II - The Real Enemies

Vonda paused as she turned around, seeing her father and Jane struggling to catch up to her. Noticing the tear gas clouding up the town center, she signaled them to move faster.

"You call this running for your life?" exclaimed Vonda.

"You've always… been a fast girl…" panted Tim.

"How much more…?" asked Jane, groaning as she pressed her ribs.

"It's right there," said Vonda. "You alright?"

"I just feel like…"

Jane stumbled into a random front yard and vomited into some bushes. Vonda ran up to her while Tim looked at the passing residents, all looking to seek safety in their homes. The riots were calming down for the most part, though people could still be seen tending to their own injuries as the tear gas spread.

"I'm sorry for rushing you," said Vonda.

"It's not that," groaned Jane. "It's… it's the cop."

"Oh… yeah, that was a— that was pretty gross. You okay now?"

"I think so."

"My home is only a few houses away."

"Okay. Let's go."

The door opened as Tim, Vonda, and Jane entered. Inside, they saw Bobby and Carlitos sitting together on the couch. Bobby quickly stood up, a worried expression on his face.

"Is your mother here?" asked Tim.

"No, she went to the infirmary," said Bobby. "My sister chased after her."

"Why is she at the infirmary?"

"I don't know, we were just listening to the radio and then we heard gunshots and then she just left."

Tim walked up to the clock that hung in the living room. He unhooked it and placed it down, revealing a small hole in the wall. He reached into it and pulled out two handguns.

"You know how to use one?" asked Tim.

"Yeah."

"Here you go, Bobby. We're getting your family out of here."

Tim tossed a handgun towards Bobby, who caught it and cocked it. Vonda then grabbed her father's arm and grew frustrated.

"Are you seriously leaving me here?" asked Vonda. "I can help out too. They're our family too. Let me help!"

"I appreciate it… but I need you to watch Jane and Carlitos. You have a bow and you have arrows. Protect them."

Vonda released Tim, allowing him and Bobby to leave the house. She then turned around, seeing Carlitos and Jane staring at each other from across the couch. Carlitos was sitting in a relaxed pose, his legs and arms being open, while Jane sat in a very tight and restrained position, clasping her hands and legs together.

"Carlitos, she's Princess Jane. Princess Jane, that's Carlitos. And Carlitos— be nice."

"But I hate princesses."

"Get to know her and you'll see how dumb it is to hate princesses."

"W-Wait," said Jane. "Where are you going?"

"I'm getting my bow," said Vonda as she walked upstairs.

Jane nodded before she looked back at Carlitos. She smiled softly and waved.

"Just so you know… I'm not a real princess," said Jane.

"My tía and Bobby both say you are."

Jane sighed as she removed the camera strap from her neck. She then looked at her camera before hearing Carlitos quickly crawl across the couch and up to her.

"What's that? It looks broken. Why is it black? It should be orange. Where is your dress? You don't look like a princess. Why are your socks so long? Are your legs hairy? Why are you so pale? Where are your boobies? Are you a guy?"

Jane groaned as she took out her tools and began to work on fixing her camera lens while ignoring the annoying kid next to her.

No one was answering. He could not wait a minute longer. Lincoln ran into the garage and looked at the motorcycle that stood in the middle, surrounded by crates of motorcycle parts.

"I'm scared, Linky."

"It's okay, Lily, everything's gonna be fine once we get out of here. As long as I'm here, nothing's gonna happen to you."

Lincoln set Lily down. He groaned as he stretched out his arms.

"Where are we going?" asked Lily.

"Not somewhere pleasant," said Lincoln. "But as long as you cover your nose, it's gonna be okay."

Lily pressed her fingers and closed her nose.

"Not yet," said Lincoln.

"Oh."

Lincoln grabbed Lily's hand and walked her out of the garage. He saw a manhole cover in the middle of the road just a few houses away. He began to jog towards it, causing Lily to sprint with her short legs.

Then, he saw the manhole cover open. He quickly grabbed Lily and threw himself behind a tree in someone's front yard. He peeked around the tree and saw a man and a woman coming out of it, both of them wearing masks that covered their faces. They also wore ragged clothing stained by roamer blood and held bladed weapons. After them, more people came out of the manhole cover, all wearing clothing that was stained by roamer blood. Some of them wore masks, while others showed their unwashed faces. They quickly began to spread out as Lincoln kept himself hidden behind the tree. His eyes then met the eyes of one of the invaders.

"Boy and girl!" she exclaimed. "Over there!"

Lincoln grabbed Lily and sprinted away from the front yard and through the backyard, opening the doors as the invaders chased after him. Lily screamed as the invaders seemed like they were catching up before Lincoln ran into the road that led to the main gate.

"Guys! Behind you!" screamed Lincoln.

Lincoln continued to run across the road, eventually making it to the musicians' house, though he did not stop to knock on their door. He darted across their driveway and fled as the invaders came across the cops. The cops quickly turned around and started firing on them, managing to kill a few of them while the invaders scattered. Then, they saw many fires being lit up and growing bright before the cops realized that the Molotovs were being tossed straight at them.

The bottles landed on a few cars and cops, causing them to burn on impact. The Laborers then all popped up from behind the gate and began to fire at the trapped cops, taking them out one by one. The invaders then ran towards the injured cops, quickly picking up their guns.

One of the cops groaned as one of the invaders ripped his SMG away from him. The invader then aimed the gun at him and fired it. One of the cops screamed as he ran around in fire before one of the invaders decapitated him with her double machetes. A cop with a shot spine struggled to crawl away before a knife was thrown at the back of his skull. An invader then pulled out the knife and placed it back in his pocket before picking up the cop's handgun.

The invaders jogged past the police vehicles, their red and blue lights swirling around and shimmering softly. They approached the gate.

"Laborers?" asked one of the invaders.

"Yeah," said Zheng. "And you guys are… Vultures?"

The Vulture nodded. She opened the gate, allowing the Laborers to march in, walking past the multiple dead bodies that were scattered around the entrance.

"This is what I like to see!" smiled Zheng as he looked around the community. "Hell's going on over there though?"

Garcia got on one knee and dragged it across the grass. He crouched towards the gate, grabbing it with both hands. He then pushed it forward, causing the gate to creak while blood pumped out of his bullet wound.

Zheng and the other Laborers turned around while the Vultures walked towards the cop. He raised his hand, signaling the Vultures to stop.

"Hey, man, what's with you?" Zheng asked Garcia. "It's gonna take you like a minute to close that gate."

Garcia kept on going, shoving the gate along slowly. Zheng scoffed as he looked at his fellow Laborers.

"Hey, man, I'm talking to you!"

Zheng raised his rifle and blasted a shot through the side of Garcia's abdomen, causing him to collapse. He walked towards the fatally wounded cop and looked down at him.

"That's why you pigs never earned our respect. You don't listen to the ones you're supposed to serve."

Zheng pulled the bolt back, ejecting the empty cartridge out of the gun. He then pulled it back forward, putting a new round in the chamber. He aimed it at Garcia, watching the cop stare ahead blankly as blood poured down his nose. He then lowered his weapon and knelt down, grabbing Garcia's handcuffs. He raised the cop's arms and handcuffed them around the gate, ensuring he couldn't grab his taser. In addition, it put more stress into the bullet wound in his arm, causing Garcia to groan out in pain.

"Leave him," said Zheng, turning around. "Where's the police station?"

"Center of town," said one of the Vultures, who carried two machetes.

"Woah, měilì de nǚrén. What's your name?"

"Shiwen."

"You looked pretty badass back there. Think you can show me some moves after this?"

"Tuì kāi."

Shiwen jogged ahead with the rest of the Vultures following her. Zheng chuckled softly before marching behind her, taking his time to observe his surroundings.

Lincoln took a deep breath as Lily whimpered softly, both of them hiding in the backyard of the musician's house. His head felt dizzy while his stomach felt like it was being tied into knots. Just minutes ago he felt nothing but pure fear. He hasn't felt anything like that in a long time.

"You okay?" whispered Lincoln.

Lily shook her head.

"Make them go away," she said.

"We can't— not yet."

Lincoln looked out the backyard. More Vultures were coming out of the other manholes. And just like with the first manhole, they left behind two Vultures to patrol around the manholes.

"Maybe the others are in the infirmary," said Lincoln. "Let's go there."

Lincoln grabbed Lily's hand and slowly lifted her up to get her across the fence into another backyard. He then dropped her, though the height she fell did not cause a single scratch. Lincoln then hopped onto the top of the fence and then dropped down before grabbing his sister's hand and repeating the same process with another fence to get to the house next door without being seen by the Vultures.

Tim and Bobby walked into the infirmary. Inside was Albert, Lana, Maria, Ronnie Anne, Nurse Patti, and some cops. The beds were filled with wounded patients. Some had broken arms, some had burning eyes, some had beaten faces, and a few had gunshot wounds.

"Jesus, are all of these from the riot?" asked Tim.

"Yeah," said Maria. "I know Patti needed the extra help, so that is why I'm here."

"What about her?" Tim asked, referring to Ronnie Anne.

"She is just trying to help."

"There's no use anymore," said Tim. "We all have to leave this infirmary."

"Why?"

"The Laborers are here. This place is under attack and I just don't have a lot of confidence that the cops will be able to protect this place. No offense."

"None taken," said Leo. "I mean, this is my first year. I never even fired a gun at a moving target… other than the roamers."

"It's a damn shame you and your peers took all the guns away," said Albert, holding a pistol.

"I didn't expect that to happen either. I honestly didn't agree with Schoffner on that. But what could I do? It's my job."

"Whatever. Good thing these guys were able to get their hands on some of the weapons."

"No, we're not fighting these people," said Tim.

"Who said we were?"

"We're not going out there unarmed," said Lana, holding a small revolver.

"So we're all on board with the idea of ditching this place for now?" asked Tim.

"No," said Maria. "I cannot leave these patients behind. Some of them are fighting for their life. To abandon them would be to kill them."

"But if we don't leave them behind, it'll be our lives on the line! All your efforts would be for nothing if the Laborers get here and kill everyone!"

"You can't convince me to change my mind. You never could."

Tim looked distressed at Maria's stubborn approach to tending to the patients.

"I'll stay here and protect her," reassured Albert. "Just get Lana out of here."

"Get Ronnie Anne out of here too," said Bobby. "Once we get everyone back to normal health, we'll leave too."

"Do you know how to leave?"

"The manholes," said Albert. "We'll be fine, just go."

"No way, I'm staying here," said Ronnie Anne. "I can still help!"

"Not anymore," said Maria. "You did a great job, but right now, there is no need for you anymore. I will have one less thing to worry about once I know you are safe."

"Okay," said Ronnie Anne.

"You won't be out there for long," said Bobby. "Lori will be back with the others. The Laborers won't stand a chance against her."

"They're here," said Albert.

Peeking through the curtains in the window, Albert was able to see a few survivors approaching the infirmary with weapons in hand. Tim, Lana, and Ronnie Anne prepared to leave through the back door. Bobby raised his gun along with Albert while the others watched. Leo and the other rookie cop raised their guns as well while radioing in some of the other cops.

Time seemed to be at a standstill.

The back door of the jail center was unlocked. Simon entered with Sam behind her, passing by the jail cells. From one of the cells, Becky looked at the passing siblings, surprising her.

"Sam!" she gasped.

"Becky?"

"What's going on outside?"

"Things are hectic out there. There's a whole riot and the Laborers are here."

Becky's eyes glinted as she appeared horrified.

"What?" gasped Girl Jordan. "You're here to get us out of here, right?"

"Yeah. If the Laborers get in here, we're gonna have to fight back."

"Gotcha. Good luck, Sam."

"You're really breaking us out?" asked Becky.

Sam nodded reluctantly. She then walked out of the jail center with Simon where she saw him crouched down. She crouched as well, noticing the cops shouting as they tried to barricade the front doors. The sound of rocks and batons being tossed at the windows could be heard as Sam and Simon made their way across a hallway.

"Hey, Sammy," whispered Simon, pointing at a crate next Schoffner's office. "Over there."

"Yeah," nodded Sam.

Then, they heard some cops running their way, prompting them to hide inside a room.

"Sam?"

Sam turned around, seeing Carol handcuffed to a table.

"Carol? What happened?"

"Schoffner knows I helped Becky. I heard gunshots. What's going on out there?"

"Riots and Laborers."

"Laborers? They're here?"

"Becky's information must've been wrong," said Sam.

"Or maybe she lied to us," said Simon, picking Carol's handcuffs open.

"I wouldn't doubt it."

"No, she wouldn't do that," said Carol, a sense of hesitation lingering in her voice.

Sam and Simon looked at each other.

Zheng and his Laborers marched along Franklin Street, passing by the terrified residents. Shiwen and the Vultures scattered about, entering each home and dragging the residents outside into their lawn.

Paula whimpered in pain as she held on to her broken leg. Nadia and Maya tried to tend to it before fear struck the girls. Zheng looked them in the eyes with a serious expression in his face. He kept on walking, giving the girls a sense of relief before one of the Vultures rolled up to them with her roller skates.

"Oh, wow!" gasped the Vulture. "If it isn't Paula and Maya and Nadia!"

"P-Polly?" quivered Paula.

"No way," said Nadia. "Polly Pain— what happened to you?"

"Nothing!" answered Polly. "Why? Did my face get uglier?"

"N-No," said Paula. "We're just… surprised… what are you doing?"

"Oh, I'm just having a look around your home. Looks just as nice as I remember it! Maybe after this is all over, you can catch me up about everything that happened with the roller derby squad or the soccer team. I'd really like to know. How's that sound?"

Nadia looked at the blood-stained machete that Polly was holding.

"Sounds nice..." said Paula.

"Great! By the way… do you guys know what happened to Rusty?"

Nadia and Paula shrugged softly before Maya spoke up.

"I think he's dead," said Maya. "That's… that's what Lynn said at least."

Polly's face was frozen at a gleeful expression, though it seemed forced at this moment. Her right eye twitched softly. Then, before the girls could react, she screamed and swung down her machete, causing Nadia and Paula to scream and hold each other. Maya raised an arm as she struggled to shield her head, only to have it struck with the blade of the machete as Polly continued to slaughter her. Blood splattered all over her face and helmet as Polly hacked away Maya's body. After a few seconds, Polly calmed down, panting heavily before smiling.

"That's a bummer," she said. "I'll catch up with you guys later."

Polly skated away. Paula shielded her eyes as Nadia looked away, holding Paula tightly. Both girls were shivering intensely as blood splatter could be seen on the back of Nadia's hair and in Paula's face.

"Christ, what's wrong with the girl?" asked Zheng.

"I don't know," whispered Monica. "Aren't you glad we won't be dealing with 'em anymore after this?"

"So glad."

Zheng and the Laborers approached the police station, seeing rioters toss rocks and batons at the windows. He let out a snarky laugh before raising a pistol up into the air and firing off multiple shots. The rioters screamed and fled.

The cops looked outside their shattered windows as they saw the rioters fleeing. The cops then gulped as they heard someone knock on their windows. Then, complete silence took over.

Carol rubbed her wrists as she stood up. As Sam, Simon, and Carol prepared to leave the questioning room, they were stopped by instinct upon hearing the muffled sound of gunshots banging against the walls, cabinets, desks, chairs, and other furniture in the offices. They quickly crouched upon seeing bullets fly across the hallway, making it risky to leave the room.

The Laborers pushed the door, causing the chairs and tables barricading it to fall down and clatter. They kept pushing, moving the barricades away before walking into the room. Then, some of the Laborers walked into the police station while others stood guard as the metal detectors went off.

The cops from the City Hall steps ran through the smoke wearing their gas masks and riot armor. One of the cops was then shot in the chest by an arrow, causing the other cops to raise their shields up. Then, Molotovs were thrown at them, causing them to scream as they ran around. Those who made it out of the smoke were shot dead by the Laborers. Zheng watched the massacre as he continued to chew on his toothpick. He then walked inside the police station.

"Not a single man dead yet, eh?" said Zheng, setting off the metal detectors.

"Fine, you win," said Monica. "I'll miss the hell out of those bagels."

"You can always come by my room if you want some."

"Nice try, Zheng."

Zheng stepped over the bleeding bodies on the ground, watching the cops suffer from their fatal gunshot wounds. Monica didn't bother to step over them, as the screams they made when she stepped on them amused her.

Zheng then stepped into Schoffner's office and saw a cop get on his knees with his arms raised. The cop looked very young.

"Don't kill me!" pleaded the cop. "I never saw anything. You can go… and I won't do anything. I promise."

Zheng raised his rifle and shot the cop in the face, causing him to drop dead.

"Yeah… we're burning this place down," said Zheng before he spat on the cop's body.

Sam, Carol, and Simon kept themselves hidden under the window in the room as the Laborers passed by. Zheng and Monica entered the jail center.

"Don't let nobody come in," said Zheng to one of the Laborers.

The Laborer nodded as he closed the door, leaving Zheng and Monica as the only two Laborers inside the jail center. Zheng looked around, clapping slowly as the prisoners looked at him with confusion before fear set in. Becky smiled as she removed her hands from the metal bars.

"Congratulations, people," said Zheng. "The pigs that put you in here are out of commission! I would love to free you all… but I have to get to know you first. Besides, one person's the main priority for now. Ain't that right, Becky?"

Clancy and Ms. Carmichael looked at each other with a bewildered expression.

"I don't hear keys jingling," said Becky.

"Is that so?"

Zheng then walked over to Becky's cell while Monica stayed by the door. Ms. Carmichael grabbed Clancy as he subtly shielded her.

"Oh, well… that's probably because I don't plan on opening your cell. I should start off with an apology, 'cause I lied to you. My bad."

Becky rolled her eyes.

"What? What's…" said Zheng as mocked Becky's eye roll. "What's that?"

"So predictable of men like you. Now… get the damn keys… and get me out of here before you regret it."

"Oh, wow, you think you can order me around from in there? This ain't Ann Arbor anymore, baby. I'm killing your people this time, not the other way around."

"First of all…" said Becky as she walked up to the cell. "Don't call me baby. I'm not your girl. Second of all? They're not my people anymore. And third of all… you still haven't let that go?"

"Acting like killing twenty of my people is nothing? Now you really ain't getting out of there, hoe."

Zheng began to walk away.

"Oh yeah?" said Becky. "That's funny— coming from a guy who never got in this hoe's pants. I think you're just jealous because you know I'd never let a guy like you get in my guts! Never in a million years!"

Zheng turned around in anger.

"Yeah?" shouted Zheng, grabbing his knife. "I'll never get in your guts in a million years?"

Becky gulped as she backed away. Then, she saw the door open as Monica turned around, raising her gun. Her gun was chopped away as Shiwen turned Monica around and held her two machetes against her neck. Zheng turned around and raised his rifle before Polly raised her own pistol.

"Woah, easy there, tiger!" exclaimed Polly. "You only got one shot. Then it's over for you. Frankly, I don't care about dying. But I bet you and your friend there do. So lower that gun and we'll let you two live."

Zheng removed his gun strap and tossed it away before raising his hands. Polly then lifted up a pair of keys and jingled them in their air while smiling. She then tossed it at Zheng.

"Do your job for once," said Polly.

"Yeah… tiger," said Shiwen.

Zheng pouted as he unlocked and opened Becky's cell. Becky then kicked him in the crotch before shoving him into another cell. She closed the cell and took a breath of relief. She then closed the cell she was in, confusing her parents even more.

"Thank god you girls got here in time," said Becky.

"Of course," said Polly. "Wanna see what we did for you?"

Becky nodded as Clancy walked up to the bars.

"Hey, what the hell is happening?" asked Clancy.

"Sorry I can't let you escape yet, Mom and Dad," said Becky as she walked away. "It's for your safety."

"What about yours? Who are these people? Becky!"

Becky glanced at Monica before looking at Shiwen.

"I don't trust her," said Becky.

Shiwen nodded before piercing through Monica's chest with one machete and decapitating her with her other machete, getting a fearful response from the prisoners. She then grabbed Monica's head and tossed it over to the floor near Zheng's cell, causing him immediate grief.

"What the—! No! Mon! Monica!" he screamed.

"That's for the betrayal," said Shiwen.

"Get the fuck back here, you bitch! I'll kill you all!"

Becky, Shiwen, and Polly walked out of the jail center. They closed off Zheng's scream and looked at the kneeling Laborers with their hands behind their head as the Vultures held them at either gunpoint or knifepoint.

"Ta-da!" exclaimed Polly.

"Good job, girls," said Becky.

"That's not all," said Shiwen.

Two Vultures walked up to Becky. They handed her the ACE 23 rifle and Px4 pistol, along with a holster. They were now back in her hands. As she holstered her pistol and placed the gun strap of the rifle across her chest, another Vulture approached her and gave her fire axe back.

"Thank you," she smiled.

Becky then walked over to the questioning room and entered. There, she saw a scared Sam, an anxious Carol, and an upset Simon.

"Carol… what are they doing here?" she asked.

"They freed me…" said Carol. "The Laborers…"

"My people stopped them. Carol, Vultures. Vultures, Carol."

"Vultures?" questioned Carol.

"Let's get you into the infirmary," said Becky. "My right eye is throbbing, thanks to that asshole, Schoffner."

"You said you were alone all this time…"

"I was telling the truth, Carol. But I lied too. Now get up before I get angry."

"What? You can't just boss me around!"

Becky raised her pistol and aimed it at Simon. Sam yelped as she pulled Simon close to her and shielded him.

"Becky! Stop! What are you doing?" shouted Carol.

"They're a threat," said Becky. "Sam can easily take me out and Simon's a slimy worm. No way I'm letting them live."

"Sam is your friend!"

"You and Jace are my only friends. Don't you get it, Carol? They're the ones holding us back. Look at him! Look at the boy! He wants to kill me!"

Simon growled as he glared at Becky. Sam shook her head.

"Stop it, Becky!" shouted Carol. "What's wrong with you?"

"You want me to die, Carol?"

"He's Sam's little brother for God's sake! Our people!"

"They're not my people anymore! Don't you understand that?! I'll kill them all if it means I get to protect you and I!"

"Okay! Okay, I get it. Just… please… let them go. Handcuff them, keep them here, do whatever you want to make sure they don't threaten you. Just… don't kill them, please."

Becky nodded.

"Shiwen. Polly," said Becky. "Get the kid's multitool. Should look like a switchblade. And handcuff him into the table."

Shiwen grabbed Simon's multitool and pocketed it while Polly placed Simon into a chair and handcuffed his hands to the table. Sam stood in fear as Carol gave the two of them a deeply apologetic look.

"Sam…" said Becky.

Sam swallowed hard.

"...don't try anything."

Becky walked out of the questioning room with Carol and the Vultures following her. The door was closed and locked. Sam took a deep breath and let out a shuddering gasp.

"Are you okay?" asked Sam.

"We never should've trusted her," said Simon.

"Luna was right. Something was off about her. I just didn't know she was this unhinged. Oh, god, Simon."

Sam hugged Simon as they both closed their eyes, realizing how close they brushed with death.