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A YEAR AGO BEFORE THE APOCALYPSE
Eden had already woken up and was busy sorting out and arranging the piles of supplies and weapons in neat order but didn't store them on shelves, cabinets, or closets. She placed all of them on all the various tables, chairs, flat spaces, and floor spaces on corners or sides.
She had done all this just so in case she needed to pack them in a hurry or go to leave the apartment. It looked like she decided firmly that she was not going to stay in the apartment permanently because of its weak security and safety measures.
After she had done sorting them out and made sure there was enough space for her to sit down which is by her desk table and chair that will be solely used for writing and eating, and her bed for sleeping, she went to dress herself up to go out again to search and forage for more food and water and try to find shelter which will be her new home with good security and it is safe from all dangers in the city, both the hostile living and non-living.
It took about 6 days for Eden to do this but on the fourth day she packed up all the supplies, necessities, and weapons down into the car, and then during the last two of the six days, Eden seemed to have gone somewhere and has not gone back to the apartment as it was empty and devoid of life in all those last three days.
Then Eden finally come back and she looked around the apartment to see if she had forgotten anything until she reached towards her desk which the only thing left was her journal and pen and she sat down and wrote another new entry on it.
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JOURNAL ENTRY: 20TH DAY, 1ST MONTH JANUARY, YEAR 2XXX
Hey, it's me, Eden. It took me so long to write another entry again here in this journal but that's because I've been busy for the past 6 days.
Here's what's been happening.
I had to go do and complete my priority number two which is Food and Shelter.
I need to prepare and go and forage for more food and water for my survival and stay here in the city. After that, I need to find shelter which will be secure and safe for me from the dangers in the city, from both the undead zombies to the hostile living survivors.
If I know some stories or watched some apocalyptic movies or something like that, those that had managed to survive in this zombie apocalypse, most of those people would be hostile like criminals that broke loose and escaped from prison or good people that changed into evil because of this sudden disaster and it's become survival of the fittest from now on.
First things first, I readied and prepared myself to tackle the days ahead as I searched and gather food and water first before searching for a new place that will be my permanent shelter and new home.
I went out and then drove the car in the direction where I believed that there is a medium supermarket where there would still be food and water there that I need for my survival.
The reason why I believed that there would be was because knowing that the sudden outbreak of zombies roaming out on the streets on the very beginning first days of the apocalypse, most of the people and survivors that had fled and escaped out of the city would have struck the food and water stores from outside and raided weapon and supply shops before they left.
It's obvious for those in the city that try to survive and escape, they wouldn't have been suicidal to go raid the supermarkets or malls that were in the inner parts of the city, mainly deep inside the middle of the metropolitan city or the streets downtown.
For me to survive my lone stay here in the city, then the survival stuff I needed is in those places, which of course, is a dangerous, reckless, and suicide mission for me.
But I am brave enough and courageous to conquer it and besides, I do have weapons with me, which are the machete, crossbow, quiver of arrows, two-bladed spear, and two silenced handguns with gun sheaths.
When I had these weapons ready and brought with me, it almost made me feel a little bad-ass as I survive this zombie apocalypse.
But I also remember one of my important survival rules when it comes to carrying such a load and needed to be careful and aware of myself.
RULE #8: Make sure to pack light.
I know very well that traveling around and carrying such a heavy load on my person, will slow me down and get me caught in enemy hands, including the zombies. So I made sure that I lighten any load and bring only the necessary and useful things on me. As well as, making sure that I'm efficiently protected from any harm that will come at me.
Anyway, I had managed to reach one of the supermarket stores I was aiming for and then as silent like the wind and quiet like a mouse, I went inside with weapons on me at the ready and had gone through everywhere I went inside the store and retrieve the food and water.
To survive in an apocalypse like this for a long time, the water has to be clean and bottled, which I found in many gallons and bottles, I got them first and put them on the armored car and then went for the food which the ones needed for survival are those that can last long for years and long life-span shelf-life. Those particular types of food are canned goods, dried beans, nuts, jars of honey and peanut butter, energy bars, hard-tack biscuits, grains, rice, and others like that.
It took almost about three trips for a cart full of packing food and water back to the car and it can manage the weight with so much stuff packed inside the back.
I was fortunate that the store I raided had only about a few zombies inside it - which I had killed with the crossbow and machete. It seems that all those food markets and malls must've been empty of zombies long ago since they had broken out of those places and then roamed about the streets all over the city.
After I've done gathering food and water, I went to drive off and search for shelter which will be my new permanent secure home and safe place. I'm doing this next instead of going back to the apartment because chances are that packing so much of these survival supplies will be too much and exhausting for me, it will take me about a week or two to do so.
When I didn't find the place I'm looking for that was suitable, I went back to my apartment and left the food and water stay inside the car as I came back to do another search for shelter during those days.
Then finally three days ago, that was when I saw it. I found the right shelter that is safe and secure for me to stay and survive in the city and that it is a good place that will be away from the dangers, both the undead and the living.
It was a half-way constructed incomplete apartment building about three stories high and its entrances and exits had been blocked by piles of fallen stones, bricks, and concrete debris from the construction carrier towers above it like an earthquake occurred previously from the sudden apocalypse and made some sort of avalanche over the ground entrances and exits.
It was a perfect place because the safe place I was talking about was on the rooftop with the only thing that can get up there is the slightly stable newly-built emergency escape fire ladder on its side.
I stopped the car right next to the ladder and then went out and inspected it carefully. After seeing that it's safe for me only to climb up and down, I went to go up and inspect the very top high of the abandoned constructed apartment building.
The ladder creaked soundly as I climbed but I ignored it and kept on moving up bravely. It didn't take me long to reach the very top and then I climbed up and then inspected the surroundings around.
It has a perfect view and scenery, looking out around the city, both high to the below grounds before me. It was a great place for me to set up as my new safe shelter and also as a watch-nest lookout. After deeming this place and decision made that this place is now a permanent shelter, I then climbed down and made and set up a pulley system to carry up the stocks of food and water and carry it to the rooftop.
The idea of a pulley system came to me, thanks to another one of my survival rules, which is RULE # 11: Make and turn any idea useful, even if it's useless.
It was a simple system that I had to do, I used a pulley by looping a rope to the very top as I climbed up again and then set up the rope to hang from a sturdy metal pole hammered firmly to the side of the rooftop and then hung it down with its long length. Then I climbed down again and then tied and set up the carry-on flat wooden surface that I searched and foraged among the construction supplies and then placed a few gallons of water bottles on it and boxes of food on. Then I repeatedly went up again and then with all my strength that I have and one foot laid against the side of the rooftop railing and pulled and lifted the supply tray way to the rooftop.
It was slightly heavy for me to lift but I did all my best and carried it all up to the roof. After I finished, I set them by the side and decided to sort them out later until I packed up what was left back from my apartment. Before I went down and back to the car, I covered the piles of boxed food and water with a thick dark tarp, to protect them from weather and hide it away from sight.
Then I went down back to the car and drove back to my apartment and pack up my necessities, clothes, supplies, weapons, and whatever is left in my apartment and bring them to the new shelter. I sighed almost tired and exhausted while doing this as I double-check the leftover stock of food and water and then packed them up and brought them to the car. Then I drove it and brought all of it and everything back to the new place.
The long trips with using and driving the car almost consumed the gas quickly but I had come prepared and already searched and found gas cans for the car and whenever I almost run out, I just get the prepared one that is inside and then refuel.
Now, all that's left is just writing this entry in my journal after I finished everything and set it all up back in the new place, and I had to come back for the last time in this apartment to retrieve my journal. The mission is complete now goes the next one is in the future at my new home.
This is Eden signing off.
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Eden finally stopped writing and she sighed as she had finished completing what she had gone to do, including the tasks of food and shelter.
Eden packed her journal and pen into her bag and then she slowly walked to her door and looked back as if for the final last time and then she left the apartment and went to the new shelter and her new home.
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