From Murder to Dust

ATE - 18 - Near

I had been staying with - being held captive by - Ink for forty years at this point, and I was going to see Error today; I was excited for that. My feelings had been shifting often recently, just as the doctor said they would; I felt like everything that I thought immediately contradicted itself. Although I couldn't feel pain anymore, Ink still allowed the high ranks to break my bones, if only to appease them. Unfortunately, he also posed a few restrictions on those who saw me: they weren't allowed to try to stop or hinder the progression of my condition in any way; of course, Error could, since he wasn't under Ink's control. Ink didn't make me drink paint as often anymore as torture, since it really didn't do anything to me other than leave a bad taste, but he sometimes did it, just for fun. Instead of that, he opted for forms of mental torture; they were really..horrible. I was sure that Ink didn't mean to torture me - yes, he did! - really; he probably just wanted me to...I didn't know. Ink was nice to me sometimes and mean other times; I didn't understand it. I had just been woken up from my sleep, and Ink had a bright smile lighting up his expression; he would be nice - no, he wouldn't.

"Good morning, Dusty!" Ink greeted.

"Good morning!" I smiled, hugging my Hope.

"I bet you're excited for today!"

"I am!" I really wanted to see Error: he was family - he was the only one who could keep me sane.

"Did you have a nice rest?"

"Yep!"

"Do you love your brother?"

"Yes.."

"You know, it really makes me sad to hear you say that."

"Wh-why?" I didn't want Ink to feel sad - yes, I did!

"I just thought that maybe..you'd let him go?"

"Why w-would I.."

"Oh, Dusty, he doesn't care about you, so why should you care about him?"

"B-because he's my brother.."

"Perhaps. It's time for you to go see Error."

"Really?" That news made me happy.

"Indeed! The escorts are already here!" Ink patted my skull, receiving a giggle; I loved that. "I'll miss you until you return, but never fear! I will be waiting for you!"

"Okay!" 

"Now, go." Ink made me stand and faced me toward the door.

"Okay." 

I walked to the door and opened it, seeing a couple guards, who gave me nice smiles; they felt sorry for me, although I really didn't know why - Ink was torturing me. They started leading me to Error; I knew the path by soul. I didn't need to be handcuffed anymore, since Ink knew that I would never try to escape - I wanted to escape so much! - at this point. My soul felt a bit weird as the thoughts flew through my mind, but that was normal at this point. As we walked, the guards started a little conversation, asking how I was and if I was feeling all right; I felt great - I felt hopeless. The guards seemed happy when I said that I was okay, which was great; I liked making people feel happy, especially when there was so much sadness - Ink was the cause, of course - going around. The walk down the stairs was a bit boring, but I managed to get through it, just like all the other times. When we reached the bottom, the door was opened, and Error's expression lit up when he saw me; that was a nice feeling. I was quickly let into the cell and surrounded with a warm embrace; Error seemed to be really lonely - I wished that I could do more to help him.