Slave To Torment

To A Close

I was awoken later that next day-... By something...I...I couldn't tell you what it was. Standing next to the bed was this bloodied mess of someone...or something...they were peering down at me, much to close to my face, close enough for the blood dripping from their mouth to land on my head. They were disheveled, a large amount actually... I barely recognized them, but now suddenly realized that I did-
But before I could even formulate that the light from the hallway above entered the room, a shadow slowly stepping into view. The figure that had been close to me had disappeared at that point, as I watched Nightmare walk down the stairs. He got to the bottom, and looked over at me calmly.
"From where you are, you remind me of him, his brokeness, his delicious aura~... How eager he at first was to disobey me..."
His glance moved to my brother, as he kept walking towards us.
"Him...on the other hand...isn't much of anything useful... He doesn't have that want to help himself, that fear of what'll happen if he doesn't. He knows you'll take anything I was going to give to him, even though he wakes up scared he truly isn't..."
Nightmare's gaze shifted one last time, back over to me.
"You remind me a lot of him, and a lot of me at your age... Which makes everything that's about to happen feel bittersweet...harder for me for once..."
Taking a couple steps closer, Nightmare took the spot the mangled corpse from before had stood in and sighed, not sadly however...more like he was doing it to tell me something...
"You're a smart kid, I saw this through Error after all... Keeping quiet about him most of the time, panic didn't ensue due to your parents worry... And even now, you know that the worry they have is keeping them away, and isn't bringing my two 'boys' back to me..."
I slowly nodded, looking away from Nightmare as I felt him start to pick me up, and leave Gradient behind.
"I didn't tell Horror this, but I mine as well tell you... He is my leverage, you disobey and he will suffer... Dust never had to, or at least he hadn't had to... He would've if your parents didn't take him away."
We went up the stairs and turned down the hall, approaching this big dark wooden door. As we did I noticed some of Nightmare's goop begin to form something, something that appeared rather person like.
"I can't say I want to do this, well then again I can't say that I don't, so...it won't be to bad, at least not yet... You're maybe 10 right? 12? Something like that... It doesn't matter, not now anyways."
We were now at the door, and he was opening it slowly. Inside appeared to be a moderately well kept room...except for the blood and good that was coating the floor, and the oddly placed shelf that seemed to have been moved... I was placed down on the bed, and Nightmare looked at me, still not smirking nor grimacing.
"You...we'll see how this goes, if not well, for me at least, then we'll hold off on it for a while... I'll find that torment for you, like I did him...and get my power back, don't worry..."
He turned around as I noticed the person like thing he was making be completed. It had little teal dots for eyes but other then that I couldn't see anything in the now dark room. The door had been closed...and this thing was coming towards me...
They...They didn't save me...from this...like I thought they were going to, like I knew they were meant to... But my parents weren't here now... Were they to late? I somewhat wondered...if...they...would . . .
. . .
They...Did... It just wasn't in time...

"PJ!? Gradient!?"
Ink screamed, running past what was left of Error, a few strings and some ink after Ink portabled him off somewhere... Killer was no where to be found, and Nightmare was as well...at least for the moment. Dream hurried behind Ink, looking around at the mess his brothers castle had become, when suddenly he noticed something.
"Ink... Look..."
Turning Ink looked at the spot Dream was pointing to and froze... On the ground was stains of blood, and clumps of ink entangled with string... Ink had no words to describe the overwhelming anguish he was feeling... but he knew he had to continue on...
"We have to keep going..."
Reluctantly Dream nodded, as he grabbed at his own belly and then continued walking behind Ink. As they did, they noticed the small trail of blood, that led to the opened basement. The two looked at each other...then down onto the dark crevice of the home...
Grabbing onto one another's hands, they slowly crept down the stairs silently. It was hard but neither made any noise as they made it onto the floor. They looked around, trying to find something- anything...when they did... A small lump was in the in bloody side of the covers, and they had no idea who or what it was...
They approached it, Dream drawing his bow just in case as Ink lifted the covers slowly and gasped.
"Gradient..?"
Taking down his bow quickly, Dream ran over to see if Ink was seeing really Gradient and sure enough he was there, his face buried in a pillow with the little lines on his cheeks showing. The both of them were more then relieved, and lightly began to shake Gradient awake.
It took a moment but they eventually heard a tiny groan come from the small monster, and him begin to move.
"It's ok buddy don't-... Don't..."
Gradient sat up and looked at his dad, and appeared happy- Well appeared as happy as we could considering his destroyed mouth. Ink felt his eyes widen, and his mouth go agape, as Gradient lunged at him and hugged both him and Dream. Now being able to see the positivity guardian, Ink could see they both shared a horrified and disgusted look.
Gently, Ink picked Gradient up rubbing the back of his head and trying to shush him.
"Shhh, shhhh, it's ok now my baby, I got you..."
Ink held his boy tightly as they began to step away from the bed.
"Wouldn't PJ be here to-?"
"He's stubborn...a lot like his father... I can only imagine how much trouble that got him in..."
"Oh...Ink don't think that..."
"I can't help it, but we shouldn't just dwindle on it. We have to keep looking for him..."
"Ok...good i-"
"What would be a good idea? Brother."
As fast as he could, Dream redrew his bow and pointed it at Nightmare, who was standing calmly across from him and Ink. When he didn't attack, Dream went ahead and began to speak.
"Where is he-?"
"Wouldn't you like to know... And what do you honestly think you'll do with that? It might've killed Cross, but you know it won't kill me..."
"Be quiet, and answer me..."
Nightmare flashed a smile, and slowly started to snicker and then maniacally cackle. It lasted an uncomfortably long time before he ended his laughter with a sigh...
"Why would I tell you? Really? Error is already leaving, you took the two of men that gave me just about all my power- And I'm rather sure Killer... Well..."
"Why? Why would you?.."
"He wasn't helping or actually feeding me anymore... And after I deal with you two, I'll get rid of the last creature that isn't feeding me-"
"Don't touch my boy!-"
"I never sai-"
"Be quiet."
Dream started to walk closer to Nightmare, and Nightmare didn't flinch nor move away.
"If you shoot me, I'll just come back. It won't be like what happened with Cross."
"I know...I know..."
"But...I can feel the difference now, in the magic, that care... It'll take a while to come back-"
"And it better"
After saying that, Dream let the bow give and the arrow shoot into Nightmare. Nightmare gave his brother one last look, calm, before reseeding into a pile of goop.
"Let's get going, get PJ, and leave... He won't be back for a while but we should hurry."
Nodding, Ink followed Dream back up the stairs as they began to walk somewhere else with in the castle of negativity.
They kept walking down the hall- and noticed something at the end of it. Oozing from the bottom of a door was a pile of goop...hastily the both ran to it...
And slowly they opened it...