Ampelius and Nova leaned each other in walking as they staggered out of the auditorium. The effects of the Zavon injection helped to numb the pain, but it left them feeling a strange warmth throughout their bodies.

  “So, what exactly happened?” Nova asked, his voice mixed with some confusion and disbelief. “I can only briefly remember what happened. And I feel numb all over, but I feel warm too. It’s like I should be in agony, but I’m not.”

  Ampelius kept his eyes forward, wary of their surroundings as he tried to recount what happened. “Long story short, we were hanging upside down, they dropped you and beat you with baseball bats. But a Zavon blasted a section of the wall open, killing those bastards. Then for some reason, it cut us down and injected us with something. I really don’t know what it was, but it’s probably why you’re feeling like this.”

  Nova frowned, looking down at himself. “It injected us? It must have been a kind of super-morphine or maybe a hybrid adrenaline-numbing agent. But that doesn't answer the question of why would a Zavon do that.”

  Ampelius shrugged, not sure how to answer it. “I don't know. Maybe it wanted to spare us? It did actually kill two other Zavons. They saw us and tried to kill us, but it saved us. I’m still trying to make sense of it.”

  “I really find that hard to believe. This is one bad dream after another.”

  “Yeah, you’re telling me,” Ampelius muttered. “Let’s just get out of here. I’m not sure how many more of those bastards, or other Zavons are lurking around or might have heard the explosion.”

  Several minutes later, they reached the same T-junction in the hallway, before they were ambushed. Recalling his memory and not wanting to waste time, Ampelius pointed left, which led to the lobby.

  As they made their way into the lobby, they had to stop for a moment. The area was virtually untouched, almost like nothing had happened. That only made them paranoid as they continued on toward the front doors.

  The ticket booth was clean, with a neat stack of unsold tickets, and behind them, the concession stand was ready for business, with candy lined up and waiting for customers.

  “Is that the jewelry store you were talking about? The one on the corner there?” Ampelius asked, nodding toward the street.

  “That’s right. But before we go, let's get a snack from the concession stand. I suddenly feel like I'm starving.” As Nova’s attention shifted from survival to the potential for snacks, much to Ampelius’s frustration.

  Nova wandered over to the snack bar and sifted through the candy. Ampelius stood around keeping guard when he felt the floor tremble beneath his feet. As he looked down and around, he braced himself against the counter, expecting everything around him to start shaking, but nothing moved. Even Nova continued about his business like nothing was happening.

  “What the hell? Nova! Don’t you feel the shaking?” Ampelius shouted, trying to make sense of the situation.

  Nova looked up with chocolate covering his lips, confused. “Shaking? What are you talking about? I don't feel nothing shaking!” He tore open another candy bar and took a bite, seemingly oblivious to the trembling Ampelius was experiencing.

  A few moments later, the shaking subsided. He glanced back over at his hungry friend who was still blissfully raiding the snack bar. Was this an effect of the injection? He couldn’t be sure.

  Nova offered a candy bar to Ampelius, with a wide grin on his chocolate-smeared face. He declined with a shake of his head, still unsettled by what had just happened. They turned toward the double glass doors at the entrance, cautiously peeking outside for any sign of hostility before stepping into the street.

  The acrid stench of burning flesh and smoke hit them both like a wall, causing them to gag and nearly vomit. The city was a wasteland, and the Zavons’ destruction was evident in every corner.

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  “I don’t like this,” Ampelius muttered.

  “Let’s just get to the shop,” Nova replied, more focused now.

  The front entrance of the jewelry shop was chained shut, forcing them to look for another way in. Around the corner, Nova spotted a shattered window and motioned for Ampelius to follow. But as they made it halfway down the sidewalk, a streak of neon green fire lit up several blocks away, closing the distance fast.

  “Oh shit, whatever that is, it's heading our way! Quick, get in and watch your hands on the glass!” Nova shouted.

  They quickly climbed through the broken window. Once inside, the jewelry shop was in disarray, with broken glass littering the floor and remnants of looted jewelry scattered about.

  Ampelius noticed a dark hallway leading deeper into the building. “Exit sign! Down this hallway,” he pointed out.

  Nova nodded. “Good, that should lead us to another alley. With luck, we can still access the train station from the surface.”

  “You don’t know of any hidden weapons here, do you? I’d feel better with one,” Ampelius asked.

  Nova shook his head. “Better not to have any when we enter the station. The fewer reasons they have to shoot us, the better.”

  They proceeded through the hallway, exiting into an alley that looked like it had witnessed a massive brawl. The ground was littered with trash, glass bottles, blood, and bodies. They carefully navigated the debris until they reached the street.

  The beam of flame reappeared at a nearby intersection, turning the traffic lights and metal poles into molten liquid. As it moved away, Ampelius and Nova exchanged fearful glances, the devastation it left behind almost unrecognizable.

  “The entrance we need is right there, at that red building,” Nova said, pointing. “But with the ground melted like that, we’ll need to find another way in.”

  “Are these buildings connected? Maybe we can get to the roof and jump over,” Ampelius suggested.

  “Could be. Let’s check it out.” Nova led them to an apartment building across the street. He tried the metal door, but it was locked. Peering through the small window, he quickly ducked down.

  “What is it?” Ampelius asked, mimicking Nova’s movement.

  “Zavons! They’re inside the apartment building,” Nova whispered.

  Before they could react, a loud thunk sounded against the door, and a Zavon’s face appeared in the window, staring directly at them.

  “Never mind, they saw us!” Nova hissed.

  They sprinted back across the street into the alley they had just left, with the Zavon in hot pursuit. As they ran, Nova spotted a circular manhole cover on the ground. Judging that they could escape before the Zavon reached them, he shouted, “Help me open this! Now or never!”

  Together, they lifted the heavy lid and tossed it aside. Nova dove in headfirst, followed by Ampelius, who narrowly avoided the Zavon’s grasp. The creature peered down into the sewer for a moment before walking away, its footsteps fading.

  Ampelius wrinkled his nose. “So this is what a sewer smells like?”

  “Yeah, pretty much,” Nova replied. “But this sewer should lead us straight to the train station, assuming we don’t get lost. There’s a maintenance room near the bathrooms; we should be able to pop up there. But we need to be cautious—there might be guards down here.”

  “You don’t think that Zavon can follow us, do you?” Ampelius asked, still catching his breath.

  “If I can barely fit, I doubt they can. Those things are huge! Let’s keep moving.”

  Their path was soon obstructed by a large hole in the floor, debris from above indicating something had crashed through. Daylight leaked in from above, illuminating the metro tunnel below.

  Ampelius peered down and then up, noting the height of the drop. “This looks like the work of a turtle shell. The metro system is down there? I thought the sewer was below the metro.”

  Nova joined him at the edge. “How far down is it? Can we jump?”

  “I think we can make it. The debris might be unstable, though. It’s risky.”

  Before they could decide, a bright blue light illuminated the tunnel behind them, followed by a deafening bang. Ampelius’s heart raced. “We don’t have much choice now. Can you stall them while I go down? I don’t care if they probe your—”

  Nova cut him off with a frown. “Okay, Mr. Straight Face Joker. Whatever you say.”

  “I’m not joking,” Ampelius deadpanned.

  “It better be a joke for your sake,” Nova muttered, lowering himself down.

  Once they both reached the bottom, they ran deeper into the tunnel as two Zavons appeared overhead, searching the area they had just vacated. The metro tunnel was eerily quiet as they moved forward, only the sound of their footsteps echoing in the darkness.

  Nova pointed at a broken light on the wall. “I remember that light. We must be getting closer to the station.”

  “Good, let’s keep moving. I have a bad feeling we’re being followed,” Ampelius replied, glancing back.

  As they neared the station, the lights began to fade until they were walking in total darkness. Nova cursed under his breath. “You don’t happen to have a light, do you? I can’t see a damn thing.”

  “No, and if I did, I would have brought it out by now. Maybe the darkness is meant to protect the station. At least, I hope so.”

  “You know, now I get why kids are afraid of the dark,” Nova said, his voice barely a whisper.

  “What kids?” Ampelius asked, his curiosity piqued despite the situation.

  “Never mind. Just bad memories.”

  Suddenly, they froze as fast-moving footsteps approached them from the darkness. Before they could react, a voice shouted, “It’s them! The traitors!”