The Pine Grove

As she walked down the desolate hallway her mind started to drift to a better time. A time when they were all together and the world was a different place. A time when her biggest concern was whose house she would be hanging out at. Her teenage years had now been replaced with scavenging for food, finding a safe place to sleep and hiding from the evil that now ran the streets. But, this was her few moments to forget it all. She sat in the corner, closed her eyes and she could almost hear her mother’s voice calling her. The lilac candle her mom would burn seemed to encircle her entire body and she smiled, for a brief moment she was home.

Suddenly she heard someone step onto the front threshold. Anya clenched the heart shaped locket around her neck with one hand, pulled her mask over her face with the other and prepared to fight for her life. Ammunition had become scarce since the awakening and she had used her last round fighting off a brood of Brix’s while defending her food supply. All she had now was the Army knife that belonged to her grandfather and she was good with that. She knew that house like the back of her hand, after all she grew up there and spent countless hours playing hide and seek with her brother in all the little nooks and crannies in this old house. Let the cat and mouse game begin.

She could hear the rustling of someone or something making their way through the run down house. The sounds were getting closer and closer to her position. She slipped out of the corner and hid inside the old dumbwaiter that led to the basement. Suddenly the smell of gasoline and diesel fuel wafted through the house. The last time she smelt that was at the ambulance bay with her brother. That fateful night when so much was lost. They fought hard but it was the last time Anya saw her brother and the others that had become her family. They had all scattered after the explosion and it had been months since she heard any news from them.

With extreme caution she slowly climbed out of the dumbwaiter and crawled through the rubble. She could hear the creaking of the floor above while the ransacked the house with total disregard for the memories it held. Anya made it to the door and stopped for a moment. Should she defend the house or run into the woods and keep searching for a safer place. As a tear ran down her face she opened the door and ran into the safety of the woods she loved. She ran and never looked back.

The Quabbin Reservoir was one of the places that hadn’t been destroyed yet. For some reason the Brix’s stayed out of the forest, especially the ones with pine trees. No one really understood why and it really didn’t matter. You knew you were safe from them in these woods but don’t let your guard down just yet. There was still evil on every turn, this evil just wasn’t supernatural. Sometimes you couldn’t tell which one was worse. Anya followed the old trail to the tree house from her childhood, about a mile into the forest. She quickly climbed up and into the small enclosure so she could stop and take a breath for a minute. The tree house was just like it was the last time she was there, right down to the pictures on the walls. She took a moment to pull herself together and get her mind together. Looking around the room she found the map of the Quabbin that was hanging on the wall and decided it would be helpful for the next journey. As she riffled through the rest of the tree house she found small items that would be useful, a flashlight, MRE’s from her dad, a first aid kit and a book identifying edible and poisonous plants. Now it was time to repack her backpack and take stock of what she had to survive. Once her bag was complete she took one last look around the room and started down the ladder. Now it was time to focus, she decided to head to Gate 24. There were rumors that a faction had started a commune by Gate 24 inside the Pine groves. Could it really be true or was it just another empty rumor? Either way she was going to find out. She started her new journey with pessimistic optimism, she would survive no matter what.

This new excursion was not protected by the pine trees so she needed to be on high alert and aware of all her surroundings. Anything could be in here. The first hour went by without incident going against all she knew she started to get a little cocky and let her guard down. That was her first mistake. While taking a water break she heard the snapping of branches. At first it was just one, then the sounds slowly surrounded her in all directions. What had she done, how did this happen? How could she have been so careless! Her eyes frantically searched for a safe space to hide and find some protection. The only option was up. So up she went. After she reached about halfway up the tree she stopped and looked down, that was when she saw them. Brix. Her heart sank to her feet. She hoped that something more enticing would appear to them. As she surveyed the land around her she noticed a fisher cat lurking about 50 feet away from the Brix. She prayed like never before that they would pick up on it, if she could just stay still long enough she might just make it out of there. The animal was creeping closer and closer until finally the Brix picked up the scent. That cat never had a chance, one of the Brix attacked it with lightning speed and tore it in half like a hot knife going through butter. The smell of blood incited a feud amongst them and they started attacking each other trying to steal the prize. Finally one ran off with the animal and the rest followed. Not believing her good fortune Anya stayed in the tree for a bit longer waiting for them to come back but they didn’t. As she took in the view from the tree she could see Gate 23 and there was a shortcut to Gate 24 from there. Cautiously she climbed down and started on her way to what she hoped would be a new start.

When she arrived at Gate 23 she took stock of her surroundings and decided to stop for a moment. This time she stayed alert to everything around her. Just a quick water break and then it was off again. She needed to be at Gate 24 before dark. These woods were not the place to be after dark. One last sip and it was time to get moving. The little known short cut had grown over with thicket bushes so there was a decision to be made. Take the shortcut and hope that the rest of the shortcut was intact or take the long way around. She pulled her hood over her head and decided to take the shortcut. About half way into the path it was suddenly clear. Anya took a short break in the clearing taking the time to remove the thorns and thistles from her coat. She started off again on what she hoped would be the path to a new beginning.

The rest of the path was full of small trees with wild flowers in all directions, it looked like a scene from the Wizard of Oz. A smile started to come across her face as she thought about what it would be like if the commune was really there. Before she knew it she came to the dirt road that led to Gate 24. She took her hood off and started to jog toward the Gate. As she got closer she could smell a fire burning and something cooking. She rounded the corner and there it was after a small field of grass there was a huge chain link fence and inside that fence, people and buildings all set in the middle of the Pine Grove. Anya started to cry, she made it, she clasped the heart shaped locket in her hand and whispered ‘I made it mom.’ She started to move toward her new home when she saw a figure walking inside the fence. It was her brother, Marc. It was all working out and things were falling into place, the right place finally. She started towards the fence with a renewed hope. Suddenly she felt as if something was watching her, more like hunting her. Slowly she turned around and her eyes met with the eyes of the Brix. There was dried blood on its face from the last kill. It started breathing faster and faster. Anya turned back to the fence, Marc had noticed her in the distance. He stood there grabbing the fence, helpless, all he could do was watch and hope. An alarm had been sounded to notify everyone in the compound of the possible danger. Anya screamed his name with all she had left inside. The Brix grabbed her and dragged her back into the woods she tried so hard to escape.