“Stop pouting.”
“I am not pouting.”
Yes, I’m pouting. I’m a sixteen-year-old girl who wants something she can’t have, of course I’m pouting. But I’ll be damned if I let my arch-nemesis know that.
“’Arch-nemesis,’ isn’t that a little unfair?” Daniel asks as he falls in step beside me.
“Stop reading my mind, it creeps me out.” I tilt my head to glare up at the perfect male specimen, squinting when the sun’s rays blaze a hole in my retina. “How much further?”
“If you’d allowed us to fly, then we’d be there by now,” Aeriel muttered and I did my best to ignore her. I was seriously making an effort not to antagonize her any more than necessary, but she made it so hard to do.
No, I hadn’t wanted to fly. I hate heights and forgive me for not wanting to cling to an angel as we soared to great heights that I may plummet from at any moment. No, thank you. Yes, my stubbornness caused an unwanted and unwarranted delay. But the way I look at it is - my sanity and general well-being are first and foremost in this quest. Otherwise, who the hell is going to find this elusive Tree?
“We’re here to protect you,” Daniel reminded me. “And you know I would never allow you to fall.”
I’d fall for you.
The words echoed through my mind and I stopped mid-step. The voice wasn’t mine, and neither was the statement. I reached out to grab Daniel’s arm, but he kept walking and I let my hand fall back to my side. Was that his voice in my head? Confusion clouds what clarity I’d managed and I frown at his retreating back. Why would he have even thought such a thing?
“I told you,” Aeriel says as she brushes past me. She shoots me a bemused look over her shoulder and turns her attention back to the trail before us.
In the two days we’ve been travelling, we’ve stuck to the Tigris River as both a landmark and water source. It leads North as far as Amarah before veering off West. According to the walking-wikipedia Aeriel, our journey will take us roughly ten days by foot, so I can’t really blame them for being aggravated with me when they can fluff their wings and have us there in a few hours.
Our journey so far has been uneventful and come to think of it, we haven’t seen or encountered any more zombies since our arrival in Al- Qurnah.
“Don’t get too comfortable,” I mumble to myself. I still feel like we’re being watched. Someone’s definitely following us; I hear the echoes of their dogged steps when the wind dies down. I just can’t seem to pinpoint what direction they’re coming from. Route thirteen runs alongside the river, so we’ve walked the broken pavement as far as we can.
As we near the city limits of Amarah, I feel the panic seize my chest. I hated Geography class, so I hadn’t paid as much attention as I should have. What I’d thought was going to be another small, goat-village, turned out to be a once-bustling mini-metropolis. Hundreds of small shops and stores lined either side of the road as far as I could see.
“This was a bad idea,” I admit softly and both angels stop walking and turn to stare at me.
“Why?” Daniel asks. “What is it?”
“What do you see?” Aeriel demanded and stalks back toward me. “Tell us.”
I shake my head, unable to form a coherent thought or sentence. Darkness converges on me like a black storm-cloud ready to burst. My skin grows clammy, the sweat freezing instantly. My teeth chatter and I blink heavily as frost forms across my eyelashes. It isn’t what I see as much as what I feel that has me fidgeting like a junkie in need of a fix.
“What do you see?” Aeriel demands again and reaches out to grab my arm. She hisses and jerks her hand back the moment our exposed skin contacts. “You’re freezing,” she whispers, her eyes widening in shock.
“I can’t see anything,” I answer softly and wrap my arms around my middle in some effort to hold what warmth I can to my body. “I feel death.”
Daniel’s spine goes ramrod straight and his sword materializes in his hand. Turning his back on me, he sweeps his attention in an one-eighty arc, visually searching for some invisible threat.
Aeriel rushes to my back, her stance mirroring Daniel’s as their protection surrounds me completely. But it doesn’t matter; it’s too late. The death I feel isn’t coming. It’s already here.
I realize that it’s everywhere the second the street fills with the undead.
A/N: Please don't forget to vote!
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Genesis 2.0 (Monster Apocalypse Survival) Sci-Fi/DarkFan/Horror
Science FictionThe End was the Beginning. Adapt and conquer, or die. Sixteen-year-old Andrea Collins survives by the skin of her teeth: always on the move, and trusting no one. Until the one day, the truth hits her - and he has wings. Taking advatage of Creation'...
