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Wednesday 12 January 2011

Nineteen

The sky has turned dark with frightening speed, and visibility has dropped. I can't see my tower block, and--with everything coated in grey dust--everywhere I turn looks the same. I think, judging from the few buildings I can see still standing, I might have wandered into the suburbs, but everything is such a mess it's impossible to tell. I hurry on, moving as fast as I can through the mud and wreckage.

I pass a crater, and glance fearfully across to its opposite edge where six or seven Creatures stand immobile. How much longer do I have before they come to life and start to hunt? The sky is already heavy with cloud, and it's getting to the point where it's difficult to see.

That's it, I decide, there's no way I'm getting back home tonight. I'll have to find somewhere to hide out for the night, then make my way back in the morning.

I try the next house I come to, but half of it has collapsed and the rooms are wide open. There's no way I'd be able to make it secure. Four streets further on I try the door of another house, only to hear an angry shout and a heavy scuffling from within. Evidently, it's already taken. I back away from the door, turn and run.

From the suburbs I find my way out onto a wide road, lined with rows of trees. Most of these trees have now toppled and lie on the ground or on top of cars, their dead branches tangled together. It's a maze, which I run through as fast as I can. Branches scratch at my arms and face. I skin my knee climbing over a fallen trunk, and I almost drop the bags of food and water I worked so hard to get.

On the other side of the road are a series of large, old buildings. The first few in the row have fallen, or partially fallen, but the rest are largely intact. I pick one at random--some place that looks as though it might once have been a doctor's office--haul the front door open and step inside. It's dark in there, and I stumble down a narrow hallway until I find myself at the foot of a set of stairs. Looking up, I can see at least three or four landings above me.

I head up to the highest floor. For no real reason, being way up off the ground makes me feel a little safer. There I find a series of small offices. I pick the one at the end of the hall, slam shut the door and shove the filing cabinet against it. At last, exhausted from adrenaline, I slump down against the wall.

I feel slightly sick. Maybe it's from eating too quickly after so long without food. Or maybe it's just fear. I shouldn't be here. I shouldn't have let myself get lost. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I should have planned, should have thought ahead. And now I might very well die for a couple of shopping bags full of food.

But now it's done, and it can't be undone. Straining my ears against the silence, I wait to hear the first calls of the Creatures as they start to hunt. I'm holding the gun in my lap, and through great force of will I make myself put it down on the floor beside me. Then I pull off my coat and drape it over my body. It's going to be a long, cold, uncomfortable night. I just hope I live to see the dawn.

2 comments:

Aza1on said...

hm, now I start wondering where this story is heading. Is it only about surviving as long as possible? ...

leroy miles said...

Well our hero has one thing right.....he should have planned his movement. Not planning is how people die in bad situations. It has been over a month and I am surprised that he has not secured equipment and other necessary items for survival. He should have at least been able to find a day pack, blankets, canteens, knives etc. He won't make it much longer if he continues to blindly struggle on.
Good work Kitt.