Day 3

David woke up with a sharp start, eyes wide and sucking in a deep breath. Sweat coated his skin and though he could not remember any of the nightmares that haunted his mind in the night he could not shake the feeling that something was off, wrong. As he turned his head toward the nightstand he saw the blinking face of the alarm clock, electricity must have gone during the night. With the power grid fluctuating life in the city would become more… complicated. As David rose from his bed and made his way to the bathroom through the hallway he still felt a bit tired. A few more hours of sleep would have been welcome but that would not do. Chase would be coming here today and they were going to leave the city… David sighed, a heavy feeling in his chest, he would have to leave his home. He was instantly reminded of the simple luxuries he took for granted when the flipped the switch and the bathroom lights flickered, he turned them off and washed up in the dark. Today the faucet barely had any water dribbling out of it and flushing the toilet left ended up with a half bowl that barely refilled. As the sink was filled with water he only took a cup of it to wash up with, at least the soap did help him feel a bit refreshed.

He dressed in comfortable clothes and made his way down the stairs, seeing the two bedroom doors still closed he walked over to Marcus' room, knocking lightly on the door. "It's uncle David, can I come in?"

"Yes." David opened the door and saw Marcus folding clothes and placing them in his suitcase, he looked up at his uncle and pushed the thick-framed glasses up his nose. "Good morning." He said with a toothy smile. Hussar jumped up from his spot on the floor and rushed toward David, lifting his front paws from the floor and hitting his legs. The dog's mouth hung open as he panted, tail spinning in a circle.

"Are you going somewhere Marcus?" David asked, raising his eyebrow.

"I'm just being prepared. We're leaving today anyway aren't we? With Mr. Chase?"

"Not necessarily today, but it's good you are ready." David said with a proud smile. "Why don't you take the suitcase down to the dining room table."

"Okay." Marcus replied and turned his head in the direction of the bedroom where Paula and Graham had been sleeping. "I heard some weird noises from their room last night, like they were moving the furniture and stuff."

David raised his eyebrow even further as Marcus took the suitcase, awkwardly carrying the luggage down the stairs as David approached the door to the room his two guests shared. Standing there he heard two voices huddling in conversation before knocking on the door with more meaning than he did on his nephew's door. "Hold on for a second." He could hear Paula's voice exclaim from behind the door. The sound of footsteps was replaced by the sound of something heavy being dragged over the floor. David opened the door and it soon caught on a heavy dresser which they had apparently placed against the door during the night. David looked at Paula with a hard gaze.

"I'd appreciate if you didn't block the doors in my home." He said flatly.

"Sorry, we just wanted to..." She shook her head, trying to find a correct formulation before looking up once again, meeting his gaze with a flat expression. "We wanted to be sure we are safe."

"We won't be a problem anymore, we're leaving right away if that's what you want." Graham said, sitting on the edge of his bed, cane in hand and sunglasses on.

David sighed and shook his head. "If you want a cup of tea or coffee and some breakfast then come down to the kitchen, will you be ready to leave after that?"

"Yes." Graham responded. "And I'll give you what money I have in my wallet, it will cover what we have eaten for."

"We can take that after breakfast." David said and made his way down the stairs.

The power outage was apparent in the kitchen, a puddle of water had collected beneath the freezer and the fridge itself was dark and warm. As David opened it he could smell some leftovers that had spoiled during the night due to the power outage. Normally, a fridge would retain its temperature for a while, the relative warmth suggested that power had probably gone out early in the night. David made a headcount of the remaining food and threw out the spoiled leftovers before getting to work on cooking breakfast.

As Marcus helped setting the table and placing napkins by the plates, David reasoned that they all had to be hungry. David decided to make a meal with a good amount of nutrients, he and Marcus and the two guests would all need it for the day ahead. He took two cans of beans and a packet of now half-frozen vegetables and peeled a few potatoes, he made a hash with the ingredient and used some salt and herbs to give it a bit more taste before serving it with a packet of bacon fried crisp alongside bread and butter.

The four gathered around the table and Hussar finished the food in his bowl. "This smells good." Graham said while his daughter spooned some hash unto his plate before she spread some butter on a piece of toast.

"I don't like beans most of the time." Marcus said picking at his food. "But they're good for me right?" He said turning toward his uncle.

"They're a great source of protein, which we need early in the morning." David said, turning to his nephew with a smile.

"Breakfast is the most important meal during the entire day." Graham said in a calm, strong tone, as if speaking to a class of children. The tone made his daughter smile sadly. They ate in silence after that. When they were finished and the dishes were in the sink, the two guests stood by the door making ready to leave.

"Stay safe out there." David said. "I hope you get where you're going."

"Same to you. Stay safe in here." Graham said before pulling some cash from his pocket. "This what we had on us, I hope it covers any expenses and any bother we caused. I don't really have anything else to give you."

"It'll do. Don't worry about it." David said with a small smile, taking the money.

"I hope you get home safe." Marcus said, sounding sad and hanging his head. David noted that the boy seemed more pensive, that… spark of his was not shining as brightly. Maybe the apocalypse was catching up with him.

"We will." Paula said and knelt, smiling and ruffling the boy's hair. "You stay safe with your uncle." She said and stood up, looking David in the eye. "Thank you for your help." She said in a calm tone. "I mean it, truly."

"I… did what I had to." David said with a shrug and defensive smile.

"I'm glad your conscience guided you to that." Graham said, smiling. "Thank you."

The two headed out through the door into the early morning sun. A gust of chilly September air blew into the man and boy who stood behind, watching them walked out toward the sidewalk before David closed the door. Marcus walked up the stairs without a word, his uncle followed and sat down in one of the living room couches, taking the CB-radio from the coffee table and turning it on. Chase would probably call in soon. He then took his laptop and turned it on, deciding to check the news.

David could not discern how much time passed by but he was pulled from the morbidly slowed internet by a loud knock on the door. He rose and slowly made his way toward the window, Marcus beat it to him as he could hear the child's voice from upstairs. "It's Ms. Paula! She's hurt!" Small feet thundered down the stairs, David made his way to the front door, what is this? Was this a trick? Could it be? Had they even walked to the car? Marcus was standing at one of the kitchen windows, looking out. "Hurry up uncle! Open the door!"

David cracked it open and… he was not prepared for the scene at all. She looked ruined, blood on hands, arms, legs and torso, small smears on her face. Body shaken by violent sobs and face contorted into a grimace of utter pain mixed with disbelief. He could not quite discern the words mumbled by the quivering lips.

"They… attacked us, dad… it his… they…" Her eyes darted back and forth, wet with tears. David did not quite know what he was doing, his mind was paralyzed, but he apparently took one of her hands and held her upright with the other, guiding the woman into his house and up the stairs. Marcus looked at her with a frightened expression, eyes wide. "Marcus, I need you go get a clean towel and a glass of water." David said as he led the woman up the stairs to the living room and Marcus darted into the kitchen.

As Paula sat down on the couch her body shook violently with each and every sob. The tears never seemed to run out either, the pain in her voice made David's heart clench. She tried to wipe her hands on her shirt, as both were bloodied it did not help much at all. "It's his blood, it's dad's." She managed to gain enough control over her voice to make the coherent statement.

"We… were parked by some old, factory. It seemed safe yesterday." She said and pointed to somewhere outside. "It seemed safe as we approached but then… then these infected people burst from the factory and came at us. I thought we were going to die then and there but then this… jeep just pulls up out of nowhere. There were… this guy with sleeve tattoos and this red headed woman and another…" She said trying to recollect some other person. "They had this machine gun, like in a war movie and they shot at the infected who just… came apart. We thought they had come to help us."

She was interrupted when Marcus came in and handed Paula a towel and water filled to the brim in his favorite Savage Starlight collectible glass. She took the things with something resembling a smile and kissed David's nephew on the forehead, mouthing a quiet thank you. He stood up and his cheeks turned a slight shade of red.

"Marcus, why don't you go upstairs while I talk to Ms. Paula, okay?" David said to his nephew.

"Yes." Marcus nodded and ran up the stairs immediately without saying a word.

"The guy with the tattoos, he tells us to hand over our things, to pay for the bullets they had shot the infected with. We didn't have anything so he just told his people to look through our car and they went through our bags, taking what they want. Dad started arguing with them, he wanted to make them stop. He told them that what they did was wrong, but they just laughed and taunted him, then a man, the driver he just pulled out a gun and…" She took a deep breath, wiping her eyes with the towel.

"After it happened I don't really know what happened, I just held onto dad and when I got up, the car was empty and… I didn't know what to do so I came back here." Paula said, shaking her head and fighting to repress the tears.

David was not sure what to say, words seemed meaningless, nothing he said or did could ever undo what had been done, and he was scared, scared of saying the wrong thing, frightened that the words would seem dishonest, that they would make him seem callous. "I… can't believe this happened, Paula. I… your dad was a good person. He didn't deserve those people's cruelty. But… wherever your dad might be now, I can't doubt that he's glad that you're safe."

The woman shook her head. "I… can't believe they didn't kill me…" She kept struggling to keep the tears at bay.

"We're perfectly safe in here."

She huffed and gave David a half-hearted smile before wiping her face with the towel once more. "Could I go upstairs and wash up, and just… rest or… take a nap?"

"Yeah." David said as if it was the most self-evident thing in the world. "Go right ahead, we won't bother you." After the day that woman has had. She deserved some time to herself, to be alone and rest. She nodded and rose from the couch, dragging her feet as she made her way upstairs to the third floor. Moments after she disappeared David could hear Marcus' voice.

"Is it okay to come down now." The child burst into the room as soon as David answered positively.

"What happened uncle?" He asked in a low tone of voice as he sat down next to his uncle, hanging his head. "Did somebody really kill Mr. Graham?" Marcus very much knew the answer, the reason behind the question was a wish to know why somebody would do it.

"Yes, somebody killed him, there are bad people in the world who will want to rob and hurt us, we'll have to stay away from them and help the good people who need it." Those were the only words David managed to come up with, he needed to be honest with the boy, Marcus had to know that not all people would be like Graham and Paula, there would be people out there who would be desperate to survive. Desperation was a motivator to do things a person would never have imagined doing before.

"You're right uncle." Marcus said after sitting quiet for a while, thinking on his uncle's words. "If we help some people maybe they'll want to help us and work with us. And we'll make a whole group like us and Hussar and Mr. Chase and Ms. Paula and we can go and live together and help each other out." David gave Marcus a smile, hoping it looked confident but this was exactly not as he had planned starting this day. The Cordyceps outbreak had claimed yet another victim and those infected with the fungus were clearly not the only threat. The law of the jungle was becoming more relevant by the very minute, human civilization descended right back into survival of the fittest. All those who would never had survived before modern civilization, those unable to adapt. They would all be dead soon enough. And David could not avoid the thoughts saying that maybe, maybe he was one of those people. Maybe he was a person whose life depended on living in a modern, wealthy country. But those thoughts were fighting a sense of steely determination. He had a duty, a duty to his family, to keep Marcus alive and safe and those thoughts made it feel a bit better. The fact that Marcus might be the only remnant of his family made that determination even stronger.

A voice crackled through the CB-radio on the table. It was Chase.

"Hey Dave." He said in a breathy voice as if he had just yawned deeply.

"Hey man, you good?" David replied.

"Yeah. I barely slept last night though so I just woke up. I've stayed with these people I met but I'm in contact with some friends who've got a nice place and these folks aren't really my type so I'm going to go over to your place in the evening, and tomorrow, then we'll go meet the rest of the people." Chase said in a tired tone.

"Also, before I forget, a cousin of mine, Jonah is in town for this conference he was attending when all this shit went down. He's stranded but is kinda close to you, so I told him to get to your place and stay there for a few days with the rest of us." Chase sighed. "I really hope you don't mind, but there's no other place for him to go. He should be at your place soon, I promise he'll be no trouble."

"Speaking of the rest of us." David said. "There's a woman here, she and her blind father stayed here last night." David explained the… episode of the morning and that Paula was probably currently sleeping in the spare bedroom.

"That's…" Chase said, trying to find words. "That's fucked up."

"Beyond all recognition." David added.

"By the way Dave, before I leave I can get my hands on some stuff to bring to your place. Is there anything special that you think we'll need, what have you stocked up with?" Chase asked.

"Get as much food and water as you can, the more the better." David said. "Other than that… maybe hygiene products and medical supplies, weapons, ammunition. What can you get.?"

"I can get food and water no problem. Hygiene products too, I can probably get a lot, I have a car so it shouldn't be a problem." Chase said.

"Okay great." David said with a slight relief.

"I'll see you soon man, and thanks again for taking Jonah in. We both owe you."

"Don't mention it Chase." David replied.

"See you in the evening, and by the way, if you're worried about supplies there's a convenience store open still open in your area, they still have some stuff I hear. Carla's, I think you know the place. They open up sometime in the afternoon and only take cash. At least that's how the rumor goes." Chase said.

"All right I'll check it out, see you later."

"Bye." Chase said and finished the conversation, the only sound made by the CB a sputtering static.

David and Marcus spent a while finding sealable containers and once again filling the discovered bottles with water from the filled sinks and the bathtub, leaving the surface water to go down the drain as just like the last time, it was covered by a thin layer of dirt and dust. Maybe it would be best to use the water purification tablets they had found before drinking any of that water? He hoped they could get barrels or something later, now they had dozens of bottles of varying size littered across the dining room table.

It was about ten am when David just happened to look out of the window and to his surprise, a man stood at the sidewalk, gaze fixed on David's home. The man stood perfectly straight, like a soldier at attention, but other than that he had no resemblance of a military man. The hair was shaggy and unkempt, a busy beard 'decorated' his face and a faded blue button-down clothed him along a pair of dark jeans. "He looks creepy." Marcus said, regarding the man warily before his face lit up. "Look uncle! He has Captain Ryan on his belt!"

The man marched up the stairs and knocked on the door. David walked over and opened it, bracing it with his own weight in addition to leaving the security chain attached. His hand was on the handle of the revolver, the man looked unarmed, but one could not take that for granted. "Hello?" David said, more of a question than a greeting.

"Are you David Carmine?" The man said holding up his hands defensively. "My cousin Chase told me to come over here." The man had a strong body odor, it could be felt even from a distance.

"You're Jonah?" David asks and the man nodded.

"I have my license if you want to see it." He says, motioning toward his pocket.

"It's okay." David said, releasing the grip on his revolver and unlocking the security chain, allowing the man to enter his home which he did with a brisk motion. Hussar started toward the stranger, head lowered and giving a low growl, Jonah stopped and froze.

"Hussar." David said in an authoritative tone. "Go lay down on you mat." And pointed toward the corner. The dog took a few hesitant steps but then trotted off to his mat and laid down.

"A well trained dog." Jonah said.

Marcus stepped by his uncle's side and waved his hand to Jonah, who smiled a white smile through the light brown forest of his beard. "Well, hey there little guy. My cousin told me about you, said you were smart like it's nobody's business."

"Is that Captain Ryan on your belt?" Marcus asked, eyes wide.

"Sure it." Jonah said. "Savage Starlight is one of my favorite graphic novels."

"I love Savage Stairlight, and Captain Ryan and Doctor Star." Marcus said and ran up the stairs before returning with a silver light comic, it's title page an image of a woman holding some shining orb with a wide smile on her face.

"That's the Collector's Edition of Termination Shock." Jonah said, pointing at the book. "Back home I have the gold version that came with the Kobayashi trading card."

"Wow..." Marcus said, his mouth stuck in the shape of a large o.

"Well." Jonah said and paced the ground floor. "Y'all got your supplies gathered in one location, nearly no damage to the home, that's nice." He said as he scanned from floor to cieling and left to right. "You're locked up in here tight, no way looters or infected are getting in here any time soon. And I like the alarms on the points of entry." He said pointing to the bundles of empty cans. "All in all, I'm glad to be in this fort of yours." Jonah said with a smile and the three went up the stairs to the living room where he placed his bags by one of the couches and sat down. "Either of you want a sandwhich?" He said, reaching over to his backpack and fishing out something wrapped in wax paper.

"Sure, thanks." David said and Jonah gave a baloney and cheese sandwhich to him and his nephew. The cheese had a smooth texture and mild taste.

"Don't ya mention it." Jonah said and leaned back in the couch. "Me, I live for all kinds of meat, especially pork, if I were a pig I'd have been a cannibal."

Marcus burst out in laughter. "If he were a pig!"

Jonah quickly finished the small meal, ending it with a loud belch that drew even more laughter from the child. "Anyway, I really appreciate y'all lettin' me stay here. I won't be any trouble and I'll help. I can fix stuff up and keep the house clean and tidy."

"Don't mention it." David said with a slight smile, which soon reformed into a hard line. "Jonah, you also need to know that there's a woman upstairs resting or sleeping, she's a guest here and..." David looked up, searching for the appropriate words. "And without going into the details, she's had the definition of a rough day. I just thought you should know she's here."

Jonah nodded, a serious look on his face. "All right, I won't bug her. Good to know who's all up in the house."

"By the way. Chase said you were here for a conference or something? What do you work with?" David asked, leaning back in the couch.

"Yeah, regarding the impact of the Civil War on local Native American Tribes. I'm working towards a post-graduate degree in US History at the University of Colorado, specializing in Civil War studies. I'm from Arkansas originally though, like Chase, but my family moved here to Colorado when I was ten. So I've lived here for a while."

"You've been here longer than me." David replied. "I'm from Arizona originally and Flagstaff more specifically, only left when I was 21 to go to college in Pennsylvania." He though back to the memories with a small smile on his face.

Jonah pulled a laptop from his backpack along with a scewdriver and proceeded to open the machine.

"What are you doing to it." David said with a nod toward the small computer.

"I cracked it over the head of an infected guy on the way here, the dumb bastard was gnawin' on the leg of this old lady, granted her leg was broken and in a cast so he did not bite her per say but the pain of him wrenching it back and forth had her yellin' something terrible. So I ran over there on knocked him out. I hasn't run right since." He said and pulled out a wallet-sized hard-drive and a bundle of wires.

"Do you need some help with that." David said, eyebrow raised.

"Nah I've got it covered." Jonah replied and kept on working, flipping the laptop over and it slipped through his fingers, almost hitting the floor before he managed to get control of the situation and slamming the case against his thigh to keep it from hitting the ground. "Are you a tinkerer?" He asked looking up at David, who smiled in response.

"Very much so, I kind of even made it into my career path, I'm a civil engineer, construction."

Jonah laughed in response waving his screwdriver in David's general direction. "Guess we're sorta kindred spirits then." They sat there and talked for a while, regarding Jonah's journey here and the conference, about David's career and his time at college in Pennsylvania and later life in Colorado, Jonah was a friendly and open character.

But that's when David reminded himself of the convenience store. Indeed money still apparently had value and it was best to get the most out of it while that ringed true. He made ready to go to the store, taking what cash he had and leaving, letting Jonah know that he could make himself at home and use the bathroom to wash up if needed, something Jonah seemed to appreciate very much.

"So, you headin' out." Jonah asked.

"Yeah, Chase told me about this convenience store that's still apprently open in the area." David replied and pulled the cash from his pocket. "I thought I'd make this count." He said before stuffing the money back down the pocket.

"Good idea, I'll take a shower after I'm done with this thing." Jonah said and made a gesture to the gutted laptop on the coffee table.

"Also." David said, pulling his smartphone from his pocket. "What's your cell number? In case I need to reach you." The two men exchanged their numbers and plugged them into their respective contact list. "By the way, if Paula, the woman I was telling you about decides to come out, give her my number as well if she still has her phone."

"Will do." Jonah replied. "Good luck out there."

As David left the house along with the dog and locked up after saying goodbye to Marcus, he made his way toward his car, still parked on the driveway and set out on the short journey to Carla's store. It was only a short bit off but with the car he would be able to load up with much more supplies. Most stores on the desolate streets were closed, the little corner bakery where David would get coffee on the way to work was dark and sealed behind a metal gate. Hussar curled up in the front of the passenger seat.

David pressed the gas pedal down further, speeding him on the way toward his goal.

AN: As I cannot respond to guest reviews on the site I'll answer your question here. I currently have about half a year planned out, though it might increase either as a new story or a continuation of this one. (Of course all those days won't be several chapters long) With 99.9% certainty it will be an OC-only story, but that also depends on if I decide to continue their story for so long as to match with the game's story. And last but not least, thanks for the review! :D