A Tale of Rust and Flesh ~ Part 10

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	Kris' ears were ringing.

	The young man stood before the pile of ashy dust before him. The apparatus keeping the late monster's eyes open with fishhooks stayed intact, however. Combining with the various bodily fluids pooled on the floor, the dust slowly but surely became a grayish red sludge as if it was a pile of dirt mixing with water.

	The smell of blood, rot, and monster dust assaulted the human's nostrils, further yet further increasing his desire to vomit and collapse on the rancid and disgustingly moist floor. Kris felt lightheaded not just from the stench, but the feeling of dread and horror pounding against his heart. He felt as if he wanted to start bawling his eyes out, but an alien form of an otherwise familiar feeling of numbness kept his tear ducts dry.

	He didn't feel empty per se; he still carried his soul within his body. Rather, the realization that he had killed something that looked eerily like his own mother didn't quite hit Kris nearly as hard as it should have. He still felt horrified and disgusted with himself and the circumstances he found himself in, but something else horrified him beyond the numbness he felt.

	It was the numbness itself, and a sickening satisfaction with what he had done. Kris couldn't help but wonder if he was going to get used to this. He wondered if he would continue to be forced to kill, and if in turn he would get used to it. If he would lose his ability to hesitate, even under benign circumstances. If he would lose what made him human. If he would become the same monster as the ones that he had slaughtered before.

	"..."

	Kris wondered if he would he come to enjoy it. The violence.

	The thoughts scraped against Kris' skull as the wormed their way in and out of his mind. The pressure building inside of his head from the swarming thoughts and fears pushed his eyes to bulge out of their sockets as pressurized blood laced with slowly fading adrenaline threatened to burst his blood vessels wide open. Another thought came into his mind, however.

	"The elevator," Kris thought aloud. The elevator was on his floor, and he could use it to potentially escape this hellish floor of this likely just as hellish building. Though he knew he needed to push forward and make his way to the elevator, his feet were rooted to the ground. Even after all he's accomplished so far, he couldn't bring himself to break the mental ice that froze his movements.

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	Susie stared at the cold, dark sky as she lay in her makeshift bedding provided by Noelle. A feeling of helplessness and dread welled up inside of her as she couldn't, or rather, refused to shake the image of the wrecked train out of her mind. The prospect of finding a mangled yellow corpse, or indefinitely finding a lack thereof crushed her.

	She willfully ignored the words that emptied out of the reindeer girl's mouth. Her words of encouragement and meager attempts at comfort rang hollow. Susie felt the urge to tell Noelle to 'fuck off' while she ran into the woods with her flashlight to find her friend, but with every moment spent peering into the skyward abyss dulled that feeling until she felt as if she wanted to just sleep forever.

	Noelle rambled on and on about how she was 'sorry for her', along with similar yet equally trivial things. However, something tugged at the back of Susie's mind; a question she neglected to ask in her shock and confusion. As she sense a pause in between the reindeer's sentences, Susie finally decided to speak up.

	"-ut trust me, if we just stick together, I-I'm sure we could find Kris eventually!"
	"...How did you get here?" Susie asked.
	"W-Wha-?" Noelle sounded flabbergasted with a hint of giddy excitement at Susie's odd choice of words.
	"You heard me," Susie continued, "it's not like I'm asking you on a date or something. It's as simple as simple gets." Susie internally asked why she said 'asking you on a date' specifically. Maybe, she thought, she said weird things when she was a nervous wreck.
	"O-oh, um, I..." Noelle tried and failed to find the proper words to explain herself and why she ended up in such a hellscape. "I..."
	"Well, come on," Susie impatiently said, turning her head to look at Noelle directly for once, "spit it out!"
	"I-I-I-I don't know...!" The timid monster answered with shame and guilt racking her voice.
	"You don't know?" Susie asked with confusion. She clearly remembered walking into an abyssal void of darkness filled with a resentfully familiar broken beer bottle and an odd, decrepit chair. Likewise, she remembered how the moment Kris turned his cellphone light on, the place she found the broken bottle and chair in question lit up with a candle.

	'His phone.'

	"..."

	"WAIT, SHIT HIS PHONE!" Susie screamed. Her eyes bulged with a renewed feeling of excitement and hope. Regardless of the fact that it was very likely that this world did not have satellites or anything else to carry cellphone signals anywhere, such a thought never entered her mind. She was too hopped up on fresh adrenaline to think about such technicalities, and immediately stuffed her hand in her jacket pocket.

	Noelle, on the other hand, was flabbergasted at the sudden outburst. A small, yet audible, yet ignored yelp of surprise and terror rose from her throat. Her entire body jolted at the sound as the leaves crinkled under her weight. "W-w-what!?"

	Susie yanked a time-worn flip phone from the late 199Xs and frantically dialed a familiar number that had long since been burned into her mind. Upon pressing a little green button, the ringing tone prompted the dragon to practically slam the phone into her right ear. She waited, and waited... until she heard something.

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	Kris sat in the cleanest corner of the decrepit elevator, knees unconsciously hugging his chest in a meager attempt at defending himself. A dirty, grimy chain still found itself wrapped around the young teen's equally dirty and grimy arm. His eyelids carried a newfound weight wholly unrelated to the need for sleep, and his heart ached with guilt and sorrow.

	Dust and dried bodily fluids caked his burnt feet, providing a minimal yet noticeable defense against the searing heat of the metal floors below. His face was drenched with sweat brought on by physical exertion, the suffocatingly high temperature, and the stress and anxiety that came with thoughts of what horrid creature would find him next. He felt physically filthy and defeated despite his victories against the horrors that lied within the waste disposal building and the glorified oven he found himself in.

	The steadily descending cage rattled and shuddered, never allowing Kris to have a single moment of silence or stillness to allow him to find his nerves. The combination of the heat against his skin, the negative emotions swirling within him, and the constant noise of the old elevator collided with his brain like a mental dogpile. Every moment he spent in the elevator corner was spent on breathing and struggling not to scream his lungs out to release his pent up emotion for fear of falling into a nervous breakdown that would leave him vulnerable.

...

	The elevator came to a halt with a startling clank, prompting Kris to jolt out of his fetal position against the wall. With a distorted, drawn out *DING!*, the doors agonizingly peeled open to reveal filthy cream-colored carpets and cracked plaster with a skeleton of rusted steel not unlike the metal halls above. The smell of cooking yet rotting meat along with a hint of highly acidic vomit hit Kris' nostrils like a battering ram. The elevator entrance faced a cracked wall; dark red hand prints smearing almost every visible inch. A dim light source originated from the left, while another door lied to the immediate right.

	Gripping the chain tightly, the now freshly adrenaline-fueled human swiftly scrambled to his feet and raised his arm in preparation to strike any abomination that may find its way near him. The warm metal the lock was composed of felt as cold as ice against Kris' back as it lightly brushed up against him. Kris listened intently for any approaching footsteps or anything to indicate something was coming closer.

...



...


...



	The room in front of him was deathly silent, save for the continued sloshing within the walls, Kris' own ragged breathing, and the occasional clink originating from the chain as it calmly swayed from side to side. Every single moment spent waiting for something to come barreling down at him only added onto the pressure that threatened to snap the human in half. "C'mon..." he impatiently whispered as he concerningly found himself eager to bring metal down against flesh once more.

	He waited longer, yet longer, still tense in anticipation. He pushed through the searing pain that bit at his feet and didn't dare to wipe the sweat from his brow. His fingers ached to rest as they continued to unintentionally squeeze the chain with every ounce of strength still within him.

...


...But nobody came.

	The nearly feral teenager slowly lowered his arm as he released a heavy breath he didn't realize that he had kept hostage within his lungs. The following inhale reminded Kris of the stench of rot permeating the air, but he wasn't exactly in any position to complain about a smell when he was focused on staying alive. All he could do in this very moment was to either stand and continue waiting for something to come at him, or he could turn the corner and face whatever awaited him in the next room. After another moment of consideration, Kris decided that he had spent too long confined within the walls of the elevator and quickly stepped outside, leaning his head out to observe the environment around the corner.

	As Kris peered into the room that awaited him, the gears within his head almost immediately started turning. To the right side of the room, a table, smashed in half at the center was joined by four wooden chairs. To the left of the room, a fridge was toppled over; the two doors of the fridge were pried open against the floor as an indistinguishable liquid seeped from underneath next to what seemed to be a shattered jar.

	A sink located just above the fridge overflowed with stale and steadily evaporating water, joined by a filthy stove smeared with old, indistinguishable food and a thick red liquid that was likely blood. A black kitchen appliance sat on the counter to the right of the stove, but it was seemingly smashed into an unrecognizable mess of plastic and jagged metal, similarly to the oven with a window that had been completely smashed, leaving a pile of glass to be scattered across the floor. A decrepit light fixture jutted from a nearby wall, but no light originated from its long dead bulb.

	Just underneath the light fixture lied a surprisingly clean step-trashcan with a small drop of an oddly familiar black substance dripping from the rim. In the far end of the room lied a visibly moldy couch that lacked any cushions of any kind. To the front of the couch was a sturdy yet empty table draped with a red cloth, with a small drawer underneath.

	To the right of the table, a sickly orange chair harbored a mutilated, blood-stained human corpse. The ribcage jutted out in odd angles, the heart and lungs were missing, the jaw barely clung to the rest of the head, the eyes were messily gouged out, any hair that once grew from the head itself had clearly been forcefully ripped out, and the intestines spilled onto the floor. Two grimy, gnarled arms originating from underneath the chair wrapped their fingers around each of the corpse's limbs, keeping it forever in place. The intestines and the surrounding bodily fluids bubbled against the hot floor underneath as vapor rose to the air and clung to any and every hard surface in sight.

	Against a wall that separated the kitchen from the rest of the room leaned a large mass of the same tendons, bones, and muscle that Kris had encountered on the floor above. The base of the mass of flesh rooted itself into the ground using various tendrils that stuck to the floor like putty against a blanket. The fleshy trunk extended into a hole embedded into the wall. 'That's where the phone is supposed to be-'

	Kris' thought immediately came to a grinding, screeching halt as a sudden realization both confused him, and chilled him to the core. He recognized the strangely familiar furniture, how the walls shaped around the kitchen to create a half-circle that separated itself from the elevator and living room, and even the color of the carpets. Kris couldn't chalk it all up to being one big coincidence, either, considering the horrid creature he had slain just minutes prior. The creature that looked eerily like his mother.

	There's no way that whatever shaped this hellish realm created this place with these creatures on accident. This was deliberate, and Kris knew it. The revelation that pulsated and writhed within the human's mind forced his breathing to gradually become forced and choked as his throat tightened.

	The walls felt as if they had closed in all around him, constricting him further. A horrible feeling sank into Kris' stomach like a brick he couldn't yet describe under the newfound pressure and anxiety weighing him down. Kris also oddly felt insulted, as it appeared that this gauntlet of trauma and bloodshed seemed to have been created specifically for him. Like it was created to torment him specifically.

	Every breath was met with a strained wheeze, and a stress-induced blur smeared Kris' eyes. He felt dizzy and scared beyond what he felt when he first woke up on a cold concrete floor. The ringing in his ears that had slowly faded from his mind came back with full force, and he felt as if he would collapse at any moment. The sloshing within the walls were suddenly beginning to scrape against Kris' ears like a fork grinding against a plate.


*RING RING*

*RING RING*

*RING RING*

	The yellow teenager, on the verge of a complete mental breakdown, snapped his attention to the strangely immaculate trashcan. With a deep, shaky breath, Kris slowly approached it and hovered his foot above the step-activated button that would open the lid.

*RING RING*

*RING RING*

	An awkward stomp flung the lid of the trashcan open as a wave of a familiar scent slammed into him like a train. The flowery, sweet, rotting smell from before. The contents of the trashcan itself, however, was even more confusing. His phone was actually there in a small white plastic bag, but it was joined by two other objects.

	With the phone lied a bulky, black colored polaroid camera, and a familiar, small, black creature that looked like someone had smashed it with a large hammer. Kris recognized its shape and wasn't even surprised that it looked to be crushed by a blunt object, but he couldn't place his finger on why. Its twisted limbs were deflated and devoid of any reasonable amount of muscle, and the tarry liquid seeped from its corpse, staining the phone. Had the liquid been thinner, it might have short circuited the phone.

*RING RING*

	Kris hesitantly reached into the trashcan and slowly retrieved his phone from the puddle of tar.

*RING RING*

	Kris placed his thumb on the little green button and held the phone up to his ear. He clicked the button, and spoke.

	"H-hello?"

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	A shrill, mechanical screech pierced Susie's ears, only rivaled by a scream of agitation and agony erupting from the dragon girl herself. "AUGH, WHAT THE FUCK!?" Susie tossed the phone to the ground and clumsily stumbled backwards into a tree as she smothered her ears with her hands. Her right ear's hearing was dulled, and the pain threatened to crack her skull into pieces.

	"S-Susie! Are you okay!?" inquired Noelle as she rushed to comfort the dragon, but she was only met with a panicked, purple hand shoving her away. Susie groaned and slid herself down onto the soft, wet forest floor. Tears of pain welled up in her eyes, obscuring her vision, but she did not take her gaze away from her phone as it continued to emit that horrible screeching.

	Eventually, the pain subsided, but her ear rang as if a gunshot had gone off mere inches away from her face. She glanced towards Noelle only to see an emotionally hurt expression plastered on her face. The reindeer purposefully avoided eye contact and carried a look of shame and embarrassment in her eyes.

	Susie wasn't just about to start apologizing, though. Noelle seemed to be completely oblivious to the sharp noise that still expelled itself from the phone's speakers, which only prompted angry confusion to well up within the dragon girl's mind. "Do you not hear that shit?" Susie inquired.

	"H-hear w-what, ex-xactly?" Noelle replied.
	"Don't seriously tell me you don't hear that bullshit right now! If I had blood, my ear would be fucking bleeding!" Susie shouted.
	"I-I-I'm s-sorry, b-b-but I-I d-don't hear a-anything! J-just a d-dial tone..." Noelle nervously sputtered.
	"Noelle.... You are full of shit! I am NOT going crazy, and I know I'm not just hearing things!"

	Susie hoisted herself up with the help of the tree trunk and dusted herself off. She rushed over to the phone, snatched it off the ground, and smashed her thumb onto the red hang-up button, finally killing the horrid noise. Susie relaxed her muscles and sat back down with a huff, phone still in hand.

	Susie's respite was cut short when the phone suddenly rang again. Her muscles tensed up, her back arched, and her eyes stared daggers at the small cellular device. It was Kris' number, the same number she had just tried to call. She shakily placed her thumb on the green button, but she stopped herself and looked at Noelle.

	The reindeer monster wore a concerned expression, but not as if she were worried about Susie's physical health, but rather her mental health. A patronizing, insulting look, Susie thought. 'She thinks I'm going fucking crazy, doesn't she?'

	With narrowed, subtly livid eyes piercing into Noelle, the purple monster pressed the green button. Susie expected another shrill screech, but she was only met with deafening silence. "........W-wait, what?" Susie slowly placed the phone back onto her ear, but she still didn't hear anything. Not even the familiar, subtle static she was used to whenever she called anyone.

	It was only complete silence. "...Hello?" Susie apprehensively spoke into the microphone.
	...
	...
	The same shrill screech returned, but its volume had been reduced to a barely audible level. "What the hell..." Susie whispered in response. It was as if the small sound was there just to taunt her. To mock her for thinking she could just call Kris' phone and get a hold of him.

	Susie hung up and dropped the phone into her jacket pocket, feeling defeated. She felt as if she came so close to being able to find Kris, but she came up with nothing. Susie wanted to cry in that moment, but she wasn't one to cry in front of anyone she didn't trust. She didn't entirely trust Noelle, so she wouldn't dare cry in front of her.

	"...Are you feeling okay, Su-"
	"I'm FINE!"

	The angry dragon's words harshly echoed between the trees, followed by a mutual silence between both of the young women. A silence that slowly but surely ate away at Susie, wracking her with guilt for continuing to push others away when they obviously mean no harm. Susie internally scrambled for the nerve to say something, anything, but Noelle only left to sit back down in front of the fire.

	"You can talk to me, Susie." Noelle calmly said. She produced a small bag from underneath a log and pulled several dry sticks from it before tossing them into the fire. "J-just... don't think that I'm... attacking you when I ask if you're okay... I've barely been able to keep myself together recently. I..." Noelle turned her head to gaze at Susie while looking as if she was going to burst into tears at any moment. "I want to go home..."

	The eye contact was no doubt uncomfortable to the dragon monster, but she couldn't help but share the sentiment. She sympathized with Noelle on many levels, even though she could tell that the reindeer had no blood nor dust on her hands gained from her time in this realm. Something told her that Noelle hadn't seen anything remotely morbid, but her experience here, isolated in these woods, obviously chipped away at her mind.

	"...Yeah..." Susie replied, "Me too... But... I gotta find Kris first. Once I do that, we can all try to go home together."
	Noelle smiled at Susie and momentarily contemplated on her next words, but eventually found what she wanted to say. "Yeah... That would be nice..."