Kaoru's breath echoed off the walls as they walked silently. The light shined dimly across the concrete before flickering once.
"The battery is dying," Haruhi said tiredly.
Kaoru stopped and pulled his backpack off his shoulders while Haruhi turned the flickering light on him. Unzipping the front pocket, Kaoru rummaged through the full compartment. "Dammit. Why didn't I think of packing more batteries?" He dropped the pack roughly to the floor.
Haruhi swung off her own bag with a sigh. "It's not your fault, Kaoru. I didn't think of it either. But at least we packed those candles right?"
Kaoru nodded once as the flashlight wavered lowly against the shadows. "It's just that we've been following this path all night and it feels like we've gotten nowhere." He kicked the edge of the railroad, gritting his teeth.
"We passed three ports already," Haruhi responded, squatting down by her pack, "That's something at least."
Kaoru backed against the cold wall and shuffled his feet. "Where are we heading to anyway?"
Haruhi shrugged, pulling out one of the tiny white candles and a lighter. "I don't know. But what I do know is that this is safer than traveling above ground." She cast him stern glare to shut him up and then went to work on trying to light the lighter. "Anyway, I think we should take a break for sleep."
His nose twitched. "Fine," he sighed. "But at least let me walk a bit ahead to check it out."
Haruhi nodded and tossed him the flickering flashlight. "Don't go too far. You don't want the batteries to run out while you're down there," she said, turning the lighter one last time, bringing the tunnel alive with the glow of the flame. Reaching down, she brought the flame to the candle.
Kaoru turned the flashlight in his hand. "I won't be long." He turned and paced toward the gloomy darkness. The flashlight illuminated only a few feet ahead of him, so he squinted into the darkness, looking for danger.
The tunnel was dead silent. All Kaoru could hear was Haruhi's quiet rustling from behind him. The tracks glimmered menacingly when his flashlight turned on them. Kaoru felt a bit uneasy about sleeping on the tracks. It went against his instincts completely but what choice did they have? They had to be somewhere in the middle of two ports by now.
Suddenly a shrill ring burst through the tunnel. Kaoru jumped with a yelp, dropping the flashlight onto the concrete with a sharp clang. He froze in place, breathing hard. What the hell was that? He stared at the flickering light blankly. Oh. That was his text message tone.
"Kaoru?" Haruhi's voice called unsurely.
"It's okay. I'm okay," Kaoru whispered in her direction of the tunnel. Quickly he grabbed his dying phone from his pocket. The energy bar was blinking red, dangerously low. He flipped it open to see a text message from Hikaru.
Kaoru you need to find shelter now! It's not safe. They are planning to—.
Kaoru didn't have time to read the rest because the phone began powering off. "Dammit!" he growled in frustration. He braced his arm to chuck the phone at the wall but instead, he held himself still. It was possible that he could still use the cell in the future. So he dropped the phone dejectedly into his pocket. Sighing, he reached down and grabbed the faint light.
"Kaoru?" Haruhi called again from the dim candle in the distance.
"It was just my phone," Kaoru called back. "It died. I'm going ahead now." He turned and trudged into the darkness. He walked until he came to a slow bend in the tunnel. Hesitating, Kaoru came to a halt and listened for any sign of movement. Nothing.
Slowly, Kaoru edged along the wall as it tilted to the left. But as he did so, the flashlight gave out, plunging him into complete darkness. Kaoru gripped the dead flashlight tightly as the fear grew in his chest. He hated the darkness and he should go back… but he had to know what was up ahead. He breathed roughly as he strained his ears.
There was a low echo of movement from ahead and Kaoru froze. If it was an animal, Kaoru would be okay. If not, he was screwed. He didn't have any weapons. But somehow, he doubted it would be an animal. The whole city had been empty of animals that he had seen.
Kaoru gulped. "I'll just see what I'm up against," he whispered inaudibly to himself. He held the flashlight to his chest, ready to use it as a weapon if he needed to, and shuffled forward at a snail's pace. It was slow-going until finally Kaoru could hear the voices echoing off the walls and a distant light glimmered down the tracks. So they weren't the only ones that thought of going into the subway. He had to go warn Haruhi.
He turned to go back the way he had come when something cold was pressed to his shoulder and a hand slapped over his mouth from behind. "Where do you think you're going?" a deep voice growled.
Kaoru tensed before kicking back behind him at the man's legs. But it only made the man grip tighter and the gun pressed harder against his side. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."
Kaoru went still. "That's better," the man said. But Kaoru suddenly flung his body away from him, ripping out of the man's grasp. He maneuvered around the man, and ran at him at full force, knocking the man against the wall in the darkness. The man grunted as he hit the wall. And then Kaoru ran, moving his feet precisely across the railroad tracks, trying not to trip.
"Get back here!" the man yelled roughly.
Kaoru's veins flared in adrenaline as he raced further away. He could do this; he could get away.
But the gun went off behind him.
Yes, this chapter is late. That is because of Finals Week and moving. And yes, this chapter is short. That is because I just found out my brother has appendicitis. So... you get the idea. Thanks for understanding!