Chapter 4 Escape

An eruption broke out among the people. Everywhere, and everyone started running, helter-skelter.

"Follow me," I whimpered to my group."This is our opportunity to be free." I took off in the direction of the entrance. The sharp saw was still there, rotating badly, but I had my plan.

I knew it was just a matter of time before all those stupid combatants came after us before Ryan sent out his whole battalion against us. A loud buzzing sound was heard; another door was open in the underground and soldiers were marching towards us. I changed my direction instantly. If these underground soldiers managed to find a way in here, there must surely be a way out.

Furthermore, these are the soldiers that always dragged the cadaver of whoever died in the arena out.

"Follow me," I screamed at my team. Without hesitation, they followed my lead and we charged to meet the group of soldiers.

They are about ten in number. The fast one ran to meet me, but I stepped aside, unsheathed his dagger from his pocket, and sliced his throat. I could feel my team watching in awe. It was clear that they hadn't seen a fierce being like me before. I didn't waste any time, I lunged at the second soldier.

He aimed at my head with his knife, and I quickly slipped under him, kicking his manhood, and he let out a painful growl. I stood up sharply, stabbed his heart, and finally used my knife to strike his eyes. I kicked him in the chest, causing him to fall to the ground. I take a glance at my team, and I am awed by their fighting skills.

They have now dropped all the heavy weapons in their hands except for Kira, who had hung the bow and arrow at her back, using a piece of cloth which I guess belongs to one of the kids as a rope to tie it. Manuel snatched one of the soldiers, twisted his arm, and used his knee to hit the soldier on the head.

Besides him, Favour sneaked an attack from another soldier. The man unsheathed his knife to strike him, but Favour stepped aside and grabbed the soldier's hand that held his knife. In a hasty second, he was behind the soldiers, and he didn't let go of the soldier's hand. In a rapid second, he sliced the soldier's throat with the knife, blood gushing out, and the latter went down dead. Both Michael and Kira had also taken down a soldier each, and they were able to give them a painful death, which kind of made me happy.

The remaining four soldiers stare at us dangerously, not making any attempt to barrage us. Instantly, I knew what they were trying to do. They are going to delay us till their backup arrives.

"Killed them." I ordered my team. The charge against the four men was made without hesitation. An arrow whooshes past my face and lodges in the forehead of one soldier. Michael slashed another one with his short knife and finally stabbed him in multiple places. Both Manual and Favor had also twisted their opponents' necks and broken their bones. I smiled in satisfaction at the sight of the damage we had done. My team was indeed incredible, faster, and swifter than I could ever have imagined. Maybe it wasn't a bad idea to accept them.

"We are running late." Michael's voice tugged me out of my thoughts. "The disruption is fading.''True to his words, everything was now quiet, and I knew it was only a matter of seconds before every other soldier followed us.

I took the lead and jumped inside the tunnel where the soldiers appeared to be from. I felt my feet touching the ground.

I rolled instantly to avoid breaking my leg. They still have a lot of work to do, a lot of distance, and miles to run.

My team's footsteps echoed behind me, and I took off in a sprint. Though I haven't been here before and I don't know the way out, I followed my instincts, which had never neglected me before.

We kept running in the dark corridor, taking different sharp bends. The further we run into the tunnel, the darker it becomes. The whole tunnel was full of cobwebs, which made him suspect that none of the soldiers had been here for a long period.

A sudden loud echoing sound of approaching footsteps was heard behind us, and I knew instantly that we were being followed. I increased my pace immediately, and my team also followed.

I was more than determined now. No matter the odds, I wasn't going to give up. I could hear Ryan shouting and giving orders to the soldiers, but I didn't let that frighten my heart.

Even though I don't know what might happen or if this route leads to a dead-end, I didn't reduce my speed. We kept going deeper into the tunnel, to the extent that we hardly saw each other again.

Just when I thought that we were doing a temple run, we finally caught sight of bright light from about 50 feet away. I breathe in relief. The same goes for my team. But it was cut short when I felt another set of footsteps approaching us from behind.

All thanks to my sharp ear and all the training my mom made me go through on how to detect different types of sound in your environment. I could feel his eyes wandering around, unable to locate us.

I am sure he heard our breath and footsteps, but the place was too dark for us to see. In stealth, I walked towards him, making sure that my feet made no sound.

I was tightening my grip on my knife with a prayer in my mind that my team shouldn't alert him. If he managed to detect us, I am sure he would entice the rest of the soldiers, and our escape might be difficult.

When I was about 10 steps from reaching him, I could feel the soldier fumbling with his pocket, and I knew instantly that he was about to pull out touch or anything dangerous. I didn't wait for him before I flung my body toward him.

I collided with him, and we both went flying on the ground, tackling each other. Even though we can barely see each other, I have been through worse, which gives me an advantage over him.

I could remember the day my dad locked me in a strange room, much darker than this tunnel. He then released hundreds of black mambas inside the room with me, telling me to avoid them until he returned after an hour.

Even though I did my best during that time, and thanks to my mom's method and everything she told me. I was able to escape with a little bit. I could feel the soldiers' eyes staring at me with anger and fury.

He grabbed my throat, gripping it hard, making it impossible for me to breathe. I could feel my teammates' urge to help, but they didn't want to hurt me. So they stayed still, knowing full well that I would scale through.

"Go for the opening," I bellowed to them amidst the pain. "Run, I will meet you." I grumbled again when I noticed that they were not going.

Finally, their footsteps started echoing again, leaving me with this guy. The man was tightening his grip on my esophagus, and I could feel myself going unconscious. That is the advantage he had over me; he was quick to make such a bad move.

Even though he was strong, I could feel his strong muscles. But I was tougher than he was. Four years in hell isn't a small job. I could still feel the soldier's hand holding my hand, which held the knife I was wielding, and his second hand on my throat.

Just when I was about to lose it, I hit him on the manhood with my knee. It caught him off guard and the soldiers let out painful automation that echoed throughout the whole building. I quickly freed my hand from his grips and sliced his throat. Without wasting any more seconds, I stood up, knowing fully well that his scream might have alerted the rest.

I quickly scrambled towards the exit, wheezing for breath while I was using my hand to caress my neck. I climbed the ladder as quickly as I could go, and I dragged my body to the outlet. I quickly shut the tunnel door, just in case the man's screams attracted any unwanted attention, and I don't want to take any risk that might jeopardize my mission.

Using my eyes to analyze my environment, I was welcomed with a horrible sight. My team is killing soldiers left and right, not just them. A young man has also joined them, making them five in number.

They were fighting viciously without relenting while Kira was acting as their backup plan, shooting her arrows, and they hit her target accurately. I jumped down from the standing, grabbed one of the soldiers, and snapped his inlet. I walked stealthily behind another man who was cocking his gun and stabbing him in the neck while blood gushed out instantly.

I used my eye to survey my environment, looking for any means of escape. I know it is just a matter of time before things get worse. On the other side of the road, I could see a filling station and a car in front of it.

"Over here," I screamed on top of my voice so they could be aware of my presence. "We have to leave now." I shouted again when I discovered that they weren't ready to leave.

I turned towards the direction of the car, moved to the driver's side, and unlocked the door. I hopped into the car and used my eyes to search for the key. I breathed in relief as I discovered that the key was present.

Thank God, my mother taught me to drive when I was 15 years old. Even though my dad didn't support her, she insisted that I was old enough to drive. I heard the sound of a door opening and closing.

That means my team is inside. I quickly look toward the front mirror to make sure they are completed, then my sight meets with that of the new boy.

"Get out now." I barked at him. You have 5 seconds to move out or I will kill you here without anybody asking me why. I threatened him again, raising my knife so he could see that I meant all my words. I am tired of recruiting people. I even wonder when I became so fluffy and talked to outsiders.

"Please, just take me with you." He begged. The same goes for my team, even though they didn't interfere, but I could see the pleading looks in their eyes. "Besides, you don't know your way out of here, do you?" He requested And that is when I discovered that we truly needed someone well familiar with that route, and I didn't want my team to be caught again.

"Okay," I finally accepted." But you will do as I say. Try doing any shit and you are gone.

"Agreed," the boy said.

"Which way?" I inquired.

"Go straight to the north," the boy replied. "It will lead us to a snowy path, and we will find our way from there." I looked at him with doubtful eyes. "And my name is Vee." He quickly added when he feel my gaze on him.

Why would he tell us to go on an ice road? I wanted to inquire from him, but the sounds of gunshots interrupted us, making it impossible for me to question him. I face the front, kick the engine to life, and throttle it.

Black smoke filled the atmosphere, covering the whole filling station. I took a glance at the side mirror, and I could see all the soldiers moving out in groups with their cars and bikes.

Without wasting any more seconds, I put the car into gear, made a quick reverse, and steered straight towards the north.

I am more than determined now, and nothing is going to stop me from escaping. I would rather keep running forever, or "UNTIL DEATH."

T.B.C

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