Fan Fiction ❯ Karma Coma- Part Two ❯ Part two ( Chapter 1 )

KarMa Coma

A Random Tale Of Oddness

By Sarah Maguire,

The Lactost-Intolerent Eater Of Cheese

 

 

 

Disclaimer:

Shasta, Ceres, Taigo, Strongbad and all original characters are property of Sarah Maguire (ie: moi) and thus,

should not be used by anyone without the creator's express permission.

If you would like to archive this or any other of my fictional works,

please email me for details at:

shasta_mac_nasty@hotmail.com

 

 

Author's Notes:

Eghad! Has it been fve months since I posted part one?! Forgive my lack of updates, but I've been distracted by this strange little thing called 'life on the otherside of the monitor'...that and for the last few weeks, my creativity's been shot to hell. Damn Writer's Block..*grumble*

Still, I wrote part one under the influence of the dreaded Mental Rubix Cubes, so part two should be a breeze.

I have nothing else to say here, so um..... enjoy the fiction?

 

 

 

 

 

 

~*~*~*~*~

Karma Coma

Part Two

~*~*~*~*~*~

 

 

 

Thump-thump-thump.

 

One spindly hand reached up to claw at the painfull drumming in my chest, breath coming in short, ragged bursts. I could still feel his hands against my thigh, brushing against two years worth of hidden torment...touching upon my darkest secret.

 

Thump-thump-thump.

 

My heart felt like it would leap from my throat at any moment, pounding franticly against my ribcage as a torrent wave of shock and nausea crashed down upon me. His taste still lingered on my lips.

Soft like a velvet rose yet sultry like dark chocolate. Part of me longed to experience his kiss once more, but inside, the demon screamed in horror.

I could'nt let him in...not now...not when I had a mission to fufill.

 

Love was nothing to me...a foolish emotion that served only to stand in the way of my goals..

 

Yeah....that's what you keep telling yourself, Ceres.. the dark voice mocked me, cackling sinisterly in my ears.

 

Shut up....shut up.....SHUT UP!! I screamed inwardly, feeling the first stab of icey cold tears blur my vision. Removing the delicated purple frames, I rubbed my eyes on my sleeve and took a deep breath.

 

Be calm...he's only provoking you... my heartbeat began to slow to a nervous pace, the rush of blood in my ears dying away to leave only the garbled voices of the shoppers surrounding me.

 

Raising my head up to steal a glance, I found myself seated on one of the iron-wroth benches dotted around the ground floor, a blur of men, women, screaming children and normality rushing past as the sun slowly dipped into the horizon, the orange glow in the skylight above fading into the first lavender hues of evening. It must be getting late, I thought to myself, slowly rising from my tiny saunctuary.

 

There seemed to be no sign of Taigo....

 

Relief flooded my being. I could'nt deal with him...not now..not after...not after..

 

No.

 

I pushed the incident from my mind, burying it deep inside myself until it lay alone in the darkness, in a secret place I rarely opened even to myself...I could'nt get involved with him...just one kiss...one kiss would unlock that secret vault...one kiss..and my secret would be out in the open..

 

With an unnatural surge of energy, I found myself running through the crowds of shoppers, pushing and shoving my way through the sea of faceless people in a bid to escape the dark walls that were closing in around me. My feet pounded the pavement without mercy, relentless until, bruised and broken, I collasped in a heap outside Shasta's front door.

 

For what felt like an eternity, I sat there on the porch steps, my ankles twisted and gushing scarlet blood as I stared up with sheer hopelessness at the darkening sky.

 

Am I not allowed to experience happiness? I questioned the distent stars, feeling raindrops mingle with the tears of despair that trickled delicatly down my face.

 

 

 

“Why can't I forget what you've done to me......father...?”

 

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Not wishing to face Taigo or the rest of the gang, I spent the rest of the evening curled up on my futon, shaking for all the dark thoughts swimming through my brain. Even in a world so far removed from my own reality, he still haunted me, his hands tightening around my neck like a tourniquet until every last breath of freedom was choked from my body..

 

My eyes searched the bare room for the upteenth time, looking for something..ANYTHING that could ease a tiny bit of the pain.

Alas, I could find nothing, not even a razor blade on the bathroom shelf or a nail scissors on the vanity desk. Nothing to help stab away my torment.

Maybe it's for the best; the angel on my shoulder mused; Bleeding yourself dry is'nt the answer...your pain only makes him stronger..

 

“But I want to bleed...I want to see the pain come to the surface and watch it heal...” I thought outloud, feeling dirthy for thinking such omnious things. With a whimper, I buried my face in the tubular pillow, hoping in vain that it might suffocate me and release me from this burden I was forever doomed to carry.

Just when I was about to sacrifice my last breath to the darkness, however, a sudden series of bangs, crashes and explosions made me jolt upright.

 

“What..?!” I gasped, brows furrowing at the slightly muffled sounds coming from beneath the floor boards.

 

“You bastard! You dirthy, rotten bastard!!”

 

Was that..Shasta's voice? It was too muffled to make out...and yet, it sounded so familiar.

I knew better than to eavsdrop, but force of habit compelled me to move closer, to witness the full fight for myself..

Getting up slowly from the futon, I crept silently towards the door, heading out onto the upstairs landing. The noise seemed to amplify ten fold as I approched the stairwell...the unmistakable sound of a vicious argument.

 

“All this time I thought you'd changed! All this time, I was a fool to believe you'd become a better man!” Shasta was half-screaming, half hiccoughing as I neared the kitchen door.

 

Peeking through a foot-wide gap in the door frame, a tiny gasp escaped my throat.

 

Pots, pans and plates littered the once pristine kitchen, unidentified foodstuff smearing the terracotta walls and the handsome oak table on which I had first been introduced to this strange crowd of lunitics, lay overturned and splintered in several places.

In the centre of all this chaos stood Shasta, squaring up to a raven haired man who was leaning against a counter-top, practically crimson in the face with rage.

 

“What the hell do you want me to say?! That I'll willingly give up my wife and daughter for a bit of fun on the side? You knew from the start this was'nt serious!” he spat, face screwed up, painted crimson in anger.

 

I jumped, the slow realization dawning on me. Once shaggy haired and dishivelled, Strongbad was now clean-shaven and sleek, his ebony hair cut short and spiked into a near flame-shape save for several fallen strands hanging in fierce amber eyes.

Unable to believe his startling transformation, my eyes suddenly fell upon a number of purple blemishes on his neck..

 

..Hickeys!

 

“You told me you were having problems! You told me you'd leave her for me....but now I find you, reeking of her cheap perfume, sneaking back into my bed in the middle of the night like the dirthy rat you are..! You can't keep playing with my emotions, Strongbad! You have to choose between us! Me or Mamuro?!” Shasta hiccoughed, her emerald eyes glazed with tears of anger.

 

I blinked, confusion clouding over my mind. Strongbad had a family? Funny...I don't remember writing that....

 

“You know the answer to that, woman! Don't you dare try to come between me and my family!” he spat, teeth bared in a snarl.

 

With movements faster than lightening, the young pink haired woman lunged at him, beating her tiny fists against his bear-like chest, screetching incoherently like a madwoman.

 

“You..dirthy...son..of a bitch..! If you were divorced, things might've been different....but you're still sleeping with her! You're still playing us both for fools! Well, I won't have it! All these lies..the change of style...the long hours.... can't take it anymore! You are scum! I should'nt known better than to get involved with the likes of you-!” she wailed, trying fruitlessly to hurt him as he'd hurt her but to no avail.

 

Instead, he meerly grabbed her wrists and shoved her hard against the counter top, causing her to stumble and fall to the debris-strewn floor.

 

“You knew all this from the beginning! Why are you throwing it at me now?!” Strongbad snarled dangerously, eyes narrowed to near slits as he stood towering over the pink-head, trapping her in his shadow.

 

“I thought you loved me enough to end it! But now I find you leading a double life!” Shasta's sobs were like nails on slate to my ears. I wanted to turn away, to escape the violent scene playing out before me...to run from the cackling electricity in the air, the calm before the storm..but something compelled me to stay...to watch the carnage..

 

“You thought I loved you?! Ha! Stupid woman! You're a fool if that's what you believe!”

 

 

....Why that dirthy, rotten-

 

 

“BASTARD!” Shasta screamed, grabbing the first blunt object she could find and whipping it at his head..but the bear-like brute was faster, meerly ducking in time before wrenching her roughly to her feet by the wrists and pinning her against the wall with full weight of his body.

 

“You are nothing to me...only a playtoy to sastisfy needs Mamuro could never fufill...nothing more, nothing less. Deal with it..” his voice was icy cold and a calm monotone, his breath hot on her cheek. I watched her squirm, struggling against his grip as his hands dipped low, slipping from my view.

 

Something changed in her eyes...they widdened to saucers..

 

“Strongbad..Strongbad, NO-!” she tried to scream, only to be muffled by one burly, calloused hand clamped hard over her mouth. I watched his free hand move with aching slowness. It was travelling along her knee, long nails scrapping soft olive flesh...trailing up towards the hidden secrets beneath the frilled hem of her sundress.

 

“...my little playtoy.....I'll show you just how much I love you.”

 

That voice....that horrid, mocking voice....I'd heard it before. The unmistakable drawl of a dark man, a sadist who knew no joy but the pain of others. My breath quickened to the point I thought I was on the verge of seizure, blood surging through my veins at lightning speed, garbling Shasta's muffled screams and her tormenter's wicked laugh.

Something snapped inside of me, causing a veil of red to cloud my eyes and blur all lines of sanity. Only rage made sense and as I stormed through that wood-chipped door, I knew nothing but vengence.

 

I would make him pay.

 

“Nggh!” Shasta struggled fruitlessly, her thrusts subsiding to a few feeble attempts at struggling as her body tired itself out fighting. Hot tears spilled from her bright emerald eyes, full of sheer terror as the beast blew hot sulphur breaths onto her delicate skin, one twisted, gnarled hand buried beneath the worn hem of her dress, shaking and jerking violently as he fumbled with her underclothes.

 

I saw myself reflected in her irises as I advanced on Strongbad, saw the venom etched upon my face...but it did nothing to deteer me, and as I raised the butcher knife from the ruined table, two years of pain and anger flowed like a torrent sea of hot lava around my soul, screaming for me to do it- to plunge the blade into his spinal cord and watch him die slowly, in bloody, twitching agony on the hard lino at my feet..

 

..Strongbad saw the venom. That reflection saved his pitiful life, but only just.

 

Just five seconds more...five seconds more and he'd be bleeding at my feet..

 

Instead, he whirled around on his heels to face me, features fixed in a glare that could freeze white fire. He hit me with the force of a speeding train, knocking me back against a wall so hard I felt something splinter behind me. Wheither it was the wall or my spinal collumn, I was too crippled by blinding pain to find out. Gritting my teeth, I willed myself not to give up, to fight back and prevent history from re-weaving itself.

 

The butcher knife lying scattered under some debris, I pulled myself upright, ready to face the demon that stood before me.

 

“Stay out of this, bitch! Don't meddle in things you cannot understand!”

 

“Aaahh, but that's where you're wrong, Strongbad...for I understand all too well. I know exactly what you are..” the words floated from my lips in such a calm, raspy voice full of evil that I could feel a tiny ripple of fear in my own blackened heart. Standing hunched from the pain in my spine, hair hidding my bloodied, bruised face but for my nose and mouth, I smirked.

 

I smirked wider than I ever smirked before, mocking him silently with pearly white teeth, my eyes crackling with rage beneath the veil of auburn before me. His lip curled in disgust, fists clenching once more as he readied himself for another attack.

“Oh, then do enlighten me, you psychotic little bitch. What am I?” he sneered mockingly, eyes narrowing to near slits as I took one shaky step towards him.

 

Feeling my hair shift from one of my eyes, I glanced up at him from my hunched-over state, the smirk widdening to a manical, Chesire Cat-like grin.

“...You are a dead man.”

 

It was then that all Hell broke loose. Lunging hard, the raven haired beast grabbed me around the throat with one huge, rough hand, the other slamming so hard into my jaw I could feel it shift out of place, a spurt of blood splashing from my mouth as I gasped in pain. Someone screamed, the shrill cries echoing from all angles.. was it me or Shasta? I did'nt know..darkness was threatening to consume my being, to rob me of my vengence and submit me to his violence. But I would'nt give up..not untill I made him pay..not untill I felt his heartbeat cease...just like I felt-

 

"STUPID...FUCKING...CUNT-WHORE..!!" Strongbad screetched, only just audible over the heavy crack of a boot against a delicate rib-cage. Blood sprayed like a crimson fountain from my mouth, my lungs burning with liquid fire on every breath.

I could feel it pouring down into my throat, clotting my lungs with each snap of a brittle rib. My strenght was sapping fast, but I still had the fire..I still had one last chance..

 

As he kicked me into a far corner, I saw it..the butcher's knife, lying so close I could feel the cold steel against my fingertips. Ignoring the fire in my body, I grabbed it, blade-side up without any thought of shredding my hands to ribbons and sliced it clean through the heavy leather of his pants. He ceased his kicks instantly, howling with agony as a new wave of blood pooled across the cracked lino.

 

"GRAHH!" he grabbed his near-severed ankle with both hands, white in the face from a mixture of shock and unfathomable rage, giving me just enough time to gingerly pull myself upright, leaning on a counter-top for support.

 

"Damnit..I missed.." a low grunt escaped my bathered lips, tingling as they tweeked into a sardonic smile;

 

"I should've aimed higher.."

 

I don't recall what happened next, but at some point, the sound of cold steel singing against a vinyl holster cut through the air of tension. Someone-a male voice- yelled incoherently through the blackening fog that clouded my vision. Sirens wailed beyond the kitchen walls and a young woman I knew was Shasta wepted hystericly nearby.

 

Everything turned blurry then...the darkness embraced me and I knew no more.

 

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The house had'nt changed one bit. Exactly as I'd left it...a run-down shack in the squalid Dublin suburbs, sun-burnt paint peeling from the crumbling walls, the battered wooden screen-door hanging limp from its rusted hindges. The stench of blood, sweat and alcohol hit me like a frieght train...HIS scent.

I felt the grubby mattress sag under my weight as he threw me against it, the rage in his dishivelled, hairy face enough to scare even the bravest of warriors.

My hands moved to my plump stomach, a futile attempt to sheild the innocence within from his fury..

 

"FUCKING WHORE!!" he shrieked like a man possessed, cocking the sawn-off shotgun in two bone-white, shaking hands. I knew he was going to kill me...kill me for daring to breathe in the sweet scent of freedom.

 

"NO! PLEASE!! NO..FATHER!"

 

BLAM!!

 

The tiny mound of flesh erupted in a furious spray of blood and entrails, splattering over the walls, the bed-sheets and both our faces. Liquid hot pain ripped through my abdomen, the deilcate organs slowly oozing towards the gaping wound. My eyes watered, teeth gritted from agony...but it was'nt the pain of a meer gunshot wound...no..it was the pain of grief...of seeing that tiny little ball of flesh lying limp before me...

 

A child..

 

...My child...

 

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Taigo was at my side when I woke up after what felt like an eternity, starring down at my battered body with genuine concern in his alluring sapphire eyes. I wanted to speak to him, but my mounth was filled with so many tubes and wires draining the blood from my lungs it was hard to breath let alone speak. He took one of my hands, gently stroking the bruised flesh with his fingertips, never dropping his gaze upon me.

 

"Ceres.." remorse resounded in his voice. A crinkle appeared between his silvery brows, olive skin tainted sallow with worry...something was'nt right.. something about him..about his features unnerved me. I looked at his hand, tenderly stroking my own.

Blood. Dark scarlet flakes caked to his bony fingers, trailing from beneath a grubby plaster cast that snaked it's way up to his elbow.

 

He was hurt. Badly.

 

Slowly, I moved my free hand, inching my fingers with aching slowness towards the call button. I had to talk to him..to tell him of the pain that resonated in my heart, to tell him of the fury that almost drove me to murder..

A few silent minutes passed between us, not a single word fluttering from his beestung lips as a nurse came to my aid. Soon, I could breath freely again, but barely, my lungs tingling with the soothing numbness of a morphine drip.

 

"You're hurt." My voice was a shadow of its former self, far removed from my stubborn, gritty tones of old to be replaced by a weak, feeble rasp. The nurse, sensing my actions before I could, slowly helped me upright, leaning me gently against a mass of fluffy white cushins before parting ways, leaving only Taigo and I alone in the cold white room.

 

"I'm more concerned about you, Ceres..you were in a coma for a month."

 

"A MONTH?!" I croaked, eyes widdening in alarm. He nodded slowly, silvery locks falling limp into his youthful face, affixed with an unreadable expression.

 

"Yeah...you screamed in your sleep every night. At one point, your heart stopped....it..it was scary..." his voice trailed off into a dark place, his gaze dropping to his karete sandals. I watched him in stunned silence, brows knitted in worry as I saw his hands move to run exasperatedly through his hair.

 

"I thought I'd lost you...every night, I watched over you..every night....and you came back.."

 

"Taigo.." I felt a painful tug at my heart-strings, remembering our encounter in the changing rooms several weeks ago and the heartfelt words he told me.

He felt so strongly about me, staying with me all through my coma..I wanted so badly to open myself to him, to let him into my world and give back the love he held..but i could'nt..I could'nt bring myself to unlock my heart..to devulge my darkest secret.

 

"...I'm sorry, Taigoshin...but I can't ever love you..." These words were little more than tiny whispers, salted tears barely supressed as my heart ached in my chest. He looked up at me, hurt flashing in those deep blue eyes that enchanted me so, face pale and devoid of it's usual lustre.

I wanted to scream at the unfairness of it all, but only a raspy, poorly disguised sob came from my bruised lips.

 

The silence that ensued was deafening, the unease thick enough to be cut with a knife. Soundlessly, I prayed for something to break the tension, to end this awkwardness that fell between us. Fortunatly, at that very moment, the twin doors to the cold little room swung open, revealing a familiar face.

I smiled softly, silently thanking her for breaking the ice.

 

Shasta looked adorable as always, her lithe figure clad in a mint green tie-dyed sundress that perfectly matched her eyes and the little band that kept her unkempt fushia locks at bay. In her arms, a small bouquet of oversized daisies lay, wilted slightly in several places.

Yet despite her perfectly groomed appearence, she appeared dishivelled and sleep-deprieved, a troubled smile etched on her fair features. Crossing the room towards the bed, she seated herself on the edge to my right and gently petted my cheek.

 

"I'm glad to see you're awake...that was a tense month.." she said softly, sighing in relief.

 

I forced a smile, squinting in the bright light. "What've I missed?" I queried, shifting slightly against the mass of pillows at my back.

Her smile faulted ever so slightly, her eyes flashing mometarily with fear, with the pain of the night when Strongbad had almost violated her..staring at her kness, she fidgeted awkwardly with the front ties of her dress, silently milling over her words.

 

"Strongbad's been jailed." Taigo answered after several minutes, eyes darkened under his veil of rich silver.

 

My smile widdened, mind going into an overload of perversely evil images involving the raven haired beast, a bar of soap and a communal shower..

Sure, he deserved much worse for his crimes, but knowing that he was going to suffer slowly...I could barely supprise my gleeful if slightly manical laughter.

Yet, beneath it all, I felt relief...relief that I had successful stopped history repeating itself, that I had saved Shasta from the same cruel fate as myself. Absently, I moved a hand to stroke my scarred stomach, silently thankful she never had to go through what I had...

 

"Ceres, I...I want to thank you..for standing up for me. No-one..no-one's ever gone against 'Bad the way you did.." Shasta said gently, her smile returning. I nodded, petting her hands with mine. She really was a sweetheart, frail and innocent but also headstrong and fiery...an alternate version of myself in a way, I mused. Confused, uncertain of what the world held for her, yet eager to find out what lay ahead on the mysterious path before her...

 

"Don't mention it." I replied, feeling strangely humble and just a little bashful as she flung her arms around me, hugging me tight with all the love and affection of the world, her cheek pressing against my own, so close was she I could smell the familiar perfume of apples on her pale skin.

 

 

I think I cried then.

 

 

...Not tears of sadness...

 

 

...or tears of anger..

 

 

..No...

 

 

For the first time in my life, I think...

 

 

...I think I cried of happiness...

 

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The weeks passed by in a hazy blur of autumn leaves, darkening skies and the rich scent of pine cones falling from their wooden perches. It must have been three months since I arrived here, I thought to myself as I sat on the porch decking, gazing out to the magestic ocean view before me, watching as the sun slowly set on a silvery horizon.

 

Those three months..they were the happiest of my life. For the first time in my life, felt like I belonged, that I was wanted...that I existed. Kind of ironic to say, giving that this world is'nt my own..but I did'nt want to leave. I had finally found my place in the universe. It was here, on the handsome pine deck of 14 Fujitsu Falls, breathing in the piney scent of the autumn breeze, watching the sunset peacefully in the distent ocean.

 

Hearing footsteps nearby, I shifted my wheelchair to look upon the newcomer before me, a serene smile crossing my features.

 

"Hey.." Taigo breezed in his husky tones, leaning against the balcony rails, sun glistening off his bare torso....so inviting.

He smiled at me, bee-stung lips pouted slightly as I felt his sapphire gaze meet my own, looking upon the woman he could never have. Slowly, he moved towards me, crouching before me to gaze directly into my eyes.

 

"I..know you told me...you could never love me...but allow me this...just once more." his hand gently cupped my chin, tilting it up towards his as gently, his lips brushed against my own. A shiver ran down my aching spine, but it was'nt one of fear. It was a shiver of pleasure. This time, I kissed back, wrapping my arms around his neck as our kiss deepened. He was so gentle and loving with me, never forceful. His lips remained sealed, the kiss chaiste and innocent as he delicately stroked my cheeks.

 

Finally, almost reluculently, we broke away if only for air. He really was a guy in a million, I mused silently to myself. I knew I was a fool to deny him, but my heart was just so bruised and broken so many times. I did love him, but the day my daughter died, I made a promise to myself...a promise to never again, be hurt by love. Two years was a long time to nurse the wounds of love, but the scars still ran so deep.

 

I don't think I could ever tell him, but at least now the dagger had loosened just a little. Shaking my head sadly, I said nothing to the sweet young man before me, our emotions suprassing any words we could ever speak.

My time had come, I knew...the time to return to my own world. I would miss him and Shasta too..but all good things must come to an end as I felt my eyes slowly grow heavy, a smile crossed my lips.

 

 

I was in a karma coma all my life and only now..

 

..Only have I finally awakened.

 

 

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The End

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