Between the Outer and Inner Walls reminded Logan of a complex labyrinth of hallways and doorways leading to more hallways. It was made to be complex enough to stump those without higher brain function, but just easy enough that those living in the Herd could navigate through them. The grey walls of the maze stretched up several meters and were lined with flashing red lights.
Inside the walls, he could no longer hear the sounds of people getting ripped apart or the growl of an Infected trying to use him as a chew toy. The silence wasn't necessarily deafening as Logan had grown to appreciate the quiet, but it was certainly unsettling, especially now. Although he loved to remain inside his own head at times, he knew he was too high-strung at the moment to let himself get caught up in himself.
He cursed himself for not studying the intricacies of the Walls and the halls, despite having the time and access to do so. Sighing deeply, Logan took a blind step forward and started his journey around the halls. The longer Logan walked, the narrower he felt the hallways were becoming. His vision swam in shades of crimson and eventually it became too much and Logan had to place a hand on the wall in order to not walk into it. Dry, dusty pipes trailed ahead and above him, only seen by the black shading where the neon lights didn't hit them.
After a few minutes aimlessly wandering the hallways, Logan stopped at a four-way intersection, glancing in all directions hoping for some sort of hint on which way to go that would keep him safe from the Infected. Alas, nothing appeared. He growled.
"This is hopeless. I'm never going to escape until the lockdown is over." Logan sighed, placing his back against the cool metal wall.
He unfastened the backpack strapped to him and shuffled through the inside of the bag, searching for a flashlight of any sort to get the red out of his eyes. Growing frustrated, he overturned the bag, not caring about how much noise the rations and clothing falling onto the metal tiles made and sifted through the mess, coming up with nothing of use. Instead, he closed his eyes and resisted letting out a scream of irritation, coming out with a deep rumble in his throat. Black was better than red.
"Is someone there?"
Logan tensed at the voice echoing from behind him. It felt like his blood had frozen in his veins and the fire in his bones had suddenly flickered out.
"Please. I don't care if you're infected or not, just show yourself." The voice said in a warm tone. "We can get through this together."
Logan's brow furrowed, he sighed deeply, and turned around, following where the voice was still calling out for him, leaving the mess behind him. He turned a corner a few meters behind him and found himself face-to-face with a sharply dressed man, his curly blond hair framing his face and thick rimmed glasses falling down his long pointed nose. The white button-down shirt seemed to hang off his shoulders and did nothing to hide his lanky form. His eyes widened when spotting Logan and he raised his hands in the air in a placating manner.
"Hi. Hello. My name is Jeremy. Jeremy Silver." The man – Jeremy Silver, apparently, spoke in a calming way. "I'm not going to hurt you and I'm not Infected."
"I'm not either. I just came from the library when it happened." Logan found himself blurting out to defend himself. His muscles remained tensed despite the man trying his best to appear friendly.
"Okay. Can I get your name?"
Logan hesitated, then said curtly. "Logan. What do you want?"
"I'm trying to escape. To the outside."
"Are you suicidal?"
"If the Infected are inside the walls, where do you suppose they aren't, Logan?"
The snappy comment from Jeremy gave Logan pause. He had a point, despite how much Logan wanted to deny it. Logan couldn't tell what color eyes the man had since everything was currently tinted red, but he imagined the man staring him down with bright, piercing eyes, unwavering and unnerving.
"Alright, say you're right,"
"I am."
"Why are you hiding out here if you're so dead set on getting outside?" Logan continued as if he hadn't heard the man's snarky comment.
"I heard the Inner Gate open and figured someone had the same idea as me. There's strength in numbers so I came over this way to find them. Are you going to hide out inside or will you come with me to the outside?"
Logan paused again. He'd never been curious about the outside world. All he ever needed to know about the world outside the walls had been written in texts that he had to study relentlessly, not to mention Aly constantly gushing over how interesting the outside must be. He had originally planned on hiding out until the whole invasion blew over so he could go back home and continue his studies, but now that he was faced with someone who believed this wasn't a temporary issue, he hesitated.
This entire situation had already put a wrench in his plans and now he had a choice to make: he could either stay and risk the Infected finding him and cursing him, or he could make a run for it and potentially never find another Herd to join and pursue teaching. Neither option was ideal, but he'd been unknowingly forced into a corner.
Jeremy relaxed against the far wall, seemingly content on watching him suffer mutely in his inner debate. The previous silence that Logan embraced now suffocated him. He felt trapped in his own mind. When he glanced up, he found his answer in Jeremy's waiting eyes.
"I'm coming with you."
Jeremy didn't appear displeased with his decision, but neither did he look particularly excited. Instead, he straightened up and beckoned Logan to walk with him down a different hallway stemming off from the main red hallway he'd been trekking through.
"So," Logan said quietly, breaking the silence, "what's your job in the Herd?"
"I'm a doctor, but my main focus is – "
An echoing growl from their right halted any conversation Jeremy was about to continue. Both men's muscles tensed when the snarling, gurgling voice multiplied and came closer. A glance at Jeremy's haunted yet determined face told Logan all he needed to know and he nodded, letting Jeremy know he'd follow him wherever he was going.
Without a word, Jeremy took off in a dead sprint down the hallway away from the Infected, who now ran after them. Logan's eyes got lost in the never-ending red hallways but followed blindly after the doctor and not daring to look back. He could feel the pounding of his heart beating against his chest nearly as loud as the pounding of feet on metal flooring behind him.
Jeremy slammed himself against a large metal door and began punching his fingers against the door panel quickly. Logan skidded around and pulled his bowie knife out, ready to fight for his life again. Before he could make the first strike, He felt something grab his shirt collar from behind and tug hard and suddenly he was outside laying in the dirt.
Logan looked up in shock at Jeremy and the hoard of Infected for a split second before the doors began to close again. Logan leapt to his feet and dove for the door, only managing to smack himself against the dusty metal walls as the door sealed itself shut and he was left on the outside of the walls.
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