We moved through the double doors of the hospital with our weapons in hand, exiting into the moonlit forest.

Hermit seemed to keep a tight grip on his newly acquired rifle. "Now that we got one of their guns it can be a fair fight."

I rested against the door post, weak and tired. "Are you sure about that?"

Lilac was quick to get to my side, one hand on his large machete and the other wrapped around my waist to assist me to stand. "Come on. Let's get you some nourishment." He tugged me toward the thick trees in the distance, and I knew the exact spot he was urging me to go. He looked toward Hermit, who led the way. "Was that stuff you said back there true?"

Hermit limped as he avoided obstacles of thick roots and thistle bushes on the trees. "Every last word."

"So, you despise her?" Lilac glanced to me, which I could see from my periphery. I was too tired to muster up the energy to even move my head.

"Yes, I do." Hermit went on, the nails of his rugged boots cutting and scraping the vines beneath us. "But I'm also smart enough to realize that if those imaginings got out of this radius it would be the end of life itself." He coughed, clearing his throat. "And also, I do have a heart. She was my patient after all, in need of a mentor, which I failed to be."

"You know," I started. "I used to hate you too for taking away my entertainment, not allowing me to pursue my creativity, my writing. I absolutely despised you, but now more than ever I realize you were only trying to help me."  I sighed, barely able to lift my leg to clear the path of a large root.

"And I'm trying to help you now, believe it or not." He shifted the rifle in his arms. "Sometimes you gotta play the game to get ahead. Now keep an eye out for these guys. They have guns too."

With that an explosion sounded off close to our position. Startled, I crouched to the floor. Lilac collapsed beside me, shielding me with half of his body.

Hermit turned toward the sound of the explosion and lifted his weapon. "We gotta hurry up and get some food in you."

"Why is it so important?" I asked, watching him as he put his life on the line to defend us.

"Because you can't summon unless you're well nourished." He coughed and cleared his throat, exposing his true motive.

"Huh?" I shook my head. "How would you know that?"

"I was your doctor for how many years, Kyla?" He crouched and observed our surroundings. "I may not know everything, but I know what you're capable of. Let's go." He reached out, extending his hand for me to take it. I did and allowed him to pull me to my feet.

Just as I stood, a sharp blade flew in front of my face to land in the bark of the tree next to me, splattering blackened tree sap everywhere in the process. I gasped and looked in the direction of the hunter who threw it.

"I ain't done with you yet, freak," the hunter growled. His familiar voice and bloodied shin gave away his identity.

"Are you crazy?" Hermit stepped in between me and the hunter. "Do you not realize if she dies, everyone dies?"

"She took my family from me," he said. His unkempt beard nearly obscured his lips. "She deserves to go out just like they did."

"The rest of your family will die if you kill her." Hermit glared, trying to speak sense into the erratic man but he wasn't buying it.

"Is that a threat?" The hunter scowled.

"No, it's a warning." Hermit shot off a round and the gun nearly jumped from his arms. The hunter quickly took cover behind a thick tree, hiding amongst the dark crevices and shadows.

The position of the moon had changed slightly, and the night sky was beginning to lighten. All I could think about was getting food before the moon was no longer high and the day began to break. Once the sun rays shown high in the sky, the roots and vines would become tough and nearly useless.

A whistle sang through the air from the direction of the hunter and a gunshot from a distance. Someone shot to provide him cover, and in the darkness, I couldn't make out where the gunshots were coming from.

I bowed and Lilac mimicked me, doing our best to stay out of the line of fire. We tucked ourselves behind a tree near Hermit.

Several gunshots rang out and at the same time another explosion rocked a nearby area. To the left, near us and just behind the hospital, a billow of black smoke rose over the roof.

"Are they targeting the asylum?" I asked Lilac.

He shook his head in frustration. "All I know is they are trying to burn this place down. And they might succeed."

Hermit took cover behind a tree and aimed the gun in the direction of the ongoing gunshots and whistles. "What the hell are we doing out here pretending to be soldiers? I've never held a gun in my life. What we need are your imaginings."

"What?" I panted to catch my breath and muster up more of my depleted energy, while trying to stay hidden from the hunters. "The Scorchers will kill everyone out here including us."

"No, you have it in you to control them," he assured. "We saw it with our very own eyes. Why do you think you're spent? You've done what you set out to do."

"Yes," Lilac agreed with big eyes. "You've tamed them. You succeeded in your goal."

"An anomaly." I shook my head, refusing to even try. What they saw when that big angry Scorcher shrunk in size and retreated was an anomaly. "I was just lucky."

"Well, we can use some of that luck right now." Hermit surveyed the area in the distance.

I stared at the sky as it slowly became bluer and tried to engage my fear. I thought about the possibility of getting wounded with a bullet or injured with the blade of a machete. I thought about the look of horror on Lilac's face when the Scorcher overcame him. I thought about being abandoned by my parents and not part of a community or family.

And although the emotions stirred, nothing happened. "I can't. It's not working."

"We need to get her to some nourishment," Lilac insisted. "The sun will rise in less than an hour."

"I agree with you," Hermit huffed. "It's just a little difficult to do that right now."

The billow of smoke was thick and smelled of an unfamiliar substance. It rose and quickly darkened the sky above the hospital. I wondered how they managed to burn the roots and vines and feared that whatever they used would burn or topple the hospital too.

I couldn't let that happen. That was my home, my sanctuary. I knew nothing beyond the hospital or the radius and didn't plan to learn. If the hospital crumbled to dirt and ash, would I be left to live amongst the trees like Hermit without a place to call my own? Wandering from tree top to tree top?

I stared into Lilac's worried eyes. "I need to get to the edge of the radius."

He nodded rapidly, his head bobbing like a petal in the wind. He looked up to Hermit who had his back against the tree that provided him cover. "On the count of three."

"Just go." Hermit shooed us away and quickly repositioned himself to shoot. This time he angled the butt of the rifle against his shoulder to absorb the intensity of the shot.

I stood and allowed Lilac to assist me behind more trees and we cleared about ten feet before another whistle and shots fired.

Once behind the tree, I held onto him tight and refused to allow my eyelids to close even thought my body willed it. I feared I would go under once I allowed my lids to shut. The tiredness beckoned me, and my weakness betrayed me.

Another shot and a split second later a splintered fragment of crusted bark busted from the tree at my back. I gasped and dropped to the root covered ground.

Lilac dropped when I did, hitting the ground with a "Hmph."

Crawling toward our destination seemed like the logical thing to do, but my exhaustion and fear kept me in place. "I can't do it."

"I would go for you and bring some roots back to you, but it does not work like that." He huffed in frustration. "You can do this," he assured. "You have to. There is no other choice."

He looked back at Hermit and gave a slight nod. Hermit stepped from behind the tree and shot a couple of rounds toward the whistles.

Me and Lilac stood at the same time, balancing as we moved low to the ground, staying behind as many trees and obstacles as possible while we slowly made our way toward the edge.

A shot popped in the distance and Hermit called out in pain. I turned just as he hit the ground, dropping the rifle to grab his shoulder.

"Wait," I called to Lilac who was determined to keep moving.

"We have to get you to some nutrients before it is too late." His eyes were wide and filled with fear. "It will take us a few minutes to get to the edge—"

"They shot him!" I screamed through panting breathes. "We can't leave him."

Hermit squirmed on his back near the tree that had provided him safety until now. Red liquid oozed from his wound and covered the hand that clenched it. I managed to rush and crawl to his side, trying to access the situation.

He coughed so much it was hard to hear him through the sound of wet phlegm. "The bullet hit my brachial artery, damn it. I'm gonna bleed out."

"No, you're not." I pulled hem of my shirt, tangling the old, worn fabric in my fists. I pulled to rip a piece of cloth, but my muscles were too weak.

"Why are you still here?" he asked through clenched teeth. "Run. Go get nutrients. That's the only way to defeat them."

I shook my head. "I'm not leaving you here to bleed out and die." I looked to Lilac who had already read my mind and dropped the blade to produce a long wide piece of fabric from his soiled shirt. He quickly wrapped the cloth around Hermit's wound and secured it like a bandage.

Hermit continued to hiss in pain as he put pressure on the gunshot wound. "Now, get out of here. I'll be ok."

The crunch of the roots under boot took us all by surprise. The hunter appeared around the back of a cluster of trees. "Oh, no you won't." With the butt of his rifle, he connected it to Hermit's temple. Hermit's body convulsed even though the impact knocked him out.

"No!' I screamed, feeling anger burn and rise in my chest.

Far off in the distance the thistles on the trees shook violently, and the strong burnt smell of the Scorcher appeared ... and abruptly dissipated. I was weak again, not even maintaining enough energy to shield my head as the butt of the gun connected with it.

~~~

Feel free to share your thoughts! How much more trouble you think they will encounter?