Chapter 39

" Try not to breathe it in and cover your mouth, everything is going to be ok." A woman who seemed to be the child's mother said she held her child close to her chest. She was trying to find a way out of the smog but there was so much of it that she was struggling to know what was up or down.

She and her child were covered in dust and their white skin now looked brown from all the smoke and debris sticking to their skin.

She held her child hoping help would come. But even after 10 minutes, she had not heard one Rescue siren so she was starting to lose hope.

That's when she heard something in the distance, and it was coming in her direction fast. The mother didn't know what to do, should she hide, maybe it was the rescue team. But what if it wasn't and it was one of those masked murderers running around?

She gritted her teeth in helplessness...but before she could think of a solution, it had arrived. She had trouble seeing but she could make out a masked individual. Her heart stopped and her world froze.

The figure jogged towards the mother and child, the mother stepped back in fear.

"Please, Kill me if you want but spare my child, I beg you she's innocent...please..please." She begged hoping the person would have just a bit of humanity left in them and spare her child.

She felt the cold embrace of death when she saw him come closer and closer. She crouched and held her daughter protecting her...but the pain she was expecting never came instead she felt a warm hand hold her shoulders in comfort.

"It's ok, your safe now mam, I'm not going to hurt you or your kid." The mother heard the voice of a child. She looked back in confusion and saw that the person didn't look like those masked murderers but instead was wearing a glass mask, not an animal mask.

'Here put these on, it will help with the smoke and your vision.' The boy offered her two gas masks, one for her and one for her child.

"T-thank you...then..sniff." The woman couldn't hold her emotions back anymore and cried while putting the mask on her child first.

"It's alright, if you walk straight down that alleyway and take a left and you continue to walk you will make it out of the smog. The other ways have been blocked off so this is the safest root. You should find other survivors there."

Leon said as he stood up and went back to his bike. The mother was first elated that there was a way out but was shocked when she saw that the kid had already ridden off deeper into the smog.

She didn't even get to ask his name.

///////////////////////////

Leon had been riding around the city like a maniac trying to find and help people. Leon had found a hardware store with all types of stuff like masks, medical equipment and some weapons to help him just in case he needed to break a door or two down.

Whenever he saved someone he would ask what had happened but he always got the same answer. Either they didn't know, masked men were the cause, or a clearly scared individual would repeat the phrase' Let blood rain fall on our enemies.' Whatever that means. Sounded like a cult chant but he had no way of knowing.

As he was saving people he was also running out of supplies. He had already given almost everything he had away, the only thing left in his backpack was a flame retardant kids jacket and one more gas mask.

After giving it away he would finally leave the city. He's done all he can so there's nothing left he could do. After that, it was just a waiting game to see how long the rescue team took.

{RUMBLE}

The ground shook violently but Leon had gotten used to the sudden random Explosion going off in the distance.

Leon had seen many disturbing and heartfelt things in this tragedy, he's seen things only described in wars. He remembered when he was learning about the Jews and their massacre, seeing death in pictures and death in real life was two completely different feelings.

If he had the power he wished he could turn back time to warn everyone, but he was only human living in the present. So that's what he would do, instead of worrying about what he could have done if he had this or that, he will concentrate on the now and what he can do at this moment.

Leon who was in his own head space suddenly saw something in the distance. It had a small figure and looked to be a child. She was just standing there in the middle of the road crying while holding her plushie.

' Isn't that...the little girl from the supermarket. Where is her...'

Leon immediately got off the hover bike and grabbed his last two items. He approached the little girl who hadn't even reacted to his presence.

{SNIFF}

"Papa, Mama, sis, Ruby's scared, where are you." The little girl cried as she held her plushie tight. Her skin was covered in burn marks and her cute little princess dress was ripped all over.

"Hey there Little red, so we meet again...are you okay." Leon asked as he knelt in front of Ruby.

Ruby looked at the masked individual and tilted her head in a confused manner. She's never met this mister before.

Leon seeing her confusion tapped the side of the mask finally showing his face through the opaque window.

" Ah, it's the kind big brother from cough, Cough." She went into a coughing fit as when she spoke she inhaled a large amount of smoke. Leon quickly put the mask on her face and draped the coat over her so she wouldn't get burned again.

"It's ok, everything going to be ok. Come with big brother and..."

" What about papa."

"...I'll help you find your papa but I need to get you somewhere safe, that's what your papa would have wanted. So will you follow big brother?"

The girl nodded and Leon grabbed her hand and walked to the Bike but just as he did he heard the scream of a woman not even 100 meters away.

Leon looked back then looked at ruby.' No Leon this is enough, you don't have anything left to help people pluss the bike only fits two people, one more, and the bike won't float.'

He looked back and then at ruby again. He gritted his teeth and knelt down to ruby level.

" Change of plans little red, I need to ask you a favor. Big brother won't be able to come with you for now but don't worry ill catch up soon enough okay? I need you to be a big strong girl and be by yourself for a while can you do that."

Ruby hesitated for a bit before nodding her head.

"That's good, when I come back big brother will treat you to as many cookies you want." That seemed to have excited the scared kid as she looked at him with starry eyes at the mention of unlimited cookies.

"Really!!! All the cookies I want, pinky swear." Little Red held out her little cute Pinky and Leon chuckled before holding up his pinky and crossing it with hers.

"I pinky swear." He retracted his pinky and placed Ruby onto to bike. He set its coordinates to the safe area and put it in self-driving mode." Make sure you hold on tight and don't let go okay."

Leon instructed and Little Red nodded her head obediently. With that said the bike started to ride off by itself and Leon ran forward to where he heard the scream.

Leon took a step forward and...

{Booooooooom}

His body was ragdolled to the side by a gas explosion that had leaked from the building nearby.