As soon as the voice registered, I peered into the surrounding undergrowth, trying to pinpoint the owner of the words with no success.
A chuckle radiated to my left; I spun on my heel to look yet my eyes were met with still undergrowth and a wave of the sun. "How's there?"
"Me." Was the only reply I got. I decided I didn't like this guy's attitude, though my curiosity was indeed heightened by the whole predicament. What did this barrier serve? Who was this man skulking behind it? Was it just him there, or were there a plethora of people?
"Alright, I guess we're skipping introductions if you're going to be difficult. What was that thing I ran into?"
"It was a barrier."
Despondently rolling my eyes, I sighed. "I guessed that much."
A chuckle resonated at my dismayed and exasperated reaction; I wasn't going to give this fiend anything else to laugh at. "You said something about it frying metal? So I'm presuming it's a force field to keep the robots out. How did you construct it?"
"Before I answer your questions, why are you so gripped by the mystery of myself and the odd barrier?"
"Because I need something on the other side of it... The plastic thing. It's vital to my survival."
"The boat? The boat is vital to your survival when this is the only stretch of water from here to who knows where? I'm sorry, but I'm not buying it." Another snigger accompanied the disdainful words; a flush crept up my neck.
"Fine then. I guess I'll have to tell you the whole situation. That boat is the only means for me and two others to get across an electrocuted lake. We need to traverse it so we can go deeper into the city. I can't tell you our full mission because I don't exactly know it." I burbled, a cringe convulsing me. Was I allowed to say that? Probably not.
The silence stretched on like a dreary journey; I felt exasperation and dismay tint my cheeks. Tempted to give up, my glassy eyes furrowed amongst the secluded shrubbery, counting to a minute and hoping to depart at the end of the sixty seconds.
Suddenly, there was a flash, a faint crack. Startled, I retreated a few steps, yet regained my composure with a few steady breathes. Remaining taciturn yet observant, I crept behind a nearby bush.
A laugh - louder, more prominent this time - emitted once again, yet this time the figure accompanied it. The man looked haggard and harrowed, his features stubbled yet charmingly chiselled. His hair was a scruffy mass of light brown, eyes dark and dubiously narrowed with amusement. His body was well toned yet his clothes were heavily soiled, the garment so dirtied it was hard to say what colour it was originally.
"No need to hide. I just took the forcefield down." He said, raising an eyebrow. I noticed a rifle was straddled over his shoulder: what was that for? Was I safe in this strange man's company?
Hesitantly standing up again, I too raised my eyebrow skeptically. "Why?"
He shrugged. "You're not made of metal, if you need to go to the centre of the city you and your friends must be freedom fighters, right? Anyway, I can make another boat out of wood."
Still apprehensive about the whole idea, however grateful I was for the offer, I nodded, taking a few steps toward him. "Right. And what do you want from the whole thing?"
Cracking a smile, the guy crossed his arms over his chest. "I don't want anything from it! As long as you get rid of the stupid robots I'm all for the idea. To do this, you're either intelligent or damn idiotic. I'm Stephen, by the way. Shall we?" He flourished his hands toward where the boat was situated, beckoning me over.
I continued to amble towards Stephen. "Tempest. My name is Tempest." I tried to show no hesitation when I traversed to where the barrier used to be, yet I apparently wasn't successful. Stephen stuck out his arm across the line and waved it mockingly.
"You can trust me." He murmured. Eyes narrowing, I followed.
Making our way over, Stephen quickly dashed away, presumably to turn the forcefield back on. My assumptions were confirmed when the same flash and crack rang out. Thankfully, I managed not to jump this time.
I decided not to wait for him, whether this was because of my desperation to get back or a need to prove myself to him I did not know.
The closer I walked to the boat, the more I felt my hope for Chris and Robyn arise - it really was perfect for the expedition. Admittedly, we wouldn't be able to fit all of us on it at the same time, but it would still be relatively simple to take two across, one rows back and gets the other one.
"Is the boat alright?" Stephen said, walking back toward me.
"Yes." I responded, before tilting my head. "How did you make the forcefield?" The question wasn't needed, yet I wanted to be enlightened with the information; my curiosity was strong about this man and where he was situated.
"Don't ask me. I wasn't the one who made it." The vague answer made my speculation merely increase.
"Does that mean there's more of you here?"
"Yes. A few of us." Stephen's eyes flicked subtly around the area. Maybe he wasn't allowed to tell me that?
Nodding in acknowledgement to his reply, I hefted the boat onto my back. "The proper name for that is a canoe." Stephen murmured. "It may be the last one on Earth. Be careful with it, will you?"
"I will. I should leave now... I've been gone for longer than expected and it'll take a while to get back with the canoe with me." The new word felt alien on my tongue.
"Of course." After quickly leaving to deactivate the barrier, Stephen crossed his arms over his chest again. "Good luck with whatever your mission is." His expression and dark eyes were unreadable.
A small smile etched onto my features, and I quickly crossed the border back into the land I was allowed to roam. "Thanks."
-------------------
It took me a while to traverse my way back to the others, but in the end I did successfully, a feat I was proud and grateful of. Nevertheless, it was one of the most stressful experiences in my life.
My mind was turbulent with theories of what Stephen and his comrades were doing, and how they built the clever forcefield to hide from the enemy. As well as this, the rather hefty canoe frequently served to be an unwelcome source of bumps and unintended noises, and I was practically melting from exhaustion.
Navigating my way back into the tunnel, I crept through the dark, making my way toward the flicker of fire in the distance.
I got closer.
Illuminated in jaunty silhouettes were the figures of Robyn and Chris, held together in an affectionate embrace.
YOU ARE READING
Monotone | ✔️
Action"If we were so riveted in the spectrum of nature, why did we stand, petrified, as we became corrupted by idle technology, stupefied by glowing screens, stolen from life as we know it from enemies right under our noses? Why did we relent to this obvi...
