The Desolate *please give me ideas!!*

ROMANTICIZE THE LIE

Hooked On A Feeling by Blue Swede played on a boombox on the shoulder of a young man. "So, who are you?" The boy next to him asked, hands on his hips.
"I don't know, honestly." I said.
"What, you don't remember or something?" He asked.
"I don't..." I replied back.
"Classic. Amnesia. How convenient." He said.
"You're telling me." I said.
"Okay...We'll call you Aerie then."

Aerie. After Aries, the constellation. I liked it, honestly.

"My name is Zeke," he said. "And this," he pointed to the guy with the boombox. "Is Brooks. He's our music guy, because this world sucks."
He wasn't wrong, this world sucked.

"This is Roxx," he made a gesture with his hand to the girl next to him. Zeke went up close to me and whispered, "her name is Roxanne, but if you call her that, she'll kill you."

Roxx held up a knife to her own throat, making a slicing gesture for reference. Aerie was taken back for a moment, but then relaxed her shoulders after realizing.

"And this," everyone looked at the shaved brown haired boy with platinum blonde hair on top. "Is Ezra. He's new, but he's a great shot."

Aerie looked back at Zeke, and then back down at herself naked, covered with her dress laid out on top of her.

"Right then, let's let her get dressed, Gentlemen." Zeke said. Turns out, Roxx was as close to a man as they got. She was just one of the 'dudes', they later called her.

They turned around and let her get changed.

"Are you seriously letting her come with us?" Roxx asked Zeke quietly, but loud enough for Aerie to hear her.

Zeke whispered quietly...saying something Aerie didn't hear.

"Alright," Zeke said, as they all turned towards her. "Our place is near here. We'll let you stick with us as long as you don't burn us."

Aerie nodded and picked up Jinx, who she didn't realize was staring them down the whole time.

She followed them down the stream for about a mile. There was a house with no doors or windows that they walked into.

Jinx gave Aerie a look of warning, subtly. Enough for Aerie to catch. Aerie nodded at the bird in understanding. She looked back at Brooks who caught her nodding at Jinx. "There's no need for worry here," Brooks said, "We're all pretty chill. We don't bite.", as he walked away,

She walked in the room with them, as they were stooped over a map of the whole world. "Okay. We need to head to the west. We haven't tried there yet." Zeke said.

"I vote, we try to find some snacks on the way." Brooks said, twirling his bow around. "You know I'm a good aim."

"Yes, I know you're a good aim." Zeke replied, rolling his eyes. "But you're a better DJ."

Brooks mugged him playfully. Maybe a bit too hard. Zeke almost fell over, and laughed.

Aerie giggled, as Roxx rolled her eyes. "Let's get on with it." She said, as she loaded more knives into the insides of her trench coat pockets.

They gathered their weapons, putting the bows and guns with sheaths over their shoulders and knives in their pockets and coats.

"Do you know how to fight?" Zeke asked. "There are some bad people out there."

Aerie shook her head no out of confidence. She hadn't tried since she woke up, so how could she. "Right, then. You should stay behind us."

Zeke gave a look to Roxx. Was that smile...devious?

Zeke walked past her and grabbed his black rundown backpack before walking out the door, as the others followed like sheep behind him.

He was definitely the alpha.

She walked behind them, cautiously–on edge, if they were telling the truth of who they are. But then again, she had no survival skills. She would die out here without them. If they didn't kill her first.

They traveled about two miles before reaching any sign of life. Ezra saw a rabbit, as it lay basking in the sun, twitching its nose. With a swift motion, Ezra pulled out his bow, grabbing an arrow from the quiver, putting it in line with the slight mark in his bow. Pulling back, he loosed the arrow, making it fly through the air, wavering in the air. It hit the rabbit directly into its heart from the side of its body. It fell to the ground, lifeless.

Three more rabbits shot up from their slumber, and started running from the noise of the string of the bow bouncing back into place. He rapidly shot all three rabbits. Again, straight into the core of their hearts.
After Roxx skinned the rabbits, Zeke roasted them one by one over the hot flames of the fire he had made with flint and steel just before. Aerie stepped towards the fire, watching the flames. The sweet smell of cooked rabbit filled her nostrils.

After it had finished cooking, she tried eating it. It tasted almost like chicken, but the spices Zeke put on it, was more of a smoked tangy flavor. She liked it.

She looked down at her food for a moment, lost in thought of who she was. And then she heard it. A scream let out nearby.

It was Brooks.