Monotone | ✔️

Chapter Twenty Five

The driving rain did nothing to improve my sullen mood. After our near escape we had sought shelter, soon locating it in a corner of an alleyway; a house tucked into a nook with special care, the rickety structure ashen and dusty yet manageable.

No one talked. No one dared disturb the heavy silence that had settled around us like an ominous cloud, like the clouds that had gathered above, soon unleashing their chilly droplets like icy tears.

Blatantly, this was harder than expected. Robots were situated everywhere, a manic bustle of enemies we couldn't evade. Death had called imminently more than once already, merely in the three days we had remained in the City. We were all scared, more terrified than we would like to admit. So, we remained quiet, morosely, letting our hope extinguish.

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Keeping watch was a daunting task, yet the pressure of the job bore down heavier in our current environment, knowing that an abundance of enemies could advance at any moment.

Chris and Robyn seemed so serene, sleeping with their fingers loosely brushing. How they found love amongst ruins was unbeknownst to me, yet it was sweet. They may not live to see tomorrow come yet they could face the troubles together.

Thunder rumbled in the distance, forked lightning split the sky, cracking the clouds open with no mercy. I tried not to jump at the sudden flashes, yet it was hard. The sound could easily disguise footsteps. Besides, I had no one there to comfort me in the midst of the storm.

I was surprised when the wall next to me exploded.

My ears rang with the impact of the blow, the power of the burst throwing me to the ground and shackling me, winded. Everything was blurry; whether that was from a vision impediment or a dust cloud I was unsure.

Loudly, debris and shingle scattered around me. The dulled sound it created registered through the persistent ringing - the noise it created was all too familiar to me. Thankfully, no major pieces of shrapnel penetrated my flesh. I managed to raise my head a fraction, a feeble cough leaving my mouth, before Chris and Robyn were hauling me to my feet, the smog of sleep still prominent in their wide eyes.

"We've grabbed all the stuff we could: lets go!" Chris yelled, voice urgent as we escaped the building. Instantly, shots rang upon us. It seemed the explosion was a lure to get us out of the house. A faint scream rose in my throat as I flattened to the ground, the faint ring of gunshots soaring over my head, whistling in disappointment as they didn't meet their mark.

More bullets sprayed near us. Making a desperate run toward a safer area, I raised my gun, the metal now familiar in my hand. Since Yesterday, I had gained more ammo; I was ready to shoot all who opposed me. I only managed to kill one robot before a scream made my blood run cold. Lashing my head around, I saw Robyn clutching her lower leg, gushes of scarlet substance leaking through her fingers.

"Stupid bastards!" She hissed in anger as Chris guided her to where I was, a wall barring us from them.

"Keep shooting." Chris told me as he peeled Robyn's fingers from the wound. From the brief glimpse I stole, it was bad. The injury was deep, dangerously so.

Determinedly, I kept shooting, using the rapid gunshots as distractions from the screams behind me. I used to watch reality TV shows - I knew when someone got shot they had to remove the bullet. The sounds of Robyn's shouted seemed to echo in my skull.

"Keep still." I heard Chris hiss. Presumably, he had finished his deed. My theory was confirmed when he appeared beside me, cocking his own gun. Blood stained his hands.

"It's bad." I reported. No matter how many I shot down, more replaced them, immediately firing at me with scary precision. Ducking down to grab more bullets from my backpack, my voice croaked slightly. "We might not make it. There's about four dozen of them. Robyn's already been hit. It's not looking good."

Chris sighed, staying upright as he fired. The blood on his hands made his finger slip on the trigger. "We can't move from this position." He murmured. Angrily, he cursed loudly and shot with a fervent glee. It may have been the light, but I thought I saw tears glisten in his eyes.

Moving up again, I shot more robots down, feeling no remorse as their metal shells clattered to the ground. "Any ideas on what to do?"

Chris sighed. "Yes. But you won't like it." I knew now it wasn't the light; a dejected tear slipped from his bloodshot optic.

"What is it?"

"The only way to get you out alive is for me to lead them away from here." Chris said quietly.

Outraged, I gritted my teeth. "There is no way you are doing that! You're our Leader! I'll go, alright? You and Robyn... You're in love! I don't even know what I'm doing out here! I'm practically useless!" I was babbling now. I was terrified. "You can't, you can't, you can't..."

"But I can. I've been training my whole life for this. To sacrifice myself for the future of mankind is how I want to go." Chris said sharply, more tears leaving his eyes. Fleetingly, he wiped them away. Now blood stained his cheeks.

"But if you stay here there's more chance of whatever our mission is succeeding!" I argued. He couldn't do this, he couldn't... "You can die later, whatever you like! Stay. Here. I'm going!"

"This isn't a request!" He shouted. "It's an order, Tempest!"

"I can't let you do this!" I sobbed. I couldn't even look at him as we argued - I kept shooting, no hesitation, no hesitation...

"You're going to have to let me!" He yelled. "You can't stop me. Don't tell Robyn until it's all safe. She's unconscious, but her condition is steady. Freshen her bandage every hour or so. Tell her... Tell her I love her."

"No--"

"Don't question my orders, Tempest." His voice quietened. "I can be the hero I've always aspired to be."

I stopped firing to scrutinise his face. His bloodstained cheeks, chiselled features, soft, peaceful, eyes... The lip ring he always fiddled with when he was thinking, his ruffled, impish hair...

"Come back. You have to come back."

"Give me two days. If I don't return by then, give up. Robyn will explain everything."

I started firing again. "You've always been a hero." I whispered. "You'll always be my friend."

For possibly the last time, he embraced me. Then, he grabbed his backpack and kissed Robyn softly, the action elongated as if he never wanted to forget the taste of her lips. Then, he ran. I crouched down so the robots couldn't see me.

It worked.

Rythmically, the robots turned around and started to follow the running figure.

Would that be the last time I ever saw Chris?

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