I slip out from the shelf I'm on and start taking in my surroundings.
What I thought was a storage room looks more like a long hallway that just extends further than I can see and is lined with those creepy red lights.
'This doesn't make any sense. If I'm going to be sold as cargo shouldn't I be in a cage or something or a locked room? Why am I in the middle of a hallway.'
I pick a side and start walking slowly toward wherever it leads.
My body and mind feel cold and quiet.
The skin on my limbs and neck feel like they are buzzing and every minute detail of my surroundings is being absorbed and processed with an uncomfortable sensitivity.
I can feel the pulsing from my heart as the blood is pushed and pulled back in my veins.
I can feel the creaking of my joints every small or large movement I make.
I can hear the high pitch sound of electricity in the walls overwhelming the background noise. I can hear the scuffing my clothes make against my skin.
I can see the texture of everything in my surroundings dyed with that garnet light.
Everything is vivid and taken in no matter how small just like how I feel during my hyper-focus moments.
After a while I come to the end of the long hallway and see an open doorway that leads to what seem like stairs that connect to whatever is upwards.
I start singing under my breath "Should I stay or should I go now...Oh! Oh! Oh! Should I stay or should I go... Hell! Hell! No!"
Peering up the stairwell I feel unsettled. Something feels wrong with this whole situation. The grated metal stairs extend much further up than what I expected. On top of that I am not locked away and I haven't seen any sign of other people in what feels like hours since I left that shelf area.
"Where the hell am I?"
I look around one last time before considering my options and reluctantly go up the ever reaching stairwell.
Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.
About four flights up from where I started I can see what I assume is the top of the stairwell. It leads to a small domed room with a wheel hatch on the roof of it.
At around the twenty-third flight of steps my whole body has broken out into a sweat and my breathing is haggard.
"Seven more flights *cough*!"
As I reach the top of the last flight my legs have turned completely to lead and I lie down on the cold metal grating trying to catch my breath.
"I need to *wheeze* *cough* *cough* *cough* …quit smoking!"
Resting until my body feels like It's not a deflated tire would've been optimal. Worst of all I really need to pee. To the point of where the bottom of my abdomen hurt and any pressure or movement at all sent shivering warning signals to my brain. You know, if not for the fact the wheel hatch started to turn above me letting out the most God awful screeching noise I'd ever heard I probably would have stayed there for a minute or two longer to let my body rest.
With just a little more than enough common sense to save a squirrel from getting run over by a car (as it just sits there being an asshole while me and my 3 neighbors wait for it to move.) I hop over to the corridor situated on this floor and open the door tilted "Janitor" before tucking my way in between mops and foul smelling buckets.
About another minute passes before I hear the latch open up and a pissy voice start speaking to an equally pissy 2nd person.
"What the hell are we taking a detour to that place for. Has Captain Lin finally fucking lost it?"
"You're asking me? Who the hell am I supposed to ask? I've heard the last couple ships to head within 40 miles of this part of the channel have been lost and the wreckage they found has been weird."
"...What do you mean weird?"
"Well I have a friend in the recovery...."
Just then their voices faded out of reach leaving a slightly relieved yet annoyed stowaway in the janitors closet.
"Could've at least finished that last sentence."
Jack turned around to observe the room finding a drain in a corner.
'you know while I'm here'
*unzip*
"Nature waits for no man"
*tssssssssss*
*creak*
*shut*
"WHO DA-"
"WHY ARE YOU PISSING IN MY STATION!"
*turn* *tssssssss*
"FUCK! STOP PEEING ON ME YOU BASTARD!"
*TTSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHH*
"I'M SORRY I CAN'T STOP"
*CRASH* "OUCH I SCHWI- SHTOP AIMING AT MEE*gag*"
*SOBBING* "I CAN'T STOP! IM SO SORRYYYY! GET AWAY."
"*sobs quiter* oh thank god it's stopping."
*tssss-pit-pat-pit-pat*
"I'll kill you-*chokes* I'LL FUC-"
*door slams open*
*TSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH*
"WHO'S MAKING SUCH A LOUD FUCKING RACKET. Oh Joey are you oka-AHH FUCK MY EYE!"
*SOBS* " IM SORRY! IM SORRY! I AM SO SORRY!"
*tsssss...pit-pat-pit-pat*
At this moment the three people in the room stared at each other. One of which was crying. Two of which looked like they needed to get their blood pressure checked asap.
*silence*
*ziiippp*
"NAME AND RANK!"
"Well about that...*sniffle* Hi I'm Jack!"
*crack*
"Joey shit don't kill hi-"
And that was the last thing I heard before my head hit the floor and my vision turned black.