Drowning Lessons

One white coat holds me against the wall while another strips off my clothes. I’m standing silently in a pair of black boxer shorts as they turn my room upside down. They pull all the clothes from drawers and pull off the bed sheets and mattress. They feel around the pillow case and look behind everything that can move. “Clean,” one announces just as another six white coats enter dragging a beat up Alex. His nose is dribbling blood onto his swollen lip. One of his eyes is half closed and there is a gash on the side of his head. They shove him down on the mattress where he lies unmoving. The white coats file out the door. “We’ll try get a nurse to you,” the last one mumbles as she closes over the door and locks it.
I leap down beside Alex, “Hey, Alex. Listen to me, fuck you’re head…” I pick up a t-shirt, ball it up and press it to the bleeding wound. The black fabric slowly gets darker and sticky.
“I wasn’t even doing anything,” Alex mumbles. “I would’ve if I had a useful fucking power. The white coats,” coughs, “couldn’t figure out who was fucking with the Captains head. Ryan was lying half unconscious,” cough, “but he continued to fuck with the Captain’s head until he was rolling around the ground in other people’s blood, screaming.”
I wince at that image. That’s fucking gross and on top of that the blood is probably Gee’s. After a while Alex sits up and holds the t-shirt to his head himself. “Can you sit up here against the wall?” I ask him. He nods and I gingerly help him over to the wall and prop him up on a pillow. He lies his head back against the bricks and presses the t-shirt into the wound.
I start piling clothes into drawers and try slide the drawers into place. I pick up the last one and slide back into place. It makes a sound that doesn’t sound like the solid smack the others made. In fact it sounds almost hollow. I pull the massive wooden chest of drawers out as much as I can and know on the back. A panel pops open. Inside is a pack of chewing gum and a scrunched up page.
I look over at Alex who is staring up at me from beside the door. “What’s that?” he asks trying to sit up straighter.
“Uh a note…” I unfold it and even it out on the drawers before heaving them back in place.
“I’ll read it out…
Dude, I’m “cured” now but I’m not aloud go home. The C says I’m going to witness protection but really he’s sending me off to some camp. He’s got all my strength dude, no amount of time in the gym will get me like that again. If you get this tell the others that the C is taking their powers for himself.
Remember old buildings; old passages
Zack”
Alex stares up at me. “Zack was my roommate before you came. He was cured and they said he was re-joining society. He was like seriously fucking strong….”
That’s why the Captain was able to throw Gerard so far and hard.
My stomach turns. What is meant by Remember old buildings; old passages?
As if reading my mind Alex says, “he had a fascination with the walls. Thought there was passageways or something. Will you put my mattress up so I can go to sleep now?”
I put a t-shirt and jeans on realising I’m still partially naked and then lift Alex’s mattress and sheets awkwardly back onto the bedframe. A nurse comes in just as I have my bed back together. I sit silently and watch as she tends to Alex’s wounds. When she’s about to leave I catch her by the elbow, “sorry miss can I ask you if Gerard Way has been admitted to the infirmary?”
She shuffles her feet slightly. “I’m not to say…”
“Please I just want to know if he’ll live.”
She looks sad. “Yea he’ll live, all the rebel freaks’ll be okay. Horrible term ain’t it. It’s been two hours and they’ve already named y’all,” she sighs, “you ain’t aloud to visit ‘em but they’re alive. Island’s on lockdown now.” She sighs and slips out of the room, doing up all the locks outside.
I turn off my lamp and go to sleep.

It’s the middle of the night when I jolt awake. The room is dark grey and long shadows are cast by the bright full moon outside. I sit up in bed. I can’t remember the nightmare but considering the reality of the evening I don’t think I want to.
I sit up and stare out the window. The bright moon has washed the world in a lifeless grey and the decay of October makes the view even more sombre. I slide out of bed and put socks on. The floor is still fucking cold but it’s better than it was. In a t-shirt and underwear I stand facing the iron bars. Alex had told me his last roommate had discovered the moving bars so maybe the bars did something else. I started pulling at and prodding the iron bars. After a few tries the bars slide upwards. I slot them back into place as quietly as I can.
With the island on lock down I won’t be able to see Gee if I don’t find these passages.
All the bars checked I move to the bricks. I push every brick I can reach on three walls, nothing.
I sit back down on my bed. I’m tired again and it’s still night. All the energy has been used up in poking bricks. I could get in a few hours’ sleep…
I lie back and hit my head off the bed post. Suddenly there’s a loud creak and the wall opens and the bed tips over.
Before I can figure out my thoughts I’m hurtling down a black hole. My face hits something cold and steel. My body soon follows suit and I’m sliding sharply down a slope. I come to a sudden stop as my face hits something rough and hard. My body crashes down and my face scraped along the rough ground.
I pick myself up and look around. Its pitch black except for cracks in floor boards right above my head. I look up and hear snoring. Standing up I’m just tall enough to fit in the passage. Were Zack down here I’m sure he’d have to bend double. I feel along the path till I find a black handle. I want to pull it but don’t know where it is so I look for a view point. I feel around the wall until I find a slot. I slip it aside and look in. I see a room much bigger than mine and full of beds.
I can’t tell who’s in them but I can see four sleeping bodies. I hear no sign of stirring so I pull the lever. A small creak lifts a patch of wall up. I bend down and crawl through into a bed of ashes. The wall falls back in to place behind me making a loud crash on the grate. One of the bodies sits up straight and gasps. The rest barely stir.
“Who’s there,” the voice comes high and familiar. The light from the window casts his shadow long on the floor.
“Shhhhh Kellin, it’s me Frank,” I whisper. There are no white coats in the room but I doubt they’re far.
“Hey Frank, please tell me what’s happened. Vic looks so sick and they won’t tell me why. He won’t wake up either…” He looks distressed.
I scratch the back of my neck, standing now. “Uh he was fucking badly drained, man, like you were and yea. Shit’s gone down…” I fill Kellin in on everything he’s missed while lying here unconscious.
He looks over at the other beds and frowns.
I tip toe across to a bed. I look down at Gerard. He is badly bruised and has a large gash on the back of his head which is partially visible. The pillow was splattered red.
My eyes well up with tears. Nope, not crying in front of Kellin.
I touch Gee’s cheek and then start off toward the fire place again. “I was never here Kellin, okay?”
He nods. Out of the corner of my eye I catch a glimpse of another body. I walk over and see Ryan Ross lying bruised and beaten in the bed. His lips are swollen and both eyes blackened. He has a bad gash to the side of his head which has been bandaged up. I feel so sorry for him.
It takes me embarrassingly long to find the lever from this side. I decide to keep following the passage. Twists and turns lead me to a sudden hole. It drops down hundreds of feet. I don’t know what possesses me to but I decide to go down it. I take a small leap and grab on to iron bars at the other side and begin to scale down the ladder.
Arms aching I finally hit ground again. The floor is wet.
Two tunnels stretch before me. Still not sure why but I start stumbling down one of them. By the time I get to the end of the tunnel it’s getting bright. I’m standing ankle deep in water. Two small boats are tied to the edge and the water stretches out before me for miles. On the horizon I can just about make out an island. Or at least that’s what I’m assuming it is.
I start making my way back up the tunnel.

They bring breakfast for Alex and I moments after I slip into bed. It’s a bowl of soggy cornflakes and a pot of coffee between us. All I can think is that Gee would be unhappy having to share his coffee.
Alex goes off for treatment with a ten man escort when they come back for the dishes. “Resist,” I whisper in his ear as he leaves. I take this as an opportunity to explore the passage. They said I’ll be getting treatment in the afternoon because after draining him they’re going to interrogate Alex. The poor guy looks horrified as they lead him out of the room. I push the bed post back and jump over the slide to a path on the other side. I obviously couldn’t see it in the night. I crawl along past other rooms. I see Bob and Ray sitting in one room through a peep hole. They’re nursing wounds and playing with dice.
I find Brendon in another pacing back and forth grimacing. I find a panel and press it, sliding open the wall of Brendon’s room.
His eyebrows shoot upwards. I silence him with a gesture. “Can’t stay long, Brendon. Just want to let you know Ryan’s alive.”
His expression calms and he sits down on a bed. His room is similar to mine just positioned differently.
“Where… How did you get through there?” he asks nodding at the wall.
“I’m not saying because if you’re anywhere near the Captain it would be dangerous.” I say quite sensibly.
He nods. “Alright. What are we going to do Frank? About all this?”
“We’re not giving in anyway,” I grin, “We’re going to keep our powers and fucking leave this place as soon as we can get shit together.”
He looks out the window almost sombre. “I know it’s mad but I never gave a damn about the weather. I could give this power away right now. I don’t want it if it means my friends get tortured. I never gave a damn about the weather and it never gave a damn about me.”
“No, no shut up we need it okay we need everyone to keep their powers as long as possible,” I gush.
“Yea I know. Anyway you better get out of here because I’m up soon. I’ll resist don’t worry. I’ll turn away while you leave so no one sees where you came from in my thoughts.”
“Thanks Brendon. Any messages for Ryan?”
“Tell him he’s brave and to keep fighting,” he says and then smirks. “And say that the sooner he gets better the sooner we can, y’know. That’ll speed up the healing process.”
I shake my head but agree anyway. I push the bed post and hop into the passage.

Five days we’ve been resisting. Gee was out of the infirmary when I went to peep in which scares the shit out of me. I found that the other passage leads to under the dungeons and not to the sea. I spoke with Andy who is ready to help with everything whenever, just to give him electricity.
I decide to search again this evening for Gee. There’s one length of passages I haven’t checked yet.
Alex is sleeping off his treatment which he resisted so well they beat him but he only managed to falter a little. To my disgust I saw it all from the passage but couldn’t do anything.
I hop in to the dark dank mini corridor and run along it’s now familiar, narrow paths. I skid around a few corners and climb a ladder, crawl through a vent and finally make it to the junction which could lead me either to more rooms or in a mysterious direction.
I look through peep holes into an empty chamber. The next is the same all wood floors and brick walls with two chairs and a single light bulb overhead.
The third one’s the charm though. I look through the peep-hole down into a room with would floors, brick walls, a single lit bulb and two occupied chairs.
“It amazes me Way how you still won’t give up. I’ve been working on you triple strength for months,” the Captain spits the last word.
Gerard looks broken in the chair. His expression is dangerous and sad and he has gashes and bruises everywhere.
The Captain and Gee are both connected to a big machine by wires joined to their temples.
“Look Gerard I’ll give you another hit if you give me some. Just a little for another big strong hit. That number 0 just has to go up to a two okay, no more. But you have to let me. It’s not even that much and then you’re brother will be safe because, Gerard, if I drain all Mikey’s power too quickly you know what’ll happen. And you know how easy that’d be for me.”
Gerard starts crying in his chair. His body shakes gently and his tears stain his jumper. “Okay… just up to 2…” he mumbles.
A white coat comes into view and pulls a lever and Gerard throws his head back and cries. The weird lines on a screen shoot straight up in the air. The white coat pulls the lever down again and Gerard collapses in on himself.
The captain glances up at the line and smiles. “Thank you Gerard, here,” he says and extends a hand. Gerard’s eyes glaze over and his pupils double in size. His mouth drops open in a deranged smile. The Captain has hit him with Ray’s powers again.
Gee slumps off the chair and from the ground stares up at the bulb, giggling like an insane child. The image is very eerie. Ray’s power does something much more disturbing than any drugs I’ve ever seen and I’ve seen most.
“Something went wrong…” a white coat says staring at the machine.
“What?” The Captain demands incredulously.
“Mr. Way is wired differently it seems. His power is focused in an entirely different section of his brain. You have gained 2 from an entire different section of his brain, no power.”
The Captain rips the wires from his temples. “What the fuck are you saying Evan. I feel like I’ve gained something.”
“Try take my last memory, Sir. Then we’ll see whether or not my stats are as off as I think.”
The Captain stares at Evan the white coat. His face contorts with effort until finally his face falls. “So what from Gerard have I gained?”
Evan turns to the screen and types a series of letters into a keyboard. It seems something emotional. Do you feel anything different? Do you have Mr. Way’s craving for coffee or feel brotherly affection for his brother, Mikey?”
The Captain sits down, looking puzzled. “I feel an affection for someone else. I can’t tell who, just that there’s someone I need to protect, do you get me?”
White coat Evan nods slowly. “I think I follow you Sir. Will I bring Mr. Way to his room?”
“Yes. Do, please,” the Captain mumbles. When Evan the White leaves with Gerard awkwardly slumped across his shoulder the Captain strolls over to the window and stares down at the sea mumbling something I can’t hear.

Notes

So this is a tad long... I'm not sure why but there you go. It took longer to write too, sorry. Next chapter soon with answers to most of the questions this could have brought up :3 leave a comment let me know what you think :D