"Stop in the name of the law", a police man yelled.
"After them, they are getting away".
"All units, the targets are on the move and are headed east at full speed".
It was an especially cold winter and the year was gradually coming to an end. The city of Lore was a vibrant and bustling place to be, but that was it. Nothing special, memorable or out of the ordinary ever happens. Festivals were far fetched and carnivals felt alien. Even christmas was simply just a memory to most elderly people and a tale to the younger generations, it was an absolute bore of a place and everyone lived simple lives in this somewhat peaceful society..... Or was it?
Somewhere in the northern district of the city, a squad of policemen were in pursuit of a gang of suspicious looking men in black outfits. "Keep running, we can't let them catch us", one of them barked out as the gang dashed into an apartment building. Inside one of the police vans, a walkie-talkie crackled with static before a voice pushed through the noise, "Sir, they are in the building", then a middle aged man with grey hair sighed and picked it up. Replying in a hurried tone, he said; "Copy that". "All units, surround the building and secure all exits". "No one goes in, no one comes out".
In a few moments, the entire block was sealed off, armed men lined up with guns in hands, eyes brimming with pure lethality. At that moment, In a room on the third floor, a massive explosion erupted, bringing down a part of the building with it. The shockwave spread through the air like a violent ripple, forcing the sergeant to order his men to urgently evacuate the people in the building., one of the swat operators was escorting a young woman out of the building when he heard her murmur under her breath, her voice trembling, "T- T--The--They....". As the operator listened, he felt a chill in his spine, only then did he glance in the direction her hands were frozen in.
"Sir.... The men..... They are gone".
"What do you mean? They clearly ran into the building, the passerbys said they saw them". "They were in the building sir, but now..... There are in..... The sky".
It was 7:15 pm when the incident occured. At a backyard alley, the black gang landed softly on the ground, unnoticed by anyone. "Now what, Thod? We can't keep running, especially when it's not just the police after us", a young man from the group said with concern. Thod --being the leader of the group-- had a calm look and his face. After pondering for moments, he said collectively, "The plan remains the same, we are to bring Shem to the temple no matter the cost. So we can't afford to stop". Shem --beside him-- shifted uncomfortably as she was mentioned. The young man cut in, "Surely, you are insane. Can't you see the obstacles, how do you intend to get Shem there, even when it costs us our lives, huh?". "There is no way we can keep going, not at this rat--". Thod --enraged and brimming with furry-- walked up to the young man and held him by the collar. He then looked into the man's eyes with a stare that could bore holes and said in a deep tone, "So what... So what, huh? You are just going to stop here. Have you forgotten how we got here in the first place? The sacrifice made by our entire clan, just to make sure we survive? Was it all meaningless?"
At that tensed moment, Thod flinched and instinctively spun towards his side, Then he shoved the young man out of the path of a speeding shard of stone that slammed into the wall, leaving an unreasonably large crack. Thod then muttered in cold disbelief, "They found us".