Experiment 21

30: Cracked Ceiling

Log Date 1569: Another one gone. I should've.. thought this through. I should've done something. I should've not have gotten attached. There's nothing else for them. I..
Forget it. It's not worth noting down. I'll note something important down about this later.
I've got medication to take.

Test Tube's P.O.V:

I'm honestly not sure who was the first one to scream. But there was screaming, lots of it. Of course.. I'm used to that. But it took me a second to realize why. It was almost like time had slowed down and nothing was happening at all. That's when I saw them.

Paintbrush, dangling from my hold. But only by the top half. The rest of them had snapped in half and was on the floor, bleeding like the rest of them. I thought for sure they'd scream, or at least die while at my grasp.. but they didn't. They just stared with wide eyes as they shook and bled out.

"...Wh..wha.. How... Wh..why..."

That's when I remembered.
Shock takes at least five to ten minutes to kill someone, and blood loss takes about seven. They wouldn't die instantly, nothing had affected their head and their heart was definitely still beating. I finally zoned back in to hear the terrified screams of Fan and Lightbulb continuously thrashing against the floor to try to stop me, try to escape.

"HOW COULD YOU?! 'NEVER MURDER SOMEONE BY MY OWN HAND' YOU SAID! WELL LOOK WHAT HAPPENED!"

She screeched. All of the screaming was overwhelming, so I dropped Paintbrush and stumbled back. The hollow noise of their top half hitting and splashing on the ground made me nauseous. Obviously there was nothing we could do but stare. I didn't have time to leave and try to keep them alive. Even if I did, there was no way to fix a break like that without surgery. There just wasn't enough time.

Eventually I heard metal tearing and breaking, making it obvious Lightbulb had finally escaped. She ran to Paintbrush with a pained expression that curses my thoughts.
It always will.
"Painty! Oh my god.. oh my god what did she do to you.."
"...I..."

Their shaking worsened as they started hacking and coughing up blood. There was internal damage by them hitting the floor with no flesh or muscle to protect their entrails. Wood splinters stabbing and sticking out of them also most likely wouldn't help. I just silently watched Lightbulb's expression, seeing if she could tell there was nothing that either of us could do to save them. She seemed panicked, just holding them and not caring about how much blood she got on herself. They continued to cough until I was sure they'd pass out. But once again, they seemed to refuse to die. They were determined to live, to fight death until they truly lost. It was obvious by how their breathing continued to rapidly rise then slow in a flux they were fighting their demise, and seeing Lightbulb's eyes darken she realized just that.. There was nothing any of us could do to save them.

A quiet wail from behind us let me know Fan had realized that too.

Lightbulbs P.O.V:

...I couldn't save them.

She couldn't save them, Fan couldn't save them, nothing here could save them. I saw Painty fighting it. Fighting so hard to not let... her win.
But they had to. I couldn't just.. let them suffer like that. I couldn't kill them.. I couldn't kill someone else.. but I could try to talk them down and out of it. They couldn't run forever. Especially not as their blood leaks out onto the cold floor and the infections slowly start to creep in

"...Painty.. please.."
I held their hand and tried to reason with them.
"...I... I... I... won't..."
"...You have to..."
"...Won't.."
"Do you not understand..? You have to... there's nothing left for you here.. you're toast and you know it..."