"Have we lost them?" I gasped, leaning against the damp stone wall for support.
Grant crept to the corner and peered around the other side. "No." He took my arm and helped me navigate the pile of loose rubble.
"Caley said they wouldn't follow us into the ruins," I protested after we reached the bottom of the hill. "Why are they doing this?"
"I don't know," he replied, holding me up as we broke into a run, "but it's clear they want us back as badly as Raja wanted us to escape."
We fled in silence with only our heaving breaths and the crumbly streets crunching beneath our feet giving away our location. Heart thudding in my ears, I strained to listen for signs of our pursuers. Without fail, just as I started to grow certain our would-be captors had given up the chase, I would hear shouts or the scrape of feet sliding down loose ground.
Shortly after the sun rose we reached the border of a woodland with enormous trees. The mixed wood forest reminded me of the arboretum but on a denser, more massive scale. Never had I seen so many trees in person.
Beautiful though it was, the thought of passing under its quiet canopy filled me with more than a little dread. I knew Grant must have been of the same mind when he hesitated and turned to face me.
He gave a nervous laugh. "I know there's no such thing as forest-dwelling mutants..."
"But it's hard to forget scary childhood stories in a moment like this," I admitted.
He reached out and took me into his arms. "Well, at least I have you to keep me safe," he murmured, lifting my chin.
We held each other and kissed.
"Over there! By the trees!"
"Let's hope those same stories give them pause as well," Grant said, taking my hand. With one last deep breath we began to run, disappearing into the soft green light of the forest.
The woodland floor crackled with the thunder of broken twigs and branches as we rushed headlong between the trees. I hoped we would finally evade them here, but the vegetation, slick from the previous night's rain, slowed our progress. The popping and snapping of wood underfoot echoed around us, converging on our location, and I knew they were close, closer than ever.
"Left," Grant gasped, steering us toward a clump of bushes.
A bright flash lit up the air just right of his shoulder and exploded, smashing the bark off the nearest tree. I cried out and dove for the ground, with Grant throwing himself on top of me.
Thwing. Thwack.
The air buzzed overhead with high-pitched zings followed, one after the other, by shouts and screams cut unceremoniously short until there were none.
We cowered together in the dirt, too terrified to move. Then, without warning, a single twig cracked right beside our heads. Grant stirred above me, ready, I was certain, to face our fate. Steeling my quivering body, I eased up and lifted my eyes.
A man squatted beside us. He had long brown plaited hair and a thick beard of the same color. It was the first time I'd seen a person with facial hair in real life; no one in the city would ever tolerate such an unkempt appearance. He wore soiled, calf-length pants and crude ankle-high boots. The upper half of his body was covered by a brown tunic made of raw fabric.
"Who are you?" the man asked, his blue eyes penetrating my skull.
Grant sat up slowly, keeping a protective arm around my chest as he drew me with him. "My name is Grant, and this is Astrid. We come from—"
"We know where you come from, City Dweller. We're not blind. We've been aware of your presence ever since you first trespassed on our land. Dressed like that—" He snorted, waving a derisive hand at our clothing. "you're not hard to miss."
Several people began to laugh. I jerked my head around, silently counting the party surrounding us. I could see three other men, and a woman, all of them dressed in the same rough outfits.
"Why were you being pursued by your own kind?"
Grant hesitated. "It's difficult to explain."
The man stood up and gestured for us to do the same. "Try."
I gasped when without warning he began running his hands all over my body.
"Don't touch her!" Grant shouted, straining to break free of the two men holding his arms.
"Relax, City Dweller. I'm only checking your woman for weapons. Besides, I think she likes what I'm doing, hmm?" The man grinned as his large hand paused between my legs.
A shiver ran up my spine. "No. I don't," I replied through clenched teeth, fighting the urge to squirm.
He smirked and resumed his search. "If you say so." Finding me clean, he nodded to the woman. "Nissa, give our male guest the same treatment. We wouldn't want him feeling left out of the fun."
I watched as the woman slid both hands the entire length of Grant's body. "I don't know, Taran, this one seems to have a pretty formidable weapon," she reported, cupping her hand over the crotch of his pants.
The men threw back their heads and laughed while Grant's face flushed crimson.
"Perhaps later you will have the opportunity to discharge it," Taran told her while the others snickered. "Kuri, search their bag." He looked at Grant. "Now, you were about to tell us why you were running from your people."
"Our...our lives were in danger."
"That much seems apparent. But why were your lives in danger? Are you criminals?"
I spoke up. "N-no, not exactly. I-I mean, some people might...see us as criminals, but most would consider us...deviants."
"Really?"
The man cocked his head. "For what reason?"
"Because we can't control...we don't have the ability to suppress...we have the need to touch and be touched."
"And?"
"And...we were caught...kissing in public," I disclosed.
"Oh no!
Kissing?
How scandalous!" Taran gasped, covering his mouth with his hand before once again busting out into raucous laughter along with the others.
A few minutes later he wiped the tears from his eyes. "I'm sorry," he apologized, still chuckling. "I know where you come from that is indeed a serious infraction. So were they coming to imprison you?"
"To return us to the hospital," Grant clarified. "We escaped late last night, during the storm."
"And how did you manage that?"
We told them about Caley and the others.
"But why trespass on our land? Surely there are places where you can hide from the authorities within the city."
"Not really," I objected. "There are very few unwatched places."
"From the looks of your supplies," Taran commented, gesturing at the opened knapsack, its contents spread about the ground, "this must have been a last-minute decision. You're hardly prepared for survival, even in the short term. You don't even have any tools, other than that pad, and it's not going to provide shelter, or help gather food." He pointed at the puzzle box. "What's that?"
"It's a gift for Astrid. I...had intended to give it to her during the solstice celebration."
The man tipped back his head, studying Grant's face. "How did you know where to find us?" he said at last.
"We didn't. We were sent here by one of the individuals who helped us escape, Raja Das. She said our people resided in the ruins outside the city, and provided us with coordinates on that pad, but we never had a chance to even look at it. Running into all of you was completely accidental."
The dark-skinned man picked up the pad and turned it on. "He's right, Taran," he confirmed, handing the tall man the device.
Taran furrowed his brow. "Who is this Raja Das? And where did she get these coordinates?"
"W-we don't know," I told him. "We only just met her last night, and spoke with her for only a few minutes. She said she worked for the Ministry of Science, Center of Reproduction. She told us to 'find our people' outside the city—until last night we didn't even know anyone
lived
in the ruins, let alone that we are supposedly from here. She mentioned a man named Zarek; she said it was imperative we speak to him."
"Did she now?" The man exchanged a look with his companions. "About what?"
"We don't know. She gave us a data chip. Do you...do you know him?" I asked.
"I think it's time you come with us," Taran announced, ignoring my question. "I'm afraid we'll have to blindfold you. Considering the company you keep—" He tipped his head toward the bodies of our pursuers. "I'm sure you understand our concern."
"Jacob, Roy, Nissa; stay here and take care of the bodies. Then double back, sweep the perimeter; make sure we didn't miss any stragglers. We'll meet you back at the camp. Kuri, take their bag; you're with me."
~*~*~
We wandered blindly for what felt like an hour or more. My swollen feet stumbled and tripped many times, but one of our escorts never failed to catch me before I fell flat on my face. It was a strange sensation, feeling a stranger's hands touch me without flinching with disgust or even hesitation. In fact, one of them kept a hand on my shoulder at all times, guiding my steps.
At long last we came to a stop. Someone eased me to the ground, then removed my blindfold. I looked around, blinking, waiting for the world to come back into focus.
I saw several small shelters covered by what appeared to be animal hide. We sat upon the same type of surface, protecting us from the wet ground. In front of us stood a circle of rocks with charred lengths of wood lying inside. One of the men, slim and tightly muscled with waist-length black hair tied behind his head, used a small handheld device to ignite the wood. Soon the smoky warmth of fire eased my shivering bones.
I reached down and touched the ground cover. "Is this...made of animal skin?"
Taran wrinkled his forehead. "Of course. It's elk hide," he added, as if he knew my next question.
"Where are all the people?" I asked, fingering the hide, exploring its stiff, rough texture.
"What do you mean?"
"We thought you were taking us to see Zarek."
