that leaked out from multimple open wounds. Faceless men stood around them, poking them with hot irons, cutting them open, torturing them in any way possible.
"Help!" Her friends cried out to her in an eerier chorus. "Help us, Serena! We'll die!"
Horrified, Serena tried to move forward to help them. If she could get to the faceless men, she could stop them from hurting the others. She couldn't move. Her feet were stuck to the ground and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't move from the spot.
Pooling her psychic energy, Serena prepared to use her abilities against the faceless men who had yet to notice her. She waved her hand at one who was bringing a sledge hammer down on Martina's legs. Nothing happened. Serena tried again. Still, nothing. She was completely harmless. Her friends were slowly dying and she couldn't lift a finger to help them.
She opened her mouth to scream, "NO!" but no sound came out. She was completely mute. Tears streamed down her face again as she was forced to watch.
Then, the blood of her friends seemed flowed like rivers, pooling together in the center of the dungeon. Out of the blood arose a dragon with eyes as pitch as black. The body of it was so long that it had to bend almost in half to fit into the high-ceilinged chamber. It's black eyes stared her down while she looked on with an intense fear, unlike anything she had ever felt before.
Serena could hear its voice in her head. It was a low, loud, inhuman growling sound. She couldn't make out the words but it almost sounded like it was taunting her.
The creature opened its great mouth, showing sharp, yellowed teeth. With a deafening roar, it lunged forward, and snapped its jaws shut around her.
Gasping, Serena awoke with a jolt. Her entire body was covered in a cold sweat that had seeped into her sheet as well. She tried to calm her breathing as her chest heaved with the ragged breathes she was taking.
Looking around her darkened room she saw that all the furniture was floating. With a shuddering breathe, she closed her eyes and willed herself to calm down. When her eyes opened again, everything had stopped levitating and the furniture was back where it should have been.
Unable to stay there any longer, Serena quietly slipped out of the room, closing the door behind her. For awhile she wandered the halls aimlessly, trying to decide where to go. After five minutes she headed to the kitchen for a drink.
When she pushed the door open, Serena was surprised to find Liz sitting at the kitchen table with a glass of water. The slightly younger woman looked up from her glass, startled out of deep thought.
"Sorry." Serena gave a sheepish smile and was thankful that her jangled nerves had calmed themselves since she awoke. "I couldn't sleep so I came to get some water." As she spoke she retrieved a glass and filled it at the sink.
Liz nodded slightly before turning her attention back to her own glass. "Same here," she said quietly as Serena took the seat opposite her.
This time it was Serena's turn to nod slightly. She figured there was more to it but she didn't want to push Liz into telling her, so she let the matter drop. They sat in silence for awhile, each woman lost in her own thoughts.
Finally, Liz broke the silence. "Serena?"
"Hmm?" Serena looked up from the wall she had been staring at
Liz seemed to hesitate, not knowing how to ask her question. "You know that haven you told us about?" Serena nodded and Liz continued. "I was wondering… do-- do you think they would be able to help me?"
For a moment Serena looked at her blankly, trying to piece this together. What did she mean? Help her with what? "Help you?" Serena finally asked, confused.
Suppressing a sigh, Liz explained. She hated having to talk aloud about her 'control issues.' "I can control it," she said quietly. "To an extent… it's when I get mad that I lose control. And sometimes…. Sometimes if I have nightmare…" Liz's voice got quieter and quieter until she had trailed off.
Serena understood. She, herself had just had a nightmare and woke up to find her furniture floating three feet off the ground. "I know," she said, reaching out a hand and giving Liz's a gentle squeeze, surprising her. "When I was eight, just before Sophie came to find me, I had an awful nightmare. I don't even remember what it was, now, but at the time it scared me half to death. When I woke up, the entire second floor of the house had separated from the first floor and was floating ten feet in the air." She chuckled softly. "Gave my parents quite a scare."
Looking down at her glass of water again, Liz thought of the last time she had a nightmare. She was at the mental hospital and had accidentally set the place on fire, killing almost everyone in it. Liz suppressed a shudder at the memory.
"I'll tell you what." Serena leaned back in her chair, watching Liz closely. "As soon as we find my friends, I will personally bring you to see Sophie." Liz looked up quickly but before she could say anything, Serena continued. "Until then, I'll tell you what she always told me and my pyrokinetic friend."
Holding her hand up, Serena let go of her glass of water. It floated in midair for a moment before it zoomed towards the sink, gently clinking down. "Sophie always told us that our powers are linked to our emotions. So, we only lose control of powers when we lose control of our emotions. Positive emotions are easier to accept than negative ones, therefore they have no affect on our abilities. When we can't control our negative emotions-- hurt, pain, loss, anger, anxiety-- we can't control ourselves. That's when things get dangerous and people get hurt. What helps me keep everything in check, is the thought of what would happen if I were to lose control.
"Now, Martina was a little hot-headed. She always was and always will be. The littlest things would set her off, and she, of course, would end up accidentally setting stuff on fire. It took forever, but Sophie taught her how to save her anger for when she needed it." Serena gave another soft laugh. "I always felt sorry for anyone on the receiving end of her wrath."
"What about the dreams," Liz asked, mentally taking notes on everything Serena was saying.
"Just remember," Serena stood up as she spoke, "it's your imagination. If something you don't like starts happening, change it."
With a smile and not another word, Serena left Liz sitting in the kitchen. Her socked feet taking her down the halls of the B.P.R.D. and she realized she was heading for the library. Maybe a little reading will make me sleepy again.
Abe drifted lazily around his tank. He had already finished his four books and he didn't need to sleep. Sometimes, he mused, I feel like a goldfish. Out of sheer boredom, he 'sent' his mind out and took peeks into everyone's dreams. Purely for entertainment.
Abe smiled inwardly. It seemed that even in his dreams, Hellboy was fighting demons and doing the whole 'lone hero' thing. Abe frowned slightly when he found that Liz was still awake. She hardly ever slept and it was starting to worry him. He made a mental note to clue in HB.
Moving on, Abe found himself looking in on the dream of Myers. A smile tugged on his lips when he saw the agent sitting in a classroom of first graders, completely naked, and being scolded by the teacher for not knowing the answer to one plus one.
Searching closer to the library, Abe found that someone was awake and moving in his direction. Serena. She was just outside the doors to the library and Abe moved to float in front of the windows.
The first thing that Serena noticed when she entered the library was how beautifully eerie it was. The large room was dark, the only light coming from those in Abe's tank. The lights shone through the water and glass, making the carpet glow a light blue. Every movement of the water was played out on the carpet, as well, the darker swirls of color cutting through the glowing blue.
The second thing Serena noted was that Abe was already at the window, waiting for her. She gave a small smile and made her way across the room, pulling a chair up beside the glass.
"Can't sleep?" Abe asked.
With a soft laugh Serena gave a slightly sarcastic reply. "Abe, you read my mind."
He returned the smile as best he could. "Was it a nightmare?"
Looking down at the hem of her night shirt, Serena began to play with it. "Yeah," she said quietly. "It felt so real, too."
"Hmm…" Abe was quiet for a beat. "Would you like to show me?"
"Why aren't you asleep?" It was a feeble and pathetic attempt to change the subject but Serena had always been prideful to a fault and didn't want to let Abe know just how much the dream had scared her. It was childish, she knew, but she couldn't help herself.
"I don't need to sleep as much humans," he explained. "Just a quick catnap will suffice."
Serena laughed. "A fish that takes a cat nap. That's a new one."
Despite being called a fish, Abe had to smile as well, but it was short lived. When he saw Serena's smile fall and a troubled look cross her face, he decided to ignore her wishes and press the matter.
"Please, show me." He pressed one of his webbed hands against the glass window. "I promise I won't laugh. I won't even smile."
Snorting, Serena said, "You can barely smile as it is."
"Exactly. So. you don't have to worry." Serena gave a small, half-hearted laugh and shook her head. "Please?".
With a sigh, she agreed. "Alright," she said as she warily put her hand on the glass, over his.
The images flashed through Abe's mind and he could sense everything as though he himself were there, witnessing it all. Two young girls, playing a game in what appeared to be paradise. One girl, Serena, fell. She felt scared and hurt so she cried as any child would. The ground shook and Abe had to remind himself it wasn't real. There was a horrible, ear-piercing, cracking and he watched as the ground split right through the stone steps, the crevice ending right beside the young Serena.
A woman appeared and radiated calm. She soothed the crying girl and the earth stopped shaking. Standing up the girl turned into the Serena that Abe knew. The scenery changed with her. Turning from paradise to hell. It was a dungeon, cold, dank, and dark. Abe could smell blood and he heard screams. Five women were being tortured, calling for Serena's help, and he assumed they were her missing friends. Serena stood, frozen and unable to help them or herself.
Out of the running blood rose a monstrous dragon with deep black eyes. It stared at Serena. It growled, speaking to her. Then it lunged forward, ready to devour her.
The connection was suddenly broken and Abe knew that at this point, Serena had woken up. Slowly, he removed his hand from the glass, looking at Serena with his black eyes. She had pulled her knees up to her chest and hugged them tightly to keep from shaking. Abe knew what she was feeling, he had shared her fear during the connection. It was intense, overwhelming, and unlike anything he had ever felt.
"It was so real," whispered Serena, squeezing her eyes shut and trying to rid herself of the images. "Abe, what if I was Seeing?"
"Can you do that," he asked. Her fear still lingered in the air. She had barely managed to suppress it.
Serena shrugged. "Anyone can See to some extent." She shuddered and buried her face in her knees, taking deep breaths. She couldn't cry. She could not lose control of her emotions. What if I was Seeing? What if that does happen to them? What if I do have to do this completely alone and I fail?
Abe picked up on these loud thoughts. He pressed his hand to the glass again. "Serena," he said quietly, making her look up again. "You won't be alone. Hellboy, Liz, Myers, and myself will help you to the very end."
For a moment Serena could only stare. "Promise?" She felt like the smile child she had been in her dream.
He nodded. "I promise."
"You'll be there for me, a complete stranger, even as the world falls down?" She was understandably skeptical.
"Even as the world falls down," promised Abe again. "I have to be." He shrugged and gave his usual small smile. "It's in the job description."
For the first time in nearly two weeks, she laughed. It was a true, hardy, jovial laugh, from her belly. It echoed through the quiet library and Abe found himself wishing he had more facial movement.
"Abe," Serena said, when she had sobered enough to speak. "What would I do without you?"
"Hmm.. I suppose you'd have to explain all your troubles to Hellboy." He continued to smile as Serena continued to laugh.
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"So," grunted the burly trucker that sat in driver's seat. "What's yer name?" Graying hair stuck out from under his hat and his dark, beady eyes glanced at the man sitting in the passenger's seat.
The eighteen-wheeler hit a small bump, jostling the driver and the passenger. "Josh," replied the young man, quietly. He was about twenty-three with light brown hair and blue eyes. Attractive by anyone's standards.
"Stan," drawled the trucker, giving the younger man a nod. "Where ya from, Josh?"
A wry smile played across his lips at the question. "Up north," he said vaguely. He knew his home had to remain a secret. Home. I don't have a home anymore, he thought angrily.
The trucker, Stan, interrupted his thoughts. "Anywhere specific?"
For the first time, Josh broke his staring contest with the dashboard and looked at the trucker. "I'd rather forget, if that's okay with you." His soft voice wasn't harsh or accusing. It was just a simple request and Stan seemed to understand.
"I get a lotta young fellas like you runnin' from home," he said again. "I won't bother askin' 'bout it if you don' wanna tell." The truck jostled again as it hit another small bump on the darkened highway. "Ya headed to the city or am I droppin' ya off 'long the way?"
"New York City?" Josh asked. Stan nodded. "That will be fine. I can get another ride from there."
Stan didn't ask anymore questions, picking up on the slight note of finality in Josh's voice. As Stan continued to drive the big rig thought the night, Josh turned his attention to the small slip of paper in his hands. It didn't say anything except an address. An address for a place in Newark, New Jersey, called the B.P.R.D..
He just hoped he wasn't too late.