°Twenty-One•Get Up°

"Time for your daily 'training', kid." The door of my cell opens wide and suddenly and pulled up from the ground. It's been a few days since that girl came to talk to me. My cell is getting worse. Due to my inability to move, I had to pee myself a few times. The smell of that mixing with my blood and it just dries into a really stinky smell and I couldn't do anything about it. I bet patients or, victims as what it looks like, here haven't taken a shower in a whole long while.

I was pulled and lifted off my feet, my legs being dragged along the floor. My body feels so sore but numb. Every single step they took created friction against my feet and it slowly starts to burn. I couldn't feel it all, the pain is nothing compared to the lines that are formed on my body. I smiled, I've gotten hit over and over and I'm still alive with bruises and wounds. I've lost sense of the time. How many days have I been here?

My smile slowly widens as was carried up and tied onto the frame. The mirror rolled in and I see a fool staring back at me, he looks like a clown, I laughed, how horrible he looked. The smile never left my face as I tried hard to not let it leave as the whip starts. As time passed, they've started to hit somewhere else other than my back.

Laughs filled the room as I forced my cries into laughter that pierces their eardrums.

×××

I snickered the moment I was left alone back in my molding white and disgusting cell. The smell of the room caused me to scrunch my nose up. I shut my eyes and pushed myself into the darkness.

Not even for five minutes, I've been away from the real world, my door was kicked open. My eyes shot open to see the same girl from what feels like a while ago. I've never been happier seeing her right this moment. She was giggling her way in and slammed the door shut and laughed maniacally. She's putting on a show I guess.

After she feels that it was safe, she stopped laughing slowly and gagged. "What is this pungent smell? It's horrible!" Her hands flew to her nose, trying to block out the disgusting smell of my cell that's making its way to her system. I just snickered, "Well I'm sorry I can't move to get to the toilet."

She replied with a snort and laughed again. Geez, I really need to get used to these little random shows to make them believe we're actually crazy. She got a little container and a damp towel out of her pocket and came near me. "Can't you move at all?" She asked, pulling my arms up and let it fall and hit the hard bed. I shook my head slightly, "I can barely lift a finger, my head the probably the only thing that is able to move but it hurts doing even the slightest thing like breathing," I said, my breath hitching and I can barely speak properly.

"You've got it hard, man. I acted crazy way earlier than you, like on my second session, I was already acting crazy so it didn't take me long to regain my composure," she said and thought for a while, "It might take you a longer time to heal and you would be having a lot of scars that might never heal."

I kept quiet as I didn't know what to say. Honestly, after all these, I don't even care if I have scars, maybe I'll look more manly. I snickered at that thought. I'm lucky that my wound isn't infected yet, well if it did, I didn't feel it at all and it's not that I can even see it. I can barely move my head to look at the wounds on the front part of my body.

She lifted my shirt and her eyes widen, she was so shocked she could barely speak. Nevertheless, she still laughed as convincing as possible. Sounds of footsteps were heard and she laughed even louder. She put my clothes down and started the poke all over my chest. The door flung open and I growled lowly at her. She stopped laughing abruptly and growled back, giving a warning. I stopped and looked as scared as I could and shut my eyes.

I listen to the door closing and slowly opened my eyes to see that the guard is gone. She lifted my shirt again and ran her fingers across the wounds, "Say, were you blessed by a spirit, guarded by a guardian angel, or have a protector?" she asked as if she knew something I don't. "How did you know?" I breathe out, squinting my eyes slightly at her. I have all three of the ones she stated. What does it mean?

"Your wounds, it's infecting weirdly and there hasn't been something like this for a long time so I just assumed," she explained. Weird? What does she mean by weird? I don't get it. Why weird?

She took my hand and placed it on my chest. I could feel my wounds split apart and big blobs moving in my flesh. Why can't I internally feel it? Was I too numb? I probably am. "If I help you sit up better, will you be able to see your legs and arms?" She asked. I nodded slightly as I don't have the energy to even say a word.

She laughed and pulled me up so I was sitting better, not that I could feel my back before either. I looked down at my legs, my eyes widen as I see blobs moving in my skin. They were green ones, making my skin almost too dark green color with the blood, the slit, and the orb things. What are those? What is happening? I looked at the girl, "Why?"

"Legend has it, if you have one of the three, you're supposed to be able to self heal quicker in general and can quicken it even more by meditating but your wounds are infected so it's acting up. I have no idea if it's a good thing or not, blood is still coming out and drying on the surface, so I really don't know. We need to get you cleaned up," she said. I nodded and let her do what she can to help me.

"What's your name? I never asked and you never said," I asked slowly. She grabbed the damp cloth and run it over my wounds. I hissed as it stings so badly. "It's Kyra, pronounced as Ki-ra, what about you?" she asked. She took out a bottle from her shirt and poured out a little water on the towel to keep it slightly damp and continued wiping my wounds.

"I'm Arran," I simply replied to her question. She went to the corner and squeezed out the liquid in the tiny towel and poured a little water on it again and came back to repeat. It stings, water touching the open wounds stings. I am so not ready for when she applies the medicine if she will.

She repeated the few steps a few times until my wounds on the front of my body were clean. She helped me lay on my stomach to make sure the guards don't see it cleaned. "It's getting late, I'll come back next time, I'm sorry I can't clean everything today," she apologized. "It's fine, but what if they come and give me another session?" I asked worriedly.

"They won't, you could say, you proved them that you're crazy. Well, if you're worried, as long as a patient disturbs you and bully you in any way, they usually will leave you alone, I'll bring the rest of the crew here, but you won't see them often after that, they'll be helping the others heal."