Coming Back [A ReyNico FanFic]

Back to Hell

Nico
The immediate thing Nico sensed was the loud wailing of ghosts and the musty smell of decaying wood.

He landed on a dark, wide and carpeted hallway. The double doors were made of dark wood, with framed frosted glass windows and tarnished brass knobs. Outside, the darkness was strangely dense, like no amount of light can penetrate it. Long, ornate tables and drawers lined one side of the peeling walls, and above them were dusty displays of old army badges and pins, newspaper cuttings and a few weapons. Looking at the odd collection, he realized that the colors were dull and watery, like paint that was mixed with too much water.

Nico got up and dusted his pants. He was surprised to see that he was wearing the clothes that he put on earlier that day: tattered jeans and a loose black shirt. He fumbled on his waist and felt his Stygian sword strapped to it. He walked along the hallway, trying to drown the sounds of restless spirits and listen for a sign of Reyna.

He had been too late. He couldn't back out now that the pendant had worked according to his plan. The least he could do was to be there for Reyna when her dreams reach its worst peak.

But if this was really her dream, then where was she?

Nico had never seen the place before, but he had a feeling that he had been here. If not in this particular room, it was in the house itself.

He walked along the hallway, trailing a hand on the damaged wallpaper of the rough wall. A thick coat of dust covered his fingertips, as if he really was present in the place, as if he really was in the flesh. It was as if his body, not only his consciousness, was traveling inside Reyna's dreams. The realization bothered him, but he kept going.

His footsteps echoed across the hall, not even muffled one bit by the tattered carpet. He could hear blood pounding in his ears as he realized that the hallway was growing shorter with every step he took.

After a few short strides, the door at the end of the hallway disappeared, engulfed in a curtain of darkness. Beside him, between two battered-looking drawers, tendrils of shadows rose and twisted. The black misty ropes intertwined, forming a door.

All his instincts told him not to open the door. The screeching of agitated ghosts was scary enough, but he thought about Reyna.

If he really was inside her dream activity, he might as well look for her in the darkest place, the place most attracted to negative thoughts.

Taking a deep breath, Nico wrapped his fingers around the cratered brass doorknob and yanked it. The door opened with a loud creak.

He found himself in a large circular room with opaque skylights and a high ceiling. The walls were plain white, seemingly unfriendly and hopelessly bare, except for the thin golden sword hanging above the mantelpiece. Assortments of tables and chairs were arranged in no apparent order, but obviously with care. Dust swirled lightly in the air. On the tables were different decorations, like glass figurines and ceramic vases. Velvet pouffes were scattered on the wooden floor. The whole place looked like somebody actually tried to make it more habitable, more homey, but obviously failed. The aura was scathingly sinister and scary.

Different doors were open around the circular walls, but Nico couldn't see the door he used to get in here. He stepped forward, and was bombarded with the booming cries of angry ghosts. They were inside the same room, but he couldn't see them or talk to them.

The spirits were angry and thirsty for revenge, and they wouldn't stop until no blood was spilled.

Their call was loud, echoing in his ears. He staggered forward and raised his hands to cover his ears when he heard a single voice that made his hair stand on end. The voice was drowning all the sound in his ears, and it was filling him with terror and guilt.