They walked through what was left of the city in careful silence.
The streets no longer carried the noise they once had—no engines, no voices calling from storefronts, no impatient horns. Only the crunch of debris beneath their boots and the distant creak of metal settling into itself. Buildings stood hollowed and bruised, their windows shattered, their signs hanging at crooked angles like broken limbs.
Alex walked slightly ahead, his eyes constantly moving. He checked doorways, glanced down side streets, memorized landmarks without realizing he was doing it. Erica followed close behind, her grip firm on the strap of her bag. Ash padded between them, alert but quiet, his ears twitching at every unfamiliar sound.
"This place used to be busy," Erica said softly, breaking the silence. "My mom used to bring us here on weekends."
Alex nodded. "Hard to imagine now."
They passed a pharmacy with its front torn open, shelves overturned and stripped bare. A clothing store farther down had its windows smashed, mannequins lying in pieces on the floor like discarded bodies.
Alex slowed. "That one."
Erica followed his gaze. The store sign was still intact, though cracked down the middle. The door hung open just enough to allow them inside.
They exchanged a brief look.
"Quick," Alex said. "We don't stay long."
Inside, the air was thick.
The smell hit them first—stale, sour, unmistakable.
Erica's nose wrinkled. "Something's… wrong."
Alex took two careful steps forward, then froze.
Behind the reception desk lay a body.
The woman was twisted awkwardly, one arm bent beneath her, her face turned toward the floor. Time had not been kind to her. Her skin was greyed, her features warped into something barely human. It was clear she had died alone, trapped in the place she had likely worked every day.
"That's…" Erica swallowed. "That explains the smell."
Alex looked away first. "We don't need to stay near the front."
They moved deeper into the store, past racks of clothes still hanging neatly as if the world hadn't ended around them. Alex pulled down jackets, folding them quickly.
Erica gathered shirts, jeans, anything that looked durable.
"We should grab larger sizes too," Erica said quietly. "For the others."
Alex nodded. "Yeah."
They worked in silence for a few minutes, the only sound the rustle of fabric and Ash's quiet breathing.
Then Erica stopped.
Alex noticed immediately. "What is it?"
She held up a necklace, thin and simple, a small metal charm catching the light. "It's… still clean."
Alex glanced at it. "You should take it."
Erica hesitated. "I don't know."
"Take it," he said gently. "You don't know when you'll find something like that again."
She studied his face, then nodded. "Okay."
She turned around, lifting her hair slightly. "Can you…?"
Alex paused for half a second, then stepped closer. His fingers brushed her neck as he gathered her dark brown hair, careful, deliberate. The warmth of her skin surprised him. He clasped the necklace, his hands unsteady for reasons he didn't want to examine.
When she turned back around, their eyes met.
The moment stretched.
Then both of them stepped back at the same time.
Erica cleared her throat. "We should finish packing."
"Yeah," Alex said quickly. "Right."
They worked faster after that.
By the time they were done, three bags sat at their feet—two slung over Alex's shoulders, one over Erica's.
They stepped back out into the street.
The light had shifted. Afternoon was giving way to evening, shadows stretching longer, deeper.
Back at the hotel, Eric stood near the entrance, listening politely as an elderly woman clasped his hands and murmured blessings under her breath.
"You're a good boy," she said. "May the world be kinder to you."
Eric smiled, nodding. "Thank you, ma'am."
But his eyes drifted to the clock down the hall.
2:00 PM.
He frowned slightly.
They should've been back by now.
He shook the thought away and helped guide the woman toward a seating area.
Back in the city, Alex slowed his pace.
"Do you hear that?" Erica asked.
He stopped.
At first, it was faint. Almost lost beneath the wind.
Then it came again.
A sound.
High-pitched. Broken.
Alex's chest tightened. "We should keep moving."
Erica turned toward the sound. "That's not… that's not an animal."
"We don't know what it is."
"It's human," she said. "Alex. It's a kid."
He exhaled sharply. "Erica—"
"We can't just leave," she said, already moving.
Alex sighed, then followed.
The sound grew clearer as they moved through narrow streets and around collapsed buildings. It led them to another store, smaller, half-burned.
Inside, crouched near the back wall, was a little girl.
She couldn't have been older than eight.
Her arms were wrapped tightly around her knees, her face buried between them as she cried.
Erica dropped her bag without hesitation and knelt.
"Hey," she said softly. "It's okay."
The girl flinched but didn't look up.
"I won't hurt you," Erica continued, her voice calm and steady. She gently rubbed the girl's back.
The sobbing slowed.
The girl lifted her head, eyes red and wide.
Alex stayed back, watching.
"What's your name?" Erica asked.
The girl hesitated.
"It's okay," Erica smiled faintly. "You're safe."
"…Chloe," the girl whispered.
"That's a pretty name," Erica said. "I'm Erica. This is Alex."
Alex nodded once. "Hi, Chloe."
Chloe wiped her face with her sleeve. "I don't want to be alone."
"You're not," Erica said. "Not anymore."
Alex felt something twist in his chest. For a moment, he saw Aunt Anna's face instead of Erica's.
"We need to go," he said quietly. "Before it gets dark."
Erica nodded and helped Chloe to her feet. The girl clung to her hand.
They stepped outside.
The sky was dimming fast.
Then—
A flash of blue cut through the air.
The sound came a heartbeat later.
Alex didn't need to turn.
"Run," he said.
And they did.
The world blurred as they moved, fear roaring in their ears as the light behind them flared again.The ruins lit up in cold blue for a split second, and then the city swallowed them as they fled.