Escaped - Sanders Sides

Chapter Three

(POV: Virgil)

With each step I took further into the dark mind space, I felt my legs get oddly heavier. Like my body trying to turn me around and send me home. I really didn't want to do this. But I had to. If I don't, Thomas could suffer and it'd be all my fault.

I stared up at the pitch-black sky above my head. It was dotted with strange sparks that drifted down around me, illuminating the empty realm of the Dark Sides. I continued to walk, squinting forward, trying to catch a glimpse of the barrier. So far, it was nowhere to be seen.

"Come on. It has to be here somewhere," I muttered to myself. "Janus had to be the only one that got out. He had to."

As I made my way deeper into the Mind Space, I began to lose hope.

The barrier must have been destroyed. The place that had kept me safe from my past for so long was gone. My friends' work had been shattered by those that I feared most.

I started to hum a song that Thomas was working on to distract myself from my growing worry. However, there was nothing that I could do to stop the others.

Up head, began the fiery embers in the air, was a gossamer veil. It was almost translucent besides a faint rainbow of color painted across it.

As I got closer, I could see a tear in it. About six or seven feet in height. Just big enough for someone to slip through. Someone like Janus.

"No. No, no, no, no, no," I cried. "No! Dammit!"

I ripped open the veil and threw myself inside. I sprinted through the dark, twisting trees until I saw their home.

Inside, the lights were on, and I could hear voices coming from the living room. The voices of Thomas's Dark Sides. Every single one of them, even Janus. The one who had started all of this.

I crept over to the window to get a better view of what was happening. I couldn't get caught or God knows what would happen to me. It was the Dark Sides for crying out loud. The ones that would wreak havoc across the Mind Space now that the barrier was broken. Now they could all escape.

Just as I got to the window, the voices stopped.

"Shit."

The front door creaked open and my fears stepped out. Janus, Remus, and Elden. What happened when manipulation, intrusive thoughts, and deception all got together? I didn't want to be there to find out.

I took off running toward the barrier. I was panting and sweating inside my hoodie. These definitely were not the right clothes for something like this.

Behind me, I could hear footsteps for a few seconds before everything fell silent besides my own heavy breathing.

"Virgil!" Janus's voice rang out across the barren terrain. "It's been so long since I've seen you."

I stopped immediately, frozen in terror. "J-Janus."

I could hear him chuckling to himself as he rose up in front of me. All of the air in my lungs escaped, and I was left choking on the nothingness that remained.

"What do you think you're doing here?" Remus asked, appearing beside me.

"Did you really think that we wouldn't notice?" Elden questioned next to the two.

I suddenly flew backward, and landed on the ground a foot away. Air surged into my lungs and I gasped and sputtered for a moment. Once I had calmed down, I stood up and faced the three sides.

"How did you escape?" was the only thing that I could think of.

The three men laughed at my question.

"Well, wouldn't you like to know," Remus cackled. I kept creeping back, trying to getaway. This was way worse than I thought. They're all free! Thomas is in great danger if I don't do anything. I came so ill-prepared. Why did I do that? I'm so stupid! These guys are gonna kill me. I need to do something, and I need to do it fast.

Remus rose the mace above his head, ready to strike me with it. In a blind surge of fight or flight, I pushed myself off the ground and sprinted in the other direction.

Remus grumbled, but Elden released a low laugh.

"Go on...run Virgil. Like always," He seethed.

I tried my best not to listen to him. He was just trying to manipulate me. He hasn't changed; none of them have.

As soon as my run kicked into a sprint, I didn't look back. I was panting while my legs were shaking. Not entirely sure how much longer I could run, I snapped my fingers, opening a portal in front of me and jumping through it.

I ended up at the beginning of the woods in front of our house. So, I kept running, not wanting to stop until I was safe in my room.

Throwing open the front door and running up the stairs, a mixture of stress and relief filled tears left my eyes.

I entered my room so fast that I crashed into my bedside table and fell to the floor. I was on the ground, half-conscious from lack of air, and sweating. Despite this, I felt safer now that I was inside my room again.

Everything had just happened all at once. Elden and Remus are also free. I have to fix this. There isn't any time to spare. The longer I'm here, the sooner they can hurt Thomas.

I grabbed a worn backpack that Logan had given to me as a gift and started packing my room inside it. I didn't know how long my journey would. Hell, I didn't know if I'd even come back at all. But I'm just anxiety, something no one wants...Thomas will be fine without me.

A piece of paper found its way into my hand. It was the card Patton had made for me. Tears fluttered in my eyes.

I'm doing this for them. They'll be safer this way.

Stuffing the card in my backpack, I threw it over my shoulders and kissed my old life goodbye. Exiting my door and shutting it behind me, I put my hood over my head. Not even three steps away from my door, Roman peaked out of his room. I froze, unsure of what to do. He stifled a yawn. "Virgil, it's 2:30 in the morning. You better not be doing something that you shouldn't," He coughed out.

Taking no second chances, I dashed down the stairs.

Don't let Roman stop you! He'll try and stop you! I kept telling myself this, running out the door and back to the portal. My eyes took a glance behind me, seeing Roman stopping to catch his breath.

"Take care, Roman," I muttered to myself before stepping through the portal and shutting it with the snap of my fingers.

The portal closed on my old life, my old friends.

I took a deep breath, letting it out through my mouth. The journey began once again to head into the darkness of Thomas's mind.