The once imposing walls, fortified with barbed wire, guard towers, and armed guards, were now nothing but a pile of rubble and debris. The charred remains of buildings and the twisted metal of fences and gates were scattered across the landscape, evidence of the sheer force and power of the creature that had caused this destruction.

Amidst the wreckage, a crimson-stained hand clawed its way through the rubble, accompanied by the desperate emergence of a man in a tattered prison uniform.

Against all odds, Fletcher survived, he struggled against the weight of shattered stone and splintered timber.

Cloaked in a shroud of dust so thick it covered his features, he seemed more akin to a ghost than a living soul. His survival, let alone his escape unscathed, defied the odds a miracle amidst the chaos.

He cast a fleeting glance upon the rugged landscape surrounding him, a momentary respite before plunging into action, time was a luxury he couldn't afford. the military could show up at any moment, this was a precious chance for freedom.

Fletcher dashed towards the looming forest, vanishing into its shadowed embrace.

Only when he was sure he had traveled a good distance away from the prison and that no one was after him, he halted to catch his breath.

"It seems, I'm the only one who made it out alive!". Fletcher said in a labored breath "I can't stop here, I need to find a shelter".

After long, exhausting hours of running, he finally arrived in an urban area.

As Fletcher traversed the unfamiliar terrain, each step echoing softly against the concrete beneath his boots, he searched for a sanctuary to settle for the night. Yet, despite his weariness urging him forward, a peculiar sensation held him captive, tethering him to the spot. His gaze wandered aimlessly through the dimly lit streets, an unsettling stillness enveloping the air like a suffocating shroud.

Something was amiss.

The city before him should have pulsed with the vibrancy of life, its alleys alive with the hustle and bustle of its inhabitants. But instead, it lay eerily deserted, the only sound the faint whisper of the wind.

'Where is everyone?'. Fletcher wondered.

He walked around, but not a single soul in sight. Exhaustion gnawed at his limbs, a testament to the miles he had traversed, his body needed some urgent rest, so he set his gaze on a random building and decided to explore what was inside.

Fletcher knocked on the door, but no one was home. so he forced his way in by kicking the door, as expected he found the place empty and covered in dust. It looked like it had been abandoned for weeks or months.

The electricity and water were off, so he couldn't use anything inside. After a thorough search, he discovered some clothes and sneakers that fit him. In the kitchen, he opened the fridge, but everything had gone bad without power.

He searched other vacant houses and found some canned food, cereal, and water, he ravished the little food he found, it made a decent meal compared to what he had eaten in prison.

***

RAAUUGGHH! A weird growling sound.

Fletcher nervously thought, 'What was that sound? Please don't tell me it’s one of those creatures!'

Peering out the window, he saw three zombies strolling past the building, they growled loudly and dragged their heavy and rotten bodies with surprising agility.

'Maybe surviving wasn't such a blessing after all' Fletcher couldn't help but admit to the irony of the situation.

Fletcher isolated himself in the apartment and stayed there for the whole night. He barricaded himself inside intending to stay until morning.

A few hours later.

Fletcher was startled awake in the middle of the night by a loud noise coming from outside his window. When he looked out, he spotted several people running away from an approaching group of zombies.

As his eyes met one of the people, Fletcher gasped and quickly ducked down, praying that he hadn't been seen.

"Damn it can't I get some fucking sleep" Fletcher cursed.

A middle-aged man with a beard strode ahead of the group and shouted to his allies, "Head into that building on the right" he pointed to the building Fletcher was in.

"Tommy! Do your thing" a skinny boy at the back slowed down until he was just within reach of the zombies. It almost looked like he was teasing them by keeping a constant distance; eventually, their attention was completely drawn away from the rest of the team as they followed the boy far away.

The rest cautiously made their way into the building. After a bit of time, Fletcher heard knocking at the door. He rushed to it and peered out the peephole; he recognized the man from earlier who had caught his gaze. "Pardon me," the stranger said, "could you open up? I don't mean any trouble."

Fletcher tucked a kitchen knife into his trousers and moved towards the entrance. 'I can't hide anymore, he spotted me earlier,' Fletcher thought to himself as he opened the door. Standing before him was a tall man with a full beard and an unyielding expression. He held out his hand for a greeting.

“My name is James, I apologize for bothering you”. James said with a friendly smile.

"What do you want?" Fletcher gave him a cold look and didn't even bother to shake his hand.

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James didn't seem to mind Fletcher's attitude. "I just wanted to say hi and apologize for barging in, we won't stay long."

“Where are you headed? if you don't mind me asking” Fletcher inquired.

James sneaked a look around the flat and noticed Fletcher was by himself. "we are going to the eleventh base, you can tag along if you want, it's not safe to be on your own," James said in an attempt to gain a new companion.

“I'm thankful for the offer, but I have other plans”.

"Well it's a shame, by the way, we found some supplies in the building downstairs, I hope you don't mind sharing some with us".

“It's all good, I just arrived here, too” Fletcher said indifferently.

"Well thank you anyway, listen tonight will be having dinner, if you want you can join us, and I'll introduce you to the Others " james added as a friendly gesture.

"I will think about it " Fletcher replied flatly.

Once James had departed, Fletcher shut the door. 'They don't seem like bad people,' he thought to himself. 'Maybe I should join them tonight, That wouldn't be a terrible idea; I could get some information about what's been going on outside since I've been stuck in jail all this time'.

**

James and his pals were all together in one room, chowing down on canned food, and chatting about whatever came up. Then there was a knock: "Hey James! It's Fletcher from upstairs, you told me I could drop by!" They opened the door and he stepped inside.

“I'm Fletcher”. Fletcher said He then turned to James and meekly said, "Sorry for snapping at you before. I've had a rough day."

James greeted him with a warm smile, assuring him that there was no need to worry.

Fletcher took in the scene of nine people gathered around, seven men and two women. His gaze hung a bit longer on the female duo, they both looked young and attractive with slender bodies.

Fletcher chided himself internally to control himself, this was not the place or time for that.

There was one man around the age of the women, while the other males looked significantly older than James, who seemed to be sitting by himself in the corner.

The two women and the young man sat together, seemingly comfortable with one another.

Fletcher was eager to find out some information, so he inquired about their story. He wanted to delve deeper into who these people were and how they had come together, so he posed the question "How did you guys meet?"

James spoke up first "Well I met Tommy, Jess, and Monica two weeks ago at a gas station, we met these gentlemen a few days later, heading the same direction as us ".

“Did you come across anyone else while traveling here?” Fletcher asked.

“A handful of people showed up now and then, including the army yesterday. We thought we'd finally made it to safety, but strangely enough, they wouldn't have paid us any attention if I hadn't revealed my prior military service. They insisted that their mission was too important to be delayed, so off they went without another word, how can anything be more urgent than saving civilians?” James rambled on in frustration.

Fletcher was rattled, hearing about the army's movements had him all worked up. But He stayed composed and asked,"Do you know which way they were going?"

James gazed off southward with a perplexed expression. "I'm pretty sure it's to the south, but there's nothing out there apart from mountains," he said in confusion.

Fletcher was aware that they were headed in the direction of the prison. he thought, 'I have to get out of here fast, they might be on the lookout for anyone who made it out.'

James inquired curiously, "So Fletcher what brought you here? Where did you come from?"

“I got separated from my brother and since then, I've been searching for him”. To cover up the truth, Fletcher came up with a false story of looking for his missing brother in case anyone asked.

“I'm very sorry to hear that, can you tell me what he looks like? Maybe we crossed paths with him” James said with compassion he had heard many similar stories, In fact, he was looking for his family too, but at least he had a lead.

Fletcher described a random person, a friend he knew from prison, and obviously, they did not recognize him, because he was dead.

"I strongly suggest joining us, you might not know about this, but all shelters compile a record of those who have survived," James said with great confidence.

"I will think about it, thank you for the suggestion" Fletcher replied.

Fletcher listened intently as people began sharing what had taken place outside. He was utterly unaware of the events that had unfolded in recent months, but he finally obtained some answers to all the questions that plagued his mind.

From what he could piece together from their conversations, a year ago, scientists made a groundbreaking discovery, parallel dimensions exist, and scientists found a way to open portals leading to them and planned an expedition like no other, to be broadcast live on television for the world to witness, something akin to the landing on the moon, but eight months later, when they were ready to send the exploration team in, disaster struck, as the world watched in complete horror, A massive explosion engulfed the entire site, taking hundreds of lives with it. Since then, portals have been popping up all over the world.

Horrifying monsters, grotesque creatures, and all sorts of horrifying beings emerged from portals around the world, causing chaos everywhere. Even dead bodies rose as zombies! But most shocking of all was when some humans started displaying supernatural abilities.

Governments around the world attempted to control this devastating situation but were unable to. As a last resort, they directed their citizens into secure underground shelters. Those who opted not to seek shelter, have been left to fend for themselves on the surface.

Fletcher discovered that Tommy had special powers; his speed increased tremendously and he was capable of reaching speeds as high as 60 miles per hour, an astounding feat. He was the reason the group had survived for so long, Tommy would lead zombies away giving the group a chance to escape.

When the chatter had subsided and exhaustion began to settle in, one of the men named Joe reached into his bag and pulled out a radio. He switched it on, filling the room with static noise, as he was frantically changing frequencies in search of some coherent sound.

"…this emergen…Chanel number 96.0 to all survivors in the Matron city and nearby areas the 11th west base is now ready to receive more people please be safe on your way here...".

Fletcher listened as well, but his attention was elsewhere. His eyes fixated on Jess, mesmerized by her beauty. Her attractive face and full figure drew him in. After all the time spent in prison, being so close to someone as lovely as her filled him with desire. He looked at her with a burning intensity.

Jess noticed Fletcher and wrinkled her nose in distaste. He had been gawking at her the entire time, she shivered, grabbing a blanket to cover herself up, she was used to men stealing glances at her every so often but this Fletcher made her skin crawl, his presence gave her an unsettling feeling.

As night had crept in, everyone was fatigued and ready for some rest, Fletcher said his goodbyes and went back to his apartment.

Jess settled in for the night, nestled beside Monica. She couldn't help but tell her friend about the eerie feeling the strange man gave her, and to her surprise, Monica had sensed the same thing.