The Changed (Completed)

Chapter Nine: Falling

Our plan was dependent on assumptions, concluding with the little information we had.

Food delivery was arriving every day, twice a day, at the same time. The gas came from the vents before the food arrived. Our main opponent was unconsciousness. If we could stay awake for the food delivery, we could have the element of surprise.

The farther we were from the vent, the longer we could wait to begin holding our breaths. Taylor volunteered to hold her mattress against the grate, keeping the gas from entering as long as possible.

064 and I spent the next few hours holding our breaths for as long as possible, pushing our limitations. It seemed we could go much longer without breathing than we could before the virus. Though I could only count the seconds in my mind, I thought I must have been able to hold the air in my lungs for at least two minutes.

The footsteps heading toward our cell interrupted my practice. My heartbeat quickened as we all tensed. The time for practice had ended.

"It's starting," Taylor whispered shrilly, pushing her mattress against the vent from which gas had begun to flow.

064 positioned himself on one side of the door, his eyes dark, "Don't forget what I said, I only plan to save myself," he grunted as I stood rigidly on the other side.

I nodded shakily. The sensor for the door was warm against my back. The footsteps grew closer. Taylor's makeshift blockage was working better than expected. Even she had yet to go unconscious. I found myself holding my breath anyway, in anticipation.

The sensor beeped.

There was a blur of conflict as trays of food clattered to the floor. 064 slammed the man in the white lab coat into the wall. I heard the crack of the bone as his head hit the concrete. The scientist crumpled to the floor.

064 ripped the badge from the man's hand. I didn't realize I was frozen until he shoved me to the ground. The sensor beeped as 064 disappeared into the sunlight.

"Margo, go!" Taylor wailed, leaping down from her bunk. She stumbled, obviously dizzy from inhaling the gas.

I ran.

The sun blazed overhead, making the scene difficult to interpret. My senses were suddenly overwhelmed by sound. Sensors seemed to be beeping all around. I tripped over my feet, following the path toward the barbed fence.

The sensors were going off everywhere. 064 appeared to be scanning the pass on every door. Confused children were leaving their confinement in confusion. Some began running alongside me.

"Faster!" Taylor cried out. I looked back, surprised to find she was running behind me.

Gunshots echoed, but why would they be shooting at us?

Behind me, a line of soldiers chased us. Bullets whistled through the air. Children running toward the fence were gunned down.

A woman's panicked shout cried, "NO! NO! DON'T KILL THEM! TRANQUALIZE THEM! STOP!"

The children and teens running ahead were beginning to climb the barbed fence. I could smell the blood from those who had been shot or cut by the spikes.

The fence was at least twenty feet tall. Some climbed faster than others. One boy was struck by a bullet halfway up.

He fell, his leg contorted at a sharp angle. His screams were silenced in mere moments as a second bullet found his forehead.

I looked back at Taylor to see her reaction. We were so close now. She had gone pale, running slower and falling behind me. I slowed so she could catch up. She gripped her side. Blood was spreading through the fabric of her shirt.

I gasped, catching her in my arms. More gunshots echoed, a bullet grazing my ear. Taylor fell to her knees.

"Get up! Taylor, come on!" I cried, pulling her limp arms.

Her mouth parted as she whispered something hoarsely. Collapsing, she repeated it, "Go."

I dropped her arms.

I ran toward the fence. The sounds around me had become muted. I scaled the barbed wire dizzily. The ground swayed below me and I could see others falling as the gunshots struck them.

Jolts of pain shot through my knees as my feet hit the grass on the other side. There was nothing to do but keep running.

A sea of trees swallowed me. The corners of my vision were becoming dark. I thought I saw Taylor running ahead of me. She stopped and turned back, "You have to be quicker than that!"

The trees were dancing. I was floating in an ocean of green. Taylor was moving so quickly, her honey-blonde hair appearing and disappearing.

My leg was aching. I found the place where the pain was pulsing with my hand. My palms and fingers were coated in thick sticky blood. Had I been shot?

I limped forward and then fell.

Branches, rocks, and roots scratched my face and arms as I tumbled. I was not awake when I stopped rolling. 

#160 in Syfy! Thanks so much, you guys! Share this story and vote for me. Let's try and get it to 50 votes. Thanks for reading. As always XOXO ~N.K