The World is No More

Chapter Eight

~A few weeks later~

    I was caught in a store by Seekers. I was in a corner, stabbing as much Seekers as I could. I kicked on away as I stabbed another. I cursed loudly as one clawed me. I re-sheathed my knife in a quick motion and quickly got my gun. I began to shoot them one by one. After they were all dead, I brushed off the dust that landed on me. I was doing an assignment; I had to find water and other drinks. I put up my gun and looked around the store. Unfortunately, I had only found three bottles of water. I put two in my bag and opened the remaining one. I took a drink of the water, mentally sighing at the coolness of it, and walked out of the store. I took one last drink and put the bottle up.

    I was walking down the road when I heard a lot of Seekers. I cursed silently as I saw a herd of them. I quickly turn around and began to run as fast as I could. I heard them behind me. "Oh...HOLY-!" I began to curse loudly. I looked ahead and pushed myself to go faster. I turned off the road and into the forest. I weaved in between trees and jumped over roots. My sides ached and my lungs burned for oxygen. I ignored it. If I stopped, I'd be dead. I prayed that I'd make it to camp.

    A few minutes passes by, I can't hear any Seekers behind me. I didn't dare to look back. I pushed myself to keep running. I saw the camp. I bolted towards it. The people who were on guard duty saw me and opened the gates. I ran in and they closed the gates again. I fell to the ground in exhaustion. "Ma'am? You alright? What were you running from?" One of the guards asked, voice filled with concern. "Yeah...Was running a whole herd of Seekers." I said in between gasps of air. The guards nodded. "Miss, please stay here. I'll need to contact Jackson." The first guard said. "Oh, believe me, bud. I'm not moving." I said slowly.

    "Jackson, we have Miss Zoey here. She said that she had ran from a whole herd of Seekers." The second guard said into his walkie-talkie, "Please come to the entrance of the camp." "On my way." Jackson replied quickly. I laid on the ground, my chest and legs felt heavy and sore. My side ached. "What a work out..." I mumbled. The guards chuckled lightly at my comment.

    Soon, I saw Jackson looking down at me. "Oh, hey. Fancy seeing you here." I smiled widely. Jackson chuckled, shaking his head. I slowly sat up, grabbing my side. "So, you ran from a herd?" Jackson asked, kneeling down in front of me. "Y-yeah." I said, pain shooting through my side. I am really out of shape...Jackson's face turned into a worried expression. "How many?" He asked. A sharp pain shot through my side each time I took a breath. "Well...Well over 100." I answered. Jackson nodded. "Babe, can you stand?" He asked softly. "I can try." I answered. Jackson helped me stand. I stumbled abit, Jackson catching me in his arms. Soon, I fully stood up, Jackson's arms still around me. He looked at the guards. "Alert everyone. Tell them we are on lockdown." Jackson ordered. The first guard nodded. "Is Zoey the last one?" Jackson asked. "Yeah. She was the last one to return from her assignment." The second guard answered. "Good. Go on lockdown." Jackson ordered. The guards announced the lockdown.

    The camp was confused. I was trying to get to the Supply Drop Off. I heard many members talking and asking what was going on. Jackson was in HQ trying to put up an announcement. I walked in the shed and emptied my bag. I was about to leave when Saphire stopped me. "What's going on? The camp almost never goes on lock down before nighttime." She asked. "Herd of over 100 Seekers chased me. We are taking precautions." I answered. "You ok, Zoe?" Saphire asked. "Yeah. Besides my side hurting like I've been shot." I replied. "Girl, you are out of shape." Saphire teased, her emerald eyes glimmered. "Oh, shush!" I exclaimed. We both were silent and looked at each other. Then we burst into laughter.

    Our laughter was cute short. "Attention camp." Jackson's voice filled the air, "We are on lock down until further notice. No one is allowed outside the camp unless they have authorization from me. Thanks." "It's safe..." Saphire mumbled, trying to reassure herself. "Saph," I whispered, gently resting my hand on her shoulder, "it's safe here. I've known Jackson for a long time. He'll do whatever he can to keep everyone safe." "Yeah...Yeah. He's a good leader." Saphire whispered, hugging me. I hugged her back. "I'm gonna wash up." Saphire whispered, "See ya later, Zoey." I waved as she left to go to the Sleeping Quarters.

~

    I was outside of HQ, looking for Jackson. I walked inside and saw him and an older woman named Mary sitting at the front desk. They were filling out assignments for this week and next week. "How long will the lock down be?" Mary asked, her voice thick with a southern accent. "Until Wednesday. So, three days." Jackson answered, "Then we are just gonna have our regular night lock downs." Mary nodded. "Hey, guys!" I said cheerfully, walking over to the desk. "Hey, babe!" Jackson smiled, quickly getting up and pecking my lips. "Y'all are too cute." Mary chuckled, "Hi, Zoey." I flashed her a smile. "Heard ya ran from a bunch of Seekers." Mary said, hints of concern filled her voice. "Yeah I did." I answered, "I also found out that I am out of shape." Mary and Jackson chuckled.

    "Speaking of that, how's your side?" Jackson asked, reaching over the desk to gently rub my side. I blushed slightly. "It's better." I said. Jackson smiled at that. We began to make small talk while Jackson and Mary finish working on the schedules. I loved it in the main part of HQ. It was peaceful. I was sitting in an oddly comfortable chair in front of the desk. Soft music played as we all chatted softly. Occasionally, people will walk in and and mark on the schedule that they are done with their assignment for the day. Saphire came in, too. We all talked and joked around until she left.

The rest of the day went by smoothly. Jackson and I was sound asleep when suddenly, the alarms started to blare. We shot up and quickly got dressed. We grabbed our weapons and ran out. "SEEKERS!" Someone cried up. Dread hit me like a freight train. Oh no.