Progress As Promised

Today's song is Progress As Promised by We Barbarians.

Fuck, Edward thought to himself as his body was wracked with another painful coughing fit. It felt as though someone had poured gasoline in his throat and then proceed to allow their cat to take a shit in the litter box of his mouth.

"Ugh," he groaned as he struggled to open his eyes he had regained consciousness awhile ago but had been struggling to regain control over his body.

As soon as he managed to pry them open he snapped them shut again, desperate for relief. If his throat felt like a litter box then his eyes certainly felt like they had been dunked in an acid bath while his head had been put into a press.

While he squeezed his eyes shut and wished for medical grade Visine, Edward tried to take stock of his surroundings but it was difficult to hear anything over his wheezing and hacking coughs.

Well, he thought, if there were any zeds I would surely be dead by now. There's no way they wouldn't be able to hear this. With a grunt, Edward pulled himself into a sitting position and immediately experienced an intense coughing fit accompanied by an overwhelming sense of vertigo.

"Oh god," he moaned as he clutched at his chest and rested his head on his knees, "just let it fucking stop."

When the painful coughing fit finally subsided, Edward once again focused on his surroundings and found that he was not alone. Somewhere nearby someone or something was breathing, very very loudly.

With every hair on his body prickling in anticipation, Edward once again struggled to open his eyes although it was far more difficult than he expected as his eyelids seemed absolutely set against the task. Finally, he had to reach up and physically pry his eyelids open and hold them open until the uncontrollable muscle spasms subsided.

Because his eyes were so irritated, Edward had a hard time focusing on anything further than the tip of his nose so he was startled to find that during his struggle, the source of the breathing had moved closer.

"Hello?" He rasped, squinting into the darkness. "Who's there?"

Instead of the answer he was expecting he was rewarded with a very sloppy and very wet lick on his face.

"S-Sammy?" he wheezed before coughing again. Tentatively, he reached his hand out and was met with a familiar furry body. "Oh shit Sam," he laughed wearily as he sagged with relief against the large dog's neck, "I was afraid I had lost you man."

After inhaling the dog's smoky scent, Edward sat bolt upright as the fire came rushing back to him. The last thing he remembered was a pair of teeth on his collar. Shocked, he stared into the loyal face of his companion as he realized who had dragged him out of the fire. If he hadn't been indebted to this animal for saving him before he surely was now.

After a few more moments of contemplative silence, Edward glanced around. "Where the fuck are we?" he muttered as the surveyed his surroundings. They were surrounded by boxes, no surprise there but they definitely weren't still inside the burning Costco.

Other than the smell of smoke clinging to his clothes and in Sammy's fur, the acrid smell of burning plastic was absent. "What the hell?" Edward thought as he rose to his knees with a painful grunt. Nothing seemed to be broken but he knew he was going to be quite sore when this was all over and he doubted he would be able to participate in any long conversations anytime soon as every time he coughed of spoke his throat erupted in flames.

Upon further examination of their surroundings, Edward found realized they were in some sort of small room and the room was moving. There was a small amount of light streaming through a crack at one end of the narrow room but other than that he was encased in complete darkness.

"Ugh," he grunted as Sammy let out a muffled yelp when they were thrown against the side of what Edward determined was the side of a truck. "Fuck," he groaned as he staggered to his feet and began walking toward where the cab should be located, "who's driving this fucker?"

When he got to the end of the trailer, he began pounding on the metal wall repeatedly, hoping the driver would hear him and take mercy on his sorry ass. If he didn't get out of this swaying death trap soon he was going to blow chunks everywhere.

After awhile he collapsed back onto the floor and placed his head between his knees and tried to focus on anything other than the constant swaying that reminded him of riding angry seas. Edward had never been prone to carsickness but put him on the water and he was immediately green. As a child he was even banned from using floats in the pool because he was so prone to vomiting in the pool.

Desperate to do whatever he could to prevent his meager breakfast from making a reappearance and figuring he was already damned to hell, he finally allowed himself to recall the face he had conjured just before losing consciousness in the fire. With a sigh, he settled back against a stack of boxes as a pair of sad, dark brown eyes came to mind.

The face he imagined was, in Edward's humble opinion one of the most beautiful he had ever seen. While she was not beautiful in a supermodel way, he had always found he had always found her face to be interesting. She had a soft, heart shaped face and creamy white skin that was a rarity in the desert. Even though she had always lived in the southwest, her skin seemed to be perpetually pale. Sure, she gained some color after spending time under the blazing desert sun but it seemed to fade just as quickly as it came. As he pictured her face he allowed his mind to drift to the set full lips he never tired of remembering. So many hours had been spent worshipping those lips that he could nearly recall exactly how they felt pressed against his own.

Edward was suddenly jolted out of his daydream by the truck's abrupt stop. "Mother-," he groaned as he lost his balance and fell over. As he righted himself he heard the sound of feet crunching on the ground outside of the truck. When the backdoor of the truck was suddenly thrown open Edward hissed and cowered in the corner as the bright light of day assaulted his tender corneas.

"Ed?" Jasper's voice called. "You okay man?"

With monumental effort, Edward shielded his eyes and peered into the blinding sunlight. "You know, still kicking," he replied painfully as his ragged throat once again erupted in flames.

"Aw thank fuck man. I really thought we had lost you for awhile there. Never would have found you if it wasn't for this guy. Pulled you as far as he could, then he barked until I got to you." He patted the wagging Sammy on the head. "When I found you, Sammy had already taken down two zeds that had found you before I did. One hell of a dog you got there man."

Rather than attempt to speak, Edward chose instead to nod his head in agreement as he hefted himself off the floor and stumbled toward the daylight.

"I'm guessing you're going to want to ride up front eh?" Jasper said as he pulled the large metal doors shut behind Edward. "Rosalie is driving your car," he motioned to the Bronco stopped a few feet from the truck. Inside, Edward could just make out Jack's arm waving a frantic hello through the car's back window and he responded with a small salute knowing the child would get a kick out of it.

"As you can see," Jasper continued once they were all situated inside the cab of the semi, "we managed to get the truck, no idea what's in it yet since everything is wrapped in a shitload of plastic but hopefully it's something good."

"Wh-," Edward rasped before massaging his sore throat and trying again, this time in a whisper, "where are we going?" When they were in the Costco, the group had focused only on how to escape, not where they were going to go once they did.

Jasper scratched his sweat soaked curls. "Eh, not sure man," he admitted with a shrug. "Rosalie said she knows a place so I'm just following her lead. Seems as good a plan as any right?"

Edward nodded in agreement as the truck's large engine roared to life but it wasn't long before he began to get antsy. Being cooped up for so long had certainly taken its toll and Edward longed to breathe some fresh air for awhile. A tap on the shoulder and a few hand gestures was all it took to get Jasper to pull the truck to a stop once again. Seeing the truck's movement come to a halt in her rearview mirror, Rosalie also brought the Bronco to a stop a short ways up the road.

After giving Sammy a quick scratch behind the ears, Edward clambered from the truck's cab and walked up the road. Once he reached the car, he motioned for Rosalie to roll down her window.

"Hey Mr. Ed! Guess what? We're driving your car!" Jack shouted excitedly from where he was strapped into the back seat. Edward grinned and gave the boy a small wave.

"Is there a problem?" Rosalie asked. "Why did we stop?"

"N- no," Edward whispered in his ragged voice. "No problem, I just wanted my bike for awhile. I need some air."

With a roll of her eyes, Rosalie silently reached over and popped the car's trunk and waited impatiently for Edward to retrieve his stupid motorcycle. She was annoyed that they had stopped for something so stupid but said nothing knowing that without his help she and Jack would most likely be dead right now.

As she watched the motorcycle speed down the road, she reflected on the enigma that was Edward Cullen. She had known him for years but never got a good read on him. Often, he was moody, selfish, and brash yet at other times he was caring, concerned, and selfless. The man was a walking contradiction. He was the only leather jacket wearing, pit bull owning badass she knew who actually read substantial books and liked to go on picnics in the woods.

With a shake of her head she decided not to think too hard about it and instead redirected her attention to singing along with Jack's soulful rendition of the Farmer in the Dell.

As the miles passed, Edward would speed ahead of others before looping back around as he enjoyed a sense of peace and solitude he had been so desperately missing.

After over almost two hours of driving, Rosalie led the way as she exited the highway and began traveling down an empty road deeper into the desert. Occasionally, they would pass a few wandering zeds but they paid them no mind as they sped by. There was no reason to waste their time and with Jack around, Jasper didn't dare try to increase his zombie killing score.

As the miles passed, a large mesa came into view and Rosalie felt a sense of dread settle heavily into the pit of her stomach. This was the only place she knew to go. She clung to the hope that not only would this be a safe haven for herself and her young son but that perhaps by some miracle, Bella had made it.

Rosalie would never have thought to come here on her own but she remembered joking conversations with her best friend, Bella Swan, from years past about what they would do in the event of some sort of world disaster. Ironically, Rosalie had decided she would be safe as long as there was a Costco around, apparently not. On the other hand, Bella had completely dismissed the idea of hiding in a Costco or shopping mall citing Dawn of the Dead as why that would be a bad idea. Rather Bella had mentioned an article she had read about an ancient situated atop a mesa in the desert.

She never really thought much about it until the outbreak began. Before her access to the internet was cut Rosalie was able to find out more about the city in the sky and memorized the directions should she ever need them. The only one she had told about her plan was her neighbor Esme but shortly thereafter the bombings had begun and Rosalie lost all contact with her neighbor. When she and Jack fled their apartment, she completely forgot about the mesa as she focused only on keeping her son safe but now it seemed like their best choice. After escaping the zombie horde, Rosalie had instructed Jasper follow her and in case they were separated to take Exit 108 and follow the signs to Acoma Pueblo.

Jack watched eagerly out the window of the Bronco as the bump in the distance quickly grew into a giant mesa rising up from the desert. "Is that it Mom?" he asked excitedly. "Are we almost there? I bet we're almost there," he babbled excitedly, not waiting for his mother to actually answer any of his questions.

Rosalie just smiled at him in the rearview mirror. She was thankful that even after all the misfortune that had befallen the small boy so far he had managed to cling onto his state of innocent wonder. As they drew nearer, Rosalie opted to bypass the visitor's center and continue on to the road leading up to the village, intending to drive right onto the mesa but was stopped by a large metal gate.

"Crap," she swore under her breath as she cut the car's engine before turning to the boy in the backseat. "Jack you stay here and guard the car okay buddy. I need to talk to mister Jasper real quick."

"Okay mom," he agreed happily as he pressed his nose to the glass while staring up the steep cliffs in amazement.

Taking quick stock of her surroundings for any sign of zombie activity, Rosalie found none and hopped from the car, slamming the heavy door behind her as Jasper brought the semi to a stop a few feet away. Without hesitating, Jasper shifted the truck into park and hopped from its lifted cab onto the sandy desert floor.

"This it?" He asked peering around.

Rosalie shielded her eyes from the intense midday sun and tried to catch a glimpse of any other living humans and failing. "Yeah, this is it."

"Cool, " Jasper nodded appreciatively.

"I guess," she answered with a shrug. "Where's Edward?"

"You mean he's not here?" Jasper asked in a confused voice.

"Well obviously not," Rosalie replied as she scanned the landscape for the lone motorcycle, "otherwise I wouldn't be asking would I?"

Jasper ignored her bitchy comment. "Well, you told him the right exit didn't you?"

"What do you-," Rosalie paused and her mouth hung open in shock. "I assumed you told him where we were going."

"I didn't think about it," Jasper shrugged, "and you know what they say about assuming. It makes an ass out of u and me."

"Why you little-."Rosalie was suddenly interrupted by the sound of a gun being cocked nearby.

"Well hello there pretty lady," an unfamiliar deep voice boomed as the two blondes turned slowly to see who was holding them at gunpoint, "and who might you be?"

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I don't think I can explain to you how much I enjoy writing this story and I hope you feel the same way. That's right, I'm talking to you. I would love to hear from you! Some of you have some really crazy ideas about who Jack's father is and I'm just going to say this once, Bella is NOT Jack's mother. While you wait for the next update, because I'm sure that's all you spend your time doing, send me your theories and zombie survival ideas. I have already mentioned a few in the story so far and I hope to use more! Have a great night my lovelies!

XOXO,

Bellarella