Sadie sat up and pushed her heels into the ground, sliding backwards until her back found a wall. She could feel her pupils desperately trying to adjust to the sudden darkness and a small headache began to form. She knew it wasn’t only her eyes that was causing the pain. Her adrenalin was beginning to drop and soon she would feel the full extent of her injuries.
She whipped out her cellphone and used the dim light from the screen in a vain attempt to illuminate the darkness. Before any of the vaguely discernible shapes began to resemble anything recognisable, she was hit by the stench. A hot, putrid smell seeped into her nostrils and mouth with every breath she took. It felt thick going down her airways and just thinking of its origins added to her nausea. She realised the floor beneath her was wet and the walls were moist and dripping, and quickly pushed herself up. Standing unsteadily on the uneven floor she tried to look around.
Her eyes couldn’t open any wider as she peered into the darkness, looking for something to give her direction, or somewhere to go. Mostly she was looking for hope, for a reason not to sink back into the filthy sludge and rot away with it all. She shook herself in an attempt to dismiss such negativity. You’re just in the sewer Dee, no need for drama. There are manholes and gutters at regular intervals, just start walking and you’ll find one soon enough. Her little internal pep talk gave her the motivation she needed, but she couldn’t set off yet.
She tried to start walking but the sludge sucked her feet into the ground. As much as it pained her to think about it, she was going to have to get rid of her heels. She slipped them off one at a time and returned her bare feet to the cold, wet floor. As her first toe touched floor she let out a little squeal and pulled back. After a regrettable deep breath she planted her foot firmly beneath her and the other followed.
Her progress was slow but constant as she headed in the direction opposite to the origin of the destructive clouds. With her right hand on the wall to guide her she felt out every step with her toes as she went along. In her injured left hand she clutched her phone and held it out in front of her for some light; it produced an impotent whitish blue glow which only illuminated the 10cm immediately in front of it.
As she moved along, her nose began to throb and her bruised ribs made breathing increasingly more difficult. Although her injuries didn’t feel serious she still wanted to assess the damage and clean her wounds. She increase her pace slightly and continued to trudge through the sewer.
In the dark, there is no way to track your progress, and Sadie began to feel frustrated. Her mind wandered and she thought of Josh. How could he have left me? I was right there, almost within reach! Why didn’t he hear me? As this continued she picked up her pace walking blindly into the darkness until she was stopped in her tracks, quite literally.
Rushing through the darkness, scorning Josh in her mind, she walked into a wall with full force. The blow didn’t hurt her and she felt more embarrassed than anything else, not that there was anyone who could’ve seen her. She had a reached a turn in the tunnel, and after righting herself she turned left to head off in the new branch.
After moving only two steps she let out a small scream, she could see light! Not too far from her, several beams had broken through the surface and shone defiantly in the musty sewer. Elated, she broke into a careful jog. She stumbled on her way but managed to stay on her feet and reached the source of the light, panting softly.
There was one fairly large hole surrounded by 3 or 4 smaller ones. They were just above her head where the wall met the roof. Although she could easily reach them, she could tell that she wouldn’t be able to fit through the largest one as it was. But if she could break out the patches of rubble between the other holes she could squeeze through. With determined vigour she plunged her hands into the filth beneath her, searching for anything she could use to crack open the holes. She ventured a bit further down the tunnel and after a short while her hand found something round and solid. Sadie took hold and pulled back hard, and freed a piece of steal piping. She rushed back to the opening.
Sadie wedged the tip of the pipe into one of the smaller holes and forced it back and forth wildly. Soon the concrete began to crumble and she worked harder. One by one she bored open the smaller holes until only one large one remained. She threw down the pipe and reached up to grab the edges of the hole.
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