The Broken Ones

Chapter 25

Taylor:

My head was pounding. Someone was shaking my shoulders. The same sensation washed over me from the first time we were here when I landed and was badly hurt. No doubt the same injuries were inflicted, maybe even worse ones.

"Taylor?" Another shake of my shoulders. There was a voice whispering into my ear. "Taylor, are you alright?"

Slowly, my eyes twitched open to land on Felix's staring down at me with worry. He didn't look any better than I felt. A few cuts lined his forehead, accompanied by bruises and a line of blood from his eyebrow. He was still in his outfit from the party and looking down at myself, I still wore the blue dress. This only left me in more confusion.

I found it difficult to speak these next words, "Felix, what's going on?"

He didn't reply. Instead, with wide eyes, he frantically darted his head to look around the two of us. I had no idea as to where we were. But I did know that it was cold, rough, and entirely unpleasant.

My head throbbed dangerously as a sudden thought popped into my mind. I attempted to sit up but quickly found it to be an almost impossible task due to the sharp pain shooting through my side. Felix quickly put a hand under my shoulders to help. "Where's Kat?" I asked.

When he again, didn't reply, the worry in me grew. He almost looked ashamed, for some odd reason. My heart sunk at his next words. "I don't know."

My breathing grew shallow. Spots danced around my vision. Kat wasn't here? The last thing I remember was sitting against a tree with Felix next to me, talking. And then darkness.

"Are you alright?" he asked me. His eyes wandered my face in search for wounds. I felt I should have been asking him that question instead. He looked like he had just escaped a fight (a sight I was used to seeing back in the real world).

"I-I'm fine. Are you okay?"

"I think so. We need to move."

"Why?"

Immediately after speaking the words, a low, angry growl sounded from somewhere far back. It echoed through the tunnels before finally disappearing after a long moment. The sound sent a cold chill through my body. Felix's grip on my shoulders tightened.

We looked at each other with wide eyes. I could barely speak above a whisper, "What is that?"

He only shook his head slightly. "But we need to get out. Now."

"Felix, I-"

I attempted to prop myself up with a struggled breath but failed ultimately. I hated being this way, this helpless. It angered me extremely, yet I couldn't stop the small whimper from coming from my throat. "This sucks," I breathed.

Felix chuckled slightly, but it was strained. "Alright, come o-"

Another growl. This time, however, it was louder. Closer. How I was going to move, I didn't know. Felix seemed to, though, as he swiftly scooped his arms under me bridal style and began walking. There was no way he was doing this without struggle, especially after the injuries inflicted.

Still, I clutched his shoulders tightly without a word.

We seemed to be in a cave. It was dimly lit, an opening somewhere far off as the only source of light. Tunnels looped throughout others, breaking off into more. Frankly, this only caused my headache to worsen at the thought of so many tunnels. I had never been one for enclosed spaces, and the walls surrounding me didn't help. My breathing grew shallow.

Felix seemed to notice this. He continued to spare glances my way with a worried look in his eyes. His heartbeat was going wild every passing second, but I found it almost comforting in a way. So I pressed my ear up close to his chest and closed my eyes.

"You doing okay, Taylor?"

I nodded slowly.

"We're almost there. I can see an opening . . ."

The both of us jumped at a third growl coming from deep within the caves. His arms buckled for a moment, almost dropping me. With a deep breath, he adjusted my body so I was clinging close to his chest before we continued our pursuit through the cave.

I tried to focus on the sound of his steps and his heartbeat, our mixed, struggled breathing, the constant dripping sound against the cave floor. Kat's face continued to slip up in my minds, but the thought made me nauseous. I quickly pushed it away.

It was surprising we hadn't come across any Cavernae Fairies in a cave this big. This was practically a breeding ground for them, or at least I would have assumed. Still, no fairies in sight. Odd. Maybe there were other creatures in here who originally claimed it to keep them away. Not that I was complaining. The fairies were the last thing I needed today.

Out of the corner of my eyes, a peak of light showed through the darkness. The sight brought a wave of relief over me and over Felix as he laughed gleefully.

But suddenly, just as we were approaching the opening, a rock falls. Then another. Then another. Within a blink of an eye, the opening is almost completely covered in stone, crushing any chance for a quick escape.

It all happens at once. Felix stops abruptly, in complete and utter shock, a second sound from the corner meets our ears-familiar, bone-chilling whispers-and a dark figure launches itself at Felix. He drops me to the floor just as he himself falls down, limp and numb to the world.

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