Anne looked up, startled, to see that it was another human that saved them, seemingly unrelated to the group that was hostile.
"These goddamn punks." A voice said.
Anne blinked in confusion, her mind racing. "Who are you?"
"That doesn't matter right now, we need to get the two of you out of here, whatever you are."
Anne glanced at Seren, her heart pounding in her chest. "We can't just leave him!"
"I'm not going to leave him, just shut up for a second." The stranger said as he looked around for options to escape.
"Why are you helping us?" Anne asked, suspiciously.
"It's complicated, but the point is, you're not safe here. Neither are any of us. And if we're going to survive, you need to do exactly as I say."
Anne was about to protest when she noticed that Seren was starting to stir. "Seren? Seren! Are you okay?"
Seren opened his eyes and looked up at Anne, his eyes glassy and unfocused. "Anne? What happened?"
"You're okay, that's all that matters. Come on, we have to get out of here."
Seren nodded and slowly got to his feet, his body still weak from the lack of oxygen. "I'm coming, I'm coming."
The stranger grabbed the two of them by the wrists. "We don't have much time, we have to get out of here now."
Seren's legs gave out as they ran, and he fell to his knees. The stranger looked back and saw that they were still being chased by the group that had fired on them.
"Come on, you can do it!" The stranger yelled.
Anne and Seren tried to run, but they were too weak. Their bodies had not yet recovered from the lack of oxygen, and their legs were barely able to support their weight.
As the stranger pulled Anne and Seren along, he felt a sense of dread grow within him. He knew that if they didn't find a safe place to hide soon, they were all going to die.
"Where are we going?" Anne asked.
"I know a place where we can hide. Just follow me." The stranger said.
"What do you mean, a place to hide?" Seren asked.
"There's a lot going on here, and I don't have time to explain it right now. Just trust me, okay?"
As the stranger pulled Anne and Seren across the barren and desolate streets of a ruined city, Anne felt a sense of unease creep over her. There was something about the way that the stranger was acting that made her question whether or not she could really trust him.
"Where are we going?" Anne asked again.
"We're almost there, just keep moving." The stranger said, his voice low and gravelly.
As Anne and Seren stumbled and tripped over the shattered remains of the city, the stranger guided them to a large building that had been torn apart.
"We're here." The stranger said, stopping abruptly.
"This place?" Anne asked, her voice filled with skepticism.
"This place is the only thing standing between us and those guys that are chasing us. Now come on, let's get inside."
Seren glanced around the building and shuddered. "It does not look safe."
"Do you have any better ideas?" The stranger asked, his tone sharp.
Anne sighed. "He is right, we do not have a choice."
Seren clenched his jaw, his face twisted into a scowl. "Fine, we'll go inside."
The stranger smirked. "That's what I thought."
As the three of them walked through the entrance of the building, the stranger pointed to a door. "There, that's where we're going."
Seren eyed the door cautiously. "Are you sure?"
"Trust me, that's the safest place for us right now. Now, come on." The stranger said, walking towards the door.
As the stranger reached for the doorknob, Seren grabbed his arm. "Wait, not yet."
"What's wrong?" The stranger asked.
"We were not born yetserday, what's your name?" Seren demanded.
He chuckled. "My name is Marcus Hale, that's all you need to know because I'm the one that's asking the questions here."
Marcus turned to Anne and Seren. "Are you two done wasting my time now?"
Anne and Seren shared a glance.
"Yes."
"Good, then let's continue." Marcus said as he opened the door and stepped inside.
Anne and Seren followed closely behind as Marcus led them down a dark, twisting hallway.
"This is insane, why are we trusting this person?" Seren asked, his voice filled with doubt.
"Because, Seren, he's the only thing between us and the rest of the people that are chasing us."
Marcus stopped abruptly and turned to Anne and Seren. "We're here."
Anne glanced around the room and saw that they were standing in the center of what appeared to be some kind of abandoned bunker.
"What is this place?" Anne asked.
"This is where we're going to wait for this to blow over. It's safe and secure." Marcus replied.
Seren looked around the room and shook his head. "I don't like this, we should just find somewhere else to hide. This feels wrong."
Marcus rolled his eyes. "Look, Seren, we don't have time for this. Those guys that were chasing us are still out there and they're not going to give up easily. If we stay here, we'll be safe."
They all sat down and breathed a sigh of relief. "Tell me Marcus, why did you decide to save us? I cannot find a plausible reason, you see that we are not from this world, yet you chose to put yourself in a dangerous position for us." Seren said.
Marcus turned away. "I was a war veteran... I fought to protect this country, the people in it... whatever, it doesn't matter anymore, I just felt as if it was the right thing to do at that moment."
Anne was taken aback by the response, it seemed so genuine, unlike anything she had experienced in her life, she couldn't help but feel that as if she could trust Marcus.
Marcus stared at the ground. "Anyway, we should get some rest."
The group slept, exhausted from the ordeal.