Snatched

Ch.22. Survivors

The first thing that I feel is the blinding light shining through my eyelids. Then came the immense throbbing coming from the right side of my brain. My first instinct is to rub my head, but something stops my arm from moving. I reluctantly open my eyes. The light is unbearable at first, but my eyes slowly adjust.

I can move my head around easily, but my arms and legs are strapped down. Looking around, I realise I'm on some sort of medical bench, and weird needles lie on a small table to my left. It reminded me of horror movies when a mad doctor comes in and slices your head of or something.

For a few moments I wriggle and strain against the straps. Just as I was about to give up, the strap on my right hand became loose. I silently thank whoever runs the world up there and continue to struggle. The strap finally opens wide enough for my hand to slip out. It takes under a minute to undo the other three straps. I realise I'm still in my training suit I put on just before we went to Bella's room. Thank goodness.

I slide off the white table and fully inspect the room. The walls were spotless and white and there was a door at the end of the room. I sneak over and test the knob. It's open.

A lone white corridor lurks before me. I decide to head to a door to my left. My mind starts to wonder where I am, and where the others are. I sneak through the door to find many small cells lined up on both sides.

I tip toe over to the nearest cell and look inside. There weren't any lights in the cells, only in the corridors. I suddenly gasp. There were two beds in each side of the cells, and each of them held a person. As I look around, I find that there are people in all of the cells, and none of them registered my entrance.

"Hey" I whisper, "...where are we? Are you okay...?"

My whispers echo against the agonising silence. There is no response, leading me to think that the snatchers may have tampered with their minds. I keep sneaking away from the door I just came through and down the endless barred corridor. My eyes drift over to a girl sitting upright on a bed in her cell, I recognise her.

It was the girl who warned me, the one who mocked my plan in Bellas room. She must have a name, but I never bothered to ask. I try calling to her, but again  and there was no response. It was as if I wasn't even there. I kept walking, countless cells pass me, none of them the people I want to find. No tuffs of green hair, and no familiar faces at all.

I start to lose hope, but a door is up ahead, perhaps it leads to my friends. Something jumps out at me from one of the cells just as I reach the door. My heart rate slowly begins to fall once I realise that it was just a kid. It's the kid with the pink hair I bumped into.

"It's you!" He says under his breath.
"What happened?" I whisper to the boy, "What's wrong with everyone?"
"The Snatchers found us," his young voice echoes quietly, "Everyone got taken here. One by one they were taken away and when they came back, they were all... Like this"

He puts his hand through the bars and points at the cell opposite. Their occupants were holding blank expressions, almost in a zombie like way. Exactly the same as everyone else.
"Why aren't you like that?" I ask, my suspicion getting ahead of me.
"That's the thing, if you don't get me out of this stupid cage, I'm gonna be a zombie!" He says, "It was your turn to get turned into one, and I guess I was next... Quickly! The freaking key is in the next room! That's where the snatcher went to at least..."
"Sheish alright, be nice." I mutter..

I move to the door, trying to tell myself that this was actually real. That I was actually captured, that I am in an unknown location crawling with enemies, and that I might not see the light of day again. My mind starts to calm down and settles on what the little boy was saying. The Snatchers had found us and brought everyone here. Wait... "It was your turn to get turned in one, and I guess I was next." How would he know that. He was all alone in his cell, maybe I was his cell mate...?

My mind wanders as I pace through the next room. It was a big white room, similar to the previous ones. Except there was a desk in one corner, littered with bits and pieces. Unnamed paperwork littered the desk in words I can't understand. Right in the centre was a small key, I grab it and make my way back.

"Finally... I thought you left me." The boy remarked rather loudly. I shushed him and tried the key in the door. It fits perfectly. I start to turn the key.
"Thanks, my names mark by the way. I'm thirteen." He says, finally establishing a name to his face, "I think I like you better than that green-haired leprechaun who came running through here."

This stopped me immediately. I suddenly turned the key back to being locked.
"Hey!" He yelled, "Come on! Whatcha do that for?"
"The leprechaun? That's my friend!" I whisper harshly, "How long ago did he come through!?"
"Let me out! I don't know, about an hour ago? Come on! I hear footsteps"

I quickly turn the lock again and pull it forwards. I push past him and shut the door quickly, taking the key. Footsteps start marching from the end I came from. The boy, Mark, must have caught on as he jumped over to the bed nearest him. I do the same for the other and lie down facing the wall, trying to stay still.

By what I could hear, there were two of them. In my fear, they stop at our cell. I struggle to stop shaking, with my heartbeat pounding.
"Didn't we sort that one?" the first one said, sounding strangely normal. It was almost like I expected them to sound demonic. "Didn't we just drag the girl over to Doctor Bane?"

29/7/16 aye I know you love cliff hangers, but I promise this isn't the worst one yet. Okay okay haha. Anyway, we are nearing the end conflict, and the end twist! Hehe!!