"BERSERKE... SCAR!!!" Red gave an ear-piercing shriek that reverberated all throughout the Inside.
Upon seeing Scar sprawled on the ground, Red hurried towards his location, tearing his shirt apart and wrapping it around Scar like a makeshift bandage. The steady dripping of his blood finally stopped as Red tightened it even more. During the whole process, Red remained calm and collected, only giving off a few occasional grunts as he tightened the bandage on Scar's stomach.
However, there was no time to rest.
Red gently laid Scar on the forest floor as careful as possible so as not to aggravate his already broken bones. Scar's breath left him a few seconds ago so Red knew there was still a chance to revive him.
And knowing Scar, that chance is greater than ninety percent since he's the epitome of survivability.
Red cupped his hands on Scar's chest, beginning his cardiopulmonary resuscitation. He didn't miss a single bit as he dexterously alternated his chest compression and mount to mouth resusciation, forcing Scar's heart to take life once again.
By the time Blond arrived, Red was already on his third set. To his despair, Scar was still not breathing.
"Come on! Come on!" Red gritted his teeth. A sense of panic began to invade his body as Scar's life slowly slipped away on his hands. "You got to wake up, Scar. Help me out here!"
Blond could see the frustration written all over Red's face as he did his fourth set of reviving Scar. Creases formed on Red's forehead as the seconds ticked, making Blond take a few steps back just in case red flips out.
Blond badly wanted to exchange with Red but the expression Red wore was something he rarely sees. And as someone who had known Red for years, he knew that Red only wears a face like that when he doesn't want to be disturbed. If Blond steps in and volunteers to take his place, Blond knew he would only incur Red's wrath and he's not confident enough that he'll make it out alive when that happens.
That's why, as much as he hated it, Blond just did his own thing.
Five minutes have passed and the 'cleaning' that was currently occurring in the Inside was about halfway done. However, Red was completely oblivious about it
Blond also put the 'cleaning' out of his mind as he tore his shirt part of his pants. After grabbing a branch that was strong and thick enough for its usage, Blond proceeded to make a stretcher. It didn't even take him a minute to make it.
"Red! We have to go! The Cleaning's almost done!" Blond screamed at Red, robbing him of his concentration.
To further explain what the Cleaning is all about, it's a massive clean-up that occurs after a mock battle. When the fights are over, dozens of humanoids that specialize in cleaning would roam around the Inside, looking for trash, corpse, or anything amiss in the Inside. It's their task to clean the whole Inside and bring it back to its former appearance. That's why anything that looks different would be brought to the incinerator.
However, these are confidential information and not anyone knew about it. That's because only a few had personally seen it and none had come back to tell the tale to the other workers. Except for the block owners, of course. They've seen the 'Cleaning' happen annually that it's just a normal day for them. Although to those who have their workers left behind during cleaning, it was a rather traumatic experience. As their injured workers got picked up by the humanoids, the block owners would clearly see their desperate struggle as they squirm. And everyone who got caught during 'Cleaning' would all end up in the same place: the incinerator.
"Give me a minute!" Red gave Blond a look of affirmation, a look that told him that the three of them would get out of there alive.
Red began his countdown as he did his fifteenth set. "Seriously, Scar? Do you really want to get kissed fifteen times?" Red tried to make light of the matter but he just couldn't get the ticking time out of his mind.
"So what of it, Red? It's not like it's your first kiss or anything." Blond shrugged. After a few modifications on his makeshift stretcher, he was only left with an underwear and a few shreds of his shorts that barely hid his thighs.
"How about you kiss Scar in my place." Red challenged him. "Seriously, this is getting really dangerous."
"Just trust your guts. Scar won't die that easily. he's a beast after all."
Suddenly, a noise interrupted their conversation. It was a noise that brought a bittersweet feeling. Although they've been expecting it, the timing couldn't be better.
A fit of coughs and a series of metallic clankings simultaneously drowned the atmosphere, making Red and Blond's blood rise up as adrenaline drowned their system once again.
As Scar's heart began beating once again, the Cleaner humanoids were already a few steps away from where the trio were. Red hastened to transfer Scar into Blond's stretcher and immediately grabbed the other end.
"LET"S GO!!!" Red's voice almost cracked as it pierced the Forest-section.
Without a second to spare, Red and Blond ran like madmen getting bombed from their rear. They've been to multiple chases before but this one was the most challenging one yet. Not only did they not have any cover, but they're also in possession of a cargo that they couldn't leave behind— and that cargo being Scar, who was a dead weight due to his injury and half-lucid consciousness.
"Do you think we'll make it? I've been running all day, I don't think I could make it." Blond doubted himself as he picked up the pace.
Slowly but steadily, the Cleaner humanoids were beginning to catch up to them. When they were only three steps behind the trio, that's when Red and Blond realize that those Cleaner humanoids were not simple ones.
"OUTCLASS HUMANOIDS? Are you kidding me?"
It's as if Red and Blond's stomach lurched upwards as a brief feeling of panic swept over them. Still, they kept running. After all, there was only less than half a mile left before they reached the Humanoid-section.
Their safe haven.
"Hang on Scar, we're almost there."
Blond looked up, trying to catch his breath and that's when he noticed the countdown being shown on the Inside ceiling. A few hours ago it showed an artificial sunrise and clouds but now it's showing the countdown to their deaths. The vast difference between the two almost made Blond laugh.
"Although I've been here plenty of times, this place still sucks. I really want to get out of here." Blond muttered to himself, finding a new source of energy and running even faster than before.
When it comes to running, it's mostly the mentality that matters slightly more than physical fitness itself. An athlete could suddenly feel bored in the middle of a marathon and stop running or an overweight person could suddenly feel light as a feather when a feral dog chases him. That's why, what matters most in running, or pretty much any strenuous activity, is the mentality to push through. And that single change of mindset could be the underlying factor of victory or in this case, survival.
Seeing Blond's mentality back in its place, Red couldn't help but smile inwardly as he admired him. Blond was never the athlete of the group, but his strong willpower had always saved him many times by skin of teeth. Even the most dangerous situation turns into a cakewalk when Blond was the one tackling it. That's why he's an indispensable figure to the team although Red was the one leading it.
"I know what you're thinking." Blond glanced over his shoulders, looking at Red on the other end of the stretcher.
"What?"
"It's good to be back!" Blond responded before Red could say another word. It sent shivers down Red's spine as he was reminded once again by Blond's innate ability of deductive reasoning.
"You're creepy, you know that." Red shot back.
"Say what now? Compared to you and Scar, I'm just tadpole in front of a frog."
"You and your creepy metaphors." Red wittingly returned.
As the two casually exchanged words, one would think that they were strolling underneath a cloudy day before sunset. Whereas the two were actually running from a hundred Outclass humanoids that would send them to the fiery furnace if they ever caught up to them.
.....
Jarxen clenched his fists, digging his nail on the soft skin on his palms and making it bleed. Red and Blond, with Scar in tow, were only a few meters from the Humanoid-section. Adding to that, they only had five seconds left before the 'Cleaning' officially comes to an end. By then, all the sections of the Inside would be closed off, trapping those left behind with the Outclass humanoids until the Inside reopens again next year, on the next mock battle. Well, those trapped workers would more or less get sent to the incinerator first.
After all, who could run away from Outclass humanoids in an enclosed space for a year?
No one.
Time seemed to come to a halt as the countdown reached one second left. Jarxen couldn't dare look at the live footage anymore.
"Come on, you all have to make it." Jarxen hoarsely said underneath his breath.