Shaggy pushed past a few of the store’s patrons and dug deeper into the throng of shoppers. His dislike of these types of places notwithstanding, it was probably a good place to hide. He pushed forward toward a glass counter, noticing that it was a display for jewelry. Over the din of shoppers, Shaggy thought he heard the drones still buzzing in the street outside. He took a moment to collect himself as he stood near the counter.
Looking around, he found that the department store seemed to sell high-end clothing and accessories. The first floor was a giant square containing clothing racks and wooden tables with various pants and skirts. It was the type of store few players would frequent, but still added to the depth of the game. The smell of coffee brought Shaggy’s eyes upward, and he noted that the second floor was a mezzanine level that held a cafe.
“Can I help you find something, sir?”
A voice shook Shaggy out of his recon and he turned to see a grey alien man. He was dressed in a nice suit and standing behind the glass counter. Shaggy thought the alien’s skin looked wet, and it made him stare for a few seconds before he shook his head.
“Uhhh, no. Sorry. Just checking prices. Wanted to decide on a price range first, you know?”
The grey alien’s smile didn’t reach his eyes and nodded slowly. “I see.”
Shaggy maintained eye contact with the alien until the man got the picture and walked off. Shaggy noted that the alien stayed in eye-shot of him and he rolled his eyes. Snobby bastard was keeping tabs on him. Although he had been standing at the counter for a while. Shaggy sighed and dove back into the mass of people. It was a fairly crowded environment, but people were still trying to give others their space.
It was after Shaggy squeezed two multi-colored aliens when he realized he stuck out like a sore thumb. Everyone around him was dressed in nice, pressed, expensive clothes and here he was, in a white tee and jeans and work boots. Not to mention that his shirt was really sweaty from running around. He contemplated making a break for it, but as he turned to the door, he spotted a drone zoom down the street. Shaggy bit back a groan and instead walked deeper into the store. Ignoring the looks he was still getting, he dashed for the stairs. He figured he could at least rest at the cafe inconspicuously.
The second floor seemed to push deeper into the building than Shaggy realized. As he got to the second floor, he noticed that besides the cafe, there were a great number of shelves that held books. He figured the second story probably functioned as a library. The stairs still went up, but whatever was on the third floor and beyond was hidden by the ceiling above the second floor. Shaggy kept clear of the railing overlooking the first floor and made his way toward the coffee shop. He still wasn’t a big fan of the stuff, but he couldn’t just sit and not grab something. That’d be suspicious. Not to mention that it always paid to keep his powers topped up.
Buying a danish and some coffee was fairly easy. But also mind-numbing. With a long line made even longer by various people not knowing what they wanted before they hit the counter. Shaggy was sure that his quick and decisive order had made the poor teen running the counter cry in relief. Or maybe it was just his own irritability. This many people squished into this much space. Not to mention all the noise, perfume, and shouting NPCs running around. It was enough to make Shaggy want to leave. But once he found a nice table and took a seat, he was much happier. The well made danish helped a lot.
Shaggy had a decent view of both the second and first floor. But he figured he was still far enough away to not be seen. A large bookcase at his back, made Shaggy calmed down as well. The buzz of drones was drowned out by the din of shopping people and Shaggy sat back and people watched for a while. His Pack Link was unnaturally silent, which both comforted and annoyed him. It was like the background noise in his life was gone. He could only hope the others would make it home safe. He knew Rita and Sybil would be fine. So would Tom. Vick was a crapshoot, but the one he was really worried about was Cekrass.
The giant lizard alien stuck out everywhere. Add in his upgrades from both being a Werewolf and a Henchman, and things looked dicey. Shaggy figured that if any of his crew needed to use the sewers, it would be Cekrass. He had warned the others that the sewers were to be a last option, but for Cekrass, maybe he should’ve ordered him to go.
Shaggy’s worries nagged at him as he finished his food and stared down at the first floor. People scurried about in little groups, examining clothes and chatting about various things. Shaggy marveled at how all this was going on with little to no player input. These digital people just lived. They existed within a realm created by some coder’s hands. It was a marvel. A marvel that was immediately shattered by something foreign.
Shaggy spotted them as soon as they came into his eyeline. He only had a half view of the first floor. But still they stuck out and not just cause of their leather clothes. Thankfully, it wasn’t the Quinica, but it was a close second for the shittiest thing to happen. Players. Three that he could see. All wearing big winter coats and clearly cradling weaponry beneath them. Shaggy almost snarled in annoyance. He had ducked in here to get away from the damn drones.
The lead woman, who Shaggy dubbed Red because of her hair, pointed to spaces on the first floor. Aqua, a blue-colored alien and Cone-head, a literally pointed-headed alien, spread out to follow her orders. Shaggy almost stood from his chair to see what was going on. But if he had to guess, the dumbasses were going to rob the place. He sighed and sat back down, looking for a way out of the department store. The second story had thick windows facing the street, which were probably his best bet, but they would also draw attention. He briefly thought about taking on the other players quietly, but that would also draw attention.
Unfortunately, Shaggy’s options were taken away as two new players appeared from the stairwell. Shaggy groaned as he mentally tagged them as Orange and Butterfly in his mind. He was surprised that Butterfly wasn’t wearing a long coat like the rest, but with her wings, it made sense. Shaggy got up and started moving away from the two. The second floor wasn’t as crowded as the first, but he did his best to keep his head down as he moved between the bookshelves.
The crack of a large-caliber automatic rifle ripped through the air and people started screaming. Shaggy ignored it as several patrons shot up from their seats, their books forgotten. Screaming and gunfire momentarily filled the air until it was all quickly silenced. Shaggy heard a muffled female voice, probably Red, giving the store patrons an ultimatum. He ignored it as he found a small reading nook bracketed by waist-high bookshelves. He sat down and waited. Chances were he was going to be found, that is, if Orange and Butterfly were smart enough to do a sweep of the floor. If he was lucky, the other players would do a quick snatch and grab then he could try to leave. The last thing he needed was for this to get drawn out.
Muffled voices and shouting came from the center of the store and Shaggy sighed. Hopefully, none of the NPCs played hero. That would just make everything take longer. He was contemplating reading a book when a gruff male voice broke the air.
“All you damn book nerds need to move to the center of the store now! Don’t make me come get you! You hear me!”
Shaggy guessed that Orange was doing a sweep of the floor. Professional and smart. But also annoying. Shaggy ignored the order and grabbed a book. He might as well entertain himself. But the close crack of another automatic rifle snapped his head up. Apparently Orange was impatient.
“Hey! I know there’s more hiding in these damn bookshelves. Get the fuck out here!”
Shaggy groaned before responding. “Fuck off! Just rob the place and leave me be! I got better things to do, then worry about a bunch of newbs fucking up a jewelry heist!”
Shaggy heard boots scuffing on the carpeted floor and Orange let out a sigh.
“Are you a Supe?”
“Pfft!” Shaggy snorted. “Sure, that’s me. Brave master of the bookcases. Look, I got my own shit going on, so if you and yours could hurry this all up. That’d be great.”
“There’s a super here?” another voice whispered from some bookcases over.
“What? A super?”
“We’re saved!”
“They’re going to save us!”
Shaggy groaned as multiple NPCs that were also hiding among the bookcase got excited. He was about to shout them all down when Orange’s gun did it for him.
“I knew there were other back there! Get out of here! And I mean all of you! Now!”
Shaggy closed his eyes and counted to ten. Even as he heard some of the hiding NPCs move. He really didn’t want to deal with this. But then an idea came to him. These guys came in here to rob the place, so maybe they had an exit strategy. Maybe he could barter with them and escape. He thought it over for a bit until a book next to his head exploded in a shower of paper. The bullet embedded in the opposite wall while Shaggy frowned. Orange was really impatient.
“Out! Now! I know you’re back there!”
Shaggy groaned as he stood. “Yeah, yeah. Good for you. I want to talk to your boss.”
“Ain’t no boss here. Are all equal partners.” Said Orange and Shaggy finally got a decent look at the man.
He had dropped the large winter coat and was wearing camo pants and a matching tank top. His orange skin clashed heavily with the green and black of his clothes. His chin and neck were hidden behind a thick black beard, and Shaggy noted the mountain of a man’s feral grin. Shaggy didn’t know if it was his imagination, but he thought he saw Orange scan his body up and down. He shook it off as he waved a hand toward the center of the store.
“Bullshit. Red’s in charge, or she’d be up here. I’ll just go talk to her.”
Shaggy moved, and he saw Orange track him with his assault rifle.
“Red? Oh, she was just put in charge of handle the NPCs’ cause of her power set. We have no leader.”
“Sure.” Shaggy said as he passed Orange.
After Shaggy had seen the standard bullet-driven rifle that Orange was holding, his worries went away. He didn’t know what powers Orange had, but if he had to guess, they were along the line of sensing others. So at the very least, Orange wasn’t the biggest threat. The other player seemed torn between following Shaggy and finishing his sweep of the floor. Shaggy was more concerned with the distinct lack of noise coming from the first floor. The three players should’ve had plenty of time to clean the place out.
A worry started in the pit of Shaggy’s stomach as he got closer to the second floor railing. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Butterfly holding a small revolver and watching a bunch of people. Shaggy almost snorted at the tiny weapon in the slim woman’s hands. It was probably a 22 caliber. It wouldn’t even break his skin. Butterfly saw him and pointed her weapon at him, but froze. She couldn’t pick between aiming at him or watching her hostages. Shaggy gave her a little wave as he peered down into the first floor. He suppressed a groan at what he saw.
Red, Cone-Head, and Aqua weren’t smashing jewelry cases and stealing clothes. No, they were rounding up patrons and searching them. Shaggy wanted to slam a fist into the railing. This wasn’t a snatch and grab it was a hostage situation. These players were searching for someone. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he felt Orange come up behind him. Ignoring the big Orange man, Shaggy started talking, loud enough for all the players to hear.
“You’re not here to steal jewelry, are you?” Red and the others snapped their heads and gun arms up at him.
But they relaxed soon after. Probably because Orange was still behind him. Instead of answering him, Red turned to Orange.
“He a hero?”
“Says he-”
“No, I am not a Supe.” Shaggy interrupted. “I was hiding out here until you geniuses rolled in and started this shit.”
Red glanced at him, eyes widening at the realization that he was a player. Shaggy gave her a little wave before he started moving around the railing. Orange kept up with him and Shaggy was sure the man’s weapon was trained on his back. Cone-head and Aqua were still searching people as Red addressed him.
“Well, sorry shortstack. We have our own job to do here, and we have little time to do it in. So don’t make any trouble.”
Shaggy rolled his eyes at the mention of his height. But he mentally ticked a box in the ‘kill everyone’ category in his mind. Aqua had another handgun and Cone-head was unarmed as far as Shaggy could see. It wouldn’t be too difficult unless this team was hiding some big trump cards. As Shaggy turned the corner to cross in front of the coffee shop, Butterfly moved to step in front of him. He sighed.
“Not here to make trouble. But I also don’t want to be here when trouble comes for you. So if it’s all the same, I’m going to dip.”
Red shook her head, sending her long mane of hair cascading over her shoulders. “Sorry, pardner. We can’t have that.”
Orange placed a hand on his shoulder and tried to jerk him away from the railing. But Shaggy kept his feet rooted as he stared down at Red. He ticked a second box in his mind. Butterfly crept closer, handgun raised, and aimed straight for his head. Aqua and Cone-head had stopped what they were doing and were watching him. Some of the NPC hostage had looks of hope on their faces as they stared up at him. Shaggy brought his eyes to the front of the store and smiled when he didn’t see any drones or cop cars.
He swatted Orange’s hand away as he peered down at Red. “Please. Don’t make me be the Hero here. I just want to get away before this turns into a shitshow.”
Red paused as she looked at him. Orange being unable to move him and Shaggy’s blase attitude had clearly made her rethink things. Orange was back to trying to move him, this time using two hands to yank his shirt. Shaggy let a growl out through his sharp teeth, but said nothing else. Red looked ready to capitulate when a loud siren startled everyone.
Shaggy eyes shot to the front door and he bit back a howl of anger. He swatted Orange with his right hand, sending the large man stumbling back. Butterfly’s gun gave a loud crack and a bullet hit Shaggy in the side of his head. He ignored it as the flattened bullet fell to the ground and launched himself over the edge of the railing. People scattered below, and Red and her two cohorts did their best to get things under control. Meanwhile, Shaggy was looking for a way out.
He charged to the back of the store, pushing aside civilians. Shaggy hoped that there was a back entrance or side door he could sneak out of. Halfway toward the back, he spotted a neon red sign over a fire exit. It was on the right side wall and clearly lead into a sidewalk next to the building. Shaggy grit his teeth and slammed into it. Behind him, the sounds of gunfire and screaming filled the store.
Shaggy pushed past a few of the store’s patrons and dug deeper into the throng of shoppers. His dislike of these types of places notwithstanding, it was probably a good place to hide. He pushed forward toward a glass counter, noticing that it was a display for jewelry. Over the din of shoppers, Shaggy thought he heard the drones still buzzing in the street outside. He took a moment to collect himself as he stood near the counter.
Looking around, he found that the department store seemed to sell high-end clothing and accessories. The first floor was a giant square containing clothing racks and wooden tables with various pants and skirts. It was the type of store few players would frequent, but still added to the depth of the game. The smell of coffee brought Shaggy’s eyes upward, and he noted that the second floor was a mezzanine level that held a cafe.
“Can I help you find something, sir?”
A voice shook Shaggy out of his recon and he turned to see a grey alien man. He was dressed in a nice suit and standing behind the glass counter. Shaggy thought the alien’s skin looked wet, and it made him stare for a few seconds before he shook his head.
“Uhhh, no. Sorry. Just checking prices. Wanted to decide on a price range first, you know?”
The grey alien’s smile didn’t reach his eyes and nodded slowly. “I see.”
Shaggy maintained eye contact with the alien until the man got the picture and walked off. Shaggy noted that the alien stayed in eye-shot of him and he rolled his eyes. Snobby bastard was keeping tabs on him. Although he had been standing at the counter for a while. Shaggy sighed and dove back into the mass of people. It was a fairly crowded environment, but people were still trying to give others their space.
It was after Shaggy squeezed two multi-colored aliens when he realized he stuck out like a sore thumb. Everyone around him was dressed in nice, pressed, expensive clothes and here he was, in a white tee and jeans and work boots. Not to mention that his shirt was really sweaty from running around. He contemplated making a break for it, but as he turned to the door, he spotted a drone zoom down the street. Shaggy bit back a groan and instead walked deeper into the store. Ignoring the looks he was still getting, he dashed for the stairs. He figured he could at least rest at the cafe inconspicuously.
The second floor seemed to push deeper into the building than Shaggy realized. As he got to the second floor, he noticed that besides the cafe, there were a great number of shelves that held books. He figured the second story probably functioned as a library. The stairs still went up, but whatever was on the third floor and beyond was hidden by the ceiling above the second floor. Shaggy kept clear of the railing overlooking the first floor and made his way toward the coffee shop. He still wasn’t a big fan of the stuff, but he couldn’t just sit and not grab something. That’d be suspicious. Not to mention that it always paid to keep his powers topped up.
Buying a danish and some coffee was fairly easy. But also mind-numbing. With a long line made even longer by various people not knowing what they wanted before they hit the counter. Shaggy was sure that his quick and decisive order had made the poor teen running the counter cry in relief. Or maybe it was just his own irritability. This many people squished into this much space. Not to mention all the noise, perfume, and shouting NPCs running around. It was enough to make Shaggy want to leave. But once he found a nice table and took a seat, he was much happier. The well made danish helped a lot.
Shaggy had a decent view of both the second and first floor. But he figured he was still far enough away to not be seen. A large bookcase at his back, made Shaggy calmed down as well. The buzz of drones was drowned out by the din of shopping people and Shaggy sat back and people watched for a while. His Pack Link was unnaturally silent, which both comforted and annoyed him. It was like the background noise in his life was gone. He could only hope the others would make it home safe. He knew Rita and Sybil would be fine. So would Tom. Vick was a crapshoot, but the one he was really worried about was Cekrass.
The giant lizard alien stuck out everywhere. Add in his upgrades from both being a Werewolf and a Henchman, and things looked dicey. Shaggy figured that if any of his crew needed to use the sewers, it would be Cekrass. He had warned the others that the sewers were to be a last option, but for Cekrass, maybe he should’ve ordered him to go.
Shaggy’s worries nagged at him as he finished his food and stared down at the first floor. People scurried about in little groups, examining clothes and chatting about various things. Shaggy marveled at how all this was going on with little to no player input. These digital people just lived. They existed within a realm created by some coder’s hands. It was a marvel. A marvel that was immediately shattered by something foreign.
Shaggy spotted them as soon as they came into his eyeline. He only had a half view of the first floor. But still they stuck out and not just cause of their leather clothes. Thankfully, it wasn’t the Quinica, but it was a close second for the shittiest thing to happen. Players. Three that he could see. All wearing big winter coats and clearly cradling weaponry beneath them. Shaggy almost snarled in annoyance. He had ducked in here to get away from the damn drones.
The lead woman, who Shaggy dubbed Red because of her hair, pointed to spaces on the first floor. Aqua, a blue-colored alien and Cone-head, a literally pointed-headed alien, spread out to follow her orders. Shaggy almost stood from his chair to see what was going on. But if he had to guess, the dumbasses were going to rob the place. He sighed and sat back down, looking for a way out of the department store. The second story had thick windows facing the street, which were probably his best bet, but they would also draw attention. He briefly thought about taking on the other players quietly, but that would also draw attention.
Unfortunately, Shaggy’s options were taken away as two new players appeared from the stairwell. Shaggy groaned as he mentally tagged them as Orange and Butterfly in his mind. He was surprised that Butterfly wasn’t wearing a long coat like the rest, but with her wings, it made sense. Shaggy got up and started moving away from the two. The second floor wasn’t as crowded as the first, but he did his best to keep his head down as he moved between the bookshelves.
The crack of a large-caliber automatic rifle ripped through the air and people started screaming. Shaggy ignored it as several patrons shot up from their seats, their books forgotten. Screaming and gunfire momentarily filled the air until it was all quickly silenced. Shaggy heard a muffled female voice, probably Red, giving the store patrons an ultimatum. He ignored it as he found a small reading nook bracketed by waist-high bookshelves. He sat down and waited. Chances were he was going to be found, that is, if Orange and Butterfly were smart enough to do a sweep of the floor. If he was lucky, the other players would do a quick snatch and grab then he could try to leave. The last thing he needed was for this to get drawn out.
Muffled voices and shouting came from the center of the store and Shaggy sighed. Hopefully, none of the NPCs played hero. That would just make everything take longer. He was contemplating reading a book when a gruff male voice broke the air.
“All you damn book nerds need to move to the center of the store now! Don’t make me come get you! You hear me!”
Shaggy guessed that Orange was doing a sweep of the floor. Professional and smart. But also annoying. Shaggy ignored the order and grabbed a book. He might as well entertain himself. But the close crack of another automatic rifle snapped his head up. Apparently Orange was impatient.
“Hey! I know there’s more hiding in these damn bookshelves. Get the fuck out here!”
Shaggy groaned before responding. “Fuck off! Just rob the place and leave me be! I got better things to do, then worry about a bunch of newbs fucking up a jewelry heist!”
Shaggy heard boots scuffing on the carpeted floor and Orange let out a sigh.
“Are you a Supe?”
“Pfft!” Shaggy snorted. “Sure, that’s me. Brave master of the bookcases. Look, I got my own shit going on, so if you and yours could hurry this all up. That’d be great.”
“There’s a super here?” another voice whispered from some bookcases over.
“What? A super?”
“We’re saved!”
“They’re going to save us!”
Shaggy groaned as multiple NPCs that were also hiding among the bookcase got excited. He was about to shout them all down when Orange’s gun did it for him.
“I knew there were other back there! Get out of here! And I mean all of you! Now!”
Shaggy closed his eyes and counted to ten. Even as he heard some of the hiding NPCs move. He really didn’t want to deal with this. But then an idea came to him. These guys came in here to rob the place, so maybe they had an exit strategy. Maybe he could barter with them and escape. He thought it over for a bit until a book next to his head exploded in a shower of paper. The bullet embedded in the opposite wall while Shaggy frowned. Orange was really impatient.
“Out! Now! I know you’re back there!”
Shaggy groaned as he stood. “Yeah, yeah. Good for you. I want to talk to your boss.”
“Ain’t no boss here. Are all equal partners.” Said Orange and Shaggy finally got a decent look at the man.
He had dropped the large winter coat and was wearing camo pants and a matching tank top. His orange skin clashed heavily with the green and black of his clothes. His chin and neck were hidden behind a thick black beard, and Shaggy noted the mountain of a man’s feral grin. Shaggy didn’t know if it was his imagination, but he thought he saw Orange scan his body up and down. He shook it off as he waved a hand toward the center of the store.
“Bullshit. Red’s in charge, or she’d be up here. I’ll just go talk to her.”
Shaggy moved, and he saw Orange track him with his assault rifle.
“Red? Oh, she was just put in charge of handle the NPCs’ cause of her power set. We have no leader.”
“Sure.” Shaggy said as he passed Orange.
After Shaggy had seen the standard bullet-driven rifle that Orange was holding, his worries went away. He didn’t know what powers Orange had, but if he had to guess, they were along the line of sensing others. So at the very least, Orange wasn’t the biggest threat. The other player seemed torn between following Shaggy and finishing his sweep of the floor. Shaggy was more concerned with the distinct lack of noise coming from the first floor. The three players should’ve had plenty of time to clean the place out.
A worry started in the pit of Shaggy’s stomach as he got closer to the second floor railing. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Butterfly holding a small revolver and watching a bunch of people. Shaggy almost snorted at the tiny weapon in the slim woman’s hands. It was probably a 22 caliber. It wouldn’t even break his skin. Butterfly saw him and pointed her weapon at him, but froze. She couldn’t pick between aiming at him or watching her hostages. Shaggy gave her a little wave as he peered down into the first floor. He suppressed a groan at what he saw.
Red, Cone-Head, and Aqua weren’t smashing jewelry cases and stealing clothes. No, they were rounding up patrons and searching them. Shaggy wanted to slam a fist into the railing. This wasn’t a snatch and grab it was a hostage situation. These players were searching for someone. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he felt Orange come up behind him. Ignoring the big Orange man, Shaggy started talking, loud enough for all the players to hear.
“You’re not here to steal jewelry, are you?” Red and the others snapped their heads and gun arms up at him.
But they relaxed soon after. Probably because Orange was still behind him. Instead of answering him, Red turned to Orange.
“He a hero?”
“Says he-”
“No, I am not a Supe.” Shaggy interrupted. “I was hiding out here until you geniuses rolled in and started this shit.”
Red glanced at him, eyes widening at the realization that he was a player. Shaggy gave her a little wave before he started moving around the railing. Orange kept up with him and Shaggy was sure the man’s weapon was trained on his back. Cone-head and Aqua were still searching people as Red addressed him.
“Well, sorry shortstack. We have our own job to do here, and we have little time to do it in. So don’t make any trouble.”
Shaggy rolled his eyes at the mention of his height. But he mentally ticked a box in the ‘kill everyone’ category in his mind. Aqua had another handgun and Cone-head was unarmed as far as Shaggy could see. It wouldn’t be too difficult unless this team was hiding some big trump cards. As Shaggy turned the corner to cross in front of the coffee shop, Butterfly moved to step in front of him. He sighed.
“Not here to make trouble. But I also don’t want to be here when trouble comes for you. So if it’s all the same, I’m going to dip.”
Red shook her head, sending her long mane of hair cascading over her shoulders. “Sorry, pardner. We can’t have that.”
Orange placed a hand on his shoulder and tried to jerk him away from the railing. But Shaggy kept his feet rooted as he stared down at Red. He ticked a second box in his mind. Butterfly crept closer, handgun raised, and aimed straight for his head. Aqua and Cone-head had stopped what they were doing and were watching him. Some of the NPC hostage had looks of hope on their faces as they stared up at him. Shaggy brought his eyes to the front of the store and smiled when he didn’t see any drones or cop cars.
He swatted Orange’s hand away as he peered down at Red. “Please. Don’t make me be the Hero here. I just want to get away before this turns into a shitshow.”
Red paused as she looked at him. Orange being unable to move him and Shaggy’s blase attitude had clearly made her rethink things. Orange was back to trying to move him, this time using two hands to yank his shirt. Shaggy let a growl out through his sharp teeth, but said nothing else. Red looked ready to capitulate when a loud siren startled everyone.
Shaggy eyes shot to the front door and he bit back a howl of anger. He swatted Orange with his right hand, sending the large man stumbling back. Butterfly’s gun gave a loud crack and a bullet hit Shaggy in the side of his head. He ignored it as the flattened bullet fell to the ground and launched himself over the edge of the railing. People scattered below, and Red and her two cohorts did their best to get things under control. Meanwhile, Shaggy was looking for a way out.
He charged to the back of the store, pushing aside civilians. Shaggy hoped that there was a back entrance or side door he could sneak out of. Halfway toward the back, he spotted a neon red sign over a fire exit. It was on the right side wall and clearly lead into a sidewalk next to the building. Shaggy grit his teeth and slammed into it. Behind him, the sounds of gunfire and screaming filled the store.
