My eyes open to see only but a blur. My head spinning around in circles, I can barely hear anything. I can see Addie walking towards me. His slobbery tongue licks my face.

The blast has knocked me so hard to the floor. I try to get back up, but I collapse back down. Struggling to grab firm on the floor, pieces of the coffee table is shattered, splinters wedge in my skin alongside some cuts. I'm able to see both hands and part of my torso bleeding.

I do it again, pulling myself up. I manage to stumble myself back to my feet. I can hear Addie's barking. It was booming noises at first, yet I'm able to hear it more clearly. Addie reaches back to the windows, barking loudly. He then turns right back at the door.

"What's going on out there?"Anita yells back in my room.

I still try to get hold of my balance, still feeling the dizziness. My mind hurts so much. I rub my temple as firm as I can. I then see two windows getting crashed. Glass shards fly inside the dining room. Addie gets back, close towards me. I spot two figures climbing inside the two broken windows. Anita continues to yell worrisome.

Looking back at the two figures, both of them are trollish and tall. They have soggy, ghostly white skin, black veins popping out; their hands are like sharp claws; their beady eyes pitch black. Both of them having scratch marks all over their bodies, while wearing long loincloths, almost looking tribal.

I notice their sharp teeth mouths. They both look grim, and then Addie starts to get defensive. I try to move forward, yelling Addie's name, but an intense pain in my back stops me. I almost drop down. Addie comes over to me. Then suddenly as I glance back at those two troll-like goons.

I hear another voice. A voice that sounds dark, yet ominous. I then look at the doorway, as the front door being bent back because of the blast. Another figure begins to enter. He's a slender, muscular bound male figure wearing a light brown monk robe; his arms sleeveless, his skin completely pitch black, with odd looking gold symbols tattooed all over his body, and a hood covering his face.

Who could he be? I then hear the figure. "Naven Blackvale."

I remain stunned. I try to get up, but then the figure pushes me back. I land hard on the floor back first. I feel a lot pain roaming through my body. It's like I'm paralyzed. I can feel my whole body bursting from the inside. I then glance to see the hooded figure holding out his hand. He's doing this.

Why?

He then steps over my torso with his boot. The pain within me is unimaginable. I then listen to the hooded figure, as I see Addie being restrained. He keeps barking, but those troll goons are keeping my dog down. What is this?

"You have something I want." The hooded figure says.

I don't know what he's talking about. The figure then stomps on my torso with a hard boot. I want to yell out, but I manage to withhold it. The figure stomps again and again. I try my best to withhold the pain that's coming from inside my body like an ongoing searing. Then this creep stepping on my torso. I can't stand this agony, yet I don't want to alarm Anita. She needs to stay back in the room.

I continue to hear Addie barking. He breaks free of his hold, trying to rush towards me and attack the hooded figure. However, one of those troll goons violently yanks Addie's collar and throws Addie into the dining room.

I try to yell out for Addie, yet this torment is messing up with my voice. Addie. His name is one of two loved ones I'm thinking right now. I want him to be okay, but then I see the hooded figure.

"Don't worry about that canine. He's not our concern. I want what's mines."

I fight through the pain, "What?!" I murmur.

The hooded figure then grabs hold of my chin. He pulls me up close to him. I can barely see his face with the hood still covering him. Only darkness is what I see. The pain he somehow unleashed inside me is still disabling me. I can barely move my fingers.

"Do you want to know what's underneath the hood?" He asks.

I try not to respond, I try to turn back around, but then he forces my chin back to his view. He begins to take off the hood. His bald head, his skin all black and gold colored symbols tattooed on his face and neck. His right eye fully red with a black iris, and then his left almost ripped off.

"You see my face now. Now give it to me." He orders as his neck twitches.

I refuse to say anything because I don't know what this freak wants. Suddenly the figure twists his hand, a sharp pain suddenly grabs hold of my insides and feels like its being shattered. I can feel tears coming down my eyes, but I can muster through. Then as I open my eyes after squinting so much. The freak punches my gut hard. He throws me to the ground and starts viciously, beating me up. A lot of punches and kicks to my face, chest, and torso.

I just take the beating; I look on to see his troll goons standing guard. Anita has yet to come out, and that's good. I wish Addie can do something and bite them. Then I begin loose sighting as the hooded figure continues to beat me almost senseless.

I spit out tons of blood. I can taste it. I see the pool of red lands on the carpet floor. The pain that once crippled me from the inside is now gone. Strikingly, the pain the freak had me in, reminded me of the burnt ache. I don't know how, but as I try to recollect myself. I lost count how long I got beaten. I can't stand the torture, but I shouldn't yell. I can feel my right eye almost half-blind. I notice near a glass shard. My face totally bruised. I feel my lips bruised. Then suddenly, I can feel my hair pulled.

"I don't care...what you...do to me." I swallow some excess blood. "I don't know...anything."

Then I spot the hooded figure knocking me back to the floor face first. My face lands hard on the floor. He then whispers to my ear. "I won't stop." He then stomps on my left hand hard. I hold myself from yelling; though I can feel as if my bones in my left hand have been broken.

The figure grabs me by the hair and then by the chin, he pulls me close to his face.

"Where is it?" The figure demands again.

"I really don'...don't know. What are you...talking about?"

The figure then summons another prismatic orb; he rolls it around his left hand. Suddenly, I notice it's turning into a ball of blue fire. He threatens me, "Where is it."

"I'm telling you the truth!" I plea.

The figure doesn't like it, and then attempting to throw it at me. I close my eyes. However, I hear a blast, an explosion-like thud. I shift my eyes to the kitchen; parts of the wood cabinets are engulfed in blue flames.

I suddenly react weird as I see that fire, then I overhear the gold tattooed figure saying, "Doesn't that look so familiar."

Suddenly, I see them again. The images of the FLAMES, BURNT WOOD, THREE BODIES. It appears again. I react stunned. How this freak knows about my family fire. Only few people knew-my aunt, Dr. Ryland, and Director Vartwild. The images of the other fire starts clouding me.

Suddenly I don't know if I'm actually in an illusion. I try to close my eyes, but then I feel a cold tip. An eerie cold going down my face, my neck, and then to my chest. I open back my eyes and then I see the point of a dagger pressed down to my chest area. I feel the sharp point, pressing hard on my skin like thorns pricking.

"Give it to me. I know you have it." He says.

I just refuse to say anything. I'm not going to tell him, because I don't have what he's looking for. The figure looks dissatisfied. He then presses the point of the blade hard, as he begins cutting me. Slicing the same part again, and again. I sough in the pain. It's like my chest being ripped apart slit by slit. I have withheld the pain for long. I don't know how far I can handle this.

"I'm tired of waiting." The figure says annoyed.

Then without provocation, he stabs me. The dagger goes deep in my torso. Not standing anymore, I let out one ailing yell. "Agghh!" The dagger is suddenly forced out of me, I fall to my knees. Blood creeps out of the wound. I try to cover it with my hand. I spit more blood, as it lands on the floor again.

Anita should stay in the room. However, she's standing in the hallway. She calls out for me, I see her frighten face. I try to shout at her. "No, Anita...get back!"

She tries to escape, but being frozen in fear, she gets caught by one of the troll lackeys. It then hits her hard. That one punch forces her to fall to the floor unconscious.

"No!" I try to get to her, but the gold tattooed figure puts his hand into my stab wound. I scream in pain. The agony rising. I try to say it, but with him holding on into my wound. He's like paralyzing me. I land on his chest, as I hear him ordering his troll lackeys to ransack my place, to find the piece.

I'm losing blood, losing consciousness, my kitchen is on fire, and my apartment is being tossed around like a ragdoll. I hear a lot of breakage. Soon, the figure knocks me back to the floor.

I can see myself as my six year old self. I couldn't save my family back then; and now it's happening all over again. My girlfriend's unconscious and these freaks are trying to find something I have no clue.

As I lay on the floor, I try to cover my wound. Then out of the blue, the figure then pulls the dagger back to me. The blood stained tip sliding down my left cheek. And then remains there. He leans close to me. I feel beaten, bloodied, and tortured. And he's still not done. Maybe until he finds that object.

He demands once again where it is. I struggle to speak back, "Please stop...this...I...I...I don't...know."

The figure doesn't respond, he just stand back up repelling the blade. But he then stomps on my wound. I cry in pain. I can barely squint, yet the pain is unfathomable. I cradle over my wound once again. Blood is still coming out. I don't know what to do until I spot the figure freaking out about something. "Stop!" He yells, "They're coming."

Whose coming?

But before they begin to depart; the figure makes one more stunning order. He instructs the goons to bring the norm girl. I look to Anita still unconscious, near the hallway floor. They're going after her. I fight myself up to stop them. I then notice Addie coming out of nowhere.

He tries to attack one of the lackeys' biting one of its hands, but then the gold tattooed figure back hands Addie straight to the floor. He then violently stomps him.

"No, Addie!" I continue to get up, crawling to the bar counter. I use the counter to pull myself up. And then as I turn back, I see Anita being carried by one of the lackeys. The figure puts back on his hood. I fight through the pain and trudge my way, hoping to stop them. But then the hooded figure sends out a blast.

The bluish blast forces me back so hard, my head hitting the wood bar counter. The hit knocks me out. I see black, but slowly I'm going back and forth, slipping in and out of consciousness.

"See you next time, Harbinger." The hooded figure says as he leaves me with that. I watch helpless as Anita is carried away, the hooded figure and his lackeys escaping through the front door.

I try to see Addie, hoping he's not dead. Hoping Anita is not dead. This has to be a nightmare. I want to wake up now.

However, my eyes are already closed.

***

Anita!

Her name I cry quietly. I jolt up breathing hard. I'm not dead. Is this a dream? I look around frantically. I'm lying in a hospital matbed. I look up seeing the ceiling, all the walls feels white. I notice figures approaching the observation window.

The last thing I saw was Anita getting kidnapped, Addie trying to help me but got hurt, and me. I then notice bandages wrapped on my arms. I see my exposed chest covered in sticky wires, bandages around my abdomen.

So I was hurt for real.

But not Anita, she's not gone. She's here. This has to be a twisted nightmare. I begin yelling out Anita's name multiple times. However coming over the observation window is my aunt and then Joa. I'm baffled why he's there by the side of my aunt. But where's Anita?

She was with me.

"Where is Anita?" My head weaves side to side, checking out the window. Not seeing another coming. "I want to see her!" I holler.

I beg for her, and as well for Addie. I repeat many times, saying their names. I need to see them here alive. I'm starting to panic, ripping out all the wires attached to my chest. I stand up getting out of the cushy bed. My feet land on the icy floor.

Then the metal doors towards my right slide to the right. A middle age man with brownish-grey hair, fare skin, and brown eyes covered with silver glasses walks through the doorway. It's Dr. Ryland. Why is he here? He shouldn't be here. He calmly approaches me, holding tight on his glassboard in one hand. He tries to help me, leaning out his other hand.

"Naven, please!"

I push his arm away. Suddenly a bunch of mediaides, some of them brute and tall, arrive to help subdue me. I try to fight back, yet Dr. Ryland explains, "It's been a couple of days. I didn't know when you was going to awake."

As the medi aides try to hold me down, each aide grabbing hold each of my arms. The doc reminds them don't hurt me, my wounds are still fresh. I try to struggle where Dr. Ryland wants me to be calm. I think about my girlfriend, Anita...and then Addie.

"I want to see my dog. I want to see him now!"

Then the image of the black freak with golden tattoos, suddenly takes the place of the doc.

He's not real.Not real!He's not real!

I shake my head, hitting it. I pause when Dr. Ryland tells me calmly that I can't see my dog. I push forward, but the aides keep pushing me back. They try to restrain me to the bed, but I do my best to fight hard. I look to Dr. Ryland, I ask him why. "Where's Addie?"

Dr. Ryland with his head down, "He had to undergo surgery."

Surgery?! The doc lets me know Addie's ribs were broken; there were also shards of glass found in him. There's some internal bleeding, it could be serious. But they can save him. I slowly shake my head not believing it. He has to be lying. My dog is not hurt. I'm the one who is hurt. I tripped and busted myself. Not Addie.

Then I think about Anita. Where is she? Where is she!? I then break hold of my restrain; I grab hold of Dr. Ryland's shirt. Accidentally, I hit him with my elbow, but I plea with him to tell me where is she. Where is Anita? She has to be here.

"You can't have this now." Dr. Ryland grabs hold onto my shoulder. "You need to rest and recover."

I grab hold of his right hand. I kneel down begging him to tell me. I lean my head. I feel tears coming down, but I fight it through. I yell out, "Anita!" I then get up and bang on the observation window. Aunt Verdi and Joa back away petrified. And then as I keep yelling for her. Dr. Ryland finally tells me.

"When we found you and your dog, the apartment was already ruined. Yet there was no one else there."

That's not true! Holding my head, tapping and rubbing my temple constantly, I lash out uncontrollably. I go bezerk screaming no, and I keep yelling Anita's name again and again. Then the medi aides force me back to my bed. They restrain me 'harshly, if necessary' that's how Dr. Ryland refers it. As I keep yelling Anita's name repeatedly, Dr. Ryland grabs my left arm, and forces it down. I try to fight back.

"Don't fight it. Control it. This will help you control." He says.

Suddenly he injects some sort of liquid from a needle gun into my left arm.

It seems it's a sedative. My eyes rapidly close. I can hear the doc saying, "There's nothing to fear, be in control." He repeats it again.

I heard that phrase. He used that same phrase when he helped me with the fire. But how can I be in control and let go of the fear.

I want the fear to be a forgotten memory. I tried to believe it was a nightmare. Why is this happening to me? Why people I care have to suffer.

My mind's not playing tricks on me. When I wake up, I need to realize this isn't a dream.

It's real.

That hooded freak has her.

----

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