The Charred Lands: Apocalypse of Fire Read Free

comfort. Right here,
walking through the swaying green trees it was hard to imagine the
world which had been described to me, even with the thick, grey
smoke clouds lingering just above the tree line as a constant
reminder of the danger. Perhaps that’s what Timothy meant when he
told me to keep my wits about me. I quickly detached my attention
from the scenery and refocused on the task at hand.
    Tony, Amy and
Kyle had been heading just over a mile away from Haven to check on
our only known neighbour, Barry Deer. He lived in a small cottage
just down the road from us. He usually kept himself to himself, but
occasionally came down to visit us in order to trade some supplies
with us. It had been over two months since his last appearance.
Growing worried for his safety, we decided to send Tony and two of
his children to check up on Barry on their next venture outside of
Haven. We hadn’t heard from any of them since they left.
    Dexter Payne
theorised that Barry may have murdered the trio. It was a definite
possibility, something we have prepared ourselves for. My father
instructed that we were to shoot Barry without question should we
arrive at his home and find anything amiss. Personally, I wouldn’t
put it past him. I had never quite liked the guy, nor trusted him
whenever he visited Haven. He always looked at the girl’s a little
funny and never seemed to have the time of day for me. He was
always more interested in talking to the women around the place,
young and old. I could never understand why on earth he would
choose to reject several invitations to live with us, in favour of
living a secluded life all alone. Nobody really knew him all that
well; God only knows what he might be capable of.
    “ Hold up.” My dad whispered, stopping dead in his tracks.
Instantly, Timothy and Brandon froze, withdrawing their weapons
before I had even come to a stop. For a few seconds I could only
remain where I stood, trying to work out just exactly what had
spooked my dad, it was only when Timothy gave me a nudge from
behind that I remembered to unholster my weapon and ready
it.
    “ What is it?” Brandon whispered from the back, his voice
sounding calm and collected. I on the other hand, felt ready to
keel over. Something had alarmed my dad, chances were it wasn’t
going to be friendly.
    My father
nodded to thick foliage to the right of the path. I quickly scanned
them, with my gun at the ready. That’s when I heard the
rustling.
    My first
instinct was to squeeze the trigger and fire as many shots as I
could at whatever was standing on the other side of the bushes, but
somehow I managed to contain myself and stay somewhat composed.
    Suddenly
something erupted from the trees. I felt my entire body tense with
fear as I slammed my eyes shut and fired off two shots before even
beginning to comprehend what had jumped out at us. For a few
seconds I stood completely motionless, my eyes still clenched shut
and my hands wrapped around my gun so hard that they began to hurt.
I heard something drop to the ground just ahead of me.
    “ Fucking hell, Zachary.” I heard Timothy sigh from besides me,
a laugh cracking his voice.
    “ Good shot I suppose.” Brandon chuckled from besides him. Only
then did I have the courage to open my eyes. I felt a wave of
relief sweep over me as I laid eyes on what I had shot
down.
    A dog. I let
out a sigh as my heart beat began to return to normality. I was
certain that it was either going to be one of the Charred Lands
many dangerous creatures, intent on ripping us apart, or one of our
missing allies.
    I felt my
father place his hand on my shoulder before he spoke in soft,
reassuring words, “You got lucky here Zachary. Thank the stars
above that it was just a wild dog. I expect that you’ll stay more
composed next time something like this happens.” He warned, I felt
my muscles begin to relax a little.
    I didn’t
reply, instead I simply nodded, unable to take my eyes away from
the small dog that I had