The Empty World | The Empty World Sequence [complete | rewriting]

"Thirty" (Draft 2)

"That's what I thought."

"Yes. By the way, my name's Daniel."

"So's mine."

"I know. They seem to like us, you know."

"Yeah, I think they must," Daniel said.

Morpheus glanced up. "Julien!" he called.

"What?"

"This time you better leave me for real! You're a Vampyre, Daniel Pearl isn't too good at blocking! Go find them! You can help them, and then I'll get better!"

"OK. Murph!"

"Yes?"

"I'm going. You better not die! I'll come back and look for you!"

"Just go already! It hurts me to talk!" And then Morpheus coughed some more.

For a while he lay still, in to much pain to bother looking to see if Julien had left. Some time later he looked at the mirror and saw that Julien had found the others, and he raised a hand weakly to listen in. Daniel Pearl was saying that he knew it was the other one who was important. He said Julien was a real Vampyre and Daniel should stay close to Julien during the quaking. And then Daniel Pearl said he had a good feeling about that tower. He thought it was the place they needed.

Morpheus closed his eyes and rested. He could feel his blood pooling under his right hand then. He spoke to tell Loren she might as well have some of the blood as it was just laying there. And then he felt as if falling. The land didn't move, but he felt as if he was sinking somehow. Later Loren spoke to him. She said, "Someone is coming. Will you tell me what to do?"

Morpheus didn't speak.

Someone came, he could sense them there, he could feel their hands touching his body, checking for a pulse. "Oh Murphy," it said. He thought it might be female, it sounded like it was a girl actually, but the hands didn't seem like those of a human girl, the fingertips felt very strange, and he knew the fingers were long.

The boulder was moved from his wing. He did not know how, but for an instant he felt its absence. And then another pressure came down on his wing and he felt on fire. Morpheus arched his back, gasped, his eyes opened. He had never seen a creature quite like this. It was definitely some kind of girl, but she was so tall, so slender, as some Halfangels were, her skin was dusky, her hair thick, cut in a bob at the chin and brown, with highlights of gold. She was gazing at him with two large black-irised eyes. She smiled two large flat teeth and then the eyeteeth right beside them. She extended a hand, four long fingers including her thumb. Morpheus took her hand and let her pull him up.

She was just a bit taller than he was, yet her face looked plump and childish, her breasts were barely developed, she seemed almost boyishly thin. Morpheus found himself smiling. He was still touching her hand, and it felt so nice. Touching her made him feel better. And then he loosed her hand and looked at his wing, it was completely healed, he flapped it, and then the other. Still he had the pain in his gut and in his head.

The boulder was nowhere to be seen. The girl was turned gazing at Loren. She giggled and then looked at Morpheus. "Loren, right?"

"Who are you?" Morpheus asked.

She leaned in and kissed his forehead, "Someone who knows entirely too much about you to let you go and die." She kissed his eyes. "Someone who loves you. And don't you try looking, it would just be too much for you."

"You aren't from this time," Morpheus said.

"Time? Time's gone completely haywire!" She paused. "What is haywire and why is it synonymous with chaotic? Sometimes I just don't understand myself..." She looked up. Morpheus noticed she had a silk tee on and that it had some sort of holographic logo on it that said: Vivid Sadness. "You know how it is, Murphy, if things end here, then I can't do what I'm meant to do."

Morpheus was looking at his wing again. "You must be a strong talent. You aren't an Angel." The vine writhed and snaked itself all the way up his right arm and around his neck.

"Nope, no wings," she said, "the boulder was very easy to move. And you were easy to heal." She touched a finger to one dark red and purple orchid blossom. "Its name is Fred, you know," she said. And then the girl stepped back onto a small carpet, and then sat down with her legs crossed in front of her. She was wearing a very short flared skirt and strange shoes. Morpheus believed they were called chopines, a style of platform shoe. "Well, come on, get on the carpet."

"You going to tell me it flies?" Morpheus asked.

She rolled her eyes brilliantly. "Hitachi would be out of business if they didn't, come on."

Morpheus sat in front of her on the carpet.

"Give him the mirror, Loren, and follow us," the girl said. And Loren did as she said.

The carpet moved up from the ledge and gradually hovered vaguely forward and upward till they were above ground. "Who are you?" Morpheus called back.

"Stop asking silly questions, Murphy. You can call me Pandora, though. It is my name."

"Pandora," Morpheus said. "You are a very strange girl."

"Well, maybe," she said. "So, look in the mirror already!"