Chapter XXXVIII

TREADING CAUTIOUSLY THROUGH A tunnel of white light, Joey glanced around searching for something anything ... but that was all she saw. There was no color, no odor, nothing. "Hello?" Her voice echoed in the vast room. She continued her walk for what felt like forever, but there was nothing around to tell her how far she had gone, and for a moment she thought that maybe she hadn't moved at all. Her heart lurched as her eyes discovered, far off in the distance, her white world turning to black.

Her heart pumped with adrenaline and excitement as she took off in a sprint to be free of this colorless world, and as she neared the black void, a figure filled her view. "Hey!" she called out. "Can you help me?"

A flash of neon blue exploded amongst the darkness and she squinted as she drew closer to the void. Slowing to a halt, she looked down where her feet met the edge of the black and her heart felt like it skipped a beat. She gave a quick glance back at the sea of white and its nothingness before turning back to the black, and that's when she saw him clearly. A young man strode towards her from afar, the neon light beaming from his body. She swallowed and her gaze met the floor once again, her toes mere inches from the black streaks that reached for her. Something about the darkness made her uneasy, but she couldn't stay here. The emptiness would drive her mad. Sucking in a deep breath, she placed a foot forward into the void, a dark presence immediately meeting her as she made her way towards the shining blue man.

"Hello?" she said again as she approached him. He stopped moving at the sound of her voice, but didn't speak and his face was still unclear from the blinding light. "Do you know where we are?"

She was now inches from the person, squinting to get a clearer look. She wasn't sure if the man could even hear her. "Excuse me?"

Another burst of blue light lit up the darkness, and she turned her head, shielding her eyes. When the bright light died down, she returned her gaze to find the man now glowing a softer blue, his eye sockets burned with blue fire where cold took the place of heat.

She traced the man up and down, eyeing him from his black boots to the tip of his frosted brown hair. She knew this man. "David?"

The young man who she could now recognize as her friend smiled. "Joey! Thank goodness it's you!"

She took a few steps back finding the warm and welcoming smile that was often present on David's face was now replaced by a frightening and alarming one. She glanced from side to side finding nothing but pitch black. "Where are we?"

"You mean, you haven't figured it out?" He made a dramatic sweep of his hands, gesturing to the atmosphere around him, and chuckled. "You're dead."

Joey gasped and blinked several times in disbelief. "What? No. That can't be right." She took a few more steps backwards. "This wasn't how it was supposed to end."

David shrugged. "Whether it was or not, there's nothing you can do about it now."

"But I can't be ..." She felt her breathing pick up as the blood pumping quickly throughout her body made it hard to breath. "I wasn't ... I never found my dad."

David crossed him arms. "You were never meant to. He's here too." She held her breath. "Would you like to see him?"

"He's ... he's dead?" she asked softly, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Has been for six years," David replied, glancing down at his nails like he had something better to be doing. "Agcorp never sent him into the Dome. Killed him the moment he was taken away."

Joey stumbled back feeling her knees buckle. "No. No, you're lying." She collapsed to the ground on her knees, tears pricking her eyes.

"Come on, Joey." David shifted to the side, his boot clicking against the floor. " Don't you want to see your dad? The man who gave his life six years ago so you could live." He smirked. "Though, you kinda threw it away didn't you."

Her hands flew to her face as tears spilled over her lashes and she cried into her palms.

"Joey!"

Joey jerked her head around towards the call of her name. Running amongst the white, someone sprinted her way, and as they drew near, she recognized his face. "Bellamy?"

Bellamy dashed her way, but as he took a step into the darkness, a bolt of electricity shot through his leg, so bright that you could see the lightening in its pure form, and he yelped. Bellamy collapsed to the ground on his rear, his elbows slapping against the white ground. Smoke rose from his chest as he pushed himself into a siting position. "Joey!" he cried through gritted teeth.

Joey furrowed her brow as she slowly rose to her feet. "Bellamy? What are you doing here?"

He slowly clambered to his feet, an arm pressed tightly against his stomach. "Thomas sent me. I'm here to get you out."

She shot David a quizzical look before glancing back to Bellamy. "Get me out?" She looked down at his feet and noticed him standing on the very edges of the white streaks. Swallowing, she said with realization, "You can't cross over to the void because you're not dead."

Bellamy nodded. "But with my ability, I can reach you and bring you back."

She jerked hearing David's cynical laugh. "You can't be serious. Why would you think she'd want to come back with you? To a life filled with pain, torment, and the constant reminder of how she ruined her friends lives?" Joey's heart sank as she lowered her gaze. "She's just a poor excuse of a soul. A monster who has only screwed up the lives of everyone she's ever know. Vincent, her father, Chase ... all dead because of her."

Joey furrowed her brow as the color drained from her face. "Chase is dead?"

David smirked. "Eaten. A nasty to way to die really. A way that never would have happened if you hadn't gotten yourself caught and tossed into the Dome."

"Joey, don't listen to him!" Her whipped towards Bellamy who took a step forward before quickly realizing that was a bad mistake. "He's manipulating you. He wants you to die, but I know there's a part of you that still wants to live."

David bellowed a laugh, slapping his thigh. "Can you believe this guy?" He stood up straight and crossed his arms again. "Tell me, if you want to save Joey so bad then why haven't you already?" He glanced around. "Couldn't you have just ... woken her up? Whisked her out of here or something?"

Joey listened intently to David, and Bellamy clenched his jaw before lowering his gaze.

"I'm sure Joey wants to go with you," David continued, "but ...
He raised a finger to his chin in a thinking position. "For some reason it's not that easy is it."

Bellamy looked up at Joey and sternly replied, "I need your consent."

"My consent?" she asked, confused. "My consent for what?"

"I can enter your body and heal you from the inside," he explained. "That is my ability. But it's limited. I can't force my way into a body."

"Then ..." She glanced around. "How'd you get here? If this is all "inside my head" how'd you in?"

"I'm not inside," he continued. "I'm portraying my consciousness so I can see you, talk to you. Joey ... Thomas wants you to come back. He ... needs you to come back."

"No," she said quickly and without hesitation. Lucinda's face flashed across her mind along with the searing fire that licked her skin and the bodies of her friends. If she agreed to go back with him, they would all die.

Bellamy shot her a stunned look. "But ... you'll die."

"And I'm okay with that." She smiled, but tears filled her bottom eyelids. "I can't go back. I have to keep everyone safe."

"What do you mean?" Bellamy's voice began to turn into a plea. "Joey, please! You have to say yes."

"No!" she shouted, and the white ground beneath Bellamy began to quake. "If I have to die to keep the people I love safe then so be it. Now, get ... out ... of my ... head!" Her voice rose until it became a loud boom with a gust of wind that tossed Bellamy backwards through the white void and out of sight.

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BELLAMY RELEASED JOEY'S ARM with a shout as he flew backwards onto his back. "Bellamy!" Thomas leapt up and stepped over Joey's body. He knelt down beside his friend and stared down at the bushy haired man who stared up at the treetops, a soft trickle of blood streamed from his nose.

Thomas placed one hand under Bellamy's back and grasped his forearm with the other, helping him rise into a sitting position. "What happened in there?"

Panting, Bellamy winced as he wrapped an arm around his stomach. With teary eyes, his gaze slowly met Thomas's. "She said no," his voice came out raspy.

Releasing Bellamy's arm, Thomas sat back with his knees pulled to his chest and he ran both his hands through his hair. "Joey, what are you doing?" he whispered. As he stared at her rapidly paling skin and swallow breaths, a thought popped into his mind. "She might say yes to me," he said lowly.

"What?" David asked, not having heard him.

Thomas's gaze shifted towards David as he lowered his legs and sat up straight. "She might say yes to me!" He rapidly shifted onto his knees. "Bellamy, can you get me inside her mind? Can you hide in my body? That way if she says yes to me, she'll be saying yes to you."

Bellamy furrowed his brow in thought. "That ... might work."

"Are you kidding me?" David asked, enraged. "You're going to trick Joey into saying yes after she already said no?"

"We are not going to let her die!" Thomas shouted, drawing everyone's attention and silencing the crowd. Ignoring the glares, he turned his attention back to his friend. "Can you do it?"

Bellamy looked down and slowly nodded. "I think so."

"Good," Thomas hastily replied before anyone had the chance to cut in. He eyed David. "Then let's get in there and bring our girl back."

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SLOWLY RAISING HER HEAD, Joey's eyes met David's as he extended a hand to her. "It's time, Joey." Swallowing a lump in her throat, she felt her chest squeeze as she reluctantly placed a hand in his, his devilish grin growing.

She closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. Right as she was about to walk into the darkness, another voice echoed through the void and she yanked her hand from David's twirling around.

"Joey! Wait!"

Squinting, her heart beat quickened as Thomas stood at the edge of the white world hollering her name. "Thomas?" she whispered. Thomas smiled as he beckoned her to come, but her grin faded and she shook her head. "No, I can't. Wha—" Her voice quivered. "What's dead should stay dead."

"But you're not dead, Joey!" Thomas responded. "There's still time to heal you, to bring you back!"

"What?" She turned around to face David who's eyes burned brighter and colder. "But you said I was—"

"Eh!" David waved a dismissive hand through the air. "So, maybe you're not completely dead yet, but you're minutes away."

"Then where am I? What happened to me?"

"You're trapped in a dream state," Thomas explained, and she flipped back around to face him. "Like I said. There's still ... time. You just have to let me help you."

"Don't listen to that fool!" David huffed. He maneuvered around to the front of her and his cold hands gripped her biceps. "This is what you wanted! You let go of that rock, remember? You were ready to die!"

"Don't listen to him, Joey," Thomas intervened, snapping her attention away from David.

"What happened to me?" She furrowed her brow and rubbed her head. "I-I-I don't remember anything. My memory ..." She looked back up at Thomas. "It's all foggy."

"Because you're dying!" David laughed.

As she stared at his face, a sudden memory flashed to the forefront of her mind and her shock instantly turned to fear as she backed away. "You," she whispered, slowly scanning up and down David's body. "You did this to me."

David smiled and bowed dramatically. "Guilty."

"But ..." Her words caught in her throat. "But why?"

She jumped as he suddenly appeared before her, their noses inches apart. "Because I got tired of saving you," he whispered with hatred. "I tried protecting you from Agcorp and look where it got me. I pushed you out of the way of the Nokida's claws claiming the poison that should've been yours." He leaned into her ear. "I was angry for what you did to me. It was my idea to enchant the compass and Lucinda happily agreed."

"Don't listen to him, Joey!" Thomas's voice pierced her ears. "That isn't David!"

David backed away leaving Joey in tears. "I thought you were my friend," she whimpered.

"Joey!" Thomas waved his arms around trying to get her attention, and it worked. "He's lying! Block him out!"

"How does he know so much?" Joey's shoulders slumped. "He knows about Agcorp and the Nokida."

"Because he's in your head!" Thomas tried to reason. "He knows what you know and he's twisting the things that happened. You can't fall for anything he's saying."

She felt a few strands of hair brush against her ear along with a soft breath of air. "Don't follow Thomas through the light," came David's menacing whisper, "and I'll let them live."

Her throat squeezed as fear gripped her and her heart pounded against her breasts. "Lucinda," she breathed lowly.

David shifted around to stand in front of her. "You saw what she did to your friends," he continued to whisper. Raising a brow, he crossed his arms behind his back. "Is that really what you want? To condemn them to a dreadful death instead of leaving this place with me?" He moved to her left, and her eyes rested on Thomas as he stared intently at her.

The desire to leave with him was great, but the images of his dead corpse plagued her mind and so she shook her head and whispered, "I can't."

"Joey, please!" He took a step forward into the darkness, but was jolted as a bolt of electricity shot through his foot and up his leg. He backed away, gripping his thigh and panting. "Joey, I can't lose you!"

Joey lowered her head. "I can't risk the lives of my friends just to save myself. They deserve to live! I don't!"

"Joey, what are you talking about?" Thomas released his thigh, but remained hunched over.

"Lucinda," Joey explained, returning her gaze to meet his. "She said ..." She sucked in a breath, almost afraid that somehow the witch would hear her words. "She said she'd kill you if I followed you."

"That's not going to happen," he said confidently. "I won't let it. We'll get out of here and get to her before she does us."

"How can we defeat a witch with such power?" she asked in desperation. "You've seen what she can do."

"Joey, you have to let me help you," he pleaded, ignoring her comment. "I ... need you." She blushed with embarrassment and shock. "I ..." He balled his hands and appeared to be struggling with his words. "I would be lost without the girl from my visions. For so long I have watched your name pop up over and over again in my mind." He paused. "And now that I've finally met you, I don't want our meeting to end so soon."

Sucking in a breath, he stood tall and took long strides into the black void. Pink electricity shot up his legs, but he grimaced and pressed on. "Plea—" He winced with the pain nearly doubling over.

"No, it's not possible for the living to pass through the void," David said through gritted teeth.

Taking another breath, he stood back up. "Say you'll let me help you." He finally reached her and his hands slid down her arms until he gripped her soft, dainty hands. "I can't sit back and watch you die."

A small grin tugged at Joey's lips. She could tell that Thomas had grown to care for her, but his desire hadn't come from within just the last few days. From the way he talked, it almost sounded like his feelings developed long before they ever met.

"We'll find a way," Thomas whispered through the pain. "There's always another way."

She let out a slow sigh before nodding her head. "Alright," she replied. "We'll find a way."

Thomas smiled and together they made their way back to the white world.

"No!" David shouted, and Joey jerked her head around. "She was supposed to be mine!" His fiery eyes grew brighter and his hands glowed a gentle blue. "You can't have her!"

He rushed forward and gripped Joey by the arm. When he did, an extreme amount of heat coursed through her body and sent unbearable pain causing her to cry out as she tried to tug her arm free.

"Let go of her!" Thomas extended an ice shard and jabbed it straight into David's chest.

David released her arm and let out a low grumble. "You will regret this decision," he spat at Joey. His mouth opened wider than a normal persons could and a loud shriek filled the air. Joey and Thomas covered their ears to protect them from the sound, and in a flash, David was sucked into a vortex disappearing seconds later.

Joey panted as she tried calming her racing heart, the sting in her arm still lingering.

"Are you alright?" Thomas grasped her arm and glanced her up and down.

She glanced down at her arm to find what was probably a first degree burn, and with a shaky breath, she responded, "What have I done?"

"You did the right thing," Thomas corrected. He gripped her under the chin, raising her head to meet her eye to eye. "What's done is done. Now, to get you home." A small grin tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Will you let me help you?" She gripped his hand around her chin and nodded.

He released a heavy sigh of relief, and immediately his body was engulfed in a vortex of blue pixels. Seconds later, he vanished.

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THOMAS REMOVED HIS HAND from off of Joey's shoulder, and looked down at her pale, breathless form. He quickly glanced up at David who furrowed his brow at him, then to Bellamy who no longer sat in his place.

From the corners of his eyes, he could make out the crowd huddled together several feet away behind David. None of them made an eager move to assist. He tried to not think the worse of them as maybe they were just giving him some space, or staying close to Mr. Magnus incase he were to flip out again.

"What happened?" David asked, gazing at Thomas silently pleading for an answer. "Did it work?"

Thomas's eyes shifted from David down to Joey, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he gripped her hand tightly and stared at her looking for any sign of movement. "Come on, Bellamy," he whispered so low that no one could here. He squeezed her hand and sat there for what felt like an eternity until unexpectedly, Joey gasped for air and her eyes flickered open.

Thomas's mouth dropped as joy and astonishment washed over him, a smile sprouting on his lips. "Joey?"

She glanced around at her surroundings until her eyes finally met his. A weak grin pulled at the corners of her mouth as her lips parted to speak. "She's here, and she's alive."

Thomas released the breath he had been holding as his head dropped. "Bellamy." Releasing her hand, Thomas patted her shoulder gratefully. "How's it looking in there?"

With a grimace, Bellamy sat up looking off into the distance silently. "There's a lot of damage. The darkness, the dream state ... it really did a number on her." He looked at Thomas. "I'm sorry, but I think I'm going to have to stay here a little longer then we both want." Thomas let out a sigh from his nose, but said nothing. It was David who protested.

"What?" David stared at him quizzically. "What does that mean? You're just going to inhabit Joey's body for who knows how long?"

"I don't like it any more then you do!" Bellamy argued. "But if you want her to stay alive then I have to!"

"For how long?" David continued, angrily.

Bellamy glanced down in thought. "I'm not sure. There is so much that's broken." He looked at Thomas. "And the longer I'm in here healing her, it'll weaken me. Making the healing process last that much longer."

"No!" David shouted, and Thomas flushed as his outburst drew the others attention. "This isn't what she wanted. What do you think she'll do when she finds out that you're still inside her?"

"We're not going to tell her," Thomas hastily replied as the others drew near. His voice lowered as he spoke directly to David. "She needs him, whether we like it or not."

"If Joey discovers I'm here she can force me out," Bellamy spoke up, and the two looked his way. His lips dropped into a frown. "If that happens, she will die."

"Then you stay in there just until she's well enough to not need you," Thomas continued, softly yet sternly. "Not a moment more."

Bellamy nodded his head in agreement. "I'll wake her up." Closing his eyes, he suddenly collapsed back and Thomas caught Joey in his arms.

"Thomas, you must be out of your mind if you think I'm going to keep this from her," David rebuked.

"Do you want her to die?" Thomas asked, and David narrowed his eyes. "Because she will if you tell her." He looked back down as Joey moaned and opened her eyes. "Joey?"

"Thomas," her voice came out hoarse and weak as a small grin pulled her lips. Unable to contain his emotions, Thomas pulled her up into a hug. Embracing him back, he felt her soft breath on his neck. "Thank you for not giving up on me."

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DAVID SWALLOWED THE LUMP in his throat as he watched Thomas and Joey embrace, heat filling his cheeks. As much as he wanted to talk to Joey, tell her how sorry he was for causing all this, he couldn't stay and watch ... that feeling like he was quickly losing his best friend.

He wrung his hands trying to keep his anger at bay, but he felt his blood boil and he shot up marching off. He trudged a few paces away from the others, listening as the others made their way to Joey each sharing in their turn for a hug, and he sat on a deteriorating log. It the silence, he found himself lost in thought, but it was short lived when Alex took a seat beside him.

David rolled his eyes as Alex elbowed him and laughed. "Why the long face? Joey's back amongst the living! That's a good thing!"

"I know that," David huffed, twisting a little further away from Alex. He leaned forward placing his arms against his knees and his head ducked between his shoulders.

Silence came for about a minute before Alex's mocking tone picked back up. "Ah! I see what this is about. Don't tell me your jealous, Popsicle."

David swung his head to meet Alex, shooting him a puzzled look, and he scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous, Pyro. I have nothing to be jealous of." He gave a slight smile before returning his attention back to the ground, his smile vanishing. "They only just met. It's not like anything's going to become serious between them."

"I mean, it would be crazy but I guess it can happen," Alex babbled on.

"Alex!" David rolled his eyes.

"What?" Alex pressed on. "If there was something between you and Joey before, there isn't now." David's shoulders slumped. "I mean ... you did try to kill h—"

"Alex!" David jumped up, staring angrily at Alex. Out of everyone, he thought that at least Alex would've understood, but if he was honest with himself, deep down David knew it was the truth and his anger rapidly fell into sorrow. "But it wasn't ..." He trailed off as a lump formed in his throat. "It wasn't me," he whimpered. "Agcorp. They made me." He rubbed his hands through his hair and gave an exasperated sigh. "What am I going to do, Alex? What if you're right? What if she doesn't like me anymore? She's my friend. I can't just lose her forever."

"Then tell her you're sorry," Alex stated simply. "That you didn't mean for any of this to happen, that you didn't know."

David snorted, placing his hands on his hips. "Yeah. If only that would work. No, I don't think a simple apology is going to fix this mistake." He lowered his voice and crossed his arms. "And I did know what would happen. I just didn't care." He felt like a Villian for even muttering those words.

Alex placed a gentle hand on David's shoulder and a small amount of vapor poured off David's shoulder from the heat colliding with the cold. "Isn't it worth trying rather than losing her forever?"

David sighed and gave a small nod. "Guess you're right," he whispered. Taking a quick glance back at Joey, he watched as his little sister pulled away from her before mustering the courage to walk over. "Here goes nothing."

He walked confidently towards Joey and Thomas, and gave a quick wave when Thomas turned to meet him. "Hey, Joey!" As Joey's eyes rested on him, he saw the immediate terror wash over her, and his heart instantly dropped into his stomach.

Joey scooted away as he continued walking towards her. "No, stop!" she shouted. "Please, go away."

David stopped mid-stride. "Joey, I ... I just wanted to talk."

Joey closed her eyes and covered her ears with her hands. "I can't." She shook her head. "Every time I hear your voice ... I hear his."

He furrowed his brow, confusion sweeping over him. "His?"

"In her dream state," Thomas spoke up, "there was someone else there. Someone who took on your form and they ..." He trailed off with a sigh. "For some reason, they were dead set on getting her to agree to going with them. They wanted her dead."

David's mouth opened in shock. "But Joey, that wasn't me. I couldn't get inside your dream state. I—" His bottom lip quiver and he squatted. "Joey, I would never hurt you like that." He watched as tears fell from her lashes.

"Then what just happened to me?" she whimpered. "If it wasn't you then who was it?"

David shook his head. "I don't know who was pretending to me, but they—"

"No." Joey opened her eyes and finally looked at him, her eyes red as she tried holding back her tears. "If you didn't yank that compass from around my neck sending me through all of that then who was it?" Her brow furrowed into anger. "Because whoever they were, they sure knew how to hurt me."

David stared intently at his friend, hurt filling his heart at the mention of his betrayal. "There is no way I'd ever do that to you again. You have to trust me!" He felt tears prick his own eyes as he watched the horror on his friends face.

Joey shook her head. "I can't," she whispered. "Not after what you already did to me." He and Joey gazed at one another for what felt like forever. Joey Richards, his best friend, the girl he had grown so close to over the past few months, the first people he ever spilled his secret to, the one he would've died to protect from the Dome ... was now terrified by his face.

"It's probably best if you left, David."

Without looking at Thomas, David slowly rose to his feet and turned, his heart feeling like it had shattered into millions of pieces. As much as it hurt, maybe Joey was right to be cautious. If Agcorp could make him not care about his best friend enough to try to kill her, what else would they make him do? They could easily use him to try and finish the job or kill any of his other friends. That was something he couldn't risk. His face twisted in anger as he stormed away.

Alex jogged up beside him, but David didn't turn to face him. "That didn't quite go to plan."

David stopped and swung his body in Alex's direction, his knuckles clinched tightly and condensation poured from his body. "When I get out of here, Agcorp's going to wish they never messed with me." With those final words, he stomped away making sure this time that no one followed.