Light of Darkness Page 13

  I can’t really see now that my left eye has been clawed and my right is swollen shut, but I can sense everything now. The initial burst of energy disrupts the cold surrounding me; Shadow’s presence returns, off-balance. Another wave explodes from my body, more dense and volatile than the last. Our energies collide, and there’s a violent reaction. Before I can brace myself, a wall of force hits me, knocking me back and off my feet. I land hard, and everything goes silent.

  I COME to. My body is slightly numb, yet I can feel this constant ache throughout it and into my bones. I force my right eye open and see the oranges, purples, and blues in the sky as dawn approaches. The long-haired version of myself appears over me with a big smile spread across his face. “That was amazing, glad it worked,” my mind says, out of breath.

  “Me too. Did we win?”

  He plops down on the ground next to me. “Barely,” he says with a sigh.

  I notice a small, dark figure soaring in the sky. “Is that a bird? That’s the first living creature I’ve seen in my inner world.” I turn my head to see grass growing from the hard, dry ground around me. “A bird and now grass. All because we beat Shadow?”

  “Of course,” Shadow says hoarsely. I struggle to sit up, but I manage with my mind’s help. Shadow sits in front of me, looking just as worn out as I feel. The darkness that made up his body isn’t pulsing with power anymore, but drifting like smoke.

  “How do you feel, Shadow?” my mind asks him.

  “Numb, tired, and hurt,” he says, lifting his right claw, which is still dripping with that shimmering black ichor.

  “So, I take it the three of us are in sync now?”

  Shadow places his claw back onto the ground to support himself. “Oh yeah, nice isn’t it? The soft grass, the healthy tree, the free bird in the sky. A mind at peace is a beautiful thing.”

  “So, what now?” I ask, looking between them both.

  My mind places his hand on my shoulder. “Well, we live.”

  His body suddenly bursts into white sand, covering me from head to toe and getting into my mouth. A wave of relief washes over me as the sand absorbs into my skin. My vision returns to my left eye as all the scars and bruises on my body heal. I look at my right hand, and the dense blue-and-white energy turns black, then dissipates, revealing my skin—completely healed.

  “Where’d he go? What was that?”

  Shadow stands and walks over to me. “For you to awake from this world, we must become one being and allow you to become what you were meant to be.”

  “And that would be?”

  Shadow kneels next to me and chuckles as he places his claws on my shoulders. “You will see.” He looks to the sky; the morning sun is beaming brightly now. “Farewell, Kyle.”

  I take him by the claws, bringing his attention to me. “Wait, will I remember any of this when I wake up?”

  “Do we ever truly remember our dreams?” He looks at me, and I’m sure he sees how serious I am. “Like I said before, you will and you won’t.” I feel a tremor of power as Shadow’s body starts to dissolve, turning to a blue liquid. ”Live well, Kyle,” he says as his whole body melts into a puddle around me. I feel myself starting to sink into it, and I don’t fight it. I’m done fighting for now. So, I just lay back, close my eyes, and allow it to take me. As I am completely submerged within this pool of my own energy, I drift off to sleep.

  I open my eyes to sunlight beaming through the window, right into my face. I sit up fast, looking for Shadow, my mind, and the tree. My body seizes with pain as my every muscle fights me, especially in my stomach. With a long sigh, I lay back onto my bed. I stare up at the ceiling, watching the dust float by in a ray of sun, and can’t help but smile. I made it.

  The smell of wildflowers crosses my nose. The intensity of the sunlight grows, and the room fills with a golden light. My ears begin to ring and then burn. An invisible hand touches my chest, and relief overtakes me. My body relaxes. “Welcome back, Shadow,” says the voice that was in my dream.

  I open my mouth to say something, but it’s so dry that nothing comes out. The alarm on my nightstand goes off with the high-pitched whine. The weight of the hand vanishes, and the light engulfing the room dissipates.

  I sit up gasping as the relief leaves my body. “What…”

  I look around for the thing, but there’s nothing. Even the smell of flowers is gone. Now it’s just the musk of my room. With ease, I reach over and tap the alarm, silencing it.

  I swing my legs over the edge of the bed. My stomach growls so loudly that it scares me. I have never been so hungry in my life, but the next task before food is trying to stand. This is going to be fun. I push off the bed. My legs shake and wobble like jelly, but they hold strong. I take one step forward, and they give out. I crumple into a pile of dirty clothes. As I start to get up, a pain hits me hard. Not even noticing my legs anymore, I jump up, running out of my room and down the hall.

  I hit the door in no time flat. I shoulder it open, kick it closed behind me, drop my shorts, and plop down into the toilet. The relief that I felt earlier was amazing, but this, this is godsent.

  Steam aimlessly floats around me, but the shower isn’t running. Turning toward an opening in the shower curtain, I see a figure covering itself with a towel. “Hello?” I ask.

  It’s a young woman’s body. One of the girls? The person draws the curtains, and I see is my aunt’s elderly face. She has an amused smile and one eyebrow raised.

  “Now, I know my nephew knows how to knock,” she says, stepping out of the shower.

  “But the door was open.”

  “Was it?” she asks, pointing at the door.

  I look at the door. The handle is on the floor, and the door is cracked all the way up from where I shouldered it. “Wow, I didn’t…”

  She pats me on the face. “Don’t worry, hun. It’s not the first time you’ve broken a door.”

  “That wasn’t my fault. Felicia blindfolded me and said I was running into a pillow. She was a bad babysitter.”

  She nods her head in agreement. “Anyway, how was your three-day nap?”

  “I was out for that long? Why are you so chill about it? I could have been in a coma. Did you call a doctor?”

  “You were fine. It was all under control.” She leans over to give me a kiss but takes a long sniff and pulls back quickly. “Whoa, sweetie. When you’re done on the pot why don’t you jump in the shower—for a long, long time—while I prepare breakfast for you and our guests.”

  “Guests?” That must be the girls. I shiver at the thought of being trapped within Airca, feeling her fear as she dealt with that Ben guy. I look up and into my aunt’s deep-brown eyes. She seems to be watching, waiting for me to say something. “About last night.”

  Her eyes grow wide with surprise. “So, it was you.” She smiles as she puts her finger to my lips. “We’ll talk later. First, please, take a shower.” She tightens the towel around herself, wraps one around her hair, and leaves.

  I take a whiff of myself. “Oh God! A shower won’t hurt at all.”

  In the shower, I close my eyes as the hot water runs over my body. It reminds of that darkness I first ventured into in my dream. The white room, the barren wasteland, the withered tree, my mind, and Shadow are all there in my memory, but I can’t seem to recall the full picture. It all feels so distant, like it happened a long time ago. The only thing I can see with full clarity is the field of green and the vibrant tree, reaching high into the blue sky. “Do we ever truly remember our dreams?” I say to myself and smile.

  I wash up and get out. After spending a second in my room drying off, I put on a fresh pair of shorts and a T-shirt, which seem a little big now. I start to make my way down to the kitchen. “Before you come down, wake the girls!” Serena yells from downstairs.

  At the door of the guest room, I knock, hard. I hear some moans and a few grumbles. “Guys, it’s time for breakfast,” I say. No luck. I try the door, and it opens. “I’m coming in.”

/>   I enter the dimly lit room. The few rays of sun that get past the blackout curtains illuminate the purple-and-gold gothic floral pattern on the wallpaper and the painting of my aunt’s old cat that hangs on the wall, just above the bed. There are multiple bodies on the king-sized bed, all of them making their own noises. Quietly, I make my way to the bed and pull back the covers from over the face of the closest body. Of course, it’s Airca.

  Sitting on the edge of the bed, I stroke her hair. “Airca, wake up, sleepy head.”

  She closes her mouth and nuzzles into the pillow. Speaking softly never works with this girl, so that means it’s time for her normal wake-up call. I run my fingers along her face. Her eyes open with frantic fear as she cocks her arm back and punches me in the face. Her fist lands squarely on my cheek, but I barely feel it. Before she can go into a full panic, I grab and hug her tight. “Airca, it’s me, Kyle. It’s okay, calm down.”

  Her breathing is erratic, on the verge of a panic attack. Page and Rica pop up. Airca pushes me back to get a good look at me. “Kyle? Oh, my God, you’re awake. Can you let me go?” I do so. She launches at me, forcing us both off the bed and onto the floor.

  With smiles, Page and Rica jump down and join us.

  “You’re awake!” Rica says, hugging me.

  “How long have you been up?” Page asks.

  “An hour.”

  Airca wraps her arms around me and squeezes tight, tears running down her face. “If you ever get sick like that again, I’ll beat you senseless.”

  The others nod in agreement.

  I sit up, stretching. “Don’t worry, it won’t happen again. I promise.” My stomach makes the most terrifying noise. “That reminds me, Serena is making food. I don’t know about you guys, but I’m hungry.”

  Rica and Page get up and rush by me and out the door. They love my aunt’s cooking and are always gung ho to get some.

  Airca just hangs on me for a second. “I’m happy you’re okay. I’ve been really worried,” she says with a nervous laugh.

  I stroke her hair. “Thanks, Airca.”

  She looks at me with a smile, and it feels like she’s waiting for something. I start to move in toward her. She closes her eyes, and I close mine. I feel her breath on my lips, and then I start to hear her talking about us and how she feels. The worry and indecision in her voice and body makes me start to worry; I second-guess if we are right for each other. I put my forehead to hers. She jumps a little, then looks at me with hazel eyes, confused.

  “Let’s talk later,” I say lightly.

  “Okay,” she says with a sigh.

  I get up and help her to her feet. We make our way downstairs. Rica and Page stand there drooling as we enter the kitchen. Aunt Serena sets plates full of pancakes, eggs, bacon, and fruit on the table. “Perfect timing, I just finished. Come on, don’t be shy.”

  Rica stretches her arms up, revealing her well-toned midriff. “Good, considering what happened last night.” I look at her intently. She turns and waves her hand in front of my face. Turning around, I look at Airca, who is standing with her arms crossed, and Page, with her arms behind her back.

  “Kyle…Kyle!” Serena yells.

  “What?” I ask, snapping out of my daze.

  “What are you staring at?”

  “I just realized what they had on: short shorts, tight shirts. I woke up on the right day.”

  Rica covers herself. “Is that what you’ve been looking at?”

  “Maybe…you don’t mind, do you?” I look to Page and Airca.

  “Hey, look all you want. I can’t stop you,” Page says, getting into a sexy model stance.

  Airca shakes her head, as she walks past me to the table. She sits keeping her eye trained on me, an unamused sneer on her face. Bad taste I guess.

  “Look, Rica I—” I turn back to her and she’s already geared up to slap me.

  Only inches from my face, she seems to freeze in place—everyone does. Just like with Shadow. I take her hand before everything speeds up. She spins, slipping on the laminate flooring. I catch her around the waist before she can fall, and she looks a little freaked out. “Thanks.”

  “No problem.” I lift Rica to her feet.

  “Pervert.” She says hitting me on the shoulder.

  We all sit at the table, eager for my aunt’s amazing cooking. My stomach growls loudly as I look at the plates.

  “Oh, you’re not hungry at all,” Page says sarcastically.

  “Tell me about it,” I say, wiping the drool from my mouth.

  “Well, there’s no need to wait—dig in!” Serena orders.

  I take a pancake in hand and take a bite. My aunt’s cooking is amazing, but this, this is just euphoric. I’m so hungry. I begin to shovel it all into my face. A hand touches my shoulder, and I snap around from my plate. Serena smiles at me. “Sweetie, slow down. There’s plenty.”

  I sit back in my chair. The girls look at me like I’m crazy. The table is a mess with milk, syrup, bits of pancake, and eggs. “Sorry. I don’t know what came over me.”

  “When was the last time you ate?” Rica asks.

  “What’s today?”

  “Thursday,” Page says, stuffing pancake into her mouth.

  “Monday morning.”

  “Oh man. You want my plate?”

  “No, I’m actually fine now. Thank you.” I get up from the table. Serena kisses me on the cheek. I go into the living room and plop down onto the sofa, then look up at the ceiling fan as it spins lazily around. It’s weird. Before going into my inner world, I always felt sleepy, tired even when I had no reason to be, but now, I’m wide awake.

  Airca appears over me with a nervous smile. “Hey, you okay?”

  “Peachy. Just thinking.”

  She climbs over the back to sit next to me. “What about?”

  “Some crazy dreams I had…and us.”

  Her face turns a rosy shade of pink. “So have I. Kyle, I—”

  “Guys, turn on the TV. People on social media are flipping out about something!” Rica says from the kitchen.

  Airca grabs the remote and turns on the flat-screen that’s mounted on the wall above the fireplace. It’s already on the local channel. The “Breaking News” banner flashes at the bottom of the screen as a reporter delivers a story about some politician and his fundraiser for his grandsons’ scout troop.

  The reporter fixes her papers. “It is official. Over the past three days over one hundred people, mostly teens ranging from thirteen to eighteen years old, have gone missing. It is a mystery that has even the best investigators of Roc City stumped. The locations where the victims were last seen showed no signs of a struggle. Even the search dogs lost the trails mere feet from the initial area. It is as if they just up and vanished.” I look at Airca, who is intently focused on the TV with a fearful expression. My attention turns back to the television as a man hands the reporter a piece of paper. After a pause during which she scans the paper, her face changes from professional to grim.

  “Breaking news: the missing people have all been found in an abandoned steel mill in Inner Town,” she explains, trying to hold back tears.

  “The next part isn’t going to be good news,” Rica points out.

  “Yeah,” Page says.

  “I am sorry to say that, though the missing have been found, they are all deceased.” She pauses. “The bodies have been described as ‘thoroughly drained of life.’”

  Airca is trembling now. I place my hand on her shoulder and she grabs it.

  Aunt Serena stands behind me, her face serious. “You girls should call your parents and assure them of your safety.” The three of them scatter to find a spot to call their families. “All those children.” I turn toward her. Her eyes and face are filled with fury; it’s frightening. “That could have been them,” she says under her breath.

  “Does this have to do with what happened yesterday? With the guy chasing the girls?” I ask.

  She looks down to me as though just realizing I a
m here. Quickly, the anger and seriousness in her face melt away, and her face fills with her normal warm and inviting smile. She puts her hand gently on my face. “Don’t worry your little head about all this right now. Why don’t you take the girls to the mall and enjoy yourselves, get your mind off this bad news. My treat.” She hasn’t used the throw-money-at-him tactic in a while. When she’s like this, it’s futile to pry, so I just nod. “Good, now go get dressed and tell the girls.”

  “Whatever you say, Aunty.” I get up, walk past her, and make my way upstairs. I catch the girls in the guest room and ask them if they want to come along. They hesitate. After what we just saw, I don’t blame them. Surprisingly, though, they agree.

  I go to my room to put on some clothes. My pants are so loose that they barely stay up. That’s when I take note that I’ve lost weight—a lot of it. “No wonder I was so hungry.” I think of all the push-ups, sit-ups, and fighting I went through in my inner world. It’s crazy to think it affected my real body like this. ”Maybe I should sell that. Lose weight while you sleep—the workout of your dreams in your dreams.”

  Someone knocks on the door. “You ready, Kyle?” Airca asks. I throw on a belt, a T-shirt, which is huge on me now, and some shoes. I open the door, and she looks me up and down.

  “You’ve lost weight. Are you sure you’re okay to go out? We could just stay in and hang out,” she says, slightly anxious.

  “What’s the matter, Airca?”

  She takes my hand and moves toward me. “Something happened last night that scared the hell out of me. And now, with all that stuff they just said on the news, I feel like that could have been us last night had we not gotten here in time.”

  “So, you can’t remember what happened?” She shakes her head. “Airca, it’ll be okay. You shouldn’t worry about it.” Her grip tightens as she starts to tremble. I pull her in and hold her. “Don’t worry, I’m here with you this time.”

  “It’s funny that you say that, because it felt like you were there. It was as if I could hear your voice talking to me, telling me what to do and what not to do,” she says with a thankful look in her hazel eyes.