2.42

In the midst of the chaos, I slipped out of the campsite via the pit the wolves had dug under the fence. My head was numb, absent of thoughts, putting one sore foot in front of the other, walking aimlessly, I listened only to the network under my feet.

Only when my bare feet entered the cold water did I realise I'd approached the edge of the lake. The night sky was lightening up, despite the sun still not rising yet, enabling me to take in the scenic surroundings.

Feeling the itch from the dried blood on my face, I pulled my pants off, then continued walking til the water was waist deep. As the cold water hit my abdomen I felt a slight flutter.

Giggling, I lay back, looking up at the birds flying past in the sky.

"I'm sorry," the words came out in a heavy sigh as I felt her flutter inside of me again.

When System woke me up, I hadn't been thinking straight and inadvertently forgotten the poor thing existed. Only panicking for Will's well-being and eager to gain energy from whatever was attacking.

Yet here I was, completely drained of energy, having forgotten to grab at least one nucleus on my way out.

"Hannah," Alex's voice called out from the edge of the water, making me quickly stand to my feet, accidentally swallowing a mouthful of water.

I was getting so sick of this name.

"Coming," I called out after coughing up a lung or two.

"Are you crazy?" Matt teased me, making me realise I was standing in just a sports bra and comfy maternity knickers, hardly looking like a victoria's secret model.

Luke covered Matt's eyes with one hand playfully, then outstretched the other to pull all the water on me into a blob on his palm, then tossed it to the ground.

"Neat trick," I blushed, edging closer to Alex who was stripping off to cover me. I had intended to pull something out of my space, but with them here what could I do now?

Once in Alex's jumper and coat, he began gently pushing me back towards the campsite.

"Hannah, what were you thinking, they were wolves, big ass fucking wolves," Alex muttered, dragging my bedraggled self through the gates. The wolves had been piled up to the side, I noticed they'd also been cut open, their nuclei all gone.

I wondered if it did the same to the others as it did me, or was absorbing their power exclusive to System users?

Just as the gates closed behind us Rick lit up the wolves like a bonfire. At first, I was confused why they felt the need to burn them to a crisp, but then the horrific thought of them somehow becoming zombie wolves attacking us before we had a chance to escape made me question it no longer.

Back in the cabin, I dressed quickly, gleefully putting on the boots I'd forgotten in my haste. When I left I saw the others putting anything useful into the back of the truck. If all goes well today we'd reach the army base. I shuddered at the thought of finally meeting that man.

"Everything okay with the baby?" Will suddenly bent to talk quietly in my ear, startling me.

"Y-yes," I flinched, taking a side step to create distance. Ever since the moment, he'd taken off my top to see my nonexistent wounds I felt there was a wall between us.

Who erected it I was unsure. Only the fear and paranoia he'd realise I wasn't really his sister made me grateful it was there for me to at least hide behind.

"Good, try to get some more sleep if you can, it's mainly all woodland between here and the base," he patted my shoulder then walked ahead to climb into the driver's seat.

***

A sudden bump in the road jerked me awake. My eyes, were wide in panic, searching for danger. Seeing only Alex's half-asleep, smiling face I let out a sigh of relief, nuzzling back into his chest.

"Are you alright?" Alex's warm hands rubbed up and down my back, trying to stir me to wake.

"Uhuh," I groaned, reluctant to leave the warmth of his embrace.

"You've slept like the dead Hannah, you sure you're okay?" He asked, frowning with worry.

I nodded, wiping the sleep from my eyes.

"Pregnancy is hard work on the body," Ty chuckled from behind.

"Where are we?" I strained my neck to look through the small window behind Tommy, who was happily chatting away with Will and Noah upfront.

"Oregon, we passed the border a while back, you've slept nearly all day, no matter what, if Dr. John hadn't said you were okay…" His eyes glared at me full of worry, making my heart skip a beat.

"Shh… it's like Dr. John said, growing our baby is hard work, I just used too much power earlier," I bit my lip, feeling regret and guilt over forgetting about the little life inside of me when I'd used my powers.

"Next time, you stay behind, leave it to me, okay?" He leaned his forehead against mine, his grip on my clothing tight.

I tilted my head to kiss him softly on his lips, he greedily kissed back.

"Ewww…" Lucas interrupted our sweet moment, making the group break out in laughter whilst I blushed and hid my head back into Alex's chest.

"Time to look alive, we're here folks," Tommy called out excitedly.

The faint smile on my lips fell and my hands protectively covered my abdomen.

"Are you in pain?" Alex whispered into my ear while the others chatted excitedly.

I shook my head even though my chest ached to try to contain my wildly beating heart.

"Just nerves," I whispered back.

He smiled warmly, giving me a tight squeeze, "the base will be safe, don't worry."

How could I not worry?

Had I changed things up enough? Enough to ensure that I wasn't succumbing to fate the second I stepped off this truck?