Charlotte was dangling in the air. Her feet kicking, as woven hands grasped at her throat, mouth frothing as she struggled to pull her self away. Maria was frozen in fear, while Leah lay silently, innards sprawled across the dirt and blood soaking the grass.
Ah. I'm late.
Something fell on the floor— a spear, Terry's spear— and I confirmed my suspicion; The spear hadn't disappeared. It had been taken. Bile began to surge upward as a sense of dread started to wash over me. I pushed my gaze past Charlotte's legs as she was being strangled and finally saw her face. Charlotte went limp. Even in death, her face looked beautiful, delicate even, if you could ignore the swelling around her neck.
Come to think of it, isn't it getting worse?
Charlotte's head burst. Blood rained down upon Maria and I like a grotesque baptism. Maria was screaming. I think. I couldn't hear then. I'm not sure I would've wanted to.
I want to say I moved pounced on it the way a predator would. That I sprang into action and cut it in half. But I was sluggish. Indecisive. Scared… Weak. The Strawman's arm snapped into motion, whipping my body so hard I felt my ribcage begto break. My stomach churned as the world turned sideways, and then completely upside down.
My back cried out silently as it found its reprieve on the tree trunk. My body slammed against it shamelessly, accepting itself as no more than a ragdoll. I felt a crack somewhere behind me. I hadn't wished more in my life that it had been a tree. My head hung low as blood dripped from my nose. Splotching the earth, staining its blank canvas with crimson. I tried to move my head. It pathetically rolled around on my neck, just barely turning before gravity swooned it back into position.
This is it, I thought. And maybe it was. After all, how could I possibly win? Against something that held no logic, something that appeared as it wished, and vanished like a ghost— No. Not possible. I had given up.
"I—" My voice was interrupted by violent hacking. Turns out having blood in your lungs isn't really a healthy prospect. I coughed up blood and mucus alike, and when I was finished, I barely muttered the word out, "Resign," before passing out.
There is a dark, dark place— a void for all purposes and intents— where things go. Lost things, specifically. The unwanted, the bizarre, the things that don't seem to fit in no matter how much they are tweaked. Yes, they all seemed to arrive at such a location. The same location I found myself in.
The first thing I noticed was the dark. Despite having opened my eyes, I could not see a thing. Strangely enough, I knew that this darkness was unlike the absence of light we call shadows or darkness in the typical sense, nor was it the darkness of non-existence. Then, what was it?
I sat curled up, tightly hugging my knees and rocking back and forth. Or maybe I was swaying side to side. Directionality did not seem to apply quite well to this place. The void hummed like a generator, oddly comforting, but exceedingly jarring the more I thought about it. As I sat,I began to wonder. And as I wondered, something called to me.
The closest phrase I have to describe what happened is "held together." Yes. It felt like I was being held together as a mysterious force called for me. At once everything seemed to stabilize, and like a miracle, I was no longer lost, because I had been found.
The world around me was bright, but not too bright, as if whatever brought me here or stabilized this space had known my likings and preferences. Although, technically the space around me was still a void, it was now a bright void, and the material around me (if it could even be called that) no longer felt as… ominous for lack of a better word. I looked around, searching for a being that did not exist, a sign of life or at the very least a consciousness who'd brought me here. And in classic Paul fashion, a few words unintentionally slipped out of my mouth.
"Who are you?"
…
Silence.
But the humming of the void had stopped. No longer did the void try to bait me with such a mundane nostalgic memory. It settled into its silence as if that was the way things were supposed to be when you asked questions you weren't supposed to. Be grateful, the empty silence seemed to echo. Although I don't know why I thought that.
Just then, right before me, something began to manifest. A column of wind and fabric alike wrapped around the air, shaping a figure with human shape. It took the form of a woman. A tan brunette with sharp malicious eyes and a capricious smile. My instincts screamed Bad news! But it seemed my mind was thinking of something else entirely. Something about her was alluring, captivating even, because I found myself walking towards her even though I didn't recall standing up.
As I approached, she began to walk towards me as well. Although 'walking' may not be the best description, it was more like a lazy strut, as if she couldn't be bothered to put the effort into walking. Nonetheless we approached each other, and finally we met.
"Uh. Hello?"
"Bow."
"… What?"
The woman looked at me with indifference as she began to pick at her nails, shooting me a glance that told me she wouldn't listen.
"Hold on now," I started, but was rudely interrupted by her shushing as she repeated her demand.
"Bow. When speaking to a higher being, an insect should know how to prostrate themselves and bow."
I clicked my tongue. Well shit. A higher being? Though no matter how much I looked at her, despite the fact I had watched her manifest from some non-existent wind and fabric, I couldn't get any vibe other than normal from her. Why are all of the women in my life so eccentric?
I lifted my hand to reach out to her but abruptly stopped. This time my instincts were practically ripping out their throat as it warned me not to get closer. Any closer must be a bad idea then.
The woman watched as I retracted my hand with ample amusement. It seemed she had notice a shift in my demeanor as I naturally began to fall into position. I was about to bow when I realized I'd much rather fall to one knee. For some reason I knew it was correct, at least for me, so instead I knelt before her with my head down, as if exalting royalty. This clearly pleased her.
"Rise maggot," the woman spoke, this time with tenderness in her voice. A sign of respect maybe? I lifted my head but took caution not to stand too quickly. Instead I expressed my good will by tapping my chest three times, an indication of the beat of my heart. I couldn't tell you why, but in that moment those actions felt distinctly correct. A ritual of sorts, that I did not comprehend then.
I finally stood face to face after expressing my good will, and asked her a question. "Where are we?" She shrugged not paying the question much mind, her demeanor much more casual.
"This place isn't really all that interesting, and besides, there's not much I can tell you in your current state."
"And why is that?"
She pinched her wrist and a white mist-like substance began to extract itself from her arm. Then with a snap of her fingers, it was torn into pieces and it vanished. To anyone else it may have been confusing. But I knew what it meant.
My soul will be shredded to bits if that happens. Then what should I do?
Suddenly, a crazy idea struck me. I wasn't sure how this place worked, but there was something about it I wanted to confirm. Desperately. "Does… Time flow here?" I asked. Her brows furrowed as if this was one of the questions she really did not want to answer.
"No, it does not. Not technically, anyway. Why?"
That was the first time she'd redirected a question towards me, scratch that, that was the first time in this conversation she had even asked me something. Before she simply chose to command me. Now she asks questions like a lower being possibly intrigues her. I don't think I like this woman.
"Are you the type of being that can obtain or view a person's memories?" My eyes sparkled as I spoke. She grimaced, her smug smirk coming off like erasable marker. "What's wrong, can't you?" I asked again, beginning to push, almost forgetting what my situation was. "Hey—"
"— Stop."
I shut up immediately. This time, not because I was forced, nor because something was telling me it was the right thing to do, but out of decency.
… Who am I kidding. It was out of fear.
I panicked, and fell to my knees, making myself beneath her out of respect. In my anxiety I raised my head and met her gaze. Her eyes which once seemed unfocused, were sharper now. The vague malice lurking behind them, was no longer opaque, now I could see, or rather feel it clearly. It was much more akin to a blithe cruelty. But much more taxing to me, was the concern flashing through those eyes, which masked her true thoughts with blatantly dark emotion.
"Don't do that either," she said, a scowl twisting her face. I stared in disbelief, but a gentle breeze brought me back to my feet. "I know," she paused, her face contorting like she had tasted something sour.
"I knowwhat you're getting at," she said in a hushed tone, and my heart skipped a beat. Could she really have known about my Immortal Essence? Could she tell me what I— what we who bear Aberrations, really are?
"But you don't say those sort of things. Not here. Not back in the forest. Not anywhere."
"Why though! It's just—"
"— It's time for you to go," her hands gripped my shoulder tightly. Rapidly, I began to lose feeling in my legs. I looked down, and to my horror, my legs were fading away, or more accurately, it was like they were being unmade. I was disintegrating and being scattered like dust. She leaned into my horror stricken face and whispered something to me.
"Names are a blessing, likewise they can be a curse. Take care not to reveal yourself to the ones who are always listening."
And in the next second she was gone. No. I was gone.
Am I dead?