The rain pattered softly upon the ceiling of her shelter, almost in gentle melody, forcing her from restless sleep. Her eyelids fluttered open to show irises dulled by fatigue. She sat up slowly-the movements heavy, as though the weight of the silent world pressed down upon her.
The air in the bunker was damp and stifling; the groaning of rusty beams seemed to whisper low, reminding her of just how fragile her haven really was. Neither the groaning nor the decay was what got her on her feet, though-it was the incessant ache in her stomach.
A few yards off, her eye was caught by the bundle of debris before she stepped out. Among concrete chunks and twisted metal, an iron bar jutted out, jaggedly. Without any second thought, she yanked it free. It was cold and rough in her hand, a crude but reassuring weight.
The outside greeted her with the soft kiss of raindrops. She stood at the entrance and let the drizzle run down her dirt-smudged cheeks. Outside, the rain drummed its rhythmic beat so different from the silence of the dead. She looked upwards, squinting at the sky. Clouds were heavy, grey quilts blotting out the sun and casting the world in shadow.
Beyond that, the streets were one grotesque tableau of corpses sprawled out unnaturally, stiffened into discolored forms; rain pooled in the hollows of their bodies and streaked away the dry blood. She went around carefully, her bare soles brushing against cold pavement slick with water and remnants of decay.
Her feet moved with a purpose, though where she was going, she was not certain. She grasped the iron bar tight, its edges digging into her palm.
Not too far from where she was standing, she realized that a piece of wood was peeking out from her pocket. She reached in and slowly retrieved a small wooden box she had scavenged. It was old and splintered, the surface scratched up, holding stories of long-forgotten history. She squatted next to the road and tried to pry it open with the iron bar. The metal scratched and shrieked against the resistant wood, but the box resisted, refusing to give up its secrets.
She tucked the box back into her pocket, pressed her lips into a thin line, and resumed her march. With every step, the gnawing in her stomach seemed to grow - a hollow ache that filled her brain. Exhaustion nibbled at her legs, and she slowed. Still, she moved forward, drawn to the shape of some fallen structure in the distance.
It had once been a great building, but now stood as a skeletal framework-a shadow of former glory. Shattered glass and twisted steel littered the entrance, and with measured care she stepped through the debris. Fractured beams of light slipping through the cracked roof dimly lit the interior.
Corpses clogged the aisles, leaning against walls or splayed across the floor. One figure was different from the rest: a body curled protectively around some small bundle. She knelt beside it, tugging on stiff limbs until cans of food and a water bottle came free. She reached out, shaking, for the supplies, catching her breath as she read off the faded label on one can. ["Expires: January 17, 2030."]
Her stomach growled loudly, a shrill sound in the oppressing silence. For one bright, shining moment, her eyes glittered brightly with unsaid relief, but she held back. She wrapped up the food delicately, and for a fleeting glimpse across her face lay self-discipline. Now she turned her interest to the bottle and marveled at the label, mostly worn off. ["Caution:. -....the rest of the warning was impossible to read.
A shadow fell across her face as she stared at the bottle. Then, in one swift, determined movement, she flung it aside-the sound of breaking glass brief, swallowed by the rain.
Continuing her search, she came upon part of the building where the walls were riddled with bullets. Next to them, bodies in military uniforms sprawled in tangled disarray, their rifles glinting faintly under the dim light.
She stooped and picked up one of the rifles, testing its weight in her hands. Her movements were practiced, deliberate—she checked the magazine, cocked the weapon, and aimed at a distant point. The sharp crack of the shot broke the stillness, the recoil jolting through her arms. It was functional, a rarity in a world of ruin.
A satchel slung over the shoulder of one dead man; she took hold of it, peering inside before slinging it over her shoulder. Still for a moment, eyes on the pile of bodies, she dropped to haunches to sort through them, hands moving with automaton-like deliberateness as she searched for anything of worth.
Until, there it was: a small card inside the pocket of one of the soldiers. A bit frayed around the edges, its importance spoke volumes. She folded it and tucked it into her bag beside the small, wooden box, then stood.
Her face a mask of nothing, the girl reached inside for the iron bar, dropping to one knee beside one of the bodies, she set to work with an absolute lack of hesitation: the quiet crunch of bone and tearing of flesh sounding in the stillness. And her hands didn't pause. With quiet precision, contrasting with the gruesomeness of the task that she was performing, the arm fell away from the body and slipped into her bag among other provisions.
She came out into the ruins, and the rain was gone. The clouds had torn apart, revealing a thin streak of light far on the horizon-the gruesome mockery of a dawn. For a moment she looked at the sky; something quivered in her eyes, swift and unreadable.
She went on, having stashed the rations safely away. Her hunger panged insistently, yet she pressed onward into whatever waited ahead, her world from what it had been, now in shambles.
She paused and dug into her satchel for a packet of food to quell her gnawing hunger, chewing rhythmically as she kept moving.
Eventually, she stepped into an abandoned airport. The vast space was littered with torn bodies, some unrecognizable and others marked by gunshot wounds. Her footsteps were muted as she navigated through the mangled remains, searching for a corner where she could rest.
Cradling the rifle in her arms, she stared into the distance with unfocused eyes. For a moment, she simply gazed into the void around her until exhaustion took over, and she drifted into a light sleep amid the decay of a world long forgotten.