HA\LF: Dead nor Alive

The three of them entered the city, and there was nothing left behind the wall, not even a proper building that they could get inside. They could see the massive field that used to be the headquarters, the training field, and the armory, all of which had been left to decay and ruin.

Archie looked to his right in the distance, and it had become a flattened land where Marie’s house was, and the home he was staying in. He felt a bit of pain in his heart when he tried to remember it, but it disappeared immediately as if his empathy and sympathy tried to crawl out of his chest but got buried down again. He then looked to his left and saw nothing but desolation and emptiness, and he knew that nothing would ever be the same again.

Elena looked at Archie, and Archie looked back at her with his eyebrows raised. Her expression was showing him that she could tell that he was sad about what had happened to the city.

“Do you want to check the bunker first?” Eve asked as she looked at Archie.

“Sure,” Archie answered as he nodded his head.

“Are you sad, Archie?” Elena asked. “The parasites inside your body feel uncomfortable the moment you entered the city,” Elena explained as she held Archie’s hand to comfort him.

“I’m fine, thank you for asking,” Archie answered with a smile.

They all went to headquarters and entered the building where the bunker was. He didn’t really want to think if there was any survivor or not, but as far as he could tell, he didn’t feel any sign of life from anywhere around the building. If there was anyone alive, they were certainly well hidden.

Eve knew that there were no signs of life anywhere in the area, but she didn’t want to say anything to Archie. She knew that he should be able to tell just as well, so there was no reason for her to bring it up.

Archie looked at the giant steel door in front of him, and he tried to open it but the there was no power to open it. He then used his hands to open the steel door forcefully, and Elena was amazed by how strong he was that the steel door moved so easily.

If the door had lost its power, then that would also mean there would be nobody in the bunker. That could also mean that they might me be stuck inside the bunker and couldn’t leave because they were stuck inside.

They saw a big hatch made of wood that could only be opened with at least four people. Archie opened the hatch and saw the dark tunnel. They walked in, and Elena was scared of the dark place so Eve carried her and held her so tightly to comfort her.

Archie was at the front, and there was no sound but the wind passing through the dark tunnel. There were torches on the walls, but there was nothing left on it, and it looked like it was a very old torch since it was so cold when he touched it.

“I think it’s better for you to go in there on your own. Elena doesn’t like this place, so I want to bring her out,” Eve said as she could feel Elena’s body tremble in fear.

“Okay, go ahead,” Archie said as he nodded his head with understanding.

Archie continued to walk through the long, dark tunnel, and there were rooms on either side of him. He looked at the glass door and there he saw people laying on the bed and the ground. Their dried and skinny bodies could be seen from outside the glass wall. He took a deep breath and exhaled deeply as he stared at the bodies.

“So you guys are locked down here,” Archie said to himself.

Archie kept looking around and walked deeper into the bunker.

Eve and Elena were outside the bunker exploring the building, hoping to see something that was left behind. Even though the building was in ruins and there was nothing interesting to see, the scenery and the building were entertaining enough to enjoy.

“Do you want to go somewhere else?” Eve asked as she held Elena’s hand.

“Yeah, let’s check the other place. I want to see if there’s anything that I can collect,” Elena answered as she nodded her head.

Eve chuckled and nodded her head.

They left the building and explored the city together, and when they were busy checking one of the houses, they heard a rustling sound from the distance. Eve unconsciously protected Elena and put her behind her back as she put both her hands on Elena’s back.  Elena was touched by Eve’s protectiveness, and she was comforted by Eve’s presence.

“Who’s there?” Eve asked calmly because she knew it wasn’t a parasite.

A small, timid girl almost the same age as Elena was huddled behind the debris, her feet and skirt visible to anyone who might peer through the gap between the ground and the debris. She was trying to hide, but she was too small to be able to fully hide.

“It’s okay, we are not going to hurt you,” Eve said as she crouched and slowly brought Elena to her left side.

The girl peek her head at Eve and Elena. She saw Elena and immediately her fear disappeared. She slowly stood up as she kept hiding behind the debris.

“Hi,” Elena greeted as she waved her right hand at the girl. “What’s your name?” Elena asked.

“Phellope,” The girl answered as she kept staring at Elena. “What’s your name?” Phellope asked.

“Elena, and this is Eve,” Elena answered as she pointed at herself and Eve. “Can we come closer? We just got here and we are looking at the city,” Elena continued.

Phellope, who had been hiding behind the debris, slowly came out and nodded her head at them reassuringly, signaling to them that they were okay to come closer.

Elena was the one who walked first as Eve followed her from behind.

“Are you alone?” Elena asked as she tilted her head.

“No, I came her with my mom. She’s looking for something that can be used to make a new bedroom for me,” Phellope answered. “Where are you come from?” Phellope asked back.

“We came from the Northern Nation, and we are waiting for Archie,” Elena answered.

“Archie? Who’s that? Your dad?” Phellope asked. “Is Eve your mom?” Phellope asked again before Elena could answer.

Elena looked at Eve and she didn’t know what to answer, and then Eve crouched as she hugged Elena from behind. “Well, you can say that I’m her mother now because she has nobody else in her life,” Eve answered with a smile on her face.

Phellope looked at Elena and she looked sad so suddenly.

“I’m sorry to hear that. We also lost people here after those two giant monsters attacked the city,” Phellope said as she looked at Elena.

Before Eve could ask about what happened to the people and the city, they heard a woman calling Phellope in the distance. Phellope turned around and it appeared her mother was looking for her.

“I’m here mom!” Phellope shouted as if she had no worries at all.

A woman that looked a bit younger than Eve came out of the corner. She was surprised when she saw Phellope was with strangers, and the first thing she did was run toward her as fast as she could while Eve and Elena looked at the woman with confused looks.

“Are you okay? You’re not hurt?” The mother asked as she checked Phellope’s whole body.

While the mother was checking Phellope’s body, Archie came out of the corner. He was surprised as well, but he was about there were people that were still alive. He hurriedly walked toward them as he looked at the woman.

“Looks like there’s a survivor, Archie,” Eve said as she looked at Archie who seemed to be in relief.

“Excuse me, ma’am, did you use to live here?” Archie asked.

The mother was being protective and cautious about the two of them.

“I’m sorry, it looks like you’re scared of us, but I used to live here in one of Marie’s houses. We left using the ships that we built a few months ago. Do you remember that?” Archie asked.

The mother was surprised and slowly lowered her guard.

“You’re an Axis Human?” The mother asked.

“Yes, Marshal Marlon, Ruby, Vincent, Prince, Resse. Everyone was with me back then,” Archie answered as he nodded his head. “Can you tell us what happened to the rest of the people here? I went to the bunker, but all I saw was…” Archie said but immediately stopped because he saw two girls with him.

The mother seemed to understand what he was about to say as she nodded her head with understanding.

“It’s a long story, but we already left this city. If you want to meet with the rest of us, I can bring you there,” The mother said.

“Yes, please,” Archie replied as he nodded his head.

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