December 27th, 2012

Night of the First Day

This is a continuation of the same day.

I arrived at the forest and ran into it. Following the dirt trail that had been walked upon many times, I eventually reached the heart of the forest. It wasn't very large, but it was secluded enough. To be safe, I walked off and away from the trail and into the thicker forest. I had to be careful to not get hurt or scratched by thorns and branches. But I knew it'd be worth it once I got through. Zombies would first follow the path, and then go hunting for light or sound. So I figured it'd be safer in a darker part of the forest.

Still though, the concept of zombies in broad daylight confused me. Being such a clear day it seemed a little odd. I always thought zombies hated light and for that reason went after the source. Looking to the sky through the trees the sun was getting closer to the horizon, meaning it would set soon. I wanted to get back to my house, but at the moment that seemed a bit of a challenge. I decided I would do that tomorrow.

Suddenly my phone buzzed. I had received a text message. It was from Caleb. "I didn't need those images at all. I saw it with my own eyes. Where are you now?" It said. I let out a sigh of relief. "I'm in the forest to the side of 160 St. Where are you?" I replied. There was a pause, then another message. "I'm at Mac's, I thought I'd get a slurpy after I saw my first zombie." He said.

I couldn't help but laugh lightly to myself. Only Caleb would grab a slurpy during a zombie apocalypse. I sighed and looked around. The forest was thick, but I was hiding under some bushes and roots. The sky was growing dark already, meaning danger was coming. It reminded me of Minecraft actually... at night the zombies would be more common because of their dislike of light.

"Try to survive as long as you can. Meet me on the trail in the park." I messaged Caleb. He responded with "Alright" I put my phone in my pocket after checking the time. 4:00 according to my phone. I stood up, stretched and walked out towards the path, making sure to remember how to get back.

I only waited about 10 minutes before Caleb joined me.

"Good evening sir, i was wondering if you would like a drink!" He said, handing me a small slurpy. I gave him a funny look. He returned an equally puzzled look. "What, if we're going to survive an apocalypse we need some sort of refreshment!" He said in a humorous tone. I smiled and shook my head. "It takes a lot to make you nervous doesn't it." I said.

"I wouldn't say that..." He said, his expression changing. "I just do a good job of hiding it." He pointed out. I nodded and looked over my shoulder. "I found a sheltered area deeper into the forest. We can hide there for the time being." I said. "What, not going to hide in a well lit store?" He said sarcastically. "I may be a daredevil but I'm not stupid." I replied jokingly. "What's the difference?" He laughed to himself.

Zombie Survival Tip #1: Always have someone to help lighten the mood.

With that we turned around and made our way into the forest. "We're going to need to come up with a plan to get out of this alive." I said. "I never thought I'd here you of all people talking about long-term plans." Caleb responded. "Well considering the circumstances... I can safely say that we're going to need it.

That was all five days ago.

Me and Caleb made a plan, and began working things out. We managed to get into our homes which are three houses apart later, as by a lucky break there were no zombies in the area. Well that's actually not true. There were a couple, but our families were already gone. We each grabbed a backpack, some food, and got out of there. Caleb also grabbed a warmer coat since he would likely need it for the night, no matter how much he refuses to admit it.

After that we spent time using our phones to get on the internet and read up on everything happening. It apparently had already begun earlier in the USA. We read that the entire thing was caused by some scientists experimenting with a way to make people live longer and be less susceptible to disease and injury. Well it clearly had some side effects, as this is where the zombies came from.

The zombies, predictably, spread by bites. The reason they have to bite you; The 'infection' is in their bodily fluids, meaning things like saliva and blood. Unless you drank zombie blood you don't have to worry about getting covered in it.

The plan was made, and we went to bed.

The next day, we got straight to work. Based on our plan, we left the area and made our way out into the city, which we assumed would have more zombies in it than our little town or district if you want to call it that. Once we got into Vancouver, things began to get dangerous. With zombies found scattered around all over the place, although fortunately not in large numbers at a time, we had to be careful.

We went to an arms store with weapons and such, and stole some things to use. There was no shopkeeper as he probably had higher priorities than selling his guns and getting money during a zombie apocalypse. I grabbed a sniper rifle and a hand gun. Caleb took a bow, some arrows and a hand gun as well. I didn't bother questioning his choice of weapon, if it screws him over later it's his own fault.

We figured we had to be conservative of our resources after raiding a couple stores. Now that we were in the city we found refuge with some other people. There were still many people surviving out there, which is good to know. Considering the situation I'm sure people are willing to work together.

The next day we did some more research, discovering the same scientists that caused the problem had hunkered down in their laboratories and locked themselves away from the outside world. However they were looking for a cure.

We decided that was our destination. Where the scientists were hiding. If they're safe there, surely others can be safe there too.

We spent the next couple days preparing for a long journey, with many dangerous stops, and began making our way out of the city. Unfortunately as days went by, more and more zombies were walking around, and less and less survivors were existent. By January 1st survivors were a fairly rare occurrence, and we were making our way out of Vancouver and down south towards California. It's going to be a long journey, but now we may escape and survive.

I'm going to write again later. We're about to move on to a new hiding spot, so I better pack up.