It was still pretty early in the morning, but even considering that, this town felt too quiet. He took the branching road with nervous energy, only to see a burning overturned car half on his side of the road, near the edge of town.

Front facing out, driver side smashed in. No one should be driving fast enough to cause an accident like that, and a hit and run seemed unlikely. Also why was no one checking. The car had been there long enough to be steadily burning. There should have been a crowd of pj clad folk roused by the crash.

He looked left: Nothing. Right: Nothing

What the hell was going on? Where was everyone? He was pretty sure there wasn’t anyone in the car, but he'd need to be in front to make sure there wasn’t someone hidden by their car seat.

Considering he felt like he might get jumped at any second, rubbernecking to make sure the (hopefully not there) driver was okay, seemed like a death sentence.

He kept his head on a swivel. Did this town have a gang problem? Some sort of violent protest? An attack? By who? Where was everyone?

As he made to pass the overturned car, he checked the side road to the left, and up against the near side corner of the building, previously hidden from view, was a giant red….gorilla thing with horns. Already looping his way. He slammed his foot on the accelerator and swerved away. Considering the fraction of a second he had to work with it made hardly, if any difference.

As the world spun he could hear a crashing sound and a scream….grunt of surprise. Maybe pain? Then he was slowly rolling. He gripped the steering wheel as he flipped. Once he stopped, now upside down and held by his seat belt, he pushed off the ceiling with one hand and grabbed the seat belt buckle with the other.

It was jammed. He pushed off harder and used the buckle hand to pinch the infuriating contraption together while using a spare finger to push the button again. It took a bit of wriggling but it clicked, and with an exhale of relief, he used his suspending arm to cushion an undignified flop onto what used to be the roof.

He clicked the console open, and failed to catch the gun amongst the junk that fell out with it as well as the ammo. He could hear the ape-thing sniffing as he picked up the now scuffed pistol, belt and box of ammo, which had spilled a couple of rounds. Swearing under his breath, he pinched that side of the box to keep the cardboard pinning the rounds in the tray that held them.

Juggling the box and gun-belt around to keep the box closed, Oliver held the belt with his left hand, and the gun in his right.

He cocked the hammer. At the same time, he heard a fwoosh noise and saw a spray of flames angled down into the windows. Neither of the passenger-side windows that now faced it, were busted though, and held the flames at bay.

I guess it has a flamethrower? Great.

He turned around and crouch-walked to open the passenger side door. Operating the upside down door handle was awkward, but the main issue was that the door itself was jammed. He heard more flames being applied to the driver-side and gave a firm shove while pulling the handle. It scraped open a smidge. The flames stopped and he heard the thing walk around the walk of the front of the truck. He could see its legs between him and the already burning car.

Since I passed that car already, guess that means I Spun more than 180° during the roll

Well, leaving the burning car to jump into the jaws of the ape-thing wouldn’t help. He checked the newly appointed floor. There was a bit of broken glass near the busted back window, but nothing up here except the crap that had been under the seats or in the console. In theory, he could lay down and shoot up and out of the window at the ape-thing. Maybe he could kill it, or… he thought of stories of bears in a similar weight class. Maybe wound it enough to chase it off?

He caught a whiff of acrid fumes.

Preferably before it manages to ignite the gas tank and we go boom.

Not seeing a better option, he lay down, random crap and the ceiling light making themselves uncomfortably known, as well as an earbud that had fallen out. Thinking of the enclosed space he was in, he put it back in his ear, the other one having managed to stay in. He only now realized it was still playing some rock-ish song he couldn’t name.

He fired through the broken back window when the thing bent down to sniff at it. The first shot hit it in the forehead above one brow. It seemed startled. He shot again. Hitting just under the chin, off to one side, hitting the chest.

It slammed into the truck. As it started to tip, he snatched up his things and grabbed the closest thing he could cling to: the outside of the passenger seat, as the vehicle was flipped back onto its wheels.

A few more rounds fell free as he got up from awkwardly laying across the passenger seat. The console slapped him in the thigh as it tried to close. The Ape thing stared at him through the driver’s side and moved forward. To roll him again? He pulled the gun back up and fumbled for the door handle with his left. The monster ducked its head below the window frame and impacted the side; flipping him again.

With some effort, he pulled himself toward the driver side armrest as the various loose debris, and the newly shattered driver window rained down on him in the now lower passenger side.

Forget shooting fish in a barrel. Being a rolled fish is officially awful.

He was now in the previously oncoming lane, upside down, faced in the correct direction though even if he was right side up, this much flipping would mean the engine would be flooded, and he'd have to drive through the whole town to get back to the highway.

Not useful.

The driver's side was now near the opposite building. If he could get out and into one of them maybe he could manage to catch his breath and figure out a plan from there. He was now slightly more than 1 building over from the ambush street. And the alleyway was relatively narrow, compared to the massive ape thing. If he could…

The Ape started reaching in on the passenger side. Perfect. He scrambled away and ran for the alley. With a terrible screech the truck took even more abuse as the Ape wrenched its arm back out of the now taller window and chased him.

He managed to get into the alley and heard grunting. Looking back, he saw the ape thing had taken to using a partially sideways run to fit in the alley. He could hear the buildings take a beating every time the red ape moved too far from an awkward sideways run. He rounded the corner, making a sharp right. There was a worker/emergency exit out back but nothing he could get in through. He kept going around the far side of the building.

He could hear the ape rounding the back corner as he rounded the front. Back on the street, in the open. The storefront was uncomfortably glass. He didn’t try the door. Even if it was open he would be just as vulnerable inside as he would be outside, though with nowhere else to go.

His feet crammed uncomfortably into the edge of the opposing building while cornering at something like a 45° angle, and he nearly bashed his head on a drainage pipe. He scrambled to double back and climb the pipe, wincing as he dropped the revolver and ammo box to better climb before the ape could round the corner and see him.

He wished the pipe didn’t clang so much though.

Fortunately, he made it to the top and was starting to climb over when he heard the ape hit the corner. He nearly lost his grip as the ape’s point of impact on the adjacent building crumbled and the ledge he was currently climbing shook.

He glanced over the side and saw the ape staring down the alley, looking left and right. Abruptly, it looked up and met his eyes. His mind buzzed as he calculated how he would get away as it came up…. probably leap back off?

Probably too slow on the landing to get moving again. Probably dead that way, probably better to hang off the edge for a second, then drop so I'm in a better position to ru….shit

The demonic ape snorted, gave the building a hefty kick, and loped away; glancing into the other shops and buildings as it went.

What the hell?