Just Getting By: Taking A Shower

I clawed my way to the surface. Trying to gain some kind of leverage against the ever increasing murky water that pushed me back down. I could feel myself getting pulled back under with every stroke I made against the water. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't see. All I knew was that the creature shared the same space as me, and I was in his home turf. Fighting with all my might I finally broke the surface in a massive splash. Gasping for air I quickly looked around me trying to spot the creature that I knew would be stalking me.

I saw Sam looking around as well. I could tell by her face that she didn't know where the creature was either. Tears were streaming down her face, but she still stood there seeming to ignore them as she scanned the water's surface. I kicked for the nearest square platform when all of a sudden I felt an immense pain at my leg. With a quick jerking motion I was dragged back under water. I quickly grabbed my leg and felt the fucker's claw sticking all the way through the meaty portion of my thigh. Grabbing my chainsaw with both hands I and revved it up. Slashing wildly I seemed to get ahold of his arm, and let the teeth of the saw dig away at his flesh.

"You wanna fucking eat me! I'll let my saw eat you too fucker!" I internally screamed at the monster.

I let the saw dig into it's meal until I felt a sickening pop and the saw moved through the open water. I felt myself go free, but it's claw was still lodged into my thigh. I quickly kicked back up to the surface trying to free myself from this nightmare like situation. I hurriedly grabbed ahold of the square platform. I couldn't tell if tears were streaming down my face due to the immense pain in my leg or due to the burning my eyes felt from the shit water. Either way my priority was to finally get rid of this stupid fucking monster.

"Tony are you ok?" Sam yelled from the right platform.

"I want this fucker dead! Yes I think I'll be ok. I might need healing though." She quickly nodded in affirmation.

I saw his head pop up for a second.

"There. There it is. Shoot him Sam!" I pointed at the monster and Sam let loose upon the creature's face. It lifted up the stump of his arm to attempt to block the shots, but quickly his face was full of nails protruding from it's face. It slumped back in the water, but due to the weird hazy effect of the monster's vanishing after death, I knew he was finally dealt with.

"Do you think we can make it to the other side before I heal you?" She was already hopping across the platforms trying to meet up with me on mine.

"Yeah I'll try." I looked down at my leg and shivered at the thought of having it's arm still lodged into my thigh. Wait. Why was it's arm still here? I didn't have time to think it through. I stood back up and quickly made my way hobbling to make it to the other side. Once my feet finally touched the surface I collapsed and Sam rushed to my side.

"I'm gonna have to pull it out in order to heal you." She was staring into my face wanting affirmation.

"Yes just be gentle please it hurts like hell."

"1, 2,"

She tugged sharply on the arm of the creature. It moved an inch.

Nothing.

I felt myself come to, and thankfully my leg seemed to be doing better. I sat up and Sam rushed back over to me.

"Are you ok?" She was full blown crying.

"Yup right as rain." I smiled at her.

"I'm sorry because I didn't shoot him you got stabbed." She was trying to wipe her tears away, but only managed to allow more to fall down her face.

"Hey Sam I'll be ok. Lets finish this shitty place so we can relax." I tried to calm her down.

"You're not allowed to die on me. I don't think I could do this by myself." She attempted at calming herself down. I stood up offering a hand to her which she gracefully accepted.

"However, once we get the opportunity to shower you need to take one. You smell like shit." She jokingly pinched her nose and waved her hand.

"Ha if only. I hope I don't have to smell like this for the rest of my life." I picked up my chainsaw from the floor, and started walking down the hall. Just like the right side there was a single metal door that led to a mystery room.

"You ready?' I asked.

"Yes." She gritted the answer through her teeth.

I pushed the door opened ready to kill whatever lay in my path.

"Hello, welcome to my rest area players." A cute yellow plushy looking bat was sitting on a wooden table in the middle of the room.

"I'm sure you have many questions, and since you've made it this far you are permitted one question and 12 hours within my rest room."

The little bat had sharp pointed teeth that hung from the corners of his mouth. When he talked his mouth was always in a grin, but the thing that bothered me most about the yellow bat was his eyes. They were just empty black sockets where eyes should have been.

"I already know my question that I want to ask."

"Go ahead player 589,457,238, (TONY HARGRAVE) ask away." There it was again that shitty little grin.

"Are we allowed to go home if we beat all the levels?" I couldn't make myself stare at those empty sockets for eyes. They just sent shivers down my spine. The yellow bat broke out into a disgusting grin.

"Congratulations for discovering this is a game. The answer is simple..."

That stupid fucking grin only seemed to increase. The creases of his mouth pushed up his fat cheeks until they almost covered those empty sockets.

"The answer from The One is to play until you die."

I felt a pang in my chest but just nodded my head. For whatever reason I could feel a lump in my throat, but I wasn't going to let this thing see me shed a single fucking tear. I felt like the yellow bat could sense my fear, anger, and sadness because there was that gross ass grin again. God I wanted to punch the fucker.

"Are we going to die?" Her question was simple, but I know I was thinking the same thing. At a certain point no matter how many skills we had, no matter how many weapons, we were probably going to die.

The yellow bat thought it was the funniest question. His grin turned into a full belly type of laughter. He was rolling across the table kicking his feet in pure elation.

"Yes player 459,654,896, (SAMANTHA SHINGLE) you will most certainly die. Question is when though, and most importantly by what?" His laugh died down and now the thing looked serious.

"I bid the two of you goodbye, and be sure to enjoy the twelve hours I've given you. It may be the last you'll ever get." With that he simply turned into a cloud of yellow smoke and was gone. Her and I just stood there allowing the situation of what just transpired to sink in. I feel like most of you reading this journal are thinking that I was sad, angry, and depressed. Honestly speaking, I was just fed up. I was going to enjoy whatever time I had left to live, and just try to survive until the last breath left my lungs. I bid Sam goodbye and entered into the left most room to go see if they had any showers to speak of. I wanted to be alone with my thoughts, and much to my surprise there was a full course meal on the table in the middle of the room. A bed lay neatly made over on the wall to my left. The most miraculous thing was the shower that was to the right. I hastily removed my clothes and went to wash the shit, filth, blood, and sorrow down the drain.

I really was going to die.