Between the dark, the shaky feeling in her broken leg each time her foot struck the ground, and the heaving in her chest as her lungs begged her to take a break and allow them time to rest, she was struggling. The drugs she’d been given gave enhancements to all of her senses, so her sight might be better than the average person, but it wasn't good enough to see normally in the dark.
To that end, it had always been only a matter of time before she hit something.
Turned out to be a broken tree branch. She ran right into it, bounced off it, and went down hard. A brief flare of pain quickly dissipated into nothing, and she rolled onto her back, struggling to drag enough air into her lungs.
Realistically speaking, how much longer could she keep running?
There was no way to know how badly injured burning man was. Sticking around and checking him over certainly hadn't been in her plan, she’d just escaped and run, but he’d been alive, and she had to believe he might be following her.
Was she just supposed to keep running until she collapsed? Until she was physically incapable of taking another step?
Rolling back onto her stomach, she managed to get to all fours before she swayed, the weight of standing too much. It would be so much easier to just curl up in a ball, let nature take its course, let whatever was going to happen just happen.
No.
That’s the voices in your head urging you to give in.
You can't listen to them. Can't let them win.
Out there somewhere is Voodoo, all you have to do is get to him and everything will be okay.
That was enough to get her back on her feet, and Indigo resumed running.
For a while at least.
Slowly, her falls got more frequent, and it was harder to get back up each time she went down.
The forest seemed to get thicker.
Darker.
Quieter.
Until all of a sudden, it wasn't quiet anymore.
“Keep doing what you're doing,bait,” a voice sneered. It wasn't close, but she immediately recognized it as belonging to burning man. Somehow, he must be following whatever trail she was leaving behind, because what were the chances that he would randomly wind up in the same part of the forest that she was in?
Stopping, hand pressed against the closest tree trunk to keep herself upright, Indigo did her best to keep her harsh breathing as quiet as possible. How far away was he? Could he hear her? Did he know where she was or only that she was somewhere nearby?
“Your stupid little car prank didn't change anything. They’re out there, and they’ll track you, you’ll lead them straight into a trap,” burning man taunted.
That was the last thing she wanted to do.
Finding Voodoo meant everything to her, but it was also selfish. He was better off on his own, she was a major liability, and she didn't bring much to the table to even that out. Her ability to not feel pain only benefited her, not anyone else. It wouldn't help protect Voodoo and his team, nor would it help them fight against Dr. Gardner.
No.
Don’t listen to him.
Voodoo and the rest of Delta Team are going to destroy Dr. Gardner and anyone who stands on his side.
Taking off in the opposite direction from where she thought burning man was, Indigo refused to allow his words to affect her.
She refused to allow anything negative to affect her.
Voodoo had told her that just because her past had beendark didn't mean her future couldn’t be light, and that’s what she was going to hold onto.
Keep moving.
