[Chapter 8]

Simon found himself sitting on the floor of a dimly lit room, his hands felt a rough carpet beneath him. He could make out the outlines of a sofa and table next to him, made slightly visible by orange light seeping out between a pair of curtains on the far side of the room. He jumped when he heard a door open and a beam of light illuminated a figure sitting on the sofa. A flick was heard and the room became brightly lit, Simon could clearly see Sayori sitting on the sofa with her hands clasped on her lap. She had a detached expression. The room itself became visible, it was a plain-looking, somewhat barren sitting room. There were white walls, dusty furniture, and a small, empty table where a TV must have stood once. A loud slam was heard, followed by heavy footsteps and a rattling sound. Another figure then entered the room. He was a middle-aged man with balding dark grey hair. He wore a stained high-visibility vest over a blue jumpsuit. His face was worn and rough, but he bore a gentle expression and had the same vibrant blue eyes Sayori had. He smiled as he approached Sayori, putting a toolbox on the floor as he passed the sofa.

"Sayo!" He said warmly before bending down to kiss her on her forehead.

Sayori looked at the man with a weary smile.

"Hey, dad."

Simon was confused, they seemed to take no notice of him whatsoever.

"Hello?" He said. They still took no notice.

He stood up and tried to move closer to them, but found himself walking face-first into an invisible barrier. The stretched out his hands and found himself surrounded by unseen walls leaving him with only about enough room to stand in. He was feeling nervous, but realized he was meant to watch what was about to unfold in front of him.

"What were you doing sitting in the dark?" Sayori's father stroked her hair.

"I know the TV is broken but you still have books you can read, don't you?"

"Yeah, dad. It's just… I like being in the dark. It's, uh, relaxing."

The father's face became sombre. He sat down next to his daughter.

"You've been thinking about her, haven't you?"

Sayori put her head down.

"It's just… She didn't care. She just left me. Am I worthless to her-"

Sayori's father put his hand on her shoulder.

"Sayori. I want you to listen to me now. She left me. It had nothing to do with you."

Sayori looked at her father.

"Then why does she lie to me? Why can't she just tell me why she left to my face? Whenever I talk to her she acts like nothing happened!"

Her father embraced her.

"Sayori… Some people just have difficulty expressing their feelings. Your mother had these problems even before you were born. I don't want you to think that you're worthless, that is a total lie. I love you, you're my ray of sunshine. You have friends that care about you. You're a smart, beautiful girl. Don't ever let these bad thoughts make you think otherwise."

"Thanks, dad." Said Sayori, muffled by her father's hug.

Simon felt strange. It felt voyeuristic to witness such an intimate family moment whilst he seemed to be invisible. There was another feeling, subtle but growing. The whole scene was somewhat heartwarming to him, some much needed respite from the horrors he had to witness. The subject of their talk also resonated with him. Simon's father left him at a very early age and his mother's mental health deteriorated has he got older. These feelings of self-loathing Sayori seemed to talk about made him remember of the many long years leading up to "The Black Day".

Sayori then released herself from her father's embrace.

"I'm going to bed." She made her way to the door before her father spoke up.

"Before you go. I just want you to now that… I worry about you sometimes. I know how bad these thoughts can be and… If you ever need help, or want to see a therapist I can arrange it for you."

Sayori had another weary smile on her face.

"Don't worry dad. I'm not going crazy."

"Just know that if you need someone to talk to, I'll be here."

"Alright." Sayori stretched her arms. "G' night dad."

"Good night, sunshine."

Suddenly Simon's view of the room started to become blocked by some white matter. He then realized that the "panes" of the invisible box he was in were becoming covered by the white substance, very similar to a window fogging up. Eventually the panes became completely white and remained so for a few seconds. Simon felt a cold rush go through his body as the white faded away and revealed yet another dark room. This was much larger then the living room he was in before. He could feel smooth, cold concrete below him. His heart jumped when he heard the sudden roar of an engine erupting right next to him. The flashing of red and orange lights displayed the outline of a large vehicle. A loud rattling sound was heard and dim orange light slowly poured into the room as the garage door rose from the floor, illuminating a large white van. The sight of several houses illuminated by streetlights below a starless night sky was briefly seen before the van slowly drove out of the garage and onto the street. The van could be heard driving away before the garage door began to close. It finally shut with a loud clang and Simon was once again in the dark. All was quiet. Simon sat down in his "box" and began to think. Why was he seeing this? Why here? He thought about Sayori. He remember the monster he fought on the rooftops back at the school. Whatever his counterpart was doing, she had a strong connection to it. He tried to connect the dots in his head but turned his attention to the sound of small footsteps coming from behind a door in the wall.

He saw the door open slowly, and Sayori's head peered out, looking about the room. She walked into the garage and flicked on the light. A fluorescent light hummed as the garage became lit. Sayori was wearing plain white pyjamas and had a tense look on her face. Among the now visibly messy garage were large tool cabinets and lockers that could be seen filling the walls of the garage. A set of metal scaffolding was lined against one wall held in place by bags of sand. Sayori then walked towards one of the lockers and began fiddling with the lock. Simon could see that she had a small metal wire in her hand as tried to open the lock. She grunted in frustration before moving to the locker next to her. Simon was confused. What was she looking for at this time of night? Why did she wait for her dad to leave? She let out a short yell of frustration as she turned around and sat on the floor, covering her face. She remained like his for about a minute, holding her head tensely. She then slowly raised her head, facing Simon. He wondered if she could see him. Her face showed nothing but a tired, dejected sadness. She then looked around the room. Her eyes suddenly lit up when she turned to the back of the garage. Sayori got up and walked to a large red metal cabinet. She got out her metal wire but dropped it on the floor as she tried to fit it into the lock. She bent down and moved her hand into the underside of the cabinet. She stopped for a second and bent her head down to the floor. She then quickly got up and walked around the cabinet started to drag it away from the boxes and crates and other large, heavy machines, grunting as she did so. Her face grew red as the cabinet moved a few inches away from the wall, making a horrid scratching sound as it did so. Simon's confusion grew. What had she seen behind the cabinet? After a few more seconds of dragging Sayori stopped and panted with her hands on her knees. She then walked in between the space she made behind the cabinet, becoming unseen. Simon heard the sound of her rummaging through what sounded like a hidden mess of scrap metal and sand bags. Suddenly there was silence. After a few seconds Sayori emerged from behind the cabinet. Simon's heart began racing as he saw the large bundle of rope in her arms.

"No, no, no!" He screamed, as he fruitlessly began kicking at the invisible walls that trapped him.

Simon feared the worst. He knew what this meant. He couldn't let it happen. In that moment he forgot everything else, the monsters, the school, he just needed to stop this from happening. Suddenly the walls became white again, and quickly faded to show a dark bedroom, with Sayori in the middle with the rope still in her arms. She was looking up at a crude hole in the ceiling that exposed a wooden beam. His fears were confirmed. Simon couldn't bear to look. He just continued kicking and punching at his prison.

"Please, stop!" He wearily screamed again, his head resting against the invisible wall. He reluctantly opened his eyes to see that there was a small crack in the wall in front of him. Simon felt hope, but was quickly replaced by relentless adrenaline when he saw Sayori standing atop a chair.

He began his barrage again, kicking, punching, screaming. He could hear the sound of the "glass" beginning to break, he could also hear the chair being tipped over. Gasping, choking. It only made him more fervent in his assault. He felt his hands being cut by the broken glass. Finally, with one last punch, the glass shattered and he fell to the floor.

Simon slowly lifted himself from the carpet, his eyes suddenly blinded by a ray of sunlight hitting his face, blurring his vision. He opened his eyes, and the image of Sayori's lifeless body slowly formed in the light.

Simon felt crushed. He sat there on his knees looking at Sayori's glassy eyes he bent his head down to cry. His hands balled into fists. Immense sadness and anger welled in him as he realized he was forced to witness another victim to the monster that plagued his life. Not his counterpart, not the visions. Just that unnameable, relentless force that creates them. Simon opened his eyes again. He suddenly stopped crying when he looked down at his body. He was wearing black school uniform. Then it all returned to him. Memories assaulted his mind like a swarm of flesh-eating insects, causing him to cry out in pain.

The Literature Club. "Maladaptive Daydreaming", Dr. Purnell called it. An idealistic fantasy supposedly created by Simon to provide himself with an escape from the memories of his real adolescence. Shortly after Simon finished his book, Simon fell into the habit of daydreaming to take up the long days at the asylum. The fantasies themselves consisted of an idealized high-school life. Friends, romances, after-school adventures. But they soon became more that. The fantasies then started to become intrusive into Simon's real life. They would haunt his dreams. He would sit for hours staring off into space until someone interrupted him. The final straw was when was seen talking to himself in full view of staff and other patients. When he was approached by an orderly, Simon appeared to have been snapped out of a trace, and claimed he didn't know that he was still awake. Eventually Dr. Purnell had Simon called in.

Simon told that he started having these fantasies after he began looking back on his past adolescence, particularly his high school days, and began to feel great embarrassment and shame when recalling his memories. He claimed the reason for this was that, during a time of life when one should be "out there, making friends, discovering who he is", as Simon put it, he was an outcast who was ignored by all around him, he never had the ideal high-school adventures that he believed his peers to have. Dr. Purnell was perplexed. He told Simon that he knew that he was much more mature than to have given in to such juvenile wish-fulfilment. Simon claimed that he knew this. He knew his worries were without foundation, but the fantasies themselves were so alluring, so enticing, that the sheer bliss and escape they provided made him lose himself within them. Simon thought that simply fantasizing would be harmless, but as the habit grew, things would get worse.

The figures in his fantasies would become more realistic, he would listen to then and discover that there were more to them that he originally thought. They would listen to each other, deal with problems together. Finally, Simon had found an escape from the past, replacement for his outcast youth. Dr. Purnell claimed that the cause of this was a type of mental "aftershock" of his previous psychosis. His subconscious mind began looking into his past for things to "fix", and filled him with delusions about his teenage years, and finally forming fantasies that became hallucinations idyllic compared to the horrors he faced before. Dr. Purnell started a new therapy program with Simon and taught him methods to resist and eventually stop daydreaming. Simon learnt to make peace with his past, and slowly, the visions went away.

That was until he found himself in the pit again. "Another short fight." he thought. Through the tunnels, upwards, and then he found the school. But this wasn't the first time he had been there.

As he reeled from this realization, Simon felt his surroundings melt around him. He found himself in the dark classroom again. He was back in his old clothes, and the desk with blank paper was in front of him. The television was still there, but it displayed a constant static image. In between the buzzing emitted by the TV, faint breathing could be heard.

"Could it be her?" Simon thought to himself. "It had to be. She's still alive. What I saw must've been an illusion."

He ran to the desk and sat down. His mind went blank. He didn't know what to do next. Sure, he knew what he was meant to do, but he knew that he simply did not have enough to work with. He had seen an excruciatingly brutal vision of Sayori's suffering, but even that was but a short glimpse into her inner world, no matter how unhidden and visceral. Simon then remembered that he did indeed have one last place he could search for answers, his memories. Simon closed his eyes and focused. He tried to piece together his first days at the "Literature Club". The visions rushed through his mind, quick and fleeting. He could see the face of a young girl. Hear her soft laughter. But her eyes betrayed her, because they always showed sadness. The girl he had known was wearing a mask, trying to hide her inner turmoil from others lest they leave her. It was only when it was too late did Simon realize the truth. It was then when he broke away from the "fantasy".

Simon's mental search had led him nowhere. He then reflected on the situation. This girl had undergone a similar suffering that he had. This was what he could use. The time for purple prose and colourful language was over. He took the pen from the side of the desk and began to write.

I think I know you.

I know how it feels. The slow creeping. The relentless hold. I've been there. I just want you to know that you are not alone in this. I want you to know that it can be overcome-

"Stop..." Said a pained voice from the television.

Simon looked up from the desk.

"Sayori...?"

"I said..."

The television screen cracked loudly.

"Stop!"

The screen shattered and Simon found himself thrown off his chair and across the classroom by a blinding ray of white light. His body still sore with pain, Simon lifted himself off the wall and sat up. The television, along with the entire back wall of the classroom, was completely destroyed. Sunlight poured form the opening, the sight of falling leaves cast shadows across the classroom. Simon stood up and walked towards the wreckage. He walked outside and found himself standing on firm earth coated with autumn leaves. He was surrounded by trees on all sides, each one covered in bright red and orange leaves that contrasted against the grey cloudy sky. Simon could hear nothing but the wind. He looked back at the classroom he just left. He saw a large, derelict building with flaking white paint and graffiti covering its walls. It took a few seconds for Simon to realize this was the school. He could sense a brief feeling of anxiety at the sight of it. He quickly brushed it off his mind. He had to find Sayori. He looked around to see if he could enter the building from any other way but found it barred by barbed wire fences. He decided to walk deeper into the woods. He passed through thicket and branch, hearing only the wind and the crunch of leaves under his feet. He began to think about the girls, the club, and all that happened since he arrived. Did he really bring this onto them? Was his selfish longing for an ideal fantasy what brought him and his demons here? If so, what was this place really, if he did not imagine it? If he didn't imagine it, did it come to him? Those lonely days in the asylum. He would drift off into his own mind. The usual pondering, perhaps an idea for a new book. It all seemed futile until he began to have these thoughts about the past, this longing, this yearning. Simon knew that he did not come to those ideas naturally. It was as if someone had planted them there.

It was in his dreams he first saw the classroom, the club, but only in glimpses. It wasn't until these thoughts became present in his mind he felt these visions stabilize, as if he was being reeled into them. He was brought here, he knew that now. Still, he didn't really know what "here" was. And, troubling his mind even more so, who or what brought him here to begin with? These thoughts came to a halt as Simon spotted the figure of Sayori between the branches.

He immediately ran through the thicket and saw her sitting down on a rock. She was bent over with her hands on her head. Simon slowly approached her.

"Sayori?"

Sayori was gently nodding her head from side to side. She seemed to be muttering something but Simon couldn't make it out. He took a few more steps.

"Sayori? It's me, Simon."

"...Stop."

"Sayo-"

Sayori suddenly lifted her head and looked directly at Simon with a furious expression.

"I said stop!"

Simon stopped in his tracks. Sayori's eyes looked tired and slightly red. After a few heavy breaths, she calmed down and sat up, her face now weary.

"Simon..." Sayori turned her eyes to the side. Simon could feel that something wasn't right. But after what he saw he wasn't just going to stand and go nothing.

"Sayori. Please, I just want to help you. I know how you feel, I've lived through it."

"Simon." She looked at him now, with that same weak smile.

"I know now. I know about..." Sayori stopped. Her expression pained, then quickly becoming furious again as she knelt to the ground and slammed her fist against the earth.

"She was my friend! I loved her! But she… and the others… She lied, just like everyone else!"

"Friend? What are you talking about?" Simon slowly crept down and tried to put his hand on Sayori's shoulder, but was quickly brushed away. She looked up at Simon, tears running down her cheeks.

"You-you don't know? It doesn't matter. I didn't matter. They were both right about me. I'm just this burden-"

Simon grabbed Sayori by the shoulders and looked at her dead in the face.

"Sayori, I don't know you that well, but I do know that what you're thinking right know isn't true! I know what its like to have those thoughts, how painful they can be. But you can't let it win! You can overcome-!"

"I'm tired of fighting, Simon." Sayori interrupted. I've been fighting, falling, coming back and falling back for, well, I guess a long time. I've heard words like yours before. I want you and everyone else to stop wasting their time. I know what I am. Even my own mother knew. A mistake. An inconvenience. And even in this "place", if what I saw is true, then I'm even worse than that. I'm a glitch. A bug."

"Sayori. Please, I- Don't believe-" Simon stopped Sayori suddenly flinched and groaned in pain. She then opened her eyes and looked at Simon.

"And that's okay."

Sayori then collapsed to the ground began twitching, breathing heavily as she did so.

"Sayori!" Simon knelt down and grabbed her shoulders, trying to keep her still.

"I'm not going to bother anyone anymore!" She painfully yelled.

Simon struggled as her convulsions got worse. Sayori opened her mouth, and what appeared to be black foam started leaking out the side of her mouth. Simon then reeled back as more black viscous mass began to crawl from out her lips. He landed on his back and crawled as more horrendous leech-like creatures emerged from her mouth and began to envelope her entire body in one squirming mass. Suddenly a cavalcade of red and black worms varying in size began to climb atop one another in a corner of the hive-mound. They quickly formed what seemed to be a large appendage, rapidly shooting out about ten feet among the leaf-covered ground, with the smaller worms wrapping themselves around the larger, thicker ones. Suddenly the line pulled itself upwards and rose five feet in the air, creating a "joint" as the rest of the limb pointed towards the ground. More worms began crawling from the mound up the joint and down to the ground, where they were convalescing to form a large, flat "foot". Simon bolted as he saw several more clumps of worms begin to form on the mound.

Simon ran into the woods. His heart heavy with what he had witnessed. Suddenly the sound of branches breaking and crashing echoed behind him, followed by loud, thunderous footsteps that he felt slam through the ground and vibrate under his feet. He suddenly fell and slid down into a small dell shaded by trees. He heard the creature getting closer, and he quickly crawled to an old, rotting log. He squirmed into the hollow shell, squeezing between the moss and broken bark. He laid there in darkness, not making a sound.

The footsteps drew closer, becoming louder with each step. Simon felt the log wobble as the last few steps were made. A low, prolonged groan was heard above him. He heard two more steps on the other side of the log, their vibrations causing bits of moss to land on Simon's face. He then heard what sounded like fingers tapping the outside of the log. Suddenly he heard the sound of wood breaking above him and felt the log spilt under him. Thick, rubbery, finger-like appendages broke though the wood above him, only inches away from his face. More dust and bits of wood fell onto his face and in his mouth, causing him to cough and spit. The fingers continued to pull through, causing sunlight to beam into Simon's eyes. With one last pull the log was spilt in twain and Simon fell onto the wet ground beneath him.

The creature towered before him. The mound of worms had coalesced and was now standing on four legs. Despite its new form, Simon could see nearly every worm slithering in and out of the creature's body, some running up and down the legs. In the front of the "body" was a large, lamprey-like mouth with many rows of sharp, curved teeth. There were two small finger-like mandibles on either side of the mouth that constantly moved up and down, both dripping with a clear fluid. Simon could see a small pale mass poking its way out from the creature's underbelly. It was Sayori's hand. It was quickly reabsorbed into the creature as more worms slithered around it. The being's foul mouth emitted another low moan as it closed in on Simon. He tried to crawl away but was grabbed by one of the creature's arms and pulled upwards by his ankle. He was trapped. He could feel the creature's hot breath on his face as he was pulled closer. The being's circular mouth extended outwards, being supported by undulating leech-like "neck". The creature's mouth began to widen when a rock suddenly struck the creature's side and bounced off.

The creature stopped and turned its "head" around, away from Simon. Suddenly the sound of tearing flesh was heard and the creature roared in pain, turning its head towards the sky and dropping Simon. He landed on his back with a thud. As he got himself up, he felt someone grab his hand and pull him upwards. His eyes widened at the sight of Yuri, with her shoulder and one side of her head stained with a sort of dark red substance. She held that same serrated dagger from before in her right hand.

"Come on, this way!"

Simon ran alongside Yuri as they climbed out of the dell. As they reached the top a figure suddenly dropped from a tree and started running with them. Simon turned and saw Natsuki with several leaves stuck in her hair. She was also holding her sword in its sheath in her left hand.

"How you've been?" She said with a brash smile.

"No time!" Yuri interjected. "Come on!"

Soon the sound of footsteps was heard again, but there was something else also. Simon could hear the sound of running water ahead. Eventually the gang found a clearing ahead of them, and the were confronted with an enormous concrete pit that sunk down at least thirty feet into the earth below them. An empty concrete valley stretched out on either side as far as the eye could see. On the other side of the pit, metal fences with barbed wire lined the outer edges of the valley while below, in the upper walls of the pit, several large pipes were seen pouring water into a large reservoir. They stared at the dark, murky waters below them. The footsteps were getting louder. Simon noticed the entrance of a tunnel by the surface of the reservoir, where water could be seen rushing in.

"There!" He shouted.

"What?" Said Yuri. "But-"

Simon grabbed both of them by the arms on either side of them as he ran forward and jumped with them into the pit. Yuri screamed as she held onto Simon for dear life. With one great splash they landed into the reservoir. With all three submerged, Simon quickly pulled both girls up to the surface. They gasped as they emerged, and could hear the creature roaring above them as they were pulled by the rapids into the tunnel.