Infestation: Outbreak

Chapter 4

I wake up. I can hear the birds chirping and the crickets outside still making noise. I look down at the watch on my wrist, it's only 5:30 in the morning. I look to see Vanessa bundled up in the sleeping bag. I get up and get dressed. I pull my shirt over my head and put on my jacket. I pull my pants up and button and zip them. I put on my boots and lace then tight, before I double knot them. I grab my bag, sling it over my shoulder and put the second strap on. I grab my gun, load it, and throw it over my shoulder.

I pull open one of the flaps on the tent door. I'm blinded by the sunlight for a few seconds. I walk out and look around the camp, just a desolate, quiet maze of tents. No one is awake yet, well no one but the soldiers that live here. I wait for a little bit, standing there inspecting my rifle.

I should probably go hunting. I'm the only one here who can get something when we hunt. The soldiers aren't quiet enough, and no one else has a gun. I walk out to the edge of the camp and enter the woods. I'm going north at the moment, walking through the woods.

I get to a clearing in the trees. I look around watching for movement. I'm in dead silence, focusing on the noise I hear, trying to focus all of my senses into hearing everything around me. Then I hear rustling in the leaves. I open my eyes and look to my left, where I heard the rustling from.

I take a few paces forward and see it, a deer. A buck stood there eating vegetation off of the ground. I aimed my gun at its heart and watched. It put its head up and saw me. When its ears rose I pulled the trigger. The buck dropped to the ground instantly.

I walk to the deer while it lay there. I put my hand down onto the stomach of the animal and felt for a breath. It was dead. I checked the wound and saw that my bullet had pierced its heart. The deer was dead before it hit the ground. I held it by its antlers and dragged it back to the camp.

Still dragging the deer, I could see the camp in the distance. I kicked it into high gear and sped up as I walked. I wanted to gut the buck but I needed to get on with the trials too.

I got down at the end of the trees and a few men noticed me. Two of them who look like they knew how to hunt walked out with their knives out. "Hey can you all clean this, I have some important stuff I have to do." I said still dragging the buck.

"Yeah sure man, we can clean it for ya." One of the men said with a thick country accent. He walked over and took the buck by the antlers and I started to walk off. It was about 7:00 in the morning now, so people were up and about.

I got some targets from the soldiers' tent and then took some tape from the mayor's place. I found that clearing out in the woods earlier, it could be a nice place for target practice and evaluations. I started walking towards the edge of the camp. "Alex? Where are you going?!" I heard a feminine voice say from behind me. I turn around to see Vanessa standing there, looking at me like I was running away.

I thought for a minute about whether or not I should take her. She could use the lessons on how to shoot. "You know what? Come on, I'll show ya." I said to her as I waved her towards me. She started walking and I turned back around and walked slower, so she could catch up to me.

"So Alex, why are you taking me out into the woods alone on a beautiful day like this?" She said as we reached the tree line. I turned and looked at her as she had a big smirk on her face.

"I don't know, guess you'll have to find out yourself." I said back. I started to laugh and smile at her as I turned back around.

We walked in silence for a few minutes until we reached the clearing. The clearing is a good name for this place, quiet and secluded. I put the targets up on a few trees scattered in one direction, all at different ranges.

I walked to Vanessa and then pointed behind her back. "Get out the gun." She had a confused look on her face.

"Aren't we supposed to be conserving ammo?" She said in a still confused tone.

"Those soldiers have an entire armory, trust me they can spare three rounds per target." I said nodding my head and still looking at her.

She pulled out the gun from her waistband and cocked it back. "Three per target right?" I nodded and she took aim. I had four targets set up. So she had twelve rounds to fire.

She stood in silence, trying to line up her shot. "Anytime now Vanessa." I said smiling at her. She gave me a glare and went back to lining up her shot. She fired the first round, missing the target by nearly an inch. She shot a second time, hitting the target in the dead center, then a third shot. The third shot hit in the same spot.

She quickly fired six more shots. I looked to see if she had hit any of the targets. She had missed one shot on the third target, by about three centimeters. She was a natural I'll give her that. Her last target was another thirty meters away though.

She fired once, missing the target. She took another shot and hit the target, which was a silhouette of a man, in the head. And then once again, she shot her last round and hit the target in the neck. Vanessa was a good shot, I was impressed. I still wasn't taking her on supply runs though. I can't let her get hurt out there.

"Alright, good job. You're a natural shot." I said smiling and looking at her from the final target. "I'm gonna keep letting you practice, I want you to know how to shoot."

Vanessa was the only thing that was keeping me human, the only link to humanity I had left. I haven't even grieved at the fact that my wife's gone, and I don't know why. I just haven't let it in, it doesn't feel real. I wouldn't be human without someone beside me, and that someone for now is Vanessa.