"Cover your ears! Now!" I shut my eyes tight and cover my ears as a flash shines bright, even in the sewer. A loud boom rushes overhead,

The ground rumbles and quakes, loud crashes come from above, dust whooshes through the gutter drains and into the sewer. I quickly cover my mouth. Dima shouts, "Cover your mouths with something! Anything!" A billow of dust rushes behind us, overtaking us immediately. Everyone coughs, pained moans. People grab for their lungs, but I don't. I take it all in. I don't know how to explain it, but I'm not coughing, choking. Dima falls next to me. I sit near him as he breathes slow behind a cloth, despite all the chaos.

A minute in, they've all collapsed and most of the crashing above stops. I breathe normal, "Dima?" He breathes heavy, "Yeah?" I stand up and pull him to his feet. I sigh, The water might have saved us. Most of the dust went into it. "I can barely breathe- What-" He takes a breath in, "about them?" I look down, only a couple chests rise and fall. "We need to go deeper. Far from the fallout." He raises his fist and coughs. I grab Lars' leg and pull him deeper. "How far-" He coughs, "Was it?!" I shout, "It wasn't the center! If it was, we'd be burning up!" I sit Lars up and hurry back." He coughs, "Why aren't you-" Cough "Wearing a mask?" I breathe in dust and exhale, "I dunno how to explain it." Dima clears his throat, "We need to keep going. Find a way to get home." Dima snaps off Parks' and Winston's dogtags. "Help me with Thomas!"

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I lock my arms under his and Dima gets his legs up. We walk him back to Lars and he coughs, hacks up phlem. He grabs at his lungs, "Oh christ, that hurts." We lower Thomas and Dima kneels, "You're gonna be alright." He scoffs and coughs, "Tell that to my lungs." Dima pulls him up and I sit Thomas up.

Something drops into the sewer water behind us, Dima points his gun towards the noise. "Show yourself!" A blackened hand comes out the water, "Dima!" He twists to the water and he shoots at it. The black creature jumps out and bends the barrel of his gun. "Shit!" He kicks it back into the water. Dima takes out his flashlight, revealing black sludge lining the walls, it moves, breathes, "Lasal, Lars, we're leaving, right now."