He Was Dying

Chapter Twenty

"Proud?"

  I shrugged. "Maybe they've got it all wrong. Maybe It's angry at them, not me."

Bryce stared at me before glancing back down, then turning towards the front door behind us. "Hey, Brock!" A voice called out from inside in acknowlegdement. "C'mon out here for a second?"

 Footsteps tapped behind us, stopping as I turned around. Brock stood over us, hands stuffed in his jean pockets as he balanced on his heels. "What's up?"

"What's the thing in the sky?"

Brock looked taken aback by Bryce's statement. "What do you mean?"

  "You know what I mean, Brock."

I stared up at him, glancing at Bryce a few times. "You know what It is?" I asked him.

  Brock turned his attention to me. "Well," he mumbled. "Yeah. You're talking about Azarov."

Bryce was like an excited child running through a candy shop. "Tell me about It."

"Azarov is the monsters' version of a God, I guess. To people who've survived and escaped, they just call It the Entity. The monsters try and sacrifice whoever comes in their yard by hanging them on the meathooks. By doing so, the monsters get to live another day."

  "Does It agree?"

"Agree with what?"

"The sacrifices."

"Bryce, I have no idea what Azarov's opinion is. When I was a monster, all I did was what I was told! If I didn't, the others would probably hunt me down and hang me as if I was a human. Throw me back to where I came from."

   Monster?

"True, alright," Bryce shrugged. "But have you ever thought how you got away?"

  "Sympathy? I don't know."

The two fell silent. Bryce glanced my direction, but I didn't call much attention to it. I stood up. "Are the others back yet?"

  Brock looked over his shoulder. "I don't think... wait!" He bounded inside, causing Bryce to stand back up and follow him in. I walked after them, taking a look around the yard before entering back into the asylum.

The guys were huddled around another male. As he laughed and spoke, an accent hung heavy on his voice, partially reminding me of Nogla. A leather jacket was over his shoulders and torso, a grey shirt, dirty and torn up, underneath.  He looked up at me, shock and surprise washing over his face.

  My ears jerked upwards as I took in his face. A stubble outlined his jaw and chin; Part of his hair was dyed a crimson red, which was brushed over part of his forehead; His eyes gleamed in the minimal light in the room, but I could see a blue-grey iris. His other was bright red. I could sense my face mirrored his reaction.

He laughed, a wide smile my way. "You're a tall fellow, aren't 'cha?"

  I tilted my head at his confidence. "I guess," I spoke nervously. I stepped forward, leaning down to be face-to-face. Staring at his artifical eye, I had to stop myself from tapping it to hear the clink of the glass and metal. "What's your name?" I asked curiously.

"I'm Brian," he smirked. "Alpha, is it? Or Beta?" He laughed at his own joke, not bothering to notice some of the other guys cross their arms in annoyance at his rudeness. "You had to pick the lowest-class name, huh?"

  I glared at him, baring my irregular teeth, my grey eyes staring through him. A growl rumbled in my throat. He stopped his chuckling. Brock pushed his shoulder a bit. "Don't be cocky, Brian."

He looked around at everyone, an unamused look on his face. "Are you guys serious? You actually have respect for this.." His arm outstretched towards me, jestering my direction. "This thing? "

I grabbed his hand, drawing his attention right back to me. I could hear the bones breaking beneath my grip. I pulled him towards me so that he was right in front of me, so that he couldn't look away. "I am not a thing," I growled. "You're lucky you and all of the people standing around you are alive." My fingers opened, and he slipped his hand away, hissing in pain.

  Standing straight, I stared down at him as he was maybe a foot and a half shorter than me. I could tell Bryce was looking at me; I could feel his eyes burning a hole through my chest.

My eyes closed. I was just about ready to turn around and storm out of the room. A hand was placed on my shoulder, and I opened my eyes to see Bryce looking up at me pleadingly. I felt guilty, yes, and I shouldn't've done it infront of my friends.
  Are they my friends, though? What if they were like Brian?

  "We're alive..." his voice croaked out.

He spun, grabbing the lead pipe from Evan's hand. "Brian, no--!"

  "BECAUSE YOU HAVEN'T KILL US YET!"

The pipe swung towards me. I ducked under it, yelling out. It barely brushed against my ears. The guys jumped into action, pulling Brian away and attempting to pry the pipe from his hands. Brian swung again, this time a ringing bouncing through my ears and ricocheting off the insides of my skull.

  Dust flies around me as I hit the floor. My vision swayed, and my arms were constantly failing me as I tried to stand. Smitty was on his knees by my side, snapping in front of my eyes to keep me awake. My body was failing him.
  Brock, Luke and Craig managed to get Brian under control, pinning him against the wall. Bryce was panicking for the sake of my life, Delirious and Evan desperately trying to get him calmed down and out of the room.

 My head was staring sideways, and all I could make out were feet bustling around me. It wasn't long until my mind couldn't bare being conscious anymore.

  Bryce was shouting, Smitty was trying to keep my eyes open, others were attempting to get Brian out of the foyer. Although how loud everything was, it was silent. My eyes picked up every speck of dust floating by, every grain of sand on the ground.

Slowly, my vision began to blur, everything doubling and becoming out of focus. Darkness faded in around me, and my eyes shut.

  Before I completely lost consciousness, I heard Bryce scream.