A couple of us gathered around the calendar in disbelief, as if to check and see if today was really the 13th. Of course this was only a guess for no one in our silo had ever seen the sun. The dreaded date had finally arrived, just as the soothsayers had predicted. Our nonperishable food supply had finally diminished. Now everyone was faced with the same grim ultimatum. Either slowly starve to death in our subterranean home, or venture beyond the blast doors into the wasteland. Almost everything we knew about the silo and the Great War was passed down by word of mouth. Close to a dozen of the elders were taught how to read by their ancestors. Through the study of old personal journals and launch manuals, a few things became widely accepted.
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In the distance a large gray tornado danced about in the flat valley. Dead trees and saguaro corpses littered the ground as far as the eye could see. The desolate scene sapped all remaining enthusiasm from my body. On my side of the mountain, I could barely make out the remnants of a small settlement a half days walk away. I let out a crestfallen sigh, tightened my shoes and began my journey. Half way down the mountain I heard the unmistakable echo of gunshots from the other side. I cringed thinking about what fate had fallen upon the others. Perhaps they were the lucky …show more content…
However, the only thing I found was bones and disappointment. Judging by the sheer amount of corpses strewn about I was not the first to try and find sanctuary here. Dragging my feet up to the last shop with the thought of certain death on my mind I pried the door open. The store was picked clean like the others. However, this one had strange two wheeled contraptions and parts hanging from the walls. I could faintly recall one of the elders explaining them to us a while back. A glance at the deteriorating posters confirmed that they were made to be ridden. I had come a long way, but it was clear now that my journey ended here. I sluggishly unscrewed a metal fairing off one of the bikes and started to dig my own grave. It was then that a distant rumbling noise caught my attention. I scanned the horizon and was mystified at what I saw. It seemed as if one of the tornadoes was speeding across the landscape. As it grew nearer I started to understand what I saw. It was a train, just like the smaller electric ones that connected the launch tubes back home. Being so far away it was clear to me that it had to be massive and traveling extremely fast. With a renewed sense of excitement I started to plan how to board that train when it came back. I knew I had no chance on foot, I quickly started trying out all of the bikes. Much to my dismay all of
In the distance a large gray tornado danced about in the flat valley. Dead trees and saguaro corpses littered the ground as far as the eye could see. The desolate scene sapped all remaining enthusiasm from my body. On my side of the mountain, I could barely make out the remnants of a small settlement a half days walk away. I let out a crestfallen sigh, tightened my shoes and began my journey. Half way down the mountain I heard the unmistakable echo of gunshots from the other side. I cringed thinking about what fate had fallen upon the others. Perhaps they were the lucky …show more content…
However, the only thing I found was bones and disappointment. Judging by the sheer amount of corpses strewn about I was not the first to try and find sanctuary here. Dragging my feet up to the last shop with the thought of certain death on my mind I pried the door open. The store was picked clean like the others. However, this one had strange two wheeled contraptions and parts hanging from the walls. I could faintly recall one of the elders explaining them to us a while back. A glance at the deteriorating posters confirmed that they were made to be ridden. I had come a long way, but it was clear now that my journey ended here. I sluggishly unscrewed a metal fairing off one of the bikes and started to dig my own grave. It was then that a distant rumbling noise caught my attention. I scanned the horizon and was mystified at what I saw. It seemed as if one of the tornadoes was speeding across the landscape. As it grew nearer I started to understand what I saw. It was a train, just like the smaller electric ones that connected the launch tubes back home. Being so far away it was clear to me that it had to be massive and traveling extremely fast. With a renewed sense of excitement I started to plan how to board that train when it came back. I knew I had no chance on foot, I quickly started trying out all of the bikes. Much to my dismay all of