Chapter 30: You’re a monster
Three men ran through the ruined city, weaving between burnt-out car wrecks and the dusty remnants of shattered storefronts. The echo of their footsteps bounced off the empty tenements like the heartbeat of a dead civilization.
Adam ran at the front, as always. From the start, he kept a slower pace than he could manage—just so Sareth could keep up. He’d expected to slow down even more, especially with the new companion.
But when he looked back...
Sareth held the pace, though his arms were tense from the weight of his backpack. Despite the exhaustion, he didn’t complain. What surprised Adam most, however, was the old man. With a bandaged shoulder and a patchy coat, he moved confidently across the rubble, as if he knew every bump and crack in the road by heart. He avoided slick patches of asphalt, leapt over puddles, and strode like a man in his prime. His breathing was steady, his steps sure—as if his body still remembered the days when running was second nature.
Adam furrowed his brows, unable to stop himself from wondering: who the hell was this old man?
He suddenly remembered something and shouted over his shoulder:
"You got a phone?"
"And what if I don’t?" the old man barked. "I do. Fully charged. But there’s no signal. Useless brick. Not a communicator."
Adam came to a sudden halt. Sareth barely avoided crashing into him, stepping aside at the last second. Their eyes met for a moment—first confused, then lit by the same spark of realization. They smiled simultaneously, as if they’d just found the missing piece of a puzzle they’d been working on for hours.
The old man looked at them with suspicion.
"What’re you so happy about?"