Haunted (A Rhett and Link fanfiction)

Chapter Nine

Link's eyes slowly opened about ten minutes later. His head and upper back were propped up on something soft. He looked around and saw a figure, his head was on the figure's lap. Link gasped nervously and started breathing faster. Rhett quickly grabbed Link's hand and put it I'm his own. "Brother, it's me, it's Rhett. I'm here. Just breathe slowly. It's going to be okay, I will keep you safe." Link slowly breathed out as his heart calmed. He had panicked upon finding himself in this situation in this insane house of horrors. "Rh-Rhett? Is it really you this time? Pl-please be you."

"Shh, calm down. It is me. Rhett James McLaughlin, in the flesh. I'm not in a dream right now. I'm actually here. And I'm going to keep you safe. We're gonna get you and me outta here. I promise." Link nodded and took a shaky breath. He squeezed Rhett's hand that was still holding onto his tightly. "Th-thank you so much, brother. I'm so dang happy you're here. I was afraid I'd never see my family or you again. That thought alone terrifed me. I need to get back to them. They need me."

"I know they do. And you'll be back to them. Soon, we're getting out of here. I promise. We're finding a way out of this mess. We already are doing something we shouldn't be able to. We can see and hear each other. I was told by a strange voice when I got here that you wouldn't be able to. So, we've already got a good chance of escaping because we're stronger than he thinks. He, whoever he is, is holding us both here. He doesn't want us to eacape, but we're going to. He can't stop us." As Rhett spoke, he hadn't noticed how white Link's face had become. 

"Rh-Rhett, there's someone behind y-you." Standing about ten feet behind of Rhett, and slowly approaching, was the man that the mysterious voice had belonged too. He wore an old-fashioned black suit with a top hat. His face was like stone, and appeared to be cracked by his mouth and eyes. His eyes were black and lifeless. He reached his hand up, and an unseen force lifted Rhett up and away from Link. Rhett was now suspended in the air by an invisible force with unimaginable strength. It seemed as though the grip around his torso would shatter his ribs and crush his heart and lungs. Rhett groaned and Link screamed. The man approached Link and knelt down beside him. He put his hand on Link's chest, making Link scream in pain. He was draining Link's life.

The man spoke, his voice was cold and fierce. "I did not anticipate you being able to see one another. I was going to slowly break both of you, and then drain your lives, but you leave me no choice but to do it now. Otherwise, you might escape. And I can't let that happen. I won't let myself die. I need your lives. To give me eternal life!" Link screamed again, tears of pain in his eyes. This was the worst pain he had ever experienced in his life. He felt as though he was being crushed. And so did Rhett, who struggled against the grip on him. Rhett began to pray, begging God to save them. He fell to the ground and gasped, wheezing and sucking in air through his weak lungs. Forcing himself to half crawl, half drag himself across the floor, he came to the man of stone. Rhett pulled the hand away from Link, who also began to wheeze. Link's vision was darker than usual, but he saw enough to see that Rhett was now in the same position he had been in.

"Rhett! No!" With a blinding fury, Link launched his wiry body onto the man and forced him off of Rhett. Rhett sat up, also having a strange burst of energy and punched the man as hard as he could in the face. Not the best choice on Rhett's part. His knuckles bled from the blow to the man of stone, but apparently, that had knocked the man unconscious. Rhett's brow furrowed in confusion, but he didn't waste any time. Despite the smoldering fire of pain in his back, he grabbed Link and picked him up, the man still had a broken leg, but somehow managed to fight the stone man. This attack had caused Link to cry out in pain as his leg moved. He seemed to be wavering in and out of consciousness. Rhett groaned as he carried the younger man away from the injured man of stone that was seemingly running this whole house. Link's eyes finally closed as he passed out. Rhett ran with Link's unconscious body to a bedroom upstairs. He locked the door behind him and set Link down on the dusty, old bed. He sighed and brought a chair beside the bed. He sat down and closed his eyes. He said another small prayer. He pleaded that they would be kept safe from the harms of this house.

Rhett opened his eyes when he heard a soft groan, expecting to see Link lying on the bed with a pained expression, but that was not what he saw. Not quite. He did see that, but Link was clearly unconscious still. Except, he was standing in the doorway. He was in both places. Rhett looked at the one standing and his mouth fell open ever so slightly. "Link? But, no, you aren't real. You're right here." The Link standing in the doorway looked at Rhett with a scared expression, but mixed with pain. "Rhett, get away from him. He's not me. I'm me. I fell down a few stairs before, but got up and ran when I heard footsteps. I saw you, carrying what appeared to be me. But, I'm me! Stay away from him! Please! I don't want anything happening to you!" The Link by the door then ran over and grabbed Rhett's hand, pulling him up from the chair and forcing Rhett to follow him to the door. That's when the unconscious Link woke up. "Rhett? Who is that? Get away from him? He's not me! I'm Link! Charles Lincoln Neal III! You're best friend! Get away from him! He must be a trick!"

Rhett stepped away from both men who seemed to be Link. "One of you is real, one of you isn't. Which one is real?" Both Link's said at once. "Me!" Rhett shook his head. It had begun hurting and swimming with dozens of voices at once. No, one voice, it was Link, but he kept hearing Link say different things all at once. Different volumes, different words. It all hurt Rhett. "No, this isn't happening. Oh my head, my head hurts so bad! What's going on? What's going on?"