A Will to Leave

CHAPTER FIVE

"How do you know they can't fly?" Edwin came up with a surprise.

"What do you mean?"

"I didn't expect them to breathe either."

I pulled my back and sat up. My legs floated freely on the water, I stretched them to have a good look at the stained thighs, "No."

"What?"

"I got hit."

"Can you make it?"

"Yes, yes, which way?"

When I walked into the testing ground I was stunned, it was empty, and the dwarfs and gnomes who were walking with arms, blasting elements on walls and ceilings were nowhere to be found. I didn't waste much time glancing at the empty ground, ran directly to the gate and pulled them, pulled again.

"It doesn't open"

"I'm not getting it yet," he said. "Where are you?"

"I have reached the gate, the ground is empty, and the gate doesn't open."

The voice came over a moment of silence, "There will be a lever next to the gate." It was a red lever with a yellow handle and black stripes. I held the handle and pressed it to the bottom. Nothing happened. I pulled it back and pushed again. I tried it a couple of times.

"It doesn't work."

"They must have stopped the whole power."

I cursed out loud as the pain spread through my thighs like sharp needles pressed against the flesh. A yellow puss began to seep from the wound, blue veins spanned down to my feet, and I was losing it.

"What?"

"The hit."

"If you turn around and walk you can reach the palace we met today, there will be meds..."

I started walking before he could finish, my eyes started to blur, and the dizziness took over, I saw the rocks melting, sand flowing away from it, and the whole ground spinning. I followed the same steps I took when I came in. I raced towards the red mark, tried not to slip, but got knocked out on the desk.

There were lots of boxes, green, blue, and saffron. I randomly pushed to the blue box and opened the half-melted green box.

"It's locked."

"There must be a key somewhere around."

I wrapped the box against me and pulled the slit with my fingers. "Got it," the stuff fell and disappeared into the ground. I put my hands down and caught a cylindrical tube, pulled the cap out with my teeth and pushed the needle against my thigh. At least my sight started to clear, I could see the mess I made. The box was in three pieces scattered around along with its belongings. The pain started to die slowly as I took some rapid breathing. I grabbed a stripe of tape and wrapped it around my thigh.

"You good?"

"Yes"

"You can find arms in the same place."

I laid my eyes on one of the arms I had pushed while falling. It was a long barrel that the gnomes used to cover long distances. The last time I touched a weapon was when I was a kid when I found a colossal axe hidden under the house.

"You should keep moving," he said. "We don't have much time."

"You said there's only one gate!"

"I didn't deny it."

"Then where should I go?"

"The control room, we should be able to open the gate if we manage to switch back the power."

"We?"

"You can't do it, there are only two people who have access. One is me, the other one was the guy you left dead in the elevator."

There was a moment of silence. "So I have to rescue you before I can reach the control."

"Yes."

"What should I do now?"