The screaming started before I was on my feet.

Everything was moving in slow motion as I relied on the confusion and fear of the grenades to disorient the crazies and give me time to get August off the ground. As I stood, I just knew someone would stick their head around the doorframe or out a window and start shooting at me.

August was light as I lifted him onto my shoulders in a fireman’s carry. I leaped from the porch as far as my strength would carry me. Adrenalin super-charged my strength and I surprised myself with the distance I covered. Bullets tore through the air near me; puffs of dirt and debris shot into the sky where the bullets struck them. I felt a sting in my leg that made me wobble for a second but I kept running.

The flash-bangs went off behind me, lighting up the night for a moment. There were screams of pain and fear from inside the house. To my left, I saw muzzle flashes as the boys gave me cover fire. Guns were going off behind me, but I did not know if that was from people shooting at me or from Kemi and Marcus.

Then I was falling; the world turned upside down as something smashed into me from the side. I tumbled, trying to hold August, but he flew off of me and slammed into the ground where he rolled away from me.

Rolling over, I looked up and saw a towering monster looming over me. Before I could react, he’d grabbed my vest and lifted me in the air. This must be the ones who ‘fled’ I thought, right before he punched me in the face. Stars exploded across my vision and I only just got my hand up in time to block his next blow. He was using me and the darkness as a shield from the others. Anger twisted his face into a mask of hatred. His fist was coming back to hit me again.

He had a lot of strength, I could not deny that. It was obvious to me, however, that he did not know how to fight. Holding someone up like this might look good in the movies, but in a real fight, it was just stupid. Lifting my feet, I kicked him in the chest before he could hit me again. The blow knocked him back and should have broken the ribs of a normal person. I hit the ground in a crouch.

He shook it off and snarled at me.

Great. He’s as tough as me too. I guess that answers whether they’ve manifested their abilities.

Surging forward, he stayed low to the ground, going for my waist. I leaped over him, dodging his grasping hands and managing to kick him in the back of the head as I flipped past him. He slammed face-first into one of those bony trees, snapping it in half. I landed poorly but scrambled back to my feet.

In that second, I scanned my surroundings. Kemi and Marcus were battling it out with other Changed. Smoke billowed out of the windows and doors of the little house. Sporadic muzzle flashes lit up the darkness, from both sides. Big-guy was coming back for me, a thick tree branch in his hand.

I pulled my pistol, whipping it around towards him. Before I could pull the trigger, he smashed it with the rude club, knocking it spinning off into the darkness. The return sweep I blocked with my forearms, with a bone-jarring crunch as the wood broke over me. This guy was pissing me off.

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Behind him, I could see August’s body lying in a twisted heap. My anger surged and the world went red.

He tried to use the remains of the club like a baton, swinging it towards my head. I caught his wrist with my left hand, and then spun under his grip. It would normally be a bad position to be in, but I was moving too fast for him to counter. I grabbed his wrist with both hands and pulled his elbow sharply down, across my shoulder.

I think he was too stunned to try and stop me. Either way, I was rewarded by the sound of a loud, wet crack as his arm bent in entirely the wrong direction.

Screaming, the guy fell to his knees, holding his right arm out at an awkward angle. I spun and kicked him in the face, throwing him onto his back. When he just lay there, writhing, I ran back to August.

“Are you Ok?” I asked as I lifted him off the ground.

He only groaned as a response. Picking him back up, I started running again, back towards the guys. “Don’t shoot, it’s me,” I yelled, just in case.

Stone appeared, rising from his position on the ground as I approached. “I’ve got wounded,” I shouted to him. “How is everyone?”

“The hostiles have scattered, except for a few that we’ve put down,” he said. “Do we hold position or pursue?”

“Fuck pursuit, we need to treat August,” I said. Running out to the road, I found a clear place near the cars where Rebecca and Jessica were crouching behind the engine blocks. Smart girls. When they saw I was carrying August, they both shouted.

Laying him on the ground, I looked up. “Who’s our medic?” I asked no one in particular. A cold sweat pricked my skin; we did not have a medic with us. We all had some basic first aid training, but that was it.

Jessica said, “I’ve got some medical training. Can I help?” Her eyes were like giant saucers, but she was holding it together.

“Please. I just realized we don’t have an actual medic.”

“Why not?” she asked, pulling his jacket aside.

“Not now, Jessica, not now,” I said. Then I shouted, “Stone, get over here.”

Stone was behind the cars in a flash, crouching low to the ground. “Yes ma’am?”

“Where’re our medical supplies? Which car are they in?” I asked, aware of the fact that I should know this without needing to ask him.

“What do you need? We have several first aid kits.”

“We’ll need more than that, but get them please.” Stone nodded and then disappeared down the length of cars.

Two windows exploded out of a car a few meters from us. We’d have some difficulty explaining that to the rental company.

“Shit,” Rebecca screamed, “I thought he said they were scattered.”

“It’s just people shooting over their shoulders,” Kemi said, appearing behind the girls and making them jump. Kemi looked worse for wear, I could see her lip was busted and there were some scratches on her face. Otherwise, she appeared fine.

“How’s your dance partner looking?” I asked.

She spat a gob of bloody saliva on the ground. “Let’s just say the bitch won’t be dancing with anyone for a while.”

Marcus walked around the back of the car, pulling a slug out of his vest as he did. He looked at it with a dismissive snort before tossing it on the ground. “The ones that could, left. A few are on the ground with injuries.”

“Are any of them dead?” I asked.

He shrugged. “I don’t think so. But I didn’t check. Johnson and the guys are securing them at the moment… oh, shit, he looks bad.”

I wished I could say he was lying, but looking down at August I knew he wasn’t.