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Description
The void beckons. But to heed it's soothing call is to lose ones self completely.

Disclaimer: Demongo, Aku, Samurai Jack and all belonging to that series belongs to Genndy Tartakovsky. Alex is mine, Andy is ANDREAc's and Sarah Pendragon is ~KiraDrakken24's.
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Demon Dealings

Chapter 16

Nothing. No sound, no sights, no sensations. There was nothing all around me, and I was floating through nothing, and I was nothing. It covered me like a blanket and I wrapped it around me and let it course through me. I drifted weightlessly and just enjoyed the sense of not existing. That is, I thought I didn't exist anymore. Did I?
The thought wormed into my head and I tried to turn away from it, back into the comforting state of being a negative space. It was peaceful here, I was warm and comfortable, with no cares to hound me and, most importantly, there wasn't any pain. I floated aimlessly, going nowhere, a hole in the fabric of reality. I curled myself tighter and dug deeper into the blackness that cocooned me.
But if you're nothing, my mind whispered, how can you have any sense of self at all?
Shut up, I thought weakly. Leave me be. I'm fine the way I am.
See? That's what I mean, my mind pushed back harder. You have wants and needs. And you think about yourself. Therefore you still exist. So where is it exactly that you are currently existing?
“Who cares?” I said out loud. The sound of my own voice startled me, shattering the quiet emptiness around me. I curled up tighter, pulling the quiet back around me. Maybe you have a point, I thought begrudgingly. Maybe I do still exist. But I'm probably dead so what does any of that matter? Let me go back to sleep.
You're going to have to wake up and face the facts sooner or later, my mind insisted. It's only a matter of time.
I rolled away from the truth of these words and burrowed down into the darkness to become blank once more. God, I was tired.
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An eternity passed. Or maybe it was only a few seconds. I couldn't tell, my sense of time was as empty as I was. I only knew that some sort of sensation was softly beginning to intrude on sense of void I was trying to cling to so hard. There was a sense of mass around me, bones and muscles and skin that slid against each other as I hesitantly flexed myself to feel the physical components that had suddenly materialized while I was sleeping. Or had they been there all along and I just hadn't noticed? The floating sensation was still there, that feeling of weightlessness and the quiet remained unbroken. I shrugged my now undeniably solid shoulders and rolled over once again to slip back into unconsciousness. Dead is dead and, body or not, there was no disputing that.
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Again, time slipped forward, though I was unable to tell how much. There was a soft pressure being applied to my arm, over and over again, a warm gentle patting feeling that I tried to ignore. It became a little more insistent and I weakly shrugged it off and willed myself to float away from it, trying to go back to sleep at the same time. Only a moment passed before it started up again.
“What?” I groaned quietly in little more of a whisper. I didn't want to disturb the fragile quiet around me.
“Miss Alex,” a hesitant voice murmured softly, it's thick Brittish accent unmistakable. “Miss Alex, can you hear me?”
“Hello, Rothie,” I whispered with a smile. A feeling that was more like a mental image appeared in my mind, a tail wagging happily. “Well, I wasn't so sure before but if you're here and actually talking to me then it's kind of official, isn't it?”
“What is, Miss Alex?”
“That I'm dead of course,” I said with a soft chuckle. “Thank you for visiting. I'm going back to sleep now.”
“Erm,” his voice became hesitant again, and edged with worry. “Well, it's true that I'm dead, there's no mistaking that.” He moved closer and I could almost see him peering up into my face with his big brown puppy eyes. Or at least I would have if my own eyes had been open. I resolutely kept them closed and tried to drift off again.
“Please stop moving away, Miss Alex,” he said, and I paused at his plaintive tone and almost opened my eyes to look at him. Almost.
“What is it Rothie?” I grumbled as I snuggled deeper into myself. “I'm very tired and just want to rest now.”
“I know, Miss Alex, and you have my utmost apologies.” I could swear he was wringing his paws worriedly as he spoke. “But you really must start to wake up now. This is no place for you.”
“I'm dead, you silly canine,” I couldn't keep a note of irritation out of my voice. “Where else would I be?”
He moved closer to me again, his voice issuing forth right in front of my face. “But you're not dead, that is what I'm trying to tell you.”
I let out a small bark of laughter and quickly slid a hand up to muffle the sound. Mustn't disturb the silence.
“That's preposterous,” I muttered. “I remember dying, and I'm here now, in Limbo or the underworld or Nis or whatever you want to call it. There isn't anything else here. Except you. And you're dead so doesn't that mean that I am too?”
He sighed sadly. “I'm sorry to hear that you remember that,” he said, moving around to lean his small warm form against my side. “What happened to you was terrible and I wish that there could have been a way to have stopped it.” He seemed to shrug. “It all happened so fast. I suppose you did die for a moment, perhaps only a few nanoseconds at most.” I felt him pat my arm again. “And while it is true that you're here in this abyss where only spirits are held, the fact of the matter is that you still retain your physical form. It is only because we are both in this place together that I'm able to touch you like this at all.” He paused, weighing his words carefully. “It was necessary to bring you here, you see. You were wounded so badly, that to not bring you here would have certainly meant complete and permanent death. This abyss of suspended existance, this void outside of time, is the only place where he could bring you in the hopes of halting death in it's tracks, so that your body could heal and recover.”
I shifted uncomfortably. I really didn't want to hear this. I wanted only to slip back into unconsiousness. But his words slid down my spine with cold certainty. He was speaking the truth and would have his say whether I wanted to hear it or not.
“Where who could bring me?” I asked, though in my heart I already knew the answer.
“Why, Demongo, of course,” he replied. “This place is of his making after all.”
My eyes flew open and I uncurled myself to sit up, my gaze sweeping around me rapidly. At first I couldn't see anything, just the darkness I had felt from the beginning. I reached up to rub my knuckles against my eyelids roughly, hoping that death hadn't blinded me. Then slowly the darkness began to dissipate in the immediate space around me. I was indeed floating, my body as weightless as a speck of dust in the wind. The black abyss extended above me, below me, and all around. The only reason I could see anything was because of the light emmitted by a ring of blue flame that slowly and constantly circled around me, it's glow pulsing like a heartbeat. I looked down to see that I was clothed in the same tattered dress that I had been wearing during the battle in Aku's audience chamber, the ragged ends floating like sea grass in a tidepool. My body was half curled into a fetal position, and I was tilted over slightly as if I had been lying down on my side before.
Of course, I thought, it's just like being in a womb. A very wierd and unreal womb. I smiled at the thought.
There was movement to my right and I looked over to see Rothie, his paws tucked under him as he floated beside me, wagging his tail and beaming up at me happily.
“Jolly good, Miss Alex, it's so good to have you awake again,” he beamed.
I smiled at him softly before turning to gaze around me again. Already I was beginning to feel sleepy again. Other pinpricks of blue light began to appear throughout the darkness around me, the closest ones resolving into rings of blue fire similar to my own. Each contained a seated figure, completely motionless and silent. The more I stared the more they defined themselves and the more familar they became. I knew these beings. Hadn't I helped to bring so many of them here? I looked over to my left and saw a tall scaly back hunched over inside it's own flaming ring.
“Sal?” I said softly. The form shifted, a reptilian head lifting up from it's shoulders to glance back over at me with sleepy eyes. Sal's lips pulled back into a lazy sharp-toothed smile, before he turned back once more and appeared to go back to sleep. I felt the corner of my own mouth quirk up slightly. “At least I'm in familar company.” The lethargic fog swirled around in my mind and I could feel my brow furrow in confusion and concern.
“Andy,” I murmured, turning back to Rothie and reaching out to take his paw. “What about Andy? Is she here too?”
He reached up to pat my hand.
“Not to worry, Miss Alex,” he shook his head and smiled again. “Miss Andy is doing quite well and is unscathed aside from some bumps and scratches. She's out there,” he turned and pointed up in a seemingly random direction. “Waiting for you.”
I sighed in relief and felt my body relax once again. The sleepiness was starting to creep it's way more forcefully back into my head, the warmth of the fiery ring thrumming in time with my heartbeat.
“That's good,” I said around a soft yawn. “I'm glad she's ok.” My eyes slipped closed again as the quiet of the void filled my head and body, promising peace and and rest and the absence of pain. Promising the bliss of nothing. Rothie let out a soft whining sound and nudged against me again, this time a little harder.
“Please, Miss Alex, you mustn't go to sleep again!”
“Why not?” I murmured, feeling myself settle into a curled fetal position once more. “It's nice here and I'm so tired. Andy is ok, that's all that matters.” I cracked an eye open at him briefly. “Did she escape? Did Demongo get her to safety?”
“Well, yes, but -”
“Then what else is there to worry about?” I rolled over away from him and nestled my head in my arms. “Leave me be now, Rothie, I want to go back to sleep.”
He sighed and leaned against me, his warm little body a pleasant softness against my skin. “Demongo was afraid that this might happen,” he fretted. “He wove his spell so well. This place is far too powerful. It would have to be, you see, to keep so many strong and willful spirits complacent until he called for them. He did say it might be too strong for you to break free from once you were finished healing.” He whined again. “There was simply no other choice but to risk it.”
“So why doesn't he just toss out a skull and turn me loose?” I muttered sleepily, not really caring, the thrumming of the fire pulling me deeper into the void.
“He would...if you were truly dead.”
“But Jack was alive. And so was Sarah.”
I felt him nod his head. “Yes, but they were not injured and still had their wits and wills about them and did not want to stay here. They only used this place as a means to sneak into Aku's castle. Demongo cannot keep a living being here against their will. I myself, though dead, cannot be held here either, since he never captured me, nor has he forced me to commit myself to his service. And because you are alive and not one of his souls to command, it follows that he cannot force you to leave.”
“Hmm,” I sighed in a fuzzy voice. “That's nice.” I could feel myself begin to drift away peacefully again of the waves of the abyss around us.
I heard Rothie sigh again before feeling him crawl into my lap to snuggle against me.
“It's no use,” he said sadly. “You've become too comfortable here. They sent me here to try to bring you back, because I'm already dead and can move about here so easily. I did my best but you've been here far too long and no longer have the will or desire to leave.” He tucked his doggy head under my chin and chuffed as he got comfortable. “The least I can do is stay here with you until Demongo finds a way to pull you back into reality.”
“Okay,” I whispered, and pulled his warm, furry little body more snuggly against me. I felt his tail wag against me one more time and then drifted away into the nothingness once more.
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Is it possible to dream while being a blank space? It must be. Voices drifted in and out of my mind as I floated serenely in the blackness. I dreamed that I could hear Andy calling my name, begging me to wake up. She was crying and I felt my heart ache because she was crying for me. But the blanket of warm quiet pulled me down deeper and the ache faded away.
I'm fine,, I tried to tell her, but my mind was so heavy and I was sure the thoughts must be lost on the currents of the void. Don't cry for me, please. I'm ok. I'd rather be here. There are no dungeons here, no miserable pain, no fear. It's peaceful here, and not scary at all.
More time passed in the blink of an eye. The next thing I knew, Demongo's voice was whispering frantically through my head, his voice swooping and careening like a wind blowing around me and through me.
You foolish girl, he hissed. Do you have any idea the peril you are in right now? You MUST pull yourself out of this and rejoin us. You can't stay here forever!
Watch me, I grumbled, and hunched myself into a tighter ball against his insistent voice. I realized with indifferent bemusement that Rothie was no longer with me. Perhaps Demongo had called him away so that he could berate me without any distractions. It's nice here. It's quiet and I don't have to be afraid, not even of myself. Why can't I stay?
Because this place is meant for souls that I have complete command over. It cannot maintain a free spirit indefinitely! You are fading away even now, body and soul, and soon even your spirit will be lost. It will dissipate until there is nothing left!
Not the slightest bit of alarm was raised in me at this. I was so warm and tired. I couldn't even care enough to reply.
I cannot believe this, he growled. The very stubborness that I so highly prize in you may be your ultimate undoing after all. I could feel his angry desire to grab and shake me, knowing he couldn't because he would have had to be inside himself to do that. And that would have just been...weird.
I should never have brought you here, his voice grew soft, and I could swear that I heard genuine sorrow woven into it. My ears perked up at this and my attention sharpened slightly through the haze that had hold of my brain as I struggled to focus on his words. It was against my better judgement to do so. But there was no other way! A desperate note creeped into his voice. Don't you understand? I had to! And now you will be lost to me because of my weakness!
“What are you talking about?” My lips were so numb, my voice so low and frail. I had to gather every ounce of strength I had left just to force them to move. “If my staying here is such a bad thing, then why did you bother to bring me at all? Why didn't you just risk me dying out there?”
I could hear him grind his fangs together in bitter frustration. You would have certainly died if I had done that, you stupid girl, he snapped. I...I couldn't even concieve of taking that chance. It was all I could think to do! I couldn't let you die!
Why? I thought back at him weakly, my ability to speak out loud failing completely. Within my chest my heart began to slow, each beat taking longer than the last to make itself heard.
Because! he cried, his voice a tapestry of anguish. I could feel my interest begin to ebb, the abyss sinking deeper into me eagerly. Because, you incessant, stubborn, infuriating harpy! Oh, are you going to force me into saying it? You merciless creature! I'm a DEMON, for pity's sake! Do you have any idea how it tears at the core of my being even to think the words?
I sank down further, and was not suprised in the least when a strange, slow unwinding feeling began to vibrate through my mind, like the threads in an old sweater fraying and pulling apart due to old age. Demongo shrieked and his panic swirled around me like a hurricane, though it failed to touch me at all.
You're body is fading! A sudden shock of cold blasted through me, his last futile effort to find some way to wake me from my slow decent into nothingness. The unraveling of my mind halted for a moment before pulling and stretching in an effort to continue it's dissolving. Alex, for damnation's sake, WAKE UP! Don't leave me! You can't! You're MINE and I won't allow it! Another chilled wind blasted through me. You infuriatingly stubborn, wonderful girl, I LOVE YOU TO MUCH TO LET YOU GO!
Time froze for a moment, a heartbeat, a thousand years, as his words cut through the black fog around me. A slow wet trickling trailed it's way down my cheek, a tear I hadn't even known was there. My heart fluttered weakly and suddenly beat once very hard as it sputtered back to life. And then a horrendous tearing pain exploded it's way through my core, lighting my mind up in a bright white-hot flash, searing my heart and igniting it in a furious blaze. I sputtered and clawed my way up from the black tendrils of the void around me, it's grip on me tightening painfully, refusing to let me go. My eyes flew open and I could feel my body solidify, screaming at the pain as every one of my molecules winked back into existance. And still the darkness hung on to me, Demongo's spell woven too powerfully and completely for even he to break me from it.
“Help me!” I cried out, my body struggling and contorting to try to break loose from the ring of blue fire that suddenly flashed and whirled closer and more tightly around me.
I can't! he howled. I created the spell without any way to overcome it, it was meant as a prison to keep beings IN! There is no way for me to reverse it! You've waited too long to fight back! He sent another blast of wind to try to pry the fire ring away from me but the flames blazed brighter, reacting like an alarm system in a prison, battening down the hatches and cutting off any means of escape.
“Demongo!” I shrieked and panic enveloped me. My breath was squeezed from my lungs as the ring tightened further, crushing me in it's white hot grip. I could feel my ribs creak in my chest painfully. Blackness swarmed in around me, darkening my vision, forcing it's way into my eyes, my ears, down my throat, into my lungs, coating me inside and out. I cursed myself for being so foolish and struggled one last time.
A bright light suddenly flashed before me, and the void flew away from me in shrieking pain. The flaming ring exploded into a thousand tiny blue fragments before fizzling away to nothingness and I sucked air back into my starved and aching lungs as the the pressure melted away. I raised my eyes, my vision washed over in an afterimage from the blinding light that had flaired up so brightly.
Before me the robed form of the samurai floated calmly in the blackness, his dark eyes filled with both worry and relief. He reached out a hand to grasp my wrist and pulled me into his arms. My body began to shake as the panic died down and the adrenaline seeped slowly away. He tightened his arms around me and I burrowed my face into his warm chest as sobs tore themselves from my throat.
“It is alright,” he murmured softly, trying to calm me. “You are safe now. I am sorry, I could not free you sooner.”
“What do you mean?” I hiccuped and reached up with one hand to scrub the tears roughly from my face. Crying in front of the famous samurai while he carried me like a baby, sheesh, I'd never live this down.
He chuckled quietly and we began to move, floating slowly at first and then picking up speed, the rings of fire holding the souls of Demongo's new army flashing by us like stars.
“I could only have freed you if you had been imprisoned alive here against your will. “ His voice grew dark and regretful. “And you did not want to leave. I couldn't even locate you until you found the strength to try to free yourself. Then suddenly there you were, right in front of me. It is strange that the love of a demon is what finally gave you a reason to fight once more.”
My face burned in embarassement and I opened my mouth to let out some sharp retort or other. The next thing I knew the darkness was suddenly stripped away and the bright light of day surrounded us, blinding me a second time. The quiet of the void was replaced with the soft sigh of a breeze rustling through leaves and the chirping of birds, and I could smell pine and wet earth and snow. When my eyes again adjusted to the light I was lying on my back stairing up at the sky through needled branches, sunlight filtering through them to dance on my face as the the huge trees towering above me swayed in the soft wind. It was cold but the the sun shining down on me took the edge off of it and made it almost comfortable. A warmth was nestled along the length of my body to my left, the scent of smoldering silk drifting into my nose, and a pair of black inky arms were wrapped around me. I turned my head and found myself staring into Demongo's blue eyes, half lidded sleepily and a bemused, exasperated expression radiating from his face.
“Um...hi,” I mumbled lamely. The corner of his mouth quirked upward into a small, half smile.
A dark silhouette suddenly overshadowed us and another pair of arms threw themselves around me as Andy pulled me up into a tight embrace, her voice sobbing into the side of my head. I raised an arm weakly and put it around her, patting her awkwardly on the back.
“Hey kiddo,” I wheezed as she hugged me more tightly. “Please don't break any of my ribs, I've already been almost crushed into oblivion once today.”
“You idiot!” she wailed, and pulled back far enough to grip my shoulders and give me a shake. “Don't you EVER scare me like that again! I could kill you for putting me through that!”
“Erm,” I muttered, and turned my face away in shame. “I'm sorry.”
“Sorry? Sorry?!” She shook me one more time before pulling me into another crushing hug, her sobs starting to quiet down into a soft, gentle weeping. I grunted and wiggled uncomfortably and hugged her back as best as I could. My gaze darted over to the right and Jack offered a small smile and nodded at me from where he sat at ease on a boulder a few feet away. Beyond him, I could see a flash of orange and black, Sarah prowling slowly through the trees as she circled us, her head swiveling from side to side and pausing now and then to sniff the air. Apparently she had decided to commit herself to sentry duty while the others attempted to sort me out.
“I'm sorry, Andy,” I said and guilt burned in me as she pulled away to wipe her eyes with her sleeve. “I didn't mean to worry you and I never meant to make you cry.” I raised my hands in the air weakly, trying to convey my remorse, before letting them drop into my lap again.
“I don't know why I couldn't come back. I was just so...exhausted...in my body, and my heart, even in my soul. It was just...too much of a good thing I guess.”
She sniffed distainfully, crossing her arms to stare angrily off to one side. “Oh sure, if you can call fading away into a void of nothingness a good thing.”
I struggled to find the right words to convey what it had felt like, wracking my brain and trying to remember all the pain and fear, the doubt and sorrow, the rage and madness that had been our lives for the past six months in Aku's dungeon, before the peace and numbness of Demongo's prison had swept it all away. Somehow it all seemed so long ago. She must have seen my anguish because her face softened and lost it's bitterness. She uncrossed her arms and reached forward to take my hands. I sniffed and swallowed down the tears that threatened to brim up in my eyes. Beside me, Demongo sat up gracefully, bracing himself against the ground with one hand while the other reached up to pluck pine needles from my hair, causing shivers to run down my body. He chuckled quietly and shook his head.
“Such drama,” he said silkily, his eyes blazing with mirth. “The trouble you put people through. Both of you.” He glanced between us and shook his head again. “It would have to be love for anyone to willingly go through such trials,” he muttered under his breath begrudglingly.
There was a small pressure in my head and Rothie's excited barking echoed in my mind. I smiled inwardly, thanking him for trying to help me and for staying with me even when he had failed to do so.
“You're back, and you're safe,” Andy said, smiling even though tears still glistened in her own eyes. “That's all that matters. And...” she swept one arm around her to indicate the forest that surrounded us. “...we're free!”
I smiled back at her and gazed at the snow dotted forest around us. Yes, we were indeed free of Aku's clutches, and I knew I would be filled in later on how it had happened. But...
My smile faltered and my brow knitted together in worry. I glanced over at Jack and noticed his face had taken on a look of regret and sorrow. How long would our freedom last? Aku was still out there, I could see it in the darkening of the samurai's face, that he had escaped justice yet again. And he would be one very pissed off demon lord after all the chaos we had caused him. We'd be hunted, fugitives for the rest of our lives, our faces plastered on the same wanted posters we had once helped to create. I looked over at Andy and saw that she had come to the same conclusion, her hands clasped tightly together and a look of uneasy distress on her face. Beside me, Demongo absently continued to comb his claws through my hair but his gaze had grown inward, the smile gone from his face and I could see the the wheels turning in his head as he considered our predicament. Jack sighed and stood up, brushing needles and leaves from his robe.
“Come, the day is ending and it will be dark soon. We must find shelter in which to spend the night.”
Sarah suddenly appeared to our left, her feet silent even when treading through the crunching patches of snow on the ground.
“I've found a cave,” she motioned off through the trees with one hand. “It can be easily defended and we can stay there while we figure out what our next course of action is.” She turned and stalked off, her orange bushy tail sweeping from side to side as she moved. I noticed that the blue lightning bolt was no longer stained into the fur and wondered briefly if the dark horned mark was gone from her shoulder as well. The rest of us stood and Demongo swept around to position himself between Andy and I, a clawed hand around our waists as he guided us along to follow her. I glanced over my shoulder to see Jack trailing closely behind, his face full of curiousity and doubt at the sight of the three of us together. I smiled at him in what I hoped was a reasurring manner and he returned it with a small smile of his own. Above us, the light began to fade slowly from the sky, it's blue replaced with hues of amber and crimson and violet. The stars began to appear one by one and the sound of the birds quieted in the soft evening breeze.

Description
The void beckons. But to heed it's soothing call is to lose ones self completely.

Disclaimer: Demongo, Aku, Samurai Jack and all belonging to that series belongs to Genndy Tartakovsky. Alex is mine, Andy is ANDREAc's and Sarah Pendragon is ~KiraDrakken24's.
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Demon Dealings

Chapter 16

Nothing. No sound, no sights, no sensations. There was nothing all around me, and I was floating through nothing, and I was nothing. It covered me like a blanket and I wrapped it around me and let it course through me. I drifted weightlessly and just enjoyed the sense of not existing. That is, I thought I didn't exist anymore. Did I?
The thought wormed into my head and I tried to turn away from it, back into the comforting state of being a negative space. It was peaceful here, I was warm and comfortable, with no cares to hound me and, most importantly, there wasn't any pain. I floated aimlessly, going nowhere, a hole in the fabric of reality. I curled myself tighter and dug deeper into the blackness that cocooned me.
But if you're nothing, my mind whispered, how can you have any sense of self at all?
Shut up, I thought weakly. Leave me be. I'm fine the way I am.
See? That's what I mean, my mind pushed back harder. You have wants and needs. And you think about yourself. Therefore you still exist. So where is it exactly that you are currently existing?
“Who cares?” I said out loud. The sound of my own voice startled me, shattering the quiet emptiness around me. I curled up tighter, pulling the quiet back around me. Maybe you have a point, I thought begrudgingly. Maybe I do still exist. But I'm probably dead so what does any of that matter? Let me go back to sleep.
You're going to have to wake up and face the facts sooner or later, my mind insisted. It's only a matter of time.
I rolled away from the truth of these words and burrowed down into the darkness to become blank once more. God, I was tired.
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An eternity passed. Or maybe it was only a few seconds. I couldn't tell, my sense of time was as empty as I was. I only knew that some sort of sensation was softly beginning to intrude on sense of void I was trying to cling to so hard. There was a sense of mass around me, bones and muscles and skin that slid against each other as I hesitantly flexed myself to feel the physical components that had suddenly materialized while I was sleeping. Or had they been there all along and I just hadn't noticed? The floating sensation was still there, that feeling of weightlessness and the quiet remained unbroken. I shrugged my now undeniably solid shoulders and rolled over once again to slip back into unconsciousness. Dead is dead and, body or not, there was no disputing that.
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Again, time slipped forward, though I was unable to tell how much. There was a soft pressure being applied to my arm, over and over again, a warm gentle patting feeling that I tried to ignore. It became a little more insistent and I weakly shrugged it off and willed myself to float away from it, trying to go back to sleep at the same time. Only a moment passed before it started up again.
“What?” I groaned quietly in little more of a whisper. I didn't want to disturb the fragile quiet around me.
“Miss Alex,” a hesitant voice murmured softly, it's thick Brittish accent unmistakable. “Miss Alex, can you hear me?”
“Hello, Rothie,” I whispered with a smile. A feeling that was more like a mental image appeared in my mind, a tail wagging happily. “Well, I wasn't so sure before but if you're here and actually talking to me then it's kind of official, isn't it?”
“What is, Miss Alex?”
“That I'm dead of course,” I said with a soft chuckle. “Thank you for visiting. I'm going back to sleep now.”
“Erm,” his voice became hesitant again, and edged with worry. “Well, it's true that I'm dead, there's no mistaking that.” He moved closer and I could almost see him peering up into my face with his big brown puppy eyes. Or at least I would have if my own eyes had been open. I resolutely kept them closed and tried to drift off again.
“Please stop moving away, Miss Alex,” he said, and I paused at his plaintive tone and almost opened my eyes to look at him. Almost.
“What is it Rothie?” I grumbled as I snuggled deeper into myself. “I'm very tired and just want to rest now.”
“I know, Miss Alex, and you have my utmost apologies.” I could swear he was wringing his paws worriedly as he spoke. “But you really must start to wake up now. This is no place for you.”
“I'm dead, you silly canine,” I couldn't keep a note of irritation out of my voice. “Where else would I be?”
He moved closer to me again, his voice issuing forth right in front of my face. “But you're not dead, that is what I'm trying to tell you.”
I let out a small bark of laughter and quickly slid a hand up to muffle the sound. Mustn't disturb the silence.
“That's preposterous,” I muttered. “I remember dying, and I'm here now, in Limbo or the underworld or Nis or whatever you want to call it. There isn't anything else here. Except you. And you're dead so doesn't that mean that I am too?”
He sighed sadly. “I'm sorry to hear that you remember that,” he said, moving around to lean his small warm form against my side. “What happened to you was terrible and I wish that there could have been a way to have stopped it.” He seemed to shrug. “It all happened so fast. I suppose you did die for a moment, perhaps only a few nanoseconds at most.” I felt him pat my arm again. “And while it is true that you're here in this abyss where only spirits are held, the fact of the matter is that you still retain your physical form. It is only because we are both in this place together that I'm able to touch you like this at all.” He paused, weighing his words carefully. “It was necessary to bring you here, you see. You were wounded so badly, that to not bring you here would have certainly meant complete and permanent death. This abyss of suspended existance, this void outside of time, is the only place where he could bring you in the hopes of halting death in it's tracks, so that your body could heal and recover.”
I shifted uncomfortably. I really didn't want to hear this. I wanted only to slip back into unconsiousness. But his words slid down my spine with cold certainty. He was speaking the truth and would have his say whether I wanted to hear it or not.
“Where who could bring me?” I asked, though in my heart I already knew the answer.
“Why, Demongo, of course,” he replied. “This place is of his making after all.”
My eyes flew open and I uncurled myself to sit up, my gaze sweeping around me rapidly. At first I couldn't see anything, just the darkness I had felt from the beginning. I reached up to rub my knuckles against my eyelids roughly, hoping that death hadn't blinded me. Then slowly the darkness began to dissipate in the immediate space around me. I was indeed floating, my body as weightless as a speck of dust in the wind. The black abyss extended above me, below me, and all around. The only reason I could see anything was because of the light emmitted by a ring of blue flame that slowly and constantly circled around me, it's glow pulsing like a heartbeat. I looked down to see that I was clothed in the same tattered dress that I had been wearing during the battle in Aku's audience chamber, the ragged ends floating like sea grass in a tidepool. My body was half curled into a fetal position, and I was tilted over slightly as if I had been lying down on my side before.
Of course, I thought, it's just like being in a womb. A very wierd and unreal womb. I smiled at the thought.
There was movement to my right and I looked over to see Rothie, his paws tucked under him as he floated beside me, wagging his tail and beaming up at me happily.
“Jolly good, Miss Alex, it's so good to have you awake again,” he beamed.
I smiled at him softly before turning to gaze around me again. Already I was beginning to feel sleepy again. Other pinpricks of blue light began to appear throughout the darkness around me, the closest ones resolving into rings of blue fire similar to my own. Each contained a seated figure, completely motionless and silent. The more I stared the more they defined themselves and the more familar they became. I knew these beings. Hadn't I helped to bring so many of them here? I looked over to my left and saw a tall scaly back hunched over inside it's own flaming ring.
“Sal?” I said softly. The form shifted, a reptilian head lifting up from it's shoulders to glance back over at me with sleepy eyes. Sal's lips pulled back into a lazy sharp-toothed smile, before he turned back once more and appeared to go back to sleep. I felt the corner of my own mouth quirk up slightly. “At least I'm in familar company.” The lethargic fog swirled around in my mind and I could feel my brow furrow in confusion and concern.
“Andy,” I murmured, turning back to Rothie and reaching out to take his paw. “What about Andy? Is she here too?”
He reached up to pat my hand.
“Not to worry, Miss Alex,” he shook his head and smiled again. “Miss Andy is doing quite well and is unscathed aside from some bumps and scratches. She's out there,” he turned and pointed up in a seemingly random direction. “Waiting for you.”
I sighed in relief and felt my body relax once again. The sleepiness was starting to creep it's way more forcefully back into my head, the warmth of the fiery ring thrumming in time with my heartbeat.
“That's good,” I said around a soft yawn. “I'm glad she's ok.” My eyes slipped closed again as the quiet of the void filled my head and body, promising peace and and rest and the absence of pain. Promising the bliss of nothing. Rothie let out a soft whining sound and nudged against me again, this time a little harder.
“Please, Miss Alex, you mustn't go to sleep again!”
“Why not?” I murmured, feeling myself settle into a curled fetal position once more. “It's nice here and I'm so tired. Andy is ok, that's all that matters.” I cracked an eye open at him briefly. “Did she escape? Did Demongo get her to safety?”
“Well, yes, but -”
“Then what else is there to worry about?” I rolled over away from him and nestled my head in my arms. “Leave me be now, Rothie, I want to go back to sleep.”
He sighed and leaned against me, his warm little body a pleasant softness against my skin. “Demongo was afraid that this might happen,” he fretted. “He wove his spell so well. This place is far too powerful. It would have to be, you see, to keep so many strong and willful spirits complacent until he called for them. He did say it might be too strong for you to break free from once you were finished healing.” He whined again. “There was simply no other choice but to risk it.”
“So why doesn't he just toss out a skull and turn me loose?” I muttered sleepily, not really caring, the thrumming of the fire pulling me deeper into the void.
“He would...if you were truly dead.”
“But Jack was alive. And so was Sarah.”
I felt him nod his head. “Yes, but they were not injured and still had their wits and wills about them and did not want to stay here. They only used this place as a means to sneak into Aku's castle. Demongo cannot keep a living being here against their will. I myself, though dead, cannot be held here either, since he never captured me, nor has he forced me to commit myself to his service. And because you are alive and not one of his souls to command, it follows that he cannot force you to leave.”
“Hmm,” I sighed in a fuzzy voice. “That's nice.” I could feel myself begin to drift away peacefully again of the waves of the abyss around us.
I heard Rothie sigh again before feeling him crawl into my lap to snuggle against me.
“It's no use,” he said sadly. “You've become too comfortable here. They sent me here to try to bring you back, because I'm already dead and can move about here so easily. I did my best but you've been here far too long and no longer have the will or desire to leave.” He tucked his doggy head under my chin and chuffed as he got comfortable. “The least I can do is stay here with you until Demongo finds a way to pull you back into reality.”
“Okay,” I whispered, and pulled his warm, furry little body more snuggly against me. I felt his tail wag against me one more time and then drifted away into the nothingness once more.
________________________________________________________________________________

Is it possible to dream while being a blank space? It must be. Voices drifted in and out of my mind as I floated serenely in the blackness. I dreamed that I could hear Andy calling my name, begging me to wake up. She was crying and I felt my heart ache because she was crying for me. But the blanket of warm quiet pulled me down deeper and the ache faded away.
I'm fine,, I tried to tell her, but my mind was so heavy and I was sure the thoughts must be lost on the currents of the void. Don't cry for me, please. I'm ok. I'd rather be here. There are no dungeons here, no miserable pain, no fear. It's peaceful here, and not scary at all.
More time passed in the blink of an eye. The next thing I knew, Demongo's voice was whispering frantically through my head, his voice swooping and careening like a wind blowing around me and through me.
You foolish girl, he hissed. Do you have any idea the peril you are in right now? You MUST pull yourself out of this and rejoin us. You can't stay here forever!
Watch me, I grumbled, and hunched myself into a tighter ball against his insistent voice. I realized with indifferent bemusement that Rothie was no longer with me. Perhaps Demongo had called him away so that he could berate me without any distractions. It's nice here. It's quiet and I don't have to be afraid, not even of myself. Why can't I stay?
Because this place is meant for souls that I have complete command over. It cannot maintain a free spirit indefinitely! You are fading away even now, body and soul, and soon even your spirit will be lost. It will dissipate until there is nothing left!
Not the slightest bit of alarm was raised in me at this. I was so warm and tired. I couldn't even care enough to reply.
I cannot believe this, he growled. The very stubborness that I so highly prize in you may be your ultimate undoing after all. I could feel his angry desire to grab and shake me, knowing he couldn't because he would have had to be inside himself to do that. And that would have just been...weird.
I should never have brought you here, his voice grew soft, and I could swear that I heard genuine sorrow woven into it. My ears perked up at this and my attention sharpened slightly through the haze that had hold of my brain as I struggled to focus on his words. It was against my better judgement to do so. But there was no other way! A desperate note creeped into his voice. Don't you understand? I had to! And now you will be lost to me because of my weakness!
“What are you talking about?” My lips were so numb, my voice so low and frail. I had to gather every ounce of strength I had left just to force them to move. “If my staying here is such a bad thing, then why did you bother to bring me at all? Why didn't you just risk me dying out there?”
I could hear him grind his fangs together in bitter frustration. You would have certainly died if I had done that, you stupid girl, he snapped. I...I couldn't even concieve of taking that chance. It was all I could think to do! I couldn't let you die!
Why? I thought back at him weakly, my ability to speak out loud failing completely. Within my chest my heart began to slow, each beat taking longer than the last to make itself heard.
Because! he cried, his voice a tapestry of anguish. I could feel my interest begin to ebb, the abyss sinking deeper into me eagerly. Because, you incessant, stubborn, infuriating harpy! Oh, are you going to force me into saying it? You merciless creature! I'm a DEMON, for pity's sake! Do you have any idea how it tears at the core of my being even to think the words?
I sank down further, and was not suprised in the least when a strange, slow unwinding feeling began to vibrate through my mind, like the threads in an old sweater fraying and pulling apart due to old age. Demongo shrieked and his panic swirled around me like a hurricane, though it failed to touch me at all.
You're body is fading! A sudden shock of cold blasted through me, his last futile effort to find some way to wake me from my slow decent into nothingness. The unraveling of my mind halted for a moment before pulling and stretching in an effort to continue it's dissolving. Alex, for damnation's sake, WAKE UP! Don't leave me! You can't! You're MINE and I won't allow it! Another chilled wind blasted through me. You infuriatingly stubborn, wonderful girl, I LOVE YOU TO MUCH TO LET YOU GO!
Time froze for a moment, a heartbeat, a thousand years, as his words cut through the black fog around me. A slow wet trickling trailed it's way down my cheek, a tear I hadn't even known was there. My heart fluttered weakly and suddenly beat once very hard as it sputtered back to life. And then a horrendous tearing pain exploded it's way through my core, lighting my mind up in a bright white-hot flash, searing my heart and igniting it in a furious blaze. I sputtered and clawed my way up from the black tendrils of the void around me, it's grip on me tightening painfully, refusing to let me go. My eyes flew open and I could feel my body solidify, screaming at the pain as every one of my molecules winked back into existance. And still the darkness hung on to me, Demongo's spell woven too powerfully and completely for even he to break me from it.
“Help me!” I cried out, my body struggling and contorting to try to break loose from the ring of blue fire that suddenly flashed and whirled closer and more tightly around me.
I can't! he howled. I created the spell without any way to overcome it, it was meant as a prison to keep beings IN! There is no way for me to reverse it! You've waited too long to fight back! He sent another blast of wind to try to pry the fire ring away from me but the flames blazed brighter, reacting like an alarm system in a prison, battening down the hatches and cutting off any means of escape.
“Demongo!” I shrieked and panic enveloped me. My breath was squeezed from my lungs as the ring tightened further, crushing me in it's white hot grip. I could feel my ribs creak in my chest painfully. Blackness swarmed in around me, darkening my vision, forcing it's way into my eyes, my ears, down my throat, into my lungs, coating me inside and out. I cursed myself for being so foolish and struggled one last time.
A bright light suddenly flashed before me, and the void flew away from me in shrieking pain. The flaming ring exploded into a thousand tiny blue fragments before fizzling away to nothingness and I sucked air back into my starved and aching lungs as the the pressure melted away. I raised my eyes, my vision washed over in an afterimage from the blinding light that had flaired up so brightly.
Before me the robed form of the samurai floated calmly in the blackness, his dark eyes filled with both worry and relief. He reached out a hand to grasp my wrist and pulled me into his arms. My body began to shake as the panic died down and the adrenaline seeped slowly away. He tightened his arms around me and I burrowed my face into his warm chest as sobs tore themselves from my throat.
“It is alright,” he murmured softly, trying to calm me. “You are safe now. I am sorry, I could not free you sooner.”
“What do you mean?” I hiccuped and reached up with one hand to scrub the tears roughly from my face. Crying in front of the famous samurai while he carried me like a baby, sheesh, I'd never live this down.
He chuckled quietly and we began to move, floating slowly at first and then picking up speed, the rings of fire holding the souls of Demongo's new army flashing by us like stars.
“I could only have freed you if you had been imprisoned alive here against your will. “ His voice grew dark and regretful. “And you did not want to leave. I couldn't even locate you until you found the strength to try to free yourself. Then suddenly there you were, right in front of me. It is strange that the love of a demon is what finally gave you a reason to fight once more.”
My face burned in embarassement and I opened my mouth to let out some sharp retort or other. The next thing I knew the darkness was suddenly stripped away and the bright light of day surrounded us, blinding me a second time. The quiet of the void was replaced with the soft sigh of a breeze rustling through leaves and the chirping of birds, and I could smell pine and wet earth and snow. When my eyes again adjusted to the light I was lying on my back stairing up at the sky through needled branches, sunlight filtering through them to dance on my face as the the huge trees towering above me swayed in the soft wind. It was cold but the the sun shining down on me took the edge off of it and made it almost comfortable. A warmth was nestled along the length of my body to my left, the scent of smoldering silk drifting into my nose, and a pair of black inky arms were wrapped around me. I turned my head and found myself staring into Demongo's blue eyes, half lidded sleepily and a bemused, exasperated expression radiating from his face.
“Um...hi,” I mumbled lamely. The corner of his mouth quirked upward into a small, half smile.
A dark silhouette suddenly overshadowed us and another pair of arms threw themselves around me as Andy pulled me up into a tight embrace, her voice sobbing into the side of my head. I raised an arm weakly and put it around her, patting her awkwardly on the back.
“Hey kiddo,” I wheezed as she hugged me more tightly. “Please don't break any of my ribs, I've already been almost crushed into oblivion once today.”
“You idiot!” she wailed, and pulled back far enough to grip my shoulders and give me a shake. “Don't you EVER scare me like that again! I could kill you for putting me through that!”
“Erm,” I muttered, and turned my face away in shame. “I'm sorry.”
“Sorry? Sorry?!” She shook me one more time before pulling me into another crushing hug, her sobs starting to quiet down into a soft, gentle weeping. I grunted and wiggled uncomfortably and hugged her back as best as I could. My gaze darted over to the right and Jack offered a small smile and nodded at me from where he sat at ease on a boulder a few feet away. Beyond him, I could see a flash of orange and black, Sarah prowling slowly through the trees as she circled us, her head swiveling from side to side and pausing now and then to sniff the air. Apparently she had decided to commit herself to sentry duty while the others attempted to sort me out.
“I'm sorry, Andy,” I said and guilt burned in me as she pulled away to wipe her eyes with her sleeve. “I didn't mean to worry you and I never meant to make you cry.” I raised my hands in the air weakly, trying to convey my remorse, before letting them drop into my lap again.
“I don't know why I couldn't come back. I was just so...exhausted...in my body, and my heart, even in my soul. It was just...too much of a good thing I guess.”
She sniffed distainfully, crossing her arms to stare angrily off to one side. “Oh sure, if you can call fading away into a void of nothingness a good thing.”
I struggled to find the right words to convey what it had felt like, wracking my brain and trying to remember all the pain and fear, the doubt and sorrow, the rage and madness that had been our lives for the past six months in Aku's dungeon, before the peace and numbness of Demongo's prison had swept it all away. Somehow it all seemed so long ago. She must have seen my anguish because her face softened and lost it's bitterness. She uncrossed her arms and reached forward to take my hands. I sniffed and swallowed down the tears that threatened to brim up in my eyes. Beside me, Demongo sat up gracefully, bracing himself against the ground with one hand while the other reached up to pluck pine needles from my hair, causing shivers to run down my body. He chuckled quietly and shook his head.
“Such drama,” he said silkily, his eyes blazing with mirth. “The trouble you put people through. Both of you.” He glanced between us and shook his head again. “It would have to be love for anyone to willingly go through such trials,” he muttered under his breath begrudglingly.
There was a small pressure in my head and Rothie's excited barking echoed in my mind. I smiled inwardly, thanking him for trying to help me and for staying with me even when he had failed to do so.
“You're back, and you're safe,” Andy said, smiling even though tears still glistened in her own eyes. “That's all that matters. And...” she swept one arm around her to indicate the forest that surrounded us. “...we're free!”
I smiled back at her and gazed at the snow dotted forest around us. Yes, we were indeed free of Aku's clutches, and I knew I would be filled in later on how it had happened. But...
My smile faltered and my brow knitted together in worry. I glanced over at Jack and noticed his face had taken on a look of regret and sorrow. How long would our freedom last? Aku was still out there, I could see it in the darkening of the samurai's face, that he had escaped justice yet again. And he would be one very pissed off demon lord after all the chaos we had caused him. We'd be hunted, fugitives for the rest of our lives, our faces plastered on the same wanted posters we had once helped to create. I looked over at Andy and saw that she had come to the same conclusion, her hands clasped tightly together and a look of uneasy distress on her face. Beside me, Demongo absently continued to comb his claws through my hair but his gaze had grown inward, the smile gone from his face and I could see the the wheels turning in his head as he considered our predicament. Jack sighed and stood up, brushing needles and leaves from his robe.
“Come, the day is ending and it will be dark soon. We must find shelter in which to spend the night.”
Sarah suddenly appeared to our left, her feet silent even when treading through the crunching patches of snow on the ground.
“I've found a cave,” she motioned off through the trees with one hand. “It can be easily defended and we can stay there while we figure out what our next course of action is.” She turned and stalked off, her orange bushy tail sweeping from side to side as she moved. I noticed that the blue lightning bolt was no longer stained into the fur and wondered briefly if the dark horned mark was gone from her shoulder as well. The rest of us stood and Demongo swept around to position himself between Andy and I, a clawed hand around our waists as he guided us along to follow her. I glanced over my shoulder to see Jack trailing closely behind, his face full of curiousity and doubt at the sight of the three of us together. I smiled at him in what I hoped was a reasurring manner and he returned it with a small smile of his own. Above us, the light began to fade slowly from the sky, it's blue replaced with hues of amber and crimson and violet. The stars began to appear one by one and the sound of the birds quieted in the soft evening breeze.