A Shadowlander's Dream: Book 1 - A Tale of Shadows (part 14 of 54)

a Original Fiction fanfiction by Kathryn K Williams

Back to Part 13
Death's Corridor

Faceless Soul

Kimberly staggered backwards, "You!" She exclaimed as she suddenly 
realized that it May that stood before her and the memory of the beaten 
she received from the girl came forward in her mind.

"So you do remember me after all." May said her smile growing even 
larger, "Then you remember our little discussion from earlier."

Kimberly nodded her head slowly as she clenched her still aching side 
from where the girl had landed a kick earlier. 

"Good, because I was beginning to worry about you." May said then, 
turned away from the redhead. 

"Ummm... Do you know where we are?" Kimberly started to ask. 

"Did you know we used to be the closest of friends?" May grabbed the top 
of one of the stall doors and set her forehead against the cold steel, 
"We used to walk to school every day and do everything together." Her 
voice was distant, "Did you know that autumn was her favourite season of 
them all. She loved the changing colours of the leaves and how the wind 
seemed to play music with them. It was almost as if she was happiest in 
the fall." She paused, deep in thought. 

Kimberly gazed at the girl curiously, "Who?"

May turned and glared at the redhead with anger in her eyes, "You really 
are stupid, aren't you?" Kimberly flinched at the tone of the girl's 
voice, "Who else would I be talking about? Jenn, you fool... We were not 
in love once?"

"But I thought Kris and Jenn wer-" Kim began to speak, however she 
wished she hadn't as she noticed fury spread across the girl's face.

"Kris? KRIS?!?" May's voice rose until it filled the room, echoing off 
the concrete walls, "I was friends with Jenn long before that... that 
tomboy dyke entered the picture." She punched at the stall door, denting 
it; "Everything was perfect until she showed up. She was always sticking 
her nose into everything. Always blaming me for everything." The anger 
began to drain from May's eye and she leaned against the stall wrapping 
an arm around her waist, "She didn't care how I felt. No one cared..." 
Her voice drifted off. 

Kimberly shifted in her place, trying to figure out what to do when 
May's eyes caught hers, "Ahh yes, then you came along." A sneer crossed 
the girl's lips, "It was kind of interesting. It would seem that Jenn 
didn't remember a thing about Kris. Everything was working out perfectly 
until little you showed up. How exactly did you get in here anyway?" She 
asked calmly, almost sounding as if she was uninterested in hearing an 
answer. 

"I... I don't know..." Kimberly nervously pulled on her sleeves until 
her fingers could not be seen at all, "I fell, I think..." She tried 
hard not to look May in the eyes.  

May stared in disbelief, "You fell?" She leaned against the stall and 
burst into laughter, "She fell!!!" The girl dropped to her knees in 
laughter, "All that work gone to waste because she fell!!!" She rolled 
over onto her back and starred up at the naked bulb, her face suddenly 
sullen; "To think that is all it took. One little girl..."

Kimberly's eyes darted around the room then back to May, "I'm.. I'm 
sorry... I just wanted to get back home." 

May quickly sat up, "Home?" A perplexed look crossed her face as she 
stood up and walked over to Kimberly forcing the girl between two of the 
sinks and setting a hand upon one of them, "Is that so?"

Kimberly nodded her head, "I just wanna go home." Her voice was shaky 
and sounded far away. Fear was showing in her eyes. 

May narrowed her eyes, "Then what are you doing back here? You could 
have turned around but you didn't. Why? WHY!?" She slammed her hand on 
the mirror next to Kimberly's head cracking it and causing Kim to let 
out a small scream.

Kimberly was shaking now. She looked away from May's angry glare; "I've 
been trying to figure that out for the past little while. I know I don't 
belong here, but something kept calling me. That maybe I would be able 
to find her." Kimberly admitted.

May stepped back, "Then what? You will live happily ever after?" She 
turned her back to the girl and stood directly under the light bulb. 

Kimberly stared down at her hands, "No... just to... thank her... I 
guess" she said softly, "To tell her she is not alone." Her final words 
were so quiet that May could not hear them.  

May smiled to herself, "You are really a horrible liar." She said with a 
small chuckle. 

Kimberly stood up, "It's the truth." She said proudly. "I just wanted to 
thank her for listening to me and for understanding. That's all." 

May started to laugh, "Well it doesn't matter because you will never see 
her ever again."

Kimberly stepped forward, "Why not? You know where she is, don't you!" 
Kimberly could feel herself growing bolder. She felt that this girl must 
be the key to finding Jenn, "Why won't you tell me!" She cried.

May turned her head and gazed at the girl, "Why not?" She smiled except 
that this time a set of small fangs poked out from the edge of her 
mouth, "Because you will not leave here alive that's why." She brought 
her hand out from behind her to show that it was now twisted into long 
hooks and claws. Not just her hand but also her entire arm looked like 
jagged bone. She swung at the redhead, barely missing the girl and 
crashing into the sink to her left, sending shards of porcelain flying 
through the air. Kimberly covered her head as she scrambled to get away 
from the insane demon child. 

"You can't hide from me." May yelled at Kimberly's heels, "I know every 
inch of this place so run all you like." Her laughter could be heard 
echoing off the walls. 

Kimberly tried not to slip on the wet floor as she ran, finding a pair 
of double doors that she didn't remember seeing before. Not thinking 
twice about it she dashed across the room and pushed through the doors 
into a locker room. She glanced around the room then ran down one of the 
aisles, through another set of doors into the hall of a school. She was 
somehow in her new school again. Confused, she stumbled around, and then 
turned to her left to see May walking down the hall towards her. 

"What do you think?" She said, waving clawed arms around, "It's real 
down to the last detail. Every day is fall, just as she likes it and 
soon everything will be back to normal." She turned back to Kimberly, 
"That is, of course, once I get rid of you."

Kimberly fell backwards and kicked at the ground trying hard to escape 
this nightmare. It had to be a nightmare; that was the only way to 
explain all of this. She rolled over and started to crawl forward when 
her eyes fell on the reflection of a girl in a glass cabinet. The girl 
was pointing at a door across the way. Kimberly got to her feet and ran 
for the door. She pushed it open then stopped. She found herself 
standing in yet another washroom. This one was smaller and was more 
modern than the last however at the same time it didn't seem to have an 
exit other then a small window.

One of the stalls opened and out walked Jenn. Kim stood in complete 
shock as the girl for whom she had searched for so long walked passed 
her, up to the sinks and started to wash her hands. Kimberly stepped 
forward and tried to find her voice. She reached out a hand towards Jenn 
wanting nothing more then to touch her, to make sure that this was not 
another part of this
Hellish dream. 

Jenn glanced up at Kimberly and smiled, "Oh, Hi May." She said. The 
words caused Kimberly to freeze in place. Fear filled her eyes as she 
turned around to see May standing at the washroom door. Her face was 
warm with a bright smile and her arms were no longer hideous deformed 
claws. 

"Hey Jenn?" May asked while stepping into the room. It was as if she was 
ignoring Kimberly standing between the two of them. She walked straight 
towards the sinks and looked at her reflection in the mirror. "How was 
your weekend?"

"Great!" Jenn replied with a smile, "Yours?"

"Good," May answered back. 

Kimberly stepped back not sure what to think. She did not stop backing 
up until her shoulder bumped into the washroom stalls causing the door 
to bang open, but the sound did not seem to effect either Jenn and May 
in any way. It was almost as if the two girls could not see her at all.

May continued to stare at herself in the mirror but her smile began to 
fade, "Jenn, Can I ask you something?" She said quietly. 

Jenn looked up at May, "Sure anything."

May's head lowered and she stared into the sink, "Anything... I 
sometimes wonder..." It sounded like she was struggling with the words. 

Jenn stepped closer to May and touched her shoulder, "You know you can 
trust me." She said, "We have been friends since kindergarten 'Friends 
till the end' and all that, remember?" 

When May looked up into Jenn's eyes the pain May was going through 
became very clear. She opened her mouth except that no sound came out. 
May returned her eyes to the sink again, "I'm sorry." She muttered. 

Jenn placed an arm around her friend and pulled her close, "It is 
alright. You can tell me." Jenn whispered into the girl's ear. 

May's arms wrapped around Jenn's waist and squeezed her tight, "I'm 
scared." May's whispers were almost sobs. 

Jenn slowly swayed while stroking the girl's back, "There is nothing to 
be afraid of. I'll always be here for you."

May pulled back enough so she could look Jenn in the eyes, "Really? 
Always?" She asked with tears in her eyes. 

Jenn smiled back at the girl, "Of course. Is that what was bothering 
you?" She asked with a chuckle. 

May gave a weak smile, "I love you." She said softly. 

Jenn laughed, "and I love you too."

May brought a hand up and brushed Jenn's cheek, "I will always love 
you." She leaned forward, not letting her eyes off Jenn's until their 
lips touched and the two girls kissed. 

Kim could not believe what she was seeing. May and Jenn were... but she 
thought that Kris and Jenn... Her head started to spin. She looked back 
at the girls as May's hand started to move up Jenn's thigh and under the 
girl's skirt. Kimberly suddenly felt the need to get out of that room 
and was about to leave when Jenn pulled back from May's embrace. 

Jenn could not look May in the eyes, "I... I'm sorry... I shouldn't 
have..." She stammered and she turned to leave. 

May tried to pull Jenn back into her arms, "No don't go. I need you." 
She pleaded. 

Jenn placed a finger on May's lips, "I'm sorry but it just can't be." 
She pulled out of May's arms, "I love you but not like this." She began 
to step towards the door. 

"Oh but you can love Kris, is that it!" May's said. Tears were forming 
in the corners of her eyes, "Why?"

Kimberly all of a sudden felt sorry for May. Kim wanted to reach out to 
the girl when she noticed drops of crimson falling from the girl's 
fingers, pooling on the white tile floors.  She glanced up to see May 
reach out a hand towards Jenn, a cut etched deep into the pale flesh of 
her wrist. 

Jenn did not seem to notice the gruesome scene before her and pushed the 
washroom door open, "That is a different story." She walked out of the 
washroom without so much as a glance back. 

Kim shook her head then let her eyes fall on the floor. The blood was 
now running along the tiles to a small drain in the centre of the room. 
Kim's eyes followed the trail back except it didn't stop at May's feet. 
The crimson path ran between Kim's own legs behind her. Kimberly turned 
around and peered into the stall to find May was now lying on the floor 
of the stall, bloody handprints marking every wall of the stall. Kim 
scrambled to the girl's side and tried to think of what to do. She 
glanced up for some paper towels to see another May standing over her in 
the stall door. 

"You now understand don't you?" May asked, nodding at her own dying 
body. 

Kimberly shook her head in confusion, "Understand what? That you killed 
yourself because you were rejected?" Tears filled her eyes, "She loved 
you and you know it. How could you have done this to her?" The thought 
made all the fear she felt before replace with anger.

"Yes she does." May said with a smile, "and she will always love me."

Kim stood to her feet, "What are you talking about?" Her eyes meet May's 
and would not let go, "You mean this world? Do you really think that by 
repeating this day that she will love you?" Kim was now visibly angry. 

"Well yes actually. That was until Kris showed up." May sneered at the 
name; "I had her all to myself until that bitch started to interfere." 
She stepped closer to Kim, "Then there is you. Do you realize just how 
much damage you caused by being here?" May's fangs returned and her eyes 
again filled with darkness, "Don't think I'd forgotten." A clawed hand 
began to reach towards Kim, forcing her further back into the stall, 
"She was supposed to be with me after lunch and not with you!"

Kim felt her bravery quickly wash away when faced with those taloned 
fingers, "I already told you." Kimberly began to stammer, "I didn't come 
here on purpose."

"Well, it's too late to change things now isn't it?" May said with a 
sinister smile. 

"If you are her closest friend then what do you think your death would 
have done to her?" Kim felt her courage recovering as she stepped 
forwards, "Do you have any idea what it feels like to lose a friend?" 

"I just..." May stumbled backwards, "Why couldn't she just love me?"

"She did love you." Kim noted, "Losing you is probably killing her." 

"No, No!!" May clenched at the sides of her head, "She didn't love me. 
She didn't!" Tears began to stream down the girl’s cheeks.  

The lights started to flicker and fade leaving the two girls alone in 
the dark. A single light drifted down until it fell between the girls 
revealing itself to be a large glowing feather. Panic could be seen on 
May's face as the feather passed her nose while Kimberly only felt 
warmth emitting from the feather. It did not make her afraid at all and 
she couldn't understand May's fear. 

"N... no..."  May began to sob as she spin around, "I don't want to go!" 
She yelled, swinging her hand wildly behind her cutting into something. 
She glanced down at her claws to see there were lines of blood.

"That was not very nice." A voice said from the darkness, "You would 
think that we were not welcome here." Out of the darkness stepped Gwen. 
Three slash marks on her cheek stood out against her white skin. She 
wiped the blood away with the back of her hand and smiled at the girls. 

"Gwen?" Kimberly muttered in awe. 

"Nice to see you again." Gwen said with a smile.

May stepped back, eyes widened with terror "I... I'm sorry." She fell 
backwards into Kim's arms, "Don't let her take me." She pleaded, 
clinging at Kim’s clothes.

"There is no need to be afraid." Said another voice from the darkness. 
Another young winged girl not much taller than Gwen stepped out of the 
dark. She was clad in long brown robes with a sash around her waist and 
a hood pulled over her head. Deep bluish hair hung loosely over her left 
eye while the right side was kept in a neat tight braid off to the side 
of a long face. A sad eye stared out from the shadow of her bangs at 
May, "Gwen will not hurt you." She said while offering a hand out to 
May, "Nor will I."

"NO!!" May yelled pushing away from Kim and broke into a run, only to 
find her way instantly blocked by Gwen. May turned to run in another 
direction to be blocked by the angel yet again, "Get out of my way!" May 
ordered Gwen. 

Gwen simply smiled down at May, "I don't think so." and before May could 
try to run again Gwen had a hand around the girl's throat, "I don't 
think to highly of runners. Or Faceless." Her wings extended and spread 
out wide reaching for the sky. 

"What!?!" May choked against the death angel's hold. 

Kimberly watched in amazement as the angel set a hand on May’s face and 
began to pull what looked like misty light out of the girl. Slowly a 
form started to shape between the angels fingers and a strange porcelain 
mask could be seen over May's face. The mask only had one triangular 
slit in the centre and what appeared to be a single eye staring out of 
it. The angel pulled at the mask forcing it out of May's body until 
finally the two came apart and she let May drop to the ground, tattered 
cloth billowing out from below the floating mask in her hands, if it 
wasn't for the fact that it was moving one would think it was just a 
costume and nothing more. It flailed about in the angel's arms in a vain 
attempt to get free, however Gwen only continued smile at it. She took 
one hand and shoved it into the centre of the robes and Kimberly had to 
cover here ears as the creature let out an unearthly howl. 

The angel did not seem effected by the screams as she twisted her hand 
deeper inside the robes almost in search of something. She pulled her 
hand out and bits of light could be seen shining through the cracks 
between her fingers, and then she smashed the mask on the ground 
shattering it into tiny pieces. A small marble eye rolled across the 
ground stopping at Kim's feet staring up at the girl. Something came 
over the girl and she felt the urge to stop the eye from looking at her 
so she did just that. The eye made a sickening small pop as the 
redhead's foot crushed it to the ground. 

May started to rise to her feet while holding her head, "Unnnnn..." She 
staggered a little as she tried to stand. Angelina caught the girl 
before she fell to the ground again, "Where am I?" May asked bewildered.

"Safe. My name is Angelina." Angelina said softly, "It is time to go 
home now." and she began to lead May into the darkness. 

"Wait!" Kimberly started after the two when Gwen stopped her.

"It is not your time yet." Gwen said calmly, "You were very brave you 
know that?" She said with a smile. 

"I just wanted to help her." Kimberly said as she watched as May and 
Angelina disappeared into the distance. 

"But you are needed somewhere else now, am I right?" Gwen said nodding 
behind Kimberly. 

Kimberly turned around to see a pair of double doors. She turned back to 
the angel, "T.. Thank you." She bowed and ran towards the door. She did 
not see the angel disappear behind her as she pushed through the door to 
find herself standing on a long beach, in her nightgown once again. A 
long cliff running off to the right and a bright red sun could be seen 
setting over the ocean. Near the waters edge Kim could see Jenn, in a 
hospital gown, lying in the sand with the waves lapping at her feet. Kim 
slowly approached the girl to see that she had her eyes shut and 
appeared to be fast asleep. Kim gazed down at the sleeping girl. Jenn 
seemed so peaceful laying there, the wind playing with her hair. Not 
wanting to wake her just yet Kim slowly lowered herself into the sand 
next to the girl and watched the setting sun. After a while Kim glanceed 
back to Jenn. The girl didn't seem to move since Kim got there. Kim 
leaned over the girl to see if indeed she was alive. Just as she was 
lowering herself closer to Jenn's face her eyes snapped open causing Kim 
to jump backwards and land in the water. 

"Kim?" Jenn said startled to see her friend. She then turned bright red 
and looked down at the ground. 

"What’s wrong?" Kim asked then she noticed that the nightgown was 
sopping wet and she could see right through it. She turned several 
shades of red then crouched into the water again to cover herself up 
when she felt something move under the water, "huh?" Kim turned around 
to see what it was when she felt it touch her ankle and quickly stood, 
"There is something in here!" She exclaimed. 

Jenn recovered from her embarrassment, "What do you mean?" She started 
towards Kim when suddenly the girl was dragged under the water, 
"KIMM!!!" Jenn called out as her friend disappeared under the surface. 

Without hesitation Jenn ran into the water and dove in. Kim struggled 
against whatever had a hold of her leg as she was dragged deeper into 
the murky waters. Jenn swam down quickly and took hold of Kim's arm. She 
tried to pull the girl to the surface; nevertheless whatever had a hold 
on the girl was now pulling the two of them into the watery depths. Jenn 
swam deeper and tried to pry the hands off of Kim when the face of a 
person came into light. The face was slightly charred, it was the face 
of her mother and the look on the woman's face was almost sad. The woman 
let go of Kim to reach out towards her daughter. Jenn blinked in 
confusion and started to reach out for her mother when Kim suddenly 
grabbed the girl by the arm and started to pull her to the surface. 
Before they could reach the surface of the water something got a tighter 
grip on the girl's legs and pulled them down with more force than 
before, dragging them into the darkness below. 

*****

To be Continued...

Onwards to Part 15


Back to A Shadowlander's Dream: Book 1 - A Tale of Shadows Index - Back to Original Fiction Shoujo-Ai Fanfiction