An eerie hiss echoed off the tunnel walls, sending a chill up Shane’s spine. Gil’s flashlight spun around and the hiss turned to an ear shattering shriek as a dark shadow darted away from the light.
“Shadow Brutes,” Alex hissed, fumbling for his gun.
“Wait.”
The voice did not belong to any of them. It was strained, on the verge of a hiss. A shadowy figure stepped forward, just outside Gil’s beam of light, just barely illuminated. It’s glowing eyes were wide as it peered at the humans through the darkness.
“Krobus,” it said with a nod. “Good.”
“Krobus?” Sam repeated.
“The brute that lives in the valley,” Shane said. “Najia told me about him.”
“Humans,” it hissed to them. “Run. Krobus waits. Run.”
It stepped around the light, moving closer to them. Another brute moved forward, followed by another and another, until a small group of Shadow People emerged from the shadows of the tunnel. They stepped carefully around the flashlights and towards the dynamite. The brute that spoke to them made his way to Gil, holding a shadowy hand out and taking the line from Gil. Gil watched, mouth gaping, as the creature took the line, it’s hand brushing up against him. He flinched, but its touch was warm against his skin.
“Run now, humans,” it said. “Shadow People help.”
“You’re… going to set off the dynamite?” Gil asked. “And give us a chance to escape?”
“Yesssss.” The glowing eyes moved up at the corners, as if it were smiling to him.
“No,” Marlon said. “We can’t let you do that.”
“No time. We fight. Go now.” The creature pushed its hand towards them and hissed loudly. “Thank you, Human. Be good.”
Marlon and Gil exchanged glances before turning back to the Shadow creature.
“Thank you,” Marlon said.
Gil motioned with his flashlight. “Let’s get out of here,” he muttered.
Sam and Alex took off after Marlon and Gil as they broke into a run down the tunnel. Shane hesitated, his eyes on the Shadow creature. The creature seemed to nod at him. Shane pinched his lips together and turned away, following the others quickly, sprinting down the tunnel to safety.
*****
“It’s fear that drives a man to fight… because he simply wants to survive… No one is brave. We’re all cowards. We’re all running… for our lives. Fear is our bodies being rational, being sane, telling us to get the hell out of a bad situation. Fear is normal. Fear is real. Bravery is not. Bravery is a lie… a mask.”
Shane’s chest burned, not from the stress of sprinting down the dark tunnel, but from the pain and grief that tore through him. He stopped and spun around, his chest heaving, when he heard the explosion. It was too far away to effect them now, but the blast was enough to echo down the tunnel and stop the others in their tracks as well. They stared down the long, dark tunnel until the echo finally subsided and their world fell silent.
Death. At some point, Death would come for them, whether it was now, or in fifty years; it was inevitable. But Death was feared. By every rational human being, it was feared. Shane feared Death. The death of those he loved, of himself. It was that fear that drove him forward, even when Death claimed its victims around him. It was fear that drove him down the tunnel, because his instincts told him to do anything he could to live, to survive. Yet Malone, his men, the Shadow People - they faced death head on. Maybe they weren’t fearless, but they weren’t cowards.
Malone was wrong. There was a difference between being fearful and being a coward. Fear was an acceptable, reasonable emotional response, but how one chose to act upon their fear separated the cowards from the heroes.
And Shane was just a coward.
The five men stood in silence, staring down the dark tunnel for a moment before turning around and moving forward, no longer running.
It took them two hours before they reached the ladder, climbing out of the sewers. The morning was dark as rain pelted at the ground. Thunder rumbled in the distance. They trudged through the mud, their clothes soaked, clinging to their bodies as they made their way back to the vehicles. They drove up the mountain range, stopping when they reached an overlook, and stepped out.
The rain had let up some, falling gently around them as they stood together, looking out over the world. Marlon dug through the back of the Hummer, ripping open a case of beer, passing a can to each of them, and they drank in silence on the side of the mountain.
