The Azrael: Surviving the Outbreak Read Free Page B

this.  He won’t believe us.”  Savanna said as her hands shook.  “Back inside, now.  We figure this out in the morning.”  She continued noticing her hands shaking and wanted to separate herself from the situation.
    “I can’t sleep with that fucking thing out there.”  John responded pointing at the Azrael.
    “Neither am I but there’s no point when we can’t see shit.  Look, your night vision goggles are in the truck and it’s right behind him.”  Savanna pointed at the truck parked not fifteen meters from the Azrael.
    “Damn it, you’re right.  In the morning, but I’m watching the door.”  John said as he reluctantly entered the back door of the house and they sat in the kitchen with a watchful eye on the hulk of a beast eating a bear, a fucking bear, outside.
    “That bear is not from around here is it?”  Savanna asked.
    “It’s too big to be native here.  Maybe it’s from the Brookfield Zoo?  It’s not far from here.”  John suggested.
    “Probably, that place has been abandoned for years.  Imagine running into tigers out there.”  Savanna imagined and searched the landscape for orange and black stripes among the green and brown setting.
    “They are probably being killed by those damned Azrael too.  Those things are at the top of the food chain now.”  John admitted.
    “Look, he’s leaving!  That’s so weird.  What the heck is going on here?”  Savanna asked John as she squinted trying to see it among the shadows of the forest.
    “It is fucking weird.  I bet he’s been eating shit here all this time.  Look at all these dead animal carcasses around the house.  The Mason House is now priority one.”  John said marking the Mason House with a red circle on the map and Savanna made note of the incident in their journal. 
    Daylight came a few hours later and the two began to pack up the truck after a much needed breakfast of instant oatmeal.  They decided to drive straight through to the Highwaymen Station this time and avoid any unnecessary stops.  Shit has changed and the Doc needed to know as soon as possible.

Chapter 2
    Mario Cortez
     
    A breeze entered the flap of Mario’s tent and stirred him from his sleep. He slowly sat up and shivered. Mario grabbed his jacket that doubled as a makeshift pillow and untied the para cord that kept it from unrolling. Over the last year the weather had become more intense. More snow accumulated in the winter and the summer was hot and humid. There were harsher downpours of rain where thunder and lightning were sure to accompany it. The changing of seasons was becoming more obvious. Nature was reclaiming the land.
    “It’s going to rain.” He said to himself while putting on his jacket.  He’s doing that more these days. He’s been living on his own in the woods for a few years now.  It’s what he knows and he’s good at outdoor survival.  Also, there are less Azrael in rural places.  They go where people are and, compared to the once overpopulated cities, there are very few people out in the rural areas.  However, he has seen more herds than usual these last few weeks along with the frequent thunderstorms.  He even saw lightning strike an Azrael and after a bit it stood up like nothing happened.  The asphalt was cracked and cratered where the lightning exited its foot.  It wandered away from the herd probably disoriented from the shock of the strike.  An enemy who gets up from such an injury and continues the fight is a formidable one.
    Mario got up and started his normal routine, folded up his sleeping bag quietly and unzipped his tent cautiously pointing his crossbow through the slit a few inches behind so it would be hidden to anyone or anything outside.  His machete was within reach of his right hand, if he needed it in a pinch, in a form fitting sheath on his back.  All was in order so he stepped out still alert to his surroundings.  It was what kept him alive this long and he will not deviate from