Scavengers {#Wattys2016}

Chapter One

I walked through the pouring rain and felt it pound against my sleek black rain coat. My bright red hair is matted down against my forehead. Few people were running through the run down streets and into random houses whose doors were broken down. Torn wet trash flew around was the wind blasted the rain into my face. This world today was sick and lacking. Or at least most of the people in it today.

   The New World Order really has taken a toll. Lies just break through and cloak everything now. They say life is good. Life isn't good here though. Windows are broken in this sector of the city. It's damp and muddy. Hygiene isn't a safety measure taken here anymore. It disgusts me. Water isn't clean to drink here anymore. Many just claim buildings now not really caring about whose house or room it belonged to once.

    I ran through the streets mud splashing against my boots. I ran feeling my backpack light and almost empty. At the edge of the enclosed and fenced in area I crouched feeling the bits of poking grass from the damp soil which flooded over now. The rain was no longer clean to drink from and it steamed slightly from being so contaminated with pollution and innovation.

   There I heard the sound of heavy rushing water. Fresh water, clean water. Water that was blocked off. A resource that was required for survival. The most needed, and it was not provided. I crawled silently avoiding the men who scaled the wall on the other side of the river. They wore their black suits and helmets. Their guns loaded and fingers lightly pressed against the triggers. I pushed up my red scarf up against my mouth. I inched closer to a seeming piece of fence.

But it fooled everyone.

I glanced at the guards who walked the other way. Now was my chance. I opened the gate and crawled my way through managing to barely get through.

I looked at the small space of two feet I had before the river. I opened my backpack and took out plastic water bottles that I had scavenged from the ruins of this city and the overflowing trash cans that scattered the streets. Many just rolled around now on the streets.

  I filled the 35 water bottles that I could have managed to fit in the bag. I glanced back as I had two more left and saw the shadow of an officer come back around the corner. I scrambled and lost the cap to the bottle and it rolled to the edge about to go over. It spun slightly wavering.

Oh my! Oh no! I thought.

   But the cap rolled falling back towards safety. I relaxed but tensed as I saw the officer come around.

I stayed very still. My heart pounding and every muscle screaming for me to move.

As the officer turned I sprung into the water diving in. I held the edge of the ground my head under the water. From the long dragging seconds under the cold H2O I could make out him looking around and then resume to disappear in the distance.

    At the edge of my breathe I gasped getting out. I was shivering already. The jacket was not meant for a swim. I was shivering and I felt the cold bite at me relentlessly. I filled the last water bottle and was about to leave when I caught sight of something.

I looked back and saw no one. Afraid I slowly removed the broken debris. There was wood over the thing I was digging for. It was just something blue with a white star or two glimpsing out from the dark grime. As I leaned the wooden planks against the fence I brushed the cloth slightly. The wet, and slimy soil stained my fingers and got under my broken nails. More began to show. I spread my span throwing off the deep brown slush.

    Red and white stripes with a lost tint of color began to show.

I noticed the acid rain begin to destroy the color and tore the fabric which I thought would be small. It however, was much larger. I didn't bother looking at it and stuffed in my backpack and scurried hurriedly out of there and shut the entrance running away from the scene before getting caught.