Lotus Blood

Lotus Blood Part 10

Chapter Eight

"I don't want to run, Mink. I like it here." And I did, the peace and ease, even the music, was just so there, so right.

"Nam, I'm your Holder. I have to lay my life down to care for you. Now run, please."

He pushes me forward.

"But why?"

He stabs his finger at the red streaks.

"Krasue!"

"Kra ... what?"

"Krasue, sent to find and take you."

"Me!"

Mink puts his hand over my mouth, turns me round and pushes me forward.

"Leave Olive."

"Her name's Olivia. And she's coming with me."

I pick Olivia up and hug her to me. She wraps her arms around my neck. Mink throws his arms in the air, pushes me again and keeps pushing till I'm trotting between the queuing people.

The music changes, a higher tempo now, more violin and less cello, trying to drown out the growing wailing. I can just make out the head of the queues, in the distance where the sea of blue carpet finishes and white marble opens out to high dark desks. Sitting there, behind the desk at the end of our queue, is a bald giant of a man swathed in green robes.

The wailing goes up several notches, rising, falling, back up again, drowning out the music. All around us, Holders pull Guests face-down in the carpet, arms over their heads.

"Scared, Nammy."

"Hush, darling. I'm not scared."

Liar.

"Okay."

Mink's up alongside me now.

"The fans might hold them off," he shouts, trying to run in his robes.

"The fans?" I shout back.

"They're not there to keep the temperature down."

A flash away to our right, Mink glances around. "The fans blow them apart."

The wailing grows again, coming for me, my bare feet tearing across the thick carpet, Bob bounding along next to me. I can see the high desk clearly now. The figure in green robes stands up, watching us. The wailing drops away, then stops.

"Keep going!" Mink shouts, just ahead of me now.

"I'm trying!"

The wailing starts up again, louder and much closer.

"Nammy, hurting."

"Nearly there, Oily."

A flash of red streaks away to our right, then another up ahead, left to right, very fast.

"Run!" Mink screams.

Head up, flat out, Olivia clinging to me.

"Come on, Nam!"

"I am!"

"We can do it!"

My legs are flying. Reception's coming up fast, the tall figure in green waving frantically. Right behind us a woman screams. A flash in front, just above the fans, then the air's full of red streaks. One dives down into the fans and disappears in a spray of crimson.

"The fans got her!" Mink shouts.

Her!

Another bigger one floats down, aiming for a gap. It flinches away, then back in. The first smudge of red appears below, pulled round in the wash from the fans. Then the air's a mass of dropping, spraying red, like paint running down a canvas

Adrenalin's roaring though me. Olivia's head buried in my chest.

"Faster, Nam!" shouts Mink.

"I'm trying!"

"We can do it!"

We've almost reached the cool white marble when it all goes wrong. A toddler runs in front of Mink. He leaps over the kid, but the chasing Holder crashes straight into Mink and they tangle. I try to hurdle the squirming tangle of white robes and go down face-first. Olivia flies out of my arms and away from me.

The wailing peaks, triumphant. I roll over and up, shaking, gasping for air.

"Olivia?"

"Hurt, Nammy, hurt, hurt."

She's flown into the huddling people and they've scattered away from her. She sits there, hands on her head, tears rolling down her cheeks.

I hold her to me and rub her head.

"Shh, okay now?"

"Better."

I look up and straight into yellow eyes stabbing out of a woman's face; a beautiful oval face, glowing crimson red, long black hair writhing and snaking around it. The head and only the head, floats in front of me. The neck trails away into hanging strings of entrails, blood dripping onto the blue carpet. The eyes are locked on me, drilling into me.

Let me know what you think, and vote. Thanks!