Seldom Six Feet Under

Chapter Two: Continuous Cries

          The lights were far too bright to see anything. Feeling tight squeezes upon her upper arms, Ruby trudged along beside two tall, armoured men, suited in riot gear. Not that she had much choice otherwise. They dragged her along the polished, clear hallway. Once her eyes started to adjust, she could see herself in the newly cleansed tiled floor below her through her blurred, watery eyes. Was she crying? Surely not out of fear. Maybe it was just the light stinging her eyes. But the fear soon made itself known, for she started struggling against the guard's strong grip. She was afraid she'd lose circulation in her arms from how tightly they had her. Where were they taking her? Why was this happening?

      They marched through a set of glass, automatic doors, that opened upon approach. Ruby heard a click, and soon found that the doors had shut and locked behind her. She figured that there was no return now. No way to turn back, nowhere to run, no escape. She let the guards practically drag her where she was destined to go, which appeared to be an untouched operating theatre. It was like the end of the world was everywhere but here. Hell, the entire facility that she was just dragged through looked untouched. For a moment, she felt comfort in seeing such a clean space. The comfort inside washed away as the guards set her down on the surgical bed. And not gently, no. They threw her down on her back, strapping her wrists, ankles, and throat down into the uncomfortable table. She would have thought that the cushion would provide a little bit of relaxation, but how terribly wrong she was. The guards stepped aside.

      Before she knew it, she was surrounded by men in long, white coats, and masks over their mouths. There was one that stood out to her. One that sent shivers down her spine, made her hands sweaty, and made her want to get away as soon as possible. This man stood over her, taking her face into his gloved fingers. He tilted her head side to side, his deep blue eyes staring into her blue and brown pair. The right side of his face had scarred over burn marks. She could see a smile form from behind the mask. Without warning, he inserted his gloved hand into her mouth, prying it open. With his free hand, he held it out for another doctor to drop a metal, dental gag, that looked like tongs, into his hand. He took it and placed it upon her jaw and gums, forcing her mouth open. He put a pair of goggles on his face and motioned for another doctor to give him another tool. Ruby could barely move her head, but she could see a doctor place the giant, metal, tweezer looking tool into his hand. The burned face doctor met her gaze and smiled behind the mask. That was when Ruby started to struggle and scream again, or as much as she could. She tried so hard to wriggle her wrists free, but to no avail. The tweezer looking tool drew closer to her open, helpless mouth...

      And then she jolted out of her sleep, sitting upright, heart rapidly pounding in her ears. She blinked a couple of times to brush aside the tears that had formed in her slumber. She gazed around through her blurred vision, finding herself still on the rooftop. The sun was just rising, and the fire had long died. She found Allen sitting in a colorful beach chair behind her. He was fast asleep, his rifle resting peacefully upon his lap. And despite being asleep, his grip on the rifle was tight, like his life depended on it. It did. He always carried around that rifle. Ruby had almost never seen him without. But safety was hard to find these days.

      She got up slowly, dusting herself off. She trudged back over to the ledge, sliding onto the cold, stone wall. She stared off towards the rising sun, the sky filling with those gorgeous shades of orange, purple, and pink. Despite still registering the horrible dream, seeing this gave her a sense of security and calmness. But she couldn't shake it off. She couldn't stop thinking about it. The burned face doctor. The polished operating theatre. The metal tong-like gag. The giant tweezers...

      She turned away from the sky, fluttering her eyes to try to stop herself from crying again. Her heart was heavy in her chest. It felt like it would let loose and drop from her ribs to her stomach. Allen shifted in his uncomfortable, beaten, yet colorful chair, setting his rifle against the side of the chair. The bones in his arms cracked softly as he extended them up to the sky. He muttered a curse at the slight pinch. His eyes darted around, finally landing on Ruby. He sighed. "Not again," he hissed under his breath as he got up, wincing from the cramps in his legs from laying wrong. He slowly walked over, stopping about a yard away. "You okay, Red?"