Not quite sure what side I'm on anymore, victims or rebels. They're all the same. Running, always running. Away from the world. The world hates me like it hates all oddities. Oddities are to be stuffed, looked at, goggled at, put on display for our wretchedness. But we are alive, are we not?

Still alive. Still running. We're oddities, and therefore noticeable. But we stick together, no matter what, which was why I was running now with another oddity and a human. Sides. Like I even cared about sides when my life's at stake. The human hasn't tried to kill me yet, so I labeled him—I think he's male—a friend. Besides, he has a gun and he's using it against the chasing police.

Bang. Bang. A cry from behind us; the human must have hit his mark.

I looked at him, silently asking a question. He puffs, "Don't—stop. Still—after us."

"Where—stop?" the other oddity, Sen, asked. I believe his face was red. Mine must have been as well; it felt like we'd been running forever.

"River—there—throw our scent—off. Hide—after." The human was almost without strength, all humans being frailer than us oddities. He groggily, fighting off the Everlasting Sleep, lifted his arm to shoot again.

I snatched the gun from his hand, pushing him in the direction of the river. "I can—fight them off," I breathe. "You're—no condition—to shoot."

"You're—a girl!" he gasped, trying to reach and grab the gun back. "I can't—let you—die—shooting them!"

I suppose he was right. I was, in their terms, a female, but I was an oddity. I might have seen his perspective on things if I was not as exhausted, but I was an oddity. Like I cared. I said, eying the oncoming policemen and hounds roughly 200 yards away, "I'm not going—to die—if they catch me. They'll—kill you. Can't—let that happen. Now—run!" All oddities have the order imprinted in their brains from repetitiveness – never let a human die if you can go in their place. I was, however I may have hated it, was acting on it.

He gave me a look of exhausted pity, and hesitated, looking intently at my face. Before I knew what he was doing, he had kissed me and whispered in my ear, "Come after us. Don't die," and then he was gone, stumbling towards the river.

I didn't waste my time thinking about his lips, so soft and tender on my own, because I could see the policemen approaching. I cocked the gun, aiming it at the group. The policemen froze, most probably thinking of all oddities' superhuman far sight. I could aim perfectly at them, and they knew it.

I wondered who should die first, my pity for organic matter long gone. They'd killed my people and twisted us into wretched beings, using us for slave work, and now a cold bullet shall end their lives. I knew the hounds weren't such as big a problem, so I aimed for the humans. My finger pulled back and a bullet was let fly. From a hundred yards away, I saw them freeze in terror, and them one of them hurled back with a choke of blood. Bulls-eye.

My humorless grin awaited the policemen when they turned from their wounded comrade, horror-struck, to me, pulling out their own guns and aiming. Seconds too late, of course. I had already shot another round, killing a policeman and wounding two more, leaving only two left, and was streaking across to the river, gun held loosely in my hands. Water. Get into the water to cool my burning body. Get to the river and then find my comrades, if they hadn't abandoned me to my fate.

Water. In the water. I was immersed by the river, paddling hard to get to the other side. It was all in vain, of course, because then I felt cold, hard steel tear into my back and lodge inside myself. Will I die floating here? I wondered, as my mind grew foggy. Will I die right here, right now, not in freedom yet?

I faded into blackness without an answer to the haunting question.

A/N: So, this might be a one-shot if I don't feel any inspiration for more of this. It's a pretty cool start if I wanted to continue it, but it's also very good on it's own. Give me your thoughts on it, please! I love reviews. :D