Finding the Fallen

Chapter 16

"It's a risk we'll have to take," Kala stressed. She grabbed one of Merik's arms and swung it over her shoulder, supporting him as well as her smaller frame would allow.

"Here," Logan stepped to her side. "Let me take him. You lead us out. We're circling around in the right direction. We shouldn't be far from the road." To illustrate his point, he took her hand and pointed in the direction he wanted her to go as he hefted Merik's arm and swung it over his own shoulder. Merik grunted and looked down at his dangling feet.

"Ok, I'm not that much of an invalid here, folks. I can still walk, man," Merik defended himself to Logan.

"I know you can, but we need to move quickly and, no offense, but you don't sound so good. I'll do the walking for you. Just hang on and try not to pass out. Dead weight is a lot harder to carry through the woods..."

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Within a matter of minutes, they reached a road that appeared to lead east into a small subdivision. Kala was glancing up and down the road repeatedly when Logan caught up. "Left turn," he said, concentrating on keeping the quickly fading Merik upright. "Let's move straight down the road for now. It's easier and the light's better. Just keep an eye out for any movement, OK?"

"Got it," Kala said, walking out onto the road and turning back toward the highway.

The highway wasn't far. Less than 10 minutes later they were heading north again on Highway 114. "Picking up anything?" Logan asked as he continued to struggle with Merik.

"It's faint, but we're going in the right direction at least," she replied. "How's he doing? Merik? You still with us?"

No reply. "Dammit," Logan said as he stopped and eased Merik to the ground in a sitting position. Shaking him by the shoulders, he said, "Wake up, lazy. We're not sleeping yet, so neither are you." He looked up to meet Kala's dark eyes. She had turned around and retraced her steps and was now reaching for Merik's face with both hands.

Logan sensed her concern. Merik was breathing; he could feel it, but he didn't know for how much longer. His entire left side was drenched in blood. Logan cursed himself for not realizing Merik was injured earlier. They might have been able to head the opposite direction and find water faster. But as it stood now, if they went back, his friend wouldn't survive.

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Merik felt as if he were a prisoner in his own head. In his half-aware state, he imagined he was locked in a small room with no exit. Every once in a while the entire room would begin to shudder and then spin around wildly for what seemed like an eternity. During this jostling, Merik bounced off the 4 grey walls like a ping pong ball. When the room finally stopped spinning, he would lay in a corner for a moment until he regained his composure. After a few rounds of this crazy carnival ride in his head, he gave up trying to fight it. He was beginning to feel nauseous anyway. The thing that bothered him the most was the fact that he knew he wasn't really in that room. If he could just open his eyes, it would end.

Despite the violent twists and turns in his mind, he was still aware to a certain degree of what was going on in the real world. He could tell his body was actually moving; he just couldn't open his eyes to find out where he was going. Not only was he bouncing around inside his own cranium, but it appeared his body might be on a rough road as well.

After a while, he heard a woman's voice, but it didn't sound quite like Kala. It had to be her, though, since he was pretty certain they were still out in the middle of nowhere. At first, it sounded as if she were far away. He couldn't make out what she was saying.

'Why the hell can't I open my eyes?' he complained to himself.

The odd, somewhat Kala-like voice answered him, "You can, and you will. This is not your time. Now, wake up!" The last sentence was punctuated with a shrill keening sound that jolted Merik awake.