Rules of Survival | afi

day seven

Victory is always possible for the person who refuses to stop fighting.

-Napoleon Hill

•••

For a long time, there's just darkness.

I float in and out of consciousness for what seems like forever, barely catching glimpses of what's going on outside my head. Ashton's boots running fast through grass, a fire, some leaves. Between the folds of black, I hear nothing.

Most people would dream of their family, of missing home, but all I dream about is blood. Gallons of it, running in the streets, filling the oceans with red. Staining the grass, killing the trees, wiping out everything in existence.

It's almost like I'm swimming in it, limbs flailing through the sluggish crimson, struggling to make my way to the surface and gasp for air. For a while I'm drowning, and then suddenly I'm not.

I break the surface, blowing the metallic scent out of my nose, and my eyes slowly open.

At first, all I see is a blurry green wall. Then my vision clears slightly and I realize it's a ceiling. A ceiling made of leaves.

Maybe I'm still knocked out.

The pain in my head washes down my whole body, throbbing violently every few seconds. I try to lift my arm but make a sound halfway between a whimper and a swear word when I can't do it. That's when I hear rustling beside me, and Ashton's worried face comes into view.

"Eliza." He gushes, and I feel the warmth of his hand under my neck. "Liza, thank God. I thought you were dying."

"How l-long has it been? Where a-are we?" I struggle to even get the words out, my throat raw and voice hoarse. The worry lines on Ashton's forehead tighten.

"Shhhh, don't talk. It'll make it worse. Here, let me help you sit up."

He's whispering, which only heightens my anxiety. I stay pliant while he pulls me up, pressing my back against something hard. The pain is so bad I see stars.

"Ashton." I choke out, forcing my arm to move and grabbing his wrist. His face is blurry.

"You've been out for seven hours and forty two minutes." He finally says, moving to grab something out of my view. "Delaney slammed the metal end of her gun into the center of your temple. We're in the woods. It was the only safe place I could find inside the safe zone."

"The h-healing serum." I say, blinking away the black spots in my vision. I reach up to run my fingers over the side of my face that was hit, feeling the swollen tissue and dried blood crusted over it. 

Ashton acts like I didn't say anything, instead pressing the cold metal lip of a canteen against my mouth. "Drink."

I'm too worn to protest, and once I get the first sip down I drink the whole damn thing. Instantly, the dryness in my throat and pain in my chest ebbs to a dull ache. My head is still throbbing.

"The healing serum, A-Ashton." I repeat, wondering why the hell he hasn't broken out yet. I think I have a concussion, and can't fight like this. Now is the time to use it.

He blinks at me, and my heart drops.

"About that.."

Immediately I straighten up, which is a bad idea, because I'm blinded temporarily by the pain that shoots through my head. "Where the hell is it?" I say through gritted teeth.

Ashton seems to freeze up for a moment, before he just sighs and starts to spill.

"It's gone. It fell off my belt while I was fighting with Delaney and when I got up it was gone and so was Luke."

"But Luke is dead." I reply, my voice rising a little. "Delaney is dead so Luke has to be. Did you even look for him?"

"I did. For two hours. The bastard probably crawled into some hole to hide and spare the last bit of his dignity. I couldn't find his body or the serum, and I wasn't going to leave you any longer than I had to. I thought you were dying."

"So what if I was dying? That serum could have saved me if she stabbed me in the damn heart, it takes fucking priority Ashton."

I don't mean to be so hostile, but if that serum is gone we are beyond screwed. I can't fight like this, I'm useless.

He flinches under my harsh tone. "I think he took it."

"He probably did. All the more reason to find his goddamn body."

Ashton sighs, shaking his head and sitting back. My head is still throbbing. He's silent for several moments.

In the midst of my anxious terror, I take in my surroundings. Ashton has made some type of shelter out of branches, creating a kind of cocoon up against a rather large tree that I'm leaning against. From the inside it feels like a small room, but on the outside it probably just looks like another bush. It's genius, but I'm too scared to care.

"We can't." Ashton finally whispers. "The safe zone shrunk again. The place we were at and the surrounding area are soaked in radiation." He runs a hand over his face. "The serum is gone. I'm sorry, Eliza."

"Fuck." I swear, trying to get up and stopping when my head prevents it. "Fuck. Ashton, I can't fight. Not like this."

"Yes you can." Ashton says, grabbing my arms to keep me from trying to move again. "You can do it, Eliza. We have less than 48 hours now. You can do it."

I stare him down. "How, Ashton?" I ask. "I can't even stand, how the hell am I supposed to killed someone? Help you?"

"You're a great shot. We have plenty of billets. You don't have to move, I can carry you, as long as you do the shooting." Ashton says lowly, coming closer to lock eyes with me. "We can still do this Eliza. We can still win."

I stare at the sheer determination in his eyes, the defiant glare in his gaze, and I believe him.

"Ok." I reply, swallowing down my fear. "Ok."

***

The safe zone now shrinks every two hours, so we are bouncing around all day.

We leave most of our stuff behind, keeping only our canteens, guns, two small packs of food and a first aid kit. The rest is unnecessary and burdensome, and for some reason I can't find my machete.

I can't walk more than a few feet before I have to sit down, so Ashton carries me. I watch behind us while he watches in front of us, and we look almost comical in our strange position, but at this point anything that works is good for me.

There's only ten of us left. Five pairs. Because of this, we see no one all day, despite being incredibly paranoid and watching for anything that could possibly move.

By the time the sun is setting, the safe zone is only a mile wide and a mile long. Ashton weeds through foliage with me on his back to get past the mark, and the second our wristbands indicate that we're inside, we freeze.

We are on the edge of one huge field surrounded by trees. It's dotted with boulders and bushes but mostly clear, and on the edges of the woods the radiation walls ripple. This is the final battlefield. One where we can all see each other, where no one can hide.

This is it where it all ends.

As the moon rises into the sky, the woods around us seem to rustle with life, and our wristbands notify us that we have one hour until the safe zone shrinks again.

One hour.

One hour until we're all pushed out into the open, forced to fight a long and bloody battle until only two of us remain standing.

One more hour in the safety of the woods, the camouflage of the leaves.

This is it. We're in the endgame now.

•••

yes that was an avengers reference sorry I could help myself

next chapters gonna be the epic climax y'all get ready to be shook to the core

love y'all lots. see you in 7-9 days

Xoxo

~Cam