Three years after Lucinda's confrontation with the mastermind behind the infection, she is forced to risk everything to save Lucella once and for all.
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Fifteen-year-old Lucinda Emerson was well aware of the fact that she didn't take TIO down...
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"Be careful out there, you three!"
"We always are!"
I scoffed at Pony's response to Mimi. "The last time you went out with us, you got your head stuck in one of the store's displays!" I reminded him with my arms crossed. Zizzy laughed at the memory as Pony shot me a glare. Letting out a sigh in defeat, he turned back to the zebra. "So, where are we going again?" He asked with a tilt of his head. Zizzy seemed excited to explain our destination even though she'd done it four times already.
"I saw this really cool mall a few days ago," she informed us as we began to walk towards the gates. "The lights in there are still working, so I was hoping we could check it out!" I smiled as I walked behind the two. "As long as there aren't any security robots or infected crawlers, then I'm alright with it!" I replied. Even though I was more that prepared for it, carrying a scoped M16 on my back, an automatic pistol and a hunting knife on both of my legs, and a single sword at my waist, the sight of another bloodthirsty robot wasn't something I was wanting to see.
I had found a black messenger bag that could go over my shoulder a while back. It definitely seemed to work a lot better than my slightly torn rucksack. Perhaps it was because I didn't carry as many items in it as I did with my rucksack. The only things I had in it were a first aid kit, extra ammunition, my journal and pencil, a camera, and my phone, its charger, and a pair of headphones. It wasn't until I had slung the bag over my shoulder that I realized how heavy my rucksack had been.
Zizzy and Pony seemed to be invested in their own conversation, and I didn't want to be nosey after what happened last time, so I reached into my bag and took out my phone and headphones. As soon as I found a song I wanted to listen to, I plugged in my headphones before putting them into my ears. Then, the song began to play. It wasn't as boring as I found classical music to be, and it was as fun and upbeat as popular hip-hop songs. It was the perfect mixture between the two.
This was the life.
Minus the occasional infected we would come across, Lucella had gone from a lively community to a ghost town. That meant that the walk from The Safe Place to wherever Zizzy was leading us would be peaceful and quiet. I let out a sigh at the music playing in my ears and the odd comfort of my eerily quiet home. It almost made me forget about what I was doing entirely. I moved my gaze slightly downwards as I enjoyed the music playing in my ears.
"We're here!"
I took Zizzy's declaration as my cue to stop my music and take out my headphones. I did so before putting them and my phone back inside of my bag. Once I looked up, I felt as though I was nearly knocked off of my feet. Although it was around eleven in the morning, I was still able to see the lights that washed over the building, plants and fountain in the center. It seemed like a very fancy place and too good to be true. I could only wonder if others had been here before us and how the lights were still working.
