Nothing but the soft gusts of wind blowing through the streets, the excess water from the long-since stopped rainfall trickling out of the storm drains. The occasional chirps of a bird sounded dauntingly loud in contrast to the still, quiet air. The only signs of movement from the buildings were the billowing of curtains, hanging from broken windows, as the breeze blew them about.
Stormfall Hills had never been so quiet, so lifeless. It was in every sense, dead. At least during the day while the sun was out.
The suffocating stillness and silence was broken by the faint sounds of footsteps as three survivors walked through the empty streets, occasionally stepping into a puddle and displacing the water with a splash.
Only when he heard an audible THUD coming from across the street did one of the men pause, his eyes darting in the direction of the sound.
There she was. Lying face-down in a puddle of water, motionless. Her shimmering, midnight blue hair draped off her limp shoulders and back to rest, tips dipped in the wet puddle beneath her.
Thoughts raced through the man’s head, making and breaking alliances as he stepped towards the woman slowly, brushing the copper hair out of his face.
“Hey, guys... Hang on.” He half-called, half-muttered to his companions, who turned around as he trudged towards the girl.
“Wha- HEY! Kai, NO!” Called the shorter blonde boy frantically, stiffening at the sight of the girl on the ground.
The black-haired man turned his head to glance at his two companions indifferently, eyeing the girl. “Leave her, Kai. She’s probably infected.”
Kai ignored them as he took another step, inches away from the form in front of his feet. “I don’t think so, Greg. Look.”
With that, he kicked with his left foot, nudging the woman loudly and rolling her onto her back.
The other two crowded behind him, the blonde looking as if he would flee at the slightest movement.
“She’s asleep.” Kai observes, stating the obvious but still shocking fact.
“You mean...” the short blonde inched closer hesitantly, “she’s not one of them?”
“Yeah.”
“But how did she survive this long?” The boy inched closer still, curious but cautious at the same time. “She should be dead by now, lying in the open like that.”
“Who knows.” Kai took a moment to adjust so he was next to his shorter companion. “Either way, we can’t just leave her here, can we?”
His friend looked at him before glancing back to the girl, his voice barely above a whimper. “I suppose not...”
They were interrupted as Greg turned to continue down the street. “Wrap it up, you two. The others are expecting us back soon.” He paused when Kai looked at him, unmoving, before Greg sighed. “Pick her up or leave her. Either way, let’s go.”
“Right.” Kai replied, kneeling and hoisting the girl up, carrying her as best he could. They were around the same age, he guessed by her weight and size.
“How did she get there anyway?” The blonde asked, more to himself than to them.
“No idea.”
“It doesn’t matter. Let’s just get back so she can rest while Louis takes a look at her.” Greg insisted as he kept walking.
Still on edge, Kai froze for a brief moment as he heard a twig snap. Spinning his head around, he analyzed the small hill behind them, seeing nothing.
Clearly noticing his confusion, Greg and Louis turned to look at him.
“What?” Louis asked as he looked around.
“I thought I heard something...” Kai explained slowly as he turned and continued walking. “Just keep going. If it was an Inzomniac, we’ll be better off in the Sanatorium anyway.”
They continued down the quiet streets again, not noticing the figure peering over the hill at them through shining red goggles.
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