They left the street behind without another word.
The city swallowed the brief violence as though it had never happened.
A faint breeze stirred loose papers across the cracked asphalt before fading just as quickly as it had come. Alexander kept a steady pace, his eyes moving from rooftops to windows to the intersections ahead. Cassandra followed a few steps behind, stealing occasional glances at him before looking away again.
Neither of them spoke about what had happened.
There was nothing to say.
The countdown continued its relentless march.
[Time Remaining: 00:29:48]
The glowing numbers hovered quietly at the edge of Alexander's vision before ticking downward once more.
Twenty-seven minutes.
Twenty-three.
Twenty.
With every passing minute, the city seemed to grow quieter.
It wasn't because the danger had passed.
It was the opposite.
