"And here I am. Sitting here on your couch." Jack ended his story.
Aster was in slight shock at all the things Jack had told him. He didn't know what to say. He tried to think of something to say, but his mouth just opened and closed as he was at a loss for words.
Jack watched Aster as he remained silent. It looked like he wanted to say something to Jack, but couldn't find the right words to say it.
Jack scratched the back of his neck and sighed deeply.
"I guess I'll go then. I'm sure you don't want anything I'll be bringing with me." Jack stood to leave.
Aster grabbed his forearm as he started to walk towards the lift. Jack looked at him with sad eyes. Aster pulled Jack down onto his lap and embraced him with feelings he couldn't put into words. Jack returned the embrace and began to cry on Aster's Shoulder. His body shuddered with long unshed tears. Aster's hold became tighter as he felt Jack's body shake.
They were like that for sometime and soon they fell asleep together on the couch. A few hours into their sleep Aster awoke to the sound of something rummaging around in his home. He looked tiredly around the room. Seeing nothing he looked down at Jack wrapped up in his arms. He smiled down at him then looked to his bedroom. Longing for his bed, he picked Jack up as he stood.
He laid Jack down on the side away from the window so the sun wouldn't shine in his face in the morning. He covered Jack up in the blanket and smiled as the sleeping man curled up into the warmth. He walked around to other side of the bed and crawled into the bed underneath the covers. He turned away from Jack and closed his eyes. Before he fell asleep he felt the younger man next to him turn in the bed and wrap his body against his own.
Jack's eyes opened to a dimly lit room. He looked around the room, the walls were bare and he was laying on the ground. He sat up near his feet was the outline of a door. He tilted his head in confusion as it began to open up slowly with a long high pitched creak.
As it opened a bright light shone so bright it blinded him. He backed away from the door when heard footsteps approach from the threshold. Up against a wall that felt far too close for his comfort, the footsteps got closer.
They stopped next to him. Still blinded he leaned away from whatever had advanced to stand next to him. He felt a hand on his shoulder.
A woman's voice spoke to him, "Jack, it's alright." He turned his head towards the voice as it continued to speak, "I'm here for you."
The voice sounded so familiar, but he couldn't place it, "Where am I?" His voice was fearful.
"Not to worry, Snowflake, I'll guide you." She spoke comfortingly.
Suddenly it dawned on him who it was, "Mom?"
"Yes Jack?" she sounded a bit concerned by his tone.
"What's happening? Where am I? How'd I get here?" He spoke franticly.
"Shh, I'll explain as we go. Take my hand, Darling." She turned her hand over in front of Jack.
"I can't see." He stated as tears threatened to fall.
She reached down and took her son's hand into her own and helped him stand. As soon as he stood she began to walk with Jack. He followed her with unquestioning trust.
As they walked on she spoke, "Snowflake, It has been a very long time since we've talked." Jack nodded his head as she lead him blindly, "You're here with me because-"
Jack cut her off, "I'm dead."
She smirked sadly, "Not quite. You are dying though."
Jack held her hand tightly and stopped walking, "What's happening to me?"
"Not to worry, we'll get to that. Right now, let me speak." She said and pulled him to keep walking, "You can't see right now because it is not your time yet." Jack had quiet tears slowly running down his cheeks, "Oh do not cry, lovely. We'll see each other again, but now is not the day for you stay."
"When then?" He asked her with a shaky voice.
"I don't know." She said flatly.
"I thought you were…" his words trailed off as he found his voice didn't want to speak the words he was thinking.
"…With them?" She finished for him. He nodded and inhaled unsteadily, "No. Do not worry Snowflake, I am safe."
"Where?" He asked with the tears slowly beginning to fade.
She stopped walking and placed her free hand on his shoulder, "Don't think about that." she let go of his hand placed both hands on his shoulders, "This is where we part my son."
"But I don't want to let you go again." He said as he placed his hands on her arms.
"You have to." She wiped stray tears from Jack's cheeks. "I love you, Jack."
"I love you too, Mom." He said as he felt her disappear.
Jack awoke out of breath, something soft was being pushed hard over his face. He flung his arms around wildly as he tried to fight off whatever was holding the thing down on him. He didn't feel anything above him as he swung his arms around. He gripped the object hard and pulled it away from him harshly. He threw whatever it was across the room.
There was a loud crash as it hit the wall. He sat up and stared to where he heard it hit. In the darkness though he saw nothing.
Aster stirred in his sleep, he grumbled incoherent words and turned over. He stared silently waiting for his vision to adjust so he could find a light to see what had happened. After a few more moments of waiting his eyes adjusted enough to try and look for a source of light. He glanced around the room but saw no lamp in the room. He stood out of the bed and made his way towards the door. As he stepped out of the room he looked behind him to see a creature following him.
He closed the door behind him and walked into the kitchen. Jack leaned forward over the island looking into the kitchen. The beast walked around the island and stood across from Jack. Jack looked at it, it had an expression as if it was waiting to say something.
As it began to speak Jack interrupted it, "Why did I almost die?"
It looked as if it was pondering, "Just others out for fun."
Jack started to feel angry, "My death is fun? Where on the planet earth is my death perceived as fun?"
The beast simply shrugged its jagged shoulders, "We are not of this plane, so I don't know."
Jack nodded curtly, "Right, I forgot. Where is it you monsters are from then?"
It smiled ear to ear, "Why Prey, you have been there before."
Jack thought a moment, "The dark place with light absorbing smoke?"
It nodded its head, "The Smoke Fields. That is my favorite place."
"The smoke fields?" Jack titled his head. The beast still held its abnormally wide smile. Its teeth seemed to flow around on the inside of its grotesque mouth. When it nodded its head in affirmation its teeth bobbed with the momentum.
"The only place our prey have ever traveled." It had a look that suggested it was pondering its next choice of words. "They…don't make it long have they traveled too far from it."
Jack was more confused then ever, "There have been more then me?"
Again its teeth bobbed, "Oh yes plenty." Its eyes glanced towards the windows, "Since the time before our Elder."
Jack straightened up at the mention of the terrifying beast, "Lovely, that elder of yours." Jack's tone heavy with sarcasm.
"Oh, yes. Fairest of all the others." its mouth seemed to grow wider than Jack had thought possible.
"How many are there?" Jack's curiosity was struck. The monster raised its hand inches from its own face and stared its palm. The skin on the back of its hand seemed to move like waves on the water. Its eyes then moved to stare at Jack. They held an expression Jack couldn't place.
"Eight." it said after a long silence.
Aster stirred himself awake. His mind still groggy with sleep. He turned over expecting to find Jack laying next to him. Feeling nothing but more mattress he sat up quickly. He looked around the room. His eyes quickly adjusted to the dark room and he saw that the wall next to the door had several paintings missing. He threw the covers off and stood out of bed and walked toward the wall. He knelt down and picked up the pillow that was laying amongst the fallen paintings. As he threw the pillow back onto the bed he heard Jack's voice faintly. It sounded like he was having a conversation. A very one sided conversation.
"Is that what's going to happen when its my time?" Jack asked the creature almost rhetorically. It nodded its head solemnly to concur with Jack's question. "Well, that's not so bad. Not as bad as never knowing how my fate goes."
"Jack? Who ya talkin' to?" Aster said as he walked into the kitchen with sleep riddled all over his face.
"No one. Just myself." Jack said hoping Aster would buy the lie.
"Ah, I see." Aster shrugged off Jack's most likely lie. "Well, since you're up. Wanna go get somethin' ta eat?"
Jack nodded, "Sounds like a plan."
Aster nodded and went back into the room to change. Jack looked toward to where the beast had been, but it had gone. He waited patiently for Aster to finish changing.
He felt a weight settle on his shoulder. He turned to see if it was Aster telling him was ready to go. Unfortunately to his horror it was a single monster that had decided that it was a good time to show up to terrorize Jack. It held no malevolent smile, no show that it was excited to cause havoc in the young man's life. The only thing that was apparent was that it was angry and filled with an unsightly amount of rage.
The pressure in Jack's shoulder began to build as it gripped tighter. Jack was doing his best to hold his composure in spite of such pain that was starting to overwhelm his shoulder. Aster walked out of the bedroom and saw Jack staring into space. His face looked like he wanted to cry out in pain.
"Jack, ya alright?"
Jack shook his head still staring at the beast that Aster could not see. Aster walked over to Jack and went to place a hand on his other shoulder.
"Don't." Jack said firmly.
Aster was taken aback by the rashness of mood change from Jack. He didn't have long to think about it though before he was flying in the air towards the window.
Aster's back hit the wall hard, sending the air out of his lungs. As he gasped for breath he felt something wrap around his body.
He closed his eyes as he felt himself lifted up. When the lifting had stopped he felt like he had hit another wall, all though he felt a bit more pain as his weight sent him through it. He opened his eyes slightly. Seeing himself in the reflection of the window was no happy sight when he when he noticed the wind blowing past him and the sidewalk getting ever so close.
HI! This took really long! I've been ultra busy. Okay, well, I hope you enjoy this Chapter. As i've said, I already have an ending so this is becomeing hard to write. I even ended up giving myself an outline. THat's bad news guys. Wanna know Why? Because it means I could end this all next CHapter. It could just be over! OR! I can keep it going. Totally up to you. THank you to my reviewers who are awesome. They have kept this alive for as long as it ahs been going.