Downfall [Punk Niall Horan]

43

Just as we stepped off the transportation after another long and dreadful teleportation, yelling and snarls filled my ears, followed by the deafening sound of gunshots. Harry pulled me faster along with him into an alley way, breaking into a run. I was completely petrified of what I would learn from him, but with my brother by my side again I didn't feel so alone. Maybe I could make it through this. Because I knew Harry loved me and wanted to protect his little sister like he always had.

With my brother, maybe I could make it out of the darkness.

"Harry, I think they're following us," I whispered, words getting swept away by the wind whipping past our bodies. As soon as they fell from my mouth they had gotten whisked away, and I was almost positive Harry couldn't hear me over the wind and my thundering heart.

We had been running through the dark for a few minutes, and heavy footsteps were starting to pick up behind us. The violence now sounded much closer to our bodies even though we were running away. Gunshots echoed between the buildings and upwards, as if they were trying to mock and scare us.

Harry clenched my sweaty hand tighter within his large one with each gunshot and yell we heard. "Shit," Harry mumbled lowly, reaching for something on his hip while he stared straight ahead of us at something in the darkness.

Growling and gargling sounds started up in front of us now, and Harry had to practically drag me towards what I knew it was. Benders, or as he called them, Biters. I heard metal sliding over some kind of soft material, and I barely caught the glimpse of the grayish tip of a knife before I heard a sickening thunk.

Something splashed onto my hand that was grasped firmly in Harry's. When Harry jerked his hand back, I heard what could only be a body hitting the pavement. How even saw the Bender in the dark was a complete mystery to me.

As he tugged me forward again, I tripped over the fallen body on the ground. My ankle twisted painfully beneath me as I yelped loudly in pain, but I kept running alongside my brother with a heavy limp holding me back.

The people were now very close to us because their ragged breaths that bounced off the walls of the alley could be heard clearly now, coming up behind us quickly. Fire was exploding through my leg, and my vision started to become blurry, making the darkness ten times worse. I could hardly keep myself upright anymore, much less run however much further that we had to.

I pulled hard on Harry's clammy hand to get him to stop, and he looked at me with frightened eyes as I fell back against the wall in a sweaty heap. I collapsed onto the ground once my ankle finally caved in to the blinding pain.

Harry's panicked, green eyes scanned all across me and all around us, ready for an attack at any second. "Harry, I can't run anymore. I think I broke my ankle. Just go without me," I said, gritting my teeth. Even talking took a lot of strength out of me, and I could hardly hold myself up in a sitting position on the wall.

"Fuck that shit," Harry said very quickly, moving to pick my useless body up, "I'll carry you." I shook my head viciously and glared at my brother, "I'll just slow you down, Harry. Go now before they kill both of us." My chest pumped up and down violently, a brutal reminder that I actually was still alive after all that had happened tonight. I was alive for now, at least.

"You're fucking bat shit, Tylie Brooke. Get your ass on my back before I drag you down this damn alley by your matted hair," he growled, pushing me onto his taut back while I tried my best to shove him away from me. What he said didn't hurt me because I knew he was just frustrated to the max and wanted to get us both out.

But I couldn't let him save me from whatever fate I had planned for me if it was at the expense of his life. I gasped loudly as I hit my foot against the brick wall while trying to get off his back, bringing a whole new round of fire shooting through my leg.