The Lost and the Dead Book 1: The Uprising

Chapter XIII: Screamers in the City

The city was still very far away, but it seemed so close that I could touch it with the ends of my dirty fingertips. The scene itself was so beautiful yet so hellish, like a heavenly hell if I were to use a oxymoron in this situation: the skyscrapers that created the skyline peered through the clouds from the tallest of the towers, but most of them were ablaze by the red and yellow flames of the apocalyptic war with hundreds of windows crapped, destroyed and blown out from most towers. The clouds were forming overhead and thunder clashed at the metallic structures deep within the city limits, making the scene all the more destructive and epic. I began my journey down the semi-steep hill that will lead right into the residential district that surrounded the downtown and uptown areas.

"Um sir? Are you going to take the hummer with you?" Retnuh asked. I looked back the Hummer and responded.

"Nah, it will make too much noise through the city once we reach there; these zombies rely on their hearing and smelling before their seeing, so it will attract every zombie in the city's limits, and besides, whoever finds that Hummer deserves it: I used it to the fullest and now someone can take it off my hands." I answered, slowly descending with each step.

"Alright sir, that's reasonable: I'll be touch if you need me, see you later." Retnuh offered before he signed off. Now, it was just me and Fallout City, I then realized a very important question... how the hell am I going to find whatever caused that disruption back in NR Headquarters? How in the hell am I going to find that lost Recon Squad? How will I know the difference between friend and foe if there truly is going to be other survivors in the area, and by far the biggest question is, how am I going to deal with all these zombies? All these questions plus others flowed into my mind and caused me to throw a fit within myself, as my mind is overwhelmed by the general scale and ambition of this operation. I knew I bit more off than I can chew, but I have been doing this lately now so I should be use to it.

It was a long 30 minute walk down the sloping highway until I reached the outskirts of the residential area that surrounded the entire center city. I admit, I never been to Fallout City, I knew it was the most dangerous area in the world with the collection of zombies, high encounter rates of raiders, the radioactive areas and hundreds other hazards like rubble, fire and electricity break-outs. However, I knew exactly where I was going because I may not know Fallout City like some others, but I knew a place called New York City when it WAS called "The Big Apple". I think going to New York City was my last vacation destination before the Uprising occurred, and it was less of a vacation and more of a field trip for Grade 10 Social (I was actually in Grade 9 at the time but I was studying Grade 10 Social subjects like Economics for example) learning about how much of a difference particular factors make in things like social understanding, economic success, political success, things like that. I still remember some landmarks like the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State building, Central Park and the Brooklyn Bridge to just list a few from the multiple historic and important locations within the city. I may not know the city like it was the back of my hand like the wasteland in general, but I have a good idea where I am, where I'm going and HOW I'm going to get there. I just got to reach the city limits by passing through the residential zone and I should be golden... hopefully.

I was walking down just one of the main veins that were part of the complex road system of the residential area: the main roads being the most important veins, the secondary ones act as the drive-ways and the alley ways, and the spaces between them all are the houses, shops and parking lots that make up the residential zone. It was like walking down on one system of the anatomy of the city, like the city resembled a human being, it was cool when I'd first thought that when I walked in, but I realize... how easily distracted I am at accomplishing missions, I glanced left and right to break the thought of seeing the city as a human body, to almost admire the little houses that once held innocent and special families that did their daily routines in life. Most of them where somewhat identical, only distinguished by their numbers and their districts. I then trampled over something which almost made me fall over onto the road, thankfully, I caught myself (Huh... that was weird pacing... stop it author, you're making this book more terrible the more time passes on).