Interaction [Dreamnotfound]

6 | Leave

For some reason I got like 15 readers in a day yesterday. Pog?

-Cas

It was nearing midnight.

Zak could tell by the sky. Besides spending his days in the forest, he had also commonly watched the stars from his window, often staying up past midnight in silence as Darryl slept in the room just next to him.

Just another thing the government would have known.

It still confused Zak why they hadn't struck sooner. Sure, the wireless location tracking was a new feature, but they would have known from his wristband that he was acting physically during the day, and not sleeping much some nights.

So why was it only now that they had come for him?

Why had he thought he could get away with this in the first place?

Beside him, Darryl was shivering, not used to the freezing winds whipping around the forest. Zak considered offering his sweatshirt, but ultimately decided against it. He and Darryl hadn't talked since they had started walking, only striding on through the forest in complete silence.

A branch cracked, and Zak jumped, instantly alert, eyes darting over the trees around them. Darryl winced. "Sorry..."

Zak rolled his eyes, resuming his casual stance, and continued to walk, not bothering to answer. Darryl tried to step quietly.

A few minutes later, another branch cracked. Zak jumped, and then turned to Darryl angrily. "Could you cut it out?"
Darryl glared back. "It's not my fault I can't walk quietly in a forest, Zak! You're the one spending every single day here!"
Zak retaliated. "Can't you just be quiet? They could hear you at any second. We need to be safe, Darryl!"

Darryl scoffed. "Like you can say that! You're the one who got us- who got us into this... this whole thing..."
His voice trailed off, and he looked down. Guilt swam into Zak's stomach, but he ignored it and kept walking, avoiding eye contact and remaining silent.

They walked for some time before another crack was heard.

Instantly, Darryl turned to Zak. "See? I didn't even do anything-"

Zak shushed him, grabbing his arm and yanking him to the forest floor, tensing up.

Darryl hadn't made that noise.

Someone was here.

Trying to stay silent, Zak craned his neck, looking around the nearby trees, hidden by the shadows in the night. He wished he had his axe with him. He had left it in the hollow of a tree near the house, and it would be too dangerous to go back.

After a couple of moments, nothing had showed itself, so Zak deemed it safe to head out once more. He pulled himself up. "We have to hurry. They can't be far behind-"
That was as far as he got before a strong hand grabbed his arm, and another clamped over his mouth. Next to him, Darryl let out a muffled cry.

Instinct kicked in, and Zak lashed out, kicking backwards, struggling against the person who held him. The person gripped his hands harder, and Zak hissed in pain.

"Stay quiet," the person hissed in his ear. Zak ignored him and kept on fighting. "Mph- let me go-"

There was a short scuffle, and then the hand pressed to Zak's mouth moved slightly, grasping something and then bringing it back to his mouth. Zak, sensing danger, clamped his mouth shut. His captor, however, brought whatever he was holding to Zak's mouth and forced him to eat it.

Zak gasped, choking, as he swallowed the bitter substance. It had the texture of a dry leaf... actually, it quite resembled a dry leaf...

And it hit him.

A forest drug. A special type of plant implemented into the environment by the government, in order to contain certain plant types and restrict human access.

But which type? Not poison, he knew that much. He would have been dead already had that been the case.

He could no longer hear Darryl, and worry sparked through his mind.

A split second later, his limbs gave out.

Zak slumped in his captor's arms, limp, unable to move, watching through barely open eyes as the world around him spun. Fear lit in his chest, trying to force him awake.

He couldn't sleep. Darryl needed him.

Zak tried to hit something, anything, but his hand refused to move. His captor gently lowered him to the ground.

"N... no..." Zak's mind was whirling with emotions. Anger, because he shouldn't have let them take him. Guilt, for that same reason. Fear, because who were these people, using forest drugs to sedate them? Desperation, because he had to get up, had to keep going, had to get up-

But he couldn't, no matter how he tried. The world blurred around him, turning a hazy blend of dark blues and greens. He felt his head hit the floor, but gently. Desperately, he tried one last time to open his eyes. Please...

He couldn't keep his eyes open any longer. Relaxing into the floor, Zak's vision slid, then turned black.

When he woke up, he couldn't see.

The world had yet to revert to its original state, and for now, everything was hazy and dark. Zak tried to move and found that he couldn't.

Faint sounds echoed around him, footsteps, a curtain being pulled-

Light.

It flooded Zak's vision, making him want to curl up into a ball and hide. Unfortunately, that wasn't an option, as he hadn't fully gained back control of his limbs yet.

The footsteps grew louder, stopping at Zak's feet, from where he lay on the ground. Then, they lightly touched Zak's shoulder.

It was like a switch had been flipped.

Suddenly, his whole body hurt. Like hurt. His head ached, his limbs felt heavy and bruised, and his wrist-

His wrist was glowing with a searing pain, feeling like it was going to literally fall off.

Zak groaned loudly. His throat hurt.

It was then that he remembered Darryl.

The pain in his wrist seemed to go away for a split second as he struggled to sit up. He almost made it... he was so close...

And then he fell back onto the rough forest terrain, exhausted from the effort, the pain in his wrist coming back with what seemed like twice as much force.

Zak groaned in despair. The figure above him chuckled lightly. "Sorry about that. Had to put you to sleep before you got too aggressive, right?"
Zak stared. The figure had a distinct accent, though Zak couldn't quite place it. "Who are you?"
The figure stepped into the light, allowing Zak to make out his features. "The names Eret. I'm not here to hurt you, by the way."

Skeptical, Zak regarded him with narrowed eyes. "Where's Darryl?"
Eret frowned. "Oh, your companion? He's just in the other room." His brow furrowed slightly. "Hold on-"

Zak watched, fascinated, as Eret closed his eyes and concentrated. After a moment, his eyes flew open again and he nodded.

"Our leader wants to see you... just a moment, if you will."
Zak waited as Eret left the room. A moment later, a cloaked individual glided in. Zak, I presume?"

Fear pounded into Zak's head, but he ignored it, nodding. The figure smiled. "Well then, Zak, hello and welcome. I think you'll find it comfortable here." He frowned slightly. "We had to remove your wristband to avoid tracking. I'm sure you understand."
Zak glanced down at his wrist, shock gripping him. That was why it had been hurting so much.

Where his band had been drilled into his wrist, there was now a bloody bandage wrapped around the space.

It hurt like hell.

Zak frowned. "Where... where am I?"

The figure grinned. "You, Zak, are at our forest outpost. And as for us?" he paused, and then continued.

"My name is Illumina, and I lead the forest upturns."