Chapter 2: Rotting Flesh

The pounding in her head and the burning in her shoulder is what wakes her up.

Why is it so hard for her to breathe? Despite how heavy her eyelids feel, she manages to pry them open. Her vision is blurry, eyes stinging as she blinks repeatedly to clear it. They widen when she sees the sharp wooden object inches away from her face. The large branch drips dark liquid onto her cheek.

Is it sap? She gapes up at it, heart picking up it's pace as her lungs deflate. The smell of copper surrounds her, no, definitely not sap.

She struggles to take in air, her chest constricting as sharp pain erupts in every cell of her body. She shifts her gaze away from the protruding object and stares up at a web of cracked glass. The outside is dark, but she can see shadows looming above.

She tilts her head away from the tree branch, neck cracking and she whimpers as a sharp ache shoots through her left shoulder.

What in the world happened?

She takes a deep breath, and chokes when she doesn't get enough.

Air, she needs more air.

With her left arm on fire, she uses her right hand to push against the cracked glass. At first it doesn't budge, but after putting more force, it opens with a hiss. Her ears pop, a loud ringing making her wince. Fresh air hits her in the face and she's quick to suck in lungfuls of it, the scent of metal fading.

She blinks repeatedly as her eyes adjust. She scans the open space above her. Trees loom over, green leaves rustling in the cool breeze of the night air. Black smoke drifts into the sky, a glow illuminating the top of their trunks. The light flickers in and out, casting strange shadows across them.

The ringing in her ears fade and is replaced by the sound of something crackling.

She sits up, careful to avoid the sharp edge of the branch, and hisses as a painful throb shoots through her shoulder. She braces her elbows against the side of the chamber and she glances down at the cause of it.

A large gash reveals silver bone, torn muscle, and ripped skin. Dark blood drips down her arm, and she whimpers as she touches the surrounding area with a finger. She twists to look at the offending weapon that tore a hole through her chamber and shoulder.

Inches more to the right and it would have been her head. Clenching her teeth she attempts to shift her legs, but finds them strapped to the leather bed. Eyes watering at the searing ache, she unstraps the buckle with both hands. As soon as she's free, she climbs out of the chamber on weak legs. As soon as she steps onto green grass, her knees buckle and she lands hard. She hisses as small pebbles dig into the heels of her palms.

She takes in her surroundings, trees, rocks, and more trees. The few around her are split and broken, torn apart from her crash landing. When she glances at the chamber behind her, she notices the fire licking up the back of the machine.

It's a good thing she woke up when she did. She doesn't know how long it would take for it to encase the entire thing. Dark smoke billows up to the sky, the fire eating away at metal and protruding wires.

She struggles to her feet, legs weak from lack of use. She attempts to use the edge of the chamber to hold her up, but rips her hand back as a searing pain meets her. The smell of burnt flesh reaches her nose and she gags.

Clenching her jaw, she manages to keep steady, and peers inside the chamber, hoping there was something, anything inside to give her an explanation as to what happened to her.

The leather bed catches fire, but she ignores it. She scans the sides, glaring at the sharp branch that wounded her. She finds nothing. There's no blanket, or book, or even a screen that she can use to determine where she is or how she got here. Or why she crash landed.

Why was she even in the chamber in the first place? Despite how hard she tries to remember, her mind remains empty. She has no memories, no recollection of anyone or anything.

Deep in concentration, the back of the chamber erupts. A blast of hot air throws her back. She lands against a tree trunk, her back cracking at the force.

"Ah!" She cries, eyes shut tight as she breathes through the pain. Light dances across her lids, a sudden heat engulfing her. She peers up at the only thing that could have held some type of answer to her questions engulfed in flames.

She struggles back to her feet and then takes a moment to look down at herself. She's covered in a black suit from the neck to her legs, her feet encased in leather black boots with two straps keeping them secure. Obsidian plates of armour cover her knees and hips, along with her elbows. Her right shoulder has one too, and she assumes if her other wasn't injured, it would be the same.

She glances at the gash, her blood staining the entirety of her left sleeve, causing the fabric to stick to her skin.

She'll need to find something to wrap it up with, and quick. She looks around, though she seems to be in the middle of no where, maybe there happens to be a cabin nearby?

"Hello?" She calls, voice weak as it cracks from lack of use. She swallows thickly, "Can anyone help me?!" Although she doubts anyone is nearby, she still attempts to try. The chances may be low, but no matter how small, she can't miss it.

"Anybody?" She shouts into the night. When no one answers, she sighs. She's on her own then. She turns a circle, unsure of what direction to walk, when a figure stumbles out from between the trees.

"Oh," She smiles in relief, someone is here! "Please, can you help me? I'm injured and I don't know where I am." She begs.

"Graguh," The figure says. The person is still a bit away, head tilted at an odd angle.

She turns red, she expected the person spoke the same language, but she's wrong. "I'm sorry, I don't understand." Hopefully when the man sees her, he'll realize she's in need of help.

She squints as he hobbles closer, and she notices the awkward limp. "Oh, are you hurt too?" She asks, mostly to herself now that she knows he won't understand, "Maybe we can help each other?"

"Grr, gruh," He responds.

She hopes that's a yes. The figure, now in sight of the glowing fire, reveals grey and yellow skin. His lips are pulled back, revealing black teeth, and its blood shot eyes are locked on her.

"Oh wow, you don't look okay." She almost gags at the smell of rotten flesh. Is this what the people hear look like? Maybe they don't shower. A primitive people, it looks like. Trying not to offend the man, she suppresses the urge to back away, "Maybe-"

Her sentence is cut off when the disfigured man lunges at her. She falls back, her head slamming against the dirt ground. She clenches her eyes shut as a pained moan leaves her. The back of her head throbs, a dull ache behind her eyes.

When she opens them, she finds saliva dripping out of his mouth and onto her cheek. The man snarls, teeth snapping. She forces her right forearm into his neck to keep him away, but he's so strong she struggles to hold him back

"Wha-what are you doing?!" She shouts. Her left shoulder screams, the ache distracting her for just a moment that the man is able to push back against her arm. She feels his hot breath against her face and quickly scrambles to get him back. Her injured shoulder makes the task difficult, but she's desperate enough to make it happen.

She gets grunts in response. The smell of a dying carcass invades her nose, and she can't help but to throw up in her mouth. She spits it at him, but he doesn't react.

"You are not okay," She whispers. This man is not right in the head. His body doesn't appear to be normal either. Grey flesh hangs from his neck, and she can see the tissue beneath. She spots multiple white worms wiggling on the wounds, and she resists the urge to vomit again. When one falls onto her cheek, she squeals in disgust as she feels the gooey thing move against her skin. She shakes her head out of reflex, wanting the bug off of her.

The worm flicks away and lands on the floor inches away.

The man snaps his jaws at her and she pushes him back, yet he remains on top of her.

The faint sounds of growling has her head snapping to the right. With the fire still burning behind her, she sees multiple shadows weaving through the trees.

More?

She glances back at the one on top of her, jaw snapping in an attempt to bite. She'll never survive if there's more.

Adrenaline pumps through her veins, and she pushes and hits at the disfigured man in a desperate attempt to get him off. She shifts her legs and manages to get her knees beneath him. With every bit of strength she has, she pushes it back. The grotesque monster rolls off her, but isn't put off in the least.

It crawls towards her on its hand and knees, a finger bending at an awkward angle as it claws at the dirt. but he doesn't seem to notice.