Where All My Hope Is

A Piece of Metal That Did Not SaveMy Life

I raced through the dingy alleys, attempting to return to the main road. I could hear the commotion of someone trailing me not far behind.

In a desperate attempt to lose them, I jumped onto an old crate, propelling myself towards a rusty fire escape. My fingers were inches from grasping the metal bar when a sweaty hand grabbed my ankle, forcefully pulling me back to the ground. I hit the earth with a thud, and a sharp pain shot through my body. I groaned and forced myself to my feet.

Three burly men had cornered me. They were Pyro's Goons; they were the utter fountain of evil in Asterin. He cut down on anyone who stood in his way. He was notorious for hunting down and killing followers of one true God, Adonai. Not only do I follow Him, but I openly live out every day of my life for his name.

My back was pressed against the alley wall as I searched for any possible means of escape. When I scanned the piles of trash and old boxes, my eyes locked on a boy about my age, hidden behind some boxes. He had light, chocolate-colored skin displayed under his dark, curly hair. I cocked my head slightly to one side as a sign of confusion, but before the man could give any sort of response, one of the men lunged towards me. He grabbed my shoulders and secured me tightly against the wall. I struggled vigorously to escape his grasp. However, I knew I couldn't win by pure strength. I suddenly went limp, and the man relaxed slightly. His mistake. My right arm jolted free and punched the man square in the jaw as his grip on my other shoulder loosed enough for me to extract myself from his grip.

I ducked under the man's outstretched arms and ran towards the opening between the remaining men. They both converged towards my escape point, blocking my exit. I paused briefly, scanning my available options. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted the boy throw a rusty piece of metal straight towards one of the men's heads.

Time slowed as I assessed the situation - I had 5 seconds before the object hit its mark. I readied myself, standing on the balls of my toes, ready to run. 4... 3... the metal was going to miss; it had flown off course and would land multiple feet away from the man blocking my path. I exhaled; a sense of defeat washed over me. The metal hit the cobblestones, producing a loud clanking sound.

Both men turned their heads, and without hesitation, I sprung towards my initial escape point, thrusting myself towards the fire escape. When the men noticed what was happening, I was already pulling myself up the ladder. The spy closest to me released a growl of surprise and lunged toward me. As anticipated, he jumped towards the ladder and pulled himself up. The bottom bar snapped, unable to hold his weight.

I propelled myself up the ladder and crawled onto the roof of the building, taking multiple deep breaths before crouching behind a large barrel. If I gave the men the impression that I had run off, they might not climb up here. I listened to the men grumble about my escape, and then, to my relief, they sauntered off. I let out a sigh and began calming my nerves. After two minutes, I jolted my head up and glanced toward where the dark-haired boy had been hiding.

People in my town weren't the kind to lend a helping hand, and I wanted to know why... well... why he was different.

I peeked over the edge of the building, looking for the boy, but he was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, I felt someone tap on my shoulder. I spun around, ready to defend myself. However, I figured if they had wanted to hurt me, they would have just pushed me off the building. I scanned the person, surprised to see the young man from earlier.

"Why were you looking for me?" he asked, a sneer plastered onto his face. Something about the way he said it made my blood boil. Aaaargh, boys: the most annoying creatures to ever walk this planet! Goodness, was I glad I was an intelligent girl!

I crossed my arms, scanning him one more time. "I wanted to know why you tried to help me."

The boy scoffed, his smirk turning into a grimace.

"It's my job," he said, not wanting to explain.

"What job?" I questioned, glaring at him. I scolded myself for being so rude. He hadn't specifically done anything to earn my disdain, but I couldn't keep myself from feeling annoyed by his very presence.

He glared back at me. "Currently? To keep you from getting yourself killed," he snapped, his annoying glare turning into an infuriating smirk.

I gawked at him. How dare he! "I never asked for your help."

A sharp laugh escaped his lips. "Come on, we both know you would have been dead meat if I hadn't come to your rescue!"

"You call that a rescue?! All you did was throw an old piece of metal at them, and you missed!" I couldn't believe him! Sure, he 'helped,' but it wouldn't have done any good without my quick reflexes.

The boy shook his head. "You can tell yourself that, but while we wait for you to catch up with reality, I need you to come with me."

My wandering eyes shot towards him. "And why exactly would I do that?" I growled as I took a cautious step back, my heels backing off the edge of the building.

He lunged forward, grabbing my arm and pulling me away from the edge. "Because," he growled, lowering his voice to a whisper, "You are one of the few followers of Adonai left, and the only way for me to protect you is to get you off the streets."

"I'm not going with you," I mumbled hotly, ignoring what he said. I forced his grip to loosen off my clothes and pulled away.

He scowled and took a step back. "Stop struggling, this is for the best!" With a quick movement forward, he once again grabbed my arm, twisting my hand behind my back and thrusting me to the ground. "I don't have time to explain, but trust me, this is for your own good."

I landed on the concrete roof and felt the wind slam out of my lungs. Sharp pain entered my stomach, like the time I had been ravaged by two days without food. The impact left me defenseless for a second, but only a second.

"I told you." I pushed with my remaining arm. "I'm not going anywhere."

With a sharp twist upwards, my foot landed on his jaw, causing him to let go. The thought of being taken away opened a door I had closed years ago. Too many memories, personal memories, were locked behind there. I wasn't about to open them up anytime soon.

I struggled to my feet, clutching my aching stomach.

I have to get out of here! I thought, knowing full well that I needed to move fast.

Suddenly, a wave of overbearing drowsiness hit me. Sleep gnawed my senses, causing me to fall to one knee.

"What did you do to me?" I muttered through gritted teeth.

The mysterious boy rose before answering, "I had to do what needed to be done." I glanced down and realized that he had stabbed me with a dart.

"Will it kill me?" I asked while collapsing to my hands and knees, panting heavily.

Pure shock hit the boy's face. "No! Do you think everything I just said was a lie? I'm here to protect you."

I laughed weakly.

"You have a funny way of showing it." Then, I closed my eyes and fell into a cruel slumber.