The Fallen World

Chapter 3: Not Alone

We continue our trek around the outlet, looking around each storefront—then came across a large, open space filled. Escalators are wrapped in vines, benches, tables, and stalls scattered everywhere, and a torn-up banner that's supposed to be hanged around the place—now just lying there on the ground.

A loud gunshot was heard nearby—"Shit, get behind something." I warned, we took cover behind a stall, it's coming from the second floor, a hyena and a young teenage golden retriever holding each other's paws, they both ran down the escalator while being chased by a group of men holding torches trying to gun them down.

"Faye, stay close to me!" the hyena shouted, he looked back and shot his revolver at one of them but misses. They reached the bottom of the escalator—an eagle stopped chasing him in the middle of the escalator and aimed with his sniper rifle, shot his left leg that took him down, the girl stopped running and tried to reach him, but the gang reached him first.

The torches they were holding made a warm, unsettling glow all over the place. The hyena screamed in agony from his bleeding leg and tried to stand up, but he instead collapsed to the floor again, "Faye! Go on without me!" "No! Get away from him!" the girl yelled at the group of strangers, the hyena tried to get up again with a revolver at hand but a badger, probably their leader kicked him and so he fell down and growled.

The badger shot him in the head, the gunshot made a loud echo all over the mall, the blood ruined her navy blue hoodie as he drop dead, she kneeled with her paws turning into fists then sobbed, and screamed: "No!" she then covered her mouth with her paws along with her face looking at the hyena's body making a pool of blood, she started to shed tears.

The gang's just standing there, chuckling as they look at the young girl weep—she suddenly grunts and grabbed the pistol of her dead friend and tried to shoot the badger, but her paw was immediately grabbed by a bear, a buff one. "Get off me!" she yelled, she then turn at the badger with a teeth gritting growl, her pistol then fell to the ground.

"You know he deserved it, kid, after what he did to me." the badger said with ease as he picked up the revolver—gosh, his face is frightening, it even has scars all over him along with his sleeves rolled up, but his watch looks fancy.

The girl struggles to break free, "You're a fucking monster." she spits at his face, he shut his eyes then wiped his face with his paws, he grunts and knocked her out unconscious with his pistol. "Live and learn." the badger said.

"Gale... I think someone's eavesdropping on us," the eagle said with unease, "I agree. Everyone! Spread out and search! I'm gonna head back. Ethan, take the kid when it's all clear." the badger ordered, the eagle nodded.

All of his friends scatter around the wide-open space of benches and stalls in search for us, Chase brought out her silenced pistol and I took out my knife.

"What now?" I asked, "Well, the badger's gone, so there's um... four of em' left." A bear, an eagle, an owl, and a wolf. The bear is strong and tough, he holds a sledgehammer and can smell us if close by, and the eagle holds a sniper rifle.

The owl, we can't stealthily twist his neck obviously, the fact that he's an owl—he wields machete and a torch. Lastly, the wolf—if he spots us, he will make a howl that easily alerts the others and can also track us if we run and hide, he holds a torch and a pistol holstered on his pocket.

I'm not sure if we can handle this, but we really have no other choice, if we try to evade them... what'll happen if they spotted us? We'll be gunned down like a bunch of idiots. "Darwin, let's move." we rush and take cover to another nearby stall and waited for anyone to get close. We spotted our first target—the owl, getting closer to our stall.