From Ashes We Rise (The Darkest Minds)

All Aboard

My heart was rattling my rib cage as Sebastian and I stood in line. I turned my head to see Paul pushing a large crate into the supply car. The others were packed into that crate. I took in a sharp breath as we walked up to the lady. Her eyes widened, a gasp escaping her lips. She quickly reached for the phone on her desk. My heart sank as she yanked it to her ear. Seb shot his hand forward.
"Hey! We're flattered but we're actually in our twenties," he said calmly. The woman's eyes were glazed over, vacant. I knew that look all too well. Sebastian was already in her head, pulling the strings. The woman chuckled as she set the phone down, the glaze still in her eyes.
"Wow! You two look so young!" she exclaimed. Sebastian chuckled as he handed her the tickets. She took them with a huge smile on her face and let us on. My heart still hammered against my chest as we walked in. I kept my eyes glued to the ground. I could feel everyone's eyes burning into the back of my head as we sat down. I took in quick sharp breaths, the air feeling as if it was never making it into my lungs. My eyes snapped towards Seb as he wrapped his fingers around mine. He didn't even have to say anything as I stared into his chocolate gaze. I took in a deep breath as I melted into his touch. I swallowed hard and nodded. He flashed a grin before moving his hand away. We traveled on the train for what felt like hours. I bobbed my knee the whole time, tapping my fingers against the table. My heart was pounding inside my chest as I constantly thought about the others, praying that they were safe inside that supply car. I clenched my jaw as I stared out the window, watching as the trees whipped by.
My eyes flicked to Sebastian as he sighed. His eyes were locked on the window. I couldn't stop my eyes from tracing the outline of his perfect jaw, his warm skin. My heart fluttered as his beauty distracted me from my crippling anxiety. His intoxicating good looks certainly hadn't change since I last saw him. My eyes flashed to something behind him, my heart sinking as my eyes ran over their black uniforms. My eyes widened, my organs sinking within me. I wanted to scream.
"What?" Seb asked.
My lips trembled as I slowly lifted me finger.
"Look," I quaked. He twisted around in his seat to look at the PSF walking towards us.
He let out a sharp breath as he turned back towards me, his skin draining of color.
"What do we do?" I asked.
"Nothing for now. They probably don't think we're kids. Just...act like you belong."
Despite the anxiety creating knots in my chest, I nodded. I lowered my head, staring at the PSF as he sat down next to another one. They were talking but it didn't look like they were looking at us. A few minutes later the PSF stood up and started walking towards us. My heart sank. "Stop staring," Seb whispered. I yanked my eyes towards the window and squeezed my fists together.
Please don't notice. Please!
I closed my eyes as I heard him walk past us.
"He's gone," Seb mumbled. I sighed in relief, feeling the knots slightly untangle in my chest.
"We have to move," I told him, my voice shaky.
"It'll be way too obvious if we move."
My brows bent back as the other PSF moved towards the back of the train. I looked forward to see two more appear from a seat.
"Seb, they know."
"You don't know that!"
I whipped my head around, my eyes catching onto the ice blue eyes of one of the PSFs. My heart sank as the realization hit me. I quickly twisted back around. "Can't you see? They're cornering us. Two of 'em just went to the back and the other two stayed. We have to go now!"
Sebastian's jaw twitched as he looked back over at the PSFs. I could see his muscles clench. He let out a shallow gasp.
"Alright, fine, but don't look so obvious. Act like you belong."
I nodded as we stood up. I started to head towards the back of the train. I kept my head down as we slowly walked for the back. Sebastian wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me close. I yanked my eyes towards his, my brows furrowing as he smiled. "Smile and laugh like we're in love," he whispered. I hesitated for a moment, his chocolatey eyes consuming me in a warm trap. The word 'in love' sent an unwanted shutter up my back. He lightly shook my shoulder.
"Please."
I forced a smile and laughed, trying to get lost in his eyes. I couldn't help but to glance up and see the PSFs headed towards us. My eyes flashed behind us to see the other PSFs gaining on us. Sebastian let out an irritated sigh.
"I hate it when you're right."
My hands trembled by my sides as the fire sizzled under my palms. "Don't run until I tap your arm."
I took in a shaky breath and gave him a small nod.
I kept walking forward, my heart pounding as I waited for Sebastian's signal. The PSFs got closer and closer. I could see them reaching around their belts. Probably for handcuffs or worse, their guns. The PSFs were getting uncomfortably close. My heart sank as the PSFs reached for their guns. Seb's finger tapped against my skin. I leaped onto the edge of the seat next to me and darted passed the PSFs. Screams lifted through the air as people realized who we were. Sebastian and I met back in the aisle and started running again.
"Stop them!" the PSFs yelled. My heart sank as a large man leaped in front of us. My training rushed through my mind. At that moment, an overwhelming burst of anger sprawled in my chest.
I would show no remorse to these people. Without even thinking, I slammed my hand against his throat and curled my fingers. He choked as my grip tightened around his esophagus. He raised a gun. I grabbed the barrel and shoved it upward. The bullet exploded from his gun, tearing through the wall of the train. Screams erupted from behind me. The color in the man's face drained. I slammed my foot into his chest, watching him slam into the seat.
Sebastian grabbed my hand and ran forward, shoving the door open. We leaped from car to car until we finally burst into the supply car. The others heads whipped towards us.
"Run! Get on the roof!" Sebastian shouted. "Now!"
None of them questioned us. We did as he said and started climbing the ladder to the roof. I stood up on the roof and watched the ground and trees warped past us. The wind slammed into my face.
"Go!" Sebastian screamed again.
I snapped out of it and started running to the back of the train. I held my breath as I came towards the edge of the cart. I prayed that I would land safely on the other cart instead of getting sucked under the train. I took a deep breath and jumped. I was airborne for a few seconds until I landed on the other cart. I stumbled and rolled onto my back as my feet slammed onto to the roof. My eyes snapped up as someone's fingers curled around my arm. Sheng grunted as he tried to lift me.
"C'mon, they're right behind us!" he squealed. As soon as I was on my feet again I charged for the other car. I grabbed Sheng and shoved him in front of me.  I glanced behind me to see the PSFs hot on our heels. I jump in between more cars. I tried not to think about what would happen if I slipped off this roof. I jumped the cars until we finally came to the end. I skidded to a stop.
"Now what?" Issac quaked.
"Don't move!" the PSF ordered as he reached for his gun. Sheng screamed and shot his hand forward the PSF flew back, slamming hard into the car behind us. My heart sank as the other PSFs lifted their guns, fire exploding from the muzzles.
"Jump!" Sebastian yelled. He grabbed my arm and started running towards the edge of the train.
"Are you crazy?!" I hollard. The edge came so fast. I held my breath and closed my eyes as I leaped from the final car. I felt myself become airborne and the noise of the train drifted away. I landed roughly on the ground and rolled over onto my back. Jolts of pain ripped up my joints. I groaned and squeezed my eyes shut, trying to shut out the pain.
"Everyone alright?" Seb groaned.
"Yeah...great idea," Andrei jeered. "I especially loved the part where I almost broke my ankle!"
Jasper chuckled as he pushed himself up.
"Get over it, Blondie!" he mumbled as he waved at the PSFs standing on the passing train. My eyes snapped over to Sheng as he slowly pushed himself up. I sat up and grabbed his arm.
"You okay?" I asked. He flashed a weak smile and nodded.
"Where's Paul?" Sebastian asked.
Andrei scoffed as he wiped the dirt out of his hair.
"He dipped after he locked us in that metal coffin!"
Issac shook his head.
"We really need to move. The PSFs aren't just gonna let us go. Soon they'll stop the train and follow us."
I nodded as we rushed into the woods, getting as deep into it as possible so they couldn't find us. After we determined it was safe, we stopped and tried to figure out where we were. We found out that we weren't that far from New York City.
We walked through the woods as night fell. The temperature plunged along with the sun. I flipped around as howls and barks tore through the air. My heart sank.
"You've gotta be kidding me," Issac mumble.
"Dogs? Seriously? They sent dogs after us?" Jasper quaked.
"We gotta move," Andrei ordered.
"Hold on! I have an idea!" Seb said.
He started forward. We all followed behind him. We came up to a small pond. Seb motioned for us to walk over to it. We all knelt down in front of it. My eyes narrowed as Sebastian just sat there.
"What are we doing here?" I whispered. "We already have enough water and supplies. There's no need to stop."
He dug down into the water and pulled out a clump of mud, squishing it against Andrei's face. Andrei froze, clenching his jaw and narrowing his eyes into slits. He looked like he was seconds away from clocking him right in the face. My heart banged against my rib cage as a smile crept across Sebastian's face. I waited for Andrei to throw the first punch but he didn't. He just stared daggers at Seb.
"Cover your bodies with it. The mud should mask the scent of human."
I sighed irritably as I glared at him, trying my hardest to swallow the giggle that was stuck in my own throat.
"You could've told me without splattering mud all over my face!" Andrei growled.
I scoped up a handful of the freezing mud and squished it against my cheeks.
"Everyone covered?" Seb asked. I glanced at everyone and saw their mud covered faces and bodies. Sebastian nodded and continued to push forward. My heart dropped like a bomb as I heard the sound of rustling in the distance. We all froze in place. Chills curled up my spine as panting lifted through the air. I shot my finger towards the thick bushes next to us. We quickly shoved our way through them. The branches jabbed me in the side as I sat and squished myself between Issac and Jasper.
A loud thump broke the silence. I looked up to see Sheng running towards his bag that he dropped. My heart sank as I looked over to see the dogs in the distance, running right at him. My heart jolted with adrenaline as I stood up.
"Sheng, get down!" I screamed. I flung my hand forward, putting up a wall of fire between the dogs and Sheng. I shoved Sheng ahead of me and ran in the opposite direction of the dogs.
"Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!" Jasper yelled. . The forest around us erupted with snarls and shouts. Seb and I ran in front of the others. My eyes darted around the woods as we ran. Gun shots echoed through the air as the dirt next to us kicked up. I could hear the bullets whiz past my ears. I whipped my head around to see PSFs running along side the dogs. I stared at the ground in front of me, weaving in between the trees like a speeding car on the highway. I ran and ran, and the next thing I knew, I dropped. My heart sank to the pit of my stomach as I looked down at the bottom of the cliff I had just jumped off of.