Location Unknown

VALERY KONINGSBRUGGE

I felt a draft in my body. The soft wind blew into the open amputation, like an instrument. The air thrust against the flesh, but the wind was so soft. It couldn't even cool down my sickness, which was heating my forehead and ears with redness and wetting my hair with sweat.

Sickness ran down my slick pale face in a vein of green. And it led to that rotten bone mesh on the end of my torn leg.

Thriving with unwanted bacteria - one would think the mushy green landscape around me had found another home on this snapped bone. A rag of some sort drenched in water was placed on my burning forehead by Xyler. I was out on the dark moist sand, beside the dock.

But nowhere near the water. Where that monstrosity resided and preyed.

Jennifer was trying to compel the strait of water that separated us from the other side, to no avail, while Molly sat cross-legged beside her. I tried to sit up, but couldn't find the stamina or the energy. Xyler laid me back down slowly.

"Easy - easy - easy. You must rest."

"How long has it been?" I asked.

"According to Jennifer's phone, about two hours," Xyler said. "And also according to the girl's phone, it's been three days since we entered the swamps." My amputated limb was wrapped with the same rag as the makeshift wet towel.

I realized Xyler was shirtless. I caved my head back into the damp sand and rolled up my eyes at the sky. A tear escaped the fold.

"How am I not dead?"

"Your blood congealed through the exit and it formed a shell before I could put my shirt around it. You losing that much blood, helped you not lose any further blood. But the worst part is gonna be taking that off. It'll be sticky and all." He turned to the girls. "Hey, he's awake!"

They turned around and ran to us. Jennifer squatted at my feet and Molly sat on her heels by my side.

"Are you feeling better?" Jennifer asked.

"I don't think he can feel worse," Molly said.

"Let him speak," Xyler said. Molly fixed the wet towel on my head like she used to do with the seaweed when I would get sick.

"Molly's right. This is the low tide." I took a moment to collect my tears and cage them for later. "What was... what was that thing? That bit my leg clean off?" Jennifer looked at my stump, wound in Compeller clothing and red on the inside.

"It was an alligator. But it ain't like any gator I've seen before." Agreeing nods all around. "It was probably double the size of a normal gator. But I only saw it for a second with your leg in the air." She sat back on the brown sand, her legs in the air before reverting to a normal sitting position. Real hilarious.

"What are we going to do next?" I looked past Jennifer at the water that I could no longer walk on. And the terror underneath, deep in the murk, that had my leg in its stomach.

"I'm gonna kill it is what," I said. "I don't know what you guys are gonna do, but I'm going to kill it." Worried glances all around.

"Valery, you only have one leg. And we're not going to waste time trying to kill the thing that nearly killed you. We need to find a way out of here and get you actual help."

"There is no way out of here," I said. "It doesn't matter anyway. I'm not locked in here with it." I banged the soaked sand with a clenched fist. "It's locked in here with me!" I turned on my side towards Molly. "So go ahead and leave me. I'll be dead weight anyways. And you guys need to get going quick before this place eats you up as well."

"Can't you heal your leg back with a bubble?" Molly whispered. She went to grab my hand, but I pulled it back into the crevasse made by the space between my body and the sand.

"I will try, but I doubt I will be successful any time soon. And with my lack of energy, I doubt I will be successful at all. So... so leave." I saw a sudden downcast look on Molly's face. "Please."

They all stood up and left without goodbyes. That way, we were holding out hope that we would see each other again. Two long wooden sticks with makeshift handles were left next to me. Molly had carved crutches from tree branches while I was neutralized.

It took a sane man to know when he was acting insane, I thought. I lifted my head off the ground.

My hair was mussed up and littered with clumps of brown sand.

The thought of payback to this "elligaytour" had festered in my mind while I was asleep.

Morning fell to evening, and then to night, quicker than I expected. Maybe because I was half-napping, half-thinking. Not being able to sleep because of these thoughts and not being able to think correctly because of my exhaustion.

The elligaytour took my leg away. Something I used for so long. Almost constantly. It could feel everything from the water to the strange textures of the Compeller's world. Now I only had half of my leg senses. And I still denied feeling.

A swish in the water made me jump in caution. I reached over for the crutches like a weapon.

It had returned to finish the job.

The moonlight shimmered on the crisp waves. The crisp waves shattered into specks of water against the mainland. My hand unclasped the stick and then I felt the sweat of nervousness run down my spine.

It was only the moon, come out to play with the water. Maybe I shouldn't sleep so close to the enemy.

I crawled up the dock, not ready to use the crutches just yet, and chose to sleep to the sounds of the gentle swinging of the narrow ocean underneath.