The shade took a step towards him and he flinched back. He had this nagging feeling that he couldn't let it touch him. If he did, something bad would happen.

The shade kept coming.

He stumbled backwards, trying to keep his balance and avoid the shade's grasping fingers.

"You can't run from yourself." It spoke, its head down, disheveled blonde hair hanging limply around his pale face. "You can't erase who you truly are."

Suddenly, he tripped over nothing and landed flat on his back. Panting, he pushed himself along the bright ground as the shade advanced.

It looked up, its movements resembling that of a rag doll being controlled by a child. Its broken eyes examined him carefully. It smirked, a twisted, devious grin. "You don't really think you can escape, do you?"

The shade's pale skin dripped with crimson blood. Only then, up close, did he realize that it wasn't the shade's blood. The shade was uninjured. The blood was someone else's. He didn't want to imagine whose.

Suddenly, the 'ground' dropped out from under him and he tumbled into a blinding pit.

He collided harshly with something solid, knocking the wind out of him. He rolled onto his side, coughing and struggling to breathe. His head was pounding and his spine ached.

As he fought to regain his breath, the shade stepped out of the light and stood over him. "This is your destiny." It stepped closer to him. "This is who you are."

He got to his hands and knees and looked up. "No. I won't let that happen. You can't control me."

The shade gave another of his creepy smirks. "Are you sure about that?" It reached down and grabbed his neck.

A cold wave washed over his body.

His eyes widened as the chill sank into his bones. His breaths quickened and his heart beat out of his chest.

"No." He clenched his fists, fighting the freezing sensation spreading through his muscles. "I... won't... let you."

The shade smiled, a horrifying, grotesque thing. "You can't fight it."

His whole body shook violently. "Yes... I... can." He pushed himself into a kneel.

The shade glared down at him. "You're so stubborn." It clenched its fists and the cold stabbed deeper, burning colder.

He hunched over, but didn't fall, gritting his teeth against the cold.

"A valiant effort really." The shade smirked. "But in vain." It tilted its head and the freezing chill ripped through his body like a hurricane, leaving complete destruction in its wake.

He keeled over with a scream. He couldn't hold on any longer. He had failed. With the last of his strength, he looked out into the white emptiness. "I'm sorry, Sophie."

A/N
Sorry about the wait. I had a mini slump. Hopefully, I've figured it out now. We're actually almost done with the story. I knew it wasn't going to be a long one, but that was fast.
Hope you enjoyed the chapter.
-Cheshire