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July 14, 2043
Ellensburg, Eastern Fringe

Here I sat in the collapsed ruin of an abandoned building. With me, an interesting set of companions, to my right sat a man, his skin was pale and his eyes were glazed over, he’s dead I thought to myself. To my left lay a woman, pretty she was, with her charming red hair and blue eyes, in the all too familiar state of death. Around me, in fact as far as the eye could see lay the corpses of the dead, strewn upon the ground just waiting to be harvested. It was a rather unsettling situation, rather the reports given out to the public stated this area was in fact rather lively, bustling with activity. “It’s time I got on the move” I said to no one in particular, grabbing my gear and started making my way to the market district, there I might meet with some of the others from my merry band of scrappers, engineers, and marksmen. As I trudged through the near endless river of bodies I began to wonder, as everyone who lived, just exactly what was causing this mass of death and loneliness. It all seemed quite pointless to me, to let loose something that killed all that stood before it without anyone noticing its presence, it was as silent as the stars yet as vicious as young women on her period. There was also the concept of harvesting, which was one of the many ways people had explained the disappearance of bodies. At times body filled streets would be found empty, without a single trace of there being a mass yet silent extermination of entire city sections. I quickened my pace as I continued through the mountainous piles of bodies, the sense that disaster could strike growing evermore apparent as I made my way to the market district at the center of town. I continued on, bodies began to thin out the closer I was to the market, a sign of relief maybe, but it felt as if a deeper sense of dread was growing in my heart.

It was getting dark when I reached the market; the grounds around the fountain were crowded with empty stands and the remains of a festival, nearby stood our trucks, our only ride out this place, they stood among other vehicles in the lot yet it’s not as if they would be of use to anyone around here. It occurred to me just how empty and desolate this place really was, a once bustling market now devoid of life, the city’s once proud streets turned to a body filled wasteland. The others were gathering supplies and materials, our purpose of establishing trade between our two cities had no meaning now. All we can do is take what we can and leave this god forsaken place to the wolves. Hours past as we loaded a number of supplies and materials, radios, weapons and ammo, sheets of metal, canned food, anything that was useful in some way, and if we could fit it in the trucks. Looking upon our work satisfied we began loading ourselves into the trucks, the place was growing eerie, the forest gloom towering over us from far away and the sounds of animals growing restless in the distance. We started driving, avenue after avenue, street signs rolled passed, buildings with their proud faces stood vigil at either side of the road. We watched, paranoia seeping in with the night, being caught out in unfamiliar territory would get you killed if you aren’t careful. We soon cleared the city limits, above us the full moon was beaming brightly, blotting out the stars around it; we relaxed a little as we grew further and further from that horrid place.

We stopped roughly 20 miles out of the city, the engines grew cold as we sat in silence, the city behind us had become a small dot in the distance, a forlorn hulk of what could have been. We knew stopping could dangerous but continuing in such a tired state could get us killed, or worse, eaten alive. Guard rotations were set and the dismal affair of setting up camp was left to those of us remaining, which counted to 14 unlucky souls. In the distance I could hear Davis running his mouth again, which, on the account of everyone there, was very irritating.

“Why the hell do we have to be the ones to be setting camp, why can’t we just sleep in the trucks for god’s sake?!”

I called to him from across the clearing. “Davis, I recommend you stop complaining or I’m going to shove those sticks you have up a hole you’d rather not have things enter through!” I looked at him with a rather calm yet annoyed expression; it had been a while since I’d been in a fist fight, and while I wasn’t looking for one it would probably be very enjoyable to beat the shit out of him.

“Oh my, I’m so scared of women!” He spat towards the woods. “Listen girly, I’ve been in this here outfit long enough to know tha-WHAT THE HELL?!”

We all watched as he disappeared into the ground, followed by a wet thump that was rather indicative of flesh hitting concrete. We looked to his former standing to see that a sink hole had opened up under where he once stood, upon further examination we saw his lifeless body in a heap below. Whether or not this was a trap we decided it would be best if we relocated as fast as possible, leaving his body in its resting place below.