Half-Dead

One: First Sight (K)

      I didn't think there was anything beyond the walls, the walls that kept me closed in for sixteen years. I used to think I was safe, that I was at home, but the others taught me otherwise.

      They said the world was vast and vivid, nothing like the dull one on the crinkled, worn paper I used to study for hours. They had said there was miles and miles of land outside those four walls.  I used to think they we're kidding when they said there we're others beyond the walls. I thought we we're the only ones.

They had been right, there was a world beyond the walls, and I was one of the first in my age group to experience it.

    Towering scrapes of metal and steel, disappearing into the darkness for most people,  but I could see it all. The transparent material had curious faces looking out at me, and strange objects perched beside them.

    It was all so peaceful and silent, unlike my home, which was always filled with cries of pain, and fear filled screams. In that moment as I looked around, I felt safe.

    Something wet and cold fell onto my face, and I flinch. I look all around searching for the source. The drops start coming faster, slapping against the dark ground, and against me.

    The streets become dark, and then the buildings began to light up one by one. The wind picks up, howling and making me shiver, my only protection my light tee and pants.  My feet dive into a small puddle beginning to form on the ground, and I jump back startled by the bitter cold.

    I should be used to it though, the lab was always freezing at night, and without any sheets the only thing you could do was close your eyes and pretend you were somewhere else.

    Out here was different, out here you could be fre-

    Zing!  One microscopic​ dart flies past my ear. I snap out of my thoughts realizing they could get me killed.

    I look over my shoulder and see them, slinking down the street, their bodies shadows in the darkness.

    Instinct kicks in as I run down the streets of Seattle, Washington, all the peace I had felt before gone. The only thing I felt was the ever familiar fear that had made a home in my chest.  The drops was falling down in sheets now, drenching my white clothes and making them practically transparent. 

     I skid to a stop as I find a strange object in between two buildings. I hop over the strange obstacle that leads into an enclosed space, reminding me of my small little room back at the labs. It makes me feel safe to me in a small space,  maybe they wouldn't see me here. I flatten myself against the firm wall, and slow my breathing. I can only hope they can't hear the beating of my heart, as it seems louder then a freight train

    "Here Kiera," a woman says softly as if calling an animal. If I can hear her, they are too close. I quickly and quietly rush behind a large retangular object in the small space. I crouch behind it keeping my body low to the ground.  I peek over the edge just a little so I can watch the action.

    The women turns the corner with her trankquilizer out front. She suveys the enclosed space her eyes scanning every corner untill something catches her eyes. I follow her eyes to a ripped white piece of fabric floating in a puddle.

    I bite down on my tongue to stop myself from yelling in frustration. She pretends to ignore it at first acting like she didn't see it,  but I see her hand move behind her to signal the others.

    Millions of thoughts fly through my head, some that were not my own. I took a breath and concentrated on ignoring the voices. They soon faded away but my worries had not.

    Two boys appear behind her. The woman puts her hand out to stop them and they flatten themselves against the wall out of my sight. I scan the place with my eyes, while keeping my hearing tuned in on their conversation.

    I scanned the area for things I could use in a fight or in an attempt to flee. Most of the things I could reach were unrecognizable. I had no idea what half the items did, but something above me sparked an idea.  A silver pole a few feet up was sticking out of the side of a building.

    I hear one of them attempting to quietly scale the tall object, that blocked them from me. I laugh at their stupidity. Nothing could get past me without my knowledge. They should have known I heard them a mile away.

    After the leader gets over,  I hear louder noises as the two ametures try to get over. 

   "Easy girl." She calls out, finally making herself known.  I chuckle silently, letting myself feel an ounce of happiness before it is sucked away again.

    I watch as they make slow, fluid movements trying not to spooke me, but if they thought I'd stay put and believe their lies they were insane.

"That's it Kiera."  The women in charge says, referring to the fact I haven't bolted yet. My chest tightens at the sound of my name. The name I was given by a friend. They had no right to use it, to them I was just a number. All my senses sharpen as they get closer, and soon I can hear the beating of their hearts. 

  Such fragile creatures and yet with their minds they became so powerful. Without their minds they would be nothing, but with them they were to be feared.

   I watch as the leader takes another small step foward and then in a last effort to save myself,  I launch into the air.   I hear the hiss of the darts release as I'm flying through the air hands out in front to catch the bar. My hands slams into the bar, and with a few swings I'm soaring over the obstacle that had once blocked me.

    The sense of flying fills me with joy, but also causes me to loose my focus. My foot hits the top of the obstacle, causing me to trip in midair and sends me straight to the ground. 

    Instinct has my wrists bracing for impact and before I can realize that's a mistake, my left wrist slams into the concrete first and my whole body crumples on top of it.

   I groan and support my bruised body with my right arm. The retrievers slam into the obstacle and attempt to shoot over it.  One of the darts successfully hit me, and I whip around trying to pull it out of my shoulder before it's too late. I throw the dart to the ground and jog away from the retrievers.

    I take a right at the next corner and find a small woods. The cover would be better then the city, so I run into the covered forest, trees towering over me. I almost stop to admire the strong trunks and delicate, brightly colored leaves, but I remind myself what I am running from.

I shiver at the thought of going back the that dreadful place, but I also felt a twinge homesick, as it was the only place I'd known.  I also thought about how disappointed Martin and Kaine would be.  A part of me wanted to go give in and go back, but that was the old Kiera, the new Kiera knew things and that place was bad. I continue to run, and the water continues to fall. I start to get used to it, and soon I didn't even feel it. We rarely get showers at the labs and when we do, they are two minutes of cold water being sprayed at you at ridiculous speeds.

I dodge low branches and swerve past fallen trees at a light jog. My heart was racing, excitement flowing through my whole body, almost making my worries disappear. The wind howled, as the sky got darker and soon small white flakes fall from the sky. 

I realize I was almost out of the woods. I flinch as one of the tiny flakes hit my face. I shiver in the wind and slow down trying to save my energy. I try to dodge the tiny white particles but they kept hitting me, and I could only wonder what they would do to me.

I break into a clearing of dead and dying grass turning from green to yellow, when the drug starts to kick in. My body starts to tingle and then becomes numb. I stumble and fall into the white powder, shivering from the cold.

I look up at the sky watching the white particles fall endlessly from the dark sky, and start to feel my eye lids get heavier by the second.