The Messiah [1]

20: Athena

Athena crouched behind the line of bushes that separated the beginning of the forest from the beginning of the slums, Jax a silent presence at her side. Lush green grass abruptly gave way to broken concrete and dirt. Long-abandoned buildings stood sentinel around the outskirts, looming higher than the trees that offered coverage from the midday sun. The pair of refugees' attention was trained on a fight between two dogs, who snarled and nipped at each other, a piece of bone laying forgotten behind them.

"I say we make a run for it." Jax murmured, breaking the silence.

Athena let her eyes flick from the dogs to the boy next to her. A fine layer of dirt covered his sun-kissed skin, giving him a darker coloring and a rugged look. His usually neat hair lay in wild waves around his head, curled from the sweat that sat on the back of his neck. Despite the conditions, Jax still looked good. She didn't harbor any false hope for herself.

"What if they turn and attack us?" She whispered back.

"That's why we run."

Athena rolled her eyes, her hands clutching the front of her shirt. She was equally covered in dirt, her hair ratty and her clothing ripped from days of hard travel. The sun dipped behind the horizon, caressing the landscape for one final second before disappearing. The cool breeze turned cold as they continued to hunch in the bushes, eyes trained on the dogs. When the animals showed no signs of stopping, or moving away from them them, Athena sighed.

"I guess we don't really have a chance if we want to get into the slums before full darkness."

"Nope."

She gritted her teeth, trying to fight against the irritation she could feel bubbling in her stomach. Ever since their argument in the grove, after she had tried in vain to leave him, Jax had fallen into a surly silence. Though she had initially softened to the prince, his quick temper and lack of ability to think things through had left him in as horrible a situation as herself, it was difficult to keep up her 'sweet' disposition. He was absolutely useless in the wild, a fact that had turned his determination to irritation.

"Alright, we'll make a run for it on the cou -"

"Run toward that dumpster," Jax shifted closer, cutting her off before she could finish and pointed to a heap of metal pushed up against a building. "Then jump for that ledge above it. I'll push you up so you can get on top. Don't wait for me, just move back so I don't have to worry about hitting you."

Athena nodded, letting Jax take over the role of leadership without giving up much of a fight. That was one of the perks of traveling with a prince - he knew how to take control of a situation. Mistakes aside, Jax was a born leader and far be it from her to fight him. Through the days Jax and Athena had spent traveling together, they had worked out a steady rhythm. Jax would give orders, and if Athena agreed they were the sensible thing to do, she would follow them flawlessly. Though the pair often argued over differences and what to do next, they had developed a bond of trust. Athena trusted Jax to make the right choices and Jax trusted Athena to follow his orders.

She gritted her teeth when Jax shifted closer, his hand resting on the small of her back. His attention was focused on the dogs, and when one dove for the other, he shoved her forward - a clear sign to jump into action.

Athena burst from the bush, using the momentum of Jax's push to spring straight into a sprint. Her legs pumped furiously, carrying her across the grass and toward the heap of metal within seconds. She couldn't hear anything over the pounding of adrenaline in her ears, and didn't bother to look back and check on Jax. As soon as she was close enough, Athena flung herself at the dumpster, hauling her skinny body up and over it. She paused for barely a second to catch her breath, then shot to her feet and jumped for the ledge above her. Instantly, she felt hands grip her butt and shove her high. Athena let out a snarl, kicking one leg up and using it to pull herself onto the rooftop, then rolled over so Jax could leap up next to her.