Subject Nightingale 1: Birth and Death Read Online Free
Author: Tim Cody
quietly and slumped against the wall, her stomach suddenly twisting with an intense sense of vertigo for what she saw.
It looked as clear as day—she was flying. She could look left and right; she even felt the wind rushing by her face and through her hair.
“ Why do I keep seeing these things!?” she shouted as she fell back to the floor, holding her head in her hands as she tried to make sense of what she was looking at.
At first it looked like she was soaring through some metal container, but it exited into a hallway. Smoke, debris—bodies. Was she seeing out in the hallway now? She was still flying, around a sharp turn that twisted her stomach into knots, and suddenly she was back in the office right outside. A large painting she didn't see earlier was hanging half off the wall, and she could see the other side of the mirror behind it; she could see into Observation Room A through it, and she spotted herself curled up and crying in the corner.
Nightingale looked up toward the mirror, but couldn't see anything except the return trip. Back into the hallway and through the metal container—an air vent? She grabbed her face and pried her eyes open to make sure they were actually open, that she wasn't dreaming, but she couldn't see through her own eyes. It made her uneasy when she spotted herself again, and then suddenly she had her own vision back.
The nightingale was perched once again on her shoulder, and Nightingale's nose was practically gushing.
“Stop it, stop it!” she shouted, bunching up the front of her T-shirt and holding it against her nose. “Why are you doing this to me!?”
The bird just sang in response, though, and again, the singing eased the throbbing in her head.
Nightingale sniffled and pulled her shirt away from her face. Her nose had already stopped bleeding, but a good deal of it remained dried and stuck to her. She rose and headed back to the sink to wash up. “I don't know how much blood I have left in me, so please don't do that again,” she said politely as she splashed water on her face and washed as much of it off as she could.
Once she was cleaned up, she sighed and walked back over to the keypad. The nightingale remained on her shoulder, its small talons dug into her shirt, looking all over as it had apparently decided to tag along.
“Were you showing me the way out?” she asked. “It looked like things had calmed down...” She typed 4069 into the keypad to open up the door, and stepped back into the office.
Much of the smoke had cleared, and it was eerily quiet. In the distance she could hear gunfire and shouting, but it sounded like it was a few floors away. She couldn't tell if it was a few floors up or down, but hoped it was all above her... She needed to get out of this building, and that meant heading down.
“You got a name?” Nightingale said to the bird, and it responded with a quiet chirp. “Right... Well, let's get going.”
She stood in the remnants of the office's doorway and stuck her head out, looking left and right down the hallway. The crumbling walls were covered in bullet holes, and the floor was littered with bodies, but it looked otherwise clear. As long as she kept her head up, her gaze above the bodies, she found she was brave enough to walk past them. She did her best to keep her eyes forward, only looking down when she needed to maneuver carefully around some rubble or twisted limbs.
A bright red EXIT sign at the far end of the hallway gave her hope.
Chapter 3
Team Up
“ They started on the first floor, right?” Nightingale asked the bird, making one-sided conversation because it helped settle her nerves. “So they should all be above us, since they were already on floor fifty.”
She had found a stairwell door at the exit sign, and started making good progress as she rushed down the winding sets of stairs. She was already approaching the 40th floor, each cement landing raising her hopes higher and higher. She held on to the
It looked as clear as day—she was flying. She could look left and right; she even felt the wind rushing by her face and through her hair.
“ Why do I keep seeing these things!?” she shouted as she fell back to the floor, holding her head in her hands as she tried to make sense of what she was looking at.
At first it looked like she was soaring through some metal container, but it exited into a hallway. Smoke, debris—bodies. Was she seeing out in the hallway now? She was still flying, around a sharp turn that twisted her stomach into knots, and suddenly she was back in the office right outside. A large painting she didn't see earlier was hanging half off the wall, and she could see the other side of the mirror behind it; she could see into Observation Room A through it, and she spotted herself curled up and crying in the corner.
Nightingale looked up toward the mirror, but couldn't see anything except the return trip. Back into the hallway and through the metal container—an air vent? She grabbed her face and pried her eyes open to make sure they were actually open, that she wasn't dreaming, but she couldn't see through her own eyes. It made her uneasy when she spotted herself again, and then suddenly she had her own vision back.
The nightingale was perched once again on her shoulder, and Nightingale's nose was practically gushing.
“Stop it, stop it!” she shouted, bunching up the front of her T-shirt and holding it against her nose. “Why are you doing this to me!?”
The bird just sang in response, though, and again, the singing eased the throbbing in her head.
Nightingale sniffled and pulled her shirt away from her face. Her nose had already stopped bleeding, but a good deal of it remained dried and stuck to her. She rose and headed back to the sink to wash up. “I don't know how much blood I have left in me, so please don't do that again,” she said politely as she splashed water on her face and washed as much of it off as she could.
Once she was cleaned up, she sighed and walked back over to the keypad. The nightingale remained on her shoulder, its small talons dug into her shirt, looking all over as it had apparently decided to tag along.
“Were you showing me the way out?” she asked. “It looked like things had calmed down...” She typed 4069 into the keypad to open up the door, and stepped back into the office.
Much of the smoke had cleared, and it was eerily quiet. In the distance she could hear gunfire and shouting, but it sounded like it was a few floors away. She couldn't tell if it was a few floors up or down, but hoped it was all above her... She needed to get out of this building, and that meant heading down.
“You got a name?” Nightingale said to the bird, and it responded with a quiet chirp. “Right... Well, let's get going.”
She stood in the remnants of the office's doorway and stuck her head out, looking left and right down the hallway. The crumbling walls were covered in bullet holes, and the floor was littered with bodies, but it looked otherwise clear. As long as she kept her head up, her gaze above the bodies, she found she was brave enough to walk past them. She did her best to keep her eyes forward, only looking down when she needed to maneuver carefully around some rubble or twisted limbs.
A bright red EXIT sign at the far end of the hallway gave her hope.
Chapter 3
Team Up
“ They started on the first floor, right?” Nightingale asked the bird, making one-sided conversation because it helped settle her nerves. “So they should all be above us, since they were already on floor fifty.”
She had found a stairwell door at the exit sign, and started making good progress as she rushed down the winding sets of stairs. She was already approaching the 40th floor, each cement landing raising her hopes higher and higher. She held on to the
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