Mahingga

Chapter 8: The Getaway

Kita hesitated, but Ako grabbed her by the arm and led her back out of the aircraft. Lights flicked on around the crash site and another set of lights was zooming up the road. They ran for the fence, and glancing up, Ako noticed that the light inside the aircraft had gone off. Ako grabbed the ladder and set it up against the fence.

"Get over!" he said, holding onto the ladder.

Kita climbed over without a word as they could see Taiyo running towards them. Ako climbed over next and jumped down to the other side, but the toe of his foot managed to trip across the top of the fence.

Ako fell to the ground, landing on his back as a wave of numbness flushed through his body. He tried to say something, but his tongue was already so numb that it just came out as a groan. A tingling sensation had spread throughout his entire body, and it tasted like his mouth was full copper and earth.

A second later, Taiyo dropped down beside him.

"He touched the fence!" Kita hissed, informing Taiyo.

"Great," Taiyo growled as he pulled the ladder over. He threw the ladder under some bushes. The lights from the road had arrived at the complex. "We've gotta move fast. They'll be scanning the perimeter any second now." He bent down and, with Kita's help, managed to get Ako onto his shoulder.

Ako tried to say something else, but it was still just a groan. His back hurt. He must have landed on a root or something. He felt like a ragdoll as Taiyo stumbled towards the jungle.

Lights flashed past them and Ako's heart stopped for a moment. He was certain they'd been caught.

Taiyo skidded to his knees, ducking behind a couple banana trees. The movement knocked the air out of Ako as his stomach lurched down against Taiyo's shoulder. They could hear voices coming from the compound.

Ako wheezed, but Taiyo shushed him. "I'm going to crawl away so that we've got some cover. I'm gonna have to drag you across the ground, brother. I'm sorry, but we've got to get away."

"Come on," Kita said, her whisper piercing through the darkness. She held both the Leylamps, though the lights had been turned off.

Taiyo dropped Ako back to the ground and then crawled ahead, dragging Ako by the arms. Some of the voices were getting closer, and lights flashed passed them again, but it didn't seem like they were being pursued.

What about the ladder? Ako thought. They were supposed to take it with them. He wished he could say something, but the thickness of his tongue told him that he'd still just be moaning. It hurt as the lower half of his body was dragged across the ground and some branch scratched him all the way down his leg, but he wasn't able to say anything. Besides that, they needed to be quiet, but it was silent agony.

Taiyo must have been dragging Ako for fifteen minutes before they finally stopped. "Okay, I need a breather," Taiyo said, flopping back against a tree.

There was a bulky rock under Ako's back, and he groaned at his discomfort.

"You know, maybe you shouldn't touch the fence next time, Ako," Taiyo said. "It makes it hard to understand you when you don't listen to me."

Ako groaned some more.

"His back's bent funny, Taiyo. He might be laying on something," Kita said.

Ako could hardly be more grateful for her words. He grunted affirmatively. Taiyo sighed and moved Ako to a better position. A tingling sensation had started to move through Ako's fingers and hands a little bit ago, and he could slightly move them. Even his lips could move a little bit.

"Guts, Ako. Did you hug the fence or what?" Taiyo asked. "Can't you move anything yet? I didn't think the fences worked that well."

Ako clenched his fingers and released them over and over, as if it might speed up the process.