The Plague

Chapter 11

I forgot to write. I forgot to update.

Honestly you all should just be burning me at the stake right now.

Oh well.

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Adam's POV

We had left the purple mist far behind about an hour ago. It had seemd like it would catch up with us, but then it just stopped, to our relief.

Quirren was happily riding on Jerome's back now, and she had taken to calling him Fluffy. As i watched, Mitch stifled laughter as she stroked his fur.

"Very fluffly, right Quirren?' I asked, trying to hold back my laughter as well. She nodded seriously and went back to petting him. Jerome grinned at us.

"Well, that's another thing baccas are good for, I guess."

I rolled my eyes. "What, being killer teddy bears?"

At this, Mitch let out a huge snort and stumbled. "I swear, you're gonna kill me before hunger or slow ones do."

I wiggled my eyebrows at him. "I'm plenty dangerous."

"If by dangerous, you mean a right pain in the-" He cut off as Mitch smacked him, and grinned sneakily at us instead.

We walked in silence for a while after that, only talking whever Quirren was switched to someone else. Jerome would lead if he wasn't carrying her, sniffing out a safe path for us away from slow ones.

The sun was just about to set when Jerome suddenly stood straight up, breathing deeply. "Mmmmm, food! Town in about two miles, straight ahead. No slow ones for miles."

Mitch and I cheered loudly at that, while Quirren clapped happily. The mood brightened from the news, we walked faster and picked up our usual banter to help pass the time.

In less than an hour we could see the large town ahead of us. People were everywhere, cooking food, working with animals, building, smelting, everything.

Mitch shot a glance at Quirren, who had suddenly stiffened and was staring intently into the town.

"Whats up? Can you see something?" He asked gently.

She shook her head nervously. "No no no no no. Shouldn't be here. We need to go." She muttered.

I stared down at the town. "Is there slow ones in there?" She shook her head. "I think we'll be fine. We're just stopping for some supplies and then we'll be on our way."

Her hands tightened anxiously in Jerome's fur, causing him to wince. "Shouldn't be here."

Mitch pulled her away from Jerome and set her on his back. "Don't worry. Everything will be fine, k? Just a pit-stop and we'll be on our way."

I started walking again, the smell of food to much to resist. Quirren was shaking her head, speaking quietly to herself.

The closer we got, the more details we could make out. Every person had a sword at their side, and several had bows slung over their backs at they. The fences were heavily fortifed, with dogs and cats alike guarding the village. Pieces of armor and weapons were scattered outside every house, ready to be used in an emergency. Mitch drew in a sharp breath.

"Well, they certainly are prepared for anything, aren't they?" He asked quietly. The most Jerome and I could do was nod in agreement.

All talking ceased abruptly as we approached, and there was the sound of several weapons being drawn. I took a cautious step back, reading the distrust on everyone's faces easily. Jerome let out a low growl, and Mitch nudged him with his foot in warning.

I made sure my normal smile was on my face as I waved to them.

"Um, hello! We were just passing through here, trying to get away from the slow ones, and we needed some supplies. Food, weapons maybe. And we were wondering if you could help us." I stated cheerfully.

If anything, that seemed to make the people not like us even more. They glared at us angrily, muttering quietly amongst themselves.

"Adam, we're surrounded." Mitch murmered quietly in my ear. A cursory check behind us revealed that six people had snuck behind us and were blocking off any chance of escape.

"Now, we don't want any trouble!" I declared.

From the back of the crowd, there was a ripple of movement that slowly made it's way toward us. As the person stepped out of the crowd, I felt my mouth drop open in shock.

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OOOOOH CLIFFHANGER

WHO COULD IT BE

IS IT FRIEND

OR ENEMY

OOOH

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed. I pass the pen to bloxie, and hope she isn't to mad that I just totally passed the cliffhanger onto her. She get's to decide who is here.

Have fun with that, I hope.