Hybrid Theory: A [Linkin Park] Spinoff.

Skies Cock Back And Shock That Which Couldn't Defend.

[Early morning. Eren's point of view.]

I open my eyes to see a figure hiding in the shadows of the hallway, leaning against the doorframe between Chester's room and the hall, my voice catches in my throat,"W-who's there?"
The figure doesn't move, "You know who it is."
I gasp, "I'm wearing my glove. Don't make me use it."
"If I'm not mistaken, you should be experiencing the crash here in about five minutes. You still don't have the mental capacity to work that. So yeah. I'd watch your back for a while, if I were you."
I close my eyes, my mind swimming, She's right. I can feel it wearing off. I groan as I try to wake Chester,"Chess. She's at the door. She's standing in the doorway. She won't move. Wake up."
Leah draws closer, "Don't try it. He's a heavy sleeper. You have no chance."
I shake Chester,"Chaz! Wake up! She's right here!!!"
He grunts,"Eren. Calm down. You kicked her hard enough to kill her."
Leah's cold, sarcastic chuckle.
"Ready for round two, Resistance trash?"
I draw my left arm back, my fingers flexing and then drawing into a fist,"Yeah. You swing first."
Leah swings, planting a blow on my right ear.
I swing, my fist connecting with the center of her ribcage, throwing her backwards, my mind swimming as I manage to get my ears to quit ringing.
Chester sits up,"What the hell is going on!?"
I stand there, trying to regain my senses,"Look. Against the wall."
"What did you do!?"
I rub my left hand,"I told you she was standing there. But you didn't listen."
"I thought you were having a nightmare!!"
I sigh and sit down on the edge of the bed,"Can't you see that you're smothering me? Holding too tightly. Afraid to lose control."
Chester sighs,"Everything that you thought I would be, has fallen apart. Right in front of you."
I stand up as I run my hands through my hair,"I'm tired of being what you want me to be. Feeling so faithless. Lost under the surface."
Chester stands up,"Every step that I take is another mistake to you."
"I'VE BECOME SO NUMB, I CAN'T FEEL YOU THERE!!"
"I'M BECOMING THIS.  ALL I WANT TO DO, IS BE MORE LIKE ME AND BE LESS LIKE YOU!!"
I sob heavily as I collapse onto the bed, my throat raw.
Chester sighs and flops down beside me,"Hey. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."
I lay there, my voice hoarse,"It wasn't your fault. I should have been more careful."
"You didn't know that she was in that alley....how could you have known?"
I close my eyes,"You want to know?"
"Eh. If you don't mind explaining."
I swallow hard,"When I turned fifteen. There was something with my eyes. I could see beyond what everyone else could see. My depth perception was so great, that multiple surgeons and optometrists theorized that I could see through anything. They called my ability Shinigami Eyes. Quite simply because in ancient Japan, it was said that the wisest Shinigami, Huet-sun, had the same ability that I have."
"Okay...... Why could you not see that Leah was in the alley, or even anywhere near you?"
I open my eyes, "I don't really know. I guess because I'm using all my energy to try and keep Charles and Mark alive....I have no idea..."
"Well how does Shinigami Eyes work?"
I stand up,"Simple. I just look at whatever it is I want to see through, then I say a few words..and, poof, I can see through that object."
"Can I see a demonstration?"
I slowly inhale, my gaze falling upon Leah's limp body, my voice taking on a low tone,"Isho. Kenta. Achei. Seiyo. Kah!!" In a matter of seconds, I can see every contour of Leah's body, her bare skin grey against the colors of the wall behind her.
Chester sits up, obviously unable to believe what's going on.
I stand there, now taking note of Leah's muscle structure, as well as her weak points,"Aishu. No kyent. Intei. Sou. Ichei." I drop to my knees, temporarily unable to see anything other than blurred lines and sharp shadows, my breathing heavy,"Chester...how did Leah.....get that scar along the right side of her ribcage?"
"She was attacked one day when she was younger. Why?"
"I...saw....it...as well as....the weapon....that did..it..."
"Yeah. A box-cutter knife."
I slowly stand up,"Is that why her size to strength ratio is different from yours?"
"In English, please?"
I sigh,"You are bigger than her, yet her muscle structure is larger than yours."
"She was thirteen when it happened. She fought and she fought..but they still sliced her like a fish."
I stammer,"THAT'S HOW SHE TOOK ME DOWN SO EASILY!!"
"Yeah. And just think. She's planning on joining the Resistance."
I shudder slightly,"Ugh. A morphine wielding street fighter...I better watch my back."
Chester smiles,"Hah. Sounds like Breaking The Habit gone wrong."
"Huh. You ain't kidding."
"Anyway.... how exactly does Shinigami Eyes work?"
I sigh,"Shinigami Eyes works as a psychic ability. But. There's a major drawback. If SE is active for too long, I cannot deactivate it, thus throwing myself into a psychotic state."
He draws a sharp breath in through his teeth,"Oh. Wow."
I sit up,"My point exactly. If I'm in Shinigami mode for more than five minutes at a time, then I become unstable.....dangerous.... something that no one can stop."
Chester looks at me,"O..kay then?"
"Then we just need a system to keep me from overdo-" I stop, being as there is someone else in the hallway.
A voice.
"Eren. Chester. I got something for you two in the mail."
I scramble to my feet, just to be stopped by my spinning head.
Chester stands up,"What are they, Mom?"
"Something that someone decided to put in boxes."
I kneel down, thinking of the deep, empty, black gash that my newest encounter with the morphine has left in my mind,"Chester. When I wake up, I'm going to have another episode of memory loss.."
He stands on the other side of the bed, looking down at me, sheer power and rage emanating from him,"I will kill Leah if she tries it again. I swear to God."
Just then, Leah groans, forcing herself to her feet, "Eren. Why won't you love me?"
Chester screams, running towards Leah, crossing the floor in a matter of three seconds, pinning his sister to the wall, his thumbs jammed hard into her neck,"LEAVE HER ALONE!!!"
Leah gasps, fighting for her breath,"Chess. Let me go. I want Eren."
"NO! SHE IS THE THIRD GIRL THAT YOU HAVE DONE THIS TO. THE FIRST ONE THAT YOU HAVEN'T KILLED OR DRIVEN AWAY FROM ME!!!! EVERYONE THINKS THAT I'M THE ONE WHO ABDUCTED, DRUGGED,MOLESTED, AND THEN KILLED THOSE THREE GIRLS, BUT IT WAS YOU ALL ALONG!!! DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH PAIN YOU INFLICTED UPON ME!? JUST TO PERFECT YOUR MORPHINE DOSES SO YOU COULD MAKE SURE YOU HAD IT RIGHT, THEN BEAT ME WHEN I WOULDN'T WAKE UP!!??!!??"
I slowly stand up,"Chester. Let her go. She's turning blue."
"NO! I WANT HER TO FEEL WHAT I FELT, LAYING ON THE BATHROOM FLOOR, UNABLE TO MOVE. UNABLE TO BREATHE. UNABLE TO PROTECT MYSELF!!!"
I barely manage to pull Chester away from Leah,"CHESTER CHARLES BENNINGTON! GET OFF OF HER!!!"
He stands there, his bare shoulders rising and falling violently, his voice devoid of emotion,"Why? Why should I have to live in her shadow? She's the prodigy of the family. She's the one that everyone looks up to. She's the true face of the Bennington family. I'm the one that everyone thinks is dangerous. I'm the one that everyone knows does drugs. I'm the black sheep. SHE'S FUCKING PERFECT IN EVERYONE ELSE'S EYES!!!"
I look at him,"Chester. Look at me."
He looks at the floor,"No. I don't want you to see the corruption."
"Goddammit, Chester. Look at me!"
He looks at me,"What?"
I sigh,"Something tells me that you've been inside the system, haven't you?"
Chester sighs, his shoulders falling,"Yes. For a recovery program. They had me in a 'safety' cell. They feared that I'd use again. Feared that I'd hurt myself. Why?"
"I was in the system as well. Except I was watched around the clock. They had to have someone, actually, an armed guard, wake me up every day, just so I wouldn't lose hold of reality and break. I had no one. No one was allowed to see me. Not face to face...I had to stand still as stone in front of three inches of plate glass... just so my mother could see me. I had to wear long sleeves, just so I wouldn't be reminded of why I was in the system to begin with."
"I could see people.... but the one I wanted to see the most, never showed up until it was time for me to leave."
I sit down in the corner, tears streaming down my face, a cold tremor running through me.
Chester kneels down beside me,"Hey. Calm down. Everything is okay."
I shake my head, reverting once more, into a mute state.
"Eren. You okay there?"