History in the Making - Part 33

Post date: Jun 23, 2016 8:23:35 AM

A new day is starting... A ray of hope rise from the remains of some shades left by a nearby window, hit me with the first sunlight rays straight in the eyes.

I wakeup slowly feeling the laziness leaving my body as I try to move myself. Finally, I find my way to sit in a quirky way and my brain starts to tease me with the business at hand and the problems we'll face ahead. I start to feel heavy as I lift myself... stretching my arms as I let loose some weird noise... guess I'm just being grumpy.

Without time to enjoy it, Felicia enters the room in a rush and nearly flew against me! I don't really know how I was able to hold her off but somehow I saved myself at the same time, by grabbing her paws... She grunted with her happy tail, twirl a couple of times and left. I sit back trying to fully awake from my slow spring and she's back again with that inexplicable insane happiness. This time, a new partner in crime appeared... it was Donna, curiously observing from the outside of the room.

- I thought you were an early bird and not a lazy bum! I guess my father was just wrong. Get up and let's get going! - She announced.

- I'm not... - I stopped myself and just began to gather my belongings. - Do you need help with anything? - I asked loudly.

- No... just... just feeding her before we go.

- Ok... I'll wait for you both downstairs. - And with that, I left.

The air outside if still very much filled with dust still settling down, but you can feel a sweet breeze that feels like the morning...

The bike was were I left it but now it's almost irrelevant for there is only one. At least it can carry our stuff like a mule would. I parked right beside an upside down car in the street already burned down. Lost myself in thoughts when smoothly I felt a hand over my shoulder making me turn my head suddenly.

- Didn't want to frighten you! I'm... sorry! - While continuously looking at me, she throw me a half smile and then something pushed her a step forward forcing her to grab hold of my shoulder to balance herself. Felicia is being a trickster again...

- No worries... - I replied as I grabbed her opposite elbow to help her when she got struck. - Now you, miss Felicia - I continued in a pranky kind of way... - ...you do that again and you'll be in big trouble missy! Now come on!

With her head clearly down she slowly starts to walk in the direction I've randomly pointed. Meanwhile, Donna was laughing and shaking her head but she also started walking in the same direction following her.

- Ladies! I know I pointed that way but we haven't discussed itinerary and there's somewhere I wanted to go before going to the port. - I paused I bit... - Maybe the best course of action is for you and Felicia to go to the port and I'll catch-up later! Sounds good?

- ...fine. - She sigh heavily but didn't move.

- What's wrong? Did you wanted to come with?

- No, not at all. I get it. You have somewhere to be and I understand that. I just thought that we weren't splitting up, but don't worry it'll be just fine.

- What? No! There's just a book and a special memento that I want to pick up if at all possible 'cause I feel like I may not have another opportunity. That's all. - A big silence stand while our eyes crossed. Do you want to come with me?

It seamed that the only audible answer I'm getting is from Felicia that barked righ away, for Donna just stand ready, asking...

- So... where to?

- We'll go that way! If we get good pacing, we can get there by the end of the day, maybe a little earlier.

Donna called Felicia and they both just started to walk in the last direction that I pointed. I stand there ready to go but unable to leave it alone what just happened. I stared at them walking away until they noticed and called me up... Rushing my pace in the beginning I quickly caught up to them.

The leftover roads are mostly nothing more than just pathways these days. As we walk over them, they prove to be fragile and very brittled making us fall more times than we care to count and delaying or arrival, but still, as the night starts to fall over us, we've arrived.

Although some of it are still standing, practically everything is destroyed, including my 'once upon a time home'. An enormous pile of rouble is all that's left of the front of the building and also the only way to get in as unsafe as it may look. Everything everywhere looks unsafe or destroyed all around us...

- I'm going in! If... something... happens, better not go try and help. Just walk away and go directly to the port. It's that way! - After a short pause I continued. - I hope to be back in about an hour tops... but...

I waited for a response... some kind of reaction but... No more words were uttered, only a minor head shake in agreement and I left adventuring myself up the pile.

The mere climb was steep and treacherous leading me to the ground quite some times before I was able to get to the top and find some stable footing and a hole as an entrance to get in. The Sun was already setting and it's probably a bad idea to be in there with the aggravation of partially no light. Still, I'm somehow confident.

After getting in through the hole, I found myself in a big room with a long yet cracked dinner table at the end of it, a lot of smashed chairs laying around the table with only two of them still in one piece. On the side that I entered I'm guessing there was a TV and such since there are broken electronics mixed with rubble. A large single piece carpet fills most of the floor with an odd pattern of a giant flock of birds splitted in two groups. The light and the dark ones. Both groups flying towards each other. I stand there for a moment wondering what that could mean for the owner... Next to that room is the hallway and main entry. Aside from loads of dust and sand, nothing much is happening in here. My place is at the opposite end of the building and three floors up from where I'm standing, so in order to proceed, I confidently open the exit door and in doing it so I almost got under the large boulders that came crashing inwards. Big scare there but at least it left a way to crawl upwards and that's were I went...

A lot of dust is in the air due to the rock slide from before and because of that, I had to cover my breathing while crawling through the maze that became of the broken stairs. Finally arriving at my floor I noticed my door top shattered but with no signs of entering or tempering with it. It also doesn't look like a fresh break. A small boulder is locked on the side of the hole in the door and water from a broken wall sprinkles over it, darkening the exposed side of the rock.

With a little fear I slowly unlock and start to open the door. The small mountain of rocks by it remained completely in place even I slide entered my 'Once upon a time' home.

I had quite the big apartment divided by a kitchen, a bathroom, the small entrance hall, a good living room, a master bedroom and a secondary bedroom made into a library. Unfortunately, most of it's completely destroyed or impossible to access. From the rooms I have access, I grab my portable bag of tools of when I think of playing 'Mister Fix-it-all', a tablet where I stored some precious photos from the past, a book that I wrote and some other small odds and ends that I could get my hands on.

Lastly, I grabbed my cereal box still unopened and noticed the phone power cord. Hesitant, I ended up stuffing it all in my backpack.

Heading out, I noticed that between entering and searching, a good two hours have almost passed...

I look hesitantly to the exit I'll have to squeeze myself in and a little tremor runs down my spine like a warning. Still, I venture myself. Although scary, dusty and as dark as it lacks space to move freely, all was going fine until... my original entrance no longer existed. It had caved in somehow!

I have no choice but to go back and move upwards along the floors until I find an exit. As it was said, it was also done. Two floors up, there was an entrance to an apartment openly destroyed and some natural light could be seen in the distance as some kind of reflection. Being cautiously optimistic I venture inwards. A lot was destroyed but a clear path the balcony was available! The blinds were almost completely shut hence the darkness in that room. But it was a darkness with rays of hope! I've opened the balcony doors, went into the kitchen to grabbed a broom and went back. Since it's electrical blinds and no power is running through these walls, I must force it into opening and so it is. At first is was really hard to pull up but I managed to pull enough to such the brooms head. I took my time to rest and get my breath back, and then it finally gave it another go. This time, right from the get go, I felt it snap and all became easy enough for me pull up the rest. I probably broke the lock and because of that it won't hold itself pulled up, but I was counting on something like this happening and so I stuck the broom upright under it, securing it by its height.

As I entered the balcony, dirt, dried leaves and a ripped bag of plastic already deteriorating, fills the floor. The railing looks in perfect condition considering... I'm not very fond of heights and that's... well... too much! And if that's not enough, there's only rocks under it. I'm on the opposite side on where I entered in the building, and as such Donna won't be able to see me or even hear me. From where I am though, I could see Felicia sniffing around so I drop a vase to call her attention and it worked. She approached the shattered vase and I called to her. She responded immediately when she looked up and saw me, and after a couple more barks, she fled.

Analysing my situation, I realise that this is as low as I'm gonna get. Other possible exists are only at higher spots. So, I devise a plan to get lower no mater the fright it may cause me. And so, I went back inside the get all the bed sheets I can find and get my hands on, pilled them over the balcony exit and as I went for more, I thought a heard a voice coming from outside. Looked around, but didn't saw anyone.

I don't know much of it but I do know a couple useful knots like the "double fisherman's knot", which I immediately started to use to lock together the fabric that I had found, so I can create something like a rope.

Finishing it, looks sturdy enough for me to use. Now, the only thing missing is the 'lock' which I'm planning on creating from these curtains. I'm hoping that they are as strong as they look.

I twist them together for more resistance and started twirling like a snake through a couple of the bars in the railing of the balcony until, after completely twisted together, I binded then together using the same knot as before. From there, I took one end of my newly made rope, and twist and turned with my lock making sure it was as secure as I could possibly get, and throw outside the rest, stretching it along the building.

Starting at the uneven floor from the balcony I try to get myself used to the height and to get courage to overcome my fear of heights. For a moment, the wind blows hard, like pushing me over the railing. When it pass, I somehow loose my grip and as a small earthquake hit, it was enough to push me out.

By sheer luck, I end up grabbing my 'rope' and I thank it a million times that it is holding my weight, and the earthquake stops. Shaking all over and with a racing heart, I fear the danger is not yet over, and I try to slowly drop-slide myself through the rope that I so dearly created, when I realise it will only get me to the first floor balcony. None the less, I took that opportunity with caution and from there it was actual a very easy parkur drop to the base level of the street.

At that moment I felt observed and was right about it... I had more than two pairs of eyes glancing at me all the time.