Twisted Returns

This silence is deadly.

At first they all stare down at the mess. The green liquid bubbles on the table, and the crystal shards swim inside.

Then their eyes move up. I stare at the walls, but I feel their eyes on me, accusing, searching, staring.

I run.

Past the table, through the door. I don't look back. Not even when they call my name. Not even when the screaming starts.

I don't know where my feet are taking me. But I know I have to run. Past the Hall, through the dining room, and to the kitchen. Yet about twenty feet away from the door, I instinctively turn.

Suddenly a rumble goes through the ground. Unlike the usual tremors that quickly pass, this one lingers. And grows stronger.

I see it before I know what's going on. The cracks forming in the ceiling, creeping slowly towards me. The walls, shaking and bending.

I have no choice but to back up against the wall, wondering if I should have taken the potion. I can already see the ceiling crumbling away, letting me see a glimpse of sunlight for the first time in ages.

The hallway begins to collapse while I wish myself away. This is a dead end. I go to the corner and find myself falling through the wall.

Behind it is a spiral staircase. There is no where to go but up, since the hallway behind me collapses. And so I run.

With no time to feel relief, I push myself to run faster. The stairs go up higher and higher, and for the first time it occurs to me what would happen if the base of this collapsed. But there is no where else to go.

My legs should be tired, but they're not. I should be gasping for breath, but my breathing stays almost calm. After a month in this body, it is now that I notice all the perfect imperfections. All flawless, but this is not me. I am an alien in this body.

The stairs stop. In front of me is a long hallway. Automatically, I start to blink rapidly, as there is bright light coming from the end. It's brighter than the usual glow of the walls in this palace. I don't hesitate to walk towards it, because I have nothing left to lose anyways.

Dana, Dana, where are you? Marigold's panicked voice asks. I stop in my tracks, wondering if my escape is over.

But then I remember the crystal pendant around my neck. I tug on it, and the thin chain leaves scratches on my skin. It snaps and I throw it on the ground, abandoning my only form of communication.

I continue down the hallway. I can see a room ahead, a glass wall in front of me. There is no door. I stop, and reach out hesitantly to touch the glass. I find my whole arm going through, and pull myself through the glass.

Past this barrier is another room of glass. It's warmer than I'm used to, although it might be considered room temperature on Earth. The sunlight is blinding, or so it seems, since I haven't seen light this bright in weeks.

I stop closer to the outer walls of this room and realize for the first time how high up I am. And how different the outside world is.

The landscape that I had seen before is demolished. There is barely any vegetation left - undamaged, that is. I can see so far in this room.

I can see Cherymin Village, the former home of Crystalline Iris. Of course, that girl is gone - and so is her village. Lorraine will have nothing to return to.

There is red everywhere. Like the horrifying time I visited the village, I can't tell whether the color come from blood or not...

I look down at the base of the castle, and the sunlight catches on a head of blonde hair. I wonder if it's anyone I know. Lynda, maybe. I fix my eyes on that figure.

I flinch when the figure gets struck by something. I keep watching. And watching. Whoever it is, they don't get up.

Then I notice it happening everywhere. People dropping to the ground, lifeless. And something strange happens - I start to see the people I know, the people I've met in my life, whether it makes sense or not.

I see Teena, even though I know fully well that it is not her, and she is still on Earth. I see her curly hair, her hazel eyes. Dead.

I see Wessley, fighting another figure. Winning. Then getting shot in the back. With him actually in the battle, I can't be sure if this is real or not.

I see Dean, in his human body. I see Savannah, the slut from my school on Earth. I see my human mother. I see Lorraine, a tiny girl on the battlefield. I see Jscott, that waiter from Singapore. I see all the people that have passed through my life. Amanda Jesse Cody Katie Jason Alyssa Elaina Marigold Kellis Ashlee Aaron...

I see them all. And they're dead.

I turn away from the window, but I still see those images when I close my eyes. I can't tell if they're real or not.

Whatever they are, I try to block them out. I shove them into that dark corner, where the forbidden lies. These are the things that I must not remember.

But that part of my mind is overflowing, threatening to bust. So I do something I never would have been able to do in my human body - I shut it down.

I don't know how long it takes, but eventually the world makes sense again. I find myself sitting against a wall, my head between my knees. My breaths begin to slow and for the first time I can fully observe my surroundings.

Only three walls are made of glass, not the whole room like I had originally thought. Another hallway exists next to the one I came from. The walls are blue, but not ice.

I realize that I recognize this place. I came here for a reason, but I can't quite place it.

Then it hits me. This is the shelter. The last place I was at before I died.

I wonder if history will repeat itself.

Last time, I only died because I left the shelter. This is the last place I will ever remember being in when I was only Diana. I wonder if it will be the same for Dana.

Of course, it only happened because I left the shelter. Nothing can get to me when I'm in here. I can live out the rest of my life here. But what is there to live for?

If I leave, there will be no living. That is not a choice. But if I don't, this war will continue until Crystallaria is barren.

Once again, I am faced with a choice I can't make. This time, the choices are harder and the stakes are higher.

They fight each other, destroying my mind in the process. So I shut them down until there is only one thought in it. One thought that swirls around, repeating itself over and over...

What have I done?