p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"Gregor was in agony. Waves of unimaginable pain shot down his spine, causing every muscle in his body to contract as if he'd been shocked with 20,000 volts of electricity. His back arched up at an unnatural angle. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"One moment, he had been walking along, following behind Vikus, the next, everything went dark. He was still conscious, but just barely. An agonizing pain was shooting through his shoulder. Moisture began to spread through his shirt. As Gregor's shoulder began to drip blood onto the ground. The world spun around him./p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"His head was getting dizzy...so dizzy. All Gregor could hear was a soft splat of blood dripping to the ground. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"His heart was pounding a violent tattoo somewhere around his navel. Gregor struggled to draw a deep breath. Was he breathing? It seemed more like the air was just drifting in and out of his lung whenever it felt like it. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Gregor!" /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"What? Gregor tried to speak, but his words seemed clogged in his throat. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Here swallow this. We need to operate immediately," said a voice calmly. A bottle was pressed to his lips. Gregor momentarily acknowledged the bitter taste before completely losing consciences. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"Gregor awoke, hours later, to an explosion of pain. It was as if someone was stabbing him in the back repeatedly. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"He reached around and tenderly felt his wound. It burned at his touch. Gregor felt a small lump floating under the numerous bandages the underlanders must have applied to him. A bullet? Why didn't they remove it? /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"Gregor realized, of course, that the underlanders had never dealt with a bullet wound. They would never think of removing anything. Gregor looked around, and, for the first time, got a good look at his surroundings. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"He was lying under a small mountain of blankets made up of animal skins and spiderweb blankets. To his immediate left were their food and water, along with medical supplies. To his right, a heap of rocks and dirt. He was lying in a small cave. As far as he could tell, completely alone, and, unless he was very much mistaken, he still had a bullet lodged in his shoulder. Where had the others gotten to? wonder Gregor. Had they died in the attack? What about Luxa? Gregor's heart seemed to stop beating just thinking about her. He had thought he had lost her once before; he couldn't stand the thought of losing her again. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"A sudden sound startled Gregor. He jumped. Or, as his body seemed paralyzed, jerked his head half an inch in surprise, then slumped it back down gasping in pain. Something had moved from under the mound of food. Was he stuck in a cave with wild animals? His heart was pounding madly, somewhere around his navel. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Ah, good, your up." said a lazy voice. Ripred. Gregor almost smiled in relief. Though admittedly Ripred was hardly better than a swarm of wild animals. But at least he was company. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Where are the others?" Gregor asked. His voice sounded faint and echoed mildly through the cave. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Oh, they're out partying," said Ripred, sarcasm practically dripping from his sharp teeth. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""They're out looking for that precious queen of yours. Looks like she got herself into trouble again." /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"Gregor's heart rose. At least the others might find Luxa./p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Oh, and York and Vikus are taking our prisoners back to Regalia," said Ripred. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Why?" asked Gregor. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Why?" asked Ripred incredulously. "Why? Because they are to be executed, they can't leave here knowing about our existence," said the rat, almost lazily. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""You know for all these people put by you, you really aren't that bright."/p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""But couldn't they just live here or something?" asked Gregor. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"He certainly didn't like the guys, especially the one who had shot him, but he thought murder was a little harsh. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""No," said Ripred. They might find a way to escape" The rat sounded almost regretful. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""So, how come you got to stay here," asked Gregor. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Oh, the others voted to give me the delightful job of babysitter. Ah, well," said Ripred. He gave Gregor one last look, and then turned in a circle, dropped to the ground, and began snoring within seconds. Gregor felt feverish. The cave seemed to swim before his eyes. Gregor closed his eyes again and tried to fall back asleep, trying to ignore the stabbing pain in his shoulder. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"When Gregor awoke the next day, he had a moment of confusion. For, smiling down at him from atop a small boulder, was his little sister, Boots. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Hi you!" she said with a delighted look on her face. "You stop seeping?" /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Ripred!" called Gregor./p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Shhh!" interjected Boots. "He seeping...! Quiet!" /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"Gregor's insides burned with shame. He had completely forgotten about his sister! Boy, if his mom found out; she would flip! He wondered how she was doing and if she had found out about what they were really doing on the quest. "So, tell me again, how did you get to the underland?" It was confusing. His mom had explained why she and Lizzie were. Presumably, Boots would have come at the same time. But if that were the case, why had she been wandering around the palace? Had Dulcet been watching her? /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Shh!" Boots hushed him. "He sleepin'...! He snores too loud!" added Boots. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Who?" asked Gregor. "Oh... Ripred... yeah. Okay I'll be quiet as a mouse." said Gregor, rolling over onto his back. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"By the next day, his shoulder was oozing pus. Yellow pus! The pain was excruciating. Gregor could physically feel the bullet moving around when he adjusted his head. He needed somebody to remove it soon; before his skin healed over, and the bullet became permanently lodged there. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"Ripred who had been snoozing in the corner awoke with a start. His whiskers and tail twitched. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Are they back?" was the first thing he asked. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""No," said Gregor, panic-filled. He had been expecting them back much sooner. What could be holding them up? /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Ah, well," said Ripred, now lounging against the wall. "Didn't really expect them to be...They probably went off and killed themselves." Gregor was no longer listening to Ripred, he needed something to remove the bullet with, but what? Had he packed anything useful in his backpack? Suddenly Gregor couldn't remember. He reached over and unzipped it. For the most part, he had what he now considered "Underland supplies" flashlights, batteries, duct-tape, but nothing that he could use to remove a bullet./p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"The only unusual thing was a photograph of Luxa, tucked away in one of the pockets. Luxa... Where was she? Was it possible she was still alive? But if that were the case, where was she? And what about the others...?/p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Is there a knife?" Gregor asked the rat. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""A knife?" Repeated the Ripred suspiciously. "Why?" /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Just answer me," said Gregor in irritation. Ripred scuttled over to the pile of animal skin sacks, and rummaged around for a moment, before pulling a small stone knife out into view. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Oh, great!" thought Gregor. Rat saliva. Perfect. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"Ripred nudged the knife out onto the ground and picked it up in his sharp rat teeth. He shimmied over to Gregor and dropped it at his feet. Gregor stretched out his arm and picked it up. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"His fingers curled around the blade. It was cool and rough, with several small chips along the blade. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Okay, thanks," he muttered. "And get me the strongest pain killer there is." The rat sniffed at several bottles of medicine before selecting a certain one. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Here, this should do the trick." Gregor open the bottle and took a quick swallow. Now all he needed to do was wait. Which is what he did. Once he guessed enough time had passed (the pain in his back had all but disappeared) he quickly removed the bandages from his back. He wanted to get this over with before he talked himself out of it. His back was searing with pain. Exposing its air had increased the pain tenfold. Gregor gritted his teeth. He reached around and gently felt around with his fingers. In his shoulder was a hot wet hole. Floating near the surface was a small metal lump. Gregor carefully slipped the knife under the bullet, and, while trying his best not to scream bloody murder, he slowly pressed the bullet from beneath his skin. Gregor shouted out with pain. He tried to quiet himself—he didn't want to scare Boots. But she slept on, unaware. He had never felt anything like this. Maybe his wound was getting infected. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"Well thought Gregor, If it wasn't already, it certainly will be. Who knows what kind of germs Ripred had been carrying. In hindsight, it probably would have made sense to sterilize the knife in some way. Ah well./p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"In the corner of the cave, Ripred was getting to know Boots a little too well. (I.e: Boots was climbing all over his body.) Gregor couldn't help but smile, even though it hurt like hell. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""Okay, boy," said Ripred, pushing Boots off his body. "I'm going to sleep for a couple of hours. You keep watch. Get me if anything moves." Gregor tried to move to position himself into a better position, but his arms trembled and shook and his back screamed in protest. So he stayed put. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;""You should go to sleep too," he murmured to Boots. Then he almost laughed at himself. She had already tucked herself into a comfortable ball in the corner and had her eyes closed, breathing deeply. He smiled and turned his attention back to watching the entrance to the cave. His stomach tingled with unease as he lay there, staring into the darkness. Once or twice he was sure he heard someone or something moving around outside. After four hours, Ripred awoke and took over guard duty. He allowed Gregor four hour's sleep before rousing him again. This time it was much harder to stay alert while on guard. He was groggy from being recently awoken and his back was paining him terribly. Multiple times he jerked awake, his neck aching and cramped from falling asleep at an awkward angle. Every time this happened, Gregor look quickly at Ripred to make sure he hadn't seen it. The rat would lose it if he caught Gregor nodding off while on watch. But Ripred was always sleeping soundly, snoring in a ratty ball. Gregor shook himself and tried to straighten up. /p
p style="color: #0e101a; background: transparent; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"He wasn't sure when he fell asleep, but he must have because he awoke with a jolt. Someone was standing right outside the cave! It was too dark to even see it, but Gregor was sure he heard soft footsteps slowly moving closer, and the soft sound of someone breathing: in and out, in and out, in and out. /p