FSE

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formerly SoFurry search engine

Chapter 4: Warning

I was waking up again. The shift from one world to the other was shorter this time, but the buzzing was still there. Within seconds I had crossed back into my own home, and all I could think about was that I was leaving Markus behind_. Was it always going to be like this?_ I knew that I had to sleep, it is an inevitable thing. However, having to leave right after what we had done... I felt that it was too soon to be separated from him.

I began thinking back to what we had done. It had been five days for me since we had met, and three for him. It definitely sounds like it was too soon for what we had done, but did I regret it? No. I think back to the time I've spent with Markus and realize that nothing in my life has ever made me feel as happy as being with him did. Also, last night was... I smiled as I thought back to everything that happened. It had been my first time, and it had been amazing. It had also been with the person that I feel I truly love. Even now I feel a pain in my chest, like not being able to breathe on a hot day, just from being separated from him. But then again, what if all people feel this way before a relationship breaks? No. Again, I'm not going to consider that. If that's how love is, then life isn't worth living. I jumped out of bed and prepared to start my day with a shower, intent on pushing these negative thoughts out of my mind. I just hope that things don't get weird around Markus tonight...

I got out of the shower at around nine, and as I was walking back to my room the phone rang. I turned back to grab it and was surprised to see my friend calling. I picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Hey, is David there?" It was Marissa, one of my closest female friends.

"Yeah, you're talking to him." I responded. She laughed.

"Hey! Me, Ricky, and Mark are outside, want to hang out today?"

I felt a twitch inside myself when she said "Mark", and I felt myself become sad. I really did miss Markus, but I shouldn't let what was happening to me cut me off from my friends. Besides, I had been pestering them for a while now. So I responded.

"Yeah, of course I do. I've been calling you guys for the past week."

"Alright!" I could hear the smile in her voice. "Well, we're already here so hurry up."

"Cool." I hung up, and quickly got dressed, grabbing nothing but my wallet and a house key. As I was about to leave, I realized that I had forgotten my cell phone in Markus' world. I wrote a simple note and stuck it to the door, telling my mother to call Marissa if she needed me.

Marissa was one of my closest friends from high school. She was the one who had been there with me through all of the bad times in my life, and she was also the one who I had first come out of the closet to. She supported me in everything I did, and is probably the person I trusted the most out of all of my friends. She spent her days working for a thrift store at minimal pay, preparing for her inevitable shift to college life. She was always the smartest person I knew, the one who could make straight A's without really trying too hard.

I met with them all out front, Mark driving and Marissa and Ricky in the back. My arrival was met with sarcastic jeers and a generally happy mood. I jumped into the passenger seat. Everyone was excited, and it seemed that we were going out to the local bar we frequented. Not that we were going to get drunk; Stryker's carded anyone who looks younger than thirty. It was just a fun place to hang out with friends, and I had even had the chance to play there a few times with some random bands. Nothing big, just replicating some classic rock stuff. It was a cool place with a lively atmosphere.

Mark was a pretty cool guy; I've known him for years. He tended to get himself into trouble over stupid things. He always seemed to be on the receiving end of bad luck, which was strange considering that he was a genuinely nice guy. He would break his own back for a friend in need. He was also my premier gamer friend, the one that would spend hours with me playing Borderlands.

Ricky, on the other hand, was Marissa's current boyfriend. He didn't speak to me much. We had spent time together before, but according to Marissa he was a bit phobic of gay people. Not that I am flamboyantly gay or anything, but he seems to be afraid to be in the same room as me, like I'm going to rape his soul or something. I didn't let it phase me; Marissa was her own person after all. If she saw a future with him I had no right to say anything about it. After a roughly twenty minute drive, we parked in the back and made our way inside.

?-?-?

Stryker's was very active today. There were more teenager than adults, and the room was alight with excited banter and the clicking of beer bottles and pool cues. It was the kind of atmosphere that made you happy to be young and alive. We grabbed an empty table in the back and cleared it of bottles and debris; Mark brought a deck of cards and alerted us that tonight would be a night for Spades and Blackjack. There were no complaints from anyone at the table, and it was agreed that a team game of Spades would be our first match. Naturally, it was me and mark against the couple.

"Do you want to deal first David?"

Mark was gesturing for me to take the cards. I had been glancing over the room, and as my attention snapped back to the table, I noticed that everyone was looking at me.

"Yeah, sure..." I cut and shuffled the deck, and then began passing them out.

"You seem a bit different today." Marissa intoned. I only just caught what she had said between being lost and memories and handing out cards.

"Yeah, I can definitely see it." Mark concurred. "You're mind isn't all the way here, is it?"

Well, that was the most ironic statement of the year.

"Why is everyone staring at me? Ricky is the one stashing cards over there."

Ricky, who had been leaning under the table fixing his shoe, leaned up.

"What?"

He apparently hadn't caught my jest.

Marissa laughed, and Mark made an 'over his head' gesture. Ricky shrugged and began looking through his hand.

Our first few games of Spades had gone south pretty fast, with Marissa and Ricky's team winning every game. Mark made several comments about his 'bad mojo' losing us the games, but I disagreed with him. I simply didn't want to believe that an inherently good person like Mark would always have such horrible luck. I eventually tried to cheer him up.

"You've got to think about it," I explained, "with everything in life there is a probability that things can shift one way or the other. There is an entire spectrum of elements affecting this game right now. Not the least of which being Ricky's stash of cards."

Marissa snorted, laughing mid-drink.

"Besides, if you constantly have bad luck on something as trivial as a card game, then maybe when your good luck hits you'll win the lottery or something. There can only be so much bad before something good happens, so don't beat yourself up."

"So you're saying that my constant losing will pay off some day?" Mark began laughing. "I can dream."

Several games passed, and we still hadn't won. We had both become so demoralized that a ten minute break turned into the end of our games of chance for the day. We began talking about various things, and conversation eventually turned to life after high school.

"Well," Marissa began, "I'm going to be a teacher. Good pay, college should be cheap, and I'm going to be able to do something helpful for people."

"What grade are you planning to teach?" Ricky inquired. I couldn't help but feel that he should know this already, they had been dating for a while.

"I was thinking about early childhood education."

"Have fun with that..." Mark retorted. He had said it enough times, but he really wasn't a fan of kids. He had his own philosophy, that kids weren't given souls until they were at least ten. I recalled this and laughed aloud. This apparently put the attention on me.

"What about you David? What are your plans for the future?" Marissa asked.

"hmm..."

I guess I had planned to go to college for a computer major or something, but these past few days had changed my perspective on life a lot. Things that could only be described as fantastic were happening to me back to back. I was traveling to a place that I had never heard of in my sleep, and was effectively in love with a person of a different species. Not that it was a bad thing; it was the best thing that had ever happened to me. However, I couldn't seem to focus on a future here when I had Markus to think about. If I asked myself what I saw in my own future now, I honestly wouldn't know how to respond. Other than living with Markus. He still hadn't left my mind after last night.

Uh-oh. A glance around the table revealed three shocked faces.

"Did you just say living with Mark?" Marissa asked.

Crap. I did just say that out loud, didn't I?

"Uhh... No, I said Markus. Somebody else."

Marissa was looking at me critically.

"When did you meet someone?" Marissa asked, obviously annoyed that I hadn't mentioned anything beforehand. Ricky was looking down at the floor, and Mark wouldn't make eye contact either. I must have sounded creepy enough to put them both on edge.

"I've gotta go to the restroom." I got up and began walking away from the table, face turning red. I didn't look back as I crossed the room and entered the male bathroom. I had probably just made the rest of my evening awkward as hell for myself.

?-?-?

As I entered the bathroom, I was relieved to see that it was empty. I crossed over to the sink and began splashing my face with water, trying to clean the sweat from my face. Damn, that was embarrassing. Mark probably thought I was hitting on him or something. I stood there in front of the mirror, waiting for my face to cool down and stop being so red.

I began pacing, and I felt myself beginning to slip. I was just barely able to catch myself before I would have fallen. Wow, that is disgusting. There was water pooling in the floor, heavily concentrated in a dip near the corner of the room. I'm really glad I didn't fall into this.

After a few minutes, the embarrassment passed, but I wasn't sure if I was ready to go back outside. I really hope they aren't going to leave or something... No, it's not that serious, is it? I was preparing to rinse my face off again when something caught my eye in the mirror.

There was a dark shadow moving in the corner of the room, just barely visible in the half light of the flickering fluorescent bulbs. As I spun around in shock, the thing began rotating in the small space. It was a bizarre thing to see; it shimmered and twisted, but I couldn't seem to look right at it. It was like looking into a black hole, and it hurt my eyes. As I was still standing there, frozen in shock, it began to solidify. My vision blurred once before it became fully visible, a short creature with a black hood. I was preparing myself to bolt when it lifted a strange looking hand and pulled the hood back from its head.

-What the hell?

It looked like a dog of some sort, kind of like a husky, but it had those same almost-human eyes that Markus had. I saw gray fur, green eyes, and a speckled brow. Its posture suggested that it was also like Markus in terms of having a predominantly human shaped body. I had no trouble recognizing where he had come from. It appeared to be female.

"How... How are you here? Who are you?"

Upon hearing my voice, the face of the dog-creature seemed to light up. It looked very friendly, in contrast to the almost reaper-like hood it wore. After seeing its face, I felt much less intimidated.

"Ah, I got through! It worked! Yes!" She sounded excited. The back of her robe was moving from side to side; was there a tail under there?

"Listen. I don't have long, but what I have to say is very important." The dog still seemed excited, but she had taken a very serious tone. "You need to listen, and take what I say to heart."

Before I could interject, she began talking.

"There is an evil man coming to take you away. You have a few days before he will be able to find you, thanks to my own efforts." She was looking at me, possibly waiting for me to confirm that I had heard her.

I felt myself shivering suddenly. An evil man? What the hell is she talking about? I felt that familiar feeling of reckless absurdity smothering me. I had to hold on to the sink to keep my balance as I cleared my head. She's warning me that I'm going to be kidnapped? But how is she standing here like this? I began wondering if I was experiencing some sort of mental breakdown; a lapse into insanity. Then, I had a thought.

I realized that if I wrote this situation off as insanity I would be doing the same thing to Markus. I would never do that, even if it was true. Following this chain of thought was pointless. I started with the most obvious question I could think of, assuming the dog was telling the truth.

"How... how do I avoid him?" My voice was cracking.

The dog looked serious.

"You can't. Understand that he will come to take you, there is nothing you can do about it."

Cold, paranoia enveloping me. Did the dog mean in this world or the other one? As I was going to ask, she continued talking again. She seemed in a rush to get everything out of her mouth.

"You need a way to keep in contact with your friend, long distance. We need his help, so find something in your world. And one other thing..."

The dog was looking right at me.

"When the man comes, you need to keep him away from your friend. You are important to him, but not your friend. He will not hesitate to kill him. Do you unders-"

I heard a kind of feedback, cutting off the dog from speaking. Her form warped momentarily, and I was no longer able to look at her directly. When she solidified, she was no longer standing. She was kneeling, and her eyes were closed. She looked wounded, there was blood trickling from somewhere on her head.

-What? I don't...

"Are you alright?" My own voice sounded strange to me.

I watched as her small frame was suddenly jerked to the side, and she disappeared. It was like watching a doll get thrown across an open doorway from behind, and it all happened within a period of ten to fifteen seconds. I watched as the last few specks of blackness faded into nothing.

Suddenly, I didn't want to be here alone anymore. I stumbled away from the corner of the bathroom, and leaned against the sink as I tried to regain my composure. My eyes wouldn't stop flickering to the corner, as if at any moment something was going to walk out and grab me.

If anything she said is true... I composed myself as I began thinking. She said I needed a way to keep in contact with Markus long distance. Then it stands to reason that whoever is coming after me is in Markus' world. If I was going to take advantage of her warning, I needed to hurry. I needed to prepare, so that if I was kidnapped I could still contact Markus. He really wouldn't handle it well if I suddenly disappeared... The thought spurred me into action. I had already told him that I wasn't going to leave him alone again, ever. I splashed my face one final time to ground myself, and began walking hurriedly back to where my friends were sitting.

?-?-?

"You alright David?" It was Mark who first spoke. "We aren't mad at you or anything. You didn't have to run like that..." Mark was laughing.

Calm. You need to stay calm, or they will realize that something is wrong. Smile or something.

"I'm sorry, I was just feeling sick." I wasn't lying.

"Yeah, you look a little sick." Marissa agreed.

"Maybe we should take you home?"

"I'm fine. I just need to sit down for a bit..." I sat down, and realized that up until that point the world had been spinning. I needed to calm myself down. I can't be freaking out like this. I took a sip of the soda that had been bought for me earlier. I closed my eyes and began rubbing my forehead.

"Well..." Ricky spoke up. "I actually should be getting home soon."

"What? But we were going to go to a movie or something!" Marissa sounded annoyed.

I opened my eyes, my head much clearer.

"Well, yeah, but I don't think everyone is onboard with it." He was looking at me.

"I'm fine. don't call off your plans on my part." I responded, faking a smile to reassure them.

"Well, at any rate, I need to go to the store first." Marissa spoke. "Do you guys want to go to the department store down the road?"

Mark groaned; Marissa was a notoriously slow shopper.

Wait... If I go to the store, I can grab a set of walkie-talkies or something. Those would work over there, right? The faster I prepare the better.

"I'm up for that, there is some stuff I need to get as well." I responded.

"...Alright then." Ricky sighed. "We should hurry, it's getting late." We got up and left the bar, a small tip left under a coaster for the bar lady who had gotten us our drinks.

?-?-?

The drive to the department store was very quick, as it was only a couple buildings down from the bar. We got out of the car, and as we were walking toward the store we realized how packed it was today.

"This should be fun." Mark commented.

Upon entering the store, I explained that I had to go check on something. I curved away from my friends as they were discussing the ridiculous rate of inflation; I couldn't care less at this point. I was on a timer, and I had no clue how much time I had left. She had made it sound like it would be a couple of days until he came, but it looked like she had been attacked there at the end. I didn't feel safe anywhere.

I made my way back to the electronics department, but my inquiries at the desk led me nowhere. The person on duty told me to go check out the toy section, where I found nothing but an overpriced toy radio with a whopping radius of twenty feet. Annoyed at the ineptitude of the worker, I walked over to the automotive department. A passing glance over the subsection signs above led me to the radio aisle. As I walked along the products, examining them, I finally found what I had been looking for.

There was a heavy-duty two-way handheld transceiver near the end of the aisle. I scanned over its features, and made sure it had a decent distance and battery life. I felt a spark of hope flaring up where before there had been nothing but worry and unease. Then I checked the price tag.

Fuck.

Just one of the transceivers was almost 400$ dollars. There was no way I could get that kind of money anytime soon, and I felt a familiar panic swamping me again. I needed these, and there was no way I could borrow 800$ from anyone. I had also never stolen anything before, and had honestly never had any interest in stealing. I don't think I could do that. Why are there no generic ones with this much power? It lasts for days, and the distance... I sighed and backed up, clearing my head.

There was nothing like this at my house, and I didn't want to risk waiting to see if my friends had anything. If getting these was important enough for that dog to find and warn me like she had, I needed to find a way to get them out of the store. She said I would need to talk to Markus, and that I needed to protect him. Markus was infinitely more important to me than the immoralities of stealing a pair of overpriced handsets.

Suddenly I had an idea. I grabbed two of the transceivers from the shelf and began making my way to the other end of the store.

Thankfully I hadn't run into my friends, and although I was obviously distressed nobody appeared to be following me. I made my way to the furniture aisle, and found a couch that was long enough to host the length of my body. I crawled onto it, and lay back, holding the two clunky cases to my chest. I closed my eyes and willed myself to fall asleep, hoping that there weren't any store associates nearby. The constant blaring announcements and shuffle as people walked by was distracting the hell out of me. It didn't help that the couch was as uncomfortable as they get. Come on... you can handle this. I felt my mind relaxing as my awareness began drifting. I was falling asleep.

?-?-?

It was done. I felt my eyes open, and suddenly I was lying next to Markus, transceivers in hand, bulky packaging and all. My head was pounding, as I had only slept for about 5 hours in this world. I smiled, silently applauding myself for pulling that off. I would deal with the guilt of stealing after we were safe. I quickly read through the packaging, making sure that it was already pre-charged and ready to go. Content with what I had read, I leaned back and slid the packages down beside the bed. That simplifies things some... I thought. I was leaning back when my eyes caught Markus' face in a thin beam of moonlight. Oh...

His face looked entirely at peace. Although he was asleep, the corners of his mouth moved up occasionally, as if he was smiling. Lines of tension that I hadn't even noticed had left, and Markus' youth seemed to glow in the moonlight. I was just seeing him like this for the first time, and he looked beautiful. I wonder if this is how he felt when he saw me sleeping... I could have sat here for hours watching him. He looked so happy, so content.

I could feel the anxiety that had been plaguing me since the event at the bar leaving me, being replaced with confidence. I had done as the strange dog had warned me to, and Markus was still here, safe. Whatever was going on, I would be able to handle it. I would do it for Markus. I would be strong for us.

I pressed my face into his furry chest and smiled as he let out a sleepy mumble. He smelled amazing, and I was breathing him in as I felt a sudden knocking in the back of my head. Aww... It was like being underwater and hearing something fall in after you. Before I could say or do anything else, I felt myself being pulled back into my own world.

?-?-?

"Sir. Can you please get up?" There was an older black lady looking down at me critically. My eyesight wavered as I looked back up at her.

"There's a sign right there that says no sleeping on the furniture." She gestured to the sign, hands on her hips.

"Oh, I'm sorry." I tried my best to look dejected when I was glowing inside. The success of my plan combined with seeing Markus again was invigorating me.

"Well, whatever, but if you do it again I'll have to ask you to leave."

I stood up quickly, and noticed she was eyeing me strangely. Had I been making a face or something?

"I ain't never seen no man sleep so good on these cheap-ass couches..." She mumbled as she checked the price tag. "Not too expensive..."

I suppressed a laugh.

"It's actually pretty comfortable" I suggested as I turned around and prepared to go find my friends. I didn't hear anything else as my pace quickened and I turned the corner, intent on meeting up with everyone.

?-?-?

It didn't take me long to find them, as Marissa had her own route she always took through the store. They were examining the frozen food when met up with them. I could tell by the look on Mark and Ricky's face that she had tediously flipped through everything on her way through the clothes section. My arrival was met with playful pleas for help from the guys, and a pointed shush from Marissa. She was apparently deciding what she wanted for dinner. I decided to help them out a bit, still glowing on the inside.

"Hey, Marissa, maybe we should all go out to eat? You know, since we're all together anyways."

She looked up. "Yeah, I guess. I can't afford to take everyone out to somewhere expensive or anything, though."

"Not a problem." I opened my wallet, the last 40$ to my name inside. "I can pay for it, as thanks for picking me up today."

"You sure?" Marissa looked apprehensive about it. She didn't like to be given things.

"If he wants to buy us food, Marissa, don't complain." Ricky stated.

"Yeah, I mean, it's his money..." Mark agreed.

"I've got to get one more thing though..." I said. As we were heading out to pay for the thing's Marissa had picked out, I grabbed a bag of honey flavored candies from the shelf.

Marissa agreed to let me pay for everything, and as a group we decided to eat at a pizza place closer to my house. It was a relatively cheap place, and it was the automatic choice whenever you wanted to get a good deal for your money. The drive back was filled with excited banter, and everyone seemed really happy. Even Ricky, who normally just kind of ignored me, was cracking jokes and laughing, talking excitedly to me. Maybe he felt more comfortable around me now, or maybe he was just happy that I had gotten them out of the store. Either way, it was nice.

Dinner went by uneventfully. We told jokes as we ate and enjoyed each other's company. I still felt on edge after the event that happened at the bar, but the excitement of the evening was catching. I was also still kind of happy about being able to get those transceivers earlier, and seeing Markus at his most vulnerable. My mind came back to that moment several times during the night. I missed him.

It wasn't long before we had all become full, and it was just starting to get late. The entire meal had only run me about 25$, and I realized that this was actually something I needed. Life for me lately has been like being caught in a tornado of confusion, and this dinner was like a moment's respite. An instant of normalcy before the tide picked up again. We left the pizza restaurant at roughly seven thirty.

I was the first to be dropped off, and after saying goodbye to everyone, I felt that the evening had ended on a rather high note. I ran back up to my apartment and locked the door behind me. After calling out to make sure that nobody else was home, I showered and prepared myself for bed. Now that I was alone, I was becoming paranoid again. I wondered if there was any truth to what the dog had said. I wondered if everything was going to be alright. It was now eight, and I held the bag of candy in my hand as I willed myself to sleep.

I swear Markus... I won't let anything happen to you. Whatever is going to happen, we are both going to make it.

This was my last thought as the vibrations of sleep pulled me under and began taking me back to Markus... Back to the person I loved more than anyone.

Chapter 5: Occlusion

I opened my eyes, my vision much clearer this time. It was a strange feeling, almost instantly feeling the clarity of a night of sleep after being so tired. I had apparently moved closer to Markus, and his arm was wrapped around my neck. As I began to stretch, the bag in my hand gave a rustle that reminded me of its presence. I tossed it back onto the bed; I would get to it later. Markus was still asleep, his face in that same expression of peace. The morning light was just beginning to peek in through the window over the desk. I watched the perfection of his face grimace as the light began waking him up. I decided that I would wake him up myself, before the light did.

I leaned up over him and pressed my lips to his. It was a quick kiss, but enough to wake him up. His golden eyes blinked open as I watched him wake up. It must be nice, not having to leave the side of his lover every other day. I wondered if I would ever have that luxury.

"David." Markus yawned and stretched under me. Feeling his furry arms rubbing against me, combined with hearing his voice, almost immediately calmed me.

"Morning, Markus. Did you sleep well?" I was smiling again. It was nice to be back.

"Best sleep of my life." He was grinning again. It looked entirely different than the smile I was used to. Not that it was a problem, but I couldn't help noticing. It lacked the innocence that I was used to seeing in Markus' expressions. It was still very sincere, though. I rubbed the fur on his shoulder, feeling how soft he was. He was doing the same to me; there were no more inhibitions between us.

"I don't suppose I could have another?" Markus suggested.

I laughed, and leaned in to kiss him again before lying against his chest and relaxing there with him. We stayed that way for a few minutes, enjoying each other's company. I had trouble being anything other than happy when I was around Markus. However, something was bothering me.

"Nothing's changed, right? After last night." I asked.

Markus looked down at me.

"David. I loved you then and I love you now." Markus rubbed my hair.

"Nothing's changed. Are you hungry?" Markus asked. I had just eaten pizza with my friends a couple hours ago, but my stomach seemed to respond to him without my consent. I guess I still needed to eat the same amount in both worlds. He laughed before sitting up and throwing the cover off of himself.

"Guess I'll go start breakfast." Markus said after a moment.

"Want any help?" I inquired.

"Nah, I'm going to try and make something I haven't cooked in a while. You'll love it." He added. The excitement in his voice was unmistakable. He really loved cooking for me.

As he stood up, I noticed that his fur appeared much more untidy. I thought back to last night, and realized this must be how his fur gets after sex. It made him look somehow much more vulnerable. He crossed the length of the room in two steps, put on his shorts, and left to start cooking. I grabbed my clothes from beside the bed and dressed myself.

Before heading out to spend my morning with Markus, I reached blindly between the bed and the wall, looking for the handheld transceivers. With a sigh of relief I found them, and pulled them up. I quickly popped open the plastic casing before slipping each one out. Tossing the packaging into a bin in the corner, I put the batteries in them and tested them. Three days of battery life, and after setting them both to the same frequency they connected perfectly. I carried them, along with the bag of candy, into the living room with me.

"Hey, Markus. I've got some stuff to show you." I entered the living room to the crackling of something cooking on the stovetop. It smelled amazing. Markus was humming to himself as I entered, and I realized that it was the final bar of the song I had played for him the other day. The happiest part of it. He looked up as I called, smiling. I set everything down on the table and gestured for him to come over.

"I brought back two things this time."

Markus was silently looking over the objects on the table, probably waiting for me to explain what they were.

I clicked on the transceiver, showing him which button I had pressed. I then grabbed the other one and ran into the backroom. I turned it on, and spoke while holding down the talk button.

"Can you hear me?"

Silence on the line. "Press the talk button on the side and speak into it."

A few seconds later, the transceiver flared up.

"David? I'm sorry, I almost dropped it earlier. Are you there?"

I laughed. "Yeah, I am. I brought these so we can keep in contact with each other if..."

I stopped short. I didn't really know what I was expecting to happen, and I couldn't tell him about what the dog had said. If someone was coming to take me, I couldn't risk Markus endangering himself. I didn't like being dishonest with Markus, but it couldn't be helped.

"What? I think it stopped working." Markus sounded anxious.

I inhaled, clearing my mind before pressing the talk button again.

"I brought them so we could talk if we ever got separated."

I ran back into the living room.

"See, just carry it on you, and we can talk from long distances." I was thinking carefully about how to word my sentences. "I just figured that it would be safer."

"I don't see why we would be separated," Markus replied, "but if you want me to carry it around, I will." He slipped it into his pocket. I did the same.

"What's this?" Markus asked, pointing to the bag.

"Oh, that's nothing..." I said, casually picking the bag of candy up from the table. I ripped open the top and handed it to him, letting him investigate for himself.

"That smells like..." He pulled one of the pieces out and looked at it.

"You got me more?!" Markus sounded amazed. "There's so much!"

"Yeah, I figured you would want them." I replied. Hopefully they would last for a while.

Markus thanked me before hugging me again. He didn't pick me up this time, his embrace was much softer. I hugged him back, burying my face against him. It was different than the massive bear-hugs I had grown accustomed to. It made me feel safe. As he released me, I was almost sad. I felt like I needed to hold him.

"I have plans for today." Markus said, smiling. He turned back to the food he was preparing and began moving it from the stovetop to the plates.

"What would those be?" I asked.

"Well, after we shower at the stream, there is something I want to show you." I could hear his smile through his words.

"What is it?" I asked, my curiosity piqued.

"A surprise. Don't worry, you'll enjoy it." He set a plate down in front of me, and any attempts I made at questioning him were hushed. The food he had prepared looked very odd. It looked like some kind of purple vegetable had been grilled on both sides before being wrapped in a strip of fish. I looked up from the questionable food, and Markus was waiting for me to bite into it. I looked down again, realizing that I couldn't say no to Markus. I picked it up with a fork he had given me and bit into it.

As with everything Markus cooked, it was amazing. The fish had a salty taste, and the thing in the middle that I had mistaken for a vegetable was actually a fruit of some kind. The combination of flavors between them was unlike anything I had ever tasted. I guess Markus was pleased with the expression on my face, so he prepared himself a plate and sat down next to me. We ate together before leaving to go wash up at the stream.

?-?-?

"Are you sure the water is safe?" I asked, cautious about getting in. It had only been a couple of days since my run in with the tentacle creature.

"There's never been anything dangerous at this part of the stream, I can go in first and look if you want."

"No, it's fine. I'll go in." I had more important things to be worried about, and I could hardly just skip washing myself altogether.

We were standing next to the part of the stream we had both swam at before. He was right about it being shallow, but I was still kind of worried. Suddenly, I felt him grab me from behind and spin me around.

"I'll protect you, David. Don't worry." He was looking right at me. Wow...

"I believe you." I said, barely able to speak. He released me before backing up and beginning to take off his clothes. I did the same, and we waded into the stream as we had before. The second we were in the water, Markus wrapped his arms around me and spun. I gasped as his sudden movement caught me by surprise.

Suddenly, I was lying on top of him with him floating in the water. Markus was laughing.

"I wanted to do this so bad when we were here the first time... I didn't want to scare you though. Are you alright?"

My face began flushing red as I realized that our hips were perfectly level, and the only things keeping skin from rubbing skin was the thin layer of fabric split between our respective underwear. Before I could say anything, Mark was kissing me. His warm tongue was exploring my mouth, and I began kissing him back. He held me close with both of his arms as he used one of his legs to keep us from floating adrift down the stream.

Markus groaned. I could feel him becoming hard through his underwear. I let out a cry of protest as he shot away from me, diving under before resurfacing a few feet away.

"Why did you do that?" I complained.

"Just wait... It'll be worth it." I could see that the physical separation was bothering him as well, but if he hadn't moved when he did nothing would be stopping us.

We spent a few minutes in the stream, cleaning ourselves off, before Markus declared that it was time to go. We climbed out of the water and began drying off. I noticed that Markus was being really impatient; he must be in a hurry to show me something. He picked up all of our clothes in one of his fists. I wrapped myself up in his towel before we began walking further down the path we had taken to get here.

We had been walking for a few minutes, Markus avidly drying off his fur. After a little while, and without warning, he picked me up. It was amazing how easily he could lift me. I wasn't startled this time, but instead began laughing as I felt my body being lifted.

"Can you close your eyes?" He asked. He was being serious again.

I was sitting in his arms now, and without fuss I did as he asked. I pressed my face against his neck and held onto his shoulders for support. I felt his breathing on my neck, and I smelled his scent. He smelled almost earthy, like a garden after rain. The clothes he was carrying were pressed against my back.

"This had better be worth it." I joked, knowing it would be.

?-?-?

We had been walking for a while now. He told me that he would tell me when to open my eyes. I felt him duck down before walking a few more feet and stopping. I felt myself bounce against him as he dropped down to the ground and tossed the clothes to the side. I laughed again. I smelled something else now, mixing in with the smell of Markus. It was familiar, but I couldn't quite place it.

He whispered into my ear, "You can look now, we're here."

I lifted my head up from Markus shoulder, and looked around.

We appeared to be in a kind of hollow, surrounded by brilliant flowers. They appeared to be the same kind of flowers I had seen before, and the think vines intertwined overhead to block out all of the light of the sun. The flowers sparkled in a multitude of colors. I saw blue, orange, red, yellow, and even neon green. Even without the sun, light was radiating from each of the flowers, illuminating the entire space. It was an unearthly light, beautiful. It made everything seem shimmery, as if the darkness was being corroded away as the light blanketed the area. As I was surveying the beautiful scenery around myself, Markus kissed me.

I felt my heart and mind exploding. I had never seen such beauty in my life. Every single detail of Markus' face stood out in the glow of the strange flowers. I leaned myself into Markus' kiss, and he fell back. We were now laying together, much like we had been at the water earlier. I rubbed my hand through the fur on his head as our tongues glided against each other.

"So, was it worth coming here?" Markus asked.

"This is the most amazing place I've ever seen, Markus." I felt him laugh under me.

"Yeah, that's how I felt too the first time I saw it, months ago. I remembered and wanted to show you."

I leaned in for a quick kiss before responding.

"Thank you! How are the flowers glowing like this?"

I looked at his face as I asked him, but he looked strange. His face was changing; we had both suddenly become aware of the position we were sitting in. I felt his hand come up to caress my face, and his other hand was rubbing my back.

"David..." His eyes looked the same as they had last night. Seeing him looking at me like that was quickly setting me off. I slid myself down his frame until our underwear was rubbing together. This elicited a moan from him, and I leaned in for another kiss.

"I think we need to lose the underwear..." I told him, rubbing the side of his head.

"I agree" he said. As I was preparing to stand up and move out of his way, he grabbed me and tumbled forward.

"Oof!"

I landed softly against the grass, and in one fluid motion he lifted my legs up and pulled my underwear down before tossing them to the side. He could be terrifyingly fast when he wanted to. I was entirely naked now, sitting down in front of him. His face was red.

"You did this for me last time, so I want to do it for you now."

Before I could protest, Markus leaned his massive frame down in front of me and pulled my sex into his mouth.

"Ah! Wait!"

My objections were ignored; Markus wasn't going to stop.

His mouth was much wider than mine, and he was able to roll his tongue around my privates in a way that was mind-blowing. His long tongue would wrap around me entirely before unwrapping and going in the other direction. He was making a slurping sound as he did this, and I felt my back arch as a spasm of pleasure washed over me.

"Markus... That's unbelievable..." I was trying to keep myself from moaning, but it wasn't working. He was really good at this.

As if in response to my compliment, Markus moved forward. The entirety of my cock was now buried inside Markus' muzzle. He extended his long tongue outside of his mouth and began massaging my balls with it while sucking me. The sensation was unbelievable; no human would be capable of this. I could feel every part of Markus' mouth rubbing against me at once. He looked up at me without stopping, and his eyes looked hungry.

I put my hands onto his head and pulled him in as deep as I could. He didn't protest, but instead sped up his tongues movements.

"Aaah... Aah!"

All I could do was sit there and moan, writhing under Markus' tongue. I felt myself being pushed over the edge, but before I could say anything Markus stopped. He was breathing heavily, and he leaned in close to my face.

"David... Do you think... I could top this time?"

Whoa.

I thought about Markus' size, and realized that he would probably hurt me.

Still, He had let me do it to him, and I would be lying if I said I didn't want him to. I really wanted him to.

"Yeah, I can try..." I was still panting, trying to catch my breath after what Markus had done for me. He kissed me after I responded.

"Here, I'll make it easier for you."

He leaned back, and pulled his underwear off. He was fully erect, and seeing it there in front of me made me feel even more intimidated. He leaned back, and gestured for me to come closer.

"You want me to sit on it?" I asked, unsure.

"Yeah, that way you can go at your own pace. So I don't hurt you."

It made sense, but I couldn't resist teasing him a bit. I moved closer to him, and licked him from the base to the tip before circling my tongue and going back down. He groaned deeply. I did this a few more times before backing up.

"I can try, but I'm going to stop if it hurts too much." I told him.

"That's fine, just hurry... the waiting is killing me."

He leaned back, and I stood up in front of him before kneeling and getting myself into position. I grabbed onto the base of his member and positioned it before sitting myself onto it.

"Ahh... Ow..."

It hurt. I had never had anything inside me before, and it hurt as bad as I had expected it to. However, along with that pain was something else entirely. Something remarkable. Markus was moaning loudly, each movement on my end causing him to shake with pleasure. I slowly began filling myself with Markus. After a little while, the pain subsided, and I moved him further in. Soon he was entirely inside me, and I sat there for a minute before moving.

"Are... are you ok?" He asked, checking on me.

"Yeah, I am. Get ready." The uncomfortable part was over.

I began moving myself up and down against Markus. I didn't feel pain anymore, but instead felt pleasure building up inside of me. It was so much different than anything I had ever felt before. It took longer to build up, but before long I loved the feeling of it.

Markus was moaning under me, his hands massaging my legs. We kept like this for a little while, bathed in the glow of the fluorescent flowers. I felt at that moment that I never wanted this to end.

Markus suddenly yelled for me to stop. I did, quickly, worried that I had done something wrong. Markus was looking at me with an expression of lust on his face. He then grabbed me by the hips before jumping up and wrapping his arms around me. He was standing now, with one of his arms under me and one of his arms behind me. I only had a moment to exclaim before we had moved to this position.

As he held me up in front of him, he began thrusting into me. I was amazed at the show of strength he was pulling. With him doing the movements, he was moving in and out of me much faster, and the pleasure I was feeling was filling me now. His moaning was becoming continuous again. He was so fast... I felt myself about to climax.

"Markus!" I yelled in between thrusts. While holding onto his powerful shoulders, I felt the orgasm hit me at full strength. I came, and it shot up onto my chest.

Markus was groaning louder now, moving faster. With him still moving inside me, the feeling of pleasure never stopped coming.

As I was still coming, he moved his head down and began licking the seed off of my chest. His tongue traced over my entire chest, licking as much as he could reach without stopping.

Seeing him do this, combined with his faster paced thrusts, almost made me climax a second time. Our voices had blended together at this point, both of us moaning with pleasure.

"Ahh... David!"

He called out my name as he pushed into me and began climaxing. He slowed down, and I could feel it throbbing inside me. I felt like my own orgasm was still going, still just as powerful as when it had first hit. He yelled loudly as I felt his seed filling me up.

He moved into me a few more times before slowing down and falling down backwards. He almost immediately began kissing me again, resting in between to try and catch his breath. I pulled myself off of him and leaned against him. After a moment of kissing, he looked at my eyes before grabbing my head and pulling me to his chest.

"I love you so much right now." He said, massaging my head. Hearing it again made me so happy inside.

"I love you too." I said.

We sat there for a while, catching our breath, neither of us speaking. I eventually rolled over to loop up at the beautiful flowers surrounding me. Markus was doing the same. As we enjoyed the afterglow together, Markus scooted in close to me and threw his arm over me.

"David..." Markus began. "Please don't ever leave."

He sounded quiet, like he was about to fall asleep. I wondered if it was safe to sleep in this place.

"That'll never happen."

His hand was playing with my stomach. I rubbed his hand, and then stood up as he watched. I reached over and grabbed my clothes before pulling on my underwear and a shirt. I thought for a second, and decided to pull on my pants as well. I felt the weight of the transceiver in my pocket.

"Why are you getting dressed?" He asked.

"I just feel more comfortable like this; I don't want any strange bug bites."

"I don't think anything would come near here, the flowers repel most bugs. And besides, I wanted to feel you."

I laughed. He sounded genuinely indignant when he said that he wanted to feel me.

"You still can, don't worry." I laid myself back down next to him and was almost immediately embraced. He put his hand under my shirt and continued rubbing and squeezing me.

"Hey," I began, "Do you think it's gotten dark yet?" Neither of us could see the sky through the tangle of vines overhead.

He thought for a minute before answering.

"Does it matter?"

I thought about it for a second. I guess it didn't. So long as I was here with Markus, nothing else really mattered to me. I leaned back against his arm without responding, and after a few moments we began falling asleep. I heard Markus begin snoring first, and before long I was out too.

Chapter 6: Nihash

Yawning, I felt myself awakening back inside my own bed. With my newly rested mind, I almost immediately began replaying what had just happened last night. Markus... That had been so amazing. Nothing I had ever seen or done had compared to last night. I stood up and stretched as the morning sunlight began filtering through the window. I can't believe those flowers exist like that. Even now, stretching in the light of the morning, they seemed unreal to me_. He really is amazing..._ I laughed as I sat down again.

I wonder if we'll be alright, lying in the forest like that. Markus told me that no bugs would attack, but what if another Ochau comes along? Or some other kind of horrible creature, laced with teeth and eyes? I thought for a moment. I guess I'll just have to take a nap at some point and convince him to go home. We should be fine for a little while, though.

I glanced at the alarm on my desk, noting that it was just becoming seven in the morning. We had gone to bed much earlier than we normally would have. I heard the birds chirping experimentally outside of the window, and the noise sounded odd to me. I wasn't used to being up this early, and hearing them was a rare occurrence indeed.

I jumped off of the bed, deciding that I would make my mother breakfast before she woke up. I had barely seen her lately, and I knew that this would make her happy. Besides, I was already up, and all I'm going to be doing today is thinking about Markus. Again.

I walked into the small kitchen and immediately turned on the stove's eye. A glance into the fridge revealed that I had all of the ingredients to make pancakes, my mother's favorite. I washed my hands and began mixing the dry ingredients in a bowl before adding milk and eggs.

I was just finishing the first couple when my mom came out of her room, fully dressed. My parents had their own bathroom, so she must have gotten ready for work before she had even left her room.

"David!" She said, surprised. "What are you doing up this early?"

"Making you breakfast." I replied, smiling as I flipped the third pancake over.

Mom walked over to me and gave me a one-armed hug.

"Thanks for thinking about me, David. I'm used to your father cooking."

"Yeah, it's no problem." I was responding vaguely, my mind back in the forest with Markus.

My mother moved away, but as she was getting ready to pour herself some coffee, she turned back to me and sniffed.

"What is that smell?" She asked.

"Pancakes." I replied, half-paying attention to her.

"No, not that. You smell like... I don't know, it's weird. Like flowers or something."

I stopped cooking and felt myself tense up. She can smell them on me? Crap.

I finished the last pancake and put it on a plate. I would have to take a shower soon then, if she could smell things from that other world. I didn't want any accusations being made when my father got back... I could hear it all now, "I smelled sex and perfume!" or something along those lines. I passed her the plate of food and turned to go put away the dirty pan.

"David, are you alright?" Mom had stopped and turned to face me.

"Yeah, I'm fine mom. Don't worry about it."

She looked concerned, and I thought for a second before continuing.

"I just didn't sleep too well last nigh-"

I felt an impact to my chest, cutting off my words. I dropped the pan I was preparing to put away and felt myself falling. I think I had yelled, but I couldn't quite tell as my mind began clouding up.

"David!?" Mom was screaming and, I felt myself being pulled away. Something was waking me up in the other world. My mother's screams blended into the sound of nothingness as I felt myself blacking out.

?-?-?

"Oof!" I felt another impact into my chest. I could taste blood, and as I opened my eyes I realized that I had been moved. Instead of lush forest, my arms were grating against stone. "Pitiable cross-breeding filth..." There was a human voice coming from somewhere near me. As my mind and vision began clearing, I scuttled backwards before looking around myself.

I was no longer in the forest. Everything around me looked blue, and I realized that I was in some sort of stone chamber. My eyes flickered around; shackles against the wall, and dark stains scattered sporadically around the dungeon. There was a single torch placed next to the door. As the shock began leaving me, my eyes settled on a figure standing in the middle of the room.

"I finally found you, but I had no clue that you were a human... and an animal fucker at that."

What? Did he just say...

My senses began returning to me, but what I was seeing still didn't make any sense. There was a human standing in front of me, a regular human, wearing a black cloak of some sort. He appeared to be rather old, in his fifties at least. His eyes were dark, and I noticed through his sneering face that his teeth looked stained and rotted. Oh god... He looked down at me in contempt, and my memory began returning. The warning I had been given had finally come true.

"You're... the man... they told me about you..."

I could feel pain across my chest. Had he kicked me? I was having trouble catching my breath.

"Yes, they did tell you about me... and they died for it. Challenge me and I assure you that the same thing will happen to you."

I began trying to stand, and was just able to pull myself up before glaring back at the man who had attacked me. I didn't understand how he had moved me so fast, and I could barely seem to keep my balance.

"You... you didn't... hurt..."

I was having trouble saying the words, but the man standing across from me seemed to understand what I was getting at. His dark eyes glittered in the torchlight.

"Oh, him?" He smiled again, his teeth making me sick. "I left him there, but I can go back and kill him if you want. It's all the same to me."

I felt rage flaring inside me.

"...If you touch him, I will kill you."

He laughed. "Oh, don't tempt me; I'm far too busy to waste time going all the way back there... now that I have you here." His voice sounded light and playful.

My head was splitting, but I didn't break eye contact. Instead I began moving slowly to the left, toward a brick lying on the ground. I leaned over and picked it up, brandishing it against the man. I wasn't going to die without fighting back.

He responded to my actions by laughing at me. It wasn't a sarcastic laugh, or even a contemptuous one. It sounded insane, and horrible. As fast as I could move, I ran forward and brought the brick crashing down.

The second it would have collided with the man, he seemed to explode into nothingness. It was the same smoky black stuff that had been surrounding the dog-creature at Stryker's Bar. I could still hear that horrible laughter echoing throughout the chamber.

I coughed as the taste of blood blended with the smell of ozone. I dropped the brick and backed up to the wall before glancing around the room. The man was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, I heard a voice resonating throughout the room.

"I'll keep you here until I need you. Try not to hurt yourself."

The voice seemed to come from everywhere; I couldn't pinpoint its exact location. The room I was in was small and barren. I noticed a single barred door on the other side of the room, and I quickly ran over. It had the appearance of a prison door, and I immediately tried forcing it open. It didn't budge. There was a single window in the middle, and I felt my heart sink as I looked through it.

On the other side of the window was a layer of brick wall. I was trapped; there was nothing I could do. I backed up before turning and sitting myself down in the corner. My mother had undoubtedly called an ambulance by now, and Markus was probably freaking out because I wasn't there.

Wait! The transceiver! I quickly felt for its weight in my pocket, and I let out a sigh of relief as I felt it there. I was reaching in to pull it out when I heard a voice from ahead of me speak.

"I wouldn't do that yet, he may still be watching."

I jumped and looked ahead of me. This was a different voice than the one I had awoken to. This voice was weaker, and softer.

"Where are you?" I asked, looking around.

"I'm down here..." I heard several coughs as a small dark shape began moving around in the corner. I saw the shape sit upright before it reached up and pulled a cloth away from its head. After seeing its face, I immediately ran over. It flinched as I got near.

It looked exactly like the dog I had seen at the Bar. Its gray fur looked untidy, and its green eyes seemed almost reproachful of me. I noticed a string of small black spots above both of its eyes; they looked startlingly like eyebrows. It looked very sad and weak, sitting in the corner like it was.

"Are you the dog that warned me about him?" I asked, kneeling next to the dog-creature. I noticed how sickly it looked, as if it had been starved. "About the man that was coming to take me away?"

"No... My Pharris... My sister contacted you. I think they killed her." I could hear a tint of masculinity in his voice; it was subtle, but I realized that this one was a male. He coughed again before continuing. "I think the Master killed her for contacting you." He sounded sad, but he wasn't crying. I wondered if he was even capable of crying in this condition.

I felt so cold. Had that person, Pharris, died just to get me a message? Just to tell me to keep Markus safe, and to make sure I could contact him? Why would she do such a thing if she knew she was in this kind of danger? I collected my thoughts before continuing.

"The master is that man that was in here a minute ago?" I asked.

"Well... he wasn't actually in here, but yeah. That was him."

I noticed that the dog was having trouble speaking.

"You... you aren't doing so well are you?" I asked, concerned. "What's your name?"

He looked up at me before continuing, his green eyes filled with sadness.

"I'm Pharris' brother... Marlowe. He put me in here for trying to... to hide her."

I felt another flash of anger.

Why did it seem that everyone over here had to suffer? How did that man have any right to do this? I realized why I had mistaken him for her now, they must have been twins.

"Just wait a few minutes before trying to contact him, so he doesn't see." Marlowe whispered.

"How long has it been since you've eaten or drank anything?" I asked, concerned.

"It's just been a couple days... I can handle this."

He didn't sound like he was handling it too well. I thought for a moment before deciding that I would try to get him some food.

"Here." I said, handing him my watch from my pocket. He looked at it quizzically.

"Can you wait for this to get to the five here, and wake me up?" I asked, gesturing at the minute hand of the watch.

He seemed confused, but after a moment he nodded that he understood. That would give me exactly ten minutes to leave and return. I leaned back against the floor and began calming myself. I didn't have much time to fall asleep, but my own fatigue pulled me out faster than I would have expected. I felt myself roll over into my own world.

I was immediately surrounded by the sounds of sirens and crying. I felt myself bouncing, and realized that I must be in an ambulance. I saw my mother there, crying. There were also two paramedics. They were both inspecting me as I was lying on the bed.

"Is he gonna be alright?" Mom was sobbing. "There's blood, why is he bleeding?"

I missed the Paramedics reply. I wanted to comfort her, to tell her that I was going to be fine. However, almost as soon as I had gotten into my own world, I felt myself being pulled back. I should have given myself more time than this. I looked around, and saw what appeared to be a lunch box sitting next to one of the paramedics. I'm sorry, guy... was my last thought as my hand draped across the handle and I felt myself blacking out again.

Back again. I jumped up, and the lunch box bounced as I accidentally tossed it a few feet. Crap. Marlowe had been leaning over me, and at my movements he quickly backed up.

"What is that?" He asked me, his eyes wide with confusion. He was looking at me as if he was scared. "Where did that come from?"

I looked over at him, my eyes adjusting to the dim light before I walked over and grabbed the lunch box.

"I was able to get this for you... barely." I opened it up, and was delighted to find a granola bar, a sandwich, and a bottle of water inside. I pulled out the granola bar first before unwrapping it and gesturing for him to take it.

He still looked confused, but he reached out to take it anyway. As his hands reached up from their position on the ground, I realized that he had been cuffed to the wall. His wrists looked as if they were chafing against the metal, and I felt more anger at seeing the cruelty of this man in action.

Marlowe took the food, and after a moment's debate bit into it. He ate timidly at first, and then began speeding up. Before too long the granola bar was gone, and I then opened the water and passed it to him. He drank it quickly, and just before he would have finished it he slowed down and sat the bottle next to him. There was only a little bit left. I passed him the sandwich, and it was gone within minutes. He looked up at me, his eyes alight with hope.

"Thank you!" He said, sounding much livelier. I didn't think it would affect him so much, but everything about his demeanor had shifted. He wasn't looking at me like he was afraid anymore.

"No problem." I replied. "I'm hardly going to watch you starve when I can do something about it."

I remembered the transceiver in my pocket, and suddenly I couldn't get it out fast enough. Marlowe watched quietly as I fumbled to get it out of my pocket. I flipped up the power switch and pressed the talk button, hoping that Markus had his and hadn't turned it off.

"Markus! Markus! Are you there?" I knew I was panicking, but it couldn't be helped. I needed to hear his voice.

A few moments passed, I heard nothing.

"Markus, I really need you to talk to me! Please!"

Still nothing. Had the man lied? Was Markus hurt? No, wait...

"Markus! Press the button on the side!"

It was a stretch, but shortly after I said that the transceiver began spitting static.

"David? Where are you?" He sounded worried, but the second I heard him talking I felt a terrible weight leave my shoulders. He must have forgotten to press the button first. I had only explained it once, after all...

I clicked the button and began talking.

"Markus... I'm fine, but I don't know where I am."

"What do you mean? We were sleeping, and when I woke up you had left!" He sounded mad.

"No, I didn't. Somebody... There was a man, and he somehow... he took me, Markus."

Silence. I was worried that something had happened when Markus began talking again.

"Do you know where you are? What do you see?"

"I'm in some kind of a cell. It's locked, I can't find a way out." Markus must be freaking out. I wondered if he was mad.

"I'm going to look around, don't put yourself in any danger. He couldn't have gone too far." Markus sounded angry. I really hoped it wasn't aimed at me.

"Be careful!" I replied, worried that something might happen to him. Markus didn't respond.

As I was preparing to repeat myself, I heard an unexpected yell to my left. I looked over, and Marlowe was looking at the bottle of water cautiously.

"What are you...?" I began, before looking at it myself. The bottle was shaking, and the water inside was splashing up and down.

"Wait... sis? Pharris?" Marlowe moved closer to the bottle. "Is that you?"

Before I could say anything, I heard a voice. It echoed throughout the chamber, but this time I was able to pinpoint the source to the small bottle, still moving back and forth.

"Marlowe? Is David there?"

The voice sounded as if it was wavering, roiling up from the small bottle.

"Yes, he is! He's fine!"

I was so confused. Is the water talking to us?

"I don't understand, how is your sister... there?" I asked, gesturing to the bottle.

"Oh! I'm sorry!" Marlowe stopped his excited shuffling and looked over to me.

"My sister was one of the Masters subordinates, so she was able to pick up on some of his abilities!" He was smiling, apparently very happy that his sister was alright. I was still very confused.

"So... she's in the water bottle?" I suggested halfheartedly.

Marlowe stopped smiling before responding.

"No, but she can talk through it. It's kind of a frequency thing, I can't really explain it."

"Resonance." Pharris corrected. "I can shift my image from place to place with water; it's how I was able to contact you in your own world. It's not something that everyone is capable of."

Oh. Thinking back, the floor had been wet, hadn't it? I still didn't understand, but the mechanics of water communication were the least of my concerns at the moment.

"Alright then." I replied, no longer questioning them. "I did as you asked. Markus and I are able to contact each other. "

"Good, then we have a chance at getting you out alive." The way she said this made my stomach turn. I was suddenly aware of how little sleep I had gotten.

"I'm glad you were competent enough to get my brother some water, but we don't have much time to waste here. I need you to try and wet the hinges of the door with what's left."

"What will that accomplish? Even if we get through the door, there is a brick wall on the other side..."

"Listen." Pharris spoke through the water. "The man who has targeted you, Nihash, is capable of strange and terrible things. I've only seen a fraction of what he can do, and I've seen many die at his hand. It's... almost as if he can use the life of a creature to bend the laws of reality."

The implications of what she was saying hit my sleepless mind like a hammer. At the mention of the man's name, I immediately felt my skin crawl.

"Most of the simpler tricks he is capable of involve water; those are the skills he passes on to his subordinates. However, he is fully capable of doing many other things, and one of his favorites is to craft illusions with mist. Do you understand?"

Was she suggesting that the brick wall was an illusion?

"Alright, but how will we be able to contact you after the water is gone?" I inquired.

"Just keep yourself safe, and take care of my brother. We'll be fine. Now hurry up and wet the door hinges. Also, the cuffs around my brother's wrist. Be careful not to get the water on his skin. I'll be able to explain what's happening better when we meet in person, so hurry!"

I sighed.

I did as she asked, not wanting to waste any more time. I drizzled some of the remaining water on the Marlowe's cuffs before walking over and splashing it against the hinges of the door. I waited for a moment as nothing happened. Suddenly, I realized that the bottle in my hand was freezing. I quickly dropped it, looking up as the hinges of the door began flash-freezing in front of me. My jaw dropped.

I didn't know what I expected to happen, but it definitely wasn't this. I heard the metal groan as the hinges snapped off, small flecks of ice scattering everywhere. The door's own weight brought it crashing down, and I covered my ears as the reverberations threatened to damage my hearing. I looked past the door to see what I had initially thought was a brick wall fading. It looked almost transparent. I could now see the torches lining the wall behind it, flickering in between the mirage and the darkness beyond. I felt my lost hope returning to me.

Success. The door was out of the way, and as I looked back behind me Marlowe was brushing ice off of himself and flexing his wrists experimentally. After he was satisfied, he looked up at me and grinned before running up next to me.

"Alright, so I guess we have to keep going now." I said, preparing myself.

"We'll be fine; my sister will get us out of here. She's a genius, you know?" Marlowe looked happy. I guess he was excited to be leaving the cell, and to know that his sister was safe. This marked a big change in his life. I realized that it had been a little while since I had heard Markus' voice, and I decided to call him before continuing.

I pulled the transceiver up to my head and clicked in the talk button before speaking.

"Markus? You there?"

He responded back almost immediately.

"Yeah, I'm here. But I can't find anything. I don't know where he went." He sounded dejected.

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry I let this happen to you, David. I thought... I thought you had left me for some reason." Hearing him blaming himself like this was making me uneasy. I replied to him quickly.

"Markus, stop. You know I wouldn't leave, and it's not your fault. Listen, I think I've found a way out. There are some people here helping me. Just try to keep calm, alright? I'll be back before you even miss me."

"I already miss you." That pouting voice again. "Please take care of yourself, alright?"

"I will. Just stay calm, I'll call when I figure out where I am."

I couldn't fault Markus for worrying about me, I was terrified myself. It was all I could do to try to reassure him that I would be fine. Right now I missed him more than anything... but I couldn't tell him that. I needed to be strong, to show him that I could take care of myself until we were together again. The next words out of my mouth were obligatory.

"Markus, I love you."

More static as he got my message.

"I love you too. Please come back."

"I will, don't worry. Keep the receiver near you." I looked at the transceiver for a minute before putting it into my pocket. A glance over to Marlowe revealed that he was looking at me strangely. Maybe he wasn't expecting me to tell Markus that I loved him.

"Let's go, we need to find your sister."

I began walking, and Marlowe wordlessly followed behind me. I pressed my hand against the illusion, and it passed through without resistance. The space where the illusory wall occupied was cold. After taking a moment to steel myself, I walked through. There was a slight chill as my body passed through the illusion. Marlowe followed closely behind.

The hallway looked long and menacing, with torches spaced every few yards down. At the end it curved to the left, much as the road I had initially traveled had. But this time... This time I'm not afraid. Marlowe and I began walking down the path in the light of the torches, ignorant of our destination but confident in our resolve.