"He's almost—" She doesn't get to finish her sentence as we both fall to the ground. The man tackles us down, using his good arm to grasp at Thea while waving his amputated one in front of me, splattering blood in my face.

He's spouting some gibberish as he digs his fingers into Thea's arms, all the while hitting me with the protruding bones from his wrist.

I kick my feet at him, hitting him in the stomach, but he doesn't notice or budge. He's single-minded in his focus of getting to us.

Thea's panicking as she kicks him too, and she manages to get him to lose his balance enough for us to slip from under him. I drag myself to my knees, ready to sprint. Thea pulls me up, helping me. But we barely get to make a few steps as he throws himself forward, grabbing us by the legs and making us stumble again.

I fall flat on my belly, the pebbles in the hard asphalt molding to my skin. I groan in pain, my body momentarily shocked as adrenaline and fright fight for supremacy within me.

The man howls, a sharp, gut-turning cry as he blankets us with his body. Not a second after, though, and another sound pierces the air—one that sounds like an explosion.

Hot liquid sprays on top of us, together with other bits of debris as the weight on top of us is suddenly gone.

I blink in shock, slowly turning to look at Thea, who is equally stunned.

We both roll over and find ourselves in a bath of blood and guts. The man is gone. Liquefied. There's only the stain of red and putrid smell that's left behind.

We stare at each other for what seems like an eternity. We're both covered in blood...and other substances from head to toe.

FORTY-TWO

"W-what was that?" I mumble numbly.

She shakes her head, confused.

More people have appeared by the side of the road, coming out of their houses after hearing the commotion. But no one tries to help. No one asks us if we're okay, just as no one tried to stop the man assaulting us.

They're just watching the show, their expressions completely blank, as if this is just another everyday occurrence.

"Where the hell are you, Cer?" Thea screams out as she wobbles to her feet, shaking the remains of the man off her. I try to do the same, but my entire body is trembling, the fear I experienced locked inside of me and running in a loop.

"Are you all right, Luce?" she finally asks, breathing hard.

Her red hair is caked with a mix of blood and some of that blue substance, her clothes ruined. I glance down at my body, finding myself equally dirty.

Raising a hand up, I feel bits and pieces of organic matter stuck in my hair and on my hoodie, and I barely stop myself from heaving.