2021 (DISCONTINUED)

Chapter 22: Moving Forward

I slowly opened my eyes, checking out my surroundings. I was laying on the ground in what looked like a garage, and I could see the others sitting around me. "She's awake!" Exclaimed Danielle, moving closer to me and looking into my eyes. "Lauren." She said gently, touching my cheek. "Danielle." I mumbled, going to lift my left arm to reach out for her. But when I tried to move it, nothing happened. I raised my head and looked to see my arm wasn't there. It was decapitated from the shoulder. "WHAT!" I shouted, launching upward and looking to where my arm used to be. "You decapitated my arm?" "Lauren relax!" Danielle told me, taking the hand I had left and gripping it. "We had to remove your arm. It was mangled and falling to shreds, not to mention it was infected. You would have turned if we'd left it on." I blinked, taking a moment to process what she just said. "Who removed it? I didn't think any of you had medical training." "We don't, but we all worked together. We just guessed the proper procedure, and cut it off with a butcher knife. It wasn't hanging on by much." Cam explained. My eyes widened. "Thank god I didn't wake up during it." I said. "You did." Danielle corrected me. "You woke up yelling and flailing, but quickly fell back under from the pain." "I don't even remember that. The last thing I remember is that Mutant ripping my arm apart, then collapsing on the ground." "Yeah. Then we killed the rest of the Mutants, then carried you to this old garage we found not far from the battle scene." Cam said. "Well, thanks for saving my life. Now I know how much you all really care about me." I told them, giving them a half smile. Danielle kissed my cheek, Nick and Cam hugged me, and Rob and Sarah just sat there, watching. "You didn't chain them back up?" I asked, nodding to the siblings. "No. They were actully a help. We would have lost the battle if it weren't for them." Cam replied. "We figured the least we could do is let them be free." Nick added. "I suppose you're right." I sighed. "Anyway, when can we move forward? The anticipation of reaching our destination is killing me." Danielle laughed. "You literally just went through a major surgery without anesthesia, and you already want to get going?" "Definitely. I'm freezing, and I'm sure you all are too." I said. "We are." Nick told me. "But I don't see why we can't move on, if Lauren is ready to." "I'm fine with it, but do we even know where we're going? We've reached Canada, so what's next?" Danielle asked. We all turned to look at Rob and Sarah. "According to our source, the laboratory is somewhere in the Winnipeg area." Sarah replied. "Well, let's get moving then! We still have quite a ways to go." I said, shakily standing up. "Please don't fall over on your gaping hole where your arm used to be." Danielle told me, helping me balance. "Your bandaging is only made of soft grass and some old tape we happened to have." "I'll try not to." I said, taking a few steps. "Just the shock and the aftermath of the extreme pain has me unsteady." I took more slow steps until I felt confident I wouldn't fall down. "Okay, let's hit the road. I need to move and warm up!" The others all grabbed our gear, then we left the garage and headed down the street. Danielle walked at my side, just to be certain I wouldn't fall. "Your injury really helps me realize you're still a human like the rest of us, and not a superwoman." Sarah told me, walking at my other side. "I never claimed to be a superwoman. I just try and stay strong, because weakness is what gets you killed." I said. "Don't get me wrong, I'm still super mad at you for killing my best friend and keeping us hostage for months, but I still remember the time we became friends." She continued. "Yeah, I don't feel sorry for what me and Danielle did, but do remember I have what could be classified as mental health issues." I said. Sarah half smiled. "I'll remember that. But I'll neve forgive you for what you two did." "Don't worry, we won't forgive you either." I told her. Without saying anything else, she walked ahead of us again. I breathed in the cool air, knowing that we were all ready to come to terms with each other before we split apart permanently.