Cold, but Still Human

Chapter 6 - Eden

[September 3, 2017]

“We’re here.”  Eden says as she approaches the portable.

“This place?” Andy questions, “I was hoping for a full on army base.”

Eden scoffs as she approaches the portable. “This is where all our supplies are being held. We usually have our training in there.” She says, pointing at the school behind the portable.

Andy glances at the school for a quick second, then goes back to his phone. “Over fourty schools were gassed across Toronto over the past hour. There’s going to be more soon.”

Everyone stares at Andy in shock.

“That’s a lot.” Rachel says, everyone nodding in agreement.

Eden turns around and attempts to open the door. “Of course it’s locked.” She sighs.

“I thought you said you had a key to this place,” Andy grumbles, annoyed.

“I still have my hammer.” Serena suggests.

Eden shakes her head, ignoring the question. “A hammer won’t do us any good. It’ll only make noise.”

She turns towards Andy, and takes out a piece of copper wire she picked up on the way to the portable. “Here. See if you can do something about the lock. We have to hurry before A, those infected people appear, or B, the military or the police appear.” Andy gladly takes the wire and begins picking the lock on the doorknob.

“Wouldn’t it be a good idea if the military finds us?” Rachel suggests, and knowing what the military is fully capable of from what she learns in Trainees.

“They’re powerless during the apocalypse. Just watch. Soon enough, every single army camp is going to be infected. Anyways, I don’t want any of us separated. The second we’re separated, shit’s gonna happen.” Eden says, looking at her group. “We don’t want to get involved with anything. The second this becomes viral, it’s every man for themselves. No one is going to be able to trust one another.”

“It’s probably too late. I can hear sirens and everything.” Amanda brings up.

Eden scratches her head in disappointment as she turns back to Andy. “You good?”

Andy struggles a tiny bit more, but before long, a click is heard. Everyone sighs in relief, and turns towards the door. “There we go.”

Eden opens the door, and heads in, gesturing everyone to follow her. She looks around, making sure everything is in place, but notices that almost everything has been emptied. “Shuck! The officials must have thought of coming here, too,” Eden says to herself.

“Rachel, Amanda, help us find some food. There might be some left to scavenge.”

“Yes ma’am,” the two say simultaneously, and go off.

Eden faces Andy. “You play first person shooters, so I can only assume that you know how a combat uniform looks like? There should be a few uniforms that somewhat resemble the ones that are found in those games.”

Andy squints his eyes, questioning why he needs combat uniforms of all supplies.

Eden looks at Andy, seeing the confusion in his eyes. “They keep us warm, give us a full body protection against the outdoor terrain, they also keep us camouflaged from people, dead or alive. It'll also be easier to tell us and other groups apart.”

“Ah, okay.” Andy says, leaving.

Eden turns to Katerina and Serena. “Katerina. You’re in charge of grabbing any medical supplies and anything else that you may come across.”