Foolish Heart //Danger Days//

30. Sweet, Sweet Freedom

There was no getting out of this. I had made my choice. I'd take the pills, and Dylan would be safe. Besides, how bad could it be? I'd learn to forget the Killjoys.

Party Poison

I winced to myself when I thought of the name. But it was okay. By sacrificing myself, he'd be saved. They'd all be saved.

The Dracs were escorting me down to the place where I found my parents. That felt like a century ago, but it was really only three months. I walked, my head facing the ground, until I heard the screaming.

"Leave him alone! You've hurt him already!" I spun around. Volume was being dragged away from Smoke, who was hunched on the ground crying. A Scarecrow made a grab for his injured arm, and his screams of agony pierced the air. Toxic was in handcuffs, a gun pointed down at his head. Volume noticed me walking past.

"Atomic!" Her eyes widened when she saw me.

'But Korse said that he wouldn't hurt them!'

I was an idiot. A stupid, gullible idiot. He wasn't going to spare them. I dodged myself out from in between the two Dracs, and ran towards the three Killjoys. My handcuffs were gone, so I grabbed Volume's gun from her back pocket. I began to shoot, and was met with the guns of three Scarecrows and two Dracs.

I was the only hope.

I fired, killing the Scarecrow that was ready to shoot Toxic. The old bass player was ready to help, using his restrained hands to grab the keys to his cuffs. I continued shooting, killing the two other Scarecrows. Toxic had released his wrists from the old-fashioned hand-cuffs, and moved onto Volume. Together, they helped Smoke to his feet, and grabbed the dead Scarecrows guns. We ended up killing the two remaining Dracs, and made a run for it.

"Where's the rest of them?" I asked, jogging down the hallway.

"On the top floor." Smoke told me, his cheeks still red from crying.

"Are you doing okay?" I questioned. He just laughed.

"Don't ask me if I'm okay. You're the one we should be worrying about."

He was right. The medication hadn't fully left my system yet, but I seemed to be holding up. We continued running until we reached a small elevator. The four of us slowly stepped inside, and Volume pressed the top button. The elevator flew upwards.

"How long was I gone for?" I asked.

"About a week." Toxic told me.

"That's it?" I tilted my head.

"It's been too long. I'm sorry we didn't come sooner." Volume looked at me pitifully. The elevator stopped at the top floor, letting us off with a soft ding.

"Let's move." I lead the group. From up here, we were able to see all of Battery City. It looked calm, and not like any city landscape I was used to seeing. Everything was grey and white, and the only color came from the orange setting sun.

"Over there!" Smoke motioned to a group of Scarecrows surrounding the four boys. We hurried around a corner, where they couldn't see us. Drac's weren't the smartest breed of soldier, and they walked by us without even noticing our presence. Party saw us hiding, and his face lit up when he realized that I was there. I pressed my finger to my lips, telling him to keep quiet. Party immediately put his head back down, pretending that he never saw me. When we were left behind the Dracs, I stepped out from around the corner and began to shoot. My three friends followed, firing their guns at the Dracs. They were easy to kill, because we had the element of surprise. Ghoul had freed himself from the circle of Dracs, and pulled out his gun. He shot one of the Dracs in the head, leaving one more. The last Draculoid took off running, ready to alert the others of our escape. He didn't make it far before Kobra blew it's brains out.

"Useless piece of shit." He spat. I ran towards the four men. Party was the first to grab onto my waist, pulling me into his chest.

"I'm so glad to see you." He held me tightly. I clung onto the back of his jacked, afraid to let go. Ghoul was next to hug me from the back, and then Jet.

"We'll never let them take you again." Ghoul vowed. Kobra stared at me, his head tilted at an angle.

"Good to see you too." I joked. To my surprise, he enveloped me into a bone-crushing hug, lifting me off of my feet.

"Never ever do that again." He choked, placing me back on the ground. I nodded firmly, wiping away even more tears.

"You're welcome, by the way." Volume coughed.

"Of course. Thank you for coming. We would't be alive if it weren't for you." Party shook each one of my friend's hands, all of them left beaming with pride.

"Let's get the hell out of here." Jet instructed.

---

I ended up passing out in the car ride home. Party sat with me in the back seat, leaving Kobra to drive. Jet sat in the passenger seat, constantly looking over his shoulder to make sure that I was okay. He was against me falling asleep with the medication still in my body because he was concerned that the dreams would come back, but he gave in, presuming that I'd be okay. I rested my head on Party's lap, feeling warm inside now that I was home. Ghoul had retrieved my mask and jacket, and draped the blue bomber jacket over my shoulders. My gun was long gone, but I claimed ownership of a new one, courtesy of one of the Dracs. Volume, Toxic and Smoke had taken Ghost's car, and made their own way home. Party rested his hand on the top of my head, slowly stroking my hair.

"You look like shit." He commented.

"I know."

After not eating for a week, I had lost a severe amount of weight. My muscles were worn down, and my hip bones were visible. There were dark circles under both of my eyes, and my limbs were still shaky.

But I was safe, and that's what mattered,

for now.