I exhale softly as the blaring of the gates being opened sounds and I take off running. My mind is spinning with questions, mostly why I haven't actually gotten briefed on this mission even though it was planned beforehand. I attempt to calm myself down by taking in deep breaths and keeping a casual pace.

You'll be fine. A voice

echoes in my head. I'm not even sure if it's mine since I can't remember what I used to sound like besides the Southern accent...

Sam wouldn't put you in too much danger.

My shoulders tense, making the blunt of axe I have strapped to my backpack dig into my lower back. Sam is the last person I need on my mind, which is unfortunate seeing how he is my operator. I reach up and adjust headset to keep it from pulling my hair. I'm surprised I have any hair left since Caleb's been trying to drive me insane.

It's just slight teasing-nothing serious. But still, I can't let or even think of Sam becoming my actual friend, much less... anything else.

"Hello, Runner Five? Runner Five?" Janine's voice flows into my ear clearly before it becomes small and annoyed. "Is this thing on, Mr. Yao?"

"...And ya have to... ugh. J-just give it to me a sec." His voice becomes louder once he addresses me. "Hey, Runner Five! We're changing things up a bit? Isn't that exciting?"

There's something more exciting than running from zombies? I wonder. This... should be interesting.

"Look," Sam sighs. His voice is lower and less clear so I can only guess he's talking to Janine, "you just keep this button pressed when you're talking and make sure you lean... this way so your body, you know, extends the area a bit and uh..."

"Good grief. Is this how you've been managing all this time?"

"Pretty much. Yeah," He replies. "I make it work."

"But if you plug this in here," There's a sound of a cord being plugged into something, "then you can sit back and the signal's better."

"I uh, yeah. I knew that... I-I didn't. I didn't know that at all."

I can't stop the smile that spreads across my face and the little voiceless laugh that escapes my lips, mixing in with my slight pant.

"So, Runner Five, Janine here will be your controller," He explains. "We're sending you off on a very special assignment. Aren't we, Janine?"

"Don't patronize me, Mr. Yao," She deadpans.

I hear stuttering through my headset. "I wasn't. I-I didn't mean... I-"

"Runner Five," Janine sighs in exasperation. "Just run."

A bit of music follows after that, but I don't focus on it. My mind is wondering to what mission I have today. There's only been a few missions where people other than Sam direct me. And those were all supply missions besides the one in Brunswick.

Then I notice something. It isn't shiny, or overly out there to be seen, but I seem to have an eye for things. I slow down my pace to a brisk walk as I make my way to it, grinning when I see a perfectly good coil of rope. I pick it up to examine it, and I smile when I see that it's clean. It seems pretty sturdy as well, judging by the multiple sharp tugs I give it.

"Runner Five," Janine's voice rings a bit too loudly in my ear. "Runner Five, why are you stopping? This is a very simple exposition for you today. It's nothing too taxing, but it is important that it's done swiftly."

Her voice is cold and hard, and I almost flinch. I just might have if I could see the sharp stare I know she's sending the scanners.

"That's why we call them runners, you know," Sam says in a grumbling voice, and I smile seeing he's coming to my defense.

"Yes," Janine hisses. "Quite."

'Sorry. I found something interesting. Thought I'd take a look,' I tap out on my mic after stuffing the rope in my bag and starting to run again.

"She said-" Sam starts, but Janine cuts him off.

"I know Morse Code, Mr. Yao."

"You do? Well, you never told me-"

"I had no reason to," She responds harshly, and I frown just a bit. I'm used to that type of voice being used towards me but I'm not sure how I feel hearing it aimed at Sam.

"And if this is one of those trinkets Dr. Meyers told me you collect I'd suggest you save that for next time."

'It was rope,' I tap quickly, my face showing no emotion. 'Good rope too. It'll be of good use to Abel.'

A little noise of satisfaction and amusement fills my ears and I can only guess who made it.

"Oh, of course," Janine states a bit awkwardly, before going right back to business. "We're low on cable-electronic supplies-that sort of thing. They're getting harder to find as time goes on. Weather corrodes, rats gnaw, looters well, loot. So I need you to head towards New Canton."

My step falters a bit at that, and I replay the sentence in my head to make sure I heard correctly.

"New Canton?" Sam questions.

"That is what I said," She pauses for a short moment. "It's all very straightforward, Mr. Yao. We treat New Canton like our enemy. Why?"

Because they threatened to shoot me while Sarah and I were running from a pack of zoms? I mentally speak.

"Because... they ... enforce martial law over there. They refuse to take our people in when under attack, and they're getting too big, and they're having dangerous outbreaks of the zombie plague."

'Those do seem like some good reasons to be wary of them,' I pipe in. Janine huffs in disapproval.

"They're still people. If we humans can't stick together, we can't expect to survive this extinction threat."

I press my lips together tightly at that, knowing that she does have a point but not wanting to admit it. I've been shot at more then once, so this little grudge is not entirely the reason I don't trust what she's saying. Something just... feels wrong. As in tremendously wrong.

It's a gnawing in my stomach and a tightening of my shoulders and a heavy weight of dread in my chest. Surely it can't just be me. I'm not that paranoid... Well, no one's ever told me otherwise.

"I've been in touch with the people in New Canton," Janine continues explaining, and I pray that I didn't miss too much. "They'll be waiting for Runner Five."

Sam makes a noise that tells he's not entirely convinced. "I don't think that sounds as good as I think you think it sounds."

"It's all going to be fine," She assures, although her voice is still clipped and icy. "Just keep running, Runner Five. You have to trust me."

"That's the last thing you should say in a situation like this."

I agree. I contemplated voicing my thoughts but decide against it seeing as Janine is not in the best of moods.

Silence erupts but is soon swallowed by the sound of music once again filling my headset.

I spot something ahead of me, and ponder if I should run past it or blindly grab at it like I've done before. I know that stopping isn't an option, lest I get another scolding from Janine, so I take the risk and reach down once I get close enough. My hand grabs at the slightly larger item as I pick it up from off the grass. My eyes grow wide in surprise as I look at the jacket in my hands. It has a an olive-sized blood stain on it, but other than that it looks to be in a decent condition.

I stuff the jacket into my bag with some difficulty. Trying to open my backpack with the axe strapped to it is much more challenging than I thought.

"I don't need to be in touch with all of them," Janine snaps. "As you know, Mr. Yao, we've set up a rudimentary form of the internet which allows communications via kind of bulletin board operated by a radio.

"I've contacted one or two people from New Canton telling them about our need for parts. They've kindly offered to let us have some and I have no doubt we'll return the favor in due time, of course."

Yeah, still don't feel any better about this...

"Yes, I-I do know that," Sam replies. "Why are you telling me something I already know saying 'as you know'?"

"I suspected given your inability to work your own area that might not actually know," She sasses, and my jaw actually drops.

God forgive me but damn.

Sam hums. "As you know, the switch you just flipped with your elbow when you turned 'round is letting Runner Five hear our conversation."

'Don't mind me,' I reply. 'This is surprisingly entertaining.'

I hear Sam snicker, and Janine stutter slightly. "You're doing well, Five. Carry on. Yes, run."

I smile once more as music blasts into my ears. I honestly wish Sam had kept the link on a tiny bit longer. It's more interesting than music and I actually like hearing them talk.

And that's not a bad thing. I tell myself. It's not. They're just... entertaining. That's all.

That doesn't even sound slightly convincing. But I press on and continue running, trying to match my steps with the rhythm of the song and failing miserably. It makes a good distraction.

"She's gone to the bathroom," Sam whispers. "To be perfectly honest, I mildly suspect she may have bugged the coms desk... coms shack... coms desk."

I shake my head as he corrects himself.

"Can you hear me, Janine?" He laughs. "Yeah, she can't hear me. Well, she wouldn't say if she could here me. That woman is tricky."

'You're a dork, you know that?'

There's a quiet chuckle that's replied, but then his voice turns serious. "Listen, she's coming back in a second. I uh, know she's very good at her job but just to be on the safe side I'm keeping as many of our scanners focused on you as I can."

I pull my bottom lip between my teeth to keep from smiling, feeling just slightly flattered at his words.

Keep telling yourself that. And really, don't flatter yourself. You're a runner; he's a coms operator. It is his job to be worried about you.

I blink, realizing that little voice in my head is right. And I know I shouldn't let myself get too distracted with theses thoughts. Distractions lead to mistakes, and making a mistake out here could cost you your life-which is something I'm not particularly fond of losing at the moment.

"What are you doing, Mr. Yao?"

"I-uh, nothing," Sam says far too quickly. "Just talking to Runner Five. That's my job. My job is talking to Runner Five. Doing my job."

I just nearly face palm. Sam. Oh my God.

"Yes, that's your job." The suspicion in her voice is crystal clear. "While we're talking, Runner Five, slight diversion. If you just head towards that large green building-you'll be able to see it on your right-my contact tells me there'll be some electrical supplies. It's an electrical and engineering building."

I look to my right and as Janine said, there is a large green building, still a good few minutes away. I start towards it, my feet hitting the ground and creating an echo of suspicion.

This feels wrong.

This feels wrong.

This feels wrong.

But still I keep quiet, unsure of sharing my paranoia, seeing as nothing has gone wrong yet-

"You do know what those are on this monitor here, right?" Sam questions, his voice shaking with nervousness.

"Oh, yes," She replies, "and there's quite a large concentration of zombies in the area so do run."

Of course. Of course I spoke to soon.

I pump my legs faster, taking longer strides and quicker steps, not wanting to have to use any extra energy of chopping of a zom's head from its body. But unfortunately for me, the closer I get to my target, the more zombies I see...

And the more zombies see me.

"Runner Five, there's about eight zoms on your tail but they all appear to be pretty slow except... except two," Sam warns, although his voice is calm. "They're actually starting to catch

up to you. Just recently changed probably. Try to pick up some speed if you can."

I ran faster, looking back to see the small pack of undead chasing me. The two that look to be less rotted are slowly catching up. I grit my teeth in annoyance, guessing these zoms must've been runners before they were changed.

"They're still catching up to you, Five. You might want to-What the... Five, what are you doing?"

By now I've slowed down to a jog, my dominant hand reaching bag and grabbing my axe. Groans and moans of the dead come from behind me, and in a flash I spin around, using the force of the swing to land the axe right into one of the zombie's skull.

I jump back as the other one lunges at me, pulling out the now blood stained ax. I swiped at the other zom, the tip of my ax landing in its neck, causing the reddish-gray blood to flow from the wound.

But it's still not enough to kill it. I use my foot to kick the zom away and free my axe. I can hear the growls of the slower zoms as they begin to catch up. If I can just take out this one...

I angle my swing as the zombie comes at me with gnashing teeth and peeling skin. This time my axe comes down swift enough to take the whole head off, leaving the body to fall onto the ground and continue to rot.

I waste no time in strapping my axe back to my backpack and running towards the target building. I get there within a minute and quickly slip inside, now safe.

"Why did you do that, Five? You could have outpaced them." Sam asks with a voice full of annoyance with slight anger.

'They were catching up, and after I leave here with the supplies I would have been slower and more tired. They would have been able to catch me.' My response is a long one, but it's what needs to be said.

"Just... tell me next time you plan on becoming the zombie version of Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, alright?" Sam asks, his voice teasing with a bit of nervousness lying underneath.

"She's fine, Mr. Yao. Now let's leave it at that," Janine cuts in. "Now, Five, grab what you can and do it quickly. There's still a bit more that needs to be done."

"There's more?"

If Janine answers it's after she turned the communications to silent, but I leave that thought be as I take off my backpack and axe. I grab whatever I find that doesn't look damaged and put it in my backpack. Some of the devices peak my interest, but I don't think asking Janine the use of these things would be a bright idea.

I pause when I see the backpack is full, and then notice how much room the jacket takes up. I gnaw on my bottom lip as I ponder on what I should do. The jacket would be of good use to the Township, but we are running low on parts. With a small sigh I take out the jacket with a less than happy look, and replace the space with electrical parts that I couldn't name if I tried.

I head to the door, and take one last longing look at the jacket that is placed on a nearby table before sprinting out the building. A few slower zoms attempt to follow me and I easily make an escape, the added weight of the parts only slowing me down a second or so than before.

"Very good, Runner Five," Janine praises. Her voice still has that professional tone to it, but there's a sincerity that's hidden in there if I look hard enough. "You're quite right to recommend this one, Mr. Yao. A very efficient, competent worker."

"Yeah. We don't wasn't to lose Runner Five," He agrees. "Just... bare that in mind."

"Nothing to be alarmed about, Mr. Yao. Everything's going well. My contact-Herjase Hatab-has means for a cashe to be waiting for us to pick up just outside the city. The rebels in the city are very eager for us to make contact."

My steps falter for a second time since I started this mission, and the feeling of dread and the tensing of my muscles return twice as strong as before.

"The rebels?" Sam repeats. "Are you trying to start some kind of war with New Canton?"

"We all know New Canton is going to fall, Mr. Yao. It's only a matter of time and when they do some of them will want to join up with us."

A laughter full of nerves leaves Sam's mouth. "Yeah. You know what a city like New Canton falling means. There are 17000 people in that complex."

My mind struggles to imagine such a large settlement so close to the smaller on of Abel... And the fact that New Canton being as large as it is refuses to help Abel when needed.

"When the city falls, that won't be 17000 happy people with blankets and picnic baskets," He continues. "That'll be 17000 zombies, caused by someone too afraid to admit they got bitten."

A shudder runs through me at the thought of that many zombies. If that were too happen, how long would it take for Abel to fall after? It's not dumb to think that within a few days they'd be surrounded by zoms all looking for their next meal.

"All the more reason for us to help some of them get out now. We need to be there on time. Do pick up the pace."

I scrunch up my nose at her command but obey, the words in my head still echoing with each step.

This feels wrong.

This feels wrong.

This feels wrong.

But I push it down, ignoring the churning of my stomach and the erratic beating of my heart and I just focus on how to keep my breathing steady.

I take longer strides when I see the walls of the city and Janine starts speaking.

"Your contact should be meeting you just over the edge of the ridge from where you are right now," She tells. "Keep running."

A sudden noise sounds out over the speakers of New Canton, and just a millisecond later an alarm is blaring out, the sound loud and painful. It takes all in me to not cover my ears, but then the sudden gunshots take my attention away from the alarm's sound rather quickly.

The urge to stop is strong, but I force myself to keep running as bullets whizz past me and a voice talks over the speakers.

"Runner from Abel Township!"

"It's a trap," Sam says in a small voice, and I hope Janine smacks him for stating such an obvious thing.

"Take evasive maneuvers!" Janine commands as a bullet flies past my face, nicking my ear. I hiss in pain as I feel warm liquid start to slowly flow from the minuscule wound.

"What evasive maneuvers?" Sam nearly yells. "I should've known..."

His last few words are drowned out by the speakers. "Runner from Abel Township, you are surrounded."

My eyes nearly bulge out of my head when I see multiple New Canton runners heading toward me. In a moment of quick thinking, I dig my heels into the ground to stop myself before making a sharp turn to the right. My breathing is rapid and uneven as my heart feels like it's going to beat itself right out of my chest.

"There's only one evasive maneuver," Sam states.

"There's no escape!"

"Runner Five. Runner Five, there's a break in the uh, yeah. There's a lot of people surrounding you," I hear him groan in frustration. "If you keep heading in the direction you're going, you might head out of scanner range but... but Runner Five, just run!"

And I do. I run. Quick strides, harsh breathing, heart pounding. I run as fast as I can, my lungs burning and legs aching. I run far away.

Away from New Canton.

Away from danger.

Away from Abel.

Away from safety.

A/N: Oh!!!! Cliff hanger! Any who, hope you all enjoyed this chapter and if you did please vote and comment. Thank you very much!