A Volatiles Claim

Hunting Shop

                "Got everything you need?" Veronika asks me while I'm packing a few UV bars in my bag.

I quickly go over my mental checklist, weapon, radio, decoys, immunity boosters, flashlight, and UV bars. "Yup, I got everything I need."

Tonight, I am going on another supply run, though this time it's just for ordinary items or anything that could be made into weapons. The place we (Barney, a stocky guy named Travis, and I) are going to is this hunting supply shop further north of the Trinity district. Hardly any survivors live in that area, and I know that it's never been looted because it's too close to the chemical border. Pretty much any building close to the chemicals deter many people because of how little immunity we have to our infections. Everyone has around five minutes of immunity before they need to get under a UV light or take a booster, if they fail to do so before the five minutes are up, they will turn into a viral. The process looks absolutely painful, I've seen it happen a few times already. First, the person starts coughing like crazy, then they start to convulse probably because the infection is taking over the heart and brain at the same time, and in under a minute, they will lose all sense of humanity and begin attacking any human nearby. Once their eyes are bloodshot and pupils constricted there is no saving them, the person they once were is completely gone.

Now I've heard that the nightrunners would use these things called 'inhibitors' to raise their immunity while also making them tougher and increasing their stamina but that's only for a select few. Being a combination of Antizin and THV GenMod, the GRE made these to combat the THV but they came at a price of horrific seizures, cardiac arrest, and more often than not, death. And if one managed to survive taking a dose of one, they would need some really steel hard discipline because those things cause addiction to them. Because of all of these factors, there are many still inside GRE crates all around Old Villador with anyone stumbling on them avoiding them like a Volatile.

"Alright, I'm going to wait in the garden for the rest to show up. I'll see you later, Veronika." I say, giving her a one-arm hug. She reciprocates my hug, it's our thing we always do when one of us is going somewhere dangerous because we won't know if the other survives till we meet again. It's a simple but meaningful thing we do because she practically raised me when we met at the Bazaar a few days after Zero Hour. She told me she once had a son that went missing at the beginning of the outbreak which then lead her to raise me because my parents were most likely dead. Though we mostly have a sibling bond, she does have the tendency to go all mom mode once in a while.

"Please be safe and vigilant. Especially with Barney, it's like having a loud child tag along." She mutters not too pleased that he is going.

I sling my bag over my shoulder and can't help but laugh at her comment. "While that may be somewhat true, you and I both know he is more than capable of defending himself and me if it comes down to it."

Veronika walks with me to the side door that leads to the garden. "I know... just make sure he isn't drunk this time. I don't like the thought of you going that far from the Bazaar."

It takes me a few minutes to go through her repetitive rambling about Barney and other worrying thoughts till I convince her that I will be fine and that she needs to go back to the infirmary. I walk down the steps and into the fresh night air. It's been a few days since I sprained my ankle on the roof, but with rest, medicine, and some walking, my ankle is completely healed. I turn to the designated meet-up spot and see that I'm the first one to arrive. 'Figured as much' I mentally deadpan.

I walk over to a bench in front of the patch of pumpkins we are growing and sit down. I look around and start to feel a bit of dread growing in my stomach. We survivors have done an amazing job of growing our own food, even with the PK mooching off of us, but that is threatened now that our water is limited. We are a few weeks away from running out of water completely, especially when we have to delegate a good chunk of it to the crops and animals. I know I will be fine with water because not only do I not gulp it down like most and actually try to limit myself but also because I have like two water barrels in my bathroom. I have this discreet water collector on the outside of my hideout for when it rains. Once I boil it to make sure it's clean, I am free to use it smartly for cooking, cleaning, and daily consumption. I know if other survivors find out that I have water, especially unguarded, there will be many who will not hesitate to break into my home and steal it. That's why I have only let people like Veronika and Barney know that if they need some, they are free to take some, but they need to swear that they will keep it secret. I know I want to help people but sometimes the smartest thing to do in situations like these is to tell only those you trust with your life because if I were to let people know about the water, they will expect me to just give it to them. The supplies needed to make water catchers are very easily accessible so there should be no reason why other people haven't rubbed two brain cells together and make them in convenient places.