Chapter thirteen

The blow wasn’t as bad as the time I’d fallen from the house, my mind still worked in spurts. I wondered if I was still alive this time, figured that I was since I could ask myself that and spent the rest of the time worrying that these blows to the head were doing some permanent brain damage. I tried once to imagine what was going on but my brain ached in protest of the deep thoughts. I was vaguely aware that I was being taken somewhere, the feelings of my body being moved around felt far away from my mind. I felt something gently run across my brow before something large and fuzzy slammed on top of me and I fell backwards into the bottomless black of possible brain damage.

I stirred in my comfortless sleep, my mind pleading me to wake up and do something. I heard voices not far away and the fuzzy thing was still lying on top of me; I forced my right eye open only slightly and peered out. Ebony’s large and familiar face lay a foot from me, what was annoying was that she lay on me at the moment. I couldn’t push her off though; I knew I’d get another gun barrel to the skull. I peered out from underneath her, finding her thick fur hid me from our attacker’s but I could spy on them. First thing I noticed was that they still had their guns on them and that the ones taken down by the stunners were back on their feet again.
“How are they doing back there?” a rough male voice said from the driver’s seat, I could just see the front of the van. Someone in the front turned to look at us, my eyes widened for a second and I swore they were looking right at me. My pulse raced as I waited for the blow to the head I knew I was getting, they looked right at me. I lay there, trying to be as still as a corpse. Maybe they didn’t see, maybe I’d get-
“They’re all still out” a feminine voice said; it must have been the one who looked around. It was... strange. I swear I’d heard that voice before I just couldn’t remember where.
“Good, we don’t want any of them waking up before we get there. Escape attempts never end well” the man said. I couldn’t help but pry open an eye again, staring past the people in the front seats and out the front window. We were far from any city now, there were trees flashing past on either side.

I lay there for what felt like hours, Ebony’s heavy body hiding me from view as I checked out my surroundings. Soon we turned off the main path and the trees began to get thicker, huge pot holes in the road thumped Ebony down on top of me. We were going away from even basic roads now; where ever we were going it was far, far out the way. I tried to see if there were any landmarks, any way of telling where we were but there were just trees. I hoped Ebony wasn’t getting hurt as she kept bouncing away as we crossed a road that seemed like it was built by a munitions factory.
“Someone flip that lizard guy over, he’s putting holes in the floor” the man in the front grunted. I felt a strong pair of hands grip me and Ebony and we were flipped apart; I noticed that I had actually pierced the metal floor. I didn’t dare open my eyes again; I just had to lay there as the floor bucked and lunged beneath me and wait for us to arrive.

We arrived shortly and I was very glad because my head was starting to hurt from the constant smacks of it hitting the floor. All I could say was thank god for exoskeletons. We’d slowed down and finally came to a stop; I still didn’t dare look around. I tried to discern what was going on around me from my other senses; a click of doors followed by a rush or cold air told me that they were coming to get us. I felt someone grip my ankles, then a curse as they caught something on a spike.
“I’ll get him” the female said again, whoever was holding my ankles let go and I felt someone else take hold of the back of my knees and pull. I tried not to tense as this strangely familiar person held me close against them in the foetal position; even their smell seemed to wake something deep within me. I opened one eye slowly and peered past the person carrying me; the others were being dragged out of other vans, black like the one that had carried me and Ebony. I kept still and closed my eyes as I was carried through some gates, relying on my other senses again. I sniffed softly and almost gagged; fear and sweat was heavy in the air here. I started to breathe through my mouth to try and block the smell out but it was taking over. I broke out into a sweat, let out a cough and vomited all over the person holding me before I blacked out for a second time.

I woke up with a sudden scream, still sweating all over and fighting against something restraining me. I fought the smothering attacker and ripped it from me, only to find myself in a dark stonewashed cell with a tattered blanket in my shaking hand. It felt as if something was around my neck as well, as if I was wearing a collar. I reached up gingerly to touch it.
“Looks like a newbie is awake” an unfamiliar voice said from right behind me. I spun around and the room kept spinning after I had stopped, completely forgetting about the collar. I gripped my head for a moment until an image of one of the black clad gunmen settled behind a length of thick metal bars. “Welcome to hell” he laughed “Your room mates will be along in a few minutes.”
“Strange, I always thought hell would be decorated in shades of flame and maintained at the cosy level of roasting point” I coughed, rubbing my eyes and deciding I did NOT want to be talked down to right now.
“Ignorant pig, you-“
“Lizard” I groaned, lying back against the wall “I have enough identity crisis’ please don’t add to them.” I only got like this when I was scared and helpless; I fought back the only way I could, with very bad jokes.
“Keep that tongue civil freak or it’ll be sprayed across the wall with your brains” the black clad man chuckled. For some reason I knew exactly what he was on about before he had a chance to explain; the collar was dangerous and I didn’t want to know how dangerous. The man walked away laughing as I broke out in a sweat again, slowly fingering the collar. I sat there thinking about the possibilities that could happen if the collar activated by accident until the cell door suddenly opened with a bang.

I jumped almost a foot in the air; my hands whipped from my neck and shoved themselves to my hips. I didn’t want anyone thinking I was trying to take it off. Only then did I look around, slower than before because it still felt as if my brain was sloshing around in a pint of rancid milk. Three people stood at the door; one was a guard so I doubted they’d be staying, one guy looked normal and the other guy was in a wheel chair. Both of them were wearing collars. I frowned gently, something was wrong...
“Trapper?” I asked, eyeing up my wheelchair bound friend “What did they do to you?” Trapper let out a laugh and made his way into the cell easily, he’d been in a wheelchair before.
“I was in an accident when I was twelve, lost my legs from the hip down. You got to know me after my mutation, when I’d made my own legs.” Trapper chuckled and patted his stumps “They had to take them away because I kept most of my weapons in them.” He wheeled over to the bed beside me and pulled himself onto it “It’s going to be weird without legs though.” I felt sorry for Trapper; his mutation hadn’t only built onto what was human about him but had also let him become normal again. Now these people had taken that away again. My attention turned to the only other person in the room now, the man who had come in with Trapper. He was shorter than us; correction, shorter than me, Trapper wasn’t as tall as he used to be. He had blond hair that was turning brown from dirt and grease and his skin was coated with it too; it looked as if he had never washed once in his life. When he looked up at me I noticed that his left eye was yellow and right eye was red; they glittered like jewels in his skull.
“Hi...” I said nervously, gazing up at this shiny eyes stranger “Who are you?”
“They call me... TNT” the stranger said defensively, wrapping his arms around himself and staring at a wall hard “I make big booms.” A grin flashed across his face, a big grin that worried me.

Disclaimer: Steal from me or lavalamp studios and you'll get a quick visit from my psychotic explosive freind here...
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Ebony and Ivory chapter fourteen is done already!