Descent Into Madness

Chapter 14: Feeling I'm Sinking

How can it just stop?

It didn't make sense. There had to be something.

Click.

I spun, eyes darting around while my hand went for my Swiss army knife. Slipping it out, I waited for one of those things to burst out through a doorway.

With every passing second, I grew more uneasy. I was wasting time, but could I risk turning my back?

I reached behind me, finding the edge of a doorway with my hand. Glancing over my shoulder, I didn't see anything and carefully backed into the room.

My heel caught on something, and I almost tripped. I looked down. A creature lay on the floor. Its chest ripped open. Blackish blood pooled around it, still wet.

What did this? I blinked.

Is there something worse than these things here?

A shadow shot past the doorway. I raised the knife. My vision blurred for a second, and I blinked a few times.

The lights seemed to be getting brighter, and I squinted as they stung my eyes. Then, as quickly as it started, the lights were back to normal. My heart pounded in my ears. What was that?

Turning away from the door, my eyes fell on a sink set into the counter against the wall. I licked my dry lips. It couldn't possible be that simple.

What do I have to lose?

Stepping over the corpse, I kept glancing back at the hall as I made my way to the sink.

The handle turned with ease. Gushing came from the long unused pipes. I stepped back, scrunching up my nose as dark red liquid shot out the spout. The metallic smell filling the air.

My first thought was blood. I watched as the sink started to fill up with it, the drain blocked, and I looked away.

The smell faded, disappearing, and I frowned, glancing back at it. The sink was empty expect for a small amount of clear water gathering at the bottom around the drain. The water coming out was just as clear.

Must... must have been rust.

After a moment of hesitation, I leaned forward and shoved my head under the flow. I watched as red tinted water ran down the drain as it washed the blood away. Setting down the army knife, I started scrubbing at my hair and face with my hands, my nails. The water turned darker.

I kept at it until my skin was raw, and even then, I had the urge to continue scouring it. I could still feel the blood coating my hands. My blood.

...Phineas' blood.

I took a deep breath that led to me inhaling some water and coughing before tilting my head to let some water run into my mouth. It tasted off. But I gulped it down, savoring the sensation of it running down my parched throat.

Once I'd drank my fill, I just let the water run over my head again. My eyes closed. The water was warm. Soothing.

It was running down my neck, soaking my shirt. Causing the stinging to transform into burning as it hit the cuts. My hands splayed out on the sides of the sink as I gasped and shivered.

I stayed like that until the burning became too intense, then I pulled away and turned off the faucet. Running a hand through my wet hair to push it back from my forehead, I picked up the army knife before turning around.

My eyes widened. A creature stood only meters from me. It wasn't like the others. If I still had any doubts that these things were once human--which I didn't really--this erased them.

It was obviously female. The curves of her body still there, despite being emaciated. Ribs bulging under her transparent skin. Matted, filthy hair fell around her deformed face. She had no lips leaving her rotten, blackened teeth completely visible. Her eyes were all white, but I was sure she was looking straight at me.

She took an unsteady step forward and nearly fell over at the movement. I glanced down at her legs. They were twisted. The knees touching and grinding together with each awkward step. Her nose twitched. She appeared to be smelling the air.

I actually felt bad for her. She didn't look deadly. Not like the others.

Even as she got closer, I didn't move. Just watched. Wheeze like breaths came from her.

She's pitiful.

Reaching out, her hand brushed my own before she finally tumbled over sideways. Head banging against the floor so hard that I heard something crack.

I knelt down next to her as her head turned towards me. Those eyes, possibly sightless before definitely were now. One hand felt blindly for me, slapping the floor inches from my foot. Her mouth open, the jaw crooked. Broken in the fall.

Adjusting my grip on the small knife, I lifted it over her head and drove the blade in though her ear.

She fell still. There was no light in her eyes to fade, but I imagined that I saw it anyway.