Out of the Darkness

75

"That's all the cards are saying," she replied, then started to stack them back together, and set them on the desk. Then she sat back in her chair and looked at me. Just looked, for a couple of minutes, the stare making me squirm in my seat. "You love her," she whispered, confusion crossing her face. She wasn't ugly, by any means. She was actually quite pretty, probably her early 30s, but I couldn't see any of that. Her eyes looked like galaxies were settled in them, swirling, shifting, the fortunes of many changing and rearranging inside her eyes. I was lost in them for a moment, forgetting what she had said, forgetting everything, only wanting to see what was inside those galaxies. It felt like I was flying, lifting off of my seat, and flying straight into the dark orbs. A coldness washed over me, then everything was black, empty, almost painfully empty. My stomach felt hollow, making me nauseous as I flew through the darkness. "Where am I?" I whimpered, feeling fear ignite inside of me. "Anna?" I called out. "Are you here?" Then I heard it. A far away whisper, full of pain and fear. "Help me," it said. "Please." I ignored the way the emptiness was tearing at my insides, and flew deeper into the darkness. "Anna, is that you?" I yelled into the vast space. "Hello? Is someone there?" It wasn't Anna. It wasn't her voice. "Who's there?" I asked, slowing to a stop. I knew that I had my body, but I couldn't actually feel it. It was there, connected to me, but it wasn't. It was the weirdest feeling that I had ever had. "Destiny. My name is Destiny. Can you help me? I've been stuck here for so long." "Where are you?" I asked, blinking, trying to see anything at all within the darkness. "Here. Everywhere. Nowhere. I don't know. It's so confusing being here. It hurts sometimes." How was I supposed to help someone that I couldn't see? "What hurts?" I asked, straining my eyes. "The Dark One. It hurts me. Sometimes others will show up here. Like you. I can't see them. I can never see them. But the Darkness always hurts us. The screams...oh my God, the screams." I heard her voice crack, then sobs. "How does it hurt you?" I asked. "I don't know," she wailed. "It comes, then I feel my body more than I have in a long time. It feels like my blood is being boiled from the inside out, like something is shoving a red hot poker into me and pulling everything out, nerve by nerve, strand of muscle by strand. It's agonizing. Please help me!" She started to sob harder, and I didn't know what to say. I couldn't tell her that I would help her because I didn't even know what was going on? How did I even get here? What was I doing before this? I couldn't seem to remember. "Of course," she sniffled, "If you're here, you can can't help me. It has you too. I'm so sorry." Was she right? Did the Dark One somehow get me too? How? Fear crawled up my throat, leaving a vile taste in my mouth. I swallowed it down, almost gagging in the process. I had to ask about Anna. "Have you come across someone named Anna?" She was quiet for a minute, sniffles filling the increasing loud silence. "Yes. The Dark One was mad when she disappeared. So, so angry. We paid for her actions. The Dark One ripped us apart slowly. Sadie was here with me sometimes. Now, she's gone. I have a feeling that she won't be back. The Darkness killed her. I just know it!" She started sobbing again, and I sighed. I felt bad for her, for the others, for her friend that was now apparently dead...if you were a ghost, how were you dead again? Whatever, I needed to find Anna, while I had the chance. The fleeting thought of me getting stuck here, and never returning to my life crossed my mind, but I shook it out. I couldn't think about that, or I would break down. The fear rose in my throat again. I swallowed it down and cleared my non existent throat. "Anna. Can you tell me anything? Did she come back? Did the Dark One find her?" I asked, over her sobs. She quieted a minute later. "Yes. She came back. I could feel the Dark Ones joy, only it was injected with pure evil. It was...horrifying. She screamed. Anna. She fought. I could feel that too. But the Dark One just laughed. Then she disappeared too. She's probably dead, as well. You should worry about yourself now...you're here too. The Dark One will come for you. Your soul is strong, fresh. It will like you." I shivered at the emptiness in her tone as she spoke. It seemed to spread through my entire body, making my insides heavy. "I'm not staying," I said, hearing the slight quiver in my voice. She laughed, a sound that jolted me to my core. I had never heard someone laugh with absolutely no feeling at all. It wasn't joyful and it wasn't malicious. It was just...void of everything, empty. "Yes. You are. Can't you feel it? It's coming. It knows you're here and it wants you. CAN'T YOU FEEL IT??" I did feel it, the emptiness growing thicker around me, making me feel like I was in a vat of sludge. It made my thoughts foggy, and the body that I couldn't see or feel sluggish. "NO," I yelled, forcing all of my strength into that one word. I started to feel a surge of pain, white hot lightning start in the pit of my stomach, ripping something from inside of me. "I'M. NOT. STAYING!" I screamed again, in frustration and pain, squeezing my eyes closed against the vast emptiness. Then I felt my body being yanked, like I was attached to a bungee cord, back through the darkness. I felt anger, not my own, race towards me as I was slung backwards. There was light, shining through my closed lids, then a forced slamming me back down. I huffed out a breath from the force. My breathing was heavy, obscuring any other sounds. My fingers were touching something. Something hard, something physical. I gripped it, trying to retain my grasp on the physical world. I realized that my own heavy breathing was mixed with someone else's. I cracked open my eyes, the light harsh against them, after being in the absolute darkness. I saw her, Amethyst, sitting in her spot. I was in my chair next to her, gripping the table in front of me. She was doing the same, and looked just as shaken as I felt. She looked up, her fearful gaze meeting my own.