Echoes of a Dying World: (An EMP, Post-Apocalyptic, Survival Story)

Chapter 4

We set up camp inside an abandoned accounting firm we have commandeered for the evening. Leon helps Emily string up tarps along the front of the office, allowing us to light a lantern without it spilling out into the night. She alone is able to reach him right now, the attack from earlier still haunting my friend. I tried talking with him but I doubt he grasped much of what I said, keeping his replies short and quiet, staring at the floor and refusing to meet my eyes. I hope it's just shell-shock and that he'll be alright with time. If we're going to have a shot in hell getting back home, we'll need him. I can't do this without him.

We cook burgers over the small portable grill plundered from the sporting goods store, the smell of sizzling meat testing my patience with each second that passes. Once it's finished I pace myself, savoring each and every bite as we settle down for the first time since leaving the apartment. After the day we've had the simple meal is exactly what we need, and I'm grateful to have it as so many lay dead or hungry tonight. We talk and eat, and for a while I can almost pretend we really are camping with the lantern's soft glow and dark shadows surrounding us. We don't talk about the day's trek, or what the plan is for tomorrow, or worry if our families are safe. For the first time since breakfast we allow ourselves to talk as friends, no agenda other than enjoying one another's company.

When the food is gone, the dishes washed, and I hear the first yawn as we lounge around, I broach the subject of where we go from here. "I know everyone's tired, but I think we should work out a plan for tomorrow." I pause to make sure I have their focus. "We're only an hour or two from leaving the city behind. What we need to figure out is how we proceed the rest of the way. We can head west, get on 285 and follow the interstate. That way might be quicker, but we'll also be on an interstate full of stranded travelers. We roll through packed with everything we have, and we'll be a huge target for an ambush or attack. Not only that, we have to think about the towns we'll have to bypass along the way. You have to consider they might not want us there, especially when hordes of stranded people start drifting their way. They might even have blockades keeping people out. To be honest, the more I think about it, the more I don't like it."

"Ok, so what's option B?" Emily asks, rolling her arms in a get on with it motion, straight to the point as usual. "Felix may have found us a safer route." I turn toward him with a nod.

"The Colorado Trail," he starts off, passing around the guidebook. "It'll add more miles, but it's bound to be a safer route. And it's going to have more resources: food, water, even medicine if you know what to look for. Those same things will be a lot harder to come by on the road. I'm not saying the trail will be without risk. There's some intense hiking involved, and a lot of the areas will be high elevation. Not to mention the EMP will end up forcing a lot of people from the cities into the forest, seeking refuge. But all things considered, I think it's our best bet."

"I agree," I say.

"It's settled then?" Emily asks aloud. Leon and Maya both nod their agreement, legitimizing the plan. "Alright, tomorrow we head for the Waterton Trailhead," I announce. "We should leave before dawn, try and beat the crowds as best we can." I wish that is all I had to say—that I could curl up in my sleeping bag and try to forget the horrors of the day. But I know it's not that simple. What happened earlier isn't something you can just sweep under the rug and pretend didn't happen. And it needs to be addressed before we can move on from it.

"So...about the attack earlier," I start. The sleepy air vanishes at my words. Emily shudders, her eyes immediately looking to Leon who stiffens beside her. Opposite them, Maya hugs her pack closer to her body, a gesture making her look years younger. Felix tilts his head and looks at me, wondering where I'm going with this. "It had to be done," I continue. "They made it perfectly clear what their intentions were. We couldn't just hand over our carts and walk away. Without them, we don't survive this. And honestly, I don't believe they would have let us go even if we did hand them over. People like that have always been around: those who prey on the weak, looking for ways to sate their sick thirsts. The only difference now is they no longer have to hide in the shadows, pretending to be anything other than what they are. If we didn't stop them...I don't even want to think of what they might have gone on to do—the lives they might have ruined before someone came along and did."