Madoka emerged from the bathroom with Nema in his arms. His face red as can be after having helped her bathe. Thankfully he had managed to do it in a way that wasn't too compromising. Though he did wish he wore gloves. Noticing that his hands were stained with her blood. He wasn't really sure what would be the best way to explain something like that.
Then again, given the current circumstances. There wasn't really much in the way of other candidates. And Madoka wasn't about to let Yuichi's teenage fantasies come true.
Though personally, deep down. He felt responsible for her ending up like this. Especially after she kept him from getting caught by that grey monster. That now haunted him every time he closed his eyes. Its devilish yellow smile, its hideous laugh. All imprinted into his mind like it was something truly traumatic.
Which in all honesty. It was.
Finally, Madoka placed Nema in her futon. Letting her rest after all of the trauma she was going through.
There were so many questions that he wanted to ask her. So many things he wanted to say. But as long as Nema was in the state she was in. He had no other choice but to wait.
"Hey Madoka! Can I get a hand in here?" Yuichi called from the other room.
"Yeah!" Madoka yelled back. Giving Nema one more look before heading over. Stopping short as he saw a corner of the room free from the paper explosion that surrounded them. "Woah."
"I figured I'd might as well make the mess a bit more manageable while we wait." Yuichi said, shoving some of the T.V. Dinner boxes into a trash bag. Obviously seeming bothered by something. "You should tend to the papers."
"Tend to the papers?" Madoka said looking at the stacks and stacks of paper that littered the room. Some would've been so high that they touched the ceiling. But obviously something had caused the towers to collapse.
"Yeah…they have some creepy stuff written on them." Yuichi said, tying the bag tight before going and searching for another one. There was something about his friend that was just off. Which was rather unlike him.
While he was looking for another bag, Madoka took the chance to quietly start picking up the pieces of paper, all dated with time of day, and what day number it was. All written in what must've been Nema's neat handwriting.
The one he held in his hand was labeled 685.
Day 685. Night Time.
He doesn't seem to notice the small changes that have been happening around him, each day playing out the same. But with small changes. The clouds changed ever so slightly, while flowing with the same pattern each day. He still hasn't noticed that he has had the same breakfast for a year in a row. Must be a result that his mind had run out of images and days from his memory to borrow from. Meaning the time to do what is needed, is close.
Reading the words silently, Madoka quickly looked around for another piece of paper. Looking for the most recent note.
Day 730
The worst of Azrael's punishment finally subsided after I had first made contact with Madoka. This was the first time I was finally able to talk to him, let alone get near him. I had to physically touch him in order to save him from the Embodiment of decay that was just about to get a hold of him. I haven't been able to interact with Madoka for at least fifteen days, maybe as another brand of punishment. Like some part of it made me invisible to him. But he still hadn't noticed how much the world had been changing, at this point at an exponential level. That seems to increase with certain trigge-
Madoka turned the page over looking to see if there had been more written on it. But it seemed almost like she had been abruptly cut off by something.
But there was no way of telling. At least not from the way the words seemed to be written.
He continued looking through the stacks of papers like a madman, searching for any clues as to what might've been going on. Or what could've caused this situation to begin with. But the only thing he could find was that this had been going on for what seemed to be two years.
All of it made less and less sense the more he read from the pages littered around the room. That was however until he found a page labeled First day.
"Holy crap man! The outside isn't looking like the outside anymore!" Yuichi yelled, stealing Madoka's attention from the paper in his hand.
"What do you mean?" Madoka yelled back, setting the paper down before walking over to where Yuichi stood frozen with fear written all over his face. Just what exactly had he seen?
That question was quickly answered when he looked out of the window to be greeted by the sight of a deep crimson sky with thick black clouds that blocked out rays of sickly grey light. A portion of the city had been replaced by building sized mounds of flesh that created waterfalls of blood. White mountains that seemed to take the shape of teeth slowly grew out of the ground forcing it to shake violently. Some pierced the clouds, others were about the size of buildings.
This couldn't be real could it?
But it was. This was reality, this was real. The apocalypse in the sky that pulsated with an almost rhythmic beat, there was a red hue to the air that grew more and more fog like as he watched. More of the gray figures he had seen the other day started moving about the flesh covered ground. More of the same creature that walked on its hands, drenched in blood as they kicked off the ground with tremendous force.
It was only then that he noticed that it was raining through the fog. The more he focused, the more he realized it was red. Subfusing the air with a slight scent of iron.
"W-what happened to the world?" Madoka questioned watching as it changed before his eyes. Feeling like he was suddenly thrust into some kind of horror movie he closed the blinds, trying to put it out of sight. Out of mind.
Then again. This wasn't the first time he had experienced some semblance of this. The smell of iron in the air, the red sky. It was all familiar to him in some way. Albeit not any that were good.
His breathing had grown ragged as he battled with the sudden change in the world, but then again, it wasn't the only thing that had changed in this moment. He had changed. He had learned. He had remembered.
Remembering a small fraction of the last twenty days. The amount of times he had seen the creature that walked on its hands. That yellowed smile that somehow ingrained itself into the underside of his mind. Being right there, but right outside of reach. Outside of focus. So diluted that it created a smothering omnipresent feeling.
There isn't much time left.
"S-should we call the cops?" Yuichi practically yelled.
"I don't think the cops wi-" Madoka said, pausing at a loud crash that shook the building. Spraying the two with a small amount of dust. Followed by the wrap of a set of slow gentle taps on the window.
Tap. Tap. Tap, tap. Tap.
Madoka and Yuichi exchanged a terrified glance. Standing as still as possible as the sound of silence followed. Momentarily basking the room with the tension it produced.
Tap. Tap. Tap, tap. Tap.
The tapping continued, this time followed by more violent tremors. This time knocking down the blinds. Revealing that haunting yellow smile.
The Embodiment of Decay held onto the building. Its twisted giggling being heard through the glass. Looking straight at him. It looked over Madoka solely by staring straight through him.
The moment the Embodiment recognized Madoka, was when the creatures smile widened. But it didn't do anything, it didn't even move. Almost as if it were just there to watch.
"T-that's the creature." Yuichi managed through a controlled voice. Not too high, not too low. But just loud enough for Madoka to hear.
Madoka wanted to say something in response. He wanted to look anywhere but where he was looking. To do something other than being right where he was. Most of all, he didn't really want to be himself at that moment. Especially when he realized he hadn't blinked yet.
He felt his eyes beginning to burn along with tears that slowly built up. Welling in his lower eyelid. Which begged for him to blink. Which. To his surprise, he didn't immediately give into the feeling. Even though he eventually was going to.
When he finally gave into the urge to blink. Madoka felt his stomach drop as he blinked a grand total of three times. Holding his breath hoping that it wasn't enough to enrage the creature.
Unfortunately it had.
The embodiment opened its mouth wide and let out a bellow so violent that it shook the foundation of the building, even to the extent that it shattered the window spraying both of them with broken glass. The shards of glass cutting them.
Madoka struggled to come to terms with everything that he was seeing. And the creature's scream was enough to push him over the edge into panic.
Finally giving into his body's instinct to run. That was his first mistake. The second followed when a grey hand shot from the ground. Grabbing onto his leg with an iron tight grip.
There was a single moment of silence as both Yuichia and Madoka locked eyes. Their eyes mimicking what the other was showing. Fear, and hopelessness. It was in that moment of silence that Yuichi lunged forward, urging his body to move faster than it ever had before. And was just barely fast enough to grab ahold of his hand.
Yet even then, he couldn't hold on forever. He pulled against it with all of his strength, trying to pull him up against the creature's grasp. Looking down at Madoka, Yuichi saw the last thing he wanted to see in Madoka's eyes. He saw acceptance.
"Yu-" Madoka barely managed to get those words out before he was pulled through the tatami and wood floor.
"Madoka!" Yuichi yelled. As he lost his grip.