Chapter 13

Amanda was lost in her thoughts, as she muttered to herself, she couldn't stand the fact that she couldn't help everyone like she wanted to. Tears filled her eyes, as Eddy flashed in her mind. Memories filled her mind of them together, and Joe saw a tear roll down her cheek. He turned back to the window, and he sighed sadly, as he thought about his cousin, John.

At that moment, as they were passing a field, Amanda saw a group of walkers staggering around. There were about five of the mutant creatures, and they were the slow moving ones. Immediately, she slammed on the brakes, and everyone yelled as they slid to a stop. Angrily, Amanda scowled, as she stared at the ugly walkers, and everyone looked at her.

"What's wrong?" asked DJ in alarm.

Without a word, Amanda grabbed her shotgun that was between her and Joe, and she got out of the truck.

"Mand, where are you going?" Megan asked, but Amanda ignored her, as she shut the door.

"What is she doing?" asked Joe, as they watched Amanda walk out into the field toward the walkers.

"Uh, we should just give her a few moments," said DJ, and Megan nodded.

DJ saw the look on his corporal's face. He had seen that look before, and he knew that it was best to let her go do her thing and cool off. Megan looked at her sergeant, as she gave him a knowing look, and then they looked at Amanda through the windshield.

Angrily, Amanda loaded her shotgun, as she walked out onto the field toward the creatures, and she aimed the barrel at the disgusting things. Every angry thought she ever had came to mind, as she screamed, and pulled the trigger.

"This is your fault!" she yelled, as she continued to shoot each mutant in the head.

As the last creature fell lifelessly to the ground, Amanda hit her knees, and she began sobbing. Megan looked at DJ with concern, and then she scrambled out of the truck. Quickly, she ran to her friend, hit her knees in front of her, and wrapped her arms around Amanda.

"Come on, Mand. You can't be losing your shit on me now," Megan said softly, and she pulled her head back and looked at her friend with care.

Sadly, Amanda nodded, as she huffed a sob.

"It's just not fair," Amanda cried, and Megan held onto her, tightly.

"I know it's not, but we have each other, and they wouldn't want us to give up now," Said Megan, and Amanda sniffed, as she looked up at her.

"How am I supposed to move on without him?"

"You already have. We both have, because we are both here at this moment, right now," said Megan, as she smiled at her friend through her tears, and Amanda nodded.

Suddenly, they heard growling and snarling noises, and Megan looked around. Quickly, she scrambled to her feet.

"Come on, it's time to go," she said, as she held out her hand.

Reluctantly, Amanda looked up at her, and then she grabbed her hand. As soon as Amanda was on her feet, they ran for the vehicle just as a horde of walkers ran across the field in the distance. They jumped in, and Amanda immediately put the truck in drive and sped off.

Silently, they drove down the road for a while, and then Megan gently put her hand on Amanda's shoulder. Seemingly, Amanda stared straight ahead, and she had a distant look on her face.

"Hey, you okay?" she asked, softly, and Amanda nodded, as she sniffed.

"Okay," she whispered, and then she pulled her hand back.

Joe looked over at Amanda with concern, and she glanced his way.

"What?" she asked, as she wiped her face with the back of her arm, and he shook his head, as he reached over and touched her arm.

Amanda smiled at him, and then she only nodded.

"What is that?" asked DJ, and they all looked ahead.

Unbelievably, there was an airplane flying high in the sky, but it wasn't just an airplane, it was a helicopter, and it looked like it belonged to the military. Suspiciously, Amanda watched as the chopper flew off, and disappeared in the distance.

"More like, who is that," she stated.

"How is that even possible?" Christie asked.

"I'm not sure, but look, it's headed west," said Megan, as she pointed in the direction that the chopper went.

Was that chopped from Overwatch? Amanda wondered, as she sped up down the country highway.

******************

For miles, it was nothing but fields and forests, and they had not passed a house or a building in hours. Evidently, the sun was beginning to set, and there was not a place in sight for them to take shelter. At that moment, they saw a sign for a town they had never heard of, and it was only ten miles away.

Slowly, they approached the small town, and it looked like it was a ghost town. Dark houses sat neatly in rows on the side of the road, and it seemed to be a small rural town that had suffered minimal damage from the apocalypse.

"What do you think?" Amanda asked.

"I say we pick a house in the far part of town, and stay there for the night," suggested Megan, and DJ nodded in agreement.

At that moment, Megan saw something move on the side of one of the houses, and she turned her head.

"What was that?" she asked, as she leaned over Josh's lap to get a better look, and Josh looked with her.

Surprisingly, two dark figures headed toward them, and Megan reared her head back.

"Mutants?" asked Amanda, as she and Joe turned their heads, and Megan's eyes went wide as she gasped.

The dark figures were in fact mutants, but these ones seemed to be charred black, as if someone had burned them.

"That's sad," said Christie in a low tone.

At that moment, more of the burned and charred mutants staggered out of the shadows, and they headed for the truck.

"I guess staying here is out of the question," sighed Joe, as he pulled his hair from its bun, and scratched his scalp.

Heavily, Amanda sighed, as she nodded, and she stepped on the gas and sped out of the small town.

******************

Seemingly, Amanda drove on for what seemed like hours. DJ and Christie had curled up with each other, and they had fallen asleep just like Megan and Josh had. Joe tried hard to stay awake, so Amanda would have someone to keep her awake, but his efforts had finally failed, and he fell into an exhausted sleep. Amanda was left to her own devices to keep herself awake.

Evidently, she tried playing upbeat music, and then when the cd played the last song, the cab of the truck was completely silent. At that moment, her eyes began to droop, and then she found herself driving down a road that was surrounded by fire, ash, and brimstone. Oddly, she looked around the cab and she found that everyone was gone.

"Mand!"

She heard her name being called, but who was it? There was no one with her.

"Mand!"

This time the voice was louder, and the fire, ash, and brimstone disappeared as she slowly opened her eyes.

"Mand!"

At that moment, Amanda snapped awake, and she found herself driving on the shoulder of the road. Immediately, she jerked the steering wheel, and the truck bounced back onto the road. Slowly, she pulled the truck over and stopped, and everyone stared at her with wide eyes. She swallowed hard, and Joe looked at her softly.

"Why don't you let me drive for a while, and then you can get some rest," he said, and she nodded.

Amanda was about to open the door when they heard a loud screech echo across the sky.

"Just climb over each other, and let's get the hell out of here," said DJ, and Amanda climbed over Joe, as he scooted to the driver's seat.

Joe put the truck in gear, and he sped down the road. He noticed that Amanda struggled to get comfortable, and he lifted the console.

"There, now you have more room," he said, and she nodded, as she laid her head down by his leg, and curled up on the seat.

"Thank you," she said, and he smiled at her, as he brushed a strand of hair from her face.

Amanda yawned and soon she was fast asleep.

*******************

Slowly, Megan opened her eyes and yawned, as she looked in the front seat. Surprised that she didn't see Amanda sitting next to Joe, her eyes went wide.

"Where's Mand!" she exclaimed, and Joe looked at her in the rear-view mirror, as he put his finger to his lips, and pointed to the seat.

Carefully, she pulled away from Josh, and she peered into the seat. Peacefully, her friend was curled up on the seat, fast asleep, and she had a fistful of Joe's shirt in her hand. Relieved, Megan sighed, as she leaned back and looked out of the window. The sun had begun to rise over the passing fields, and she smiled. Suddenly, the truck began to sputter, and that was the end of Megan's peaceful moment.

"What's going on?" she asked, alarmed.

Joe chuckled as he pulled the truck over to the shoulder, and then he looked at her, thoughtfully.

"We are out of gas," he said with a grin, and Josh opened his eyes.

"Let's go fill her up," he said groggily, and Megan nodded.

Cautiously, they looked around, and when they didn't see anything, Megan and Josh got out of the vehicle. Megan pulled her handgun as they walked to the back, and opened the tailgate. Quickly, they pulled a couple of the gas cans out and they filled the gas tank. Once the tank was full, and the containers were empty, Megan nodded to Josh and then they threw the empty containers back into the truck bed.

As soon as they got to the door, they jumped at the sound of a gunshot, and ducked for cover, as a bullet hit the side of the truck. Quickly, Josh and Megan jumped in the truck, and Joe started the truck and slammed on the gas. Immediately, Amanda sat up, and looked at Joe in alarm.

"What's going on?" she asked, and DJ and Christie stared at them with wide eyes.

"Someone shot at us when we stopped to fill the gas tank," he explained, and he jumped at the sound of two more bullets hitting the side of the vehicle.

"But, who is shooting at us?" DJ asked as he looked around.

Suddenly, DJ saw a hooded figure on the hill, aiming an automatic rifle at them.

"There!" DJ exclaimed, as he pointed.

Angrily, Amanda grabbed her shotgun, and then she rolled down the window.

"Shoot at us, will you," she mumbled, as she looked through the sight.

She found the shooter, aimed straight for his head, and she pulled the trigger. DJ, Christie, Megan, and Josh watched the hooded figure fall to the ground, and they cheered.

"Nice shot!" laughed Joe, and everyone agreed.

Amanda yawned, as she stretched, and then she looked at her friends, thoughtfully.

"He shouldn't have shot at us," she said, flatly, and everyone laughed.

She faced forward, as she grinned at Joe. Oddly, she noticed a sign with red spray paint on it.

"What is that?" she asked, as she pointed, and Joe let off the gas as he pulled up to it.

"Safety is this way," read Christie.

Behind the spray painted words, the sign read Welcome to California.

"Do you think Overwatch did that?" asked Joe, and DJ shrugged his shoulders.

"Either that, or it's another trap," said Josh, as he gave his cousin a knowing look.

Joe stepped on the gas, and as they traveled, more signs appeared on the side of the road with spray painted arrows. Soon, the signs were no longer painted, and Joe pulled up to a large gated fence. There were boards attached to the fence blocking any view as to what was behind the fence.

At that moment, they heard clicking over the radio, and Amanda and Megan looked at each other, nervously. Dj reached over the seat, and he grabbed the radio. He clicked the mic button a couple times back.

"State your names," said a voice over the radio, and they all looked at each other in question.

"Look, we know you are scared, but I would just like to know your names before I let you into my community," said the man over the radio, and Amanda nodded to DJ.

"This is sergeant DJ from the Delta-1 squadron, Corporal Amanda, Corporal Megan, and the rest of our team, Joe, Josh, and Christy," he said, and after that there was nothing but radio silence.

At that moment, the gate made a clunking noise, and then it began to open.

"Slowly, drive to the next gate," stated the man, and Joe slowly pulled through the gate.

Amanda swallowed hard as the gate closed behind them, and Joe reached over and intertwined his fingers with her's.

"If something happens, we are in this together," he said, softly, and Amanda nodded.

He stopped the truck in front of the next gate, and two men walked out with rifles in their hands. One of the men signaled for Joe to roll down the window, and Megan slowly pulled her hand gun, as she nodded to Amanda. After that, Joe hit the button, and the window rolled down.

"Sir, when you pull through the next gate, park at the end of the row of cars, and the general will meet you there," said the man, and Joe nodded.

The man walked away from the truck and then he raised his hand in the air toward a man that was standing behind the gate. The gate opened, and Joe pulled slowly through it, as he rolled the window back up. Shocked, they all stared out of the windshield, and they couldn't believe their eyes.