Tremor: If your world was falling apart, how far would you go to save it? (The Tremor Cycle) (18 page)

‘Yeah, that’s a Peace Force badge.’ Althea came up behind him.

‘What are they doing up here?’ William asked.

‘The Peace Enforcers are free to roam, so they don’t really have to follow the rules of Kentvale. Some say they’re as vicious as the bandits. They come out here and do God-knows-what to whoever they want.’ Igraine seemed to regret the words as soon as she’d spoken them.

‘Oh crap, that’s not good,’ said William, eyebrows raised.

‘Dad used to tell me that if these guys find you, and they’re not happy with the reasons why you’re outside Kentvale, they accuse you of being a Scavenger or bandit and torture you. They draw it out for as long as they can, make you beg them to end it, but they never do.’ Althea threw the badge as far into the trees as she could manage.

‘Alfie, I’m scared,’ said Ori, hands clasped over his face. He was standing by the fire.

‘Oh God, I wasn’t thinking,’ she said, rushing to him. ‘I didn’t mean to say all that…’

‘This is problematic, if they find us they could alert Terrafall and Erisia,’ whispered Igraine to William, as Althea comforted her brother.

‘What if they already know we’re here? They might have seen us coming, abandoned this camp and are waiting to ambush us,’ said William. His eyes searched the pass ahead of them. ‘If they catch us they probably won’t waste time asking questions.’

‘They’ll just torture and kill us,’ said Igraine.

Chapter 16

The Wilds

William looked at the map, turning it this way and that. The lines and shapes seemed to clot into one, but he had an idea of where Gravenshard was. It had to be the biggest blob, fed by lots of other squiggly lines. That’s probably what it was now, a big grey mark on the landscape, a shattered human mess. ‘We’re close to the town; it’s one more mile through the pass.’

‘I hope Bod and the others have made it to Stone Cross,’ said Ori, grip tightening on Althea’s hand.

‘Sure they have,’ said William, determinedly. ‘Terrafall and Erisia won’t know what’s about to hit them.’

Igraine stepped forward. ‘I’m sure we’ll see them again. But for now let’s keep our minds focused on the journey ahead, because if there are Peace Enforcers about we need to be watchful.’

‘We’ll stay in the shadows, like Bod told us to,’ said William, heading off through the trees, which clung to the side of the trail that cut through the pass.

Suddenly, a howl from an unknown animal echoed across the mountains. He looked to the fanged rocks that hung above them, wide-eyed. It couldn’t have been a wolf, could it? There weren’t any wild wolves in England anymore. And anyway, most wild animals had either died, or been hunted for food. Surely wolves wouldn’t be lurking out in the wilderness?

‘I didn’t like the sound of that,’ Ori moaned, clinging to Althea’s arm.

‘Wild dog, I think,’ said Althea. ‘Nothing compared to Peace Enforcers or bandits, though.’

Nodding, Igraine motioned forward. ‘Keep moving, quickly and carefully.’

‘I wish we still had your crossbow,’ William said to Althea.

‘Me too,’ whispered Althea.

They moved next to the trail, occasionally slipping back onto it when the trees became too dense. William looked ahead. Down below, the ruins of Gravenshard punctured the patchy horizon. He felt as though each decrepit building was watching them. He swallowed and kept his eyes on the fractured footpath as they hunkered through the hills.

They hung back by the edge of the trail, stepping further down into the verge as they drew closer to the town. The place really did look as if many shards had been dug into the earth, broken buildings sticking into the lower sky.

‘The train tracks are close,’ said William, scooting around a black pool of ditch water. Gravenshard was straight in front of them now. ‘Does anyone feel that?’

‘What?’ said Althea, turning to face him.

‘I don’t really know, I mean, I just have a bad feeling.’

‘We’ve all felt like that for ages,’ she told him. ‘Come on, nearly at the tracks.’

‘No, it’s different; it feels like something’s going to happen, something bad.’

‘Just try to forget about it. Focus on getting past the town.’

But when William looked into his friend’s eyes, he knew she was hiding what she truly felt. Trying to put on a brave face as usual, for Ori’s sake.

The tracks appeared as they descended the last part of steep terrain between them and the town. The rusted bars dissolved into the distance, poking the rapidly darkening sky, iron rods puncturing William’s future.

William scaled the ridge first, and then held out his hand to help the others up. When everyone was on the tracks, they began sneaking down them, wary that Gravenshard was just seconds to the left.

Gulping heavily, William looked down the side of the ridge as he moved. The tracks were raised and they were right on show, with barely a bush for cover. Was this really a good idea? They could end up being seen, and then what?

He shunted the dread away, knowing that following this route would get them past the town in no time, and once they were in the countryside, he was sure there’d be plenty of places to hide from any approaching enemies.

Walking down the rail tracks reminded William of the countryside treks he used to go on with his mother and father. He pushed those thoughts away too, just in time to hear a loud cry.

‘Intruders!’ shouted a distant voice, followed by the pounding of hooves.

‘Get down,’ Igraine yelled, dragging Ori with her.

They hit the dirt. William’s kneecaps vibrated hard into the metal track and he swore as the wind was sucked from him. He carried on nevertheless. He knew they’d been right on show, but he let the idea of getting through this quickly override those paranoid feelings. What a sucker he was for not trusting his initial doubts.

‘Enforcers,’ gasped Althea, her breaths raspy.

‘Crap, stay down!’ whispered William. ‘But whatever you do, don’t flippin’ stop.’ It was dark enough, so they might not be found, well, if they hadn’t already been spotted.

‘If we are separated, keep moving south. These tracks lead straight to Stone Cross, so as long as you stay within sight of them, you will get there,’ whispered Igraine. ‘Let’s head for that switching station. Keep low.’

The pounding hooves got louder, gradually blending with William’s heartbeat. He felt as though each pound drove his chest further into the tracks. Could they really get away now, when the Enforcers had horses? He carried on crawling, pushing himself to move faster.

Something swooped out in front, closing off their path. William froze. It was too late; they’d been seen. He wouldn’t go without a fight though, that was for sure.

A shriek shot into the air, a shriek that seemed almost on top of him. William felt the wound on his forehead burn and swayed slightly. He lost his vision for a second as the pain from the wound took over. He tried to keep his balance, but it was all too much. Rolling down the side of the tracks, his mouth became filled with crusty grass. He couldn’t breathe, couldn’t grasp what was going on.

His body eventually stopped rolling, becoming entangled in a wiry fence. Fighting his way through this was definitely out of the question now. And to top it off, his vision was becoming blurrier by the second… He bit down as a torrent of pain filled his head, trying to take him into the darkness of unconsciousness.

‘We can’t leave him!’ screamed a voice, slightly broken, drifting into his ears from far away.

‘He knows what to do,’ said the older, more urgent voice.

‘Get them, before they escape!’ screeched yet another voice, this one vicious and completely unfamiliar to him.

‘Go! Just run!’ he managed to scream, although he didn’t know where the strength had come from.

He tried to get up, but the wires dug in deeper, holding onto him like a starving mouth. The Enforcers had found them, and he’d been thrown into the ditch at the side of the track. Had the others escaped? His forehead wrinkled. He couldn’t think about them right now. The pain was too intense.

All the sounds faded away, leaving William with the silence as company. He rolled out of the metal jaws, pulling his arms from the now tattered black jacket, and dragged himself into the field on the other side of the fence. He couldn’t give up now.

‘Althea? Ori? Igraine…’ whispered William, a lump rising in his throat. He forced it back down. ‘Crap…’

He staggered to his feet, trembling. Crap, it hurt, but he tried to push away the bleeding pains. ‘Come on, stay with it,’ he told himself, limping along the fence line. He looked through the wires and back up to the tracks, shaking his head. There was no way he’d chance them again. It was too risky now.

He held onto the fence, pulling himself along. He looked to his left. It was like some kind of enclosure, stretching quite far into the fallen landscape. Ahead was another fence. Face scrunched at the impending anguish, he realised he’d have to haul himself over it.

A few steps more and he came to a large metal plate attached to the wiring. He ran his fingers over each of the engraved letters: South Bay Animal Park. He was in an animal enclosure? Surely it’d been long deserted? A couple of crimson-stained objects lay scattered on the ground around his feet. His eyes closed.

Bones.

William paused. What was that rustle? He squinted, trying to focus on where the noise had come from, but it was too dark. His heart began to pound. Things really weren’t going well, worse than he had ever imagined. Desperate and starving animals hadn’t figured on his radar, not seriously.

Something swooped out behind him.

‘Oh God, oh crap!’ stammered William, pulling himself even faster along the fence.

He heard a snarl. What animals snarled? Tigers? Lions? William shook his head. Wolves.

Shadows began to slice through him. He stopped, feet becoming rooted in the earth. The smell of rotten flesh and blood made him gag. He was being hunted.

As far as he could tell, there were four of them, four salivating wolves. They seemed to be taunting him, inching closer, anticipating a kill. He held onto the fence tightly, wondering how much it would hurt.

Lightning shot past William’s temple, vibrating his ear. He grabbed the side of his head, eyes wide with confusion. A pain-stricken howl ruptured the silence, followed by the sound of padded feet scampering away. William gripped the fence harder, managing to stay upright. All was still.

‘What the hell?’ he said out loud.

‘You could be a bit more appreciative,’ said someone quite close.

William looked over his shoulder, face contorting. He was weary, aching. ‘W–who’s there?’

‘Someone who would like to help, but you should decide quickly. Those beasts are hungry and won’t be gone for long. They are very territorial and hunt in packs, and they’ll be back.’

The wolves had been scared off then. The feeling of relief didn’t last as the new shadow of uncertainty hit him. Who the hell had saved him? And why? ‘Show yourself.’

‘As you wish.’

A man with crow-like features stepped forward, only half of his pallid face visible in the dwindling light.

‘Merle!’ William was astonished. ‘I thought you were dead! How did you get away from the bandits?’

Merle roughly swung William’s arm over his shoulders. ‘The bandits have developed a rationing system, whereby they don’t kill all their victims on site, but take a few to their camps for later. I managed to escape when they went on one of their raids.’

William gulped. What did that mean for the others who’d been with him?

‘From what I can tell, the Peace Enforcers have been tracking you for some time,’ said Merle, letting William go and managing to tear part of the fence away to provide an escape route. ‘I was too late to stop them from scattering your group, but I don’t think they caught anyone. I’m guessing they figured the wolves would get you. They can be a lazy bunch at times, especially when they aren’t under anyone’s authority out here.’

‘I hope the others make it to Stone Cross,’ whispered William, ducking under the barbs of wire, making a concerted effort not to pass out from the pain.

‘I knew this mission was worthless from the get go, but no one ever listens to me,’ said Merle, gloom evident in his eyes. ‘Why attack them when we can wait for them to attack us and use our valley as a vantage point?’

‘If we do that all the people they’ve kidnapped will be sacrificed,’ said William, scowling with resentment.

‘They’re probably dead, boy,’ spat Merle. ‘Why risk our lives for those of the dead?’

‘You don’t know that,’ William shouted, pushing Merle into the fence. ‘How can you know that?’

Merle held up his hands. ‘Don’t punish me for my opinions. I’m with you now anyway, so whatever happens one of us will be proven right.’

William released his grip on Merle’s leather jacket. ‘Sorry. It’s just…’

‘You still have hope, I get it,’ said Merle, swinging the crossbow back over his shoulder and shaking his head.

The ground trembled, heaving upwards then dropping back again. William kept his balance, limping on through the outskirts of Gravenshard, followed by Merle. He realised now that the track actually cut through the town, so their plans of trying to avoid the place wouldn’t have worked. Their map was obviously an old one that didn’t include the housing estates built on the outskirts.

William looked away from the signs of destruction and pulled out the map. ‘Keep to the rail tracks. Well that’s gone out the window,’ he told himself, grabbing hold of a bent lamppost when the tremor’s intensity increased once more.

Merle stumbled along, crossbow aimed in front of him. ‘After the tremor we may encounter bandits. For some reason they begin their hunts after a big one hits. I picked up a few things during my short incarceration with them.’

William pressed on, trying to maintain balance. Merle may have saved him, but there was something still unnerving about him, and his attitude stank. William clamped his teeth together. He wasn’t going to let it get to him. He couldn’t let it get to him.

‘Have you got any water?’ he asked, coughing, not even turning to look at Merle.

Merle passed him a hip flask. ‘I managed to collect a little rainwater a couple of nights back.’

William flipped the cap and took a quick sip. It felt as though he’d been eating sawdust for the past week, but the water brought his tongue back to life. ‘Thanks,’ he said begrudgingly, holding it out.

‘You keep it. You look like you need it more than me.’

William saw movement ahead and ducked. It couldn’t happen again, could it? He couldn’t take anymore. ‘Animal or human?’ he whispered.

‘Human, very much so,’ replied Merle, pulling William into a roadside ditch and cocking the head of the crossbow over its lip. William looked in the direction he had it aimed. A woman dressed in threadbare clothing stepped into a nearby road, pushing a packed cart.

‘Alms, alms, please come to me, I’m so alone,’ she mumbled as she pushed her cart along.

William placed his hand over the crossbow and pushed it down. ‘She isn’t going to hurt us.’

‘She could be a Watcher,’ whispered Merle, shrugging William’s hand away.

‘A what?’

‘They watch the roads for potential targets for bandits. They get paid in, err, meat.’

‘But it looks like she needs help.’ William rose a little. ‘She doesn’t look like a bandit. Look at her!’

‘Don’t even think about it. Charity is a death sentence in these parts. We have to leave her.’

William closed his eyes and pretended she wasn’t there. He couldn’t bear it. ‘We can’t leave her. She might get caught.’