Fever Dream Red

40

A shot suddenly rang out in the deserted diner. Everyone flinched. The sound of the gunshot rminded everyone what had occured before. It reminded everyone how many had died.

A silence rang out for a few moments. Then an agonising scream broke out from Skye. We looked at them. Their foot was bleeding terribly through their trainers.

Skye screamed again, and this time Chloe acted. She tore Eli's suit jacket off of him, and frantically tied it around Skye's leg to try and stem the blood loss.

Eli didn't compute this at all. He stood, wide eyed, staring at the damage he had caused, the gun still in his hand. His finger was still on the trigger.

He realised this and dropped it as if it was scolding. Stood there in his plain shirt, he looked around, trying to find his jacket. He realised it was around Skye's leg and the look of  terror only grew on his face.

Skye was thrashing around, screaming and groaning in pain beneath his feet.

With their good leg Skye kicked Eli. Hard.

Eli jumped back, somehow shocked he was facing punishment for his crime.

Then he realised that there was no way he could take us back to The Base.

He had nothing to force us. He had only shot Skye's leg and yet he was terrified. He didn't have the turmoil to kill someone. Not yet.

So he scattered. He ran away like the little coward he was. No doubt he would tell Nick where we were. He probably wouldn't tell him that he shot a foot but was scared to do more.

I realised then that Skye had been left in a pretty bad spot. They couldn't walk unaided, and the wound had every chance of becoming infected. If we didn't get any antiseptics or painkillers or anything, Eli may as well have just killed Skye on the spot.

I didn't actually know any of this. I had just heard about it. When I say I heard about it, I had simply just watched a few apocalyptic books and films.

I really had no idea. I just knew that Skye's wound needed way more than just a tourniquet.

I thought quickly. Then I remembered.

We were in a diner in a little shopping area. There could be a pharmacy round there. It was likely.

"I'm going."
"Where?" Doug almost shouted at me, worried about losing another member.
"To get supplies. For the situation!" I pointed at Skye.
Skye mumbled something in return. I was fairly certain it wasn't positive.
"I'll go with her." Sunny volunteered herself. I wasn't surprised. She was practically green. She hated the sight of blood. And this sight was certainly bloody.

We walked hastily out of the diner. We didn't run. How could we run when we didn't know where we were running to?

I looked at the shops adjacent to where the diner was, searching the signs of long lost shops, hoping for the right one.

"Finny! Over here!" Sunny shouted at me. She was a few metres away, pointing at a sign behind me. It was the green addition sign all pharmacies have.

We ran in and glanced past the aisle names, until we came to a medication one. I didn't really think this was exactly medication, but we looked anyway.

We walked past cough medicine and pain relievers, Sunny grabbing a few of each as we went along, "Just in case."

We then found the bandage rolls. Sunny grabbed all of them. I also grabbed some antiseptic. I didn't know if it would come in use or not.

We ran back to the diner where things seemed to be slightly better. Skye was calmer, if paler, and Doug and Alfie were slightly calmer.

Chloe was talking calmly to Skye, about something random. Chloe was chatting their ear off. Skye only replied in mumbles.

Me and Sunny spilt the contents of our raid onto the floor next to Skye.

Chloe immediantly picked them up and began making use of them.

She had Skye's naked foot in her hands and she grabbed a clean tissue from her pocket and spilt some antiseptic onto it.

She pressed it onto the area surrounding the wound, and only a little onto the hole itself. I could hear the rough wince Skye took in. I mirrored it myself.

The blood that had been there washed away, leaving only a bleeding wound.

Chloe rinsed her hands in the antiseptic and tore a piece of bandage roll off. With Skye's foot in her lap, she delicately wrapped up their foot, lifting it up every so often to take the bandage under. She secured it and smiled reassuringly at Skye.

"There. It shouldn't get infected now. How does it feel?"
"Not great. I mean, I have just been shot."
"Is it still hurting?"
"Of course."

Chloe got a painkiller out and gave it to Skye, offering them some of the water Doug was drinking before the whole fiasco started. Skye took it gladly.

"Now we just need some walking sticks." Chloe said to no one in particular, thinking. "Does anyone have any walking sticks?"

We all shook our heads, feeling hopelessly hopeless in this situation.

"Oh well buddy. I guess you're out of action for now."
"But we can't stay here. We have to go. Eli is driving back right now. He will tell Nick where we are." Doug argued.
"We can still move. Skye just can't walk." Chloe said simply, as if the two statements didn't directly contradict each other.
"How can we move when Skye can't walk?"
"We have a car, don't we?" Chloe asked incredulousy. "Just drive twenty minuted and keep a low profile. And don't stay on the main road!"

"Come on soldier. We gotta get moving." Doug said to Skye, scooping them up like a little kid.

Skye sighed sadly as they were picked up. I think they knew a little of their dignity was chipped away at that point.