Jim had listened intently as Kat told her story, but when she stated that her brother had been missing for seven days, he felt sad. The probability of her brother still being alive was not likely, but then his previous thought had returned to him: It was still possible that he had abandoned her for his own sake. 

This world could change anyone. 

“Don’ worry, we’ll find ‘im,” Jim said with a calm smile, yet behind that smile he knew they never would. Noticing Kat’s change in demeanor, Jim’s automatic reflex was to examine their surroundings. Suddenly, the smell that Kat described finally reached him. “Me too,” he said. “Someone’ prob’ly got a fire goin’. Maybe you should go back.” Jim began walking down the street with slightly foggier air. He knew that following the smoke trail was a bad idea and had he been with Lex, she would have insisted they go the other way. But since Lex wasn’t here, Jim followed his curiosity, strongly hoping that it would be someone friendly at the end of the path. 

When Jim finally made it around the corner at the end of the street, there seemed to be multiple fires engulfing a smashed car, a knocked over table, and the side of a building. “That’s strange,” he muttered quietly to himself. His next step forwards seemed to be ridiculously loud in the quiet city, and that single step appeared to awaken something. Within a moment, piercing screams and gurgles erupted, smashing into the windows at the sides and causing Jim to fall back. Three brutes came booming down the sidewalks, their bodies all scorched and raw. One of the brutes two arms were morphed into one, same with their legs, and was crawling at a rapid pace. Jim didn’t have the chance to see the other two before he took off running behind him. Although distracted by the fear of getting killed, Jim couldn’t help but wonder what had happened to them.