cleanse

21

My hand was still wrapped in hers the next morning. The two of us laid on our backs, staring straight up into space. It was all calm until I heard a rustle in the leaves. At first I thought it was wind blowing through the bushes, but the sound was too harsh to e a sweep of wind.

"Mahree!" I whisper sharply. "We need to go! Someone's here!" I yank her off the ground and pull her along. She's still half asleep, but I'm not getting both of us killed all because she wants five more minutes of shut-eye. She mumbles something I can't pick apart. "I... think they... I think they found... us..." she repeats herself. I feel my eyes widen. "Who found us?" My heart races faster and faster.

"The... Cleansing Squad..." her voice slurs into a mess. My mind begs me to run but I don't know where to go. If what she said is true, they could be hiding anywhere. In the trees, bushes, ponds, or caves. I search around us frantically, finding that we're coincidentally stuck in a circle. Trees enclose us, surrounding us. My grip around Mahree tightens and I feel the blood rushing everywhere inside me. My mind is racing so fast I can't decipher thoughts anymore. Everything is scrambled.

I hear another rustle, this one sending a shiver down my spine, causing my back to arch. "I think they're here..." Mahree whispers. She seems to have been awoken now that her words aren't trailing off in different directions. Out of pure instinct, I press my lips to hers, as a sign of affection, or a goodbye. She kisses me back, but her eyes are wide open. I realized that when I opened mine mid-kiss. I pull away slowly, turning my head to where she's staring. 

Right behind us is a man in shining black, bulletproof armor. He had the signature Cleansing Squad tinted helmet on, making him look like a mindless army drone. His gun was cocked and loaded in his unrelenting arms. "Mahree Ashington and Violet Foxwood," he began somewhat calmly. "You're under arrest for escaping government custody and your Cleansing Ceremony." As he finishes his sentence, he pulls a smaller handgun from his belt of weapons. I recognize what it is; a Sleep gun. They shoot darts that have a temporary sleep drug in them. The second they make contact with flesh, the target is down for the count.

"Put your arms up or your getting the darts!" He barks. I reluctantly raise my hands over my head, as Mahree does the same. Everything goes according to normal until a spear pierces the soil ground, just a foot in front of the man. He yanks the Sleep gun from his belt and opens fire.

The last thing I saw before blacking out was Nyx, hiding in the treetops.