After looking around the camp I couldn’t find Lora nor my parents however I kept bumping into John and Evan, where they gave me some food, some water and let me rest so no one would mess with me but like John said nothing comes free and thus he suggested why don’t I join him. What he was talking about was quickly becoming known as runners, people who would go out and get resources only to sell it back to the camp so they could eat, drink and have a shelter but it was never safe. Seeing little I could do for food I decided to join him, are first run would be in the morning, and those bastards didn’t even let me sleep till sun rise as apparently Evan thinks ‘the first bird gets the worm’ John didn’t even say anything when Evan said it wrong, just had a expression of pure pain. I couldn’t help but chuckle a bit as we made it to what the camp called the gate but was more of a check point to see who was crazy enough to leave camp but mostly so the camp could track resources and people to get a portion to keep the guards fed. Nothing of real note happened until after we were out of sight when they pulled me aside with faces dripping with seriousness, “What does your ability do, don’t worry we will go first, mine is I can perceive time 10% slower,” John told me.
“Mine is I gain extra strength for a time,” Evan told me boastfully.
“Yes he has strength but do you have anything useful?” John asked.
“My ability allows me to manipulate mana or at least that’s what it says but really just makes me see the world in different colours,” I stated sadly.
“Does it work in the dark?” Evan asked, I hadn’t even thought about it that way, “Didn’t think about it? Sometimes my genius scares me too,” said Evan with a grin from one ear to the other.
With a knife held out by John for me he said, “Take this and don’t worry about him, that’s best idea he will have for a month.”
“Cold hearted, what about my feelings,” Evan asked with mock hurt.
“Okay, we’ve had are fun but the kid is here and you and I have heard some of the stories so it’s time to be serious.” John said with a light tone of voice before slowly getting serious.
“What stories,” I asked only to remember my introduction to this world, with those Goblins.
“Just stories of people going missing and then puddles of blood appearing. You know the fun stuff that doesn’t cause shivers down your spine at night,” Evan said with mock calmness, only to see once more a disapproving frown from John, “serious only serious.” Evan responded with a ting of tiredness but still over the top, the usual for Evan.
The conversation laid heavily on the job in regards to searching for anywhere that could have anything of use or value and avoiding danger and it seemed we were moving towards growing mountains but we weren’t the only desperate ones looking for anything.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“Snap out of it kid.” John bellowed as a purple fire seemed to burn in his hazel eyes only growing brighter as the giant hummingbirds about 40-60cm (15. 7-23.6 inches) big raced at us with their giant beaks about half their size glistening like steel, only for them to crash into the ground as we dodged them, hitting dust into the air obstructing my view of my team and the hummingbirds. Activate free flow was the only thought that travelled through my mind thanks to Evan, as the mountains next to us stopped the dust from dissipating quickly, due to the ability the world lit up in bright colours yet I still felt blind as I couldn’t distinguish what was what until, “Zoom.” As one of the blue blobs suddenly grew closer, I moved left only for a giant, “Boom,” to echo as I felt dirt hit me in the face, my legs started shaking causing me to have to wrestle them under control to continue holding me up yet I wouldn’t falter like last time I hadn’t even been hit yet.
Looking at where the hummingbird had crashed I saw it rise back up or what I assumed to be a hummingbird, it just looked like a weirdly shaped blue blob that only resembled a hummingbird if you squinted but that was of no matter as I saw it buzz up, down, left up, right, just all over the place slowly rising and never staying in one spot for too long. Yet I couldn’t stay focused on the one as the buzzing of the hummingbirds rang out from all around me with some running into the ground most likely after the others or, “Zoom.” I jumped to the side as another hummingbird acted as an explosion kicking dirt and dust up smacking me in the face, yet I could still see the hummingbird on the ground for a few seconds before it raised itself up off the ground and started zipping around no longer staying still “Zoom. Zoom, Zoom” I saw the hummingbirds converging on one spot than “B-Boom.” I was thrown to the ground as what I could only describe as a giant explosion going off, occurred not far from me, “JOHN, KID YOU ALRIGHT,” Evan screamed.
“Yeah I’m good,” I bellowed out, free flow off, my vision went back to the familiar colours and shapes and I saw John on the ground with blood on his face looking up I saw a hummingbird racing towards John, “Zoom.”
“Not today!” Evan screamed as he punched the giant hummingbird to the side.
“click”
The hummingbird rose up and joined the other hummingbird preparing for the next strike. “No you aren’t touching him!” Evan yelled before looking to me and shouted, “Run and don’t stop!”
Run. I could’ve, but I didn’t
“ZOOM!” “clack.”
The world was frozen with the hummingbirds racing towards John and Evan. With myself stuck watching what I knew was to be the end of them, frozen like the first day of this cursed apocalypse and like the first day I saw it, that purple spark falling from the sky, this time slower and this time when it hit the ground, time started again.
“B-Boom”
“Activate free flow,” I shouted as I ran towards were the hummingbirds crashed, pulling out my knife I lunged at one of the hummingbirds before it could take off, driving the blade into caused it to chirp in high pitch chirps, pulling the blade out it started to screech as I was covered in blue. Before I was forced to jump to the side as I heard, “Zoom” the bird hit the ground with a “Boom” due to the jump and turn on my heels, I turned to face it managing to nick it with the blade as I spun around just for it to “Zoom” into the air. As it rose above me, I prepared myself for another attack but it started chirping with the others following its call. Suddenly I saw the other hummingbirds that had attack us fly off over the mountains only to be followed by the one that called them off. Falling to my knees I asked was it over, wait, free flow off,
“John! Evan!” I raced to find them as I couldn’t lose anyone else.