Story Summary - Part 3

PART 3/4:

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"Following Riley out of their military boarding school, thirteen-year-old Ellie finds herself in the ruins of a shopping mall beyond the quarantine zone. There, a soldier named Winston gives Ellie a horse-riding lesson while Riley ransacks Winston's tent. When a series of explosions go off outside, Riley's newly stolen walkie-talkie says it's the handiwork of the Fireflies..."

Over the walkie-talkie, Riley and Ellie hear the Fireflies, and Riley wants to go check it out even though Ellie is hesitant. They quickly move over several rooftops and sneak up on both the Fireflies and the QZ troops they're fighting. Riley suggest they toss a smoke grenade at the QZ troops since the Fireflies are trapped. She rhetorically aks Ellie if she wants to be pushed around in the QZ for the rest of her life, or if she wants something else. In a quick decisive moment Ellie grabs the grenade and hurls it at the QZ troops. The Fireflies escape and Riley cheers hurray, causing the QZ troops to notice them. They quickly flee over the rooftops as they're shot at.

When they're far away and out of sight, hiding behind a container, Riley explains she stole the smoke grenades from Winston. But as they're conversing, Ellie mentions someone's watching from a nearby doorway... The person slowly approaches and there's some doubt first, but then Riley knows: it's an infected woman. Before they know it she's jumped at both of them, holding them down on the ground. Riley just barely manages to push the infected runner away with her legs, allowing Ellie to get loose. Riley grabs a nearby rock and smashes it into the infected runner's face, but at this same time the infected munches on her wrist. Ellie quickly comes to the rescue with a wooden stick and strikes at her back but this only causes the infected to turn to Ellie now. She's grabbed and right at the moment she's about to lose, Riley pierces the throat of the runner with the stick, killing her.

Ellie and Riley catch their breath and Ellie demands to see Riley's wrist. She shows it (hesitantly) and it turns out there's no bite; she got lucky as the teeth didn't fully cut through her jacket, although there's quite a rip in her sleeve. At this discovery they hug, but there's not much time for a peaceful moment. Behind them two other runners show up and they find themselves hunted. When they run into a nearby alley it turns out to be a dead end. Fortunately, before the runners reach them they're shot by a group of people from a distance.

The people get closer and Riley is about to thank them when a man grabs a stun gun and zaps Riley with it, leaving her unconscious on the ground. Ellie wants to assault the man but he smacks her down. He wants to stun her too but a woman stops him and asks: "Ellie? What are you doing here?" She tells the men to put bags over their heads and then they all leave together.