Sunshine

A Sudden Warning

*Nico*

The smell of pomegranates wakes me suddenly, an odd draft chilling me to the bone. I sit up, cursing when I realise where I am, the underworld. My father walks over to me, robes swirling around his ankles.

"Why am I here?"

"I must warn you that something is coming, something big. I'm not sure what, but it might not be entirely pleasant for you or the others at either camp."

"Why are you telling me this?"

He pauses for a moment, seeming to contemplate what he says next.

"Because your help may be needed to avoid conflict."

"How will I know when its time?"

"You'll know."

My dream starts fading, signalling the end of our conversation.

"Wait! How will I know?"

He doesn't respond, turning away as my dream fades into a nightmarish round of flashbacks. The air becomes thicker, smell of pomegranates making me sick as it overwhelms my senses. I feel the walls closing in on me, darkness enveloping me as I am thrown to my knees in a small space.

"No...no...no...please no..."

I'm back in the bronze jar, but it keeps shrinking to force me to curl up further. The walls press against my body, cold and unforgiving as they continue to get smaller around me. I start struggling again, thrashing around in hopes of breaking free, but soon find myself tucked up too small to move. I scream out for help, voice becoming weaker as the pain becomes blinding. Eventually it subsides, seemingly satisfied with my submission.

The scene changes until I can feel claws slash through my stomach and sides, followed by a sharp pain in my hands as I fall into an endless expanse of broken glass. Blood drips down my tattered shirt and onto the glass, seeming only to excite the creature further as I can feel it's rancid breath on my face. Someone pulls me back suddenly, hands digging into my fresh wounds and making me scream in pain again.

I open my eyes to find myself in a new room, helpless to stop the water that fills the floor and splashes up onto my legs. I start panicking again when the water reaches my neck, barely able to draw in a last breath before it reaches the ceiling and covers my head. My body starts shutting down from the cold, a searing pain going through my lungs as my oxygen runs out. I start struggling again, feeling someone's arms wrapping around my waist.

"Relax."

The voice sounds far away and muted, but slightly familiar. Just enough to make me focus on something other than my pain, if only for a minute.

"Nico? Come on."

The water vanishes, dropping me about fifteen feet before I slam into the still slick stone. It's rough, some pieces cutting into my flesh and drawing blood, while other pieces get embedded just below my skin. The room starts heating up quickly, something wrapping around my body to pin me against a living surface. A heavy draft makes me shiver, while something soon after catches around my feet and arms, pinning me more tightly to the moving surface and increasing the heat in the room. My skin is now slick with sweat, dripping down my face and onto the floor. The blood keeps flowing from my hands and knees, turning the floor a sickening shade of red. The colour makes me panic again, setting off another round of thrashing when I realise I can't move. Something warm places itself on my shoulder, just below my jawline, and I soon find it is something living when I feel warm breath ghosting across my neck.

"Nico, you've got to calm down. I'm right here."

I start panicking again, lashing out and striking the first thing my fists come in contact with, which just so happens to be the thing that is holding me in place. It releases me, sending me crashing to the ground, drawing blood when I bite my lip.

"Nico! No no no...Nico? Are you alright?"

I open my eyes weakly to see Will, who has a quickly forming bruise on his cheek, kneeling beside me.

"W...Will?"

I reach out for him, allowing him to pull me against his chest and wrap his arms around me.

"What happened to your face?"

"Got in a fight."

He smiles softly, looking down at me with a slightly worried expression.

"With who?"

"With you."

I wince, looking down at his shirt in embarrassment.

"Sorry."

"There's nothing to be sorry for Darlin, you didn't do it on purpose."

He kisses me gently, pulling back quickly when I shift myself around.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

Most of the lingering fear from my nightmares remain, but the feeling of his lips against my cheek helped to clear my head for the few seconds they were there.