The Infected Mind

Chapter 18

I felt something cold and hard behind my back, the air around me was frigid as well. My main focus, however, was how I was in more pain than I could have ever imagined. Raven has some strength, I'll give her that. I was grinding my teeth and holding my eyes shut, but I soon noticed I didn't need to hold them shut, they were blindfolded. Where the hell am I?

There was something around my wrists again, obviously rope. The fight with Raven left my Crawler legs mangled and broken so there was no point in trying to bind them. I could feel the cuts and gashes on my body, the scabs cracked somewhat as I breathed, and I felt some begin to bleed again. I wanted to just fall dead again.

I lifted my hands to my face and tried biting through the rope. After several minutes of this, they were frayed enough for me to break them. I had no idea who found that rope, but damn it was strong. I went to lift the blindfold off my eyes, but realized that it wasn't actually a blindfold. There were bandages around my face. So Megan and the others got me out? They should know how dangerous that is, and they know I can regenerate, so why would they put bandages on me?

I lifted the bandages up off my eyes and was shocked to realize that my right eye was blinded. It must've been Raven's nails...

Even though my one eye was blind - temporarily, thankfully - I could still see fine, it looked like I was in a basement somewhere. There were bandages on my arms and several spots on my torso, I could also feel some on my neck. There was a small package of pills on the ground beside me with a note attached, I read the note before even looking at the pills.

'Hey, Sorry about any confusion. We were traveling and we went into this old cabin we saw, but there was a lot of dried blood inside on the floor and walls. Then we saw you skewered on the coat hooks and broken apart. The adults put you down here and locked the door incase you woke up, because they noticed your heart wasn't removed and you certainly still had your head. Me and some of my friends wanted to help, because Crawlers can't talk, and we heard you mumbling something. We don't know if things like this even work on crawlers, but these are painkillers. You're obviously in pain. If any adults come down, pretend to be dead, they'll think you never woke up, but if a kid comes down that looks younger than you, you'll be fine as long as you don't try to eat us.'

Reading the note was a nightmare. The kid had awful handwriting. I looked at the pills, if they were painkillers, they might not work on me, but they also might. If they were any kind of poison, it wouldn't effect me at all. I popped two pills from the package and swallowed them dry. I'm going to take anything I can get at this point.

I looked around the room, there were a few crates and boxes stacked on the walls, holding Christmas decorations and some construction supplies, based on the sharpie-on-tape labels. I saw a rat run across the base of the wall and almost gagged. I really don't want to do this, but I have to regenerate...

I stood up in a hunting crouch and waited for the rat to move a bit closer. It was hugging the wall, likely unable to see me in the dim lighting. When it finally came within range, I pounced forward and grabbed it, then swiftly ripped its head off. I shuttered in disgust at the rat. Here goes eating the second rat in a row.

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I had nearly finished eating the rat when I heard someone coming down the stairs outside the basement door, it was my saving grace that those stairs were in extreme need of repairs based on the loud crunching of old wood. Remembering what that note said, I got back in the same position I had been and pulled the bandages down over my eyes. I heard the door unlock and slowly open, before what sounded like four people entered.

"Is she still dead?" I heard what sounded like a small boy ask.

"I don't know...wait, look. Some of the pills are missing. And the ropes on her hands are over here" Another boy said.

I felt something poke my arm, and it managed to get directly on one of those bone deep scratches. Out of reflex I grabbed it and growled. I realized I had grabbed someone's wrist, and I could now hear a girl screaming.

Before I could let go, someone kicked me in the ribs. Hard. I growled out in pain and let go of the girl's wrist, scrambling backwards on the floor and holding my side. I could swear these kids managed to hit an injury with every move. Either that, or there were just a lot of injuries I didn't know of. Kicked in the broken ribs? Check.

I could hear them going to the door, but I needed answers, "Wait!" my voice was scratchy and it hurt my throat, but I heard them stop moving. After a few seconds of silence I heard a girl speak, "Did...you just talk?"

I lifted the bandages off my eyes, there were two girls and two boys in the group. One girl was clutching her wrist, clearly she had poked me. One of the boys had a large flashlight in his hand, thankfully it was off.

"Sorry about that. You poked a deep cut on my arm and I grabbed your hand out of reflex." I put my hand back on my side, "And, whoever that was who kicked me, several of my ribs are broken there."

The three other kids in the room pointed to the boy without the flashlight, the other girl said, "Michael did it."

He proceeded to look at her angrily and then turn to me with fear filled eyes. I raised my hands slightly in a mock surrender, "Don't worry, it's completely understandable, and there is no way to see if someone's ribs are broken without an X-ray."

They seemed to relax. The boy with the flashlight stepped forward, "so...you are a Crawler...but you're not like a...killer Crawler?"

"I am a sane Crawler, meaning I have a human mind, although I do have instincts. Think of me as a human in a Crawler's body."

They all came forward and started asking questions. Oh boy.