Something grabbed my shoulder, its five inch claws sunk deeply into my clothed skin. I made no sound when I felt the flesh rip open and blood flush out as to not alert any more of those evil 'monsters' that were lurking through this very building. I instead whipped around to face its decaying form, ripping my bloodied shoulder out of its grasp at the same time. My eyes swiftly travelled from my attacker to the growing pool of crimson that surrounded my bloodied black boots, then back to the creature again.
I easily pulled the knife from its place in my back pocket, twirling it between my fingers before clicking the small button on the side that let the hidden blade show itself. The thing moved slower than the other ones I had encountered in the building before, or wasn't it called something else? I effortlessly forget the details, all I knew was that Germany was supposed to be here, I mean, everyone else should be too. I had only found France so far, but he was already too far gone, too lost in the decaying bodies and blood of enemies he had encountered before he met me. When we met, the first thing that stood out to me was the lack of emotion in his voice and eyes, it was as if the death in the building had also sucked the life out of him.
I was knocked out of my thoughts by the sudden closeness of the thing, I could even taste its rotting flesh on my tongue as I breathed in the thick air. I shook my head to clear it of the thoughts of France.
"Disgusting" I suddenly growled as I began to swipe the knife up and down, running its blade against its naked body before I finally lodged it into the creatures head, it happened to be the only way I learnt to kill the things. I could stab them until it was impossible for them to move, but I'd rather not constantly stab something that used to be human. It just didn't feel right to me.
Yeah, I know it wasn't really considered murder to kill it as the things weren't really even considered human anymore, but what if the thing I killed was once a person from my own country? It makes me uncomfortable to think about those types of things and just maybe I was quickly becoming numb to the thought because I hardly ever became disgusted with myself whenever I realised I've lost some self-control and just destroyed one of them... usually with its disgustingly thick blood coating my fingers and running through my hair, threatening to turn me into one of those things as well if it got into my system. It was a painful thought to think about… the fact that even myself, a country, an immortal until I was forced to stand down or until all of my citizens were dead or stolen, even we countries were mortal to some extent, and that's what really scared me the most in moments like this.
I cut myself out of my distracting thoughts with a start to look up and down the hallways suspiciously, I calmed myself with the thought that there would probably not be any more of those monsters for about two hours at the most. Not down these halls, from my knowledge at lease. I looked upwards toward a small balcony that was almost right above my head, a few stairs lead up to it from down a left hallway so I quickly made my way down towards it.
"Crap" I hissed, suddenly finding myself leaning against the blackened wall for leverage. My shoulder throbbed as the blood now oozed even more from my movement. A raw taste flooded my mouth as I inched down the hall, it tasted of blood and bad memories. Some of my memories, I realised, had begun to fade into others and I just really hard time truly remembering them truly, like the recurring memory of a little boy asking me to go to war and another of a man yelling at me to run.
I paused and stared at my trail of blood, it was so familiar, like I've seen my blood spread like this in another life… it was just so distant and just like my memories, my eyesight was fading, but I angrily fought the urge to close them and lose myself even more to these dark halls. Sleep is for the weak, as I found myself repeating in my mind whenever I felt like this, sleep is for those who forget safety, for those who want to forget light, life, and love. We can't forget these things.
"Hey, You alive down there?" An easily familiar voice echoed through my empty mind, America, land of the free and home of this centuries black plague.
"Italy?" the voice questioned once more, and I let a smile hide my disgust and itching pain as I turned up my broken gaze to his stupid face. America stood almost right above me, on the balcony I was trying so hard to get to and he stared down me with a new expression on his face, one I couldn't quite remember him ever wearing before.
"Hello America" I greeted, my eyes travelled behind him as far as I could see and followed his movements as he jumped down from above. As he landed I noticed the sheer amount of scars littering his arms and almost bare chest, save for the flimsy piece of clothing he decided to wear as a shirt. His jeans folded up to above his knees and even more cuts and bruises scraped up the shins in a twisted pattern. I noticed a bite mark on his upper arm and would have stepped backwards if it wasn't for a hand of his clasping onto the broken skin of my shoulder.
"What happened to your arm, bro?" he inquired and I shuddered as pain was forced through my body at the rough treatment, bile rose up in my throat even though I hadn't eaten in literal weeks from the pain I was reduced to as he unknowingly rubbed the cuts harshly as he pulled me forward.
"Ah, America! You don't need to worry, I'm fine, and I just got attacked before you came! But I'm ok so you don't need to keep touching me" I hissed quickly, a warning tone in my voice. But I still tried to keep a smile for his sake. Or maybe it really was for my sake… I only ever smiled when I thought about Germany and what would happen when I find him and we fix this mess somehow, that's actually really depressing.
"Did… Did it bite you?" his tone turned dark and I opened my discoloured closed eyes to stare at his expression as it changed from mild happiness to a dark frown. I shook my head quickly in a non-verbal reply.
"I wouldn't let it do that, it grabbed me too tight and it ripped me open," my usual frown returned as I recalled the easily won battle but I let it return in a soft haze as he beamed happily after my recollection.
"Okay… but," his eyes widened to stare behind me as he quickly lifted the something that was once trailing behind him. It was a baseball bat, but it was equipped with nails that protruded at random, I could only just make out the dark stains in the dark light and grasp that it was half-dried blood before I was shoved out of the way by him forcefully.
As my back slammed against the wall painfully, I realised he had to have weakened considerably seeing as I didn't get a broken ribcage or spine out of his sudden aggression, it was probably because the disease was both created and released first in his country. I stared, flabbergasted, as he crushed the creatures head multiple times beneath the bat mercilessly, its black blood spluttered from its mangled skull. When he finally finished he stood on the things chest and ripped the blunt protrusions, along with the rest of the weapon, out of the things ruined head.
Normally the creatures didn't have a lot of blood, just some type of oozing black liquid. The fact that this one did plagued my mind momentarily, had it only just turned? If that was true it would mean there were definitely other people in the building other than the one standing in front of me. Even though I had only gone downwards below the ground level by at least sixty metres, I had only come in contact with the infected. France was someone I had met earlier but…
"Italy are you okay? We have to go back to England and the others" my head snapped up, that's why he had no one with him. They were some place safe, I almost shuddered at the word, and I hadn't been properly safe ever since Germany ran off… Probably to be mangled by the hands of those things… poor Germany. That reminded me.
"Is Germany with you?" I asked. He shook his head, a slightly pained expression afflicted his appearance.
"I thought he was with you, the last we heard was when we called you to come here" I remember that, in the middle of the chat we got attacked. But then he ran away, screaming at me to run to the false safety of this place, and I was left to watch as the things chased after him, spitting and howling like animals... I shuddered.
"Germany distracted the things and ran away, he told me to come here and find you!" I quickly whispered back angrily, I looked down as I felt his hand be placed on my good shoulder to aid in pulling me off the wall.
"We have to go back to them, something's wrong with England… he… He isn't right anymore. They might need my help with controlling him again" America muttered, I nodded with a smile brightening my face. I needed to keep up my composure, I don't want to make them worry.
"Ok, so then let's go!" I hyped. I probably looked stupid, so happy in such a sad time. But all I could really think about was the blood still seeping out of my shoulder and how horrible it looked and felt against my blue uniform.
…
It didn't really take long to find America's stronghold.
"Knock, Knock! I found Italy!" America called in a semi loud voice, my eyes instinctively checked my surroundings for any sign of an attack as his voice echoed. The cement door placed in front of us opened slowly and I lowered my head, I knew America never noticed my eyes but I knew they would. I don't even know when they turned red, but they did and they're scary and I don't want them to think I was insane or something.
"You found Italy? What about Germany, weren't they together?" His obnoxious voice made me shudder, how is he still alive if he isn't even a country anymore?
"He said he ran away to protect him or something, pretty ironic isn't it? Germany running away for Italy" America laughed at his stupid, fucking piece of shit joke. My anger flashed quickly across my face as I whipped my head to glare at him with amber eyes. My hand that still held my knife twitched, ready to lodge it in his retarded skull.
I swung my body to face him, shaking as unknown rage boiled in my stomach and flooded up to my throat. "This isn't some type of joke you inconsiderate whore!" I screeched in his face, ravishing in the slightly hurt expression he held afterwards. "Germany is gone, America, Germany is gone and probably dead and I will never be given the chance to say that I lo…" I felt tears fall down my cheeks and I registered the fact that my hands were fisted around the others shirt, pulling him to the floor with strength only rage could add to my body. Prussia ripped me backwards by my shoulders, but I suddenly felt numb.
"Italy! Calm down!" I heard Prussia yell at me. My hand dropped the knife and as it clanged to the floor in contrast to the sudden silence I realised how absolutely idiotic I am. Someone lifted me up and as soon as I felt the hands snake around my chest everything came back to me in a blur of pain, it exploded through my body like boiling water sprayed across my flesh. Someone placed a hand over my mouth and suddenly… it all left.
….
A hazy image sprung to life before me, like a black and white movie playing on the big screen in the old time. Germany and I were the only actors on the stage at that moment, talking about someone, but I immediately knew it was America.
"This is all his fault, dammit" Germany huffed, placing a large hand against his forehead in a defeated sort of way. The other Italy smiled, a smile that he wore often and I felt myself smiling along with him from my perch on a bench.
The image darkened slightly and Germany suddenly morphed into someone else, a short boy with a black hooded cloak with gold tassels, and a hat to go with it. He turned to look at me, a smile contorting his image, the other Italy turned as well.
But he looked so much more different than the Italy in the memory from before, red eyes, messy amber hair, tanned skin, a dark smirk, and a dusty pink suit. It was all the opposite of me. I felt a pain in my chest, as if this was who I really was, a man with an empty smile and a deadly aura.
I stared dumbly as he pulled a knife and turned back to the boy, who still stood beside him, staring caringly at me, I felt a scream bubble up in my chest as the other Italy swiped the knife across his face, a red substance oozed from the clean cut. The boy's face contorted into a look of horror as the blood flooded though the fingers he held to the slice on his cheek, the marred flesh split open and I was left to stare helplessly as he exploded into dust before my eyes. I tried to scream his name, but no memories of it came to mind and I was left with screaming Germany's instead. The image stilled with the other me staring at me with a dead expression before everything fizzed to another of Germany and the other Italy.
"Germany, it's all going to be ok, ok?" The Italy in the memory said, leaning halfway on the taller male. He held an arm over Germany's shoulder, rubbing his neck affectionately, causing Germany to look back with a rare smile.
"We should call the others… Tell them where we're going and where the safe haven is" Germany said, the person wearing my skin smiled at him before looking straight in my direction, a darker form of the original smile was flashed my way.
"That sounds like a great idea."
…..
My eyes snapped open with an added gasp, while my hands scrambled for some sort of leverage.
"Are you ok?" A small but stern voice questioned, I squinted my eyes as I tried to recall who it was, calming down to try and remember.
"What happened to his eyes" I heard Prussia whisper, probably to America seeing as he found me.
"Who are you?" I asked turning to stare fully at the look alike of America.
"I'm Canada" he sighed dejectedly and I nodded, slowly processing what was happening.
"I'm fine, Canada. But where am I?" I finally asked the question that burned inside my head, the name burned in my mind, as if I could never forget it. Had I before?
I glanced around the room while waiting for Canada's answer. I saw an empty bookcase, three single beds, another queen-sized bed unlike the one I was sitting on, one wardrobe, and a large mahogany table sat right in the middle of the white washed room. No chairs sat around the table and I quickly realised that it was probably for laying people on it and playing doctor with the 'patients.'
"You're in a safe room… I mean we are" Canada finally said. The thoughts I had forgotten came back to me as I sat up more to lean back against the headrest.
"Hey, Italy you're awake!" Prussia called walking over and sitting next to me. "Do you know what happened to Germany? Exactly, because it might help to find him."
My thoughts flew back to the terrifying dream I had just woken up from.
"He should have been here already" I answered, staring down at my hands. "It would have made it so much simpler if he was here with me… and maybe I wouldn't be so confused about my eyes changing colour or my hate I feel too much" my darkened tone made everyone in the room freeze and stare at me. I had quickly accumulated a small crowd in front of my bed from the simple statement.
America, Canada, Russia, Prussia, and Austria stood in front of me while Both England and Hungary were further back, still listening but not engaged. England was resting, like me, with his back against the headrest of the other queen bed. A mediocre insane look spread across his face as we exchanged eye contact, and we held that eye contact for an almost uncomfortable amount of time. While our eyes were locked I realised our time in the building had some similar reactions to our bodies, his irises, too, had changed their colour, from green to a baby blue. I didn't really take much more in other than how neat his hair was and how much brighter it seemed than the rest of the room, as if his hair was absorbing all the light. After I broke the contact I watched, instead, how the others marvelled silently at my own eye colour.
"When Germany ran away from me he gave me a knife" I picked it up from my bedside table to show it off, pressing the button and spinning it around. "I would have been dead as soon as I opened the door if it weren't for this knife… the room was full of them… I destroyed every single one of those puny creatures with no wounds at the end" I forced myself to stop sneering, for everyone else's sake more so than mine. When I looked up I came face to face with the disgustingly happy England, once again I was struck by how blue his eyes were and how bright he actually seemed.
It appeared that England, after seeing everyone else gather around my bedside to hear my story, had decided to come over and now sat right in front of me. His crossed legs held two hands clasped tightly together, the small smile he held before was replaced with a wide Cheshire grin. But that didn't make him look any less insane than he did moments earlier when he seemed to stare straight into my soul.
After my sudden gasp, and fall backward America hissed "England, stop smiling" from behind me, and for the first time since I got here, England spoke verbally. Not with his eyes, or with his looks, but through words that vibrated the air in front of my face and sent chills down my spine.
"I feel for you, bud, I really do" his hand slowly stroked the side of my cheek, running it down to my neck in a mildly suggestive manner. As his hand travelled down, so did his eyes, and I felt myself become self-conscious in his scrutinizing gaze, what was he doing?
His face leaned closer to be right beside my ear and I shivered as his warm breath spread across its expanse as he whispered quickly, yet almost silently "I can't wait until you change… Arthur was so easy to take over, and I don't want to keep dealing with the others on my own." His hands gripped my waist so I couldn't move, my amber gaze slid haplessly to the others.
"England, stop" Canada said loudly, and simply, a deeper tinge made me freeze. Why was everyone changing? What did England mean when he said those things? My misty stare was forced onto Canada as he pushed England off the bed and replaced him in the spot in front of me.
England let out a hiss from the floor before scurrying off to his bed once again. I was dragged from the horrifying scene of England scurrying about like an animal by another hand on my cheek that somewhat forced me to turn and look into a violet gaze. He looked so painfully tired that I felt sorry for him, but I guess the sorry was all for me at the moment, and I could hardly guess why.
But I was quick to find out why most of everyone I had talked to where sending me random apologetic looks.
"Romano is here" Canada muttered, pointing his gaze toward the lonely wardrobe while nodding toward America to open it. My breath hitched as he unlocked the door and let whatever and whoever was inside to swing it the rest of the way open and fall to the floor.
The heap on the floor laughed so loudly and suddenly that I almost jumped. His head lifted from the floor to look up at me, the same face, the same green eyes, and the same curl, the same everything! I was helpless to the immense joy I felt at the realisation that he might be relatively ok. My brain completely ignored the fact he was just inside a wardrobe for reasons unknown.
"Romano" I choked as his face lit up like a child during Christmas when he placed his gaze on me, his feet pulled up below him and I watched pathetically as he struggled to stand.
"We're so sorry, Italy" Someone grumbled and I didn't have enough time to answer why before he spoke.
"Oh my Italy, I'm so happy to see you! You have no idea what these barbarians have done to me" I froze, he froze, and the whole entire world froze. The only thing I could truly realise at this moment was the sheer fact that this was not my brother, not my Romano, not my other half. But for that very second of frozen peace I came to understand that something absolutely terrible was happening… and it began as soon as we all entered this place.
"We had to put him in the wardrobe because he kept on making England angry by criticizing his hair and eyebrows" Prussia whispered from beside the bed.
"England bites when he's angry." Romano snorted, but didn't stop his advance towards me. The memory of being worried about America's bite mark came back, did England do that?
As Romano took the one last step and lifted his hand to touch my face, something ripped at my heart, it cut me off from the overwhelming joy I was feeling and replaced it with a deep type of fear. This was an imposter, an alien in a human suit, and as much as I didn't want to I flinched when his hand caressed my cheek. Even when the hand was softer than England's and smaller than Canada's, I still felt like this hand was the worst hand I had felt against my face in a long time, because this was the hand of a faker. With that thought, I ripped my face away from my once brother.
An expression similar to that of a child who was denied cake was splashed across Romano's face, and tears pooled down his cheeks in a salty river. He didn't look any different than to when he first got out of the wardrobe and I sneered at the thought.
"I'm so sorry, Italy" Romano whispered, hurt completely evident in his voice and face. I felt almost no remorse for what I did, and I just hoped he would realise that fact on his own. His downcast stare lifted to express a pert smile and wide eyes. The tears seemed to have evaporated quickly into the damp air as his smile turned sinister.
"But… It's ok Italy, you'll realise soon what's happening and you won't run from my advances anymore" his twisted grin flew to England for a moment before flickering across the sea of faces to land on mine again. I wanted to scream about what was happening, I wanted my Germany, I wanted… I wanted everything to be the same as before. Nothing was making sense anymore, and I just… I just can't anymore.
"Italy, it's all going to be okay" The only female whispered while placing a delicate hand on my shoulder, and leaning close to my ear. "You're not the only one who thinks something truly wrong is happening" I turned to face her worried expression. Her pretty features twisted in discouragement and her hold was weaker than normal, I realised.
My eyes twitched to America as he forced a struggling Romano back into the closet. No one said anything as he screeched bloody murder about us changing and how we're all going to die in here.
I slowly moved my eyes over the others, flittering over their distraught faces. Canada caught my eyes for the split second I looked at him and held my gaze for longer. His eyes whispered pain and torture while his body screamed annoyance and boredom, he must have been feeling the same about this whole ordeal. Like something was battling inside of him, fighting to get out, to get out and end everything you lived for and wished for.
But I knew, even without happiness to lead me on, no matter what happens to me, I find Germany, and we get out of here the same as we came in.