章節 71: 2.40

Just as the sun was beginning to set, we approached a heavily wooded area, leaving the barren desert landscape far behind us.

Everyone was packed into the truck alongside the waning supplies. Only Noah and Will sat up front, Will driving. Trying to avoid civilisation, he had mainly driven off-road making the ride slow and bumpy. Luckily the truck could take it, designed for much worse landscapes than this.

Now we were back on a slightly smoother, well-worn road nearing the campsite we intended to spend the night at. The others were all excited at the prospect of sleeping in beds and meeting new faces; however, I couldn't escape the looming sense of dread in the pit of my stomach.

In the dream, I had been here before and met the small ragtag of soldiers trying to make a survivors camp with the small group of civilians they had rescued. Although, that had been during the freezing cold January, with a different group of people. So who knows what else had changed?

It was now March, and Leo and Holly had survived. Tommy had never found his siblings either, so there was no Dr. Ty or Laura. That Hannah had also never met Alex or had any influence on the group at the college. Had Noah not brought all those people in, would they have lasted longer? Were all those deaths on my head for a selfish choice of wanting safety?

The people we should have met were never found due to my messing up the timeline. Though I suppose since Noah was reborn, he also should have changed quite a few things.

"You alright?" Alex asked, resting his hand on my tiny bump, whilst I nuzzled into him like a cat on his lap.

"Yeah, just eager to find a bed to lie on," I sighed, turning to glance around the truck to study its weary passengers. Lucas had already fallen asleep strewn across Tommy and Sofia.

When the truck finally drifted slowly to a stop, I paid close attention to the buzz of wildlife around us, reacting to our sudden intrusion. Using System, I tried to find the signs of the living and the dead, finding neither.

Was it malfunctioning?

"Excuse me?" It exclaimed, before taking a huff.

I rolled my eyes and took Alex's hand as he helped me off the truck.

We'd parked right opposite the entrance for vehicles. The camping area of the grounds was fenced in, considering the local wildlife. I shivered at the idea of stumbling upon a mutant animal. From what Luke had described earlier, finding this place full of zombies would be preferable to running across a mutated predator.

"Somethings wrong," I heard Noah mutter as he strode ahead, gun cocked. Tommy, Victoria, and Rick swiftly mimicked his actions, following him.

"Stay with Alex," Will pushed me into Alex's open arms, like he did not trust I would do as I was told, then joined his team behind the ominous semi-open gate.

Shortly after he returned, pale-faced.

"Will, you okay?" I pulled out of Alex's hold and jogged over to him, noticing an equally pale-faced Tommy walk towards his siblings.

"No," he replied honestly, clearly in shock. Curious, I tried to pass him to see inside but his hand grabbed my wrist and pulled me into an embrace so tight I could barely breathe.

"Go bring the truck in Will, we'll have to stay here the night regardless…" Noah ordered, opening the gate.

At his instructions, Will finally let go of me to obey. Always a soldier first.

My knees almost buckled at the sight when we entered. Alex steadied me from behind, though his legs seemed just as shaken.

"What a shit show," Ethan whistled from behind.

A shit show was an understatement. What had once been a small bustling hub of survivors in my mind, was now a chaotic, bloody mess of upturned furniture, broken supply boxes, and what were once people, were ripped to shreds and eaten to the point it was unsure which body part belonged to which.

Instantly I bent forward to throw up the small protein bar I'd managed on the truck.

"Quick question," Luke gulped, "if Zombies did this, where are they now?"

"I wanna know why the soldiers seem to think it's okay to stay somewhere like this?" Matt clucked his tongue, displeasure obvious on his frowning face.

"The fence," I steadied myself, wiping my mouth on my sleeve, "safer here than out there when night falls."

"Wasn't too safe for these folks though," Ty walked over with Laura, hauling bags, "still prefer my chances behind these walls than on the road though…"

You and me both.

Despite being exhausted, the soldiers dug a grave, doing their best to bury their fallen comrades and civilians.

Meanwhile, the rest of us cleared up the best we could, setting camp for the night. By the time the sun had completely set the campsite was secure and the campfire was roaring.

In the dim light, we could even trick ourselves into pretending we weren't spending the night in the graveyard of many. Easier for them, they couldn't sense the lingering souls unwilling to part.

"Are we sure staying here is a good idea?" I asked a very dejected Will as he sat on the log beside me. His eyes remained focused on the blazing flames, vacant.

I reached out for his hands, asking System to help me soothe him, "look at me," I ordered, trying to add strength to my words.

Eventually, his eyes slowly shifted to look into mine.

"We're still alive," my smile was faint, but sincere, as I moved our hands to my abdomen, "you're not just my big bro anymore, you're an uncle too, and my little plum, and I need you to be strong for us."

He pulled his hands out of my grip to rest his palm flat on my stomach, I leaned back to give him access, feeling a flutter at his touch.

"Yeah, you're alive," tears crept out of the corner of his eyes as he swiftly pulled me into a tight and desperate embrace. Something told me if I weren't here in Hannah's stead, this man would have long given up.

My chest felt constricted with the weight of responsibility on my shoulders.

After our brief moment of peace by the fire, Will left to use his power to help secure the wooden gates. The others had collected anything metal from the lodges for him to manipulate.

Finding Alex and his friends chatting happily in the cabin I climbed into the bunk under Alex and hugged the musty blanket to sleep.