Agent 38: I Never Forgot You

Chapter 49: Are You There, God?

     ***TW: just pretty intense I think. Gore, violence, etc.***
    
     The world was silent.
     Sarai watched, mouth agape, as Alex fell. His head flew back, his knees collapsing beneath him, and down to the ground he went. She shouted his name, stretching out her hand as though maybe, somehow, she could catch him.
     A thud! resounded around the room, every pair of eyes staring at the scene before them. The Octoling behind her beloved ripped the knife from Alex's body, eyes wide in horror as Aaron pushed him away.
     Instantly, the chamber erupted in chaos.
     Sarai shoved Gabriel out of the way and hurled herself towards Alex, ramming people out of the way as they tried to advance, as they tried to kill her partner while he was defenseless, face down and undignified. People were screaming from everywhere, blades being drawn, noises and smells and sights blooming behind her eyes and overwhelming her till she thought she couldn't move. Rage and despair sprouted in her chest, tears jerked from her eyes, an immovable lump lodged in her throat. This was where she would fail, wasn't it?
     They stabbed him, her mind whirled. they stabbed him and he's dead and it's my fault for not getting here sooner. It's my fault. Oh, god, please, please let him be alright. Please let him be alive.
     Aaron got there before she did, scooping his friend up off the ground and pivoting on his heels to strike the approaching Octolings. A stab of grief sunk into her stomach as she took in Alex's face. He had a slice along his cheekbone, bruises on his forehead and jawline, scrapes and tiny little cuts everywhere, and yet despite all the ink coating his face, his features betrayed none of the agony he must have felt. Aaron's teeth gnashed as he fought, eyes wild and fearless, ready to do whatever it took to get Alex out of here alive.
     One a friend, the other a lover, yet the same goal in mind.
     "Back off!" Aaron roared, drawing one of his dualies and swinging it around. The Octolings bristled, faces twisting as they tried to push through. Callie lunged forward and pulled up her weapon, blocking them off. "You animals stay the hell away! Don't you touch him!"
     Sarai muscled her way forward, swallowing her tears as people jostled her back and forth. Someone shoved her to the side and she whirled, swinging blindly with her blades, making contact with each whip of her arms. A hand yanked the back of her collar and she screamed, rage pumping through her veins, before she realized it was Marie pulling her towards Aaron in the tiny alcove of safety created by Callie.
     "Sarai!" Aaron cried, beckoning her over. A deep, fresh cut was strewn across his chin. "Take him. Go!"
     She rushed forward and obediently grabbed Alex's arm, hauling his limp figure over her shoulders and off Aaron's. Sarai shuddered, tears running to her eyes again, her clothes already damp with dirty green ink. Panic flooded through her as she staggered out of the safe haven, pivoting as she swung her blade around. Some of the men shrieked in agony as she struck them, falling away before her and clearing a path to the exit.
     "I need Marie!" Sarai shouted, trying hard not to burst into tears. So much was happening so fast, yet she felt as though she couldn't be any slower. "She'll be more of a help than me!"
     The Inkling's voice yelled back from somewhere else. "I'm coming! Just go– I'll catch up!"
     Sarai hesitated, then turned and fled. She ran as fast as she could, Alex's body slack against hers, his hearts beating lazily and reminding her at every moment just exactly what she would lose and how fast she would lose it. She ran, for time was fragile now, not a force to be reckoned with, teasing her by dangling its presence over her head.
     She slowed to a walk, every muscle in her body straining to stay upright. Although Alex was much thinner now, he was much taller than her, which made it hard to hold him up without losing balance. The hallway echoed with the ragged breathing of her partner at her side.
     Slowly, Sarai felt his legs begin to move, his breath hitching with every step, and felt a burst of relief in her chest. He was alive.
     "Alex?" she breathed, staggering down yet another hall. How vast could this place be? "Are you awake?"
     He shifted, just a little. "Yeah," his voice sounded strained, nothing like the rich tone she'd gotten used to. "I'm awake."
     "Oh, thank god," she whispered, body aching. She'd been awake for a while now, running and active for even longer, and hoped she would find the exit soon. Less for her sake, more for his. How long could he possibly survive like this? Suddenly Alex stumbled and she pulled him back up, resisting the urge to grunt. "just hang in there, okay? We're almost there."
     Sarai forged foward. The hall was silent except for her heavy breathing and Alex's gasps for air. She could feel her suit dampening with his ink, dreading the moment where she would see herself covered in awful green. She forced one foot in front of the other, ignoring the shrieking of her muscles, shoving the pain to the back of her mind. How could she possibly focus on that for even a second knowing that right beside her, Alex was dying?
     She shuddered as she walked. Even if they managed to get out of here, all of them, in one piece, how would they get to a hospital in time? She'd established that Gabriel would be coming with them (if she could find him in this whole mess), so how would the car ride go? Would he attack them? Would Alex even survive the car ride? Almost two hours, stuck in the same space as the man who'd tried to kill him... no matter which angle, they were doomed. She could feel it.
     Against her, Alex shifted, then softly rasped out her name. Sarai resisted the urge to shiver as despair burrowed into her hearts– he sounded so... so broken. Nothing like the man she'd known less than two weeks ago. How could so much have changed in ten days?
     "Don't talk," she murmured, selfishly, for her own sanity. She couldn't bear to hear him like this, to even see him. "save your energy."
     "Sarai," he said again, stronger. Fear carved a pit in her stomach; even her name sounded warped in his mouth. He slackened, just a little, whenever he spoke.
     "Alex, please work with me. Save your breath."
     "Sarai," his voice was slurred, unsteady, dripping with grief. "you need to leave me."
     A shiver ran down her back, tears threatening to burst from her eyes again. How... how could he even think that she'd leave him? How badly had she messed up? How badly had she treated him for him to think this way?
     "You know I can't do that," she whispered, trying to keep her voice from shaking. "I can't just leave you to die."
     "I can't either," he mumbled. Quiet, desperate. "you have to take everyone and–" a brutal cough ripped from his throat and she winced. He was fading, fading fast. "–take everyone and leave. Please. I'll only slow you down."
     "You just got stabbed, Alex," she said, trying a different approach. Maybe, if she was just hostile enough, he would listen. "I'm not leaving you. Not now, not ever. No one is ever gonna take you from me again, you hear me?"
     Her beloved went quiet; a silent agreement, maybe.
     Sarai blew out a slow breath, trying to calm the racing of her hearts. The outcome of the rest of her life would come down to the decisions she made in these next few hours; she had to be careful. "Your only job right now is to stay alive, okay? Just keep going. You hear me?"
     He nodded, his head slowly bowing down, and closed his eyes. She felt a shiver of fear trickle down her back.
     Take your own advice, she thought. Just keep going.
     With every hall that they passed, she felt colder. Sarai knew it wasn't herself– it was him, his body, growing weaker and more frigid by the second, desperately sucking the warmth out of her body. Her hands were slick with ink; his ink. Cold sweat dripped down her back. Four words echoed through her mind as they trudged through spiraling corridors, down small hallways and large storage rooms.
     It can't end here. It won't end here.