Beyond the Walls

Rest Zone

Trembling, Lucas stares at Hiraya's eyes as a single flow out of his eyes.

"Lu-- Ah!" Hiraya flinched after her wrist was grabbed by Lucas and squeezed.

"Dude! Let go!" Elijah appeared at their side trying to remove Lucas' grip.

*Slap

Lucas was awakened back to reality after being slapped at the back of his head.

"Are you on earth now?" Athena squatted and took a peek at him.

"..!" Lucas tried backing away from Hiraya with a wide eye and open mouth.

"I, I AM SORRY!!" Lucas said and bowed as low as he could.

"No, it's fine. Rather it's me who should apologize. I am sorry for prying… I,I shouldn't… I am sorry." Hiraya sincerely apologizes also while rubbing her reddened wrist.

"No, I, I…" Lucas' eyes can't focus on one thing on the floor as if he is looking desperately for answers down there.

"You should treat that." Athena said.

Lucas looks up and sees Hiraya's bright red wrist. His hand mark is obviously engraved on her skin.

He apologizes again and Hiraya says, it's fine. She'll just rinse it with water for now to have it treated.

"Dude, what is happening to you?!" Elijah said with a disappointed tone.

"I, I don't know what to say… I am sorry.." Lucas answered.

"First, you are stingy about the food, then you did that to the newly recovered Hiraya… hays. What is it really?"

Lucas exhaled, when did this start his paranoia. It feels like something is about to happen if he lets down his guard for a moment.

'Was it because of the dream?' He asked himself. He couldn't take long naps because he is afraid of nightmares like from before.

"Get some rest, will yah!" Elijah said, pulling him up and pushing him in one of the beds.

"I, I need to--" Lucas tried protesting.

"I promose to keep an eye on them. I promise!" Elijah whispered.

"H,how did you—?"

"Athena, told me. So have a good rest. " He smiled at Lucas as he pulled the sheet up to Lucas and patted the covers like he was a baby that Elijah is pampering for a sleep.

"Okay, I get it…" Lucas gives up and closes his eyes

'Maybe it's okay even if it's just a little bit.' Lucas said to himself but he doubts if he can really fall asleep.

"Where is Hiraya?" Aaron asked Elijah.

"Ah, she went to the restroom to wash her hands."

"She is not back yet?" Aaron asked again.

"Hmm. I don't think so. You think she is doing number two?" Elijah said in a low voice to Aaron.

That's when a swish of bedsheets was heard from behind them.

"Lucas! Where are you going? I told you to sleep man!"

Lucas hurriedly looked openly at Liam's group and muttered numbers.

" 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,... 10, 11… "

He repeated the head count again. "1, 2, 3 … 8, 9,10… 11"

"Lucas, what is wrong?" Aaron asked.

"There are only 11 of them!" He answered

"Dude, you are severely lacking sleep."

"You, you don't understand!!" Lucas said in panic as he jumped down the stairs and sprinted towards a door that is labelled with a girl's sign for a comfort room.

"What are you doing?! That's the ladies room!" Elijah tried stopping Lucas but...

*Bang bang bang

Lucas already starts kicking the door getting everyone's attention.

"HIRAYA!!!!" He called as he continued to kick the door relentlessly.

Aaron came and held Lucas. "LUCAS! Calm down! You can't do that!!"

Lucas was dragged away from the door.

"Aaron!! YOU! YOU HAVE TO BREAK THE DOOR NOW!!! HIRAYA IS IN DANGER!" Lucas keeps retaliating but he is no match in Aaron's strength.

"Lucas, it's just a bathroom! Hiraya will be embarrassed to go out if you continue to---"

"NO!!! THERE ARE ONLY 11 OF THEM THERE!!!!!" Lucas pointed at Liam's group who is watching them with amused looks.

"THERE SIXTEEN OF THEM!" Lucas shouted and finally it hit Aaron and the others as they scan the surrounding area. The usually noisy man sticking to Liam is gone.

*BANG BANG BANG

Aaron didn't stop on hitting the door with all his might and it finally opened forcefully.

It was anguish that everyone felt as they saw the bloodied face of Hiraya pinned down by four guys plus Brandy on the bathroom floor.

"Woah! We got busted!" The noisy man said.

Two are holding her hands and feet together while the noisy man is sitting on top of her in the middle of removing her top.

"Want to join?"

Aaron and Elijah went inside immediately but Lucas was frozen still in place. He stopped breathing as he watched in slow motion on Aaron throwing the guys like some rugs while Elijah pushed Brandy to the other side and assisted Hiraya to get up.

The men gang up on Aaron but Aaron had this big buff muscles that he was able to flung away his attackers and take on offensive.

"Haaa. Haaa…" Lucas kept shaking his head as he closed and opened his eyes trying to shake off the scene from his dreams.

While Aaron single handedly five men and Elijah escorting the beaten Hiraya.

Everyone else is just staying still. Watching it. As if Lucas minds playing tricks on him. The dark scene in his memory is overlapping with bright lit rooms.

The room suddenly flickers red and it made Lucas tumble down as he heard a warning siren accompanied by the male system voice.

*Ting ting ting

[ATTENTION PLAYERS!! Please bear in mind the Rules in the Rest Zone. Attention players! Please bear in mind the Rules in Rest Zone... ]

The warning continued, then the vent in the ceilings opened. Lucas, still distraught, watches as the vent airs in gas.

*thud thud thud

The sound of Aaron beating repeatedly the men becomes fainter and fainter as Lucas tries to crawl on him.

"Sto..p.. " he tries to say it out loud but his consciousness is dropping.

*Thud

Aaron then slumped down to the bathroom floor. That was the last thing he had seen.

Diving down, Lucas found himself at the center of a dark path. He started walking aimlessly until a flickering light caught his attention. At the end of the pathway is an elegant two closed door with chains and heavy locks.

He approached it and when he was at arms length he woke up.

He woke up half lying on the bathroom floor with one arm extended.

'Ah!' He remembered he was stopping Aaron from killing someone.

He looked ahead and saw Aaron on the floor.

"Hey. Wake up" Lucas whispered as he shook Aaron's body.

"Ughh." Aaron groans as he pulls himself up. His knuckles are bloodied but it doesn't seem like it was his blood.

The floor has blood stains also.

"There are only four of them here." Lucas said after pulling up Aaron.

"How many are they supposed to be?" Aaron questioned.

He beat people up without any concern for the number.

"Five. If you include Brandy." Lucas pointed with his chin Brandy who was slumped in the toilet bowl.

"Ah!! This bastard never learned!!!" Aaron went to stomp on sleeping Brandy but then Lucas stopped Aaron.

"Don't tell me you feel bad for this bastard!!" Aaron raised his voice, soon one of the beaten men groaned as he started waking up.

The man turned to his side then spit a broken tooth to the ground.

"Where is Hiraya?" Aaron asked.

Only then Lucas saw an empty space beside the still knockout Elijah.

"Dammit, where is she?!" Aaron started commotion, waking up everyone in the process.

"She is not anywhere!!" Aaron exclaimed. Returning back to the bathroom area.

Lucas meets eyes with agitated Aaron before Aaron starts banging the door connected to an adjacent room.

*Bang bang bang bang

He slaps, punches and kicks the door while demanding for Hiraya.

"Aaron.. " Lucas called first in a calm tone and eventually he had to squeeze Aaron's shoulder just to get his attention.

Aaron shrugged his shoulder multiple times before he finally got irritated at Lucas.

"What the f**k?!! How in the world can you stay calm?!!" He shouted.

“... I… I’m sorry.” Lucas sniffed.

Aaron instantly regrets it. “Shit.”

"Aaron… Hiraya is not the only one missing. The guy you were punching was also gone. " Lucas said. He had to make sure it was just the two of them who were missing after scanning around.

*Ting ting ting

*swish

A screen pops out in the middle, it shows a video with a play button. The video played and it showed the scene where Hiraya entered the bathroom and was followed by four men, the other girl with Hiraya exited the bathroom in a hurry.

They men locked the door while Brandy just stayed still by the door as the assault started. Hiraya tried to shout but then the man was faster. Her clothes were torn and she tried fighting back against the four men but she was too beaten up to even put up a decent fight.

Lucas, who is standing behind Aaron squinting his eyes as he sees him shuddering and anger flaring up.