Blotted Out - Chapter 5.2

"The hoverboards are easy to manage. Turn one way, they go that one way. Turn the other, the same happens. Do not lean forward on your boards, they will increase in speed rapidly." Ben looked at me. "Very rapidly."

"I won't screw up," I said sarcastically, "I promise."

Ignoring my comment, he pulled the door open wide. After me, Johhny and Martin had made it out, he locked the door more than once, checked it, then locked it again.

"Why all the caution?" Ben gave me an 'I-said-I-will-explain-everything-later' look, and threw his hoverboard at the ground. It instantly floated a mere 3 feet from the earth.

"Solar panels," Ben explained as we threw ours on the ground as well. I strapped a very excited Johnny into the side seat. Stepping on, I strapped my own feet onto the board. It was kind of wobbly, but I was used to it by now. Learning to ride a basic hoverboard was something pretty much every kid of Pan learned how to do.  

"How fast do these things go?" I leaned forward, nearly bumping into Ben. Maybe riding it wouldn't be as simple as I'd hoped...

"They," he glared at me, straightening up, "can reach speeds up to 80 miles an hour. We're not going past 55 - which is already programmed into your boards." Ben looked almost intimidating on the hoverboard. He was already about 4 inches taller than me; him being on the board, flying higher than me, made it worse. "You ready Mr. Martin?"

"Let's go," Martin said from the behind me. Ben made no hesitation, and sped off ahead of us. I leaned forward a little, and I had soon caught up with him. It took me a little while, but soon I had the hang of it. Riding this one sure did strain the legs though.

We passed very few trees, and the sun was brutal. Several times I had to reach into my backpack to pull out the water bottle and sip a bit. I was going to be burnt more than a piece of toast.

I passed the time by counting the number of animals I saw. None of them looked particularly dangerous - just the back of a bunny here, the flitting of a deer's tail there. Every so often, Martin would speak up from the back... Normally to comment on how hot it was, or how bad his back hurt, or to say "in my generation," or something like that. But for the most part, we traveled in silence.

Soon, Ben began to check over his shoulder, as if something caught his attention. Then he would comment to say something about how close our next break would be. "10 minutes, and we'll stop," he said over his shoulder.

Johnny looked up from me, his face slick with sweat. "I'm hot," he whined, sniffling a little bit.

"We'll stop in a little bit," I told him - though I couldn't blame the kid. It was probably around 80, in February - which was pretty odd for Pan. Or wherever we were. When we reached a clump of trees, Ben stopped us.

"We can take a break now," he said while climbing off. I unstrapped my feet, and jumped off as well, unbuckling Johnny. I carried him to the shad under the trees, and set him down. He wiped his forehead, and curled up into a ball.

"I'm hot," he repeated, this time louder.

"Here," Ben tossed me a water bottle. I opened it, and poured a little into my hand, splashing Johnny's neck and face with it.

"Drink this," I urged, giving him the bottle. He eagerly drank half of it, then let it all back out onto the grass. My heart started to race, and not just because of the heat. Something was wrong with him...

Ben knelt down next to me, feeling Johnny's forehead. He pressed two long fingers against his neck and Johnny closed his eyes. Reaching into his backpack, Ben pulled out a long piece of cloth. He wet it with the water bottle, folded it, then laid it on top of Johnny's forehead.

Still worried, and partially annoyed, I rolled my eyes. "What are you? Some certified doctor?" Ben's face tightened, but he said nothing. He stood, glancing back the way we'd came. He looked back at Johnny, shaking his head.

"We need to keep moving. We'll get back on in about 10 minutes."

And ten minutes later we did.

We only stopped about twice after that for drink and food breaks. Johnny seemed to be getting better, but he often slept in the seat when we rode, and never spoke very much. By the time it was getting dark, and our hoverboards swiftly dying, we had reached a stream surrounded by big boulders - some with large openings, like caves. 

"We'll sleep here for tonight." None of use disagreed with Ben, and we all followed him into a small cave-like boulder. After Martin and Ben had finished stacking the hoverboards on the side, Ben left to get firewood. 

Martin never spoke. Not once. He was smart. Must've known I would've attacked him for being so clueless.

Ben came back, his hands full of twigs and branches. He took a match to a leaf, and set the pile ablaze.

"Won't it be too hot for that?" I asked. Ben shook his head.

"Get's really cold in the night. Near 30 degrees, almost." He pulled a blanket out of his backpack, and laid it out on the ground. "Get used to sleeping like this. Beds are a luxury we can't often afford."

I wanted to ask him who 'we' was, but I knew he wouldn't answer. Not until he got that "chance" he was talking about. I doubled up on mine and Johnny's blankets, and he laid down. He was looking a little better, and he was actually taking the water now.

Martin had already laid his stuff out on the opposite side of the fire. He looked like he was going to say something, but he didn't.

"We'll take turns watching. 2 hours, then switch. I'll take first watch." Ben was already on his way out, and he sat at the entrance to the cave with his blanket wrapped around him, a shiny knife in hand. It may have even been the one he had almost killed me with...

"Well," Martin laid down closing his eyes. "You know, I really could do for a snow-cone right about now." Okay, I had to laugh at that one. Some of Martin's youth seemed to comeback when I did. "Goodnight," he whispered. Johnny was soon asleep, but I couldn't. Ben would do something in the night, I knew it.

I kept watching him with one eye open, waiting for him to turn and throw the dagger at me - but the most movement he made was looking up at the star-filled night sky.

Finally, I gave up. If he wanted to kill me, he would've done it already. On that grim thought, I closed my eyes, darkness already enveloping me.