Vivian
My eyes stung. Tears threatened to run down my cheeks as i thought about what I had just done. I abandoned my little sister; I left her behind. All for good purpose, the voice in my head reminded me. Remember what your mother said.
"Vivian, you have to leave. Give Julia a comm and get out. If you leave through the gate in Sector A, these directions can lead you to Candor. "
"But- but mother, I can't leave her behind!"
"I can keep her safe. Trust me. Now go; time is running out. I love you."
I still couldn't believe my own mother had made me leave my sister behind. It seemed barbaric, leaving a little girl alone in a town that had just been invaded. The only reason I'd listened to her is because she promised to keep Julia safe. I had to believe that. Hopefully she actually could because I didn't know what I would do if something happened to Julia.
I stopped running for a minute and turned around. The valley Arman rested in lay below me, making me realize just how far uphill I'd gone. Fortunately I could only see two smoking ruins out of the thirteen and upwards there could have been. To my knowledge nobody would have gone to the park or the movies this early; I'm not sure they would have even been open, meaning there was a very small number of casualties.
Unless they've started killing people off...
I dismissed the thought. If they'd wanted to kill everyone they could've detonated all the bombs in the middle of the day when everyone was out and about. I thought about it and came to the conclusion it'd be useless to kill people at random for any purpose they had.
Finally I sat down and pulled out the map in the concealed pocket of my bag. Julia always made fun of me for being fourteen and still having a stuffed animal but Spotteheart gave me a little bit of comfort. I looked down at Arman and tried to judge which sector was in front of me. I didn't think I'd wandered too far off course but I had to be sure. Mother had told me I needed to be exact in order to make it to the next town.
Squinting my eyes against the sun, I pulled out the list of instructions that went with the map.
"If no delays; 13 hours."
I read. Muttering a few choice words I was glad Julia wasn't here as I looked at my watch. Thirteen hours from now was 9:30 at night and the sun was predicted to set at 7:24. I had to hurry if I wanted to make it far enough away to be safe when I camped. I was only about 4 minutes away from the gates and I was sure they'd already sent out search parties.
I got up hastily and consulted my map, trying to figure out which direction the "tree with a purple mark" was. Mother was right; the instructions were specific. Sector A was a little to my left so i positions myself in front of it. Fortunately I had ended up on the hill with "the trio of sandstone boulders". I looked at them closely and saw scratches that seemed to form an arrow of sorts. Turning around and studying the trees, I hoped the rest of the journey would be a bit easier.
Half an hour later I slammed into a tree branch. Cursing, I lifted my eyes from the ground where I had been searching for a black gecko statue. As I was looking up something fell from a nearby tree. I quickly hurried over, trying not to trip over any roots. The leaves rustled loudly as I knelt down and picked up a black gecko. I sighed happily and gazed at the tree it had fallen from and noticed purple mold on one of the branches, which happened to be my next instruction. According to the lost the branch pointed in the direction I was supposed to follow a stream along. I stopped moving around and listened. While some find birds cheerful, i know they're incredibly annoying. As I took in the bright green scenery I strained to hear the slightest trickle of water.
My impatience grew as I stood there. At this rate it'd take me forever to reach the next town. I really couldn't afford to wait this long; this was making me anxious.
About five minutes later I suddenly heard something on my left. I realized it might have been a good idea to climb the tree and look for the stream. My tree-climbing skills were rusty but I manages to make it about halfway up the giant thing with only a few bruises and scrapes. The branches blocked my view a but but I managed to get a 360 look at my surroundings. Thankfully the rest of the trees were quite short. I noticed a flash of red in the direction I'd come from but paid it no mid. I didn't think I'd be going back anytime soon. Leaning out a bit I caught a glimpse of what could only have been the stream. I smiled and cautiously made my way back down the tree.
As soon as I fell from the bottom branch I saw my bag lying on a rock. I mentally kicked myself for leaving it vulnerable. Picking it up I gave the tree one last pat for its help before I set of towards the stream. It seemed to be forever but I finally reached it. The quiet rushing sound was music to my ears. I sat down and took out the water purifier. As I filled it with river water the wknd started to pick up so I weighed the map down between two rocks. The next direction told me to "cross the three stones" once I'd gone seven miles upstream. It looked like the stream flowed in the direction of Arman so I guessed it was one of the main water sources.
I just sat on the bank of the river for the next ten minutes, not even thinking about food despite my hunger. I was too busy worrying about Julia and all of my other friends. I briefly wondered if anybody else would have managed to get out but decided nobody would have been prepared enough.
The ding of the water purifier snapped me out of my thoughts and I hastily got up. As I practically stumbled to where I'd left it the wind blew my hair into my face and I tripped over a rock. With despair I recognized the sound of fluttering paper and turned around, watching the wind toss my map and instructions into the river.
"No!" I yelled as I reached for them, desperately trying not to get wet. I gazed in horror as try settled on the surface of the water while I struggled to get up.
"Oh, come on, don't do this to me!" I pleaded, throwing myself in the water, not caring about staying dry anymore. I gingerly picked up the map and sighed. The dark ink was runny and the letters were blurred together, making it impossible to decipher some of the labels. The instructions were no better. I could only somewhat read a word every few lines. I cursed and threw the now-useless scraps of soggy paper on the ground. "Oh, god, what am I going to do?!" I yelled at the world. I was going to get lost, that's what. I just knew it.
Turning around I kicked the nearest tree with fury. My toe painfully ricocheted off the hard surface and I cursed again. I had just jeopardized my mother's whole plan; my whole plane. If I couldn't get to the next city I'd eventually die of hunger or something. I'd never be able to call to them to aid Arman if that's what I was suppose to do.
I say down on the cursed rock which my map had been on and threw the stone I had used as a paperweight. Burying my head in my hands I silently contemplated what to do. Eventually I decided to loo through my bag to find something that could help me. I knew I had a compass in there so I could keep going in the general direction of Candor but what I really needed was a map. Even if it was less detailed, and picture of my surroundings would definitely help.
As I rummaged through my bag my hand caught a piece of paper. I hopefully pulled it out and sighed as I saw it was just a standar-issue envelope. Turning it over I noticed my name written on it in my mother's handwriting and I got hopeful again. Almost as soon as I had lifted the flap I heard a metallic hiss much like the doors in our house. Startled, I leapt up and looked around, trying to see if anyone was after me. It seemed unlikely that someone could have gotten this close without me noticing but I had to be cautious.
As I looked across the river I gasped. The tree I had thrown the rock at was now illuminated near the bottom. I carefully crept across the river and approached the tree, my eyes widening when I saw what was in the ground. A circular hatch had opened up next to the tree with bright lights lighting it up. I could only guess the rock had hit some sort of button on the tree.
I quickly out everything back in my bag, promising to read the letter later. Stumbling only a little I raced back to the tree and looked down the hatch. Cautiously leaning over the joke I saw a ladder disappearing into the darkness. I started climbing down.
~
Sorry I haven't updated in a while! My computer was a peice of crap and didn't function. I hope you enjoy!
