Now reunited, Killian, Jasper and the group must cross dangerous territory to the Freebird's main camp. On their arrival, Killian learns just how far the Freebird's hatred of Jasper expands-and just how much danger that puts him in.
Soon after arri...
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There was nothing but darkness and the distant hum of sirens, blaring, flashing blue and red lights were the only things that lit up the infinite blackness around Jasper. His mind was muddled, a vicious rumbling echoed through the air as if he were in a tunnel, his vision blurring every time the ground shook. The floor was wet and every time a distant light shone through on the other side of wherever he'd found himself, it was through a window. Where was he? Around him, broken pipes spewed noxious air and sharp, jagged pieces of metal stuck up from the ground, glass glimmering beneath the mysterious liquid covering the ground.
With every step he took, the shallow puddles beneath Jasper echoed. The sirens began to grow louder, the rumbling more intense as he approached the single reflection of light on the ground. A child sat in the shaft of white light, beside an injured person, who was panting—or...choking? He slowly approached, swallowing hard. The scent of iron enveloped him completely, bringing on a horrific headache. The sirens began to screech in tune with a deep, ominous rumbling. A horrific howling, as if a thousand damned souls were crying out for help all at once, cried through the darkness like a symphony.
Jasper's pulse beat hard in his heart, a horrible sense of dread gripped onto his shoulders. The child turned to look up at him and when Jasper got close enough, he fell back with a horrified gasp for air. The child's face, hands and clothes had been smeared in blood, the person on the ground was dead. The tiny figure was the one who had been making the choking, sickening sobs as blood cried from their eyes. They reached out to him, "Help me!" They were so loud that they began to cough, more scarlet pouring out of their lips.
When Jasper looked down, he screamed from terror, falling back and kicking away from the ground that surrounded him. What he thought was water wasn't. The pool beneath him was blood. He lifted his hands and stared, wide eyed at the red coating his flesh and pouring down his body. The child began to wail incoherently, the sirens grew louder and louder. "I'm sorry!" Jasper desperately pleaded with tears streaming down his cheeks. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" He begged.
Jasper woke up yelling for Killian, gasping for air. "Killian! Killian!" He felt around the bedsheets frantically, kicking his legs despite the agony it caused. Gentle arms wrapped around him, holding him close to their chest. Jasper buried his face into Killian's neck, tears streaming down his face. His sobbing from the night terror had emerged into real life, his whole body shaking uncontrollably, inconsolable, he began to speak without meaning to. He didn't even know what he was saying, speaking just to speak, anything to do but to have that horrible image stuck so permanently in his mind.
"Jasper! Jasper, baby, it's okay, it's just alright." Killian soothed. In the wake of the horrible dream, his lover's voice was like an angel's. "It's just another nightmare. That's it, just breathe, it's alright. It's okay." Jasper's forehead was covered in sweat, he could barely even remember where he was now. His head spun, making his stomach churn like a blender. Everything was so far away, as if he were still stuck in that odd tunnel. He began to pant, it was difficult to catch his breath. Jasper kept his eyes closed. Opening them meant he might wake up in another nightmare, an even worse one! "It's over," Killian whispered into Jasper's ear. "The nightmare's are over."
