Underground

The long tube was painted with spiral black and white. It seemed like it was a piss poor job at turning this sealed off elevator shaft into an Alice in Wonderland ride. I was heading towards what I deemed the Underground, a place not haunted by what was above ground but with the same fear surrounding it. It was set up by the government as a haven and was quickly overthrown by scum. Now crackheads and prostitutes run its streets, and I was just looking for an escape.

I'd been through too many broken homes and washed up warehouses to keep living like this. To think I'd left Casey and the emptiness for this? I was tired of watching the beam of my flashlight trace the dried blood and corpses of people who weren't quick enough. I was tired of sleeping in tucked away corners and waking up like my nightmares were only the beginning. My hoodie had been soaked, dried, and resoaked through out my "adventure". There was no way my mind could become sober with this routine. Could I really embrace what was happening? The lab experiments I'd found in all the basements made numbed me. I didn't have a plan at this point. I just wanted to get away.

Spiral after spiral kept flying past me. I would have been dizzy if it were not for the lack of sleep. I was on the mail tube to hell, and I needed to be alert. Wind came through air vents with a whooshing that me feel welcome that it was man-made. Lights became brighter and brighter. This I took as a good sign.

Finally the platform settled down into some place that looked like a subway. In all my daydreams, I never thought I'd be doing this. Heart racing, I took a step towards the slums of the beaten world. There were ticket windows, but no price for admittance. It was a sick metaphor for this life. The price you paid was your own dignity. I breathed in what could only be described as sewer waste. A public started to emerge; I tried my best to blend in. This was no escape artist's dream. A girl in curly hair and eyeliner threw me a sultry look and asked me if I wanted to join the mile-low club. I said "No thanks" and kept walking. I cringed at the feeling she gave me and the way she twisted her slang.

I had no idea where I was going, simply going with the traffic flow. I was on no mission and with no feelings of relief. Despite the fact I was as far away from the above ground problem as I could get, I couldn't shake the sense of fear. For one, this carnival attraction was a playground run by a society that was looked down upon, no pun intended. There was nowhere a person could walk without trembling for existence. It always struck me how Casey could do exactly that, but so innocently. I had always felt obliged to protect her, but once the rest of the House had taken her away and left me behind, what was I to do? I was going to drag them behind in their running away. No point in keeping a little ol' boy around if he won't keep up his end of the work.

The disease had made everyone sick. Not only was I running away from being another host, but family.