Decay

You sat crosslegged by your small fire, gun in your lap, can of beans in your hand. The beans were expired and probably would have tasted terrible, but you were so desperate for sustenance that you paid no notice. You'd already picked your tree for the night, about 40 feet from your fire. It would allow you a good view of the camp.

You remembered the creature you first encountered. It technically wasn't aggressive, but it had scared the shit out of you with the eyes. You would keep careful lookout for hostile creatures on the forest floor.

You remembered the other creatures you had met, and for the first time the magnitude of the days events set in. You had survived death, teleported, and made contact with aliens all in the span of a day.

"Jeez. If everyone wasn't fucking dead, maybe i'd get a nobel prize.." You mumbled bitterly. You walked towards your tree and dexterously scaled it. Securing yourself to a branch with the rope, you found a comfortable position.

-

"Come on!" You giggled as you stepped out of the car. She got out the passenger side. "Where are we? She asked. "Only the coolest place ever! Come on, follow me!"

You walked with her, holding her hand, towards the impressive woods looming in front of you. "It's a redwood forest. These are some of the biggest trees ever!"

She walked with you through the forest. It was completely serene.  The forest bed was shady and cool and the forest was silent as you walked through.

"This is amazing..." She said as you walked.

"I know. I have always loved this place. It's so quiet. Whenever i need to think i come here."

"I love you.."

-

You awoke with a slight gasp. Drawing your sidearm you scanned the ground below you for any threat. You found none. As you got down from the tree and slung your bag around your back, kicking dirt over the embers of your fire, you reminisced about how you missed your motorcycle about now. It would make getting around in the woods loads easier. You decided to walk towards the mountains. You might be able to get a better view of the surrounding terrain from the top. The mountains looked to be about three miles away. You huffed and started walking.

As you stumbled your way through a bramble bush, you looked up at the mountains again. Much closer. You could for once see detail. You once had gone mountain hiking. You hoped you were more in shape now than you were then. As you continued walking you noticed the view of the mountaintop steadily decreasing and the gradient of the ground steadily increasing.

30 minutes later, you had reached the point where more and more rock was exposed. You paused on a steep granite slab and looked out at where you had come from. From the direction of the sun, you assumed that this was west. You could see much more now. The forest looked to stretch on for infinity.. But in the distance, you could make out an odd formation. It appeared to be unnatural, but it looked like no building you had ever seen. You decided to camp here, as the sun was already setting. You scanned for a tree. At this point, there were not many, except for a few small, stubborn evergreens. You wondered if you should bother making the trek back down. You shouldn't have anything to worry about, you hadn't seen a WD for the entire time you had been there.

"Fuck it."

You set your bag on the ground beside you and mentally complained about how cold the rocks were. You had nothing but a jacket and a sweatshirt. You could not afford to pack heavier. You had not yet had to deal with a harsh winter, and you hoped you didn't have to. A fire was stupid. The flames would be visible for miles around.

You sighed and once again fell asleep.

--

"Baby! Where are you?"

"On my way there now, stuck in traffic." You responded into the phone, trying to keep a level voice. Behind you, masked soldiers shouted muffled orders and erected barricades while others scanned the area, assault rifles up. A helicopter whirred overhead.

"Listen, i need to call you back. I'll be there soon!"

"Just..okay. Please, be safe."

"Don't you worry about that." You hung up the phone. A soldier, clad in MOPP chemical protection gear, spotted you and walked over to you.

"You, clear this area now! Martial law is in effect, get back to your residence!"

"I was just trying to, sir, what the hell is this anyway?"

"Biological hazard outbreak. Return to your residence now. Blockade yourself inside and keep all volume to a minimum."

"Why?"

The soldier looked at you.

"Looters. Now go-"

The soldier was cut off by a burst of gunfire. He and the others ran towards it.

"Shit! Charlie 1-4, sitrep!"

He turned back to you one last time.

"Get to your residence, NOW!"

The soldier sprinted towards the source of the gunfire. As he ran past an alleyway, someone lumbered towards him. The soldier pivoted and shot the person, before continuing.

You were stunned. They had just shot that guy. You moved towards the body, if nothing else to at least cover it.

It was no person.

--

Once again you awoke, drawing your weapon and scanning your perimeter. Predictably, nothing. You got up, picked up your bag, and started walking again. Living this way was starting to take a serious toll on you. You were always hungry, it was random if you could find a chance to bathe, your teeth were not doing well, and your back ached from your lifestyle of camping in trees. Sometimes you wondered why you continued to live like this.

You remembered the things you had met in the forest. That would have been a big damn deal back before. You reminded yourself that this was more than likely not earth, and you were also probably dead. Was this hell? You had no clue. It wasn't a pit of flames, but it wasn't a strip club with unlimited happy hour either.

You scoffed. You hated clubs.

They had said something about a town. You wondered what this could be. While the one had attacked you instantly, the others had only shown curiosity. Could they be peaceful? At least one was capable of immobilizing you.

You decided not to take chances. You didn't want to be studied. You did not want to be near any sentient creatures. You wanted nothing.

You took out your pistol and looked at it.

No, not yet. You saved that for if you were infected.

All day you walked. Down the mountain and back into the depths of the woods. No particular direction in mind. No point anyway.

You were really hungry now. You hadn't eaten in a long time.

This was a problem. You saw no wildlife in the woods. No squirrels. No chipmunks. No rabbits. No birds. No food.

You tried to remember edible plants. It would do you no good anyway, only grass grew on the forest floor.

Evening fell quickly.

You decided you didn't give a shit about the danger. You collected some dry sticks and logs and eventually had a decent fire.

You leaned back against a tree trunk.

Questioning once again why you carried on, you looked at the pistol in your hand. It would be so quick. Robotically you brought it up to your skull. One. Two.

"Mind if i join you?"

-

You snapped the pistol towards the darkness.

"Mind stepping into the damn light?"

You demanded.

A creature similar to the ones you had met before stepped into the flickering firelight. It was tall, almost as tall as you. It had glowing hair that seemed to be blowing, but there was no wind. A large horn adorned it's head.

"It seems like an awful night to be alone."

The creature sat down.

You did too. "I've spent plenty just like this."

"That seems a shame."

"Damn right. Now, why the hell are you here? I already told your little buddies to piss off.."

The creature smiled. "Ah, yes. My student always was too hasty."

"Was your student the jackass who assaulted me?"

"No, that was one of her friends. My student did the talking."

"Oh, so your student was the jackass who imprisoned me in a force field."

"As i said.."

"Yeah, yeah. So like i told them, I really don't feel like going anywhere, doing anything, or especially being studied. I'm dead already, but at this point i might as well kill myself a second time."

"Why is this place so bad?"

You thought.

"Because as shitty as it was back where i'm from, at least it was home. I was surrounded by the ruins of what was once a great civilization- a great species. People who i might have known were now dead. But it allowed be to remember what there was. Here, it's just a damn woods. I'm alone, and i'm literally dead. That's why."

The creature was silent. Finally it asked "how did you die?"

"Couple assholes shot me on a supply run. They were blowing off rounds and were going to bring down a pack of WDs on the town, so i created a distraction. They spotted me before i could get away and put a round through my gut. Then i woke up here. Bullshit."

"Why would they do that?"

"The fuck do i know? The only people that can survive now are fucking psychotic or really damn lucky. Like me. Or at least i was."

"And what is a 'WD'"?

"Whiskey-delta. That's what the military called the Things that infected people became."

There was another long silence.

"You must have been brought here for a reason, no?"

You thought.

"If there is a reason, i don't care. I'm just some fucking person with no damn purpose who managed to outlive everyone i know. So fuck this. I don't care why i was brought here."

You angrily brought the gun up to your head.

You attempted to pull the trigger, but your hand could not move.

You looked down. The firearm and your hand were encased in a glow.

You sighed.

"Why the fuck is it that you guys can do that shit?"

"It's called magic"

"That's a good joke, but fucking let me go, would you?"

The creature held a level expression.

"I can't do that. I cannot let you senselessly inflict harm on yourself. Not with you being the first of your kind here."

"i already told the other one, i'm not fucking interested in being probed in some stupid lab!"

The creature looked surprised.

"Our society is peaceful. We would not force anything on you if you did not want it. But i cannot let you do this."

The creature softly levitated the gun out of your hands and examined it.

"What purpose does this device serve?"

"It shoots bullets."

"I knew that.." The creature said quietly.

"Don't be a liberal. That thing is the only way I stayed alive. It may have killed people before, but now it only kills the monsters that people turned into."

"And now you intended to turn it on yourself?"

"As i stated, as far as I'm concerned, this place fucking sucks and i'm done with life!"

The creature looked you in the eyes.

"What have you seen of this land, other than the Forest?"

"Fuck all! .. But there was something in the distance. It didn't look natural."

The creature smiled.

"Our capital city. Where my sister and i rule."

You were taken aback, but kept a level tone.

"So your majesty walked all the way out here to see little old me? I'm flattered."

The creature flared out an impressive wingspan from it's back, causing the fire to intensify.

"Oh, that..."

The creature folded it's wings and sat down again.

You sighed. "How did you even find me out here.

The creature smiled a little.

I have my ways. I come here as a matter of great importance . And because it is the first time my kind has met yours. It would be best to have the leader present."

You scoffed. "Well, my leader is either holed up in a bunker somewhere, or roaming around the streets of the capitol, dead like everyone else. It's just me. And i am no damn leader."

"Do you represent the idealism of your kind?"

"Not really. The whole end of the world thing kind of changed what my species is about."

"If you are the only one of your kind here, then the responsibility of representing your kind falls to you, does it not?"

You sighed. "What you're saying makes sense and all, but i'm not really up to that. I've spent months evading crazy people and living dead, living in fucking trees and eating squirrels. I'm not ready to meet any damn aliens. I'm not ready to be any kind of representative. But i also don't want to live out my days out here, some kind of hermit, eventually starving to death or getting a disease or something."

The creature spoke again. "Our society is inherently peaceful and accepting of outsiders. You would encounter no hatred or discrimination. We only wish to learn from you. We would even be willing to integrate you if you chose."

"Well isn't that the choice of the century. Either come meet aliens and struggle to readapt to a society, or stay out in the damn woods. Well shit, i don't know. I'll consider it. What direction is your settlement from here."

"West. And if you wish to remain here, i will not stop you. But i must warn you. We have no control over this forest. Our magic holds little meaning here. There are carnivorous creatures that would not hesitate to attack."

It set your firearm back on the ground in front of you.

"I sincerely hope you do not use this the wrong way. Reevaluate your decisions. You may find more purpose than you think. The population in my land is.. Rather unused to violence. They tend to avoid this forest and it's dangers. If you wished to avoid them, this is the place for you. But be warned, the dangers that make them avoid this forest are the same dangers that will come for you."

You flashed back to the eyes in the shadows.

"I'll keep that in mind. Thank you..?"

The creature stood up.

"Celestia."

With that, it unfurled it's wings and shot into the sky.

You stopped and thought about the conversation you just had.

"What a stupid name..."