-The Banditos-

-Chapter Six-

"Oh god." I mutter under my breath, starting to run. Adrenaline builds inside me and I realise this is it. This is the moment between life and death. If I get caught, it's over. I grab Chloe's arm and urge her to move faster. She looks to be panicking and starts pushing Elissa to make her and Sarah go fast.

Soon, everyone is running, but Nico is gaining on us. Luckily we're at the front so we might have more time, but the people at the back? God help them.

I run as fast as my legs will take me and ignore the fact I'm running out of breath fast. Nico has made his way to the back now and runs his horse into the sides of people with such force they fall unconscious. Only then do I see the guards slowly running behind Nico, presumably to take the people he's caught.

He's already knocked down five people and some of the Banditos are slowing down. I look straight at him, just keeping my balance and he looks straight back. However his eyes hover over to Sarah and Elissa. I don't need to see his face to know there's a smirk on it.

He speeds up, ignoring the other Banditos around him and starts to catch up to Sarah and Elissa, who look to be struggling as it is.

"Seth, how much longer?" I shout out.

"We're almost there, I think! Just around this corner!" He calls back. I look forwards and see that the ravine bends around. At the other side of the bend must be where the cliff face is. However, Nico is still too fast for us to be able to reach the cliff in time and him not get Sarah or Elissa.

Chloe seems to have noticed his fast approach and slows down to go between Sarah and Elissa but I pull her back. She looks over at my desperately, he face red from running.

"Don't stop, okay?" I say. I slow down to go by Sarah and Elissa. Nico is practically beside me so I shout up at him,

"I know you want me! So come and get me!" He looks down from his horse with a vacant expression, but I know he's heard me. I might have only seen him two times but I know how he works.

It works and now Nico is more focussed on me than he is on Sarah and Elissa. I slow down so he has to slow down too. I'm mainly distracting him so the Banditos have a chance to escape but also because I'm running out of energy.

He rams his horse into me and I almost lose balance, but I follow the force and manage to stay upright. I've slowed enough so that we're behind all the Banditos now and by quite a great distance. I look over and see them starting to scale the steel hill out of the ravine.

However, whilst I'm not looking, Nico bashes into me and this time I do lose my balance. I stumble over and land in the water of the river and Nico pulls his horse to halt.

This truly is it.

I push myself up onto my hands and knees and feel Nico's shadow tower over me. I look up at him and he stares down, his face still emotionless but a hint of smugness on his eyes.

"This was fun." I say to him, now on just my knees. It's almost like I'm bowing down to him and I hate it, but I've run out of energy to stand up. Besides, this is the final time I'll see him, or the outside for that matter. His silence makes things worse, "You ever think about what you're doing, Nico?" I question, anger in my voice, "How you treat people in DEMA? How you use fear to control them?"

He still looks down at me, his stare unwavering.

"You ever think about how much misery you put everyone through? And then you act shocked when people are against it." I push myself up and now I'm on one knee, "You're a coward." I spit at him.

He gives me a look that seems to say 'are you done' and then he reaches his hand down.

Just before it reaches me, I see a yellow petal fall on the ground beside me.