Claudia was asleep in her room at Leena's. She and Artie had begun the process of moving themselves to a larger double room, and she was so exhausted after a day of sorting through her belongings and tossing out what she didn't want that she decided to take a short nap.
It was dark when she woke up. Crap, how long did I sleep? Claudia had already packed her alarm clock, so she had to dig around for her cellphone. Two-thirty in the freaking morning? "Why didn't somebody wake me up?" she mumbled to herself.
"I put them all to bed early so we could have some time to ourselves."
Claudia leaped out of bed and drew her Tesla at the sound of the somewhat familiar male voice. She began slowly inching her way to her bedroom door, constantly sweeping back and forth for signs of the intruder. "Show yourself!"
The soft glow from the dusk-to-dawn light outside wafted through the windows, forming an incoherent mist in the middle of Claudia's room. Before her disbelieving eyes, the mist coalesced into the form of an older man, quite thin, with a nasty grin that turned his once-handsome features cruel. "I'm afraid your Tesla will do me no harm, Claudia, but it will leave a frightful mark on Leena's outdated wallpaper."
Claudia lowered her weapon and gulped. In the middle of her room stood the ghostly image of James MacPhearson.
Artie tossed and turned, his sleep restless. He had been having bad dreams, old memories resurfacing to haunt him. Images of Carol cycled in and out with images of Claudia, the two eventually becoming one and screaming as they burned alive. Artie tried to wake up, to pull himself away from this awful vision, but it was no use. He was stuck listening to the death wails of his beloveds, past and present, their voices going higher and higher in pitch until he could take no more. Artie looked around the ground for a stone, and finding a good-sized one, he raised it up and dropped it painfully on his foot.
The pain did its job. He was violently thrown out of the dream, thrashing so wildly he rolled off the bed and slammed onto the floor. Groaning as he got to his knees, he leaned onto the bed for support and stood. What the hell was that all about? he wondered, trying to think of why in the world he would dream such a thing. I didn't eat THAT many oatmeal scotchies...
He immediately turned around and sat on the bed as he felt his legs weaken and his knees buckle. Artie's awareness got fuzzy around the edges as he felt exhaustion return to him. Maybe I should lay back down...
Artie got back under the covers and laid his head on the pillow. Sleep overtook him almost instantly.
Pete jerked wide awake. Something was wrong, and he was vibing like crazy. He struggled to remember what was happening that woke him up.
God, it was some awful dream. Myka had been running towards him, shouting for his help, When he tried to go to her, his feet had sunk into the ground. He pulled one foot up out of the cloying mud and stepped forward only to sink back into the ground. His other foot fared no better, and the more he struggled to get to Myka the stronger the mud got, eventually sinking him up to his knees. Bad dreams don't normally vibe me out like that. I guess there's a first time for everything.
Beside him, Myka whimpered and kicked in her sleep. Pete wasn't sure what she was dreaming, but from the words she spoke it was another nightmare about trying to save Sam. He rolled over and pulled Myka to him, murmuring softy in her ear and stroking her cheek until she calmed down and relaxed against him, her back molding to his chest. When her breathing evened out, Pete buried his face in her sweet-smelling hair and fell back to sleep.
Leena sat up in bed, wide awake. Her room was full of a misty fog, and she could tell that the aura of the building itself was off. Someone is here who shouldn't be...
She grabbed her housecoat as she got out of bed, resisting the urge to fall back to sleep. Her pillow was so inviting, and she was so very tired, but Leena could recognize when someone was projecting a sleep aura. "Once resisted, never persisted," she said, and the supernatural tiredness that had crept into her very bones suddenly left her. She smiled to herself and stepped out into the hall.
The strange mist was everywhere, so thick that she couldn't see the bottom of the stairs from the top. Leena went from room to room, checking to see if everyone was alright. Artie's aura told her he was trapped in a nightmare that would only dissipate once the sleep aura did, and Pete's and Myka's auras had joined together in order to protect one another. That just leaves...
Claudia's terrified screams tore through the air, shredding the sleep aura.
"I am bound to Arthur because of the Phoenix. Now that you two are 'engaged,'" he said snidely, using his fingers to make quotation marks in the air, "I am somewhat bound to you as well."
"What do you...how is this...I don't..."
"Not very articulate, are you? Though I imagine your vocabulary isn't the reason Arthur is besotted with you," the ghostly image smirked.
Claudia felt herself blush in angered embarrassment. "It's not just all that, you know."
"Oh it isn't? Would your precious Arthur still love you as much if you weren't so pretty a prize?"
His words had their intended effect. Claudia stepped forward, enraged at having this monster question Artie's integrity. "Artie is the most non-shallow person I have ever known. It wouldn't matter what age I was, what size I was, or how I looked. Artie would love me no matter what!"
MacPhearson moved closer to her. "Are you so sure about that?" he whispered, craning his head down to her level.
Claudia glared up at him, anger winning out over common sense. "Absolutely," she hissed.
A predatory smile spread over his cruel face. "Let's find out, then, shall we?"
Before Claudia could move out of the way, MacPhearson stepped into her body, his essence taking over. He bent Claudia's fingers into claws and began scratching her face, her neck, her chest, her stomach, her thighs, her legs, ripping her clothing away in rags. Her soft skin had no defense against her strong fingernails, and the results were devastating. Claudia scratched and clawed herself everywhere, gauging at her face and neck. Blood ran down her body and served only to lubricate her fingernails, changing them from scratching implements to sharp knives, slicing her flesh everywhere she could reach. Claudia heard a strange sound, a sort of high-pitched keening, and it took a moment for her to realize that the sound was her screams erupting from her throat.
The attack suddenly stopped, leaving Claudia in a heap on the floor. MacPhearson pulled away from her and leaned down to hiss in her bloodied ear, "This is a test for both you and Arthur. Your choice to bond with him has changed many things, and it must be ascertained how deep your connection lies."
The door to Claudia's bedroom flew open, and Leena stepped in. She walked between Claudia and MacPhearson. "Leave, James. You are not welcome here."
MacPhearson snarled at the dark-haired woman. "What are you going to do, aura me to death?"
Leena concentrated and pushed her awareness forward. "You are not protected from me by being tied to a physical body. I can sever your energy from your consciousness and leave your spirit dead."
An evil smile spread over MacPhearson's face. "Just remember that betraying those you love wasn't all I made you do when I had you with the Pearl."
Leena nearly gagged, the memory of his touch making her feel sick. "Get out, James."
MacPhearson slowly disappeared, his laughter the last thing to go.