Terror | | TWD

[𝟎𝟏] 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐧 𝐎𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐨

The young boy still looked reluctant, scrunching his nose and twiddling his fingers, but eventually he agreed. Together the pair raced down to the quarry, careful not to be seen by any of the adults. They weren't supposed to be on their own.

"I don't get it," Maxine said once she had placed Laika on a stone. She balanced on a bigger one, trying to raise one leg into the air. "They always complain about us having to stay in their sights." She pouted.

Carl eyed her warily, his heart beating against his chest when Maxine almost fell off the stone. "They just worry."

Maxine scoffed, jumping from the big stone to another just nearby. "Gosh, you sound just like dad. 'Max, I'm just worried about you'" She mimicked Shane, making funny movements with her hands.

Carl laughed, his eyes wrinkling at the edges. "You really should stop getting us in trouble."

"Shh, no one will know." She leveled him with a glare, "just don't go around snitching again."

"C'mon, I already apologized for that!"

"If you play Edwin Aldrin, maybe I'll consider forgiving you." Maxine smirked, knowing Carl hated when he couldn't be Neil Armstrong. Just like expected, Carl huffed and threw a stone into the water.

"You promise you'll forgive me?" He asked hesitantly.

"I said I'd consider it."

"Maxine!"

"Fine, fine, I promise." She rolled her eyes, grabbing Laika so she could also join the journey. "There, that's the moon!" She pointed to a rather large boulder, with steep round edges and a whitewashed surface.

They both ran for it, wanting to be the first to conquer the planet. That proved to be a more difficult task than imagined, because of the smooth surface. Maxine clawed at the stone, but it was impossible. She needed to be smart about this.

Spotting a stone nearby, she ran for it. Climbing the smaller stone was far easier, and from there she could climb a few more. She stopped in her tracks.

There was a good meter jump from the stone she was standing on if she wanted to reach the moon. That was a long jump for a nine-year-old, Maxine thought. But I'm not a pussy, I'm strong.

With new conviction, Maxine took the jump. She heard Carl gasp somewhere beneath her, shouting out to her. Luckily, her feet landed safely on top of the moon. She was elated.

"Yes! I made it, Carl!" She cheered, jumping up and down. Carl was horrified. "i conquered the moon!" Maxine giggled, and in her frenzy, she didn't notice she had stepped too close to the edge.

Suddenly, the ground beneath her fell away into nothingness, and she felt her body flying. Biting back a scream, she clutched onto Laika so the dog wouldn't get hurt because of her.

The landing was far more painful than she imagined it would be. She crashed into a bed of tiny rocks that cut into her skin. Her knees were burning. "ow, ow, ow." She whimpered, watching a red liquid seep out of the wounds.

"Oh my god," Tears were brewing in Carl's eyes. He turned on his feet and ran back to the camp, shouting "Mom! Mom, Maxine is hurt!"

Maxine was left alone in her misery, not being able to withhold the sobs that were racking her. It hurt! It hurt really bad! There was so much blood! Am I dying?! I don't want to die!

"Max!" The shout made her look up behind tear-filled eyelashes. Her dad was coming, he was running down the hill towards her. She would be okay. Her dad would save her.

"Dad!" She shouted back, stretching her arms once he got close. She wrapped them around his neck and sobbed louder. "It hurts! It hurts!"

"Shh, shh, you're okay, you're okay." Shane removed her from his arms to inspect the wounds. "You're a soldier, Max, you're strong. You gotta be strong."