Subject A7

Chapter Eleven

I screamed as we hit the water. It was freezing.
Without thinking, I let go of Dylan's hand trying to swim but was confused, I did not know which way was to go up. I tried swimming forward but felt like forever. I was running out of time, I started to panic. I was going to drown.
Something grabbed me under my arms and pulled me up, when we reached the surface I gasped for the air grabbing onto whatever was holding on to me.
"Easy Avery!" Dylan holds onto me tighter. "I've got you, you're okay."
He makes his way to the ledge. I pulled myself up trembling, shivering from the cold.
"Told you not to let go," he was annoyed.
"I'm sorry, I panicked."
He mutters something that was too low for me to hear. "Never mind, come on!" he says.
He pulls me to my feet and we ran, there were gunshots but somehow we missed each of them running through the building ruins.
"Come on, I know a safe place," Dylan says.
I was stepping on things hurting my feet as a reminder that I was not wearing any shoes.
"Dylan! Stop!" I cried slipping my hand from his.
He stops to look at me.
"I don't have shoes, I can't keep going," I said feeling very pissed off with myself. Why was I acting such a weak person? I should be stronger than this?
Dylan sighs, sounded like he was annoyed with me. He comes over and crouches down in front of me.
"Climb on," he says.
I did as he asked, I still felt like shit and hopped on his back. He did not groan as I expected and continued walking.
"We'll find new clothes for you and some shoes," he says, "in one of the buildings, people use to hide out here before Arcane took over. People ran leaving most things behind."
"Arcane..." I whispered.
"Just over here, there is a building that has all kinds of different hiding spots. We'll be safe there," he says and climbs over the rocks. He grunted a few times but manages to get through.
"What about the infected?" I ask him.
"Arcane got rid of them ages ago, whatever they did not kill, they captured. So I believe it would be safe but I'll check it out anyway."
He gently lowers me to the ground. He asked me to wait there as he scouts the area to make sure it was safe, I walked over to a dusty chair and sat down. I swirled around it looking around at the place, it was cold and the sun was slowly rising to make things easier to see.
My mind kept returning back to the events that had happened, I did not expect this to have happened.
My lips started to tremble and couldn't keep it up anymore, I burst into tears.

"I'm sorry," I sniffed. "It just all happened so fast and everything I thought I knew... it just came crashing down... they were going to kill us... Jaxon was going to... hurt me... Conner... was in so much pain... Noah was shot!"
"Calm down Avery," Dylan says rubbing my shoulder. "I kind of expecting this, Noah would probably be a mess right now as well."
"I am such a fool," I cried. "I foolishly believed them ... without a second thought ... they punished us... Jaxon hurt us ...."
Dylan stiffened.
"You must be so... pissed off with me... I am slowing you... slowing you down," I cried harder.
"I'm not pissed off," he whispers.
"Y-yes you a-are," I wiped my face looking at him. 
Dylan makes a face. "It's not you that I get annoyed at. It's me. I am used to people keeping up with me but you've just came out of Arcane with nothing. I need to remember that this is a shock to you and that you aren't used to this kind of lifestyle yet."
"I'm s-sorry," I whimpered.
"I know," Dylan pulls me into his arms. "You must be exhausted, please try to get some rest."
"Here?" I hiccuped.
"We're safe for now, I'll wake you if we need to move again," he promises.
I sniffed.
"Stay with me?"
Dylan lays down taking me with him, I adjusted my position so that both of us would be comfortable. But he was laying on the hard ground so he wouldn't be.
"I will," he whispers stroking my head softly.
"You okay?" I ask him.
"With you here by my side? Of course," he whispers. "Now sleep."


* * *

I was woken by Dylan shaking me awake, I was about to tell him to piss off when he puts his fingers to his lips.

I frowned at him and he just shakes his head. "Come" he mouths moving away. I quickly got to my feet following him. I could hear them now, the voices of the guards from Arcane, I felt myself start to panic but mentally slapped myself, I cannot be a liability, I will not be a liability!
I needed to focus and that focus was following Dylan to avoid being caught. I noticed that he was now carrying a bag, wonder where he got that from.
He climbed up some of the rocks, I glanced down at my feet.
"Just keep it in," I muttered prepping myself. "You're not some weak ass person, keep it in, don't make a sound and we'll be fine."
I started to climb up, it was fine for a few minutes. Dylan leaned back to grab my hand hauling me up.
"So far so good," he says.
He continues forward, I really wanted to look around as it was daylight and the building we were in was filled with office chairs, desks, and papers that were all old and dirty. Everything looked as if it were tossed all over the place. I picked up a piece of paper.

It read; Warning Virus Spreading.

It dated back to two-thousand and twenty.
"Wonder what the world was like back then," I whisper putting it back down.
I continued forward until Dylan motioned for me to follow him through one of the rooms.
"We'll go up one more floor and should be good," he says. "Hopefully they'll think we decided to not stick around and head back."
"Sounds good," I answer.
He jumped up onto the ceiling that revealed to be an opening, I jumped up as he had just done but missed his hand.
"Again," he calls. I did so again but I grunted at how I missed his hand again, I was not as tall as he was.
"Hang on," I tell him. I quickly make my way back to the other room ignoring him when he told me to come back. I picked up one of the chairs and wheeled it back into the other room.
"Avery," he makes a face but again I ignore him.
I placed it just below the hole and climbed up. It was easier to reach him now and he hauled me up.
"Good idea," he says giving me a nod of approval. I felt my cheeks heat up.
"Thanks," I replied.
Dylan crouches down and moves over towards the window, I watched as he listened.
"They're probably not here," one of them shouts.
"Keep searching," another called.
"Jaxon is calling us back," another shouts.
"Keep moving forward," a woman shouts.
Dylan sighs in relief when they were called to search elsewhere.
"They don't sound like a very good team," I said causing Dylan to chuckle.
"We rattled them up from the stunt we pulled," he grins before taking the bag off his back and pulls something about of his bag.
"I went to look around and found these, I hope you like it."
He pulls out a pair of dirty brown shoes, a blue pair tore jeans, a brown shirt, and a torn maroon coloured cardigan. It was dirty but seeing Dylan smiling at what he had found was contagious, I grinned.
"It's perfect," I say jumping up to have a better look.
"I know you wore nothing but white clothing, always clean but it was the best I could do."
"Does not matter, it gives me something besides feeling like another one of their subjects," I was about to start stripping but looked at Dylan arching an eyebrow.
"Oh, uh, right... sorry" he turns around. "I hope it all fits."
I rolled my eyes, I quickly stripped down now realising I was not wearing a bra, I looked back to make sure he was not watching and decided to keep the singlet on and put on the shirt. It did have a bit of a funky smell but I ignored it. I put on the jeans and was very surprised they fit snuggly on me as if it were waiting for me.

When I went to put on some shoes, I stood there looking like some clueless bimbo.
"Umm...Dylan?"
"Mm?"
"Did you bring some socks?"
He turns and stares, I had to glance down to make sure I did not put anything on the wrong way.
"Looks good on you," he says, his face was turning a slight pink shade. "Better than the white."
I giggle and give him a spin.
"Thanks, I feel like this is more me than the other clothes."
Dylan chuckles. "Sorry, yeah I did bring you some socks. Here" he pulls some out of his bag and tosses them at me. I caught it quite easily. One was blue and the other was red. I shoot him a look.
"Sorry, that was all I could find," he looks away trying to not laugh.
I roll eyes trying to not laugh either and put them on.
"Did you sleep all right?" Dylan asks.
"Surprisingly, yes I did," I tell him putting the shoes on. They were a bit tight but at least it was something to protect my feet so I was not going to start complaining.
"I am good to go," I tell him jumping to my feet and picking up the maroon cardigan and putting it on.
"Okay, we will check to see if its good to go," he says crunching down again and moving towards the window, he peeks up scanning the area before us.
"Mmm... I'm not too sure," he says after a few minutes. "I think we should find a way out through the building, it's too quiet."
"I don't know much so I'm happy to go along with what you think."
Dylan smiles. "Wish Hunter was more like you, he fights with me a lot."
"Really?"
"Yeah, when we get through this I am happy to sit down and we can talk about everything...how does that sound?"

"I'd like that," I tell him feeling my cheeks flush. Dylan started to walk, I made sure to be right behind him so I'd do exactly what he was doing.
The thought of us two sitting down, talking about his friends and what their life was like really brought an extra spring in my step despite everything that has happened it made me feel like there is a whole new world just waiting for me.
Until my thoughts went back to my friend Noah, he, Nick, Hunter, and Vincent jumped down through the drain hole to the sewers... I hope they were all okay, especially Noah who was shot in the leg. The blood drained from my face when I recalled all the blood.
"Will Noah and the others be okay?" I asked Dylan.
Dylan continues walking.
"They know what they are doing, they would have stuck to the plan and got out of there. Your friend was shot but luckily it was in the leg so he will make it, he just needs to get to the Fireflies urgently."
"How far are the Fireflies?"
"It's a two-day trip if we walk but Hunter was smart enough to hide a car so it'll be faster for them to get to the mountains."
"The Mountains?"
"Yeah, we were located in one of the cities but that we before we were ambushed, happened about five years ago."
"I think that's what Vincent and Jaxon were talking about," I said now remembering the conversation. Vincent had just confessed he was my father and Jaxon ruined the moment, I asked him.

"Is it true that you used a memory swipe on me?" I ask creating a diversion in hopes Jaxon wouldn't shoot Vincent. Jaxon blinks he was caught off guard with my question.
"I mean, I have been having strange dreams about the outside world. And this man just confessed that he is my father ... so is it true?"
Jaxon narrows his eyes at me. "Of course it is you stupid girl, but don't worry, once I shoot your father and I will happily wipe all of this away as well ... and who knows maybe then we can have some fun."
Vincent clenched his fist in anger.
"Drop the gun now asshole," Dylan says aiming the gun right on Jaxon's head.

"You were there, weren't you?" I ask him.
He nods. "I was," he says.
We looked up to see some stairs leading up and down, Dylan glances at me.
"Which way you wanna go?" he asks.
"Up," I say without hesitation.
He nods slowly. "Why up?" he asks.
"I'd rather not get caught."
He smiles. "You are learning," he says, "I'd go upstairs as well. As soon as they realise that we're not here, they'll give up and won't go into full depth of their search. Once it is clear, we'll come back down and make our way towards the camp."
We started to walk up the stairs, a low groan came from it.
"It's not going to collapse from under us, is it?" I ask him worried.
"No, it should hold" he sounds not sounding so confident himself. "Just be careful."

I kept my eyes down watching my every step. Once we reached the top, we came face to face with a room with nowhere to go and a dead end.
"Shit... a dead end," he turns looking annoyed. "We better go back."

I turn around and freeze, there were voices coming from below us.