Elodie's POV

      The rats came through like a sworn. Once again, I found myself at odds with the situation—either back down immediately or fight back—of course, I chose to fight back, mainly because Simon was by my side.

      It was only when the rats had targeted Simon, out of all of us specifically, and started dragging him across the room.

      After I smashed some rats that tried to overwhelm me, I focused more on my attention to the rats that were trying to overwhelm Simon.

      "DON'T FALL BACK!" I screamed, sprinting to Simon, but he did just that. The other orphans couldn't help him either because he was now being dragged by the rats through the big hole that led outside.

      "SIMON!" I screamed, reaching out. The orphans did the same, but it was too late. Simon was taken away, and the only question that was up for debate was whether he would be alive if we found him the next time.

      "The rats. They're gone...why did all the rats go for Simon?" One of the orphans asked in speculation. That was a good question that even I couldn't answer. Why did all the rats suddenly stop overwhelming us once they've gotten Simon? Did he have anything to do with this disaster?

      My arms felt tense and sore. All that swinging I've been doing...was it all for nothing?

      "Hey! Look outside! The rats are gone! The streets are empty!" An orphan exclaimed.

      I couldn't believe it. The rats, gone? Really? After what felt like an eternity, even though it lasted only hours, was finally over?

      I drop my weapon, stroll over to the orphan looking outside, and take a look for myself. I see no rats. None on the streets, none on the sidewalks, and none inside of any store that I can spot. Nothing.

      I sigh, stretch my arms, and start removing the barricades that were placed to keep us from the snares of the rats. It didn't take us long to get outside and have some fresh air. After walking down the street for a little bit, I started to notice more people coming outside of their apartments or small business stores.

      Trash was everywhere. It was inevitable because the rats brought down everything in their path and seemingly didn't stop—of course, until they caught Simon.

      "He's gone isn't he?" I ask openly, almost shedding a tear.

      Not one of the orphans replied.

      I started to lose hope, that was, until I saw a manhole on the side of the road, and what was left was the opening that would probably lead into the sewers.

...

FLASHBACK, Simon's POV, Two Years Earlier

      My butt hurts so bad from the spanking. Constantly, I try to find something comfortable that I can sit on, hoping that would ease my comfort. It didn't. Right now, I'm in the basement, and the light isn't working either.

      I've been locked down here after my dad found out that I've been causing too much trouble at school. I'm scared, so scared that I shake a bit every time I hear something in the farther depths of the basement. In my mind, it was most certainly the boogeyman.

      So, I wait. Wait for the boogeyman to leave me alone to make my punishment more endurable, but I was still met with the same sounds. I couldn't take it anymore. I grab a dirty broken broom leaning against the wall and start approaching the sound.

      It's getting louder. Wet snot comes from my nose as I remove the dirty cloth on the floor that was covering the moving object, only to find out that the moving object was a rat that had gotten its tail trapped on a mouse trap.

      I move back in fear, then, I come to a realization that all of the anger which I had built up from the teacher, principal, and my father could now be put on a powerless creature. I slowly move towards the rat and once I've gotten a good idea on how far it can move with its tail stuck, I start smashing it with the broken broom.

      I smash it so many times until I hear a splatter sound. I must've smashed it like forty times without stopping because I was out of breath and had to lean against the dirty wall. I stared at the splattered rat body for about two minutes. After, I shed a small tear which only led to me crying in the end. I didn't cry for the rat, however, I cried for myself. I felt like such a failure.

...

Simon's POV

      I woke up smelling horrible. Not only did I smell horrible, but there was a load of stench all around me. My arms and legs were cold. What was I lying on? I slowly opened my eyes and saw filth all around me. I was basically sleeping on top of a pile of trash, if one were to call it that.

      I decided to not say anything but put my focus on escaping. I couldn't differentiate the small objects on the ground from the rats that had attacked me earlier and dragged me into their hell hole. I knew one thing for certain: the chances of me getting out of here without a light would be minimal.

      I hear more noises to my left, on the other side of the pile of trash that I was lying on. I stop making moves, but even that's not enough to calm me down. My heart's beating faster. Where are the other orphans? Were they alright? What about Elodie?

      "Don't go anywhere." Something said.

      My heart skips a beat. What was that? It must've been a spirit. Unless...a shadow...

      A giant vermin was looming over me. A rat—its breath so hot that I felt like I was going to burn alive.

      "What...do...you...want...from...me...?" I said, leaning back.

      The giant rat grinned.

      "The death of more. You killed me, remember? Bad luck to you, I still remember your scent. I came back from the dead and developed a higher intelligence that none of you humans could ever dream of. I'm the only one of my kind." The giant rat said.

      I stare at it, more or less confused. I don't remember torturing any rat or animal. Only a psychopath would try to do something like that. What did I know what psychopaths did anyway?

       The giant rat moved closer to me.

      "It's sad that you don't remember..." It said.

      It opened its mouth and everything turned black.

...

Elodie's POV

      We, the orphans and I, reunited with Ms. Sheron. However, we still couldn't figure out what happened to Simon. No one was looking for him at this moment, mainly due to the city having bigger issues than one missing kid.

      I don't want to say much more. I have a headache just from thinking about Hugo's body back at the orphanage.

      "What are we going to do now, Ms. Sheron?" I ask.

      Brooklyn's units are now on every block, trying to clean up the mess that the horde of rats had made.

      "Prepare. Prepare for something like this to happen again..." She said slowly.

       I nodded. After all, I didn't have too much of a say. I had no home anymore, and I would probably be sent to another location out of Ms. Sheron's hands, now that the orphanage was basically totaled.