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The last rays of sunlight were slowly being enveloped by the inky black cloud as Daniel, and Molly carried Jamie through the steel gates of Lincoln, their bags on their backs. They had abandoned Molly's car a half mile back when it came to its sputtering, smoking end along the road. It didn't matter anyways. The street was clogged with too many people for a car to get through.

"Everyone needs to head to the Robert Lincoln Memorial Hospital," a soldier with a bullhorn said to the crowd. "Please follow the marked roads in an orderly fashion."

M2 Bradley IFV's rolled down the middle of the manicured front lawns of rich houses, and soldiers set up AA guns in perfectly sculpted back yards. Lincoln was a gated community for the wealthy, for those who made a fortune in local coal, or real-estate, or for well to do professors at Riverspeak University. They had all been evacuated early on, long before anyone else had, and now their five hundred thousand dollar homes had become makeshift bunkers for U.S soldiers.

Helicopters flew overhead in a seemingly unending stream, heading off into the dark horizon.

"There is room for everyone," the soldier with the bullhorn continued.

Fear ran through the crowd, and the soldiers could smell it. They moved quickly to break up any kind altercation, ensuring that nothing would start a panic fueled riot.

"What's going on," Jamie asked as they walked.

"We're here in Lincoln," Molly said. "We'll get out of here soon."

The vixen looked over the black fox hesitantly. His eyes were half open, but she could still see the irreparable damage done to them. The whites of his eyes were pure red, and his irises looked like broken egg yokes, the beautiful blues reduced to scorched mush. The sight of it made her shutter.

Robert Lincoln Memorial Hospital was the largest building in Lincoln, named after the founder's son. Its Victorian spires loomed above the surrounding trees, its terraces, and windows illuminated by the spotlights that surrounded the makeshift helicopter pads. The edge of the hospital's grounds were lined with freshly placed razor wire except for two gated entrances; one in front, the other in the back. Soldiers manned machine guns pointed directly at the mass of people just incase the crowd turned violent.

Barricades divided the park like grounds into sections to keep the crowd moving where they wanted it to move, and for them to stand where they wanted them to stand until they could be evacuated. Daniel, Molly, and Jamie stood close enough to see a squad of soldiers standing in front of the chain link gate, huddling close, and talking to each other, keeping a careful eye on the crowd as they did.

The crowd stood in close quarters, huddling uncomfortably close. Many held up pictures of loved ones as they squeezed from one side of the street to the other.

"Excuse me," a jaguar male in a dirty business suit said to Molly. "Have you seen this women?"

He showed her the picture in his wallet of another jaguar of about the same age. Most likely his wife.

"N-No," Molly said shakily.

"Hey, sir," a husky girl in her mid twenties said to Daniel. "Have you seen him?"

She held a small picture of a wolf in a football uniform. Daniel knew him. He was a big football star for Riverspeak, riding on a good scholarship.

"No," Daniel said. "I haven't seen him."

"He said he was going to one of the shelters in Riverspeak," The husky girl continued, tears starting to form in her eyes. "But I know he made it out. He wouldn't be that stupid to stay."

"Maybe he's with the other football players down the street," Daniel lied. "You should check there."

The girl's eyes instantly brightened, and without another word she pushed through the crowd, and out of sight. Daniel felt bad lying to her, but he couldn't bare the sight of the girl breaking down in front of him, not when he was barely keeping it together himself.

The thin coyote's eyes turned to Jamie, his arm still slung around his shoulder, keeping him upright. Shock still had the black fox in its grips, numbing his throbbing pain, and checking him out from the rest of the world. Daniel reached into the bag slung around his back, and produced a bottle of water.

"Here," Daniel said. "Open your mouth. You need to drink."

Jamie did as he was told, and opened his mouth, tilting his head back as he did. Daniel let a small trickle of water poor from the bottle, and into his friend's dry mouth.

"Are you okay," Daniel asked, screwing the cap back on.

A stupid question.

"Yeah," Jamie managed, clearing his throat.

The crackle of another bullhorn brought their attention forward once again. A dozen or so army doctors now stood in front of the crowd with an armed escort flanking each side.

"People with serious injuries will be evacuated by air," a soldier with the bullhorn said. "That's injured people, and their families only to be airlifted. Everyone one else will be evacuated by convoy."

With that, the doctors then proceeded into the crowd, marking people's arms as they inspected them; placing a large X on the arms of the severely injured.

"What do we do," Molly said in a low voice," if they separate Jamie from us?"

Daniel's eyes widened at the thought. Jamie was bad enough to be airlifted, there was no doubt about that, but would they allow Molly, and Daniel to go with him?

One of the army doctors, a female cheetah came up to them, and instantly began looking over Jamie.

"Flash blindness," she determined right away.

She marked an X on Jamie's arm with a silver, fast acting fur dye.

"The soldiers up front will take him from here," she said. "They'll lead him the rest of the way."

"Wait," Molly said. "What about us?"

"If you're not family I can't let you go," the cheetah said. "Don't worry. Your friend is going to the same place you'll be going. Only he'll get there before you."

"There has to be some other way," Daniel began to plead.

"Private Miller," the doctor called over her shoulder, and immediately a coyote, bigger, and more muscular than Daniel appeared. "Private Miller, please take this man forward. He's suffering from flash blinds."

"Yes, ma'am," the soldier said, nudging Molly out of the way, and putting his arm around Jamie's back. But Daniel would not let him go.

"We're the only people he's got," Daniel said, becoming angry at the situation. "What's left of his family lives out in Kentucky. We're all he's got out here."

The doctor quickly waved another soldier forward, seeing that Daniel was going to be a problem.

"I couldn't forgive myself if something happened to him," Daniel blurted out.

Things were quickly getting out of hand.

"What's going on," Jamie said, becoming alarmed.

"Everything's fine, Jamie," Molly said, trying to keep a reassuring tone.

People began to back away from the commotion as the other soldier came up to Daniel, and Molly, his gun raised.

"Get out of the way, sir," the soldier said firmly.

"No," Daniel growled. "I'm staying with him."

Without another warning, the soldier took the butt of his rifle, and slammed it against the coyote's forehead, causing the gash that was already there to bleed freely once again.

Daniel fell to his knees, dazed, and clutching his head wound. Molly quickly went to his side, letting Jamie be taken forward.

"What's happening," Jamie yelled out, frightened.

"You're going to fine, sir," one of the men said as they led him forward.

"Where's Daniel? Where's my friend?"

"He's fine."

Daniel sat quietly still, the world around him in slow motion. Molly looked closely into his eyes, the vixen's movements leaving tracers as she moved.

"Daniel," she said. "Are you okay?"

Her voiced seemed distant, and detached from him. He blacked out for only a moment, but when he came to he was standing up, Molly's arm propping him upright. The sound of whirling helicopter blades pounded in his ears, and bright lights beamed overhead.

Twenty or so helicopters took off from the hospital's grounds, heading out across the sky, becoming dim pinpricks of light as they disappeared behind the rolling, tree covered hills in the distance. "Molly," Daniel mumbled.

"Daniel," Molly exclaimed. "Daniel, I... They took him. I didn't..."

Daniel nodded his head slowly, understanding.

The chain link gate ahead of them opened, and the crackle of the bullhorn returned once more.

"Everyone please move calmly forward. We will be taking only one hundred people at a time. If you do not reach the gate please be patient. Other convoys are on the way."

The crowd surged forward in a quick pace, quietly stuffing themselves through the narrow gap. All the while a young soldier counted.

"Sixty...sixty-one...sixty-two...sixty-three," Daniel, and Molly heard him say as they approached. "seventy-one...seventy-two...seventy-three...seventy-four."

Daniel's pace quickened, and he found himself trying to nudge other people out of the way.

"Seventy-eight...seventy-nine...eighty...eighty-one..."

Daniel's hand clutched Molly's firmly, making sure he wouldn't lose her in the sea of people.

"...ninety...ninety-one...ninety-two...ninety-three..."

"Stop shoving," someone yelled behind them.

"Then get out of the way, and let my family through," another voice yelled back.

"Calmly move forward," the man on the bullhorn repeated.

"Ninety-six...ninety-seven...ninety-eight..."

Daniel, and Molly walked through the gate onto the hospital grounds.

"Ninety-nine...one hundred."

The gate shut immediately after them.

They could hear the pleads from others just short of the entrance.

"You don't understand, I have a wife, and kid waiting for me back in New York."

"Can you make an exception? Just let my wife, and kids through. I'll stay behind."

"My sister is waiting for me in Superior. I have to go now."

The group of one hundred was directed towards the front of the hospital along a small road that contained an assortment of hummers, and trucks, and other escort vehicles. Soldiers then divided the one hundred into groups of ten, and began loading them up.

"Quickly now," an older soldier said.

Then the humming returned, low, and deep. Daniel's stomach lurched into his throat when he felt it, and so did the others around him. A deathly silence fell over the crowd beyond the fence as they turned skyward to see the black, sea urchin looking thing come into view.

They could see it perfectly in the dark cloud. It was the perfect shad of hellish black that made all the light in the town refuse to even come near it. The sight of it commanded a fear like none other, a type of primal fear that screamed at the brain to run, and to never look back.

"Come one," the older soldier yelled, and everyone frantically got aboard the army vehicles.

The crowd over the fence shrieked in terror, and in animalistic fury, dove into the razor wire trying to escape.

"Stay back," the soldier with the bullhorn said, but no one listened.

Daniel, and Molly climbed into the back of a truck with a canvas top just as machine gun fire ripped though the air. The bodies stacked up quick, drenching the street in slick red blood. Two other black vessels appeared just behind the first, and everyone became twice as manic.

The army fired everything they had into the air; rockets, and missiles, and bullets all shot upwards, and the land became thick in smoke, and deafening sound. Soldiers in the hospital let out torrents of gunfire from nearly every window while rockets flew from unseen gunners on the roof.

Two soldiers dove into the truck just as the convoy took off down the road; a male wolf, and a female jackal, both just as terrified as the civilians who sat hunkered down with their hands over their ears. Molly held Daniel's hand so hard he thought she might break it, but he was holding just as tight.

The convoy skidded around on the hospital, and out a back entrance. People ran after them, trying to climb up on the trucks, and overwhelm them. The two soldiers did not hesitate on using their weapons, shooting the civilians in the arms or legs to force them to get off. People who couldn't catch up cussed, and screamed at them in terrified rage.

Then the beams of blue light flashed down from the vessels, striking mansions, and rich storefronts, blasting them into flaming ruins. Bricks, and glass, and scorched wood pelted them as they drove madly down the street. The gas tanks of expensive cars, and SUV's ignited from the heat, blowing the cars up, and sending twisted shrapnel in all directions.

More beams flew down, and the three trucks behind them were violently ripped apart, drenching what remained of them in white flames.

"Get us the fuck out of here," the female soldier screamed to the driver.

The truck veered off from the rest of the convoy, taking a side road that led to the small downtown area. Tanks rolled out of alleyways, taking a few shots before they too were destroyed.

The acrid smell of chemicals burned Daniel's sinuses, causing a small trickle of blood to drip from his nostrils. Each breath scorched his throat, and roasted his lungs.

His eyes watered, and he coughed, and gagged as the truck drove through clouds of yellowish smoke, and crackling white flames.

Gunships roared overhead, firing more rockets into the air while mobile SAM's painted the sky with missile trails. The sight was overwhelming.

"Go left," the male soldier said to the driver, and they instantly jerked down another street.

"Keep going forward," the wolf continued.

The driver floored it, flying down the road.

Soon they reached the town's brick walls, and plowed through the metal gates, sending sparks everywhere. It looked like they had made it out unharmed, and free, but then another beam of blue light came down, closer then before. Daniel felt his fur singe as the incredible heat bared down on them. The force of it blasted the asphalt of the road in all directions, and sent the truck careening through air. Then it all went dark.