Into the Void

Please don't

Mark faces off against Dark, hands crossed against his chest. Mark has his back to me, but the tone of his voice lets me know he is angry. “Let her go, Dark. It’s me you want. Let her go, and I’ll do whatever you want.”

Dark stands there and stares at my friend as though he is really contemplating it. A smirk appears before he laughs and walks closer to Mark. “As tempting as that sounds, I think I’ll decline the offer. Seeing you in this much pain is much more amusing.”

“Why are you doing this? What do you want from me?!” 

 “Why?” Dark’s face contorts with rage, red and blue echoes of him shouting in his anger, slightly out of sync. “You want to know why I’m doing this? You promised you’d let me in! I waited patiently, but nothing happened! You shut me out, cast me away. Well, I’m tired of giving people a choice!”

“I didn’t start this Dark. I thought you were a dream when I said that. I...I didn’t know that you really existed until later on. How was I supposed to know that some character my fans created was real? I didn’t know! I refuse to accept the blame for something I never did to you. I didn’t do anything to any of you except make a few videos!”

That makes me pause. They are talking about something that goes completely over my head. All I know is that Dark is growing furious, and I’m starting to feel that white hot rage. The darkness surrounding us seems to pulse with anger, and his auras are continually screaming. Constantly moving. I’m not sure if Dark is losing control or if it’s his rage, but our connection is becoming stronger than I liked.

“If it hadn’t been for you, I wouldn’t be like this. WE wouldn’t be like this! You are the reason we are in this accursed state of existence. I am tired of living in your shadow. I am tired of being trapped in a world that caters to the whims of others. I will no longer be held back, and I will destroy anyone in my way.” 

 “I...I don’t know what you want me to say.” Mark’s shoulders slump down. I so desperately want to hug him. Say that it isn’t his fault, that none of this is his fault.

It looks like Dark is about to say something, but he cocks his head and looks confused. I look around to see what might have changed, but nothing is different. Mark and I lock eyes, confusion on his face too. I shrug and shake my head, trying to tell him that I have no idea what's happening. The tension is unbearable as we wait for Dark’s next move.

The entire place starts to shake, making me lose balance and fall. Dark screams out at some unseen force. “NO! You can’t chase me out as though I’m a mongrel stealing a scrap of food. HE IS MINE!”

The darkness seems to rise up in revolt of whatever is happening. Mark looks at me with pity for a brief moment before he makes a mad dash past me. He barely gets past my prison before he’s attacked by tendrils that latch on to him. Tendrils that start to drag him back to a very furious Dark. Mark’s screams of terror have me struggling to break the last chain, preventing me from helping him.

Something amazing happens. The brightest light I’ve ever seen washes through the place, chasing away Dark’s shadows. The light sears through me as though I had jumped into a fire after being frozen. I scream in pain and hear an echo farther away. Everything is white searing light as Dark whisks us away in a desperate attempt to escape the pain.

My body still feels like it’s on fire when Dark brings us back to the manor. He drops us into a chair and groans. He lays his head back in the chair, not moving. Whatever had caused that light to appear had seriously hurt both of us. It damaged his control over me. I can feel the metal band around my mouth loosening, and I yank it off.

“Dark? Dark, listen to me. Whatever you have planned won't work out well for either of us. You’re hurting both of us. Can’t you feel it? I can feel your pain. I can feel your rage. Dark, you’re going to get us both killed.” I don’t rage at him for keeping me locked up in a small corner of my own mind. I’m just trying to reason with him calmly. Maybe appeal to his logical side.

He gives off a small sigh, “You and I are connected in a way that I never expected to happen. Just as you can feel my anger, I can feel your sorrow. A side effect that never should have occurred. Bri, you may never understand why I need to do this, but you will not be able to stop what is happening. Our time is coming.”

“Are you going to kill Mark?”

“It would defeat the entire purpose of Anti bringing him here alive if I kill him the moment he gets here.” Dark scoffs.

“What about after? Are you going to kill him then?” I am afraid to hear his response, but it’s something I need to know.

“That depends entirely on what happens. He may make it out of this alive, or he might die in the process. I can not see the future.”

,

“Oh,” I whisper. Not exactly the response I was hoping to hear, but better than the answer I feared.

Dark sits up in the chair slowly. “You knew Marvin was helping them, didn’t you?”

“Yes. Marvin is the only one I know that might be powerful enough to hide the guys from you. I...don’t know much about all of this so I wasn’t sure if I was right.” Sitting down, I shrug.

“It appears you were correct. I always seem to underestimate you, Bri.” He groans as he shifts, trying to get into a comfortable position.

“You wouldn’t be the first.... I’m hoping you’re not the last.”

“I do not know the outcome of our little adventure. I am not a seer. If all goes as planned, then you shall be free to live your life out. You are simply a means to an end.”

“Oh.” There’s not much I can say after that. It isn’t exactly thrilling to hear that I’m just being used as a Taxi.