[The City Of Bones]

Chapter Seven: Antecedent Endearment

The pain was like fire burning in the boy's arm. He winced. A cold sweat ran over his entire body. The fact that he still felt the wound meant that hadn't gone into shock and at the moment the pain was unbearable. He didn't know if he could stand on his feet much longer. It was the kind of agony that you could only read about in a novel. It felt like a hot, sharp knife, covered in salt, slicing through his skin and into his muscle and bone, it was as though his arm had been frozen and a bolt of lightning had struck his body from head to toe.

The only way to describe it was like someone had bashed his arm in with a baseball bat.

Phanes green eyes cringed; he squeezed his eyes shut and toppled over to the floor onto all of the cracked glass. Blood soaking into his sleeve and radiating outward. Silla quickly stripped the fabric away to show the dark hole in his skin and ripped away at her jacket to make a makeshift bandage to bind his wound. "Silla!" He called out to her in a hoarse and concerned voice.

"V'ere you hit?" He questioned.

"No." She had noticed that his vision was blurred, and he seemed to be a bit stunned, understandably, though.

Another fastpaced object had flown threw the broken window and nearly hit her again. "Get down!" He yelled, and her body didn't even challenge his order as she threw herself onto the ground. She panted heavily and kept her eyes on Phanes. He looked more distressed than she had ever seen him. Most of the time he was quiet, and his face was as calm as a still rock. But now he was anxious as his brows scrunched together fretfully. The fact that he was this worried meant that they were in deep trouble.

Using his uninjured arm, he dragged himself towards her and wrapped himself around her body, shielding Silla from any awaiting damage. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?" He asked, staring into her blue eyes in worry.

"I'm fine. Are you alright, though?" She asked him as beams of light seemed to rain into the bar like a hail storm.

"I'll be okay," he told the young girl unconvincingly. Around them people were yelling and firing phasers in the streets. The beaming technology they used fired high-energy beams of light in a straight line. Most of the weapons they used were handheld sidearms that used beaming technology to fire tractor beams. It seemed that they were stuck in the middle of a turf war. There was no way they would be able to go home on their usual route without getting disintegrated.

The only other known route was a place that was crawling with death and the few who made it in didn't make it out. The underground was the only other root left because if they stayed on the surface they would surely perish. But what other choice did they have? If they stayed, they would be killed and if they went through the underground, at least they would have a chance of survival.

Both the boy and girl crawled across the glass covered tile floor occasionally scratching or cutting up their arms and legs until they finally reached the back door leading them to an alleyway out back near two large garbage cans. Following Phanes, Silla made her way through various tunnels and damp alleyways until they reached the location of the infamous underground.

Staring up at the shear size of it, she was surprised that the entrance was just a giant underpass. Silla had never been anywhere near the underground much less know what it looked like. She had just assumed like everyone else that it was some secret area not a passageway. Surprisingly it had turned out that the underground was an ancient set of tunnels and catacombs that went under the city.

Unknown to her the enormous tunnel was connected to many other subsets and was difficult to navigate if you didn't know it well. It was the former ancient City Of New York's sewer system that went under the entire city. It was a horrible place filled with the mentally disturbed, cold blooded murderers, and everything else that went bump in the night. It's not a place even the people of the lower ring wish to go.

Upon entering the girl noticed just how dark it was; only the assumingly radioactive glowing green water and luminous fungi lighted the paths. As she looked around the ancient sewers smelled like putrid rotting bodies. Green slime, giant mushrooms, grime, and all sorts of glowing fungi covered the hundred year old cement paths and ceilings.

Next to them the many cracks leaked murky green-brown water, and it flowed out of holes from only Gods know where. More cracks appeared as they traveled down the tunnels and more green slime squirted and dripped through crevices. But what worried her the most was that fact that the ceiling looked like it could cave in at any moment. The bones that littered the grimy cracked cement ground worried her and every now and again she would come across a full on skeleton without any missing bones. Some of the remains could've been hundreds of years old. They were like ancient relics and she was amazed how the older bones looked so different from her own.

Walking Silla would count all the bones as they passed by.

One skeleton, two skeleton, three...

Most normal people from a few centuries ago would be appalled at her nonchalantness but now all the young girl could manage upon seeing human remains was one simple thought.

Ew.

In this century it would be considered odd not to run into a dead body at some point. This sort of thing was the norm, unless you were a woman lucky enough to find a nice husband from the upper ring to live a plush life. But most women didn't have a rich husband much less a nice one that loved them. Romance and chivalry were a thing of the past, though that didn't stop the young girl from dreaming.

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Further down the intricate tunnels a man who sat a little farther from the entrance stop walking, turning slowly, and start to follow them, his face hidden by a dusty and worn high collar. She was surprised to see something alive down here much less a person.

He was the only semi-human thing they had seen thus far, and she couldn't decide if that was a good thing or not yet. Narrowing her eyes slightly to see through the darkness she caught sight of the man in front of her and froze in horror. The mans clothes hung onto him his skeletal frame and his skin a deathly gray. He looked as if he was some kind of reanimated corpse. One of his eyes popping out of his skull and only hanging on by a few nerves. The other eye having a glassy filament over it and she was curious if he could even see.

Though what frightened her the most was his detached jaw that revealed the few sharp teeth that he had. The jaw bone only hung onto his face by the decomposed muscle and flesh of his cheek. What hair the man had was long and scraggly like it had been pulled out in clumps. The green oozing rashes on his skin made him look almost like he had radiation poison or some advanced form of mange. It was best to avoid him as there was no way he was of sound mind.

Thankfully Phanes was right beside Silla, and she pulled onto the back of his shirt to alert him. It took him only a minute to fully register what she was signaling to. At first he had looked over to her in confusion until he saw the desperate look on her girls face. Realizing something was off he looked over his shoulder to see the skeletal man following them causing his eyebrows to knit together in frustration while they rounded a sharp corner.

As time went on said man only seemed to come closer. Until he was practically only three feet away and finally he spoke. "Oh yes... I've not had any in ages," he hoarsely spoke to himself as saliva ran down his neck.

A shiver ran through her body, but she hid it the best she could. Phanes, however, quickly pushed Silla behind him and turned around to glare darkly at the man; not that he could see it. Turning around on their heels, they ran and started to make their way through the tunnels. But they didn't make it far before they heard the distinct echoing of bones breaking and rearranging along with fleshy squishing noises. The boy and Silla froze on the spot.

With wide eyes they slowly turned their heads.

Silla managed to catch a glimpse of something in the shadows before it quickly disappeared much to their horror. Now she was even more suspicious of what those previous sounds were. She could only imagine the fate of the skeletal man from earlier. Though if she was being honest, it was probably a mercy. Long after that everything in the tunnels went silent to the point, only droplets of water could be heard. Every step she took she felt they were being watched and Phanes was even more unnerved; he too could sense something was terribly wrong.

Then before they even heard it something hard hit her body, knocking Silla flat on her stomach as she groaned under the heavy weight laying on her back, trying to move herself she found she was stuck. Phanes had blocked her from a sharp rock that was projected at her from out of nowhere. "Are you okay?" He asked worriedly next to her ear. Turning her head to reply she suddenly froze in horror. In front of her his dark green eyes stared back at her expectantly but right behind the unaware boy was something inhuman. Something frightening.

He sat crouched down next to the frozen girl her mouth agape and her skin pale. Still confused the boy watched as she slowly moved to point a finger at something behind him her whole form shaking in the process. Looking in the direction, she pointed he turned to see a gruesome sight that nauseated him merely a meter away as his eyes widened. How could it have crept up on him without noticing it?

This monstrous thing in front of him was no longer human. Its skin looked merged together as if a barrel of acid had been dumped on it melting the bones and flesh together while his chest had his enlarged empty rib cage exposed. The multiple limbs that it had, were much longer than any humans should have been and at the end were large hands with black claws instead of finger nails. The creature was on all fours like an animal and it wasn't until closer inspection that he realized it was the corpse like man from earlier; he had somehow transformed himself into this carnivorous thing, or he was hiding his true much more sinister form. His previous glassy eyes had multiplied and elongated nearly moving to the side of his head along with slits in the place of nostrils like that of a snake.

They continued to stare at each other for what seemed like minutes but was actually seconds until it quickly detached its large jaw unleashing multiple rows of ragged teeth that moved around in its mouth like circling sharks. The monster letting an impossibly long yellow forked tongue slither out as it let an ear bleeding hiss. The horrific shriek echoing in the tunnels as they were hit with sticky green salvia and spit. Their hair also blowing back from the sheer power of it.

Phanes grabbed her sleeve, pulling Silla from her hands and knees to her feet, dragging the young girl behind him as he ran down the tunnels. They scrambled and ran as fast as they could but the thing was too fast for her and she could barely keep up with the evenly matched Phanes. Panting with each breath, it wasn't long until the man like thing behind them hissed and started to chase after the two, shooting a long arm every now and again in an attempt to catch them. While fleeing Silla nearly screamed as another razor sharp claw whizzed past her head nearly decapitating her.

It sprang again, landing on the cracked tunnel ceiling, where it hung like a gigantic malignant spider, staring down at them with its cluster of eyes it's head twisted backward. Its jaws opened slowly once again showing its teeth and spraying saliva while screeching at her. It gurgled and hissed and to her horror Silla realized that the noises it was making were words. "Girl," it hissed. "Flesh. Blood. To eat, hmm smells delightful. " The cannibalistic monster whispered darkly.

From then on it flung itself at impossible speeds with its multiple elongated limbs causing dents into the ancient tunnel walls as it used it as leverage. It twisted and turned its body in every which way like some kind of alien, allowing its body to move like a projectile shooting through the air.

Desperately trying to keep up suddenly, Phanes made a sharp turn to the right, into a straight dead end alley way. Well, it technically wasn't a dead end, there was just tall crates stacked five high, creating a three meter high wall. The wood looked to be a few hundred years old and was falling apart. It was all rotted out from water dripping from the tunnels cracks.

Stopping just before the crate wall, both of them were breathing heavily. They could hear the creature not far off, no doubt it would find them in less then five minutes. Silla looked to the boy as if asking what next and he turned to where his back was facing the crates and got down on one knee, cupping his hands together. "I'm going to lift you up, I v'ant you to crawl to the top and v'ait for me." Was all he said.

Looking at him in disbelief, her eyes widened. He wanted to pick her up and hoist her on top of a fifteen foot tall wall of crates with an injured arm. It wouldn't be possible to put anymore strain on it without grave consequences. She was about to call him crazy, but the shrieks and hisses sounded closer so she kept her mouth shut.

Hesitantly, she walked over to stand in front of the sandy blonde boy, silently asking permission to start. He only nodded in reply. Gently, she put her foot in his cupped hands, grabbing onto his shoulder for support. She mentally counted to three before she put all her weight on his hands.

Slowly he stood from his kneeling position, standing to his full height. She reached her hands out as far as she could, but she was still a few feet short of the top. Looking down to him, she spoke, "I can't reach the top? What do we do?"

He thought for a moment before, looking into her eyes. "On z'e count of three, I'm going to throw you in z'e air, you're going to have to catch z'e edge and pull yourself up. Okay?" He spoke and she nervously nodded, nonetheless, putting her faith in him. He started to slowly count under his breath, every number he would slightly push her up farther. Finally, on the third count, before he tossed her up, she silently yelped.

Suddenly she felt herself being thrown into the air. For a split second of flying upwards, she reveled in the feeling of soaring into the sky, loving the way it felt to be freely surrounded by the air. Though her moment of complete bliss was interrupted when she felt herself start to fall. Eyes widening and instinct mode activating, she shot her hands out, just barely getting her fingertips over the edge, her boots scraping against the side of the crates trying to gain some kind of traction.

After situating her feet and hands on the wooden boxes, she easily hauled herself over the edge, standing on her knees at the top. Moving quickly she soon turned to look over at him having heard a silent growl at the entrance of the tunnel. He was just around the corner...

Getting down on her belly, She reached her arm as far as it could go over the edge, waiting for him to grab it so she could pull him up. Taking a few running steps back, he leaned down slightly. The girl gazed at the entrance of the dead end when she spotted a massive shadow nearing it. Silla looked down just in time to see Phanes push off into a run.

She watched with worried eyes as he ran full speed towards the crate wall and at the last second, jumping high, landing a foot on the ground proceeding to push off from there. Adding a few more feet to his already impressive jump, he slammed into the crates with his feet, roughly grabbing Silla's hand as she felt her shoulder pop at the sudden weight from his body but refused to let go.

Glancing quickly at the entrance, freaking when she saw a claw slowly wrap around the corner, Silla grunted quietly, pulling him up and over onto the top. And conveniently on top of herself. Though neither of them could do anything about it as the creature walked into the alley, slowly scraping a single claw into the bottom of the crates.

"I know you went down here... come out you little runts," it evilly hissed. Silla flinched lightly, a shiver running through her body. How nasty could this thing get? Phanes however just laid still over her, both his legs on either side of her left one, hands pressed flat against the crates on both sides of her waist and his head laying in the space between Silla's neck and her right shoulder. She couldn't see his face, so she couldn't really see what he was thinking. Was he as uncomfortable as she was?

Another bang sounded, and a long clawed arm ripped past them, narrowly missing his back. The boy didn't even flinch. Suddenly, the demented creature started banging on the crates, making her sink farther away from the side, a quiet gasp escaping her throat, but luckily it couldn't hear her over the banging. Surprisingly, a large hand came to cover her mouth, and she looked over. Phanes put a finger over his lips, nodding to the other side of the crates, the side that didn't have a crazy monster on it. Understanding what he wanted, she nodded.

Pressing his lips against her ear, Silla fought hard to hold back another shiver. Did he not know anything about personal space? "You go over first. I'll help you down, and v'hen your feet touch the ground... Run," he whispered quietly. The boy slightly lifted himself from her, giving enough room to wiggle sideways towards the other side without being seen. Seeing as the monster kept banging on the crates, she was able to swing her legs over the side unnoticed.

From there, Phanes grabbed her hand in a tight grasp and lowered her down as far as he could, leaving her with only a five foot drop to deal with. Nervously she counted to three in her head before letting go of his hands, sliding from his grip. Landing on her small feet looking back at him expectantly. However, when he saw her looking, he made a 'run away' motion with his hands and Silla shook her head.

He glared at the young girl before shaking his head. Taking one glance back at the creature, he swung his legs over the side, judged the distance, and then jumped, landing perfectly in a crouched position. Silla cursed under her breath at his gracefulness, but went over to him anyway, putting a hand against his back, leaning close to his ear, but not as close as he did.

"Are you okay?" She mumbled. Silla asked especially since he had been wounded in the arm earlier. I'm response to her question he roughly grabbed her wrist, yanking her closer to him, making them come face to face. She looked at him surprised.

"I told you to run. V'hy didn't you?" He said slowly, dragging her out of the alley way and into the streets.

"I didn't want to leave you alone... Not after you saved me... More than once," She whispered lowly, still trying to back away. He slowed his pace slightly to a walk but didn't let go of her. They were far enough in the tunnels now that the cannibalistic monster couldn't get to them.

"Just don't ever endangered yourself again," he said his voice sharp like a knife and she couldn't help but squeak out at his tone as they finally left the dangerous underground.

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To be continued...