Not Enough - Part 4

Instructions

WARNING: IF YOU ARE SENSITIVE TO THREATS OF DEATH, PLEASE DO NOT READ THIS PART. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ I felt the elevator shifting, but I didn’t know whether it was moving up or down. The Pura dropped me on the ground and I slowly stood up, just as the elevator jutted to a stop. The door slid open, and I had to squint, adjusting to the brighter light outside. I was pushed out, my hands held behind me, being greeted by hoods and sullen eyes. There were about six people all huddled in a circle, surrounded by tall, intimidating Pura, guarding them. Some looked like they were there a long time, with dirty clothes, scruffy hair, and pleading eyes. Others were sitting with guarded expressions on their faces, their eyes flicking left and right suspiciously. The thing in common with all of them were the chains around their wrists. ‘What’s going to happen to us?’ I thought, frightened. As if they were reading my thoughts, one of them looked up at me and shook their head. I was shoved down, landing hard on my behind, and I felt a sudden cold as a pair of handcuffs were attached to my own wrists, making me a part of this big, terrible chain. I noticed that some of the Pura were taller than the other, and only now did I noticed that not all of them were fully inhuman. Some looked unsure, and some others looked rather uncomfortable. There was one of them, around my height, who was shuddering slightly. I could see their hands through the long, grey sleeves, and I saw that they still had a human skin tone. I gasped, receiving the attention of a few others. “He’s not fully turned…” I breathed to myself, barely even hearing it. I hear a rustle, and I notice the first member of the chain lifted up by the cuffs. One by one, all of the rejects were dragged up in the air, hanging like dolls in invisible arms. As I felt myself lift off the ground, I drew in a sharp breath, not used to levitating in this way. A tall, spindly Pura was moving their fingers at us, as if they were counting us, hanging weakly by our wrists. I shut my eyes for a moment, my view coming back quickly as the little chain jolted to a stop, suddenly being released and dropping to the ground. I stood, facing a large, open pit. My blood pounded in my ears, and I looked around frantically as I was dragged towards it and was made to stand right by the edge. I looked down the hole, seeing nothing but darkness, but I heard a slow, steady ticking. I stared at where I thought it was coming from, but I find nothing. Frowning, I turn around and glare at the Pura. The shorter one I had noticed before was standing near the back, strategically looking the other way, his hand gripping his staff like a vice. The slender Pura from before was standing with the other Pura in a circle a few metres wider that the pit that we were by. They moved a finger, and slowly, the first reject in the chain, the one directly next to me, was pulled farther towards the edge. I could see the terror in his eyes as he tripped over, being forced to dive headfirst into the pit. He suddenly jerked to a stop, being held there. The invisible hands holding him let go, and he plummeted farther into the pit, screaming until an abrupt silence. As the silence came, the slack on the chain connecting him to the next reject was pulled straight, causing her to begin to fall. She let out an agonizing screech, and continued to fall until she disappeared from view, pulling the next reject down with her. This terrible cycle continued, each person falling off one by one, until the somebody the person next to me got pulled down. He screamed, being pulled down extremely quickly. My eyes widened and I started screaming as I felt myself dropping, although my eyes were squeezed shut. Building up the courage to open my eyes, my vision came back as a wide circle, slowly fading. The infuriating tick seemed to stop as I fell farther, and I had stopped screaming in blind fear, leaving nothing but silence.