Scooter: Well, only one review since last update? Hehe. Well, OK then. Personally, I don't care if I get reviews or not. I only am looking for someone to tell me if my writing is good. But if you complement me on this particular piece of work, you'd better give Solared complements as well!! Remember, she helped write it!! Anyway, the 'impossible' thing I mentioned last time:
If you haven't noticed yet, Kyon's arm is broken. Now, in order for him to actually be useful, I have to basically make him use his arm. So even though his arm should be immobile, I'm going to have him able to move it. ((shrugs)) It's awkward, I'm aware of that, but sue me. Anyway, enjoy!!
Chapter 2
Kyon blinked at Itsuki and in a moment walked over to him to give him a brief hug. "Just be sure to come back, OK?" he said, breathing heavily. "And please be careful," He gave the other a squeeze on the shoulder and stood back.
The television suddenly blinked off for a moment, before switching on again, showing slightly grainy footage of a broken mannequin in a mangled clown's mask, it's face slowly turning towards the camera.
Itsuki grabbed Kyon's shoulders and pulled him back slightly, focused on the television set.
Kyon began to shake from fear. "Y-Y'know...I've never feared clowns...but now..." he chuckled slightly and it was slightly higher than his normal voice. But for some reason it felt as if it was drawing him in. He tried to take another step forward but caught himself.
"I-Itsuki...it's drawing me in..." Kyon closed his eyes and turned away from the screen, breathing raggedly.
Itsuki pulled Kyon close, into a hug, still watching the screen pensively. If he had did this any other time, he felt he probably would have been met with a punch to the jaw by the other male.
"...Hello, Gentlemen." The mannequin's mouth moved, a low, low, almost demonic sounding voice coming with this movement.
At first, Kyon's instinct was to pull away from the ESPer, but the fear and need for comfort won out and he clung to the slightly larger male as though he were a lifeline. He looked at the screen, wanting to take another step towards it, but forcing his arms to stay around the ESPer.
His brown eyes met the black eyes of the clown and he was trembling, not able to tear his gaze away.
"...I hope you two have acted quickly, making it into this room. For you see..." The clown trailed off, the video feed blinking every now and then.
"...There are dangers all around you. Seen, and unseen...as we speak, you both are inhaling a dangerous nerve agent, that will surely becoming deadly in a minimum of two hours..."
Kyon's eyes widened and he gasped, covering his mouth and nose, taking a half step towards the clown, then back into Itsuki's embrace. he coughed yet again into his hand and buried his face in the ESPer's shoulder.
"This can't be real. This is only a dream. We can't die if it's a dream," he chanted over and over again.
Itsuki was still silent, eyes narrowed and staring at the taunting mannequin on the television screen.
"...There are several antidotes hidden through out this house...the key to freedom, in a safe in the kitchen...however, you need the combination to even hope to open it..."
The television flickered slightly, the image warping for a moment before turning back to normal.
"...You find the answer, OVER THE RAINBOW"
It suddenly cackled, before shutting off.
Kyon's body was violently trembling and he looked at the screen, noticing that it was gone and he heaved a large sigh, his body slightly un-tensing. His eyes seemed to focus and he coughed again. It felt like something was lodged in his throat.
"I-Itsuki..." he said quietly, his eyes trying to close.
"...We better go find these antidotes." Itsuki said after a momentary pause, reaching up, and stroking the back of Kyon's head soothingly.
He felt like completely panicking, but...if he couldn't be strong for himself, he had to be strong for Kyon.
His heart clenched and he staggered slightly, looking at Itsuki with worried eyes. "I'm really sorry," he said in a ragged voice. "I'm causing you to worry so much..." he coughed yet again and gasped for breath for a few moments before looking around and spotting a door on the opposite side of the room. He clung to the ESPer's arm with his own good arm.
"Don't look behind you in the corner..." he mumbled, gently tugging the ESPer towards the door.
Itsuki tried to stay in place, frowning.
"It sounds like he's trying to give us clues to something...we should look around."
Kyon stopped pulling on the ESPer, shaking his head to clear it. But every time he tried to think, the image of the clown appeared and he trembled, wrapping his usable arm around himself and looking around, obviously frightened.
"This has to be a dream," he said, but looked around the room, feeling bile rise in his throat as his gaze passed over the corpse.
"..." Itsuki had no idea what to say in this situation.
It was likely NO ONE did after all, cause, you know, it's not everyday you're trapped in abandoned garbage heap house spewing nerve gas with a friend of yours.
"...If you can't look, I will..." He said lowly, just feeling a need to keep moving.
Kyon swallowed the bile in his throat and shook his head. "Mm-mm. I'll help," he said, moving to stand next to Itsuki. He took a deep breath. "We should have asked if it was in a shot form, or a drinkable something..." Kyon said, closing his eyes, having to force them back open. He looked around the room noting the corpse, the door they had come from, the TV, and the other door.
He walked over to a shelf in the room and knelt, only to jerk back as a knife came jutting out from the wall, and would have sliced his head open had he not jolted back. His injured arm screamed in pain and he clutched it to him, whimpering.
Itsuki was headed up the stairs of the house, a bit reluctantly since the boards seemed less than promising to step on.
Kyon moved fairly quickly to catch up to Itsuki. If it was a normal house, he would have stayed alone, but he didn't want to be alone. Not here.
"I-Itsuki...can you do me a favor?" he asked in a soft voice, that was tight with pain.
Itsuki reached the second floor, looking down at Kyon's tight voice.
"Huh? Are you okay?" He asked.
One side of Kyon's mouth turned up slightly in a pained smile. "I wish I was doing OK." He chuckled softly and that caused a cough to rip from his throat. He recovered and looked at the ESPer.
"...If I'm dying...please don't leave me until I'm dead. I don't want to be alone here," he finished in a quiet voice, looking at the ESPer, shivering slightly.
"You won't die!" Itsuki suddenly exclaimed, walking down the steps to Kyon's front, grabbing him firmly by the shoulders.
Kyon hissed in pain and looked at Itsuki, his eyes seeming to hope that he was right. He couldn't help it, and he hugged the ESPer gently, not wanting to hurt him.
"L-Let's go...we don't have a lot of time left..." he said quietly, coughing again and doubling over slightly, one eye closed.
Itsuki held Kyon upright, helping him up the steps and off the creaking boards.
"I'm not letting you die." He said firmly.
Kyon smiled slightly, feeling a tickle in his throat and he couldn't help but let out a groan of annoyance as he coughed yet again. "I swear that's getting so old..." He moved on his own, but leaned a bit on the ESPer, wincing once in awhile as he tried to keep his broken arm still.
"I'm sorry I'm not being helpful...I'm trying...but I'm also trying to stay awake." he chuckled slightly, trying to change the subject. "I wonder what's going on outside of here..." he mused.
"Let's just focus on getting out of here so we can live to find out..." Itsuki remarked, trying to push the sharp pain in the side of his head out of mind.
"...Now he said something about a safe in the kitchen...but we need a combination..." Koizumi murmured, inching towards the first room in sight, and grasping the handle.
Before twisting it, his eyes scanned over the frame of the door, and quickly falling upon a sign that read 'FIRST LEVEL OF HELL'.
"...Sounds lovely..." The ESPer hissed under his breath, turning the knob and walking in.
The room on the other side was fairly well lit compared to the rest of the house they had ventured in thus far. Nothing on the walls to speak of, the only thing defining itself from the dingy white walled room was a large large rug in the center of the room, encompassing most of it.
"It doesn't look like any clues could be in this room..." Kyon said softly, but then crossed himself. "But looks can be deceiving." He put a hand to his forehead and thought that he had a fever. But when you check yourself, it's always warm. At least he hoped he didn't have a fever.
He wiped some sweat from his brow and looked at Itsuki and then back the way they had come, seeming to think that maybe the clown had decided to follow them. Kyon tried to take a step, but when the room around him swam, he stopped attempting to move.
I'm only slowing Itsuki down. he thought miserably, coughing agin and looking at the ESPer and then at the room. "How big is this place..." he thought aloud.
"...Just stay by my side." Itsuki muttered, observing the rug closely. Peeking out from beneath was a small white envelope.
Taking a careful step towards it, Itsuki pulled it out from under and opened it up, taking out the contents.
"...'Those who end up in this ring of hell have lost themselves to their passions...at the bottom, you'll find the numbers leading to your cure'..." He read, furrowing his brow.
"..." Looking back at the rug, he noticed upon further inspection, things seemed a little uneven.
Grabbing the edge of the rug, he pulled it off in one swoop, but didn't feel prepared in the least for what he saw beneath it.
"...Don't tell me..." He whispered, looking down at what was hidden.
A large pit of syringes with thousands upon thousands of rusted greeted him. It's radius was as large as a hot tub that could fit 20 people comfortably.
"What the..." Kyon breathed, his heart pounding hard in his chest. It felt as if it would burst out of his ribs and the high-schooler shivered at the thought, taking a step towards the tub.
"'Lost to our passions'...what could that mean?" he wondered aloud, cocking his head slightly, trying to think, only to receive a headache for his efforts.
"So that means that one of these is the antidote?" he asked softly, then his chest tightened in horror. "There's only enough for one per shot. What if there's only one syringe that's the solution...the other person will..." his voice caught in his throat and he coughed again,doubling over slightly but recovering.
"But we can't randomly try these...if we pick the wrong one it could kill us."
"No..." Itsuki shook his head.
"The first ring of hell is for the sin of Lust. That's what he meant, I think...At the bottom you'll find me, 'numbers'...he means we have to dig to the bottom to find the combination to the safe..." He slowly pieced together.
"The sin of Lust." Kyon cocked his head as he coughed again. "The thing I'm worried about is what should happen if we were to accidentally get pricked by the needles." He looked at the needles and then to Itsuki. "So, should we have at it?" he asked, his voice heavy and weary as if he could pass out at any second.
"...I'll go." Itsuki said after a pregnant pause, taking a step forward closer to the pit. "There's no avoiding it. We're already poisoned. There's not much else he can do to us..." He muttered, standing at it's edge.
Kyon blinked at Itsuki and in a moment walked over to him to give him a brief hug. "Just be sure to come back, OK?" he said, breathing heavily. "And please be careful," He gave the other a squeeze on the shoulder and stood back.
Scooter: Well, another chapter up and ready to rock!! I know we're bashing the hell out of Kyon and Itsuki. :P But we can't help it!! They're so easy to beat up!! Anyway, seeya next time!!
--Scooter--