''After the Fall'' | EPIC POST-APOCALYPSE CREEPYPASTA

it's time to sit back and relax with your favorite drink and listen after the fall jab to one leaving home a soft breeze brushed against his face the august sun still warm on his cheeks colin laid amongst the brush of what had once been a cornfield the world around him quiet and peaceful his mother called his name from the back porch stirring him from his daydream he stood up and looked across the field to see her waving for him to come back his feet had to make large strides to avoid the brush and often times he would stumble his mother's cause became more urgent and the tone in her voice caused him to look up again he witnessed several bright streaks of light burned through the clouds above him colin jolted from his dream his breathing erratic at first but calm quickly it was the same dream every night it was a relic of the life he'd once had you think back to his family in his tiny little single wide trailer plopped in an old cornfield in that tiny little town in alabama even the name of the place was a ghost to him now all that remained was ash and names meant little his hands white to the dust on his pale face and he slowly rose from his makeshift bed he knew he was somewhere between georgia and north carolina but that was as close of a guess as he could make the world become so much different after the fall he gathered his things in the olive drab satchel he'd found among the debris of his father's things there was little to save but he managed to salvage some clothing and canned goods it had taken him a long time to leave town but when he realized help was not coming for the only survivor of his home he knew he had to look for help he'd learned a lot in the few months he'd been alone being cautious being the most important colin stepped out of the gaping hole within a half-broken grocery store he'd taken sheltering just as the sun attempted to light the sky the colour was distorted to crimson through the haze that remained in the air but he knew it was dawn colin removed his father's survival guide from the pack before tossing it on his back he'd read it multiple times along with the bible his grandmother had given him he's the only two books he'd been able to save from his home for that he'd been lucky one kept insane and the other kept him alive he tried to remember the things his father had taught him and wished he'd paid more attention his feet shuffled through the debris of another tiny town that no longer had a name it had been weak since he'd seen another person which had frightened him at first but now it was a relief when colin was young he'd always thought that most people were good he had the naive notion that if he truly needed help he could find it within walking distance his neighbors had always seemed like nice people his dream was shattered after the event it was shocking to learn what lengths people would go to in order to survive he'd witnessed his old bus driver put a bullet in a woman's head for a can of spaghettios there was no going back after that he couldn't even remember the last time he'd spoken he'd only let his father's nine millimeter beretta do the talking by the time the sun had rested directly above him he came upon a large sign that read welcome to south carolina colin stood stoic the words almost alien to him never been this far from home he tried to find his aunt in georgia but the landmarks had been so distorted from the damage he couldn't discern his true location everything was burnt and broken even him he brushed tears away from his eyes as he continued to forward into the blank canvas before him and wondered if anything would be created here ever again cars lined both lanes for the highway he traversed bodies lay frozen in time within each seat the television broadcast had told large cities to evacuate and they all tried what the report did not inform them of was the fact that there was nowhere to run to colin stopped to examine each vehicle looking for anything of use his eyes rested on a small car seat in the back of an suv the skeletal remains of a child still secured tightly inside his fingers brushed across his face feeling the scars from his own burns and thinking of his younger brother he had to shake off his despair he couldn't break down in the open it wasn't safe nowhere was colin passed through what was probably once a bustling main street crumpled buildings greeting him at every step the sun was falling and he knew he would need shelter the night had brought its own pitfalls the more troublesome members of society had taken over the dark most of them had learned that people moved at night to avoid detection and had started hunting in the twilight hours he made sure not to be their prey finding shelter in an abandoned gas station it always hated the dark but this was something different now that the moon no longer guided the night it was like being plunged into oblivion his body curled up behind a crumpled countertop resting his head upon his satchel clouds rolled in the distance tinted purple by the ash of the sky he could smell the tainted moisture that filtered the air there was a storm on the horizon which meant that there be less movement in the night the raging of mother nature used to frighten him as a child but it was a shield in times like these colin knew he'd be able to sleep soundly for the first time in over two weeks and his lips curled slightly into a smile as lightning split the sky his eyes fluttered in the darkness and he was lulled to sleep by the rhythm of thunder his younger brother dany pounced on him reminding him that saturday morning cartoons were on colin rubbed the sleep from his eyes and made his way to the living room with the click of the remote he appeased his brother and yawned as he walked to the kitchen he made them both a bowl of lucky charms and sit quietly until his parents woke up they sat and giggled with each other at the antics on the screen until their fun was disrupted by an emergency broadcast tornado sirens wailed in the distance but colin saw no clouds out the window across from them the sound had startled his mother and soon both of his parents stood beside them eyes fixed on the screen it had been their first warning of what was to come colin was startled by the sound of rustling within the gas station he poured the pistol from his coat and eased around the counter the sun had not yet come up he could barely see his pale blue eyes were even worse for seeing in this darkness but his ears had become sharp the sound of cans and bottles being rummaged through were like a beacon he honed in on when he was sure where the intruder was located he lifted to aim the sound of the safety releasing caused the figure to pause dropping their loops they did not move and colin froze as well not knowing if they had a weapon or not his body shook as he slowly applied pressure to the trigger please if you have a gun don't shoot the voice of a child called out i'm just looking for food i'm not trying to start any trouble colin's voice replied raspy from lack of use anyone with you no sir the child whimpered and take what you need and leave that's your last warning he barked tiny feet shuffled in the dark grabbing at things colin could not see he followed the sound until it exited the store he listened intently as the steps drew further away from him and even after they were gone he couldn't go back to sleep he simply sat gripping his weapon until the daylight allowed him to see the store was a mess and the kid must have been knocking things over to try and tell what he was grabbing for well he felt guilty for not helping but he'd seen far too many people lured into traps by children he could not risk it once colin could see his surroundings more clearly he exited the gas station a few extra rations in total his pistol scanned the area making sure he was alone he circled the tiny building and checked nearby cars but there was no sign of the kids when he returned to the front of the store his eyes fell on an old newspaper stamp the stacks of paper still read the headline the end he'd seen that page thousands of times and knew the article word for work he wondered if any other newspapers were still printing after the event he wanted to read a different story for once [Music] from what colin understood the earth had been pelted with several large asteroids they drained down in the atmosphere like buckshot and destroyed several communication satellites on their descents the smaller objects burnt up in their entry but the larger bodies stayed intact until they collapsed in a burning display of light force emitted from each of these that leveled most structures something they referred to as an asteroid air burst apparently it wasn't an unknown phenomenon but nothing on this scale had ever happened before the initial damage and lack of proper communication is all it took to send civilization as they knew it to a halt and left the world around him a primal version of what it once was colin pulled a tattered road atlas from his pack and trailed the road he thought he was on with his finger he made a point to avoid large cities due to the level of damage and major highways that seemed to attract the more dangerous members of society from what he could tell he was north of augusta georgia near a small town called clarks hill south carolina his exact location was unclear but he was sure he was on the right track he had no other family at least none he'd found and he decided to go no he'd heard rumors of places untouched in canada and that was his only hope his hand shoved the map back into the bag before he began walking again the first hundred miles had been far easier before someone had stolen his bicycle he thought about his 10th birthday when his father rolled out that 10 speed with the biggest grin on his face his family had never been rich by any means so a gift like this was a big deal kyle remembered riding it until late in the night before his mother made him come inside the growling of his stomach broken from his daydream and he again had to brush a salty speck from his cheek before reaching for a bag of beef jerky a couple of bits dropped on his tongue and he chewed remembering how teriyaki flavor had always been his dad's favorite colin was approaching an intersection he'd usually take a moment to double check his location at places like this but something about this one felt wrong there were more cars in this particular crossroad than there should be in a rural area like this his eyes scanned the area as he came to a stop behind a large ford pickup two sets of cars seemed to block the left and right passage and the direct route held an overturned school bus someone had created a blockade here a rather large blockade he saw no movement ahead but that meant nothing any number of people could be hiding within the abandoned vehicles he quickly removed his pistol and slowly made his way to the trees to his left he followed the road from the tree line watching intently for any sign of life colin's steps were deliberate making sure to step heel to toe in order to create as little noise as possible you'd hear his heartbeat within his ears it echoed at him as a warning he knew what he was doing was stupid but he had to keep going forward and couldn't risk getting lost as he approached the far side of the intersection he heard voices the sound made him creep even slower and dropped down to a crouch there seemed to be a scuffle of some sort just around the end of the bus but he couldn't see clearly calling crossed behind a van kneeling down and looking underneath toward the commotion three men stood over a young african-american boy rummaging through a torn backpack they seemed to be looking for anything of value but only found a few cans of beans and child-sized clothing one of the men kicked the boy which caused him to cry out in pain colin's eyes drew open wide instantly recognizing the voice from the night before he'd always hated bullies and his first instinct was to run for the boy and he almost started sprinting but one of the men turned to reveal a 20-gauge shotgun within his hands the more he watched the more he realized they all had weapons each had a pistol holstered at their hip and the other two held hunting rifles complete with scope this made colin realize that the only reason he'd been able to approach was that they were too preoccupied with the boy argued with himself internally on what to do watching as they spat and kicked the child repeatedly then one of them poured their pistol aiming it at the back of the boy's head one of the manuals what are you doing earl he's got nothing we want there and he's going to die out here anyway his friend replied colin snapped into motion his feet moving before his mind had even registered the action within three seconds he'd rounded the bus dropped the safety and emptied half of a clip into the three men the shop forced the leader of the group to release a shot into the air but the others dropped before they could fire the boy lay on the asphalt covering his ears from the sound and crying colin's heart felt like it was about to beat out of his chest before the reality of what he'd done came crashing down on him his hands hung limply by his sides as he fell to his knees he'd never had to kill anyone and it was hard for him to process he sat staring down at his hands and feeling like a monster soon his face was soaked by his inability to hold back his despair the boy slowly crawled over to colin placing a hand on top of his knee colin jumped not used to being touched almost falling back thanks mister the young man said through sobs as he slowly got to his feet took a good 15 minutes for colin to compose himself and get up from the road shuffled around the men as the boy searched each one for anything useful they all looked like the kind of men that would have been buddies with his father the idea that the world had become so horrible in just a few months was torture and he had hoped he wouldn't have had to become one of his monsters colin grabbed one of the rifles an extra pistol and as much ammo as he could carry he only took one can of food and a bottle of water he left the rest for the kid and began walking north again the boy followed a few feet behind and colin simply ignored him for about a mile they both walked in silence until his new companion decided to speak he repeated how thankful he was for help and came closer to colin when the boy was walking beside him he noticed a small hand reach over as if wanting to give him a handshake my name's anthony but everyone he calls me tony he tried to smile through a swollen lip the order of the two stopped scratched his head for a moment finally took hold of the kid's hand he shook it gently not sure how hurt tony was i'm calling he sighs so um you're just going to keep following me now no matter of fact i was headed this way anyway he smirked you might say you're following me colin shook his head and started walking again whatever you say kid they continued this way for the next day mostly silent until tony decided to spark up a conversation it was usually silly things that didn't matter anymore like old television programs or comic books colin never said much but didn't completely ignore the boy the way tony spoke reminded him of his younger brother and something about that was comforting the two finally came upon an old farmhouse tucked back inside the tree line colin knew that darkness would be on them soon so he instructed tony to follow him into the structure colin handed tony a pistol made sure he knew how to use it pointing out the safety switch on the side he told the boy to wait by a tree nearby until he could search the house the older of the two then disappeared into the dark structure moving from wall to doorway with his pistol trained on anything within his immediate view he remembered the basics of breach and clear tactics not just from his father but from so many years playing first-person shooter games well he hoped it was enough to keep him safe when each room was found empty he returned to the front door and whistled for tony to come inside they made themselves at home within the living room they were lucky enough to find a small kerosene lamp to fight back the knights tony attempted to entertain colin with horrible knock-knock jokes as they passed a can of frank and beans across a small wooden coffee table the scene almost felt normal to colin and he started to forget what the world had become around him but with every sound from outside the door his eyes were jerked toward the window each time he would search the surrounding area before coming back inside and eventually the routine had become exhausting he just wanted to get some sleep before they had to start walking again in the morning yeah enough jokes let's get some rest his voice being much harsher than he'd intended tony's head lowered before he slid back to the couch sorry just used to talking with my brothers before bed colin felt like a jackass and shook his head oh i'm sorry kid i forget i'm not the only person to lose people i should remember that he said before taking a seat across from his companion i don't understand why you keep calling me a kid tony bart you don't look much older than me tony was right colin was only 16 when the event occurred he sat quietly for a moment thinking about this he'd felt so old lately he didn't want to admit he had no real idea what he was doing but he was afraid to stop there had to be something better than what he'd come to know and he had to find it tony turned and noticed the fear in colin's eyes which made him uneasy the boy spoke to break the tension so how old are you anyway how old are you colin asked did he snap back to reality i asked first tony said sticking out his tongue in mockery well i'm older so that trumps who asked first colin replied in a matter of fat tone fine the boy huffed i'm 10. well what month is it colin pondered for a moment should be november well then i'm 11 this month tony beams what day is your birthday colin asked the 29th tony replied same day as mine colin laughed slightly under his breath which is the first time he'd done that since before the fall they both joked about sharing a birthday party and baking a cake of course colin knew this was all fantasy and probably would never happen he knew that either of them could be dead at any moment but he didn't want to crush the boy's dream i'll be seventeen this month he finally answered the boys question chapter two painful memories colin dreamed of january his family huddled around the tiny kitchen table as his younger brother sat in front of a large chocolate cake adorned with 12 lit candles they sang happy birthday and their mother told dany to make a wish the young man's eyes glowed with excitement before taking in a deep breath and extinguishing all of them but one the remaining candle made danny frown but colin lind over and put it out with a huff i didn't see it still lit you got him all he said with the chuckle he was startled from his dream by the sound of an engine roaring to life he shot up from the couch to notice tony was no longer inside he grabbed his pistol and rushed outside as a rusty old chevy truck plowed through the field in front of him tony sat bouncing in the driver's seat with a grin from ear to ear colin bolted down the front steps bounding across the field he yelled for the boy to stop but his course couldn't be heard over the sound of the truck he finally came across the path and wait for tony to stop tony's eyes shot open wide as he slammed on the brakes the truck came to a stop kicking up dust just a foot from colin he rushed to the driver's side turned off the engine and yanked tony out before screaming what in the hell do you think you're doing tony's eyes welled up i just wanted to have a little fun at this rate i'm never going to get to drive a car and i don't know why you don't be a lot quicker than walking everywhere calling his voice was still booming listen i didn't get to practice enough before all this [ __ ] happened okay plus don't you think all that racket is bound to draw some attention his words were stopped in his throat by the sound of another truck colin had been right and someone now knew where they were he quickly jerked tony up and began running for the house within moments the door shut behind them and they tossed their things into their bags colin peered out the window to see a huge four-wheel drive stop outside the farmhouse two men inside and two more standing in the bed of it holding rifles they all climbed down and began calling for the two to come out they'd already been spotted and now they were trapped inside colin whispered for the boy to follow him upstairs they crept slowly up the wood planks and made their way to a bedroom that overlooked the man then colin instructed tony to go to the side window and open it as the boy did this colin brought his rifle up to aim he peered down the scope and dropped the reticle at about neck level of one of the gunmen colin told tony to let off a few rounds as soon as he took his shot he squeezed the trigger slowly remembering to exhale as he drew it all the way back the crack of the rifle caused tony to jump his finger jamming down on the trigger of the pistol again and again the first man fell to the ground blood spurting from the side of his neck the other men scattered at the repeated popping of the pistol they attempted to seek cover behind their truck but colin was already trained in on the next one the bolt dropped the next round in place and he fired sitting around through the next one's chest another round chambered and fired within seconds shattering the driver's knee as he tried to run the last had made a dash across the field but colin's last round buried deep in the back of his skull before passing through the other side when he lowered the rifle tony was still clicking away at the pistol having no ammo left in the clip colin took the pistol from tony's hands shoved it back in the holster he'd stolen and guided the boy down the stairs they exited the front door to see that the driver was still trying to crawl for his truck tony was told to remain on the porch as colin approached the injured man he stood over him for a moment as the man rolled over to come face to face with colin's rifle a final shot rang out in the open field before the two gathered their belongings and started their trek back to the road in silence an hour later tony attempted to apologize i'm sorry colin stopped walking and without even looking back to the boy began yelling if you want to survive you're going to have to listen to what i say and start acting less like a little kid you keep running around and joking about this situation you're gonna be dead danny then he started walking again leaving tony speeches behind him tony kept his distance for the rest of the day he didn't even speak during meals or breaks it's the longest day either of them could remember by the time they came to rest at a deserted diner they were simply ready to call it a night colin closed his eyes his pistol resting in his lap tony said across from him staring at the pistol for a few moments he'd never seen anyone act like colin did and questions bubbled up inside it one question in particular you called me danny you almost whispered colin peeked out to the boy what back on the road today you called me danny who's danny tony finally asked colin shook his head for a moment don't worry about it tony was afraid to push colin anymore he knew it would just make things worse he shuffled against his backpack and tried to get comfortable as the sun disappeared over the horizon colin turned away from the boy as he felt the salty tears form at the corner of his eyes the two of them lay in silence for hours before they could actually fall asleep when both drifted off to a restless sleep they dreamed of the same thing and it wasn't birthday cake or present colin simply nudged the boy awake with his boot and tossed him his backpack he'd already been up a couple of hours and had stocked up on what few things were still edible from the diner they began walking again and found themselves passing through a tiny neighborhood each house looked similar yet minor differences drew their attention they both quietly admired the change of scenery it had been all trees for quite some time colin's eyes trained on the windows most of all his rifle in hand tony had even kept a pistol in his pocket now knowing danger could be around any corner they both become hardened by this world even though neither of them were truly ready for it then colin's eyes came to rest on something laying in the grass it was shiny and new even though it was more of a purple than the blue one he'd had he slowly picked up the bicycle pressing on the tyres to check for air they were firm and he knew they could use it to move a little quicker he wove tony over and sat on the seat then gestured for tony to hop on the back pegs the two of them began rolling down the hill and the breeze on their face reminded them of a better time colin wanted to yell out with excitement but he knew it would be a bad idea when the hill tapered off the bike came to a stop at a sign that read 30 miles to charlotte colin's fun had been dampened at the thought and he simply pulled out his map they'd need to turn north to avoid the city and he began plotting a path tony slipped off the bike and walked over in front of it reaching up and pulling the paper down so that colin could see him you feel like talking to me now the boy said in an almost bashful time i just didn't have anything to say colin replied before pulling his map back up you could start by telling me who dany is tony quipped colin closed the atlas and shoved it back in his satchel with a sigh he rubbed at his eyes and tried to think of the right words he tried not to think about his little brother but tony was a constant reminder of his mistakes he wanted to tell tony the truth and just get it out it was the first time he'd even had someone to talk to in months colin was simply afraid that tony might leave and never come back he was my little brother about your age actually he finally let it slip was tony's face wrinkled in confusion for a moment but soon realized his mistake oh i'm sorry what happened he died colin replied before looking at the ground where his foot kicked at the asphalt before or after the boy quickly responded after was all colin could say tony wanted to ask why he wanted to hug his new friend and tell him it would be okay something in him told him that it wasn't the right time and he knew it was getting late so he simply climbed back on the bike and tapped colin on the shoulder before pointing forward the bike whipped to the left putting them on a more northern route the pedals were as they left the tiny neighborhood and their small moment of happiness behind they disappeared over a hill clouded in the ashy smoke that brought them back to the world that they truly lived in by the end of the following day they found themselves rolling down burke street in herodis south carolina the light was fading and they decided to take refuge in a small dollar general store as usual colin swept the property before allowing tony to come inside the two of them scoured the isles for any supplies most of the good canned food had already been taken but they were able to find a few bags of dry beans colin found a first aid kit and tony waved a few flashlights that still work down the aisle to his friend this meant they wouldn't have to spend another night in the dark at least until the batteries ran out they barricaded themselves in the manager's office and gorged themselves on the snack cakes that had not gone stale it's the closest to a birthday party they were gonna get but it was just as good as long as they were together when they emerged in the morning colin removed his map and showed tony the route they would have to take it put them crossing a bridge which he hated to do but it would save them the hours it would take to go around they mounted their bicycle and quickly descended onto the bridge their eyes fell on the crumpled remains of the landing in what was once a passage across the lake now laying in the water the two slowly descended to the docks looking up and down the shore to look for another bridge tony hopped off the bike and ran down the shore a bit pointing toward what appeared to be a dam in the distance he waved to colin drawing his attention to their salvation a smile grew on colin's face he really didn't want to have to go back and around the water the bite began to roll forward as tony came running back the two boys mad at a small building up from the landing and decided to make their way toward the dam a whistling noise caught colin's attention and he stopped the bike just as an arrow struck him in his right shoulder tony screamed at the sight and started to ward him but colin yelled for him to run for cover tony dove behind a pile of canoes and colin began peddling as fast as he could his eyes scanned the buildings as he went and just before he passed beyond a building another arrow buried into the wall beside him his body fell from the seat of the bicycle and began crawling behind a storage container the two boys were only ten feet from each other but without knowing where the shots came from it might as well have been miles tony cried into his hands trying to be silent because colin had already taught him how important that was colin looked down at the shiny projectile that jutted from his jacket the red having quickly died the cloth around it he was in immense pain but he couldn't let that stop him now the two of them were still in a lot of danger colin tried to peer over the crate but the roof over him blot most of his view he knew the shot must have come from an elevated position but he couldn't see any open windows or rooftops he pointed to tony then to his eyes then back out toward the building across from them it took the boy a minute to understand but then he shuffled the other side of the canoes tony inched over one of them and searched the area an arrow punched the hull of a nearby boat which sent tony diving for the ground he tried to whisper something but colin couldn't make it out then the boy pointed to his eyes then across the street and made an arch from his hands that signaled her roof colin put up his hand instructed tony to stay put then eased around the opposite side of the building as he approached the opposite corner he took a quick peek toward the roof standing with the bow drawn was a very thin man wearing a hockey mask covered in what appeared to be dry blood colin watched the man for a few moments seeing that he was still focused on the other side of the building he moved closer coming to a small car he attempted to aim the rifle but pain pulsed through him when he lifted it he hoisted the barrel over the trunk of the car with his left arm and tried to steady it as best he could his breathing had become erratic causing the reticle on the scope to jump violently colin tried to calm himself he knew he would only get one shot the crosshair swaged from the man's head down to his left arm which happened to be the one holding the compound bow his breathing slowed when his arm was as steady as he could make it his finger pulled the trigger the shot grazed the man's left arm pieces of his jacket scattering to the wind he turned and fired an arrow that stuck into the hood of the car in front of colin the young man ducked for cover as another arrow was let loose from the corner of the building he saw tony tears streaming down his face he'd used the shot as a distraction to come help but colin wasn't sure what to do they both made their way back around the building and moved back further away from their attacking the building was small wouldn't hide them for long the man had them at a disadvantage and colin knew this plus he now stood between them and the damn they'd have to eliminate the man but he wasn't sure how as they rounded a side street and attempted to come around to their attackers left colin knelt beside a tree and told tony to take the rifle he hesitated but colin simply shoved it into the boy's hands tony shook his head and tried to hand it back but colin resisted i can't lift it and if we don't stop this guy we're dead he gasps through his pain you have to take the shark kid tony cried he'd never had to kill anyone and didn't want to colin could see it in the boy's eyes he didn't want to have to make this choice there really was no choice though and he began to tell him what to do he pointed at the bolt drawing it back and placing a new round in the chamber he dropped the bolt closed and told him to bring it up to his shoulder call him push back the stock into tony's shoulder huh you've got to have a good grip on this one has more kick than a pistol you're gonna want to look through that lens right there where the two lines meet is what you're aiming for you try to calm yourself line up those crosshairs and take a deep breath you pull that trigger as you breathe out slowly and you'll be fine the words came rushing back to colin just the way they had from his father tony crouched and crawled around the tree he could see the man still searching for them but only the top half of his body was visible he rose to his knees trying to brace himself colin stood right behind him reminding him to try and stay calm the man turned to look in their direction and came close to that side of the roof tony began shaking at his feet and it traveled through his whole body colin rested a hand on his shoulder and promised it would be all right the crosshairs danced around a bit and colin reminded him to shoot for the biggest part of the man's body that he could see when the two lions intersected over the man's stomach tony let out a sigh and pulled the trigger the two found their way to a church nearby tony sat on a pew as colin dropped his bag beside him he told tony that he needed him to break the back end of the arrow and pull it out tony hesitated but colin insisted handing him a thick towel he told him to break the end off remove it and cover the wound with the towel stressing the fat that he'd need to press hard tony was still shaking but he knew his friend was right he'd seen all this in the movies but he wasn't sure if he was strong enough the shaft cracked and broke free causing colin to scream out in agony they both removed the halves of the arrow and covered each side with a towel what happened to danny colin tony's voice was low his hope dwindling i told you he died colin snapped but how colin how did he die tony pushed harder for the answer colin couldn't take it anymore he'd almost gotten both of them killed and now he couldn't even lift his rifle his body jerked from his sobs unable to hold it back anymore tony immediately felt horrible for even asking but he wasn't sure what to say he simply kept pressing the towel against colin's shoulder which was soaked with blood by now i call him paused the words not wanting to come i couldn't protect him tony listened as a story was told about two young boys playing in an old cornfield the land had long been without a harvest his family no longer sowing the seeds it had been a dream of these grandfathers and once he was gone no one saw the need his parents placed their little mobile home on the land to keep his grandmother company she enjoyed having her grandchildren so close the boys would spend their evenings and weekends playing in the field and down in the trees behind it well that was until the fall his parents had died trying to protect them they didn't have a shelter but all huddled in the center bathroom of his grandmother's two-story house the boys had been placed inside a large cast iron tub and both parents laid over the top of them this was the best shield they had as the heavens rained down on them when the commotion ended colin had to force his parents off of himself and his brother the medicine cabinet had come crashing down with such a force it jabbed into their father's skull and shards of glass protruded from their mother's neck dany cried relentlessly as collins searched for their grandmother she'd lost hope and they found her body laying outside still clutching a picture of her late husband the weeks that followed colin could not grieve his parents he had to be strong for his brother he dragged him along while collecting things they'd need to travel his first plan was to make his way to his other grandparents house which was in a town nearby it'd be a long walk but he had no choice there was nowhere else to go he'd already tried two neighbors homes but they'd all attempted to flee their car sat lifeless a few miles down the road he shielded dany's eyes as they passed they came to the yard of their bus driver who had his shotgun in hand a young woman clutched a can of soup and begged for help colin pulled dany away as the gun fired and the woman fell to the ground and that was the last time he approached people the father taught them to move at night that way you were less likely to be seen that might have worked during combat situations but this was a different world it was only a week into the two boys being alone when the bandits found them a group of middle-aged men and women had been searching for food and weapons they took danny first and colin drew his father's pistol he vibrated in his hands he'd never had to use it outside target practice he wasn't sure if he could kill someone he aimed it and ordered them to let danny go but they refused before he could react they tossed his screaming little brother in the backseat of a car and sped off the shots of the pistol pelted the back of the vehicle but it was no use danny was gone so you see colin looked back to tony with tears in his eyes i couldn't protect him i can't protect you and i obviously can't save myself tony hugged his friend as best he could without releasing the pressure on the towel it's not your fault colin we're just kids you did the best you could hell you've saved me twice already yeah but that doesn't help bring danny back colin salt well you said they took him how do you know he's dead tony question oh you know firsthand what happens to kids that are of no use in this world replied with the cold stare and tony knew it was true they both sat quietly colin cried himself to sleep and tony set up watching over him for hours over the next month colin made it his mission to teach tony everything he knew they both read from the survival guide in the bible at night they even found a small home library that offered more information on foraging and handcrafted items tony even picked out a few books for entertainment value but colin was firm on training each day while colin healed tony became more adept at the world they now lived in and soon colin felt safe with him by his side they could protect one another like brothers should which always made colin a little sad jabber three a cold winter winter was what they were not prepared for neither of them came from places that received much snow by late december the ground had been coated in white and the two boys found themselves making more frequent stops to rest their clothing was not adequate for this type of weather and colin constantly cursed himself for not being prepared for this tony always tried to be his ray of hope and assured him that they'd find better attire before it got too bad colin tried his best to believe his friend but as the weeks passed that small sliver of hope began to fade they've been making poor time already but when they finally reached what should have been the northern portion of ohio they knew their map would be almost useless the rising waters of the great lakes had engulfed most of michigan turning the state line into beach side coated in snow they've been moving more west to avoid columbus and had no choice but to continue in that direction and across indiana they'd abandoned the bicycle long ago the snow had risen too high to push through with the tyres colin stopped at a sign that read kishawa country cabins his eyes intent on the words his will was spent and so was his body tony tapped him on the shoulder and asked what was wrong but colin simply stared at the sign the wind stung his face and he could no longer feel his toes they spent almost two months walking through this and they'd only made it to illinois colin knew that if they were to avoid major cities and the rising waters from the lakes then it would be another few months before they reached canada he began to regret coming north he started wishing he just stayed home and tried to survive there you okay man tony nourished him again colin remembered why he kept going i'm cold and i'm tired no [ __ ] so am i tony quipped i think we should find one of these cabins get a fire going and hunker down i don't think we can survive out here much longer colin replied barely taking notice of tony's remark tony's eyes lit up at the thought of being warm for a while and took off toward one of the log structures that remained at the camping ground after a few attempts of finding an unlocked door and failing colin simply kicked the door in they would have to board it shut but at least they were inside tony rushed over to the fireplace seeing that whoever had stocked the cabin left enough wood to get it going he began lighting kindling and grabbed for the first log while colin surveyed the place they'd abandoned their normal caution for warmth and he needed to make sure they were safe the tiny cabin had a living room two bedrooms a small kitchen and one bathroom even if the facility was on a well colin knew the pipes would have frozen long ago they'd have to melt down snow over the fire to drink and bathe the fridge was empty but there were a few canned goods left in the small pantry it wasn't much but it was something tony yelled for colin letting him know the fire was ready and colin grabbed a couple of blankets from the bedroom before joining his friend they both stripped off their dripping coats shoes and socks then laid in front of the light as the sun went down tony asked what colin's plan was from here but he was silent for a moment um let's worry about that in the morning he finally replied before tossing tony a thick comforter colin dreamt of lying in the old cornfield again but this time dany was right beside him he turned staring into his brother's eyes and noticed malice within them danny asked why he'd been forgotten so easily and colin tried to explain through tears he tried to tell him how sorry he was and that tony wasn't a replacement that he could never replace the sky above had turned dark and cold the wind picking up rapidly colin looked up as snow began to cover his face and when he looked back danny's form was replaced with tony's his friend spoke wake up wake up colin tony stood before colin shaking him and trying to get him to open his eyes colin's eyes remained shut but mumbled apologies over and over again tony felt his forehead it was extremely warm and sweat beaded upon it the young boy could tell his friend was shaking despite how warm it felt he knew that colin must have a fever the boy dug through their pack for the first aid kit finding a small packet of ibuprofen before grabbing a bottle of water he heaved calling up from behind and pushed the pills between his friend's lips his hands shook as he tried to pour the water in and get colin to swallow begging him to take the medicine through his fever-induced haze colin choked down the pills tony laid him down again and rushed to find a towel he knew he had to bring down his temperature for the next few days tony medicated his friend tried to keep him comfortable and gave as much water as colin could swallow they didn't have any antibiotics and tony could only hope colin was strong enough to fight off whatever infection had afflicted him the boy was scared but his friend had prepared him to survive tony had learned to shoot track hunt and prepare food which would come in handy as their stocks were running low they hadn't seen many animals but well at this point anything would do when colin's fever broke tony decided to go out to look for food he only had a couple of cans of beans left and he knew that was not enough colin would need real food once he woke up tony had found a winter coat in one of the bedrooms it was a little big but it would help him keep warm he took the pistol collins hunting knife and the rifle as he set out into the endless mounds of white the wind was harsh to his cheeks but he knew he had no choice colin awoke four hours later his head pounding as he scanned the room a small sliver of paper had the words gone hunting scribbled upon it this caused him to rush to his feet knowing tony should not be out there alone but but as soon as his feet came to the floor he stumbled in his weakened state his body crashed into the couch sending pain throughout him he screamed in agony gagging and coughing in an effort to catch his breath he called out for his friend but unknown to him tony was at least a mile away tony sat covered in snow near a small bush his eyes trained on the slight movements of what appeared to be a snow rabbit he'd been waiting for hours and this was his chance to bring home some meat his finger pulled the trigger and the shot rang out just before the animal dropped over lifeless tony let out a laugh of joy as he ran for his reward grabbing hold of it and his knife he quickly skinned and cleaned his kiln before burying the unused portion his feet dragged in the snow to cover up any trace of blood or his tracks as he made his way back to the cabin when the boy stepped into the cabin colin almost tackled him in a hug he was sure he'd been hurt or taken while out hunting he squeezed him so tight that it hurt his chest and eventually had to stop and sit back down a coughing fit erupted from colin's chest as tony set down the rabbit he ran for the first aid kit looking for something that would help with a cough but there was nothing he returned and asked what he could do to help you came back that's enough colin attempted to smile so you got yourself a rabbit tony grint i got us a rabbit tony had learned a little about cooking from his mom before the world turned a crap not necessarily rabbit but he figured it couldn't be much different he diced the meat and scrounged the cabinets for any kind of seasoning there was a bit of salt pepper and maybe a sprinkle or two of oregano it wouldn't be much but it would add a little flavor to the pot it boiled over the fire as tony detailed his hunting trip colin smiled as he listened to every detail he was glad his friend was safe they shared the meat and broth the warmth of it easing colin's throat it was the first time they'd felt full in a couple of months the two of them had not had meat since before the snows with their bellies full they huddled by the fire again tony pulled out one of the books he'd acquired along the way alice in wonderland began reading colin would normally tell him to brush up on something useful but he felt the boy had earned something more upbeat he laid there against the couch until he fell asleep tony shook colin violently wake up colin grogly responded what the hell what's wrong there were wolves outside the boy yelled that's not possible wolves don't live around here colin responded while trying to go back to sleep then he heard a very distinct hell colin shot up into the window tony following just behind in the darkness they could make out three sets of eyes pacing just behind the tree line the wolves had caught a scent of tony's kill and followed it back to the cabin they drew closer following the smell until one of them was at the door the other two circled the tiny house scratching at the wood at random intervals colin could only guess that the scarcity of food had drawn them back to a place they rarely visited now they knew where to find a meal and had no intentions of leaving until they had it colin quickly called for his rifle and tony placed it within his hands how many rounds were harvey left he asked the boy about five tony replied while shaking the box [ __ ] we need to save these we really didn't need this right now colin kirst tony apologized but colin assured the boy he was not mad at him he put the rifle down and grabbed for his pistol he knew they had more rounds available for it and if he was careful it should do the trick he handed tony the other pistol if they work together they could split the group up tony took the back door while colin gripped the front knob the door slowly parted the pistol steadied for aim the animal turned in curiosity but was met with a nine millimeter bullet it yelped and ran back for the group just as colin stepped out onto the porch the other two advanced on the house just as tony rounded the corner colin dropped three shots at one missing the first two due to the wolf speeds but the third hit it in the hip which made it stumble but barely slowed it down tony lined up his shot firing two rounds the first hit the wolf's shoulder and the other landed between his eyes putting it down colin fired two more shots as the last of the pack continued to advance it lunged for him as he was firing causing colin to miss he struggled to keep the gnashing teeth at bay and slowly pressed the barrel of the pistol to the thing's ear with a final pull of the trigger it fell limp on top of him and tony shoved it to the side before lending his hand to his friend they both cleaned up the bodies and dragged them away when they returned to the cabin tony finally asked the question he'd been waiting a week to have answered he wanted to know what they planned on doing next they were almost out of food and were no close to the canada colin had almost forgotten that he promised him plan before he fell ill he rubbed his eyes for a bit going over what he'd originally wanted to do that morning it didn't seem like the best idea now that they'd seen what could be waiting in the woods and predators had become more aggressive due to lack of food sources you ever had coffee colin finally spoke no but what's that got to do with anything tony responded his face wrinkled in confusion follow me colin said with a smile he'd found a half empty can of folgers when they'd arrived but didn't think it important at the time he grabbed a rag emptied the grains into it and tied it closed he boiled the grains in a pot before filtering it through another rag he came fairly clean before he placed it into two mugs he sat at one chair within the kitchen and the other across from him he pointed to the chair and tony sat gripping the warm cup okay i don't think we should go any further until this snow clears up he said before taking a sip of the strong brew maybe even wait until spring tony attempted a drink gagging at the taste oh how do you drink this stuff ah you get used to it colin lied he'd always taken his coffee with a lot of sugar and cream but that was a luxury they simply didn't have so what do you think hang out here and wait for warmer weather sounds fine to me but we're gonna need food tony responded before attempting another drink from his mug he grimaced again after swallowing heart i think i might have an idea about that too colin took another drink we still have all these cabins around us and if there's one rabbit there's bound to be more we just have to be more careful next time they both agreed to make the campground home for the winter and spread out the next few days searching each cabin one by one they managed to stockpile their pantry with plenty of canned beans fruits vegetables and dried goods then they took to the woods looking for meat well it took a few weeks to get a few pounds of decent food they converted the stand up shower in the bathroom into a meat locker insulating the walls and packing the bottom with as much ice as they could find it wasn't perfect but with a little salt their meat would stay fresh between uses they simply had to keep the ice fresh and keep their stock up every few weeks the weeks passed and they feasted on several rabbits squirrels and random rodents it wasn't ideal but it did keep them fair they became more creative with their recipes to make sure it didn't become redundant they hunted during the day and set traps for predators at night they read from a small library of books they'd found during their searches of the cabins some of their literature was comprised of magazines but well anything new was a blessing connie even made sure to set aside time to teach tony anything he could remember from high school they have become a family with their own home you don't talk much about your family colin said one night after dinner you never asked the boy replied in a matter of fact home well i am now so colin quizzed tony paused for a moment his eyes drifting off into a memory of a life he'd almost forgotten when the facts came flowing back he began telling a story just like one from their books tony had come from a broken home he'd never met his father and his three older brothers did most of the providing their mother was addicted to heroin when he was nine a social worker arrived to remove him and his brothers from the home they spent the next couple of years being shuffled among foster homes that was until the fall when he'd been separated from his siblings and had no real idea where they were colin almost cried to find out that tony had been abandoned the day of the fall the boy had huddled in their basement alone while the world came crashing down when he emerged the home he'd been living in for the last few weeks had been destroyed his foster parents never even called to let him know that they weren't coming back colin hugged his new friend which made tony cry as well colin made him a promise that he would never leave him like that and tony promised to say chapter four the long road when the snow began to melt and winter gave way to spring colin was hesitant to leave their new home it had become a comfort in a world so devoid of such pleasantries it took tony reminding him of their destination to bring colin back from that dream they both knew they could not survive here forever especially now that there was no snow or ice to keep their food fresh it had become more difficult to find wild games late as well they could only assume that their activity there had driven most of the wildlife away they would have to prepare to leave their home their pace had slowed it was less of an urgency to make good time they had one another and for now that was all they needed it took them far longer to make it to wisconsin than it should have but summer was close and the map showed a nice sized lake right within their path colleen wanted to take a break in a town nearby and enjoy the season it was like having a real family vacation for once he'd never traveled much as a child it seemed like the best time of any to have some fun especially now that tony was with him they unloaded their belongings into a large home at the end of what should have been lewis street where salem wisconsin the backyard had a view spanning across a lake that the map named neshonok colin stood at the edge of the dock as tony ran to the end of it it was a small boat tied to a post just floating within the water as if it had been forgotten as well tony came rushing back with fishing poles in hand look maybe we can catch some dinner the boy yelled with excitement maybe colin said with a smile you know how to fish not really my brothers took me once but it was a long time ago tony seemed sad at the phones but hey you can show me right colin nodded and grabbed a pole before following tony to the dog they stood at the end casting lines they tried to bait with the franks out of a can of frank and beans but didn't have any luck the two of them stayed there for hours chatting about the last few weeks and where they were headed when the sun went down they made their way back to the house hoping to find better bait tucked away somewhere ah if nothing else we can dig for worms colin said as they stepped in the back door can we go back out tonight tony jumped with the enthusiasm let's start early in the morning i'm pretty hungry and we could both use a rest colin responded tony looked disappointed but he understood and began unpacking some cans to make dinner connie started looking over the house checking for blankets and maybe fresh clothes as colin entered the living room tony was standing over their backs holding the bible colin's grandmother had given him tucked between the pages was a small photograph of her family colin dropped two blankets in a couple sets of clothes on the couch before coming over and pointing down at the picture that's my dad mom he pointed at the faces on the page me and my brother danny you guys looked happy tony replied we were colin said taking the picture into his hands he stared at the yellowed image it was from long ago they were all dressed in their sunday morning at time colin with his button-down shirt and red sweater vest his younger brother looking almost like a sailor and his parents holding them close with big smiles playing on their face colin remember the day how much he didn't want to take the picture but he'd give anything for one more day like that brushed a tear from his eye before placing it back between the pages tony could tell that something was wrong and handed colin his bowl of beans he knew that bringing up the past would ruin the day they'd already had and they simply ate their dinner and made themselves comfortable in the living room tony dreamed of freshly caught fish but colin faded back to that open field in the autumn sun and his mother's voice remember the streaks of light falling from the sky his vision changed to the moment his parents covered him in the tub the impact of the fallen debris he witnessed his parents death all over again before tony shook him away it's time to catch some fish tony screamed with excitement okay okay colin is sad as he found his way to his shoes the two of them found their way to the dock and tony dug in the mud for some worms they cast their lines under the dim light of what should be daylight colin looked up at the haze that rested in the sky it wasn't quite the summer he was used to but it would do they stood there for hours tony keeping the conversation going as always soon the boy was silenced by a tug on his line i got one yelled colin dropped his pole stepping over to help his friends they both tugged on the rod and reeled in the largest bass either of them had ever seen he flopped about on the line as tony held it up high in celebration colin only wished he'd had a camera to capture the moment they both laughed at the site and were glad they'd have a decent meal colin instructed tony howe to descale a fish and prepare it to be cooked they were lucky the house they'd taken residence in had a fire pit their seafood dinner roasted nicely over it as they shared more stories i got my first fish when i was five calling said with a laugh i was too afraid to touch it when it flopped under the bank did you eat it tony asked nope my family wasn't into seafood but it was more about spending time with my dad golly responded tony paused for a moment looking at the fire you talked like you and your dad didn't get along too well colin turned the fish on the pike they'd created to evenly cook the meat well he was good at teaching me things but wasn't so good at showing me how he felt don't think i ever remember him hugging me or telling me you love me that sucks tony replied yeah i always told myself if i had kids i'd always tell him i loved him well i don't think a kid should have to go his whole life not hearing that colin said is i still focused on the fire yeah i know what you mean tony said almost in the sun colin knew the tone in tony's voice they both come from places without love constantly amazed him how lucky he was to meet tony in a world like this it was easy to forget the smog that filled the air and the ash that occasionally littered the ground everything seemed easier with tony around secretly he prayed for god to protect the boy even though he wasn't sure there was a god watching over them anymore the two went to bed bellies full of their fresh catch and canned vegetables but colin set up thinking of his family while tony slept he thought about what tony had said about danny possibly being alive his young friend had been right about so many things and wondered if his little brother might still be out there somewhere he wondered what he might say to him if he ever saw him again he found a pen within a desk drawer and began writing in the blank pages at the end of his bible when tony woke up he watched colin tuck his bible back into his pack that's what he was doing he brushed it off and acted like he was checking his supplies colin suggested they go down to the water and take a swim but tony became hesitant when colin noticed how apprehensive his friend became it caused him to question it that's when he found out that tony couldn't swim well the day was spent tossing the boy into the water and drawing him out until he learned his way in the water thanks for teaching me to swim tony gasped as he pulled himself from the lake ah no problem i'm sorry it was so rough it's the only way i ever learned colin laughed slightly tony brushed the water from his face no it's fine it seems to be the only way to learn anything anymore you get tossed in the deep end and if you come up you survive colin couldn't respond to that it was the most honest thing he'd ever heard the whole world was the deep end now and everybody had been tossed in the people that were left were the ones who were either strong enough to stay afloat or just plain lucky colin wondered which of the two he was and look to tony questioning the same thing listen colin said in a somber tone if something happens to me remember everything i've ever taught you and survive okay tony's eyes got wide and he leaned back from his friend colin had never spoken to him that way it was almost as if an elderly family member was saying their last goodbye his eyes shifted from side to side not sure what to say when colin's hands grasped his shoulders promise me colin's voice was serious i promise to only respond spent the rest of the summer enjoying the lake colin was sure they had plenty of time to make it to canada before the next winter and wanted to enjoy as much time here at the water as possible by the time they decided to leave tony was an expert fisherman and swimmer he'd even taken the robot a few times to learn the water it had been an amazing summer better than any memory colin could ever remember from his childhood he only wished he could have shared it with danny chapter 5 autumn leaves by august they'd reached north dakota which meant the border was not far away the open fields that once held weak went on for miles with the occasional town spec between them tony would make games of tag last for hours the two of them chasing each other across the old farmland colin almost felt like a kid again and there was no one to tell him when to stop he hadn't seen another soul in months which meant the world was theirs when they reached a sign that read pembina colin pulled out his atlas his finger trailed the route they were on and showed tony that they were less than a day away from the border tony jumped up and down with excitement before slapping colin on the shoulder you're it and the boy took off into a field nearby stalks of old wheat still dancing in the wind colin quickly shoved them out back into his pack and took off into the brush i'm gonna get you kid he yelled abandoning his normal caution in the light of their good news the two ran through the field tagging each other back and forth the tall grass parted at every step tony stopped abruptly and crouched giggling as he watched colin fly past without seeing him colin pushed the stalks away from him searching all around for his friend when his hand landed on tony's shoulder he gave him a light push and it sent the boy down on his hands and knees you're going to pay for that tony yelled colin ran full speed away from the tiny spot rushing to find a place to hide his body emerged from the field beside a dying tree he circled it and looked around there was nothing in the area to give him away and without the motion of the brush tony would have a harder time locating him colin simply crouched behind the small tree and waited for his friend to find him that is until he felt the hard steel of a rifle barrel pushed into his back stand up colin slowly rose from his kneeling position bringing his hands into the air listen i don't have much but you can have it we're just trying to get to canada it doesn't look like you're gonna make a kid hand me the pack do it nice and slow the voice commanded colin did as instructed letting the straps slide down his arms and dropped to the ground behind him now the rifle the man said his tone growing more serious the gun was let down and rested by the bag the man had seen the pistol and the holster and colin was forced to remove that as well his captor walked around the patch pushing it to the side with his foot soon the man stood in front of colin and told him to get on his knees and put his hands behind his head colin begged to be set free but the man did not respond colin could tell he'd been waiting at the border for people like him and began to regret this whole trip again he felt so stupid for not being more cautious in the field and the thought reminded him that tony was still out there somewhere with no knowledge of what waited for him the man prepared to fire but just as his finger came to rest on the trigger tony burst from the field screaming ha ha gotcha within an instant the man's barrel began to turn toward the younger of the two and without thinking colin grabbed for it and screamed no his hands pulled it back and as the round left the chamber it buried deep within colin's chest just as quickly tony pulled his pistol from his belt and fired a shot into the man's head both colin and their attacker fell to the ground almost simultaneously tony shoved his pistol back into his waistband and rushed to his friend he placed both hands on the wound the blood now gushed from he tried desperately to stop the pouring liquid but it was no use calling gas for air as his lungs filled with the same blood soon the red sprayed from his lips as he struggled to speak no don't talk i'm gonna take care of you like last time you're gonna be okay tony said through the tears that soaked his face colin simply shook his head and tried to smile it's okay tony shut up tony cried he removed his jacket and tried to apply more pressure to colin's chest but it was no use the wound was too severe and colin knew this remember he promised colin said weekly through gurgling gaffes for air no tony screamed you promised colin struggled again i know i promised i will survive tony finally agreed colin's vision began to blur but his mouth opened again i love you tony i love you too colin tony's tears flowed like a faucet now as he tried to hug his friend one last time colin's eyes closed slowly his mind fading back to a field that used to grow corn he lay in the sunlight again with his brother danny beside him in the distance he could hear his mother calling them back home he got up slowly and smiled at her waving he took his brother's hand and started back to their little trailer and when he turned his eyes to the sky he saw the light coming down again this time when it came he left with it and his family tony took the time to bury colin's body next to the tree with the hunting knife he carved colin's name into the bark and the best date he could remember he wanted to make sure his friend was never forgotten because he knew that he would never forget colin he'd been not only a brother but the closest thing he'd ever had to a real father figure tony gathered their things and started toward the canadian border he wasn't sure what he'd find there but he would keep his promise he would go on and he would survive no matter what chapter 6 apex predators the heavy steps of combat boots echoed down a long corridor as tony was escorted by armed guards into a large concrete structure buried in the side of a mountain his weapons had been confiscated upon his entrance into canada tony had approached the border station which appeared to be abandoned upon first inspection he'd only made it a few yards within the gate before a dozen rifles were trained on him the guards had taken all of his possessions and forced him into a jeep tony had been blindfolded for what seemed like an hour before they allowed him to see the large entrance of the bunker tony could only wonder what their intentions were with him and found himself wishing colin was still alive to protect him the procession stopped at a large iron door one of the men pounded his fist on the entrance causing it to reverberate against the concrete walls around them within seconds a metallic clamor was heard from the other side and the door opened another camouflage man stood on the other side and directed tony to enter the boy was pointed to a small chair sat behind a large metal desk tony sat his body almost shaking at the thought of what would come next the door was shut and was latched before the man sat across from tony opened a small folder that rested upon the desk the man's pen clicked and the folder was tossed open to what appeared to be some sort of form name the man said tony jumped slightly not expecting the voice um tony full name please the voice changing to annoyance anthony james williams tony replied he asked 11 12 in november the boy said as he looked around the room what is this place your questions will be answered later but first we need to get some information from you the man said is he finally looked up to tony so where are you from tony's side and for a moment he wasn't sure if he should be so honest georgia with every answer the man scribbled on the form and soon it was filled with most of tony's personal information the boy sat nervously tapping his foot on the floor below him the steady buzz of the fluorescent lights above him the only sound other than the questions he found himself thinking of colin again wondering what his friend would have been doing in this situation the boy imagined colin fighting back against the guards at the border and finding a way to take them all down he'd built his recently departed friend into something superhuman and the thought made him smile the sound of the folder clapping closed broke him from his daydream okay that's enough of the boring stuff it's time to get to the reason you're here the man said with a smile playing on his lips this is forward-based charlie and i'm bandit tony's eyebrows contorted at the name bandits yep when you start here you get to change your name if you want most people have names like that around here when we get you set up you can choose one too but i think long and hard about it because once you pick one that's your name from here on out bandit's pen tapped on the folder as he spoke so what is all this tony's hands waved around him at the room well when the world went to [ __ ] a lot of people didn't know what to do government went out the window most of the army regulars weren't sure what to do without proper guidance some of them even lost their [ __ ] banned it said with a slight laugh in his tone so we kind of left a hole that had to be filled and that's where we came in and who are you exactly tony quizzed well our higher-ups are former military from various places they came together to try and protect who was left and they've been recruiting every able-bodied person since that's how i started i mean i was a snot-nosed kid from oregon before i came here never used a gun in my life bandit laughed but who are you tony's voice became annoyed at having to repeat himself oh sorry found it paused man i have a tendency to ramble i mean they say i have a big mouth i guess that's why they have me doing these little interviews for newbies tony simply shook his head before bandit realized he still hadn't given the boy an answer okay okay we call ourselves the apex predators that sounds really lame tony scoffed bandit shook his head listen i didn't make up the name some old fart did something about how there are two kinds of people in this world the predator and the prey you know wolf and sheep [ __ ] well they wanted to make sure we were the top of the top you know tony's eyes rolled a bit in his head most of the guys i've seen so far don't look much older than me and you know what 15. look million bandit's face showed how insulted he seemed to be sixteen actually and it finally escorted tony from the tiny room and further down the hallway they came to a large bay window with a desk just behind it a young hispanic girl sat at the desk with aisles of shelving behind her bandit past the folder through a slot to the left of the window and the girl retrieved it as she skimmed tony's form she exchanged small talk with bandits tony stood quietly listening to the exchange and learned that the girl's name was packrat it seemed fitting since she seemed to be the guardian of all the supplies for the base tony's eyes scanned the shelves and saw stacks of clothing food rations weapons ammunition and various personal hygiene items the girl finally turned her attention to tony and began asking for his shirt pants and shoe sizes just as bandit had taken his notes so did pack rats every answer was scribbled into tony's file and once she was done her little body disappeared among the stacks when she returned a pile of clothing was dropped into the slot by the window bandit pointed to it and tony only assumed he was to gather the things the boy opened the metal slot and removed three tan t-shirts three digital camouflage button-down shirts and matching pants once he closed the slot packrat dropped a pair of black combat boots into it and shoved it back through bandit open the door grab the boots and plop them on top of tony's pile tony looked down into the boots and noticed they were filled with rolled up balls that must have been his socks and underwear okay that's all you get for now bandit said that isn't we learn a little bit more about how capable you are tony was then escorted further into the compound past a large set of double doors that approached a crosswalk within the hall they took a left and approached another door through a small window at the top of it tony could tell that this was some sort of barracks the other side held lines of bunk beds and young men scattered among them some lay on their ax reading some played cards over their foot lockets some slept and some of them were cleaning their rifles the longer he looked the more he realized that all of them seemed to be as young as he was bandit pulled open the door with one hand and waved tony in with the other after you the boy entered slowly his stack of clothes almost covering his face his eyes shifted from the faces before him the faces that now turned to see him enter it seemed like everything came to a stop to witness the newcomer and this made tony uncomfortable his feet shuffled under him as bandit entered just behind the group sat in silence for a moment before bandit introduced tony to them and instructed the room to show the newbie around before turning on his heels and exiting the room no one moved at first especially tony the world he'd come to know recently had taught him to be cautious and at the moment he felt like he was standing in front of a t-rex trying to be as still as possible so he wasn't attacked tony wanted to be invisible he wanted to crawl into a hole away from the constant stare of every boy in the room and that's when a hand clapped down on his shoulder causing him to jump and turn toward it a dark-haired caucasian boy laughed for a moment before removing his hand sorry about that he spoke through a slight laugh i forgot how jumpy i was when i first got here yeah tony fake to laugh the dark-haired boy shoved an open hand forward names duke hey tony reached out and shook the inviting hand duke duke gave a weak smile rubbing at his clothes shaved hair yeah i didn't pick it some of the guys did yeah they said it's because i looked like one of them duke boys you know from that old show it's only shook his head i've never seen it ah i guess she won't get the reference then anyway let me show you around duke said as he started down the path between the rows of beds as duke passed by groups of people he named them off they were skinny who was of course a very skinny middle eastern boy and there was tex he wasn't from texas but somehow got rope with the name he made a hot rod flex rabbit joker fox bug wolf and a mac which was short for mack truck because of his size all of these names had corresponding meanings and applied to the personality that held them tony began to understand the reason for the name choosing tradition they all seem visibly happy to be someone different from who they'd once been it was like starting over and prying themselves up from whatever hell they'd come from that was when tony began thinking of what he wanted his new name to be that thought rushed through him as the tour continued and he missed the next group of names he didn't snap out of it until they finally approached the bathroom now this room has your showers and [ __ ] duke's head you have two bathroom rules one if it's yellow you let it mellow if it's brown flush it down we have to conserve water tony laughed at the thought as juke continued on two we get showers on monday and thursday that's it again to conserve water used to going without showers so that's no big deal tony replied yeah we all were two when we got here duke scratch his head again and looked down so um how long were you out there anyway tony's eyes trailed off thinking of the last year of his life and colin i was alone for the first month or so after the fall but i've had company over the last year he just didn't make it here duke shook his head as he looked up i'm sorry it's okay we almost made it some [ __ ] tried to jack us just outside the border and my friend stopped him but he got shot in the process tony kicked to the concrete as he spoke man that really sucks duke replied but you made it here and we all take care of each other tony felt duke's hand slap him on the back and something about it made him feel better he even gave a little laugh at the thought of feeling safe again he wondered if he ever would be after losing colin but the people here didn't seem too bad duke showed him to an empty bed that he could use tony placed his clothing in the foot locker at the end of it and unrolled the folded sheets and pillowcase he prepped his bed just before bandit returned to the door he caught out to the room lights out we got an early day tomorrow ladies and the flickering fluorescent lights above them went down the room was woken by a blaring trumpet a very large man stood at the doorway while a young man blared the instrument as the horn fell silent the man instructed them to get on their gear and meet in the training area tony rushed to pull on his clothing as some of the other boys disappeared out the doors he didn't want to be left behind because he had no idea where the training area was while he struggled to tie his boots duke stepped over to him and helped him finish duke stayed until tony was finished and told him that he wouldn't let him get lost on his first day tony thanked him and something about the way duke cared reminded him of colin which made him sad he tried to hide the feeling and forced to smile as they exited the barracks when they exited the doorway at the rear of the hall tony was greeted by a large clearing that was surrounded by a concrete wall on all sides his eyes scanned the enclosure in the dim daybreak guessing that the wall had to be at least 20 feet high the area was as large as a football field and was littered with ropes ladders ramps tyres and metal barks tony knew what this was it was an obstacle course the boys lined up in rows of six and tony fell in line next to duke his new friend pointed to the man that had woken them all up as if to tell him to pay attention for those of you who don't already know me i'm sergeant burst kill the man's voice sounded like thunder but you'll call me sir understood the group screamed in unison yes sir tony jumped at the sound as the sergeant spoke again i'm sorry i thought i asked you a question the boy screamed again and this time tony joined them yes sir the sergeant paced back and forth across the front line but his eyes caught sight of tony who stood in the back the man's broad shoulders pushed past the boys between them and came to stand over tony his eyes were intense the kind of stare that you only developed from combat he stood silent for a moment weighing in his thoughts on the new recruit tony's mind swam with worry unsure of what might happen next tony's eye shifted slightly over to duke at that second the sergeant spoke directly to him don't look at him look at me buzzkill's voice boomed again and tony could feel his spit splash his face tony stiffened his eyes wide yes sir what's your name kid the man barked tony's damn it spit it out punk the sergeant yelled tony the boy forced it out the sergeant huffed a smile curling on his lips no what's your real name boy tony hadn't decided on her name yet so he scrambled for an answer he was quiet for several moments running through the options he'd been contemplating his eyes shifted slightly and he noticed the people in front of him were watching intently for his answer the sergeant seemed to lean in closer his smile widening at the idea of causing tony distress suddenly the boy did not want to be here he wanted to be back in the cabin with colin he wanted to go back and start over fear crept up in him a fear he thought he'd escaped all of this swarmed his mind as the sergeant waited for an answer well the man bellowed tony's mouth opened without thinking stone the sergeant leaned back and laid out a hearty laugh stone more like pebble all the boys joined in the laughter all of them except duke but they were silenced quickly by a raised hand from the sergeant before he spoke again very well stone the sergeant turned on one heel and returned to the front of the group tony felt duke's elbow nudge him and when he turned toward his friend there was a grin spread across his face tony had chosen a name which he could not change from that moment forward he would be known as stone by everyone within the base the day started with calisthenics as a warm-up then they hit the course and though tony had been worried about the task he seemed to have no trouble with the challenge his year with colin in the emptiness had not only taught him a lot but he had prepared his body for the future that thought pushed him harder tony wanted to live up to colin's memory as tony crossed the finish line before anyone else one thing echoed within his mind and that was his promise to survive through his gasps for breath he was still able to smile and he imagined colin smiling back why are you smiling for a stone the sergeant yelled tony was broken from his dream again i'm alive sir for now buzzkill responded a sense of seriousness in his voice tony's smile faded as the rest of the boys joined him at the end of the obstacle course they all struggled to breathe some hunched over and holding their knees they all poured sweat and begged for rest tony could only imagine how tired everyone else was but his muscles burned from the strain duke padded him on the back and congratulated him on finishing first tony feigned a smile again unable to shake the sergeant's words he knew how dangerous the world was but the illusion of this place had allowed him to forget it for a short time the boy knew he would have to leave these wars eventually and he was sure that was what his instructor meant chapter seven on the rise the young men spent the winter training tony finding himself outshining most of his squad mates while most of them had come from backgrounds with survival knowledge tony had lived it during his year with colin his sergeant soon requested that tony become their training squad leader and would be tasked with carrying out their daily routine when the announcement was made tony could feel the daggers dig into him from some of the older boys within the group he knew his promotion would stir bad feelings but there was little he could do about it tony had made a promise he would do whatever it took to survive after one particularly grueling day of traversing the course through harsh winter conditions the boys took to their bunks groaning in pain when tony's head hit the pillow his exhaustion brought him to slumber far quicker than it ever had the grumbles and complaints around him had become common but it faded as visions of the warm waters of a lake filtered into his mind he saw colin standing on a bank as tony swam the summer sun warming their bodies a smile crept across tony's lips during his sleep until the sun was eclipsed by darkness he began to gasp unable to breathe and slipped under the water tony woke to his blanket being forced down on both sides by multiple boys he quickly struggled to free himself but their combined strength was too much to protest tony screamed into the sock that had been shoved into his mouth begging for help soon a slurry of fists buried into his abdomen he was struck repeatedly for several minutes within the dark room of their barracks each of them had blacked out their faces to avoid identification but it didn't matter tony knew who was attacking him and why the commotion stirred duke from his bed he scrambled from his bunk and across another when he reached the group his body dove shoulder first into one of the boys holding down tony another released his hold on the blanket to face douche slinging her fist in that direction duke quickly evaded grasping hold of the arm as it passed and tossed the boy to the side as duke tried to ride himself from the maneuver another punch landed firm in his jaw sending him to the floor this had left one side of tony's bed partially free giving the squad leader the ability to free himself with squirms and kicks until his body slid from his bunk duke struggled to his feet the other boys rounding the bed tony dropped his heel into one of their knees which caused it to buckle soon duke and tony were back to back surrounded by the remaining boys they both bore their fists and prepared to fight as the ones on the floor regained their stance tony landed a right hook in one of the boy's ribs while dukxney buried in one's gut their attack left him open and soon felt knuckles bury in their face they stumbled but came to rest against each other's back for support the two advanced again ready to strike but just before they could land a hit the fluorescent lights flickered to life above them and the sergeant's voice echoed through the hall what in the hell is going on in here buzzkill's voice boomed all of the boys stood like statues tony and duke turning to face their instructor eyes cutting to tony the group looked at tony his face bruised from the altercation it was easy to see what had transpired and all of them knew the consequences of their actions several boys shuffled their feet behind tony preparing nervously for their punishment tony had no reason to defend them but he also knew that if they were punished for fighting then so would he and duke it only took him a few seconds to make his decision he stood to attention steady himself and cleared his throat everything's fine sir just a sparring session tony lies well it's over now it's lights out clean yourself up and get to bed buzz kill barks all of the boys quickly made their way back to their bunks tony stood at attention until all of his men were back in bed staring at the sergeant buzzkill gave the boy a slight nod knowing what he'd done for his fellow squad mates before turning and leaving the room when the lights went out again tony stood back into his bed and pulled his blanket up over his aching body every muscle screamed at him in pain but he wouldn't let it show there were whispers around the room as he closed his eyes and tried to return to his dream despite how much he hurt when they were aroused by the morning bugle each boy made their bed dressed for the day and stood at attention at the end of their bunk tony stood at the end of the aisle counting them off as each member of his squad took their place his eyes fell on six empty bunks tony stared at them noticing the neatly made beds his trance was broken by the sound of sergeant buzzkill announcing their orders for the day they would be participating in a live fire exercise and they were to report to the indoor firing range tony turned on his heel and ordered his man to follow him they marched down the hall their instructor walking turned him with tony uh permission to speak sir tony requested oh i heard stone buzzkill's voice was barely above a whisper where are my men the boy questioned they're not your man anymore we don't need soldiers like that here the man answered the group entered the indoor range and took a place at each position turning out and retrieved his issue ar-15 readying it for use buzzkill stood at the end of the line hand resting on a lever when it was poured their targets would drop from the ceiling they were instructed to ready themselves release the safety and prepare the fire tony took his stance and adjusted his breathing his finger preparing to reach for the trigger buzzkill dropped the level the opening in the ceiling parting and six large figures hanging from ropes with their heads covered in black bags tony's eyes shot open at the sight his hand loosening its grip on the rifle none of the boys fired a shot but stared at the targets in front of them with nooses around their necks fire buzz kill me out sir tony questioned i said fire he repeated no stand out tony replied looking back to his men excuse me stone what did you just say buzzkill's eyes grew wide and the vessels in his face grew close to bursting tony had been used to firing at training dummies and sandbags but this was wrong each boy clicked the safety on their rifle and held it an angle while coming to attention tony did the same his face showing the seriousness of his choice the boys hanging from the ceiling were already dead tony knew this and saw no sense in defiling their corpses and these boys did not deserve this the squad leader stared at the instructor his eyes curled in anger stone you don't understand that if your men don't fire on those targets then it'll be you that pays the price the sergeant quizzed yes sir tony's voice echoed through the firing range very well the rest of you returned to your barracks stone you come with me buzzkill disarmed the boy as the rest of the squad exited the room his heavy hand coming to rest on tony's shoulder follow me boy tony took one last look back as duke exited a sense of worry playing on his friend's face tony simply nodded telling duke that everything would be all right even though he didn't believe it himself he simply turned and was escorted out of the other exit and down the hallway they came to a stop at a door with two armed guards buzzkill handed the ar-15 to one of the men before the other opened the door tony was guided inside by the rough hand of his instructor he was placed at a small desk one like you might see in a classroom the instructor took a seat across the room in one of the many chairs that lie on the wall the door opened again several uniform men entered in single file they each took a seat across the room and as tony watched the sergeant rose and held a salute until each one was seated their uniforms were more intricate than the one tony had been given and each were adorned with a patch that signified they were actual apex predator forces when the sergeant's hand dropped from his greeting he called for his folder one of the guards entered holding a file that looked strikingly like the one filled with tony's information the folder was then handed to the man at the front of the line and he flicked it open to begin scanning the documents so this is the one you've been bragging about sergeant the man spoke behind shadows yes sir i think he has what it takes buzzkill responded the man passed the folder down as he finished reading you think or you know i know sir buzzkill quickly corrected himself the man stood slowly approaching the light when the dim glow illuminated the man's face tony could finally place it with the voice he'd a terribly scarred appearance and one of his eyes seemed glassy and whiter than should be natural tony could only assume this man had no vision within that eye the clothes cropped hair and build suggested this person had seen true combat in his life and tony could only wonder what they wanted with him my name is general foreign the sound was deep and almost rang in tony's ears who are you kids the boy almost slipped stone sir the group laughed stone he looked like a pebble to me and he tried to keep from rolling his eyes as a general spoke so you want to be a predator her tony was confused he'd never expressed any interest in combat i just want to survive sir i made a promise to survive i promise her to who the general smart tony thought back to colin a friend and i intend to keep it no matter what foreman turned back to the rest of the man he seemed to be officers as well they spoke in hushed tones for several minutes deliberating over some decision that still confused the boy each one slowly nodded as if placing their votes while tony sat unsure of what he should be doing next his sergeant looked back and nodded as if to assure him that everything was fine but this man had just asked him to shoot the dead body of a helpless boy he wasn't sure if he could trust any of them at this point tony tried to think of what colin would do but before he could find an answer the general was standing over him again okay private stone we're gonna see if you have what it takes foreman smiled the officers exited the room just as they'd entered and tony was left with the sergeant again the folder was placed on the desk in front of the boys he was given a detailed description of what would happen next tony would be taken along with any other recruit that had been accepted to the next phase of training any of those that did not make the cut will be given other duties to attend to that was when tony questioned the sergeant regarding the six boys that had been murdered the sergeant laughed they aren't dead kid just relocated those bodies were of enemies they died in combat what the boy struggled to understand it was a test see if you'd shoot or act on your better instincts bus kill smacks and you passed chapter 8 becoming stone tony almost sighed in relief completely surprised by this revelation he was sure he'd wandered into a camp of psychopaths that had murder on their minds the boy was escorted back to the equipment room where pack rat was instructed to return all of tony's personal belongings they confiscated on his arrival she returned soon after with the olive green pack that he'd taken from colin a tear almost formed in the corner of his eye at the site but he pushed it back with his hands he took the bag and was escorted to an area of the compound he'd never been to another barracks full of young men the young man scanned the room he only noticed two familiar faces could only assume the rest had been reassigned his heart sunk a little when he didn't see duke but he hoped it was for the best tony wasn't even sure he wanted to be a member of this group but it didn't seem he had much choice he'd only hoped he'd be safer with soldiers around him an older boy who seemed to be at least 17 approached him the boy had dark scraggly hair that hung about his ears and down to his shoulders some of his locks were tied back behind his head enough to keep it out of his face his skin was dark and heavily turned by the sun the name's apache his hand stuck out quickly for a shake stone tony replied welcome to bee company stone let me show you your bunk apache said before guiding tony to respect get settled chow's in 30 minutes and we have a hike after that tony sat on his bed removing his belongings from the bag and placing them in his foot locking the trunk already had a week's worth of uniforms and toiletries inside the clothing was all the right size and his name stone was labeled on the end of the bed his place had been reserved within the few minutes it took to arrive this place was rather efficient tony thought as he squared everything away and closed his locker the door to the room opened again tony didn't look up but notice that the footlocker across from him read duke duke and tony were only a year apart so that coupled with their previous training in the same group placed them as partners each partnership was responsible for each other during training and missions what missions they would be partaking in tony was unsure but he was glad to have duke watching his back it's the first time he felt he could truly trust someone since losing colin the next year would be spent training much as any other soldier the only difference was they had to prepare for the world they now lived in and learn how to combat it once their superiors were sure they could handle themselves in the field a training exercise was implemented to test it the pairs were sent outside the walls with a specific task in mind tony and duke set off in the night shivering in the cold they had minimal gear and each carried a rifle they watched as the other group split off and went in different directions once the two of them were alone on the snowy path duke began to make idle conversation tony answered as best he could his mind thinking back to the last time he was outside of the base his eyes constantly scanned the area around them all he could think of was being attacked his mind returning to they collin died you okay do cast yeah just not sure if i'm ready for this tony replied well that's what we're all here to find out duke said as he nudged his partner maybe or maybe we're being fed to the wolves tony said with a sigh the pair stopped and knelt down near their destination they laid on moving under snow-covered brush their eyes trained on a large moving truck in the distance three men stood outside an old barn smoking and chatting with one another their mission was to retrieve that truck by any means necessary duke tapped tony on the shoulder then pointed toward the tree line on the western side tony simply nodded as they crept from the hiding place toward the trees the two boys kept low and moved from tree to tree their camouflage in the darkness hiding their movements until they were close they paused at the edge of the trees watching the men until they returned inside duke made a break for the driver's door and tony had it for the opposite side the tweezer doors opened and gently pressed them closed duke's hands ran across the dash behind the steering wheel feeling the hard metal of the keys still in the ignition he gave one more look to tony as if questioning if he was ready tony nodded again as the truck roared to life the truck had only moved a few feet when the barn door opened and the men came running out firing their rifles at the size of the truck the two boys ducked slightly to avoid a ricocheting bullet and duke's foot pressed the pedal to the floor they were out of sight within minutes laughing to each other of their success two miles down the road duke pulled the truck into a small clearing in the woods they'd need to check the contents of the truck before returning home tony jumped down from the passenger seat and met his partner at the back door the metal creaked and moaned as the latch dropped and the door began to open luke stumbled back for a moment bumping into tony as four teenagers stepped from the cargo area aiming their rifles at the two boys tony's head turned to the ground in disappointment and duke simply shook his head in disbelief ah looks like you boys failed apart she said smiling only because we got bad intel tony scoffed yeah plus the two groups aren't supposed to be working together just partners duke reprimand you think there are rules out there weasel marked i think i know where you got your name from now tony pop back watch it kid weasel replied his tech laughed in the background okay okay okay apache broke up the argument let's get back to the base before it gets too late wheeler get this thing moving with a quick acknowledgement of his orders one of the larger boys jumped from the cargo area and climbed into the driver's seat duke and tony approached the truck but were informed that their punishment for failing the mission was a walk home duke glared at apache the thought of a six mile hike back to base in the snow was making him furious tony simply tapped him on the shoulder and shook his head knowing it was useless to argue the trucks sprang to life again and soon it was so far away they couldn't even hear it the two boys began walking their eyes scanning the trees around them in the darkness after about an hour of walking tony tapped duke on the shoulder he'd noticed the lights first but as soon as duke's eyes fell on them they both dropped to a crouch and crept to the trees the moving truck sat unmoving on the side of the road but the area around it was still lit by headlights they sat watching for a few minutes scanning the area but saw no movement if the truck had been overtaken by an opposing force they would have surely taken it the scene just did not make sense duke raised a finger to his mouth signaling for tony to be quiet then wave for him to follow the two moved slowly through the trees toward the truck tony slid his rifle from his shoulder his eyes intent on the truck duke soon did the same readying for whatever they may encounter ahead the cab was empty and there was no sign of their squad mates nearby tony eased his way to the back door which was still unlatched one hand pushed the door open while the other pushed the barrel of the rifle into it it too was empty but something inside did catch his eye a dark brown stain in the middle of the floor duke rounded the passenger side of the truck to find tony staring into the empty truck took a second for duke to look at the spot but as soon as he did his hand grasped onto tony's arm and began pulling him back to the trees for cover the two sat listening to wind pushed the canopy above them the faint sound of laughter began to filter in among the still of the night and duke turned to the direction it appeared to emanate from instinctively they began moving toward the sound purposefully avoiding any twigs or brush that might signal their approach the crackling of a fire could be heard now and the voices were more audible there appeared before separate male voices having a conversation duke noticed the trees begin to thin which meant they were approaching a clearing the light from the fire became visible and the shadows of the man danced through the grass i really wish you hadn't killed the long-haired one one man spoke he was pretty i could have had some fun with him well we still have fun with that little girl if you weren't so rough with it another replied both of you shut up you give me a headache a third broken you could be helping me clean this meat so we can eat those words cause tony to step back a moment but duke urged him forward they both needed to see what was ahead even if they didn't want to when the group ahead came into view they could see one man poking at the fire with a stick another rummaging through the packs on the ground and two standing over the shredded body of apache tony covered his mouth his vomit tried to roll up his throat duke put his finger to his lips again begging tony to be quiet the other three boys had been bound together and gagged at the edge of the makeshift campsite they were all beaten and bruised fear apparent in their eyes we've got to do something tony whispered i know just give me a minute to think do you try to be quiet as well there's too many of them for us to take so we're gonna have to try and split them up let me go around get their attention tony suggested you go get our friends no if they catch you then i'm alone duke shook his head as he spoke i'm going to try and pull the one by the bag out get your knife ready do crap through the trees tony following behind they reached the back of the tree near the pile of bags the man was steadily pulling items out of tony pressed his back to it pulling his combat knife from its sheath he nodded to duke just before his friend leaned down and picked up a rock dude leaned to the side and whipped the rock at the man landing it against his leg the man jumped and looked out into the darkness where the rock had come from he pulled a knife of his own and began easing toward the tree as he rounded it he saw duke standing about 10 feet inside the trees and gave a sick smile as the man stepped past the tree he began licking at the blade on his knife he urged duke to come to him while laughing to himself before he noticed the motion tony had leapt onto his back cupping a hand over the man's mouth and slid his blade across his throat blood gurgled from the wound mixing with the man's attempt to scream the sound was muffled by tony's hand but the man began to struggle duke approached and restrained their prey and forced him to the ground they stood over him keeping his cries quiet until he finally fell still tony leaned back against the tree staring down at the blood on his knife and hands okay now we just have to split off another one duke said as he leaned around the tree when tony didn't respond his friend looked back stone are you with me tony just stared at his hands causing duke to grip onto his shoulders he gotta stay with me stone i can't take these guys on my own dude could tell tony was afraid he could feel the boy's body quivering under his hands he did what he had to do they killed apache and they're going to kill all of us if you don't help me stop them tony snap back to the reality he was now facing the seriousness of the situation had become a weight on his shoulders but he knew duke was right just like colin had always been right there were sometimes he had to kill to stay alive he started moving before being told to his body weaving between trees as they circled the camp he felt like one of the wolves that had attacked his cabin so long ago they stored their prey in the dark working their way closer and closer he started to understand why they were called apex predators they hunted the hunters ah where did jeb go one of the main quests i don't know bill probably want to take a piss another set i didn't take his gun go check on him bill ordered the smallest of the group stepped out into the brush grumbling about having to chase after jeb and carrying one of the rifles that they'd poured from one of the boys his feet shuffled through the brush calling out for his friend and scanning the eye the light from the fire began to dim as he rounded a tree and tripped over something solid he landed with a thud and his rifle tumbled away from him he cursed in pain having landed on a rock he slowly rose from the ground brushing dirt from his pants yeah what happened rick bill called from the fire nothing just tripped over a route or something rick responded well get jeb and get your ass back here bill yelled yeah rick mumble because he wiped at his pants again his hands touched something wet and when he raised it to his face he noticed the red tint his eyes widened as he turned to look at the body of jeb crumpled up by the tree he turned quickly to scream for help but just as he did two shots rang out from the campsite he quickly picked up his rifle and rushed back to the fire to find both of the remaining men laying in pools of their own blood bullet holes buried in their skulls his eyes searched the trees but he saw nothing he turned back toward jeb's body to see duke aiming at him put the gun down duke said yeah right kit rick lifted his gun as well do what he says tony's voice broke because he pressed the barrel of his ar-15 against the man's head they disarmed the man and bound him with the same restraints that had held their friends duke instructed two other boys to gather material make a gurney so they could bring apache's body back to the base tony then told wheeler to head back to the road to make sure the truck was still there once they gathered their things along with their prisoner they marched back to the road and loaded apache into the truck the group rode in silence keeping their guns trained on rick who sat gagged in the back of the truck when the group pulled up at the base they quietly unloaded their instructor came to check on the results of the exercise and noticed the ravaged body of one of his trainees he began to question the group when tony and duke exited the truck with their prisoner in tow they shoved him toward the instructor indicating his crimes as they passed they were tired hurt and covered in dirt and blood all they wanted to do was bury apache but their superiors had a different plan the body was confiscated for evidence and rick was placed in a holding cell chapter 9 night stalkers the following day the entire group were called to speak to general foreman one at a time they were questioned about the events of the previous night and told not to repeat them to another soldier tony and duke sat outside the office waiting their turn unsure of what they'd be asked duke considered asking tony if he was going to be all right but the blank stare that still hung on the boy's face made him second guess it tony sat emotionless while duke disappeared into the general's office he sat thinking of the blood in apache's body then he thought about how it felt to kill again it reminded him of colin and how small it made him feel his name being called broken from his dream has dew passed him without saying anything or looking at him specialists stole form foreman said as tony took a seat i'm sure you know why you're here yes sir the boy answered staring at the wall behind the mouth what happened foreman asked while scribbling notes and staring at his papers tony relayed the story for the general his eyes not leaving the white-washed wall barely even blinking the words told each step he'd made and what he'd witnessed he played on repeat in his head as he spoke his body shaking when he began detailing apache's body when mentioning killing he would look to his hands he still felt dirty in his mind he could still see the blood staining it when he was finished he sat staring at his hands and the general finish writing to notice the room was quiet for some time neither of them sure of what to say at first why tony mumbled we call them vultures it's one of the things we're fighting against out here form inside how do they even know we'd be out there tony's eyes became wild and turned directly at the general foreman turned in his chair stood and walked around the desk he sat on the edge of it for a moment just looked at tony he shook his head for a moment trying to decide what to say there were a lot of things in this world that had changed but he was still having trouble understanding it himself when he was sure of the right words and how to say them he gave another sigh and slid the folder across the desk tony looked down to see images of two men in apex predator uniforms one of which looked familiar he looked closer and his eyes grew white remembering the man who was carving into apache uh we found that some of those vultures have found their way into our ranks former said with a frown you mean tony shook his head no not in here too not anymore you took care of that foreman rested his hand on the boy's shoulder tony pulled away how do you know there isn't more the general stood and went back to his seat pulled the folder back to him and said that's why i asked you here stone it took the next year for their small unit to uncover the wolves amongst them but with the general's help they did there have been six charged with molestation four for rape and three more groups killing their younger counterparts they only found one more instance of cannibalism but it was enough with each mission tony became harder he was becoming the wolf that stalked in the night and his pack grew strong at the end of that year each member of their group was promoted to corporal a b company had been nicknamed the night stalkers where their individual strength was lacking they made up for it with teamwork no one dare crossed them in packs and it was not long before they received their first mission outside their usual scouting grounds they would be sent south back across the border tony would be going back to pembina north dakota for the first time in over two years and he immediately thought of a tiny inscription over a shallow grave like usual the group set out at night buzzkill had been requested to drive them by jeep to the border where they set out on foot they moved quietly through the overgrown field the brush higher than their crouch bodies the moon overhead guided their movements as they approached a small farmhouse on the outskirts of pembina tony recognized the place he passed it not long before being taken by the predators his eyes scanned the field especially further south there stood the decrepit tree a monument to his past he tapped duke on the shoulder and pointed to it signaling to head that way the group came to rest under the tree several of the boys taking an opportunity to check their gear grab a gulp of water or check their map duke hovered over one of them staring down at the map and asking questions of the designated targets tony stood by the tree running his fingers along colin's name it took a few minutes for duke to notice but he approached and placed a hand on tony's shoulder you okay duke asked his brows curving in concern yeah just saying hello to an old friend tony smiled slightly what the order of the two said confused remember i told you i had help getting all the way here tony replied well yeah that's about all you ever really told me well this is where he died tony waved his hands around to the clearing so this is where i buried him oh duke shuffled his feet and looked down before coming closer noticing the name in the tree colin yeah he was like a brother to me i wouldn't have made it here if it weren't for him tony sighed a tear forming at the edge of his eye funny duke laughs slightly why's that tony turned to look at him i had a brother named colin duke sad while smiling his eyes trailing off in a memory tony found himself staring at duke shocked by what he'd heard what were the odds he stared harder and soon duke noticed luke squinted again asking if his friend was okay tony simply knelt down and removed his patch a small compartment on the side was opened and tony revealed a tattered old bible between the pages he found what he was looking for a yellowed and warm picture of her family there was a mother father and two very young boys he tucked the bible under his arm and stepped to do handing him the picture duke's eyes narrowed as he attempted to see the image in the dark but soon he realized what he was looking at his thumb trailed over the young image of his mother and the smiling face of his father he laughed slightly at seeing his chubby cheeks as a tiny boy and when he saw colin the tears began to roll down his cheeks tony brushed a tear away as well seeing this and stepped back to the tree he knelt there over colin's grave holding the bible and looking at duke how duke said i have no idea he thought you were dead tony said in a quiet tone of remembrance so he's buried here do cast tony nodded right under your feet he died protecting me and i couldn't just leave him out here to be picked out by the animals he wouldn't do that to me danny knelt by the makeshift grave his hand touching the ground salty specks littered the dirt as they both sat quietly the rest of the group had noticed the exchange but decided to stay out of it tony then leaned over pushing the bible toward duke he told him it had been collins and he knew his brother would want him to have it duke took the warm book from tony his fingers pressing it open and scanning through the pages the ink was faded but he could still read some of the scriptures the front still had his brother's name written in it and he remembered when his grandmother gifted them one duke's hands flipped to the back pages which had been left blank for writing notes he found a letter addressed to him in his brother's handwriting danny if i don't see you again and you're reading this i'm sorry i couldn't protect you better i spent the last few months so sure you were dead then i found tony he gave me hope to find you again he's become like a brother to me he reminds me of you so much he could never replace you but it made it easier to be out here without you if you find him with this book stay close to him he can't replace me either but you won't regret meeting him take care of each other survive and remember i will always love you your big brother colin duke tucked the bible in his pack and gave tony a hug their group turned away and weasel started asking about the mission to try and change the subject tony stepped away patting duke on the back he nodded to him to say it would be all right and promised they could talk more once the mission was done duke agreed and they stepped back to the group weasel had pointed out the path they would take that led to the farmhouse ahead it's just on the edge of the property and according to their sources a group of murderous scavengers had taken up residence in it according to general foreman this is where most of the vultures had come from recently radio keyed up a message came through from overwatch group requesting position of the night stalkers tony touched at his ear before identifying himself and informing them of their position they were asked for confirmation of ghost haters tony looked at the group who nodded in agreement tony gave the confirmation as they all readied their weapons the group moved toward the farmhouse as a large group waited on the hill behind the house overwatch was made up of a more experienced adult group which had been instructed to observe and assist this was their first sanctioned mission outside the wall and would determine their future within the apex predators tech observed from the back with binoculars calling out targets appearing through the windows there have been two are men standing on the front porch three inside that appear to be drinking and unidentified motion within one of the upstairs windows the group advanced duke took wheeler to flank left while tony weasel and tech moved right they approached from the tall grass stopping just at the edge the two men outside seem to be having a discussion which might take some time they wouldn't be able to enter through the front without being spotted ah it's not like it's gonna matter anyway one of the men said what do you mean the other replied you know we're all gonna be speaking spanish soon the first retorted that's just a rumor the mexicans aren't going to come all the way up here his friend says either way i'm going to have as much fun as i can before then the first said with a love tony had no idea what they meant but he made a note to ask the general when he returned he looked across the field to duke he was signaling for him to take his group around back to find an entrance he motioned with his hand a confirmation then pointed to his right the group followed behind him closely with their weapons at the ready they moved in a staggered formation slipping through the brush until they reached the backyard the grass hadn't been kept cut which allowed them to draw closer to the rear entrance the steps were broken and the door appeared to be boarded shut they wouldn't be able to enter without making a lot of noise weasel tapped tony on the shoulder and pointed to two large doors that led downwards [Music] they could only assume it led to some sort of seller which would be their best bet tech fish for his lot picking set and started work on the fastened chain that held the doors closed the boys eased the doors open deafening the creek the old wood would make they entered one at a time descending into darkness their feet met concrete steps that dropped below floor level toward a dirt floor each flashlight attached to their rifles flickered to life and they took the room in sweeping formation the interior was only half that of the upper floors surrounded by a cinderblock foundation wooden shelves lined the room with glass jars of varying size weasel approached his light refracting through the liquid inside it revealed a fleshy mass that had once been a human foot floating in some sort of preservative weasel's eyes widened once he realized what was in front of him and when tony noticed this he clasped his hand over the boy's mouth tony shook his head and raised a finger they could not afford to be heard before they knew what was waiting upstairs tony radioed the rest of the group to inform them that his group had made it inside after receiving confirmation the group continued to search the room for an entry into the home among the jars were various body parts but what was most disturbing was the entire body of a fetus so he stared at this particular specimen for several minutes unable to understand why anyone would do this text flashlight waved side to side to draw their attention to a ladder the rungs ended at a hatch in the ceiling tony motion for his squad mate to go up then pointed to his eyes to give an order to look around tech slid his rifle over his shoulder and started to ascend once he reached the hatch he gave it a slight push to his surprise it moved so he reached into his pocket to reveal a small mirror the hatch raced slightly and with a mirror he circled the space it appeared to exit into a pantry full of more jars so he finished opening the hatch once tech gave the all clear the other two joined him in the cramped pantry tony took the mirror and slid it under the edge of the pantry door the other side held a kitchen with a large butcher block table in the center the wood was still stained from the last use which caused tony's dinner to try and exit his throat he held it back and swallowed gagging at the taste he relayed what he saw to prepare his group for what they would see next as he reached for the handle tony allowed the door to part just enough to see out to notice the hallway that led to the living room the door swung open slowly tony's rifle rising as he exited weasel followed just behind scanning the area to the rear of tony tech was last pushing the door back behind him and crossing the kitchen various cutting tools had been scattered across the kitchen counter and the sink was still specked with blood and viscera tech covered his mouth and nose to try and block out the odor but it was too powerful the kitchen was tiny and the back door was all that lay behind them they had but one direction to go and that was toward the living room each area was dimly lit with candles and oil lanterns and the light danced along the walls this only added to the sense of paranoia that grew in the young soldiers they knew that at any corner they could be met with a fight tony held up his hand to signal the group to stop as he approached the doorway to his left all of them could hear the men in the living room talking now but they had to check each room as they passed the leader's rifle made the corner of the door with weasel just behind it had once been a bedroom but now resembled a torture chamber the bed had been fitted with chains that currently held the lifeless body of a young woman tony checked her pulse to verify what his mind already knew to be true he pulled the sheet over a cold and naked body it was the best he could do for her now they exited back into the hall and switched to the opposite wall in order to approach the next doorway the passage was shut so again tony used the mirror to judge what may be on the other side when he stood he could only look back and shake his head his hand grasped the knob carefully turning it as slowly as possible the light from the hall spilled into a tiny closet where another woman sat bound and gagged within the woman's eyes grew wide and began shaking at the side of the boys tony could only imagine she thought they were here to hurt her tony whispered we're not here to hurt you we're going to get you out of here okay the woman nodded as if she understood tears filling her eyes as tony helped her to her feet he ordered weasel to escort her back to the cellar and away from the house weasel took the woman by the hand and headed back to the pantry door tony whispered into his radio for assistance duke responded and once he was sure of the situation he took weasel's place in the group they stood silent in the hall the stairs leading up were to their left and the doorway to the living room was right ahead they couldn't risk alerting the men in the living room but had no idea what lay in store above them tony pointed to the living room and moved forward then pointed to duke before gesturing toward his eyes and back up the stairs duke nodded and aimed his rifle to the staircase he fell to the back of the group to watch their back tony's rifle passed into the living room first with tech's shoulder at his back once he could see the two men within he noticed they were playing cards at a small folding table and drinking beer their angle made it easier for their entry without being noticed at first but once both the boys were in the room it was hard to hide the men had their weapons near them but tony and tech were locked on their position get up slowly do not speak tony whispered the two men rose slowly their hands coming up over their heads tony gestured toward the front door and the man began moving toward it tony tilted his head to key the radio in an attempt to inform wheeler that two men will be exited in a minute as he did the man in the rear door for tony's rifle shoving it against the wall the boy instinctively fired but the bullet buried into the woods he felt the man's fist punch him in the face as his body was shoved back into tech tech could not shoot without harming tony and simply stumble back by this time duke had turned his attention to his friends and attempted to get a clear shot tony struggled with his adversary the other man ran for the shotgun that rested by the table feet bound down the stairs questioning the noise duke turned to shoot but was tackled to the ground by the man who'd come down one of the man's hands pressed the rifle into duke's chest while the other drove its knuckles into his face tony was finally able to bring his knee up and push back the one that held him his rifle snapped into place and three shots were fired before the man could regain his balance as that one dropped tony turned to the next he was about to fire the shotgun the boy pulled the trigger while dropping backward into the hall the door frame was splintered by 556 rounds and buckshot simultaneously as tony hit the floor duke blocked the next few punches with the bud of his rifle and attempted to shove the man off of him but it was no use he was too large the body of his rifle began to bury into his neck cutting off his air until tech turned and dropped the end of his gun into the man's temple the large figure crumpled to the floor holding his head and cursing tony looked back because the man attempted to get up and screamed for tech to shoot his friend simply stared with his gun trained on the person damn it i said shoot tony yells at the sound of gunfire and screaming wheeler and weasel forced their way in the front door weasel popped a couple of rounds into the man in the living room who was injured but trying to get up from the floor the man's body dropped limp after one bullet paste his skull wheeler shoved take aside and fire three rounds at the final adversary two hit him in the chest and one in the neck blood sprayed across the hall and created a peppered painting on the wall you guys okay we've lost we're fine tony said while gasping for her you get the girl out yes sir she's with overwatch wheeler replied good let's finish sweeping this house and get the hell out of here tony replied duke nodded while he adjusted his gear again preparing to ascend the steps they fell in line behind him tony taking out the rear if there was anyone else inside they'd have to face all of them when they reached the top step they were greeted by several young children they stood whimpering in doorways of bedrooms and staring at the stairway the boys approached slowly asking if there were any adults inside some shook their head and others simply stared blankly while the group searched each room after a short interview with some of the oldest children the group learned that each one had been abducted along with their parents and had not seen either of them for weeks night stalker one to overwatch tony spoken to his radio transmitter this is overwatch go ahead knight stalker one the voice replied mission complete we have 12 civilian miners that will need extraction tony's voice now sounding far older than it was ten four nights talker one extraction on route in 15. the voice came again chapter 10 survival the ride back to base was a quiet one the group was bruised but not nearly as bad as the children they accompanied tony had felt bad about their near failure but when he saw how much worse his life could have been he let the feeling fade this was the world he was part of now and at least he was on the right side of it the children hugged each other and questioned their destination some of the other night stalkers attempted to explain the base but duke suggested they limit their information until they could speak to the general tony let their words fade away as he stared at the farmhouse ablaze they'd burned all the evidence of the carnage in hopes to deter anyone else from repeating it he'd seen so much death in such a short period of time his body felt numb as the light danced in the distance everything continued to burn even though the fall was over he wondered if this was what life would be like from here on out death and destruction he used to light fire the beauty of it but that was when it was for roasting marshmallows his hands gripped his rifle a little tighter in anger as he was reminded of another thing he may never do again once again tony found himself sitting in foreman's office for debriefing a small glimmer of light was gone from his eyes now it faded in the distance with that burning farmhouse the general spoke but the sound was muffled by tony's thoughts he answered robotically giving any pertinent information when the meeting came to a close foreman asked if the boy would be all right tony simply nodded and stood for his seat he headed for the door but just as he reached for the knob he remembered something a question sir tony turn back to the general go ahead stone foreman responded is there an army marching on north america the boy questioned the general paused and closed the file he'd been scribbling in yes he sighed that's why you need the kids right tony pressed harder form and robbed at his eyes we need everyone we can find we're severely outnumbered tony opened the door then i should get back to my man we have training to do when tony entered the barracks the rest of his group were breaking down their gear and preparing to head to bed he stood in the doorway watching each of them their faces showing defeat he knew that if a few locals almost took them down there was no way these boys could survive war this couldn't be the end he thought he just found colin's brother and friends tony stood silently watching each of them move about the room and imagined their death this world had too much of that already stop unpacking tony finally spoke duke looked up we're not going back out are we tony nodded and listened as the group groaned in unison we're leaving tony said he drew them in close and told them about the conversation he'd overheard during their mission and foreman's confirmation of the rumor each of them listened intently and tony could see the fear in their eyes none of them were older than 17 and knew they were not prepared to face battle-hardened soldiers tony urged them to pack as much supplies as possible over the next 24 hours and to meet at the motor pool at sunset they would commandeer a vehicle and leave this place the apex predators would have to fight this war without them tony had made a promise to survive and he would protect his new family especially duke the following day was spent gathering food weapons and ammunition they weren't sure how long they'd be on the road but several packs were prepped for their last mission wheeler had acquired the key to the motor pool under the pretense of gassing up with one of the humvees weasel distracted pack rat long enough for weasel to gather the items they'd need tekker always helped in the kitchen so it wasn't odd when he requested access to the pantry one by one they acquired the supplies they'd need and by the time the sun had fallen they'd all met at the multiple duke and tech loaded gear into a humvee as tony and weasel plodded a course where the north was too harsh and there'd be enemy forces to the south they had to be careful no matter their choice but it had to be made now we had climbed into the driver's seat as the rest took their places inside tony climbed into the passenger seat and pointed at a destination on the northeast coast as the vehicle roared to life the group approached the gate where the guard questioned their actions tony leaned over and gave an excuse of having a secret mission the guard wasn't convinced and radioed for confirmation tony simply nodded and wheeler hit the gas barreling through the barricade and into the night gunfire peppering the vehicle in their retreat do lean forward so um what's the plan we're gonna get as far away from here as possible and hopefully stay alive tony replied do gleam back and the vehicle felt quiet none of them were sure where to go or how they'd be able to sustain themselves in this world the apex predators would surely be looking for them and they'd have to avoid the army that was taking control of north america all of this only made surviving more difficult but they had each other and that would have to be enough as they passed the remains of the old farmhouse their eyes fell on the smoldering wreckage smoke still tainted the air above it and they wondered if that could be their future headlights of three vehicles topped a hill behind them and they instantly knew it'd be the predators their vehicle began receiving bullets within seconds and each of them ducked to avoid any ricochet wheeler forced the accelerator down further until it reached the floor he struggled to remain on the road as their pursuers drew closer weasel grabbed his rifle and leaned out from the window returning fire tony screamed for him to get inside but it was too late the boy was shot four times in the chest the rifle tumbled from the vehicle and his body fell limp in the seats his head still hanging out of the window no one else trying to be a hero tony yelled as tech scrambled to cover weasel's wounds it's too late he's gone man duke said as he pulled a tech's arm they're gaining on a stone wheeler yelled tony looked back and the lead vehicle was only two car lengths away they would overtake them and more than likely kill them he had to do something and fast so he told wheeler to head for the trees the wheels kicked up dirt as they rapidly changed direction the boys were tossed about inside as they bound over a hill and into the woods the two humvees behind them followed after and weaved between the trees wheeler struggled to avoid each one as well but sideswiped a large oak causing him to lose control the wheels caught an awkward angle and turned the vehicle on its side the world went dark for a moment when tony opened his eyes he could have sworn he saw colin kneeling over him he smiled slightly and colin did the same he could hear talking around him but simply looked back to his old friend tony began to apologize but colin simply shook his head the figure mouthed the words you're not done yet before disappearing tony was forced back to reality by the sound of tech screaming for help general foreman had him by the hair and was dragging him toward one of the other vehicles duke struggled to remove himself from the overturned humvee and it appeared that wheeler had been killed during the crash tony slowly rose from the ground his eyes searching the area duke was almost free from the vehicle and foreman had returned to claim another one of the boys the other humvee had turned back once they'd noticed the crash they'd need equipment to retrieve the vehicle and foreman was sure he could handle a couple of kids tony gritted his teeth and began walking toward the general despite the pain he now felt in his knee his hand reached down and grasped the grenade pulling the pin he shoved it in front of him so former could clearly see step away from that humvee tony screamed we're taking it and we're getting out of here foreman paused and held up his hands now hold on let's don't do anything stupid no no talking tony bart you get away from the vehicle now we all die the general laughed you can't be serious kid dead serious we're leaving and you're not going to follow us tony replied we don't want to be pawns in your war we're not soldiers we're kids we're going to live foreman slowly backed away as duke grabbed a few bags from the crash vehicle the two boys joined tech in the general's vehicle and duke took the driver's seat tony eased himself into the passenger seat still holding the live grenade as they rolled past the crash tony tossed the explosive into the crash tombi foreman dove behind the trees three boys drove away the sound of the explosion echoed through the trees as they exited the woods they never looked back as they headed east and toward anything better than the life they come to know [Music] [Music] ah that's basically all i have to say right now well those of you who've stuck with me for a while will know that these uh three hour stories really take it out of me not just me i'm sure everybody else that tries to tackle the biggest stories as well oh my god um talk about having no brain work left after doing this oh my god yeah um yeah really takes out of you so very glad to have got this one finished loved the story thought it was great but trying to do these big ones all in one go is not easy two solid days of work to get this to you so really hope you appreciate it i hope you think it was worth it did you what did you think of this story i really like well i always liked the poster called always like the post apocalypse ones in particular so uh it's an easy one for me to enjoy reading but what did you think thoughts feelings emotions in the comment section below the video please let me know what you thought well the podcast is going from strength to strength if you haven't discovered it yet please look in the video description every single listen will help make it popular and well helped make me able to keep it going to be honest with you a lot of you were clamoring for me to be on spotify apple podcast and the like and i finally am so please please please go there listen leave an awesome recommendation five stars please and then everything will be good and keep going yeah love you guys thank you so much well until next time which will be very very soon very very sweet dreams and bye bye go for a little nap now you

Channel: Dr. Creepen

Views: 143,882

Rating: 4.8628416 out of 5

Keywords: dr creepens vault, dr creepen, dr. creepen, nosleep stories, creepypasta, scary stories, asmr stories, best horror stories, nosleep horror, creepypasta horror, creepypasta reading, creepypasta stories, creepypasta narration, post apocalyptic movies, apocalypse creepypasta, dr creepen post apocalyptic, After the Fall, POST-APOCALYPSE CREEPYPASTA, post apocalyptic audiobook, post apocalyptic asmr, creepy story videos

Id: 0PBYzZ16wyA

Length: 159min 18sec (9558 seconds)

Published: Fri Nov 13 2020