A/N:
Hi! Let's just say shit is about to hit the fan! Also, I'll say this now so there's no mistakes. I won't be updating anymore until after Christmas. NO UPDATES UNTIL AFTER CHRISTMAS! I'm sorry I just have so many people to see and things to do and I won't have time to write anything, at least not anything good. So I'm waiting until afterwards just so I have things sorted out. I'm sorry but it's for qualities sake!
Anyway! Enjoy this chapter and I can't wait to hear what you guys have to say! HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE! XD
"Wake up, boy, I have many names to collect and don't care to drag out the process..."
Ben groaned, blinking lazily to get the grit out of his eyes. Wake up? What was that supposed to mean? He was dead, he didn't need to sleep. So why was his head so foggy as if he really had been sleeping? What happened here? Last thing he remembered was Widemouth making a break for it after the portal opened and- Oh right yeah that's what happened... He huffed and tried to sit up, his body aching horribly. He knew where we was, he could figure that much after remembering the portal opening. But he didn't remember it being so... grim.
The floor was made of darkened wisps of black shadows, rising from the ground in a mist that reached upwards like claws. The walls, if there were any, it was very hard to tell in the darkness, were pretty much the same. And they expanded outwards to a colossal level. It made no sense to him, but he was more focussed on the fact that someone was talking to him. He coughed when the dust in the air nearly choked him. It took a moment to gather his senses and push himself to his feet shakily.
"What?" He rasped, having to clear his throat a few times, "Trix? Jeff? Alice? ...Slender?"
The voice returned, closer this time and coming from behind him. Distorted but almost liquid, inhuman for sure, "Not quite."
Ben started and span around, eyebrows raising when he saw the figure looming over him. Dark and burning in blackened embers, towering over to match even Slender's height, eyes flaming in a malicious expression over jagged rotten teeth, "Zalgo, long time no see..."
"Indeed, boy." Zalgo chuckled ominously, "Looking for Slender I presume? How predictable."
"I can manage that." Ben replied warily, taking a step backwards, "Fancy telling me where he is? Or where anyone else is?" He knew that having an attitude was probably not the best route to take with a demon, especially this one, but it was a survival mechanism by this point.
"To the point, I like that in a Proxy."
"Yeah. Much appreciated and I'll remember that. But I'm not your Proxy. Now if it's alright with you and if you're not going to tell me, I'm going to find some familiar face-hey alright I'm not." He stopped still as Zalgo seemed to teleport in front of him, blocking his path.
"You are interesting. You hold so much fear and sorrow and yet you hide it so well."
"Don't flatter yourself, I'm not scared of you. But I'll take interesting as a compliment." Ben took a wary step backwards.
"But such a liar..." Zalgo scolded.
"I don't lie. I'm not scared of you."
"Who said the fear was aimed at me? Regardless, being dead does not save you. If anything it makes you more prone to damage..."
"I'm aware. I'm just not scared." Ben looked right at him. It wasn't hard to see his fists shaking slightly as he glared, but it was not fear, "The way I see it, I'm relatively safe until Slender full out keels over on us. Which frankly, I doubt will happen. So you're better off letting me go and hope your Sickness gets me."
"Oh you'll be a fun one to break... But because you're so entertaining already, I would like to offer you a deal."
"Here we go." Ben sighed, "I've already got a headache, do we really have to do this?"
"You're already so sure you'll get out of here with your name in secrecy. Why not make this interesting?"
"Because I'm not an idiot. See you around." Ben walked around him. If his heart was still functioning, it would have been pushing right through his chest. He knew it was risky mouthing off to this particular demon but he stood by the knowledge that with Slender still alive, he was mostly safe. All he had to do was either stall for time or get the hell away from him. Then he'd be able to do some good around here. Or make a break for it. Whatever came first.
Zalgo however, didn't stop him. Instead, he just sneered, "Even if it includes your siblings...?"
He didn't want to, but Ben halted. Shit... Don't bite the bait, he told himself, but too late, he had already started talking, "What would you know about them?"
"That they're doing very well with their lives since you put your father in an asylum." Zalgo snickered, "One of your finer moments in my opinion..."
"It was to protect them." Ben muttered, not wanting to show anger at a time like this, he didn't want approval from someone like him.
"I understand, really I do. But wouldn't you want to explain that to them in person?"
Ben hesitated, but he'd be lying if he wasn't curios to see where this was going, "Possibly..."
"Naturally. So here's my deal... You hand over your name, and I'll take your Sickness away for one entire day. You'll get to see your sister, your younger brother... Get that closure you all so desperately crave! Get that chance to say goodbye and tell them what really happened that night at the lake! It can be yours... All it takes is a name... Like you said before, boy, you're not an idiot. Prove it... Help me, to help you."
An entire day with his siblings... Although impossible to him, it hadn't stopped him wishing for it. Zalgo was right; given just one day with them he could tell them what happened. There wouldn't be a need to worry about them getting hurt because of the Sickness in him. He could talk to his sister, his younger brother, see how they managed after he and their father were gone. Maybe they kept in contact, maybe they knew their father murdered him but maybe not. It could all be explained. He could say goodbye. He could... He could just... talk to them. For just one day they could be a family again.
"I'm waiting..."
Ben closed his eyes a moment, settling his words in his head before opening them again, "You know something? A couple of decades ago and I would have taken that offer in a metaphorical heartbeat. And yeah, I'll prove I'm not an idiot..." Ben muttered, looking as isolated as he had in a long time. But it didn't last long, his eyes burned as he turned to look at Zalgo, pointing up at the towering figure warningly, "By telling you to fuck the hell off."
Zalgo growled, leering down at him, claws curved in his direction, "Don't make such a mistake, boy! You need me!"
"I need you to cut the dramatics." Ben smirked, turning his back on him and walking away, "My family is doing just fine, I don't need to hand my name over to double check. And I look forward to seeing Slender kicking your ass later."
He walked fast, and his words were flowing faster. But even combined, they could not match the speed of a clawed hand scorned. Zalgo struck him across the back of the head, forcing him to fall, "Have it your way, boy!"
Ben grunted in pain as he toppled over. He barely had the time to catch himself or hover or fly or anything. The blunt force took him by surprise and that only got worse when he feel against something cold and wet. There was a loud splash that was cut way too short by a muffled, icy film covering his ears and stinging his eyes. He tried to yell out, but something cold rushed into his mouth. And that's when it registered... Water. He was under water. He couldn't breathe! Can't move, can't see, can't do anything! Drowning. He was drowning! And like before, there was no one coming to help him.
Trixie stirred awake groggily, trying to remember what the hell just happened. Okay... just calm down and think. She had been in the ally with Ben, Alice and Jeff. There was a portal. One that Kate was supposed to go through with them. Widemouth, he ran off and left them. Kate never came back. The portal opened as soon as if was completed. And then there was darkness... And now, this. But what was this?
She took a deep breath, and nearly choked when the overly sterile air stung her throat. Her eyes blinked open, sore and dry as if coated in a layer of dust. Where was she? It looked familiar. And horribly so. She didn't understand. How was this possible? She tried to sit up, but her wrists and ankles were bound tightly. Her eyes widened and she started to struggle in panic. The room looked bleached, tiles covering the floor and nothing but dull white over the walls. The door was locked tight, just one little square carded into it where someone on the outside could look in on her if they wished. Trixie whimpered as she fought against her restraints. This was a hospital room. Her hospital room.
"No. No no no this isn't real!" She yelled, panic bubbling inside her, "Y-You tried this before! It's just Sickness! Let me out of here!"
It was hard to forget the last time she was dragged into a portal, and was trapped in her own Sickness. Forced to relive her worst memory. Restrained and forced to believe that she was insane, forced to believe that it was her fault her family had been brutally murdered, and that she was the danger. It killed her. In more ways than one. She had managed to break through this before. She could do it again. She had to!
"Let me go! It's not going to work this time! I-I just- I..."
She trailed off when she heard a noise in the corner of the room. It wasn't exactly an overall scary noise. But giving the current situation, it make her yelp in panic as soon as she saw the shape that caused it. It was small and trembling. In fact if it weren't for the trembling, she would have assumed it was Widemouth again. But it was too scared, and a little too big. It looked human for the most part. But its eyes were pure black, skin an odd blue tint in the gloom. And it was crying.
"H-Hello?" She whispered shakily.
The shape whimpered and looked over at her, black tears slipping down its cheeks, "Help me... I don't like it here."
"Jack?" She gasped, trying to struggle free but her restraints held tight, "Jack please say that's you!"
"Y-Yes... A-And... Please don't hurt me!"
"I'm not! I swear I'm not going to hurt you, Jack, I'm just..." She stopped herself from saying she was glad he was alright, because it was plain to see he was anything but, "Jack this isn't real. This room is Sickness. My Sickness! It's not real but you need to get me out of here! Y-You need to untie me, please!"
"Why...? We're never going to really be free."
"We can! I-I don't know how but... Please Jack. I know you're scared, I'm scared too! But if we find the others-"
Jack shook his head violently, hands covering his ears, "Stop! Stop it! H-He's talking to me! I don't- Make it stop!"
It nearly broke her heart to see him like this, tears welling up in her eyes from fear and sympathy, "I-It's alright, I can get us out of here! This is my Sickness! I know it's not real! We can leave here!"
"Then why haven't you..." He asked solemnly, another large black tear slipping down his cheeks.
She froze, brow furrowing in confusion when she realised that he had a point. The last time, the room had practically evaporated, bonds included, the moment she noticed that it was an illusion. Why wasn't the same thing happening now? It didn't make sense! Yes she was scared but she had been last time too. All that mattered was the realisation! Right? What was different? The only thing that she could notice was that instead of being in hospital gown, she was still in her jeans and jacket. But did that really count for much? Unless...
"I'm not the patient..." She muttered, "I-I'm- This isn't my Sickness... I'm not being questioned, and you're here. So..."
"So this is my Sickness." Jack sobbed, getting to his feet and revealing a gleaming metal scalpel in his hand, taking slow steps towards her, "It's mine and you're going to get hurt because of me!"
Trixie started to panic, shaking her head and trying to squirm backwards but to no avail, "No, n-no, Jack, please! You don't have to do this! It's not real! You can beat this!"
"H-He won't let me! I don't- I- Please make it stop!"
Jack didn't stop advancing on her rigidly as if struggling with himself, hand shaking violently and making the light bounce off of the scalpel blade harshly. Black tears streamed down his cheeks, sobbing loudly as he stood at her bedside. Trixie looked up at him pleadingly,
"I-I'm sorry, Jack..." She clenched her eyes shut and looked away, ready for the strike to slice her skin, "I-I'm sorry..."
His arm swung down. She screamed. And the scalpel blade sliced. And suddenly everything was silent. After what seemed like a lifetime of agonising waiting, Trixie finally registered that she was not in pain, and she was still breathing. Well more like hyperventilating, but she was breathing. And she was vaguely away of Jack panting shakily somewhere close to her. She swallowed hard and peeked her eyes open, turning her head towards the sound of breathing. And... she saw that her right hand was no longer bound.
The scalpel was dented heavily into the corner of her mattress, having severed the bonds and missing her wrist by centimetres. Jack held into the sheets tightly, breathing raspy and tense like he was having an asthma attack, his fists shaking as he clutched the weapon tightly. He blinked a few more tears away, looking shocked and fearful. It took another few minutes of silence before anyone could say anything.
"I... I didn't do it..." Jack whispered, "I... I don't want to hurt anyone anymore..."
Trixie stared up at him, too scared to move but at the same time wanting to untie herself with her now free hand and run for it. But she just couldn't' move. Her voice shook when she finally spoke, "Y-You don't have to..."
"Why...? W-Why are you sorry?"
It took a moment, but she knew what he was talking about. And she didn't hesitate to answer, "I'm sorry, because I didn't try harder when you were with us." She blinked, tears tricking away, "If I'd made more effort, maybe you wouldn't have been taken. I-I'm sorry I didn't help... I'm sorry I wasn't a better friend..."
"He took me..."
"I-I'm sorry!"
He was silent for a long time, fingers shaking as he lifted the scalpel from the fabric, trembling like he wasn't sure if he was going to take another stab or not. Trixie winced, too scared to move just in case. She didn't want to die, but she didn't want to upset him either. She didn't want to leave him. She could only wait. Letting him chose what was going to happen next. This was his Sickness dream, only he could get them out of there now. He moved, finally. And the air rang with the sound of metal hitting the floor. And a body crumpling to the ground in a set of sobs.
Trixie wanted to cry out but her throat at become so tight it was hard to breathe. She tried to reach forward to try and see him. But the moment she moved, the room seemed to fracture around her. The tiles on the floor cracked and started to melt into clumps of dust, the walls around them seeming to melt into shadows and dissolved into the ground. Even the bed that she was trapped on steadily started to break down until she too was free and sitting on the icy black ground. She gasped, eyes wide and looking around. The Sickness was dissolving. Jack was... well he wasn't okay but he was starting to realize the Sickness wasn't real. She hoped...
"J-Jack?" She whispered, staring worriedly at him, "J-Jack are you alright? Y-You see, i-it's not real."
"I... I don't know... I-I don't want to be this..." He whispered, curling up on himself in a ball, crying silently now, "H-He's still talking to me. I don't want to listen. I don't want to hurt people anymore..."
She gulped, hand trembling as she rested it on his shoulder. It had always been common knowledge to her that he was a lot younger than her, but never had he looked like such a lost little boy before, "It's okay... I'll... I'll stay with you. We'll find the others, Slender will get you home, and you won't have to listen to Zalgo anymore."
"He has my name!"
"I don't care!" She said harshly, turning him to face her. Blind or not, he had to know how serious she was, "I don't care, you're coming home with us, understand?"
Jack whimpered, blank black eyes staring at her in confusion. He didn't know what to think. His mind was scrambled. On one hand he could feel the Sickness pulsing through him, Zalgo's voice mocking him in his ear and commanding him to kill. He wanted to kill, to hurt and just obey because if he obeyed then maybe the pain would stop! But it never did... And on the other hand, he wanted so much to believe her, to go home with her and be safe and away from all of this! He didn't want to kill anymore! He didn't want to be what he was so scared of. His young mind couldn't handle the pressure, and he just broke down. He was dying inside, and he couldn't take going it alone anymore. He lunged forward, and he clung to her tightly, little face pressing hard against her shoulder.
She flinched, a yelp escaping her when he moved so fast. But... he didn't hurt her. And she couldn't take the fear anymore. He was trembling and she couldn't help but wrap her arms around him protectively to hug him tight. There was a stabbing pain in her heart when she remembered that the last time she'd been in a position like this, was when her younger brother was still alive. When he used to have nightmares or had gotten scared sleepwalking. The flashback didn't last long enough, and soon she was back in the darkness of a demons hell, holding this poor scared boy close to her and just praying that nothing else was going to hurt him again.
"I w-want to go home..."
Thunk-Thunk! Thunk-Thunk!
Jesus her heart was beating fast. She nodded, "We'll get you home. I promise, we'll get you home and we'll be safe from him, I promise."
Thunk-Thunk! Thunk-Thunk!
"Help me." He muttered, clinging to her jacket, "And... And help him too, please?"
She furrowed her brow, "Help who?"
Thunk-Thunk! Thunk-Thunk!
Wait... that wasn't a heartbeat. Along with the noise, the cold, damp ground underneath them was vibrating slightly. That was something hitting the ground. She shuffled backwards with Jack still holding into her, eyes widening as she looked down at the ground. It was... slippery. And it crackled dangerously as they moved like it was going to break under their weight. Kind of like ice. Actually a lot like ice. No... it was ice!
Thunk-Thunk!
"Oh my god!" Trixie screamed.
A fist was beating hard against the ice, but underneath it! And soon enough a face pressed against the cold to stare up at them desperately. Pale skin and pale blonde hair waving in the water under the ice, wearing green clothes and the eyes... those black eyes with scarlet pupils burning in panic.
"Ben!" She screamed again, letting Jack go for a moment to lean forward, hitting her fists hard on the ice to try and smash it, "Ben hang on!"
Jack's eyes widened, holding himself in fear, "Water... Ben... No... N-Not right- Can't happen!"
"Jack help me!"
"I-I can't- I just-" Jack covered his ears, rocking back and forth, "Not again!"
Trixie felt her heart racing and panic coursing through her head as the walls of the hospital room started to steadily rebuild itself. Jack was losing himself again, falling back to Sickness. And along with the walls, the floor started to return over the ice. Ben stared up at them, mouth open and yelling in a muffled stream of bubbles, fists pounding heavily, sparks fizzing from his fists as he did so. Trixie cried out in fear and frustration. She grabbed the nearest thing she could grab, Jacks scalpel, and jammed it into the ice. She tried to chisel the ice way, hacking small chunks out of it. But it wasn't fast enough.
"Hang on!" She screamed, "Keep trying!"
"Don't leave me!" Jack sobbed, "Don't leave him!"
"I'm not leaving anyone!"
She threw the scalpel aside, it was useless! Her nails clawed just as helplessly against the cold, making her fingers ache and draw blood. There was nothing else here to use! The floor was rebuilding too quickly! She was going to lose sight of him and... no! No she couldn't! Not him and Not Jack! Not again! She looked over her shoulder and saw that the metal bed frame that she had been tied to before was starting to reform. Trixie saw an opportunity, and she lunged for it. She grabbed the rickety frame and shook it for all it was worth. And after a harsh kick that sent a sharp pain in her ankle, one of the legs broke off. She limped back to the chipped patch and held the bar above her head.
"Get behind me!"
Jack stared up, following the sound of her voice and shuffled behind her, holding onto her leg and crying against her knee in terror. Trixie held her breath, summoning all the anger and fear she had been feeling since the moment this shit started, and she swung down with all her might. The metal smacked against the ice, and cracked. But it didn't break. She sobbed in frustration, swinging again and again. Each time the crack got a little bigger. She looked down at Ben desperately, but he'd gone from sight. She screamed in dismay through gritted teeth, hitting the ice again, harder and harder until her bleeding hands started to ache. And then finally, the ice started to part...
There was a chaotic shattering of ice, sounding more like someone had just thrown a mirror against a wall and had it splintered into pieces. Ben's body flew over thirty feet in the air, but his burst of every soon gave out as the panic set in once again and he crashed to the ground with enough force to make the ice shake. Water dripped off of him in a puddle. He was crying, but looking mad with anger and fear, shaking and soaked with his eyes burning bright. He opened his mouth, and he retched. Water pouring past his lips and adding to the pool around him, black ooze of Sickness leaking out with it.
Trixie had fallen backwards over Jack and onto the ground from the sheer force of it. And she found her flashback of her brother had not totally ended yet since her first instinct was to wrap her arms around the young boy to shield him from the shattered ice and destruction. He shivered against her, crying and not wanting to look around him, the noises being enough to paint an image.
"Ben!" Trixie gasped, still holding Jack to her protectively as she reached out to him, "Ben are you-"
"Don't touch me!" He hissed, hunching over and coughing madly.
"I'm just-"
"I'm not safe!" He yelled, sparks crackling dangerously over his soaked body, "Just... Give me a minute..."
She understood what he meant. He had already explained to her how it was not a wise thing to do to touch him when he was angry or worked up like this. The electric current that ran through him naturally was on high alert and sparking over his skin. One touch and it would be a lot more than pain he delivered. And he couldn't control it right now. So she waited impatiently. Trying to stop herself and Jack from shivering in the process.
After an agonisingly long wait, Ben finally spoke, the sparks starting to dim ever so slightly. He was safe. It wasn't real. It was just a Sickness dream. He wasn't going to drown again, he told himself, you're already dead you were not in danger! Just calm down... Breathe... Speak... You're fine...
"L-Looks like it w-was your turn t-to save me this t-time, huh?" He rasped.
For a moment she didn't know what he was talking about. But then she recalled, when it was her stuck in Sickness last time, he had come to her rescue, giving Zalgo a fake name so she would know it was a fake dream. She hadn't thought of that when she was saving him now. She didn't see it as a debt to repay.
"Wh..." He coughed, wiping his mouth and attempting his usual smirk, but he was shaking too much from cold and shock for it to take full effect, "Wh-What are you looking s-so scared of Trix? C-Can't die t-twice, remember?"
Trixie just stared at him, keeping one arm locked around Jack, "You... You asshole!"
"What did-"
Before he could reply, she had reached out, throwing caution to the wind and used her free arm to hug him close too. She didn't mean to do it. But she had already lost so much, that she couldn't bare to lose someone else. She had only just found Jack! And she didn't want that to be an exchange, find one lose another, she wanted everyone back home at the end of this and that was a promise she was making herself. So she held them both tight, not wanting this to be another nightmare.
"Don't," She whispered, "Don't you fucking do that to me again."
Ben blinked, arching an eyebrow before relaxing just the smallest amount. Now that he was out of the water, and with less hostile company, he had managed to calm down a lot. And although he knew he couldn't die, he still didn't want to do that ever again. He sighed, steadily patting her back gently, "Yes, ma'am... Wouldn't dream of it."
Zalgo shook his head in disappointment at the display he had just watched. He waved a clawed hand and the view vanished into a wall of dust and dark. He growled, turning around harshly so his hand slapped hard against a grey-skinned cheek. The victim winced and glared coldly at Zalgo under his hood. But there was nothing he could do. He was being held against his will to a wall of Sickness. To struggle too much would cause it to get agitated and swarm around him. He was stuck, with Zalgo in full control.
"Cheaters everywhere..." Zalgo sighed mournfully, "Did they learn from you, Shadow Lurker?"
Shad was breathing heavily, almost hissing through his teeth. The moment they had left Emily and were attacked by Jane, he had found himself waking up here in this prison once again. And Zalgo was taking great pleasure in jumping between leaving him isolated in his own misery, or coming back to give him a front row seat of his chaos.
"I didn't cheat... And leave them alone!"
"You cheated, Shadow Lurker, and I don't like cheaters..."
Shad narrowed his eyes coldly, "Allow me to take a moment to admire the irony in that statement."
"Do not attempt to have an attitude with me, Shadow Lurker, it won't get you anywhere. You just saw what happened to the last one who gave me attitude!" He indicated to where they had just been watching Ben struggling in the water, "You cheated and that means I win."
"The deal was that I had to reach Emily before Jack did. Before the Sickness reached her. That was the deal and I did it! You have no right to bring me back here!"
"Oh we all know you would have come back here anyway for your dear master, Slender."
Shad tried to ignore the fact that it was true and kept his enraged expression, "Where is he? And where are the others now?"
"Here, of course. Practically lining up at the portal to hand their names over, much like you."
"I am not handing over anything! I did not cheat!"
"Oh you did... You see, it's true I asked you to reach her first. But it seems in the end that it was she who reached you first instead... I believe it is cheating when you get a human to do the work for you, Shadow Lurker."
Shad felt an anger inside of him that was only reserved for moments like this, "You knew... You knew she wouldn't be inside. You knew she would approach us! You knew she would get to me before I got to her!"
"You're so predictable, Shadow Lurker," Zalgo chuckled darkly, folding his taloned fingers together in a smug fashion, "So much like a human. Don't worry, it's what I like in a Proxy. So easily trained."
"Where is Slender?"
"He's having a wonderful time catching up with his old friends... Would you like to see? It's quite the show I can tell you that. Not as amusing as my dear child playing with your friend Kate..."
"Kate has nothing to do with you! None of the others do!"
"That was before. And now, you're all going to be mine, as you should have been. You just wait, Shadow Lurker, for once I call Slender back to me... This whole realm is going to be mine."
Zalgo snapped his fingers, he wall behind him erupting in ash and flames that almost matched his mottled skin. An opening pealed away to reveal two young men, familiar and blank expressions on their covered faces. Shad widened his eyes at the sight of them. Hoody and Masky! But they looked so gaunt and lost and practically dead! And between them, they were dragging something heavy and badly wounded across the floor. And the sight of it made Shad yell out in anguish. The Sickness he was fused to rattled warningly, and Zalgo simply laughed.
"I'll leave you and your soon to be late master say your goodbyes..."
"S-Sir...?" Shad rasped, staring at Slender's motionless body between his previous allies, "Sir are you alright? Sir wake up!"
A/N:
So... Does anyone else think that shit has completely hit the fan now? XD Action and madness and Sickness oh my! I hope you guys liked this one and I'm sorry for the cliffhanger! Especially since I won't be updating until after Christmas. Let me repeat again that just in case, NO UPDATES UNTIL AFTER CHRISTMAS! I'm sorry but I have family to visit and friends to see and it's all just going to be one busy but fun mess. But after Christmas I'll start writing again and updating and it'll all be back to normal I promise! XD Until next time! HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!