Finding Darkness

Chapter 5

"You came just as I thought you would," he whispers into my ear.

"W-w-who are you?" I ask quietly, my voice quivering.

The being chuckles. "I can taste your fear, Astral. Are you afraid of me? You needn't be. Yet." He chuckles softly again.

"A-answer my question," I demand, my voice sounding small and afraid like a child.

He laughs. "Very well. My name is Number 96 Black Mist. I am the messanger of darkness," he replies.

Black Mist. The name alone is enough to make shivers shoot down my spine.

"W-why are you here?" I ask Black Mist. He is either here just to be here, or he is one of the evil I must hunt.

"Why should you know?" he retaliates. Black Mist whispers again into my ear, "Can't a spirit visit another world?"

I hover still, afraid to move. My muscles go ridged as Black Mist slithers in front of me. All I can see are his eyes, which are like mine except his right eye is black, and his mouth, which is twisted into a mad grin. Just like in my nightmare. Milky white fangs where his canines should be. Malevolent. Vicious. Black.

"That fear of yours is palpable. It tastes so sweet. You must know how much I just love sweet things, don't you?" Black Mist hisses mischievously. The hand that was on my shoulder slides down to my chest. "Oh? What's this?"

I stiffen as he rakes his long nails against my scars. No, not nails. Now that his hand is against my pale skin, I can see why I could not see it in the first place. It is black with claws instead of nails. I can't talk; I am too fightened.

Black Mist continues to caress the wounds, an evil smirk playing on his lips. He finds a long scar and starts playing with it. "This one in particular is beautiful." He snickers. "Some scars signify pain and battle, you know. My two favorite things." He tears his gaze away from my many wounds and looks into my eyes. A tendril strokes my face in a mockingly loving gesture, like one brother might another. "You're still shaking. I told you you don't need to be afraid just yet."

I watch, trembling, as Black Mist finds a clear spot near my clavicle. He digs his claw deep into the flesh, and I barely stifle a cry of pain. He trails it down my chest and into my abdomen, cutting through many other small wounds. He stops at the bottom of my ribcage. And by "bottom" I mean the very bottom. The long wound starts to bleed. The life fluid drips down and plops on the floor.

"Black..." I manage to choke out. The blood is dripping black. Why is it dripping black? When it falls, I can no longer see it, for it camoflauges into the blackness.

Before everything goes dark, Black Mist calls out in a cheery voice, "Sweet dreams, Astral! This is a reminder that we've met..."

With that, I fall to the floor with a thump.

***********

When I awake again, I find myself on the bed of the room I sleep in. I try to sit up, but the pain in my chest burns, and I have to lay back down. It feels like my chest and abdomen is burning. My hand drifts up to where the wound is supposed to be, and as soon as I find it, I wince. I bring my hand up and see the black blood where my own clear blood is supposed to be.

"Wh-why...is it b...black?" I ask myself weakly. It hurts just to talk. Why? The pain is only in my chest and abdomen area. Why does it hurt so much all over my body? Strange...

I hear a door opening and closing. Footsteps pound painfully in my ears as Yuma walks to where I am.

"Astral? When did you get here?" the boy asks, his red eyes flashing with worry and concern. He walks up to me and sees the giant black wound. "Hey, why is this black? How did this happen? Astral? Astral!"