It had been a month since our last encounter with Ron. He had almost completely wiped out the town's civilians. Those who survived either were taken by the Noir for experiments or joined the rebellion. We all agreed that we would take down the army and save the last hope of humanity. This was our last fight, our last chance at victory—this was the last war.

  "Don't be fooled by their lies," Beto explained to a group of adolescents. Rellik and I stood next to him. "They only mean to hurt you," he continued. "They lie about food and shelter—they only want to use you. They'll turn you into their monsters, make you into their perfect killing machines."

  A kid raised his arm. "Yes?" Beto asked.

  "Why though?"

  "Imperialism, that's why," Beto said, turning to pull out a remote. He switched on a TV behind us, showing footage of leapers and the army with a caption that read "How to defeat them."

  Beto turned back to the kids. "We know some things about them. One, the leapers don't seem to attack the soldiers. Two, the soldiers—or what used to be soldiers—seem more intelligent than normal. That's all we know about them. The leapers are easier to understand: the head is their weak point. One well-placed shot can kill them. But there are other versions: brutes, which Jason here has killed before—they carry gatling guns and wear heavy armor. Any questions?"

  The kids shifted uncomfortably. One raised his hand. "What about that crispy general?"

  "Don't get in his way," I said abruptly.

  "Why not? I could take him on," another kid boasted.

  Suddenly, the wall behind the kids exploded. Everyone jumped up as the smoke cleared and soldiers walked in, opening fire. Rellik, Beto, and I ran into the hallway of the old school. We could hear soldiers pursuing us, their bullets barely missing as we took a sharp turn. We saw the exit ahead, but a soldier was running toward us. I pulled out my handgun and shot at him, but the bullets bounced off his armor. The soldier chuckled and fired, hitting Beto in the leg.

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  I pulled a knife from my coat pocket and threw it at the soldier's face. He dropped instantly. Rellik covered us as more soldiers approached. I threw a sticky grenade at the roof, grabbed Beto's arm, and dragged him toward the exit while Rellik provided covering fire. I kicked open the door just as the grenade detonated, sending smoke and rubble flying.

  "We need to get you to a medic," I said to Beto.

  "No, I'll just slow you down," he replied as we heard vehicles approaching. "GO!" Beto shouted.

  Rellik and I ran to an alleyway, hiding behind a dumpster. We watched as two army jeeps rolled up to Beto. Soldiers surrounded him, and then Ron stepped out.

  "Where's Jason?" Ron demanded.

  "You won't win," Beto spat. "There's one thing you haven't destroyed."

  "And what's that?"

  "Hope," Beto said.

  "Foolish man," Ron chuckled, whipping out a magnum and shooting Beto in the face. As Beto fell, a grenade dropped from his hand—pin already pulled.

  "Scheisse, RUN!" Ron shouted, diving away. The grenade exploded, killing the soldiers but leaving Ron unscathed. "That Hündin," Ron muttered as he got into the jeep and drove off.

  Suddenly, something grabbed my leg. A half-leaper tried to bite me, but I kicked it in the face and crushed its head. More leapers appeared behind us. Rellik and I ran down the alley until we hit a fence. I spotted an open window and shot my grappling hook inside. Rellik covered our escape as we both pulled ourselves up.

  We landed in a bedroom, slamming the window shut against the leapers below. Another leaper lunged at us from inside, pinning me against the window. The glass cracked under our weight, but I managed to shoot it in the head before it could bite me.

  My walkie-talkie chirped. "What's going on down there?" a rebel asked.

  "The army found us," I reported. "They killed Beto and the group we were with. We nearly got killed by leapers ."

  "Well, do you see that huge fire?" they asked.

  "What fire?"

  "LOOK!"

  Rellik and I turned to see the old school engulfed in flames. At the entrance stood some kind of new mutant, about eight feet tall, slim, with black armor covering its body. It wielded a high-tech flamethrower, but most striking was its black skull-like mask with glowing red eyes.

  "We're coming back," I said, exchanging a determined look with Rellik.