Our Beating Hearts //KLANCE// Zombie AU

Keith

It's been 183 days since the world ended.

183 days since Keith lost his parents, his home, his promise of a normal life.

For 183 days he's had to carry a gun on his back and a knife in his belt. For 183 days he's had to steal and hunt to survive, and sleep with one eye open every night.

It's been 183 days since Keith's world turned to shit.

But it's only been four days since Keith had really lost everything.

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There was a gentle breeze that day. It blew steadily through the greenery of the overhanging trees so that they brushed against each other, rustling together in perfect harmony. The sun shone through the tiny gaps in the tree branches, twinkling in a new direction every time the leaves moved. It was a beautiful day, and Keith would have agreed if he wasn't currently running for his life.

His heavy boots pounded against the earth and rock underfoot as he ran towards an unknown destination. He clutched a knife in one hand and slashed at the overgrowth that threatened to trip him along his route. The beating of his heart grew louder and louder in his ears, the pace accelerating with every sharp intake of breath. He could hear the disturbing cries and moans of the things that were chasing him, some almost sounded human. This only made Keith run faster.

In a moment of desperation he glanced over his shoulder for only a second, and the sight he was met with was one of nightmares. There was a whole hoard of diseased sprinting towards him; bloodied and callused hands outstretched in an effort to be closer, their eyes rolling in agony underneath the worn skin on their faces. They all chased him with an animalistic hunger, and not even their own broken bones could slow them down. As he spun his head back around he noticed that he had been running towards a small cliff-face, the bottom was littered in large rocks that could surely crush a human flat. It was only a split second, but in that moment Keith had lost his footing and tripped on a bramble bush, which sent him flying over the edge. He wrapped his forearms around his face to protects his head, which did little to ease the pain that spread through him with each tumble and jolt as he rolled down the cliff face. He could feel the sharp stones beneath him tearing into the skin of his arms and legs, surely bruising his back in the process. He came to an abrupt stop when his back collided harshly with a solid weight. His body arched as the momentum flowed through him, knocking the air from his lungs. His eyes rolled back into his skull as he gasped for breath, his vision dulled and an ear-splitting ringing noise was all he could hear.

Suddenly he felt a warmth encircle him and lift him from his spot on the ground, the warmth was comforting and allowed Keith a moment to calm down and steady his breathing. He closed his eyes as his breathing slowed, he could hear muffled voices around him, telling him it was going to be OK. Eventually he accepted the warm feeling that surrounded him, and the reassuring kindness of the voices from the dark. He allowed the darkness to envelope him completely, and for the first time in a long time, he passed out without a single care in the world.

Keith awoke to the feeling of the cold metal floor beneath him, causing an involuntary shiver to run down his spine. His eyes fluttered open slowly, taking longer than he would have liked to adjust to the light he was met with. He slowly sat up from his place on the floor and his head immediately rejected the idea. Keith held his throbbing head in his hands as a flurry of black spots clouded his vision, he breathed deeply to ease the sudden pain. Once his vision had cleared he removed his hands from his face and took a moment to look around. The first thing he saw was the worn blue paint that coated the brick walls that surrounded him, it was peeling in some places, and stained with ghastly colours in others. He turned around to see one wall that was not in fact a wall at all. Metal bars stretched down from ceiling, so close together that Keith could barely fit his hand between the gaps. He latched onto the bars in an attempt to hoist himself up, but quickly fell back when a sudden loud thud echoed through his cell. 

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" Keith groaned as he landed on his back, which he soon realised was painfully bruised from his earlier little adventure down a rocky cliff face. He propped himself onto his elbows with a pained sigh and brought his attention to the man standing on the other side of the bars. He had a lean and yet also masculine build, with long silver shaded hair and a slender face. He knelt down so that his face was level with Keith's, giving him a clear view of his dark and piercing eyes. Keith knew these eyes well; they were cold, malicious and deadly. They were the eyes of a killer. Keith dragged himself further into the cell, away from the man with the deadly gaze. 

"C'mon Lotor, give the guy a little space." Keith saw the man named Lotor pinch his face in anger, but it only lasted a split second before he spun around to face his away from the cell bars. Keith's eyes drifted past Lotor, only now noticing the group of other individuals that stood behind the man. Keith noticed the wide range of people that stood before him, while most were adults, some were quite obviously only children. Lotor made his way to stand in front of one such child, and he placed his hands on his hips as he looked at them. Keith could make out a short scruff of pale brown hair that flayed out around the child's face, with large circular glasses framing their amber coloured eyes. They wore a stern pout and crossed their arms over their chest as Lotor approached them. 

"Don't worry Pidge, I was only going to say hi." Lotor raised a steady hand which made Pidge flinch, he brought his hand to their head and ruffled their hair playfully. It would have been a very affectionate gesture, but Keith had assumed otherwise. 

"So where do you think he came from?" A taller man from beside Pidge had spoken, distracting Lotor. While Lotor's attention was directed elsewhere, Pidge noticeably scowled and rubbed the top of their head. 

"He was up in the forest right? Isn't that where the Galran base is?" Suddenly all of the attention was directed back at Keith, eyes both fearful and menacing staring daggers into his skull.  He scowled back at each pair of eyes while grasping at his shoulder, which he quickly realised was jutting out at an unnatural angle. He shifted back further until he was pressed up against the opposite wall. 

"Well he's not a threat to us in that condition. It's been a long day and I'm sure everyone wants to rest. We can bring him some water once he's calmed down and try to talk to him later." A new voice emerged from the group, belonging to a tall and lanky teenage boy with olive skin and short, chestnut coloured hair. He seemed to be speaking directly to Lotor, as if asking his permission.  Lotor seemed to ponder this and he glanced around the room at all of the tired eyes and worn-out expressions of his companions. 

"Very well. Everyone get some rest. I'll take the first watch." He announced and the group sighed in relief. Lotor made his way down the corridor away from Keith's cell with the rest of the group following suit. Keith allowed his muscles to relax and breathed a sigh of relief. 

"Hey, don't worry. No one here wants to hurt you." The tan boy from earlier was sitting on his knees in front of Keith's cell with a warm smile on his face. "I'll bring you some food and water soon, and then maybe we can take a look at those injuries. That sound good?" He asked gently. Keith tried to scowl at the boy, but he felt his face soften at the tone of his voice. He nodded slightly and the boy's smile stretched wider. 

"Lance! I want to speak with you. Now." Lotor's voice echoed through the hall and Keith saw Lance shudder at his tone. He gave Keith a reassuring grin and got up from his place to walk to Lotor, who held the door open for him and closed it with a thundering slam. Once they had vanished, Keith slumped back onto the cool brick wall and closed his eyes. Keith had met too many people with the same eyes as Lotor in the 183 days that he's lived like this, but never once in all that time has he ever seen a pair of eyes as gentle and as beautiful as the boy's named Lance.