Sacrifice II: Torment

The first memory of the girl's revival would likely be thought merely to be a dream by those who are skeptical of the supernatural but Hotaru knew all too well that what she had experienced was no dream. It was the beginning of what would become her new reality.

She was floating in perpetual darkness. The only visible light was the pale glow that seemed to be emitting from her own soul.

How long had she been floating in this place?

Where was this place?

Would she ever be able to leave?

Unfamiliar laughter broke the deafening silence, causing Hotaru's heart to thunder in her chest. Willing her eyes to open and her body to move, she swam in search of the source of the taunting laughter.

"Silly girl."

A woman's voice echoed throughout the void causing Hotaru to stop cold. It was then that she realized that neither the laughter nor the voice that spoke had come from any singular direction.

It seemed as though the very void itself was mocking her.

"Have you not realized it yet?" the voice taunted.

Realized what?

All Hotaru had realized was that she was lost and, other than a disembodied voice that seemed intent on mocking her, she was completely alone. She closed her eyes in defeat, hoping that she might fade out of this miserable pseudo-existence.

Hotaru's eyes flew open, the final words of her dream echoing over and over again in her mind.

She was alone in a room bathed by the gentle light of a collection of lamps. Her collection of lamps.

She was laying in her bed.

In her bedroom.

Once upon a time it was her sanctuary but now….

Now she wasn't quite so sure.

There was very little that she was certain of at this point.

She remembered visiting the lab where her father worked. There were screams. An explosion….

Then everything went dark.

And then there was the void.

Had she been caught in Purgatory? Surely such a place could neither be Heaven or Hell. It was far too dark. Too empty. Certainly she had died in the explosion and her soul had gotten trapped in Purgatory; where all lost souls were locked away for an eternity of emptiness.

But how could she be laying in her bed now?

It made no sense.

The laughter began to echo in her mind once again causing Hotaru's body to tense. It was then that she realized how much pain she was in. The majority of her body was heavily bandaged.

Had she actually survived the explosion? How could that be possible?

"Stupid, stupid girl."

The words echoed clearly in her mind, followed by more sinister laughter. It was at that moment that Hotaru realized that she would never truly be alone again.

Overwhelmed, Hotaru began to lose consciousness. The last thing she could remember before everything returned to black was the sound of her voice repeating the last words Hotaru had recalled from her dream.

"When will you realize that I am you?"