"Do you know where we're going?"

A deep crimson tongue slurped around the mouth and lingered for a couple of seconds, twisting into a tightened corner of lip and tensing and writhing. It scratched against the pale copper whiskers and bulged inside the cheek, returning like a nervous skinned rodent to the opening of its burrow before darting back to the rotting smell of the interior.

- CHRIST, PETER.

Rising up from the dripping overcoats and soaked citywear was the creeping stench of massed humanity, fibres yielding particles of sloughed organic matter and the redolence of smoky taprooms, the sharp trace of damp decay, fastfood odours, sweat, flatulence, exhaust and piss. Rainwater was drying slowly and leaving contours of filth and minerals across shoulders and the backs of coats. Eyes avoided others and gazed vainly through the surreal shield of windows and doors. Each passenger jumped forward and stretched out an arm to press themselves back against the seats and walls. A shockwave of halitosis belched up from the giant mouth next to my face, curdling in the near-total humidity and seeming to overwhelm any trace oxygen that remained in the air. The nauseating stink of a rich expenses lunch engulfed the entire vehicle. Eyes closed and sleeves were pressed against noses and mouths. Cheeks swelled in exhalation and were wet with stinging tears. There were coughs and sighs and the stamping of sodden feet. Everything jolted as we hit a dead halt, then jerked back into a resting place shaken and battered and gradually worn down.

- THANK YOU THANK YOU FUCKING HELL!

I tried to free a hand to press against my face for no other reason than despair. A steady trickle of acid liquid dripped from my hair into the corner of my eye and almost blinded me on the window side. As my hand moved, I felt another moving in to grab the rail, a prehensile claw that was firmly attached even before I had fully committed to the tentative movement. Untethered, I was immediately thrown backward by a surge in acceleration and accompanying emergency brake. I dropped, winded, down the side of the vehicle and into a pit around passengers' feet and luggage. There was no air. I would have to live off the meagre half-filled lungs' worth I had managed to trap before falling. Gradually, my eyes became accustomed to the gloom. Occasional slanting beams from streetlights swept through and made ghosts in the afterglow of persisted vision. I could not move and felt the slimy slippery floor beneath my hands.

- SAY AGAIN, PETER.

There were eyes in the dark, perhaps. Between oxford and sneaker and tapping kitten heels, there were bright sclera and the ardent stare of fearful pupils. I lifted my hand to wipe the moisture from my face. A foot moved and pressed against my arm. It twisted impatiently and I felt the tightening of the calf muscle against my side. There were whispers from the dark interstices between bags and legs and dripping umbrellas. My face found comfort against the sludge on the palm of my hand. The deep vibration loosened vertebrae and I felt myself beginning to fall apart. There was a moment to recalculate. I twisted and pulled myself along the floor a little. I turned back to see the eyes still studying me.

- NO NO NO NO ARE YOU BREAKING UP?

The orange sweep of the streetlights scanned through the gloom again, and I saw movements further towards the back of the bus. As I repositioned, I lifted my head to see directly upward. A face seemed to be staring down, but the eyes were either shut or blind. There was no expression, only downturned lips on the fleshy cradling of a heavy skull sinking into its neck. I wanted to breathe, but realised that the air down here could be deadly.

"Hey."

"What?"

"Hey you!" The whispering reached me and I turned again to see between the bags and shoes. There was a dirty hand holding onto part of the steel fittings around the seats. I pressed my sleeve against my smeared eyes to try to absorb some of the stinging moisture.

"What?"

"You know where we're at?"

"No."

The eyes narrowed and disappeared for a moment into the surrounding darkness. A shoe moved on its heel and the spike of an umbrella stabbed for territory. I moved my hands back and tried to lift my head. I felt a bag above me and tried to force my way up. The umbrella found my arm and cut short my grip with a cautionary thrust.

"Hey!"

"What?"

"Whatcha mean?"

"What?"

"Where are we?"

"In the city. Somewhere."

"Yeah?"

"I think."

"Yeah?"

My hand slipped on the sludge across the floor and I skated backwards as the brakes slammed on again. A foot came down in a vindictive stomp and crushed the end of my smallest finger, grinding it with a malicious twist before allowing me to recoil in pain. I nearly gasped as a secondary wave of agony seared through my limb, but managed to hold onto my captured breath.

"Hey."

"What is it?"

"Do you know where we're going?"