Andy stood at the entrance to the vault, prepared to leave.
She had decided not to carry her entire military supply bag with her. It would be too bulky and slow her down. Instead, she took only her gun, a few pills to knock herself out in case she needed them, and a flashlight.
She knew there was a good chance she wouldn't make it back before nightfall.
Josh opened the vault door for her, and together they pulled the bodies outside, leaving them in front of the bank.
The chairman came out soon after.
"We'll take it from here," he stated as Andy lowered Edward's body to the ground.
''That one too'', he added turning back to the entrance
"Alright."
Andy turned her back to them and began walking away.
"Best of luck," the chairman called after her.
Good luck.
Of all thing to say.
"Thank you," she replied.
Andy moved away from the bank, limping as she went.
When she reached an intersection where the road forked in two opposite directions, she stopped.
For a moment, she considered going after the children.
They might still be alive out there...
Waiting... scared... for someone to rescue them.
She began walking in the direction they had left.
But after only a few steps, a memory surfaced.
Sonia's baby.
Adiela's tiny hands grasping tightly onto her mother.
Josh crying over Tim's body.
Andy stopped dead in her tracks.
Then the chairman's words echoed through her mind.
"We cannot waste lives on the dead."
She remembered Adiela again.
Her expression hardened.
I already failed enough children.
I won't fail anymore.
Finally making up her mind, Andy turned around and headed in the direction she had originally been instructed to go.
The opposite direction from where Anna's group had gone.
Along the way, Andy passed a small convenience store.
It wasn't one of the designated locations on her list.
Still...
She decided to search it.
She checked behind the counter, hoping to find a firearm.
Nothing.
But she did find a lighter and a pack of gummies.
A win, considering the circumstances.
She slipped both into her bag.
Andy then unfolded her map.
Four locations had been marked for her to search.
She circled the store she had just visited before crossing it off the list.
Then she continued on her way.
Eventually, Andy entered a park.
Her pace slowed as she took in the scenery.
Weeds had grown wildly across the area, spilling over the roads and benches.
Nature had already begun reclaiming its territory.
But more peculiar than that...
...were the flowers.
They were blooming in winter.
Andy stopped.
The flowers resembled water lilies, growing directly from the ground.
Their petals were a dark teal, shimmering faintly like stars scattered across the night sky.
I've never seen flowers like these before.
She crouched down.
Were these always here?
Or are they a result of this calamity?
Andy knelt in the grass and carefully picked one.
As she stared at it, a memory suddenly surfaced.
A young girl, around nine years old, kneeling in a meadow and handing Andy a tulip she had picked herself.
Andy had received it while kneeling in almost the exact same position she was in now.
Her expression softened.
Then—
A deer suddenly sprang from a nearby shrub.
Andy flinched.
Her hand immediately went to her gun.
For a moment, she considered drawing it.
The deer froze.
Andy looked at it more closely.
It was young.
It probably never even saw the world before all of this.
Her compassion won out.
She slowly removed her hand from her gun.
What a strange little Bambi.
The fawn bounded away.
Andy watched it disappear into the distance.
It truly was strange.
Its fur was almost completely black.
The white spots across its back were unusually prominent.
And for a fawn...
It had remarkably large, translucent teal horns.
But as strange as it looked, Andy wasn't surprised.
Any other time, people would've flocked around it, calling it a new species.
But not now.
After the apocalypse, sightings like this have become more common.
Nowadays, it would be stranger to encounter a normal animal.
Andy slowly stood.
She looked around the park.
For a moment, she could almost see what it had once been.
People walking their dogs.
Children running across the grass.
Couples sitting together.
Families enjoying picnics.
Life.
She remembered playing with that same spectacled girl.
She remembered carrying her on her shoulders.
Andy reached beneath her shirt and clutched the necklace hanging around her neck.
The small pendant contained a photograph.
She held onto it for a moment.
Then...
She regained her composure.
Andy let go of the necklace and continued walking across the park.
Andy eventually reached the first supermarket on her list without any trouble.
She pushed the door open.
Inside, the building was completely dark.
She switched on her flashlight and held her gun beneath it.
The lights were out.
She wasn't taking any chances.
Moving cautiously, she scanned every inch of the establishment, checking the aisles, counters, and surrounding areas for anything that might be useful.
Nothing.
The supermarket had already been emptied.
Andy sighed.
Disappointed, but not discouraged, she marked the location off her list and moved on to the next.
Unfortunately, the second location was no better.
She searched through it herself before crossing it off the map as well.
Two down.
She continued toward the third location.
As she approached the shop, something immediately caught her attention.
Two motorcycles were parked outside.
Andy stopped.
Then she heard voices coming from inside the establishment.
People?
Her instincts kicked in.
Before anyone could spot her, Andy quickly slipped into a nearby dumpster.
She crouched down and kept herself hidden.
A few moments later, the owners of the two voices emerged from the supermarket.
They were carrying several bags.
Food.
Andy watched carefully as they walked over to a metal barrel and unloaded their supplies beside it.
There was a considerable amount.
Would these people spare me some food by any chance?
They have so much...
Her stomach tightened.
But it would be scary if I just sprang out at them.
Besides... who would be willing to share anything in times like these?
Her eyes narrowed.
Slowly, her hand moved toward her gun.
Maybe I should just steal the food I need.
I'll just take what I need.
She immediately stopped herself.
No.
I can't.
They must have desperate mouths to feed too.
I can't do that to them.
I—
Something caught her attention.
Andy froze.
What is that?
The first man began pouring a liquid over the pile of supplies.
The second reached into his pocket.
Andy watched as he pulled out a lighter.
Her eyes widened.
Don't tell me...
The man tossed the lighter into the barrel.
WHOOSH!
Flames erupted.
Andy stared in disbelief as the supplies caught fire.
Why?
She couldn't understand.
Why would they go through the trouble of gathering so much food...
...only to burn it?
Then she noticed something.
Something she hadn't paid attention to before.
She had been too focused on the fact that there were other people here.
And on how much food they had.
But now that she looked closely...
Their clothes were strange.
Nothing about the apocalypse would make you wear those kinds of clothes.
And nothing before it would have either.
The men wore long robes that covered their entire bodies.
Blue bands rested around their heads.
Hoods hung behind their necks, ready to be pulled over their faces.
Strange runic symbols hung from their belts.
Their robes were predominantly black, patterned with consecutive blue lines that ran from the top to the bottom.
The lines formed a strange, almost black-hole-like pattern around the middle of their robes.
Andy narrowed her eyes.
She studied them carefully.
Then it hit her.
There was no doubt about it.
These men...
...are cultists.