I shielded my eyes with my hand, looking out into the distance at Grace's house. It was dawn, and the sun rose steadily above the trees, oranges and pinks streaking across the sky. It was a beautiful, serene image, complete with chirping birds and the seemingly peaceful, silent house. 

I pursed my lip, willing myself to stay concentrated on the task at hand- finding a way to defeat the Others. 

Ever since last night, when I'd announced my love for Zombie and was brutally rejected, I couldn't stop my mind from wandering back to the memories we'd shared. 

First, I'd thought about the times in Wright Patterson and the sparring sessions filled with so much unknown sexual tension. 

Second, I thought about my time in the hospital wing when Zombie had promised he wouldn't leave me. I thought about how he promised he would find me. 

Then I thought about seeing him again, after nearly freezing to death in the cold Ohio tundra. I though about how I'd found him even after all had seemed to be lost. 

 I thought of Nugget locking us on the top floor of the hotel, in the bare, musty ballroom with floor length windows that looked out for miles. I thought about how he'd finally admitted he had feelings for me. 

And then that brought my to Grace's house, where I thought about the time I'd been cutting Nugget's hair and Zombie had stood there in the doorway. I thought about how perfect life had seemed and how I could've frozen that moment in time to play over and over again. 

I felt my eyes brimming with tears. The wonderful memories from the past were what made the situation last night all that unbearable. I was embarrassed. I was frustrated. And I was completely and utterly at a loss. 

I didn't want to see Zombie again. But at the same time, he's all I wanted to see.

"That it?" Ringer asked, pointing to the house. 

I nodded. "Yeah," I said, trying to keep my voice as upbeat as possible. 

Zombie already knew how hurt I was. The last thing I needed was everyone else knowing. 

Ringer gave me a curt nod before taking the lead with Constance. I dropped back just enough to give them space but still remain in front of Zombie. 

"Canary," Zombie said hoarsely. 

I shook my head so he could see I wasn't interested. I bit my lip, my eyes squinting in a desperate attempt to hold the tears in. I'd managed to avoid him the entire trip back, engaging in unwanted conversation with Ringer and Constance and walking a few meters in front of everyone during points of the journey. I wasn't about to let all my hard work go to waste, especially when he was just going to whisper more lies. 

"Canary," he said again, his voice firmer this time. He reached out and grabbed my arm, spinning me around to face him. 

His face ready of agony and the dark circles under his eyes had returned. 

"Let me go," I said coldly, my teeth grinding against one another. 

"You're right," he said, looking down at me with such intensity I felt like I could crumble to pieces. "I've taken some time to think about it...to think about us. And you're right, I want-" 

"Can you two hurry the hell up? We've got an alien race to take down," Ringer yelled back, her command tearing into the air. 

My vision fogged momentarily before I was able to blink back the tears that had been dangerously closing to spilling out. "Coming," I shouted. 

"I-I don't want to talk to you right now," I said, my voice breaking. "You hurt me. And-I just can't do this...right now," I continued, ripping my arm away from his grasp. 

"Then later? At the house?" Zombie asked, his words almost coming out as a desperate plea. In that moment, Zombie didn't seem so tough. He seemed broken, as if he was falling under the weight of the world. 

Maybe he does love you I told myself. 

"Yeah," I said quietly. I hated giving in, but there was a reason I fell in love with this boy. 

~*~*~*~

When we arrived, Constance entered the door first. 

This was the first indication that something wasn't right- on any other normal occasion, Ringer would've forced her way to the front, making her grand entrance before anyone else could take a step inside. 

Then, once we were all inside, standing adjacent to Cassie, Nugget, and Evan, Constance pulled her gun. This was the second indication. 

"Lose your weapons," she snapped, nodding to Zombie and I. 

Right. We'd taken all the guns from the house. I mentally cursed my past-self. Now, we were utterly defenseless.

Without a word, we placed our guns near the fireplace. Zombie and I shared a quick look, both of us thinking the same thing. 

Like with Dumbo, we hadn't been careful enough. We hadn't inspected this lady. We hadn't even bothered to ask her how she'd met Ringer. 

"You," she said, jutting her gun in the direction of Nugget. "Get the other human out here. I want everyone out here," she shrieked. 

Nugget nodded and zipped away, bringing a wailing Megan back only a few seconds later. 

No one dared to move. It was only right as Constance was taking Nugget into a hold did Cassie and I took a step forward. 

"Listen, no one needs to get hurt," Cassie said slowly, stressing every syllable. "What do you want? Let us know...just please, don't hurt him," she said, her eyes frantically darting to and from Nugget. 

Constance smirked, no doubt enjoying the tension suffocating the room. "You know what I want," she said, tightening her grip on Nugget. Her eyes glided over to where Evan stood, a few mere feet to the side of Cassie. 

But before anyone could do anything, a shot erupted and blood started to pool from Constance's abdomen. 

She fell to the ground, revealing a stoic, poised Nugget, pistol in hand. 

Cassie brought her hands up to her face, visibly relieved. "Thank god that's over w-"

"Don't move," Ringer hissed, swinging her gun up. She took Constance's place, the barrel of her gun running perpendicular to Evan Walker. 

My breath stopped. I knew Ringer had always been a bitch. But not the kind of a bitch to turn on her squad. 

Zombie shifted his body so he stood in front of Evan, blocking Ringer's direct shot. "I can't let you do that," he said, putting his hands up. 

My heart thudded against my chest. My legs felt weak. 

"Don't make me do this," Ringer said, an ounce of regret filling her voice. She didn't want to hurt Zombie, but I knew she would. Ringer would do anything to get what she wanted. And I guess in this case, she wanted Evan. Dead. 

The sound of a helicopter approaching rattled the house. 

The Others. Constance must be one of them and now that her tracker was blacked out, they knew we were here. It wouldn't be long now. 

"Ringer-" I started. 

Crack

The bullet erupted from her gun, flying through the air to lodge itself into Zombie's left thigh, right about his kneecap. 

Zombie fell backward, taking Evan down with him. 

I reached outward in shock, my eyes widening in pure disbelief. What was happening? 

Ringer was a blur. She was up and over the sofa and out the window within seconds. 

Hardly a minute after, the sound of the Black Hawk descended down upon us, hovering right above the house. 

Then it dawned on me. They weren't here to extract us and throw us into some new Wright Patterson. No, we were a lost cause - too deviated from the Other's mission for redemption. They were going to blow us sky high - taking us to Dubuque. 

"The basement!" I screamed, hoping my voice could be heard over the sound of our impending doom. 

Cassie and Nugget, followed my Megan, scampered down the stairs, leaving Evan and I to help Zombie down. 

"I need to get the missile launcher," Evan said, moving out from underneath Zombie's body. "We need to take the helicopter down." 

When the hell had we gotten a missile launcher? I closed my eyes for a second before opening them again. "Fine, get it," I said, "I've got him." 

I knelt down next to Zombie, brushing his hair from his eyes. "We've got to go," I murmured. "Hold onto me, okay?" I said. 

Zombie nodded. "Yeah," he grunted. 

Even with Zombie trying to help as much as possible by using his good leg, I still had extreme difficultly moving him a few mere feet. I clenched my jaw, frustrated and scared. 

"I've got you," Evan said, coming up from behind to help. He heaved Zombie down the stairs as we both supported him on either side. 

"Where's the missile launcher?" I shouted. 

Evan didn't have time to respond before the entire upstairs of the house was blown to bits. The three of us were thrown to the ground and I collided into the wall of the basement, my side taking a hit as it jammed into the cold concrete. 

I groaned in pain, my vision going in and out. It was fogged...and not from tears this time. I willed myself to move and for my eyes to see again. 

My ears rung, the blast still taking hold of them too. I blinked twice, my vision clearing just enough so I could see Evan ascending the stairs. 

Where was he going? And more importantly, where was Zombie? 

"Canary!" Nugget called. I knew he was in the same room as me...somewhere along the back most wall. But he felt a thousand miles away. His voice was small, distant. And soon, I couldn't hear him at all. 

<><><>

So, it's been brought to my attention that this story has been going on for too long. And yes, I do realize that I've been at this fanfic for a while now. And yes, I do think it is in dire need of an ending. 

However, "Perish" does consist of three novels/storylines (The Fifth Wave, The Infinite Sea, and The Last Star). Although I have no doubt that part of the issue is my lack of updating for such a long time, I do argue that writing a fanfic covering three books has also got to be at least a little bit of the reason why this fanfic seems to be dragging on. 

I understand that the length of this fanfic and how long it has taken for this fanfic to be written (at least two years) is frustrating. Regardless, I do hope you're still enjoying it. If not, that's fine too. And if you're still hanging on in hopes that Zanary will have a happily ever after, keep reading because although I can't guarantee anything, you're in for one emotion-filled ride. 

To continue, although I have deviated from the plan of updating I laid out in the 'Update' chapter, I do still intend on finishing "Perish" before the new year. Yes, you can all plan on having "Perish" complete before the ball drops.