Beyond the Walls

Unconsciously

He has this blank look on his face as he stares at nothingness. His group had left him alone after being unresponsive for a while.

“Hey, they are deliberating if you really lost it now.” Athena bravely approached Lucas and dropped her body down on the next bed where Lucas is sitting.

“...” Still not talking, Lucas remained staring long with his legs close up to his knees.

“I am not buying it but I know that look. What kind of hell have you seen in your dreams this time?” Athena said as she lazily repositioned herself.

Lucas finally moved. He slowly turned his head at Athena. He was greeted by a smirk.

That’s right, Athena was always nearby whenever he suffered from nightmares from his past.

“You experienced hell from twenty years ago, right?” She pressed for answers.

Lucas, who usually avoids eye contact, meets Athena’s hazelnut eyes.

It's the same shade as the woman’s eyes in his dreams. It’s the same but also different.

“You can tell?” He asked with a blank look.

“Back at the stadium… when that woman was bitten, you carried her but second later you handed her then baited yourself, why?” Athena asked back.

“We won’t make it if we get surrounded.” Lucas frowned a little and answered as it is something so obvious.

“Aaaaand it took you a second to realize it. Normal people don’t react that way.” Athena answered.

“Is that why you saved me? Were you curious?” Lucas questioned back. He always wondered why he was saved.

Athena smiled and mumbled. “You’ve performed better than expected.”

“Who are you?” Lucas frowned.

There was a pause and staring contest between them before Athena answered. “You are not asking for my name right?”

“I already know your name. ” Lucas immediately answered.

“How? Did you hear it from others? Because you never asked for my name and apparently nor anyones. ” Athena found it amusing how Lucas seemed to look shocked.

Lucas was confused after hearing it. It is true, he thanked her, but not once did he ask for her name. He backtracks how he knew everyone’s name.

‘How did I know Elijah’s name?’ He thought again.

“It seems like you are doing it unconsciously. A typical trait found in distrustful people.” Athena interrupted her thoughts.

It’s uncomfortable…

“I, I am scared and a coward. I just wanted to live… Maybe I run because I am an i***t who wants to be seen as a hero even if I am this loser.” Lucas said in a small voice almost like a whisper as he turned back, being meekly and lethargic.

“HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” A loud mocking laugh came out of Athena.

Lucas frowned at the unexpected reaction.

"Why? Why? What is it? How did you make her laugh?" Elijah pops out on Lucas ' side while Athena wholeheartedly laughs.

"Oh my! You are one funny guy! I need some water." Athena dried her laugh tears as she got up and walked out as she waved bye to them.

“...Oh, by the way. You are no Hero.”

"What is it? Huh? Huh?" Elijah pushed Lucas to answer but Lucas has no answer to it either.

"Are you okay now?" Aaron next appears beside them.

Lucas looked up and quickly averted his eyes and weakly answered. "Sort of. How is your hand?"

Aaron's hands are wrapped in bandages because of minor bruising he sustained from beating Brandy.

After waking up in an adjacent room to this room, a door opens and they walk through that and after spotting Brandy was in the other room, Aaron assaults him while cursing at him. If not for the system's warning Elijah and others wouldn't stop him.

In the end Brandy lives another day but suffers a black eye and injuries from heavy punches of bulky Aaron. The reason was not only entirely because of him pushing and betraying them but also it turns out Hiraya's injuries were because after trying to stop Brandy, Brandy beat her up while Unica clinging to him in the end they couldn't defy the rules.

‘One key is equal to one entry’

"This is nothing. I will kill that bastard as soon as the next round starts." Aaron said as he glared at Brandy curled up with other loners.

There are currently 18 of them in the room with lots of beds and a hologram screen that displays the waiting area rules. It was exactly the same as the previous one except there was no countdown for next round notice.

“Dude, You already have Hiraya, can you not make a move on my Athena?” Elijah pops in front of Lucas with scrutinizing eyes.

“I don’t know what you are talking about.” he responded.

*Ting Ting

[Meal Time!]

A robotic man’s voice announced and a holographic picture of a meal was displayed. Two windows opened in the background of the hologram and showed packed bread and bottled water.

Uncivilized people grabbed as many as they could as they could. There were some players who didn’t get their share.

Lucas is one of them but instead of panicking for having no food. He watched players rumble. They resort in violence, fighting among themselves and stealing. Today was their second day in space, but it looks like they missed the food yesterday, it’s their first time seeing it.

In his sight a vision is overlapping. He was riding in a car when they passed by a supermarket that was robbed by the townspeople. There were gunshots and bawling. There were no police nor any authority to stop this because the authorities themselves are stealing from there.

He shook his head to make it disappear, eversince the nightmare, he had been seeing fragments of the apocalypse.

“*Phew* I thought I would die there.” Elijah came with several bags of bread and water bottles.

“As expected of a thief. Thank you.” Aaron said as they walked back to Hiraya’s bed. She is lying and has a slight fever, maybe because her wounds took a toll in her body.

Lucas looked once more at the ongoing fights on all the sides of the room. There is one that puts all the bread in his mouth but the other player puts his hands on his mouth and forces it out.

‘That’s right. This is human’s nature.’ He thought and walked towards his group.

“Here.” Elijah gave Lucas bread and water.

“I didn’t do anything.” Lucas said as he put his hands on Hiraya’s forehead. It’s still a little hot, so he adjusted the blanket and covered Hiraya more.

“Man, what are you saying? We all make it here because of your plans. Is this what you were saying to Athena earlier?” Elijah put the bread and water to Lucas' lap.

It was really not a big deal if Lucas did not eat today, he didn't feel hungry at all. He is used to eating once every three days. He has to save as much as he can for his sister’s medicine.

He looked at Elijah again and asked. “Elijah, Have I never asked for your name before?”

“That’s weird, Athena asked the same thing last time. Yeah, man, in the first round we are too busy to survive. I guess we missed our chance.” Elijah innocently answered.

Lucas now remembers, He only knew Elijah’s name when Hiraya asked after the first round.

‘Just like Elijah says, it might be because we are too busy.’ He thought about convincing himself.

He unwrapped the bread and as he tried to take a bite, the fighting had ceased but lots of players were injured.

“Excuse me.”

They look at the direction of the voice and it’s from the man they contracted in the second round, behind him is the teenage boy Lucas had carried previously.

“Will it be okay, if we sit together with your group?” The man said.

It is understandable because even if there is a fight among the players no one had ever approached their group. Lucas can think of two things. First is because of Aaron’s presence. He looked not only reliable but he looked tough especially after beating Brandy the moment they stepped in. He already displayed prowess and strength.

“This is our portion.” The man offered their crushed bread and water bottle with trembling hands. It looks like he had fought for it, there are still blood stains on it.

Lucas is not focused on them but on the peering eyes of others.

“Lucas?” Aaron called.

The man and the teenager looked at Lucas and when Lucas turned back, Elijah and Aaron were looking at him. He looked back at them with a puzzled look.

The original recipient of the bread and water is Aaron but then to his surprise it was offered to him next.

“Please include us in your group.”

This is the second reason why Lucas’ group was untouched. They arrived in a group. Lucas can guess that some of the players here passed the second round like Brandy.

They’ve betrayed their group.

Lucas' group is aware of this, because they too witness how some of these people play, that's why they don’t mingle with any of them.

“Please.” The man pleaded.

Lucas looked over his group.

“We leave the decision to you.” Aaron said as he chewed his bread.

“They helped us once. Let's help them once too.” Lucas said and they agreed.

Elijah moved and gave them a space to sit with the circle.

“...but” Lucas said, meeting the man’s eye. It made everyone halt too.

“We will take that.” Lucas continued and looked at bread and water.

“We have enough bread and water.” Elijah said and showed two excess bread and water on the side.

“They helped us with the price, shouldn’t we do the same?” Lucas had this unwavering look.