Broken Symmetry (NTB Book 2) (A Socksfor1 AU)

Secret Alliances

(BLAZA POV)

I woke up standing in an empty black space. 

I peered around, looking for anything that would give me a clue as to where I was. Nothing for what seemed like miles around. The space was so vast, I wondered if I was just outside on a starless night.

I saw a light off to my left, and I turned to see a bright figure standing not to far away. One half of the figure's body was pure light, the other dark shadows. It looked like... Akik?

"Akik!" I called out, "Where are we?"

The figure didn't move. Just kept staring off into space.

I started to run forwards. As I got closer, I saw that it was, indeed, Akik. Just a more faceless, emotionless version of him that was made of light and darkness. 

But a few feet away from him, I was stopped abruptly by running into an invisible wall.

"Owww," I muttered, shaking my head. What was that?

Akik finally turned and saw me. His emotionless eyes had no pupils, and I couldn't see his mouth. He also didn't have his spacesuit on - which I found quite odd, for I had never seen him without it.

Akik blinked apologetically. "Sorry, Blaza. This is not my place to help you."

And at that, he turned and started to walk away.

I stood up and tried to follow him, but was met once again by the invisible wall. It was like cold glass, but completely unseen. This must be what it feels like for birds when they run into windows.

I stood up and tried punching the glass to make it break, but nothing happened. It just hurt my hand. Yet I continued to pound on it in a desperate attempt to escape.

"Wait!" I called, "Stop! Come back!"

Akik didn't turn. He just continued to walk away.

"Please! Help me, Akik! I need you!"

Tears spilled from my eyes as I called out his name and pounded against the smooth, unseen wall. My knuckles were bleeding, but I didn't care. I wasn't going to stay here, wherever "here" was. I looked at my hands and saw that thin, glowing red strings were now tied to them. I felt them around my neck, too. They seemed to attach to somewhere above me, in the black abyss of the space.

I pressed my hand against the glass and stood there, sobbing, as Akik walked away and disappeared into the distant darkness.

"Please..." I whimpered, "Come back..."

I fell to my knees and pressed my forehead against the glass, my hope vanishing. Suddenly, I felt a strong tug on the strings tied around my wrists and neck. I choked in surprise as I was yanked backwards swiftly, hitting the ground behind me with a painful thud. I took a moment to regain my breath before looking up to the end of the strings.

Where I saw two red slits staring back at me through the darkness.

I felt something wrapping around me, and I looked down to see black, thorny tentacles creeping around my body. I tried to move, but they became tighter and tighter. Soon they were completely encasing me, creeping around my mouth and nose as to prevent me from breathing.

The figure that was staring at me came into the light, the red strings that had been tied to me also tied to his fingers. Vizor chuckled, his deep, demonic voice sounding like it was from the very depths of hell.

"Hello," he said, "Blaza."

I breathed shallowly and quickly, trying not to inhale the black sludge from the tentacles. I was panicking. I couldn't move, couldn't breathe.