The Lost Ones

1 - Lela

We were running. For how long, I still don't know. My legs felt as if they had been torn off altogether. The burning sun made our surroundings feel hazy, and the scenery went past in a blur. All I could see was Adrian racing ahead of me. He looked behind me and grabbed my hand. 

"We'll find a safe place soon, I promise." He smiled and that lifted my spirits a little. As long as we were together, it would be okay.

We came to a deserted clearing. There were no signs of life, apart from us. Adrian looked at me, and I saw the fear in his eyes. Neither of us knew what we were doing, or where we were even going. We just had to run away from them. From the hospital. We had been trapped there for ten years now, since we were four, and I would never forget the torture we went through.

A blank, white room. Nothing but a few chairs and a round table. I'm sitting at one end, Adrian at the other. We haven't talked for hours. We're too scared to. They might come and perform tests on us again. I rub the place on my forearm where they took my blood. It still hurts, even though that was about fifty minutes ago. A woman comes in.... I read her name badge: Marie Gabriels. Doesn't she have a niece in the childrens' hospital ward? 

Bad memories. I'm only vaguely aware of Adrian asking me something, then waiting for a reply. He has to wave his hand in front of my face to remind me of where we were and the danger we're in.

"Sorry?" I was lost in my own head. He rolls his eyes, but smiles all the same.

"Lela, pay attention! We need to go somewhere, and my legs are killing me," It's my turn to roll my eyes. He laughs and carries on. "Unless you're planning on getting us lost in the desert, like that old book, you know, from back in the old days....."

I raise my eyebrows, with no idea what he was talking about.

"The kids get lost in the desert, with all those crazy people.... The Scorch Trials! That's the one." Adrian snaps his fingers.

"That's what you're thinking about right now?" I cross my arms.

"I thought we could use some fangirling right now."

"Well, we don't."

"Well, fine then, little miss judgemental. Where do you suggest we go?" Adrian had me there. Where could we go that we couldn't get tracked down by the hospital? They had security cameras everywhere in the cities and the towns, and plus security was so tight nowadays we'd get shot as soon as the guards spotted us. 

"I... don't know. We could... we could...." I had no idea. Adrian shook his head.

"Come on, before they catch up with us." He grabbed my hand and we kept walking.

It seemed forever until we reached a place that didn't have every inch covered in hot, golden sand. It was blazing hot, and we had almost nothing to drink, only a small flask filled with tap water. We had only managed to steal a few small items from the fridge in the hospital kitchen. Guards patrolled the corridors 24/7 there, so you could only slip quietly in and out again without being noticed. 

"Lela! There!" I whipped round and saw footprints. Human ones. Leading into a grassy forest that led into the distance, a horizon shrouded by trees.

"Is it worth the risk?" I asked uncertainly. I definitely didn't want to find out what the hospital would do to us if they found us away from the facility. One other boy had attempted to escape, and we watched the whole thing from the only window we had. 

The young boy, about six or seven, ran out through the iron gates that trapped us inside this bleak prison. Guards shout, people scream and point at the boy. How did he get out? I guess we'll never know, because several guards are advancing on him, their legs stronger and faster than his. They surround him, guns at the ready. Adrian and I scream from our room, but we're too high up for anyone to hear our calls. We hear loud gunshots, and a terrified scream. The scream is the worst part. It's too young, too innocent, too scared. Then it cuts off abruptly, and suddenly the floor is tinged with red. They drag the boy's limp body away, and we hear nothing more.

I think Adrian's thinking of the same moment, because he winces as if recalling a bad memory. I know the feeling. 

"Yes," He says eventually. "We need to stick together. We need somewhere safe, or reasonably safe. We've never had that, but we need it."

"I agree." I link my arm with his and we set off.

And then the first gunshot sounds, leading into a chorus of them. 

They found us.