87 Below

Chapter 27: Adrenaline

Light. A bright searing light caused Atlas to cover his eyes from the assaulting view. Adrenaline had carried their group through the mine for the past eight days. Like their other journeys, many had fallen victim to the mineshaft. Others were barely stumbling as they reached its end. A sudden gust of fresh natural air penetrated Atlas' nostrils. The crisp morning air was surprisingly warmer than the dank chill of the mineshaft.

"We're here," Hope breathed, a small, weak smile gracing her face. With fewer mouths to feed, they had each rationed out a few meals, only running out six days into the trek. Everyone knew they would need to get food soon or face the consequences. Colin emerged from the cave just behind them and fell to his knees in the warm sunlight glow. Raising his closed eyes up he exhaled, "Thank you, God. Thank you."

The others emerged from the mouth of the mineshaft with joyful shouts as they lept into the dense forest area. Many fell to the earth, rolling in the dry ground. Adira, with her makeshift wooden splint, stood beside Atlas. Wordlessly, she patted him with her good arm. The concourse took the time to enjoy the sunlight for a while before moving to a more shaded and secure area. It was possible that SCUM was lurking around any corners now that the Resistance had confirmed they knew about the cave entrance. They could only hope that SCUM didn't know where the mineshaft spits out. There were many paths the group could have taken throughout the cave, so this was unlikely, though not impossible.

The leaders that remained gathered together under a large tree. Of those that remained were Atlas, Adira, Colin, Hope, and Cyrus, one of the elder members of the group, who was surprisingly fit given his age. They had lost many good men but gained more reason to fight.

"So what's the game plan?" Cyrus questioned, he looked to the others.

"We better scope out the area. Look around for any threats," chimed Colin. He leaned back against the sturdy tree trunk.

Cyrus nodded, "Good plan, however, my stomach is begging me to disagree. When can we find food? Our rations ran out two days ago." Atlas stood shakily. Looking around at their remaining soldiers who lay under the trees, relaxing after their journey. "We won't have much luck encouraging anyone to search the area without some reward. Maybe we use food as an incentive." With his own stomach growling, Atlas looked to the other leaders, hoping for more input on the matter, only to find they were all looking to him to decide. Silently, Atlas walked to the center of their nomadic encampment, "If we stay put we will die here," he addressed the people, "We need to scope out the area; Search for any possible enemy forces, find water and food sources, and a good cover place to rest up. If we stop now we will wither away. Our friends and families will have died in vain."

Some of the crowd was responsive, stumbling to their feet. Others stayed put, exhausted from running on fumes, "If you're able, I ask that you come to see me, we need to spread out. The faster we work, the sooner we can find food and a safer space to settle.

Not many had the strength to lift their heads, but nevertheless, they pressed on and awaited orders. Atlas split the hungry horde into groups, a group to gather wood and other necessities, a group to scout the area, and a group to find good sources of food and water. Following the path of the sun, they all convened near the mine some hours later.

"There is a small shed, overgrown with time to the east of here," one woman said as she approached Atlas. He recognized her as Elizabeth, one of the mothers who had lost their children in the fire. She was a shining beacon of beauty, radiating happiness; at least she was before the fire. Now, her face was a darker beauty. Her hazel eyes were hollowed from hunger and her hair graying with stress.

"A shed wouldn't fit all of us here. Would we be able to salvage some of it to build with?"

She nodded, "Yes, there was metal sheeting for the roof. The wood might be rotten, but some could be used to get us started." Atlas listened as she explained the state of the shed. It seemed promising at least but a little worrying that civilization might be nearby. He hoped the other groups brought more good news.

The other groups led by Colin and Cyrus filed back to the camp with wood and water bladders full from a nearby stream. The only group that had not returned was the hunting party, sent out to find food. Hope had led this party further north of the camp. They had made some makeshift traps in hopes of keeping the noise to a minimum and their whereabouts a secret. Many of their guns had been left with the bodies on the other side of the cave-in, so they only had a few silenced weapons they could spare for the hunters.

It was getting closer to midday when everyone would soon need to rest and the hunting party had yet to arrive. All was quiet in the camp except for the small glow of some fires they had started to warm up. Suddenly, a sound in the distance made Atlas reach for the handgun at his side. With this hand primed and ready, his eyes search the area for the culprit. Nobody moved.

Another sound directed his gaze to the outskirts of their camp, an area where the trees were dense and thick with overgrown moss and vines. A branch snapped. Then another, until a figure emerged from the thick brush. Hope. Atlas relaxed, realizing how tense he was. She had a huge grin on her face as she stood proudly before the ravenous mass of people. "Let's eat!", she shouted as the men behind her walked out of the woods carrying two red-tailed deer carcasses. The mouths of everyone watered as they skinned and sliced the deer over the fires. Finally, with full stomachs, they put out their fires before nightfall could creep in and got some much-needed rest before their journey continued.