A skittering sound echoed in the dark room. Cas wrinkled his nose. He hated these bugs. Try as he might to reason with himself, they were just small little creatures that meant no one any harm, they deserved a place in the world as much as he did, he still couldn't help but feel like throwing up the two mcchicken's he had just eaten when he saw the little brown-red exoskeleton of the roach skitter between the boxes in the freezer. And to think that these little shits got to survive a nuclear holocaust event? One that was likely coming soon? Or had it happened already...Cas had always known the perfect world he had been born into was going to go ass over end before too long, it was like the feeling you get imagining a freight train headed at full tilt toward a towering cliff edge full of shouting and cheering ignorant hooligans. He had been the quiet figure sitting in the very back of the train looking for an escape hatch or a safe place to hide til it was over. Well the shit had hit the fan. 2 years ago, roughly, he wasn't even sure what day of the month it was anymore, the disease had broken out, the busy streets had gone dead silent over night, the malls full of muling and pushing crowds had gone dark and your friendly neighborhood streets were quiet...unless it was one of those nights you were out alone in the cold and dark and you heard a shuffling, a groaning, and you knew you were about to run into one of the walking dead. The skulking shades of what used to be people that walked endlessly day and night looking for something to feed the bottomless pits that they were. Cas wasn't likely to be one of those people that ran into walkers on occasion, though. No. He was smart. He was equipped. He was in control. And he was all alone. Except for these damn roaches. The nuclear event that was supposed to wipe out the planet never happened, but there had been a world epidemic just as apocalyptic and sure as shit these buggers had not only survived but were having a hayday in this new world without debuggers, pesticide or people in general. Cas was about to bring some old time reality down on their unsuspecting brown and red crusty heads. Picking up the 3 quart jug of gasoline he had aquired, and not easily at that, he began to shake its contents all around the freezers insides. Corner to corner then criss crossing the floor. Once the jug was light enough to heft he arced big gouts of gasoline against the freezer walls and roof. Hahaha! He smiled darkly to himself. These little fucks had no idea what was coming to them! He tossed the gas can unceremoniously off to the side and backed away to the door. Opening it carefully and tuning an eye for dark skittering figures trying to escape, he backed out through it and pulled out his lighter. It was how he had seen it done in the movies, but now holding the lighter he realized he had no cigarette to ceremoniously light then flick into the gas to start the fiery destruction. Dammit, he thought. If only Kaiser Soze was here and he could bum a light. He slammed the freezer door and turned around. Huffing slightly stilll from the exertion of the gas dousing, he surveyed the topography of the old fast food diner he had commandeered looking for something that would work as a torch. There was a pile of old receipts in the corner but that crap would be hard enough to light and even harder to keep it going as it fell through the air. No, he needed something that would crackle angrily and greedily attack the gasoline and light the whole place afire with sweet vengeance. Smacking a fist into his palm he set off down the short hall to the front counter. Hopping up he swung his legs and landed on the other side. He was in the dining area now. It was dank and looked very sorry indeed. Not homely at all he thought. He had stacked all the chairs in a corner by the drinks station and cleaned the tables and the floor so that at least the place was clean. The doors he had all locked, they were locked to the outside but open from the inside, and he had secured all the windows with hefty metals he had taken from the car shop accross the street. Aha, he thought. The bathroom! With a high screech of glee he skipped around to the bathrooms and slammed open the heavy door. The sight of one stall stacked high with ammunition and weapons warmed his heart but he wasn't after that today, he needed toilet paper. He pulled out his baton and began wacking at the toilet paper holder- These things were way too fucking secure. With no one to steal it anymore, the lock funtion was useless..you heard it here first he thought to himself. He finally busted out a fresh roll and stuffed it under one arm and was about to head out with a light heart and bouncing step when he stopped cold. Something had caught his eye on the left side, a mere shadow, a thought, but nonetheless it was powerful enough to stop him in his tracks and cause the toilet paper roll to slip slowly from his arm and to land softly on the floor, rolling away as if trying to escape. He didn't care, though. What had caught his eye was a AK 47 fully automatic rifle he had stolen from a group of thugs a couple weeks ago. That was another story, what was important was he had taken a risk and now it was about to pay off big time. Almost shaking, eyes wide and vacant, he walked slowly up to the rifle where it hung on the door of the handicap womens bathroom stall. Hanging beside it was a full belt of ammunition. Cas's heart began to thud dully in his chest. He sighed as his hands touched the cold metal. Oh yeah...this was the moment he had been waiting for all week. A chance to work some magic. Oh those little suckers were about to get a wake up call, a wake up call for the end of time. Time for some old painless," he muttered, thinking of the movie predator he used to watch in another world several millenium ago it felt like. He started with the ammunition belt. It was much heavier than it looked and even heavier than he remembered. He slowly slid it off the door and hefted it. Oh yes, this would do just fine. Buckling it into a circle he slung it around his shoulder and positioned the clip so it would connect to the gun right around the hip area. Shoot from the hip, right? Then he took down the big silent, awe inspiring gun. It seemed to whisper to him of its power. Be careful what you wish for..."What?" He asked the silence? It was a gun. Get over it. He slung it over his shoulder and had to widen his stance and brace his legs to take the wieght. Feeling at least 20 feet tall he buckled the ammo into the gun and stood for a second, reeling at the power it made him feel. Then he slowly turned around, and slowly opened the door. Carefully and slowly, as if to savor the moment, he walked towards the kitchen area that led back to the freezers. His knees and legs tingled...his breath was slow and relaxed, his arms tingled too and he loved the weight of the beast in his arms. The corridor back to the freezer seemed to stretch and widen before him. It was endless as he made his way down towards the freezer door. He stopped in front of it. He realized he still carried his lighter. That idea was like a humorous twitch in his mind and he let the gun hang against him as he reached into his pocket and took out the lighter. He looked at it affectionately and walked over to set it on a sink. Then he made his way back. This had to be done right. He wasn't going to forsake this divine opportunity, he was going to appreciate every..last..drop. The door handle was cold as he palmed it back.