HE WHO FED ON NIGHTMARES

CHAPTER SIX

Aunt-Drea laid in a pool of her blood, writhing in agony on the floor.

I was by her side in less than a second and knelt next to Sairen as he held her in his arms and as her screams filled the room.

"What's happening? " I didn't know who I directed the question at but Sairen answered.

" I don't know, she hasn't said anything."

Aunt-Drea groaned in pain and thick tears ran down her face as she tried and failed to swallow her screams. She clutched desperately at the sleeve of her shirt, clawing at the fabric as if it were on fire. " M-my arm. It's burning. "

Sairen tore the fabric of her nightshirt off and I swore; her arm was torn where the arrow had pierced her flesh a week ago and the skin around the wound was green and swollen, blood oozed out of the gaping hole.

My gaze snapped to hers but her eyes were clamped shut so she couldn't see the anger that had crept into my stare. "You weren't healing? Why didn't you say anything?"

" I–it was fine be–fore, " She gasped and latched unto my arm, her cold fingers digging into my flesh. Her pain travelled through my body in a vicious wave and I cried out, feeling her agony. I held onto her, trying to take some of her pain, but it was just too much and I wondered how she hadn't passed out already .

" Its some type of poison. " Sairen said as he inspected her wound closely and tied the area above it where the skin hadn't gained that hideous green hue as yet. "It hasn't reached as far as I would've thought though. It's moving extremely slow. "

"By the Greats! Matty! Bring my med kit!" Jules' voice came from the entrance and she rushed in, collapsing next to us. "What in the eight hells is going on? "

"She's been poisoned during the attack,"

Jules shook her head as she studied Aunt-Drea's wound. "The poisons I know of don't usually wait five days to start affecting the victim, this is something different. Matt!"

"I'm here mom." Matthias ran in with two white cases, one in each hand. Akali came up behind him, holding a large basin and they laid the items on the floor next to Jules. "I didn't know which one you wanted."

"Thank you. Siya, keep the tourniquet tight, we need to stop the flow as much as possible."

An hour went by so fast yet time had seemed to slow simultaneously; Jules had cleaned the wound and extracted all the poison she could. It had lost some of its green tin, but it still wasn't healing and Aunt-Drea was still in agonizing pain even after all the medication Jules dumped into her. The medicine had long since taken over and Aunt-Drea laid fast asleep, but we still crowded the room, uneasy as we watched over her.

Jules broke the steady silence and she stood, wrapping her blood-stained robe around her. "I'll go to the lab to study the poison first thing in the morning. They'll have better equipment there. If I can figure out it's components, I can figure out a cure, but for now, she needs rest and medication to slow the flow of the poison and keep that fever down, hopefully it'll buy me some time to figure out what we're dealing with."

"You all know that this isn't a coincidence, right?" I didn't need to elaborate; they knew what I spoke of. Even Akali seemed to be fully informed since she didn't seem the least bit confused or lost.

" We know. " She kissed my forehead and gave me a falling smile. " We should all get some sleep, it's almost sunrise and I'm sure we all need it." Matt and Akali trailed behind her, leaving Sairen and I with a heavily sedated Drea.

" She should've stayed. " I didn't think I spoke loud enough for him to hear, but he did and he sat up straighter in the chair at the sound of my voice.

"What?"

" Andrea. She should've stayed with you guys; she shouldn't have come with us. At least she would've been safe. "

"Sol—"

"She's dying Sai, I feel it when I hold her hands. She's in so much pain." I knew what death felt like better than anyone ; I felt it everyday, with every breath.

"She's not going to die. Jules will find an antidote and she'll be fine."

" Can you promise me that? " His lips tightened and I nodded. Even if I wasn't sure about anything else in life, I was confident in one thing; Sairen didn't lie. Whatever the reason, it was the only certainty.

"Look;" He pushed back the few strands of hair in his face that always seemed to escape it's tie, momentarily revealing his entire face before they fell back again. "I may not be able to promise you that she'll be okay, but I can hope that she will and put my faith in the Goddess and Jules to make that happen. And that's really all that we can do, isn't it?"

I watched Sairen as he watched me, then I looked away when his eyes bored deeper than I would've liked. I had always confided in him when we were younger, and I hoped things could go back to how they were before I left; when we were two inseparable sides of the same coin. But for now, there was this bit of tension in the air whenever we were together and I wanted to be rid of it. I looked up again, at those eyes that never left my memory, and tried for a smile. "Do you remember when we used to stay up late like this? Sneaking snacks into our little fort and seeing who told the better stories? "

He chuckled and I caught myself doing the same. " How could I forget? You were such a sore loser; you would get so angry at the fact that mine were better. "

"Because they weren't! And I was only mad because you cheated."

Sairen laughed but it was weighed down by the atmosphere." I'd like to know how I could have cheated with impromptu storytelling."

"I don't know, but you found a way." My fingers brushed the faded scar that ran along my left palm and I held his eyes, exposing my hand to his. "Is yours still visible? "

He laid his hand on the little glass table that separated us and I saw a faint whiteish line similar to my own. They would line up perfectly if we held hands, and they did. His fingers slipped through mine and I held on as if for dear life. Time was a funny thing when dealing with loss; it still felt like yesterday when we stayed up as long as we could, knowing it would be the last night we had together. When we slit each other's palms in an oath to make our way back to each other no matter how long it took, and yet it felt like entire lifetimes had passed between then and now. His head was still bent towards our hands when he spoke. " I guess the oath worked. "

"I guess it did."

Aunt-Drea stirred in her sleep and I froze, expecting her to wake screaming. I wondered if this was what they felt all those years while I slept, anxious about not knowing what was coming next and dreading the outcome.

"I searched for you." His sentence was a shock to the comfortable silence we had fallen into and my heart dropped a bit then sped up so quickly that I felt dizzy.

"You did? "

"Of course." His dark brows creased significantly. " There shouldn't be any doubt that I would have come looking, and I did. I looked everywhere. But I never could find you."

"You wouldn't have; Aunt-Drea cloaked us from anyone we knew, she did that every time we moved— which was anytime I screwed up or we came into contact with threats, so it was like we just disappeared. "

Sairen nodded slowly as he took in the information that revealed his efforts were in vain. "Where did you go after you left home?"

"Mom had estranged relatives in the Caribbean, so we lived in Trinidad for a few years until.... Until we had to leave. Then we stayed in Italy for a year, we spent a few months in Korea and other countries, then we finally ended up in Toronto." I shrugged. "I was coming to find you too, you know; the moment I turned eighteen I was jumping on the first flight here. "

His laugh was humorless. "I guess now you don't have to pay for tickets. "

"I guess not." I yawned despite my efforts not to.

His hands slipped out of mine and I fought with myself to not grasp for him. "Get some sleep, Sol. You look like you're surviving on spite alone. "

"Thanks for the compliment." I would've said that he looked worse than I did, but it would've been a lie and I already had a lot of those piling up. He said he didn't sleep much, but I wondered just how many hours he was running on that he still managed to look great.

"Always."

My dreams jolted me awake. I had been in and out of sleep for the past few hours, my mind keeping me occupied with things I rather not see, and my brain too tired to keep me awake and spare me from my nightmares. I saw him again, his towering figure seated casually on his throne; and I saw my mother, still bound and bleeding on the alter as demons flew above while mouth-less monsters ravaged the ground below.

Little streaks of sunlight filtered in from the spaces between the white curtains, illuminating Sairen's form, his head bent at an odd angle over the back of the couch as he slept.

Didn't need much sleep, huh?

I turned to Aunt-Drea who was still sound asleep next to me, checking if her fever had subsided at all from last night, and my hands drew back instantly; her skin was cold to the touch. My voice was weak with fear when I finally swallowed the growing lump in my throat and spoke. "Aunt-Drea?"

My fingers squeezed her freezing arm as I tried to shake her awake but she was stiff and cold— like a corpse. I was shaking when I laid my head on her chest to check her pulse, but I was frozen when I didn't hear the beating of her heart. NO...

"Please! Andrea!" I shook her and slapped her but she stayed unmoving with her hands stiffly at her sides and her plump lips matching the hue of her hair.

" Sairen! " My legs almost failed me as I scrambled off the bed, every step felt like I was close to falling and it was hard to speak with grief stuck in my throat . "Sairen wake up!"

I stopped as a sudden cold rushed over me and I felt myself numbing all over as pins and needles travelled throughout my body, but even if I could have moved, I wouldn't want to go any further; The carpet had been sage... not silver.

I heard a scream that couldn't have been my own; I didn't sound so broken, so void and empty, but as I made my way around the chair to Sai who I thought was so deep in sleep that he hadn't heard me call, I realized that it was me who had screamed, and my cries were still filling the room. I knelt in front of him, crying in that unfamiliar voice as my hands shakily caressed his face, leaving streaks of silver from the gash in his throat. "Sai? Siya no. "

"Sairen!" I didn't know why I kept calling his name, kept touching his face as if that would've brought him back, but I did. I kept checking his pulse to see if I heard even the faintest of beats, hoping that the slash had been shallow enough that he could have healed himself.

I should have known that a shallow cut wouldn't leave so much blood. I should have known that his blood on my hands was too hot, too thick for him to stand a chance. I heard footsteps in the corridor and I pressed my forehead to his briefly before I forced myself to stand, forced myself to venture out to see if anyone else was alive.

The lights flickered on in the halls, giving me glimpses of the blood painting the walls a haunting silver and my steps became heavier as my heart sank deeper into my stomach. Matt and Akali's door was ripped off its hinges, laying on top of Jules' decapitated body, her broken arm reaching out for her son who laid a few feet away from her, Akali laying on his chest. His wife's stomach was carved open and her innards scattered across the floor; there was a little something in her hand, a tiny red thing. Hesitant steps brought me closer and I recoiled, holding back my vomit as I watched the little fetus laying by its parents.

I heard the footsteps again, they were closer now, yet somehow I wasn't as eager as I were before to see if anyone had survived Him. Maybe it had to do with the fact that the Schadeux voices rose almost painfully in my head, or maybe the footsteps were too steady, too purposeful to be the frightened ones of an escapee... The lights flickered off and I fell to the floor, cradling my head in my hands as the voices rose to a crescendo, almost shattering my mind. Then, they stopped and there was light... and someone standing in front of me.

I looked up slowly, following the shiny black shoes to the neatly pressed navy slacks, and what was left of my heart dropped. He stood above me, covered in shadow even with all the light.

I felt the smile on his face, I felt his gaze over my body, and I felt like I was about to die. He crouched down to my level, extending his hand to me and I batted it away with whatever strength I had left. Unlike his face, his hand was completely solid and a low chuckle came out of his shadowy mouth. " Now, now, little light, don't be rude. Didn't you miss me? "

"No." I spat the word like venom and hoped it burned him.

" Well that's rather disappointing. I missed you quite a lot, you know. You and your mother. "

I wanted to get up, to stand, to fight— but I couldn't. I was being restrained by invisible shackles. " Where is she? "

"Don't worry little one, she's quite fine. And so is everyone else for now. "

I furiously wiped the tears that soaked my face even though it was too late and he had already seen me crying, but I wouldn't give him the continued satisfaction. "What do you mean? "

" Oh, fortunately for them all, this is a dream. I'm still...incarcerated, so this, " He gestured to himself, and to everything around him which all started shifting until we were in that familiar dark room. The pentagram was still wet from its latest victim. "... is all I can manage with what strength I have, but you've been making it easier for me to communicate with you recently. You're losing control, aren't you? And it seems you've been forgetting to take your suppressants. "

"How do you know—"

He waved his hand in a dismissive gesture and we were back in the house. "Never mind how I know the things I do, I just do. But let's cut to the chase shall we? Come with me Solaure, and this can all be avoided. We'll be reunited, you, your mother and I; a family — doesn't that sound wonderful?"

" You're delusional. "

"No, just optimistic. What do you say?"

I fought against my restraints with all my will. If this was a dream then it was mine and I had control. I felt them weaken but they didn't break. " I didn't run most of my life just to walk away with the monster I was hiding from when he comes along spewing shit about being a family. I will not come with you and we will never be a family, and when I do find you— because trust me I will— I will kill you. Now doesn't that sound wonderful? "

I felt his smile drop and the mist around his face became darker, then his smile returned, but it was strained. " Twenty-one days. That's all you have, take that time to make up your mind. By then I will have enough strength to be free and trust me little light, you'd want to be on the right side of the door when doom comes knocking. "

He stood up, brushed the imaginary creases off his perfectly tailored suit and started to retreat. " You seem to be gaining consciousness, but I'll see you again and more often, Solaure. And tell our Andrea that she has that amount of time as well; I get confused with dates, so that makes things a whole lot easier for me."

The lights flickered off again and darkness consumed me, tearing me up as I laid helpless on the ground.

I heard a voice, and I felt myself being shaken but I couldn't move. My eyes peeled open revealing Sairen's face over mine, and I realized that it was his voice, his hands, and that he was really still alive. I felt the sharp tip of a blade pierce my skin and the pain jolted me out of my paralysis .

"Solaure." His voice registered in my mind with a sharp clarity and my body moved despite still being numb. My hands came to his face, like they had in my dream, but this time he was okay. This time he wasn't dead. I crashed by body to his, wrapping my arms around him and as his arms encircled me, I finally let myself cry. Really cry.

Sairen didn't seem to mind being used as a pillow, or that I cried on him for almost an hour. He just laid with me, being a silent comfort as I drained the last of my tears. I think I had fallen asleep again, but I wasn't sure because for once in a very long time I didn't dream. I stirred as the last bit of my dream state wore off and I felt the vibrations of Sairen's firm chest when he spoke. "Are you awake?"

"I didn't know I was asleep." I rose from his chest and wiped the sleep from my eyes, feeling the most well rested I'd been in a while even though I couldn't have slept for more than a couple of hours . "What time is it? "

He sat up to look at the little clock on the nightstand. "Eight."

He opened his mouth to speak but I cut him off. "I know. I know; We'll talk, just let me get cleaned up first okay?" I needed to wash my dreams away.

"Okay."

I knew I had put the hot water on, if the steam was anything to go by, but I was still freezing. The warmth refused to seep into my skin, refused to give me an ounce of relief.

Less than a month. That's all Andrea had, that's all we had until whatever plan he had was set into motion, and judging from the nightmares that had been plaguing me since I was a child, I had an idea as to what that plan was, and the worst part of it all was that I only had a few weeks to find and kill him, even though he had been off the grid completely for almost ten years. I ran my thumb over the reminder of him he gifted me all those years ago. Unlike my body, the scar felt hot to the touch, it felt as if my skin was being peeled away; it burned. I shoved my wrist under the water but it did nothing to soothe the pain, so I beared it in silence like I did everything else, hoping the shower drowned my sobs.

He had known I was off my suppressants and I didn't know how; no-one knew. Aunt-Drea had made them for me, pills made from special herbs she ground up to keep my power from draining and hurting me, but they had stopped working so I stopped taking them.

I turned off the shower, dried my skin and sat in my towel in the bathtub for a while, trying to let my mind go blank but one date kept resurfacing in my head.

June 12th— My mother's birthday, but also exactly twenty-one days from now.

Sairen was re-entering the room when I came out, his clothes changed and his hair damp. I had changed in the bathroom, thinking he was still outside, but apparently I didn't need to. He handed me one of the cups he held and I sat down on the bed. The hot mug did little for my cold hands, but the coffee warmed me up from the inside and I sighed in content. I answered his questions before he asked them.

" He came to me in my sleep, actually came to me. This time it wasn't just my imagination, and it didn't feel like just a dream. He wanted me to come with him, said we can be together as a family. " I scoffed at the word. " He gave me less than a month to think about it, said he was still gaining his strength and that when he's free there'll be doom. " I left out the part about everyone being dead, I couldn't bring myself to voice what I saw, instead, I ran my hands down my face, using the action as an excuse to wipe my tears. " I'm tried, Sai. "

"I know." He took my cup from my hands and placed it next to his on the table and brushed away the tears I failed to hide. "I know you are. But we have a month, I've hunted Creatures so well hidden people thought they didn't exist in less time than that. We will find him Sol— we'll find them, and we'll finally put an end to it all ."

I didn't know what to say so I just nodded and laid my head on his shoulder .

"Hey," I turned to the soft voice by the doorway. Akali walked in, still in her silk robes, her brown hair a frizzy mess atop her head.

"Hey," I smiled at her in greeting.

"I thought you were going to work?" Sai asked.

"I was, but I'm not feeling so good so I decided to take the day off. "

"Kali, are you okay ?" He voiced my question; she looked like she had been crying.

" Yeah, it's nothing really." She didn't meet our eyes when she spoke, just the spot right above our heads. "I came to tell you guys that Drea's awake and she's asking for you.'

Sairen didn't seem to be convinced. " You should get some rest Kals."

"I will."

The moment I saw her I rushed into her arms, careful of her injury and she hugged me back with her good hand ."How are you feeling? Are you still in pain?"

" Honestly I've been better, but the pain is just a dull ache at this point." She brushed my hair away from my face, a frown taking over her own. "What's wrong, Soli?

" I was worried about you and— I was contemplating whether or not I should tell you this, but I think you should know that we have...a problem." I told her everything I told Sairen; about him and the deadline he gave us. When I was finished, she had lost the last bit of colour in her face.

"So that rat 's finally crawling out of his hole. "

"Parasite," Sairen called from the spot he had taken on the couch, the same couch he laid dead in in my dream. " I think that's a better adjective, don't you? Sucks the life out of everything and fits right at home in a pile of shit."

Despite her pain she managed to smile. " I didn't thank you for last night, "

"I'm offended that you think you have to."

" Still—" Aunt-Drea started coughing uncontrollably, leaving splatters of blood on the rag she held to her mouth. When the coughs subsided she took a sip of the water from the glass I handed her and closed her eyes. " One month, huh? Well we've got a lot of work to do till then. "

"We?" I scoffed. "What do you mean we? You're staying in bed. "

"Soli, we need to somehow find Alessia and Rae and you need to somehow master control over your power in a month— something we've been failing to do for years. If you lose control, the power will consume you. We don't know what that would do to you."

"I'm willing to take that chance . I'm not going to risk your life Aunt-Drea."

"And what about yours, Solaure?" Even with her lips chapped and her features sunken she still managed to intimidate me with her stare. Usually she would have gotten her way with that look, but not this time; I couldn't afford to back down. How was I supposed to tell her that even if she pushed herself to train me it'll all be for nothing? That she'd be risking her life for nothing?

"I'll train her." Sairen's words cut through the tension like a knife and both of our attention was turned on him. "I've worked with and against most Creatures and studied the makeup of each one since the moment I was old enough to read. Just tell me what she needs to learn and I'll know what to do."

" What? " I said, the same time as Aunt-Drea asked, " Are you sure? "

"No. I could kill him."

"It's cute that you think so princess, but I've dealt with much more dangerous Creatures than you. I'm a tough one to kill. " My dreams didn't seem to feel that way. Sairen always slipped through my fingers when I slept, every dream I had of him ended in his death, now he was suggesting I actively put him three steps closer to Ourie. Sairen was beautiful, insanely so that it almost seemed impossible; but no matter how striking his face, or how beautiful his eyes were, he didn't look as beautiful in death.