"All surviving citizens must evacuate and follow us. I repeat! All surviving residents are to proceed to the quarantine zone."
The voice from the loudspeaker tore me out of sleep. I sat up sharply and looked out the window. A convoy was crawling down the road an armored vehicle with a mounted machine gun on its roof, flanked by soldiers with rifles at the ready.
The rumble of engines rolled along the street, while the voice kept echoing, repeating the same message over and over. The soldiers didn't even bother checking the houses just kept moving forward, as if they no longer expected to find anyone alive. Behind the armored trucks came buses and cargo trucks packed with people. The column stretched far down the road, heading toward Pittsburgh. Looked like the military had actually managed to wipe out most of the infected with mass bombings, judging by the direction they were moving.
I didn't go out to them. Didn't see the point. Maybe the quarantine zone was safer, but living there meant following someone else's rules standing in ration lines, enduring forced labor and hunger. As long as I could still find food on my own, I'd stay away from their camps.
The convoy kept passing by, the last vehicle another armored truck with a mounted gun. When it finally disappeared around the corner, I went downstairs, washed my face with cold water, and brushed my teeth. You have to take care of them now there aren't any dentists left in this world. I can already imagine how people will be walking around toothless in five years… though at least sweet stuff can last for decades.
Breakfast was some instant porridge tasteless, but filling. After eating, I stepped outside. The sun was already burning. I walked up to my old pickup, checked the tires, lifted the hood. Decided to take it. Pulled the cover off my bike and started loading it into the back. By the time I was done, sweat was pouring off me, my shirt sticking to my back.
"Damn heavy thing…" I muttered when I finally finished.
I tied the bike down, covered it with a piece of fabric, and threw my gear onto the seat. Only after sitting behind the wheel did I realize I hadn't even checked if the damn truck would start. The key was still in the ignition. I turned it, and the engine coughed, growled, and came to life.
"Lucky," I exhaled in relief.
Now all that was left was to find a farm nearby a place to stay for a while.
I drove down the road but didn't make it far maybe twenty meters. On the shoulder, right where the convoy had passed, sat a scrawny, dirty puppy. Barely two months old. He lifted his head and looked straight at me. I stopped, not sure what to do. It was hard enough keeping myself alive let alone someone else.
I pressed the gas, planning to drive around him. But despite the fear and trembling in his legs, he started after the truck. In the mirror, I saw him stumble and run, trying to keep up.
"Aw, hell…" I muttered, cutting the engine and stepping out.
The puppy froze, watching me cautiously. Slowly, he began to approach. His fur was a reddish mix of breeds a mutt, no doubt.
*image*
I walked toward him. His tail started wagging, and with a faint whimper, he came closer. When I crouched down, he pressed his little head into my palms, as if he already knew I wouldn't hurt him.
"Arf… oof… arf!" he whimpered, trying to bark, but only a raspy squeak came out.
"Where did you come from, huh?" I sighed, accepting my fate.
He must've fallen out of the convoy. Someone's dog. Or maybe the soldiers didn't let them take him, and he just ran after the trucks until he couldn't anymore. I sighed again, picked him up. He squirmed for a moment, then nestled his snout against my shoulder.
Back in the truck, I set him gently on the seat. Reached out and stroked his back his tail thumped wildly. He was probably starving.
I dug into my pack and found a can of meat. Mashed some with a fork and set it on a piece of paper.
"Here you go, little guy."
The puppy devoured it greedily, whimpering with pleasure.
"Let's call you Buddy," I said, watching him lick the last crumbs clean. "Looks like you're the only friend I've got left."
In this world, there's no one better than a dog. A man will abandon you long before he helps you.
I started the engine. The puppy, full and satisfied, curled up on the seat and fell asleep. I glanced at him, shifted into gear, and eased onto the road. No reason to rush better to stay alert and watch the way ahead.
It didn't take long to reach the farm. But something felt off the fields were black and dead. The ground scorched, nothing left, not even weeds. How hadn't I noticed the smoke? There must've been a huge fire.
Did the military burn it all down? Maybe they thought the fungus spread through grain and decided to torch everything. I'm no biologist or farmer, but even I know not everything could've been infected.
I stood there, staring at the endless black plain. That harvest could've fed thousands if only someone had gathered it in time.
A small sound broke the silence the puppy had climbed out of the truck and was tugging gently at the hem of my pants.
"Hey, easy there," I said, crouching to pick him up.
"That's right, Buddy," I whispered, gazing at the charred land. "We won't find a home here."
The wind stirred the ashes, and they fell like snow onto my boots. I turned away from the fields and walked on, searching for a place for us.
********************
After my first plan fell through, I drove through quite a few places, trying to find somewhere suitable to settle down. The main requirement it had to be surrounded by forest. There were still wild animals out there, which meant at least some source of food. If I were to haul supplies from a town, I'd need a place to store them.
I'd almost decided to head for one of the quarantine zones. But then I remembered the dog. They wouldn't let him in one extra mouth to feed, a possible carrier of infection. Places like that are all about control. Nothing "unnecessary" gets through. Any animal is a potential threat.
So I chose another path. I went south where there were fewer people but more reserves and wilderness. A place to lay low. Maybe even build a shelter.
"Let's go find ourselves a new home, Buddy," I said, giving him a pat on the head.
He wagged his tail, tongue lolling out, and tried to lick my face.
"I'll take that as a yes," I smirked.
I had food left for two, maybe three days if I rationed it. In the truck bed, I'd packed various tools, a diesel generator, a couple of jerry cans, some medical supplies, and an old laptop found it in a looted house. Might still come in handy someday.
Food, though, was the real problem. The houses were empty stripped clean, as if someone had gone door to door and cleared everything out. Looked like people took all they could when the evacuation began.
The road south was long, but at least it was quiet. Deciding to restock in a small town along the way, I parked the truck a little outside the perimeter. I popped the hood, disconnected the battery, and hid it in the tall grass nearby. My pickup didn't have any fancy anti-theft system just the keys. If someone wanted to steal it, it wouldn't be hard. So I picked a spot where it wouldn't be easily seen.
"Stay here for now," I told the pup, giving him a pat before leaving him in the truck. Then I moved toward the town, cautious and quiet. I'd brought my AR-15 instead of the shotgun better for distance and screwed on the suppressor.
At the town's edge, I pulled out my binoculars and scanned the streets. Infected were moving about quite a few of them. From this side, it didn't look safe at all. If I went in directly, I'd risk running into a whole cluster. Maybe I could circle around to the other side. There were too many no way I could take them all down even if I tried.
I made a wide loop around the town and ran into a few infected along the way, but managed to avoid them. They seemed half-frozen their movements sluggish, faces empty, like they were asleep. Maybe the fungus puts them into some kind of trance, conserving energy until it triggers another wave of activity.
I made a mental note: better not approach from this side. I'd have to find another route in maybe a spot where I could slip along the walls unnoticed.
Even with fewer infected around, they were still there, so I had to stay sharp. I took aim steady, breath held lined up the shot on one of them. Distance, about eighty meters.
Crack.
A clean headshot. The infected dropped instantly. The others nearby twitched at the sound, but didn't react much beyond that. Good meant I could quietly clear the path when needed.
After a few more precise shots, I moved in. Short dashes, staying low, ducking behind cars. I slipped into a narrow alley between buildings, where trash bins stood near the back doors. I tried to stay silent, but my heart was pounding, breath coming in quick bursts.
As I got closer, my heart dropped into my stomach right behind the trash bin, an infected was pressed against the wall. I carefully placed the barrel against the back of its head and pulled the trigger.
Silence. I glanced around nothing moved. No sound but my own breathing.
The store entrance had to be nearby. I found the door and tried the handle locked.
"Damn it."
I pulled out a screwdriver and a spare key a simple trick for cheap locks. Jam the screwdriver in, twist the key, and break the cylinder.
I drove the screwdriver in with a sharp strike and twisted hard the mechanism snapped with a loud crack. Louder than I'd hoped. Carefully, I tested the handle. The door gave way. Darkness beyond and no sound.
"Kh... ahh... rrgh!" groans echoed from the alley. More than a few of them.
I slipped inside and shut the door behind me. The place was dark looked like a storage area. I flicked on the flashlight mounted to my rifle and swept the beam around. Quiet. No movement.
Outside, the sounds grew louder shuffling feet, teeth clattering, the low, guttural moans of the infected.
"Shit!" I muttered. "That exit's gone."
I'd have to find another way out. Maybe a stairway to the roof.
I moved between stacks of boxes, the beam of light cutting through dust and shadows. No canned food just perishables. Stepping into the main part of the store, I crept along the shelves, weapon raised.
A rustle.
I spun around, rifle up.
Two figures emerged from behind a display. Young women pale, exhausted, jittery.
"Stop," I said evenly, keeping my gun steady.
They froze.
"Don't be afraid," I said, lowering the weapon slightly. "I'm just here for food."
They didn't move. No weapons, no threat. I took a slow step forward, checked the corners, then peeked through the window. Outside, two infected were staggering across the street.
"Please… help us," one of them said, her voice trembling. "We can't get out of here… you're military, right?"
I didn't answer. Just kept thinking about how to get out at least for myself.
"Please!" she cried louder, desperation breaking through.
"Quiet!" I hissed, whipping around. "If you want to live, don't scream."
She went still, fear wide in her eyes, tears welling up.
"Calm down," I said more softly. "Tell me is there a way to the roof from inside?"
"No… not from here," she whispered, swallowing hard. "Only from outside. We… we were working like normal when it all started. People suddenly went crazy started attacking each other. We hid back here."
"Quiet," I interrupted. "If you want to make it out, help by keeping quiet."
They nodded, shaking. I decided to ask, half out of curiosity.
"Why aren't there any infected inside?" I asked in a low voice. "Too quiet for a place like this."
"The doors opened," she said, voice trembling. "They started banging on the glass, then one of them got out the others followed. They ran outside and attacked everyone. Bella shut off the power so the doors wouldn't open again. We've been hiding here since… watching it all."
As she spoke, tears streamed down her dirty cheeks her story spilling out with them.
"Can the doors be opened manually?" I asked.
"I… I don't know," she whispered.
"What's your name?" I asked quietly.
"Anna."
"Listen carefully," I said, keeping my voice steady. "If we want to get out of here alive, we'll have to move fast. The power shouldn't have gone out this early. When I give the word, you'll turn it back on. We'll draw the infected into the alley by the back door. You got phones?"
"Yeah… but they're dead," Anna replied. "We were afraid to turn on the power to charge them."
I glanced toward the shop window. Just two infected outside I could handle that.
"Got a charger?" I asked.
"Yes… yes, we do," Bella stammered, voice trembling.
"We need at least ten percent," I said. "Then we'll play the loudest music you've got and toss it into the alley. That'll pull every infected off the street."
"Got it," Anna nodded.
There weren't many options left. We had to take the risk. If I'd been alone, I'd have just opened the door manually, dropped the two infected, and run. A couple of flashbangs would've been enough to throw off pursuit. But with them here, it was different. If I drew the infected in now, no one would make it out of this district alive. It'd be kinder to shoot them both than let them be torn apart. They had food, sure but that would run out eventually.
I sat behind the checkout counter, eyes on the front of the store. I sent Bella to restore power, and Anna to plug in the phone.
Light flickered to life. The ceiling lamps buzzed weakly, refrigerators hummed back to life, and the air filled with the low, rhythmic pulse of machines. The register beside me chirped and rebooted.
One infected twitched, pressed its forehead against the glass. The other reacted too but the bastard went straight for the door. The motion sensor triggered. The doors slid open.
"Shit, don't come in," I whispered, my pulse quickening. Of course he stepped inside.
He staggered toward the freezer section, pressing his head against the cold metal. I started moving toward the stockroom. The door opened, and Bella appeared. I raised a finger to my lips quiet. She saw the infected and her eyes went wide panic rising fast. I grabbed her, hand over her mouth, and gently pulled her back into the storage area.
"Listen," I said in a low, urgent voice. "Once the phone's charged, I'll give the signal. You throw it into the alley, then both of you run for the main exit. I'll handle the infected. Do either of you have a car?"
"No," Anna said.
When Bella finally calmed down a little, I took my hand away.
"No" she breathed.
"Alright. Then we head across the street," I said. "I saw a parking lot there there's a ladder up to the roof. From there, we can move along the rooftops." They both nodded.
While the phone charged, I checked the back exit. A horde of infected packed the alley. I closed the door again and sank to the floor.
I pulled out a pack of cigarettes, lit one. The smoke was harsh bitter, like everything else in this damn world. I needed the moment. Needed to brace myself for what was coming.Hell, I didn't even know why I kept going anymore.
I looked up at the girls, exhaled, and muttered, "Guess Victor's good heart won't let me walk away after all."
"Don't worry," I said with a confident grin. "I've crawled out of worse shit than this." It was a lie, but at least it gave them something to hold onto.
You don't get to breathe much before death three cigarettes burned away too fast. When I stood up, I walked over to the phone. The battery was charged enough.