I woke with a start.
My head was pounding and my breathing was heavy. Within a few blinks, my blurry vision sharpened to focus on the concrete my hand was resting on. Considering how messed up my body was, it felt odd how awake I felt. An urgency formed in me once again, breaking my my chain of thought as memories started snapping back into my mind within the span of seconds.
Get up. I need to get up. "Mike? Lou?" I rasped out, tasting blood in my mouth. My hand curled against the cement as I tried to regain some feeling.
"Good morning, Ryleigh. Had a good night's sleep? Do you want breakfast in bed?"
I ignored Lou's taunt, only one thought in my mind.
Move. Fucking. Move.
Pulling my unresponsive arm to me, I started to push myself up. "Food sounds so good right now." I gritted out, feeling my arm shake under my body weight.
"Sustenance is a privilege granted only to beings who are alive."
"You should savour how it feels to be hungry, feathers. I don't think you have long left to feel it anyway."
I laughed at that, finally getting onto my knees. My vision swam. I'd given up on the pounding head those two gave me everytime they spoke. It was the only thing keeping me awake at the moment. "Glad you're enjoying the-agh-joyride." I gasped in pain as placed weight on my injured foot. "How long was I... out?"
"We aren't sure." Mike spoke up. "When you hit the ground, we both lost consciousness for a while too."
Lou sighed in my head. I could feel their tension. "We just... 'woke up' a bit before you."
"Great, great." I swayed on my feet. "Had a good... sleep?" My mouth felt dry. I was so... thirsty.
"Sure. But I'd rather not make it permanent."
"Move, Ryleigh."
"I'm trying, Mike." I hissed as I forced my feet to move. One step in front of the other. Come on.
"Hearing you having to baby yourself to walk is not very reassuring if you don't mind me saying."
I rolled my eyes. It sent a twinge of pain up my head. "You can take over any fucking time, Lou." My left side hurt. I think I fell on it. "I'm not exactly taking a walk in the park." I was moving so slow. So very slow.
"We've tried." Mike sounded tense. "We can't control you. Either of us."
"What do you mean?" I winced as I forced myself to take a longer step.
"We can't control you. I tried to give the demon the reins when we gained consciousness." My head would hurt just a bit harder everytime either of them used a long word. "It seems-uh-very unviable."
"Did you try?"
"Yes. We were just arguing about what to do next when you woke up."
I laughed. Arguing. They were arguing. We were all arguing right now. "I don't know if this means anything, but your efforts probably helped me wake up. Maybe even react and get on my feet faster."
"I don't know how much of that I can corroborate." Lou mumbled, but it sounded like his normal voice in my head anyway. "I was considering leaving by myself."
"Can you?" I asked grimly. It would seriously lighten the burden in my body.
"Gee, thanks, love being called a burden."
"But it would, demon. We were both perfectly comfortable up until you joined us."
"Hey!" Lou snapped, making my body go numb for a short moment. Luckily, my good foot caught me before I fell. "Sorry." He lowered his voice. "Anyway, if I could keep my essence intact after I left your body, I would have."
I rolled my eyes. We were almost at the exit. "Apologies if it's not up to a five-star accomodation in my head."
Lou chuckled, letting his voice fade away. Those two went quiet for a few short moments as I pushed my body the last few metres to the entrance. A shaky breath escaped me as I leaned heavily against the rusted metal door frame, taking the moment to lift some weight off my foot.
"We don't have time to stop."
"I know."
"You need to move, Ryleigh. We b-"
"I FUCKING KNOW!" I snapped. The scream came from an outburst of anger I didn't expect. I could hear the frustration in my voice. The exhaustion, the fear, the panic, the urgency. I was scared. I wanted to make it out. I wanted to live.
I gritted my teeth, pushing off from the crumbling wall right after yelling despite the state of my body. "Anybody know how much time we have left?" It was colder outside. The wind was freezing. The gravel on ground stung my feet. I could vaguely make out two cars a bit ahead.
"No."
"Tell your hellhound to get it."
"It's a beast. It can't read."
"You can look through its eyes for a few moments, right?"
"Ryleigh's barely standing just with us talking. I don't think her body would hold up if I made any kind of move."
"No it wouldn't." I replied slowly. "I can't barely feel my legs."
"We know." Mike sounded worried. "We don't have time, but we've atleast made it out. That increases your, and by association, our chances of survival."
"Well... at the very least, now we won't be crushed by the building when it comes dow-"
The sound hit first. It cut off Lou's voice and sent a sharp bolt of pain cutting through the side of my head. There a short moment where my hearing vanished, replaced by a pressing silence but I didn't have long to deal with it. The next thing was the air.
It felt like a physical being at my back, pushing me forward and lifting me off my feet. The breath was forced out of me, my vision filled with a searing brightness and my body experiencing a harsh heat. I was slammed down on the ground a few meters away.
My hands instinctively rose to protect my face. They hit the ground on my side. The rough ground burned against my skin, tearing off slivers of it and pressing into whatever was left. I slammed into, the momentum forcing me forward. My vision switched between total darkness to blinding light and back as I rolled over my sides. When I finally stopped, I was flat on my front. My back was burning. It was hot, so hot.
The last bit of the energy I had left finally gave out and my body went limp, head falling forward to rest on my torn arm. My other arm was stretched out to my side. My vision was closing in, head was pounding. I felt done for. Atleast it hadn't felt this bad the first time I died.
"You're not... dead yet."
Thanks, Lou.
"Turn on your back, Ryleigh. You're burning."
Feels like it, Mike. But I can't move.
"Yes, you can. One little push."
One... little...
I had to save them. I'd come here to save them. This body can't be destroyed yet.
I flexed my fingers, still unable to feel anything in them. Pushing my palm flat against the vibrating ground, I forced my body onto my side. A pained whimper escaped me as I rolled onto my back against the cool gravel, feeling some of the burning die down. It dug into me, but it no longer burned.
My arms were skinned and heavily bleeding. As were my legs. I couldn't hear anything. My vision was red once again. I think I'd completely lost vision in my right eye because everything seemed lopsided.
"Sorry..." I forced out amidst the hollow feeling in my chest. I still couldn't breathe.
"That's okay." With my senses quickly fading, I realised I could feel a soft warmth as Mike spoke. "You've done enough."
Everything in my body hurt. It was hurting so much that it had all just melded into one endless cacophony. I felt everything and nothing at once. Mike's presence in me was warm, like drinking hot chocolate on a winter's day. Lou was the winter's day. The gentle burn within my nose as I inhaled deeply.
"Winter's day?" Lou laughed inside me. I could imagine his smile. "I've never been described so nicely. I don't deserve it."
Mike's voice sounded tired. But he didn't back down from speaking up. "I've never had hot chocolate."
You're missing out.
"Do I really feel like that?"
You make me feel warm. Even though it's freezing out.
"I'm the one probably making you feel that."
No, Lou. It's cold out.
"The sun should dissipate some of the chill."
The sun?
I blinked a few times to try and clear up my closing, red vision. It took a bit for the colours of the sky to sink into my retinas. It was a light purple. Clouds streaked across the sky were starting to turn orange and pink. It looked like it was going to be a clear day.
"Pre... tty." I forced out through my lips, feeling an unknown burning begin within my throat and chest. At this rate, join the line.
"You're wrecked, Ryleigh."
Thanks, Lou. Do any of you know how we'll get out of here?
"No."
"I'm working on it."
You should hurry up, Lou. If you guys pass out with me again, we'll die here.
"Maybe I'll finally be able to control your body once you do and get us out of here."
As long as it stops hurting this much.
Silence. Silence from both of them as I thought that. My head was starting to go blank, eyelids drooping shut. It felt good to be lying down instead of being strapped to chair. The ground against my burning back was cool. The wind outside was still freezing, but it felt good against my skinned, burning limbs.
"Hang on... just a bit more, Ryleigh. I'm not... done."
"Hurry up, demon. I'm fading too."
"Fuck you."
The curse made me laugh, temporarily forcing my eyes open as my shaking body sent jolts of pain through my body. How long do I have to stay awake?
"Just a little... more."
I felt my vision flicker, switching to the monochromes of Lou's vision when he'd transferred to me. I could smell the fire. The charred air, the burning meat inside, melting steel and cement. It was there for just a moment, but I could smell sunshine. It smelt... nice. Warm. I could feel it.
"A little..."
My vision went back to normal for a few moments up until they fell shut. I was struggling to stay conscious. To keep my body awake and brain running for Lou.
"You should rest, Ryleigh."
Mike... Sorry, Mike. I should've hurried.
"I'll be fine."
"Don't worry about us. We'll get out."
Have a drink for me when you do.
"Can you calm down?" Lou sighed in my head, making my lips turn up into a small smile. "You're not dying here. We are."
"All three of us are." Mike replied deadpan.
"Do you know how to sugarcoat nothing, feathers?"
"We're in her. She knows when we're lying."
"Little, white lies, feathers. They go a long way."
"Lies are..."
Mike's voice faded away from my head. And I felt the confusion on Lou's end.
"Feathers?"
"I'm fading with... her."
"No you're n..." For a moment, I could hear him. When his voice came back up later, he was saying my name. "-leigh? Ryleigh?
Man, I was exhausted. Too exhausted to react to his voice.
"Ryleigh... she's the one fading away, demon..."
"I noticed... I'm trying to..."
My mind was going blank. It was hard to hear them. The darkness felt comfortable. It felt... welcome.
Within a few seconds, I was gone. The cold was no more. The pain was no more. It was bliss, silence, felt like returning home. I'd been in pain for hours. Almost days even. I deserved this. I wanted the rest. I wanted it over.
The darkness consumed my body. I felt light, like I was floating away. It felt the same as when I'd died the first time, but slightly more different. I was... I was tied down. Like I was back in the chair.
There were ropes around my wrist again, cutting in because they were so tight. They wouldn't let me go. They both burnt, but one was hot and one felt cold. The pain felt detached from me. I knew it was mine, but at the same time it felt like I was only observing from afar.
The ropes were the only things I was aware of. All I could concentrate on was the pain they caused me in the blank void. There was nothing here. Nothing to see. Nothing to feel. Nothing to hold on to. I don't know how long I was stuck like that. Time felt fluid. It felt like I was stuck in one place but for some reason, I knew that it had been longer. Much longer.
Eventually, it started lightening. I could still feel the ropes around my hand as it got brighter. It was a light I recognised, and a place I recognised. It was back in the old bar. And I wasn't the one bartending.
The wall of drinks formed slowly in front of my eyes. A figure cleaning glasses down by sink colouring itself into existence after the entire restaurant I'd popped in. It felt nostalgic. I could see the street outside, the lamps, the familiar wallpaper and hardwood floors. My head wanted to turn to look for Dottie and Sasha, but it was glued to the place, looking down into my glass of scotch as my fingers sketched out random patterns on the old wood.
"Need a refill?"
The voice was morphed. I couldn't make out if it was male or female. My head turned up on autopilot. The figure didn't have a face.
"Yeah. I could use one."
"You're not from around here, are you?"
I scoffed. "I am. I was just gone for about a year. Just got back."
"Well..." He upended the bottle to refill my glass. "You don't seem happy to be back."
"Yeah." I looked up at the guy. Old. Middle-aged, maybe. Doing the job I would've been doing if I hadn't been forced to leave. "I am happy to back. Just not happy about what comes tomorrow."
"People rarely are." He returned to wiping down glasses.
Here I am. An ex- bartender confiding in a bartender. No better place to ask around for job openings. "Hey, you wouldn't happen to know a place hiring a bartender, would you?"
The man whistled to himself. "Looking to get my job?"
I shook my head, smiling to myself. "Not at all. Just looking in general." A sigh escaped me. "It's going to be hard to find an opening this close to Halloween."
"Going to start looking after?"
"Most probably." Raising my glass, I took a long sip. "My living situation isn't a problem right now. How I support it is."
Ah, I remember now. This is when I first went into the bar after moving back to the city. The bartender... I can't remember his name anymore. He was the one who first offered me a part time gig beside him for events. And then he'd quit and I'd taken over.
"Looking for part times?"
"Looking for anything, at this point."
"I've been looking for someone who could help out on Halloween. Do you have any plans?"
My head turned to the bartender standing at the sink once again. But he was gone, form fading out of existence as I once again became aware of the ropes around my wrist.
I tugged at it fruitlessly once more. The bar around me didn't disappear. I heard the bell ring, and a new voice.
"Good evening." This was a new bartender. I couldn't make out their voice again.
"Good evening." My reply came from behind me. I heard footsteps approach the bar. They settled into where I was tied down.
My hand rose, running through my hair as a vague sense of being watched settled on me. I shrugged it off, turning to look at the new bartender.
The blank face shifted. I saw some teeth in a semblance of a smile. "I just announced last call. You want to order something, do it now."
"Ah, what a shame." I sighed, knowing perfectly well that they'd just announced it. "I was looking forward to relaxing with a stiff drink."
"You'll get the stiff drink, but you'll have to leave by midnight." My eyes flickered to the clock. "Also no more orders after forty-five." About ten minutes left. I can convince them.
I glanced down at my watch. Humans liked expensive. "Not long then. I'll have scotch, neat."
"Got it." The bartender turned away.
"Make that three." She didn't seem happy about my corrected order.
She approached me slowly, watching my form. I felt her eyes move away as she placed the glasses down in front of me. "Here you go." I tried to meet her eyes. "Anything else?" She wanted to get away.
I smirked to myself. "Not really. Thanks." She would crumble like the rest.
"No problem." She turned away, heading back to the sink. I could see the relief in her form.
"So, what brings you here?"
"Was walking by, saw this place. It seemed nice and quiet so I decided to stop in." I sipped his drink, meeting their inquisitive brown eyes. "Glad I did."
"The feeling is mutual." It always is. "New to the city?"
I chuckled. That's a good one. "Not really. I've been around."
"Then what brings you here? Waiting for someone?"
"Nope. Just walking around." I cocked my head, pausing to look at her body. "It's almost starting to seem like you don't want me here."
I... I knew this interaction.
"Trust me, it's the other way around. Besides, it's nice to see a new face around here once in a while."
"Don't get a lot of new people here?"
"Not really." She smiled as she looked up at the aging human approaching the bar. He had one foot in the grave. He should be at a hospital, not cutting into my chats with this cute bartender.
"A regular?" I asked, watching the dull, lifeless aura go.
"Almost all of them." I felt irritation cross through me. She wasn't paying me attention anymore. "Give me a few minutes to finish up here."
Ugh. "Sure. Take your time." I chuckled. "Though not really. You close soon."
She laughed to herself, looking up from the register to deal with the rest of the humans clients in this shoddy place. I watched her quietly as she did. Her laugh, her demeanour, her smile. She'd been doing this for a long time. It showed in the familiarity with which she moved behind the bar and the way she dealt with these 'regulars'. Professional, detached, yet warm.
I finished my second drink leisurely as I watched her continue. Older humans were easy to deal with. The faster they were out of here, the better for me. I wanted her.
She moved out from behind the counter, doing me an unknown favour by letting me watch her walk around. "So, are you the only one working here?" I asked out loud.
"The cook leaves by ten." She replied passing behind me as she walked back over to the bar. The glasses clinked on he countertop. "The only thing you'd get now is peanuts."
"Nah, that's okay. I'm not hungry." I'm hungry for her.
She smirked back, elbow brushing against my back as she walked past. Interesting. "I didn't ask."
"You treat all your patrons like this?"
She passed by me. "Only the ones I find cute."
I felt a sense of deja vu form in me. That was me speaking. And I was currently sitting in Lou's spot. More specifically, Lou's body. I was Lou. This was a memory.
I watched on in distaste as our entire first meeting played out. I could hear his thoughts on everything I was saying and doing. He genuinely thought he had me in the bag when he'd asked to come over. And it was his irritation that had made him corner me. Getting cheap kicks out of scaring the shit out of me since he couldn't get them the way he wanted.
The memory faded away, leaving me seated there and still tied. I was getting tired of this. The darkness was much more preferable compared to this. I didn't enjoy watching myself through other's eyes.
Unfortunately, my time on the barstool wasn't up yet.
As I watched on, the bar started filling up. The seats and chairs were occupied by dark essences. I could still hear some of Lou's thoughts which only meant that these were demons in the earlier days of when they'd taken over.
The bell dinged behind me, and I felt the bar go hostile and silent. My vision shifted for a moment, settling behind my back as the new customer surveyed the bar.
"Good evening. What can I get you?" The bartender, me, asked. I still couldn't see my own face. It felt odd looking at her. Just a blank canvas as a face. No discernible features. I was just a voice.
A human. This must be a demons were probably after. I could see its soul was still intact. For now, anyway.
"What can I get you?" They repeated, sounding a bit uncertain as it noticed the demon's reaction to my presence.
I stopped in front of the bar. Was she not aware of who they were? "You're human."
"Yes, I've been made aware of that several times." She held my gaze. I could see the ignorance in her eyes about me. "You can order something." She pointed at the array behind me. "Pick your poison."
I turned towards the demon. It's essence wasn't even up. It probably didn't even consider me a threat. "What are you doing here?"
The demon waved the glass in it's hand, barely acknowledging my presence. "Enjoying a quiet drink."
I could feel the anger of the demons sitting behind me. They were weak. It would be easy to take care of them. "And what are the others doing here?"
"Take a look around." It took a leisurely sip. "We're all here for the same reason."
"And the human?"
"The bartender who works here. I made an... after-hours arrangement with her."
The human let out a sound that sounded like disagreement.
Maybe it was forced into… "Do you have a contract with this human?"
"No. She has nothing special to offer me."
"She has a soul. And that's all you normally need, don't you?"
"Yes… But I'm really here just to enjoy a drink."
The human was still displeased. The demon's words did not seem to be resonating with it. "Did you hurt the human?" It must have.
"Yes, he did." The human replied, sounding irritable. "And I have a name. It's Ryleigh. Either take a seat or order a damn drink, newbie. I'm not here all night."
I looked at her, observing her aura. Confused. Angry. Curious. "Newbie..." An odd nickname. "Fine. I'll take a drink." Might as well fit in and avoid the demon's wrath. It would be hard to protect the human while fighting them off.
The human still felt hostile. "What do you w-" She jumped at the loud sound of a table being slammed behind me.
One of the demons was now standing, essence roiling in anticipation of combat. Its best to stay collected. I should only fight in a reactionary manner. The truce is still in effect.
The angry demon rifled through it's pockets, glaring at me with veined. I could hear the humans racing heartbeat. It exhaled shakily to calm down. "Are y-"
"Sorry about this, Ryleigh." The demon spoke up. "But I cannot sit in this place with that... that thing here."
I rolled my eyes, looking away from the demon. It wasn't a threat.
"Uh... okay. Thanks for... Have a good eve..." The human stuttered as a few more demons stood up, placing fabric on the table and turning to leave.
They were all on guard. Darkened eyes flickering left and right, teeth bared towards the bar as they headed for the door. There were only a few left in the bar. In the same state as the ones who'd left- black eyes, visible fangs. But these ones were holding onto their drinks and their seats.
"What the fuck?" The human cursed to herself before turning to me. "What are you?"
I turned to look at her. It really didn't know.
My silence perturbed the human further. Its next words were filled with anger. "Listen here, new guy. I have never... I mean, fucking never, had customers walk out on me before. I will serve anyone, and anything, as long as they're legal and want a drink. But in one night, within less than a minute of you being in the bar, half my customers have left." Customers? "You mind explaining why? Because I'd rather not have someone detrimental to my tips sitting here."
Its incredulous how it calls these demons 'customers'. Does it have no idea about what they are? How can it be so clueless-
"Answer me, for fuck's sake!" The human snapped.
I cocked my head slightly. "Rather insolent for a human, isn't she?"
"You have no idea." The demon agreed. "She's actually more trouble than she seems."
Rather surprising. "Is that so? With your personality, I assumed you must have put her in her place a long time ago."
"It's not like I didn't try in the beginning."
As I figured, there must have been some form of violence or contract-making involved. "Interesting... So, your bartender is a fighter?"
"More like an annoying fly?" As all humans are. "Maybe even an annoying flea, like you."
"You're an equal pain in my side, demon." I looked over the human aura once more. No signs of a contract seal on it. No signs of demon essence binding either. "She's absolutely human, isn't she?"
"One hundred percent."
"And she's that annoying to you?" The human frowned.
"One hundred percent." The demon continued.
It was extremely unsettling to watch myself from Mike's head. His detachment to who I was and my feelings towards his appearance was almost creepy. The way he kept referring to me as 'it' or 'the human' had me extremely uncomfortable. I was barely an existence to Mike. Even now, after knowing him for so long and seeing him get softer towards me, it still felt like that sometimes. Is this what Mike was always like?
The figures faded away again, but the bar stayed. I watched and waited quietly for something to happen, but nothing did. For a very long time, it felt like.
Man, it's lonely here.
****************
AUTHOR'S NOTE
Happy New Year!
Here's a bit of belated gift!
I was supposed to upload this on Christmas but ssssh it works just fine as a 2021 present.
What do you think of the new chapter? It's a bit of a long'un but I had fun writing it again. I need to do more pieces from Mike and Lou's perspectives every now and then.
What do you think is going on? Is Ryleigh dead? Is she ever going to wake up? What happened to Lou and Mike?
Hope you liked the chapter!
Vote and comment!