Inevitability
Tomorrow

September. At least I think it's September. It's been too long for me to keep track of everything. I still remember a couple months ago I fell into that reservoir by complete accident. Some idiot left a tire iron near it and apparently it blended in so well with the surroundings I didn't notice until i tripped over it.

That gun I hid from her until that one beast attacked us was hidden under the passenger side of the car. I made my own brackets to hold it too. I also had to assemble it while the battle was raging on. The main part is under the car, the rest is in the trunk which we keep open pretty much all the time. Rain won't matter since we clean our weapons regularly and always watch for any sign of rust. That gun though, it's just too damn hard to aim with it. I blew off the beast's arm with a lucky shot. Thought my arms were going to rip out of their sockets when I fired it too. The force it had was incredible. Strangely it wasn't as loud as what I thought it would be like.

I can tell she was mad at me since I didn't know exactly where we were going. Anyone would've gotten mad at that. What I do know is that now there must be a reason for all these things happening. That scientists told me about their little project and how they took prisoners and made them into those demons. I'm still not sure what he called the virus but it can only be transmitted through blood or saliva. Any other way is mainly impossible. The virus ceases all functions of the brain and when the body dies it creates it's own current into the brain. Well, apparently they didn't know that was only for those zombies everywhere. Those beasts, or whatever, have something else going on. It's like they're still alive almost. I rather not think about it. I guess they are dead since they can't control themselves and have the same weakness as the zombies: The need for flesh.

Things have been dying down the further we travel. It's probably because of the vast open valleys and such. Not sure when the next city or town is but more than likely there'll be the living dead waiting for their meal.

November or December. I don't know how much more of this I can take. Everything's beginning to take a toll on me and I doubt I'll last another year if this keeps up. It probably won't though. I have to look on the brighter side of things even though it's hard as hell to begin to think it.

All we've found on our whole trip so far are ruined cities, destroyed civilizations, and thousands upon thousands of corpses. After you've been on a long trip like us you grow use to seeing it everyday. It's not that it still doesn't bother me but the fact that I know what's out there. If there is hope out there somewhere, maybe someone not thinking about killing themselves when they find a gun, we can at least maintain our sanity in this wreched world.

Those damn things never stop wailing and moaning! It's driving me to the brink of insanity! I fear that everytime I lay down something might bust through the door of this old mansion. Mostly afraid of those demon-looking things. I still don't know how many each lab over the whole was carrying. From the looks of the one we found, it seemed they tried to hold around six or eight. Maybe just three but I know it wasn't only one. Our ammunition hasn't died out but it almost did the last time we encountered one of those fuckers. I only have a limited supply of those anti-tank rounds left. I guess it's best to see what else we're up against before we load up anything we don't need.

Early 2005. The last of humanity might be gone forever. About a week since my last entry in this journal we found a city with survivors in it. I was so relieved to see that some other people have made it! The city was barricaded as best as possible and after a few minutes of discussion we were let in. We got to keep our ammo and supplies since their supply hasn't even gone down half-way. They lost a lot of people while trying to fight for their city back and burned every corpse they found. None of them knew what day it was, what month it was, and almost didn't know what year it was. I can relate.

After a few days there I began asking around if any of the people have came in contact with those monsters that I seem to run into constantly. Nobody has even seen anything similar to it. I thought for sure there'd be at least one person who saw it raising hell through the city. I asked how it all began for them and each one had a different story but it all lead up to them running into the mall and somehow taking charge from there. Apparently their mall had a gun shop and they decided to take back what was rightfully theirs to begin with. We shared stories of our travels and the horrors we faced with each passing moment as entertainment. Of course it sounds morbid but it's the only thing we had. Entertainment's hard to come by in a crisis such as this. We told jokes, had a good old fashion barbeque for the first time in what seemed like ages, and even acted as if the things outside those huge fences and lined cars weren't even there. It was good while it lasted.

It wasn't long after until all hell broke lose. It seems bad luck follows me everywhere I go. Late one night I decided I might try and write down some more into my journal but just as soon as I picked up the pencil I heard a blood curdling scream from outside. I dropped the pencil but kept my journal in my hand as ran outside followed by everyone else there and even Jenkins' ex. It took us only a matter of seconds to realize what had happened. "Get back inside and grab your guns!" one of the city's folk told me. I looked down the street and saw what I hoped to God I never saw again. But there it was. Another one of those fucking beasts. It was just standing there though. It didn't move, didn't try to attack, it didn't even look like it was alive until I saw it's chest rise and fall from breaths.

I gripped my journal tighter and turned around to go inside and fetch my shotgun only to be stopped by another beast. This one was just four feet away from the person nearest me. It lifted one giant arm and took one swipe at the person tearing skin, bones, ligaments, whatever you can think of, right out of it's path through the unlucky person's torso. I held my journal up in time to protect me from the slinging blood and sinew. It was no time to be vomiting now. I wiped the excess blood off with my arm and ran into the small apartment following my only partner who's stayed alive this long with me. Once we got to the room I threw the journal to the floor making it create a tiny splash from the blood still coating it. I dove to the floor and reached under the bed to retrieve my shotgun then grabbed as many extra shells I could and dumped them into my trenchcoat. The coat still fit through all this time I've been wearing it.

On our way back through the apartment we heard more screams followed by gunshots from various types of guns. That roar. That horrible roar came from the lungs of one of those hideous beasts just right outside the building. I cringed and took a deep breath then ran outside to face the onslaught. The beast closest to me had already wiped out half of the people here and was about to clear out more if I hadn't stepped in. It raised it's bloody claw and was about to strike down another helpless person until I raised my gun, aimed, and fired. The beast stumbled sideways for a few seconds as it's blood sprayed along the ground. I cocked the gun and fired again this time stepping closer. More blood was spilled from the abomination in front of me. It let out another screech but this time I could hear pain in it. "Come on! Get away from it!" I yelled to them. They did as instructed and went into the apartment complex to get themselves ready. I checked the barricade where I saw the first beast and was amazed that it didn't move yet. It was a abd decision for me to turn my head away from my enemy.

The next thing I knew I was going throught he air and hit something hard enough to knock all the breath out of me. I don't know where my gun went. My chest hurt and I couldn't see straight for a few seconds. By my side was my best partner and friend trying to pull me up. "Thanks...uh..," I managed to mutter. She gave me a quick smile and replied, "Alyssa." I nodded and held myself up against the brick wall I must have hit. I watched as Alyssa held up her assault rifle and aimed right between the thing's eyes. Time acted as if it didn't exist right when she pulled the trigger. I quick burst of light and three bullets were sent flying towards their target. Only the target moved from it's original position. They hit the sign behind it creating sparks and loud 'pings' off of it. The monster crouched and lowered one shoulder then ran straight at her. I saw my shotgun finally but it was too late. The thing crunched it with one foot rendering it completely useless. It didn't even slow down until it's shoulder connected with Alyssa's body sending her flying straight into the side of our car.

Glass shattered and metal crunched. I couldn't do anything. I was helpless. I had no means of protection except my fists and a whole lot of good they'd do me against the rough skin of those things. As I watched Alyssa's body slump down from it's impact I noticed her gun was gone. I checked the ground next to the beats and there it was with still twenty- seven rounds left in it. I dove for the gun and pulled finger around to the trigger as soon as my hand touched it. I was extremely pissed. The only person who kept me sane through this whole trip might now be dead all because of this damn monster! I raised my arm and shoved the barrel right against it's ribs then held the trigger down.

Blood erupted in bursts from each bullet and landed either on my arm or back. Staying on the ground from here was a good idea. It didn't see me at all. Maybe these things have a different fault in their design. The beast lumbered its way backwards. Blood still gushed from its open wounds and splattered against the pavement. I pushed myself up and gathered my myself while watching the thing scream and clutch at its chest. I few seconds passed until I noticed that the monster would take a while to recover from something like that and headed towards Alyssa. My heart stopped as I reached her. She was motionless and a tiny line of crimson went from her mouth down her neck. I gently grabbed her by the shoulders and slowly eased her down to the ground. I didn't have time to check for a pulse yet since that other demon might be trying to break through the fence right now. The gun I needed was in pieces and hopefully I could put it together before anything terrible happens again.

I grabbed the pieces to the gun as fast as possible and heard somehting that put some courage back into myself. Someone else was shooting at the zombies nearest us and them. I assembled the big gun in a few moments and snatched a handful of the bullets knocking some to the ground and losing sight of them. I don't know how many bullets had then but I took one and shoved the rest into my trenchcoat. The gun made a big clunking sound when it hit the ground so I could reload it. The other person helping me was the one who had hosted our barbeque earlier. They had some kind of rifle but I couldn't tell at the time so I slung my rifle over my shoulder and ran next to them. "It's good you could finally help!" he said as he took aim and shot another ghoul down. I just gestured towards my gun and knelt down facing the fence.

There were so many more than before! It's like they were just popping out of the ground right there! I acted as fast as I could and aimed directly at the forehead of the next beast. The shot echoed as loud as all the moans and growls muttered from the ghouls around us. The bullet traveled its course and pinned itself directly into the head of the huge beast sending it backwards with a trail of blood flowing from the wound. It didn't seem to make a sound and I was wondering why it didn't even try to move or tear the fence down at all. It was about that time I heard the person behind me scream and I only turned around to see a huge claw penetrate through his torso. His screams stopped instantly as the creature lifted him up and threw him to the side setting its sight upon me. That other demon was just a distraction! One to make us focus on until the other recovered. I spun around reloded as the demon before me lumbered forward with blood oozing from the wounds I inflicted earlier. Each step it took seemed to shake the ground lightly and each step brought it closer towards me by about three or four feet.

I managed to load another bullet into the gun as others spilled out of my pocket and onto the ground. As I pulled the rifle up I didn't bother to aim and just pulled the trigger as another round was ejected and rocketed towards my approacher. I loud and audible crunch sounded out and when I looked in the beast's direction I saw that the round had made a successful hit directly to its head. The crunch was from its bone breaking and splitting. The beast fell to its knees and slumped over itself then laid still. For a few seconds I stared in awe wondering how the hell a person could manage to look so horrible from just a chemical. Of course there were other chemicals out there that could more than likely fuck you up but this was beyond anything like a disease or minor burn. It was like an infection of mass proportions. What alerted me back to reality was the sound of someone coughing. I glanced around and saw Alyssa holding her chest and spatters of crimson near her.

It only took me a split-second to tell myself to leave the gun and help her. I crouched by her side and gently held her head agaisnt my arm while keeping a look out for any zombies that may try to advance. She coughed a few more times, each sending its own red dust at me, and finally realized she was being held. She smiled and reached one of her slender hands up to my face then ran her fingers through my hair as if everythign was fine. Nothing was fine. It was far from being anywhere near the word "good". "Hey...," she said in almost a whisper. I hushed her as best I could and shifted myself better to hold her. Nothing came near us yet. It was safe for a few more moments. "I'll be OK...just make sure I don't slow you down...," she muttered and relaxed slightly. "Don't leave me now!" I urged. She sighed, probably from exhaustion, and moved her lips forming words but no sound came out. I could tell she was going to be fine for a little bit but we had to get out of here and fast.

I picked her up and clicked the car door setting her in fast but gently. I didn't hear anything else from her except her soft breathing. I grabbed a couple pistols from the trunk and put on my own holsters then grabbed another shotgun before remembering we needed more ammo. I was torn with either leaivng her helpless and defensless or just going on and the next thing we encounter we better have luck on our side. Luck seemed to be just what we needed but I knew better than to take great chances. I put a broken door against the passenger side of the car just so nothing could get to her immediatly if anything even tried to.

The gun shop was in the mall and I had to take a huge risk for myself and Alyssa's life if was going in. I only had four shells loaded into the shotgun and one full clip to each pistol. All in all I had thirty four shots total. I had to make sure either to not run into anything or as little as possible. The mall was only just down the street but that was still time I had to leave Alyssa in the car by herself and time I couldn't waste. I swallowed my pride and hoped for the best as I ran straight towards the place.

The parking lot was rather vacant of anything. Carts were stranded out in the middle of nowhere and every now and then I came across spots of dried blood. How did I know it was blood? It's the only thing that turns a rusty color after time besides metal. I didn't know if there would be any way of getting out alive or not but I needed the ammo to survive a little bit longer. There was no way I would go out there and face those things with what I had left. The doors were finally in front of me after a little running and to my surprise, locked. I don't know why the people thought of locking the damn thing in case they might have needed cover or a shelter later. I couldn't see inside since all the lights were off and it was basically night outside. The only way in was to shoot the lock or break the glass. Didn't want to make too much sound so I just pulled out one of my pistols and fired at the lock. It left a nice black hole where the key should've gone and tiny metal fragments fell out. I yanked the door open and holstered the pistol back reminding myself I only had thirty three more shots.

The inside of the mall was larger than it appeared on the outside. The whole place was like a mansion and I only had a little bit of time left to search the facility for the gun shop. Nothing moved, moaned, or growled through the main entrance at me and I figured it was best to let my guard down and try finding what I needed fast. Bad idea.

About eight stores from the doors a damn zombie lunged out at me from a hallway leading to the bathrooms. Scared me so bad I leaped back and tripped over a garbage can knocking its contents and my shotgun to the floor. The creature didn't stop there. It slouched its way towards me as fast as it could while I tried scrambling for one of my pistols. The thing caught itself on the bench nearby and fell to the floor with a loud plop but didn't even seem phased. It just kept coming! I finally felt the grip of one of my pistols and snatched it. My target was almost staring me in the face now. I took a deep breath and jammed the gun directly into it's left eye then fired two shots off. Brain matter made a mess behind it as it collapsed right into my lap. I pushed it off and holstered my pistol then grabbed the shotgun and ran towards the nearest map.

The whole fucking place was so dark I could barely see my own hands in front of my face. I didn't have time to find a flashlight so I tried my best at making out the map in the blanket of darkness. I had so much trouble finding the damn red arrow to show me where I was it felt like I would be too late for anything. It was a lot better than running around the place not having any clue at all. Finally, after about five minutes, I found it and traced myself a path towards their gunshop.

I made sure I knew where to go and ran straight towards my goal. Every store was open and no shutters were closed so I figured the gunshop's entrance would be fine. I rounded a corner and shoved my shotgun straight into the gut of a zombie. A very pissed zombie from what it seemed. I didn't hesitate either. A loud crackle and the ghoul flew into two seperate pieces along with bits of itself in other directions. I knew the thing was still alive but I didn't have time to kill it completely. Around the next corner I saw a faint glimmer of a sign. I couldn't read it but I could tell it was my place I was looking for. The doors were held open and everything inside almost looked untouched. Some guns were disturbed or missing but other than that it looked fine. That was until I went behind the counter.

Boxes of ammo were scattered all over the floor with bullets lying in every direction. It almost seemed like they wanted to piss me off and knew I was coming! I found a light switch and clicked it on to make sure I wasn't seening things in the dark. That was an even worse idea. I now saw exactly fucked up they made the counter seem. Everything looked worse than it did. I kicked the back room's door open and was relieved to find crates of ammunition covered by a thin layer of dust. They seemed to have forgotten about this area. I pried to top off reluctantly. There were so many nails in the damn thing it almost seemed impossible. After a few seconds I found boxes of nine millimeter rounds and twelve-gauge shotgun shells. There was a small box on the floor and I used that to gather up as much as I could. I even threw in a couple guns that caught my eye. When I was finished the thing weighed quite a bit but not nearly as much as the whole crate itself.

Coming out of the room I set the box on the counter and cleared a way for me to walk until I heard something else. Something like someone was stomping on the carpet in the store. When I lifted my head up I quickly ducked back down. Of all the times, it has to be now! There was another one of those beasts in there with me. I took another glance and saw it wasn't a different one. It was the one that hit Alyssa and it was still bleeding all over the carpet. Now I was fucking pissed. It might have killed her while I was in here trying to get our ammo! I couldn't control myself for what I did next. I grabbed my shotgun and threw myself over the counter firing a shot aimed at its head. The beast staggered a bit then roared louder than anything I've heard. The glass from a few stores shattered all over the floor including the one I was in, of course. When it stopped I cocked the gun and rammed it straight into the thing's chest then fired again. This time blood shot out of its back like a small explosion and even hit the far wall. It toppled over on itself as fast as I had pulled the trigger as well. I could tell it was still alive but dying quick. I cocked the gun once more and placed it at the demon's temple then squeezed the trigger. They feel no remorse so why should I? The head exploded in a fury of red and pink dust as well as a huge blood patch on the floor. There was almost nothing left of it. I began laughing to myself and wiped the blood from my sleeves and gun. I had to get back to Alyssa.

I put the shotgun on a strap and slung it over my shoulder while I grabbed the box of ammo and made my way back through the mall. I found that zombie I blew in half had made its way to the store as well. I decided to just end it right there and dropped the heavy box onto its soft skull. There was crack and nothing more. When I pulled the box up there was bits of its head stuck to it but it wasn't moving. I made my way onward towards Alyssa hoping time was on my side this time.

No zombies or anything made their way towards me while I found my exit. So far so good. I kicked the door the mall open and ran out almost spilling the conents of the box on the floor. I finally got back to the car and defended myself with melee attacks to anything that tried to touch me. The trunk was already open so I placed the box inside and reloaded my shotgun in the process. When I knocked the broken door away my heart stopped. She wasn't moving and it looked she wasn't breathing either. I leaned next to her and listened closely until I heard a soft wind moving through her mouth. She wasn't dead thankfully. I ran to the other side and layed the shotgun between the both of us then turned the key to the ignition. Nothing happened but a sputter and then it died. I sat there for a moment thinking to myself wondering why everything around me has to just fucking die when I rely on it so much! I tried again thinking something like a miracle could happen. Still nothing.

I tightened my hand into fists and beat the stearing wheel furiously. Gasoline had been so hard to come by our whole time! I kept cursing and hitting the damned thing for about four or five minutes until I felt a gentle hand on my shoulder. It was Alyssa! She coughed a bit and whispered, "It's going to be O.K...we won't die like this..." I wished I could've believed her but there was so many things going wrong that I had a hard time believing anything good might happen. Bad luck streaks have never been this cruel before. She somehow managed to keep a high spirit even when she could die at any given moment! I admired her and only until now I realized that I loved her as well. I didn't want her to leave me! I told her stay still while I searched nearby for any kind of gas. She smiled weakly and nodded. I took no time in cutting the ends off of a hose then stuck one end into the nearest car's gas tank. I began sucking on the other until I tasted the nasty and strong liquid which I put into out car's gas tank immediatly. Some of it had spilled out but not a signifigant amount. I waited a while and checked the hose to see if it was all gone. I dropped the hose and got back into the car then stopped. There was a roadblock of zombies ahead of us and we couldn't get enough speed to get through. My ideas were always bad but I had to do something. I ripped one of my spare shirts in two and tied the ends together then stuffed it into the other car's tank to see how much gas was left. Enough.

I couldn't help but smile when I found my lighter still worked. The shirt was dangling out of the side of the car like an extra appendage and I held the lighter near the end of it. It caught eventually and I pulled the car out of park and set it into neutral then pushed it towards the group of zombies and ducked. I took one quick peek as it rolled its way towards the group then bumped into some knocking them over but getting stuck under it. The car suddenly exploded into a firey mass sending metal and glass in a thousand directions. Almost all of the ghouls were knocked completely off their feet from the force of the blast and landing a few feet away from where they were standing or even a few yards if they were close enough. Nothing hit me or our own car so I got back in and started it up but this time it gave me a nice roar when it came to life. There was just enough space for me to drive through without getting a scratch and began gaining speed as we neared the fence. It was down but still an obsticle. We bumped over that and hit the ground on the other side then we were free. For a while.

A few days after we rested near a forest and decided to just try and relax as best as possible. Alyssa was feeling better but still looked like hell and she didn't have any energy to do anything anymore. It was my guess that something happened to her internally but she refused that and ignored her pains. I caught her wincing every time she took a step or cringe whenever she sat down or stood up. She was dying. There was no easy way of saying it and I just had to make the best of it while I still could. We told stories to make us laugh. We stayed close together at night while watching our camp fire. It was as if it was only us on the entire world. In a manner of speaking it probably was. Nothing jumped out at us or groaned its wail of mourn for us to hear.

Both of us lost track of time and fell asleep one night. I awoke to fine Alyssa still lying down with her eyes shut. Deciding not to wake her yet I grabbed a skillet from the trunk and opened a cooler full of fresh meat. I got my own fire started and threw a few pieces of baccon into the pan then held it over the glowing aura for a while. Grease formed under the meat as it curled and popped while it heated. I thought for sure she would wake up from the aroma it created. She hadn't moved an inch. It suddenly hit me. I laid the skillet on the ground and put out the fire then walked over to her. I knew what had happened. She was gone. Passed away in her sleep. I don't know exactly how she did but more than likely it was from a broken rib jabbing her in the heart. Must've completely ripped through it now. There was nothing I could do and it was no use crying to for someone who wasn't there.

I emptied the baccon on the road and threw the skillet back into the car. I wasn't hungry anymore. There was a large blanket in the backseat we both used to keep warm the other night. I took it out and set it on the hood as I retrieved the one she had. One last look at her face and I let the new blanket cover her like snow. Every new day brings new challenges. I heard that somewhere before and now it makes sense. There's always something new to deal with the day after. Almost like an impending doom that just waits until tomorrow. There's so much I don't understand. The next town is quite a few miles from where I am right now. After I covered Alyssa's body I went here. Here? It's just further on down the road. It seems strange to me at how there's only this one town in the middle of nowhere with one road in and two roads out. I found a map stashed under a pile of shit in the back of the car along with a letter from Alyssa addressed directly to me. It was in an envelope and clearly written on the front. She never knew my name either. All it said on the envelope was "To the man who's kept me safe for the past year. From Alyssa."

It was written just recently since there were no folds, tears, or even any stains or dust on it. It was tucked in the cushion of the passenger's seat just barely enough for me to catch it with my eye. I don't know if I should open it or not. What's inside could make me do something I might regret later. Whatever it says, though, it must be important.

*****

I looked at the letter today. I can't really say anything about it except that now I'm determined to find out what happened to this dead planet and why. There's not going to be anymore pointless searching for mainly supplies. I have enough to last me for a while now. This whole area thinned out from a lush forest to just massive plains. Alyssa will always be with me whether I know it or not. I know I can't let her down now. She died because one of those fucking things killed her! My friends, my family, everybody has died because of those things created for...something. There's got to be a reason! It can't just be military purposes! Nothing can happen on a large scale such as this for just some fucking military assholes who think they need different weapons!!

I can see the town from here now. It's not much of a town either. So very few houses and one big fence surrounding it all. I can tell something's happened too since the fence has several holes the size of gorillas. There's a tall building too but I can't tell what it is. No movement. Maybe for once I'll find the answers I'v been looking for all this time. The place looks like it's ready for war as well. Sandbags have been piled up in certain areas but very sloppy. Perhaps I'll find more than what I intended to...