Most people can't remember their dreams, but some can remember it bit by bit. I suppose a nightmare is also considered a dream, but then again, why do I remember it clearly? Who knows? I'll ask God when I meet him someday.

Day 5

I woke that morning to the sight of all my sisters still in deep sleep. I smiled. I got up and I went to the toilet. When I got out, I saw that Lori had already woken up. I walked up to her. "Morning sis," I said with a smile.

"Morning Linc," She groaned. "Wake me up when the others do," She said as she lied back down. I obliged. I took the hockey stick and I sat on my cot. I haven't slept on this for a few days.

Bun Bun laid there on the bed, lifeless and lonely. I grabbed him. "It had been a while buddy," I said to the inanimate object. "I'm sorry I haven't been talking to you... It was just so painful. I'm sorry Bun Bun," I cried as I buried my face into the stuffed rabbit's body.

"Don't worry Linky" I heard a deep voice said, making me pull my face up fast. There was no one but me awake in that shelter. No one with that voice. I looked around, and I saw no one still. My brain must be on the roll. I'm too tired.

"Dang it Lincoln, keep yourself together," I slapped myself. I sat Bun Bun on the cot, and I got off the cot. I looked at my watch, and it was still early. With the hockey stick in my hand, I walked to the back room where we kept mom. I sat down on the floor with my back rested on mom's crate. "Hey mom," I said as I knocked on the box. "I'm still mad at you, you know." I told her. "You left us just like that, you didn't even leave us a letter, you were... selfish." I said matter-of-factly. "Well, I hope wherever you are right now, you're happy, because you hated it with us here," I said. I didn't cry. I won't cry anymore.

I sat there with my back on the crate, and I fell back asleep.

I woke up with Lynn in front of me, she had her baseball bat in hand, and I could hear Lori and Luna discussing something behind her. "Wake up Linc, we're burning daylight," Lynn said as she offered her hand to pull me up. I gladly took the help.

"What's with the gear?" I asked her as I saw her body wrapped in some makeshift body armor.

"We're going outside, after Lori's little escapade yesterday, we thought that maybe the monsters went into hibernation. You better get yourself some armor too if you want to join us upstairs, it's alright if you don't want to," Lynn patted my shoulder.

"I'm coming," I said.

"Guys, Lincoln's coming," Lynn told the other two.

"The more the merrier," Lori said as she passed me football helmet.

"Glad to have you with us bro," Luna said.

The four of us went to the ladder, Lisa and Lana there, waiting for us. "If you run into any trouble, run back," Lisa said as she passed us all an earpiece each. "We'll communicate with these outside, no use shouting and revealing our location." Lisa continued.

"Thanks Lisa," We said.

We climbed up top, and we saw the snow growing high. We closed the hatch, and stood in a formation. Luna with the revolver in the middle, Lynn in the front, Lori on the right, and me on the left. We slowly walked to the door, when I felt like I stepped on metal. "Wait," I said as I kneeled down. I wiped away some of the snow, and I saw it, the gun that dad brought outside that day. I grabbed it and I showed it to them.

"Keep it Linc, you might need it." Lori said and the others nod.

We got inside the house through the back door, and we saw that the house was just the way we left it, minus the trespassing snow. We went to the kitchen cupboards and we saw the food we left in the house. There were still a bunch. "Holy schmoley, we could feed ourselves until winter end with these," Lynn said. She went to the cupboard beside the fridge, where we kept our grocery bags, and piled the food inside the bags. "I'll send these back first, Luna come with me," Lynn said as she carried all 15 bags filled with canned and packed goods.

"Alright brah," Luna said as she followed Lynn back.

"We'll stay in the kitchen, also, ask them if they wanted to take anything back inside," Lori said to the two.

"Okay, don't go anywhere!" Lynn said enthusiastically as she and Luna went outside.

We checked the whole kitchen, we took the knives from the cupboards, the hammer mom kept in the drawer beside the sink, and whatever that was left. There weren't that much food after Lynn grabbed the bags. We had only a bag full of stuff when we finished scrounging up for stuff in the kitchen. "Leave it there for a while, let's check the dining room." Lori said. I followed her. It was the same as the day we left it. There wasn't anything in that room worth taking. So we moved to the living room. We grabbed the CDs, and all those D-things you play on the TV. We packed them in the bags and we left it at the back door.

"How are you Lincoln?" Lori asked with a somber tone in her voice.

"I'm alright, I guess," I said weakly. "I miss Leni," I accidentally blurted. I didn't want to say it.

"Me too, Linc. That's why we have to live, that's what she would've wanted," Lori smiled as she picked up dad's lucky golf club. "Do you think dad would mind if I use his golf club to bash a few heads in?" Lori snickered as she swung the club. But then she sat it up on the wall, "I don't have the guts to do that," she sighed. "I wish things were different Linc," Lori said.

"Me too sis," Lincoln said.

Just as we were about to send the bags to the back door, it flew open. We saw Lynn, with the bat in her hand and a wide smile on her face.

"Where's Luna?" Lori asked.

"She's in the garage with Lana, they're grabbing a few tools Lana wanted to use." Lynn replied as she got inside. "So, what did you guys find?" She asked.

"Not much, but this'll be good for now, we're gonna check upstairs in a bit," Lori said.

"I'll join you guys, let's go," Lynn said. Just as we were about to climb up the stairs, we heard a drawer being shut upstairs from Lori and Leni's room. We were the only ones in the house. I clenched the hockey stick and we slowly climbed up with Lynn leading the march. When we got in front of the door, we could hear someone ruffling through snow in the room. Lynn looked at us, and we nodded. Slowly she twisted the door knob before kicking it open.

"Leni?" Lori asked. On the bed was a person with golden blonde locks and dressed in a bloodied turquoise dress. Lori walked closer to the person.

"Lori, don't," I said. But she didn't care.

"Leni, I'm so sorry. LENI!" Lori hugged the person tightly. Me and Lynn had our weapons ready.

"I thought you wouldn't miss me." We heard Leni's voice. "Sister."

Lori pulled her face up. We could hear her crying. Then we saw it. 'Leni's' head made a 180 degrees turn. We saw that thing's eyes meet Lori's. Lori screamed, but she couldn't let go. She was stuck, her arms were glued to the thing. We couldn't do anything. "GUYS HELP!" Lori yelled. It was too late. That thing opened its jaws like a python, and took Lori's head hole. We saw Lori's lifeless flopped to the floor as "it" released its grasps on her.

"Hey... siblings," it said.

We couldn't fight that thing. We closed the door, and we ran downstairs. We went to the back door, grabbed the bags and ran outside. But outside we were met with another hell. Luna was there in the open with her gun aimed at a man.

"Luna, relax, it's me dad." it said as it walked closer. The skin was pale, there were black lines all over its face, as if it had been fixed with an adhesive of sorts.

"LUNA! DON'T LET IT GET CLOSE TO YOU!" I yelled as we ran to her.

"Heh, close enough," it said, before lunging itself onto Luna making her fall to the snow, but Luna managed to kick it back. Using the gun in her hand, she fired her shots. BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! CLICK! CLICK! Empty. It fell and then got back up immediately. "That hurts Lunes" It said before lunging at Luna again. This time it bit her right shin. With all her might, she kicked it using her left leg.

"FUCK YOU!" Luna yelled as she kicked it. Just as she was about to kick it again. Lynn smashed it's head using her baseball bat. 1 strike and both the bat and the head cracked open. "ARGGHH!" Luna screamed in pain. Her tibia sprung out of her skin, and her lower foot practically detached from her body. We couldn't leave her, we could hear the wood boards inside our old home creaking from the other thing's movement.

We dragged her to the hatch, and we carried her down.

Blood. Everywhere. Luna couldn't do anything but scream. Lisa didn't wait. She stopped the bleeding immediately with a tourniquet before quickly detaching whatever's left of her foot. By the time Lisa finished the emergency surgery, Luna had already passed out. "What the hell did we just saw?" Lisa asked as she looked at our faces. The others were scared so they hid in the kitchen together, we were too. But we had to. "It wasn't like the early reports, that was something... unholy,". What sin had we made to receive this? "What were they?!" Luna asked, her face laced with fear and dread.

"I don't know," I said as my eyes stared at Luna's detached foot.

DAILY MAIL, JUNE 20th 2022

NO HOPE IN THE WEST

WASHINGTON, DC - National Guard and Army units decimated. All government activity has been ceased in the West. All administration west of the Mississippi River is forfeited. God bless America.