EPIPHANY ✁ newt

23 , the front lines

The outskirts of the city were in shambles. We had parked our car a bit away, not wanting to bring attention to it and walked towards the tall gray walls looming over us from there. I could feel my vision starting to blur due to the excessive amounts of blood I had lost in the past hour or so, and with with Newt's grip tightly around me, it was getting hard to walk. I tried to take in my surroundings as we pushed through the crowds of people around us - sheds stood on both sides of the path we walked, some looking like makeshift broken down houses while others made for trade.

"This place really has gone to hell." Jorge said as I moved my eyes to the cloth lines hanging overhead - a flurry of colour contrasting the dull blacks and grays of where we walked.

"We've just got to stick together." Thomas said in a determined voice, and he was right. We couldn't screw this up when we were so close to the end. So close to victory, to peace. But every time my mind started letting itself dream too much I had to remind myself that something seemed to stop us every single time I thought that. It was sad, but it was the truth. I couldn't let myself hope, maybe then we would actually succeed.

I looked ahead as a sudden chat broke out from somewhere - slurred voices joining until they were basically screaming. "We are the voice of the voiceless! They hide behind their walls thinking they can keep the cure for themselves while they watch the rest of us wither and rot!" Someone had a microphone now, and before I knew what was happening a jeep drove past us - the man screaming standing on top of it with at least six armed men around him. "But here are more of us than they are of them! And I say... WE RISE UP! AND TAKE BACK WHAT IS OURS!"

We stood in silence, watching the proceedings pass by as all the crowds around cheered wildly - some even trying to jump onto the moving trunk only to be thrown off by the guards. The sound of a aircraft made me turn my eyes to the sky, and sure enough - a burg and helicopter were circling above - as if looking for something. Or someone. Us.

Looking away, I let Newt pull me behind the others as we kept going - a few minutes later the doors obviously leading into the city came into view, and Thomas immediately started walking towards the area faster. "That's our way in!" he yelled over the riots, beckoning for us to hurry up.

"Thomas! This is not what you are looking for! All these people are trying to find a way in and you think you're going to find something they can't?" Jorge demanded over the noise all around, trying to catch up with the boy.

"We came this far didn't we? I'm not turning back now, Jorge." Thomas insisted, turning back to face the man for a second as he let himself be pushed even closer to the doors by the sea of people all around us. We kept pushing past the people until Thomas had somehow led us to the front of the procession. I tried to tell Newt to let go of me as it would be easier for us both to maneuver around alone, but the blonde refused to let go of me.

"Thomas this doesn't feel right." Jorge said, and I couldn't help agree with him. This whole place felt so off - like something was going to come crashing down on us at any second. I couldn't help hold my breath standing there, waiting for something to happen - but I knew Thomas wouldn't listen, and I knew none of us were leaving him here alone.

I looked over my shoulder only to see three or four armed men in helmets walking to the front of the barricade. But then I realised they weren't aiming for the front... they were trying to get to us. Heart pounding, I grabbed hold of Newt's jacket, pulling him closer as I whispered his name quietly, tilting my heads towards the men once I had got his attention.

The blondes eyes widened at the sight and he lurched forward, pulling me with him as he tapped Thomas's shoulder. "Hey guys, we gotta go now. Come on, look..." Everyone's attention turned to the men who were now closing in on us, and Jorge and I pulled out our guns - Brenda thankfully having provided me with a refill before we got out of the car.

But before we could do anything, a sudden hush fell over the crowds around as a strange almost humming sound started up. I whipped my head towards the walls once again only to see some huge canon looking things getting raised up on the vantage points of the walls, flashing bright red lights as they moved. I knew it meant bad news as everyone around us started running -sending everything into commotion once again.

Our group seemed to stand paralysed until the first bomb hit. It was only a few feet in front of us - the dust could reaching us as fits of coughing ensued, everyone suddenly jumping into action and running as fast as we could away from the walls. Within seconds the whale land was a battlefield - hundreds of bombs being flung into the crowd as we ran for our lives. Fry, who was leading our small group turned into some sort of broken down alleyway - but it was enough to get us out of the line of sight of the bombers.

"Thomas! Brenda!" I turned to see why Jorge was shouting, but before I could even get a decent glimpse of what was happening around me, Newt and I had been grabbed by someone in a mask and shoved into the back of a car. It was painfully clear that we were the only two who had seemingly been thrown into the car. Had the others gotten away? Guessing from Jorge's screams, that was probably a negative. But where were they? Had there been multiple cars? Were they being taken where ever we were as well? Or would they be taken somewhere else? Were we going to be separated?

"Seph, hey, breathe." Newt's accented voice said, ripping me out of my thoughts. He had obviously heard me hyperventilating, and I wanted to inform him it was in fact breathing - just a bit too much, but didn't have it in me. We were sitting in the backseat of the car, three guards in masks were posed in front of us, on the other side of the vehicle making sure we didn't try anything.

Only minutes later I heard some sort of gates opening outside the truck, and strained to understand what the shouting voices were saying as we swerved to the right inside the vehicle, obviously taking a turn into some area. The trunk came to a halt, sending both me and Newt lurching forward and almost out of our seats as a loud bang came from outside. Seconds later the backdoor was being opened, and I squinted my eyes at the sudden brightness, letting myself be hauled off of the trunk.

Newt and I watched as the car we had been just thrown out of drove off, a second one driving in and Thomas and Brenda being taken off it. As their car drove away, a third pulled up - this time though it went differently. As soon as the doors opened, Jorge tumbled out, his hands wrapped around one of the guards, he looked ready to kill him as he shouted some incoherent words.

Thomas and Brenda immediately rushed over to him, stopping the older man before he could actually end the guys life. But Thomas, Newt and I were suddenly pushed up against one of the cars as only Brenda was allowed to go near the fight - only her screaming that she was there calmed Jorge down enough for the guy who had just kidnapped us to move away.

"Everybody relax! We're on the same side here." One of the guards said, slightly muffled through his mask as he held his hands up in what almost felt like a peace offering. I frowned. Same side? What the hell did they mean? Had they not just kidnapped us less than twenty minutes ago? What was going on?

"Okay. What do you mean side side - who the hell are you people?" Thomas asked, voicing my exact thoughts as he pushed away from the people holding him back, walking closer to the man who seemed to be the leader or something. Everyone seemed to pause for a second, Newt took my arm as he moved to stand beside Thomas as well, pulling me with him.

Then slowly, the guy who had spoken to us lifted his hand to his mask and removed it. I heard Newt gasp beside me and turned to look at him to see nothing but pure horror etched in his eyes as he whispered one single word, that made no sense to me.

"Gally."