“I wouldn’t dream of it,” I chuckled as I pulled the dirty fabric of the backpack strap over my arm. “Where are you going?”
“I hate to be the bearer of bad news.” Natalie grinned. “But I get the fun job. I’m going to the armory to pick up all the weapons and ammunition we could need.”
“Sounds like a plan,” I agreed. “One hour?”
“One hour,” Natalie confirmed, and then she motioned for me to head out.
I flung the other strap over my shoulder, twisted around, and pulled the rucksack against my back tightly. Then I stepped out of the tent and back out under the night sky.
I could see the house Natalie was referring to off in the distance. The sickly lime-green siding had certainly seen better days, but it still had just enough of a glimmer that its color shone through the darkness.
It was almost like a tacky green lighthouse.
I ambled up the beach until I eventually hit the spot where the sandy ground turned into overgrown grass and dirt.
The supply house itself looked like it was in dire need of a good gardener. Vines curled all the way up the home’s porch beams, and the grass of the yard was so tall it nearly came up to my knees. There were also what appeared to be tangled heaps of wild bushes all around its perimeter.
The roof of the house’s porch was completely caved in, and nearly all of the dwelling’s windows were shattered. Natalie was right, though. The front door was ajar, an open invitation for me to come in and take anything I wanted.
According to Natalie, we had to go across the coastline and then pass through a thick forest to get to the power plant. And, if my calculations were correct, we’d probably need to hunker down for the night at some point.
That meant I needed supplies to build a shelter.
I’d seen it a million times on those survivalist shows I watched, and I’d even practiced it in my backyard a few times when I was really bored.
All it took was some sort of structural support, a simple covering to keep the elements off our backs, and some sort of rope to tie it all together.
We’d also need the essentials for night travel… Flashlights, lanterns, or glow sticks, matches and kindling to start a fire… Some sort of cooking supplies, whether that was just a simple metal grate to toss over the fire or a cast iron skillet, along with some utensils for stirring and eating. Obviously, if we needed to take cooking supplies, we were also gonna need something to cook.
Surely there would be some sort of canned goods I could take along with us. I really didn’t feel like hunting, especially when I didn’t know what was out there.
Then there was the bedding. Unless we wanted to sleep on the hard, rocky ground, we’d need some sort of cots or sleeping bags or at least a blanket or two. Even if we had something as simple as some sticks tied together with twine, it’d be more comfortable than just laying down on the ground.
Last, but certainly not least, we needed bug spray. I would never, ever go out into the deep woods without a trusty can of bug spray, unless I intended to be eaten alive.
As I slid into the house, I realized I couldn’t see anything. So, I instinctively tried to turn on the light switch, but all I got was the click of the eroding plastic.
Nothing.
I felt around blindly inside of the door frame for a moment in the hopes I’d find another switch or a candle or something. Then my hand brushed past a long, cold metal cylinder.
A flashlight.
I snatched it from its holder on the wall, ran my finger up the metal until I found the rubber button, and then clicked it on.
A soft beam of light cut through the darkness like a hot knife through butter and illuminated the wall straight in front of me. Then I slowly began to move the light around as I took in my surroundings.
The Scavengers had converted the entire interior of this house for optimal storage. There were rusted metal shelves lined up all around the walls, and then a few more were pulled out into the center to make up a series of “aisles.”
It was like a post-apocalyptic Walmart. Only maybe a tad classier.
The rope was the easiest thing to find, since the entire shelf on the back wall was covered with it. Yarn, twine, nylon, and elastic string littered the racks along with several other types of cord I wasn’t familiar with. Eventually, I snatched up one spool of twine and one of nylon and tossed them into the backpack. The bug spray was right next to the ropes, too, though I could see most of the cans were half-used.
There didn’t seem to be any blankets, pillows, or any sort of things that could be used for a makeshift bed. I assumed those materials didn’t hold up as well in the face of nuclear apocalypse, so anything they had was probably out in the Scavenger’s own dwellings.
I guess we were sleeping on the ground.
There was a large shelf filled with canned goods, instant noodles, essential baking ingredients, and military-style rations at the west end of the house, and I made sure to snatch up a few cans for the road. I also picked up a few essentials that would be multi-use, such as baking soda, salt, and cornstarch. Then I grabbed a small skillet whose handle folded in on itself, two spoons, and a large metal canteen.
My last stop on my Scavenger shopping spree was the fire-starting section, where I picked up a ton of what looked like dryer lint, some matches, and two metal zippo lighters. There was also a small horde of flashlights on the shelf above, so I quickly slipped them into the bag along with their corresponding batteries.
My backpack was now fairly heavy, but I figured I had just about everything we could possibly need for a simple overnight trip.
However, as I was leaving, I saw something I simply couldn’t resist.
There, hanging on the wall, was an entrenching tool. Or, as the military liked to call it, an “E-Tool.”
The model before me was the foldable kind, one that could be used as a shovel, a saw, and even a pick. And, if things became truly dire… it could also be used as a weapon.
It was sitting next to the rest of the shovels and digging tools completely unfolded, which made me think the Scavengers simply didn’t know what they had.
I’d always wanted one of these things, and there was no way I was going to pass this up. So, I grabbed the E-tool from its hanger, folded it up, and slid it into my already overstuffed bag.
Once I was all done in the supply house, I made my way back down to Natalie’s tent. When I finally got there, I saw the blonde woman was already waiting for me with her hands sassily placed on her hips. The Scavenger had changed clothes, and my jaw nearly hit the sand when I saw her.
Natalie now wore a pair of daisy duke jean shorts that had been ripped to hell and then repaired with multi-colored denim patches. The shorts matched her patched-up, sleeveless jean vest, the same one she’d been wearing before.
However, her top was what really got to me.
The blonde woman now had on what appeared to be a one-piece bathing suit, a sleek black number with a neckline that plunged all the way down to her bellybutton. Natalie’s perky breasts were covered only by a thin strip of leather on both sides, and her cleavage was a sight to behold. The entire garment was held against her body by a taut metal chain that ran around the back of her neck and attached itself to the fabric just above her breasts. Natalie also wore a pair of knee-high leather boots that clung against her soft skin.
“What?” the woman mused with a raised eyebrow. “That other set of clothes was dirty. I needed to change into something more appropriate for this journey.”