Rescued by the Reaper

Panic or Love

Ben felt panic like a cement block in his stomach. The slashes he felt were coming more often, and he kept getting glimpses of David. He couldn't hold on to them through the pain, and he couldn't seem to bring his own connection when he wasn't in pain.

The holes of rot in his arms were slowly growing. He looked like a termite-infested tree. He didn't know how to stop it.

Ben's mother was missing. He called for her multiple times a day, reaching out with his heart. She wouldn't come to him. He knew she was either stuck in Hell with his friends, or she wouldn't bring herself to get involved in the mess they had made. He was lost when it came to his new abilities. His father had beaten him into learning the abilities of a Reaper, but he had barely had any training in his ability of Life. There were so many things he didn't know, but needed.

"Chapter six, it talks about painful connections." David's mother slid the book to him. He felt an edge between them, created and sharpened by Ben's getting David involved and kidnapped.

Ben was getting faster at reading the book, but he was still lacking in the knowledge Annette had after years of study. He could read a chapter in a day, now. At the moment, he dreaded the words that were printed so small. He had so much to read over the twelve pages, but the brain power to comprehend a third of it.

After a few hours, Ben felt his eyes drifting. He was being lulled to sleep by the sound of her humming from the kitchen. He recognized the tune, an old classical song that David had played from his phone for himself and Alice. They had teased him relentlessly, but he still loved it.

He stood and tried to recite what he had learned.

Pain creates a negative bond between two souls. Pain can bring together two people in ways that are destructive. Pain can harm both even if only one is being harmed. There's the theory that it can cause one to take on the physical pains of the other. Psychologically, it can make the two recognize pain in each other. They will grow to associate each other with whatever they went through. Yeah. Sounds about right. We will probably end up like our creators. We will always see each other and think about hate. He will hate me. We won't ever love each other. We will see each other with different people and want to kill each other.

Ben wanted to slam his head against the wall until he found an answer. He needed to do something useful, but he couldn't seem to do anything other than slowly fail. A few days earlier, he had tried some kind of meditation with the crystals that surrounded him. He wasn't even sure they could help him in a time like this. He was alone in the connection, which left him almost alone in the world. 

"I'll be back in a few hours." Annette patted his shoulder. "Why don't you take a break and use the crystals? I have a little book for you to look over and find the right ones for you. You can pick them out and spread them around and meditate." 

"I don't think that could help me right now." He sighed. "Thank you, Annette. Really, thank you for everything." 

"Sure." She left him to his thoughts and worries. 

In the silence, he could feel the radiating energies from the small colored rocks around the room. They all seemed to bring a focus point onto him. He listened to the sound of white noise as it crashed in waves over his ears. It was a steady beat, but one that didn't bring him any peace. It was almost maddening after a while. 

He stomped his way up the stairs, unsure of what exactly he was doing. His feet carried his heart, but the rest of his body seemed to be lagging behind them. He opened the door to the bedroom that still had a hint of cologne in the air. He was amazed, like always how David seemed to not want much. His room was so simply decorated. 

Ben sat on the edge of the bed, letting himself sink in. His heart raced, not with excitement, but with panic. It didn't leave him. He felt the constant pain in his chest and head. The smell of David sent more thoughts rushing in about how he had ruined his chances. He had ruined David and Alice's chances, too. They hadn't lived, yet. He ruined their chances to live and experience life. He told himself that if he had left them alone, they wouldn't have lived much longer, anyway. It didn't take away the cement inside of him. 

A hollow thump went through his back, knocking him to the floor. His eyes looked on, but he was in Hell. He was looking at the dark depths of a small cave where he was trapped. His Father held a thick metal pole. With another swing, he heard bones crack. The pain that he felt were harsher than he had felt before. It left him breathless, and unable to move. 

"You will break!" His Father yelled. "I will break you from that body. I will break that weak spirit of yours." 

"No." David's voice rang in Ben's ears. "He will come for us." 

"No, he won't!" Another hit across the shoulder. "He can't come here. You are stuck, child. I'll destroy you both." Another hit, but it came across the ribs. 

Ben fought with everything he had to hold onto David. It felt like he was sliding back to his own body, but he struggled with a grip. He was sliding back, seeing the gray edges closing in slowly. He refused to let it go, and it seemed to be a tug-of-war of willpower. Ben didn't want to taste the blood that rose in his throat, but he wanted to stay connected to David. He wondered briefly if David knew that he was seeing. Could he feel it? 

The two worlds that Ben split himself into seemed to bleed over into each other. He could see David's room, and he knew that his body was messed up, but he was still with David at the same time. It didn't make sense to him, but he was holding onto David with every bit of strength he had. 

Ben's Father took a step back and looked over David's broken body. "You truly believe in that newborn, huh?" 

"I do." David coughed harshly, bringing a new sharp choir of pain through their bodies. He spit blood on the floor. "Even if we don't get out, he's still coming for us. That," David gasped, "I can bet on." 

"You're a fool." His Father growled. "You and that witch are both fools to believe in someone so new. You humans will believe in anything that can show power." 

"You forget one thing." David wheezed. Ben could feel the same drain of energy that he had felt when he was in David's place. "I'm not human." 

Ben had no choice but to slip back to his own reality when David passed out. There was no consciousness to cling to. Ben ignored the pain in his body. It was a dull sensation compared to the love he felt bleeding in his heart. David believed in him. Alice believed in him. David was right to think that Ben may fail and die, but he still believed they would find each other again. 

The panic Ben had been overwhelmed with vanished from his limbs and settled for a small seat in part of his heart. He had the feeling again of small people around a fire. Some of them danced, the others sat and watched. 

Ben focused his mind instantly on healing. He felt parts of himself snapping painfully back into place. It didn't break his focus, it only strengthened his resolve. He would find a way. He had to.