As the two of them ran along the ruined streets, they were both amazed at what they were seeing. They could see signs of buildings that had been torn apart by some sort of powerful force, and they could see bodies littering the streets.
Anne rubbed her eyes, trying to focus her vision in the darkness. "What could have done this? There aren't even any other species on Earth that could cause something like this, at least not one that we're aware of."
"I don't know, but we need to keep moving. The sooner we get out of here, the better." Seren said.
Suddenly, Anne stopped in her tracks and gasped. "Seren, look! It's a person! Someone's alive!" She cried out.
She ran towards the figure, ignoring the dangers that were lurking around every corner. Seren followed close behind, not wanting to leave her alone.
As they got closer, they realized that it was not just one person, but many. Before Anne could approach them, Seren stopped her with worry in his eyes. "Anne, I don't think this is a good idea, humans aren't aware that we exist."
"Who cares! We have to help them! It's our duty to help people in need."
Seren was about to protest when he noticed that one of the figures was pointing something at them. "Watch out!" He cried out as he tackled Anne, taking the two of them out of harm's way.
The sound of gunshots filled the air, and Anne and Seren began to run for their lives.
"What are they doing?"
One of the humans in the group screamed out. "WHAT ARE YOU?!"
Anne and Seren hid behind a crumbling wall, trying to avoid the barrage of bullets that were flying towards them.
"We're not here to hurt you! We're here to help!" Anne cried out.
"How can we trust you?! We don't know you, or your kind!"
"We're not from this world! We're from another planet, and we're here to help!" Anne yelled.
The barrage of firing continued as the group was not willing to hear out the demands of Anne and Seren. Anne was about to run out from her cover when Seren grabbed her arm.
"Let go of me!" Anne said, angrily.
"Anne, it's too dangerous. We can't just go out there without a plan."
"What else are we supposed to do? If we don't go out there, they'll kill us! We have to help them! We're supposed to be helping people, Seren, that's why we came here in the first place!"
Seren looked down at the ground, his eyes full of worry. "Anne, we have to think about this. If we go out there, they might hurt us. We don't know how they're going to react."
Anne felt a surge of anger flow into her, but was able to calm down. "You're right, I'm sorry."
"There's nothing we can do to change how they feel about us." Seren said, solemnly.
"There has to be something we can do. We can't just sit here and let them shoot at us." Anne said, her determination rising.
"I know, but how can we stop them from attacking us? We're not soldiers, we're just scientists."
"I don't know, but we have to try."
"Fine, but we need to think this through. We can't just rush in without a plan." Seren warned.
Before they could start thinking about a plan, Seren began to hyperventilate and clutch his chest. "Seren!"
"Anne, my chest, it's... I can't breathe." Seren gasped, struggling to get his words out.
"What's wrong?!" Anne asked, frantically.
Seren coughed and spluttered, his eyes watering. "This planet, it's not built for us... I remember seeing that the atmospheric pressure on this planet is 1/3 the amount on Elyndra."
"How could we not have known about that?!"
Seren's breathing became more ragged as his condition worsened. Anne looked around frantically, trying to figure out what to do.
Anne realized that her breathing began to shorten and the effects were now taking a toll on her as well. She looked down at her bracelet and tried to activate it, only to find out that it wasn't working.
"No, no, no..." Anne panicked, looking around for a solution.
"Anne, you need to... get help." Seren said, barely able to form the words.
Anne looked at Seren with tears in her eyes, and shook her head. "I can't leave you, not like this."
The firing from the group continued as Anne and Seren struggled to find a solution. Anne felt herself growing lightheaded as she struggled to stay conscious.
"Seren, I can't do this. I can't lose you." Anne said, choking back tears.
"You have to try. You have to get out of here." Seren said, his breathing becoming labored.
"NO! I won't leave you!" Anne said, her voice full of conviction.
"Anne, you can't... stay here. It's... killing us both. You have... to go."
"I can't do that, Seren. I won't."
Seren looked up at Anne and smiled weakly. "I'll be okay... I promise. Just... go."
"I can't leave you here, not after everything we've been through. We're supposed to be in this together."
Seren placed his hand on Anne's shoulder, his eyes full of sadness. "We will be, but you have to... go."
Anne's heart was breaking. She couldn't bring herself to leave Seren. She knew that if she stayed, they'd both die. But if she left, she'd have to live with the guilt.
Anne gritted her teeth, her mind racing. "I can't make that choice, Seren. I can't lose you, but I can't leave you here."
Seren stared at Anne, his breathing growing more and more ragged. "I'll be okay, I promise."
Anne couldn't take it anymore. She stood up and glared at the group that was firing at them.
"Anne, don't!" Seren said, his voice strained.
"They need to learn that we're not a threat. We're not going to hurt them." Anne said, her voice full of anger.
Seren watched as Anne stood up and began to walk towards the group. As she walked closer to them, she held her hands up and shouted. "We're not here to hurt you! We're not a threat!"
The group looked at her with a mix of surprise and fear. One of them fired off a warning shot at her, causing her to jump back.
"Please! We just want to talk!" Anne cried out, her voice filled with desperation.
Anne walked closer to the group, her hands still raised. "We're not a threat! We're here to help!"
Before she could walk any closer, one of the group members fired at Anne. As the bullet approached her at speeds she couldn't comprehend, she was tackled and dragged behind the crumbling wall.