The Aftermath

S2E2: Alerted

       Morning hits as Chris struggles to keep his eyes open. The feeling of absolute dread fills his eyes as he begins the slow painful walk to the horrid new world. Just one simple doorway is blocking out all the potential danger that can be enacted upon him. This dreadful walk back into reality has now become a normal routine for everyone at camp.
       Chris sighs as he weakly pushes the bunker door open while almost tripping on his own two feet. He squints as he opens the bunker door the sun glaring directly in his face. He holds his arm up to block out the sun's glare and searches for the rest of the group.
He slowly trudges through the camp till he finally finds the group gathered collectively near the infirmary tent. Chris sees both Jeannie and Matthew in the near distance holding what seems to be a map in their hands discussing about the next scavenge.
"There seems to be some vacant stores that haven't been rummaged through yet that we could scavenge not too far from here," Jeannie explains to the group while pointing to the abandoned town.
The map looks crumpled and has multiple red markings written all over resembling all the ransacked stores.
"We can send out a large majority of us to scavenge the town while we have someone take watch over here," Jeannie continues.
The group remains relatively quiet while silently groaning about being up the early.
"I can take watch at camp while you guys scavenge the town," Tamara says breaking the silence.
The group looks at each other with bewilderment wondering why Tamara would want to run this hellhole by herself.
"Tamara are you absolutely sure that you want to run this place by yourself?" Matthew questions Tamara with the same blank emotionless face.
"Yes! Absolutely! It'll be a walk in the park," Tamara answers almost immediately with a hint of satisfaction in her eyes.
"Alright than, it's settled. We should start heading out as soon as possible. Jess and Jill, start packing rations and meet us at the gate," Jeannie says before walking off.
The feeling of exhaustion begins to fade in the group as they are now about to enter the hostile world once again.
At the pantry, Jess and Jill repeat the process of packing away food and water for the scavenge. They share no eye contact as they both mentally prepare for the possible hell that they will all have to face together. Will we make it out alive? Will there be any supplies left in this abandoned town? Is it really worth the risk? Jess thinks to herself while wiping the sweat off her forehead
"Do you think Tamara will be alright here by herself?" Jill asks Jess while still looking down at her pack that's filled to the brim with supplies.
Jess ponders at the question for a moment still wondering on how Tamara survived out here this long.
"I don't know. We will just have to trust her judgement," Jess finally answers.
They remain in silence until all the packs are filled with the necessary supplies. They begin trudging through camp with the heavy packs and see the gate in the distance.
Once the group passes through the gate, they will be tested through many unknown hardships. The air will feel different, and the group's attitude will take a shift as they try their best to adapt to their surroundings. They are about to step into the lion's den, but this time, they'll be ready.
"Are we all ready?" Chris asks the group while holding the gate. They all nod as their whole demeanor changes.
"Alright than, Hayden you got the guns?" Chris asks.
"Yeah I got them. Let's head out now while we still can," Hayden suggests.
Tamara opens the gate as the group begins the process of walking out of their safe haven. They take the first step into this unprotected atmosphere and cautiously look around.
"Stay safe everyone. Look out for each other," Tamara says while smiling softly.
"Will do. Take care of the bunker for us," Matthew says before walking ahead of the group.
       Several hours pass, and the group arrives at the isolated town. The town looks completely cluttered with debris and broken down vehicles. Glass on some buildings are shattered while others are boarded up. A supermarket can be seen up ahead with a few crawlers around it.
This supermarket has sliding doors that are still sealed shut with a large remainder of food inside. A side door is just in view with only one crawler blocking the entrance.
"I think we should take our chances with the side door," Ryan says.
"Yeah but we shouldn't make any noise, so someone has to stab the crawler," Chris says with a sense of realization.
Suddenly, Hayden runs ahead, fleeing past the other crawlers and leaps in the air successfully stabbing the crawler's cranium. Hayden violently rips the knife out of the crawler's head as black blood oozed out. He's taken back from the adrenaline of that moment just when the group catches up with Hayden.
The group opens the side door into the supermarket, and their hearts skip a beat. They see a wide variety of food in the aisles and a pharmacy located at the back of the store.
       "Holy hell," Jeannie exclaims excitedly with a huge smile on her face.
She runs to the aisle closest to her and picks up the first canned food item she sees.
"We can live off the stuff for a solid year at least," Jill says pridefully.
       "We'd have to take several trips in order to collect all the supplies here," Chris says.
"That's true. We should split up to cover more ground," Matthew responds for the first time without an attitude. The group shuffles off excitedly ready to raid this long desired supermarket.
       Meanwhile with Paige, Sarah, Jess and Hayden, they're collecting antibiotics and other medical supplies in the pharmacy. The pharmacy has a few first-aid kits laying on the floor, and empty pill bottles are placed on the floor like land mines.
       "Hey Hayden, can you help me store some antibiotics in my pack?" Jess asks Hayden. "Yeah sure," Hayden responds almost immediately.
"Hey Sarah I need to talk to you," Paige says suddenly.
       Paige reaches out and grabs Sarah's arm to pull her aside in private. Paige's usual joking demeanor has left and is filled with some type of terror. Paige takes a deep breath and faces Sarah getting ready to open up one last time.
       "Listen. I need you guys to not call me Paige anymore. It reminds me too much of my horrid past," Paige says to Sarah while avoiding eye contact.
"Okay. What would you like us to call you then?" Sarah asks while her facial expression screams bewilderment.
       "My current name is a terrible reminder of the past. I could never live up to my family's expectations and that forever damaged me. Paige died before this apocalypse even started. That's not who I am anymore. I'm not the scared isolated teenager that's scared of their own shadow. Paige is holding my true self back. You can call me Simon from now on. It's what I'm comfortable with," Paige reveals.
Paige covers his face with the palms of his hands and rests his body on the closest chair looking out into the isolated supermarket. Sarah stares at her best friend in disbelief wondering how he was able to hide this side of him.
How long has Paige held this secret deep inside? Why hasn't told me before? Sarah thinks to herself before looking back at her emotionally drained friend.
"Alright than Simon. You know I will always be here for you," Sarah responds finally.
"Let's bring this stuff back to the rest," she continues finally reassuring him.
Simon remains quiet and just follows Sarah feeling at peace with letting go of his troubles.
While Simon and Sarah prepares to walk back to the group, Chris, Jeannie, and Ryan are searching for canned food. They pass by empty bags and cans as they avoid broken down carts in the rummaged down aisles. The actual shelf itself was rusting away while cobwebs rested upon it.
They admired the shelves while looking for food that hasn't spoiled yet.
"Let's divide and conquer. I'll look at this aisle while you guys check the other one out," Ryan says.
"Got it. Call out if you see anything good," Chris responds while walking into the eerie aisle.
Jeannie rummages through the dirt and dust to try and decipher where possible food sources can be. Jeannie digs through the rubble to see through the bottom shelf of the aisle. Behind that rubble showcases an array of canned goods consisting of fruit and vegetables.
       "Chris get over here!" Jeannie yells excitedly pacing back and forth. Chris admires the cans; holding them like a precious artifact.
"These are Rosie's favorite," Chris says while motioning to the canned pineapples. Chris's tone shifts as soon as the thought of Rosie crosses his mind.
Is Rosie still alive? Will I ever get the chance to see her again? Will it ever be the same? Chris thinks to himself while still admiring the can of pineapples.
"Do you remember a time before the apocalypse?" Chris asks Jeannie with the same expression on his face.
"Of course I do. We were happy, but it doesn't mean that we cannot be happy ever again," Jeannie says reassuringly.
"But how can we be sure that Rosie is alive? Can we ever go back to the way things were?" Chris asks as a tear begins to streak down his face.
"It's hard to know what the future will hold, but I have faith in our group. I'm sure Rosie's alive. She has to be," Jeannie says as she sits down and sighs with exhaustion.
Jeannie and Chris sit quietly, enjoying the silence that they don't experience often. Jeannie twiddles with the radio antenna and contemplates on whether or not to try and contact Rosie. Chris looks to his left and sees through the window which reflects the dangers of the outside world.
"Hey guys I have what I need. Are you ready to head back to the others?" Ryan asks.
Chris takes a final look through the window getting a visual of the harsh roads and destroyed buildings before standing up from his seated position.
"Sure thing. Let's go take inventory with the rest," Chris says before walking back into reality once again.
Towards the front of the supermarket, Ricky, Jill, Skyy and Matthew scavenge for anything useful near the cash registers. All the carts are cluttered here with expired beverages and rations. There's boarded up windows and a small pocket where the glass seems flimsy and vulnerable towards the corner of the supermarket.
"Alright everyone try to find anything that seems useful. It doesn't have to be food related. It can even be plastic bags for all I care," Matthew says before walking off while playing with his knife.
"Hey Ricky, I'm going to go check for any supplies behind that counter," Jill says while pointing to this oddly placed counter in the middle of the store.
Ricky hesitates at first, wondering if it's a good idea to separate this close to the entrance.
"Sure thing just don't go to far," Ricky says to her worriedly.
Jill walks off while Ricky watches her with a hint of fear in his eyes.
"It's really sweet how protective you are of her," Skyy says suddenly with the same innocent smile portrayed on her face as always.
"What makes you say that?" Ricky asks curiously.
"It's just the way you look at her. I can tell that you're a very caring person," Skyy says while rummaging through the rubble.
"Oh please! Compared to you I'm a devil with the way you handle that emotional boyfriend of yours," Ricky says as the worry finally fades from his demeanor for a moment.
"He actually isn't as bad as he seems," Skyy chuckles.
"If it weren't for him, I wouldn't be alive right now. Sure he's very stubborn at times, but he has a big heart," Skyy says reassuringly while looking through the boarded up glass window.
Suddenly, Skyy's entire demeanor changes, and she quickly pulls Ricky down hiding behind an old register. Ricky looks at her with bewilderment but quickly gets shushed as they slowly raise their heads above the counter.
Screaming can be heard in the distance, as a young teenage girl is seen running towards the entrance desperately trying to pry the doors open to the supermarket. Tears rapidly stream down her face as she violently screams for help. She looks visibly worn, and blood can be seen on her torn clothes.
Crawlers can be seen gaining on the defenseless teenager as she pounds on the front entrance trying desperately to infiltrate the store. Skyy covers her mouth and gets glassy eyed as she tries to avoid eye contact with the innocent girl.
Suddenly this massive, tall, and awkwardly slender black figure appears behind the girl and drags her body across the hard paved road. The figure brings it closer to the crawlers while they surround the slender creature like some sort of ritual.
The creature gapes the girl's jaw wider and wider, until the screaming comes to a halting stop. The girl's lifeless body laid on the road as the slender figure began to shift into the victim's body.
Skyy begins to slowly shuffle backwards quietly and than carelessly steps on a can. Skyy's heart dropped to the floor as she sits through the most awkward and painful silence she's ever encountered.
Once Skyy looked up at the little crevice on the boarded up window, there it was. The same lifeless body of the girl that the slender creature had taken control over. Her outfit looks rather polished and clean like a normal human would usually be.
Skyy is in disbelief as a million questions formulate in her head. What is that thing? Are they sensitive to sound? Does it take over an exact replica of its victim? Skyy thinks to herself with the same wide eyed expression.
Skyy is in shock and begins to hyperventilate at this new revelation. She can't move. She is absolutely still as she cowers in fear prepared for the inevitable. The creature's mouth gapes open as it makes a blood curdling scream that's enough to frighten anyone.
"Oh my god," Skyy whispers to herself in complete shock.
The crawlers can be seen running towards the supermarket at full speed prepared to leap through the weakly boarded up windows. Sky just remains there as the others begin the process of running towards the others.
"Skyy! Run!" Matthew yells across the store.
Skyy quickly turns around as she can feel her heartbeat rapidly elevate with every stride she takes. She's already out of breath from the utter and complete shock of the slender figure.
The sound of glass shattering can be heard in the distance as the groans of the crawlers inches closer and closer towards the group. Any wrong move. Any wrong action. Any wrong turn they make. Is instant death.