World of Monsters

2. Gabriel

     When she opened her eyes, Alyssa was no longer in the same building. The bright Florescent lights from the grocery story had been replaced by a lowly lit room that was illuminated by lanterns that were hanging on the wall. She slowly sat up to realize that she was lying down queen sized bed in a room that looked fancy and was even quite clean. Alyssa looked around the room but couldn't see anyone there. She slowly walked out of the bedroom, and into a hallway. It wasn't until she reached the living room that she decided to call out and see if she was really alone.

     "Hello?" she yelled out, hoping to hear someone answer. There was no response.

     It at this point where Alyssa began to inspect her body, looking to make sure she wasn't injured or hurt. There were no bites, no cuts, no signs of being infected by the zombies that had attacked her. Alyssa was completely unscathed. Considering how many undead there was inside that grocery store, so for her to get out alive and without a scratch on her was nothing short of a miracle. The fact that she was unconscious when this all happened, means someone else not only saved her but brought her to this place wherever it was. Alyssa had honestly thought that was the end of the line at that grocery store but there she was, walking around a strange place that wasn't in her town. Rather than gripe about now knowing where she was, Alyssa chose to appreciate the fact that she was still alive and would be able to take care of her absence from home at a later time.

     "Good evening," A voice called out.

     Alyssa spun around and was shocked to see the young man that stood before her. He had literally come out of nowhere. She was facing the door so she had no idea how he entered the room without her knowing about it.

     "Where the hell did you come from?" she asked him.

     "It's a bad habit." The man answered, "You'll get used to it."

     "Where the hell am I?" Alyssa then asked. All she knew was this place wasn't anywhere inside her town. "Where is everyone?"

     "You're in my home." He replied, "There's no one else here."

     "I don't get it, how do you keep the undead out?" Alyssa asked.

     "Look outside and see for yourself." he answered.

     Alyssa walked over to the window in the living room that was closest to her and looked outside after pulling the drapes open. She was on what seemed like the twentieth floor if a high-rise building. They were in the middle of a deserted city as all the surrounding buildings were dark. When she looked down, she could also see there were hundreds, possibly thousands of zombies walking the streets outside.

     "Where are we?" Alyssa asked him.

     "We're in the city that used to be Nashville." The man answered.

     Alyssa looked back at him, somewhat worried. "How are we going to get out of here? We're surrounded!"

     "They can't get up here." he replied, "I destroyed all the staircases between the fifth and ninth floors. So there's a four story gap. All the floors ten and above are safe, but I recommend staying up here."

     "Where's up here?" Alyssa asked.

     "The twentieth floor." The man answered.

     "What about the elevators?" Alyssa inquired.

     "The cables are snapped, they don't work."

     "How long have you been here?" she then asked.