Hallways of death 5

Collapsing to the floor, Ali and Akai's strength waned as the gas took its toll. Ali with little strength he had pulled Akai to the wall and they both lay against the wall.

"How did manage to come back?" he asked looking at the ceiling above them.

Akai looked up and sighed, "I don't know", she said, "it felt like I took little nap"

After taking the devastating blow from the monster, akai fell unconscious. All what she saw black abyss all around her. She ran all directions but road was never ending and she finally gave up. She waited there for a long time.

Nothing happened, and so, she fell asleep.

"I was sleeping peacefully there", she said, "it was clam and didn't know how much time had passed by then"

When she woke she was welcomed by excruciating pain all over her body, "ah..ah…" she moaned pain. When she tried to get up from sharp rubles under her, she was horrified to see an iron rod that stuck out her left waist.

She gulped hard and tried to pull it out but there was no way for that. She fell on the rod which was connected to the bricks below her. The only way was to pull her out of it. Akai sharply inhaled and exhaled. Using her foot as a spring, holding the edge of the rod with both hands she slowly pulled her body up.

The pain was unimaginable. Her whole body was screaming to just die instead. She gritted her teeth to the point that they bled. Akai screamed aloud and tears couldn't stop falling from her eyes. Every second of it felt like hell.

"God please help me", she cried in pain, "I am in pain"

She continued to scream because that was the only thing that eased her hellish pain for even a tiny bit of it. Time seemed to have going very slow at that time. It felt like hours to her, trying to pull herself out. She couldn't take it anymore.

Finally taking a risk, she kicked the ground with right leg and with all her power she pushed herself up in one go. Falling to the ground she screamed as loud and as hard as she could. She crawled into a ball clutching the deep hole in her guts to stop the bleeding.

She cried in pain while scratching the hard floor with nails that bled. Never did she think this would happen to her. All this only happened in the movies she watched. Every time the characters cried in pain she'd say that they were so weak but now that it had happened with her she could feel that.

It felt as if the pain would never stop, so, she punched the floor with her one hand to ease the pain and with the other she pressed her wound.

Minutes went by, and the pain had at last stopped and she could breathe again. The pain eased a little bit. Later she was able to stand up and look for her sword. 

"I looked for my sword and I found it stabbed at the wall. The sword did not break nor did ot have any tiny bot of scratch", her eyes were full of wonders, as she remembered how her sword was stuck to the wall to her right.

A cheap sword like that would have broken to pieces after that attack, yet it stood there much stronger then before, waiting for its owner to use it again.

"It felt like he was waiting for me"

"Wow, you seemed to love your sword too much that you even call it him", said Ali with sarcastic look.

"Off course!" she coughed on her reply, "it was a birthday present from three precious friends, there is no way I would let it get destroyed"

She started to bleed even more, "ah"

"Akai!" Ali quickly put his hands around Akai's waist and pressing the wound, while also pulling her close to him, so she could lean on him.

"You should go", Akai was barely inhaling any oxygen, "at least you can survive, you aren't injured as I am"

Ali pulled her even closer and said in serious tone, "I won't make the same mistake twice"

"Are you confessing your love?" asked Akai forcing chuckles which made her wound ache, "I won't accept it"

"Think whatever you want, but I won't leave", he said with the same seriousness and went quiet the rest of the time.

Akai too, gave up on persuading him to leave without her as she very weak from the injuries, not mention deadly poison she was inhaling. Breathing turned out to be the most difficult task now. 

 'Is this it? Am I supposed to die here like that? Injured and poisoned at the same time….along with a company...maybe this isn't half bad. Dear god, are planning to take me now? I'd be happy if you did….'

Akai thought to herself, was she finally leaving from this world? Leaving her family behind? She felt bad that she had to be accompanied by some to the afterlife.

She laughed lightly at the unexpected situation she ended.

"You could laugh at this time?" Ali feeling shocked and amazed at the same time.

"I am someone who laughs at the most serious times, buddy' she said still trying to laugh, "How unlucky you are to be dying along with me" 

"you must have entered this world by putting your leg first"

Say what you want buddy" she scoffed, barely, "that's what I am"

Ali smiled, feeling comforted even when they were about to die at any minute now.

Both clung to each other, their breathing becoming labored and their vision dimming. With no way to escape the poisonous fog, they were left to confront the grim reality of their situation. As consciousness slipped away, they waited, their fates sealed by the cruel twist of their circumstances.

Moments before Akai's eyes completely closed, the wall in front of them burst and from the fog of dust came out a shadowy silhouette. They rushed inside and knelt in front of her.

From the blurry view, she could only make out the metal mask.

"You found her?" someone from behind him said. That was all she could hear, after that everything became a background noises.

And her view became pitch black.