Chapter 12
we're doomed
Al and I shared the last food we have, we didn't get that much before the flood comes after. We only get what we can and what we need but I think as far we come by into any other places, the food is always gonna be the problem.
The glass house seems okay, we feel safer for a moment but we couldn't help ourselves to be vigilant. We really don't know much about this place and if we keep lurking around, there might be a danger that's heading to us. We should take the risks but it always goes somehow into places. We should know what to do, it is simply because people always don't take chances.
"Dylan, we need to do something, I can't help myself staying in one place."
I nodded to him, "as am I, I really don't feel comfortable in this place... it is like, everyone's watching."
"Who knows, right?" he said, "it would never be called glass jungle if no one is looking at it."
"We should take the lead first thing in the morning," I said, "and its better to do that when the sun hasn't shown up yet."
"That's a good one..." he said, nodding and he gets his technology which he did something I really don't know, he looks up to me and saw my faces confused. "Oh, about this, I'm trying to cipher this place and if I could do it, we can lead the way..."
"Can you work it out as soon as possible?"
He nodded, "it may take a few hours but I can... you know I can." He smirked, "what could be threats outside, huh? That's what I'm curious about... this place is a ghost town but it doesn't, really. Something is off into this place."
"I feel that too." I said, "you know what, I should take a rest now and you, do your thing..."
He chuckles, "I'm on it, Dy."
I place the sheets on the floor and have my backpack as my pillow. When I close my eyes, I couldn't stop thinking of anything, what might happen next or the day after tomorrow. Its always a risk and this survival hasn't gone a good way because as of what we're experiencing right now, they're trying to eliminate every participant by natural causes which comes from the acid rain and flood. But if you get to bound to meet few people whose motives are to slay everyone... you wish to escape from it.
For some time, Al woke me up in a sudden.
I didn't know how many hours I took on sleep but that it feels like it was just seconds from closing my eyes earlier. I bound to go near to Al and ask him what's the hurry of him waking me up, in the middle of the night—and I think, he didn't get sleep and still working on his technology.
"C'mon, get here." He said and I come to his direction, "I've done it." And put the screen on my face, seeing the map of the glass jungle. "But there's one thing I couldn't do without any sufficient tools." He said.
My forehead creased, "what is it? I thought you already had those?"
He shook his head, "not on this one, I had replaced the burned chip but this one couldn't track the others, they may be blocked us from inferring into their signal or it is just... we're alone in this place."
I turned my attention to his technology and there is no indication of any people around, the technology couldn't even recognize our trackers. If Al had the chip, we can be safer in that way but I think it is still possible to roam around the place when we already had the map.
"That would help us right?" I asked.
He nodded, "of course, it will, it just that we can't see if we are alone but surely, my technology will help us.... four hours wouldn't be such in a waste."
"It took four hours?" I said, surprised but not really, "so... I think we should go before the light shines up."
He agreed, "that's why I wake you up, Dylan." He said, "we should prepare, just bring your bag and your ax, don't bring any not necessary things, okay?"
I give a nod as respond and prepared myself before we leave. I remove all the things inside my bag and pick up my ax. I didn't take much of the time and watch Al to prepared himself, with just his empty backpack and his technology. When I bound to get my motorbike, he immediately stopped me.
I looked at him, raising a brow, "what, Al? This could help us more efficient?"
He shook his head, "it will, but it won't help when they heard that there are some people lurking around the place, we wouldn't that right?"
"Absolutely." I said, "and we'll walk."
"That's the plan." He smirked. "I think we should go now before anyone could see us."
We left the glass house, it doesn't have a lock and we just wished that some people won't barge in. The dark hazy environment welcomed us when we got out. It is so dark that the night sky reflected into the glass mirrors that make the whole place into its darkness, the moon doesn't help at all. We started walking, we're hearing some glass shattering and as we look up, it is like the glass towers we're gonna fall right to us.
"We go here," Al said, pointing the left direction, I just followed him while I was the one who keeps being the vigilant around but I think we're safe—but that's just my guts and doesn't really rely on what's coming on us. "There!" Dylan exclaimed I get to find him running towards a glass establishment which has two stories and signage of it saying convenience store.
"We're not sure what's inside, Al," I said, holding his shoulder trying to keep him going inside.
He looked at me, "We won't know 'till we see it inside."
"I know it's a risk but surely, we needed what's inside."
We keep in silence, but the next thing happened was seeing Al throwing a rock in the glass and shattered it. I immediately run into him and put him down on the ground because there might be people inside who can see us directly within those mirrors. But then, Al shoved me away from him and I couldn't believe how he manages to stand up again.
I stay on the ground while I keep saying to stand down and he thinks he knows, it is safe that's why he immediately goes inside and enter the store, I didn't know what up he's too, that's why I stood up and follow him inside and I found him just standing there and when I look around, I see nothing... the shelves are empty, all the goods are gone.
"Is your technology bring us to the right place?"
"Yeah..." his tone was so low and couldn't define show shocked he is to see the empty space of the store. "How did this happen?"
"I think we're not alone in here..."
He looks at me, creasing his forehead, "that's what I'm getting afraid of."
"We should move out."
He nodded to me, and as we were heading out, three people come in our way. A girl whose holding and pointing the gun on our direction and the two guys, on her left whose, holding a wrench and on the right, a baseball bat.
I heard Al's cursed.
"Don't try to move or I'll shoot," the girl threatened, "put your hands up," she commanded. I didn't hesitate to follow her instructions but seeing Al doing nothing, that seemingly got me in hell. She pointed the gun into Al's direction, "didn't you heard what I just say, put your hands up."
"Just do it, Al." I hissed.
He smirked and slowly putting his hands up. The two guys come near us, the guy who's holding a baseball coming at me and took my ax, he then gets a tightrope on his pocket and grab my hands and tie it behind my back, the other one also did the same to Al.
"This looks so good," the guy said on my ax, "this is better than the bat, though."
"Oh, guys!" the other guy who searches in Al got his technology, "I found this!" he comes into his group and they look at it, "this is somewhat a technology, 'no?"
"Maybe," the girl said and get it from his hands and trail her way to Al's direction, "where did you get this?" she asked, trying to be intimidated but it doesn't but because she had a gun, we should feel scared.
But Al didn't answer and just glare at her, the taller guy kicked Al on his knee that he fell on the ground, I tried to help him but the other guy stopped me from doing that thing. He forced Al to stood up and lit his chin up to see the girl.
"Just answer the fucking question and you won't be kicked again."
"That thing can't be seen anywhere in the Waste Land and how come did you have it? All the Licit People could own one, but we don't, so how?"
Al's jaw clenched, "I made it."
And I think that the three of them would be satisfied with his answer, but not the way I expected to happen, they laughed and thought it is a joke. "How could a person like you can make technology?"
"I'm smart." He simply said, "and you didn't think of that because you have a brain to function that."
"Son of a bitch," she knocked him off with his gun, immediately Al lost his consciousness and left me alone with these notorious people. The tall guy tied Al into a post and surely make him not to escape from it, and the two of them comes closer to me as I keep walking backward and when she pointed me her gun, I stopped. "Good, you noticed that." She smirked, "you're only just one shot away."
And I took a deep breath, I can handle the tension but I can't handle the three of them.
"What did you want from us?" I asked, trying to subside the fear.
"What do you think why we're here?" she said.
I smirked, just thinking of it. "You guys have no supplies, am I right?"
"You got it," he said, "and we come here to get what you had."
"But we ain't got one." I said, "just like you guys had, we have nothing."
"Check his bag, his pockets and this one too," she referred to Al, still unconscious.
They immediately took my backpack away and check what's inside of it but then they found nothing, same on Al's backpack. They search my pocket and the only thing they found was my motorbike keys.
"Oh, you got transport, huh?" he smirked, "where did you park it?"
"Somewhere you won't find," I said, "just give it back to me, you guys can't find something on us, we're all the same, we needed something to survive."
"But he has his technology and you got your bike," she said, "it will keep us right on the track... and what do you think we found you here, huh?"
"That's why I'm asking, I don't know."
"We got this place, this store and every people who come here can't leave with something but nothing." She said, "and I think we got something from you and we're not going anywhere without nothing, right?"
"Do you think you deserve to be on the Licit People if you keep stealing from other people... and I can see now that you don't have any potential being one..."
"Do you think you also had one?" she raised her brow, "we all don't deserve in Noble Land but once we get there, we can change but now, we have to do everything just to survive and that's what we're doing... and you and your friend won't go any further, this is your end."
She place her finger on the trigger, I closed my eyes and openly waiting for the bullet to hit me, and it's like I have waited for so long that to happen and when I closed my eyes, I saw them trembling on the floor, holding their neck where the therefore tracker is. I thought it would stop eventually but it didn't, somehow, their tracker and head go explode, their blood showered all over the place and when I wipe my face and seeing all around the corner how messy it happened.
Did their tracker overheat? But how did it happen?
I help myself untie from the rope and reach Al and wake him up.
"Al, we're doomed."