Chapter 3

     Ethan woke up cold and sore. He sat up and looked around the room. Beth and Charge were nowhere to be seen. A note was nearby where he was sitting.
     "Don't freak out. Don't destroy anything. There's half an apple on the shelf if you're hungry. We went for food. Didn't want you slowing us down. Be back when clock says 3:20." He looked around the room. What clock? he thought to himself. He looked at the pillar that was supporting the weight of the room in the center and saw the clock hanging on a nail. Ah. That one. 2:45. How long have I been out?! He tried standing up on his leg. Pain shot through his body. Ethan collapsed on the floor and grunted.
     Ethan wished he had his family still. His mom would get a wet cloth and put it on his forehead as his brother wrapped his leg in Insta-heal bandaging. His older sister would sing him to sleep. He missed the nights when it rained and thundered. He may have hated the weather, but he would get in his sister's bed and curl up in a ball as she sang him a lullaby. Ethan never met his dad. He died in a terrible car accident when he was very little. His mother always told Ethan that he was a good man. Someone to look up to.
     A jolt of pain woke Ethan from his daydreaming. He looked at his leg. It had been bandaged up already. Then he noticed that he wasn't wearing the same pair of pants he was earlier. He was wearing sweat pants. That's a little uncomfortable... He put the thought to the back of his mind. Ethan pulled up the pant leg to look at his wound. It was wrapped in Insta-heal. It shouldn't take more than a couple of days to heal up now. He lowered the cloth and went back to daydreaming.
     He thought back to his past when it was actually light outside. Climbing trees and racing friends through the streets until the lights signaled "Sunset." Sunset was a new Display every day. From the Sun climbing down a set of stairs to it flying off in the distance with a parade of stars following, it was always guaranteed to entertain people. He remember watching it with his siblings one time.
     "What would it be like to not have the sun?" Ethan asked them.
     His brother looked at him funny. "It would be really dark. What are you thinking, bro?"
     "Just a thought. It gets cold at night and I was wondering if the world would just freeze over or it would just be really cold every day."
     "I think it would just be dark. The sun's not going anywhere for quite a while. It's held here pretty good," his sister chimed in. His sister was always encouraging. Never saying a harsh word in her life, he always looked up to his sister. Then their brother was shot. Everything changed. Nothing mattered anymore. Ethan's sister was still encouraging, but she was very quiet. Not saying much anymore.
     Ethan and his mother were arguing one day afterwards and his sister was in the room. She stormed from the room crying. He shouted at his mother an obscenity that he regrets now before running up to see if his sister was okay. She was holding a gun to her head.
     "Sarah, please put the gun down," Ethan said calmly.
     "Why? Why should I? Nobody listens to me! Nobody will miss me!" She shouted back. Ethan was taken aback. This is the loudest she's been for months.
     "No, you know that's not true. I would miss you very much Sarah."
     "You never show it."
     "I try!"
     "No, YOU DON'T!" Tears were streaming down her face. "I always tried to be the strong one since Josh died, you never tried to get over Josh!"
     "I suppressed his memory. It was too painful. Just like your's would be if you pulled that trigger."
     "YOU FORGOT HIM! YOU'LL FORGET ME TOO!"
     "SARAH JUST PUT THE GUN DOWN! I DON'T WANT TO LOSE YOU TOO! I LOST A PART OF MYSELF WHEN JOSH DIED. I DON'T WANT TO GO TO THAT PIT AGAIN!" Ethan sobbed. "Please don't pull that trigger."
     "Ethan," Sarah paused, her voice quivering. "I love you. Don't forget that."
     The next second seemed to take years. She tightened her grip on the gun and pulled the trigger. The slide drew back. Then came the explosion. Fire flew from the barrel. Red splattered the wall. The shock-wave of the bullet's power was the hardest thing to endure. It felt like Ethan's heart was ripped from his chest. All Ethan heard after the gunshot was the sound of his pounding heart. His mother burst into the room. He remembered her screaming. She shoved Ethan out of the way and picked up her daughter's corpse.
     Ethan lost his soul that day. He is still haunted by that gunshot, by seeing his sister and best friend collapsing, by seeing all the blood. He lost all his friends. No words could comfort him. No actions could be taken to make him feel better. He didn't talk for the following month. He still doesn't talk much.
     A shake of the concrete slab woke him up from his nightmare. He scrambled to hide behind the pillar. He found a piece of glass and used it to look back at the entrance. The slab flew to the other side of the room and three demons walked in. Ethan saw a clawed hand curl around the pillar. It took all it was within him not to breathe. Then a head peeked around the corner. The massive yellow eyes looked down at him. The creature snarled out one word.
     "Gotcha!"