The Last Legends: A Novella

Morgan

How long has it been? How long since I have stumbled upon someone human in more than body alone? How long since I have found someone capable of speech? Or even a beating heart? They all died off so fast, the world's population halved within days of the first wave of the Infected.

And how long has it been since I had a real night's sleep? One in a normal bed, not plagued by nightmares. What is the point of nightmares anyway, when they are more pleasant than what has become reality? I only need one or the other keeping me up at night, not both.

I had been walking for hours already. I had begun at the first hint of heat from the sun and had not stopped for so much as a sip of water since. It was already about noon, so, without having a watch or anything I could use to tell definite time, I guessed about four hours. Maybe five, though it felt much longer.

It really didn't matter. I could feel my body was about to give out from hunger. I had been partially lucky in finding a clean looking river, which I had been following for some time, only letting it out of my sight at nightfall. I'm not stupid, though; even though the water looks safer than back when it used to be filtered, I still boil about three bottles worth every night, four if I don't see any nearby buildings that look safe enough for shelter.

All of those pots for boiling water, the lighter, the bottles, my clothes, gun, and bullets really begin to drag you down after a few days. Yet I've been traveling for over a month, though I actually picked up the hunting rifle I was carrying not too long ago. Not to mention not being able to find a steady source of food. I hadn't seen anything larger than a minnow in the river, not that I could catch any size of fish, especially with my bare hands.

I stopped my trek and looked at my surroundings for several minutes. When only birds moved, plus a stray dog which didn't seem very scared of my presence, I determined I was as safe as I was going to get. I took off my boots, followed by my socks. I rolled up my jeans as high as I could and plunged my feet into the icy river.

After a moment of deep, rapid breathing, I gradually got used to the cold and began to enjoy the reprieve my feet were getting. They had begun to blacken from the constant addition of new dirt over the past week from when I had last taken the time to wash any part of my body.

My socks were actually worse off; I may as well have dipped them in black paint. I tossed them aside and dug out a new pair, my last pair. And, while I was at it, I decided to lighten my load a bit. I threw off all my dirty clothes, bathed in the river for several minutes, then fetched my last pair of jeans and one of my last t-shirts from my bag. In all, I probably only relieved myself of a pound, but it was still a pound I no longer had to carry with me.

As I dressed, keeping an eye out just in case my trivial fears of someone watching me were well-founded, I thought about where I was to find new clothing. It may seem, let's face it, stupid to think about at the end of the world, but I couldn't exactly go around naked and, with enough grime caked on, clothes begin to stiffen. So I needed to expand my apocalyptic wardrobe. 

I was now approaching a city downstream, where I was sure I would no longer be able to safely drink the water. I didn't know the name of the city, a rather small one by the looks of it with all the signs so heavily graffitied they were impossible to read, but it was bound to have a store or two with something left. Food would undoubtedly be the first to go, so I did not hold high hopes that I would find anything more than a stale crumb. However, if there was a clothing store, there would likely be at least one thing left for me. Especially if this city was hit hard and fast. Besides, who would immediately loot a clothing store when there are better things to be had?

Jeans. T-shirts. Socks. Food. Those were my top priorities, in no specific order, followed by shelter and water. Actually, shelter probably should have been the first. I didn't like cities, even before the Infection. They are big and hard to navigate, even more so when you don't have a GPS. 

Without trouble, it would take me at least two days to get through, maybe three if I can stock up on resources somewhere. Then, depending on the trouble, I could be there for a week or more. Or I could be there forever. As a corpse.

I debated going around the city. That was probably a safer idea, but it added days to my journey. Days without food and days without water. At least in the city, there was a chance of me finding something of use. Food? Clothes? Maybe even a car!

The thought of finding a car gave me the first hope I had had in a long time, even if it was unfounded. I could vastly increase the distance I traveled with a car. Yes, most were loud, but I could outrun as many infected as I needed with a car! But getting your hopes up during the end of the world is foolish. It is how countless people have died and I desperately needed to get myself under control.

I dug my hand deep into a smaller pouch on my bag and came back with a circular stone, marked with a charcoal H on one side and a T on the other. Since it was a bit bigger than a coin and harder to lose, I kept it with me for situations I was torn on. T for Town, H for something else.

The stone went into the air, seeming to hover for a moment before coming back down a foot in front of me. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I leaned over the stone. A black T stared back at me.