The Divide

“Strike!” Thorn bellows, but their weapons answer like whispering pleas. Bullets ping uselessly against layered plating; spearpoints glance off, carving shallow scratches with little impact. Sparks shower the air, yet the machines hardly flinch. 
          Crank grabs Thorn and hurls him into the railing. Norio lunges, driving his spear between the plates at Crank’s side. The giant jolts back, colliding with a support cable and snapping it in half. For a moment nothing happens, then asphalt fractures and the bridge groans. Metal grinds against aged rebar; a deep, terrible flex crawls through the bridge. Concrete splits with a crack like the world itself being scored open. A large chunk dislodges and tips, dragging a rusted bus with it; the vehicle slams through the railing and plunges into the dark river with a thunderous splash. 
          The bridge jerks, tilts; cables snap under new, uneven stress. Cinder grabs Thorn’s arm as the ground gives. Benji tumbles and slides; Dosei slips, clutching at air until Norio hauls him up. 
          “Fall back!” Thorn shouts. 
          The team scrambles, sprinting toward the far side. Halo stumbles as a slab gives way under her boots. 
          One by one, supports shear loose. Metal groans, concrete buckles, and the bridge begins to collapse in to the water like a chain reaction. 
          Halo sprints, lungs burning, heart hammering, as everything falls apart behind her. 
          The team makes the final leap off of the bridge as the last shuddering arc of metal tears free and pitches into the river with a scream of stressed steel. They land hard on solid ground, the air thick with dust. Behind them, the wreckage crashes into the depths, dragging a few androids with it. 
          Helrix stands on the other bank, untouched by the disaster surrounding him. He watches with a cold smile that never falters. “Run away,” he says as if offering mercy, “That’s all you can do.” 
          A jagged divide separates them from the androids and the hospital. The thunder of the bridge’s collapse still echoes as the team staggers back into the streets they came from. 
          Thorn paces a few steps ahead, his jaw locked tight, shoulders rigid with fury. His boots slam into the waterlogged pavement with every stride. 
          The team is shaken, breaths ragged, weapons still clutched too tightly in their hands. Even Benji, who usually cracks a joke when things get grim, is silent. Halo’s mind still replaying the sight of Helrix’s calm, unblinking smile as the bridge crumbled away. 
          “We can’t make it to the hospital now,” Norio finally says, breaking the silence. His voice is steady but flat. 
          Thorn stops, glances back at the group, and exhales through his nose. “Then we take what we can get. There’s a pharmacy two blocks from here. We’ve already stripped it clean of useful items, but maybe there’s something we missed. We don’t have the luxury to be picky right now.” 
          The group nods, too drained to come up with another plan. 
          “We salvage what’s left. Then we get out,” he says sternly. 
          The air in the pharmacy is heavy with mildew and dust. Ceiling tiles have collapsed, leaving clumps of insulation dangling. Shattered glass crunches under their boots with every step. Broken pill bottles scatter across the linoleum floor, spilling unknown faded capsules and powdered medicine that looks like colorful sand. 
          Most aisles are stripped bare, the shelves sagging beneath the weight of soggy cardboard boxes. Labels are peeling off, while others are too water-stained to make sense of. Boxes of pills lie crushed and sprouting mold. 
          Faded posters still cling to the walls. Cheerful ads of bright, smiling families beneath bold slogans promising miracle painkillers for every ache. 
          Dim shafts of daylight stab through cracks in the boarded-up windows, catching on the swirling dust. The team picks through the debris in silence until a cabinet door swings open on its own. Everyone whips around, rifles raised, spears braced. The door hangs crooked on a single hinge. 
          “Loose hinge,” Norio mutters, lowering his spear. 
          Halo picks up an old magazine, kicking up a cloud of dust, making her sneeze. The sudden sound makes the others jump. 
          “For the love of—” Cinder hisses, glaring. 
          “Sorry!” Halo whispers, nose red. 
          Across the aisle, Dosei reaches for a box stacked precariously high. The shelf tips, and with a crash, the entire display avalanches onto him. He disappears under a small mountain of moldy cosmetics, muffled curses echoing from beneath. 
          “Don’t mind me,” he groans, flailing with a lip-liner pencil in hand. 
          Benji snorts, already at the checkout counter. He pulls a dirty candy bar from the shelf, tears open the faded wrapper, and pops a piece into his mouth. 
          “Are you insane?” Thorn growls. 
          Benji chews slowly, shrugs. “Tastes like chalk and regret, but hey, it’s sugar.” 
          Cinder folds her arms. “You’ll be dead before the androids even touch you.” 
          Benji winks. “Worth it.” 
          Thorn pinches the bridge of his nose, muttering something about children in a warzone, before motioning the others toward the back. “Focus. Is there’s anything worth taking?” 
          They fan out across the ruined pharmacy, rummaging through empty boxes and collapsed shelves. Most of it is useless, the disappointment hangs heavy in the air. 
          Halo crouches behind the dark counter, brushing aside faded receipts and cracked plastic pill bottles. Her hand bumps something solid, a large storage tub tucked against the wall, half-hidden beneath fallen boards. She pulls it out, heart quickening, and lifts the lid. 
          Rows of pill bottles gleam faintly inside: painkillers, bandages in sterile plastic, and antibiotics with unbroken seals. 
          “I found it!” she exclaims. 
          The others rush over, boots thudding on the warped linoleum. She holds up a pack of antibiotics. 
          “Are those—?” Dosei blurts, adjusting his glasses. 
          “Yes!” Halo confirms, her voice trembling with relief. 
          For the first time all day, the group erupts into cheers. Benji punches the air, grinning. 
          “Pack it up,” Thorn orders, though even he can’t hide the glint of hope in his eyes. “Fast. Before anyone realizes we’re here.” 
         They cram the supplies into their rucksacks, moving with renewed energy. The heaviness in the air shifts, still tense, but lighter now and driven by purpose. 
          As they step back into the flooded street, water rippling around their boots, Thorn casts one last glance at the jagged windows overhead. His eyes linger on the dark shapes shifting behind the cracked glass. 
          “Move,” he mutters, low and sharp. “We’re not safe yet.” 
          The team doesn’t hesitate, they hurry away from the pharmacy with their prize clutched tight. 
          On the way back toward the forest, the team rounds a corner and nearly collides with an android patrolling alone. Its head jerks toward them, eyes flashing red. For a heartbeat no one moves. 
         Then Thorn surges forward, fury from the bridge still burning hot. His spear extends with a metallic snap, and in one brutal motion he strikes and slashes it clean through the android’s midsection. Sparks burst as the machine jerks violently, its torso shearing away from its legs. The upper half dropping into the shallow water, arms twitching, while the lower half staggers two steps before toppling over. 
          The silence afterward is suffocating. Norio and Benji exchange nervous glances, today is definitely not the day to piss off Thorn. 
          The others keep moving, but Halo lingers a moment. Her gaze fixes on the android’s discarded frame under the water, still intact enough to be useful. Rubble could walk again if she can bring these parts to him. Her stomach twists with both dread and determination. 
          She forces herself to look away before anyone notices. But in her mind, the decision is already made. She’ll come back for it later. Right now, nothing matters more than saving Yumi.