Arcane Guardian ↣ Avenged Sevenfold

30 ☼ sealed

this chapter is a littttlle depressing so dont say i didn't warn you;)
DECEMBER 2008

"AMANDA!" Noelle shouted, the rest of the world fading away as the walls around her turned gray and blurry. No color as she looked down to her hands, she cried as she relived the pain of the knife, screaming when she felt the blood in her veins run freezing cold. "MANDY! WHERE ARE YOU?!"

She spotted a silhouette, and heard a shout. "NOELLE!" A voice creaked out, and she ran as fast as she could towards it. The closer she got, the more she saw of Mandy's colorless face. They stood a few feet away from each other before throwing themselves at each other, squeezing into a hug. They wordlessly cried as they held each other, worried the other would threaten to let go.

"She did this, Mands." Noelle shook her head. "It's all my fault. If you had never met me..."

"If I had never met you I would've been a miserable abandoned foster kid. Don't talk like that." She rubbed Noelles back. "We are in this together, alright? It's you and me like always."

She nodded. They finally pulled away, still holding hands. "They're gonna fine my body." Noelle looked away. "Whoever comes to tell me that you..."

Mandy nodded. "He had a coffee run and I kicked it. How dumb is that?" She laughed. "Jim refuses to leave me alone and then the second he does, I die. But, Noelle, how did you..?"

Noelle lifts up her shirt to a giant laceration in her chest. "She stabbed the hell out me. While Dari was in therapy, the sick fuck did it so she and Brian could find my body."

Mandy looked around to the blurred grey blobs that once was the world around them. "How did the guys get their foot in the mortal world? The first time all those years ago." 

"Well, they could always tune in as spectators. Zack always said it was kind of like finding the right radio signal. Twisting the knob til you got something. They never really explained it to me fully I guess because they never assumed we would end up here." She ran a hand through her hair. 

"So how did they make contact with you?'

"Something about children being more in tune to the paranormal." Noelle said. "I guess it's trial and error from here." 

"Uh, okay, well shit, lets try something." Mandy shrugged exasperatedly. "Umm... take my hands." They held hands, and closed their eyes. "Think really hard about your apartment and your dead body." 

They tried that for a good ten minutes to no avail. 

They finally pulled away. "God, how are we gonna fucking figure this out." Noelle said, taking deep breaths and trying not to panic. 

Mandy sat on the floor, feeling her hands slowly sink into it whenever they pressed down. "Oh god, what the fuck is this place made of?" They were quiet as Noelle paced slightly. Mandy emptied her mind. "You know, I saw my life flash before my eyes. Like they always say it does. I just felt everything go past me. I even saw my mom, holding me when I was a baby baby. I saw all our friendship. Relived my wedding." 

"I just saw white," Noelle shakes her head. "I don't think I'm going to a good place Mandy."

"That's not true and you know it." She said. "We have no time to pity ourselves right now. We have to make some kind of connection, and we have to start by spectating." 

Noelle put a hand up her shirt, sinking her thumb into the wound, wishing she could feel something. And feel something she did because she felt searing fucking pain, but saw the world's sharpness and detail begin to turn up. "Holy shit, Mandy, that's the way!"