I'm beginning to think it's going to take forever to coax an actual conversation out of Erik. But we wouldn't want an Erik who mindlessly reveals all of his deepest and darkest desires, now would we? Where's the fun in that? A little bit of poking is in order.

Existing With No Purpose

My mind was locked away in the tunnel, alone and uncertain of how to react. It was with a strange curiosity that I wondered what would happen to me if I allowed myself to mentally remain in that place, starved of any light-even I had a small amount of light from candles in my abode, so this was a startling consideration. After a while would I cease to think, seeing as there was nothing to inspire creative thought in a darkened tunnel?

I was already feeling the burn of that notion.

I had not composed for what seemed like an agonizingly long time. I didn't sing, didn't design, didn't move about from room to room restlessly as I used to on a particularly dull day. My forehead wrinkled beneath the mask as I tried to recall the last time I had actually accomplished something. I drew a blank.

The tunnel was so cold that even the stormy weather outside appeared warm and inviting. Even my bones rattled in the abyss. I wrapped my thin hands around my torso in an attempt to draw the meager warmth provided by my body closer. The only response that triggered was a shiver as my body rejected the heat and moved to create more out of friction. Almost humorously , I thought, 'At least I won't have to worry about going brain dead. I'll freeze to death far before my mind rots.' Head drawn down and knees buckled beneath me in a sitting position, my body coiled like a spring: still for the time being but prepared to leap at the first movement.

"Erik!"

I jumped when I felt hands shaking me, ripping me from the horrible world in which I had been captured. Once on my feet, I realized they were no longer supportive and settled slowly back into my chair, using my hands on the arm rests at leverage.

I was in Nadir's house. He had awoken me from the darkness. I was sitting in a chair by the fire. There was no tunnel.

I was in Nadir's house and there was no tunnel.

Try as I might, the words wouldn't seep in, battling at the surface of reason with my distorted imagination. The blackness was creeping at the corners again, threatening to take over completely-

"Erik, snap out of it, man!"

A flash of air against my face met the tears I wasn't even aware existed. The two collided and I gasped for oxygen to fill my lungs. The Daroga held my mask out in front of his body like a shield, angling his vision so that he might not have to witness the horror. I could hardly blame him.

"What happened?" I gasped, hands gripping the arm rests and upper body reclining on the back of the chair. All of a sudden I was depleted of energy. I was even too tired to demand my mask be returned.

Nadir handed back the porcelain regardless, assured that I was out of whatever reverie had consumed me. As I reattached the clasps, he spoke.

"You went mad for a few moments, thrashing about and saying something about being stuck in a tunnel." He ran a tired hand over his face, his perfectly normal, if not a bit aged, face. "Then you said something about a 'she' leaving you alone. You fell to the ground and started shivering as if you were back out in the storm, mumbling about some black tunnel."

My eyes flitted close and my head leaned back as I sighed. "I apologize for my ghastly behavior, Daroga. I do not understand what came over me."

He returned to his seat and took a long gulp of tea before saying, "It was about her, was it not?"

"Who?" I asked innocently.

Nadir became very grave and stared at the side of my head while I kept my stare directly in front. "Don't play me for a fool. It may have been six months, but I still remember the disaster at the theater."

"I very nearly killed you that night," I snapped before taking on a sickly sweet tone, "And yet here we sit, sharing a cup of tea. Surely your memory has faded a bit, otherwise you would not allow such a fearsome foe into your home," I chuckled. "Or did you mean to kill me tonight? Finally rid the world of its monster? What a brave hero, you are, Daroga. Almost as brave and stupid as that boy." I spat the last word, finding satisfaction in the way it burned as it left my lips.

He gestured madly. "See! This is about the girl."

"There was no girl," I hissed. My eyes narrowed as they watched the fire dance in its cage. The stone of the wall gave no slack to the flames, as it was a cruel master to its pet. It simply used the heat to give its own existence a purpose. Without fire, what was a fireplace but an empty stone structure with no meaningful function except to gather dust?

"But there was an angel."