Kaleidoscope

Two

"Let me go!!" Perry screamed at the thing dragging her back, deeper into the kaleidoscope. Her desperate, futile attempts to kick the creature's claws away to try and escape from its hold made no impression. She took in the scenery of her surroundings.

Where was she?

She knew the kaleidoscope changed almost continuously. In front of her on the pink walls the butterflies were still smiling but behind her, in the direction the creature was going, was a dark and desolate blackness; cracked walls and skew paintings, dead plants and dust everywhere . . . The wooden floor was stained a dark red colour with deep scratch and claw marks on it. Something told her to get away quickly, very quickly. She did everything she could to break the grip, but nothing helped. She called Peter to help her, but her cries were only met by the sound of shackles and a manic laughter.

"Peter does not exist my dear," a deep menacing voice said from behind her. "I AM Peter".

With the heavy shackles around her ankles, she tried to stand erect. She was facing some sort of desolate throne room, the throne made up out of bones. She tried to see what was hidden by the darkness of the room when something on top of the horrible throne caught her eye.

A man sat there with a devilish grin and did not take his eyes off her. He was tall and slender, like a corpse that didn't decay; his eyes glowing purple and his short silver hair shining in the dim light of the braziers next to his throne. He was dressed in a black coat with gold detail on the chest and black pants, his boots decorated with gold chains, semi-heeled and in polished black glove.

He got up from his throne and walked towards Perry with his cane. She looked at him, terrified as he came closer. "You cannot run my dear. Even if you tried." He smiled, pointing at the shackles with his dark wood cane.

"W...Who ..." she stuttered.

"Who am I? Pralekai, the Black, at your service." He smirked. "Finally, I found another one for my collection." He turned away from her and walked towards the other braziers, conjuring fire from his hands to light them. Light flooded the room with a dim orange haze as all its secrets were revealed. The wall was stony and littered with overhead chains with shackles. Some still had skeletons in them, others were empty. Perry realised that Pralekai intended to keep her there. For ever!

Hoping she was wrong she asked: "What do you want from me?" hoping that she could deal with the answer.

"To warn you! Try to escape again, and you will end up like Alison over there." He pointed to the decaying corpse in the furthest corner of the room. Perry was disgusted by the sight of the flesh rotting away from the very bones.

"What am I supposed to do here," she asked nervously to her captor to which he smiled. "Now you are asking the right questions," he said and walked slowly towards her, his boots echoing through the cavernous stone hall. He bent to his knees and grabbed her chin, his unkempt fingernails all but piercing her skin. "You, my dear, will just be," he said with a grin. "You are free to roam my prison cell. You may help others escape before the darkness either kill or mentally ruin them but you, my dear, are not allowed even to try to get a glimpse of outside world. You will share in my misery for all eternity!"

He cackled as he made his way back to his throne. She stood up, her legs quivering from the weight of her shackles. "I do not understand. How is this your prison cell?" she managed, becoming less paralyzed with fear. "Another fine question" Pralekai answered, "I will tell you the story of how one mistake drove my fellow deities to imprison me here, but I think you need to learn a little bit more of my little playground." He grinned again as he called a Vorgothian hound to him.

The grotesque beast walked towards his master who whispered something in its horrid ear. The beast contorted itself as it walked towards her. The same sounds Perry had heard creaking, breaking and crunching while she stood over Abigail's lifeless body was now sounding right in front of her. The sight was horrible; with every twist and turn the beast's black skin broke to litter the floor with millions of black and red crystals. As the beast finished its ghastly transformation, Perry, paralyzed with fear, gazed at it as Peter walked towards her, flashing that same revolting smile.