Land of the Setting Sun
5/25/2007 - Parched
"Yeah, I agree, let's get the fuck out of here and find him." We both strolled up to the gate, and despite the pleas of the guards, yanked the gate open. The wind whistled intensely against the harsh corroded metal of the shelter, and I could see it physically slice by, like a horizontal veil before the darkness. Stepping into it was like stepping into a merciless hurricane, and I grew that much more worried for the old man.
I strapped on a headlight, and grabbed Ogasawara as we made our way through the suffocating darkness. It was all I could do to keep my head down and stumble over the rubble. We continued for several minutes, battling the unrelenting wind. Then I heard something different. Shifting, like sand, pouring over the stones. I raised the light beam and took a quick glance around us, but found nothing but rock particles sifting through the air. Turning back, a very grimy and violating feeling poured over me, like being dipped in mud, but there was nothing touching my skin. Ogasawara stopped running, grasping his knees and panting slowly.
"Goddamnit, not a good time to stop and smell the flowers, Ogasawara! Let's get a move on!" I yelled over the wind. The ship wasn't too far off in the distance now, only another mile or so. He was a big man, so I had no trouble believing he couldn't keep up our pace for too long, but I was beginning to get an eerie feeling standing out here with the souls of the damned. It was a very different experience from what I'd had that morning. I took a quick glance at Ogasawara, who was still keeled over, this time on one knee.
"Hey, you good? Try standing up!" I put a hand on his shoulder and nearly fell over as he collapsed under the little bit of weight I'd applied under my hand. He crashed into the ground, his right arm disintegrating into a wild spray of ashes that bloomed out into the breeze. Wait, disintegrated? I stooped to take a closer look, certain my imagination was playing tricks on me when I was seized from behind by two hands. They grabbed my face and jammed fingers into my outstretched mouth, janking back roughly. My mouth became very dry all of a sudden, but I bit down on the hands anyways, which crumpled underneath my teeth like tissue paper.
I immediately began to sprint towards the ship, shedding my pack for more speed to get away from... whatever that had been. After a few more minutes of outright sprinting, I began to sense the steely taste of blood in my mouth. Water. Shit. I'd left my canteen with my pack like an idiot. Feeling around in my mouth for a moment, my fingers came up red, brimming with blood. And a little bit of... skin? At that I felt a little bit nauseous, but whatever had caused it couldn't be that far behind. I slowed my pace, only slightly, so I'd have enough energy to reach the ship.
A tiny part of my brain chastised me. "And then what, idiot? You going to break the lock to the hold?" But I kept running regardless.
----------
I sat, propped against the locked door of the hold cradling my face, which had gone from a mild irritant to feeling like the insides of my mouth were peeling off. It had spread across most of my face as well and I desperately clawed at it to lessen the pain. Eventually, my fingers dug into it, peeling away the skin of my cheeks and leaving nothing but gaping holes. I yelled into the darkness, and it seemed to respond. I'm not sure if it was an illusion due to the pain, or the real thing, but shadows seemed to melt out of the darkness, forming figures that came to comfort me in the dark.
I embraced them, eager to end the unbearable pain.
"Yeah, I agree, let's get the fuck out of here and find him." We both strolled up to the gate, and despite the pleas of the guards, yanked the gate open. The wind whistled intensely against the harsh corroded metal of the shelter, and I could see it physically slice by, like a horizontal veil before the darkness. Stepping into it was like stepping into a merciless hurricane, and I grew that much more worried for the old man.
I strapped on a headlight, and grabbed Ogasawara as we made our way through the suffocating darkness. It was all I could do to keep my head down and stumble over the rubble. We continued for several minutes, battling the unrelenting wind. Then I heard something different. Shifting, like sand, pouring over the stones. I raised the light beam and took a quick glance around us, but found nothing but rock particles sifting through the air. Turning back, a very grimy and violating feeling poured over me, like being dipped in mud, but there was nothing touching my skin. Ogasawara stopped running, grasping his knees and panting slowly.
"Goddamnit, not a good time to stop and smell the flowers, Ogasawara! Let's get a move on!" I yelled over the wind. The ship wasn't too far off in the distance now, only another mile or so. He was a big man, so I had no trouble believing he couldn't keep up our pace for too long, but I was beginning to get an eerie feeling standing out here with the souls of the damned. It was a very different experience from what I'd had that morning. I took a quick glance at Ogasawara, who was still keeled over, this time on one knee.
"Hey, you good? Try standing up!" I put a hand on his shoulder and nearly fell over as he collapsed under the little bit of weight I'd applied under my hand. He crashed into the ground, his right arm disintegrating into a wild spray of ashes that bloomed out into the breeze. Wait, disintegrated? I stooped to take a closer look, certain my imagination was playing tricks on me when I was seized from behind by two hands. They grabbed my face and jammed fingers into my outstretched mouth, janking back roughly. My mouth became very dry all of a sudden, but I bit down on the hands anyways, which crumpled underneath my teeth like tissue paper.
I immediately began to sprint towards the ship, shedding my pack for more speed to get away from... whatever that had been. After a few more minutes of outright sprinting, I began to sense the steely taste of blood in my mouth. Water. Shit. I'd left my canteen with my pack like an idiot. Feeling around in my mouth for a moment, my fingers came up red, brimming with blood. And a little bit of... skin? At that I felt a little bit nauseous, but whatever had caused it couldn't be that far behind. I slowed my pace, only slightly, so I'd have enough energy to reach the ship.
A tiny part of my brain chastised me. "And then what, idiot? You going to break the lock to the hold?" But I kept running regardless.
----------
I sat, propped against the locked door of the hold cradling my face, which had gone from a mild irritant to feeling like the insides of my mouth were peeling off. It had spread across most of my face as well and I desperately clawed at it to lessen the pain. Eventually, my fingers dug into it, peeling away the skin of my cheeks and leaving nothing but gaping holes. I yelled into the darkness, and it seemed to respond. I'm not sure if it was an illusion due to the pain, or the real thing, but shadows seemed to melt out of the darkness, forming figures that came to comfort me in the dark.
I embraced them, eager to end the unbearable pain.
