Fate of the Dreamers

Chapter Nineteen - A Positively-Epic Battle

Pen sat on the side of the road, his eyes glued on Rawri's motionless body. A lump on Rawri's forehead showed the impact of the clipboard, and red splotches on his arms and legs proved his muscles had been pushed to the limit. Dreamcatching had never been like that, so exhausting and...dangerous. And he had no idea about the physical connection between the dream and the real world. He traced the scratches on his face and his chest through his unripped shirt. Makes sense, he thought. Only injuries to the body translated to the waking world; nothing happened to clothes.

He rubbed his mouth. Sitting there forever, waiting for when Rawri finally came to—if he even would—wasn't going to stop JYP. He heaved Rawri's arm over his neck and lifted him, beginning their trek back to the bus station. Rawri made a sound from his throat. Thank goodness.

"Rawri? Are you awake?" Pen asked, noticing his friend's legs starting to move in time with his own.

Rawri swallowed. His eyes were still shut, but some colour was returning to his face. "I feel so...empty," he said after a moment. "My head. It's not the same." Rawri blinked quite a few times. "What was in there?"

Inhaling through his nose, Pen tried to find the right words to say. "I think it might have been a form of...evil, perhaps." Rawri pursed his lips but said nothing. They continued shuffling down the road.

"JYP," Rawri said suddenly. He stopped leaning on Pen and straightened himself. "It was him! All this time, I'd been hearing his voice, thinking it was mine or—or he was using my voice to tell me things..." He clutched his head.

"How would he have gotten in your head?"

He gazed into the dark sky for a moment before his face filled with regret. "He had such an influence on my life, Pen. I wanted to do anything and everything for him." He gasped. "And I told him where the bus station was. We need to hurry."

They ran back to the station, and eventually its rundown shadow faded into view. Pen had no words to say, partially from his exhaustion, but simply because now he didn't know what to do. He had replaced all their dreams with something new, something better, so what was his role now?

Dreamcatcher jumped to the forefront of his memory. JiU. A pang of guilt stung his stomach. He had totally ditched her...the group...and now they could be in trouble. At least Rawri wants to fix his mistakes.

Rawri tripped down the stairs when they arrived. "That burst of adrenaline didn't last long," he snorted. "My legs feel like jelly. I don't know what I'd do if we need to fight.

Pen helped Rawri up. "Let's just hope we don't have to."

Their hurried footsteps echoed in the empty station. Despite having only been there for a couple of minutes before, and the stress of possible danger, Pen felt a homely comfort from the walls. He shook his head and chuckled to himself. Who am I kidding? This is an abandoned bus station. The walls are crumbling!

They approached the corner, turned...and froze. Everyone they had left sat lined against the wall, ropes holding them together and gags in each their mouths. Stray Kids, Rawri's friends, Zoëy's buddies, and Dreamcatcher: all of their heads were bowed and legs straight out in front of them. Pen's heart fractured at the sight of his group in such a state. He had thought no one would have been able to defeat them. Who could have done this? Wait, where are Zoëy and Bang Chan?

"Aha! Everyone, we have guests!" A booming voice filled the room, stirring the people on the wall.

JiU's head shot up, and she locked her eyes with Pen's. They were full of warning. Whoever was here...they had never encountered anyone like them before.