The Catalyst

Chapter XXVII: Without Her

Layla's family decided to take a trip out of town for a while. Dante stood at the end of the driveway and waited for Layla to come out and put her bags in her moms car. "Im gonna miss you." Dante said. "Im gonne miss you more." Layla replied while smiling. As they hugged and kissed her parents walked out to the car. "C'mon Layla! Lets go!" Layla's dad said. "Bye baby." Layla said to Dante as she kissed him on the cheek. As her and her parents drove away, Dante starred at the car as it drove away from him. Taking Layla with it.

As the day went on, Dante felt just the beginning of the pain he now must endure. Layla was gone for now. There was nothing keeping Dante from thinking of his hell. Dante layed in his bed and felt a strong pain go down the back of his head and his chest. Dante sat up and rubbed the back of his neck as images popped in his vision. These images and the pain he felt with them made Dante's vision switch from his sense and back to his normal vision. The images were filled with Dante killing and Dante covered in blood with his knife in his hands. But with his sense he saw something different. Instead of him he saw a baby in arms crying and bleeding from his nose.

The pain Dante experienced was to dreadfull to explain. Dante screamed and shouted and soon enough got uo and started to grasp his head and throw himself around. The pain was everywhere. His head stung with pain as well as his chest and back.

The pain soon ended. Dante layed on the ground with tears running down his eyes. "What is happening to me?" Dante thought to himself. His questions were endless but nine of them could be answered. He could only guess what they were which isnt enough for him. As he got up from the ground he heard a ringing sound behind him. "Dante." Arno said. "Are you okay?" Dante turned around and looked at Arno. "What is happening to me?" Dante asked him. Arno looked at Dante and saw the tears on his cheeks and cuts from throwing himself around.

"Dante, what happened?" Arno asked. "I keep seeing these visions, Arno." Dante said. "And everytime i do i feel pain and sorrow run through my body. And the images are so vivid and real like they really happen." Arno asked about the images. Dante and him discussed of them for a while and Arno fiannly had an answer. "Dante you are ill. Your mind is cluttered with sorrow and hate. The images you are seeing, they started when we first contacted you right?" Dante nodded. "Those images are cuased by a greater power than us. It must be something inside you Dante." Dante than remembered the woman. The woman who was there when he blacked out. "Well......there was this woman i saw once. When i blacked out from the pain of the images. Arno looked towards Dante with his mouth wide open.

"What?" Dante asked. "Its working. The truth of your past is coming to your mind. Those were the images Dante. At least some of them." Arno said. Dante's eyes widened. "The baby....is me.....and the woman..." Dante stopped as he faced his relization. "Mom?" Dante said quietly.

Later on during night, Dante layed in his bed and starred at the ceiling. The feeling that Layla was not just across the road right now stuck in his mind. But so did the thought of the woman and him as a baby. Dante didnt know what to think. He never met his mom or dad. But he couldn't help but think that this was true. As he fell asleep he felt no pain from images. But he knew more was to come. Since Dante was without Layla, there was nothing to stop it.