Clentine:
I had almost stopped breathing. I watched the creature co out the sa way as the other one, head down and sniffing across the ground. This ti, it was headed straight toward . I knew I had to move, but I had a terrible feeling that the mont I did, it would know I was there.
Carefully, I shifted my weight. My leg was half-raised, and I was balanced on the tip of my foot. I slowly placed it down, but the rough ground made a faint sound under the pressure. I held my breath. The creature lifted its head, as if trying to locate where the noise had co from.
I began to slide my front foot back, hoping to step away as quietly as possible. But it was getting harder, because the creature was moving fast, and I was trying not to make a sound.
That’s when soone ca to the rescue.
I heard rocks hitting the ground on the other side, where the first creature had been standing. It was deliberate, and it was loud. I turned and saw Yorick throwing rocks to distract it. The creature raised its head and rushed toward the sound.
I had only a split second to move. I dove to the side, and the creature ran past , chasing the noise.
Then I saw Yorick sprinting toward .
Chaos broke out as the two creatures began fighting over the severed head. They were making so much noise that, at this point, we knew anything we did wouldn’t be heard over them.
Yorick ran straight toward , grabbed my hand, and shook out of my frozen state. Then he took off in the opposite direction from where we’d co. I heard my other squadmates following us. But the green squad started heading back the way they had co, as if they’d either given up or planned to regroup later.
For now, we were just racing through the village. The houses looked like they had been attacked. Their doors were wide open, and the creatures were everywhere. There were so many of them.
We suddenly realized we couldn’t go any farther. We stopped and stood in a tight circle, eyes scanning in every direction.
"How do we defeat them?" I asked, still watching the area to make sure none of them got the jump on us.
No one answered. Just silence. Then Yorick pointed toward one of the tallest buildings in the distance. It looked like a mansion.
"But we can’t go there," I said.
"Clentine’s right," Troy added. "What are the chances that the mansion is safe? It’s bigger than the rest of the houses. That just ans more of those creatures could be inside."
Troy was with on this, but Yorick had noticed sothing we hadn’t.
"There’s a big lock on the outside of the door," Yorick said, pointing. "And none of the windows are broken."
He paused, but we already understood what he ant.
"Which ans none of the creatures have been inside yet," Haiden finished for him.
It made sense. That beca our new goal.
We ford a line, holding hands as we moved slowly forward. I was in the middle. Troy led the way, followed by Yorick, then , with Haiden at the rear, holding my hand. Walking past the infested houses was terrifying. The sights, the sounds, we kept our eyes peeled and our steps quiet.
Sohow, we made it to the end of the road where it curved to the right. From there, I could see more houses on the other side, but we had reached our destination. The mansion stood tall ahead.
It would be dark soon. There was no chance of finding any kids now. Besides, we needed to first understand what kind of creatures we were dealing with, we were completely in the dark.
"So, how are we going to do that?" Haiden asked, nodding toward the door.
Troy looked at , and I knew what he ant. He pulled a thin wire from one of the bracelets on his wrist and handed it to .
I crouched down in front of the large, crusty old lock. It looked ancient, covered in strange engraved patterns. My squadmates stood around , forming a circle, each of them facing outward to keep watch.
Then I heard the click. A small smile crept onto my face. I stood and tapped Haiden on the shoulder.
"It’s open," I whispered.
He turned, along with the others. But now ca the hard part, removing the lock and opening the door. We had no idea how long it had been shut. For all we knew, the hinges could scream the mont we touched them.
"Won are usually more gentle—Clentine should take off the lock," Troy said.
I was already on it. Carefully, I slid the lock free and handed it to Troy, who gripped it tightly, almost like he was ready to use it as a weapon if sothing jumped out.
Now ca the big mont. We had to open the door. It was one of those old, heavy wooden doors with a manual latch, one you had to lift by hand.
I started to lift the hatch by hand, but it made such a loud screeching noise that we all panicked. The creatures’ chittering grew louder, they had heard us. They knew soone was among them now.
"Co on, hurry up! Forget about being quiet!" Yorick shouted, grabbing my hand to help lift the hatch.
I had to let go, it was too heavy, too rusted. Only Yorick or one of the others could manage it.
While the others struggled to push the heavy door open, I caught a glimpse of the creatures sprinting toward us. They were fast, but not as fast as I had expected from their long, scaly legs. They took huge strides, but their pace wasn’t consistent. After a few seconds, they would slow down, then suddenly speed up again.
Suddenly, I felt a hand grab and toss inside. I hit the floor first. I think it was Yorick who had thrown in. The others began piling in behind .
Troy and Haiden made it through, but Yorick was still at the doorway.
That’s when I saw his expression shift. His eyes narrowed. For a split second, everything seed to freeze.
And then, right before my eyes, sothing grabbed Yorick. It was probably a hand, or whatever it was, but it pushed him back. The White Squad suddenly appeared out of nowhere, rushing in and leaving Yorick behind. It was Joshua who had tossed him out.
"No, Yorick!" I scread, getting up to run toward them. But the White Squad had already started the chaos. They pushed Troy and Haiden back as they ca in.
And then Joshua and Jack started to close the door while Yorick was still outside.
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