Survival or Struggle?

Everyone sighed in relief once getting on the bus, it felt like a lifetime had passed since they were able to relax. They stepped carefully around the lumber that had brought onto the bus and sat down near each other.CC started the bus without a word and sped off towards the Weapons Depot. They were all silent, Jake especially, seeing as he was sporting a giant gash from the claws of the zombie that tried dragging him away. Jinxx noticed and squeezed Jake's shoulder slightly in reassurance, Jake smiled at the effort Jinxx was making to make him feel better. CC looked back at them every few minutes, only stopping to obey traffic laws(why even obey them when it didn't matter anymore was anyone's guess).

"How far to the Weapons Depot?" Ashley asked Jake quietly. Jake silently fished out the map and looked at it.

"About a half hour." Jake said simply, Ashley nodded and it went quiet again.

Jinxx looked at Jake's wound and grimaced. "We need to take care of that." he stated grimly.

"With what? We don't have medical stuff on hand." Jake griped.

"And I don't know about you, but going to a hospital isn't going to happen." Ashley said darkly.

"Hell freaking no!" CC announced his agreement with Ashley. Damn, he had some mighty good hearing.

"Well, the only other option is a store. Like a K-mart, or a Meijer or something." Andy said. Jake was looking at the map again and pointed.

"There's a Wal-Mart about a twenty minute drive ahead of the Weapons Depot." Jake said softly.

"Then that's where we're going." Ashley nodded, a determined look suddenly crossed his face.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Jinxx asked, chuckling slightly.

"Not only can we help Jake but the other survivors as well. We need food, water, shoes, clean clothes, gasoline for the generators. We go and we might be more likely to survive longer than the way we are now." Ashley explained.

The others nodded, agreeing. They were out of the essentials. And in this case, they wouldn't have to scavenge as much as they have been recently. Plus, having a safe place to call home is worth it if it's fortified and stocked up. CC didn't speak up, but Ashley could tell he agreed with him regardless of not saying a word. They were connected by something much deeper and more sinister. Ashley would be more worried about it, if he wasn't worried about getting out of this alive first. One step at a time, as the saying goes. The bus coasts to a halt and the rest look up. The Weapons Depot was void of people, but there were cars around.

It also looked just about fully stocked, which was weird, considering it was the zombie apocalypse. Ashley would have thought it would have been the first thing raided and looted. Even an apocalypse can surprise you. CC got out of his seat and went towards them, looking down at Jake. Jake couldn't really walk without blood gushing out of his wound. He would have to stay here. Jake saw CC look at his wound on his ankle and was smart enough to know that he couldn't go anywhere at the moment. So he replied simply with:

"Knock em' dead. And be careful."

The others nodded and promised to make quick trips. Especially Andy, he was out of ammo. And besides that, he had used his shotgun as a battering tool, basically breaking it to pieces slowly. So he needed a new weapon and a back up weapon. They marched off the bus, closing the doors behind them as they went. They only hoped that it wasn't going to be as perilous as the lumber mill. One could dream about something being easy for once. They entered, CC letting them know it was safe enough to come inside and they rushed in. The place was huge, full of any type of weapons and ammo and other things that you could think off.

They looked at each other and started grabbing anything that they could. Well, anything good anyways. Anything bad they left alone. They took trips, getting three or fours weapons on the bus at a time. Jake had managed to hop his way into the driver's seat and open the door easily as they were coming. Andy's new weapon of choice: An M4 as his main and a Glock 17 for a back-up. They rushed back at forth, putting the weapons into the very back of the bus. Jake was actually surprised with what they grabbed, besides guns, there was a myriad of other items. They had hit the jackpot it seemed, the place had a little bit of everything. And an easy take too, for once. The weapons(and other items) were as follows:

M-4 Carbine
Assault Rifle(2)
Machine Gun(3)
Sniper Rifle(2)
Pulse Rifle(3)
Smoke Grenade(12)
Flash Bang Grenades(12)
C4(12)
Dagger(4)
Flamethrower
Spear(4)
Grenade Launcher(4)
Lance(3)
Throwing Knives(12)
Bow and Arrow(26)
Spiked Club

They had enough for now, enough weapons to last them a long while. Jake marked the Weapons Depot on the map, knowing they would need to come here again. After all the weapons were carefully situated in the back of the bus, Jake hopped off the driver's seat and to his original place, the others patted him on the back in thanks. That part was over, and Jake suddenly wondered why there was no zombies around. Best not to think about it for now. Another twenty minute drive later and they were at the Wal-Mart. And to their horror, it was the exact opposite of the Weapons Depot. Multiple cars on fire, blood and gore everywhere, drag marks that led to the back of the building. CC heard the moans before he even stopped.

"Looks like we got ourselves a fight on our hands guys." he called out, making sure he had his machetes on him. The others readied their weapons, Jake too.

"I'm not letting you guys think I can't take care of myself. One time was one thing, I'm not making that a habit." Jake explained before limping off the bus after he got his weapons ready.

The others shrugged and got off the bus, Jinxx being the last one out, closed the doors behind him. The scene was chaotic, there were moans, groans, and shrieks coming from certain directions. But the zombies weren't out in the open, so the five men couldn't be sure what direction they were coming from. They looked at each other and marched forward towards the doors quickly. A few zombies lumbering around the burning cars would come out and whoever was closest would shoot it. They had to pry open the doors once there, Ashley and CC prying them open while the others shot at any approaching zombies. They were becoming greater in number now that noises were making them aware of dinner.

They rushed inside, slamming the doors shut as fast as they could. After that, they spun around and Andy sighed. "Grab a cart and lets go." He said simply.

The five of them grabbed a cart and started down different parts of the store. Andy was down perishables, Jinxx was down pharmacy, Ashley was clothing, Jake was frozen(had to have a freezer in that apartment complex somewhere), and CC got the gasoline for the generators and also went down produce and bakery(which were right next to each other). They all came back with carts full of things. Which was a problem. How to do this with zombies outside? Andy looked at all the carts and then at CC.

"Take the lightest cart and book it." Andy muttered.

CC nodded, took Ashley's cart and sprinted out of the building as soon as the doors were pried open. While CC was gone and loading the bus with his things, Jake went and got a few things. Shoes, and breakfast items(eggs, bacon, sausage, butter, milk). The shoes were essential, Jake must have asked the size of each person, because he hadn't been gone for very long. Ashley was out and making sure to cover CC. CC came rushing back and looked at the carts.

"Frozen next, don't need it melting. We have a huge ass freezer in the complex." CC said, rushing out with the frozen goods as Ashley covered him.

"I knew it!" Jake shouted.

Andy chuckled and managed to remember Jinxx's cart hadn't been taken yet and got out the necessary things to deal with Jake's injury. Jake didn't put up a fuss as it was disinfected, and wrapped(he barely passed needing stitches). Once that was done, he put the things back into Jinxx's cart and just in time for CC to barge in again for Jinxx's cart. Seeing Jake's recently fixed wound, he nodded to Andy and sprinted off, Ashley taking the cart while CC had a time slashing his enemies. After a while, the zombies seemed to have grown in number, too much for two people. They rushed out with their carts. They didn't want to waste too much ammo. And the pipe bombs would attract even more attention(not to mention the cars that were on fire). Ashley barely managed to get the last two carts with CC's help.

The burning cars in the lot made a groaning sound, It didn't sound good, at all. There were at least three dozen cars on fire. And if they exploded...it wouldn't end well. Ashley and CC seemed to have heard the noise a little sooner than them, because they were practically rushing as Andy, Jinxx and Jake were busy shooting. The fire's all grew in intensity, the five men could feel the heat from the bus. They needed to get the bus away from here. It was packed with C-4, among other things.

"CC, start up the bus!" Andy shouted over all the noise. CC looked at him as if he grew seventeen heads.

"The bus is packed with explosive materials. If the gasoline makes all these cars explode, we'll be goners!" Andy said urgently.

CC only heard the mention of 'explosive materials' and 'fire' in the same sentence to help Ashley with the last of the stuff and rush onto the bus to start it. He moved the bus away, the others fighting the zombies so they wouldn't be drawn to the moving vehicle. Ashley and the others kept a distance from the bus as it was being driven in a safe distance, but also close enough to where they wouldn't have to run far to get on. But the cars were still too close to them, and the noises from the cars shifted the zombie's attention from them to the death traps. Once all the zombie's started converging on the flaming cars did Ashley, Jinxx, Jake and Andy book it.

And they booked it fast, Jake settling a little behind because of his ankle. Then, they heard it, it almost sounds like a kettle going off. And somehow, they ran even harder. But the blast of the three dozen cars still took them off their feet. And as the fiery debris settled, all was silent.

Notes