Rise

Chapter 2

I wake up to the odd sound off beeping noises. My eyes aren't open because I don't really feel like facing the world right now, but I know right away that Noe brought me to a hospital. The smell of antiseptic and sickness lingers in the air. The smell of prolonged death in my opinion. Even back when I was a girl I was like this. When people would come to my mother with horrible victims of disease, or the loss of a limb. Then would be the time to run away, to escape into the wilds. Now I am the victim.

 But Arsinoe feels right at home in these environments. It almost makes me laugh, because my mind is still jumbled so I am thinking back in the past. I have a fuzzy memory of taking Noe out in the woods and try to teah her to hunt like I do. Only she could never do it. And if we did, she broke down and begged me to let her heal it. She's the type of person who calls me over to squish a spider. And yet when people were brought in with horrible slashes and infections, she seemed to transform into someone immune to fear. Healers are born, and not made. At least where we come from. Here chemicals and machines are the healers, not the clueless fools called doctors. Essentially the opposite. i wonder why I am even bothering to save these strange people.

 My eyes flash open suddenly. It's a mistake, as I find myself squinting in the bright light. I lay there for a moment, dazed, waiting for my eyes to adjust. When at last they do, I sit up on the hopelessly clean and orderly hospital bed. I swing my legs over the side. That's when I notice what I am wearing. A paper shift, rubber glove blue. My legs are bare, and smooth. It's a little creepy to think that somebody had to see me naked to get me into this. I shake the thought away

My toes lightly touch the shiny pearl tile. Surprisingly, it feels lukewarm, not freezing cold. I place the rest of my feet on the ground, slowly standing up. I don't fall on my face. That's a good sign. I remember all the details of the showdown crystal clearly. My emotions are in check though. Anybody could be watching through those security cameras in the corner of the room. I do make sure to rip out the IV that was attatched to my arm. The sting is minor, although a small stream of blood flows fresh from the wound. I move towards the door. My hand slowly twists the knob, but it isn't locked. This should be reassuring, but to me it only sends off a little alarm in the back of my head, one that flashes the word "Trap!" in large red letters. The door smoothly opens outward. I stick my head out into the corridor. Eerily empty. I decide to ventureout. Noe could be anywhere, and I need to make sure she's okay.

I pass several other rooms, all with the doors closed. Everything here is made out of the same disgusting white material. Everything is so clean and quiet, it puts me even more on edge than I was. It's as if there is nobody even breathing. There aren't even echos. It's enough to make a person go insane. I pick up the pace, wanting nothing more than to get out of this place. For about an hour things go on in this manner, the only change being a turn in the halls.

Then, I catch a glimpse of colour. It glows a warm orange. I also hear a droning hum. When I focus I can see that it's the second last door on the right. I'm sprinting as I go up it. The door is thrown open. Arsinoe sits on a (surprise) white couch, with a lady wearing a labcoat. They both turn to look at me. Noe gives me a genuine grin before running up to me. When she jumps, I easily catch her and spin around with her in my arms. When we stop, I just hug her for a while. I'm happy that she is with me now, but my thoughts are preoccupied with the devil doctor. She is smiling right at me.

Her teeth are all perfect shapes, with no wear or colour on them. They don't look real at all. They can't be, have to be fake. The only alternative is that she's been drinking mush all her life. Her smile is so wide that it stretches her cheeks, giving her a plastic doll like look. It's just slightly disturbing. Even her nails are filed perfectly filed. They look thick too, which adds to my description of her as a devil. I lean forward to whisper softly in her ear. "We need to go. Now."

We pull away from the embrace. She stares me in the eye. Her expression tells me that she's feeling the same as me at this point. It's not hard to see why. We turn to exit the room. But thenshe speaks.

"Oh you shouldn' be leaving so soon. Why don't you stay? You will find yourself to be quite comfortable here." She is still smiling when she says this. My blood curdles at the sound of her voice. It is a high pitch voice. I guess it's supposed to be cheerful. But it is monotone, and so the ultimate effect creeps me out. I feel Noe shudder.  I ignore Devil Nurse and grab my sister's hand. I walk fast. She does her best to keep up. I start to concentrate on moving backwards. It's harder when the chick's calling after us, pleading with us. I swear she's crying. "Please stay, come back!" I move faster, and focus more. I glance at Noe. she seems fine. With one last breath, I let go of all my stored power, and we are hurdled backwards, as we go back into the past.