As the second cultist lit the drum on fire, he began his discussion with the first one again, continuing from where they had left off.
"And when do we bring them down?"
"I don't know," answered the first one. "We are in need of manpower. The Ninth Apostle said to let them live if they agree to give their lives devoted to the great EooRen."
Who is EooRen? Andy thinks to herself.
"Those blasted heretics would be better off dead! The Ninth Apostle must have been mistaken. If she won't, then I'll burn them myself!"
SMACK!
A loud slap landed across the second cultist's face, delivered by the first.
"Don't you ever question the Ninth Apostle again, and never again involve her name in any sentence with that kind of vulgar tone."
The second cultist held his face and immediately apologized.
"Yes, forgive me, Brother Klan."
"That is Reverent to you."
"Yes, Reverent."
The first cultist stopped and looked up at the sky with almost fanatical admiration.
"I aspire to be like the great lady, the Ninth Apostle. She is noble, loyal, beautiful, and magnanimous. And to that end, I will forgive you."
"Thank you," the second cultist muttered.
"Enough," the first cultist said as he turned around and began walking toward the motorcycles. "We have wasted enough time here. We can't keep the great lady waiting."
The two men hopped onto the motorcycles they had left outside and took off.
Andy breathed a sigh of relief at not being caught.
She remained in the dumpster for a little longer, waiting to make sure they were gone while processing the information she had just heard.
Well, this was not something I had in the books for this outing.
Was what they were saying true?
If so, then who do they want to attack?
She suddenly heard the sound of bags popping from inside the burning barrel.
Andy rushed out of the dumpster to check if there was still anything salvageable in the burning barrel.
She kicked the barrel over onto the ground and rolled it, pouring all of its contents out. She then began kicking the remnants apart to reduce the intensity of the fire and prevent it from spreading any further.
When the fire died down enough for her to get close, she began searching through the remains.
Most of it had been burnt beyond saving, apart from the supplies inside metal containers.
Andy picked up whatever she could salvage and placed it into her duffel bag.
Among them were a few cans of mushrooms and tuna.
This should be enough for a day.
She thought as she loaded the cans into her bag.
They were hot, but she didn't let that bother her.
Time was of the essence.
Should I head back?
She contemplated the question as she picked up a can of tuna.
Most of its exterior had been burnt away, except for one section where the word "FORWARD" was still visible.
Some sort of omen?
Andy didn't believe in omens.
But she knew that if she only brought back this much food, they would soon be back in the same position they had been in before.
She placed the can into her bag and decided to keep moving forward.
Before leaving, she marked the current location off her map and drew a caution symbol over it to indicate danger.
As she arrived at the third spot, she noticed some movement and immediately turned to face it with her gun drawn.
But it was only a black cat meowing from atop the building next to her.
Andy let out a breath, realizing how tense she had become.
She then walked into the building and began searching it.
The building had a decent amount of food, a little more than what she had managed to pull from the fire.
Andy became excited as she began loading it all into her bag.
Then she heard more rustling behind her.
That dumb cat.
She thought to herself as the rustling continued.
But the sounds grew heavier.
Too heavy to have been made by a cat.
Andy didn't take any chances.
She placed a sleeping pill inside her mouth before turning around.
This time, there was a huge black cat prowling behind her, about the size of a mountain lion.
She remained alert and pulled out her gun, aiming it at the animal.
But it didn't flinch.
It simply continued moving toward her slowly.
Andy didn't sense any hostile intent from it, so she didn't shoot.
The creature stopped directly in front of her, staring into her eyes.
Then it walked toward the entrance.
It stopped there and turned its head toward her, waiting.
Almost as if it were telling her to follow.
Andy knew the cat meant her no harm.
She spat the pill back out and decided to follow it.
The cat led her into the opposite building, where the smaller cat had been perched earlier, and into a room with a dead body lying on a bed.
The body was wearing a nightgown and clutching what appeared to be a letter.
Andy carefully took the letter from its hands.
The big cat allowed her to do so.
She unfolded it and began reading.
Tailor, Markus and Evan.
I'm sorry for being such a burden all the time.
Always calling you to take me to doctor's appointments.
And making you stay with me when I was sick.
I'm sorry for being such a useless friend and always taking your precious time.
I just want you to know that I don't resent you for leaving me alone.
You guys were like the family I never had, and I cherish all the precious memories we had together.
Thank you for being in my life. I love you guys.
And if any of you could, will find it in your hearts to take care of Momo? She is a really good girl.
Andy's eyes watered as she read the letter.
This poor girl died bedridden, believing that her friends didn't care about her anymore.
How tragic.
She turned toward the cat beside her.
"And you must be Momo."
The cat let out a low purr in response.
Andy turned back toward the corpse on the bed.
She wrapped the body in its bed covers and carried it outside, where she buried it.
Momo sat beside the grave, letting out soft, mournful purrs.
A short while later, she got up and led Andy into a separate room.
Cans of tuna were scattered all over the place.
Momo picked up one of the cans and carried it over to Andy.
"Is this for me?"
But the cat simply continued staring at her expectantly.
"Ah, so you just want me to open it."
Andy opened the can and gave it to the cat.
Momo began tearing up as she tasted the familiar flavor of the fish.
When she finished eating, she pulled a tarp away from the corner of the room, revealing a massive pile of tuna.
"You want me to open all that?"
Andy responded apprehensively.
But the cat simply picked up another can and placed it on top of Andy's duffel bag.
"For me? Thank you."
Is this some sort of payment so I'll open up the rest?
The cat looked back at the pile, then at her duffel bag, clearly expecting her to understand the message by now.
It finally clicked in Andy's head.
"Is that all for me?"
The cat purred in agreement.
"Aww, thank you so much, Momo!"
Andy immediately pulled the cat into a tight hug.
Momo began struggling in her arms, letting out a sound that, if translated, would have meant:
Let go of me, woman.
Andy eventually released Momo.
Then she stared at the pile of tuna.
There was enough food here to last the survivors for at least half a month.
Tears began flowing down her face.
Finally... finally, we don't have to starve.
Even if it's just for a while, we can live without worrying about food.
All of her repressed emotions came flooding out at once.
Momo placed her tail against Andy in comfort.
When Andy finally finished crying, she looked out the window.
It was already getting late.
There was no way she could safely continue walking around.
"Do you mind if I stay here with you tonight?"
Momo curled up beside her in response.
As Andy gently stroked Momo's fur, she began addressing her owner, Sidney, whose name she had found among the books in her room.
You don't need to worry, Sidney.
Your friends...
They loved you till the end.
And Momo is stronger now.
She's going to be alright.
The two slept next to each other for the night.
The next day, Andy picked up two bags along with her duffel bag.
She said goodbye to Momo before leaving.
The walk back was considerably uneventful.
When she finally arrived at the base, everyone was glad to see how much food she had managed to obtain.
"How did you get this much?" the chairman asked.
"It was a cat," she replied.
Andy proceeded to tell them about her encounter with Momo.
She then asked the chairman if they could bring Momo back to the base with them.
He adamantly refused.
"We already have enough mouths to feed. We don't need anymore," he argued. "Besides, that thing is a wild beast. Who knows when it will turn on us?"
Andy didn't respond.
Instead, she brought up the search for Anna.
"Since we have enough food to last us for a while now, you wouldn't mind if I went out to look for the kids, would you?"
The chairman looked at her with a blank expression.
"I already told you. They're dead."