Rats

"We shouldn't be here. Only Scavengers can go to the Forbidden Zone," Radha said. Her whiskers were moving quickly and nervously.

They were standing on a rusted metal beam above the seawater. The jagged hole that lead from the Warren towards the surface was just ahead of them, letting in the growing light of daybreak. Long shadows stretched over their heads back towards the safety and constant oversight. A strange silence settled in, only the water lazily lapping against the concrete and rusty steel.

Rajesh stood on his hind legs and sniffed in the morning air full of salt. "Come on, we got here without a problem! We need to move or the guards will find us. Do you want to explain yourself to your parents, or have some adventure? We'll have a look outside, the guards will pass and be none the wiser, then we can slip back in! Let's go, hurry!" And he jumped down onto the path coiled among the broken rebars and shattered concrete, fell on all fours and turned his head to her, waiting.

Her hair was bristled, but she was curious and angry at herself for being afraid, or maybe at Rajesh for being so damn brave. Neither of them got to see the outside much, and it would be exciting to walk under the open sky unsupervised by Elders, free to do anything they pleased. At least for a short time. She joined Rajesh and ran alongside him, up the broken path until they could see the sun and the beach and the sea throwing itself at the concrete ruins. They have to be back before high tide, or they will have to swim through the entrance.

They continued up over the dunes and between many remnants of ancient walls. Rajesh was always running ahead and grinning as a madman when she called at him to slow down, until her front paw suddenly sank into a slimy pile of dead seaweed and she fell down, her muzzle digging in the sand. Rajesh looked too amused for her liking.

"You know what? I have enough of your 'adventure'!" Radha was spitting sand angrily. "There's nothing but sand and concrete! We could have asked to go to the beach with others - no forgotten tunnels, no broken walls, no looking over our backs! I'm going back!"

"Wait, Radha," Rajesh jogged back to her, "just come a little farther over this hill, please."

"And what's over this hill, eh? More ruins?"

"Well, yeah, but... Those are Giant ruins."

"Everyone knows that, dumbass."

Rajesh thought for a second before responding: "I've heard the Scavengers talking yesterday, when they returned from an artifact hunt in this part of the Forbidden Zone. They said that the last sandstorm uncovered a 'Shadow Wall'. It should be here, just over the hill from the unused tunnel."

"And what is this Shadow Wall?"

"A wall with shadows?" Radha turned to leave. "I don't know, Radha! But when the Scavengers were talking about it, they looked as if they've seen a ghost."

"So you basically know nothing and just hope that you find something cool."

"Stop sulking, come on!"

Radha glared at him for a bit longer, but finally wrinkled her muzzle and started up the hill, Rajesh in tow.

Several minutes later, they reached their goal. Below them, the sand sloped down towards a larger chunk of a relatively preserved concrete wall. On the wall, there really were shadows - burnt-out silhouettes of Giants. They were much larger than any rat ever, standing on their hind legs, with limbs too long and heads too round.

"What happened to them?" Radha whispered, suddenly overcome with strange unease.

"No one knows," Rajesh replied in a small voice, "but the Elders say that there was fire and madness, and then the Giants were no more."