A Volatiles Claim

Factory and Fears

An intense surge of dread and nausea flood the pit of my stomach as I glance down at the ground below me. "Hell no! You are insane!" I call out to the man across from me.

"Oh, come on, it will be fine! Just... don't look down." Aiden's voice echoes below us, resulting in the specs below us, biters, to shamble around to locate the source of their potential meal.

The deteriorating highway that we were on is... somewhat crossable if one doesn't count the massive gaps from fallen portions of it and chunks of the road miraculously hanging on by a few steel rods. Hazardous chemicals are splattered along the highway and down below us; and even though it has been many years since that day, they are still just as deadly as the day they were dropped onto Old Villedor. Vibrant foliage sprouts from the cracked asphalt and ruined cars that were permanently stalled on the structure. The scenery from up here should have been somewhat breathtaking, getting to see the old district under the moonlight all while being safe from danger, but I was far too invested in the massive drop below us to care. Just looking down at the chemical-drenched road from up here is enough to remind me that one wrong slip-up would result in me breaking every bone in my body, snapping my neck, and or instantly dying. And considering that I have already made it halfway across this nuisance of a structure, my ghost would be pretty pissed if that happened.

"Aiden, dying by swinging from a rope and missing the jump or not catching the rope at all is not how I plan to leave this world." I sass back at him, prying my eyes from the ground that seemed to move further away from me the longer I stared at it to my companion's scarred face.

An unamused expression adorns his facial features and his hand seemed to twitch at his side. "If you can handle the big jump it took to get onto the highway and then climb up one of its broken pieces using nothing but the cracks in it, then swinging from this rope should be far easier." He gives me a pointed look before continuing. "Besides... if you are worried about crashing into something when you swing over, then don't worry. I'll catch you."

A fuzzy feeling courses through my body at the way he said 'I'll catch you', as those few words were uttered with such confidence and truth I almost believed it. Almost. My overthinking brain and concealed fear overrode all rational thinking and replaced it with an itching urge to slap the naiveness out of my friend.

Aiden must have seen my unyielding expression because the next thing he does was flap his arms at his sides in a defeated gesture that was accompanied by a disapproving sigh. "Look, you wanted to come with me, so now you need to work with me and trust what I am saying. I know you are capable of making this jump, but if there are any doubts about this, I am here to help you in case you slip," he pauses for a moment, and a serious look blooms on his face.

"Do you trust me?" His tone held so much determination I couldn't help but remember that night I sprained my ankle in the Horseshoe District. Aiden, after intercepting a viral that leaped towards me and decapitated it, asked me the exact same question when he suggested that he carry me all the way back to the Bazaar. And if I can trust him then... then I can trust him now.

If I'm being honest, in this moment, I don't really know where all of this sudden apprehension came from. Aiden was right, the jump that it took for us to get onto the highway was about the same length across, the only difference was that the initial leap had us colliding with a broken slab of the road and climbing up using only the cracks in the asphalt. And even though it was terrifying knowing that the fall distance would severely injure or kill me as I dug my fingers into the rough grooves of the slab, the rush of adrenaline and relief I felt when I pulled myself over the edge was exhilarating. Some part of me thinks that the reason I am hesitant about this jump was either that the rush had quickly faded, or maybe I didn't care too much at the first jump because I was too busy trying to get out of the tunnel. It wasn't from the excitement to move on, but more so that the more Aiden and I were in there, the more I couldn't help but remember the events that had happened there.