Alice and Max flew like water beetles across the City buildings. There was a long stretch of these buildings tightly packed together and it took little effort to hop from one to the other.

The cold and dark day kept most folks inside. No one would be caught on top of their roofs only if it was a decree by the Queen herself as she passed by the citizens in a parade. She would wave and speak pleasantries to all she passed. Some were afraid and some hated her with every bone in their bodies. But most citizens were indifferent to the Queen.

Alice and Max were going at a good click when Max noticed they were being followed. Two guards quickly tailed them and they were gaining fast.

“Alice! They’re following us!” Max shouted.

“Just what I expected. We gotta move quick!” They dashed like lightning now, hurdling air vents and pipes sticking out of the rooftops. The guards did the same and kept gaining.

Then Alice, with a clear escape route, jumped off one building and into an open window of an apartment. Max lost her and decided to keep going on without even stopping, for he knew they were on his tail. The guards now split: one followed Max and the other after Alice.

Alice sneaked around the apartment for it was dark and empty, waiting for the guard. The white armored guard jumped inside and took out his knife. He stealthily approached the darkness by checking corners and looking under chairs and tables. He got to the kitchen and there Alice grabbed his hand. He was too strong, but she was so small, she could escape his grasp by her nimbleness.

She slipped out. He crept around as he tried looking for her again. This time, the big guard would stab and kill her.

Alice waited behind an open bedroom door. He didn’t come in for some time. Then after the door creaked open, he quickly turned and checked behind the door. But she wasn’t there.

Turning, he heard a screech and felt a pain in his leg. He looked down and saw Alice crouched on the floor with a knife in her hand. He screamed in agony and fell backward as she struck his face with her hammer.

Max was stuck. He came to a ledge where there was no turning back. Turning horrified, he saw the guard come rushing down towards him at full speed. He readied himself and closed his eyes, hearing the footsteps coming closer and closer.

Now!

Suddenly as fast as light, Max jumped out of the way. He thought that would do it, but a guard of the Troop isn’t easily fooled. He came towards Max, picked him up, and threw him against the concrete gravel of the roof. He kicked him repeatedly. Over and over again mercilessly, the red-eyed guard hurtled his leg into Max’s stomach and stomped on his face. Max froze again as he was bracing for the violent impact of the strikes in the fetal position. He was in tremendous pain but was afraid. Fear overcame him agai, as he hated how he wasn’t so easily changed. Just as he was nearing his point of tolerance, the kicking stopped.

Max looked up and saw Alice fighting the man. He was angry, but not the kind of anger Max had seen. His eyes looked like balls of fire and his hands were like bear claws. He fought like a beast, like a wild animal ready to devour his food. Suddenly Max realized, he was going to kill her, he was too fast and too strong but together they might be able to take him and so he sprang up.

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His adrenaline kicked in and he joined the fight prudently. He waited for the right moment and punched the guard as he threw one back. Alice then roundhouse kicked him to the face and he fell to his knees. Max had leverage and punched him repeatedly until the guard wiped them away and went for Max’s neck, violently thrusting him around. Alice got her hammer that had fallen and swung, missing the guard’s head.

The guard noticed and threw Max at her. As the children fell, the evil-visaged guard picked up the hammer and went for Alice, for he saw her as the stronger one. Max saw him beating away without care at his friend. Anger boiled up in him and he lunged like a rabid dog. Max gripped viciously around his neck tightly and falling, writhed on the floor on his back. He wanted to be in this position until the guard would be unconscious or until he had enough, but the guard thrashed violently flailing his arms. He took out his knife and stabbed Max’s thighs. Max became angrier and squeezed harder. Max had to wait until he was dead, waiting because this one was evil. He didn’t like the look of this one and he needed to die. He didn’t like it one bit though and never intended to hurt a living soul, but when provoked Max was an unstoppable force. This was the longest moment of his life as he slowly took away his first life.

The arms stopped and the guard wasn’t gasping for air anymore. Max let go, panting and crying out in anger, pain, and sadness. He threw the body off of him. He saw his leg, not badly wounded, but hurting.

Then he came close to Alice. She was bloody and badly bruised and wasn’t moving. He tried to talk to her, but she lay still. Nothing about her seemed alive.

Deciding to carry her, Max picked her up, and saw a green neon sign that read, MOTEL, blinking on and off. It was on top of the building he now stood with Alice in his arms. He found a door that led into the motel from the roof. Entering, he descended the spiral staircase.

“You’re gonna be OK, Alice. Stay with me!”

He brought her down the deadened halls of the hotels, passing the endless doors leading into unknown bedrooms.

“Hello?” Max called out into the dimly lit hallways but no sound came. The motel was deserted, it seemed. Alice was badly hurt and so before going to the front desk, he decided to enter a vacant room. He knocked on one but no answer came.

“Good enough for me.”

Impulsively, Max kicked down the door. No one was inside, no bags or sound came from the darkness as he lay Alice down onto the bed.

Max's adrenaline was still going. He had no time to delay. He found bandages and an entire first aid kit, but nothing in there was going to help very much. He cleaned her up quickly with water and found in her bag some painkillers.

When she wakes.

He then found in the bathroom a defibrillator. Taking the device, he set it up by her remembering how it worked.

“Clear”, he said out of habit as he shocked her.

Out of fright, Alice shot straight up and let out a great scream as Max tried to hold her, but she pushed him away.

“Alice. Alice, it’s me,” Max said, calmly. He comforted her and she laid in his arms as she let out a great sob.

He just listened and then looked at her, “Are you hurt?”

“I don’t know,” Alice said through tears. “I can’t feel too much and my vision is kinda fuzzy.” She was speaking through her teeth. She never wanted to cry, but she couldn’t help herself.

“Well, you just have to rest, OK? Just lay down and take a long rest.” Max helped her into the covers.

“Oh, here take some of these.” Giving her the pills and some water, Alice gulped them down briskly.

Switching off the light, Max retreated into the bathroom, relieved they were safe for the time being. Max sank on the floor, exhausted. He saw his wound and got some bandages. He set himself up on the ledge of the bathtub as he cleaned it. Numbing it with a needle, he then washed it again just to be sure. He attempted to sew it shut with a thread and needle. He was counting on it being sterile. When he was done suturing the wound, Max cleaned up, turned off the light, and went to sleep on the bathroom floor.

Alice was in miserable pain. Her face felt like a brick building. The pills were going to help a lot and the bruising wasn’t as bad as it looked. She would heal up just in time…

Before she was taken that afternoon.