No Way Out

Chapter 3: Survive

The butterflies in my stomach wouldn't let up. It was time to go on my first run. Ever since Calvin had assigned me to the running squad I have had to go through multiple training courses and dry runs. But this is the real deal, finally.

Everybody was pretty happy with the jobs they were given. Three weeks have passed and I haven't heard anybody complaining about it. Tristan is Calvin's 'Secretary', he helps him come up with ideas and make important decisions. Tyler and Isaiah were put on construction. Matthew works in the armory, he makes new weapons and puts together equipment for new survivors. Pacey works on the farm and helps grow crops. Mikala was put on gate duty, four hours a day.

I throw my pack in the back of the truck and strap my gun and knife to my belt. I am most nervous about going on the run with strangers. There are three others; Danny, Jack, and Jessie. So far, Danny seems to be my favorite. He's the type of guy who would risk his life for somebody he has never met, he is the kind of person I want to be.

"You coming?" Jessie asked, as if trying to get my attention.

"Oh, yeah, sorry," I say as I crawl into the truck.

* * *

We drive into the city, and park beside a huge grocery store. I open my door and go to the back of the truck to grab my pack. I put it on my back and hold my gun tight in my hands, ready to shoot anything that threatened our lives.

"Do you even know how to use that thing?" Jessie asked, seeming as she was looking down on me.

"Yeah, my dad taught me before all of this. Not trying to brag, but I'm not a bad shot either." I said, insulted by the question. I try not to let things bother me, but I just can't stand when people think that they are better than me.

"Enough chatter. Time to go," Danny says, as he takes lead. We stop at the door and wait for his move. "In and out. Only shoot if you absolutely have to. If there is only one corpse, use your knife... that's why you have it. On my go. 3...2...1." He finishes as we bust the door down.

I point my gun to the right, clear. Now the left, clear. I lower my gun and proceed to follow Danny. I grab a handfull of cans of corn and shove them in my pack. Then, I see a crate of water, so I grab it and take it to the door. I notice something at the back of the store, but I can't tell what it is. I move to the back and see a big box behind a metal gate. I pull the dummy-locked chain off and open the gate. I put my knife in the lock of the box and break it open. Before I can see what is inside, I feel something grab my shoulder. I turn around and see at least thirty corpses.

"RUN! GET OUT OF HERE!" I scream as I run to the front of the store. I run into Danny and explain the situation.

"Alright, let's go. NOW!" Danny said as we run outside. When we get out, we see corpses surrounding us from all sides. I quickly look around for any escape possible. I see an opening, but as soon as I turn around to tell them, I see that three corpses pounced on top of Jack. "We don't have time... leave him. RUN!" Danny says, pushing Jessie towards our exit. As I follow behind Danny and Jessie, I see that the gap we are heading towards is closing fast.

I speed up and get in front of the other two, putting my pack in front of me to push the corpses out of my way. I use all of my strength and clear a path for the others. "There." I say pointing towards the treeline in the distance. We run untill we can't run anymore. We stop by a creek, deep into the woods, hoping to catch a break.

I pull my pack off of my back and open it to grab the fishing supplies. I gather it together, grab a small stick, and sharpen both sides of it to use as a hook. After spending about five minutes digging for worms, I cast the line into the water. Immediately, I get a bite and yank the line as hard as I can. The ten inch bass is enough to feed all three of us tonight.

"Look what I got," I say proudly, walking towards Danny and Jessie. "We better start a fire, 'cause I am starving."

"Woah! Good job kid!" Danny said, sincerely.

After I take my compliments, from Danny only, I go to look for fire wood. After about five minutes I have enough to bring back to camp to start a fire. When I get back, Danny already has a fireplace ready for us, but Jessie is nowhere to be found.

"Where is Jessie?" I asked Danny, hoping to get a good answer.

"She thought she saw something out there. She said she would be right back," Danny replied.

I start piling fire wood in a Tee-Pee formation, while Danny tries to build a little stand to cook the fish on.

I turn around to the sound of Jessie coming back. "What was it?" I asked her, to no response.

Frustrated, I opened my pack to get the matches. I pulled one out, and struck it against the box... fire. Danny placed a wooden rod over the fire, and put the fish on it.

After eating, I decided that I would take first watch. Danny and Jessie unwrapped their blankets and tried their best to sleep.

Two hours went by, and I poked Jessie in the stomach,"Hey, it's been two hours."

Without saying anything, she got up and leaned against a tree. I laid down in her pallet and dosed off.

My nose burned. I opened my eyes and saw orange light heading this way... fire. I quickly jumped up and ran towards Danny to wake him up. All of a sudden, Jessie poked out from behind the tree and...

When I woke up I had a huge headache. But that was the least of my problems. The fire had engulfed our camp, and I didn't see an exit. Danny and Jessie were gone, but all of their stuff was still here. I grabbed Danny's and Jessie's blankets from the ground and covered a section of the fire.

With my pack on, I ran straight untill I couldn't run anymore. When I finally made it out of the woods, I saw the horde heading straight towards me. Sanctuary was west, but the corpses were forcing me east. And with the woods on fire, I had no way around. It was now, the first time I have been forced to survive.