After each of us took at least one five hour energy(I took two), we got to work. Not wasting any time as the sun set below the horizon.

I spent most of my time on the second floor, working on the chemical balloons, mixing each of the compounds together with tedious care. There was a certain familiarity that came with the slow process. It made me feel slightly at ease.

While I worked on the balloons, Eli finished his own project involving the makeshift fire bombs. He'd already drained several of the abandoned cars left in the apartment complex's small parking lot for their precious gas. While we used most of it to fuel our escape vehicles, Eli reserved a few liters to be used for weapons.

He would still be our eye in the sky, most likely using the same building that we'd used earlier today as his perch. But he would using the fire escape to get up to the roof rather than the stairs to avoid those things in the hall.

I still couldn't shake the foreboding feeling of those egg sack like things we'd witnessed. They hadn't posed a genuine threat at the time, since they had appeared oddly dormant, but my instincts had still told me to run.

Whatever those things were, I wanted them to burn too.

And considering how much fire power we had under our belts, it might have been possible.

Once I finished my work, and stowed the balloons in my designated dually truck, I found Charles in the kitchen. He had previously been loading and checking each of the guns but had already finished the task.

He was sitting on one of the barstools quietly with his hands moving precisely with a post-it note to create what looked like an origami parakeet. Charles seized his nervous actions once I entered the room, as if being knocked out of a deep thought.

"Hey, I jus' finished loadin' the dually, you good?" I asked as he set down the paper fixture delicately.

"Yeah I'm fine," He replied with a dismissive wave of his hand, "I was just thinking."

"What about?" I asked and took a seat next to him.

"What we're gonna do after," He replied.

"We're gonna head north right?" I asked.

A few days ago, I had little interest in going anywhere after destroying Wither Gate. My initial plan had actually been to die in the process.

But things had changed.

"We can, but, where are we gonna go?" He asked, his expression full of conflict, "Travelling around is too dangerous now."

I shrugged. "We could find another safe house," I offered and he briefly considered it.

He rubbed subconsciously at the scar on his jaw. "I was thinking that we could start a new Wither Gate," He prompted and I arched a brow.

I had a hard enough time being attached to two people. I couldn't imagine being a part of a community like that. But I didn't want to tell him that either because I had a feeling that Eli would want the same thing

"Maybe," I said hesitantly, "If we can pull this thing off tonight."

Charles nodded in agreement. "Fair point," He remarked before standing up, "You're not still thinking about dying are you?"

I shrugged again.

"Are you still thinkin' about those people?" I asked gently.

He didn't bat an eyelash.

"Always."

"Then yes, I am," I replied, "But if it's any consolation, I won't be tryin' to kill myself anymore."

His brows furrowed. "Not that I'm complaining but why the sudden change of heart?" He asked curiously.

"I guess I found out that maybe my life isn't as shitty as I thought it was. And even though Christian is gone," I began as my gaze fell to the counter top, "I don't think he'd want me to join him up there jus' yet. Si I just gotta keep goin' right?" I continued and pointed upwards.

He nodded. "Something like that," He replied but this time it sounded as if he actually believed it.

He stood up before checking his own shoulder wound, through the hazmat suit, which was healing nicely.

"Oh look! We're shoulder boo' boo' buddies!" I said like a lunatic and he quickly gave me a concerned look.

He leaned in with a narrow gaze.

"You're still on drugs aren't you?" He asked with mock seriousness.

"Possibly," I shrugged as a guilty grin spread across my face. A funny feeling spread through my chest at the sudden proximity.

It wasn't unpleasant.

Charles stepped back and sighed through his nose.

"How come you get to take drugs but I can't smoke?" He asked.

"Because smoking is gross," I replied with a distasteful expression, "Besides, I'm pretty sure the person who used to own this place was a drug dealer so I couldn't jus' let his stock go to waste."

"What infallible logic," Charles noted with a roll of his eyes.

"What makes you say they were a drug dealer?" Eli's youthful voice suddenly asked.

I turned to see him holding almost a dozen unlit firebombs containing homemade napalm. I subconsciously moved a hand to the flare tucked in my front vest pocket.

"Well first of all, I found a stash of painkillers and anxiety pills in his bathroom and there used to be a bunch of packets of white powder in that cookie jar," I explained honestly, pointing to the unremarkable looking brown jar and then gesturing to the guest room where they slept "Plus I found vacuum sealed stacks of twenty dollar bills under one of the mattresses."

"What did you do with t-the powder?" Eli asked before checking the inside of the cookie jar only to find it was empty.

"Don't worry about it," I replied quickly, feigning innocence. Of course I tossed the powder down the sink almost as soon as I found it but they didn't have to know that.

Soom after that, the three of us exited the apartment for the last time and walked out into the balmy night. It was around four in the morning now and still dark outside; the ideal time for a surprise attack.

Charles shook his head while stepping up onto the front loader.

"That's it, once we're done here, I'm sending you to rehab," He stated firmly but couldn't hide his grin.

"Good luck with that," I replied, reaching for the door handle of the dually, "They'd probably take your ass with me."

"Shit. You're right," Charles admitted before taking a seat within the front loader and quickly adjusting the slightly too small hazmat suit he wore.

Eli walked past us and shook his head, approaching my old black truck with an amused but knowing expression.

"What am I going to do with you t-two?"