Imaginary - Book 2 - Chapter 41 - In the Dark of Night (Patreon)

Sorry this is a day late... I couldn't, for the life of me, motivate myself to write this yesterday. I think the problem is that this is EXACTLY the sort of storyline I wanted to write for book two, showing that yes the kids are powerful, but this isn't your typical superhero story and they're as vulnerable as anyone else, but at the same time it's not exactly the type of storyline I'm eager to write when I'm in the midst of a bout of depression.

Thankfully the most depressing parts should be done soon, and hopefully that'll boost my enthusiasm for finishing the book. Once either this or WWotWW are off my plate I can focus on DD book 3, which is something I'm really looking forward too...

Once I go through the last two books and compile a complete list of all the bit characters I've introduced so I don't forget. There are so many.

Hitting the pavement hard, I rolled just in time to see that phantom blade come ripping down the street. I opened my mouth to scream at Kira to move, but nothing would come out, when I tried to stand to help her my muscles wouldn’t move. I couldn’t turn my head. I couldn’t even blink.

All I could do is watch as she attempted to twist away, only for that horrid attack to catch her in the upper arm and rip off her arm. Again. 

Blood sprayed across the area, coating my face, and all I could do was stare. “No…” I finally managed to choke out. “No!”

The scene froze, then glitched back a few seconds, and restarted. Forcing me to watch it again.

“Stop!” I screamed, finally finding the strength to turn away and close my eyes.

“Tamera! Tammy!” I jolted awake by someone gently shaking me, and my blurry eyes took a moment to acclimate to the dark

“Mom? Where am I? How long have I been asleep?” I asked groggily as I lifted my head to look around the room. 

“You’re in one of the patient rooms,” she replied quietly. “Apparently you passed out mid-conversation with your friends, so they asked Mac to bring you here.” 

“I did? I don’t remember that,” I said, shaking my head, trying to clear the cobwebs. It took me a couple of moments for my brain to engage, but when I did, I immediately bolted upright and looked at my mother. “What about Kira? Is she alright?”

Although I couldn’t see her expression, I could make out her silhouette by the bed. She didn’t reply.

“Mom?” I prompted.

“I don’t know the full details, but I apparently arrived after they finished the surgery,” she finally said. “From what I overheard, Kira is going to be fine; they managed to fully stabilize her, but the damage to her arm was too severe, and they couldn’t reattach it.”

“Oh,” I replied quietly. It’s the only thing I could think of. Pulling my legs in close, I buried my face into the back of my knees to hide the tears which I knew were coming. “What about Kyle? And her parents?”

“I think they took Kyle over to see her, and I personally called everyone’s families while I was stuck in lockdown back at the office,” she explained. “They were out of town on business, but they’re catching the next possible flights back, and should be here by morning.”

I nodded quietly. “And since you’re here can I assume that…” 

“They caught the one responsible? Yes. It actually happened only minutes after you kids were evacuated, but they Beureu didn’t want to lift the lockdown until he was properly contained and outside the campus,” she said. “I guess they didn’t want to risk him getting loose and hurting someone else.”

“How nice of them,” I hissed into my knees.

“Tammy, are you okay?” my mother asked quietly. “Mac told me that you only had a few scrapes and bruises, and that you’d received some treatment, but…”

“Physically? Yes, but mentally…? I don’t know,” I muttered weakly. “I know everyone says what happened wasn’t my fault, but I can’t help but feel guilty. I was only a few steps away when it happened, and I’m the one that called out to warn her. Maybe if I’d noticed a the attack just a second faster, or just called out a moment earlier, she’d be fine right now.”

“And if you’d been just a fraction slower, she wouldn’t even be here right now,” my mother replied, wrapping her arms around me. “I heard that after Kira got hurt you stayed behind and did everything you could to save her. You should focus on what you did, not what you could have done.”

“That doesn’t stop me from feeling guilty,” I sobbed before crossing my legs so I could lean forward and embrace her. “I can’t get it out of my head. I see it happen over and over whenever I close my eyes,” I whispered.

“I wish I knew what to tell you, I can’t even imagine seeing something like that, but once this is all over the two of us will sit down with the doctor and see if there’s anyone you can talk to,” she said soothingly.

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea…” I muttered.

“It’s better than bottling up all your emotions,” my mother said. “I know that before we discovered you were an Empowered person I had to spend a lot of time working, and I left a lot of the household responsibilities to you. It forced you to act more maturely and become more self-reliant than your peers, which I regret forcing on you, but you need to realize you don’t have to handle everything yourself. You have me, and your friends. You can ask for help occasionally. Trust others to help you.”

“Alright, I’ll consider it,” I sniffled, pulling back from the hug.

“Good, because your well being matters more to me than anything else, I hope you realize that,” she whispered.

“I know…” I whimpered.

“And I’ll do whatever I need to in order to help you get through this,” she continued. I nodded wordlessly.

“Now,” she said, gently pushing me back. “While I know you’re worried about your Kira, it’s probably one of the reasons you can’t get that moment out of your head, but you really need to lay down and try to get some sleep. While Kira was injured, you shouldn’t ignore the fact that you went through a traumatic experience. You need to rest, and recover too.”

“I don’t think I can,” I whispered as I leaned back, laying my head on the pillow. “Not with everything going through my head.”

“You need to try. We’re unlikely to hear anything about Kira until tomorrow anyways, so you should do everything you can to take care of yourself,” she stepped away and grabbed a chair that was sitting against the wall then dragged it over to my bedside. “Would it make you feel better if I stayed here with you?”

“I’m not a child,” I muttered tiredly.

“Really? So would you like me to leave?” my mother asked.

“I didn’t say that,” I grumbled, pulling the thin covers up as far as they’d go. “You’re not going to leave after I fall asleep, right?”

“I’ll be right here when you wake up in the morning, I promise,” she said. “And once you get up I’ll go with you to check to see how Kira and the others are doing.”

“Good,” I muttered, stifling a yawn. I didn’t turn to look, but I could feel her comforting presence beside me. “Mom, I know I don’t say this enough, but I love you.”

She chuckled. “You say it more than enough, and when you don’t say it, your actions speak volumes. I love you too,” she said. “Now, sleep.”

“Alright…” I muttered, closing my eyes.

And for the first time in several hours, I didn’t immediately relive that bloody moment over and over in my mind, allowing me to finally get some restful sleep.