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

"Twenty-Eight" (Draft 2)

"Opium," Morpheus said.

"We didn't see her," Julien said softly. "David found a broken mirror in your pack, and two unbroken. But we didn't see her."

Morpheus had such a horrible taste in his mouth. He wanted it gone. And his chest hurt. Usually he could keep from feeling such things so easily, but his body didn't seem to be able to make subtle shifts yet. He didn't dare try a big shift.

Morpheus squinted his eyes shut then blinked them open. There were two figures before him and he thought that if he'd opened his eyes on them without first hearing them he might have been frightened. Out of focus they were large pale heads with very big black eyes. But then he realized as his vision cleared that both wore dark sunglasses and had pale scarves wrapped about their heads to keep the sun off them.

Morpheus coughed. He didn't like it, this hacking. "I think I feel sick," he mumbled.

"Do you want to go inside?" Julien asked.

Morpheus nodded. And then he coughed again.

Julien picked him up and carried him into the house. They lay him in Julien's bed. Julien fluffed up the pillows and covered him with blankets. "You've been out a long time, Morpheus, if you know what happened, you can tell me when you're stronger, but you need to rest, I'm sure."

"I'm not sure what happened, exactly," Morpheus said.

"I'm going to fix you something to eat. You always feel better after you eat. Just lay still. David will sit with you." Julien kissed his brow. "I'm sure Opi's all right, she always is."

"Julien! What's the date?"

"I don't know, the end of June..."

Julien walked around the corner and Morpheus heard him go down the steps. He looked for David. He was standing in the bedroom near a wardrobe taking off his scarf and glasses. Morpheus needed to know the year. David's clothes looked strange to Morpheus, very eastern. He was dressed in gray silk. As soon as he took off the scarf Morpheus saw he had red hair, it was quite a bright color.

"What's the date, David?"

"June 22nd 2220. I think it's Angel's birthday soon, but she probably doesn't even remember herself now."

"2220?" Morpheus asked.

David came closer, sat down on the bed near the foot. He was wearing a gray satin choker and a lot of silver charms in his ears. The hair fell in the longest locks either side of his cheekbones it seemed it had once been in a neat very geometric style but had grown out so that it looked scruffy. His face looked familiar, he reminded Morpheus of someone.

"Is something wrong with me?" The eyes were bright green with a hint of gold near the pupils. The face really was very pretty, one of those great Vampyre faces, well balanced bone with skin stretched taughtly over it.

"No. Is there anything to drink up here? I can't get this bad taste out of my mouth."

"You know we've always got baking soda and peroxide lying around the bathroom. That'll get rid of a bad taste, make your teeth nice and white too." He smiled. The smile also seemed familiar. But Morpheus was sure he didn't know David, at least not yet. It seemed he was supposed to know David.

"Could you bring me some, please?"

"Sure."

David slipped from the bed and walked around to Morpheus' side where the dressing room was littered with clothing and sewing materials. In just half a minute David was beside the bed with a cloudy solution in a glass and a plastic container to spit in. Morpheus washed out his mouth as best he could.