Chapter 222
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When Eve calmed down she thought about what she needed to survive. Primarily she needed water and warmth. She could hunt tomorrow, but she needed water now. Eve thought she might be smelling water, like a stream or something. It was too dark to see much. Eve rembered learning how to make fire by rubbing two pieces of wood together. Eve tried to make a torch like this. She had once laughed at Adam for saying how she'd need to learn this skill one day. He'd been so proud when he learned this skill in the cub scouts. If only he could see her now. Eve did it, made the torch of fire. Then she followed to where she heard running water, and hoped she wasn't hallucinating. But Eve found the river. It took all her self control to gently put her torch down, the ran to the river and filled her hand with some of the most refreshing water she'd ever felt. It was cold, she'd have to dry off soon. Eve knew what this meant, she was still alive.
Without a watch on it was hard to know the exact time. Eve waited until sunrise to sleep. The sun would provide her with some warmth, and she couldn't leave a fire burning while she slept. Eventually her hunger woke her up. Eve figured that she'd slept at least a few hours, based on the position of the sun. Eve began hunting. She knew she'd have to avoid the bigger animals, and birds were too fast. But she soon found a rabbit, Eve tried to get the rabbit to come to her. At first it did, but then the rabbit sensed danger ad ran away. Eve chased and caught the rabbit. She strangled it to death and then skinned it as best she could with sticks. Time was Eve had considered becoming a vegitarian, would never have considered killing a cute little bunny rabbit. Today, she was just grateful for the meal.
Eve tried to come up with a long term plan. She doubted that she could survive forever in the woods. She couldn't exactly turn herself in, the collective would execute her for dessertion. Maybe Mason would keep his word and grant amnesty. But Eve saw what George Maso was capable of, she hadn't forgotten St Patrick's. Maybe Eve could make up a fake name, claim she was just one of many displaced refugees. But she would have to wait until the heat died down. So, for now, Eve adjusted to life in the woods. Going to sleep around sunrise, hunting in late afternoon, staying awake by the fire at night. Eve came to look forward to the sunrise, partly so she could sleep. But also because it was a beautiful sight, the one thing Eve could look forward to.
If her calculations were right, it was Sunday, Febuary 11th, 2035. 525 days until impact. It was hard to tell alone in the woods. When Eve woke up, she remembered four sunrises, which made today Sunday. When Eve got to the stream, as she was drinking, she heard a voice from behind her. His voice said "Hands up rebel." Eve put her hands up, and turned around. The first thing she noticed was his uniform, United States army. Then Eve saw his face. He actually seemed to recognize her, and he did look familiar. He was older, his face was hardened. But Eve would recognize him anywhere. This was her oldest friend, the first boy she ever kissed. It was Adam.