Terror. A dimension mirroring the living one--but morphed to reflect the imagination of its Overseer. And the current Overseer... has refused to relinquish her power for centuries, tormenting her souls--"terrors"--into becoming... zombies.
Arielle f...
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"Wait," said Benny, squinting at the situation.
The Being dodged him, overlooked him, ignored him—and declared Arielle as an outsider to Terror. Not him.
But that didn't mean anything, did it? Maybe Arielle's tether to the Void was stronger, and her departure would wound Penelope the most. Benny didn't belong in Terror, everyone had said it. And of course, the Being thought so too, right?
"Wait for what?" The Being turned halfway to him, a hint of impatience to his movements, a glint of annoyance in his ice-blue eyes. "We have no time to waste, Benny. The faster we get this over with—"
"—but I get to go too, don't I?" He peered at Arielle, who had lowered her chin to stare at her blood-stained shoes. "To the Void, or whatever?"
The Being narrowed his gaze on him. Not in threat, but in scrutiny, as if scanning the depths of his soul, checking his eligibility. He then winced, shook his head, and rotated to focus on Arielle. "You can't leave, Benny. You're a true defective. Terror is your after-life realm."
Benny's knees buckled and it took strength he didn't think he had to remain upright. "I'm... defective?" He heard Jade and Oscar whispering near him, their words hissed and harsh, but couldn't understand what they said. "I... belong here? In this fucking crazy place?"
They were wrong. They led me to believe... and they were wrong!
Death was death; but Benny didn't want to spend the rest of his days here, hiding from zombies, living under the pressure of Penelope's rule. Even if they did defeat her and send her on to wherever she belonged, the heaviness of this atmosphere, its fiery air, the charge of scaring ghosts and sending them on to a realm where they'd sleep forever... it didn't appeal to him. No, he'd rather be in the Void, talking to the ghosts, listening to their stories. Who knew? Maybe he'd come across one he'd encountered while investigating, while alive. How he'd love to hear from a specter's perspective, to understand why they haunted places and what their unfinished business was.
But he wouldn't. He was doomed to roam the fires of Terror. Forever.
The Being shuffled about, urging Oscar to stand on his left, Arielle on his right. He raised his arms, aiming them at the fiery wall protecting the house. Swirls of white, pulsating energy broke free, feeding into the flames.
"Indeed. I'm sorry, Benny." The Being remained fixed on the fire, but his voice was softer, as if attempting to soothe Benny's ache. "If you went to the Soul Realm, you'd wait forever to find another host. And in the Void, you'd be of no use to the universe, and end up back here if you ever figured out your unfinished business. Penelope wasn't wrong in taking you, but she went about it the wrong way."
Benny watched him, still shocked, unsure how to process this information.
Jade slid up to Benny, sneaking her arm under his. "You can hang with me, it's cool," she whispered, a weak smile forming over her lips. Benny tried offering her the same smile, but his heart wasn't in it. He continued to observe the Being as he fought to break down the barrier enough to get Oscar and Arielle through.
