(The New) Power of the 8 Elements: Part Two

Chapter Twenty Six: Upside Down

"The world is upside down, it's gonna take a lot of hands to turn it right side up." - Leymah Gbowee
PRESENT DAY
THRAX

"Oh...my head..." I groan in a low voice.

My entire body is overcome with dizziness. My heart is racing, and all I can see is...nothing. It's dark at first, but my eyesight returns, becoming insanely blurry.

"Ay dios f*cking mio..."

"Thrax! Thrax?! Thrax!" a woman's voice shouts, full of panic.

Someone grabs my shoulders and begins shaking me. It's only then that I finally begin to take in the rest of my surroundings. Celeste is standing in front of me with her hands on the side of my face.

"Thrax...can you hear me?" she says as her muffled voice finally begins to sound like something. "Thrax, are you okay? Oh my God...you're bleeding."

"Where...where am I?" I say.

"We're in Nordstrom's house."

"S-s-s-still?"

"Yeah, yeah, I think we're in his basement. I don't know what part of the house this is."

"What h-happened?"

"Nordstrom knocked you out. Hit you pretty hard."

"My f*ckin' head..." I moan in pain.

"Yeah, he...uh...he used the butt of his shotgun, I'm sorry."

"Are you...are you okay?"

She nods. "What about you? We've gotta get out of here."

"I think I'm gonna throw up..."

"Okay, well, not on me," Celeste says, jumping away from me.

"Avez-zou...tienes ice?"

"What?"

"For my...my head..."

She shakes her head and then sighs. "Listen, Thrax, there's something I need to tell you. Nordstrom is b-"

As if my life wants to punish me even more, all of my senses come back at once. I can see. I can hear. I can smell. God, my sense of smell becomes so potent and awake that I gag, tasting vomit and venom. That's when I hear footsteps. It sounds like  military boots storming down the stairs. Instantly, Celeste sits down in heavy what appears to be a chair and pretends to be asleep. Nordstrom marches into the room, touching the wall. He stares at me, and I wonder if he's going to make the first move by at least talking or taking note that I'm being suspended in the air by rope.

"You've got a lot of nerve," he says finally. "Breaking into my house 'specially in the way you did. A sl*t like you has no business being on my property."

"Who y-y-you calling a sl-sl*t, b*tch?"

"What? You know what, you're lucky it's Halloween night otherwise, young lady, you would be-"

"Lady? I ain't a f-f-f*cking l-lady."

"Nice try. Then what do you call this...?" He pokes at my boob fluff.

"Fur t*ts! Neva seen 'em before?!" I raise an eyebrow at him seductively while grinning.

"Is this supposed to be some kind of kinky game?"

"Why don't you come here, and I'll make it one."

WHAM! In a clean punch, Nordstrom hits me in the chest. It bares little resemblance to Lawrence's attacks though, but I begin to release that by hanging like this, my ropes are coming undone. I doubt it'll take long before my bonds come loose.