A day of aerobic exercise

Every single one of us was tired, who wouldn't be? Yesterday evening we were evacuating the entire hospital, everything was going so fast that it felt like seconds to me but in reality it lasted about seven hours. And then there was today, and we all know how that turned out. The jeep wasn't small for a group of seven people but still, we had to get creative on how everyone was going to fit. DJ was squeezed between me and Jelo, Paige was with Conan at the front, Ethan had it sweet having the back all to himself, though Jelo was actually supposed to be back there with him. Jelo moved to our side after thirty minutes of being coped up in the back with him, and Dr. Peralta slept in the driver's seat with the seatbelt on. Within an hour of us hiding in the woods most of us were out like lights.

Most of us.

I woke up sometime around midnight after hearing the door to the jeep close. I looked out the window to see who had gone out and saw that there wasn't one, but two people standing outside. It was Paige and Ethan.

I turned to the passenger seat and saw Conan there, beside the seat was almost every single one of our bags covered with KJ's fluffy jacket, the window was rolled all the way down allowing the wind, and their conversation to come in.

"You said you thought you saw someone at the convention, care to share who it was?" Ethan said, leaning on the window on Jelo's side.

Paige, who was leaning on the window of the passenger seat, bit her lip and turned to check on Conan before answering his question, "I thought I saw her."

Ethan furrowed his brows and confused he asked, "Her who?"

"Who else would shake me up like that?" Paige replied.

Ethan's eyes suddenly widened, at that moment he knew who Paige was talking about, "Diana?"

That name again! Even these two know who that is?! Now this is getting creepy. You know what, I shouldn't be eavesdropping at all. I'll just go back to sleep, that is the best idea I've had all night!

I closed my eyes and tried getting some rest but I just couldn't! I have a hard time falling back to sleep when I wake up in the middle of the night but please not right now!

"She's dead, Paige. Why do you think you saw her? Did you think it was her ghost or something?" said Ethan.

"I said that I thought I saw her, not that I was sure I saw her!" Paige clarified, "And for the record, they didn't find her body!"

"As well as the bodies of the other 249 people, not to mention they haven't salvaged the shipwreck yet either!" Ethan exclaimed.

"You don't know that, Munson."

"Yes, I do!"

"No, you don't because the shipwreck isn't even there anymore!"

"What?"

"I asked KJ for a favor, her family has connections, you know that," said Paige, "I wanted to get closure with that nightmare of a day and she obliged, she didn't even ask me why she must've just chalked it up as a research I was doing. And you know what she said to me? She said, 'Paige, they said that shipwreck isn't there anymore'. Which you'd think would be all over the news since that tragedy was known nationwide and the reason why it sank was never even determined!"

Her loud voice scared Conan, she immediately opened the door and swaddled him, "I'm sorry, sweetie. I didn't mean to scare you."

"Paige you have got to stop being obsessed with that ship and that day," Ethan said, resolutely.

"I'm not obsessed with it any more than you are," she stated, "It's just that every time that time of year rolls around I start having nightmares."

"And you think I don't?" said Ethan, "There's a reason why I turned down Czyrus's offer to go with them to Mare. I cannot look at the ocean during this month. Honestly, is it too much to ask for at least one of us to move on?!"

"One of us already has, and look at what you're doing. You want to drag him back to the nightmare we're living!"

"Arguably, we're living another nightmare right now. And what Lanz is doing is not moving on, he's repressing it and forgetting people in his life! It isn't healthy, the guy can't even look at the sea without looking pale and coming close to collapsing. He even forgot about you."

The mention of my name sent me into a bowl of questions. Why am I dragged into this now? I've forgotten people? What does he mean that I forgot Paige? What are they talking about?!

"And I was fine with it!" Paige said, "He was happier and healthier now than he was before. You saw him at the hospital, he barely spoke a word to anyone! He didn't eat, he didn't sleep, he stared blankly at the wall!"

"Face it, Ethan, the reason why you're upset about this isn't because of how he's coping, it's because she's being forgotten," Paige explained, "It's not me that has to stop obsessing, it's you."

As Paige was about to climb back up the jeep, Ethan spoke, "Conan isn't your brother Paige, nor is he or any kid you meet a replacement for him."

Paige wiped a tear from her eye and replied, "I know that."

Then everything was quiet again. Paige was in the front seat with Conan and Ethan was still outside. What do I make of what I just heard? I don't know. In fact, I don't even know how to feel about it. Were they talking about me? Because it felt like they were, I was almost completely sure of it!

My mind debated on whether or not I should confront them about this. I was torn, should I or should I not? A part of me wanted answers but part of me was hesitant, stopping me from making that choice. It wasn't even a small part of me, it was almost like something in my mind didn't want me to find out and was making it hard for me, it was as if my mind was chaining me from knowing something.

I found myself feeling comfortable lying down on a bed, not just any bed, it was my bed. But these sheets, I haven't seen them since I was a kid! Where'd these come from, better question is what am I doing back home?

Then I heard giggling across the hall, in my sister's bedroom.

"Mai is that you?" I called, no answer.

I went outside and found a little girl playing in front of my grandmother's room. The door was open and inside were all these beautiful pastel colors, my grandmother's room looks nothing like this. The design, the decor, the colors? They were tailored to a child's taste.

"Excuse me," I said, "Little girl?"

"I'm not little!" she retorted, "And I have a name you know?"

"I'm sorry, of course, you have a nameI'm afraid I don't know it, can I ask what your name is?"

As she continued playing she replied, "Why are you asking me? You already know my name, you're silly!"

What?

My vision became blurry, my mind felt like it was being pried open, and then I was underwater, floundering around desperately trying to reach the surface but it was so far. Below me was a dim light and a shape I couldn't make out. But I was certain of one thing, I was desperate to get down there as well as get out of there, which didn't make sense to me at all! Something inside me wanted to get to the surface, but there was also a part of me that didn't want the light below to get further and further away.

I was panicking, I wanted to get out of here! Somebody, anybody, get me out of here!

Lanz…

I heard someone calling from a distance and I fumbled around looking for them. I turned around, and around, and around but there was no one there. There was only the

I was losing air! Somebody help me!

Lanz…

I looked below and saw someone swimming up towards me, a young lady, dressed in all white. If this entire situation was not creepy enough, let's add a spooky lady to the mix!

Somebody, help me!

Lanz…

I tried to swim away from her but for some reason, part of me didn't want to. Part of me wanted to stay and be with her.

She touched my cheeks and from the water, I heard her whisper, "You know me."

"LANZ!"

When I opened my eyes I saw Dr. Peralta in front of me, looking so worried, "You were squirming, tossing, and turning, it looked like you were having a nightmare!"

"Good job doc," said DJ, "You woke him up from one nightmare to another one."

I sat upright only now realizing that I was lying down. My heart was racing, my head was hurting, and I couldn't stop thinking about that girl. Slowly, I was starting to forget what she looked like. Typical dreams, you easily forget them. But what she said kept ringing in my head, 'You know me', and then there was that little girl! What did this lady mean that knew her name? Was that lady even real or was she a figment of my imagination along with the little girl? Was my subconscious writing a horror movie or something?!

Paige popped out from the woods with Conan in her arms and with Jelo following closely behind holding his stainless tumbler that looked charred.

"Doc, we have to find this little guy something to eat," said Paige, "You know that newborns need to drink milk every four hours or so. Not to mention, diapers. Lanz's handkerchief doesn't really fit Conan."

"Where would we even find baby stuff?" asked DJ.

"There's a daycare near our side of town. I volunteer there after school, I have the keys in my bag. It has everything we need. I would go by myself but Estrella is kind of after me."

"So, what? Do we split up? We take care of Conan, guard the jeep, while you and a couple of us go to the daycare?" asked DJ.

Ethan nodded his head, "Sounds like a plan."

"No," Dr. Peralta said, "We're not splitting up. That's too dangerous, everyone is going to the daycare. We're sticking together."

DJ nodded and then clicked his tongue, "Are we going on foot?"

"Yes," Dr. Peralta answered, "The jeep will draw too much attention and its fuel is already at the half mark, we can't waste it. Paige, is the daycare far away?"

"About a ten-to-twelve-minute walk north," she answered.

"Alright, everybody grab their things and we'll be leaving in five minutes. We'll grab some supplies along the way too. That bag of chips isn't going to last long," Dr. Peralta said before he went off to check the road we'd be taking.

"While we're there, we might as well stop by our house and get some supplies," said Ethan who was busy rummaging the back looking for his bat, "Where is my bat?"

"I think I saw Dr. Peralta with it," said Jelo who was munching on the bag of chips.

As Ethan ran after Dr. Peralta I was left half-awake with Jelo, DJ, Paige, and of course, the baby.

Slowly I was forgetting my dream, but what little I remembered was mixed with the conversation between Ethan and Paige last night. Two things repeated in my head over and over again, that lady saying 'You know me' and the name I've been hearing again and again.

"Diana," when I said her name the chatter around me stopped. Paige suddenly stopped talking and Jelo stopped munching on his food, "Who is she?"

"Come again?" DJ asked.

"Diana. I've been hearing her name constantly and it can't be a coincidence at this point. So, who is she?"

The three of them all looked at each other as if they were waiting for one of them to make a move.

"Come on guys this isn't a stand-off and it's not like I asked for the answer to anything drastic, I just want to know who she is and how apparently I remind people of her," still, there was no response, "Guys? Guy-"

"WE HAVE TO MOVE!" I was cut off by Ethan who had come running with Dr. Peralta and opened the doors of the car, "GET IT!"

"Weren't we going to walk?" asked DJ.

"Obviously the plan has changed," said Paige.

Dr. Peralta quickly told us what was going on before getting in the jeep, "Estrella's men are on their way, we've got to move!"

Jelo, Paige, and DJ all looked at each other relieved. Jelo placed his hand on my shoulder and said, "Let's put a pin on this conversation, alright?"

"Yeah, we really have to run," Paige agreed before getting in the jeep.

"I can't imagine I'm saying this but thank you, Estrella!" I heard DJ mutter under his breath before climbing up.

"LANZ GET IN!" urged Ethan, I didn't have time to argue so I just did as I was told.

When everyone was inside Dr. Peralta started the car and Ethan passed us our weapons. "Hold on to the little guy," he told Paige, "This is going to be really bumpy."

He plowed through the rocky and bumpy soil of the forest. We grabbed on tightly as we went through bumps, we went up and down it felt like we were on a roller coaster! Everyone was happy when we got off the forest and back on the road, from there it only took about three minutes to get to the daycare. Paige went in with DJ and Dr. Peralta while Ethan, Jelo, and I went to Ethan's house.

The Munsons' residence was a modern one-story black house. The house oozed chicness, the style of Ethan's family. If KJ was from an old money family, Ethan was part of the new money of Insula. His family's business skyrocketed over the years but his parents remained true to who they were. His dad was famously known in Valens as the "Rich dude with only one pair of shoes", because, well, he only did have one, buying tons of shoes was a waste of money he often said unless you were buying for someone who didn't have shoes.

Ethan opened the door and turned on the lights, "I'd say the usual make yourself at home but we're in a pinch. Jelo, head to my room and grab all the clothes you can find and just stuff them in. Lanz, help me out in the kitchen."

"I-I think Lanz should get the girls some clothes too," said Jelo, "Lanz you know where his cousin's room is right?"

"Yeah, of course, I do."

"Good, do that."

"Just use one of her bags, I think she has a duffel in there somewhere," Ethan said before heading to the kitchen with Jelo.

I scratched my head and did what I was told, as I said before, no time to argue. I went to his cousin's room and quickly found the duffel, it was easy because it was under her bed. I opened her closet and was puzzled, "Uh, Ethan?"

From the kitchen, he shouted, "What?"

"Where are your cousin's everyday clothes?" I asked, "All that's here is her uniforms! The type C kind!"

"Same question!" I heard Jelo say from Ethan's room, "All you have in your closet are the type C uniforms!"

It didn't take long for the two of them to get in the room, Jelo was holding a hanger of clothes and Ethan looked so confused. I showed them the closet and Ethan rummaged around but found nothing, "Did she bring every single one of her clothes with her?"

"That doesn't explain your clothes," said Jelo.

"That would be my cousin," he replied, "He was staying with us for a few days. He had the same build as me and my mom would've certainly told him to take my stuff."

"So, what? We're going to be walking along the zombie apocalypse in our thick uniform?" I asked.

"Doesn't seem like we have a choice," Jelo said as he stared at the uniform.

"You have got to be kidding me…"

"Nope," Jelo said looking grim, "Unfortunately not."

"Just pack it in," said Ethan, and I did. Jelo went back to Ethan's room and did the same.

I already finished stuffing the uniforms in the bag so I looked around the room to see what else I could bring that would fit at the back of the jeep without squishing Ethan. I grabbed the fluffy comforter and tied two pillows with some plastic twine I saw lying on the floor and brought them along with me. After I was done I went downstairs and helped Ethan pack food, he needed all the help he could get.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"Packing food, what else?"

I lifted the food he stuffed in the eco-bag, "These are chips."

"In case we get hungry on the road."

"Ethan, we don't need snacks. We need to survive!" I went into their pantry and grabbed the canned goods. Sardines, meatloaf, corned beef, I took all the ready-to-eat meals that the entire group can share, "These types of things Ethan. And grab a few pots and pans while you're at it."

"You already have a frying pan."

"Just grab two or three pots will you? Obviously, we can't heat soup with this thin frying pan."

"Oh right, I'll get it."

I shook my head and took a couple of spatulas and an actual knife, I wrapped it around the newspaper I found on the counter and carefully put it all in the eco-bag.

As we opened drawer upon drawer I came across an old map of Insula. I recognized it, it was the map Ethan used in Civics and Culture, a class we had in primary school.

"Remember this?" I said showing him the map.

"Yeah, I remember it because it was the only subject in that year that I actually could understand."

"You did get pretty high scores in those tests in longitude and latitude."

I pocketed the map. Why? Because since the cell towers were down we had no data, meaning no GPS. So if we wanted to get to the safe zones it would be through the good old-fashioned way of map reading. Hopefully one of us knows how to read these things. I've been too reliant on the GPS.

After a while, we all headed back to the living room. Ethan was carrying two eco-bags of food and cooking supplies like pots pans, butanes, and a portable camping stove, Jelo filled Ethan's duffle bag with uniforms and I could even see a sock or two sticking out, and I carried pillows, the comforter with its packaging, and swung the duffle bag of clothes around me so that I would have an easier time carrying everything.

"All set?" Jelo asked, to which we both nodded.

Jelo took the two pillows seeing how I had trouble carrying them and we left the Munson's residence and headed back to the daycare. When we got there we were stumped. The jeep was nowhere in sight!

"Where are they?!" Ethan exclaimed.

"Get down!" Jelo pushed our heads to the ground. We hid behind the bushes, and as I was about to ask why he did that I heard the footsteps of several people.

"The drone last spotted them here," said one of the men.

"They couldn't have gotten far," said another.

"Spread out, and find them!" ordered what I'm guessing is their leader, "They're presumed to have taken files from the lab that hold valuable information. We cannot allow them to share that information. Do you understand?"

"Sir, yes sir!"

"Now what have we gotten ourselves into?!" Ethan screamed in a whisper.

We ran back towards the direction we had come from discretely. If anyone of them had turned in our direction I was afraid we'd be caught, the camouflage pattern did not hide us because we were in a suburban area surrounded by houses!

"THE KEYS!" Jelo urged us as he reached the door of Ethan's house. Ethan tossed him the keys to the house and he immediately opened it and locked it once we all got in.

"What do we do now?!" Ethan asked, "They obviously would search every house in the area! And where are Doc and the others?!"

"Why are you asking me?!" I exclaimed, "I've been with you this entire time!"

"GUYS!"

We turned our attention toward Jelo, "Calm down! We can get out of this mess. We'll get to the question of where they are once we are out of here and safe and sound!"

"And how exactly are we supposed to get out of here?" asked Ethan.

"It'll be sometime before they reach this house so we have ample time for escape. Your parent's room opens to your backyard, and your backyard just to be facing the forest," Jelo explained.

"The forest sounds safer," Ethan said, "What are we waiting for then?"

We bolted to his parent's room and headed out of their backyard and into the woods. We ran deep into it until we were sure they wouldn't be able to find us. Good thing for us, we knew the layout of these woods, a little.

"Where do we go from here?" I asked Jelo.

"We need to think, where would they go? That's not far enough from here. A place we all know and would go to. Because I highly doubt that they would leave us all alone at the hands of Estrella," Jelo said, "So any ideas?"

"The school? It's just a few blocks from here," I answered.

"That place is full of Inmourtis!" Ethan exclaimed.

"But Doc and Paige don't know that, do they?!"

"Yeah, but DJ does!" he retorted.

"That's it!" Jelo exclaimed, making us turn to him, "Where would DJ go?"

"DJ?" we both said at the same time.

"Doc and Paige would've most certainly headed for the school but DJ knows it's not safe, so where would he suggest? A place like that's like a stronghold?"

"Where else?" said Ethan, "Claymore Mansion."

Jelo and I looked at him and sure enough, we knew that he was right, Claymore Mansion was indeed built like a stronghold, strong enough to survive the coup d'etat of the 1880s. If they headed to somewhere safe, DJ would have suggested that house for sure.

We didn't waste any more time and made our way to KJ's house. To be honest it was completely far from where we were. Claymore mansion was near the hospital which was nowhere near where we were. First, we had to get out of the woods and back on the main road, we got a little lost along the way but after two loops and around the same area we finally made it out! Still, we had a long way to go.

After a twenty to thirty-minute run, we finally reached the Claymore Mansion. It was good and we could finally rest our legs. But there was one problem, the jeep was nowhere in sight. We searched the entire lot for it but it wasn't there!

"They aren't here!" Ethan exclaimed, "Where are they?!"

"Calm down!" I said, "We just have to think where they could be."

"They were here no doubt about it," we turned to Jelo who had squatted and was looking at the tire tracks on the ground.

"You think Estrella got them?" Ethan asked.

"I don't think so," Jelo answered.

"That's good and all, but we still have no idea where they are," I pointed out.

"Oh but we do," said Ethan who was looking out in the distance.

"What?" I questioned and he turned my head towards the direction he was looking at, "There?"

Out in the distance, but not too far away, was the hospital. They were heading back to the hospital.

"It's the one place Estrella won't expect them to go."

I gripped tightly to my frying pan.

Oh boy, this day is going to get a whole lot more messy.