Aubrey and her horse came upon the great walls of the town. The town “Newland”, had great timber wood walls built around it. There was a great supply of timber due to the amount of timber trees in the forest location. They looked as if they stood as high as a 2 story hotel. There were watch towers on different sides of the walls, with only one gate to get in. It ran on for miles and miles protecting the town that was within it. There were around 50 people that lived there, not including the little kids and babies that all scurried about. They had power coming from a nearby hydro-electricity station. The town had stables for horses, cows, pigs, and other animals. There was a bar, a small store for food, a clinic, and a gun storage area to keep all of the extra ammunition. The town had everything people needed. As she came down the path making her way to the massive gate, she read the signs that warned outsiders that they had guns pointed at them and that they needed to state their business. She made her way up to the gate, listening to the people yelling about her being back. The gate opened as she made her way into the town. She hopped off of her horse, walked over to Tomas, and asked, “Where is William?”

“He is taking care of Pepper in the stable. Want me to take this guy?” Tomas responded.

“No, I got it. I just needed to know where he was, thanks,” she said as she began walking into the barn. The horses nickered and neighed as she walked the strong black colt behind her. She watched William mess with Pepper’s feet, correcting her shoes. He stood up, patted her shoulder, turned to meet Aubrey, and said excitedly, “How is this big guy?”

“He is great. He is all ready for whoever gets him,” Aubrey said as the colt rubbed his head on her. “They are gonna be really lucky.”

“Now who said I’m gonna give him away. I think he already found his person,” William said as he pulled the saddle off. 

Aubrey jumped excitedly and exclaimed, “You’re not messing with me right?” He nodded his head, and she began to hug him. 

“But first, “ he began as he pulled the colt into a stall, “he is gonna need a name.”

“What about Bill?”

“Ha, that is definitely a ‘no’ kid,” William laughed. 

“I'm not a kid. I’m 19 and, okay, you're right.” She sat and pondered for a minute and studied the colt. His fiery eyes watching her, she admired his silky black coat and answered, “How about Storm?” 

“That sounds good,” William sighed. He took a breath and looked at her before stating. “I need you to come out with me again, go get some supplies and grab Luke and Tomas. There is a herd of infected coming. We have to make sure there are no people out there.” William instructed. 

She nodded her head yes and made her way to her house saying hi to people on the way. The streets were busy and full. Due to winter inching closer people were all worked up about finishing projects. The sounds of laughter and a few dogs barking filled the streets. The bakery smelled of fresh bread and other delicious treats as she strolled by. A few of the younger kids were playing tag on main street as she walked past them.  She went through the front door of her blue 2 story house. There was a kitchen, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a study, and a living room. The house used to be the property of the old couple that took her in. She was given to them when she was 14. They raised her as their own, showing her all the love and affection she could have. They had an old shed in their backyard. They transformed it into a room for her, adding installation, walls, a bed, and everything else she would need for a room. They even made her a bathroom in it. They passed away about a year ago. They had died of old age thankfully. They had left everything to her including the house. She has been wary about moving in. The house felt empty and lonely since they passed. She finally moved in two months ago.  

She made her way upstairs heading to her room. She threw her bag down on the bed and walked over to her closet grabbing a jacket and more ammunition for her pistol. She grabbed an apple and a water jug, throwing them both in her bag. She pulled her hair up into a high ponytail and walked into the bathroom. She looked at her face, noticing there was dirt around her amber eyes. She wiped it off before hearing a knock at the door. She grabbed her bag and opened the door to find  Luke and William. 

“Ready, Kid?” William asked. She nodded her head as they walked back to the gait. She walked into the stable to find Storm all saddled up. She grabbed his reins and led him outside before leaping into the saddle. William, Luke, and Tomas all rode in front of her, leading the way to the old mall. She looked amazed at the stunning pieces of nature around her. Although she had seen this environment a thousand times she was always left breathless. They rode along the road, which had old rusted cars laying in the middle and the sides of it. Grass grew on the cars and a small stream came through the cracks of the road. The sounds of birds chirping and the wind blowing through the trees calmed Aubrey. 

“So, Aubrey, how is it going?” Luke asked as he rode up next to her. Luke was a scrawny white boy who was just a year younger than Aubrey. His brown hair sat all curly on top of his head. She called it ramen noodle hair. His mother gave him the hairstyle, saying she was going for a ‘perm’. They were popular in the old world. He continuously stared at her with his deep brown eyes before she responded, “It's alright. What about you?”

“It's better now that you're here,” he flirted.

“Really? You use that pickup line all of the time. When are you going to take a hint.” she said as she rolled her eyes. 

“Oh, come on, I know you like me. I'm irresistible.”

“Ha, you irresistible?” she laughed. “No, definitely not. I just don’t like you so back off.”

She rode Storm up next to William who was snickering with Tomas about the conversation. She rolled her eyes and snarled, “Something funny?”

“He does this every trip with you. It's hilarious.”  Tomas laughed. She rolled her eyes and looked back to see the mall. They had gotten there in record time, it only had taken them about 15 minutes. It sat in decay and mold, its once bright colors now dull and plain. The outside was full of plant growth including moss and small ferns. They all hopped off of their horses and tied them near some trees to keep them in cover. They all made their way quietly into the mall. Their hands gripped their guns ready for anything to come at them. As they entered the main entrance of the mall was full of grass and plants. There was what looked like to be a small waterway near the fountain. William turned around facing everyone and instructed, “Okay split up Luke and I will take the bottom floor, Aubrey you and Tomas take the second to make sure it's clear.” 

They all nodded their heads before splitting up. They knew the “clean up” as they called it wouldn’t take long due to them cleaning this area a few weeks ago. Aubrey carefully walked up the rusted escalator steps and made her way into an old clothing store. The clothes were still intact but a little dull and dusty. She carefully looked behind each mannequin and shelf when she came upon a door to the back. She could hear banging and a low growl on the other side. She saw writing on the wall that read “Dead inside.” It had been written in blood, its dry red color leaving marks from the writing dripping on the floor. She sighed and made her way out of the store to hear Tomas yelling, “All clear down here! What about you Aubrey?”

“All good. Some infected in an old staircase but all cle-'' She was thrown to the ground by a girl. The girl had ginger hair slicked back in a ponytail. Her bright blue eyes stared down at Aubrey in fear. Her white freckled face was full of terror as she held the knife against Aubrey’s neck. Aubrey watched her frozen, as she heard Tomas running over to them.

 The girl asked, “Who are you! What do you want from us?” She was pushed to the side and thrown off of Aubrey. Tomas helped her up when a little boy came to protect the girl. He had blonde short hair and was all skin and bones. He had on a superhero t-shirt and black joggers. 

He held his knife with a shaky hand and said, “D..don’t hurt us. We need help.”

 Aubrey walked over to the kid handing Tomas her gun. She crouched down and replied in a soft voice, “Hey little guy. We aren’t gonna hurt you, we came here to see if anyone was here who may need help.”

“I told you she wasn’t with the scary men,” he said to the girl. 

The girl stood up and put her knife away. “Sorry, my name is Clarissa,” she said. “This is Nickolas, but he goes by Nick. I didn’t mean to cause you trouble; We thought you were with the hunters.”

“It's alright. My name is Aubrey. This is Tomas. The hunters, who are they?” Aubrey asked. 

“Some group that was here they...”Clarissa quietly continued, “...they killed the rest of our group. We are all that is left.” Tomas was met by Luke and William as their story was finished. Clarissa and Nick’s faces partially turned gray. Aubrey felt a sense of remorse for them as they heard a gunshot behind them. 

They turned around to see a group of 5 men walking behind them. The men carried themselves high and proud. Their eyes were full of hunger for something, but Aubrey couldn’t make out what. They wore camo outfits and held shotguns and an assault rifle. They looked up at them yelling, “Over there! Let's hunt boys!” 

Clarissa and Nick grabbed a hold of Tomas and Aubrey and pulled them into the store.  They made their way back to the door with the infected inside. 

“We can go through here,” Clarissa instructed, moving the barrier in front of the door. 

“Are you crazy? There are infected there!” William exclaimed.

“No, they are all pushed to one side. We made it so we could get to the top of the building. There is a ladder at the edge. We can escape there,” Clarissa said as she opened the door. They all nodded and went running up the stairs. They could hear the men running at them as Aubrey closed the door behind her. The infected stood right behind an old bookcase. She watched them run up the stairs, and, as they got closer to the top she pushed the bookcase down, allowing the infected to follow them up. 

“What are you doing!” Tomas yelled as he held the open door that led to the roof. 

“Buying us time, now run,” she answered as the door slammed behind her. She could hear gunshots in the staircase as they all ran over to the rusted ladder. She looked down and saw the horses near the tree stomping their hooves in the ground. 

“Go to the black horse, Clarissa,” Aubrey instructed as she cocked her gun back, getting it loaded. She turned around and watched the roof-top door. She could hear William yelling at her in the background but she tuned it out and lifted her gun up as the men came running out. She pulled the trigger and struck one of the men in between his eyes. They started shooting at her as they came up. She jumped behind one of the large vents that sat on top of the building.

 “Oh, come on, little girl. Take it easy. We won’t hurt you,” one of the men pushed the body out of the way then continued, “Not too much at least.” She jumped up from behind the vent and counted 4 more men. She shot at another, this one impairing another man's chest. Another she hit in the shoulder, and he fell over crying in pain. 

She took off and made her way to the ladder. She began to climb down when a bullet grazed her shoulder. She grabbed it in pain and quickly slid down the ladder. She jumped off of it and then ran over to Storm who had Clarissa sitting in the saddle. She hopped on and kicked his sides yelling, “Go, boy, go!” Storm reared before bolting down the path. She could hear the guns firing behind Strom. She gripped the reins and steered Storm as she asked, “Where are the others?” 

“They are just ahead of us. I came back, I knew you would need help.” Clarissa smiled. 

“Well, thanks, I defin-” She stopped and groaned in pain. She grabbed her left arm holding it where the bullet grazing was. She pulled it back to find her hand all covered in blood. She could feel everything get hazy as she was grabbed by Clarissa. She took the reins from her and grabbed her side to keep her position upright. Aubrey took a deep breath as everything went dark. 

****

Aubrey woke up in the warm comfort of her bed. She sat up quietly, moving slowly trying to regain her thoughts. All she could remember was everything going dark while Clarissa took the reins from her. She turned to her left to find Clarissa standing at the door. She walked over and sat on the edge of the bed with Nick following her. As she sat down Aubrey sat up and smiled, “Thank you, I’m glad you didn’t leave me back there.” 

“Of course, besides you wouldn’t have made it without me.” Clarissa teased. 

Nick sat up and asked, “Can we go see the horses, Aubrey?” 

“Sure, little guy, just let me get dressed,” Aubrey answered as she got up and adjusted her jeans, and walked over to the mirror. 

“Hey Nicky, why don't you go downstairs,” Clarissa instructed. 

He nodded his head and ran down the stairs. As he did, Aubrey closed the door and walked into the bathroom looking at her stitches. She traced her fingers along with the shallow cut and walked over to grab a shirt when Clarissa asked, “So, the other scars, what are they from?”

“Well...” Aubrey began as she placed her shirt down. She pointed at her left shoulder showing a scar from an exit wound, “This is from an arrow shot. It's how I got my bow and arrow. There was this guy who kept threatening the lives of a herd of wild horses near us. So I took my time to find him and well, he caught me before I got to him. But hey I got a cool scar and it’s how I found Storm as a foal.” 

“Really? What about the one on your ribs?” Clarissa asked in wonder.

“Was an accident when I first rode Storm, he threw me and I got cut on a piece of metal.” She moved to her hand and showed a gash scar along it, “this one is from my first fight. I was with my dad. These guys came at us and one got me in the hand with a knife, but I got him after.” Aubrey sat quietly for a minute and began to put her shirt on. She sighed and Clarissa studied her, Aubrey grabbed her arm in remorse and fear, like she was remembering something. Clarissa walked over to her and asked, “Are you okay?” 

Aubrey shook her head and responded, “Yeah, I'm good. Why don't we go show Nick those horses.” She sighed and they both made their way downstairs with Nick jumping with joy. They both laughed as they walked out the door making their way to the street. They were waved at by the people in the town, all new and old faces to them. Everyone in the town knew each other due to it being so small. They finally made their way to the barn and Nick ran over to Storm and began stroking his muzzle lightly. The other horses nickered and whinnied as they came in. There was a variety of colors from bay to a white blanket appaloosa. Storm rubbed his nose on Nick, and he giggled, “Haha, that tickles boy.” 

“That is Storm for ya,” William mentioned as he walked in. He walked over to Pepper whose stall was next to Storms. “So, are you kids gonna stay?”

“Kids? I'm 19. He is 10.” Clarissa laughed.

“Don’t worry. This is normal,” Aubrey added.

“Well, that is true, but you didn’t answer my question,” William responded.

“Well, I just don’t want to be trouble to anyone here. Besides you guys have a lot of people here, Why should we be mo-”

“Now hold it, kid,” William interrupted, “we take in people like you all of the time. Hell, most of this community is stragglers we found or people who needed help. We have everything you need here including a school for Nickolas and a supplies store for crafts and all that. This place can be your home too just like it is Aubrey’s. Hell, she came to us all skin and bones when she was 14. She had gone through a whole world of hell to get here, and she has made a great commitment to this community. So you ain’t no trouble kid. We would love to have the help.” 

“You guys could move in with me. I have room,” Aubrey added. “Nick could have the downstairs bedroom or a family could take him in if they wanted, like they did with me.” Clarissa sat and pondered the question before turning to Nick. His eyes were full of hope and joy as he stared at the tall adults. She sighed and asked, “Now, Nicky, if we stay, you have to listen to whatever the adults say to do okay? And you will go to school every day. Do we have a deal?” 

“Yes, yes! I will go to school and help! I wanna stay!” He exclaimed excitedly. They all laughed and William turned to Clarissa and declared, “Welcome to town, kid. Now tomorrow you will learn how to do patrols with Aubrey. She can fill you in on the rest sound good?” 

“Yes, sir, thank you,” Clarissa smiled. 

“Good. Now Aubrey you get them settled in, and if Nick wants my offer on the family let me know.” William announced before walking off. They all ran outside bursting with laughter before taking off back to Aubrey’s house, full of excitement.