Mallory fell asleep in the comfortable bed faster than she expected she would, her eyes closing and dozing off as soon as she wrapped herself in the covers. Her slumber was dreamless and tranquil for the first few hours. Then, she felt herself being pulled in that familiar void. After her failed attempt at swinging her arm of her own will, she felt herself starting to panic, dreading how trapped she felt the last time she had that dream. No, not this again!

As she felt the tears well up in her eyes and kept wriggling against the invisible current drawing her deeper into the darkness, that slender pair of eyes appeared before her once more. Although she had seen them before, they took her breath away with their imposing size and fiery nature. They looked to squint in reaction to her struggling, and that booming voice permeated the dimension with, "I heard what you said to her. Stop lying to yourself."

In her panting, she tried to ask the tormentor what he wants, but she could not even open her mouth to speak.

The eyes widened with a sort of understanding in her struggle. As if reading her mind, the voice boomed with, "I want what you want. To rid the world of its poison." Her expression did not change, and she continued to struggle against his omnipotent grasp. That is when the being's eyes narrowed, and it finished its claims with, "To rid the world of Eagle Eye."

The tension in Mallory's face released with his final statement, and somehow, she felt a sort of comfort in his presence. Even though she hated being in that place, being taunted by this force in her dreams, she felt like whoever this was really meant what he said. Still, she knew there was something sinister about these dreams, and this being might not have her best interest in mind. After a moment of staring into the giant pair of fiery eyes, she started to struggle again. No, I don't trust you!

"I'm sure you don't," he responded, "you are a smart girl. But in due time, you will trust me."

Who are you?

The corners of the eyes raised in response, as if the being was smiling. "A friend."

Mallory continued to struggle, her mind running rampant in response to the being's latest, most unbelievable claim. Those last two words the being spoke echoed through the abyss for what felt like hours, and the purple flames that shaped its eyes started to falter back and forth. The voice was not responding to anymore of her thoughts, she was just stuck to panic in solitude. Suddenly, she was thrust toward the flames of the eyes. Finally, she was able to force a sound out of her mouth with a high-pitched shriek.

Her scream carried out into reality, bolting upright in bed covered in a sweat that chilled her to the bone, with only the tears streaming down her eyes to warm her face.

Grace shot up off of the floor at the sound of the girl's scream. Her back had been facing Mallory, so she turned her head back to see her agonizing trembling in bed. Grace rushed to her feet and ran towards Mallory's side, throwing her arms around the girl and holding her tight. "Mallory, it's alright!" Grace pleaded, squeezing her tighter as she continued to scream. "It's okay, you're safe! Please calm down!"

Feeling Grace's embrace and seeing the dark room made her think she was still stuck in the dream but hearing Grace's voice helped her snap out of it. Her scream finally broke and diminished into heavy panting, her chest heaving up and down. She wrapped her own arms around Grace's and sank her head into Grace's chest. Grace started stroking the back of her hair and eased her terror with a quiet hush.

There was a knock on the door that startled Mallory a bit, to which Grace responded with a light pat on her head. "What's going on in there?" Rod's voice called from the hallway.

"It's alright, Dad!" Grace called, blinking some tears out of her eyes, her voice a little shaky. "Mallory just had a nightmare. We're okay."

"Sheesh," Rod grunted, "nearly gave me a heart attack. Tell her sweet dreams, maybe that'll help." His voice trailed off as he started to walk away, and they could still hear him mumbling irritably through the wall.

Grace scowled at her father's indifference, continuing to comfort the girl in her arms.

Once Mallory finally caught her breath, she whimpered, "I'm sorry."

"No, you have nothing to apologize for," Grace assured, still caressing her short hair. "Dad gets plenty of sleep. He can handle one rude awakening."

Mallory sniffled, trying to regain her composure. Since she realized she was no longer in that void, it felt good being in Grace's embrace. She felt like she could lean against her warm body for the rest of the night, but she did not want to burden Grace and the others anymore with her constant distress. With that, she let go of Grace and leaned away from her.

Grace noticed Mallory's resistance and she let go of her. She watched her sit up in the bed, breathing shakily and wiping the tears from her cheeks. The girl had a dead look on her face, like she was trying to toughen up, or detach herself from her emotions. That look worried Grace. Don't do that, you're still so young. You don't need to act so numb. Grace wanted to tell her what she thought, but she knew it would not do much good. Although Mallory was just a girl, she had a strong resolve, knowing well that she would be too stubborn to be convinced. Coming to that conclusion, Grace brightened up for her sake, and suggested, "How does a glass of water sound?"

Mallory perked up a bit, glancing at her from the corner of her eye, and she nodded.

Grace smiled ear to ear and rubbed the back of Mallory's head one more time. She felt her own clothing was somewhat damp after holding Mallory for a while. "I'll go get you some water and a towel. I'll be back soon, okay?"

The girl nodded again, holding her bare arms and wiping off some of the perspiration.

Grace walked out of the room quickly, leaving the door open behind her.

As nice as a glass of water sounded for her dry mouth, Mallory felt nervous being alone in the dark again. She knew she would be fine as long as she stayed awake, though. Even so, one thought still ran through her mind after hearing Grace's claim to her father that it was only a nightmare. It wasn't just a nightmare.

***