Song - Believer (Imagine Dragons)
"Stay close," Thomas murmured to Newt and I walking behind him.
We pushed through the hectic streets of the outskirts of the city. People walked in every direction. Some friendlier than others. I was shoved to the side at least three times, putting me off balance especially because of my ankle. Thankfully it hadn't swollen up too much but it still ached.
I shoved right back even harder, but Tom told me to keep moving. We needed to keep a low profile. And starting another riot wasn't exactly that.
People also sat on the edge of the narrow street; some lay on the ground. I hoped they were sleeping. I doubted it with the dozens of trucks carrying body bags.
I glanced behind me to see Fry basically glued to Brenda's side, glaring down any person who got too close to her.
That was the first time I had ever seen Frypan glare.
Jorge was also glaring. Not at the strangers around us, but at Frypan. He didn't seem to notice.
Jorge cleared his throat,
"This place has really gone through hell," He muttered to Thomas while moving past us to walk with the boy.
"We just gotta stay together-" Thomas replied before being interrupted by a loud booming voice over a speaker behind us,
"We are the voice, of the voiceless!"
We all spun around to see a parade of trucks heading our way, so we moved to the side with the rest of the crowd.
"They hide behind their walls, thinking they can keep the cure for themselves! While they watch the rest of us wither and rot!"
A group of men dressed in soldiers' uniforms and face masks sat on top of the roofs of the trucks. The crowd started to cheer as they drove past.
And as the first car passed in front of us I saw-
Wait.
No. It couldn't be. Don't be dumb. It's just your eyes playing tricks.
Although, the soldier who caught my eye did sit straight up as a pin when he seemed to be looking at me. I followed his gaze.
He turned around to one of the soldiers and exchanged a few expressive words while pointing at us. But the car was moving fast, and he already was twenty meters away and I lost sight of the car in the crowd.
"And I say, we rise up and take back what is ours! Let's bring back a victory!" The voice boomed causing the entire street to erupt in dangerous cheers.
We watched the crowds starting to follow behind the trucks.
Thomas looked at us all, grabbed Newt's hand, and said,
"Come on, let's go," before pulling Newt along and following the people.
We came to the end of the city where there was a hundred-metre wasteland of nothing... before the wall. The walls would have been the biggest things I'd ever seen if it weren't for the skyscrapers towering over it... putting the walls of the maze to shame.
The people had congregated in a riot and were screaming together,
"Let us in! Let us in!"
We started pushing to the front of the crowd, following Thomas.
"Thomas! This is not what you're looking for. You think out of all these people trying to find their way in, you're gonna find something they can't?" Jorge yelled at Thomas.
"Came this far, I'm not turning back now," Tom affirmed, not deterring from his path. Tom and Jorge pushed forward leaving us caught in the middle of the crowd.
"What did we get ourselves into?" Fry exclaimed.
The hair on the back of my neck prickled. I inhaled a short breath beside Newt. He looked at me with a confused look. Someone was watching us.
I glanced behind my shoulder.
The soldier from the truck before... was shoving people out of the way... heading straight for me and Newt.
Newt also glanced behind us,
"Shit!" He cursed while grabbing my hand and forcing us into a sprint.
I must have heard wrong in the cacophony of voices from the crowd, but I swear I heard someone yelling my name. I ignored it. Even when it became a constant sound from the crowd. I had to be imagining it.
We shoved through the crowd to the front, where we found the others. I grabbed Thomas by the shoulder,
"Guys, we gotta move! Look behind us!"
They all turned to see the soldier beelining for us, and even more fighters flanking us from the sides.
"Shit-"
SCREECH!
We all turned back round; the crowd now silenced.
The massive guns lining the walls... were lurching into ready position.
Screams escaped mouths behind us. And we felt the crowd slowly dispersing.
"Thomas let's go!" Fry bellowed grabbing Brenda. I grabbed Thomas and shouted,
"Tom, we gotta go-"
BOOM!
BOOM!
Thomas grabbed Newt and I,
"Go! Go! Go!" He screamed as he pulled us back to where we had come from.
More explosions and screams rang through our ears as we sprinted as fast as we could away from the wall. I forced the pain of my ankle into the back of my mind.
We bolted to the side when we were clear of the guns, heading into the city...
But were stopped by a group of soldiers all wearing the same face masks as the first man I saw.
One grabbed me by the back and pulled me away from Thomas and Newt.
The boys roared as I kicked and squirmed, but they were also grabbed and thrown into the back of a van. Fry bellowed while being ripped away from Brenda and then thrown into a van. I was chucked into the same one as Fry.
"Newt! Thomas! Brenda!" I screamed.
"Hey! Not her!" I heard a voice yell from outside the van that I could not place. But it was too late. They closed the doors and the driver hit the accelerator.
I strained my eyes to see out of the front window. The others were in front of us also in vans and there was one soldier in the back with us....
Perfect. I glanced at Frypan with a subtle smirk.
He returned my expression with a face I recognize all to well,
'Don't do it,'
Holy fuck... you know I'm gonna do it.
I directed my gaze to the soldier between us and then back to Fry. He gulped but nodded slowly.
And with my fingers, I counted down from three to Frypan.
Three.
Two.
One-
"Ahhh!" I bellowed while breaking free and rolling towards the driver. I heard Fry do the same aiming for the soldier behind us. I jumped into the passenger's seat and grabbed the wheel from the driver.
He shouted but before he could grab his walkie talkie I snatched it and put it behind me. The car started veering from side to side. The driver headbutted me and I fell back clutching my face.
I screamed in anger and pounced, blocking his view of the road, ripping off his mask, and laying several punches on his face. I heard a steady thumping and turned around to see the car heading to the side of the road and hitting objects in its path.
"El look out!' Fry screamed.
"No shit!" I hollered back. I looked back at the driver, his face alive in shock.
I opened the car door... and pushed him out.
I settled in the driver's seat, putting my foot back on the accelerator and hands on the wheel. I turned around to see Fry throwing the other knocked-out soldier out of the car.
He rushed forward after shutting the back and jumped into the passenger seat,
"We need to follow the others-"
A crackling over the walkie-talkie made us both jump.
"Larson, what's happening in there? Status update required,"
We both looked at each other... before Fry grabbed the walkie talkie opening his mouth to respond but I snatched it out of his hand,
I cleared my throat and impersonated a male's voice,
"Everything's fine now sir, now, fine, situation... normal... um... how are you?"
I cringed and looked at Fry. His mouth was open in shock. I smiled sheepishly.
"Wait, who is this?"
"Uh..."
I threw the walkie-talkie out the window.
I glanced at Fry.
"It's fine... look! They aren't even turn-" I started,
Another truck pulled out of nowhere in front of us. I stopped the car abruptly.
I gulped.
"Yep! Really great Eleanor! Good job..." Fry sighed.
"Uh oh,"