Shadows of Our Pasts

Chapter 2 - Strangers, for now

I stood from my place on the roof, jumping down to my window and undoing the latch by shoving a knife in the window sill and swiping it across. Throwing off my hood and pulling down my mask, I rolled my shoulders back and stretched, getting ready to prepare my things for my bigger run tomorrow. I'd just gotten back from a run around the block, exercising and checking that the area is still clear of any nearby walkers, but I'd yet to venture out further and I still needed more supplies, so tomorrow was the day.

I quickly gathered everything I usually take and lay it across my dresser, checking things off of my mental list as I went. One by one I threw my supplies in my duffle bag, my items consisting of every necessary survival gear ranging from flashlights, batteries, a lock-pick set, etc. Of course, I also add in a few extra knives and a couple of handguns, just in case. 

As you can probably guess, my friends say I'm an overly cautious control freak, but I like to think I'm just reasonably careful and come prepared.

That's why I trained myself to use a multitude of weapons so that I could handle any situation that I'd be thrown into and would know how to protect myself in any scenario. On me, I typically carried a weapon belt for ammo and throwing knives, a couple of handguns strapped to each leg, and my compound bow coupled with titanium arrows. 

Once all of my equipment was ready to go, I set out my usual run outfit: black under-armor under a sleeveless armored hoodie, tactical pants, an archer bracer for my left arm, and a tactical fingerless glove for my right hand. 

Of course, all of my equipment tended to be straight black, but...we are called 'the Godless Shadows,' so what else would you expect? The one thing I indulge in is my silver bow and arrows, they are my pride and joy and you'd have to pry them from my cold dead hands before I ever consider changing their beautiful silver.

Once everything was set aside and ready to go, I did my usual routine of double-checking all of the doors and windows to make sure they were properly blocked before showering and dressing in sweatpants and a sweater, lowering myself onto my bed and - with a 9-millimeter in one hand and a hunting knife in the other - I stared at the blank ceiling until sleep came to me.

--

I jolted awake, covered in a cold sweat as I put my weapons down and held my head in my hands, trying to catch my breath. I guess thinking about the war so much recently hasn't had the greatest side-effects for me...

I don't know how long I stayed in that position struggling to breathe, but eventually, I swallowed hard, urging my dry mouth to recover from my panting as I dropped my hands to my side, lifting my head again and swinging my legs over to the side of the bed. I wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep and disappear - let better dreams take over so I could finally get proper rest, but I knew it was now or never and there were too many people counting on me for me to decide to give up over a nightmare. 

So, I shook my mind free of the images that plagued it, stepping onto the carpeted floor and changing into all of my gear for my supply run. Once my quiver was clipped onto my weapons belt, my other weapons and gear were secure on my body, I threw a couple of water bottles in the bag before slinging it onto my back, followed by looping my arm through my bow so it could rest comfortably on my shoulder as I got moving.

As you might've picked up on before, all of the entrances and exits to my house are blocked off- except for one: my bedroom window. This window goes out to a 2-inch ledge over a 20-foot drop, and a fall from it would be fatal as the ground is blocked off with makeshift spikes, some brutal barbed wire, and jagged rocks bigger than my head that would definitely do a fair amount of damage.