Shifters

Nightmare

A soft pitter patter tapped gently on the window as rain guided by gusts of wind, scattered across the land. Intensity increasing, Josh murmured softly as he stirred from his slumber as a brilliant flash shone through his window temporarily brightening the artificial sky. As a tremendous crash of thunder, followed its brilliance, Josh snapped awake brimming with alertness. Staring outside, the once serene view was replaced by darkened clouds accompanied by high winds as a storm ravaged everything in its path. As the scene continued to unfold before him, another flash of lightning arced across the sky. Josh flinched as thunder followed swiftly behind forcing repressed memories of his first awakening to return. Sitting up slowly, he felt a mild resistance as his hardened clothes peeled off the surface causing dried mud to scatter as it fell to the floor.  Recollecting the events surrounding his earlier exploration, he sighed deeply, turning his attention to the oddly shaped ring. It had, in more than one instance, assisted him through seemingly impossible situations by providing immensely favorable outcomes. Although he was still unsure of what abilities it possessed as well as how to tap into that power at will, after several life-threatening instances, he was certain near death experiences would definitely trigger a reaction.  

Pondering the mysteries around the ring, Josh looked up as he heard the front door slam shut. 

'Did Herman finally return?' he wondered, suddenly becoming aware of his current apparel, 'I should really get myself cleaned up before he sees me like this.' 

Deciding a shower was needed, Josh picked up a towel, preparing to make his way to the ornate bathroom. Just as he opened the door, a shiver ran down his spine as the temperature suddenly plummeted. Simultaneously, the ring vibrated incessantly as if warning him of an impending doom. 

"What the-," he said, rubbing his arms as the cold settled in, "what's going on?"

As the temperature dropped even further, Josh jumped at the sound of the window behind him shattering into pieces. Startled by the sudden development, he wasn't even given the chance to react as a shadowy figure entered his room through the broken frame. 

'How is this possible?' he thought, panicking as the Looper appeared menacingly before him. 

As the shadowy entity advanced toward him, his limbs grew numb as if his energy was slowly being drained. Just as he was about to collapse, the ring vibrated even more strongly, dispelling the encroaching paralysis. Regaining control of his body, he contemplated running away as fast as he could manage, however, the more he thought about it, the angrier he became. 

"I'm done running," he muttered. 

"You hear that?" he shouted, spewing wisps of cold air, staring defiantly at the Looper as it neared him , "I'm not afraid of you!"

As if surprised by his sudden bravery, it stopped mere inches away from him, cold energy emanating from it's shadowy physique, covering the inside of his room with a layer of frost.

"What do you want from me?" he questioned, unsure where the surge of confidence originated.

Dark sockets staring directly into his eyes, the entity's mouth opened widely, spewing a wave of pure black energy. In response to the approaching dark energy, the ring trembled violently as it cocooned Josh within a barrier of light blue aura. 

'It seems I was right,' he thought looking down at the ring as it repelled the dark energy, 'this thing really does activate whenever I'm endangered.'

Unperturbed by the barrier's appearance, the Looper unleashed several more waves of energy which bounced harmlessly off of the cocoon on collision.  As it ricocheted off the barrier, the Looper raised a shadowy hand, reabsorbing the stray energies. Regaining the energy it had expended, it resumed its advance, this time causing the room to tremble with every step. Josh maintained a firm stance as the being approached, hoping the barrier would react in a similar fashion as it did earlier. Still staring directly into his eyes, the Looper extended a hand outward, placing it on the barrier. At first, nothing happened, no sparks flew and much to his disappointment, the shadowy entity was certainly not repelled. As they stood mere steps away from each other, the light blue aura flickered as streaks of black energy permeated the barrier. 

Josh stared in disbelief as his hopes for survival dwindled as more of the barrier became corrupted with dark energy. As the barrier's fate became more apparent, it collapsed causing the entire building to shake violently. Almost instantly, Josh crumpled beneath the intense pressure as the ring's vibrations ceased abruptly. 

Cowering in fear, he bowed his head as the absolute confidence from earlier disappeared. Body shaking uncontrollably as the cold energy penetrated him to his core, he felt the Looper's hand rest atop his head as it whispered, 'Remember!'

Josh screamed in agony as immense pains immediately shot through his head all at once. As he writhed in pain, he wished for nothing more than to remove the dark hand, however, his body would not respond to his will. As the pain intensified, his mind went blank as tears streamed off his face. Just as he thought there'd be no end to this torture, a bright light filled the room, easing his pain as it purged the darkness. 

Thankful for the relief, the unmistakable voice of the auburn haired woman suddenly reverberated in his mind, 'Wake Up!'