The road kept going, and I didn't see anything else in sight. The sun shone down overhead, and my stomach reminded me that I was still alive. With the weight of the rifle gone I walked a little faster down the road.

I followed the bend, and was surprised to find nothing but beautiful nature all around me. The dirt soon became gravel as I took a left turn, and hesitated for a moment.

I'm not stopping. Not anymore.

A truck blocked my path, having crashed and it's loaded trailer of hay bails had rolled onto the road. I pulled the pistol out, and carefully walked forwards. I stopped a few feet away, and looked around.

The place seemed to be deserted, but I wasn't sure about it. I walked towards the truck that was in the ditch, and I looked at the drivers door. The front had caved in, and their was no way anybody could have survived it unless they were thrown from the vehicle.

I kept the pistol out as I move to the back of it. I went in between the trailer and the truck to get to the other side. I was almost through when I heard a twig snap. I froze, and cocked the pistol. I tilted my head to see if I could catch what made the noise.

Seconds ticked by, and I waited patiently to see if I could hear it again. Then, another twig snapped, and I slid back carefully. I couldn't see the road at all, and I was extremely close to a section of trees that marked the ending of a small forest.

I sat their, crouched against the back of the truck when another twig snapped. My heart started to flutter, and I felt sweat starting to form on my face. I peeked around the corner again, and didn't see anything. Anxious to move, I stepped out from behind the truck to find nothing in the woods.

I lowered the gun, having raised it halfway to my chest, and looked towards the road. The trailer partially blocked my view, but I could see down the road. Another vehicle blocked the road again. This time it was a school bus, and it had hay bails piled in the ditch.

I slipped the gun away, but I was still nervous. How could that had happened unless someone had did it on purpose. It's only been 8 days, and this made me think.

Whoever did this is one smart person

I walked around the trailer, and made my way onto the road. I looked around to see why this was placed here, and saw a rock road leading off of this road. A red cattle fence was blocking the entrance, and I glanced around again.

I don't know if their alive....

This path has to lead to somewhere, and I saw no other road. I walked over to the fence, and laboriously climbed over. I jumped from the top, and landed with a dull thud as my pack slapped against my back.

I looked around, and followed the path into a peaceful wooded area. After a few minutes of walking the path gradually became newer, and finally gave way to pavement. Through the trees I could see the top of a house, and I soon found that this was connected to a back yard.

I slipped over a small white fence, and walked towards a street that seemed deserted. A white car faced me parked in front of a nice house that was painted white. I looked around to find nothing else that seemed threatening as I made my way towards the car.

I reached towards the handle, and pulled it softly. It moved up, but wouldn't open.

"Locked. Guess I'll have to use force then." Said I with a resentful tone.

I pulled the pistol out, and gripped it by the barrel. I brought it back, and used the butt to smash in the window. Right after the break a loud noise came from the car, and filled the air.

"Shit... why did I do that?" I asked myself as I had no clue why.

I unlocked the door, and hurriedly opened it. A sifted through the front compartments, finding nothing of use, and I quickly looked around. One rotter had came from behind the nice house, and was making its way towards me.

I looked into the back seat and found nothing at my glance. Giving up on that I clicked the trunk button, and barely heard it pop over the noise. Another rotter had joined its friend, and they stumbled over towards me.

Oh god... please give me more time.

I ran over to the trunk and flipped it open. A gun case lay inside, and a few boxes of bullets sat next to it with some hunter orange. I slung off my back pack, and fiddled with the zipper.

"Come on!! Open you stupid bag!" I glanced back over to the closing rotters as my fingers failed to grasp the zipper.

Managing to find one, I yanked it over top, and grabbed the two boxes of bullets. I pushed them into the bag, and quickly zipped it shut again. Three more rotters had shown up after the first two, and I couldn't risk it anymore.

I pulled out the pistol, and took aim. I aimed it at the closest one, and pulled the trigger. Watching it drop to the ground, I fired at the next one, but missed. I shot once more, and the bullet dug into its jaw, but didn't kill it. The third shot finally found its mark, and I went back to the trunk.

I just grabbed the case, and pulled it out; to worried about the approaching rotters close by. While I pulled the case out I saw movement in the corner of my eye, and I flung it around. While spinning around I saw a rotter close up to my face, and watched as the bag smashed its face.

The blood splurged from the face, and it splashed onto my shirt. Luckily, the car alarm covered any noise up, and I quickly stumbled backwards. I looked in all directions to find a small horde surrounding me.

I wish I had that rifle...

I shook the thought from my head as I pulled the pistol out with my right hand. I switched hands, and squeezed the trigger, watching a rotter nearby fall to the ground. I ran towards the fallen body, and pulled the trigger five more times before emptying the clip. Two more rotters fell at the frantic firing, and I tried to push in another clip after I had ejected the other one.

Rotters tried to grab my bag, arms, and chest as I ran towards the thinnest part. I pulled the trigger three more times to see two rotters fall to the ground. I kept running as I could feel their massed bodies closing in. Only a little bit farther, only a few more shots, and I would be free of their clutches.

Four rotters stood in my way, and I tried to aim my shots as I sprinted forward. I shot twice, and was happy to see two of them fall. I pulled the trigger two more times, but only one fell. I didn't bother anymore with the gun, and I started to run faster.

The rotter reached out at me, his fingers extending towards my closing body as I dashed towards him. I pulled my arm in, and put one more forceful step in before I met the rotters body. It shuddered, and I felt arms grasping my body as we fell to the ground. The teeth snapped next to my ear, and I reached for the knife in its sheathe. I pulled it out, and forced it into its head as I rolled away.

I had dropped the gun, but didn't want to go back for it as I quickly scrambled upwards, and continued running. My breathing was starting to be rapid gasps for air as I ran into the woods. I didn't care about not seeing anything, I only cared about getting away from the rotters.

I gripped the knife tightly with my left hand, and remembered the bag on my back. It hung over my pack, and almost hit my legs every time I took a step. I slowed down after I had gotten myself considerably lost, and sat on a rotten log.

I looked up to find the multicolored leaves blocking the sun up above, and I pulled my backpack of slowly. My legs ached with exhaustion, and my arms felt weak. My left shoulder started to throb, and I wondered if that was from the first encounter with a horde.

I sifted through my back pack, and pulled out a bottle of water. I quickly twisted the cap off, and took three rapid gulps of the warm liquid. I finally pulled away to take a breath, and screwed the cap back on.

The gun bag sat their next to my pack, and I wondered what was inside. I looked around to see if I was alone, and then I leaned forward. I grabbed the handle to it, and drug it towards the rest of my body. I examined the bag, and my curiosity got the better of me. I looked around for a zipper, but all I found was a broken one. It was lodged in the corner, and was stuck tight.

I quickly thought about slamming the bag into the rotters face, and decided the reason to why it was broke. I still held the knife, and I delicately tried to cut open the fabric. The olive green fabric seemed worn thin as when I first tried to cut it I succeeded.

I continued to slowly, and carefully cut along the zippers course until I had cut the whole bag open. I had it balanced on my knees, and when I flipped the fabric off I stifled a cry of happiness. Inside of the bag was a bolt action rifle, my favorite gun of all time. It was a single shot, but that didn't faze me. I had spent countless hours with one on my grandpas farm, and knew that I could quickly reload one.

A nice scope was mounted on top of it, and seemed to be a regular one with a plain cross hair, and four times zoom. I almost jumped up giddily with the new weapon I had acquired. I looked inside the bag to see if their was a strap, but my excitement died down when I saw that I would have to carry this one with my hands.

===============

Looks like Ethan has had a very scary time in the small... town?

What would have changed if he wouldn't have gone for the car?

Would he still have his pistol? Would he still be alive?

What do you think we change for our traveling survivor as he faces the unknown world?

Find out (maybe) in the next chapter.

Vote and comment please.