Origins

Pain. So much pain.

It hurt to breathe. She moved her tongue around her mouth to check if her teeth were still there. To her relief, somehow, they all were there. Kathryn relaxed her tongue and let the blood slip down her throat. It's iron taste brought her back.

Nothing tastes like blood.

She tried to open her eyes but she could tell that one was swollen shut. Even that simple act brought a rush of new aches all over her face.

I'm alive. Still alive. Breathe. Slowly. Go se ...

Kathryn lay still. The blood still trickled and when she tried to move her hands and feet she could hear a squishing sound. It reminded her of a child playing in mud.

Then the memory caught up with the moment of pain. The scenes were dark flashes like a black-and-white film ...

Dinner.

Drinks.

Talk.

Laughter.

Bedroom.

Ring.

Deny.

Argue.

Slap.

Scream.

Fight back.

Punch.

Scratch.

Claw.

Rip.

Enter.

Struggle.

Enter.

Suffer.

Enter.

Struggle.

Shriek.

Bubble.

Crack.

Splash.

Blood.

Black.

Silence.

Awake in a flood of agony and a sea of pain, Kathryn knew she survived. She knew she was whole. She tormented her body to follow her commands to move. This meant nothing was lost.

But her dignity.

She crawled to her hands and knees and could see the floor was soaking in the crimson ichor of death. A new shock came to her: her death?

Kathryn tried to scream but only air escaped from her throat and even that was an excruciating thing to try. She dry-heaved. Her throat caught fire as bile found it's way forward and out.

What happened?

Kathryn limped on all four to the front door. She bumped into every piece of furniture on the way, leaving smears of fresh blood. Before she could reach it her body surrendered to the shock and collapsed.

Sleep. Just sleep a little more so you can wake up from this horrible dream.

With that last peaceful thought, Kathryn drifted back to sleep. 

The splattered organic remains of Mark Vargis still dripped from the ceiling and slowly slid down the walls into the corner.