The Fallen World

Chapter 10: Calm Skies and Flooded Places

Noon, a few days away from the hotel, now on the crumbled freeway filled with rusted-out cars and trucks. The sky is clear and warm, looking at the trees and bushes as usual—for any danger of course.

I face at the bright and beautiful sky, then closed my eyes and enjoy the sun—I slightly smiled. All I can feel are the warmth of the sun and the breeze along with the weight of my backpack and holding a rifle on my paws.

I can hear laughter on my left, it's just Chase and the boys. I got curious and look at them, but they're not laughing at me, they're just looking at Kieran showing his knee-high socks at them. His socks are colored brown, orange, and white—and has a snowflake pattern along with some zigzags around them.

His clothes were a lot different back at the hotel, he now wears a blue flannel shirt, ripped jeans—or is it just damaged jeans? Brown slip-on shoes, and those socks. The backpack of Kieran shows his rifle strapped behind it, its stock has roses carved around it.

"Oh my gosh, does your socks have to be that long?" Chase asked, Kieran chuckled—"Hey, don't blame me that it's comfy and cute." "Your comfy and cute." Derek said, Kieran chuckled and scratched the back of his head.

Chase still wears my suit under her jacket, I feel naked without it. She seems to like those boys, based on her facial expressions she never showed me before. I still feel suspicious about them—even if they're soft. I'm not jealous or anything from their friendship, just being cautious.

As we saw a city ahead of us, the road is blocked by a blockade of vehicles and some corals growing out of the cars and trucks. "Now what?" I asked, facing at Chase, "Well, I guess this is our stop. Let's get out of the road and go through the trees, then we can go back to the road."

We jumped over the metal fences on the right and walk into the trees. The forest floor is filled with leaves and different varieties of trees grow around here, the dappled lights spread around the floor and hits my face. Each step we take gets a crunch from the leaves and fallen branches.

After our short stroll around the trees, we jumped back to the freeway and entered the city. This one's more different than the previous city I ventured out with Chase—the roads are flooded and coated with vibrant green algae.

"Any of you guys know how to swim?" I asked and looked at everyone as we step in the green waters. "Not me!" Derek said, I shook my head and sigh. "We'll look for shallow waters then, if we have no choice... then I'll make you swim, got it?" I said rudely, Derek nodded.

We keep moving forward to the flooded streets and roads, I stared at the building in the distance tilted to the right, "Heh, imagine if that building falls." I pointed, but no one replied. "Wanna check what's in there?" she points at the stores on the right, "Fine," I said.

I heard a loud splash behind us—Derek fell and slowly rises up, we all stare at him, Chase and the fox chuckled, I shook my head and sigh. "We should split up," I spoke to Chase beside me, "What? Why?" "Wouldn't it be much faster if we go to different buildings at the same time?"

"Okay then. Kieran, you're coming with me." Chase pat Kieran's shoulder and followed her as she walks to the corner store not far from here. Great, I'm alone with a guy who can't swim...

Derek and I enter a clothes store. the store is massive and wide open, and dark too—it even has two floors with escalators around it, the clothes hanged around the store's racks are now wet and dirty, we can wash them properly when we pick them up after all this scavenging. Some clothes are all over the water, sunken or floating.

"So...now what?" Derek asked, "What do you think? Search around th-" I stopped speaking and heard a strange gurgle above us. We were frightened, stared at each other for a moment then slowly look up, we saw a large barnacle with an open mouth of sharp teeth lurking on the ceiling. "Shit, it's a droop!" "A what?!" Derek asked.