The rearing beast in front me was as magnificent as it was deadly, the fear in my eyes mingling with apprehensive awe. It was purely mythical, a mutant being one would expect to be written of only in fantasy books. Or nightmares.
I backed away with increasing fear, for I knew my reckless plan was useless, and I would die amongst my failed conniving scheme. At least Robyn and Chris would be saved; that was the important thing, right? I would be known as the martyr who stirred and spurred them to complete their goal: Star-Crossed Lovers avenging their fallen friends.
The thought made little difference to the quaking terror flaming deep within my soul. The can in my hand clattered to the floor, the impact resonating with a metallic clang.
Bang.
The sound it emitted was similar to the one of a gun. The gun! Of course! Obviously, whilst the ebony beast was situated in the water I didn't dare use my gun as a means of defence, fearful that it would splash, spark, ignite or anything.
Now, it was on land. Susceptible to the metal wrath, safe from any danger the liquid may hold.
Fumbling at my hostler for the shotgun, I kept a careful eye on the serpent. It was regarding me warily, scrutinising me with a feral glint in its eyes, weighing me up.
"Tempest!" The shrieks from the other side echoed shrilly in my ears. I couldn't let them down, couldn't.
The surrounding walls seemed to gloat as the monster continued to circle my body, trapping any exits unless I could shoot...
I hefted the gun into my grip, aiming at the thing's head.
Before I could create its peril, the beast suddenly twisted, hitting me with its tail. The scaly length struck me like a whip, a lasso, promptly coiling around my ankle and dragging me toward it. I hit the floor hard as I was thrown off balance; I felt blood trickle down my cranium, matting my hair and oozing despondently onto my already soiled shirt.
Slowly, the world spun. Everything was convulsing in slow motion, my vision blurred and hazy, the only clarity was of the fangs exposed in its mouth, dripping with yellow venom.
Bang!
My gun... My finger had twitched, sending a bullet hard against the floor. Struggling to raise it, I felt more pain lace around my system, dragging me under.
The nothingness was not welcome.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
-----------------
Rapidly gasping for breath, I lurched awake, feeling as though my lungs were corrupted with froth. My vision was unclear, pain singing out of tune in my body.
"Tempest! I thought you would never wake!" Chris crouched beside me and gently lowered my head back onto my flimsy pillow, his hands shaking like a leaf in a breeze.
"I'm awake now." I croaked. I felt dizzy, my thoughts incoherent, his words barely registering.
"And thank God for that." Now Robyn joined my side, her hand fleetingly brushing Chris's as she inspected my ankle. "It looks alright. The wound isn't infected."
"It hurts." I whispered.
"Not surprised." Chris muttered, a relieved sigh streaming from his lips. "We'll have to look at your head now. Is that okay?"
"Sure." I mumbled.
Gently, Chris supported my upper body upward, whilst Robyn scrutinised my head. She must've gotten this knowledge from her brother - basic bandaging and all that. "This may hurt." She hissed.
I yelped in pain and surprise as a bloodied bandage was removed from the back of my head, the pain associated with the movement searing into my skull like a poker.
Biting my lip to prohibit any more inhuman sounds from escaping, Robyn deftly wrapped another bandage. Blatantly, her touch was not as gentle as the deceased Jay's, nor as expert. The pain was elongated as she made some adjustments.
"That should do it." She murmured after a brief interval. After nodding to Chris, I was lowered back down, the soft bedding welcoming me.
With a muttered thanks forced out of clenched teeth, Chris chuckled. Though the haunted atmosphere was tense - it was clear we were all reminiscing about Jay. Obviously, Robyn decided to speak, to penetrate the grieved silence in which we wallowed.
"That was quite something. Not as quick as it should've been, but alright nonetheless." Robyn drawled, yet her words lacked a harsh impudence, only mild disdain.
"Yeah. What was that thing...?" Chris murmured, shaking his head in disbelief.
"Probably a genetic mutant. The robots probably dropped it down here and it made its home in this tunnel." Robyn speculated. I was happy not to interrupt their musings; the action would be too painful to bear.
Blinking to clear a rheumy, spectral fog from my vision, I grunted in vague acceptance of this theory. I stifled a shiver. That thing would haunt my nightmares for a long time.
"You sure do have a knack for attracting bad luck." Chris remarked, a small smile tugging at his lips.
"Unfortunately, yes." I agreed, taking time in forming my words. "But we shouldn't dwell... I don't want to."
"Of course not." Chris said.
"Chris reckons we're near our desired entrance to the heart of the city. Above our heads is much more danger." Robyn continued the conversation. The mood seemed to turn slightly morose. Clearly, we were all dreading the task ahead.
"Yes... We know little about the centre of the city, apart from it'll be crawling with robots. We'll leave in a few days. Food needs to be consumed sparingly. If we eat too much we won't be able to live for more than a week."
"And water?" I inquired.
"We still have plenty of that, but it will taste funny. We can always use puddles if it comes to that. Anyway, you need to rest, Tempest."
"Wait. You're hiding the plan from me, aren't you?"
Chris and Robyn exchanged a look. It was Robyn who answered first. "It's not that we don't trust you, it's just that it'll take too long to explain. It's not even certain it'll work yet. Honestly, we're still tweaking."
Chris nodded.
The silence stretched. "Okay. But you'll need to tell me sometime or another." I forced down my anger. They had to have good reason for not sharing it with me, right?
"Thanks for understanding." Chris said quietly. "We'll leave you in peace now."
It didn't take long for me to fall asleep.
YOU ARE READING
Monotone | ✔️
Action"If we were so riveted in the spectrum of nature, why did we stand, petrified, as we became corrupted by idle technology, stupefied by glowing screens, stolen from life as we know it from enemies right under our noses? Why did we relent to this obvi...
