Sunday, October 20, 2013

T.N - Chapter 74


Despite the blanket, my teeth were still chattering and my body was still shaking. I started to wonder if it was because I was cold, or because of the anger that was roiling inside of me every time I laid eyes on Kent...was it even proper to keep on calling him Kent? He was Kent and he was the Virus, he was someone I’ve known since birth, except I never really did know him. He was a stranger with a familiar face. Thankfully, he walked past me to lead the group along with the Dragon, so I didn’t have to look at him.
Wolfgang placed my glasses in my hands, but my hands were shaking too much for me to put them on. He took them back, crouched down, and placed them gently on my face. His hands were warm, and his fingers grazed along the side of my face. I averted my eyes and stood up.
A guard escorted me over to the hatch where the Dragon had already climbed down. At the urging of the guard, I clambered down the hatch. The inside of the submarine was dazzlingly black, the walls and floor of the corridors polished to perfection. The corridors were narrow, only wide enough for three people to walk side by side. I couldn’t see the Dragon in front, but I could hear him making small talk to Laura.
As we walked along the corridors and climbed up and down countless stairs, we passed by engine rooms with workers bustling about keeping the submarine afloat. We passed by other rooms with scientists tinkering with complex gadgets and writing equations on a whiteboard.
Climbing all of these stairs made my breathing laboured, and I could feel the thrum of my heartbeat accelerate with each step I took. I had tripped a few times on steps, but each time, either the guard or Wolfgang caught me and I would mutter a small thanks.
The last room we passed was the largest out of all of them, and the simplest. A large, circular table was in the middle, with twelve chairs around. Ten chairs were occupied by a variety of people dressed in formal, black clothing. I only caught the glimpse of a few faces, but I recognized them all from the Justice League’s most wanted. A man with slicked back hair glanced up from his conversation, and watched me walk past, his teeth bared in a large grin. I shivered, and looked away.
We descended one last flight of stairs to where the corridors were lined with closed, steel doors. A couple of guards opened the doors, and I was herded along with Heathcliff, Wolfgang and Charlie into one of the steel rooms. Inside were small cells separated by thick steel bars. The guard that was escorting me placed me in a cell alone, while the others were together in the one to my right. The guards locked the door of the cells and then walked outside of the entrance. The Dragon sauntered in, and looked at Wolfgang fondly.
“Your mother and I need to have an adult talk, along with her crew and the North heir” he said to Wolfgang. “I hope you don’t mind being left out of it.”
Wolfgang only stared at him with complete, unadulterated anger. He opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it and just let his glare do the talking.
“I’ll take that as a no,” said the Dragon. He walked out of the room, and paused by the guards. “Make sure my son and his friends don’t make any trouble. I’d hate to show them to Damien in less than one piece.” The guards nodded, and the steel door shut with a clang.
Wolfgang yelled in frustration, and pounded the wall. He said some expletives, but what he specifically said I don’t know. My mind started to become fuzzy, with white splotches swimming across my vision. I slumped against the wall, and slid down to the floor.
“Theo!” called Charlie’s voice, but it sounded muffled. He reached his hand through the bar and grabbed my wrist. His hands were hot, so uncomfortably, burning hot. “You’re shivering, and you’re freezing cold, are you feeling ok?”
I wrenched my hand away. “I...I’m fine, don’t touch me, you’re too hot...” I took the blanket off of my shoulders. “I don’t know...why everyone is worrying about me...” I grabbed the bars and slowly hauled myself up off of the floor. I let go and faced the others, smiling. “I’m totally fine...see?”
Everything turned white, and the last thing I felt was the sensation of falling. 


Geez, we've really let ourselves fall behind! Here's a longer chapter as my apology. School has been crazy and full of work, and I've forgotten that it was my turn to write here! Oops....
Of course, I've been working on other writing projects, so don't forget to look at Zone 1!