No-Clipped

Chapter 15: Flesh

I woke up beside a tall man whose large hands were hovering over my shoulder. I quickly sat up, and the man jumped back, startled.

"Woah, who are you?" I rubbed my eyes, and winced slightly as I accidentally put pressure on my burnt finger. I had a stinging pain on my face as well, as a bit of the metal from the furnace had cut my cheek. My ankles were in bandages and so were a few of my burn wounds, and I looked to my other side to see that Michelle's arms and wrists were in bandages too. I looked back at the man.

     "I...help...." He says, stuttering and stumbling on words. I squint, looking the man up and down. He looked middle aged and was very tall, with large hands, a bald head, and big brown eyes. It was a little uncanny, but I assumed it was a normal appearance for someone who had probably been wandering through liminal spaces for a couple years. His clothes were worn, dirty, and tattered.

     "I don't think he speaks English." Michelle said calmly, looking up at the man. He nodded his head.

     "Yes...no English." 

     I nod and smile at the man. "Thanks." He nods back and Michelle and I stand up.

     ".... Follow." The man mutters, before walking off down another hallway. I follow behind with Michelle beside me, limping slightly as my left ankle had been sprained after the explosion. We slow down for a bit until the man is enough yards ahead of us before Michelle leans over and speaks quietly.

     "Think we should trust this guy?"

     "I dunno..." I respond with hesitation in my voice. "I mean, he did save us. So...I don't see why not?"

     Michelle squints, looking the man up and down and taking in his appearance as the lights down the hallway gets slightly brighter. "He has a bit of a...crazed look in his eyes. Er, maybe not 'crazed' but those eyes...I don't know. There's definitely something unsettling about his eyes. And his hands..."

     "His hands..?" My eyes trail down his arm to his wrists and hands, which were abnormally big, and his skin was pale, droopy, and wrinkled as if it were loose.

     "Excuse me, sir, can you help us find an exit?" Michelle asks. The man turns around.

     "Ex...it? Exit...yes. Exit." He nods quickly. Before he turns back around I notice a metal name tag on his pocket with the name Albert Cadelle etched into it.

     We follow Albert for a while, and eventually get used to his presence, trusting him to lead us to an exit. He was actually pretty friendly, often finding supplies scattered around the station and giving them to us, as his own backpack was completely full. Ours were too, but we still had plenty of room for anything useful we could find. Listening to us speak, his speech slightly improved as well until he managed to spit out full sentences, making it easier to communicate. We walked and walked for hours, the two of them often helping me with difficult steps as my ankle injury made it hard to walk decently. He seemed incredibly eager to heal us, constantly reminding us to drink almond water and consume other substances with healing qualities. He often fixed our bandages as well, making sure our wounds would heal easily and quickly.

"Need sleep." Albert pauses after around 10 hours of walking and talking, stopping at a small area free of loud noises and fiery machinery. I look at Michelle.

"Are we in an even level?" I ask quietly.

"No, the electrical station is level three." She responds. I take a deep breath.

"Right...I-I'll just wait until the next time we're in an even level to sleep." I say. I try to sound casual, but there's obvious tiredness in my tone and my eyes were droopy. Michelle shakes her head.

"You sleep. I'll watch and make sure nothing happens, alright?"

I hesitate before nodding and looking back at Albert. "Hey, are you going to sleep too?"

He shakes his head. "No need. Get sleep. Lots. Please." He says, and gives us a small smile. I sit down and lean against the wall. Michelle yawns, pacing back and forth beside me as I close my eyes, falling asleep almost immediately.

I woke up and let out a large yawn, letting my vision adjust.

"Michelle?" I say quietly, looking around. She had fallen asleep too, laying her head on her backpack. I smiled softly to myself. I had been used to seeing Michelle angry and annoyed all the time, but sleeping, she looked peaceful. I was so distracted that I almost didn't even notice the bloody pile of human flesh scrunched up on the floor beside us...the metal name tag labeled "Albert Cadelle" set right on top.

"...Albert?"