11. WHELVE
Whelve (verb)
To bury something deep; to hide.
Chapter 11
(Mako P.O.V)
I open my eyes grunting at a gnawing acute pain in my legs, as if someone is pulling at them to rip them apart. A slight stuffing smell pierces my nose, a slightly rotten reek fills the tight air around me. I blink three times trying to abolish the darkness but to no vain. I suck in a deep breath as my heart begins to race, a heavy weight of fear pushes at my chest and I explode in anxiety.
"Hello!?" I cough out, my voice coming harsher that I excepted; leaving my throat dry and scratchy. I push myself up to try find something or someone, bearing the ripping pain of my legs that send electric violent pain up to my waist. Placing my arms in front of me in the void of blackness; I march forward not knowing what I'm stepping on or where I'm heading.
"Is anyone here?" I let out in shrill tone swallowing, my shoulders feeling tight. Why is it so dark, why does it smell like... wait, last thing I remember is that we were trying to get out of the elevator and... I yelp as I slip down on the wet ground. Thumbing so hard sending raging torturous pain into my back. I shoot my hand behind me trying to suppress the aching hoping to bring any little comfort as possible. Letting out a breath, my eyes begin to wet and tears threaten to fall.
"Help!" I plead out trembling; placing my hands beside me on the ground, warm wet sticky liquid taints my hands.
"Ram it Mako." I shoot around at the annoyed low tone voice coming from my right side.
"Seiji? Tora?" I ask not able to make out who's voice it is.
"Thank god, I thought I was alone... where are you?" Relief washes over me, all the fear melting like ice in the hot sun. I push myself up steadily trying not slip down again, as my body won't forgive me next time.
"Yeah, you're not alone... but we are alone down here, for now." He says voice wheezy. Stumbling on what feels like rocks, I finally step on a pushy thing and he grunts in pain. I can proudly say I found him by stepping on him.
"What happened? why is it so dark?" I ask lowering myself next to him. I find myself leaning away from where he seems to be sitting, the rotten bitter lemony smell hitting harder now. What is this smell?!
"The... bop... shlocking bomb happened." He blurs out grunting and shuffling in his place. It's too dark that my eyes are not even adjusting by a prick. Seems like the building caved down on us. Miracle we're still alive, truly.
"Oh right... I thought I might have just passed out from all that stress." I joke letting out a chuckle brushing at my nose to try ease the smell... I think some poop pipe blew up in the process. At least we're okay, I can deal with a little bad smell.
"It'll be okay, help will find us soon and get us out of here. Give it a few hours at most, I'm sure." I reassure him taking a seat next to him, stones digging at my bottom. I'm sure humans out here in the city will come to our rescue any minute. I hope no one in the building got hurt...
"Yeah right. It probably been three days at least. No ones coming." He lets out.
"Three days!?" I laugh out, sarcasm intended. Even if he has a watch on him, no way he can check it in this darkness.
"I've been going out of it for a while, but from the way I'm healing I think it's been at least three days." He goes on. I shake my head, wishing I could see his ridiculous face right now.
"Healing? what are you talking about?" I ask him, adjusting my legs in front of me; trying to ease the chronic pain... did I get hurt because of that bomb? at least I'm in one piece...
"It hurts so bad... " He says voice dying out. From what I remember, if he's Tora then he was almost half out the elevator opening... if one of us had to be hurt, it would be me as I was closest to the bomb, and I'm barely dangerously hurt. He's probably just trying to scare me.
"Want to hold my hand to feel better?" I call out to him but he ignores me. I remember when my illness used to take a toll on me when I was young, my brother Botan would hold my hand and it would ease my pain as I squeezed his back... but I guess because he's family, unlike me and Tora.
"Your loss." I add cheaply shrugging in the stuffing darkness. I'm not scared though, even if it's a ghoul I'm with, at least I'm not alone.
After what feels like eternity; nothing happens. Nothing. Just me, and the stinking smell. Tora did offer me a few of his weird words like 'shloking, fshek' from time to time and pretends to be dead in between, refusing to offer me any company. I sigh knowing it's been roughly a whole day waiting in here. Laying down, my hands sandwiched beneath my head offering me a flat temporary pillow I thank god that at least I'm feeling no pain in my legs anymore.
The sound of rubble wake me, I flinch at the falling stones and dust on my face. I sit up,
"ho...a" I attempt to wake Tora but my dry throat fails to form the right tones. I tug at him to wake him,
"I told you... halp... they're here." I mumble as dust showers us harder. I place my arm on my face as whatever was on top of us is lifting, light piercing the evil darkness that was hugging us all this time. Hearing the loud heys and a deafening sound of loud machine; I pull my arm away from my eyes adjusting to the light. A smile rips my face, giving my dry lips a stinging pain.
"Tora!" I spin to share my happiness of finally getting out of here; but my smile disappears. A pale lifeless boy faces me, eyes half open. My eyes wide, searching for his missing limbs. His right hand half missing, flesh and skin grown on the sides; both his legs at an uneven length missing his feet.
"Are... what..." The words don't form in my mouth. The tears stream down my face at the horror in front of me. Not only are his limbs missing, odd skin and flesh grown instead of what needs to be a fresh bloody wound.
"Mako!" My eyes are glued on Tora, his chest heaving up and down with great effort. His eyes open wider and he spots me. A slight smirk draws on his dusty face, unmatching his horrid sight.
"Mako!" Arms jerk me around, fixing my vision somewhere else. But I can still see Tora's disassembled body in front of me. This image forever will be taunting me.
"Are you okay!?" My brother Botan calls out from under his mask searching my face. I swallow looking down unable to meet his face. I find my hands tainted in deep dark red, flaking where my skins folds. Now I realize that the wet liquid I slipped on earlier was Tora's blood.
I'm a terrible person. When he was in so much pain, I made jokes and made fun of his words... he even told me he was in pain...
After watching Tora taken by a baby blue vehicle to a doctor according to my brothers commands, we head home. Me soaked in blood, trying to ease the sudden aching in my whole body.
Opening the main door, Botan walks in and I follow. Stopping in my tracks, crouching forward I give the spotless floor a glance before my body heaves and my stomach throws out the bile. I vomit a whole lot of black liquid. Coming out of my mouth like a waterfall.
"Ma..ko..." I stumble forward and Botan steps away from the black liquid on the floor as if it's nuclear waste. I let out even more before I stop, my stomach squeezing so hard, as if giving it's best to throw out everything there is.
Having not eaten for days now, I question is my illness from childhood is back... wait... I haven't taken any medicine... I can't even recall taking them on the day I went out with the twins.
"Father!!!" My brother calls out, his voice wobbly. I sit up brushing at my wet lips shaking and sweating.
"Why... does it smell so bad..." I ask my brother who's face has gone pale. I lay my body on the wall trying to ease the aching through out my body. Glancing down at my legs, I find my knees bare, black smudged shredded edged trousers now only covering my thighs. Did my trousers burn from the explosion? But my legs seem fine... They were hurting before... But nothing is wrong with them now...
The house has never smelled so bad ever. In fact, this smell was back at when I was with Tora... I thought it was the smell of a busted sewer but I can still smell it and now it stinks million times stronger. Like a big bile of rotten olives. It almost gives me a distant memory, but I can't quite grab hold of it no matter how hard I try to remember.