Children of The Fallen

Chapter 29: why aren't I dead?

Morgan Sinclair

With every inhale more sage fills my lungs making sure to sear every inch of them. Panic and confusion wash over me as the smoke around me creates a haze over my vision and my brain. "Get her somewhere safe!" Dane shouts.

A hand wraps around my arm yanking me away. Blonde hair waves in front of me as we run off. Chloe. Several hunters break through the doors in the hallway making direct eye contact with one of them. They raise their weapons but before I could bring my arm up to shield myself my body jerks forward being pulled by Chloe.

I gather myself letting my senses come back to me. Chloe pants not out of tiredness but flooded with adrenaline. We're in a relatively quiet room in the house, with yelling and gunshots ringing in the distance. I walk further into the room, near the window to see if there are any still outside or if they've all made their way in the house. A sharp inhale escapes me as my skin burns in the sun. With my blood pumping and all around heightened stress I didn't fully feel my skin singe from the small part of the window they broke with their sage smoke grenades.

"How did they find us again?" I say in the midst of catching my breath but the sage is making it all the more painful to do so. It's wild how quickly sage can make me feel this weak.

She shakes her head breathing hard and raspy, picking up the gas canister she inspects it. "I don't know. Look we got to-." The door bursts open cutting her off. She throws the gas canister back down preparing to fight them.

Three hunters storm in immediately open firing as they enter the room. A stray bullet catches my arm. I yelp at the impact and grunt as it continuously stings me- they're laced with sage. Chloe lunges for them grabbing two of their guns and quickly bashing them in the head with them. Blood splatters on the impact. When the third hunter enters she snaps his neck in a flash.

Turning to face me, my eyes widen at the series of bullet wounds scattered on her person. She picks up one of their assault rifles from the ground. "We have to go now." She motions with her head to follow her.

We run through a sage filled house, each breath burning more than the last and weakening my body. She takes me to the tunnels beneath the house- sage free. Giving us a reprieve to properly breath non-toxic air. The tunnels look as ominous as they sound. The concrete wide long walkway with cracks sporadically on the walls, harsh fluorescent lighting, and random rooms with wooden doors scattered throughout the hall.

Chloe leans up against the wall, her breath staggering. Her knuckles are white as she tightly grips the assault rifle with one hand after taking a deep breath to prepare herself. Her free hand goes to torso and begins digging into her own flesh. She groans through her teeth tearing bullet after bullet from her body. Tossing the bullets to the ground she leans down on her knees panting. "The rest went through, thank God." She says tiredly.

"Are you okay?" I ask.

"Yeah I'll be fine. You? Hows your arm?" She points to my bloodied arm.

I look down at it, it went through. Outwardly it's healed but inside I still feel the sage lightly searing my body. "It's fine, stinging but it's fine."

"These guys lace everything with sage. Smart- but annoying." She says.

In the distance the sound of the large metal door opening at the entrance of the tunnel echos through the hall, along with faint shouting and talking. Chloe stands up off the wall her facial expression shifts from exhausted to something violent- a frightening furious calm, death was in her eyes. "Stay back, do not move under any circumstances." She commands. Several hunters run towards us and Chloe open fires, I flinch at the sound. She empties the clip taking out a good amount of hunters, then sprints to them.