"LEAVE? Leave where?" Yilas was wrapped in a dark layer of fabric before she realized it. It had revealed her eyes but pretty much everything else was covered.
"We are leaving the camp, right now. So keep quiet." Without further explanation, Mohsen blew out all the lighting in the tent, carefully watched out for any guards outside before dragging Yilas by the hand to the outside.
Yilas wasn't mentally prepared for a runaway but she understood that if she stayed, she would become dead meat sooner or later. Without looking back, they were leaving the only light in the desert behind them.
Into the darkness of the desert, they ran desperately careful. One man running ahead holding only an arm as white as snow, peaking out of a tiny black ball.
***
After who knows how many hours of moving, Yilas soon realized her physical strength had improved significantly since she had come to this camp. However, it wasn't some magical power that could keep her endurance infinite. Yilas was huffing and puffing but she was kept on the move by Mohsen who had only looked ahead all this time.
"Te-Teacher... Mo-Mohsen... I... I can't...keep up..." Yilas panted between every word, even speaking had taken up too much air from her burning lungs.
"Just a little more, we are almost there." With his hand still holding tightly onto Yilas's hand, Mohsen softly reassured her even though he was also at his limit.
Their pace slowed down significantly, at this point Yilas was basically being dragged by the hand. Her chest was burning and sweat had drenched her skin, her head was spinning in a circle but her legs were stubbornly clinging on.
Seeing her desperate state, Mohsen sighed. According to his calculation, there should be a forest that they could hide in, though it was 4 hours walking away from the camp. The two of them had only been running for more than 3 hours, they shouldn't slack at least until they can find shelter in the forest.
Nonetheless, he had overestimated their physical abilities, thinking they would make the trip with no issue. After a split second of thinking, Mohsen turned the bag he had on his back to his chest and kneeled down to the ground.
"Yilas, get on my back." Mohsen's only thoughts were making it to the forest before any pursuer showed up, he didn't care much about how tired he was or how fatigued he looked already.
"N-No... We should just take... a break. I will be... fine." Yilas refused to go along with his plan, mostly because she knew Mohsen was worn-out too.
"Come on..." Still, in a kneeling position, Mohsen tiredly took Yilas by her wrist and put her on his back, and slowly tried to stand up. Unfortunately, his leg's blood circulation wasn't going good making them lose all strength. Both of them fumbled onto the ground, luckily it was a short-landing.
"Ah!" Yilas screamed as she felt they were falling, all she could do was to hold on tight to Mohsen, who had quickly spread his arms so that Yilas wouldn't get hurt.
"Mohsen, are you alright?" Mohsen was lying face down on the grown, his hands rolled tightly into a fist. "Let me help you get up..."
Before Yilas could get close enough, she had been pushed away by Mohsen, it wasn't a strong push but it clearly showed his embarrassment. Watching Mohsen struggling to stand, Yilas felt sad and desperation overtaking her, sadness was staring show on her big wary eyes.
"Maybe... maybe we should just go ba..."
"NO!"
"We can't make it, we won't..." Yilas burst out of desperation. All she felt was fear, she didn't want to be dead meat and die but at least she wouldn't kill Mohsen in the process if they went back to the camp. She couldn't possibly imagine him suffering.
"Shhhh..." Mohsen quickly wrapped Yilas within his arms and chest, rocking her every so lightly and stroke her back comfortingly. He had only been angry at himself for being so weak but unknowingly he had projected his frustration onto Yilas. Hearing the break in her voice, seeing sorrow on her face was the last thing he ever wanted. But he could only blame himself for his crude manners.
"We will make it, just trust me."
Yilas's hiccups echoed into the depth of the desert, accidentally making its way into the ears of a hidden creature nearby. Within the darkness itself, flashing blood-red globes appeared, moving closer and closer towards the two careless shadows. Without making a sound, without showing itself under the dimly lit moonlight, their distance had shortened to only a few feet from each other.