Bright colors of yellow poke at my eyes. Warmth touches me with a soothing hand, and the urge to wake up grows. I open my eyes, and the sun's gaze punches me with a blinding light. It was night when I was still awake. Now it's morning. I cover my eyes and let them readjust. My left eye squints as a blurry image of the Emily forms. She is still driving and everyone in the back is asleep.

The sun rests above a grassy horizon off in the distance. I can actually see the sunrise without a sky scraper blocking the view. That means we are officially in the little suburb of Coaltown. The place used to have huge deposits of coal which is how the place got its name.

Since it was a giant coal mine, there isn't much in terms of business. A fire department, some restaurants, two hotels, and a couple local businesses. However, Coaltown and the metropolitan area Brookhaven aren't joined with a bridge like all the other towns.

Brookhaven and Coaltown sit right next to each other so we may be dealing with double the number of shamblers. However, Shamblers are slow and easy to deal with. The military, other people and that thing that from last night is what scares me.

Countless buildings have burned to the ground and engulfed coal deposits create clouds of black smoke that choke out a majority of the sunshine around the middle of Coaltown.

"Where are we going?" I yawn.

"I want to see if my family is okay." Emily answers.

"Sounds good to me. You helped me get my brother. The least I can do is return the favor."

Emily lets out a frustrated sigh and her grip on the vinyl steering wheel tightens. I can tell she is pretty scared. I know I was, and when it turned out my parents were okay, that was more than enough for me. Despite what happened last night on the bridge, I still think mom and dad are okay.

"I put your gun in the glove compartment." Emily says.

I open the latch and grab my revolver. It's been dried and oiled. Adam really does do a good job when it comes to cleaning. Maybe better than me. Doubtful but still. Adam could definitely give me a run for my money.

I pull out a can of crushed pineapple and pry it open. My stomach has shriveled up overnight. One can of food a day sucks, but we do get to drink all the water we want. I chug down the artificial syrup and munch the fruit into a mushy pulp. The food hits the back of my throat and falls. Some relief comes to my stomach, but not a lot. I certainly want more, but the rule is one can a day.

Everyone is still asleep except for Jessica and Lauren. They must have awakened a couple minutes ago. The both of them are playing cards again. It's nice to see that Jessica hasn't went completely mad.

Lauren has probably been our foundation for humanity, and the only thing that hasn't completely driven us all to insanity. It's just something about Lauren's gentle personality in this rough world. It gives me a sense of hope that humanity might be restored one day.

I pull out my survival manual and make a note in the diary portion:

Wyvern- Big ugly mofo that takes on the appearance of a deformed grey dragon. Heavily armored and seems to pay no attention to getting shot. Has a retractable tongue for catching prey, but it can easily be cut with a knife. Seemingly indestructible. A weakness has yet to be discovered.

The sunlight dies and clouds blot out the sky over Brookhaven's city limits. The shambler population is getting more and more dense as we head further into the Coaltown.

"Aren't you from Brookhaven?" I ask Emily as I reach behind me and grab my 30-30.

"I live on the other side of town."

"Ah, where the rich kids live." I tease as I check the ammo count in the rifle. It's fully loaded with one in the chamber. The revolver is loaded with five 357 rounds, and I have enough shells for another cylinder.

"I guess you could say that." Emily drives through a stoplight and turns left. The terrain goes from a small, suburb to a more rural area. Barbed wire fences off different plots of land as long driveways lead up to the houses lingering in the distance. Modern homes with concrete roads mix with traditional farmhouses that have acres of land specifically for crops.

"Hey Matt?"

"Yeah Emily?"

"Never mind…"

"No, what is it? Seriously."

"I don't want to give you another opportunity to prove me wrong." She giggles.

"Well, everything's been good because I've been right. Ask away."

The teeth in Emily's mouth show as she smiles, "Do you think…Do you think my parents are okay?"

"Well if they're not at the house, they'll be at a quarantine zone."

"Eric said that you predicted his mom would be at quarantine zone because she's a nurse, and you were right. So, I guess I'll just have to trust you, but just this once."

Emily turns left onto a gravel road called Lakeside Circle. The speed of the car gradually increases. I reach up and grab hold of the vinyl handle, "easy there Jeff Gordon. Don't run us off in a ditch." I tease.

Emily giggles at the statement and slows down for another left turn. The tires grip the paved, brick road that twists back and forth between a pond and some trees. We come over a hill, and at the very end of the road sits a very nice, three story house.

"Now remember, don't rush in. Let's clear the place first." I say as I ready my 30-30.

"Yeah! Nice and easy!" Emily replies as she reaches around and grabs the Austrian handgun fixed in the waist of her skirt.

"I'm coming too!" Eric states.

"Adam? You awake?"

"Yes."

"You stay here and keep the group safe."

"Just make it quick." Adam replies as he kicks the safety off his AR-15.

Emily can barely contain herself, "Will we have enough room if mom and dad are here?!"

"We'll make room if they are." I answer as she parks a couple feet from the house.

Emily bursts out of the vehicle and makes a break for the front door. She pulls out her house key and sticks it in the knob.

"Emily! Wait!" Eric yells as we try and make sure it's safe to proceed. She barges in and Eric chases after her.

I wave at Adam and motion that he needs to be ready. He signals that he is prepared if something happens. I run around to the back of the house and pull up the rifle. Nothing seems to be out of the ordinary. A tire swing, and a basic woodshed. At the very top corner of my eye, I can see something flapping in the wind. A curtain from an open window flickers from soft gusts of warm wind.

"Oh shit."

I run to the back porch and jiggle the door knob. It's locked, but that doesn't mean anything. The sound of the deadbolt scraping against the striker pad of the door clicks. I step to the side of the door and pull the hammer back on the rifle. The door opens up and Eric carefully peeks out with his gun.

"Jesus Christ. You scared the hell out of me." Eric gasps as he lets me in.

"Like wise. Everything fine inside?"

"Yeah. It's clear."

"Mom! Dad! You still here!?" Emily shouts as she wonders though the house.

Eric gives me a concerning look and points to the kitchen. He opens the cabinets and steps out of the way. Several, perfectly shaped circles from where the dust hasn't settled in years are scattered all over the shelves in a uniform manner.

"What do you think Matt?"

"What do you want to hear?"

"Everything."

"Either somebody broke in and raided the house…" Emily is upstairs, but it's not worth taking any chances. I cover my mouth with both hands to try and limit as much noise as possible, "Or a certain somebody just left."

"No…They wouldn't do that. Would they?" Eric replies.

"You go keep Emily occupied. I'll see what I can find."

Eric nods and heads upstairs. Emily is still calling out for her parents. Almost like it's out of a desperate attempt to hold onto the last of what she calls a family. It's depressing to hear Emily cry out because it sounds like she's still so full of hope. It's not set-in stone yet. Maybe her parents got caught at work, and the military happened to come by and raided the house. Although that doesn't explain how the house wasn't tampered with.

I poke my head into the nearest room. It's just a game room that has a pool table. Neon signs and leather furniture decorate the room. Nothing too interesting. Eric escorts Emily downstairs and into the game room as he tries to keep her occupied. I head upstairs and make my way to the strange room that had the curtain flopping out the window.

It's hard to say what happened, but it's looking like the military didn't comb over this place. Reason being is Emily's place is fairly well hidden, and even if the military did come by, the place would be in ruin. With the curtain hanging out the window, it is possible somebody broke in.

I ready my gun and barge into the room with the open window. Nothing looks out of the ordinary. No broken glass, the bed hasn't been made, and the dresser drawers aren't hanging out. I open the top drawer and find nothing but empty space. The next one has nothing inside as well.

A picture frame skids across the bottom drawer as I open it. What's this doing here? An embarrassing picture of Emily when she was a kid? I chuckle as I flip it over and investigate. It is a picture of Emily when she was a kid. However, the guy in the picture looks nothing like her dad.

Emily is standing in the front of the family portrait, and her mom as well as the man stand in the background. They're holding hands like a married couple, and Emily looks like she's actually happy. Who is this guy? A step father maybe. He looks familiar, but it isn't clicking. Maybe it will come to me later.

I stick the photo in my backpack and open the nearby closet door. There is a slot about the size of a suitcase that separates the wall from the miscellaneous objects on the top shelf. There's one more thing to check before a verdict can be reached. I walk over to the bed and open the nightstand.

Inside is an open security case that would require a deliberate four-digit input to open. What I feared to be truth has become the truth. The military didn't raid the place, and somebody didn't break in. There's no other explanation other than Emily's parents leaving. As for the open window, they packed up in such a worry that they didn't bother to close it.

Assholes just straight up left. They didn't try to come to the school when all this shit happened, nor was there an attempt at trying to get in contact. I sit down on the bed and rub some stress out of my face.

"Fuck!" I softly exclaim.

What am I going to tell Emily? That her parents just left? Even if I could make something up, what good would it do? She's going to learn the truth eventually, and even though she was opening up to me back on the road, who's to say that wasn't because of the anticipation of being with her family again?

Why should I care though? It's not like we're ever going to become friends in the future anyway, but I don't know if her heart could take it. Not to mention that because of our bad blood in the past, she may think I'm being heartless. Either way, it's not going to work out for me. Perks of being nominated as the reluctant leader of a dysfunctional group. I make a decision and head downstairs.

"Son of a bitch!" Emily shouts.

"Sounds like a scratch to me!" Eric taunts as he pulls the cue ball out of a side pocket of the pool table and sits it where he wants.

"You find anything useful?" Emily asks as I step into the game room.

"Not really. I think somebody broke into your house and took everything because the window on the second floor was open." I reply.

"Figures. I was wondering why everything was gone." Emily says as Eric leans on the table and lines up his pool cue. He bounces the cue ball off a solid billiard and knocks a striped one into a pocket.

"You asshole." Emily scoffs as she offers me the pool cue. "Want to give it a shot?"

"Nah, I'm good. We staying for a bit?"

"Might as well. It will give mom and dad a chance to come back. That's if they're not at a quarantine zone." Emily states.

"I'm sure wherever they are, they're okay." I say with a straight face.

The truth is, that's not what I'm feeling right now. Every day that passes, my faith in moral concepts continue to dimmish. The subliminal teachings about how family is always something that's going to be there, and friendships are the foundations of trust continue to fail.

They're becoming nothing but flawed, fucked up social constructs that can't stand the test of time. Emily's parents leaving her is a prime example, and that's not including my dad shooting at me and Adam when we were on the bridge last night.

Same goes for Jessica, Lauren, and Melissa possibly. Fleming? I don't know if she was in a relationship or married, but it's safe to assume that if she had someone in her life, and they're either dead, or long gone.

I open the front door of the house and wave my hand. Adam corrals everyone out of the vehicle and walks into the house with my 22 rifle and his.

"What are we doing?" Melissa asks as she rests her shotgun over her shoulder.

"Taking a little break. Then we'll be back on the road." I reply.

"We're not setting up here?"

"There is a good chance this place has been compromised. It'd be dangerous if we stayed too long." I answer Melissa's question.

Everyone follows the sound of Eric cheering and Emily's cussing. I lock the door and stare out the side window.

"You alright Matt?" Fleming asks.

"Yeah..."

"Good. Hey Eric!" Fleming yells.

"Yeah!?"

"Matt's going to teach me how to shoot!"

"Sounds good!"

"I want to come!" Lauren shouts.

"I guess I'll make sure Matt doesn't shoot himself in the foot." Jessica states.

Fleming points at her waist and shows off the gun she's got. It's dad's 44 magnum revolver. Out of all the guns my family has, she picks that one.

"I don't really know how to use it." Fleming states.

"Have you ever shot a gun before?"

"Will you make fun of me if I say no?"

"Since you're carrying a single action, no." I reply.

Adam, Lauren and Jessica make their way to me and Fleming. Adam has the AR mounted on his back as he carries his 22 rifle and my 22.

"Fleming asked me if we could show her how to use the 44 magnum while you were in here. Then Lauren and Jessica told me they never used a gun before, so I reckon we better start the kid and Lauren off with something small." Adam teases as he holds up the 22s.

"I'm not the kid. You're the kid." Jessica sneers.

"Yeah. Yeah. We'll see here soon enough." He answers.

Fleming and I follow Adam outside as Lauren and Jessica fall behind us. Adam aims the rifles up into the air and holds them out but quickly yanks them back as Lauren and Jessica reach out to grab them, "First rule, always know where the barrel is pointing. Even if it's unloaded, never point it at somebody."

"Why? If it's unloaded, it can't hurt anyone." Jessica says.

"It teaches discipline is why." Lauren answers.

"Correct!" Adam states as he takes the magazines out and clears the guns. "We got a reasonable amount of ammo as of now but shooting a handful today may end up being the handful we need tomorrow."

"22 isn't a very powerful round, but it doesn't have a lot of recoil either. Your anticipation of pulling the trigger will kick more than the rifle itself. Which makes it ideal for people who've never shot before. It's also going to be more than enough to kill a shambler if you can hit the throat." I say.

"Make sure you're at least twenty feet away from your target. Whether it be a shambler or human."

"Why is that?" Jessica asks.

"Because there's a good chance the fucker can still attack you even after being fatally struck. Especially if they're charging you." Adam replies as he hands the rifles off to Jessica and Lauren and instructs them on what to do next. Fleming pulls the revolver out and hands it to me. I open the loading gate and hit the ejector. No brass comes out which means Fleming didn't even get the shells in.

"In order to load this kind of gun, you'll have to open this little notch, and push the shells out with the ejector. Like this." I load a shell into the cylinder and eject it back out. "Then you turn the cylinder to load the next round."

Fleming watches closely as I load each chamber with a bullet, and eject each one.

"Does that latch have to be closed in order to fire?"

"Yes, and the hammer has to be pulled back every time you fire."

I hand her the revolver, and the rounds. She flips open the loading gate and tries to feed a bullet into the cylinder. Fleming works it in and rotates the cylinder. She loads the next shell a little quicker but continues to struggle on finding a rhythm.

"Certainly not the fastest gun." Fleming says as she rolls the cylinder and loads another chamber.

"But it will put anything you point it at down quicker than most rifles." I answer.

"More so than what we are using?" Lauren asks as Adam helps her with trigger discipline.

"Oh yeah." I answer.

"A small trade off." Adam states as he helps Jessica shoulder her rifle.

Fleming loads six rounds and ejects them out into her hand. She closes the loading gate and gives me her attention.

"Square up and take a firm stance." Adam gets into a solid position and pulls up his rifle.

I put both hands on my revolver, "those three little notches on the top of the barrel? You want to make sure the back one is in line with the two up front. The tops of each one should be perfectly aligned in order to make the most accurate shot. This applies to all guns with basic iron sights. With the exception of the rifle Adam is using and shotguns, but we'll cover those later."

I walk over to Fleming and instruct her on the proper way of handling the gun. She pulls the hammer back and prepares to dry fire. "The moment you touch that trigger; you've made your decision. There are no take backs, so never put your finger in the trigger guard unless you intend to pull it." I say.

Fleming takes a deep breath and eases her finger back against the trigger. The cylinder spins as the hammer drops into the empty chamber with a thunderous click.

"Now when the bullets are loaded, you have to have a strong grip on that gun, because it's going to kick like a mule." I say as I put my hand on Fleming's and jerk it up. She doesn't have a strong enough grip, and the gun nearly comes out of her hand.

It's difficult to re-enact just how much recoil the 44 magnum will have, but it is best to give Fleming an estimate because what she's using isn't some entry level gun like the 9mm or a 38. Special.

Fleming repositions her hands, braces her arms and nods that she's ready. I wait a couple seconds and yank the gun up at an angle. She offers a bit more resistance and snaps back on target a little more effectively.

"If we can find some more ammo, can we actually shoot it? That way I can get the full experience?" Fleming asks as we do another simulation.

"Absolutely. The reason we don't have more than a couple boxes is because it was a dollar fifty a round before all this happened."

"A dollar fifty a round?" Fleming asks.

"Yup. It was nearly seventy-five dollars for a box of fifty, and that was just plinking ammo. Hollow points were nearly fifty dollars for a box of twenty."

"I really wish I would have gotten around and bought me something, but I always saw guns as more of an accessory before all this happened. How wrong I was." Fleming says as we simulate another shot.

"Matt? Adam?"

"Yeah Lauren?" We answer.

"Thank you for letting use these. I mean, I really hope I don't have to kill anything, but it's nice to know that I won't be so helpless now. Especially if a shambler or someone like that guy on the bus comes after me."

I crouch down to one knee and put my hands on Lauren's shoulders, "I want you to know, that I am going to do everything I can to protect you and everyone else in our group, because I don't want any of you to have to do bad things either, but if I fail to uphold that oath, then I know that everyone here can protect themselves."

"I understand. Thank you, Matt." Lauren says with a hopeful smile.

"Good then. Come. We need to get going if we're going to find a place to set up for the night."

I put my hand on her back. Everyone follows me into the house and heads into the room where Emily and Eric are playing pool. I sit down on the living room couch and recap on everything that's going on. As of now, everyone has a basic understanding of how firearms work. Which means one of the objectives is complete. Next is to find a safe place. Finally, I'll head out and kill Blair and his group.

My mind seems to be catching on something though. Almost like the original objective is constantly being distorted by something. I wanted to bail as soon as I got out of the school, but then it turned into helping Eric and them, then Blair was tacked on as another goal to take care of. Now I'm making commitments of protecting the group and teaching them how to use guns. What the hell is wrong with me?

"Deep in thought?" Jessica asks as she walks into the room.

"Yeah. Just…trying to figure out our next move."

Jessica sits down in the recliner across from me and cleans the lenses of her glasses, "Well. What is our next move?"

"We can't stay here because there's a good chance someone broke in before our arrival."

"What makes you say that?"

"The window on the second floor was open, and I can't determine if someone broke in, or Emily's parents forgot to shut it."

Jessica looks around and makes sure we are alone, "I'll be honest, it's probably because her dead-beat parents just bailed."

"That's what I was thinking, but maybe…"

"Her parents are worthless Matt. I've known them my entire life. Emily's mom had a chance at a better life. An opportunity to give Emily a good upbringing and bright future, but she threw it away to get back with her ex, so it's very likely they left Emily to die."

"Why would they do something like that?"

"Probably because she was nothing more than a tax exemption and child support, but now that society has collapsed, Emily is nothing but dead weight to them."

"Jesus Christ."

"I of all people know what it feels like to be a tool for someone else's benefit." Jessica sighs as she pulls out her little wallet and hands me a piece of paper. "This is what my family thought of me, and my interests."

An expensive, looking wax seal has been broken, and a list of various names along with addresses all across the United States fill the front and back of the paper.

"You haven't even graduated yet." I say.

Jessica shakes her head, "doesn't matter. Mom barges into my room about a month ago with this and says 'pick one. You have until winter.' I wadded it up and threw it back at her and said that they didn't have any right to whore me off to some Yankee motherfucker from Manhattan, or that dickhead in Dallas."

"Motherfucker from Manhattan and Dickhead in Dallas. Good one Jessica." I chuckle as I continue to read through the list.

Jessica giggles herself, "I told them my body wasn't for sale, and that I was going to have a mechanics degree by winter. Which mom and dad didn't take too kindly to my response."

"Well, they were only looking out for themselves, and their wealth. I'd say you did a magnificent job."

"I should also mention that when they asked me where I learned that kind of heathen language, I said it's because of you."

"Ah! You ratted me out! I'm so scared of what they're going to do!" I sarcastically tease.

"They said you were nothing but a bad influence with no sense of civil etiquette."

"Oh! I don't think my heart can take it!" I taunt.

Jessica shakes her head and continues to laugh. It's kind of nice seeing her like this. Normally, Jessica is always high strung, serious and a bit bitchy. In fact, this is probably the first time I recall ever seeing her laugh. No wonder she spent hundreds of dollars on alcohol.

Jessica's parents were complete douches. They didn't want her living her own life. Nor did they want middle class folk like me and Eric around their daughter. The both of us had the freedom to do what we wanted, and that's something Jessica's parents didn't want her to have. No wonder her parents hated me.

"I can see you two are finally getting along." Emily says as everyone makes their way into the living room.

I fold up the letter and put it in my pocket, "Ah. Jessica and I have always got along. She just didn't want to admit it."

"If you say so Matt." Jessica playfully rolls her eyes with a grin.

"Is everyone ready?" Adam asks.

"Yeah. Let's go." I reply.

We leave the house and load up in the SUV. Emily, Eric, Adam, Fleming, Lauren, Melissa, and Jessica. Everyone is here.

"Well, where too now?" Emily asks.

"Let's go to the riverside. We can set up camp there for the night. That will give me some time to think about what our next move will be." I state.

"Alright. The river it is." Emily starts the vehicle and puts it in reverse.

I remember that letter from earlier and pull it out. There's a full page of names on both sides. A huge smile rips across my face as I think about what Jessica said earlier. This will be a fun little group activity.

"What's so funny?" Melissa asks.

"Alright everyone, listen up. I have a game we can play until we get to the river…"