Chapter Seven

They don't even need to eat, this is all grotesque!

-'Hungry for Another One' by JT Music

Six had been walking along the large metal pipe for what felt like ages. Her legs ached, especially in that one spot where the back of her leg had been hit by a bottle thrown by one of the chefs. They had seemed so stumpy and slow! How could they have been so fast?

Six yearned to rest. Her entire body pleaded for a break. But stronger than the desire to rest was the call of the spot of light far off in the distance, growing brighter with every step she took. A pale, cold light it would seem to most, but to Six it seemed like the most beautiful gleam in the world. Just looking at it made her increase her speed, trotting along the pipe, trying not to slip on its slick surface.

As she continued onward, the glimmer seemed to rise until it was high up, a wall manifesting out of the darkness, the glimmer shining through a crack up above. Six's heart plummeted as she realized that the wall was too slick to climb, but her spirits rose again as she discovered an iron ladder set into the wall itself. I didn't even wish for this one, Six thought, grasping the first rung and pulling herself upward.

The gleam grew brighter as Six climbed toward it. Her eyes began to smart from its light, but still she climbed toward it.

Just a little further, she encouraged herself. Just a little more.

And then the light consumed her as she climbed through the crack. Six was almost blown backward by a gust of wind, warm and wet and filled with the smell of salt. A damp saltwater mist sprayed over her and Six clamped on tightly to her perch as everything swayed and rocked more violently than ever.

So I was on a boat all along, Six thought.

Now that her eyes had adjusted, Six looked out in wonder over the vast spread before her, drinking in this first taste of the outside world. The sun shone down over the sea, dappling everything in gray and green and gold and blue. The riotous call of sea birds, white and noisy, filled the air, along with the slap of water against the side of the ship and the hiss of spray spewing into the air. It would have been a perfect scene, except that the ship Six seemed to be in was not the only watercraft around, for another dark, smoking boat bobbed beside it, a dark blemish on the stainless ocean.

Six stared up at it, her eyes offended by its presence. Her hole was low, close to the water's surface, and the sea spray was thick, misting her sight, but through its fog she could see many squat, stumping figures walking the gangplank from their own ship into the craft she was in, flooding in like weeds drifting on a tide. Six stood and began to climb the ladder affixed to the outside of her ship, watching the flow of people as if mesmerized. So many of them – it seemed like the parade would never end!

Men and women, Six realized as she came closer and the salty blur faded somewhat. No children. All of them gross and overweight with sagging faces, shuffling as if each step would be their last, but none of them stopping. They murmured among themselves, but Six could not catch a single word. All she could do was keep climbing and watch their progress as they stumped forward, eyes fixed ahead.

And then Six reached the top of the ladder, another crack promising another plunge into the Maw. She faltered, glancing back at the other ship, weighing her options. The sunlight was so bright, so tantalizing. Did she really want to go back just now? Back to the darkness and the torment? It was so peaceful up here.

But deep inside was the urge that had been growing ever since her adventure. The unnamed desire that pressed her on spoke and told her that what she was looking for was not on the decks of the other rugged ship but back inside the place where she had just escaped. For whatever reason, she wasn't done there yet.

Six soaked up a little more sun before plunging back inside the dark hole, breathing it in like a man sucks in a breath before diving into airless water. After even a little time outside, the Maw seemed stuffier and darker than ever, but Six did not turn back. I will see the sun again, she promised herself. After I do this, I will.

It never even occurred to her to question what her secret mission was, or that it was a secret even to herself.

…

Six couldn't help but wonder if her eyes had been permanently affected by her brief stint in the sunlight, for the innards of the Maw seemed more shadowed than ever. She didn't dare hold her light aloft, however, for her view of the numerous guests plodding in unison had instilled a healthy respect for the darkness that hid her from view. If she, who had lived in the darkness for so long, was so bereft of sight, then how much so for the guests who lived their lives up above in the light?

Reassured by this, Six clung to the shadows, feeling empowered by her near invisibility. But then she heard the rolling sound of stumping feet and her security faltered. Even so, she pressed on even as the line of guests came into sight, lugging their own weight along the lighted and handrailed route, their pace never wavering.

Six stopped as her pipe ended below the raised walkway where the guests made their course. A decorative wooden screen separated herself from them, but it seemed so flimsy and then next to their hulking figures. She even doubted if it was stout enough to climb. Hesitantly she pulled herself up and waited for them to see her. Not a gaze drifted her way. It was if their eyes were fixed to the form in front of them, a never-ending parade of mindless followers intent on seeing their journey through to the finish. Even though they were close enough that Six could feel the heat radiating off their corpulent bodies, she took courage and began to ascend, keeping an eye on them in case their gaze should slide to another target.

"My people."

Six almost fell off her perch as the voice – a woman's voice – echoed into the almost-stillness. She gave a struggling half-jump into the enclave above and curled up into a boarded-up corner, clasping her hands around her knees, all senses gone to full alert.

"Beloved guests. Chosen ones," the voice continued. It was soft, almost as if spoken only in Six's mind, yet she could hear it clearly from outside her tiny hollow. "I welcome you yet again to the Maw." Six noticed that the figures stomping below her had become quiet, their murmurs more hushed. They were listening. "How long it has seemed, far too long, since I have seen your beloved faces. You, each and every one of you, have been selected out of the many common individuals to survive. And not only to survive, but to thrive!"

Six edged to a crack in the boards and peered out, searching for the source of the voice. When she saw, her heart gave a funny partial beat. She recognized that person. On a balcony overlooking the guests stood the Lady, just as mysterious and strange as she had appeared in her dreams. Her white mask shimmered in the darkness, reflecting the scant light that lit the balcony. She appeared majestic, regal even, looking with benevolent eye over her congregated assembly.

Six felt a strange feeling steal over her as she continued to stare. It was a feeling she could not put a finger on, but it felt too familiar to be nameless. Recognition was too simple and tame a word to describe it. Six felt as if she would have the same feeling if she stumbled across a mirror in whose reflection she would see herself covered in injuries and bleeding. Recognition? Yes. But horror as well.

The Lady continued to talk, her flowing, flowery words drifting into the still air, reminding her subjects just how fortunate they were to have found her favor. But as Six watched, she beheld a dark shimmer steal into the air, ebbing from the Lady's location over the watching crowd. It was intangible, barely perceptible and Six doubted if any of the other watchers could see it from their position, but she watched as the dark shimmer moved like mist over the crowd. Its effect soon became apparent, for the guests began to shift, their murmurs sounding discomforted. Some leaned over, clutching their enormous bellies and muttering toward their shoes.

"Now, come, my favored guests," concluded the Lady, raising her arms high above her head. Her trailing sleeves streamed like the wings of a great, dark-winged butterfly. "Come and celebrate with me. Dine at my tables, eat of my food, drink of my wine, and let us free our hearts of sorrow. Tomorrow may come, bringing its woes, but today… Today you shall feed!"

The guests, who by this point were shuffling with anticipation, gave a roar – or a moan, Six could hardly tell which – and lunged toward the doors. No longer were they slow and weighted. In their haste, they knocked into one another, staggering against their own bulk, forcing themselves to greater speed than their neighbors. Six watched in fascination, glad that she was not among them. They would trample me for sure, she thought, watching as a smaller guest was shoved aside and forced to crawl forward. Whatever could they be so excited about?

Curious about what she might find, Six squeezed between two slats in the boards blocking her and made her way into the next room, which seemed to house an upper level to the guests' area. She could see them rushing below her, the thunder of their footsteps making the boards tickle her bare feet. Less anxious than ever about them spotting her, Six moved across to the opposite balcony and pushed open a paper screen door just enough to let her enter.

Six's eyes had no trouble adjusting to the meager, warm light, and in its orangish tint Six could see several long wooden tables in the center of the room. Even though it seemed not to be in use – the chairs were stacked up in piles on the perimeter of the room – the table was completely covered with food. Hunks of meat, juicy pies, enormous sausages, sleek fish, puffed bread, bowls of stew… more food than Six could ever imagine sat stacked on the table in dishes, bowls, pots, pans, and any other sort of platter one could find. Some food had even dribbled off and lay scattered on the floor.

Six might have partaken of the free opportunity, but a noise distracted her. It had slowly been growing in volume over the several seconds when she had been standing immobile, gaining a startling intensity as she pricked her ears. It was a grinding sort of sound, a slurping and a munching, a chewing and a swallowing that made any sort of normal eating noise pale in comparison. It was the noise that a thousand starving wolves might make if they came suddenly upon a herd of cattle. Not just were they eating their food and enjoying it, they were devouring it as if it might be their final meal. Eating to survive.

Any sort of appetite Six had worked up shriveled immediately as she heard the noise. Her stomach clamped into a tiny clump and shivered inside her ribs. So, that's what the dark shimmer was, Six realized, unknowingly clutching the leg of the table just to have something to cling to. The Lady was giving them the Hunger so they would eat. But why?

This question went unanswered, and after that Six found it difficult to think any more thoughts. The smacking, munching, moaning sound had gotten too loud. The girl began to move forward, simply because the noise had grown too monotonous to bear lightly. As she passed into the next few rooms, she could see shadows behind the paper curtains; shadows of gelatinous mountains shaking with the effort of shoving as much food into their mouths as possible. A few more rooms in, she came across her first guest.

He sat propped up in one of the chairs, utterly absorbed in his meal. Six tried not to look directly at him, but it was difficult not to take a revulsive interest in just how much food the guest was attempting to shove down his gullet. He was almost choking as he fed, too much going in too quickly, bits of meat mixed with slobber spilling out the corners of his mouth and dripping on the table, mixing with more food, his saliva moving in a constant, sticky cycle from mouth to table to food to mouth. If Six's stomach could curl up any tighter, it did then.

When Six was certain that the monster's attention was fixed unwaveringly on his meal, she edged across the room, stepping softly so as to make no noise. The guest didn't even notice. He began to greedily suck the moisture out of a steak, eyes closed and mouth making a whimpering moan between slurps. Six slipped out of the paper doorway, which stood cracked open.

More guests in this room, just as revolting as the first, chowing down on their meal with even more vigor. Determined to cross this room as well, Six started forward, but froze when the beady fat-encircled eyes of the closest guest fell on her. Some buried part of her mind wondered if he would glance over her and move on with his course, and if by staying still she would be rendered invisible, but this guess was shown to be futile. His desire was beyond dead meat.

The guest's mouth opened in a savage scream and he thrust his table away, nearly crushing Six against the wall with its force. The little girl found herself surrounded by breaking plates and flying shards of what had once been bottles. The guest's main course rolled on the floor. His chair cracked beneath him, the legs splintering in different directions and the guest floundered on the floor like a fish out of water.

Six backed away, skirting the smashed table and attempting to stay away from the thrashing guest. Had she been at a safer distance, she might have laughed at his efforts, but as she stood not ten feet away from his clutching hands, she simply found it revolting.

And then disgust switched rapidly to terror as the guest, with a terrific heave, flipped himself over from his back onto his stomach, pudgy eyes filled with craving. With alarming speed he began to struggle toward her, feet kicking out behind him, hands clawing at the boards, dragging himself forward. His own weight seemed inconsequential compared to the reward of feasting on live meat.

Six's heart leaped with sudden fear and she sprinted away toward the far doorway. She heard the scraping shuffle of the guest behind her and heard his bellow of desire. This only spurred her to greater speeds as she pictured his swollen fingers wrapping around her, throttling her, pushing her down his throat to join the rest of his swallowed meal, never again to see the light of day. Determined this should never happen, she leaped forward into the next room, glancing up anxiously to make sure nobody else would join in the chase. Dark, mean eyes followed her progress, but none of the guests she passed seemed quite so desperate as the one behind her. Once or twice she saw large, thick hands clutch the tabletops as if preparing their owners to spring, but only the first guest made the pursuit.

I need to go somewhere he can't follow, Six thought, blindly running through room after room. I can't keep running forever! She gasped a little as she spotted her answer – a doorway leading to a raised level. For one of the giants standing on his hind legs this would be but a large step, but for one clawing his way forward on his belly, this would provide a far greater challenge. Six, daring to hope she was far enough away, took a running leap and pulled herself up, watching with dread as the guest slammed face-first into the incline, recoiled, and then attempted to heave himself up and over, grasping toward her with both hands.

He's too heavy, Six thought, giddy with adrenaline. He's too heavy. He's too heavy.

Even with this reassuring thought, Six did not linger to observe the guest's endeavors. The sight of an uncooked little girl might spur him to such frantic movement that he might just make it over the step, and Six definitely did not want that. Slipping beneath the table to avoid the munching guests in the room and still keeping a careful eye on her flailing assailant, Six moved on, but a quick scan of the room told her that she had reached a dead end.

Trapped? Six's mind started to panic. No. She couldn't be. Past the angry guest couldn't be her only way out! There had to be – HAD to be another way!

There. Up high on the wall, a window to an adjoining room. Six tensed as she realized what she must do to get there, but the shuffling and whimpering of the guest at the door decided everything. Hissing in air through her teeth, Six slunk out of hiding and began to climb. First from the bench to the table. Then from the table to the stack of plates in the center. As she passed from one to the other, Six felt the burning gazes of the seated guests pass to her. The first, a male, lurched forward, arms straining, but was held in place by his enormous stomach. The second, a female, gave a gurgling scream, her eyes bugging. She reached upward as Six balanced on the tip-top of the plate pile, gauging the distance from her perch to the windowsill.

Then the male guest managed to knock the dishes with his hand and the whole pile shuddered. Six stumbled, trying to regain her balance. Seeing that his plan had almost worked, the guest let out a bellow and hit the dishes, harder. The topmost plate jostled. Six bit her lip. The guest, nursing his hand, leaned forward as much as he was able and began to push the stack, tipping them all over as the female guest cheered him on, completely oblivious to the fact that she was going to be covered in plate shards after the deed was done.

Wait, Six coached herself as the plates began to tip. Her eyes had spotted a lantern hanging over the female guest's head, between herself and the window. If she jumped now, the guest might pull her down, but with enough distraction…

Wait…

The plates began to slide.

Wait…

Everything was moving forward.

…Now!

Six jumped for the lantern. She heard the victorious yell of the male guest, which became completely overshadowed by the screech of the female and punctuated by the smashing sound of three dozen dinner plates crashing to the ground.

Six swung her legs, willing herself further. Even though she told herself she shouldn't look down, she did, and met the blubbering eyes of the female guest, trying to brush away the blood from her cut arms. Six didn't feel sorry for her then and felt even less sorry a moment later when the guest reached up and almost snagged her toes, her chair tipping backwards as Six propelled herself forward, letting go and landing safely on the windowsill, ignoring the woman's moans of irritation and pain.

Even though she was gasping with exertion, Six didn't dare to rest. This next room was larger than the others, a long bar taking up the back half of the room. Most of the guests were facing away and those that weren't seemed completely engrossed, but Six still didn't feel safe. All she wanted right that minute was a corner to hide in. Some place to take a deep breath.

Please, she thought. Just a safe place. Please?

Softly, so indistinct so as only to be thought a figment of the imagination, Six thought she heard a Nome. Her ears perked up and she began to scan the room, inching forward to see what she could find. Every so often she looked upward at the guests to make sure she hadn't been spotted, even though she would have been alerted immediately if it had been the case. But she made it safely across the room without incident, spotting an inconspicuous crack in the boards mostly hidden behind a stool. Pushing it aside, Six crawled between the slats.

Inside was another one of the secret rooms. A pipe stood off-center, several offshoots branching off in different directions like a warped metal tree, a bedraggled sock hanging off one of the pipes. Six wondered where the sock had come from, if it had belonged to one of the children in the beds so long ago and if it had been taken here by the Nomes. She wondered if the sock had been hung to dry, and watched as the ceiling dripped, countering this hypothesis.

A skittering noise brought back Six's attention and she snapped to awareness. The Nome, which had gone unnoticed on the other side of the room before now, peered out at her, its small, bony hands tapping nervously on the pipe between them. It circled the pipe as Six approached it, more skittish than any other Nome she had yet met. The little girl moved slowly, circling around to the old metal lamp in the corner of the room and flicking her lighter, illuminating the room as she touched the lamp's wick to the golden flame. Even with this reassuring prompt, the Nome only inched forward, its invisible eyes fixing Six with a suspicious stare.

How rude, Six thought with a huff as the Nome turned its attention to the fire. It squeaked as she picked it up, holding it tight in her arms as if trying to hug some warmth into its heart, but it merely dangled there, numb and unresponsive. It turned back to the fire as Six set it back on the ground, ignoring her as if she was nonexistent.

"I'm not like the others out there," Six said in a hushed voice, nodding out the crack where the gobbling of the guests could still be heard. "If you're afraid of me, you needn't be."

But the Nome didn't seem interested in discussion. It merely held out its arms to the fire.

"You should be grateful," pouted Six. "I hugged you. You were all alone until I came."

Still no response from her small companion. Only a sideways glance and a little shuffle closer to the lantern.

"I made that fire," said Six, tapping the lantern. "I could put it out. Do you want that? Do you want me to put it out? There, then!" And with that, she tipped over the lantern, letting it clatter over the floor, the tiny flame blinking out of existence with a tiny 'poof'. The Nome gave a chitter and backed away, looking at her resentfully.

"Do you like that?" Six demanded with a defiant step forward. "Do you like the dark?"

The Nome shuddered, and with a whirling about-face, fled out the crack and into the brightly lit main room. Six heard a bellow as the guests were alerted, the thunder of heavy movement, and saw shadows and light dance outside the opening. In a moment, the noise subsided and everything went back to normal, the guests' chomping and gurgling noises continuing as if nothing had happened. Six sat down on the cold wooden floor, knees drawn up to her chest. Alone. Alone in the dark.

A/N: I'm baaaack! Sorry this chapter took so long to post. Life has gotten in the way of... well... everything, so it took me waaay too long to write this chapter. I'm not sure exactly when I'll be posting next, but I promise this story WILL be completed. It'll just take a bit longer than I expected.

Thanks to all you guys for reading, and I'll post... sometime. Until then!