It had been almost two weeks since I had last seen Luz. Everything was different now. The way I operated, the way I held myself, was entirely different. No longer would I be weak. I saw the world through different, survival-rooted, eyes.
Determination fueled me instead of the blind hope I had previously pushed myself on. My mission to find my family had been the only thing on my mind. When my attention drifted I just simply thought of my past and I'd run on my rage. It got me further faster than anything else before. There were no distractions to slow me down from completing my goal.
It made me wonder if this is how Luz had done things before she met me. She mentioned how she operated critically and without emotions. Now that I had been doing much the same I'm starting to believe that she was right. Maybe I had been the one who was holding us back. My influence on Luz only managed to help double down on the amount of lost time as well as the risk upon us. The time I had wasted almost got me carelessly killed.
None of that mattered though as I stood before the trail that led to my family's lodge. What I saw caused my heart to drop. It looked nothing like it did in my memories. The structure looked fragmented and run-down. Bullets riddled the side of the building. This had been something I'd noticed as I approached closer.
Making it to the end of the trail I saw some bodies of the dead scattered about the front yard. The sight made me fall to my knees a few feet before the front porch steps. My body began to shake violently from tears. I had begun to break down again, my mind shutting down as dark and intrusive thoughts took up what open space had been left. I could only assume, only fear, the worst until I knew for sure what had happened here.
No, no I have come too far to just give up! They had to of made it out! I stood up instantly, letting myself fall back into new habits whilst disregarding old ones. Emotions would do me no good unless it was rage, something that fueled me instead of debilitating me. I took the old, creaking wooden steps up and upon reaching the door, brought my hand up to push the door open fully.
The door opened up, hitting the wall as my eyes analyzed the surrounding area. There were traces of them being here, yet they seemed to have abandoned it. But they wouldn't just leave without a clue, right? They would have left something for me to find. Something only I could see or know so they wouldn't give away their plan to any random survivor who discovered this place. Emira, Edric, Dad, or Mom would have found some way to tell me regardless of whether they believed I was alive or not.
Though they weren't here now, they had been, which meant they were safe. All I had to do now was get to them. So I took a moment and closed my eyes trying to think of someplace, some secret, some way they could have found to tell me where they were headed. Looking around I tried to jog my memory as I took in the chaos that was left behind.
Either I wasn't the only one looking for where they might have gone or my family really made a mess of this place. The mess; draws thrown to the ground, cupboards left wide open, stuff tossed and discarded to the floor, had only seemed to scream clutter more than a hint. The result of desperate actions, regardless of who had caused it, wasn't helping me much.
Think Blight, what is something only you would know? I tried to push myself to find the answer as my current mindless search only came up inconclusive. Then it came to me, a memory of Emira and me. And suddenly, I knew exactly where to look. I stumbled over objects and pushed past obstructions as I made my way to Emira's room. Upon entering I found it in the same condition as the rest of the lodge.
Though this didn't concern me as I made my way to the corner of the room and lifted the rug. I laid my hands flat on the wooden floor until my fingers came across the loose floorboard I had been looking for. Lifting it up I saw a box, taking it out I lifted the lid immediately. Inside lay two folded pieces of paper.
I placed both in my pocket and went to cover the secret spot as I replaced the floorboard and threw the rug over top of it. Standing, I made my way out of the lodge quickly feeling as if I needed to get some distance from it before anyone returned. So I made my way from the lodge, both pieces of paper weighing heavy in my pocket. Once I got the much-needed distance and settled somewhere safe I'll see what they held.
... ... ... ...
I sat against the side of a building, the letter addressed to my brother in my hands. My sister's handwriting looked messier than it normally would have to let me know she'd probably written this in a rush. There were some smudges, but not to the extent that the words written were illegible. So I took in a shaky breath and began to read it with furrowed brows.
Dear Edric,
If you are reading this, then I hope that means you and Amity made it here safely. I know that this looks bad, but we were found by the group that has been searching for dad. He knows something that they don't and they want him to work for them. It has something to do with his job at the lab though he wouldn't go into detail about it.
These people, this group, had been sent to search for both us and you as well. They want to use us as leverage against dad to get him to do what they want. I've marked a place on the map for you. Dad and I are headed there now in hopes to finish what we started. I know this doesn't make sense but I promise I'll explain everything once you get here.
I need you to do me a favor Edric. I need you to get Amity here safely if you can. Please don't tell Amity about this. I don't want her to be scared. What's happening with dad and this group is bigger than all of us.
So please, just get here safe and we can catch up on lost time. I miss you guys so much. I love you. Tell mittens I said hello, will you?
See you soon,
Emira
This letter had been meant for Edric yet I was the one who'd been reading it instead. She's still trying to protect me even with the end of the world. I had to hold back tears at reading this. I unfolded the other piece of paper to see it had been a map with a spot specifically marked off on it. This was where they had been headed and Edric wasn't with them. Edric never made it.
But I did and I will find them. My dad and Emira were the only ones I knew I had left. And now I was in a town that I'd found familiar. I'd seen this before when my family and I passed through here on the way to our lodge.
Since leaving Luz and changing things up I had only sped up the process of traveling. That's how I had managed to get so close, almost too close to truly believe it. Then I found the lodge and now I found the letter. Setting off on the same journey with a different destination but the same end goal. To find my family.
Looking around the surrounding town I took in its familiarity and felt myself become the calmest I had been in a while. Even with this new situation, I had been placed under I felt calm in knowing that my dad and Emira were still alive. Suddenly, I heard a flock of birds taking off into the sky. My eyes fell upon their quick accent and their even quicker retreat. I turned toward the right where they had come from. Knowing that something was wrong but not exactly knowing what that was. All I could guess was that nature usually knew things before anyone or anything else.
Turning to face where they retreated from I looked around as the surrounding area became eerily quiet. Nerves settled within my stomach as I took slow steps back trying to scope out what could be causing this feeling, these birds, and the lack of natural sounds within nature. Then suddenly, I saw it, smoke drifting up into the air. Though it didn't make sense.
This couldn't have been a wildfire as I was in a town. Someone or something had caused this, purposefully or not, this all felt dangerous and wrong. "Run!" I heard someone call from behind me and turned to see a guy wearing a helmet over his head rushing towards me. The abrupt and jarring appearance and presence of another person caught me off guard. There were the distant sounds of bikes revving up, supposedly taking chase after this mystery guy.
"I'm being serious! Run now if you don't want to get killed!" He shouted while running passed me. He looked back, faltering for a moment while his body showed a posture of worry, his hand reaching out and pausing in mid-air. I looked from him to the distant sound of approaching bikes before shifting my eyes to him once more.
It took me a moment longer before I sighed, caving. "Please don't let this be a mistake," I mumbled to myself before running towards the guy and we both took off down the street. The bikes turn and I catch a glimpse of our assailants, more particularly, the symbol on their uniforms. These people were members of the group that had been hunting Luz down and possibly the same ones that had been hunting my family. The thought of Luz caught me off guard, making me stumble on my footing for a moment as I had been trying to avoid thinking of her as of late. I had not been doing a good job of it today.
I shook myself out of it, every warning Luz had given me about this group now fresh in my mind as I pushed to run faster. We may have had our differences but that didn't mean I'd throw everything I had learned through traveling with her out the window. Maybe I couldn't trust strangers, but if this guy was running from them, the odds of him being bad are slimmer than that of most strangers I'd met in the apocalypse. So I simply followed close behind him as the ones chasing us made up ground, nearing us quickly.
"Get down!" He shouted before turning quickly, pulling out a gun, and firing a few shots towards them. He hit one of them before downing the other two as he shot out their wheels. The last one continued toward us. I stood up from my crouched position looking at his belt while he tried to reload his weapon. I rushed forward, taking a knife from his belt and turning back towards the attacker on the bike.
"You've caught me on a bad day," I said through my teeth before aiming and throwing the knife, sinking it into his shoulder as he spun out. "That made a lot of noise, probably drawing in a lot of monsters and possibly more of them. We need to get out of here." I turned back to the guy giving him an evil look where I thought his eyes were behind his helmet's lens.
"On it!" He said before running towards the discarded bike as the attacker slowly stood back up. I walked toward him as he fumbled to grab his gun from his belt. Before he could fully pull it out I took the knife from his shoulder and stabbed him in his chest. He took his helmet off and coughed up blood from his mouth before falling to the ground in a heap. And I stared at him as a memory came to my mind.
"No, not like that Amity," Luz spoke before taking my hand in hers and moving the knife to be aimed at her chest. "Like this. Right where the heart is." She moved the tip of the knife to press gently against her chest above her heart. She pushed it in a bit and my eyes went wide as I pulled it away from her instantly and she started to laugh.
"What the heck Luz? I could have hurt you!" I screamed shoving her back as she continued to laugh.
"I'm just messing with you Blight. I just want you to know how to protect yourself just in case I'm not there to do it myself." She smiled and I had to fight off one of my own as I wanted her to know how mad I had been at her. How her joking, yet careless actions had upset me.
"Keep doing stuff like that and I'll be the one protecting you," I mumbled grouchily as she turned and started to walk off again.
Growls, monsters, I could hear them coming from all around and that snapped me back. "Hurry!" I heard the guy from beside me shout. He hopped onto the bike and revved it, motioning with his hand for me to get on the back. My gut told me nothing but my brain screamed at me to get on. So I listen to it and I jumped on the back barely getting my hands to wrap around his stomach before we took off.
... ... ... ...
After we made it a large distance from where the group was we rushed into a building. Shutting the doors behind us quickly we both caught our breaths. Not letting my guard down for a moment I took out my knife and scoped out the building. "We have to ensure it's clear in here," I informed the guy beside me and he nodded his head.
He took a few steps to the side, taking a metal pipe from the ground and starting to slam it heavily against a shelf. I lifted a hand, motioning him to stop and we both froze to listen to our surroundings. It was quiet for a moment before I heard a shuffling movement coming from the back of the building. A monster came running from a corner at a speed I had not been prepared for. The monster had moved almost as uncannily fast as the ones from the school Luz and I were in.
This wasn't normal, though I didn't have the time to debate the speed at which a blood-thirsty monster had been approaching me. The monster shoved into me, knocking me down to the ground with a force. Another monster did the same to the guy beside me. He lifted the metal pipe and pushed it against the monster's throat to keep it away from him.
I felt a wave of anger bubbling up from within me and I let it out. The rage from within consumed me as I took my knife to the monster's skull. I didn't even flinch as the blood coated my hand. Throwing the limp body off me, I crawled toward the guy beside me, my eyes locked onto the monster attacking him with a force I hadn't seen before.
I grabbed the monster from behind and threw it to his side. He pushed himself back a bit before jumping up. The monster attempted to run at him again though I moved to trip it. It fell in a heap by his shoes and his eyes grew wide. He brought the metal pipe above his head and repeatedly brought it down against the monster's skull. I merely watched on until the guy dropped the pipe and fell back into the wall slowly sliding to the floor.
I took this time to turn and begin to look around the building for anything that could be of use to me. I soon stumbled upon a staircase leading to what looked like another floor above us. "Found a staircase leading up," I shouted, peeking around the corner and seeing him with his head against the wall as he stared blankly at the ceiling. "You want to check it out?" I offered and he gave me a thumbs up.
"You go on ahead. I'll catch up." He mumbled. My guard was still up so I decided to head up but stay aware. Who knows who this guy is or what he's up to? I gave him a thumbs up in return before heading up the stairs.
I'd spend my time exploring the second floor grabbing what I needed. Soon enough I heard footsteps coming up the stairs. "Mystery girl, you up here? Please don't tell me you plan on jumping from around a corner to stab me. I've had a long day and could use a bit of a break." There was a pause as he reached the top of the stairs.
"Well, at least as much of a break as the apocalypse will allow." He mumbled that last part under his breath and I walked into the hall and into his line of sight. "Oh thank goodness. I live to see another day." He laughed to himself awkwardly after that and I shook my head at him.
He made his way to a window, passing by me as I tense up expecting him to attack me. Though instead he just continued on his way and looked out of the window at the town below. "So, where are you headed?" He asked me absentmindedly as he moved the curtain to the side to get a better look at the area below us.
"I'm not telling you that. Especially now as you are faceless and I have no idea who you are." I explained, crossing my arms and raising my walls.
"I'm wearing this helmet for a reason, and this jacket?" He moved it to the side leading me to realize that he had put it on inside out. "I'm wearing it like this on purpose." Shrugging it off his shoulders he offered it out to me while still facing away from me and I slowly took it from him.
Bringing it toward myself I looked down and opened it up to see it had been one that belonged to the very people that were just chasing us. "I stole that and I cover my face so that I can slip passed them. Though they have made plenty of enemies so I try to be careful who I wear it around as well as where I am when I do so." He explained before he turned to face away from me and took his helmet off.
I overheard him take a few breaths as I examined him from behind. "It gets hot in there." He mumbled to himself as I looked toward the sweat running from his black hair down his neck. Walking closer to the window he opened it up to get fresh air as he attempted to cool himself off. My eyes fell back upon the jacket as I took a few steps forward and laid it down on a table.
"How do I know you're telling the truth? How do I know for certain you're not one of them?" I overheard him chuckle as he ran a hand through his hair. He placed his hands on the window sill and leaned forward to catch a further glimpse outside. Distant sounds of monsters came through the window as he sighed to himself.
"Not one for trust are you?" He asked, looking up at the sky, his eyes analyzing it. His gaze left the sky as he turned his head to the side, giving me a small look at his features. They felt familiar to me as if I'd seen him before. He took a step back, reaching for his helmet before placing back onto his head and turning toward me once more. I heard a distant sound but thought nothing of it too focused on the present moment.
"Listen, I've already had a traveling experience that went wrong. I just don't think that traveling with, trusting, or sharing things with yet another stranger I know nothing about is the best idea. Especially if that new stranger is also running from the same group the last one was. And..." I trailed off when I saw a flash coming from a window of the adjacent building.
Instincts took over as I lunged forward, shoving the guy in front of me to the ground narrowly missing a few bullets that shattered through the window. We both landed hard on the floor. This caused soreness in my arm. Aching pain started to shoot down my arm and pulsate.
"Okay, that is the fourth time I've been shot at since this whole trip started!" I screamed in frustration as I pushed myself up using my good arm. The guy pushed himself up quickly, grabbing my arm and pulling me up before taking his gun out. The shooter began to flee from the adjacent window and my head turned towards the door to our floor as it was bashed open. The guy jumped in front of me and I grabbed his jacket from the table and wrapped it around my fist.
"There's no other way out!" He shouted as shots rang out and he used a wall for cover. I rushed to the window, one glace at the height already causing my stomach to turn. "We're outnumbered!" He screamed before he began firing back in return. Taking a page from Luz's book I brought my wrapped hand back and punched out what was left of the window a few times until it was free from most of its glass.
"We'll go through the window then!" I exclaimed before climbing through the window. My footing slipped as my fear began to tug at the back of my mind. I fell forward narrowly catching myself before forcing my eyes to remain forward. "It's now or never man!" I called through the window at him before unsteadily making my way across the uneven roof.
Soon I heard the guy rush out the window as he stumbled from behind me. Making it to the other side of the roof I noticed a pickup truck parked at the back of the building. It didn't have anything to break our fall if we jumped but we did not have plenty of other options. I swallowed my fear as I locked eyes with the guy beside me.
There was the sound of people making their way out of the window and onto the roof along with us. We both turned to look back before looking toward each other again. We had the same idea cross our minds at the same time. It was either the truck or them. So we both faced the truck and took a leap of faith as some of the people chasing us made their way across the roof.
My feet landed against the bed of the truck and I fell forward onto my knees as my hands caught me. The guy jumped out of the truck and offered me his hands. I placed mine in his as he helped me out of the truck quickly before we both sprinted away. Gunshots rang out in the air, bullets hitting against and ricocheting off of objects around us, narrowly missing us.
... ... ... ...
We'd been walking for a while now. My legs wanted to give out despite having gone through worse. I guess I was just tired from it all; the traveling, the overthinking, all of it, and now it had finally manifested in a physical form. After leaving Luz, I didn't have to deal with running for my life from an ominous group I still barely knew anything about.
I was brought from my thoughts a moment later when the guy fell to the ground before me out of nowhere. Rushing to his side I kneeled before him unsure of what was happening. "Are you okay?" I asked concerned. He was breathing heavily I could see.
"All good," he stated while giving me a thumbs up. "I just need a minute." He explained and I shifted my position, falling back to lay beside him.
"Me too man," I mumbled to myself more than to him. I sighed and covered my eyes from the sun with my arm. We had both been conveniently headed in the same direction so far, whether that was on purpose or not, I didn't know for sure. Though my destination was some random location on a map and his was somewhere in the city. I didn't ask for him to go into detail as I didn't want to get stuck in another random side quest during my journey.
I'd wasted so much time with Luz already. Things were serious now that I knew for certain Emira and my father were both alive out there. Wherever he was going had to of been close and because of that he had somehow barely convinced me to accompany him as we were headed in the same direction. I had no real intentions of letting my guard down, but with him, I had been getting the help I needed.
Traveling alone only gets you so far so fast. With him lending an extra hand when necessary and taking out monsters alongside me I had been able to make up for the lost time. So I agreed to follow him as it helped me to make up this newfound ground I'd been given. However, unlike Luz, with him, I refused to open up. This had been to avoid another situation like what had happened between Luz and me.
There was something about this guy that felt familiar which also encouraged me to travel with him. There was this constant tugging at the back of my mind trying to tell me something. It felt important but I couldn't identify it. What was it about him that caused this twisting in my gut? Something I had not felt since I began to operate out of logic instead of relying on my emotions.
"We're getting close to my stashed bike. You sure you don't want to come with me?" He asked, bringing me back to the present moment.
"It's doubtful I'd agree to such given my recent history. So, no, I will not be going with you." I stated bluntly while he just chuckled light-heartedly. After that, we both grew silent as he looked around before leading me around the side of a building. He approached a large trash bin getting my help to move it before he went behind it to something covered with a tarp. Removing it revealed the stashed bike he had mentioned and he cheered for himself.
Taking it he started to maneuver it down towards the main road we had been using. I followed behind him seeing the sweat fall from beneath his helmet. How does he breathe in that? He laid the bike against a cement block on the side of the road before turning to address me with a friendly smile.
"So, we'll be parting ways soon. Once we get back on the road it won't be long until this statement holds true. In this case, would you like to at least tell me your name?" He asked. My walls were up, but he had a point. It's doubtful I'd ever see him again after this so what harm could it really do?
Though this thought caused my stomach to twist. My gut was trying to tell me something. And though I had wanted to avoid sharing personal information with him I couldn't help it. He turned away from me and began to walk forward. "My name is Amity," I mumbled after feeling myself give in just a fraction. Not a whole lot, but just enough to make me do such.
"Wait, Amity? As in Amity Blight?" He turned back towards me so fast and I froze. Those words, the ones he just spoke, echoed in my mind and sent my heart stuttering to a sudden halt. How did he know my name? My hand shifted, hovering over where my pocket knife had been placed. Before I could ask him just that exact question he did something that made me freeze even further.
He lifted his helmet off, showing me his face; and the person he revealed himself to be left my feet rooted to the spot. A face, his face, familiar as it almost matched exactly that of the one in the photo Luz had shown me. "Gus?" His name slipped passed my lips as I stayed in my shocked state.
"Luz told me about you. She's been looking for you!" He took a step forward and I took one back. "How did I not realize it was you?" He stated, dropping his helmet to the ground beside him.
"Luz has been looking for me? That can't be true. She said she wanted me to stay away from her!" I started to breathe heavily while pushing my fingers into my hair and pulling at it. "How does this keep happening to me? Why?" I felt my eyes begin to water.
"She regretted it the moment she said it. She was just scared Amity. She didn't mean it." He tried to explain but I wasn't having it.
"Don't say my name and talk to me as if you know me! Luz made her choice to leave me and she can live with it." I took a step forward and pointed my finger at him. "I am tired of trusting people only to get hurt in the end. You and I," I started pointing between the both of us, "are no longer traveling with each other." I said before turning on my heels and storming off.
"Amity wait!" I heard him shout behind me. I heard his footsteps rush to catch up to me but I was done with it all. Turning around I flicked my knife open and he slowed to an immediate stop in front of me. When he stopped fully I directed the end of the knife at his throat and gave him an evil glare.
"She hurt me," I stated boldly and I watched as Gus swallowed hard and slowly raised his hands in surrender.
"I know. She regrets it. She'd do anything to take it all back if she could." As he said this my strength to keep my walls up wavered. "She's in trouble Amity. That's why I'm headed to where I'm going now." He paused for a moment, his eyes shifting between mine, searching for something.
"That's not fair." My breath shuttered when saying this. How in the world did I find myself back to Luz when I was doing everything in my power not to look for her? I wanted to avoid it all yet the world somehow managed to bring me right back to her unknowingly. This had to of been some cruel joke. I'm so close to finding the family I had left in this world and Luz has found a way to crash back into my life.
She hurt my feelings. She told me to go away. She wanted this, asked for this, and I gave it to her. If she really cared she wouldn't have left me in the first place. I couldn't throw myself back into her world and all the complications that came with it, that came with her. "I know it's not," Gus spoke quietly, his hands still raised where I could see them.
I hesitated, my eyes shifting away from him for a brief moment as I felt myself falling slowly back into the girl I had missed so much. But I would never allow myself to admit to that so openly out loud after how she had hurt me. "You know where she is?" I'd found my heart asking for me instead of my head.
"Yes," he gently placed his hand upon mine and lowered the knife slowly from being aimed at his throat. I pulled out my map and handed it to him.
"Show me," I ordered and he nodded his head before looking at the map with confusion showing on his face.
"What?" I asked and he looked up at me before shaking himself from his thoughts.
"Nothing. We're headed to the bell tower in the middle of town to regroup." He said pointing it out on the map and I nodded my head. It was on the way to my family. I could find her, get my answers, and head to meet with my dad and Emira. Not all have to be in that order necessarily.
I wouldn't let myself give in so easily though. I will not allow my walls to fall around her this time. I'd get answers but I'd do it on my own terms. But not before I finished what I started, what I had come so close to finishing. My mission would take priority and the answers from Luz could wait.
"I'd understand if you were hesitant, but know this, it is entirely up to you." He started reassuringly. "You can come with me and get your answers, your closure from her, and move on. Or, you could choose to do otherwise." He stepped forward and rested a hand on my shoulder.
"You both deserve to figure things out at least." His hand gave my shoulder a squeeze before he took a few steps back. Turning, he threw a leg over the bike and sat down while starting it up. He offered out his helmet to me with a smile. "Your choice." His words ended which brought out a small silence afterward.
The quiet lingered for a few moments as I thought it all over. I took slow steps toward him before grabbing the helmet from his hand. I placed it over my head before sighing. "Let's get going then." As I said this I went to take my place behind him catching the small smirk that grew on his face.
So I'd be seeing Luz again, sooner than I thought. Though this would only be the beginning of what came next. Something bigger, darker, was just around the corner waiting for us.