Xy1013Note: Minor swearing in this chapter, adds to the suspense =D
The Challenger
Chapter Twelve: The End?
Shadow slowed her legs hurt her throat was dry, every breath she took was a wheeze. She tried to open her eyes wide enough to look around but the smoke was over whelming. Tears streamed down her face from the sting that the smoke had on her eyes.
The heat of the fire was amazing. She had thrown her hoodie off ages ago now all she had on was a singlet, her short shorts and a pair of her favourite converse.
"I need to cover my mouth and nose," she thought to herself. She reached down and tore a part of her singlet long enough to cover her mouth and nose. She took another shaky breath and started running again.
"The stairs should be just a little further down," she thought trying to remember what this part of the orphanage looked like.
If she were correct there would be a set of stairs, which lead to a little side corridor that extended off the main hallway.
If she followed it a short way down there would be a door. That would be her escape. The fire was gaining on her, her little break had been costly.
She was tired her legs didn't want to move but an erg was driving her on. The erg to make it to freedom, the erg to survive.
Shadow skidded around a corner and there before her were the stairs! She quickly ran down them. The fire had already started spread to the wall above of them and bits of ash were falling on to them.
Any second now they too would be alight. As Shadow neared the bottom of the stairs she jumped skipping the last four.
She then started running again. The door was only a little way down. It was a wooden door one that wasn't used to often Shadow guessed its whole purpose was to serve as a fire door. Which seemed convenient as right now she was trying to escape from a fire.
She ran at the door her fist encircled the handle as she attempted to yank it downwards. The handle didn't budge. "Shit!" she yelled. "No way! You have to be fucking kidding me!" she kicked the door in anger.
"No way Open up damm you!" She struck out at the door once again, and a third time. "This is bullshit!" she screamed the door was locked. Smoke went into her lungs causing her to start spluttering, she wheezed as she tried to find some kind of form of oxygen.
She placed her hands on her knees struggling to breath. Flames were beginning to engulf the hallway. "No," she mumbled "No I need to keep going," she drew in another breath followed by rapid coughing.
Her hands gripped her sides they hurt. "I won't give up," she wheezed "I will get out!" She stood up and began running again. The fire's flames were above her and pieces of the ceiling were falling down besides her.
There was a cracking noise and a large chunk of the ceiling (also the floor of the level above her) began falling down. Shadow didn't notice in time and just as she was passing underneath it, it broke away.
She didn't see it and by the time she had turned her head to see it was already too late.
It came crashing down on top of her. "Ahhhhhh!" she screamed crashing to ground. Her head hit the tiled floor hard. Blood began to spill out from a wound, which had been caused due to the impact. She pulled her self trying to get up.
But it was a useless effort. She turned her head straining her neck to see what was holding her down.
A large wooden pillar from the ceiling was lying on top of her leg. Her right arm was bleeding from a large gash on it. "The pillar must have mad contact with it when it came down," she thought. "I need to get out".
Shadow tried moving her ankle. There were no problems it moved fine. "Great it's not sprained or broken". Shadow's right leg was being pinned down her left leg was free and her entire body from mid-thigh up.
She moved upwards in a sitting up position. She then placed her hands over the pillar and began pushing. "Argh! Ahhh!" she screamed.
"Okay so that didn't work," she said attempting to add humour "onto Plan B. I need to pick it up, that's the only way I am going to get my leg out with taking it off". She looked around more bits of the ceiling were falling down besides her.
"And I need to do it soon or I'm gonna' end up as barbecue". Shadows fingers slid under the pillar slowly she lifted upwards. It was heavy and her right arm was in so much pain. "Errrrr ahhhhh!" she yelled as she lifted it.
Slowly she felt the pressure on her leg being relived. She was waiting, waiting for the moment when it was up enough so that she could slide her leg out from underneath.
"Nahhh! Coooomee Onnnnn!" she growled. "Just a bit…higheeerrrr!" The pressure was gone she pulled her leg out and dropped the pillar.
It made a boom! And dust flew up from the impact. Shadow coughed and leaned down to examine her leg. It hadn't been too badly crushed but it was severely injured. If the fire didn't kill her then loss of blood surely would.
A large bunch of fire fell down onto the pillar in front of Shadow and began consuming it. Her eyes widened at the sight of it, the dream came flooding back to mind. The burning bodies and screams. Shadow pushed herself up.
Her injured leg protested against the move by sending a sharp pain through it. Shadow screamed and fell back down onto the ground. But the sight of the fire, the feel of the flames so close to her forced her body to get up again.
She grabbed her right arm it too was heavily bleeding. She clutched it in her left hand and hobbled off. "I. Need. To. Get. Out!" she wheezed. With every step her more pain shot through her leg. Tears were rolling down her cheeks.
Her leg felt like it would give way any second. She looked up ahead "an exit please let there be an exit," she moaned. But her hope dyed away when she saw what was to meet her.
More flames. The fire had engulfed the entire part of the orphanage that she was in. "No," she whispered. Pain shot through her entire body "Ahh!" she cried and fell to the ground. Tears fell down her cheeks.
She laid there every drop of hope and willpower left in her had been drained away. "I," she took in a breath but it was useless all there was to breath in was smoke. She coughed and spluttered some more. "I wish," she mumbled.
"I wish that I". She took in another breath more coughing came. "I wish that I could of said," more coughing came. "Goodbye," Another tear left her eye and slid down her check.
She remembered all of their faces. Matt's, Mello's, Roger's, her mother's and father's and Near's. She remembered his words.
"If you want someone to blame for their death. Blame the very place you have been staying at for the past six months".
Shadow smiled "Hmph, to think," she took in another breath "that I would die the same way they did". A pool of blood surrounded her leg.
She looked down at it. She put her hands on top of it and slowly pulled it back toward herself, leaving five long streaks on the floor. The heat of the fire was overwhelming it had advanced on her and was now surrounding her.
She heard the cracking of the ceiling and other items that the fire was consuming. Shadow looked ahead she saw the flames but she also saw something else.
She raised her head off of the floor. Was it? Not it couldn't be. But it was. All of a sudden an overpowering force came over her. It forced her to stand up blood dripping down her arm and leg. Slowly she limped toward it.
Her hair covered her eyes as she hung her head. "Was it real? Was this real?" she asked herself. Was it just another bed dream and any minuet now she would wake up screaming. "No it's not a dream. This is real".The flames moved in closer and closer inching closer together from both sides. Shadow looked up determined tears streaming down her face.
"I am not going to die here!" she screamed "You hear me I won't die here!"
Shadow began running the pain was shooting through her leg but she didn't care. She jumped throwing one of her legs out in a karate-like kick.
Her foot broke through the window with ease. The glass was already weak from the fire and Shadow delivered the kick with more force then necessary.
She fell not to far it would have been more of a dangerous fall if she were jumping from the second floor.
She fell onto the grass although the impact hurt she had already felt enough pain in the orphanage for it to seem like nothing. She slid her hands forward they hurt too now. She prepared to use them to push herself up but hesitated when she saw why they hurt.
Blood was dripping out of them and pieces of glass were stuck in them. "Great!" she yelled attempting to get up without the assistance of her hands. It proved impossible with her leg. She was worried the fire would spread to the outside she needed to get away from the orphanage.
There was only one way. Shadow's fingers gripped one piece of glass, she gave it a sudden tug and tore it from her hand. "Oww!" she moaned that had hurt. She repeated the process for more large pieces of glass until all the visible pieces were gone.
She then slid up and start limping off. She didn't make it all the way to the gates however. Her leg finally gave out and with a crack! She collapsed to the ground her shoulders heaving as she tried to breath. "Oxygen," she mumbled to herself smiling.
She coughed and spluttered some more. Bits of blood fell onto the grass. "Great when I thought it couldn't come out of any more places," she said sarcastically. Her vision began blurring and she felt light headed.
She crawled over to a shady clump of trees and leaned on a tree. Her eyes wandered back to the orphanage. All she could see from this angle was the eastern side. It was completely engulfed in flames.
"I hope everyone got out," she mumbled.
She blinked twice and thought she saw the flames begin to disappear. She started to feel her body sway.
"Well at least I didn't die burning to death," she thought. "But I'm sure bleeding to death will do it". Her vision blurred again and began to go black. "I suppose," she mumbled struggling to take in a breath.
Her chest felt like someone was squeezing it. "I suppose," she repeated. "This," she tried to breath again I only resulted in coughing. "I suppose this is it," She muttered.
"Goodbye," she whispered and her limp form fell to the ground motionless.
* * *
Ahhhhh the suspense! Wow I am quiet proud of myself for this chapter it's pretty good very dramatic! So yes another cliffy I just love those things! So I'm not giving away any details on what's in the next chapter is there a funeral? You'll just have to wait and find out. Oh and for the swearing I couldn't help it like I said it adds to suspense. And if you were trapped in a burning building would you let a few F's and S's fly? So yeah so sorry you had to wait a few days just finished the first half of my Fullmetal Alchemist box set yay! Can't wait to watch the second part.
Sharleen: Oh my God Amy did you just kill your OC?!! What kind of writer are you! You don't kill your OC's That's inhuman!!
Shadow: Yeah I better not be dead that would ruin the story
Amy: actually most movies/stories you see are always that much better when you kill of the characters I mean look at harry potter, and in death note Mello dies. I mean I didn't want him to die but it made it all that much better.
Sharleen: *blink, blink *
Mello: I die!!!
Amy: opps! *Sweatdrop * Cya you all for the update it'll be here soon *walks away with laptop *
Mello: Wait how can I die who killed me!!?? Come back here!