The Fallen World

Chapter 8: Strangers

'Have you ever risked your own life to save someone else's?' That question still haunts me 'til now... and never answered it.

It's been two months after that brutal night, miles away from that dreadful place. I postponed my journey to Chase's community for now and settle inside a lodge-like hotel somewhere around the lakeside... I wander on my own out in the snow.

It's five in the morning as I wander around the snowy neighborhood which is two miles away from the hotel and the lakeside. The snow is shallow, and they're about to melt after a few short days—but the calm winds are breezing cold.

I'm not wearing my wolftrooper suit anymore, which is a bad timing for walking around this cold environment, but I'm a wolf after all. the stitches on my right cheek finally recovered and so is my leg, but my shoulder aches.

I look around the houses in search for food, I hold a sniper rifle as I stroll. Almost all of the windows and doors are barricaded, the roofs are no doubt covered in snow.

I hear chattering nearby, I took cover behind a dumpster and saw a pair of hunters. I started to listen to their conversation before I make my move. "Listen man, I'm not sure if we can be Rosa's servants any longer. I have this feeling we might end up badly, you know what I mean?" the falcon says nervously.

"Well, yeah, but if we don't follow her rules we're gonna get killed either way. We really don't have much of a choice..." the fox explained disappointingly, the falcon sighs. They now wander around the snow and looking around houses with their pistols ready.

What catches my ear is that I heard the familiar name, Rosa. Shit, after miles and miles away from that place, she's here?! I'm not sure if I wanted to hurt those boys—but if they spotted me, I have no choice but to kill them both when that happens. They passed through a house and got out of sight, I rushed to a nearby house and decided to enter.

I removed the barricade from the door with my crowbar then entered. I checked the drawers, cupboards, cabinets, and even the fridge—nothing useful. After I searched around the house, I realized it's a bungalow—the fact that there are no stairs. Wait, I came inside from the outside... gosh I'm getting unaware these days.

I found a torn out paper on the sofa, I picked it up and made a quick read: Honey, if you're reading this, I took the kids with me, something's happening, meteors came down upon us! We were scared, the next three days people started to act crazy, they all fought for food and supplies, please find us at the hotel basement. Harvey.

I was frightened that night when I was a pup, I still remember the day when those bright blue meteor showers wreak havoc—destroying buildings, houses, everything else. All those death, fear, violence and if that's not enough, the meteorites started spitting out spawn then those Reefs started to appear a year after that.

I stopped reading and got out of the house. I looked around the houses for almost thirty minutes of taking out barricades, checking for supplies, and getting disappointed. I decided to come back to the hotel and take a break.

All of a sudden during my stroll—the fox and the falcon spotted me in the distance. The fox shouted: "It's the wolf!" I panicked and ran. I heard gunshots coming from behind and finally took cover behind a house.

I crouched, grabbed a bottle that's half-buried in the snow, and listen for footsteps. "He's somewhere here!" the falcon said. "Derek, stop running! Wait for me!" the fox shouted.

As the footsteps got closer, I rushed to the falcon, smashed the bottle to his head, and dropped his scoped pistol.

I wrapped his neck with my left arm and aimed my pistol at the approaching fox, the falcon stopped struggling and panted.