Blue Moon

Chapter 41

They were almost to the ships. Alona had been watching Arlo as he was walking. He had only spoken a few times to give commands. He had killed two black-eyed men, they were barely alive. He said they must have accidentally come across the tunnels, and almost starved down there. 

People had moved to the other side of the tunnel to avoid their dead bodies. Mothers covered their children's eyes as they passed. 

Alona was crushed. She had admitted her feelings for him and he had ignored it.

She didn't know what she expected. They were marching towards war and she was acting like a hormonal 14-year-old girl.

"Here! We've made it to the ladders." Arlo called out. 

Alona held her light up clicked it rapidly. Drew came jogging up. 

He joined Arlo at the ladder, then quickly climbed up.

Alona helped usher people towards the ladder. Arlo stood on the other side of the stream of people. He hadn't looked at her only a few times. From his expression, she could tell he was all business. He was the Captain again.

They followed the last few people up the ladder. 

Alona climbed out in the cave, for whatever reason she expected it to be brighter at the top of the ladder, instead, it was the same darkness. She sighed, at least now she could breathe a little better up here. 

Arlo climbed up behind her. She walked towards the rest of the group. They were already moving towards their safe haven. 

To her left were several large boulders. She watched as a soldier opened a small panel on the rock and typed in a passcode, suddenly the boulder flickered into a ship.

She stood stunned at what she had watched. 

She tried to remember which number ship was the one she was supposed to board.

Arlo came up beside her, "That one." He said as he pointed to a ship at the end, it was number 8.

She glanced up at him and nodded. 

"Look, Alona-" He began.

She could tell where he was headed, "It's fine." She said, cutting him off, she walked towards the ship. 

Nadia leaned against the inside hull of the ship. Alona slung her bag into the storage compartment above her seat. She felt relieved it was no longer weighing on her.

"Hmm." Nadia said from behind her. "I see."

Alona turned, looking at her confused.

"Look, I know." She said, "You must be shaking in your boots right now."

Alona scoffed, "Yeah."

"At least now you've killed someone. You won't have to worry about that first kill anymore." Nadia said dropping down into a seat.

She had killed someone. That didn't feel right, but it was, and she was about to kill more people. Alona sat across from her, "You're right." 

----

They were ordered to move to the bathhouse, two ships accompanied them. Drew and Greg were on one of the other ships, along with other soldiers.

Alona watched as Arlo's crew buckled into their seats. She stood on the lowered ramp, at the back of the ship. 

She had fished her Polaroid camera out of her bag, lifting it, she snapped a picture, earning her confused looks from the crew members. 

"What is that?" Vlad asked, leaning forward to see the picture coming out of the camera.