Chapter Nine

Night Time

"RUN!"

The group runs as mutants chase after them. Past injuries and exhaustion are catching up to the group, making the race a very poor one. As the mutants crawl, so do some of the humans. Lafy tries to lead the group, but the pain prevents them from thinking of survival.

Castiel starts supporting Miki, seeing as her knee seems to be about ready to pop-out of place. He glances over at Nathaniel, who is hand-in-hand trying to keep Jay moving. "I told you that place was bad news!" he yells.
"How was I supposed to know that the mutants would hide out in a kitchen freezer?!" Nathaniel snaps. Fanta just cannot help but wonder what possessed mutants to populate McDonald's at all.

They run through the streets, trying to put enough distance between themselves and the mutants. When there is enough, then they may hide. Until then, they must keep moving. Otherwise they will suffer the same fate as Charlotte and as Wish.

Lysander and Dia run together, faster than the rest. Dia glances back, seeing Melody is the last. "M-Melody?" Dia calls.

"Shh," Lysander gasps. He grips her hand to show his fear of her falling behind. "Just focus on running, okay?" Dia agrees to let the matter rest.

Chino notices Dia's distress and glances back. When she sees Melody falling behind on a worrisome level, she stops. "Hey, Melody! Keep up, girl!"

Melody's cheeks are tinted red. Sweat drenches her clothes. Her chest heaves as each breath burns her lungs. Red flows from her leg, from the scrape she had received three days ago. Chino can see patches of yellow and white splattered on a red canvas. "I...I can't…!" She starts to cough, and stops moving entirely.

"Melo-DY!" Chino is yanked forward by Impy. "Impy, let me GO! Melody-!"

"LEAVE HER!" Impy runs quick, trying not to leave Chino any opportunities to run back. "You'll just get ripped apart too!"

Chino struggles, but it is too late. Melody screams in agony and falls to the ground. Her fingers slip and slide as they try to grasp the bleeding scrape. The mutants arrive and tear at her, increasing the intensity of the screams. Green eyes tear as they watch this happen, and the body that holds them goes numb. Impy can freely drag Chino along, now.

With Melody's death, the group is given time to escape. They are able to hide in another building, and check it quickly in the case of surprise guests. When the search is done, the group decides to focus on a major issue. "Miki's knee is screwed up," Castiel points out. "We need to treat it, and fast."

"Are you sure it isn't already?" Nathaniel inspects the knee, poking and prodding it. "According to Chino, Melody's looked pretty infected, and it's been three days…"

Miki winces on and on as Nathaniel abuses the tender cap. Castiel grows angry and shoves him off. "You're not making things better by poking at it!" he snaps.

Lysander steps in between the two, glaring. "Cut it out. This is serious, and Miki looks like she knows it." The boys each raise a brow in confusion and turn to Miki. She looks ready to cry.

Violette comes over and sits next to her, patting her head. "Hey...Wh-What's wrong…?"

Miki holds in her tears for a few seconds. They come flowing out in a series of sobs and screams. "I DON'T WANNA DIE!" she cries. "I DON'T WANNA, I DON'T WANNA!"

"Sheesh, we get it…." Castiel kneels in front of her and shakes her upper body a bit. "Calm down. We're going to wrap it up, nice-n-tight, and you're going to be fine; do you understand that?" She stops sobbing and nods, still sniffling. "Good grief…"

The group looks for medical supplies. Apparently, the dollar store did not have much in means of healing. Anything they have is not suited for holding knees in place. "Someone's going to have to go and find things so that Miki can be able to move," Jay informs. "Question is, who's willing to go out and try their luck for Miki?"

Impy refuses, because she wants to keep watch over Lafy. Violette says that she wants to stay and help Miki stay strong while any volunteers are gone (which Miki tries to say that this is not necessary). Nathaniel says he is not willing to die for Miki's sake, which causes a bit of a commotion between the boys once again. Dia and Fanta want to stay to protect Miki in the case that mutants break in. Castiel and Chino volunteer, making Lysander say he wants to stay to keep everything under control.

"Well, let's go then," Chino huffs.

She leads the way out of the building. Already they hear people inside rushing to put up blockades, or some form of protection while they are stilled. Castiel walks behind Chino, glancing around nervously. "Damn...How are you not flinching right now?" he asks.

Chino glares back at him. Once again, her eyes are cold and lifeless. Complete seriousness has taken over her facial features. "I'm not a 'scared' sort of person. Yet, I have to see my friends die in front of me." She turns her attention back forward, marching a little faster. "I refuse to keep letting them die. I. Refuse."