A lot has happened in the span of 3 months.
Lily was flaying the rabbit and birds we caught.
Lee came over and said "Thats not enough to fill all of us"
Lily retorted "Well, will you go for another round then?"
We already caged some of the caught rabbit alive, it will take time before we could farm them, feeding and taking care them was easy.
Mark is a new member who joined two months ago and fortunately, he is part of the United States Air Force. His experience with guns has been a great help, along with Lily. Lily acts as a leader and is always vigilant about our surroundings. Kenny, Lee, and Mark are the ones who go out for hunting.
"Your bows was a great help"
Bows work silently and are effective in almost every situation, as they don't make noise that could attract unnecessary attention.
Feeling proud, i raise my head high "I tend to get creative sometimes"
This is a big thanks for the internet back in my world. I thought watching ways how to survive in the wild will be useless on me as i usually just stays coop in the house, making animations.
For the first time, i'm real glad i wasted time watching those things.
I tugged on lee's clothes
"Can i come with you guys again?"
"Sure" he replied
Looking at his lil girl clementine, he waves goodbye.
Clementine waves back, but Duck, on the other hand, was persistently pestering his father, Kenny, to let him go with them.
Kenny ofcourse refuse, afraid for his son's safety as outside was dangerous. I already proven my ability to them, and i'm old enough. So they're find with me coming. Just watching me close time to time.
Lee got his axe hanging by a strap behind his back, same with me with a wood spear. Just incase we run out of ammo's/arrows
Lee and mark was together, so i followed kenny.
After getting prepared, we walked inside the forest.
After a long time, kenny ask "See anything worth taking Riley?"
I was on the tree, having on looking for anything.
"Just a small bird and a zombie"
"Can you take out the zombie" he ask
I took aim, arrow loaded and shoots it out.
The wood arrow pierced through its head, entering through the eye socket. It was evident that a direct shot to the head wouldn't be effective, as the hard skull would impede the penetration of the wooden arrow.
I climbed down "No luck here"
We changed location. Just then we heard a far off scream.
Surprised, Kenny curses
"What the f*ck.. "
We dashed hastily towards the scream, our hearts pounding with urgency.
As we sprinted, a zombie horde began to materialize, slowly emerging in overwhelming numbers throughout the woods.
In a state of confusion, Kenny spun around, desperately searching for the right direction, when suddenly another cry pierced the air.
Instinctively, we traced the source of the sound and discovered Lee and with two students donning blue university jackets, along with their teacher ensnared in a bear trap. Fear and panic gripped them as they struggled to free their trapped mentor.
Their eyes widened in alarm as they caught sight of the rifle behind Mark, causing them to retreat cautiously.
In a scared and trembling voice, one of them blurted out "Oh sh*t! No, no, please don't kill us. We just want to help our teacher! We'll leave i swear!"
Their words carried a mix of panic and desperation, as they pleaded for their lives while assuring their intention to retreat.
We caught up with them, Kenny catching his breath as he spoke, "Lee! Are you guys okay?"
The college teacher, clearly distressed, pleaded, "Get it off! Get it off. Goddamnit! Get it off me!"
The pool of blood was beginning to attract a large horde of zombies.
Observing the situation, Mark quickly advised, "Let's avoid using guns if possible"
The three of us gripped our bows tightly, ready to take action.
Kenny handed over the situation to Lee, saying, "Figure this out quickly before we become a meal for these things."
The other boy, interjected, suggesting, "Travis, Maybe they can help!"
However, Travis hesitated, expressing his concern, "These might be the same guys that raided our camp, and we barely got away from that!"
The revelation of the raid took us by surprise. We couldn't imagine who would target a camp of teenagers.
But reflecting on the state of the world, it was no longer that much surprising to me. I had seen enough zombie movies to understand that desperate measures were often taken for survival, including raids by bandits seeking supplies for themselves.
Mark was visibly confused about the raid, questioning, "What guys?"
Kenny swiftly released a shot, killing a zombie in the distance, and exclaimed, "Why the f*ck is there a bear trap out here!"
"I don't know!" the other boy replied, clearly shaken.
Lee lowered his bow and cautiously approached the trapped man, saying, "It's okay, we're not going to hurt you."
Travis, still skeptical of our intentions, pleaded, "Don't listen to them Ben! Please, just let us go! We're not a threat to you!"
Kenny snapped back, "Kid, calm down! We'll try to help you, but you gotta shut the f*ck up!"
Realizing I had run out of arrows, I tightened my grip on my spear, preparing for close combat. Knowing i'm physically weaker, I positioned myself towards the back, maintaining a safe distance.
Lee demanded, "Who raided your camp?!"
Flustered, the boy named Ben answered, "I-I don't know! Guys with guns!"
Travis pleaded once again, "Please, we won't bother you, I swear!"
Everyone was on edge, unsure of what to do next. Sensing the urgency, I interjected, "Can you do with the telling tale while moving, we don't have time for this!"
Lee acknowledged my suggestion, saying, "Sorry, my bad..."
Examining the bear trap, Mark bent down for a closer look. "This trap has been altered, there's no release latch" he observed.
Travis gasped in horror at Mark's words, realizing the severity of the situation.
Lee approached the bear trap and attempted to pry it open with his axe. As he did so, the teacher screamed in pain, causing Lee to immediately stop. "It's not budging," he concluded, frustrated by the trap's firm grip.
Lee raised his axe high, taking aim at the chains. With a powerful swing, the axe collided with the hard metal, causing a resounding clang and chipping the blade of the axe. However, despite their efforts, the teacher continued to cry out in pain, desperately pleading to be freed.
Reacting swiftly, Mark intervened, stopping Lee "Stop! Upon closer inspection, you're not cutting through that. It's a special military-grade metal that even bullets can't penetrate."
Mark's revelation added another layer of horror to the situation, causing Travis and Ben to lose composure. "How did this happen? We just wanted to live" they lamented.
Everyone stood there, feeling the weight of the predicament they found themselves in, grappling with the urgency and the limited options available to them.
Lee raised hus axe once again, ready for another strike "Move aside, we're going to have to amputate," he declared.
The teacher, hearing this desperately tried to plead with Lee, tears streaming down his face. "Wait, wait, wait, no! Please, no! Can't you find another way? I love my legs. I want to keep my legs. I need to walk!" he cried out in anguish.
Travis, overwhelmed by emotions "Oh God, he can't die! Please, save him!" he pleaded desperately.
This is just tragic, i can't take this anymore. I'm a modern person, seeing bad things happen to people like this is just too much for me. I want to cry too. My heart was pounding fast, panicked, maybe next time i won't come
Kenny, running out of arrows, made the difficult decision to use his gun and shoot the approaching walkers. He knew that each shot would attract more of them, but they would be overrun if they didn't take action. "It's now or never, Lee!" he shouted.
However, Mark intervened, stopping Lee from proceeding. "He has lost too much blood. You'll only make his death more painful... I'm sorry, but..." he trailed off, unable to finish his sentence.
Ben cowered, muttering incoherent words, overwhelmed by the dire circumstances.
Travis confronted Mark, desperately searching for a solution. "What are you talking about? He can be saved. There must be a way!"
I wanted to say something, perhaps suggest ending the man's suffering with a bullet in the head, but that felt morally wrong, and I lacked the courage to voice such words. "We can't leave him like this here. We should at least do something," I urged, hoping my message would reach their ears.
Lee seemed to understand the sentiment. "We can make his death painless," he suggested.
Kenny, ceasing his shooting, spoke urgently, "Riley, hand me your spear, i can't hold them off any longer, Lee! I've already wasted half of my ammo"
I glanced at the multiplying number of zombies and made a split-second decision. "I'll keep them busy. You guys do what you gotta do," I declared, taking off running and leading a horde of zombies in a different direction, using the trees as my advantage.
"RILEY!" Kenny exclaimed in disbelief at my reckless action, but it provided them with an opportunity to act.
"That reckless kid," Kenny muttered as he chased after me, clearing a path by killing most of the remaining zombies along the way.
Meanwhile, Mark stepped forward, suggesting, "I'll do it."
He aimed his gun at the teacher's head, ready to end his suffering.
Travis, however, quickly stepped in to defend his teacher. "Wait, no! How could you do something so inhumane!"
Mark understood Travis's reaction, but he knew the harsh reality. "Trust me, kid. This is a humane thing. It's better than leaving him to be bitten all over and living his last moments in agony."
The teacher, caught between the fear of death and the desire to cling to life, should have understood this better than his students.
Travis stood his ground, determined to protect his teacher. "No! Ben, help me out here!"
Ben, still trembling and filled with fear, remained frozen and unable to offer assistance.
Mark, realizing that the kid won't listen, swiftly pushed him aside, attempting to take charge. However, his hesitation became evident as he struggled to pull the trigger.
Observing this, Lee stepped forward, offering to take on the task. "Let me do it," he said firmly.
"What? No," Mark protested, unwilling to let Lee do it.
Mark remained resolute. "I can do it. We were trained for this."
Mark questioned Lee's experience, to which Lee responded, "You were trained, but have you ever killed one before? Because I've already had blood on my hands even before all this sh*t happened. And I don't regret a damn thing"
Taking the rifle from Mark's hands, Lee handed him the axe. "Just make sure those zombies don't get near me, alright?"
Mark, feeling defeated, was surprised to learn something about Lee's past, gaining insight into the person he was standing beside. But even with that, he can't imagine lee being a bad guy even with the fact he killed someone even before the world has gone to sh*t.
"Don't make this harder for us, please. Say your last words before it's too late," Lee requested, his voice filled with a mix of compassion and urgency.
The teacher paused, lost in thought for a moment.
"I don't want to die" he muttered, He wiped away his tears and gathered his strength.
"Travis, I'm glad to have had you as my student.. And Ben, our time together may have been short, but I'm glad I had the chance to meet you," he said, shifting his gaze towards Lee. "You're Lee, right? You're not one of those raiders, are you?" he asked, seeking reassurance and a glimmer of hope.
Lee shook his head in response to the question about being a raider. "No," he affirmed.
The teacher, accepting Lee's response, requested that he take care of his student. He opened his jacket and handed over a necklace and a class photo taken a few months ago. Travis received the items, holding onto his teacher tightly.
"Please don't give up. You can't die. We can definitely find a way to get you out of this," Travis pleaded, his voice filled with desperation and hope.
The teacher hushed Travis, wearing a brave smile on his face. But inside, he couldn't hold back his tears. He didn't want to die, but the prospect of a painless death didn't seem so terrible either. It sounded better than getting tortured to death by getting eaten alive.
He called out to Ben, who slowly walked over. The two students embraced their teacher in a heartfelt hug.
"We won't forget you, Sir David," Travis sobbed, and Ben's tears mirrored his.
David let go, gently pushing the two students away. "Now go," he urged them.
Lee called out to Mark. "Get them to safety," he instructed.
Mark quickly ran off, calling out to Travis and Ben. "Come on, let's go!"
Travis and Ben followed Mark, tears streaming down their faces as they moved forward, carrying the weight of their teacher's impending death.
Before Lee pulled the trigger, David made one final request. "Promise me you will take good care of them," he pleaded.
Lee felt a bitter taste in his mouth. He didn't want to make empty promises, so he spoke truthfully. "No promises," he admitted.
To his surprise, David smiled. He felt a sense of relief amidst the chaos of the world. He knew that promising a life was close to impossible. He only hoped that his students would live a good life before death came to claim them.
Lee returned the smile, and with a pull of the trigger, a loud thunderous shot rang out, marking the end of the beloved teacher's life.