The Sum Of Us
By: Writes with Block
Disclaimer: If it were mine I could buy a Mini-Copper.
Author's Note:
Dreadfully sorry for the long wait. I'm not doing it intentionally. My muse just goes away and decides when it wants to come back. And, to answer Cassie's question, I haven't abandoned this fic. I'm just a slow updater. Sorry!
Chapter Six
It was the air that first drew her attention for it was something she had never felt before. There were vents on the Neb and in Zion but this was different. The air held a different quality.
'Not air,' Cyprus realized slowly. 'It's wind. This is wind.' She raised a hand and felt with delight the wind whistle around her fingers. She breathed in deeply, feeling the cool, sweet air fill her nose and continue down into her lungs.
"It doesn't hurt," she realized out loud. Her hand was steady as she pressed it to her chest. She took another breath and there was no rattling, no crackling, no bubbling. The only thing she felt was the strong, even beat of her heart and the firm expansion of her chest as she breathed in.
Her sickly, weak heart and her wet, struggling lungs. They were working, they were normal. The pain, the unending pain, was gone. Her joints, her chest, her head. It was all clear, all clean, all strong.
With a whoop of unimaginable joy she began to run and suddenly there was somewhere to go. She raced across a field of green, the wind pushing her hair back. The ground sloped suddenly and she fell, rolling and tumbling over herself. Sprawled where she landed, she remained still, her eyes closed tightly to savor the steady rhythm of her own breathing. She began to laugh and pulled out tuffs of grass to toss into the air. Her laughter gave away to deep, even breathing. There was no need to worry here. No fears and no troubles. She lay quietly, enjoying the wind that rustled her hair. Lying quietly she let her mind drift.
"I cannot breath properly," she said to herself. "My heart is weak and my lungs are not well. There is no wind, no ground, no grass, no sky. This is impossible."
The moment the words left her mouth ever thing changed. The gentle wind turned into a cold, howling monster. The lush grass turned into brambles and pricked at her flesh. Everything turned dark and dank and chilling.
She sat up quickly, casting about. Everything was cloaked in shadow. A rancid smell filled the air and, in the distance, something screamed. The ground swelled slightly and then settled. Cyprus pinwheeled her arms desperately for balance as the motion was repeated once, twice, three times. There were three heavy huffs as the ground settled and Cyprus realized that the ground was breathing. It was alive.
A sick wash of hot acid hit her stomach and she moaned in fear. The ground heaved again and she staggered.
"What is your purpose?"
The corner of Cyprus' mouth twitched and she cast about for the voices' origin.
"What is your purpose?!" the disembodied voice demanded.
"Who are you?" she demanded.
"Tell me your purpose!"
"Leave me alone!" Cyprus screamed. She pushed her palms against her ears and continued to scream. "Leave me alone! Stop talking to me!"
"Tell me!!" the voice screamed. "Tell me now!" The dim darkness opened and there were teeth. They snapped together once, twice.
Cyprus screamed and struggled to get away. Something was clinging to her face and she torn at it, crushing it in her hand. It hissed as she continued to choke at it and she bolted up right. Dim lights sprang to life suddenly and Cyprus realized she was in her room. The object she was crushing in her hand was her breathing mask. She dropped it onto the bed. Her chest was heaving and her throat was whistling sharply. With a sigh Cyprus dropped her head into her eyes.
It was just a dream. Just a nightmare.
'It was going to eat me,' Cyprus thought. 'That think was going to eat me alive.' A harsh shudder ran down her spine and cold chills raked her body.
"Just a dream," she assured herself. "Nothing but a nightmare," she whispered. One of the machines on shelves behind her bed beeped and Cyprus turned to it.
Her body temperature was dropping. The decline was not rapid or steep but Cyprus doubted her ability to raise it on her own. Her body was covered in a film of sweat and her sheets were damp.
"Pren," she called, turning away from her machines.
"Yes Cyprus?" the frog asked, his screen coming to life.
"Activate Beezle."
Pren groaned. "Not him Cy."
"My body temperature is dropping and I can't stand up," Cyprus snapped. "Just to it."
Pren said nothing and in a few seconds Cyprus heard the soft whirl of gears. The soft click-clack of metal legs against the floor approached the bed slowly. Her blanket was pulled toward the floor and she held on to it. The click-clack continued up the side of her bed and before too long a blue spider had climbed onto her mattress. It wasn't an actual spider but rather a piece of gear built to look like one.
"Need something boss?"
"Warm saline," she answered. As Beezle skittered away to retrieve the requested item Cyprus pealed off her damp clothing and redressed, disgusted that the act left her exhausted. She rested her back against the wall behind her bed, her eyes shut. Spindly, skinny legs crawled up her legs and Cyprus chuckled at the sensation even as she shuttered. She was old enough to think it was fun but not so old that she didn't still think it was a little creepy.
"Here ya go boss," Beezle said.
"Hang it up please." Cyprus listened as Beezle skittered up the wall and hung the IV bag on the hook. The tube dropped against her shoulder. She took it and located the rough patch of scar tissue in the crock of her elbow. With an expert touch she inserted the needle into her vein and sat back as the warm liquid coursed through her chilled body.
"Temps going up boss," Beezle remarked as it crawled over to inspect Cyprus' arm. The machine beeped again but it was a different tone and Cyprus sighed. "Heart rate's kind of fast. Want a sleeping pill boss?"
Cyprus opened her mouth to say yes and the memory of the nightmare flared to life. "No thanks Beezle. I don't really want to sleep right now."
"How come boss?" Beezle asked as he click-clacked his way to check the machines' readouts.
'Cause something might eat me,' she thought and shuddered. ''Just not tired. I've been sleeping allot during the day lately."
"You got a fever boss. I'll inject some aspirin." Beezle click-clacked about his task and announced when it was done. "Got any crackles boss? Let me check your lungs."
"Don't," Cyprus said sharply. "Just....leave it alone."
"Whatever you say boss but you'll pass out if you can't breath."
"Yeah yeah," Cyprus sighed. "I know." She looked briefly at the crumbled oxygen mask that was dangling of her mattress. Her body still felt cold and her joints were throbbing with dull pain. If she went to sleep against there would be more nightmares. She didn't know why she felt so certain about it but she did.
'I don't want to get eaten,' Cyprus thought and shook her head. 'I'm never going to get any sleep like this. I'm going to make myself sick again.' She shivered miserably and pulled the IV needle from her arm.
"What's up boss?" Beezle asked.
"I'm going to my parents' room," Cyprus answered, wrapping a blanket around herself and standing. "You can shut down or charge or whatever you want."
"What's bothering you boss?"
"Nothing Beezle. I'll be fine." With a soft grunt of effort Cyprus spun the lock back and pulled the door open. Letting it swing shut behind her, Cyprus stood for a moment in the empty hallway, shivering. Everything was still and quiet and dark. There was the ever present hum of the engineering level and nothing else. This was the way she liked Zion. No people clogging the hallways, no music pounding against the walls, no hot air that clogged the lungs.
With a sigh, Cyprus walked next door on legs that felt too weak and loose. She tapped once, twice, and then waited. It wasn't long before the door swung open quietly. It was, as it she knew it would be, Neo. He always answered the door. Trinity slept too deeply to hear her timid tapping but Neo always woke. He looked sleepy and slightly unsettled, his hair tousled and eyelids heavy with sleep, but his eyes shore with emotion as he regarded her with worry.
"What's wrong baby?" he asked, ushering inside and securing the door.
"I've got a fever and my temperature is dropping," Cyprus answered and pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders. Neo looked at her as if he thought there was something she wasn't telling him and Cyprus almost sighed outloud. How did he always know when something was bothering her?
"Did you have another nightmare?" he asked gently, his fingertips stroking her bangs lightly. "You haven't been sleeping well lately. You always look exhausted. Are you getting sick?"
"I don't know. I never feel well in Zion. The air is too heavy. I can't breath. And I had another nightmare."
"Thought so," Neo said. "Come on. Its late and we both need some sleep."
Neo was asleep within minutes of laying down but Cyprus remained awake, staring up at the ceiling. She was safe, laying between her parents, her father's arm pulling her against his chest, but she could shake the feeling that something was out there.
Something that wanted to eat her.
A bit short but still pretty good I think. Thanks for sticking with me everyone! Please read, enjoy, and review.
A big thank you to:
Cassie
Carrie
Chris
And everyone else who has been so kind and reviewed.
By: Writes with Block
Disclaimer: If it were mine I could buy a Mini-Copper.
Author's Note:
Dreadfully sorry for the long wait. I'm not doing it intentionally. My muse just goes away and decides when it wants to come back. And, to answer Cassie's question, I haven't abandoned this fic. I'm just a slow updater. Sorry!
Chapter Six
It was the air that first drew her attention for it was something she had never felt before. There were vents on the Neb and in Zion but this was different. The air held a different quality.
'Not air,' Cyprus realized slowly. 'It's wind. This is wind.' She raised a hand and felt with delight the wind whistle around her fingers. She breathed in deeply, feeling the cool, sweet air fill her nose and continue down into her lungs.
"It doesn't hurt," she realized out loud. Her hand was steady as she pressed it to her chest. She took another breath and there was no rattling, no crackling, no bubbling. The only thing she felt was the strong, even beat of her heart and the firm expansion of her chest as she breathed in.
Her sickly, weak heart and her wet, struggling lungs. They were working, they were normal. The pain, the unending pain, was gone. Her joints, her chest, her head. It was all clear, all clean, all strong.
With a whoop of unimaginable joy she began to run and suddenly there was somewhere to go. She raced across a field of green, the wind pushing her hair back. The ground sloped suddenly and she fell, rolling and tumbling over herself. Sprawled where she landed, she remained still, her eyes closed tightly to savor the steady rhythm of her own breathing. She began to laugh and pulled out tuffs of grass to toss into the air. Her laughter gave away to deep, even breathing. There was no need to worry here. No fears and no troubles. She lay quietly, enjoying the wind that rustled her hair. Lying quietly she let her mind drift.
"I cannot breath properly," she said to herself. "My heart is weak and my lungs are not well. There is no wind, no ground, no grass, no sky. This is impossible."
The moment the words left her mouth ever thing changed. The gentle wind turned into a cold, howling monster. The lush grass turned into brambles and pricked at her flesh. Everything turned dark and dank and chilling.
She sat up quickly, casting about. Everything was cloaked in shadow. A rancid smell filled the air and, in the distance, something screamed. The ground swelled slightly and then settled. Cyprus pinwheeled her arms desperately for balance as the motion was repeated once, twice, three times. There were three heavy huffs as the ground settled and Cyprus realized that the ground was breathing. It was alive.
A sick wash of hot acid hit her stomach and she moaned in fear. The ground heaved again and she staggered.
"What is your purpose?"
The corner of Cyprus' mouth twitched and she cast about for the voices' origin.
"What is your purpose?!" the disembodied voice demanded.
"Who are you?" she demanded.
"Tell me your purpose!"
"Leave me alone!" Cyprus screamed. She pushed her palms against her ears and continued to scream. "Leave me alone! Stop talking to me!"
"Tell me!!" the voice screamed. "Tell me now!" The dim darkness opened and there were teeth. They snapped together once, twice.
Cyprus screamed and struggled to get away. Something was clinging to her face and she torn at it, crushing it in her hand. It hissed as she continued to choke at it and she bolted up right. Dim lights sprang to life suddenly and Cyprus realized she was in her room. The object she was crushing in her hand was her breathing mask. She dropped it onto the bed. Her chest was heaving and her throat was whistling sharply. With a sigh Cyprus dropped her head into her eyes.
It was just a dream. Just a nightmare.
'It was going to eat me,' Cyprus thought. 'That think was going to eat me alive.' A harsh shudder ran down her spine and cold chills raked her body.
"Just a dream," she assured herself. "Nothing but a nightmare," she whispered. One of the machines on shelves behind her bed beeped and Cyprus turned to it.
Her body temperature was dropping. The decline was not rapid or steep but Cyprus doubted her ability to raise it on her own. Her body was covered in a film of sweat and her sheets were damp.
"Pren," she called, turning away from her machines.
"Yes Cyprus?" the frog asked, his screen coming to life.
"Activate Beezle."
Pren groaned. "Not him Cy."
"My body temperature is dropping and I can't stand up," Cyprus snapped. "Just to it."
Pren said nothing and in a few seconds Cyprus heard the soft whirl of gears. The soft click-clack of metal legs against the floor approached the bed slowly. Her blanket was pulled toward the floor and she held on to it. The click-clack continued up the side of her bed and before too long a blue spider had climbed onto her mattress. It wasn't an actual spider but rather a piece of gear built to look like one.
"Need something boss?"
"Warm saline," she answered. As Beezle skittered away to retrieve the requested item Cyprus pealed off her damp clothing and redressed, disgusted that the act left her exhausted. She rested her back against the wall behind her bed, her eyes shut. Spindly, skinny legs crawled up her legs and Cyprus chuckled at the sensation even as she shuttered. She was old enough to think it was fun but not so old that she didn't still think it was a little creepy.
"Here ya go boss," Beezle said.
"Hang it up please." Cyprus listened as Beezle skittered up the wall and hung the IV bag on the hook. The tube dropped against her shoulder. She took it and located the rough patch of scar tissue in the crock of her elbow. With an expert touch she inserted the needle into her vein and sat back as the warm liquid coursed through her chilled body.
"Temps going up boss," Beezle remarked as it crawled over to inspect Cyprus' arm. The machine beeped again but it was a different tone and Cyprus sighed. "Heart rate's kind of fast. Want a sleeping pill boss?"
Cyprus opened her mouth to say yes and the memory of the nightmare flared to life. "No thanks Beezle. I don't really want to sleep right now."
"How come boss?" Beezle asked as he click-clacked his way to check the machines' readouts.
'Cause something might eat me,' she thought and shuddered. ''Just not tired. I've been sleeping allot during the day lately."
"You got a fever boss. I'll inject some aspirin." Beezle click-clacked about his task and announced when it was done. "Got any crackles boss? Let me check your lungs."
"Don't," Cyprus said sharply. "Just....leave it alone."
"Whatever you say boss but you'll pass out if you can't breath."
"Yeah yeah," Cyprus sighed. "I know." She looked briefly at the crumbled oxygen mask that was dangling of her mattress. Her body still felt cold and her joints were throbbing with dull pain. If she went to sleep against there would be more nightmares. She didn't know why she felt so certain about it but she did.
'I don't want to get eaten,' Cyprus thought and shook her head. 'I'm never going to get any sleep like this. I'm going to make myself sick again.' She shivered miserably and pulled the IV needle from her arm.
"What's up boss?" Beezle asked.
"I'm going to my parents' room," Cyprus answered, wrapping a blanket around herself and standing. "You can shut down or charge or whatever you want."
"What's bothering you boss?"
"Nothing Beezle. I'll be fine." With a soft grunt of effort Cyprus spun the lock back and pulled the door open. Letting it swing shut behind her, Cyprus stood for a moment in the empty hallway, shivering. Everything was still and quiet and dark. There was the ever present hum of the engineering level and nothing else. This was the way she liked Zion. No people clogging the hallways, no music pounding against the walls, no hot air that clogged the lungs.
With a sigh, Cyprus walked next door on legs that felt too weak and loose. She tapped once, twice, and then waited. It wasn't long before the door swung open quietly. It was, as it she knew it would be, Neo. He always answered the door. Trinity slept too deeply to hear her timid tapping but Neo always woke. He looked sleepy and slightly unsettled, his hair tousled and eyelids heavy with sleep, but his eyes shore with emotion as he regarded her with worry.
"What's wrong baby?" he asked, ushering inside and securing the door.
"I've got a fever and my temperature is dropping," Cyprus answered and pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders. Neo looked at her as if he thought there was something she wasn't telling him and Cyprus almost sighed outloud. How did he always know when something was bothering her?
"Did you have another nightmare?" he asked gently, his fingertips stroking her bangs lightly. "You haven't been sleeping well lately. You always look exhausted. Are you getting sick?"
"I don't know. I never feel well in Zion. The air is too heavy. I can't breath. And I had another nightmare."
"Thought so," Neo said. "Come on. Its late and we both need some sleep."
Neo was asleep within minutes of laying down but Cyprus remained awake, staring up at the ceiling. She was safe, laying between her parents, her father's arm pulling her against his chest, but she could shake the feeling that something was out there.
Something that wanted to eat her.
A bit short but still pretty good I think. Thanks for sticking with me everyone! Please read, enjoy, and review.
A big thank you to:
Cassie
Carrie
Chris
And everyone else who has been so kind and reviewed.