The Altered.

Chapter X.

Without context, that was terrifying.

"I don't know what he's talking about," Lia murmured, crouching by the boy and resting her hands on his shoulders. "His parents... they -"

"Attacked him," Eira finished.

All eyes were on the boy, but his eyes were darting about the alley. He seemed not to have heard what the girls had said. He said again, more forcefully this time, "Somebody's here."

"Who?" demanded Lia.

Aaron stood up and crossed the short distance to stand by the girls and stranger, but Miles stayed seated on the ground, legs folded beneath him and Harvey's cold body held close to his own.

"Your parents?" Eira suggested, worry lacing her tone.

"No," said the boy. "No, no, they're gone... I think..."

Lia gave his shoulders a shake. "Hey!" she snapped, but she didn't sound angry; more panicky. "Tell us what the hell you mean."

The boy's eyes had landed on the end of the alley, which opened up onto the street.

Without a response, he darted off into the shadows.

Lia chased after him, disappearing into the dark edges of the alley. "Tell us what you mean!"

He didn't have to.

Aaron said, "Shit," staring at something at the end of the alley.

Eira cowered by her brother's side. "That's what he was staring at."

Miles craned his neck in an attempt to see what they were looking at without having to move.

"Miles, leave the corpse."

That was Lia, emerging from the shadows with the boy in tow. "I know it's important to you -"

"Harvey isn't an it!" snarled Miles, upper lip curling.

Lia flinched. "Gosh, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. You can't bring him with you."

"Where are we going?"

"We're running," she said, "as soon as you put the body down."

"I'm not leaving Harvey behind!"

"Miles, we have about five seconds before -"

But they didn't have five seconds. The person who had been crouching at the end of the alley abruptly stood.

"Crap, Miles, leave Harvey and get up!"

Sensing the urgency in her tone, Miles blinked, for the first time actually considering that maybe he had to leave Harvey behind. The prospect of doing such made him uncomfortable.

"What's happening?" Aaron pressed, but he already knew.

The person was running, now. An Altered, heading in the frightfully direct direction of the teens.

The Altered also had a gun.

Miles had never seen a gun before. Not in real life. In old television programs and movies, guns made frequent appearances; but not anymore. This world was not meant to use guns for evil.

Miles was suddenly torn from Harvey, and he let out a noise of protest before realising it was Aaron who had grabbed him.

"We have to go," Aaron breathed, close to Miles ear and voice brimming with fear.

Once Aaron had hauled Miles to his feet, he let the latter go, however the instant that Miles reached for Harvey's limp body, Aaron grabbed his hand again.

"Bloody hell, Miles, do you want to die?"

Then they were running. Rather, Aaron running, Miles staggering along after.

Gunshots split the air.

An impact; a soft sting; an unbearable, searing pain.

Miles stopped running.

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+1136 Words

((Banner credit to itsnothardtodreamx!))

I hope everybody is staying safe out there with the real virus that's going on right now. It's coincidental that I'm writing about a make-believe virus while the coronavirus and all that's happening,,, but I do have a lot of time to write with the whole self-isolation ordeal.

I hope everybody is doing what they can to stay entertained and healthy <3

- Reb <3