Disclaimer: If I owned Pi'ch Black and stuff, none of i' would be as good as i' is.

Damn I', Not Again!

Ch. 3

So then I was bleedin'. I' wasn' a bad cut, I'd only caugh' the very tip of the dagger, bu' still, i' hur'. I was numb from the knees down and in pain. Plus my arm still hur' from the nigh' previous, and m'wrist wasn' in any great shakes either.

All the fault of one person in particular.

Still don' know who he is.

And i' was only a couple credi's, wha's he so upse' abou'?

I was there for a long time before m'legs started t' i'ch. Since they'd been numb for the las', oh, three hours, I took this as a good sign and decided t' leave before whoever lived here came back.

I stood, wobblin' a li''le and shakin' my legs ou' a bi' before carefully walkin' over t' the hanging ladder and grabbing i', in case someone up there was screwin' with m'head. I gave a short, nervous chuckle and started climbin', arm over arm. I was pulling with m'arms because m'legs were useless as of ye'.

I' seemed like hours before I got t' the top of the hangin' ladder, and I hooked m'arm over the top rung, restin' for a momen', Then I looked up. There was a hatch, thank goodness, and I pushed on i'. I' gave a li'tle, but all in all, I' didn' move more than an inch.

Damn.

I looked 'round some more and saw a window abou' halfway t' the floor. Strange, bu' oh well, a way ou' is a way ou'.

I climbed down a li''le and hooked my legs through one of the rungs, so tha' I sat like i' was a swing. And with tha', I leaned back and then forward, ge''ing the motion started and then standin' on the rung. I had pretty good control over my half numb fee' now, so i' was relatively easy. I had a pre''y steady rhythm buil' up when I drew my knife, aimed and le' fly.

I' hi' the glass and bounced off.

Damn.

I watched i' fall t' the ground and then looked back a' the glass as I swung away from i'.

I snorted in contempt and grumbled a li''le as I increased the span of my swinging.

This was dangerous, and I shouldn' even've been attemptin' i', according t' the miniature version of m'pap in m'head. He was yellin' at me t' 'get down from tha' ladder this instant!

Bu' of course, I didn' listen. When I go' close enough t' the glass, I kicked i' as hard as I could, bu' i' merely shuddered in i's frame.

Double plated glass.

Damn.

I swung back, marshaled my momentum and kicked i' again. The glass cracked, and I think my femur did as well.

Double damn.

As I swung back the nex' time, I turned my shoulder inte the swing. This was before I remembered, at the las' second natur'lly, tha' this was the arm tha' goggle-man had lef' a deep gash in. So when I hi' the glass, although i' did shatter int' a thousand pieces, Most of my body was left in severe, momentarily paralyzin' pain.

Although, I could've sworn tha' I landed on somethin'...

No time for speculation, I though' t' myself, as I struggled t' my fee'.

"I go' t'ge' a new day job." I mu''ered t' myself, dazedly. I grabbed my head and then looked 'round. There was a body lying on the floor. I tilted my head a' him and a conflic' waged within. Help? Or le' sleep?

-He could be hurt.-

He could be goggle-guy.

-He's a human being.-

He hur' me, I'm no' helping.

-Pleeeaaaaasssse?-

...

Damn.

Despi'e my be''er judgmen', I dropped heavily t' one knee, cursing because now there was glass in i', and placed two fingers gingerly on unknown person's throa'. A steady pulse bea' underneath.

He's fine. Happy now?

-Quite. We can leave now.-

A hand grabbed m'already injured wrist and the body rolled over, t' reveal Goggle Guy, looking...well, I can' really interpre' facial expression withou' the eyes, but I'd say he was livid.

Damn.