"Hey! Hey! Run! Go!" I screech as I see the figures of my friends.

"Oh, shit!" I hear Newt say as the rest of the gang start backing up.

"Hey! Go!" I yell as the Cranks are now only a few feet behind us.

"Get outta here!" Minho yells as we keep running.

"Run!" I scream.

"C'mon!" Newt yells as everyone starts to run off.

"Let's go, go, go! Let's go!" I yell as Minho and I catch up with the group.

"Alana!" Newt yells as he pulls me toward him.

"Alana, Minho,what the hell are those things?" Winston asks as we all start climbing up another set of escalators.

"Cranks! Just keep going!" I yell as we run faster.

"Move! Move!" Minho says as the Cranks start getting louder.

"Where do we go?" Frypan says.

"C'mon." Teresa says.

"Keep moving!" Newt yells as we run straight down.

I then stop in my tracks at the sight of a Crank coming toward us.

"Aris, no!" I exclaim as he hits it on the leg with an object.

It grunts and flies across the floor. I push Thomas and Minho back while Newt, Teresa, Winston and Frypan stand back on the other side.

"No!" Teresa yelps as she's now on another escalator.

"Go! Go around!" I yell as we start scrambling around.

"Teresa!" Thomas yells as the Crank crawls toward her.

"Shit." I mutter as a Crank is now in front of me.

I balance myself on the escalator as I kick it in the stomach. It falls to the ground and I look to see Teresa hitting a Crank in the head with an axe.

"Minho, c'mon!" Winston shouts as the rest of the group run in the other direction. 

"C'mon, c'mon!" I yell at Teresa and she nods at me as we go up on rest of the escalator steps.

"Where the hell are we gonna go?" Frypan asks as we all catch up with one another.

"We gotta find a way out of here!" Minho yells as we're now both in front.

"Go!" I yell.

"Faster, faster!" I hear Aris say and I pick up my pace.

"Newt!" Minho yells and I stop in my tracks to see a Crank land on top of him.

"Newt!" I yell, running back to him.

"Guys, help!" Newt yells.

I nod at Minho and we start running again.

We kick the Crank off Newt, making it break through the glass and land hard on the ground.

"Newt, you good?" Minho asks as I help him up.

"Yeah. Thanks, love." Newt pants and I nod at him.

We then look back to see more Cranks running toward us.

"Go!" I yell.

"C'mon, Newt!" Minho says and we turn our heads, starting to run again.

"Keep going!" I yell.

"Through here, through here! Let's go!" Minho says and we run into and opening.

"They're coming!" Frypan yells as I speed down the dark, thin hallway.

"Guys, where are we going?" Newt says in a raspy voice.

"Okay, run! Go! Go!" Teresa yells and I keep going, hearing the group's footsteps behind me.

I grunt as I stop by a door. I pull on the handle but it seems to be stuck.

"C'mon, man!" I say, pulling the handle.

"Just keep going!" Teresa yells.

"C'mon, they're coming!" Winston says and I curse under my breath, starting to run again.

We stop once again, meeting the end of the way.

"It's a dead end!" Minho yells.

I look to my right and see two doors. I roughly push against them, but I notice the lock on the door.

"Get us out of here, Alana!" Teresa yells as I hear the Cranks getting closer to us.

"This one!" I yell as I look at the other door.

Minho and Thomas help me kick it. I kick it again, it doesn't even seem to be budging.

"I'll hold them back!" Winston says and I hear some gun shots.

"Harder!" Teresa yells and the boys and I kick the door again.

"Get that door open!" Winston says as Teresa and Newt jump in.

"Move!" Frypan says and Newt pulls me back.

"C'mon, Frypan!" Aris yells and Frypan charges at the door, finally getting it open.

"Let's go! C'mon! It's open! Everyone through! C'mon, C'mon!" I say as I get Teresa and Aris through.

Winston then goes next and then Minho and I. But we stop in our tracks due to the sound of skidded marks.

"Winston!" I yell.

"Help me! Help! Please! Please!" He cries out and I grab his arms, trying to pull him away from the Cranks.

They start clawing at his stomach, ripping his skin and my eyes widen at the disgusting sight.

"Oh, my God!" Teresa says as I'm now standing with Minho by the door, holding the Cranks off.

"Go, go, go!" Thomas and I say as the rest of the group help Winston up.

"Get up, Winston!" Newt says as he slowly gets up.

"Tommy, go!" I yell, pushing him off and I nod at him as he hesitantly runs off.

"Minho, go! I'm right behind you! Trust me." I tell him.

"Let's go! Let's go! Alana!" Minho yells as he starts running.

I then run seconds later, trying to catch up with Minho as fast as I can.

                                        ||

We're now crouched down in a little den, accompanied by the screeches of Cranks. I quickly shut my flashlight off and put my finger over my lips.

"Alana." Teresa whispers, her lips trembling.

"I know, I know. We just gotta hold out a little longer until they're gone. We'll be alright." I tell her. "They're not gonna hurt you guys. Not anymore. I won't let that happen." I whisper back.

"Looks like we're staying here the whole night, then." Frypan says.

"That's a good thing. You guys need sleep. I don't wanna have to deal with tired companions." I mutter.

"You need it too, Alana." Thomas tells me.

"No, I don't. I'm fine. My only priority is getting you guys out of here." I whisper.

"Thomas is right, Alana. You need it. When was the last time you slept?" Newt asks me.

"I said, I'm fine. Now, will everyone please shut the fuck up so I can listen? I wanna get you guys out of here alive." I snap as I look down at my shaky hands.

                                       ||

"Hey! Hey! Get out of here!" I exclaim at a crow who's picking at my backpack.

I wave my hand at it and it immediately flies away. I then look to see Minho and Teresa starting to wake up. I then stand up and look around. The Cranks seem to have disappeared. Maybe they got tired or just wondered off.

"Are they gone?" Newt asks and I turn my head.

"Yeah, I think we're safe for now." I tell him. "Okay, we should get moving." I say, grabbing my bag off the ground.

"Did you sleep?" Thomas asks and I let out a deep huff.

"Let's pack it up. Aris, c'mon. Fry, Winston. Let's go." I say, ignoring Thomas's question as I put my bag on my shoulders.

"You didn't take anything back there, did you?" Minho says to me and I look at him.

"I didn't need to. I don't need things to help me remember. I wanna do it on my own. However long it takes." I answer him.

"Alana-"

"Let's go. We gotta find the Right Arm." I say, cutting Frypan off.

  ||

I stop in my tracks at the sight of buildings all burned and torn apart. We all hop over the ledge and we keep walking through piles of trash and ash.

"What the hell happened to this place?" Frypan asks, looking up.

"I don't know. It doesn't look like anyone's been here in a long time." Newt answers.

"I hope the whole world's not like this." Aris comments and I stop in my tracks due to a weird noise coming from above me.

"Hang on, stop." I say as I stand still, hearing a weird sound. "Do you hear that?" I say to everyone and they turn to me.

The sound gets louder and my eyes widen seconds after. It sounds like a helicopter.

"Get down!" I exclaim. "Everybody, hide! Hide! Hide! Get in here. In here, in here!" I yell as Winston and Minho get in the den with me while Thomas, Teresa, Newt and Frypan hide in the other.

"Oh, shit." Newt breathes as I look up to see the helicopters passing us.

"They're never gonna stop looking for us, are they?" Minho says.

"No. We have something they want. But I we won't give it to them. Over my dead body. C'mon, let's keep moving." I say as we all get out from the den.

  ||

"Everyone good?" I ask.

"Yeah." Minho answers and I nod as we keep climbing.

"Alana, you look really pale." Aris comments.

"I'm fine. We gotta keep going. If we stop, we'll never make it." I grunt as I keep climbing.

"You're gonna hurt yourself if you don't take a break." Aris tells me.

"For the hundredth time, I'm fine. My dad trained me before all this, I know what I'm doing." I pant as I keep climbing.

"Do you?" He slowly says and I stop to meet his blue eyes.

"The truth? No, I don't." I tell Aris. "But the only thing that's keeping me sane is getting you guys out of here and Alby's words screaming at me every second." I say as I start to climb again.

||

"A little further, guys." I say as we reach a sandy hill.

"Ugh." I hear Winston groan and my stomach churns for some reason.

We then reach the top of the hill and the rest of the group stand beside once another, looking at the view from afar.

"Those mountains, that's gotta be it. That's where we're going." I say, pointing at the faint outline of a mountain.

"That's a long way off." Newt tells me.

"Then we better get moving." Minho says and I nod as we begin to walk.

I then stop in my tracks as I see Winston fall down the hill.

"Winston! Hey, Winston! Winston!" I exclaim, kneeling down to him.

"He's hurt pretty bad." Frypan says as Winston starts gasping, his chest he heaving up and down.

"What do we do?" Teresa asks, looking at Thomas.

"Shit." I mutter as I stand back up.

"Winston. Can you hear me?" Newt says and I look back down at Winston.

"It's okay." Newt says.

"We carry him." I finally say and everyone looks at me.

||

"Alana. Grab his legs." Minho says as he holds up Winston.

"I got him, I got him. I can carry him." I say as I take Winston out of Minho's arm.

He's surprisingly lighter than I thought he would be.

"How are you doing that?" Frypan pants.

"Like I said, my father. I can handle it. I got him." I say, looking down at Winston.

"Do you remember anything else about him?" Thomas asks as we start walking down the hill.

"He used to beat my mother every night. Not a very enlightening thing to remember about your own parent." I grunt as harsh winds start blowing.

"Uh, I..." Thomas stammers but I brush it off.

"Gotta find shelter!" I yell over the harsh winds as we keep walking.

                                         ||

"Thanks." Newt says as Minho hands him his water bottle.

I look at Winston's heaving body as I lean my arms over my crutched up knees. I clench my jaw and make a fist, feeling my knuckles turn white.

"I can't, I can't, I can't!" I shout, abruptly standing up.

I ignore everyone's stare on me as I begin to walk at the top of the hill. Once I reach it, I cross my arms and look at the view, letting out a breath.

"It's like they're getting further away." Newt says and I slightly crane my neck at him.

"We just gotta keep moving. We can make it." I croak out.

"Alana, I'm sorry for what I said back there. I had no right to speak to you that way. I was an asshole back there." Newt sighs.

"I know." I say, now fully turning around to face him.

"Can you forgive me?" He says.

I don't respond. Instead, I grab his shirt and bring him down to my height and put my lips on his. He kisses back as his hand lays on my waist. I pull away after a few seconds and I look up at him.

"Yes, you're forgiven, blondie." I say and he smirks down at me.

He the wraps his arms around my neck as I turn back at the view. I sigh as I rub his wrists.

"Hey, guys." Another voice says and I turn my head to see Teresa walking toward us.

"Hey." I grimace at her while Newt sends her a grin.

"How's it looking?" Thomas calls out with a hand over his forehead.

"It's a little further." I say, getting out of Newt's grasp.

"That's not very convincing." I hear him mutter to the other boys.

I then turn my head to see Teresa feel the back of her neck. That's the third time she's done it.

"Hey, what's going on with you?" I ask her.

"They did something to me." She says as she moves her hair to the other side of her neck.

"What?" I say as I walk closer to her.

"At first it just felt like I was waking up from a dream or something. Then they all started coming back." She says as Newt and I take a look at the lines, dots and huge box inked on her neck.

"Your memories?" I say and she nods. "What do you remember?" I ask as I nod at Newt, telling him it's okay if he went back.

"I remember the first time they brought you and Thomas in. I was taller than you, then. And faster." Teresa cheeses and I chuckle.

"Okay." I chuckle. "I mean, you are taller than me. By an inch." I say, playfully nodding at her.

"And I remember why we were there. You, me and Thomas. We thought we could fix all this." She tells me. "I think we should go back." She finally says and I look up at her.

"What?" I say.

"Just listen to me." She says.

"What are you talking about? Go back? After everything they've done to us." I tell her through gritted teeth.

"No, it's not that simple." Teresa says.

"Yeah, I think it is that simple." I nod at her.

"No. You don't understand." She tells me.

"What don't I understand?" I ask her.

"Everything was fine until you..." She trails off to me.

"What?" I say.

"Nothing." She says, shaking her head at me.

"Teresa, what aren't you telling me?" I ask. "What aren't you telling Thomas?" I say and her eyes meet mine.

I then hear a gunshot and we turn our heads.

"Hey! Guys, get down here!" Aris yells and Teresa and I run over to the scene.

"Winston what are you doing, man? Give me that!" I hear Frypan yell as I stop in my tracks.

"What's going on? What happened?" I pant to everyone.

"I don't know. He just woke up and grabbed the gun and then he tried to..." Frypan says, looking down at the gun in his hand.

"Give it back, please." Winston says, holding his hand out and I kneel down to him.

"Winston, are you okay?" I say, holding his torso.

He then starts coughing, black liquid starts coming out of his mouth and I stand back. He then lays back down on the sand, his chest heaving up and down.

"Winston." I croak out as we all gather around his lanky body.

"It's growing...inside me." Winston whimpers ad he lifts up his shirt and my eyes water.

"No." I whisper, my eyes watering.

"I'm not gonna make it." He croaks out. "Please. Please. Don't let me turn into one of those things." Winston yelps, holding his hand out to the gun again and I look down at Frypan's hand.

"Wait, Newt..." Thomas and I say as he takes the gun from Frypan.

"Goodbye, Winston." Newt says as he places the gun on Winston'a chest.

He then gets up and walks past us with his head down.

"Winston, no, no, please. Please, just, hold on. We're almost there. You're gonna be okay." I whimper as I drop to my knees.

"It's okay, Alana. Leave me. I'm just gonna drag you down." Winston croaks out.

"No, I'm not leaving you. No, no, I won't." I say and tears roll down my face.

"You have to. And you will. You're the reason I even made it this far. You're fucking amazing, Alana. We don't deserve you. I sure didn't." Winsome heaves out to me.

"I'm sorry, Winston. I was supposed to protect you. I failed you." I cry out to him.

"No, you didn't. What's meant to be, will happen. Please, I don't wanna turn into one of those things." He pleads once more.

I then look down at the gun in his hand. I take it off his chest and I place it in his hand.

"Thank you." He nods. "Now, get outta here." Winston breathes to me as I squeeze his hand one last time, and he squeezes it back.

"Goodbye, Winston." Teresa says to him, then walks off.

"Goodbye, buddy." Frypan says, tears rolling down his face, then walking over to Newt.

"Bye, Winston." Minho mutters, hiding his tears as he grabs his bag.

"Winston, I can't." I croak out as Thomas pats Winston's shoulder.

"Go. It's okay." Winston nods at me.

"I'm sorry. Goodbye, Winston." I cry out to him.

I then walk over and grab my bag, putting it on my shoulders.

"Alana." Winston says and I turn back to him.

"Yeah?" I say, more tears filling my eyes.

"Take care of them." He tells me and I let out a shaky breath.

"I will. I swear. I'm sorry." I say in a strained voice.

I sniffle as I begin to walk with the group. But we all stop as the gun shot goes off. I drop my bag and I run back to Winston.

"No, don't look back." Thomas croaks out and he holds my shoulders.

"No!" I say, slapping his chest, but he just pulls me into a hug.

"We gotta keep going. For Winston." He whispers as I sob into his chest.

"For Winston." I whisper back as I pull away from him.

"C'mon, love." Newt says in a groggy voice and he takes me hand and we start walking.

We gotta keep going. For Winston.