As she was searching she heard a cough from behind some rubble and discarded boxes. Instinct took over and she snuffed her candle, sinking into the shadows. Slowly, she made her way towards the sound. She was careful not to knock anything over, feeling her way along with her sensitive foot pads, a new addition from her dog's DNA. As she crept along she pulled a large bowie knife from the sheath on her belt, just in case whatever was coughing was also hostile. She reached the wall of rubbish and dropped to her knees, creeping to the edge. From a pouch at her waist she pulled a shard of mirror wrapped in cloth. She reached out, careful not to show too much, and used the shard to peer around the corner.

What she saw surprised her. It wasn't a mutant or a monster, but an ordinary human! She watched as he attacked a can of something and set it on the tiny fire he had made. Her stomach rumbled; it had been nearly two days since she had eaten anything but the stale bread in her bag. She was sorely tempted to ask to join him, but experience had taught her to be wary of any other living creatures, human or not. Not only that, there was a good chance that he would be hostile simply based on her appearance. Her ears twitched as she debated what to do. Finally, she decided that it would be best to talk first.

"Don't freak out..." she said quietly, keeping to the shadows, "I promise I'm harmless, I'm just looking for a way upstairs,"