Well, that was a nice greeting. I say to myself. I decide to go back to the station and there, I introduce myself to Dulce.

"Salutations!" I say to her in a modish tone. "My name's Eight. You're Dulce right? If I'm not mistaken."

She just nods, without uttering a single phrase. I then turn to Violeta. "Hey there, little girl." I say. But no voice comes out from her. She's gripping tight to Xeva, eyes firmly closed. I suppose that both of them are very timid.

"You're bleeding." Dulce suddenly whispers. She removes the bandage I've been wearing and replaced it with a new one, then chuckles. "Does it… still hurt?"

"A little bit." I reply.

"She's a medical instructor." Xeva adds. "She knows everything about medicine, wounds, and whatnot. She works at the hospital part-time and I always get a free check-up when needed. Remember your last hospital visit? Because of that you received a complimentary healthcare, since I don't usually go there."

"You can visit me anytime Eight… if you want." Dulce says whilst looking down. "I can restore you to full health, as long as you take care of Xeva for me."

I nod with a wide beam. I've never received free healthcare before so this is certainly an offer I can't refuse. I have been receiving a lot of gifts lately. I guess I'm lucky this month.

"I must be going now." Says Dulce. "Come on Violeta."

"Nice meeting you two!" the little one adds. All of us bid farewell and as they move towards the exit I hear Violeta whisper to Dulce, "They look good as a pair aren't they?" and they both giggle.

"So, now what ma'am?" I awkwardly ask.

"Now, go home. Tomorrow's another big day for us both. We need to train hard for the siege." Responds Xeva. I nod and I salute as a sign of goodbye. Being partners with Xeva for the mission seems a mix of joy and fear. Having her by my side, well, I'm not sure if she has the willpower to protect me or if she will be the cause of my death. But still, my first love as a teammate? Whatever pain I'm going to get, it is so totally worth it.

It's dark and I'm still far away from the apartment. I should've brought cash with me so that I could ride an air cab - I've never ridden one of those in ages – oh well, might as well walk… again. I take a break when I arrive at the park. My wound is starting to get worse. It's still bleeding and the bandage doesn't seem to help at all. Going to the hospital at this time of night will be a hassle for me – it won't if I brought any cash – since it's farther than the police station. The face of Dawn suddenly pops out of my mind. Dawn! I forgot that she's at home, waiting for me, sitting in her wheelchair by the window, watching the skyline. I hope she's okay. I instantly have an urge to move forward albeit very slowly because of my condition. I think I lost too much blood from the fight. I feel extremely dizzy. My sight is blurry. Mouth dry. I don't think I'm going to make it. Almost there! I think. I can see the apartment, dim and somehow distorted. A luminous, shining light takes over my vision, and that's the time I fell hard on the ground.

I find myself in a world filled with darkness. No light. The wound in my shoulder and hand are gone all of a sudden since I don't feel any pain and the mushy, deep tear. I shout and scream, hoping for someone to answer, but I only get a sound of the minatory wind. I walk and I walk, there is none. This place seems endless, and I'm starting to get scared now. I clamor, and beg for a response. But still, there is nothing. I start to cry a little and begin to run the never-ending path of the twilight zone. I run and I run until the minutes turn into hours and still there's nothing, except for the ominous breeze. I use my Signal Beam for brightness but all I get is a dark, purple glowing stream surrounded by a pitch-black atmosphere.

"HELLO?" I snap, kneeling. "PLEASE! IS ANYONE THERE? Please…" Nothing replies. I yell hard, hard and hard until no voice comes outside from me. I cough blood. I can now taste the metallic flavor of the liquid resulting from my action. I can't speak now. It's all right, since there's nobody out there that can hear me. I take off my hat and jacket and use it as a pillow. I lie down and look up the starless, black sky. I close my eyes and hope that I will wake up soon from this horrible nightmare.

I open my eyes after a few minutes of thinking about what to do in this strange place. I flabbergast because I see a small, twinkling dot in the sable heavens. It then multiplies, forming into a rod. I prop up and follow them. I reach the end, and another spot pops out. And then dazzling lights of prism bursts out of the sky. Swirling like an aurora. I pause for a moment because of this beauty. The specks lead me into this glowing, blue hole. It looks pretty deep but I don't have any other choice, so I jump into it.

A single leap then I suddenly teleport into another world, opposite from where I was. Everything's white. I can see my surroundings now, at last. The area is empty like the other one before. As I roam around this strange place I see a tall, slender, black figure with thin arms and long, white hair. I move closely, it looks like it's kneeling. I tap it on the shoulder, no response. I whisper to it then it stands. I repulse, being startled by its act. It bows its head and turns around. Its hair covers its visage. It giggles a bit, then stares at me. The breeze caresses its hair, I peer, and I stagger back scared. Because the time I see its face, I know that the horror has just begun. It has no eyes, no nose, and the space where the mouth's located has a long slit on it. A sickle quickly pops out on its hand. Then it puts up a wide, disturbing smile with its razor-sharp teeth chattering; another one appears beside, then another behind it, until they're a hundred of them. They are now advancing towards me in a zombie-like motion. I'm somehow motionless, having no idea on what to do in a view of the fact that I'm absolutely frightened and all.

But my adrenaline overcomes my fear so I dash speedily away from those ghastly monsters. I run as fast as I can until I can no longer see them, but a sickle suddenly bursts out towards me and hits my knee. I strike down to the ground. I scream, aghast. I can't feel my legs. I see them partially ripped apart from my thighs while blood continuously sprays, bathing my lower body in bright, gruesome gore. My sight is beginning to blur, and there's not much time left before I become fully incapacitated – or dead – I crawl, trying to avoid those hideous beasts. But they manage to reach me with no seconds to spare. I find myself surrounded by them. I see one of the creatures come near me and raise its sickle, ready to witness my demise. I close my eyes, hoping that I won't feel pain when they tear me to shreds. This is the end. I think. Then the sickle punctures through my throat. I can no longer breath, as blood gushes in and out down my windpipe. Somehow, I feel a sublime sensation. No pain, no ache, no sign of suffering; just the feel of the warm, oozing liquid that flows in my entire torso. My thoughts are now replaying my happiest memories – playing through the windy meadows; thanksgiving dinner with my friends and family; the fun times at the city fair and the warm hug I feel from my mother near the fireplace during a winter storm. I start to choke as I open my eyes. My vision is starting to fade into the darkness. I can't feel my entire body anymore. Before the eternal life takes me, I let out a soft whir –

"See you soon, mom…"