Pernicious- True Evil

Chapter 6

When Astra woke up, the first thing she saw was a single wispy cloud, making its way across the sky. Where was she? She could see she was being dragged on a mat by a man with long dark hair, who was accompanied by another man with shorter hair. Her fingers grazed across the threads. It wasn't soft at all. It was itchy and coarse, made out of what appeared to be woven grass.

Who were these two men and what did they want with her? They didn't seem to notice she had woken up since they were walking in front of her.

The one who was dragging her seemed to be less muscular and was a bit shorter than the one walking beside him. He had an old leather bracelet strapped to his wrist that reminded her of something she would see at a gift shop. She wasn't sure if she was seeing right but she could swear the man dragging her was unnaturally pale, while the other one, from what she could see, appeared to be normal.

Astra was surrounded by emerald grass that stood on top of rolling hills. Though there weren't many clouds above her head, she could see on the mountainous horizon, there was a thunderstorm brewing. With the exception of grass, the land was void of a diverse amount of plant life. There were no trees, bushes, or flowers anywhere.

What was that smell? It reminded her of stale meat and body odor. Was that her or was that coming from the mat?

The hot sun beat its unforgiving rays down on her face while her body rocked back and forth on a coarse, unstable surface. Thoughts circled around in her mind as she felt a droplet of salty sweat roll down her cheek.

She felt like a prisoner trapped in her own body. She couldn't move and could hardly breathe. Her head had become a snare drum that pounded on and on, while her body felt like a voodoo doll subjected to thousands of needles.

Every breath she took released an explosion of pain, making her want to breathe as little as possible. Sometimes the only relief she could get from this pain was by holding her breath until her body screamed for the release.

The air around her felt different. It even smelled different. Although the sun was strong, it was nowhere nearly as strong as it once was.

Her ears twitched at the muffled sound of running water that gradually became louder. She looked over and saw a small creek just a short walk away. As she moved her tongue around her jaw, her body screamed for some of this substance. The sound of the liquid splashing against the rocks tormented her. It called out her name, causing the need for this precious liquid to become amplified.

Her mind raced as she tried to figure out how she could get some of this element inside of her. She longed for it so much that she could almost taste it. Mustering every ounce of strength she had, she opened her mouth ever so slightly and made a small squeaking noise from the back of her scratchy throat. She winced as the movement of her mouth caused her lips to split open.

How long had she been out for? She felt a cool breeze raise goosebumps over her skin as she closed her eyes for a moment. Concentrating with every ounce of strength she had within her, she tried to move her arms and legs but could only feel her toes and fingers twitch. A wave of exhaustion washed over her muscles and mind, weighing them down like bricks. She wanted nothing more than to allow her body to slip back into sleep, but she couldn't let that happen. She needed water.

Astra felt her body slow to a stop and then came the sound of shuffling, first leaving her side and then approaching. How was she going to get their attention? She wanted to scream, "I'm awake!" She wanted to flail her arms and beg for them to bring her water. She longed to feel it slip down her throat and loosen her tight stomach.

Opening her lips, she attempted another sound but this time she mouthed the word, "water."

"Hey, look at who is finally coming to," a man's voice softly cooed as he sat down beside her. "You are a fighter."