A Door that Opens Part 4

Before any of them even had a chance to look around, there were so many swarms of bright, glowing blue butterflies all around them. They were all around Rise especially, and the other Marines. Glistening with every motion, they were beautiful. None of them deviated from their flight patterns as they made waves that matched the sea's. Rinji was also mesmerized by this display, but he realized he lost sight of his enemy. Instead he saw Alice, who stood not too far behind him, who was waving her arms around.

Alice: Dori Dori no Kochou!

Rinji: What... [Unbelieving of her ability, but then remembered how fast they were approaching the Red Line]

He looked to the front to see that they were well underway of a head-on collision.

Rinji: Chio! Nikk! Get to the helm immediately! Divert us from the Red Line!

Chio kicked the next one down who was also distracted by the butterflies all around them. He nodded to Rinji and whirled around for another kick at two of them who blocked his way from the helm. He dashed toward the helm.

Rinji: Nikk!!

Nikk opened the door to see the beautiful butterfly images, and her mouth went gape for one whole second before she sterned herself again and saw the source of it. Then her mouth turned more to a frown than anything.

Nikk: Osore...

Rise: Damnit! Rinji, where did you go? You're still on this ship [swiping her hand at the butterflies, searching] I will find you again! Just keep talking and accept it! Where--- whoa....

The area around her turned black, and strangely, the entire ship began to glow a sort of grayish tint. There in front of Vice Admiral Rise was a subordinate under her command, or so it seemed. It was very hard to tell as most of his face was chewed off, and his skull was gaping out from beneath two flaps of skin. Butterflies that seemed to have turned red were all over him, seemingly chewing off his skin little by little.

Rise: Private! What happe--

Blood spurted from his wounds and began to cover the deck. He called for help in whispers and reached out for her with blood-covered hands.

Alice: What... [Looked toward Nikk] What are you up to!? Don't taint my beautiful creations with your horrific, monstrous images!

Nikk: I was here first...

Rinji: Girls! Not the time! Chio! Divert us!

Chio: I can't! The helm's stuck! This wind is far too hard!

Usagi: Captain! Look!

All of them looked to see that there was, indeed a gray glow coming not only from the ship, but also on a large portion of the Red Line that they were headed for.

Rinji: What the...

Rise was just about to sneak up on the Catman, but stopped as she looked at the mountain. What was this thing before them. It looked like a blazing hole in the middle of the mountain. If the ship collided with it and was destroyed, then it didn't matter what she did, she would be killed in the seas.

Alice: Stop it! You're disrupting my dream energy!

Nikk: You stop it, you're interrupting my nightmare energy.

Both of them stared each other down, black and white energy collided and the gray hole in the mountain widened, and that was it. The ship did not alter course. The nose of the ship passed straight through it, and some of the marines jumped straight off board as it went in. Rinji on the other hand began to think faster than the speed of light.

Rinji: ''So, it seems my journey to find Nekoshima will be cut short afterall. Still, it was a great run. From the Cross Pirates, to the Seacats, and now with my loyal crew who will see the end of my journey with me. I'm sorry Kiria, Migoto... Father, I will not see the likes of you again. Perhaps we shall meet on the shores of the great Lion's Gate. Like a good Captain, I shall die with my ship, Panno Marie... Panno... Mother.''

That was when the entire ship was engulfed in the bright light, and all of them felt the ship dip down, and fall. Everyone on board began to fall down a gigantic hole. Inside a wide downward tunnel that started out completely black. As Rinji fell down that hole, the walls turned checkered in black and white, then black and red, then black and green, and more and more colors came abroad all around him. Then there were chess-pieces! All around him, giant ones, and they were being played by giant hands! Down and down, he fell. He lost sight of his crew, and of his ship, but he just kept on falling.

That was when he started to see birds, so many birds flying all around him. They must have been rainbow birds because they were all colors of the rainbow, and they flew like they were rays from a rayleigh prism. Red, blue, yellow,green, and purple... but was purple really real in those colors? Or did they just sort of mix in an optical illusion? Ah, who cared, he just kept falling and falling.

Things did not lighten up, either. This time he was seeing stripes of purple and pink, all around him they swirled and whirled like a barbershop decoration. That was when he noticed it was all around him, even above and below. The entire place swirled purple and pink, even looking like a whirlpool underneath him, one that came up toward him, but then the end of it grew big green eyes, and that was when a menacing grin came about to stare him down. It was yet another cat, quite the large one whose purple and pink-striped fur appeared in bits and pieces,and it gazed at him. It was a distorted mirror image of himself, as he held the same look on his face, and he reached out to the other cat, who reached out to him at the same time. But then the cat went back to a grin, and winked at him.

That was when he fell faster, and through the hole he went. He blacked out completely for a moment. And when he opened his eyes, there were at least ten or fifteen spears pointed at his head from all around. All of them were in the form of playing card symbols (spades, hearts, etc.) and they were all held up by playing card men. They all looked serious, their helmets of red and black covering their eyes, but their mouths with gritted, menacing teeth.

Cards: NO ONE SEES THE QUEEN!!!!!!!!

Their voices rang throughout what looked like a castle, and all of the halls echoed in response. There was Rinji, sitting up and looking around himself at all of them. He sighed, flapping his bottom lip in despair.

Rinji: Brilliant...