EnderOni, Loop One

Chapter Nineteen:

A Dream

-...-

It wasn't long before Seto had started to mumble to himself, and then was loud enough for the other three to hear. He stood up from his seat at the table and looked at the other three.

“I still find it hard to believe that not once since I've been here have I ever seen the real Ty.” Seto frowned. He looked unbelievably tired.

“And you know what else i've noticed?” Seto asked, and the other three shook their heads.

“If Ty was the Oni this whole time, this means that the Oni can, in fact, get into the safe room!” Seto said.

“Oh.” Tyler heard Ian go, and then he himself wondered how he didn't make the connect straight away.

“He sat in here with us as we believed it was our only safe place.” Seto continued. “But because he dragged us out before trying to kill us, I think he's unable to switch to his oni form in this room.”

“Or it was because he wanted to show us the real Ty? Come on, other then an iron door, there is nothing keeping that thing out of here.” Bodil replied.

There was another silence, and Tyler got up from where he sat. He placed his book on the table and walked into the bathroom, coming back out a few seconds later having pushed water into his face. He sat back down.

“Oh god.” Seto suddenly tensed up, staring into space.

“What? What's wrong?” Ian asked, looking concerned.

“OH PLEASE TELL ME I'M WRONG!” Seto gripped the side of the table, beginning to freak out.

“What?” Tyler asked.

Seto turned to them.

“If Ty has been an Oni the whole time, that means there is more then one Oni.” Seto said.

“W-What? T-That can't be true!” Bodil gasped.

“Actually...” Tyler frowned, standing up.

“You see, Ty has been with us just about the whole time. Even during battles with the Oni. He's come out of nowhere and saved us before. So he and the oni have been in the same room. Meaning, there is more then one Oni here.” Seto explained.

“B-but one Oni attacks each time.” Ian said. “It always looks like the same one.”

“Maybe the same one attacks us each time, maybe they all look the same. There is more then one, though, and we have no way of knowing how many.” Seto replied.

“At the moment, however, we can only conclude there are two.” Tyler said. “The Oni and the Ty Oni. OniTy.”

“Onity...Hm..” Seto shook his head. “That's true, but i'm sure there is more.”

“I don't remember ever there being more then one Oni in the stories before.” Bodil looked down at his feet. “At least, I don't remember.”

Seto sat down again and he started swinging his legs gently back and forth.

“What i'd give to rewind it all.” Seto sighed, and then tears come to his eyes again.

“What we'd all give to do that.” Tyler muttered.

Seto's crying got louder pretty quickly.

“I'm done.” He said, then raising his voice, he repeated.

“I'M DONE!”

“W-Whoa.” Bodil looked at Seto with worried eyes. Seto was losing it.

“Seto, please.” Tyler stood up.

“NO! I can't do this anymore. I can't get us out of here, I can't save anybody. Someone's gonna die again, and then there is going to be three of us. And then two, and then one! There is no escape, there is no way of freedom. We stay and die or we go and die!” Seto cried out. “If I had any last bit of hope, i've thrown it out. I can't do this anymore.”

“You're giving up.” Tyler said.

“I'm giving up.” Seto nodded his head.

“B-but-” Bodil looked at Seto, tears in his own eyes from the break down.

“Now it's up to me to decide how I give up.” Seto choked.

“Seto stop.” Ian frowned.

“Do I want to starve or do I want to become 10 O'clock?” Seto cried.

“Don't say that.” Tyler glared at Seto. “Never say that.”

“But it's the truth and you know it, Tyler!” Seto barked. “You know there is nothing we can do!”

“Our food is running low anyway.” Bodil noted.

Tyler opened his mouth to reply, but he was cut off.

“So what's this about loops?”

Tyler and Seto turned to see Ian sitting down with the journal, flipping through it. Tyler gasped, getting up and snatching it back from Ian. How did he not notice Ian?

“That is not your book.” Tyler said with no real reply planned.

Ian crossed his legs. “I'm gonna die sooner or later anyway. I want to know what you mean by loops?”

“What did you read?” Bodil asked.

“Guys stop.” Tyler hugged the book.

“Tyler, stop.” Seto frowned. Not even Seto would come to his aid this time.

“There is something important in that book. I think it's about time you shared it.” Seto sighed.

Tyler looked around at the three. He felt attacked.

“You spoke of Loops and clocks and numbers. What's that all mean?” Ian asked.

Tyler stuttered, backing up.

“Didn't you listen? I don't know what any of it means! I never wrote any of it! I c-can't explain!”

“I think you're lying.” Seto said.

Tyler felt suddenly alone.

“I-i'm not. I wish I could prove to you, but I can't!”

“Just give it up already!” Ian continued.

“It's ending, Tyler. Whatever is worth keeping in that book isn't anymore!” Bodil joined in.

“Mitch had all the right to pester you about what was in there.” Seto said. “It could have saved him.”

Tyler watched as each one of them tried to get him to tell them things he really truly didn't know. He stepped back a few more times, looking at the three as if they were zombies. They continued to beg for answers, until they stepped over a boundry, and it was too late.

“I DON'T HAVE ANY OF YOUR DAMN ANSWERS, OKAY!?” Tyler yelled. “I came to this mansion to have a good time with my friends, and now all I feel is alone and attacked! There is nothing in this book that will aid any of us! Take my stupid word for it!”

With that, Tyler walked around the table, over to the exit of the safe room. Ian gasped.

“W-Wait, you can't leave!” Ian said, following.

Tyler stopped and turned back to them. .

“Iike Seto said. There's nothing we can do now. I'm taking a walk. Who cares if I come back?” Tyler sneered , and left the safe room.

“Ooohh boy, Um.” Ian looked back and forth between the two at the table and the iron door. “I-I think I should follow him.”

Ian left, and Bodil became a bit guilty for what he did. He turned to Seto, who still looked unmoved, tired, and depressed. Bodil gulped.

“I think we should follow them.” Bodil said.

“I think I'll starve.” Seto muttered, and put his head down on the table.

Bodil paused. He then sat down.

“Okay then.”

-...-

Tyler sat in the red chair on the 4th floor. He was leaned back, his arms on the arm rest, and his head rested. He was honestly on the verge of sleep, the book on the end of his lap. Ian had followed Tyler, and now leaned on the wall next to a window. It was boarded up, but there were little areas that Ian found that he could look through. He saw trees, the sky, birds, grass, and blood and a body. He saw Bashur, and quickly looked back from the window to Ty.

The book on Tyler's lap fell to the floor, waking Tyler up. Tyler took a deep breath and picked the book up, but didn't get out of the chair. Tyler rubbed his eyes and looked at Ian, who looked back. No words were exchanged until Ian felt pressure. He kicked his feet at the floor.

“Do you ever wonder if maybe this is all just one long nightmare?” Ian asked.

Tyler listened, and he didn't reply.

“Like..” Ian shifted where he stood. “Like maybe I just happen to be in a coma in the real world, and this is my dream? And when I wake up finally, everyone will be fine.”

“I wish. But I can tell you that that's not the case.” Tyler muttered.

“How would I know? Maybe I dreamed you saying that.” Ian shrugged.

“Believe what you must to feel a rest.” Tyler sighed, not believing it.

“Yeah. A dream.” Ian continued. “In real life, we're all okay. Nobody's dead. I'm making cakes, Bodil's playing parkour, Seto's casting spells and having fun with his friends like Brice!”

“What would I be doing?” Tyler asked out of boredom.

“Acting?” Ian thought. “Or maybe something interesting, something different?”

“Like what?”

“Like a security guard?” Ian wasn't sure.

“Eh.” Tyler crossed his arms. “Sounds boring.”

“You never know.” Ian replied, and the conversation went dead.

After a moment, Ian talked again. He started walking around the room.

“What would you do if you could escape, Tyler?” He asked.

Tyler shifted in the red chair, yawning.

“I'd get therapy.” He answered. “Maybe buy games for Janet to complain about. Stalk Kyle. The usual.”

“Hm.”

Tyler looked over at Ian. “What would you do?”

“I'm not sure.” Ian answered.

“You should think on that then.” Tyler sighed.

The door suddenly opened, and Ian and Tyler looked over to see Bodil. He looked spooked, and was breathing hard.

“G-GUYS! IT'S SETO!” Bodil gasped.

“What happened?” Ian asked, and Tyler stood up.

“He's freaking out! He's running around trying to track down the Oni! We need to stop him!” Bodil cried out.

Ian turned back to Tyler. Tyler didn't see the worth of it, but there was nothing else to do. He gripped the journal, and walked towards the door.

“Let's go find ourselves a sorcerer then.” Tyler said.

Bodil lead Tyler and Ian back down stairs. Bodil checked the piano room and the library quickly first, but there was no sign of Seto. Then they headed back down to the second floor, and found just who they were looking for when they stepped into the hallway from the staircase. Purple fog filled the floors, flooding rooms and disappearance down the stairs.

The three saw Seto standing in front of the Oni, his back to them. He was yelling at the Oni, half in English and half in whatever language most his spells were in. The Oni stared at Seto. And then it moved. Everything slowed down, and time felt as if it almost stopped. It stood up tall, it's claws raising into the air.

And then it struck Seto.

The book fell from Tyler's hands, into the fog, and the noise made him flinch.

-...-