Reversal (Camren/Norminah)

Chapter 32: Taken

XXXII.

At the end of the day, that was her purpose; the only reason why she existed. She was born to die. 

Over the next forty eight hours, the two of us slowly but surely made our way on foot towards our final destination. Lauren had been right, there were small suburbs scattered all around the city of Harrisburg that stretched out over multiple counties of which I didn't bother remembering the names. It didn't matter though, seeing as we entered and left each within a matter of hours.

Just because we no longer had the car, didn't mean that we stopped being tourists. Lauren and I stopped at a few small towns to get a good look at the scenery and sample the local cuisine. Turns out that an entire box of maple sugar candies did more harm than it did good in terms of my inability to stay in one place for longer than three seconds.

Ashland was a small burrow that sat about an hour away from Centralia. It was a quaint, yet conservative town that had been structured around a single main street and gave off a strong mining vibe. We parked ourselves at a friendly, family owned motel for a single night so Lauren could explain to me exactly what the plan was from here on out.

Currently, I stood in front of tall walled mirror with my arms up so Lauren could fumble around with the knife belt around my hips and readjust the sheaths. Rather than hidden under my jacket, the blades now rested down the length of either thigh.

"It's better from now on that people know you're armed." She explained, tightening the belt before stepping back and giving a nod of approval. The girl then turned around and held my jacket open so I could slide my arms through the sleeves.

"So what exactly are we going to do when we get there?" I questioned. "Do you have a plan?"

"I guess the plan is for us to go and find Clara." Lauren replied. "She'll surely have a more intricate way to get rid of the rest of the place. It'll probably involve taking down whoever's in charge."

"Do you know who's in charge?"

"No." Lauren turned me around and reached down to zip the jacket up halfway and adjust the layers against my chest. "But they shouldn't be too hard to find."

I then watched as she elevated the collar of her own black jacket and brought the sleeves to her elbows. She had strapped a small brown pouch around her waist that was half hidden under the hem of her coat and mostly contained small weapons and basic first aid supplies. "Take this." The girl told me, holding out a black piece of fabric and hardened plastic with a strap on either side.

"What is it?"

"A gas mask." Lauren had a second one in her other hand, and demonstrated its application by placing the contraption over her nose and mouth before strapping it just above her ponytail. I was taken aback at how much she resembled one of our attackers with the dark outfit and matching headgear. "The mine fires underground expel noxious gasses that we shouldn't be breathing in for long. These will take care of that."

I nodded, pulling the mask over my mouth and nose similar to the way she had. Lauren's approving eyes made me feel considerably more intimidating than I knew I was, but it was reassuring nonetheless. Taking a slow breath in, the air felt cooler and cleaner than before.

Backpacks strapped securely to our bodies, the two of us left the small town and took off in the dead of the night. I felt good, moving at a steady pace behind Lauren as she led me through the trees. It didn't take long for me to start realizing the changes in our environment. The air began to get visibly smokier, and the scent of pine became thicker the further away we got from town.