Journey Through Emotion: An Angels of Death Fanfiction

Chapter 2: Lost

Zack started throwing small sticks onto the fire. Ray rose to her feet and stared and him curiously. She hadn't remembered him being this way, but she wasn't sure what was different about him. He wasn't any taller or wider. He was still covered with bandages. His hair was only a bit longer and he was still in his prison jumpsuit. She thought the stripes looked nice on him. He didn't have his scythe anymore, but that still wasn't it. Physically he was almost exactly the same. It was something deeper.

As she pondered him, he quickly turned towards her, causing her to jump back and fall onto the stump they'd been sitting on earlier.

"Are you just gonna stand there?" he snapped. "A little help would be nice!"

He stared at her expectantly. Ray's voice got caught in her throat as she sat staring blankly back.

"Fine then! I'll do it my damn self!" he shouted. He muttered something to himself as he trekked off angrily into the woods.

Ray sat there nearly in tears. He seemed so cold suddenly and she wasn't sure why. Surely whatever caused this sudden outburst was that same change she couldn't see. He had just been the Zack she knew, but only for a second. She wasn't sure she liked this new Zack... She made it her dying wish to figure out what had happened since they'd seen each other last.

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Meanwhile, Zack searched the forest floor in search of firewood. After walking several minutes, he realized he hadn't picked up a single twig. The ground was scattered with plenty of brush, but he was in search of something else. Everything was so different since he's been thrown in that horrid prison. He couldn't bear the thought of losing Rachel again, but he didn't want her to be unhappy. He imagined briefly of giving her a new reason to live, but he knew she would never see him in that way. It was wasteful even to think of such things.

He was going crazy out in these woods. Not only had he lost his mind, he'd lost his way. He had absolutely no idea how long he'd been walking or which way he'd come from. He couldn't find traces of light or smoke from the fire. With no other options, he called out for Rae in hopes her melodic voice could lead him back.

"Rae!" he called timidly. After no response, he raised his voice slightly and tried again. "Rachel! Can you hear me?" Still nothing.

Several minutes passed as he wandered around. He continued to call for her while pacing back and forth. After what seemed like an hour, he sat on a dry spot to rest. He began to worry.

What if he never found his way back. What if he never saw Rachel again. He jumped up and began to panic. He needed to get back to Rachel. He called for her repeatedly, running in any direction he heard even the faintest noise. He quickly became tired again.

Suddenly, he felt a presence behind him. He stopped in his tracks and turned slowly, prepared for anything. He turned swiftly to find that there was nothing there. He was reluctant to take his guard down.

He was startled by a rustle just above him. He scanned the treeline in search of the culprit. Suddenly, a flash of white flew a him, narrowly missing his forehead. It just as quickly disappeared. There was another rustle in the trees behind him. As a second white flash came at him, he ducked. Zack put himself face up on the ground so he could attempt to locate his assailant. After another white flash, the forest went still.

Zack looked around, but could find no trace of the creature. He rose to his feet and set out once again to find his way back to Rae, when a peckish voice came from beneath him.

"Hello Isaac," the small voice said.

As Zack turned and looked to the ground behind him, he saw an all too familiar figure.

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Back at the makeshift campsite, Rachel had begun to fuel the fire with nearby brush. Zack had been gone an awful long time and it began to worry her. She contemplated going to find him, but knew she'd probably get lost. She ultimately decided to stay put and wait for him. He'd show up eventually.

She began using softer brush to make a pallet for them to sleep on. It wasn't much, but she hoped Zack would appreciate her help. He had been so upset before... She just wanted him to come back and be the old Zack.

She sat and started thinking about how things had been the past few years, first her parents and then fighting, and how she'd finally made things better then the police took them away, the pain and monotony of everyone calling her crazy, then waking up in that absolute hell, only to escape and wake up in a new one. Sure, no one was trying to kill her the second time around, but they managed to kill her soul. She wasn't sure she was the same person after all of those events...

Just as she had decided she was crazy and all of this was another delusion, Zack emerged from the dense thicket. She was so happy to see him that she sprung up and nearly jumped into his arms, but she quickly backed away when she saw that he wasn't alone.