The Barron's

chapter 1 : where it began

Chapter 1 : When it Began

Year 2078. After WW3

I woke up to the smell of smoke. I slowly open my eyes to find the ground covered with a thin layer of ash. Then I see the fallen buildings. Then there are the ones that are just barely away from crumbling to the ground.

I hear the steady breathing of someone to my left and look over to find my best friend, and only friend I've seen since the war ended, Caroline. Her blond hair has been darkened by the ash around us and her white convers are now a light shade of gray. She also has her hand on her pocket knife.

I've noticed that we both have been doing that in our sleep. Only difference is my hand lands on my dad's old glock. It's our only real defense against gangs. That's the thing about the world today. Almost everyone has made a gang to survive ever since the government came crashing down. And if your not in a gang, your an outcast. And if your an outcast, your basically dead.

I look down at my ripped jeans and pull out the photograph of my mom and dad. I can remember when my dad gave me this photo like it was yesterday.

+ + +

-July 28, 2077-

"Kate, I want you to have this," my dad said, handing my a picture of him and my mom when she was still alive.

"I love it. Thanks dad."

"That was the picture me and your mom took on our Honeymoon. Happy birthday Kate."

"Thanks. But why are you giving this to me? I thought this was your favorite picture of you and mom?"

"So you can have us inside you pocket all the time. And so we'll always be close and you'll never be alone. Or you can put it in the necklace mom gave you when you where eight."

"I think I'll-"

I was cut off by an explosion. We know what it was. There was no need to ask questions, so we ran to the basement as fast as we could. Then another explosion came and the house started to collapse. My dad jumped on top of me to try to shield me from what was happening, but I knew what was really about to happen. Then... that moment of dred came when he could never tell me story's of my mom when she was alive. Or tell me that the war would end and everything would be okay...

+ + +

"Kate. Kate, what happened? Kate," Caroline's voice brought me back to the present.

I looked over to see a worried look on her face. Then I realized I had tears streaming my own.

"Nothing. It was just a flashback," I say, hearing my voice crack when I say ' just '.

"Hey, it's no big deal. I get them to..."

"Yeah," I say while wiping my face with my hands, "well we should go. I don't wanna be here when the house we where sleeping agents falls down."

"Yeah. Just look around the corners, cause, well..."

"Don't remind me," I say jokingly, remembering what happened last time.

+ + +

-two days earlier-

"No," I say laughing. "There is no way that happened."

"Did to. And I can prove it!," Caroline says laughing her head off.

Then we hear another voice say, "Hey! What are you doing here!," they said as more of a statement.

We didn't answer, just ran in the other direction. We heard gunshots coming from behind us and Caroline turned her head to look if they were following us. It was a very slim chance, that they weren't, but that was only the second time we've run into a gang. The one before that, we eventually lost them the third day of running.

"Kate, their not following us!," she whisper, yelled.

"Are you sure?," I asked.

"Yeah. I don't know about you, but I'm ganna keep running for a little though."

"Don't worry, I'm runnin'."

+ + +

I put my finger to my lips to tell her to be quite before I look around the corner. She nods, and I turn my body to a running away position in case there is a gang there, and put my head around the corner of the house we were by.

I look and the only thing I see is the normal; fallin down buildings, ash spread over the ground, rising smoke, and maybe a burned tree or two.

"We're good," I say and motion for her to follow me.

We walk for a few moments in silence, trying to hear if anyone is around and just hiding, but turn up nothing.

We walk for a few more feet before I hear something to my right. I look over to find an alley with about ten to fifteen men and a few girls maybe sixteen, all holding Mac 10's.

"We thought we heard someone else on out grounds," says a man in the front. He has brown hair and gray eyes that belong to a snake. He wears ripped jeans, and a white t-shirt with black under armour sign over his heart. He's maybe in his mid twenties. I won't lie, he's very good looking. There's no mistake he's the gangs leader.

"Must be out cast," he speaks to his group. As he does so, I motion for Caroline to get my gun from behind my back and hand it to me, since I'm the only one who knows how to properly use it.

"You all know the rule. Or do I have to explain again," the man says, right as I feel the cool metal touch the palm of my hand I quickly rap my fingers around it's cold surface and wait for the right moment to turn loose the bullets it holds.

Silence. That's the first thing that comes to mind. I quickly notice there guns are lowered, and give Caroline the signal to turn and run; my left hand in a fist, and raze the gun and fire.

I fire two bullets and turn to run. I don't look back to see if I hit anyone. Just yell at Caroline to keep running.

I hear bullets flying past us and feel something run over the edge of my right arm but can't really feel it, so I just keep running.

I turn and fire two more bullets and see a man in a red shirt fall to the ground. Guilt. That's the only thing I feel when I see him fall. I see a girl maybe seventeen run over to him. She's yelling at him to stay awake. I'm a killer. A cold blooded killer. My dad wouldn't have wanted this. Same with my mom.

I have to turn away to keep from stopping dead in my tracks. Literally. Caroline is a few feet ahead and I sprint to catch up with her. We come to a patch of woods and I tell her to just run strait.

"What if we get caught in there?," she states.

"We won't. Trust me alright? And if we do, it's the best place for a last stand. We might actually have a chance."

She doesn't say anything after that. She's probably thinking the same thing I am; no it's not. And this is true. It's not. The best place for a last stand would be in a big house or a tall building. Mostly because you can climb up the stairs and have more time to prepare a stand. Unlike in the woods, you find a good spot that's covered with green and stay there until someone comes close.

I don't know... Maybe we'll get lucky.