Chapter 1

  I examine the tree, a arrow painted on it, and it points to the left. "Guys, supply drop is this way." I say, turning back to my friends. David is the first to step forward, and look at the tree. He is just a few inches shorter than me, but he is stronger than I am. He is a skinny man, with dark brown hair, green eyes, and a scar on his cheek. While I have light brown hair, and hazel eyes, and with a little bit more weight than him. He got the scar on his first run outside the Quarantine Zone walls. He thinks it makes him look tough, and he is not wrong, as it makes him see more intimidating, someone that should not be messed with. I do it anyway, as I find it funny how red his face can get when he is angry. He has never punched me that hard, not hard enough that it hurt too bad.

"Yeah, we are getting close." He says, turning towards me. "The supplies better be there this time." Last time we went on a run we like this we lost three men, and there were no supplies at the drop.

"You know Jason, I am sure that he got supplies this time." I say, trying to restore faith, but I worry that there will not be any supplies again. Is this just a waste of time? I wonder, but keep it to myself. David just laughs, and walks down the path, keeping an eye open for any raider ambush points. We are out in the forest, just inside raider territory. Jason is in a raider group, and he steals supplies from the group, and delivers them to us at secret drop points. If the raiders found out what he was doing, he would die a painful death. I turn to the other two in the group, and motion for them to come forward. "Come on guys, not much farther now." The other two members of the group don't talk much at all. The woman's name is Lucy, and she is a year older than me, eighteen to be exact. The man that walks with her is Kevin, and he is a year younger than me. The three of us walk together, while David leads the group, being the oldest at nineteen. 

"Come on people, I want to be home before dinner time, it is sandwich night for me and my wife." David says, picking up his pace. Me, and the two others also begin to walk faster. The cities may have been destroyed after the war, but many of the forests remain intact, this one included. Most of the wildlife has managed to survive the war, better than the people have. The human population took heavy losses after the war, and as a result, the demand for resources has decreased greatly, but still, we are running out. We soon find a old cabin, concealed by a tall maple, and pine trees. The gentle wind moves the leaves around. "I see  a cabin. Maybe the supplies are in there. Come on." He says, and starts to jog toward the cabin. I start to jog as well, following him close, with Lucy, and Kevin right behind me. We arrive at the cabin, and look to see if there are any signs that note that this is the drop zone. 

"Lucy, Kevin, you two check the outside of the cabin. David, me and you will check the inside." I say, and David nods, and I pull my revolver from my holster. We slowly approach the cabin keeping an eye on the treeline, making sure nothing jumps out at us. David, and I stand on opposite sides of the door, and he gives me a nod. I grab the handle, and give it a twist. The door creaks as I push it open. David enters first, and I follow behind him, revolver raised. He enters the room on the right, while I enter the room on the left. "Clear in here." I say, and wait for him to respond.

"Clear in here as well." He says, and we meet in the hallway again, him leading. We move further down the hall, and there are two more doors, the one on the right is shut, but the one on the left is open. I slowly enter the left room, and find a raider corpse on the floor. "Ivan, is it clear?"

"Yeah, it's clear, but there is a dead raider in here. Multiple bullet holes in his chest. Did you check the other room?" I ask, and take the pistol off the dead corpse, as well as a few extra bullets, and some food. 

"No, I'm waiting for you. Get over here." He says, and I exit the room, and stand on the other side of the door, and slowly open it. David enters first looking left, while I look right as I enter. We take a few steps into the room before David lowers his gun. "Jason, is that you?" He says, and I turn to see a man with his back against the wall in the corner, bleeding. His breathing is weak, and blood is leaving his body from multiple bullet wounds. He looks up at us, and smiles. It's Jason.

"Hey guys," He says, and then coughs, and more blood comes out of his mouth. David walks over, and crouches beside him, and I do the same. "They followed me here. They knew that I was doing this. You need to take the supplies I stashed in the desk over there, and leave." He says, and reaches out his hand, and David grabs it. "They have set up an ambush out there. You need to leave, get back to the Quarantine Zone, and defend it." David glances over at me with a curious look on his face. "They are planning a attack. They are already on their way as we speak. It was all a trap." He says, and he begins to slowly fade away, and soon, his breathing stops. I hear a gunshot, and then a scream, coming from outside.

"Raiders! Raiders are attacking!" I hear Kevin yelling, and I rush out into the hallway to see him carrying Lucy on his shoulder. He sets her down in the first room I searched, and then regroups with me, and David. "They shot Lucy, I don't know how many are out there, could be just that one, or more hiding in the bushes. I need to tend to Lucy, I need you guys to take care of that sniper, or we aren't getting out of here." Kevin says, and then sneaks back into the room where he set Lucy down, trying to keep his head below window level. I turn to David, and a look of worry is on his face. This is not a face he shows very often, and it terrifies me. 

Author's Note

Please leave reviews, and ratings. Anything that can help me become a better writer is appreciated. I will try to get a chapter out weekly.