108

The last gunshot rings out, and the only moans left are from the remaining survivors. All zombies lie motionless along the floor of the Sanctuary, their bodies mangled and lifeless. The air is stale and thick with the smell of rotting flesh. Smoke wisps through the room, dissipating as a breeze now flows through the cracks and bullet holes. Broken glass and bullet casings clutter the catwalk. The first rays of the sun peek through the windows atop the Cathedral.

You walk down the ladder of the catwalk, keeping a watchful eye for any sudden movement from the dead lying around. Slowly, others join you: Tom, Mindy, Emma. In the middle of the Sanctuary, all of you stop and glance around the room. Words cannot describe what is felt in that moment of seeing the death and destruction from the past few, short hours.

"What now?" Emma asks.

All eyes look to you.

"I think I speak for everyone when I say… Rezo should be our leader now," Mindy says.

As the darkness gives way to the light of the sun, you glance around the Sanctuary and know there is much work to restore this place to the safe haven it was only a day ago. And other concerns are mounting. The zombie horde is only a sign of what is to come. You can't yet fathom the impact of letting the raiders join you inside the Cathedral. Candace's death weighs heavily on your mind. The responsibility of keeping you and Emma alive along with the rest of the survivors seems an arduous, almost impossible task. The decision to stay at the Cathedral or leave must be made soon. And still, the need for food, water, and medicine requires constant attention as opportunities to replenish them diminish each day and the dangers of living in a Post-Apocalyptic world grow. As the sun rises on a new day, you glance around the Cathedral, a place where people use to come to pray and find solitude. And looking at the faces of your fellow survivors, you see a glimmer of something you thought had been lost for months.

Hope.