The Past Forgotten (Broken Hope)

10 Years

10 Years Later

I look down to see the dark brown mud moulding around my brown leather boots. I glance up to see a crow flying up high above the buildings, screeching like mad. I glance to my left to see an old, rotting, decaying corpse, leaning against a brick apartment block. I slowly trod my way toward the utterly disgusting man to see that there are bite marks.

In the back of my mind I recall what my post-apocalyptic friend has taught me.

"Just because they are on the ground, not moving, doesn't mean that they are fuckin' dead"

I unlatch my hunting knife that has been fastened to my belt. I approach the figure to see its eyes open, and glance towards to me. I have the power of mercy, and that's what I did. I pulled my silver knife out of his skull, now dripping with tar-like blood. It was safe, I mean safer to loot the body. We did what we had to survive, to kill, to rob, to betray. I wasn't that man, but I took what I could off the dead.

I stripped his body of his coat, leather with a fur lining in the inside. I placed that over my green shirt, lessening the chill that the wind constantly tormented me with. Winter had just come, but that didn't lessen the bitter cold that we all had to endure. I knelt down and tightened the laces of my boots, as even that small detail could save a life. I felt inside the jacket to find a pistol in one of the inside pockets. I pulled it out to reveal that it was a Glock 99, a very reliable pistol. I dug around the body's pockets to find two magazines, that fit my new pistol perfectly.

*snap*

I turned around to see Jess, my companion, as she strode up to me. She had been the one who had fired at my some ten years ago, and it was her duty to see me well, if I was to die she would be sent out of 'the group'. Nevertheless a new leader had come to power in the group and he banished her and my coma-state body out into the wilderness. She used up almost all of her resources trying to bring my limp, useless body to life.

I had awoken just in time to save her ass as a runner, one of the more evolved ones lunged at her. Ever since we have stayed the same.

"Nice jacket" She said with a humorous grin.

"Ha, ya'know, this kind fella here offered to me, and a pistol too. An offer I couldn't put down" I stated, my hand pointing to the dead body. I glanced up to the sun and back to Jess.

"Bout four hours light left, so where d'ya wanna go? The Boston stronghold or visit the Cortascepts? I hear the C's are lookin' for a cure...." I glanced up at Jess who was looking off at a distance. "Uh.. You okay?" I asked, confused.

I turn to where she is glancing at. A valley, with lush green hills and tranquil waters. But as you looked on I saw the worst thing eyes could ever set upon.

A horde.

Specifically a horde of runners.