An Outsider's Call

46

SAWYER

Taking action fast, I start swimming downward. There's got to be a way out of here. I swim against the coming current, slowly but surely making my way down. I turn around to make sure America's following me... but she's not. She's floating in the water at the very top, like she's waiting for death to come get her.

I let out a groan, and swim my way back up. Once I make it back to the top, I grab her by the arm. She opens her eyes, squinting them, and shoves me away. I grab her again, trying to bring her down with me, but shoves me away once again.

Come on! I wanted to yell. I let out a gruff, telling her I'm serious. She has to come with me, or she'll die.

She comes to her senses, and follows me. We start all over again, swimming back down towards the ground below us. She treads against the water next to me. Come on, we gotta make it.

The fluid is stinging my eyes, the thought of opening my mouth is making me gag, but we gotta keep going.

Now just a few feet away from the ground, I notice it isn't ground, it's like gooey slime. Solid slime holding the surface above it. We reach the slime, and I grab onto it.

I stretch it out, pressing my hands against it as America does the same.

I physically start to feel the oxygen escape my lungs, as I tug on the slime even harder. I feel it get thinner and thinner. I pull my body down towards the slime, and press my face against it.

I try to break through it, harder and harder. I strain my face, getting even more desperate to break through.

I suddenly feel it break apart and separate, my body falling through the hole in the air. I flip and slam against a hard surface, grunting and gasping for air. I cough, and gag from that foul fluid that I just spent over a minute in.

America comes in after me, slamming against the surface as well. I take several seconds to breathe, and start to sit up. Both of us have slime and fluid on us from head to toe, smelling awful.

I look up at the slime net above us, the hole I just made sealing up. We haven't landed on a clear white floor... We've landed on a pitch black floor, everything around us leading to true darkness now. I exhale in relief, and turn to America who is laying on the floor.

"Are you okay?" I ask. America groans.

"Ask me in reality. Which we will never see again." she pants out, putting her hands over her face.

"Hey," I say in a gruff voice. She sits up and turns to me, giving me an angry look. I talk more softly. "You'd still be hovering up there if I didn't drag you down with me. Be grateful that you're alive. Even if it's just for a few more minutes..."

I get up from the floor, looking around. I wipe my face off, and shake the excess of my hands.

"How do we get out of here...?" I mutter. America just sits there, as I try to think of something before time runs out. A few moments pass by, until I notice it's starting to get very humid.

I wipe my face off again, realizing I'm sweating now.

"Are you getting hot?" I ask America. She turns to me.

"A little..." she mutters.

All the way down the Space, pass the fluid, past the slime, it's nothing. And that nothing, is where it's hot.

Really... really hot... So hot it's like mist is forming in the air, making it hard to breathe all over again.

I thought I knew everything about the Space... I was wrong. There's so much more to it, and probably even more to the ignition.

But when I was in the telepathy space, the floor broke apart into floating rocks... I didn't see any water at the bottom.

Does the ignition react differently to the Space? Or did the Space turn on us? Like it has a mind of its own...

I still haven't uncovered anything about America's past... nor about the ignition. What is happening...?

I then start to hear faint sniffles coming from America. I turn around, seeing her hugging her knees to her chest, faced away from me. She's scared... I walk over to her.

"Hey," I say softly. "There has to be a way out of here. Don't cry, just try to work with me."

Once America's sniffles get more clear, I realize they aren't sniffles... they're laughs. She turns around, a big smile on her face. I go blank faced, getting annoyed.

"I am laughing," she says, throwing her hands up like she doesn't know why. She laughs again. "I just can't believe I'm gonna die at the bottom of an endless room with Sawyer fucking Harble."