Rot || ONC2024

──●Ten●──

    Once night fall hit, it was time to hunt.

     Scanning my surroundings, I placed my bag by a nearby tree. Thinking better of myself, I draped it over my shoulder. It was easy to loose your sense of surroundings in an area as big as the forest. If I lost my bag, it would be over. I couldn't afford that to happen.

    The small rustling of a bush nearby alerted me of someone else's presence. Darting my eyes to the source of the noise, I smiled. Beside it was a small rabbit gnawing on the grass that still remained.

     "Perfect little snack," I whispered to myself. It would be just enough meat that none, or very little, would go to waste. The best part about being away was that I didn't have to fork over this kill.

    I smiled, baring my claws. This kill was mine, only mine.

    Springing into action, I leapt after the rabbit. As it saw me barreling forward, it quickly spun around. Picking up my pace, I chased it. I jumped over roots, dodged bushes, until I finally caught it in my grasp.

    Using my claw, I sliced open its neck. All its screaming stopped. Slowly peeling back the head, I dug in. I felt its warm blood on my face and in my mouth. Bite after bite, my stomach kept growling, hungry and thirsting for more.

     Just as suddenly as the euphoria had came, it stopped. Something about this area seemed... familiar. 

    To my right was a small crawl space, just small enough for a person to hide in. The grass around it stood tall and overgrown. Right next to it stood an apple tree.

    I slowly walked towards it, dread creeping in with every step. Then, just as sudden as it had came, it stopped.

    The vision started. The girl stood by what I presumed was the sapling of the tree. Her fiery locks were tied back in a loose ponytail and her eyes sparkled like diamonds in the night. She was bright, full of life. A small blanket was set up in the crawl space, accompanied by an open book. A flower was on the cover, and the scribbled words of Information Thingy were etched into the leather cover.

    The tree then rapidly grew taller. The girl's hair was now cut to her shoulders. Her eyes were dull and drained of the hope and light that they previously held. She wore the familiar, silver chest plate, wrist, and shin guards that belonged to the Hunters. The crawl space was left empty and barren, the only things in it being a bag of jerky and a canteen of water. Instead of the gentle singing of birds, the hellish screams and grunts of Walkers filled the air.

    Just as suddenly as the vision had came, it vanished, leaving me alone with the tree and abandoned crawl space.

    "The war," I whispered to myself. "It was showing me before the war...but that was years ago. And Al said humans wanted to destroy nature, destroy the Earth."

    I looked up to the tree. Despite the war grounds it was planted on, it flourished. In the moonlight, the apples gleamed and glimmered like beautiful crystal balls. The leaves were a beautiful amber colour, some already littering the ground below.

    "If they want to destroy, why did they plant this tree? Why did she care?"

    Maybe she was an exception? In every group of people, there was always one outlier from a group, the one who didn't dare to follow the rules. Maybe she was that outlier.

    Alastor had said that all humans were tainted. He said there were no exceptions. I wouldn't dare to question his authority, he was selected as our Commander for a reason. Maybe, although, he was wrong. Maybe it was time to question his authority.

    As I sat down and continued gnawing on my rabbit, a loud bang followed by a searing pain in my arm alerted me I was in some hot shit.