Click! Click!
Amber's keen brown eyes scanned the dark area as she cocked the gun held in her jet black paws. A scene of catastrophic wreckage lay in front of her.
Visions of her childhood began to creep into her mind. She remembered how her and her friends would run and play in the busy neighborhood that was the desolate remains which lay in front of her now. Beasts filled the streets daily, chattering and laughing about their day.
But all that was gone now.
Nothing.
The fox's black-tipped ears sprang up as she heard something make a crunching sound across the street from her. She tightened her grip on her gun, muscles tensed to spring into action at any moment. The enemy would not wait if she hesitated.
Just then a tiny otterbabe tumbled out onto the streets, giggling and playing with its feet. Anger burned up inside Amber as she watched the babe. She couldn't just leave the babe there to get shot, and her life was much too valuable to the SRA to risk it saving a child. And who knows? This could be the enemy's child. Or it could be a cruel trap set by the enemy, to lure her out into the open. Maybe the kid would just crawl away and someone else could find it.
Amber turned and rested her back against the stone wall, trying to ignore the sounds of innocent gurgling the babe was making. She closed her eyes as a frozen wind ruffled her light brown fur.
Heaving out a sigh of frustration with herself, Amber stood, gun in hand, and stepped out on the street to get the babe. Lowering her head she rushed across the open area, heart pounding madly. When she reached the babe she scooped it up in her arms without pausing and dashed back to cover.
Amber dove the last few tail-lengths to the overturned Jeep she was hiding behind. She sat up carefully, looking down to find the otterbabe sucking noisily at her collar. Amber drew her lips back in disgust and pried its mouth away.
Just then the ear-splitting sound of gunfire came from somewhere behind them and the baby burst into frightened tears, burying its face into Amber's chest for protection.
"No, kid, stop it!" Amber protested through clenched teeth, trying to pull the child away. It seemed to have a death grip on her.
"Jeez, Amber, thanks!" a voice was speaking into her ear. She clicked her earpiece on and snarled into it.
"It's just a child, I couldn't leave it to get killed! Now shut up and shoot!" she snapped.
"They're gonna kill us, Am. Wanna help a bit?" Derrick's voice was strong and calm in her ear. Amber sighed.
"I can't, Derr. If I do the kid will run off again and might get hurt. Sorry," she apologized. Derrick never responded.
Amber maneuvered herself to peer around the Jeep. About ten Natgov scum were standing huddled in a tight circle in the middle of the street, large metal shields surrounding the whole of the group so that the NRA's shots were virtually useless. Amber cursed them in her mind.
Then she remembered the grenade she had stumbled across a few days earlier. Getting her pack off with one arm proved to be very difficult, as she was holding the babe with the other. Maybe if I let go, the babe will too she thought. Carefully she pulled both arms away from the babe, but the babe stayed, clinging tight to Amber. That works too, I guess.
Both arms free, the fox took her pack off and located the grenade in seconds.
"Everyone, take cover!" she screamed into her earpiece.
Without waiting for questions of why, she ripped the pin free and tossed it with perfect aim right into the middle of the Natgov troops. Wrapping herself around the otterbabe, she huddled close to the back of the Jeep, ears flattened to deafen the sound.
Seconds later an explosion ripped in the street, rocking the ground violently as troops and gear were thrown mercilessly into the air. The NRA took advantage of this and began to fire non-stop into the middle of the wreckage, hoping to finish off any survivors.
After several minutes of shooting, Amber called a cease fire into her earpiece.
"Some of you guys go check it. I'd already be out there if it weren't for this kid," she spoke again into her earpiece.
Several beasts crept quietly into the wreckage, poking at bodies with their guns and feet. After a couple minutes they gave the all-clear sign, and the rest of the squad stepped out onto the street to join them.
With the quiet, the babe finally stopped crying and loosened its grip on Amber. She held it out at arm's length to look at it. It was a beautiful golden-brown color with snow white paws, and large bright blue eyes. It laughed merrily and pawed at Amber's face when it saw her. The fox wrinkled her nose and set the babe on the ground.
"Kids…" she muttered, then turned her attention back to her squad. "Alright, let's get home, guys."