[ .dream] | 003. The hunter becomes the hunted

[lamorteblanc]

The graveyard he finds himself in is quiet, muted in its palette of greys and blacks. Around him, the graves are unmarked: silent sentries of chipped granite poking out amidst fallen leaves. Kazutaka wanders amongst them, aimless as his fingers drift over the stones.

And then he hears them.

Off in the distance, they come. Barking, howling, baying at the moon which has turned blood red as it rises into the sky. He sees them as they approach but these are no ordinary wolves. These are misshapen creatures in the shapes of wolves: an ear is torn and nothing more than severed flesh coming from its skull, one in a deep state of decomposition, some are missing patches of their fur and reveal slickened pink flesh filthy with mange beneath. They snap their jaws as they run toward him, hungered and manic.

So he runs.

He runs from those wolves as fast as his constitution can allow. No matter how fast he runs however, they come close and nip at his heels. Always a breath away, an inch away. As he runs, the voices begin. They are varied as they are many, disembodied and rising from the dark forest that seems to surround them. But there are two that stand out from the chaos.

"You were always the pride of my collection, Kazutaka."
A woman's voice, gentle and suffocating.
"What are you going to do? Run and tell on me?"
A male teen's, mocking and condescending.

He stumbles into the forest now, hoping to lose his monstrous attackers in the thicket. Under his feet, the roots seem to aim to trip him. Branches attempt to ensnare him. However, he pushes on through the darkness with the wolves still a mere heartbeat away.

"As beautiful as any doll."
"She's too good for the likes of you."

And as he runs, the deeper he goes into the forest, the louder the voices get. Not only these two but several others. Most women, one other distinct male.

"You mustn't love Veronica more than I, Kazutaka. I shall be very cross."
"Freak. Don't look at me with those eyes, you freak.

The wolves come closer. He can feel their breath near him, he can hear their snarls almost as if they were growling straight into his ear. Around him, the forest echoes with screams, protests.

"NO! GET AWAY!"
A young lady this time.
"I DON'T WANT TO DIE!"
Another woman, distinct from the first and third.
Screaming.
Panicked. Animal-like. Ragged and raw.
Screaming.
Protesting.
The screams of what seem to be a young boy.

Then suddenly a sharp pain. One of the wolves overtakes him, sinking its yellowed teeth into his leg. With a cry, he pitches forward and falls into the leaves. The others follow, only drawn closer by the scent of his blood which begins to seep into his pants from where the first bite. They draw no quarter and are as merciless as any animal is: they rip into his flesh, drawing blood and cloth and tendon and muscle from his form as he struggles to break free. Kazutaka reaches out, a futile effort as rabid canines rip into his arms as well. His own screams are silenced among the voices that seem to come from the shadows surrounding him and those monsters.

His eyes close, another effort to block out the pain and bring a quicker death.

But when he opens his eyes, he finds himself whole again. There is a moment of shock as he takes it in, glad to find his legs are returned to him and the wolves are nowhere to be seen. The sound of water comes near his head and it draws his attention as he staggers up and onto his shaky legs. However, when he turns his eyes downward, he finds his perfectly white clothing stained with flecks of red.
Blood.
Over his chest, his sleeves, his arms, dripping wet from his hands.
He tries to run them under the tap but to no avail. They remain as they are, bloodstained and shaking under the water. Nothing can wash them, nothing can clean the stains.
As he pulls himself to his feet, he chances upon a blood trail from where he stands. A few steps away is the prone body of a young lady clad in a simple yukata. He approaches, fear evident on his features as he kneels by the body and takes it into his arms. She's as bloodsoaked as he is, most coming from what appears to be a large stab wound right through her clothing. A scalpel lies nearby, its handle as bloodstained as his hands.
And he holds her to his chest, trembling as he does.
From his lips, one name falls in a whisper.
"Ukiyou."

---


He awakes thanks to the thump of a rather large volume from his hand to the ground. Once again, Kazutaka's fallen asleep in his armchair by the window. The dreamberry blinks from his desk and he barely glances at it as he reaches for his glasses. There's a frown however as he places the fallen book back on his desk and shuts the feed off.


[ OOC: actionspam please? ;;; ]

Comments

[video]

[rainbowarch]

[...what the heck did he just watch? It's kind of terrifying.]

Hey, Muraki, are you okay?

video;

[lamorteblanc]

[ There's a moment as he wipes sleep from his eyes but he fumbles for the dreamberry-SFC-whatever-it-is-now. He keeps the right side of his face obscured from view however as he speaks. ]

Mm... Cielo, yes. I'm alright. Quite alright.

video;

[rainbowarch]

You sure, that didn't look too pleasant.

video;

[lamorteblanc]

[ Fingertips move up to massage his temples a moment before he turns his attention back to the screen. ]

I'm sure. It was... a recurring nightmare, so to speak. Nothing more. Just a dream.

video;

[rainbowarch]

Well, if you say so. I'm just worried about you, that's all.

roomiespam!

[hearsnoevil]

_{[Yep. Here comes Mao from the kitchen with his SFC-turned-Dreamberry, his brows furrowed as he stares into the screen until he's close enough to watch Muraki from his peripherals.]}

...Muraki.

All the roomiespamming!

[lamorteblanc]

[ He looks up at the sound, running his fingers through his hair a moment to gather his senses. ]

Yes? What is it, Mao? I thought you'd slept by now.

/partaaaaaay!

[hearsnoevil]

_{[He snorts softly, craning his head back towards his room.]}

I've gotten used to hearing voices in my head as I sleep but hearing someone scream as they're ripped apart by dogs isn't something I've ever encountered. I wasn't expecting it to be coming from you.

_{[He hesitates before speaking up again. For a few seconds, the madness dissolves to show the real teenager beneath.]}

...What's wrong?

/breaks out the booze and the sea-weed

[lamorteblanc]

[ A frown as he glances at the device on his desk. ]

...I would suppose this would be the culprit.

[ But there's a moment as he reaches for the pack of cigarettes next to his book as well as a lighter. He takes his time with a drag from his cigarette a moment, the only light coming from the tip of it as he inhales. ]

There are a million and one things wrong, if that dream was any indication. We don't have all night.

[video]

[cheapshinigami]

[Tatsumi watched the dream without intending to. He didn't know the new transformation of his device would allow dreams to be broadcasted like that. Whatever private hell the doctor seems to have relieved, is nothing he ever wished to have witnessed, dream or not.

It gives him a feeling of wrongness. He can't decide whether he is glad about what he just saw, or not. Truthfully, he wouldn't wish that on anyone. Not even Muraki. While he does want to get rid of him, he'd rather do it more... cleanly. Or so he tells to himself.]

Muraki...

video;

[lamorteblanc]

[ The fact that Tatsumi had responded, even more the fact there was no spite evident (yet) in his voice was a slight cause for surprise.

But then the night was young yet. He had more than enough time. He takes a moment to exhale his recently taken drag from the cigarette in his hand out the open window. ]

Come to question me about what you've seen?

[ V I D E O ]

[cheapshinigami]

That is none of my business, is it, Doctor Muraki?

[Not to say that he's not curious about it, to be honest. But he's not going to prod the doctor for more. They are enemies, after all. Why would he give Tatsumi that kind of information, information that could possibly be used against him.]

video;

[lamorteblanc]

None, whatsoever. However, I can see you just as tenacious as those wolves.

[ An exhale, coming from his cigarette, no doubt. ]

I suppose there are things you want to know?

[wanted action, bb?] 1/2

[cinnaponpuppy]

[What?
No!
He found himself trying to talk to the screen! He was begging for the creatures to leave the doctor alone.
That wasn't a dream the Doctor should have. Only monsters like Tsuzuki should be plagued by that!]

2/2

[cinnaponpuppy]

[Muraki's "beloved" was out of his place in no time, heading for Muraki's place.
It took a couple minutes with invisible flying action.

Whoosh.HERE HE COMES TO SAVE THE DAY..

Climbing up the steps until he was outside of Muraki and Mao's place. He made sure he was visible before he knocked on the door.]

Muraki?

[lamorteblanc]

[ The sound startles him. No, not the sound of the door. He'd picked up on a presence heading toward their apartment eons before the knock came. It was the voice. It was the fact Tsuzuki had come of his own volition to his door.

It makes him pause when he hears it, the tiniest hint of surprise as he reaches for the doorknob. But he opens it as soon as he regains his calm. ]

Tsuzuki-san...? What can I do for you at this late hour?

[cinnaponpuppy]

[You should have nightmares more often, Doctor.]

I was making sure you're okay, Muraki-sensei. [He could relate a little too close for comfort with Muraki's dream.]

voice;

[ravenly]

[Watching all of this, Rue isn't exactly sure how to react...

She recognizes none of the voices, knows none of the people involved save for Muraki, and if she's honest, she's never seen him quite like this, either. There's a shiver, trying to shake the growling and barking out of her mind.]

Wolves are...quite terrifying.

[She's never quite had any nightmares about them, but...]

voice;

[lamorteblanc]

[ Oh hey, Rue. And already he's wondering just how many people were awake to witness his little guilt film. ]

They are. They're stubborn creatures. Powerful predators. Truly stop at nothing to fell their prey.

voice;

[ravenly]

[She frowns, and can't help but feel like he's missed the point of that statement somehow. But enough of being vague.]

Are you all right, then? ...It was only a nightmare, wasn't it?

voice;

[lamorteblanc]

Quite alright. Nightmares can be rather terrible things.

[ And yes, the human psyche was a terrible thing. Just as terrible as those wolves, really. ]

I'm sorry you had to see that.

text;

[pactum]

Who is she?

text;

[lamorteblanc]

[ Oh hey. What're you doing here? But welcome nontheless. ]

Ukyou?

She's my fiancée. I haven't seen her in a year but it's my fondest hope she never comes here.

[ Because really. If she knew what the people of this city knew... ]

text;

[pactum]

[ it's no great surprise to find that the doctor is engaged; given Ciel's time period, he would think it stranger if he weren't. ]

I see. I think I understand what you mean, in that regard.

Still, you must miss her very much, to dream of her--as cruel as it is that you were forced to see her that way. But dreams are often cruel.

text;

[lamorteblanc]

[ Dreams are cruel. Indeed they are. Especially when you fear of giving in to the inner madness and turn your hand toward the only spot of light in your tunnel. ]

They say dreams offer an insight into our psyche, either through memories or symbolism. Freud had an interesting discourse on that matter, if I remember.

[ And another pause after he sends that message. To be perfectly open or not.

Guess what he chooses? ]

Yes. I do miss her.