Drachen Fire Pt. 2

The iron around my lungs started to loosen and before any part of my body could react, I began to fall. The surface-dweller’s clutch loosened and my leg would undoubtedly break as it hit the ground.

“Bane, curl into a ball!” Rocco shouted as loud as he could.

I managed to turn my head and… are you kidding me?! Rocco managed to shoot through one of the legs of this monstrosity and was rushing towards my landing point. Why? What was the point of this? Even if he catches me, we’re likely going to get swooped back up and die anyway. Why do humans do such pointless things?!

I curled into a ball, not because I wanted to but because my survival instincts kicked in as soon as I heard the rage in Rocco’s voice. It made me feel disgusted. There’s nothing for me in this world. There’s nothing for any of you here. Why do you fight?

The wind of my fall wasn’t to be understated. My father would tell me about roller coasters from the old world and how they gave an illusion of adrenaline. This is undoubtedly the real thing, but if somebody could truly recreate this feeling in a safe environment, that would probably be… so much fun.

Before my fall came to an end, the clanging of the diamond-grated steel echoed in my ears. Rocco was running as fast as he could and the reverberating sounds of the metal floor spoke to his resolve. One thing neither of us expected, however, was that my surface-resistant uniform began to tear. I couldn’t recall when exactly it happened but at some point, that nasty abomination tore a hole in my uniform and it was beginning to gape. It doesn’t seem like Rocco noticed. We’re told in training that without a surface-resistant uniform, humans burn to a crisp within seconds. They say being burned alive is one of the most painful ways to go out but if it’s only for a few seconds, that’s manageable…

Although, now that I think about it. It’s a shame. I think I really wanted to ride a rollercoaster.

My eyes closed and my brain turned off. The uniform was coming off my entire body and I had no clue when my body would hit the floor or if Rocco would make it in time to catch me but either way, I’m dead.

…

The driest breath of air was inhaled. It was so loud, I almost choked on nothing. My head raised itself from the ground. It appears I was lying down when looking at both my sides. Rocco was on my left. Reality was still forming in front of me. Heads or tails appeared all the same for now. As my vision started to focus, in front of me was a bed railing. Rocco must’ve lifted me to one of the bunks while I was out. My right leg looked horrid. It was bent out of shape and clearly broken. I couldn’t feel it at all though. In fact, I couldn’t feel anything.

In the lightest voice possible, I managed to whisper, “What the hell happened?”

“Take it easy, kid I just juiced you up on painkillers so they might not have fully kicked in yet. Do you feel okay? Do you know who I am? Do you know who you are?”

My hand was able to reach my head just fine as I tried rubbing out this annoying headache that suddenly appeared… Wait, my head? I shouldn’t be able to touch my head with the uniform on.

“Where’s my uniform?! Are we on the surface?” The second question proved redundant as all it took was a glance past Rocco’s shoulder and I saw the surface and its bright shining white sky ahead. More importantly, though, the surface-dweller was still there. My body reacted without thinking and Rocco grabbed me.

“Take it easy, kid! Your legs broke-”

“What is that thing still doing here?!”

Rocco looked behind as if checking to see if it left. He looked back at me and sighed.

“I don’t know what’s going on, Bane. First, your uniform came off and you’re fine, and ever since you hit the ground and knocked out, this creature just calmed down out of nowhere. It even stepped back and let me pick you up. I don’t know what’s been going on these past thirty minutes, but I’m just glad you’re safe.”

It wasn’t hard to tell that Rocco was surging through a phase of emotions. His face and voice were very inconsistent. Ah, shit, I don’t know what’s going on either, and honestly, thinking is definitely not something I can do capably right now.

“Rocco, let’s go back home. Even if I get fired, it’s okay. I’ll explain to management that the incident was entirely my fault and I tried doing something stupid even though you had things under control. I’m sorry…” My head couldn’t help but sink into my hands. Everything about my existence started to feel pathetic again.

Rocco scoffed, “You may not be the smartest or strongest kid in the book, but from what I can tell you seem passionate. I don’t know what it’s for but you have this fire in you that seems inextinguishable. You can go home and act like you don’t care about anything if you want, but I see the flame inside of you.”

“Come on, old man, you’re talking like I have two days left to live…”

“You don’t but there is something I should tell you…” Rocco hesitantly reached for my broken leg and although my leg instinctively tried moving away from his grasp, I let him pull up the sleeve of my jeans. I was wrong. My leg wasn’t just broken, it was damn near cut in two. Is that my bone?!

“Rocco, what the hell?!!” My body almost jolted again but Rocco held me down. Lucky for me. I’d have probably taken my leg clean off with enough sporadic movement.

“You’re going to have to get it amputated. If we had one of the best doctors on site right now, maybe we could’ve done something, but considering the four-hour trip back down to the surface and it’s just you and me…? I’m sorry, kiddo. I’ll do my best to keep you juiced up on painkillers…”

He stood up and walked over to the elevator control panel. Would the elevator even go down? One of the doors has a chunk of it flat center in the elevator itself. Well, maybe the doors closing has nothing to do with how it moves. Seeing Rocco walk over to the panel was almost melancholic in a sense. Remembering my father was never easy. He wasn't around when I needed him most but everything I’ve done up until now has been for him. Seventeen years of wanting to be a Scavenger Lord just to measure up with my old man. Rocco is going to push that elevator button and it will all be over. Sorry, dad… You can’t say I didn’t try. It’s time to put this dream to rest now. After all, it always sort of felt more like yours than mine…

With a drink of water, my mind began to feel refreshed and something new sparked.

“Hey, wait…” I reached out my hand towards Rocco. He looked behind with a face that read confused and concerned.

He began to slowly walk back over to me. “Everything alright, kiddo?”

“We can meet them…”

“...Who?” Rocko’s face leaned more into confusion now.

“The Ylvona crew. I know the protocol. If a group is late. You must wait two hours at the rendezvous before retreating and reporting them as missing.”

The face Rocco wore now was neither confusion or concern, it was akin to disbelief. “No way, we are not meeting them! You are in no condition to move and even if you could, that surface-dweller is still waiting for you like a hungry dog.”

I took another glance at the surface-dweller to assess the situation. “Why hasn’t it come in?”

“I have no idea, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to step outside and find out, Bane!”
Another sigh escaped my body. I could feel my brain beginning to work again.

“I don’t have a suit on and I’m still alive. This has never happened in human history, ever since we’ve been forced under the surface-”

“Yeah? And what’s your point, kid?”

My face began to strain in an effort to be taken seriously. “We need to push onwards. My existence can be detrimental to the progression of humanity. The surface-recovery program could see an unprecedented breakthrough. This decision we make right now will decide if humans grasp victory over God.”

He was silent for a little bit. “...Victory over God, huh? Is that what they've been teaching you in your little cave schools or is that a personal assessment? You think this is God’s fault?”

Well, I can’t say I took him to be the religious type so perhaps that was a misstep. “No, you’re right. It isn’t a victory over God. It's a victory for us.”

The man you must be to pursue the career of a Scavenger Lord is no doubt one of noble character. Sacrificing yourself for others in the name of progress. Religious or not, I know Rocco cannot refuse the call of duty. The world can progress at your say-so. It’s checkmate. Even if you do care about my well-being, there’s no way you would choose me over your job. You feel my words, You believe them. Now, act!