Project: DiVa, A World in Shadows

Chapter Three: Not Quite as Planned

       Smoke in the air, Fire burning in the streets, and charred bodies of people everywhere, some were still crying out in agony while those standing were running away.
     
      Those horrible things I could only read about in books are right before my eyes. I tried to look away but the chaotic sight just couldn't let my gaze go, it,was just sickening.
    
      "Hey are you alright?" Zac said .
 
      Looking at him I can see that he was calm and composed as if he was used to this.

     "Hey, you still with me?" He asked. My mouth wouldn't open and even if it could I wouldn't know what to say about it all.

      "Listen we have to go! The Fire is spreading towards us!" Zac said tugging on my sweater.

      My head answered for me with a slight nod to Zac as I stood there trying to regain my composure through the chaos of everything. He lead the way out through the broken window of the cafe with a part of it crumbling down.

     I could hear more people screaming, more children crying, and more buildings crumbling while we go out onto the streets to stay ahead of the fire. Through out all this chaos and confusion Zac seemed to stay calm with a slightly positive atmosphere.

"Hey Z-zac, what do you think of all this?"  I asked as we continued onto the sidewalk walking away from the broken cafe.

     "Well I'm pretty sure we're both thinking the same thing." He said with a slight smile.

     "But how could you look so happy and fine with everything going on around us?" I asked with an expressive tone.     

      "Yeah everything seems bleak around us but that doesn't mean we should feel sad right?" He replied

       " I mean we're lucky we didn't get hurt, isn't that something to be happy about?" He added with a smile.

      "But don't you see the chaos around us!?"

      "How can anybody stay happy about all this??". Zac and I stopped walking and we were face to face with one another. His expression shows that he knows my worry about it all, he pitied me as he took a step closer.

       "Look I know it's hard to stay positive with all this chaos around us, believe me I know, but  if we give into this pit of despair we won't be able to get through this." He said with a smile before hugging me.

      My eyes stared to water as I held on tightly to Zac, I couldn't stop myself from crying. He pulled away from me slightly before looking at me.

      "Now let's stay strong and keep moving, I know a place we can stay for a while". I wiped the tears of my face and nodded while giving him a small smile to him before we continued on walking.

      When we are a block away from the cafe I could hear something cutting the wind with a blade far from us which was gradually getting closer.

      We stopped and looked up as the sound was getting closer and closer

     "Emergency choppers, we're saved!" I said in a sigh of relief.

      "Those aren't emergency choppers." Zac said with a slight worry in his voice.

      Taking a closer look at the helicopters I noticed a specific symbol on the side of it. It was a shield with red and white colours separated in a cross along with the capital letters R and G over it. The paint may have faded a bit but I was certain that crest showed it was none other than the royal guard.

     "Wait what are they doing here?" I asked with a worried look on my face.

      The Royal Guard was the best of the best when it came to fighting and controlling the masses. They're known for their ruthless and cunning techniques to finish the mission given to them which is exactly what worries me.

       As the helicopters get closer I faintly hear the sound of clanking metal from the roof above us.

       "What the? Oh no." Zac said looking up at the roof.

      "Fire!"

       I heard the man from the roof shout and I saw a missile launch itself from the roof of the building, heading towards one of the choppers.

      Before I could react to what was happening the missile had already hit the chopper and it came crashing down a few blocks away from us.

      "This is bad we've got to- " Zac was cut short by a sudden gunshot coming from around us.

      My instincts took over me as I ducked my head and screamed, not knowing what to do. We we're in the middle of a war zone, something I couldn't imagine myself in, bullets and rockets started flying through the air from both sides and I just felt helpless.

     "Hey, Hey! Stay with me. We need to keep going." Zac said trying to shake me out of it.

      I took a deep breath and remembered what Zac said earlier and mustered up whatever courage I had.

      Nodding my head, Zac then replied  " Alright we have to cut through this alleyway" as he stood up.

      Running, we entered the small path in between the buildings away from the gun fire. The alleyway was full of twist and turns and it started to get smaller and smaller.

      "We're almost there just follow me and- " Zac stopped as we we're about to exit the alley.

      Stopping as well, I looked in front of him and saw a line of soldiers blocking the way out.

      "Well, well, well, look at what we've got here" said one of the soldiers who had a feminine voice as she stepped out from behind the other soldiers.

       "So we've finally found you Project Storm" she said with her hands on her hips.

       "And it seems you have Project DiVa as well"