CHAPTER 15: Something Strange

"Hey Elyssia!" Ash hissed before he shot a burning hot pea at my stem.

I bit my lip in order not to cry out at the pain.

"What is it?" I whimpered as the pain increased and my stem looked as if it would actually catch on fire.

"Just follow me. Protest one bit and die." Ash answered, his image looking pale.

"Fine." I mumbled as I climbed out of bed and followed Ash down the stairs, pausing for half a second to press my leaves to the wound and heal it.

I was led all the way to what looked like the old city hall ― but with many hills and dangerous landscapes surrounding it.

"Wh-what now?" I asked fearfully.

"Climb!" Ash answered as he scaled the hills with surreal ease.

As I tried to climb, my root slipped, and I was falling . . .

. . . only to be saved by Ash's leaf.

"Hey! You almost got yourself killed over there, girl! Be careful!" he scolded me as he carried me to safety.

"Oh . . . I'm so sorry Ash . . ." I mumbled shamefully.

"It's fine, Elyssia." he answered, giving me a tight hug shortly afterward.

And this time, instead of pushing him away like I did more often than not, I returned the hug happily, allowing myself to fully absorb his warmth.

"Now come on. We haven't got long to go." Ash whispered, whacking the back of my head very lightly as if to say, "Onwards, Elsi. Onwards."

I smiled, and I kept on climbing and climbing until we were within fifty metres of the ancient City Hall. But at that point, I could see a zombie with what looked like a tiny black water balloon in his rotting hand. With a grin, he tossed it to the floor, and strangely enough, Ash didn't warn me about it, for as soon as it had made contact with the earth, it exploded in a myriad of greyish-green gas, which made me want to cry ― I had not found the reason yet. Just as I breathed it in, I felt dizzy, and I was falling to the ground, fast. Just then, I had an odd feeling ― it was as if the gas had made my soul want to jump right out of my body. It was rattling my lungs, and it made me want to scream. And strangely enough, Ash was smiling and slowly backing away; in fact, on the brink of hysterical laughter. He started giggling uncontrollably, almost like this Dr. Zomboss person that I've heard about in the news and I've seen in my own dream.

"Ash! Help me! Help me!" I screamed, making Ash laugh louder and back away even faster.

Then I woke up.

"Elyssia! Are you fine?" Peater asked, shaking me awake.

I rubbed my eyes and groaned.

"What happened?" I wondered aloud as I began to feel dizzy and woozy.

"You were thrashing about in your sleep! You were groaning as if there was some kind of pain hurting you, you were talking in your sleep . . . I thought you were dying or something!" Peater replied.

"It was all a weird dream . . ." I mumbled as I tried to stand.

But, just like that time at the hospital, I fell down as soon as I had let go of all means of support.

"Elyssia, I think that you need to stay here in bed. I'll take care of the zombies for you ― and maybe bring you a souvenir or two!" Peater said.

"No . . . I don't!" I replied as I tried to stand.

But I collapsed yet again, as if that noxious gas had actually weakened me. My eyes hurt, and I was slowly being paralyzed.

"Peater, I don't need to stay in bed! I have to fight! I want to fight!" I yelled as I finally remembered the painful memory that the cloud of gas had brought to me.

It was a chilly day in April 2013, and Adria, Alana and I were walking around what remained of Weston. We oohed and aahed at all of the sights that the long road had to offer ― from shops and dealerships to libraries and statues.

"Look at Weston Library's tower!" I exclaimed.

"Wow! This is . . . amazing!" Adria exclaimed.

Alana, being her usual, quiet self, just happily pointed out an interesting opening in one of the walls.

"Oh! Let's see where it leads!" I squealed as I ran over to the entrance.

"Touch a crack and break your back!" Alana whispered.

"That's an expression for humans, Alana!" Adria giggled.

"But wait ― look up!"

I looked up, and I could see a rotting corpse with an evil grin on his face.

"Jump in ― quick!" I hissed as I made to jump into the entrance.

My twin siblings, meanwhile, had tripped, just as the zombie had thrown his ammunition onto the ground. The ammo had exploded in a myriad of greyish-green gas as soon as it had made contact with the ground. I could hear my siblings cough and scream as they inhaled the gas. Then there was silence, and I knew that they were dead. Feeling a surge of anger and hurt go through me, I charged inside the building, only to find the exact same zombie who threw the ammo grinning at me with a knife in his rotting hand.

"Oh, you son of a bastard!" I growled as I punched the undead murderer's head right off.

I then stomped right on the head, crushing it, and ran all the way home, not knowing how I'd tell my parents the bad news.

"I need to fight. Anything to set things right after those double damned zombies killed my sisters ―" I slowly clapped a leaf to my mouth, but it was too late. I had just revealed my deepest, darkest secret by accident to the last plant I'd want to have snooping about in my private world.

"Did you just say that the zombies killed your sisters? Sisters that I never knew you had?" Peater asked incredulously.

"N-never mind that! Just forget what I said and leave it at that!" I responded angrily as I tried to stand up, only to fall right back down yet again.

"What is happening to me?" I cried, bursting into hysterical tears a second later, my breathing rushed.

"Keep yourself calm, Elyssia. Keep yourself calm." Peater murmured. I calmed down my breathing, although it was still heavy with pain and grief.

"It's fine . . . it's fine . . ." I mumbled as my roommate gave me a huge hug.

I hugged him right back as I tried to get my body to stay in control.

"Is everything all right in there?" Ash had thrown the door open, and was kneeling by my side as I seemed to be crying uncontrollable tears of agony and pain.

"Get away from me! I said get away!" I screamed as I tore myself away from Peater's embrace and proceeded to fire my icy jets at Ash.

"Whoa! What did I do? I thought we were square!" he yelled as he dodged my shots.

"Elyssia! Calm down!" Peater exclaimed as he tried to calm down my fiery soul, but to no avail.

The room was spinning like crazy, my head felt as if it was going to pop off . . .

And next thing I knew, I had submitted myself to the darkness of what was either death or oblivion.

Wooww... amazing...