What next?
What could possibly be after this? wondered Ashley Roberts as she sat on a brown leather couch in the darkened family room that was in the house that had previously belonged to her aunt and uncle, now deceased, well, mostly deceased, much like most everyone that Ashley had known from her old life.
A life that had ended only a small hand full of hours before.
As she sat in the dark, where Nick had left her only moments before to check on Mike and the others out in the bus, Ashley wondered what could be beyond this.
What kind of life could one have in this new world? Could one really live happy, or die old?
Or had this thing, this "virus", really have spread to the four corners of the earth?
Was there still hope, still possibility that soon, very soon, things could go back to how they where?
Or was there any point trying to believe at all?
No, Ashley reasoned. Nothing would ever be the same. There was no point. No point in anything, now.
Even if these monsters, all of them, collapsed completely dead right this instant, the definition of a "normal life" would have changed dramatically.
There was no bringing back the people who had fallen, was there?, Ashley realized, as a single tear made it's way down her pale cheek.
No, there wasn't. No chance at all.
Her aunt and uncle, lay dead only several rooms away. She didn't need to be psychic to figure that one out. And the res of her family, and most of her friends her also dead.
Or up and around adding to the death list.
Neither thought really made Ashley feel any better.
Now she was with six other teens, and they were all that was left.
Ashley gripped her Ithica shotgun tighter, as more tears began a trickle, which quickly led to a stream.
At this moment, there was only a single option that Ashley wanted to go for.
Slowly, very slowly, with meticulous care, Ashley moved the shotgun off her lap, and placed it butt down, between here legs, so that the barrel pointed straight up.
She then slowly leaned over, and carefully placed her chin over the barrel.
This must be what it's like to see you life flash right before your eyes, Ashley mused to herself, as she slowly shut her eyes, and with her right hand, as her left was steadying the weapon, she put her finger on the trigger.
What would it be like, Ashley wondered. What it would it be like after this? What would the others think? What would it look like?
The others, Ashley thought, concentrating on a single thought for just a moment.
Even now she could hear muffled voices coming from the next room. Words she couldn't understand. They taunted her. She could hear, but couldn't listen
It was Nick and Mike, probably. Planning what to do next. Why did they bother?
Well, none of that really mattered, Ashley reasoned, eyes still shut tight. She wouldn't be here to find out.
She squeezed the trigger harder, wondering how much force it would take to fire the weapon.
Suddenly, a new thought struck Ashley. One that made her eyes snap open, and made her release the grip she had on the trigger.
Tracy.
Ashley's best friend for nearly an eternity. One of the most important people in Ashley's life.
Well, definitely the most important now, as everyone else was gone.
"No.", Ashley whispered, pushing every negative thought from her mind, and concentrating solely on her best friend. Someone who currently sat in a school bus right outside. Not fifty feet away.
Ashley had to stay alive to stay with Tracy. It was that simple.
And it made perfect sense. Ashley, breathing hard all of a sudden, snatched the shotgun from it's spot, and returned it to her lap.
She realized that she was no longer crying, and was oddly enough filled with a kind of hope. She had to keep going. She had to. Because she wouldn't leave Tracy behind. Not like this.
After a few moments of heavy breathing and rapid heart beats, Ashley maneged to gain control of herself. Maybe there wasn't any hope that they'd live. Maybe even a few minutes from now, Ashley, Tracy, and the rest of this tiny group would be dead. Killed by these insane, inhuman creatures.
But Ashley would wait for that time.
She sat back, and tried to relax, grabbing these few precious seconds of peace before Nick, or someone else, came to get her. She sat quietly, in this darkened room, and thought about where her life could be headed next.
Ashley smiled to herself, thinking again of Tracy. She would never realize that she had saved Ashley's life.
"Thanks, Trace.", Ashley murmured, using Tracy's nickname. The one she had easily come up with so long ago.
She didn't have to wait long, but she was wrong on her first guess of who was going to be the one to come for her.
Instead of Nick, it was Mike. And he looked incredibly shaken.
"What's going on?", Ashley asked, in a regular voice.
"Quiet!", Mike snapped urgently, almost before Ashley had even finished her sentence.
Ashley did quiet instantly, as she rose from the couch, gripping her shotgun tighter.
"Come with me.", Mike said, looking plainly worried, "And be very, very quiet."
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"Kay, then we move," Nick said, as he mounted the first stair of the staircase.
"Sounds good.", Chad seconded as he turned around to stare out the window.
He froze, and dove straight down, hitting the ground hard, grabbing frantically for his M1.
"Get the fuck down!", he snapped, "The fuckers are out there!"
"Shit!", Mike heard that, and hit the floor next to Chad moments later.
Nick stopped on the sixth step. He knew he was out of view from the outside.
"Did you see how many?", he asked, in a calming voice.
"Not really, no.", Chad said, breathing hard.
"Alright, everyone be quiet.", Nick said, hoping Mike and Chad already figured this, but verbalizing it anyway. Nick slowly, unslingling his M4 as he went, ascended the stairs, and got next to the window.
The window was a good five feet off the ground, Nick noted, as he back slowly against the wall. But there was still plenty of space for Nick to see outside.
"What are you doing, man?", Chad asked weakly from Nick's feet.
Checking out what we're up against.", Nick replied matter-of-factly, as he hugged the M4 carbine close to his body, and slowly leaned to the right, turning his head as he went.
The neighborhood came into view at an agonizingly slow pace, and finally brought into Nick's line of sight a group of the creatures spread over much of the main roadway.
Nick did a quick count of the creatures he could see, while Mike and Chad, still on the floor, looked on with strained expressions.
"What're you seein'?", Chad asked, breaking the silence.
"I count eleven of 'em.", Nick reported, "They're just walking, or shambling, or something. I don't think they know we're here... Oh, you can get off the floor now. Very slowly... Chad, stay here, Mike, go downstairs, quietly, and get Ashley. She's in the next room.", Nick said, not taking his eyes for a second of of the small gathering of tattered and bloody things that moved in a way that would make someone's stomach do several flips. Nick included himself in the stomach-flip category here.
Chad and Mike inched themselves into crouching positions, and Mike made his way downstairs, only riding to his intimidating full height once he was safely down the the ground floor.
Without saying a word, Mike left the room to retrieve Ashley.
Chad, took his place next to Nick on Nick's left. He raised his M1 much like Nick had.
Nick still hadn't looked away from the undead posse, keeping his head well out of sight, only allowing a single eye to stick out. Just enough to see what was going on.
"How we doin'?", Chad asked quietly.
"Not too bad.", Nick muttered, "They're just walking by. I guess they showed up right after you got here. Maybe they'll pass us over entirely. Im hoping that Molly and the others have noticed 'em, and won't do anything stupid."
"Amen.", Chad said. "And what if they don't just walk by?"
"We'll wing it.", Nick said, staring at the creatures, "It'll probably involve guns."
"Sounds good." Chad replied, Plan B not sounding good in the least. Chad would much rather get out of this one as simply as possible: Staying out of sight.
A few dead-quiet seconds passed, before audible movement from downstairs was heard.
Moments later, Mike appeared followed closely by a puzzled looking Ashley.
They climbed the stairs, and were soon standing in front of Mike and Nick.
"What's going on?", Ashley repeated her question, as see moved several feet over to peer out the window.
She was stopped instantly by Chad, who basically grabbed her and prevented her from getting even close to the window.
"They're out there.", Chad answered being as simple as possible.
Now Ashley looked scared, too.
"What's the plan?", Mike asked Nick, who didn't seem to be paying any attention to anyone actually inside the house.
"We'll let them make the first move.", Nick breathed, "It doesn't look like they've seen us."
"What about the girls?", Mike asked, obviously thinking of mainly of Molly.
"I don't think they've noticed them either. I think the girls spotted them and are laying low."
"Fuck... This fucking sucks...", Chad muttered, pissed.
"Everyone just shut up and relax. Let's just see what they do.", Nick ordered.
Everyone instantly shut up, but no one relaxed.