Chapter 21 NowNever #2
“It’s not what you think. Look how upset you were over Fredrick. Do you want more of us to die?” he questioned. “They’re the future, the reason this war will be swift and a lot less painful than it would be otherwise,” he told me as if that somehow changed anything.
“They are children,” I told him, and pushed him away from me with both my hands against his chest. “You’re the monster,” I accused, “All this time you’ve been accusing her, but look at what you’re part of,” I told him. “You disgust me.”
“Percy?” I looked to my left and saw Ana standing with Kat at the entrance to the path between the buildings. “We were looking for you,” Ana said.
“Is everything okay here?” Kat asked, stepping forward onto the side path, her hand hovering over the firearm at her side like she was ready to use it against Dylan.
“I’m Captain Viridis, and everything is fine here,” Dylan said arrogantly, dismissively.
“I think we should go to the mess —” Kat began, but then her radio crackled to life at the same time as Dylan’s.
“Are you with Percy?” a voice I recognised as Narkissa asked through the radio.
At the same time, Dylan’s radio crackled, “We have incoming! Enemy forces closing in from the north-west treeline.”
“Percy, come with me,” Kat demanded, holding her hand out to me.
I stepped towards her as the sound of shots began to fire, and the stomping of boots running made the ground tremble.
“Ana,” I said, turning to her. I still needed to talk with her.
Before she could reply, there were multiple explosions, and suddenly I was thrown to the ground, my back hitting the stone path hard, as Dylan pinned me beneath him and dust and rubble fell around us.
“Are you okay?” he shouted over the noise, his hair grey with dust.
“Ana!” I said, ignoring him and trying to move out from under him; thankfully, he got up quickly.
“Percy!” Ana shouted, running toward me.
“What’s happening?” I asked.
Kat spoke into the radio on her shoulder and then turned to us. “Royal and allied forces,” Kat answered. “We need to go,” she said urgently.
I looked to Ana and out to the quad behind her. It was chaos, gunfire, people running, people injured, craters scattered across the once immaculate lawns.
Kat stepped forward and took hold of me, and Dylan pushed past us.
“Everything is going to be okay, Percy, go with the sergeant,” he commanded as he ran off towards the chaos.
I turned to find Ana again when Kat stumbled forward, her eyes widening in what looked like fear.
“Percy!” Ana yelled, and suddenly she was beside me.
Kat’s grip on me loosened, and her hands fell away. She stepped back, lost her balance, and fell to her knees.
“What?” I asked, my ears were ringing, and everything sounded like we were underwater.
Kat fell forward, onto her face, not even attempting to catch herself.
Ana fell to her knees beside Kat, her hands pressing against her back. Kat’s green fleece began to turn black. Ana’s hands lifted, shaking, red-stained.
The red of Ana’s hands shocked me into action, and I fell to my knees opposite Ana on the other side of Kat.
“She’s been shot in the back,” Ana said, looking at her trembling red hands.
“Help me,” I said as I pushed up Kat’s fleece to find the wound. “We need to apply pressure,” I instructed as I put my ear against her back to listen to her breathing; it was a wheezy, ragged sound.
“How do we apply pressure?” Ana asked, her voice shaking.
“Here, help me,” I said as I took off my own fleece.
“We need to put her on her side to help her breathe,” I said as I rolled Kat to her side, and Ana helped me, steadying her.
I moved Kat’s leg and arm out as I had learned in my healing classes, placing her in the recovery position.
But I didn’t know what I was doing. Not really. I wasn’t prepared for this.
“She’s bleeding so much,” Ana said, and I remembered the fleece in my hand.
“Here,” I said and pressed my fleece hard against the entry wound, trying to stop the bleeding.
“Percy,” Ana said.
“Percy,” she said louder.
I turned to her.
“What do we do?” she asked, tears in her eyes, Kat’s blood across her forehead.
“I, I don’t know,” I admitted. “We’re doing what we can,” I said. “Hold this for me, keep the pressure,” I instructed, and after Ana had taken over applying pressure, I tried to check Kat’s breathing and pulse.
“Percy?” Ana asked, as I desperately tried to find a pulse, and put my ear up to Kat’s nose, trying to hear if she was breathing. “Percy?” Ana asked again, crying openly, “Is she?” she asked.
“I —” I couldn’t say it, I checked again, and nothing.
Ana and I looked at each other, and I shook my head.
The quad behind Ana had become a grey sea of nothing, like a fog had descended upon us. But the air was thick; it coated my tongue and throat, making me want to cough and hack.
“She’s dead?” Ana asked.
Somehow, Ana saying the word made it real.
“I’m sorry,” I said, speaking to Kat. “I’m so sorry,” I cried.
Ana was suddenly beside me, her arms around me, crying against my neck.
“What do we do?” she asked me.
A metallic screeching type of sound rang around us as if bouncing off the walls we were between, and a spark of light flashed in front of us as a bullet scraped against the wall of the building.
“We can’t stay here,” I told her.
“Where do we go?” she asked, looking at me for guidance, and I stood up, pulling Ana up with me, her arms still holding me.
“We can leave now,” I said. “Arvid said we would be picked up tomorrow night,” I explained, “We follow the trails east behind Witching Command, and someone will meet us tomorrow night.”
“You want us to spend the night in the forest?” she asked.
“I don’t think we’re going to get another time to get away unnoticed other than right now,” I said, hating how heartless I sounded. Kat was dead at our feet, and I was already thinking about how I could get back to Selene.
Ana nodded in agreement, “You’re right,” she said.
“We can’t go through the quad,” I said. I really didn’t know my way around; I had barely been allowed outside of Witching Command.
“I know the way,” Ana said, taking my hand in hers and leading us further down the path between the buildings.
Soon, we were running with the treeline to our left and back in the direction of Witching Command.