The red moon was much closer toward the hill
Giving the environment a faint crimson glow
The small patches of snow that remained, had been soaked with blood
Multiple bodies lay still on the hill
The whole environment was quiet
Not even the breeze moved
Small craters and ruptured earth covered the hill
Pieces of ice on the ground. One of the bodies looked like charcoal.
A small flame burning at their feet.
Soon
Heavy breathing from below began getting louder
It was Leo
He was halfway up the hill, running and climbing.
The hill was steep and filled with rocks sticking out of the earth
Leo used them to push himself further
He breathed through his mouth as he climbed, drool running down his chin
He reached the top of the hill, and instantly went silent
Breathing slowed almost to a halt. His eyes flickered between the bodies
Even the one that burned quietly in the corner
Slowly, Leo began walking forward
Eyes scanning the bodies
Leo's heart pounded against his chest. It was not because he ran.
More like fear, or anticipation.
Most of the bodies were unrecognizable
Except the ones killed by ice
Leo was now in the middle of the hill, and there was no Autumn
Did Sato lie to get away?
Leo's hands trembled slightly. Slowly he cupped them around his lips
"Autumn!?" he called
His shout echoed down the hill, slowly repeating itself as it got farther away.
That was the only thing he heard, though.
Leo's eyes scanned frantically as he slowly turned around
He listened. waiting to pick up the slightest movement
But nothing
Leo's breath hitched before he slowly clenched his jaw
"Fucking liars," he muttered
He turned to face where he had first entered the hill
Out in the distance, the blurry skyscrapers stood
Some of them destroyed, some leaned to one side, some perfectly still.
Leo's fist tightened, eyes narrowing.
Instantly
He jumped, rising high into the air.
He landed heavily on the ground below the hill
But he didn't stop. He leaped forward again.
Landing on a high platform of wreckage
Then another leap
Then another
He only had one destination
The skyscrapers.
AUTUMN'S POV
Darkness covered her vision. Just faint pictures flooding her mind
Leo and Thomas, nothing else.
No memory from before this world.
No parents, no friends, Just Thomas and Leo.
Despite having flashbacks, a slight pain continuously coursed through her body
But she still dreamed
"I want to live." A small whisper escaped her lips
Maybe she dreamed the thoughts, but they came from somewhere
Another memory flickered
The first time they all met
The forest.
The notification.
Thomas and Leo
Suddenly
"Autumn!?" a loud shout rang out
The memory collapsed instantly
Her eyes opened slowly, blurry, but the darkness began to fade.
She was indeed on the hill
Just trapped inside a crevice a little below the hill
Her eyes scanned for whoever called her name
She could see the silhouette clearly
It was Leo. He frantically searched the top of the hill.
Autumn's face lightened quickly. She opened her mouth to call his name.
But
No words came
She tried again, nothing.
Just a dry, freezing ache at her throat. It felt like a tiny piece of glass had gotten stuck there
She remembered instantly. The ice Marquez had frozen inside her chest.
It was leaking, but settling at her vocal cords.
She opened her mouth again, trying to call
But the pain grew worse, her voice barely more than a gag
Leo searched above frantically
Autumn stretched her hand upward, weak and trembling
It was already too dark below
Slowly, she watched Leo turn toward where he came from
Tears welled at Autumn's eyes, her vision slowly getting more blurry
Body going weak
"L—" she never got past the first letter
Leo leaped upward into the air angrily. Dust blew down onto Autumn
Tears began to flow down her cheek
She still tried to call, the words just wouldn't make it
She could feel her trapped leg drenched in liquid
Her body grew weaker by the second
Soon her vision darkened
Her heartbeat grew fainter, slowly fading
"No!" she thought
Her eyes opened again, still blurry but functional
She didn't wait. She acted.
She began pulling her trapped left hand from the crevice
Neither wanted to budge, so her shoulder did.
Her shoulder disconnected quickly, a crumbling sound escaping
The pain tore through her instantly, even the tears stopped flowing.
"Mmm," she mumbled as the pain built quickly
"Mmm," another breath escaped. She needed a release.
Her free right hand gripped tightly around a stone.
"AAEAEGH!!" she shouted
The ice stabbed at her throat, but the scream wouldn't stop
It wasn't loud, just a raw broken scream.
From such a distance a normal ear shouldn't have heard it
But Leo
...
LEO'S POV
Leo continued running.
His feet crashed against the wreckage as he pushed himself forward.
The skyscrapers were getting closer.
Then—
He stopped, ears twitching.
His head slowly turned to the hill, eyes narrowing.
The noise had already faded
But it sounded familiar
Leo turned his whole body toward the hill
Eyes unsteady
...
AUTUMNS POV
Her scream had already faded, breath heaving
She coughed multiple times, each time blood flew up with pieces of ice
She coughed again, adrenaline fading
The world was getting dark
She could barely even feel the pain from her dislocated arm anymore
The tears in her eyes remained
Slowly her eyes closed
...
THUD
The huge pressure from her legs had been removed
Her eyes opened again, just slightly.
Just a narrow, blurry view.
"Autumn!" Leo shouted.
Slowly, he raised her upward.
For a brief second, relief overwhelmed Autumn.
But
Her eyes couldn't stay open. They closed automatically.
End