SUNNYVALE

(64) TRAVELLING THROUGH THE MINDS

"Alright, Sammy, you ready?" Tierna asks, trying to cheer her up. 

Sam nods.

Today, she would be trying to expand her range of power with Tierna and Crystal's help. The plan was pretty simple: Sam had to get to Shelina's mind wherever she is, and project an image of Crystal so that she'd feel the strength of their bound and hopefully manage to get out of where she is. 

Obviously, this was the 57th try, with no success so far - as soon as the girls agreed Dr Naeher couldn't be trusted, they knew it would be quite difficult to find a way on their own. 

"Yep" the tall blonde responds, frowning.

She immediately concentrates, and the same circuit of thoughts, like a gearbox, is engaged: she would first close her eyes, and in her mind an image very close to a sky with no clouds and plenty of stars would draw itself. Each star was one person's mind, and in an infinity of stars in her mind, Sam had to dig deeper and find the one that is related to Shelina's mind, that Sam could then reach.

Only, she hasn't managed to succeed while she was awake.

But this time seemed different: after a moment trying to see each and every bright point in the darkness of her own mind, Sam finds herself discovering an even darker spot, where spirits couldn't glow, and looked rather like opal rocks. Frowning, Sam takes a closer look, as her head starts hurting. She would groan, as the others were trying to wake her up, but they never managed to do just that. 

That's when she understands: the souls that weren't glowing were probably in a very specific place - and given that Adolf Hitler and Staline are there, one can safely assume they are in Hell. In shock - Sam really could find any soul and project any image she wanted inside of their minds - the blonde just tries and focus...

... Until she realises one of those rocks is very weakly shining in the dark, almost extinct. 

Without a single hesitation, Sam digs into her mind and reaches out for the stone, as the scenery immediately changes: she ends up (or at least a version of herself that wasn't physically there) in a very dark place, where screams could be heard loudly, making her want to jump off a bridge or something. 

This is when she sees her: Shelina is sitting on the ground, her body curled up so that her legs would touch her stomach, while her arms were thrown around them, and her head is buried inside her arms. 

The Sam in the material world grabs Crystal forearm, which propels her into her vision, therefore into Shelina's mind.

When the brunette realises she isn't alone, her whole body shivers, as if she was ready for someone to hurt her. Crystal, still dumbfounded by Sam's ability to enter people's mind, just stands there, her throat turning sore: the woman she loves was right here, and yet she was in reality so far.

Taking a deep breath, Crystal says softly:

"Shelina... It's me. We're here to help... just... Look at me, please."

But Shelina shakes her head no, her face still buried in between her arms. 

"I won't fall for false hopes again" the Canadian simply says in a cold yet weak voice, while her body shivers even harder.

"This is real" Crystal tries to reassure her, visibly hurting.

"Shelina, it's me, Sam" the blonde then says, confident. As Shelina stops breathing, she adds: "You've seen me already in your mind, that's 'cause my power is to project images inside people's minds. You know I ain't lying, so would you please have faith in us and look up?"

When Shelina's grey eyes resurface and immediately look for Sam, she almost faints when she sees Crystal for real, for the first time in forever. Assuming that people in Hell used Crystal's image to torture Shelina psychologically, Sam just puts her arm on Crystal's way, who was already walking toward the other girl, giving her a warning look. Nodding her head, Crystal stands down, burning in impatience.

Shelina slowly gets up, tears rolling down her cheeks. 

"How do I know it's real?" she asks, truly terrified. 

"Your favourite song is Make me think of you by Ellis Noa" Crystal immediately starts, ignoring Sam's alarming eyes while she steps forward. As Shelina takes a few steps back, the dark-haired continues: "You told me that while I was in a coma, and I heard you 'cause you're the only person I'd hear even if we wouldn't be in the same dimension. You have this annoyingly cute habit to play with your hair as soon as you're uncomfortable, just like this time I told you I was in love with you for the first time. See? Those are things only you and I know, Shelina: I am real, and I am going to get you out of here, I promise."

Shelina bursts into tears, before running toward Crystal, probably to hug her tight - but this isn't possible, as they weren't physically there. Realising that, the hurt inside Shelina's eyes was unbearable to Crystal, who tries to hold her own tears back. 

After a few seconds, Sam feels her mind burning, which could only mean one thing:

"We have only seconds left" she warns Crystal, who turns to Shelina.

"You stay strong, okay?" she says, staring right into Shelina's eyes, "'cause I'm not done kissing you, I mean, hell - I haven't even started cooking for you, or dancing with you, and there are so many more things I want to do with you, and for that I need you to hold on, alright? I trust you, Shelina, and I love y-"

But the vision ends there, as Sam opens her eyes, almost falling on the ground, as Tierna's arms surrounded and supported her. Crystal, on the other hand, is seating on the ground, her face buried in her hands, crying her heart out.

This isn't over just yet.

***

Kelley and Abby are standing at the entrance of the dark palace, the blonde's whole body shaking like never before.

Her older sister smirks, before turning toward her.

"Ready to meet daddy ?" 

Abby nods, a smirk on her face.

"Hell yes."

Kelley bursts into laughter, before adding:

"Ah ! You even got some jokes now: I knew bringing you home would make you feel better, sister. Now, let's go in."