2 Weeks Later...

I stepped slowly off the smouldering steps into the surrounding parkland, my head spinning, midday heatwaves baking the smooth marble under my feet. As I regained my wits I glanced around.

He'd gone too far this time.

The city was eerily silent around me, no voices, no cars, the breeze provided a soft rustle as it whipped dried leaves around in circles on the pavement. A torn sheet of newspaper blew against the barred fence of the park and stuck there. I should have seen this coming. The signs were there all along but I was too focused on what I thought was important, too blind to see the obvious that was staring right back at me. Seth.

A defeated cry echoed through the empty park, it came from behind me. Did it just call my name or am I going crazy?

"Ash!"

Nope, not crazy. It sounded like Alison. As I looked and she called again I realised it was Alison. So she was still alive.. I turned to face the direction of the din, and not a second later she came stumbling out of the bushes, face bleeding a little from large scratches up her cheeks, and looking scared. "I'm so sorry.." She said as she got closer, the panicked look in her eyes giving her an edge of sincerity. But I didn't have time to acknowledge her, he was getting away. Leaving her standing there like a hopeless child, I walked off pointedly in the opposite direction. This was her fault too to be honest - I can't take all the credit.

The silence was suddenly broken as the sound of gunfire broke through the noiseless shroud around us.. I dropped to the ground.
Shit. They found us.
I turned around, Alison was looking around frantically. She was going to get shot if she didn't move quickly. She glanced my way. Those eyes. Cursing my stupid crappy idiot human self, I got up and ran to her, slamming into her torso (as gently as one can slam into someone else while running for their life), and landed us both with a dizzying thump into the same bushes she'd stumbled out of moments ago.

"Ashto-.." She started, but I covered her mouth. There'd be time to listen to her excuse for an... excuse.. later, if we lived. She obviously hadn't woken up properly yet and didn't realise the gravity of the situation, but I had enough of my faculties in order to be reasonably peturbed.

I saw them entering the park cautiously through the thick leafy shelter we lay behind. At first only one or two, then hundreds. We were done for.
Like the well-trained personnel they were, they strafed, hopped or crawled into the park, and checked every inch. Like I said. We were done for.

I needed a miracle to save us now. But what I saw instead chilled me to the bone.
At the front of the armed band of militants, leading with a small device in his hand and smiling as if he'd just won state, strode Alex.


(Yay! This is an unofficial addition to the story of Ashton X! It's probably not by any means the direction the actual story will take, but it was fun writing it! You can find the real adventures of Ashton over at ashtonx.blogspot.com!)

Cheerio

JW