Never Ending Nightmare (Sunsinger!Male reader)

Chapter 17 - Fragments of One; The Opening Act

~Burn Bright and Outlast the Endless oppression of the Darkness~

(The Maw - The Lair)

The atmosphere laid heavy and oppressive today, for the Maw was not used to the cheerful laughs and joy in the Children's playroom that disturbed the otherwise dreary atmosphere it had grown used to oh so long ago. For once, It seemed to have allowed RK to relax as it eventually accepted the "Friend, not Food" ideology brought onto it by the trio. It had seen this before, with Ten. RK hadn't been around at the time, having been killed by Six after he'd been turned into a nome. But here, with the help of Twelve, he successfully managed to escape his certain doom at the hands of the Lady.

Twelve slumped against the playroom wall, exhausted and unsure of how RK keeps up with all of the kids. Their energy is relentless and with the safety of their caretaker they play and joust in play fights. A smile crept on his face, "Well, they'll grow up better than we did at least." Twelve told himself, for all they had done in the Maw they had still created a safe place for the children ignorant to the world outside. One day they'll grow up, maybe once then they'll be able to break the endless cycle.

Twelve had already begun to make a plan to take down a specific tower and bring light to the place of shattered streets and broken roads. He had no idea if it would work but he knew failure could lead to opportunity, an opportunity to eradicate the tower, one way or another.

Once finished with helping RK get the children under control, he returned to his room as he had forgotten to grab the Hunger suppressing Light pills. They were invaluable to him and Six and yet they had gone completely over his head until now. As he opened his door the atmosphere shifted into something far worse than normal. Undeterred by the feeling, he lit his wings and took one step in.

That one step into the room sent his head spinning, like a sudden concussion from the mere air sent him to his knees. The Warlock couldn't bear the pain that transcended beyond just one dimension. It was as if the Maw had split reality itself and pulled forgotten yet painful memories from another. The Nomes had realized Twelve was in pain, though without knowing what kind of pain he was in they couldn't do much to help him.

The pain eventually clouded his mind and only subsided into memory fragmented from another life; his first life in this world.

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It started in darkness, with a clear mind at the bottom of a well. A well that slowly stretched, revealing its bottomless pit. The fall was soothing, it felt as if the well was a safe place in this hostile world.

Then it began to shatter.

First the walls of the well broke into pieces, revealing an empty void with only fragments of rubble to accompany the lost.

Then the air itself splintered like broken glass

One clambered out of the pile of blankets he hid himself in while he slept. Once free he rubbed his eyes clear of crust before sliding down the pile and to the floor beneath, he stretched and remembered where he was; a home decor factory on the outskirts of the city, next to the forest.

Although with everything waiting to be assembled, it currently looked more like a dump for defective products...

That didn't matter to One however, he was more concerned with the scuttering movements of something nearby. It could've been a rat, it could've been a small dog or cat. What it was however, was a young teenage girl in a yellow raincoat. This confused the boy but disappointed him slightly. If it was a rat then he could've caught it to eat it...

One realized he was staring, quickly his eyes snapped to the approaching girl who introduced herself as Six. One, who for all intensive purposes, was wary of the child he just met. He'd already been tricked by two other kids out of food and he wasn't going to make it a third. Despite her attempts to present herself as friendly (which Six is terrible at), it was her mysterious mannerisms that really made One think about hot footing it the other way when her back was turned or whenever she left to "Find something to eat."

And maybe he should've done exactly that, because it seemed that after meeting Six and basically getting coerced by her into following her across the Pale City back and forth he had caught her. Feeding on a struggling child in the dark. And of course with her senses she knew he was there, he wasn't exactly a ninja by any means, just quiet enough to avoid drawing attention to himself by any monsters. Six waited and waited for him to say something after she knew that One knew. Yet he never said a word, and for that, she pushed an envelope. She told him she was going to "Find Someone, To Eat." Six watched as his breath hitched with fear, possibly nervousness.

All Six knew is that his fear just made her hungrier.

With a mortified One eyeing for opportunities to hit the dash and get far away from Six. And Six knew he was planning on leaving, but she wouldn't let that happen, unlike Mono; this boy had no powers, and had no way to fight back. He was but a mere plaything in Six's hands and she wanted him to know that.

So when he tried to run away, Six already had it all planned out.

She had taken him to the Hunter's grounds, of course, he was long dead by now; Entities like him don't resurrect until the next loop starts. But that would be getting off topic. Six had already known how to set up bear traps through watching the Hunter from past timelines, and now she would utilize one of them for her own gain. She had it hidden in the tall grass, a perfect place for children to slink into and run away from monsters because of their small statues. She had told One they'd be going to see if the Hunter had anything useful, which of course he had his shotgun still in working order. As Six kicked over the decayed monster One had realized where he was situated, he was right beside the tall grass. And unbeknownst to him, Six was glaring at him through her bangs, her red pupils watching his every move as he feigned ignorance and pretended to see something in the grass.

Once he dashed into the foliage it didn't take more than a minute before Six heard the loud snap of the bear trap. Casually, she discarded the shotgun next to its dead owner before going to see what condition One was in.

The teeth of the trap hadn't separated the limbs from its owner but they were certainly no longer of use; being broken, pierced and punctured in ways no limb should. The cries of the trapped child had an effect on Six, being so close to helpless, wounded, trapped prey just kicked her predatory instincts into overdrive. Within a flash it was her teeth clamped around his neck like a rabid dog, tearing out his throat as he wriggled, kicked, and sputtered with the little life he had left. His blood staining his clothes and the trap a crimson red all the while Six watched with an expressionless stare.

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Twelve woke up in a cold sweat against his closed door, when had he closed it? His mind couldn't even focus on anything other than that vision, Six's nonchalance as she killed One was terrifying to witness, and it must've been fucking mortifying for his last moments. His eyes darted around the room, no, nothing to indicate he was in danger. His head was a clouded mess, similar to the static it shifted unrecognizably through broken memories. Why was he experiencing these hallucinations? Memories of another timeline? He couldn't make sense of anything. 

He clenched his fist to regain feeling in it, good, good it was all still there. The bear trap in his dream felt too real on his leg, and Six's teeth on his neck, it was nothing like before. It wasn't ravenous or in hatred, it was a mercy killing he thought. But then again, the way Six glanced at One while near the tall grass felt like it was...planned? It didn't seem right, it wasn't just left there, it was too clean, no dust had yet settled nor any animal had already tripped it had it been there as long as Six said it had been.

It was a set up. 

Six, set One up.