A/N: Yay for the prologue of the doomed little story I've been dying to write! Hopefully I can keep up the inspiration for this ^^

I don't own Grand Chase or any of their lovely characters! What I do have, however, is the ability to manipulate them as much as I want through the power of FAN FICTION!

Chapter 0: The Prologue

Tick... Tock... Tick... Tock...

The darkness was all-consuming,no trace of light to be seen. She didn't move: she'd stopped trying long ago. Trying to find an exit just brought pain. Trying to think caused pain... Everything caused pain. Limbs could be moved with no amount of coordination, nothing to hold her in place or to propel her further. Everything was trivial there, in the pitch black area. So she waited, and waited, a constant ticking reminding her of the world moving along outside the silent prison.

Tick... Tock... Tick... Tock...

Time goes by.

"...Thr... eks?... Are you... ?" The mumbling began, a whisper that grew louder and louder, seemingly grabbing at her. She closed her eyes as something finally made contact; a feeling of a heavy pressure covering her whole body. The pressure was good. The pressure meant she'd see the light soon. But the pressure also meant she'd have to deal with them again. Them, their question... Everything she didn't want to deal with. The consuming pressure finally reached her eyes, bringing with it a blinding light. The ticking was slowly fading, though a rhythmical beating was taking its place. She was calm, knowing soon she would be able to move.

Soon. Soon. Please, don't make me wait! I don't know how much longer I can take this!

And then her eyes were open to the florescent bright ceiling lights and pristine white sheets, the familiar beeping coming from the machine next to her. The girl breathed a sigh.

This was good.

This was familiar.

Most of all, this wasn't painful. Feeling lighter, she stretched her arms as much as she could, taking in the sickly colour of her skin contrasted against the bed sheets. She couldn't remember how bad it had been last time, but she was fairly certain it was worse then. Raising her head and brushing back some deep violet locks from her eyes, she took in the room. Her brows furrowed. Have I been moved?

The answer was yes, and it was made quite apparent when a small doctor with black hair entered her room from the door that led into a room with a large observation. She had watched with interest for a few moments as he walked around making changes on her white wall board, and was almost disappointed when he only noticed she was awake as he was checked the unusually speedy heart monitor.

"Arme! You're awake!" The man exclaimed, giving her a quick look over. She averted her eyes to avoid his close scrutiny, playing with her hands quietly.

"Well..." The doctor spoke awkwardly, "I'm sure you've noticed by now that this isn't the Cadenza Private Hospital. Welcome to the Heart Foundation Hospital! You've been transferred here because... well, I'm sure you know why. But rest assured! We have the best team of doctors on the face of the planet working on your case right now." At this the man leaned in closer.

"You must trust us, Arme. No one here will let you die. We're doing everything in our power, so just hang in there, alright?" The doctor seemed rather serious, and Arme simply nodded, praying it was true, though she knew full well the most likely result of her condition. Still... her thought were cut short as black dots swarmed into her vision, threatening to overtake her sight entirely. She reached to the bedside for the pill case she knew would be there, and quickly ate them before turning to the black-haired man again.

"I'm going to ask you a few questions while we wait for your mother to make her daily visit, okay?" Another nod. Arme watched the man write a small note at the top of the clipboard, then pull over the navy chair that rested in the corner of her room.

"Arme, I noticed you took your pills right away. Are you feeling drowsy now?"

"No... Well, a little." Arme mumbled, pulling at the edge of her sage green hospital top.

"I see. And did you feel any pain while you were asleep?"

"No." This was a lie, but she didn't need them telling her mother she was in pain when she was unconscious, so she simply bit her lip, the grip tightening on her top. The doctor's brows furrowed at this answer, and he jotted down a note longer than the previous.

"All right, then. Were there any times you gained consciousness during your rest?" Rest? She mentally laughed at how simple and peaceful it sounded. If only he knew.

" As usual, no."

"And I've read in your file that when you're unconscious you don't feel like you're asleep? More like you've been trapped in a dark room?" Another sigh, another nod. Are the questions going to be over soon...? She doubted it. All she could hope was that her mother arrived soon.

"You're sure nothing happened? Nothing that felt like a dream?"

"No..." Why did it matter?

"And Arme?"

"... Yes?"

"Do you realize how long your unconsciousness lasted this time?" Arme blinked at this question. If they were asking, surely it wasn't good. She had felt like she was in the darkness forever, but it felt like that every time. Every... single... time.

After a moment, the answer was a definite 'No.' The doctor frowned.

"Arme, you missed your fifteenth birthday." Her eyes widened as she did the calculations. She had been praying she wouldn't up till the day she had fainted, and if she had missed it...

"I've been asleep for two weeks!" Was the astonished answer. The doctor shook his head.

"No, Arme. Your birthday was exactly one week ago. You've been asleep for three weeks, by far the longest lapse you've had. I hate to say it, but the data is getting frighteningly close to that of the previous patients." She stared at him, wondering what exactly happened to the 'You must trust us, Arme. No one here will let you die' mindset. You might as well be telling me I'm going to die.

"There's still time... right?" The doctor nodded.

"Yes."

"How long will it be until my next checkup?" Her violet eyes looked up uncertainly, not at all certain she wanted to know the answer. The doctor quite obviously didn't want to give her the answer either, judging by the way be stood up and began to pace the small room back and forth. Finally he turned to look at her.

"You see Arme, here's the thing. You're going to be staying at the hospital for a while." The purple haired girl stared blatantly at him until she finally understood that he wasn't joking.

"W-What? No! I can't even go home? What about school?" Placing the clipboard on the desk a fair way away, he refused to turn back and look at her.

"Arme, at this point of your... condition, it's dangerous if you leave. We can no longer be certain about when the lapses will occur, and our information shows that your conscious time is going to rapidly decrease. If we release you, there's a high chance you'll pass out in the middle of a public area." No way... Realizing she lacked the power to do anything else, Arme resorted to glaring at the back of his head.

"Can't I go home? I'll rest there!" The last thing she wanted was to be surrounded by doctors in the overly white room under a bright light as she took her final breath.

"Arme, we already have permission from your mother. You're staying here."

"B-but-!" This was cut off by a loud knocking at the door. Through the observational window Arme's mother could be seen banging on the door, frantically yelling something at the sound-proof entrance. Once the door opened she flew in at an amazing speed, her long violet hair flying out behind her as she took a spot next to her daughter.

"Arme! Oh, Arme, sweetie! How do you feel?" Such a generic question, but Arme put up with it, seeing the genuine concern on her mother's face. She put a smile on her face before answering.

" I'm fine, Mom! I always feel a lot better after I wake up, you know that." Her mother gave a relieved sigh and placed a hand on Arme's bed sheet, near her hand. When she lifted it a small box was in it's place, wrapped perfectly, a bow sitting on the top in perfect form, so like her perfectionist mother.

"I know how much you were looking forward to it, but... Well, happy birthday, Arme!" Her mother smiled, eyes sparkling as she watched her daughter. Without much hesitation Arme undid the bow and took off the wrapping neatly (a habit she had picked up from her mother). A velvet packet was left, which was opened to reveal a small necklace with two shimmering purple stones on it. The design reminded her somewhat of a lynx, edged with a silver frame and intricate gold swirls, fine tufts of silver shooting off the two ears, and the two small gems shining up at her like eyes.

"They're tourmaline gems, Arme. Some of the most beautiful gems in the world. I want you to have it, and remember that even when you're in the hospital you're still free. You'll never be entirely locked up. For you, there will always be a way out. Just look at this some days and know that your father and I are supporting you every step of the way." A grin slowly appeared on Arme's face as the clasp was done up on the chain, the gold and silver alternating links pressed softly against her neck, cooling her.

Thank you... Thank you so much... She lifted her head and looked at her mother, the smile still on her face.

"We love you, Arme." It was to this that Arme opened her mouth to form a reply.

"I-" And the black dots were swarming into her vision, threatening to black out everything all over again. N-No! Not again! Arme reached out frantically for the side of her bed, her hand grabbing the pill case only to realize it was already empty. No, no, no, no, no!

"NO!"

And everything was gone.