Generations After

005

After the physical pain had stopped, Anthony shoved his hands in his pockets and ignored the apologetic voice rambling on behind him.

She stabbed me in the eye, after all.

Justifying his silent treatment to himself, yet her relentless apologies were getting depressing. It surprised him that Riley, this person he'd thought was more mature through everything she'd been through, could conjure such a soft, apologetic voice. She was shorter than Anthony, and since he was about five foot eight, she would have to come in at about five foot six, he figured. But, beyond all the hidden loneliness, with a personality as lighthearted as hers, it made him wonder if they were even the same age, though she swore repeatedly that they graduated together. Being that it was two years ago, that would mean she was sixteen now, both of them old enough, in the city's eyes, to join the Wall Security Soldiers.

It bothered him how he still never recalled seeing her in school. Then again, if someone didn't engage him first, he never recognized their existence. He always felt it was harsh for him to do that, but if people didn't have a desire to connect with him, why should he attempt to spark that flame? That's why he found it surprising when Riley followed him out of the city. When he asked her reason for leaving with him, her response of, "I want to join you," caught him a little off guard. Especially since this quest was to figure out what he wanted to be for the rest of his life, or so that's what he told her.

"Ant!! Please stop being mad at meeee!!" she whined out much louder this time.

"I'm not mad at you." He responded more calmly than she was probably expecting.

"Then why have you been silent this whole time?"

"Because I wanted to see how far you'd go to grab my attention. I'm just glad you didn't stab me in the eye again."

As this comment escaped his mouth, Riley puffed out her cheeks and flipped her short black bangs out of her face. A tongue emerged between the two red swelled balls with a, "Mmm!" in his direction. Anthony smirked cockily and turned towards her. Bending forward, he closed his eyes and copied her facial actions, his tongue now pointing back at her.

Suddenly, a dry sensation struck his tongue. He spread his eyelids and pulled away, noticing a string of saliva with the likeness of a spider's web connecting from his tongue to Riley's fingertip. With a wink, she removed her finger and wiped his drool on her jean shorts.

"That's what you get for giving me the silent treatment." Her tone matched that of a con artist that just accomplished the perfect crime.

Anthony, unable to process the situation, halted. His tongue was now more dry from the warm air, and his cheeks felt as hot as the sun.

"How much further do we have to go?" Riley slumping her shoulders, whining out as if the mood from the previous disagreement hadn't subsided yet.

Anthony's shock had finally abated as he turned to see Riley strolling on without him.

Now that she mentioned it, he figured they were only about 10 miles away from the village now. Even though the progress was little, his legs were still aching relentlessly, but he attempted to keep his posture for Riley's sake. He felt if he looked strong enough, it would keep her motivated to continue moving. He always felt that exhaustion was a mental battle more than a physical one.

Plus, this was the first day either of them had spent any amount of time together, so it wasn't like she knew how much laziness he was capable of accomplishing. But now that he was thinking about it, why was she joining him on this journey? He didn't think anyone else would bring a girl they knew nothing about into the Abandoned Plains with them, which only made him question his sanity. For all he knew, she could have easily been a picker or assassin, getting people from the city to go outside the border to attack. But he remembered the multiple tests and checks someone has to go through to even enter the city even if you lived there your whole life before you left.

His thoughts trailed off as his paranoia soured to untamed levels. There was a good reason to be cautious around an uninvited guest, but batshit crazy about the reasoning behind their motives. That's another story.

"Ant! Look! It's a family of schreiks!" Riley called out from a few steps behind him. He figured he must have passed her, his thoughts drifting him away, maybe even subconsciously keeping his distance.

"Schreiks?" He looked back in the direction she was pointing. Sure enough, there was a small pack of about four or five, black, knee-high lizard-like creatures with orange stripes standing on two legs. Their heads were hanging in the air just above the patch of tall grass where he presumed they'd found their dinner or had manufactured a home. Anthony found it was safe to assume they were the herbivorous type since they weren't attacking each other.

"Aren't they amazing?! Can we try to catch one and keep it? I've always wanted a pet!" Riley insisted on whispering, as if to prevent scaring them off, but it was still loud enough for Anthony to hear. Even though he had prior knowledge of the creatures from textbooks, it was only fundamental knowledge.

And from that knowledge, he knew there was no way to control one, let alone properly take care of it. Anthony turned his back with a cold-hearted, "No," and continued to walk. He could hear her arms shuffle around in what he assumed was her aggravated response to his answer. However, only after a few steps, the once ecstatic turned aggravated girl was now silent. It was as if the world had stopped on a dime, or maybe the calm before a storm.

There was a sense of tension lingering in the air, but what caused it? Anthony turned back to look for Riley. And as he'd predicted, she was nowhere to be found. Turning to the direction of the schreiks, he noticed in the passing glance a head of black hair and the back of a green cape crawling through the grass. It was like watching a tiny insect approach a leaf on a branch.

"Riley!"

The schreiks poked their heads up from the grass and darted their vision towards Anthony. Within the millisecond after, they transitioned to a crawling position and disappeared into the uneaten grass. Riley popped up from the blades and plopped onto her knees.

"Ant! How could you?!"

"I told you—" Anthony's stomach interrupted his rebuttal with a loud rumble. He knew he'd packed food, but that was for emergencies. He blurted out, "wait... I take back what I said, catch one!"