After completing the quest, Aiden remained motionless for a moment, his chest heaving with every breath. Sweat dripped from his brow and soaked through the back of his shirt, his lungs burning from the non-stop hour-long sprint that had tested the very limits of his endurance. The harsh rhythm of his breathing echoed faintly in the silent, desolate street around him. Every muscle in his body ached with exhaustion, his legs felt like dead weight, and his heart pounded like a war drum in his chest.
He glanced around cautiously, scanning the surrounding area for any signs of danger—walkers, looters, or worse—but all appeared quiet for now. With his adrenaline slowly fading and fatigue setting in like a heavy fog, Aiden forced his legs to move, trudging toward one of the few intact houses he had scouted earlier during his search for supplies. The front door hung slightly ajar, creaking softly as he pushed it open and stepped inside.
The air within was stale but clean—no rot, no blood, no signs of recent occupation. That was a small victory in itself. He made his way through the narrow hallway, his boots thudding softly against the hardwood floor, until he reached the master bedroom at the end of the hall. The room was surprisingly untouched: a large bed sat against the far wall, its sheets still mostly in place, the windows intact but dusty. He locked the door behind him and quickly dragged a nearby dresser in front of it, reinforcing the entry just in case.
With what little energy he had left, Aiden staggered to the window, pulled the curtains closed, and began boarding it up with spare wooden planks he had scavenged earlier. The hammering was slow and deliberate—more noise than he liked to make, but necessary for peace of mind. When he was satisfied that the room was secure, he finally allowed himself to relax, just slightly.
Reaching into his pack, he pulled out a dented can of chili and an Emergency Meal Ration (EMR). His hands trembled slightly as he used his multitool to pry the can open, and he devoured its contents with the kind of urgency that only true hunger could justify. It wasn't gourmet by any means, but after everything he'd been through, it might as well have been a feast. He downed the EMR next—a dense, flavorless brick of nutrition—and followed it with a long drink from his water flask.
After eating, Aiden didn't throw the can away. Instead, he cleaned it out quickly and stored it in his inventory. Experience had taught him that even the most mundane objects could become useful in the apocalypse, whether for crafting, trading, or makeshift tools. Everything had value if you lived long enough to find a purpose for it.
Finally, with his stomach full and the room secure, he collapsed onto the bed, not even bothering to remove his gear. The mattress was dusty and uneven, but it felt like heaven compared to the cold, hard ground he was used to. Within moments, sleep overtook him like a crashing wave. His body went still, his breathing evened out, and the constant edge of survival finally dulled—for a few short, precious hours.
In the dead quiet of the room, the world outside kept turning, but Aiden had passed out, utterly spent—his mind and body surrendering to exhaustion after a day that had pushed him to the brink.
The next morning arrived with a dull gray light filtering through the boarded-up edges of the window, casting faint lines across the dusty walls. Aiden stirred slowly, groaning as the soreness in his legs and arms hit him like a delayed aftershock. Every muscle ached from the previous day's relentless sprint and exertion. He lay still for a few moments, staring at the ceiling, mentally preparing himself to move.
Eventually, he sat up with effort, rolling his shoulders and wincing as he stretched the stiffness from his limbs. Sleep had helped, but only just. Survival didn't allow for rest days.
He got to work without complaint, though his movements were slower than usual. The first order of business was unsealing the room. Aiden carefully removed the planks from the window one by one, using the back of his multitool to pry them loose. A few nails bent or snapped in the process, but that couldn't be helped—not everything could be salvaged. Once the boards were off, he returned them to his pack for later use, then took a moment to pull the dresser away from the door. It scraped loudly across the wooden floor, the sound echoing briefly in the silence of the empty house.
Stepping back into the hallway, Aiden paused for a moment, letting his eyes adjust to the dim light. The house, like the rest of the neighborhood, was eerily quiet—silent in the way only abandoned places could be. He made his way toward the front door but stopped just before opening it.
His mind replayed the layout of the town from the day before. What he'd seen didn't leave him hopeful. Most of the buildings had already been stripped clean—stores looted, homes emptied, vehicles burned out or long gone. Whatever had been valuable or essential, the people who once lived here had taken with them. Judging by the scattered evidence—hasty packing, abandoned furniture, signs of conflict—they hadn't left at a leisurely pace. They were fleeing. But to where?
Aiden stood in the doorway, eyes scanning the lifeless street outside. A thought crossed his mind, uninvited but persistent. He frowned slightly and muttered under his breath.
"Atlanta..."
The name hung in the air, heavy with implication. It made sense. A major city, government presence, possible refugee zones—if there was any place nearby that might have had organized shelter or evacuation points, it would be there.
The realization tightened something in his chest. If survivors had gone there, maybe supplies would have too. Maybe even answers. But Atlanta also meant danger. Densely populated before the outbreak, and likely overrun now, if the city hadn't fallen entirely.
Still, it was a lead.
Now with a clear goal forming in his mind, Aiden's sense of urgency sharpened. He stepped outside and scanned the quiet street, eyes narrowing as they locked onto a vehicle tucked away in the driveway of a modest suburban house—a weathered but mostly intact sedan. The kind of car people drove to work or school, back when the world still made sense.
"Perfect," he muttered.
He moved quickly, checking his surroundings one last time before jogging toward it. The car was locked, of course. With no time to search for keys that were likely long gone, Aiden reached for the crowbar secured to the side of his pack. He gave the glass one hard, deliberate swing.
CRACK!
The window shattered, spraying glass across the seat and pavement. Almost instantly, the car's alarm erupted, blaring into the quiet morning like a screaming beacon of bad decisions.
WEE-OOO WEE-OOO WEE-OOO!
"Great," Aiden hissed under his breath as he ducked into the driver's seat, already fumbling under the dashboard. Wires. Wires everywhere. He stared at them for a second, adrenaline already spiking.
"How hard could hot-wiring a car be?" he asked himself out loud, trying to sound confident.
Within seconds, he had his answer.
"Very hard!" he shouted, as the first guttural moans echoed down the street.
He barely had time to look up before he saw them—walkers. Dozens of them. No, more than that. A whole horde, drawn by the alarm like flies to rotting meat. Shuffling out from alleys, side streets, and smashed buildings, they swarmed toward the sound. Toward him.
"Shit, shit, shit—"
Abandoning the car, Aiden threw open the door and bolted across the lawn, vaulting a low fence and sprinting full speed toward the next block. The walkers were slow, but there were too many. Way too many. The entire street behind him was flooding with the dead—at least a hundred, maybe more.
Breathing hard, legs still sore from the day before, he didn't stop. He couldn't stop.
He rounded a corner, ducked behind a wrecked SUV, and crouched low, trying to muffle his gasping breaths as the sound of the alarm slowly faded into the background, replaced by the low, hungry groans of the dead echoing through the empty streets.
"That went well," he muttered bitterly to himself.
With the echoing groans of the horde still haunting the back of his mind, Aiden didn't waste a second. He stayed low, moving fast between houses, cutting through overgrown backyards and hopping fences like a ghost slipping through the cracks of a crumbling world. He wasn't giving up—not yet. The idea of reaching Atlanta had ignited something in him. A purpose. A direction.
The first car he found—a rust-covered pickup truck tucked beneath a collapsing carport—was a bust. The ignition system was so badly stripped that it looked like someone had already tried to hot-wire it and failed miserably. Aiden gave it one quick look, then moved on.
The second car, a sleek silver sedan that still looked relatively intact, gave him a flicker of hope. He shattered the driver-side window with a rock this time—less conspicuous than the crowbar—and climbed in, hands moving swiftly beneath the dashboard. Sparks danced as he twisted and yanked at the wires. Nothing. The engine didn't even cough. For all its good looks, the battery was stone dead.
"Two down," he muttered grimly. "One more, maybe…"
By the time he reached the third vehicle—a boxy old station wagon half-hidden by an overgrown hedge—his hands were shaking from adrenaline and frustration. The air was tense, and the distant moans of the horde seemed to grow louder every time he paused. He smashed the window, slid inside, and got to work.
This time, he got lucky.
The ignition sputtered to life with a violent cough, then roared into a ragged, but functional, growl.
Aiden froze for a second, half in disbelief.
"…No way."
But it was real. The engine was running. No alarm, no instant failure. Just the sweet, glorious sound of internal combustion.
He slammed the door, dropped it into gear, and peeled out of the driveway, tires screeching against the cracked pavement. Dust and broken glass kicked up in his wake as he tore down the street, leaving the dead behind—confused, howling, and stumbling in the direction of the noise that was already fading fast.
The city loomed ahead, still many miles out, but growing closer with every passing minute.
Atlanta.
It wasn't just a name anymore—it was a destination. A chance. Aiden tightened his grip on the steering wheel, eyes fixed on the road as the car bounced along the weathered asphalt. Whatever waited for him there—hope, danger, salvation—it had to be better than what he was leaving behind.
And for the first time in a long time, he felt like he was moving forward.
As Aiden drove steadily down the long stretch of cracked highway toward Atlanta, the world around him unfolded like a graveyard frozen in time. The road was littered with the remnants of a panicked exodus—abandoned vehicles, overturned trucks, scattered belongings left behind by people who had either made it out… or never made it at all.
He kept his foot light on the gas, slowing down whenever something caught his eye. Every few hundred feet, he'd spot a vehicle that looked intact enough to be worth checking. With practiced efficiency, he'd pull over, step out with his crowbar in hand, and scan the area for walkers before approaching. Doors were pried open, trunks were searched, and glove compartments rifled through.
Most cars were empty, looted long ago, or left behind in a hurry. But not all of them.
He managed to scavenge a few useful items: some canned food, half a box of pistol rounds, a half-used lighter, and a surprisingly intact road map of Georgia, though most of it was stained and curled from moisture. The real prize, however, came when he found his first jerry can, still half-full of fuel. He grinned at the sight of it, wiped off the grime, and without hesitation, stored it in his system inventory—that strange, almost magical digital space he still didn't fully understand, but had learned to rely on.
After that, he got more creative. Carrying a length of rubber hose in his pack, Aiden began syphoning gas from any vehicle that still had fuel left in the tank. It was messy, tiring work, and the taste of gasoline that lingered in his mouth after each attempt was enough to make him gag, but it was worth it. Every drop meant more distance. More options. More chances to survive.
By midday, his inventory held three full jerry cans and a decent supply of odds and ends. Nothing groundbreaking, but in this world, small wins could mean the difference between life and death.
With each mile, the buildings grew denser, the trees thinner, and the horizon darker with the distant silhouette of a ruined city. Atlanta loomed ahead like a sleeping beast—silent, brooding, and full of unknowns.
Aiden took one last glance at the fuel gauge, then back to the road. The engine hummed beneath him, the car cruising steadily through the desolate world. He tightened his grip on the wheel and muttered to himself:
"Almost there…"
And with that, he pressed on.