The air was warm and sweet, and rushed past Way's face as she ran. The fact that she could feel the breeze on her skin even when stationary thrilled her. An explosion of colors rose up gently on the horizon, filling the sky, and the innumerable calls of unknown creatures filled the world around her.

'This' Way thought, now grinning uncontrollably, 'Is freedom!'

3042, 1st day in the wild

-flora and fauna are completely unfamiliar to me. Catalogue them?

-yes

1. weird tree thing. Resembles a fern. is very colorful, and kind of frilly. About as tall as three of me stacked, but I saw some that were bigger.

Way wrote as she rested beneath the shade of some tall frilly, frondy plant, holding her journal. The city of Woodwall sat in a valley, so after the steep run, she could look down through the wall of trees and over the metal one and glimpse at the shining chromed roofs of the buildings below, only slightly hazy and glinting through the city's barrier. She had slowed her mad run a while ago when she realized the guard had, as she'd hoped, stopped chasing her just past wall. The day had only just started, so there wasn't much to write, but Way had decided to write something every day from now on, for posterity or something. This was an adventure after all.

Taking out a nutrient bar from her bag, she started chewing, when a small furry thing dashed across in front of her, and disappeared into the underbrush.

'What was that!?' Way thought, and jumped. Children were raised to be silent when in public in Woodwall, unless the situation was academic in nature.

A moment later, a much larger creature forced its way through the foliage and chased after the furry blur. After that way heard screeching, and a nasty crunch that sent chills down her spine. She covered her ears, so as not to hear more of the noises that followed, and sank back against the thin tree that shaded her.

Thoughts raced through her head as fast as her heart beat. 'That had been close!' 'This is the wild! of course there would be predatory animals out here, stupid!' 'I should go back. Worst case scenario is some mild humiliation. That's better than getting eaten, right!?'

"No!"

This was said in a harsh whisper, so a not to attract any hungry beasts.

Then in a steadier voice, "no, I can't give up." Way told herself, quietly but firmly. Saying it aloud helped affix the thought in her mind.

Looking up through the lacy canopy, the sun wasn't yet at it's zenith. With most of the day ahead of her, Way sprung into action. The journal went back in her bag, along with her coat, it was too warm for it now. Next she quickly finished her energy bar, and put away the rapper. Then, Turning on her heel, Way faced away from the direction the ferocious beast had gone, and started walking.

As she made her way through the wild the scenery began to change. At the base of the valley that Woodwall sat in, the surrounding land had been dotted with rusting metal debris, though on a smaller scale than the worn section of wall she'd snuck out years ago. As she climbed however, the obvious taint of outsiders had rapidly decreased, leaving more room for lush flora to grow.

The valley was rather steep, and though she was now travelling up more diagonally than she had been before her break was cut off by that beast, it was still a harsh trek for someone so inexperienced in hiking. The plants she thought of as trees shaded her well, but on the occasion she reached any sort of clearing, it felt as though she'd stepped into an enormous solar decontaminator. It was the beginning of this part of this planet's summer now, and her pilfered coat was meant to stop water not sunlight.

The sun soared high in the sky and beamed down on Way's back through the teal and turquoise foliage. The calls of uncountable unknown creatures still rang out in the wilds around her, but she hadn't had another close encounter since earlier in the day. Reaching a small indent in the relatively even slope of the valley, Way's legs all but gave out beneath her.

Walking uphill in the wild for hours after spending the entire previous night running, sneaking, and hopped up on adrenaline, Way discovered, could take it's tole on your body. Way hadn't slept in over an entire day/night cycle, and now, safe from the guards, ferocious beasts out of sight, the exhaustion caught up with her.

Laying down in the small pit in the ground, sunlight filtering through the colorful foliage above, Way was out like a light.