A Window To A Soul

Chapter 38: Cal

I woke up from a loud rumble. I could feel my bones shake and it felt like the ground was groaning. Everyone started screaming as I jolted awake. I immediately got up and ran out of the medical tent. I looked where everyone was running from. There stood Oden. He was killing people left and right. Random people just crumbled to the ground.

I looked at the opening of the tent and my eyes widened as I thought of Della. I wasn't going to lose someone else! I ran inside and looked for her. She had been helping one of the injured people and was now hiding with them. I crouched next to her and tried to speak quietly, but loud enough for her to hear me through the noise. "We need to go. NOW!"

Della dug her face into her knees and shook her head. She was scared. Really scared. "NO! I can't."

I gulped. I knew that she couldn't take much more of this. I put my hand on her shoulder and told her to look at me. She lifted her head, and when she did, I leaned forward and kissed her quickly. Then I got up and reached my hand down for hers. "Della. Please trust me."

She took a deep breath before grabbing my hand and letting me lift her to her feet. We both ran out of the tent, knowing that we couldn't save the injured anymore. As we ran, we heard a loud boom behind us. I glanced back as we saw mattresses and body parts flying. I stopped Della from looking at it as we continued to run. There was someone in front of us that crumbled, limbs breaking off and turning to dust, and we couldn't move quick enough because we ran right through them.

Della almost tripped but I caught her and dragged her along. I felt my calves burn as I ran as fast as possible with as much force as possible. My lungs stung as I tried to breath through the smoke and limbs that turned to ash.

We ran around what used to be the medical tent and went around many other tents that people were staying in. I hoped that Oden wouldn't attack us before we got away. We were running back into the ruins of the town and into the more city-like space. Della glanced behind us and then back in front of us.

I dragged her behind the first tall building. It was a factory. I stopped to catch my breath and Della stood in front of me. But her eyes widened and she looked above us. She grabbed my arm and yanked me with her and we continued to run. As we got farther, I heard and felt the building crumbling to the ground along with many other buildings, including the one I went to when I visited my parents. The parents that I will never see again after this.

I felt like I was gonna pass out. I didn't know what to do at this point. We couldn't run forever, I barely have any stamina left whatsoever. I felt like I was going to collapse. I looked behind me and saw Oden far behind us, watching menacingly and walking toward us, stepping over the fallen debris.

I kept running, hoping that we could lose him. Hoping that we would live. Everything inside me was telling me to sacrifice myself for Della. Even though she didn't want me to feel like this, I couldn't help it. I thought about my scars. I had seen so much more horrible things than her. She had barely seen any of the world. She only turned 18 a little while ago, and before that, she never even saw the outside world. Not even another human in person other than the Great Ones.

We hid behind another building before we ran again as it crumbled to the ground. I started losing hope. I remembered Della giving me hope. I'm starting to wonder if I was a fool for believing her.

A building next to us fell and made such a loud sound that it made my ears ring so much that I thought my head might explode. I looked over at Della and saw tears in her eyes. I took a deep breath and stopped. I pulled her back and she looked at me, confused. "What are you doing, Cal?!"

I shook my head. "Let's stop running from him, Della. We need to face him. We can't run forever."

Della looked scared and confused. She looked like a slave that was kicked too many times. It pained me. I promised to myself that I would let Della live a long and good life. Even if it means that I don't live.

I turned around and looked at Oden as he slowly approached us. The buildings still fell around us. We both looked around at the buildings. It looked like an apocalypse. If I had to compare it to something, it would be the book that I thought was my favorite when I was 13. It was about a rebel who got what he wanted. It looked exactly like I had pictured it when I was younger. Everything was ruined forever. There was no going back.

I still remember what it was like to walk through the crowded streets with one thought in mind: don't attract attention. I remembered that little boy that I brought back to his caretaker. He was probably dead by now. Maybe worse. I have to learn to stop getting attached to people that won't survive.

I looked at Della and squeezed her hand as we waited for Oden to approach. She was scared, I could tell. I knew that we may not get out of this, but we have nothing else to lose. We already lost the future that we wanted. No one is free. Almost everyone died. I don't know how many people are alive anymore.

I can't even have my sister. She's gone too. I stopped myself from crying. And as Oden got up to us, another building crumbled behind us. And then I smiled when he was about 10 feet from us.