On a sparrow's wings

Chapter 14 - The danger around the corner

  Anastasia and Michael have been making their path through the city for who knows how long. The path had been fairly safe so far but Anastasia couldn’t help but feel a strange tingling on her spine. As if something was watching her, stalking and waiting to pounce. And eve when Anastasia turned around to look around to look it wasn’t gone. She could spy a set of glowing green eyes, behind corners, in dark rooms, in the distance. She looked at them and they at her, unblinking. They followed her, flashing like emeralds in the shadows. Attack us already this is torture! She felt as if she was going insane. With each passing hour the shadows looked more and more like monsters were hiding in them. And the problem was she didn’t know if there were monsters hiding in the shadows waiting for her to drop her guard and rip her head off. But she wasn’t going to give them the chance.

  Michael was feeling it even more so. He was tense all over if Anastasia were to touch him he would jump. He looked around every single corner even those they had already went by. He never holstered his shotgun, always clutching it tightly with his sweaty palms. Every so often he would wipe them in his pants but they always quickly returned to the shotgun. He barely blinked, his eyes had gone red and were watered constantly. Every little sound made him lift the shotgun and placed his finger on the trigger. But he never shot, always steading himself.

  When the sun fell under the horizon they found their path blocked by a herd of greys.

“We can walk through them.”, Anastasia suggested.

But Michael didn’t even think her idea over before dismissing it and looked around for another route. But there wasn’t one. The roads diverged too much and the building were to far to jump from one to another and if even they did the windows were whole and the noise would bring every single bandit to them, and the greys for that matter. For which Anastasia was happy about. Michael not so much, he craned his head all around looking for the tiniest way they could take to avoid the herd. He got the map from Anastasia and saw that to their left led to Viper territory. Michael said that they can’t go through there when Anastasia inquiered. Anastasia looked to the road that led to their left. At first she didn’t see anything but as she stepped a bit closer and squinted her eyes she saw some kind of circular objects on polls. She got closer and the objects took shape. They were human heads, the hair was falling off and the pigment was ashen but Anastasia couldn’t mistake them for anything else. She shuttered but took a closer look nonetheless. Something moved around the heads and she saw it. A snake rose from the eye socket of one of the heads and hissed loudly. As far as Anastasia was the noise still made her took a few steps back and swallow nervously. 

  To their right there was a blockade of military vehicles and  rubble from the buildings to the side. Michael thought he could climb it but it wasn’t stable enough. The ruble broke through as he stepped and Michael fell backwards.

“There is no other way we have to go through the herd.”

Michael paced back and forth, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“Are you f*****g insane? How are we supposed to get through the herd alive?”

“It’s easier than you think.”, Anastasia took a few steps closer to the herd and pointed, “You have to go in the space in between them, quietly. There sense of smell isn’t good they won’t notice you if you are fast enough. Oh and also you will have to put your gun away. They can kinda sense them.”

“And you know this how?”, Michael stopped in one place.

“Hey it’s not like I haven’t done it before.”

Michael gave the herd another look. The greys walked back and forth, the noises of their screeching and clicking bouncing off the walls into Anastasia and Michael’s ears, “No way. That’s not possible.”, Michael returned to his pacing. Anastasia took off her shoes and placed them in her backpack. On grass she could step quiet with shoes on but not on cement.

“What are you doing?”, Michael asked when he noticed it.

  “Watch me.”, Anastasia sighed and before Michael could turn his head she was already making her way amongst the greys. The herd was big, she had to be amongst them more than she was used to. They shuffled around her, searching for their next meal. They didn’t trouble her, she was too fast and too quiet for them. She sprinted on her tiptoes, jumping to the sides of the greys that got in her way. She felt like a ninja making its way across roofs and alleys, avoiding guards so she could get to it’s target. She always liked ninjas and now she could be one, or at least pretend to be for a short while. She finally found herself on the other side of the herd, the greys walking behind her, clueless to Anastasia’s sprint through them.

   Anastasia turned around and saw Michael with his mouth gaping and ripping the hair off his scalp. She took a ceremonious bow and smiled widely at him when she rose. She patted the dust of her socks and put her shoes back on. She rose and waved Michael to come over. He shook his head and crossed his arms. But Anastasia kept urging him until she saw a large sighe leave his mouth and he also crouched to take off his shoes. He rose stretched and slowly and clumsily made his way through the herd. Right before he was about to go Anastasia signaled him to stop and gestured towards the shotgun in his arms. He shook his head once again. Anastasia tried her best to express that he will die if he doesn’t put away his gun in gestures. He seemed to understand because he sighed and put the shotgun in his backpack.

  Michael slowly and clumsily made his way through the herd. Almost bumping into a couple greys, always managing to save himself at the last moment with a stumble backwards. A grey blocked his path, he froze not knowing what to do. After a few seconds the greys turned their heads and to notice his presence. Michael tried to shuffle past the grey but to no avail. Anastasia noticed a small opening to his right and she gestured to him and he moved there. And she kept gesturing to him until he was across. The greys had almost noticed him when he made it across. They got a bit further away before they spoke.

  “How the hell do you know this?”, Michael muttered, his face red and his forehead covered in beads of sweat.

“I told you I’ve done this before.”

Michael scoffed and kept his silence.

A silence followed as they continued making their way. They kept walking until the herd was far enough that they didn’t hear the greys screeching. They noticed the darkness gather around them and they looked for shelter. Anastasia found an boarded bookshop. Michael took the axe he go from that vendor and chopped down the boards that covered the door but they left the ones that covered the window. Once they were inside they moved one of the shelves with books on the door to board it up and made their campfire.