arte and sunny's guide to surviving the apocalypse

9- in destruction's own temple

Sunny had missed dinner the night previous, so the leftover venison soup the next morning was brand new to him. By then, he'd found himself extremely hungry, eating four bowls of it, and finishing off all the leftovers. Tori herself had only had one that morning, and wasn't too shocked with his hunger, even somewhat expecting it. She knew he was going to need the energy for the day ahead, with the partial climb back down the mountain.

As they got equipped for the day, heading back out into the brilliantly white outdoors, Sunny found himself asking, "So, where are we headed next? Back towards Noname, or Argilstead?"

Tori shook her head, not even sparing him a glance. "We're going to Static Flats, towards the highway. Pyxis is our next destination, and I'm sure they'll be just as thrilled as Cress if we're late." She patted him on the back, pushing him a little further down the trail. "We ought to hurry, we've got quite a bit of walking to do."

"If we're headed back towards the highway, we could always steal another car," Sunny proposed, mostly joking. Though, from the sudden spark in her eyes, he could tell she was now seriously considering it. He mentally cursed himself for even mentioning it, hoping that she wasn't actually now planning on doing something so reckless. Even if she's able to drive the thing, and it would be faster than walking...

Again, they walked in silence, with Tori constantly surveying the land, ears and ears perked, perfectly in tune with her surroundings. While Sunny had a general idea of where they were, his internal compass was more frustrating than anything, almost confusing him as they went. He knew he couldn't just walk straight to the Altar, even if that's what his gut was telling him. No, they had to have nuance about the whole thing, because rushing straight there would be a mistake. After all, it wasn't like him being asleep for a year took away their status as wanted criminals- they'd assumedly blown up two buildings now, and while most people thought Sunny was dead, they'd certainly be more than ready to attack him if they saw him.

It was noon by the time they'd finally hit Static Flats, with them edging around the corners of town, rather than just traveling straight through it. They snuck through the shadows of buildings, creeping through alleyways, always inches away from the unassuming people on the sidewalks, watching without them having a clue. Sunny found himself staring at the normal people, most of them talking or laughing, holding food or shopping bags as they walked from store to store. And even though he knew where they had come from now- not the main lands, but the Research Facility- he still felt a strange pang of loneliness watching them. There they were, grown from a tube and none the wiser, living a more normal life than Sunny could ever dream to.

Tori hustled him along again, leading them towards a tunnel the highway ran through, but Sunny was hardly paying attention now. Maybe one day, they could all come down here, after the world was saved and they were all safe. Maybe they'd go into the music shop, and Barley would show them how to play various instruments, making a ruckus until they were kicked out, all laughing amongst themselves. Maybe Tori could show them how to pickpocket random strangers, and even though Sunny would complain, he'd find himself fascinated by it, anyway. Maybe he and Artemis would buy some ice cream from one of the vendors, and they could all walk down the street, window-shopping, trying to make each other crack up.

"Can you get your head out of the clouds?" Tori roughly shook his arm, nodding towards the tunnel. "There's chimera in there, we need to be alert, Sunny."

He nodded, rubbing at his eyes. "Right, right. I'm sorry."

"Come on, then." She dipped inside of the gaping maw of the tunnel, retreating into the darkness, leaving Sunny to follow. He sighed, running after her, like he had been for hours now.

Maybe one day, they could have a nice time touring the shops, without the threat of the government breathing down their necks. Maybe, but Sunny really doubted it.