"So," Said Slade, looking down on them from the tree, "You guys got a camp nearby?"
"Yeah," Replied Alice, "Is that your brother?" She pointed to the young boy behind the tree.
Slade nodded, "That's Jacob. Mind telling me your names?"
"Alice," She answered, "This is Dick."
"You guys got any others in your group?"
"Yeah...quite a few, actually."
THIRTY MINUTES LATER.
"So," Said Slade, surveying his surroundings as he entered the visitor center, "This is your camp?"
Jacob stayed behind him, cautiously eyeing the members of Alice's group.
[It was obvious from the moment I met Slade and Jacob that they didn't trust easily. It wasn't until Dick mentioned Safe Haven that he agreed to meet the others. I admit, I was surprised that anyone Slade's age could survive this long without help, much less protect his brother, who looked to be eight years old, at most. He was a loner, that much was apparent. I wasn't exactly sure what to think of him. Either way, it was obvious that he didn't plan on staying with our group.]
"For now." Replied Dick.
"So you guys honestly believe this 'safe haven' crap?" Questioned Slade.
"Should we not?" Replied Abby.
"It's pretty far-fetched if you ask me."
"Well, none of us did." Retorted Abby.
"Fair enough."
"We're going to be cooking dinner in about an hour or so," Announced Riley, "You're free to stay."
"Thanks, I'll stay," Said Slade, "But me and Jacob are going to be leaving afterwards. I'm not staying here for long, me and him'll be leaving in the morning, maybe earlier."
"You guys goin' somewhere?" Asked Lana.
"Not in particular." He answered, continuing to look over the interior of the visitor center. His brother remained silent, following him through the building.
It was only just over thirty minutes later, that Alice, Slade, Jacob, and the others sat by a small fire, Leo having constructed a wood grill to suspend the cooking pot over the fire. It was almost dark, only a small amount of light lingering in the air. They were cooking beef jerky soup, a meal which Alice wasn't particularly enthusiastic about. The aroma alone was enough to deter her, having eaten that same meal far too many times in the past.
[I wasn't too sure how much longer I could go on, eating a variant of beef jerky for almost every meal. Ugh.]
Slade's body language made it obvious that he didn't trust them.
"So," Said Alice, turning to him, "How long have you and Jacob been on your own?"
"Since the beginning," He answered, "We've met a few others along the way, but this is about the most interaction we've had with other survivors."
"Trust issues?" Asked Lily.
"I call it intelligence." Interjected Morales, one of the few times he'd spoken in quite a while.
"Wait," Joked Abby, "You can talk?" Morales ignored her, letting out an irritable grunt.
"Well, dinner's done!" Declared Riley, removing the pot from above the fire.
Looking to Slade, Alice could tell that he was focusing on something outside the visitor center window.
"I thought you said this was all your group." He said, turning to Dick.
"It is."
Slade froze.
"Well," He said, pointing out the window, "Someone's outside."
The entire group was immediately alarmed, looking to the window. A shadowy figure was sprinted towards the woods, holding a backpack loosely on their shoulder.
"That's not one of ours." Said Abby, unholstering her gun.
Suddenly, a deafening noise shot through the air. There was an explosion of red light just outside the visitor center, a loud boom searing the ears of the survivors. Red sparks fell to the ground. It took a few moments for Alice to understand what the noise was. She wasn't sure how, but it was a firework. She and Clark used to sneak out every fourth of July to the park, and watch the fireworks from the playground. None of it made since to her. A firework?
[To be honest, everything that happened that night was a blur. I don't remember much about what happened next. It was chaotic, to say the least.]
"The hell was that?!" Exclaimed Lily, jumping up.
"A firework?" Guessed Alice.
"Whatever the hell it was," Said Dick, "It's gonna attract a hell of a lot of mutants. We need to get out of here, now."
Alice could already see mutants emerging from the forest, drawn by the noise.
"You guys got a car?" Asked Slade, hurrying to help the others pack their things.
"We used to," Replied Alice, equipping her backpack, "Ran out of fuel about three days ago, we had to continue on foot."
"Alright," Announced Dick, opening the door, "Time to go!"
He and the others ran out the door, surrounded by mutants in the street.
"Run to the left!" Yelled Dick, bolting off, dodging mutants as he ran.
Suddenly, gunfire echoed through the air, as Alice and the others hurried to follow him.
"Someone's shooting at us!" Yelled Abby, taking cover behind a broken-down car.
As she was running, Alice heard one particularly delayed gunshot. A searing pain shot through her body, as her leg gave out beneath her. She yelped in pain, falling to the floor.
"Alice!" Exclaimed Adam, helping her to her feet. Her leg was bleeding, although she couldn't feel any pain given the adrenaline. She wasn't quite sure exactly what happened, but her mind's best explanation was that she'd been shot. She was slowing him down, and they had a difficult time avoiding the mutants around them. More gunshots echoed, and the others vanished into the fray of chaos.
"This isn't going to work," Yelled Adam, "We need to head back into the visitor center!"
He helped Alice limp back into the building, mutants following them inside.
"C'mon," Said Alice weakly, "We need to get to the restroom, we'll be safe in there!"
They finally reached the men's restroom, flinging the door open, and locking it behind them. Mutants banged on the door behind them with ferocity, trying to get in.
Things began to get blurry, as Alice's body went numb. Adam's voice began to fade out, as her speech slurred. She blacked out.
The following was a daze. Unsure of how much time passed, she occasionally regained consciousness, seeing blurry glimpses of what was going on. Adam carrying her in his arms. Lots of running. Mutants and moaning. Daylight...Slade?
THE DAY OF THE OUTBREAK.
"Hello? C-Clark?" Whispered Alice, stalking through the park, "Are you here?"
No response. The police sirens blared closeby,she wasn't quite sure if they were looking for her. She didn't have the opportunity to check the news often, and she considered the possibility of something else going on. Either way, she was waiting for Clark. They'd starting meeting at the park rather often, and she had been looking forward to their meeting. Her "parents" had been acting strangely the entire day, and the occasional scream echoed in the distance. She knew something was wrong, but she didn't want to leave Clark waiting, in case he showed up.
Suddenly, she heard rustling from the bushes. Someone emerged from the brush. It wasn't Clark, instead a much larger man. He appeared to be limping, not having noticed her in the dark. She decided to leave, and avoid being seen.
She crept away, and sprinted back towards her home. It didn't take her long, and she reached her two-story blue-painted house. However, she froze as soon as she rounded the corner onto her street.
Her house was enclosed in yellow tape, restraining some of her neighbors from entering. Police cars were just outside the house. Officers walked about, talking on walkie-talkies.
Soon afterwards, an officer emerged from the house, carrying something covered by a cloth on a stretcher. A dead body.
PRESENT DAY.
The haze she had previously been in began to lift, as Alice came to her senses. She was in a tent, loosely covered by a sleeping bag for warmth. She sat up, removing the sleeping bag from on top of her.
Her leg was ravaged, covered in a bloody bandage. The brisk morning smell of the forest hit her nose. She began to remember what happened. She tried getting up. Then, the pain hit. Her leg gave a shock of piercing pain, making her lie back down in submission. It was then that she realized she'd been shot.
Footsteps resounded outside the tent, as someone approached her, opening the tent and poking their head inside.
"Good," Said Slade, "You're awake."
Author's Note: Hey guys, thanks for reading. Reviews and suggestions(as always) are appreciated.
Chapter 13, "Dangerous" Preview/Synopsis: The group is scattered, and Alice is injured, pushing her to new lengths to survive. A new threat emerges.
Reader-made OC Credits:
Adam - Created by Cowardlygurp
Leo - Created by Grimrephr
Abby - Created by The Internet Sass Queen
