Chapter 12: See You Soon

Asher was gasping for breath as he lay under a large pile of snow he had dove under. He could hear countless footsteps all around him and those unsettling groans and shrieks. He heard doors being busted into as the lunatics searched for him in the tightly packed together shacks of the Boundary. It wouldn't be long now until they found him, sooner or later one of them would spot his footprints in the snow and track him down, or maybe they'd just stumble on him by dumb luck. No matter how he looked at it there was no way he could stay hidden for long, eventually he would be found. 

This is just great. I really do come up with the best plans! 

They had been calling out to him for a while now which only made him more scared. Every time they spoke he felt indescribable dread. The thought of being dragged before this lord or whatever this thing was made Asher shiver. 

 "WHERE ARE YOU CHILD!" " GOD IS WAITING FOR US!" "THE LORD DOESN'T LIKE TO WAIT!" "HIS PATIENCE ONLY GOES SO FAR. "The voices bellowed all around Asher. They were a little closer now than when they had last called out to him. He tried to control his breathing as best he could as not to be heard. Once he caught his breath he was going to make a run for it, towards the centre of the Boundary. He wasn't that far now from escaping the dead zone and hoped that maybe they would stop following him if he went far enough. He felt like this group was almost a hive mind all connected, in search of people to give to this lord. Maybe they wouldn't want to stray too far from it in fear of being branded deserters. Asher didn't have much optimism regarding this though though, he wasn't sure if these people could even be considered people at all. They were like cogs whose only function was to serve their lord. Even when Elise had battered one after another of them he had not heard a single one of them yelp or cry out in pain. It was like they were dead already with only devotion fuelling their bodies to move. 

"GOD WILL SAVE YOU CHILD… AND YOUR MOTHER. SARAH" A woman's voice spoke only about ten metres away from him now. 

Asher's heart sank into his chest. How did they know his mothers name? None of them had told Carl or any of the rest of them their names. Asher didn't have much time to think about this as he heard the woman approaching where he was. Just before she reached him Asher shot up out of the pile of snow meeting the crazed women's black eyes. A wide grin appeared on her face until her jaw contorted into an unnatural position and she let out a deafening shriek. Not even a second later Asher had plunged a knife through her throat silencing her… but it was too late. A stampede of footprints began approaching from all around him. Asher swung around and bolted in the opposite direction and towards the centre of the Boundary. His only hope now was to run as fast and as far as he could in the hope that they might lose interest and give up on the chase, a prospect he was not too hopeful about. If he found a large enough group of survivors then maybe that would distract them, but was he really willing to sacrifice their life for his? He wasn't sure, he still felt guilt over killing Elise's old group and didn't want to add more blood to his hands so soon. As he ran, a hand reached out from a side alley to try and grab him but he slid underneath it, gliding for a few moments on the icy ground until he popped back up onto his feet and continued running. He had never in his life been so happy to be born small and fast, if he was any larger he wouldn't have been able to evade these lunatics as easily. His small size allowed him to weave in between them which, while difficult, was still manageable. Diving to the side to avoid another oncoming attacker he rolled and shot back up once again, not stopping for even half a second. 

"YOU ARE LOST!" "THE POOR BOY IS LOST!" "WE MUST SHOW HIM THE WAY!". Voices shouted a few metres from behind him. 

Asher's heart was beating, faster than it ever had before, his lungs felt like they had been set on fire and despite the freezing temperatures he was drenched in sweat, but still he ran. He ran for what felt like hours, but in reality it had only been about fifteen minutes. He was wheezing as he ran, struggling to get air into his lungs, he felt as if he would faint. He could barely even hear the lunatics shouting at him from behind or their thunderous footsteps steadily growing closer and closer. 

"Don't you fucks ever get tired!" Asher shouted back with laboured breath. The only good thing was that he was swiftly approaching his goal. The dead zone ended just up ahead and he was praying that once he crossed it they might give up. So he ran stumbling and tripping as he did but he never stopped until eventually he exited the suffocating darkness of the dead zone and was embraced by the bright street lights littering the Boundaries streets. As he did, he did what he had not dared to do this entire time he was running, he glanced back over his shoulder and as he did all his delusions of escape crumbled to dust. There still chasing him down were hundreds and hundreds of those black eyed lunatics, all wearing that horrifying smile. Asher sighed, and kept running. Why was he even still running, he wondered? He knew he was doomed. There was no escape for him, soon enough he would tire and they would catch him. They would either kill him or who knows maybe they would bring him to their lord and make him like them.

 So why then? Why am I still running? Asher pondered, zoning all the noise around him out. I mean not so long ago I tried to end my own life. If it wasn't for Mother I'd be dead already and then I could have avoided this whole mess.

 Asher had always felt like his life didn't matter, not really. He was just another nobody, with no great accomplishments, no great prospects for the future, no one besides his mother that he even really had a bond with at all. Sure he was in line for a promotion at work but what was that worth? He would still be seen as a Boundary dog by all those in Elpis, only allowed to stay as long as his work was profitable for the company. Once he had outlasted his usefulness he had no doubt he would be sent back to where he came from. When he thought about it suicide just seemed like a better choice, that way he didn't have to stay awake every night dreading the start to what he saw as another meaningless day. 

So why then? Why am I struggling so much right now? Not so long ago I would have given up as soon as things got tough. 

Asher tried to make sense of his desire but couldn't. The only thing he could picture was his mothers face that night she found him lying on the bathroom floor, bleeding to death and her words telling him to stay with her. He simply couldn't bear it, no thought of his mothers face if she found out he died was too painful to imagine. 

Up ahead Asher ahead the sounds of people, it was faint but they were definitely there. 

If I can just make it a little further. 

As he thought this he felt a hand grasp onto his shoulder from behind and yanking him back. Asher looked up, his eyes blurry making out a tall gaunt man smiling down at him. "Hahahahah." Asher laughed, through ragged breathing. "Sorry but I can't die just yet." Asher jumped upwards ramming the top of his head into the man's nose. He heard a crack and as he dropped back down he rammed his shoulder into the slender man knocking him back and Asher sprinted on. He ran with all the remaining energy he could muster, the voices of people up ahead growing louder and louder. He turned a corner onto another street and there ahead was a large group of fifty or more people ahead. They were all well equipped, wearing heavy coats, wielding various weapons and were standing at a large fire they had built in the centre of the street. They must have thought they would be safe from any attackers, having such a large number. One of them noticed Asher. 

"Hey stop where you are!" The man yelled out as he lifted up a hunting rifle, but then the colour drained from the man's face as he saw hundreds of people turn the corner. All running directly at them. 

As soon as Asher saw the man had noticed the lunatics following him he took a sharp right turn, directly towards a small shack which he rammed through the door and crashed onto the floor as he did. He groaned and looked holding his breath as he did. Outside the door he saw the lunatics run straight past him and towards the massive group of people. A few seconds later screams could be heard from outside as the hoard crashed into the survivors outside, gunfire could be heard. Asher allowed himself to breathe again as he sat up fully. He was utterly exhausted and desperately needed a moment to catch his breath. Looking up again his eyes widened in shock, one of the lunatics had stopped a few metres away from the door and was staring in at him with those lifeless eyes. He had thick brown hair, stubble and he was tall and slender. The man's face was bored looking until a slight smirk appeared on his face. "See you soon." The man said. He then turned and ran off with the rest of the hoard. 

Asher vomited the moment the man left, all of the fear and nervousness had built up. He was in a state of complete terror that he had not allowed himself to acknowledge until just now, only being carried by his adrenaline. He took in deep breaths to try to calm himself down. What he had done was a gamble but it had paid off, he had a feeling that those lunatics would prioritise the many over the few. Attacking the larger group meant more followers for their lord after all, still Asher felt a little conflicted. While he had survived how many were now going to die in his place or suffer worse fates. A petrified scream could be heard from outside, causing him to grimace. He stood up, only now allowing himself to notice his aching body, groaning from the pain he stumbled towards the window at the back of the small shack, opened it and climbed out. Falling out onto the soft snow he let out a long sigh, as he looked up at the snow falling down. Less and less screams could be heard now which meant he was running out of time. He willed his battered body to stand up and began walking towards his old home. 

It was time to reunite with Elise and Sarah or at least that's what he hoped. If he had sacrificed all those people only to find his mothers corpse or see her turned into one of those freaks he didn't think he could bear it. "No, they're alive. I know it." Asher muttered to himself. As he did he couldn't help but notice that he had wished for both Sarah and Elise's safety. He didn't know why but he felt as though their journey together had just begun. As he walked to his home one thing kept replaying in his mind. That mad man had told him that they'd see him soon… and Asher believed him.