The Art of Death Vol I

Chapter 12

   I walked around the old 'Gated' community and it looked pretty much abandoned. There were a few abandoned shacks, which were basically homes; it looked like for survivors. I looked around the land and started off towards a shack, picking out anything important so I could find my way out when the time came. The shack was made of steel material; the crappy kind that wouldn't hold down much, especially if it rained. There was obvious damage to it. There was deterioration and really bad rusting to it. Oddly enough, it still had a doorway, but no door. I went inside.

I walked past the doorway, and it was really gloomy on the inside. Nothing showed that people lived here. Everything was vacant. I looked around and saw something wet and gross on the ground. I looked down and it was a soggy case of handgun bullets. I started counting them. There were about twenty in it. I put the case in my pocket. I looked around some more, but there was nothing. I saw some more shacks behind this one and next to it through the holes. It looked like there was about half a dozen total. I went up to the shack next to it, which showed some signs of deterioration, but not as bad as the last shack.

I checked the time, and it was 3:30 PM. I had a few hours left. I should leave at 5:30 at least. I looked back at the shack. It had a crummy door that fell as soon as I opened it. I looked inside and there were some lockers, probably for storage, some shelves, a bed (that looked disgusting may I add), and a couch. I first went up to the shelves and there was some stuff on it which were nothing of importance. But there was also more bullets on it for the handgun. I grabbed them. It was roughly eight this time, but I took what I could get. Altogether I found twenty-eight in this place. Elias and I would split it and get fourteen each. I looked around, but there was nothing else to find on the shelves. So, I made my way to the lockers. There were about three lockers. The first one I opened had crummy, worn up shoes. In the second one, nothing. The third one made me stop in my tracks. I heard faint breathing coming from it; making me nervous. I started shaking, becoming aware that there might be someone or something hiding in there. Waiting to get me. I was being stupid, of course, because I had a gun and could easily neutralize the problem; I hoped. I slowly opened the locker, and it creaked open on rusty hinges.

Without hesitation, the locker slams open and the Beast jumps out and throws me to the ground. It gets on top of me, trying to bite me with its razor-sharp teeth. I punch it once but to no avail. I took my gun and hit it in the face a few times. It's dead, disgusting head splattered all over everything myself included. I moved its body off me, and it fell over to the side. I groaned and continued looking. I checked the locker the thing was in, but there was nothing else. I moved on to the couch and check the cushions and everything. Nothing, again. I go on and leave that shack.

There were two shacks behind the one I was just in and behind the first one I was in. I go over and check the one behind the one I was just in. This one had a door like the first one. I started to think about this place as a whole. It was a mess, but to some extent, more so than the rest of the city. At the same time, it was pristine. Not the dirt and grime mind you, but as I looked around, most of the doors were still closed. In the shacks I did go into, the personal belongings looked like they were where they belonged and barely anything was out of place; save for the ammo and the beast. Something fishy must've happened here. I can't explain it, but I believe it had to do with another outbreak.

I walked into the next shack, and to my discovery, there was absolutely nothing in it. Nothing at all. I quickly left and checked the time. It was 3:52 PM. I went over to the next shack, and this one had a door, but it was hardly being held on. So, like the first one, when I opened it, it fell down. I walked over on the dusty floorboards, but this one had nothing in it either. I looked around and quickly saw something on the floor. It was shotgun shells, and there was a small box full of fifty of them nearby. No shotgun, yet. I left the shack and went onto the second to last one.

Before I got up to the door, I noted something standing in my periphery. It looked like a person, but I still wasn't sure and was still worried seeing someone else in the community with me; even if it turned out it wasn't one of the beasts. I reached for my pistol and turned to face the thing while aiming at it. What I saw left me breathless. An empty street. I was either going crazy, or it hid behind one of the other shacks. Either way, I didn't want to wait around to find out.

I walked up to the nearby shack and turned the handle, but it didn't budge. I had no way of getting into this one. It was locked tight. I could easily get in, but I didn't want to find out what happens when the illusion breaks. I went to the next one and that one was unlocked. I looked around in it and saw something glimmering on a nightstand. It was a key and twelve more handgun bullets. We were at forty total now, not counting my five and his five. I took the key and went back to the shack that was locked. I put the key in, and it automatically clicked open without me turning it. I opened the door slowly.

On the other side was a bunch of stuff, like on tables, on the floor; a bunch of stuff, just abandoned. I saw on the table, was a shotgun; so I grabbed it instantly and strapped it to my back. Eventually, I found fifty, yes, fifty, handgun bullets. We were up to ninety now. Forty-five each. I put all the bullets in my backpack and wrote it down in my journal. Ninety handgun bullets, forty shotgun shells. Then, I put it away, looking around and finding more stuff on shelves, including ten shotgun shells. So, I wrote down we were at fifty. That was mostly it, besides useless items in their original resting place... Elias still didn't have a shotgun, unfortunately. I checked the time. It was 4:02. I had about an hour and a half left. There was nothing left for me to really explore, so I left the Gated Community and went on my way down the street. I ended up going to the other street by the skyscraper and kept going straight.

I found my way looping back around to the Clock Shop again. I decided to head in early since I found some stuff and the day was almost over anyway. I went inside and waited for Elias to return from what he was doing. I hope he found his own shotgun because I didn't want to give up this one so easily.