BOOK OF MIA: 2081
Chapter 5: Wounded
I wheeze like an asthmatic carrying a ton of weight or climbing a steep hill. A very steep hill. Neither of which is true. I'm running through a fairly flat ground, albeit in a forest, struggling to see the dark figures in their nightshades hurtling ahead of me. Now and then, Nate's disembodied voice coaxes me to be faster, be quieter, and to keep up. All of which I'm trying to do, but failing. I am probably scaring the life out of the critters and animals nearby.
"How much further?" I huff, knowing we've barely travelled more than a click. I never thought I would regret bunking Health & Fitness classes, but right now, I feel like a lump of dough. A lump of dough that's too soggy. Man, I'm out of shape.
Before I get an irritating answer back for my stupid question, like a child asking 'Are we there yet?' something disturbs the surrounding air. It flicks my hair and splinters the tree trunk ahead of me.
"What was that?" I manage as another whistling sound passes me, too close to my hurt ear for my liking. Soon, distinct sounds of multiple guns firing fill the air — their bullets singing — around us.
"Run!" Gems yells to my right as he weaves around trees, his legs faster than I can keep up with. A blur in the night. To my left, Nate's invisible; too quick for my eyes. I struggle. My calves burn in protest, not used to the activity demanded of them.
"Mia!" Nate's voice reaches me as bullets whistle past in the night; a scary serenade that increases rapidly. It sounds like a machine gun, but I know that's not true. It's countless Sentries, ghosts in the forest, in hot pursuit.
How do the Sentries know where we were? I try to locate Gems to my right, but it's hard to monitor a camouflaged target while trying to dodge bullets and splintered barks flying around me. I am so close to calling out for Mum — it's not even funny. The boys are way ahead of me. Their codex, in tune with their need for flight. Mine? Well, I can't really tell why mine is taking so long to reboot. Gems shot me with a taser more than an hour ago. Something is wrong with my tech, and for the first time panic wells in my throat, clamping down hard as a bullet grazes my thigh. I drop like a log to the damp forest floor and excited shouts ring around me.
"We got one!"
"Find the others. They can't be far ahead!"
"Alpha group take left. Delta, go right. The group's using nightshade."
Keeping as low to the ground as possible, I scramble to my elbow and crawl to the nearest tree. I don't know what I'll do. Outrunning them is impossible, and I am not dumb enough to try it. It'd be like tempting a lion with fresh meat. I hug my legs to my chest as close as I can, and keep my back to the tree, trying to control the rasping sound of my breath. Perhaps, if I stay still, they will walk past me, the three Sentries that are approaching. But then again, I am just a lump of flesh leaking infrared. The heat radiating off my body is easily detectable to the infrared night vision the Sentries use.
"Sentry 176 is still pinging," someone yells out.
"Two Sentries after 176! We'll get the girl. Go!"
I can hear the leaves and debris crunch underneath the approaching footsteps. Their flashlights scoop around the brush, searching for me. They know where I fell. I know this from their approach. They are zeroing in to the longitude and latitude of where their advanced tracking bullet hit a target — me. For the moment, that's where they will go. I know this from the countless War & World games I played with Nate, so I'm familiar with military workings, but I'm not as good as Nate is. He beats me with a clean sweep every time. His dad's a high-ranking official in the Coalition Army, so high-up no one knows his official title. Or at least Nate doesn't. And what Nate doesn't know, I don't know.
Once the Sentries arrive at the spot where I dropped and they discover nothing but blood, they will expand their search.
With my breath held in my lungs, I steal a glance back towards the campsite. It's bright lights, still visible.
To my right, a shrill girl's scream sounds, sending goosebumps up my arms. I did not know anyone else was out here except the three of us, but of course, that's entirely egotistic and stupid to think we'd be the only ones avoiding bloodshed. I wonder who the girl is as I hear gunshots sound and then silence.
It can only mean one thing, and I shiver. I know what awaits me if they find me. A bullet to the brain. Maybe. If I'm lucky. My breath tremors out of me. I can't help the shaking anymore, and it's got nothing to do with the zero degrees temperature outside. It's simple. I'm afraid to die.
I see three flashlights converge at the spot where I'd dropped meters away from me. I dare not move. One crunch of a leaf and I'm dead. One sharp breath and I'm dead. I hold my breath. Luckily, I'm a good swimmer, but even then, I can only hold my breath for two to three minutes before my lungs burn. With my tech working, I could have easily done fifteen minutes without another breath, but I don't have that luxury tonight. Not since Gems electrocuted me.
"Where is she?" They scan the ground. One of them picks up the bullet that dropped, marking the spot where it hit me. He holds it up to the beam of his flashlight. "She's definitely hit!" he says as a matter of fact.
"But not fatally, so where is the blood trail?" The second sounds curious.
It makes me curious too. I sit here tucked away within the shadows of a giant tree, I stare at my thigh where the bullet hit. There's a tear in my pyjama leg, and my tanned skin peeks out. Perhaps even a smattering of blood colours the edging, but to my surprise, no blood oozes out of the wound. I touch the spot and the skin tingles as my fingers trace the pink flesh. I'm pretty sure it had been a nasty gash made by a bullet a moment ago.
"What the?" I say soundlessly. I know the bullet hit me, hit me and brought me down. So where is the wound? No one heals this fast, not even in 2081. Not even with fused CodeTech making us virtually superhuman.
"She's got to be here. Search the ground!"
My head snaps up, and I eye the Sentries again. They fan out from the spot, their flashlight sweeping with immense precision. One is heading straight for me without even knowing it. My pulse quickens. Somewhere further away, I hear the echoes of shots being fired, more screams. I pray that it's not Nate. Or even Sentry 176.
A beam sweeps closer and closer. I draw a quick breath and close my eyes against the beam sweeping up the path towards my face. This is it. Please let it be quick so I don't feel it.
The light hits my face.
But nothing happens.
I wait. The wait is killing me. What is he waiting for? Shouldn't he be screaming "I got her!"? I'm sure I'm quite a pathetic sight, scrunched up in a ball, pretending I'm invisible to the world. He's probably savouring the moment as he points his gun to my head.
The beam lingers on my face another moment before darkness returns to my eyelids. One. Two. Three. Nothing.
I take a peek. The Sentry continues surveying the surrounding area, right around me. His beam sweeps the brush methodically. His boot crunches the debris steadily. Slowly but surely, he's moving away from me.
Why didn't he alert the others? I glance at him to make sure he is indeed moving away. This is my chance perhaps. I don't know why he didn't call out to his team. I frankly don't care. In fact, I'm thankful he's shown mercy. Maybe, like Sentry 176, he doesn't support what just happened in the canteen. Innocents killed.
I slowly get up and walk away while the coast is clear. One step, two steps, till I'm at least twenty meters away from them and their beams. Then I break into a sprint, surprised my legs are strong and agile. Surprised, the breath is steady in my breast. Surprised that the bullet hole that should have been in my leg is no more. How? — I do not know, but I'm thankful nonetheless.
I have to find Nate. I make ground fast. Perhaps my system has finally rebooted, just in the nick of time. My vision clears, focusing sharply on the trees and shrubs I'm coming up to. The huddle of Sentries long behind me now.
"How did you do that?" Nate's voice echoes next to me suddenly, giving me a fright.
"How did I do what?" I ask as I scan him from head to toe, making sure he is in one piece. He is.
He eyes me suspiciously, like I should know what he's talking about. I don't.
"What?" I ask, glancing behind us to make sure we are still in the clear. If we can run fast, the Sentries can run faster once they get on our trail. It's in their coding.
"I saw you get shot!" Nate says, narrowing his eyes.
In the distance, we hear the Sentries approaching.
"I thought I was too, but maybe I wasn't." I say, grabbing his hand and pulling him into a run again. "How far are we from the river now?" I ask. All other questions can wait.
"Five clicks, maybe."
"Sentry 176?" I ask, forgetting I actually know his name. "I mean Gems. Where's he?"
"He surrendered to buy us time."
"There!" a shout comes from behind us. "There, I see two more!" A beam glides towards us like a demon seeking lost and desperate souls.
And we flee. It's the only thing we can do right now. Flee.
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