Broken Wings

Chapter 3

I awoke to the soft patter of rain hitting sheet metal above me. It was still cloudy but still light enough for me to realize it must have been the next day perhaps around 10 am. I shakily got to my feet. A sharp jolt of pain ran through my body as I put my weight on my left foot.
“At least I can stand” I said to myself. I have a tendency to talk to myself. I guess it’s cause I normally don’t have anyone to talk to. I wandered around this lab. Walking over to the overturned desks that riddled with yellowing documents and files. Glancing over a few they all made mention to some type of mineral that was under study by a lone geologist. Reading further it seemed he had come across a unique mineral that had the strangest properties and all this other nonsense about the professor seeing images and encountering strange otherworldly sensations when in direct contact with the mineral.

The pain had subsided for the moment I felt as though I could search around for this so called magic mineral. After all I was essentially trapped in this crazed professor’s secret lab and I was in no real hurry to find a way out the Darkside made certain of that. I continued to limp my way around the area and my eyes chance upon seeing a calendar,
Although still weathered and yellowed I could just barely make out the text.
“October…year…1958” Weird, perhaps because of the Cold War this farm constructed a fallout shelter and this supposed crackpot took it over and turned it into a lab of sorts. Upon further investigation of the desks I found a journal which was the personal one of this so called scholar. None of the details in it were particularly interesting just random tests and hypotheses on where and how this mineral came to be formed. The last entry however, was of some importance as it explained that this mineral could not be formed by act of natural processes here on earth. Strangely enough the final theory explained that the stone was synthetic in origin and functioned as a two way communication device due to the fact that whenever in contact with the mineral the scholar explained he could feel and experience things on the other side so to speak. When taking two samples of the mineral, from the details of one experiment , and placed in separate rooms one being kept at a cool temperature and the other at mild 70 degrees Fahrenheit the stone transferred cold air to mild room and vice versa.

This was fascinating to say the least but it had no bearing on my current predicament. Feeling tired from all the reading and the constant throbbing in my head I decided to find a more comfortable place to sleep. Looking around a side door went off down a buttressed hallway. As luck would have it a small bedroom was discovered complete with a king sized bed and a few blankets. Unsure as to how sanitary the area was I decided to just grab a few blankets and sleep on the floor.
Little did I realize as I began tugging on the sheets something was holding them down. With a powerful pull I yanked the sheets out and much to my horror a decayed, bone white skeleton was there to greet me. I didn’t scream but the mere fact as I was this close to a dead human being this whole time was extremely unnerving. Despite how fearful I was of touching anything around this corpse I noticed an object glittering in his right hand. It was teal in coloration giving off a soft glow that reflected off the skeleton’s stark white bones. His left hand held what looked like a note of some sort and curiosity overwhelmed my fear. I quickly snatched both the mineral and note at once and left the room slamming the door behind me which seemed to shake the whole basement. Making note not to do that anymore, I gave the mineral a closer look. It was shaped like well, nothing in particular but touching it made me feel warm. As if every care or worry I had would work itself out. I pulled out the note and began to read.

"October 23rd 1960, well I have been down here a good two years now. Ever since I chanced upon this mineral while on a geologic survey in Greenland my life took a turn for the worst. I became obsessed with figuring out what this thing is. Why do I feel as though I am not myself when I hold it? Why did I take a knife to my loyal assistant while under its effects? I became a murderer and had nowhere else to go. I disappeared and started my false life as a field hand on the nearby farms. The toil and arduous work was downright spirit shattering but the mineral for whatever reason kept me going. I became a fanatic upon discovering the old shack off the farm I made it into my base of operation and I continued to study this fascinating stone. I suppose it does not matter now the cough has gotten worse blood has come up more than once. I can’t sleep anymore sweating all night thrashing about the only thing that keeps me sane is this stone…my work was for nothing….too tired now…."

The note ended. I couldn’t help but feel sorry for this man. He did nothing wrong and yet the stone almost seemed to in itself kill him. Angrily I said “he didn’t deserve this” as I threw the mineral at the wall. It shattered on impact sending shards everywhere. For a second I thought the stone had explosive properties as the fragments flew out at extreme speeds. Pieces managed to imbed themselves in my skin around my hands and arms. The pain in my foot paled in comparison to this agony. I toppled to the floor in a heap clutching my arms close to my body as they began to burn like fire. Enjoy the pain, relish in it the after all it’s what you deserve Darkside said as I gritted my teeth holding in a scream. Strange sensations over took me I felt as though I was reliving someone else’s memories. I saw a small village with thatched roof houses. Everything was vibrant and cheery, I heard laughter and conversations coming from a small café in what looked like a downtown of sorts. I spotted a large tree which seemed to have been hollowed out to function as a house and gravitated towards it. WHAM!! A cyan colored creature slammed into me and shocked me back to reality. The pain was so intense by this time I barely noticed the shards in my arms begin to glow. My blurred vision could barely make out the spot where the stone shattered but I saw a vibrant teal colored glow engulfing the room.

I couldn’t take the pain anymore as I felt the warm light wrap around me I passed out all the while hearing a voice in the background a faint whisper “Oh my gosh oh my gosh, Pinkie pie are you okay?!”