Beyond the Walls

Like a Rat

*Huff Huff

Heavy breathing and spinning vision, Lucas failed to hear the voices around him as he pushed himself from the floor. His eyes play the scene in skips and loops. He is blinking really slowly, unable to grasp the severity of his situation.

The cemented walls and metal bars are all stained with dirt and traces of c*****e.

“...ey! Hey!! We need to go!!” A far shouting voice is barely reaching him.

‘Elijah?’

He recognized the haggard and thin face in front of him and was shaking his body. His arms were wrapped in Elijah’s shoulders and he was lifted up.

Lethargic and weak, Lucas can barely help Elijah to lift himself. He can only let himself be a baggage to drag.

*Thud

Both him and Elijah slump to the floor after just three steps.

“AH!! Please man!! We need to go!” Elijah slapped the floor and looked at Lucas desperately.

*Growl

“AHHHHHH!! LET GO!!” Elijah panicked as he kicked an undead by his feet to free himself.

Lucas up behind Elijah and coming behind an open barred room is a top naked undead with black and red blood still dripping from its mouth.

It looked like it was smiling as it walked towards them.

He approached the busy Elijah from the side before it crashed down and jumped down to Elijah.

“AHHHH!!” Elijah barely manages to stop a direct bite off from the strong newly turned undead by pushing his forearm to it’s neck away from his face.

Wrestling with it, he forgot the newly undead by his feet. He was grabbed again by his heels. Now defending himself against the strong undead, he looked at Lucas miserably and in despair.

“PLEASE HELP ME!!!” reflecting horror he pleaded.

*Swish

Elijah slides down. He was dragged away from Lucas' view.

From then the unmoving Lucas can only hear Elijah’s screams

“AHHHHHH! I AM SORRY I AM SORRY!!! PLEASE SOMEBODY HELP ME!!!”

Unmoving Lucas can only shed a tear.

Few hours before…

The rest area is quiet while they wait for the next level to start.

[LEVEL 3 will start in …]

[12:00:01]

Most of the players are looking lifeless and exhausted. Some don’t even have the energy left to pick themselves up from the floor.

[11:59:57]

Lucas turned his head up slowly. His eyes were sunken and his lips had dried, chapped then dried and chapped again.

One of the players crushed his empty water bottle before he started crawling to a group of players.

It was Liam’s group. They are relaxing on their side with plenty of food supplies.

“P,plea...se s,s,spare me even just a w,water.” He pleaded, Liam’s group had it easy taking turns to guard their supply.

“Ah? Didn’t you just get your share?’ One of Liam’s subordinates said.

The man on the floor was one of the winners of the brawl for bread and water, a few hours ago. His face and body are full of cuts and blood clots because of it.

For the past three days, they’ve witnessed many faces of humans.Lucas looked at Liam’s subordinate, grabbed a half eaten bread and threw it in the middle of the room.

The bread hasn’t even touched the floor yet, yet multiple players had gathered quickly pushing, hurting and pulling each other just to get it first.

The brawl has started again. A woman got it first after kicking a man in his groins before stepping on him to leap to the dirty bread. She reached the bread first and immediately pushed it all to her mouth.

Howling like animals, players didn’t give up and tried to make her spill the bread but the woman persisted and swallowed the bread without chewing it properly.

She refused and tried to crawl away but she was dragged back to the center and when she refused to face up. Players hold her up and the male player that had begged for the bread glare at the woman seeing the crumbs of bread in her lips.

“YOU b***h!”

*Punch

“Phuwaaaaaah!” The woman had been punched to her stomach forcing her to throw up the remains of the bread together with some fluids.

The male player didn’t think twice and knelt down to the floor and started scooping.

While the others backed out frowning at the disgusting sight, two more players knelt down letting go of the beaten woman.

Liam’s group cheered and laughed loudly while Lucas observed it all from his place by the stairs without giving much expression.

“Do you think it’s not too late to get supplies?” Aaron looked a little better than Lucas.

In the past three days, it’s not like, players didn’t try to oppose Liam’s group. Other players had gone to Lucas’ group and proposed it first.

It wasn’t Lucas that the other players needed but it was Aaron. Aaron, the toughest looking person that was not affiliated with Liam’s group

Despite having the majority of numbers against Liam’s group. Aaron refused to participate in taking back the supplies though they heard tons of insults, Lucas’ group remained quiet.

“We will not win.” Lucas repeated his words to Aaron three days ago.

He already explained to his group that, first, Liam's group is strong. Their group consists of all men. Maybe Aaron can win a one on one match, but not with that. Second, if by some miracle they win, he reminded them how these players pass the second round.

“Why do you think they only took one into their group? Because even if it is good to have a large number, these people can’t be trusted. ”

“Are you saying we should fight for our food then?” Elijah asked, expressing his discontent.

“There was a girl in the video with Hiraya … in the bathroom… Why didn’t she call for help when she came out?” Lucas opened a taboo topic but he is not meeting anyone’s eye and only stares down

He sees Aaron clenched his fist. Trembling at the memory, he glanced at the girl caught in the camera. It just so happened that she too was looking at their way and immediately looked away scared at the scowling Aaron.

Missing the point, Lucas talked again to point out his intention. “Can you trust your back to those people?”

It was given that Aaron would take the lead if they agreed to take back the food and these people are only using him as a shield.

“If you accidentally killed one of them in the process how do you think they would react?” Lucas made Elijah and Aaron look at the waiting players as they discussed their participation in their proposal.

“That’s what they want.” Aaron knew it after Lucas pointed it out.

The players that are waiting had this desperate look on their face but they are scared too.

“Will you still trust them?” After Lucas had said it, Aaron refused the players bluntly.

They’ve heard curses after their persuasion didn’t work but Lucas’ group stayed quiet.

“What will we do now?” Elijah asked.

That’s when Lucas numerated what might happen, to avoid the punishment, Liam’s group will not hoard all food, instead they will leave food that’s what they will aim for.

Elijah snatched the two sets of food as easily leaving three more food and water for others to fight for.

There were other players that tried to rob the food to them but Aaron only needed to stand in front of them and Aaron’s group was left alone. The bread was divided in 6 portions but Lucas gave up his part to Aaron because he said that they will need his strength that day because there are still more than 100 hours left before the Level 3 will start.

The next meal, Elijah was instructed to steal one set only, Lucas ate a little bread and gave the rest to Aaron.

[80:31:32]

Before the next meal, Lucas pulled out a secret stash of bread and water. It was the meal he had hid after Liam’s group had appeared. It was the offertory of the two people who had joined their group. Molds have started to take shape and its form was crushed but no one is in position to complain. While others were fighting over, their group stayed still.

“I can get us food, why don’t you allow it?” Elijah said as he eyed for the bread. Their meal was barely felt and they are starting to feel the fatigue.

“If we keep getting it, they will turn to us.” Lucas answered while catching several players eyeing on them.

‘They are cornered now. It will be hard to move from now on.’

With 72 hours left, Liam gave the weakening Lucas some food he gave to his group using the same excuse of wanting to preserve their strength. Though it is the truth, With Aaron more energy than him can raise their survival probability so it was like an investment to Lucas’ point of view.

Besides, he isn’t someone who eats 3 times a day. His body can endure hunger. He had been living like a deprived rat for years. This is something he had endured everyday inside the walls.

Instead of eating, everything he had had been poured out to his most precious person, the reason he refused to drop dead.

‘My sister is waiting for me.’ His determined mind declared which is opposite to his sickly appearance.

Coming back to the present with 11 hours left, Aaron took a seat beside Lucas and asked.

“You should eat the next meal. You look like you will collapse anytime. I will take the shift. Go get some rest.”

“Yes.” Lucas answered with a slight smile as he staggeringly went to the bed. Before drifting away to exhaustion, he sees Elijah taking place beside Aaron.

He placed himself in the corner distancing himself to sleeping Athena.

“I can’t wait for tomorrow.” He mumbled and closed his eyes.

[03:01:02]

There is a minute left before the supplies will be given. First in line was Liam’s men. Surrounded in a safe distance are other players. Relaxing in their pose and chattering among themselves they stand close to where the box of food will be dropped.

[Meal Time!]

Two windows opened and the supplies were seen. Before one of Liam’s subordinates grab their unfair share, Elijah swipes in for supplies first. He is quick to his feet and hands and he rushed out of there immediately.

“HEY! YOU THIEF!! RETURN THAT HERE!” Said of the men.

But he was ignored.

Giving bread and water to his group they immediately open their share and start eating hungrily while being on guard to anyone that approaches.

“HA?!! You really have a death wish huh?!” striding to their side.

Aaron, who is munching bread, stepped forward and drank the whole bottled water and crumpled it in his hands.

“Yes?” He said.

A small laugh was heard. It was Liam’s.

“This was you, again... Lucas.” Liam said, clapping his hands.

Lucas who is barely seen in the background still looked frail as bread crumbs were all over him.

“What should we do? You ate all the portions for everyone else.” Liam instigated the crowd.

“What are you saying, retard? We only had one loaf of bread and water. Just how it should have been.” Athena stepped forward, sipping the last of her waters.

“The next level is starting, shouldn’t everyone eat to have energy to survive?” Aaron instigated.

*Cough cough

Lucas grabbed his water and pushed down the stuck bread in his throat before he wiped the water dropping in his chapped lips. Aaron makes sure that Lucas can’t be seen by Liam.

As Liam’s forehead twitched at the suddenly motivated and salivating players, he looked at the timer.

[2:55:06]

“Go get only our portion.” Liam announced.

After getting exactly their portion, the players came rushing like beggars that had been deprived of food.

“Why now?!” One of Liam’s men asked, dissatisfied.

“He really is something…” Liam stared intently at Lucas’ way.