Ultramarine | The Darkest Minds Fanfic

Chapter 9, Sheena

It took me a moment to regain consciousness. And another moment to regain my hearing. Lastly, my vision. I could feel a white numbness in the back of my skull, and it was all the warning I need to know that my monster was struggling to come out.

　　Not now. Please. Not now.

　　"Ruby! Ruby! Please!" Fighting over the buzzes in my head, I heard Nico crying, and saw to my right, Ruby was on the ground, only half-conscious. Nico was pinned to the ground by her, and her on him by the block of cement over her back. I inched my fingers over to her, putting them on her right hand, and her eyes snapped opened.

　　"No! I have to find her first—" I heard Liam yelled, voice shook in panic.

　　"Dammit, Liam, move!" Cole's voice roared. "Go with the others!"

　　"They're here," I heard Vida say. "Help me with this—"

　　The cement over Ruby's body was lifted. My head was drifting in and out of consciousness, despite my struggle to stay afloat. It wasn't so much for my will to live, but more for the fear of not knowing who'd wake up in this body next. Me, or the monster.

　　For a moment, I didn't realize I was on the ground, until a hand reached out for me and tried to haul me up.

　　"I can't move her! She's stuck!" I heard a voice so similar to Cole, but not really him.

　　"Get out of here!" Cole's voice bellowed at my helper, and the hands that were trying to pull me free were pulled away, replaced by another pair. Out of the haze that hovered over all my senses, I heard Jude crying in a distance, "—It's not right; we can't leave them down here! Please!"

　　"We have to..." I heard Ruby replied.

　　They were moving away from me, but the hands that replaced Liam's were still there.

　　"C'mon, Lilac, I know you can do this..." Cole's voice was trembling in a way that made my heart wrench. I finally registered what happened to me—the lower half of my body were buried under a pile of rubbles and rebar, and from the feel of it, my feet were crushed.

　　"Cole, go help the others." I said, trying to sound brave. "I can handle it."

　　For a second, I was afraid that my voice had come out unintelligible, and he didn't register what I said. But the look on his face told me that he did—he just didn't want to do as I said.

　　After a moment, he closed his eyes, and let out a breath. "I'll come back. I promise." He stood up, took off, and I was alone.

　　There was an orange tinge on everything I see, and it took me a moment to realize that it was fire, burning here and there after the explosion; on the floor, on the curtain, on the bodies... The whole room smelled like... like hell, like inferno, hundreds of times worse than the one Cole created downstairs a few hours ago.

　　Of course I can't let him come back for me. I have to get myself out of here, if I'm going to get out at all. I tried to push myself out of the rubble, but it won't budge. In a distance, I could hear Cole shout, "Move, move, move! Down to level three; we're going out the way you came in—"

　　The whole structure shook, raining dust over my head like earthquake, and the rubble on top of me loosen a little. I tried one more push; this time, an inexplicable strength washed through me, and with a hard shove, my legs came free.

　　You're welcomed. A voice in my head said, sending a chill down my spine. It was my monster. It gave me the strength I need to push free.