The Back Alley Treatment

A Short-story utilizing a new technique to revitalize people from comas. The question raises is the treatment ethical and will it actually work?

I turn the corner blinded by blackness that seemed to settle in like fog. I struggle as I stuff my hand into my ripped jean pocket, fishing for the address. Finally a crumble feel on my finger causes it to hook the paper and reel it up. Staggering around, I find a blinking street light just outside the alley. My eyes strain, working to decipher the code; as if my eyes were a key, the code unscrambles to an address. It reads, 666 Back Alley Lane, Grave Coven 4311. My voice crackles, "This cannot be right..." as the paper rips from my hand and whistles away. "I could have sworn," speaking in an anxious voice as I creep backwards from the alley, "this address cannot be real."

A flash crashes down, thunderously shaking the ground. The flashes uncover the red streaks streaming the sky as if it was bleeding. I standing there, my rags drape down against my slight, bony frame as I just notice this unlit sign. I slide my right foot, side stepping towards the opening as I lean back letting my head peek over my shoulder as the burst of lightning illuminates the creaking, red cross sign. I read, "Emergency Room," in bolded, dreary words while underneath in miniature print reads, "Brain Trauma Unit." Another roar of thunder booms through the air, another burst of lightning streaks down revealing a door, a door that quickly becomes obscure as the lightning subsides.

I take a deep breath and exhale slowly as I start, in almost a march, away from the back alley. I jam my hands into my pocket, hearing the sound of my boots clank against the ground with each step as I pace myself. The clanks are interrupted by eerie sounds; the howl of a wolf, the growl of a lion. Startled, scared I glance above seeing the bleeding red moon drips its light through the bleak skies. A shiver ripples through my spine as my eyes reflect death. The sound of a drum beats from my chest as my survival instincts kick my legs into 5th gear. My eyes rain, my skin trembles, my cries vibrate the air as I heave myself from the back alley.

I almost slip in a pool of bloody fluid as I dart to the next corner light. Catching the street light, I whip around the corner searching for an avenue of clearance. I skid, scorching against the ground while leaving a squealing track as I break to a halting stop. "Th...thi...this cannot be," I stammer as I look around shaded in the mist of night, "How can you be here?" I reach out to caress her cheek as the image vanishes. Then darkness creeps back over this adjacent alley only to be disturb by voices? I hear voices start resonating through my mind...

"Is the treatment working? Is there any change?" a soft, lady's voice asked fearing of the worst.

"Well, we were sure we had him but there seems to be a relapse at this point. See the image of you, well despite your significant attachment to him it does not seem to be enough to shake him. We will need to move onto more shocking event if this treatment is to have any chance of succeeding." A man responds in a sorrow tone, lending less and less hope the more he talked.

"Voices? where...where are these voices coming from?" I speak as my lips tremble and hands shake. A ghostly white reflection shines from my face as I struggle to my feet, my head spinning around trying to give direction to voices' location. Dizziness compels me to collapse back to the ground. I sit there with only the beating of my chest notifying me that I am still alive. I close my eyes and sit for 5 minutes in almost a trance as I hope when my eyes open hoping a good reality will appear.

A blast of disappointment erases all hopes as I just stare into oblivion. The voices I once heard are now a distant memory. Looking up I see the red stained moon once again and hear the howling of the wolf and the growling of the lion. Brushing off my pants and gingerly standing back up as I start a pacing march back from the adjacent alley to the back alley’s street light. As I reach the street light I see a crumbled piece of paper levitating in the air. I walk over with my hand leading and snag the paper with my fingers, it ruffles in my hand. The ink is smudged, the paper red stained but I am still able to decipher a few words. I read, "The Past is Real! The Past will reveal the Future! The Past begins Life again! May remembrance of the Past bring about a new Life!" Ahh the past, I think to myself but as when I try to derive memories of the past but only a blank slate appears.

Flabbergasted, I close my eyes, praying that images of past experiences will start to magically appear. Sweat begins to pour down my forehead as anxiousness replaces calmness. "nothing, Nothing, NOTHING!" I shout with louder angst, "Why can I not recall one damn memory!" I scream as agony rains through the air. "Calm down, now just calm down," I try to perform a self-help technique, "there must be a rational explanation for this." "Of course, of course there are always rational explanations for mis-remembrance...hmmm I wonder if mis-remembrance is even a real word?" I stand isolated by all rational no matter what I try to tell myself. Now adding injury to insult, I feel the prick of a needle plunging into my arm. I reach down and grab my arm, trying to pull out the needle but voices?

"Ready to instill the next treatment?," that same soft lady voice from before asked.

"I am going to induce the last and strongest treatment as it is the last hope we have left," that same man’s voice answers as from before. "Nurse would you please take her out of the room as this could get a little messy," the man asks in a monotone voice.

"Of course doctor, right away," another lady voice answers that is distinct from the other lady’s voice.

The voices are crackled away, engulfed by this intense screaming. The voices, they seem to be coming from that door, or from inside my mind. The voices grow and grow, screaming, encroaching all around me. In an attempt to escape I dart like a bullet out of the alley into the darkness, zooming blindly away from the alley. The farther I run though the louder the voices get to the decibel of screeching nails on a blackboard. I cover my ears as blood drains from them staining my palms. I fall, kneeing down as if praying, begging "Stop, please...please stop, the voices...the voices" I scream at the top of my voice as my body shakes from the angst. I claw at my chest, feeling my heart almost ripping the flesh from my body as it pounds it way out with only my hand keeping it at bay. The vitality being sucked from me as my heart beat intensity begins to fade. With one last gasp, one last pound of strength, one last drop of hope I manage to pull myself to my feet and spring forward back in the direction of that dreaded alley.

The voices begin to fade as I remain isolated in the dark alley again, leaping to grab hold of the street light that has lighted my way back. Tears drip down my face, these tears could be of joy knowing that I have escape the voices or of fear as I stand in solitude without knowing of how I came to this Hell. As I rub my hand against my face, I notice streams of blood replacing my tears. I panicky rip my hands from my face and stare at them finally noticing the blood coating. Staring for a few seconds out of shock as my eyes glow a glossy white. "Where, where could that blood come from," I mumble as I hastily pat down my body trying to find the bloody source. As my hand slaps against my ear, I feel the dry blood frost over my ear.

The howl of a wolf. The growl of a lion. The scream of the voices. I shake again, the blood rakes down from my ears as I fall to the ground unable to stand. "Arrggggghhh," I vomit in agony as I feel myself about to implode. A light shines from the dark alley almost beckoning me to come to it. As I weigh my options I glance back from outside the alley seeing the sky bleeding red while being blinded from any details of the environment. I am forced to leap to the light, as light must be a hope from this dark wasteland. As if bounded to the light my feet feel like they are floating me towards the only hope left. The voices fade, the howl of the wolf fades, the growl of the lion fades as I am consumed by the light. I see a steel door stand in front of me, as the light beams around it almost inducing me to open it. My hand reaches for the door, feeling the coldness of the steel as I try to pry it open. The door doesn’t budge even the slightest inch as I fall to the ground causing my blood stained hands slip off the handle. I stare up and notice that sign again, but this time it reads, "The Treatment" in bloody red.

I keep staring, now moving my eyes back to the door and then those voices, they come again but this time they echo from inside that door which stands in front of me. I listen in on the conversation as now the voices become decipherable.

"Oh yes, he is just the sweetest of gentlemen. You know tonight he will be bringing me back roses and a big surprise that he refuses to tell me!" A young lady gleefully sequels, apparently to someone else as I recognize this voice as the same lady I heard earlier. I work my way to my feet and now see a window, thinking to myself, "Was this here before?" in a questioning voice. My eyes catch this lady sitting down, wearing red lacey lingerie as she continues to talk into the cell phone. She sits legs crossed, on the end of this white bed, as I see her laugh as her body shakes from her giggles. Her hair flows with a glossy reflection as it shimmers down her back…so brown…so gorgeous I think. Her eyes the blue of the Blue Kyanite crystal, "What a beautiful lady," I think to myself as a smile forms on my face for the first time since I could remember.

I feel a bang in the distance, hearing what appear to be two male voices in the distance but instead of speaking it sounds like the howl of a wolf and the growl of a lion. I hear a shriek from the beautiful lady as the phone bounces on the floor. My eyes glued to the window as you see this two guys walk in, one dressed as a lion and the other as a wolf. "Surprise dearie," I hear the lion roar out as he pounces on the victim. The wolf lets out a loud howl as he jumps in to join the lion in attacking their pray. The lady I see shrieking as she is over taken by these two animals. Lavishly they attack her as their hands stain from her blood. Desperately, right before her last breath, I see the lady rip off the mask of the wolf only to reveal…my face?

I open my eyes slightly as I see a man in a mask standing over me, his hands a pale white…or are they gloves I wonder this man stares back at me a grin forming on his face. "Well it appears our treatment has been successful," the guy lips curl to a smile as a response is heard from the side of me. "Yes doctor, it would seem it has worked, shall I run the regular diagnostics and make sure his systems are functioning normally," a lady asked. "Yes, we need to make sure this procedure has not had any ill effects on his systems."

I look up, feeling my lips tremble as I begin to process words, process words that flow out in silence. BEEP…Beep…beep I can faintly hear as my vision begins to fail. "Nurse, nurse get in here…." were the last words I heard before my vision completely failed me.