"There's no time to waste now," Abbey continued speaking after yelling out "Schade." Sharon seemed puzzled. "Who or what is Schade?" she thought. Looking towards Abbey for directions, she lamented, "What do we do now?" "Come to me," Abbey ordered. Without hesitation, she instinctively reached forward towards Abbey. Both were standing side by side. "Give me your hand," Abbey instructed. Again, with hesitation, she immediately pulled her hand forward for Abbey to hold onto. Abbey pondered about something in his head. "She is really afraid of dying; for her to be this obedient," a mischievous smile could even be seen on his lips. But still, he couldn't allow himself to be sidetracked by his impulsive thoughts.
They both held hands tightly while concentrating all their willpower on their internal energy. Before long, they were both creating something new. Sharon felt strange; even with her eyes closed, she could see and feel the surge of energy around her. She felt like she was giving birth to a baby for the first time. She kept her focus on what she was doing, not wanting to be distracted this time. She heard a faint, familiar voice saying, "It's good that you're keeping your focus. You're learning." Trying not to be distracted again, she knew who the person with the voice was. It was none other than Abbey.
For some reason she could not explain, she could see him Infront her, and she could see what he was doing. How is this possible, she asked in herself thoug not wanting to break her concentration. This time Abbey spoke but she could not hear the words with her ears but she heard it in her thoughts, as if he was speaking in her mind. Again she asked " How is this possible"?.
With a smile on his face, he replied, "We are now connected in body and soul." "You can now feel and hear my thoughts, and I can do the same," he explained. She still did not understand. She asked, "Will it always be like this? Will I have someone in my head at all times, knowing all my secrets?" Sensing her thoughts, Abbey seemed amused. "We are in danger, and this is what she's worried about? Me knowing all her secrets?" he reassured her. "No, it's just a joint hallucination we're experiencing now. Once we break free from this realm, the bond will be broken," he said.
They both held on tightly to each other. Sharon could feel the new surge of energy growing, but she could also sense Abbey's doubt. She heard his thoughts, even though he was trying his best to sound confident. She thought for a moment before letting go of his hand. This time, she decided to act on her impulsive nature. She reached out her hand to grab Abbey's head and immediately pressed her lips against his. Without saying a word or a thought, she kissed him passionately.
Immediately, a new and brighter form of energy was formed, almost as bright as the sun itself. They both felt warmth under this energy. It was as if they were protected by it.
In all his life and experience, Abbey had never felt something like this before. His whole body became one with the energy. "Is this what they mean by the saying 'two shall become one'?" he thought to himself.
They could both feel it, as if they were becoming one sentient being. Their thoughts were intertwined, and the new energy wasn't just as bright as the sun, but also breaking through all the hallucination barriers around them. Before long, all the barriers surrounding them had been broken and Sharon could see the creature holding them captive. She couldn't believe her eyes, and she even had goosebumps all over her body just from staring at it. The monstrosity standing in front of her was terrifying.
"Schade," she called out its name. Schade was a fog-like creature with seven horns on its head, eyes as red as smoking lava, and surrounded by the darkest of dark smoke that acted like terrifying wings all around it. Sharon could literally feel the essence of fear and death emanating from it. But even with her lips still pressed to his and her eyes closed, she could see all around her. She began to shake all over, her legs like jelly and about to give way under the overwhelming pressure coming from the creature.
But before she could collapse, a gentle voice spoke within her, "Do not be afraid. I am with you, and we can defend and defeat the darkness." Immediately, her hope was renewed. Keeping hope alive is always important here," the strange voice reassured her. Instinctively, she recognized the voice as Abbey's. While their lips were still pressed together, she pressed even harder and more passionately, as if holding on for her dear life.
It seemed that this was the trigger they needed to finally break free from Schade's hold. Immediately, Schade was sent flying a few meters away from them. "You can let go now," Abbey's voice could be heard in her head. She was reluctant to do so, but Abbey calmly said, "Don't let fear hold you down again. We have already defeated fear, it has no hold on us anymore. Don't give it a reason to return." Upon hearing his soft and reassuring voice, she gradually let go. Eventually, she opened her eyes and saw her physical surroundings again. After taking a deep breath, she was able to regain her composure.
Looking at Schade from far away, she asked Abbey, "Who or what is Schade?" Abbey took a deep breath before explaining, "Schade is the terrifying being that hunts the doorway. Some might say it is the door slave master. Its job is to trap lost souls and devour them. That is how it becomes stronger. It feeds on their fears and sorrows." He paused for some time before saying, "Now do you understand?" Sharon nodded her head to indicate yes. Abbey was puzzled, so he asked Sharon, "How did you know that kissing me would amplify our energy?"
Sharon shrugged her head as if trying to say, "I didn't know." But eventually, she said, "I knew we were in trouble and since I was in your head, I could feel what you were feeling. So I acted on my impulse and just did it. I never knew it would work," she said.
Abbey was impressed with Sharon in that moment. "There is no time to waste. We can't keep dwelling here or Schade might just grow bolder and make another attempt to devour us," he said. "Since we are still in the place of solace, let's try to conquer a doorway home once again."
But before they could do anything, a very strong voice spoke to them. The voice sounded like rushing lava, and it hurt to hear. "Do you think you have escaped me?" said the voice. "Do you think it is that easy, that you can just come and go as you wish? There are consequences to every action." Both Abbey and Sharon realized where the voice was coming from and instinctively looked in its direction.
"It's you," Abbey said. "I thought you had forgiven me for my past transgressions. And now you're bringing up consequences for every action?"
"You escaped me last time you were here," Schade said, pointing to Abbey. "Do you think you can do that now, especially with her around?" Sharon was confused. How could Abbey be talking to this terrifying creature as if they were old acquaintances? She felt the urge to shove Abbey, but she maintained her composure for a while.
"What's the fuss? Why are you bringing up the past now? Let bygones be bygones," Abbey said. Schade let out a menacing laughter.
"Before saying anything else, I must remind you that nearly half of the creatures here dislike you and wish to see you trapped here," said Schade. "And you're saying let bygones be bygones? What a joke."
Abbey couldn't help but smile, but a grim expression soon appeared on his face. "A brave bravado with an utter ego, personally," he said. "I can try and stop me, but I promise you can't. And judging from what happened not long ago, you can't stop us either."
Sharon was able to pull herself together. "How well do you know Schade?" she asked.
Abbey couldn't help but laugh at Sharon's words. He attempted to change the subject, but Sharon was insistent. Realizing he couldn't avoid it any longer, he chose to be honest. During one of my journeys, I made a mistake that I am not proud of. I was pushing myself to my limits, and that's when it occurred.
Unfortunately, Schade showed no concern for Sharon and was solely focused on consuming Abbey. There were specific guidelines that needed to be followed, but Abbey appeared determined to defy them. Essentially, Abbey was seen as an adversary while Sharon found herself caught in the crossfire.