London Bridge Is Falling

Game of Survival

The mission was a failure, we didn’t save those people, but on the bright side, we killed Irving. I guess every mission can’t be a success. That’s what sucks about all of this, we try and we try but it’s never quite good enough. Back at the base, we go over plans to kill the head of Helios, but every plan ends up with us dead and him still alive and kicking. We’re stuck. I’m not sure how we’re going to survive this mess, with the leaders mutating themselves with the virus; I can’t imagine what the head of the viral outbreak will turn into. I have to get the thought out of my head, so I leave the room and head to the roof while everyone bickers back and forth on who has the best plan. The chilly midnight air cups my face as I open the door; it’s refreshing. I hear the door open slightly and Selena walks up beside me, the wind flows through her hair, she shivers.

“Needed air?” She asks.

“Yeah.” I reply. “I’m just over all this nonsense, Selena. I want to be done.”

“Trust me, Dylan. I want this to be over too. I wanna blink my eyes and everything be okay again. I want my husband here, my son…”

I turn towards her. “I didn’t know you had a husband, or a son.”

“It’s almost too painful to talk about. I lost them in the outbreak.”

“I’m sorry.” I pull her into a tight embrace. “We’ll get through this. We just have to keep fighting.”

“We’ve been through so much together, Dylan. I hope in the end, we both make it out alive.”

“We will.” I say stern. “We all will.”

“Yeah, I hope you’re right.” She gives me that slight smile that she does when she’s worried about something.

“How many times have we said that this is humanity's last stand and we’ll all die if we don’t take down this big and bad corporation?”

She laughs. “A lot.”

“So we’ll say it again, Sel. And then we’ll do what we always do, destroy them.”

“But this is the head honcho, the big baddie. It could be our-”

I interrupt her. “Don’t even say it. It’s not our end. We can do this.”

She smiles, the wind kissing her cheeks. “You’re right, Dylan.” She hugs me tight and heads back to the stairs. “Coming?”

“Yeah, in a second. I’m enjoying the fresh air.”

Back inside the compound, I make my way to the room where everyone else is at; I hope and pray they still aren’t bickering about ways to die. Entering the room, my ears are at peace. It’s quiet, they aren’t yelling over each other, but talking like civilized people. Jill looks at me and smiles, something seems strange here.

“Dylan.” She says. “I think there’s something you need to see.”

“Huh?” I’m confused. Walking down the steps is a girl, black leather jacket, long hair in braids pulled back in a ponytail. I know her, she looks familiar. “Jo…”

“Dylan.” She doesn’t hesitate; she takes off in full sprint and jumps into my arms.

“Jesus. Marlene killed you.” I take a deep breath. “What happened?”

“After I was shot, I blacked out for what seemed like forever. When I came to, I ventured out into the unknown where a group of people found me and helped me out. I’ve been looking for you since then.”

“I’m so glad you’re here, Jo.” I sigh. “Life has been super hard recently and with everyone back...It’s getting a bit easier.”

“I thought you might enjoy this.” Jake says, sneaking up behind me and pulling me into a hug. “Let’s get back to business. We need to plan when we’re headed there.”

“I say in two weeks, we storm the castle.” Lara joins our little group.

“I think that sounds good.” Jake smiles. “That’ll give us some time to prepare.”

“Wait.” Jo says. “I know a place we can go. It’s a large walled community outside of London. We can stay there and prepare.”

“Well.” Lara looks at me. “Think it’s a good idea?”

I shrug. “Yeah, I think it’s a solid plan. How do you know it’s safe?”

“Trust me, I know. I was with them for a long time.” Jo smiles. “It’s safe.”