Granny's Cabin II

“Bob” was more like a floating distortion, a glitch, a swirl of universe soot that sparked purple and made the back of your brain vibrate if you looked for too long.

“Bob?” Damian said, wincing.

“Oh for the love of the charity, please stop calling me that,” Bob said.

“Aaaah!” Ash grabbed her head, collapsing to her knees. Damian rushed to help.

“Ash?! What’s wrong?” Damian asked.

“I … I don’t know. I can’t … I can’t open my eyes, everything is too bright.” Ash said, her voice pained.

“Let’s get you into a darker room then,” Damian said. He sounded about as concerned as he might if he were answering the question “what’s for dinner,” but he worried any time Ash was in pain.

Damian walked her back to the living room, nestled back on the darker side of the cabin, where the windows were still shuttered from whoever last cared for this place.

“Any better?” Damian asked. Ash shook her head, unable to respond. He helped her lie down, made sure she was comfortable, and went back to Bob. Or, not-Bob.

“So, not-Bob. What should I call you?” Damian asked.

“I … do not know,” the Swirl said. “Things are … different here. I cannot … I do not know.” The voice was deeper in real life than it had been in Damian’s mind.

As if to remind them that there were other more pressing matters at hand, the room again began to rumble, this time accompanied by large cracking sounds under the floor.

Damian grew wide-eyed. “Well not-Bob, we have to get out of here. Can you wal—err, move?”

Damian didn’t wait for an answer, and went to get Ash moving toward the car. Helping move these things, whatever they were, from one plane of existence to another was one thing, at least he knew it helped slow the Breach. But this? Having one here? He didn’t know what to think, but right now, he didn’t care.

This world can split in two for all I care, Damian thought as he hoisted Ash to her feet. She struggled to open her eyes, but couldn’t keep them open long enough to see where she was going.

“I got you,” Damian said and he ducked under one of her arms and guided her to the car. He grabbed his keys and even managed to scoop up a water bottle on the way out the door.

The cracking noises were louder than anything he’d ever heard. “Loud” wasn’t quite right though, it was like they were in the sound. They might have a minute. Probably less.

He lowered her swiftly into the car, and turned toward the driver’s side, where not-Bob was waiting.

“If you’re coming with us, do it however you will, but do it now” Damian said as he pushed himself into the driver’s seat and slammed the door. Not-Bob drifted into the car, and spun in the back seat. Damian wondered if not-Bob needed to be in the car, or if he could just kind of float along behind them, it might be less terrifying. No time now for suggestions, and he started the car.

With the cracking sound came the familiar pull downward, and he could feel the stress on the car. These tires better hold, he thought, as he peeled down the dirt road.

CRRRRAAAAA-BOOM

“What was that?” Ash asked, curled up in the front seat with her head in her hands.

Damian looked in the rear view as he crossed into the forest.

The earth was silent, and Granny’s Cabin was gone.