DEAD

chapter eight~gun and trade

Nyla ~

I groaned and rolled onto my back.I sat up then reached for my katana.It's noon...I shielded my eyes and looked over at Shadow. And he's still here.Great.I got up and kicked him in the side.

"What the fuck?!"I walked over to my backpack and grabbed my other katana then sheathed them both. "Where are you going? "He got up and grabbed my shoulder.
"Away from here."I jerked my shoulder away from him.

"Hold on a minute. "I heard scuffling sounds as he quickly packed camp and jogged back to me.The horses whinnied as he jumped onto one.I sighed and turned around."How are we gonna ride through that? And, how did you get both horses through it?"I pointed to the woods behind me.

"They aren't that thick,you know. "Shadow shrugged and pointed to my horse."You coming? "I gave in and mounted my horse.We had them at a slow walk as we headed into the forest.It was so green and filled with noises. I think it's the most alive thing right now.

"Sooooo... "He trailed off and looked at me awkwardly as I unsheathed my katana and set it in my lap."Who were your parents?"

"I don't remember. "

"Really? "Shadow said in disbelief.

"I was raised by a guy named Shiloh. "He smirked.

"That's a weired name. "

"Fuck you.He was nice. Remember that super badass zombie at the base? "He nodded. "He was my friend once."Shadow narrowed his green eyes and shook his head.

"Some friend. "I gripped the reins tighter.

"Yeah.

"What was his name.I wasn't listing when he was talking."I snorted.

"Jade."

"Sounds retarded. "I shook my head and punched him in the arm. "Owwww!"I smiled.

"I'm aiming for a trading post. "

"Huh? "

"Our next destination. "

"Follow me. "He snapped his reins and the horse started a slow trot. I did the same. He led me along a feint dirt path.We even saw a few low class zombies from a distance and they luckily didn't notice us. We emerged to a small village in a large meadow. There were several nude people there carrying spears and machetes. Children had small clubs and some were grounding corn on stones.

"Hi! "Shadow raised his hand above and waved it wildly. A elderly woman came forward. She had grey,tangled hair with flowers wove into it.

"Hello, Shadow. "He got off of his horse and motioned for me to to the same.I dismounted.The woman held out a hand to me. "Who is this? "

"Nyla "He brushed his black hair away from his face. "She's wanting to trade. "I watched as a child with blond hair took our horses to a fence with ropes tied to it.We followed the woman to a small house and went inside.There was just one room and a table was in the center. It had weapons and food on it.

"What would you like?"I pointed at a box of bullets and a heavy jacket.

"I'd like two of them,please."

"So polite." She handed the goods to me and Shadow. I took out some of the salted rabbit meat and a container of water.

"Will this be enough?"This woman nodded. "Thank you. "She smiled at me and Shadow tugged on my hand.I followed him out of the building.He untied our horses and we put our things in our saddle bags.The coats went on the outside of our backpacks. We mounted our horses.

"I guess we'll have to go exploring now. "I giggled as we set off again."What?"

"Nothing."I looked at the sun and snapped the reins. Shadow cursed under his breath and followed. I led us out of the forest and we were soon on the highway. We passed rusted cars and the occasional brain dead.I kept my eyes glued to the road ahead. My horse reared at the sound of nearby gunshots and a shrill scream. I calmed it down and looked back at Shadow. He put a finger to his lips.I saw two people on horses and opened my mouth to hail them but one rose a hand with something in it. A gunshot souded and Shadow yelped then fell off of his horse.