Gone? USUK

Chapter 11: I'll Come For You

"He's where?"

The Romanian boy sighs once again and looks to the salt circle that surrounds us warily. Dark shadows dart back and forth across the room just outside the border. I'm not entirely sure it'll keep the demons at bay, either.

"Arthur, since he hasn't finished his business in this field, has been sent to a halfway dimension. He's going to be stuck there for eternity until we can find a way to get him back or move on." He looks at me pointedly, telling me with his eyes that he isn't willing to explain again.

"So, how do we do that?" I ask, casting a worried glance to one of the dark, shadowy figures that has found entertainment in staring at me -- making me feel as if it's seeing right into my soul.

"Wait," Vladimir says, "you don't plan on going after him, do you? It's suicide!" He looks utterly baffled and astonished -- as if I'm the most unintelligent person he's ever had the displeasure of meeting. He's really quite expressive, isn't he?

"Are you stupid? Of course, I'm going after him! It's my fault he's there in the first place!" I shout, growing angry. Why would I give up on Arthur? Giving up is the kind of thing you do when your favorite TV show has lost all hope of making a comeback from a shitty season, not the kind of thing you do when the guy you love is stuck in an alternate dimension.

"Okay," Gilbert says passively, holding up his hands in front of me in an attempt to calm me down. "How do you even plan on helping him?" His blood red eyes bore into mine expectantly, and I feel my heart grow heavier.

With haste, I turn back towards Vladimir, who is adding more salt to the barrier that surrounds us. "There's a way," he says softly, flinching ever so slightly when one of the two demons hisses at him, its blood red eyes glowing with bloodlust. "But it's extremely dangerous. It's basically committing suicide."

I shake my head stubbornly. The thought of dying does scare me, but it doesn't scare me as much of the thought of hurting Arthur scares me. "I don't care how dangerous it is. Tell me what to do and how to do it."

His face grows serious, even more so than before. Taking off the small hat atop his head, Vladimir turns it upside down and retrieves a small bag -- similar to that of a teabag -- and holds it up. It contains a hideously brown and black powder that emits a foul smell.

"What the hell is that?" Antonio asks with a whine, plugging his nose with his index finger and thumb as he scurries away from the edge of the salt circle in distress as one of the demons crawls closer.

"It's a special kind of powder. It'll allow me to send your soul into the dimension Arthur is stuck in. You'll need to find him and convince him to move on or return to this dimension. It'll be hard, though. He's going to be out of it, like, really out of it. Ghosts that are sent to the halfway dimension usually have to relive their deaths."

"Why?" I ask, feeling my brows crease at the thought of Arthut suffering any sort of pain. "That seems so cruel."

Vladimir shurgs and empties a handful of powder into his hand. "It's not always what happens. Most of the time, it's their most vivid memory, which is why they have to relive it. It's sort of like a dimension of infinite limbo."

"How will they get back?" Francis asks, his perfectly sculpted brows furrowed in confusion.

As if he forgot that we'd need some way to return, Vladimir slaps his forehead. Then, he takes a small slip of paper from a pocket on the inside of his hat. "Recite this incantation when you're ready, but be careful. If you die or even so much as suffer a small injury in the halfway dimension, you die in this one."

"In other words, no pressure," Gilbery mutters sarcastically, patting my back nervously. I can tell that they're all worried about me, but I need to do this.

"If I don't make it back," I murmur, taking the slip of paper from Vladimir's gloved hand. "Tell my mom what happened."

My three friends exchange nervous glances. "We promise," Francis murmurs. Not a moment later, Antonio bursts into tears, making my heart clench.

"We love you, man," Gilbert murmurs, forcing us all into a heart-warming group hug.

"You act like I'm going to die," I say snarkily, wincing as my own voice cracks. I'd rather not act like this is goodbye, even though this might just be the case.

Stepping away, I look to Vladimir, feeling the sweat of my palms starting to wrinkle the paper that Vladimir has given me.

"If you don't come back within twenty minutes," he says, readying the powder. "I'm going to force you to come back with or without Arthur." I know he isn't joking, so all I do is nod in response.

Suddenly, without warning, I'm greeted with a burst of foul-smelling powder in my face. I cough and sputter a little when I accidentally inhale it, scruching my eyes shut as I heave.

When I open my eyes, I'm definitely not in my home. "Well, Toto, we are not in Kansas anymore," I mutter to myself as I take in my surroundings.

The ground is a dark maroon -- which kind of reminds me of the sand and dirt you'd find on mars but much darker. There are what looks to be dead trees surrounding me -- a dark blackish color that reminds me of only death. There isn't even a sun or much of a sky at all. The sky -- or what should be the sky -- is nothing but deep, inky blackness that seems bottomless. It's oddly terrifying.

The sounds remind of a videogame, constant whispering and voices that stay at the edge of my perception -- just barely inaudible.

Just as I'm about to panic, I see a light shining through the thick tree branches. It reminds me of a flashlight, and I sprint to it without hesitation. It's him. I can feel it. I can feel it in my bones. Wait, can I even use that one? I don't really have any bones here...

Shaking my head in order to focus, I break through the treeline just in time to come to a huge house. It's cracked and made of decaying wood that seems to be falling apart. It's splintering and rotting, and I fear that it'll come crashing down any second.

What makes my breath catch in my throat is the sight of Arthur stepping into through the doorway with a small flashlight in hand. He shuts the door silently behind him, and I feel my heart drop to my stomach, so I do the only thing that makes sense.

I run after the man I love.

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Heylo, my lovely little nuggets! I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to leave any comments or suggestions if you have them! I love to read the feedback that y'all leave! Anyway, I'll see y'all nuggety readers in the next update! Until then, have an absolutely fantastic and fabulous day! Bai!!! >:3

-IggyScones