Chapter 35
Kevin’s point of view
Feeling returned to my fingertips and
joints gradually. Still immersed in darkness, I scrabbled at the ground in
front of me to try and get up. Pain was suffused into my every fibre, so I gave
up and relaxed.
I was too dazed and weak to comprehend
my situation. Yet, I was lying on something……. Solid ground? I felt the surface
beneath me. It was dry and dusty, and felt rough against my numb fingers. It
was also very fine with minute particles – sand, maybe?
I vaguely remembered deep, intense
colours; brightness that had appeared in my vision. Where was it now?
Where was I now?
It was completely black again, but
there was no thick eerie floating sensation that engulfed me. A light breeze
blew past my inert body. I felt it
weakly on my face, my fingers…….
My mind became roused by an enticing
thought.
This wasn’t Oblivion!
But, if I was back from Oblivion, why
was there no sound or light? Oblivion had completely dampened my senses. My
sense of touch was back, despite being faint, but nothing else.
The pain began to fade. I breathed
heavily with relief, managing to roll onto my back with great effort.
I still didn’t understand where I was,
or what had happened.
No light, no sound…..?
Those nagging thoughts ran through my
mind, as I lay stretched out on my weary back.
I had to know if my sudden suspicions
were correct. I checked myself over to be sure.
Running one hand over the other, I
realised with revulsion that I only had three digits on each hand. Where the
hell were the other two?! I cautiously felt them again – no stubs or a remnant
of my missing fingers, which there would be if they had been torn or cut off by
something. They also felt strangely swollen. Perhaps they had been ravaged by
something after all, and were infected? But wouldn’t it hurt? Most of my pain
had subsided, and what was left was not in my fingers.
I moved onto my face. Mouth, jaw,
nose, hair…. They were accounted for. But my eyes…. I hesitated, fearing the
worst had happened. My swollen fingers brushed off my closed eyelids……..
I sighed – they were still there. I
snapped them open with relief…… but there was nothing.
My fear returned. I blinked several
times testily. Nothing…..
In panic, I felt the left side of my
head, then the right. My ears were still there too. Yet there was no sound.
My heart sank, and I felt tears begin
to trace a path down my face. My fears were now confirmed.
I was blind……
…. And I was stone deaf………
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Time passed, but for how long I lay on
the sand, miserably weeping in despair, I didn’t know. The soft grains beneath
me and the cool wind that soothed my aching form gave me my only sense of
existence.
No vision…… no hearing……
How was I supposed to find out where
the hell I was? How about getting home if I couldn’t see it?
I pondered curiously on my immediate
thoughts, realising my determination more than I ever did: there I was, just
found out that I was four fingers short, deaf, blind, and hopelessly lost…….
And the first thing I worry about is how to get home.
Now, my single-minded journey sounded
a bit stupid and delusional. Nothing, it seemed, was allowed to get in the way
of my goal, and I suddenly realised for the first time that common sense was
one of those obstacles. No wonder Solin thought I was mad! Perhaps Solin had
been right all this time? Out of our countless arguments, there was one I
always seemed to recall best:
“I WILL be heading home,” I stated. “In
time.”
Solin stared at me with annoyance.
“Will you stop going on about that?”
“Why do you keep giving me the
impression that you think I’m NOT leaving?” I snapped. “Why would I give up
everything just because I came here?”
“Don’t you get it?” she retorted.
“You’ll only wind up back here anyway! If humans are anything of the paranoid,
fearful fools that the rumours claim, then they’ll reject you. They’ll think
you’re a demon – they’ll attack you, and send you away.”
“He knows, dammit!” I snapped. “Brian
has to know there’s something going on. He’ll show them the truth.”
“And who will believe him?” she
questioned mockingly.
I gave no reply.
“Exactly!” she shot me a sharp stare.
“They’ve probably locked him up for being a head-case if that’s what he’s been
trying to tell everyone!”
“Then I’ll free him myself!” I
replied, shouting proudly.
“What you’re going to do will be
dangerous and single minded.” Solin snapped. “Why not quit why you’re ahead? Or
are Karnak and us other Soul Creatures not good enough for you?”
“I appreciate the help, but this is
just a detour as far as I’m concerned. I’m going back, and that’s final!”
I sighed and frowned with guilt and
regret – perhaps Solin was right, and I should have just quit while I still had
a safe existence? I had been stupid: even if I did manage to get home, my
behaviour was immature and uncalled for. I picked up a handful of the fine
grains surrounding me and let them slip like water through my remaining
fingers. I consoled myself with the fact that I still existed somehow, and
Solin’s common sense had reminded me of my old, human persistence – I was
somewhere and I really should find out where. No more moping about.
I turned over onto my stomach and
managed to pull myself onto all fours with effort. From there, I slowly began
to crawl forward blindly, my swollen fingers and hands frantically feeling the
sandy ground in front of me with each inch covered. For a long time there was
nothing but sand, and I began to wonder if I was on some kind of beach. I began
to tire of prevailing sand when I roughly bashed my hand off something very
hard and jagged. I yelped with a cry I couldn’t hear, and drew my hand back.
Stone…….
That hurt! ……. Aww stop moaning you
big wuss!
I felt it to make sure it was stone,
and it definitely felt like it. My beach theory suddenly made sense – beaches
usually had rocky areas, followed by sand, then the water. At least I sort of
knew where I was. A beach.
OK, so that was a little vague – a
beach in which region? On what planet? In which solar system? But at least I
wasn’t completely clueless now. I sat down heavily, having used some of my
rapidly diminishing energy to merely crawl along the ground. The sand was still
beneath me, and my back was against the stone. I pawed at the sand again out of
boredom. I remembered the soft sensation of it’s grains slipping through my
remaining fingers like ……… water.
Water?
I suddenly became aware of a dry,
parched feeling in my throat. It took a while for me to recognise, but soon I
had little doubt – I was thirsty.
Yet, I hadn’t needed to drink for over
a decade! What the hell had happened to me? So many changes I couldn’t
explain……
No answers were coming my way very
soon, so I just gave into my desire for water. This was a beach – beaches
always had water nearby. All I had to do was get across the sand again, heading
away from the rocks.
Determined this time, I somehow
managed to pull myself upright. I didn’t feel like crawling along like some
kind of wounded animal. Regaining my balance, I stumbled forwards with cautious
steps across sand and more sand.
I don’t really remember everything
that happened after that. I do remember feeling water around my ankles, falling
to my knees and scooping the cool liquid up with my hands. I drank it greedily,
ignoring the bitter taste of salt. I really shouldn’t have drunk seawater, but
at the time, I didn’t know it wouldn’t harm me anyway. I vaguely remember
passing out after drinking refreshing-yet-salty water until I felt bloated and
full.
When I awoke, everything was
different. Things began to make more sense for a change…..
***
