Take Flight

• Beatrix Foki, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2022

The wind whips my hair into my eyes but all i can see is black, my hands search in the darkness trying to grab my rifle as rats scurry in the abandoned tunnel. Fear grabs my chest as soft footsteps thud on the blood soaked floor, my hands grab the rifle and i tense as footsteps grow louder, wait no, the sounds of two pairs footsteps makes my blood chill as i grip the rifle a little harder. “She’ll be here” the low gruff voice takes me by surprise as i shrink a little further into the darkness cocking my gun towards the sound of the voice “do you have the gas?” My heart races as the sound of grinding metal echoes through the tunnel, i have to act quick, i duck behind a pipe crouching down as I aim my rifle at the looming shadow of the man, close my eyes and pull the trigger.

The gun shot rings in my ears deafens me to the muffled thud that followed, wiping away tears i sling the rifle over my back and start two back away. It never gets easier, taking lives. My boots make imprints in the sewage water echoing through out the tunnel as look for the covered symbol, finding it i open the cleverly concealed door and step inside. The warm air hits me first followed by the safety and security i always feel when i come back, this is my home, the fairy lights hung around the small space cast a mellow glow as I kick off my boots and collapse onto a pile of pillows a