We all gathered around the radio to hear it better, and although there were a few interruptions, we were able to hear most of the transmission clearly:

Yes! Finally! I've... been trying to get here... for who knows how long. But they never let me get close. They were always watching... Always watching until they managed to catch someone. Then they don't come out at least for another day. Hah... they usually all leave if they don't find someone...

They couldn't find anyone this time.

Something tells me they knew I was nearby, they must have been able to sense my presence somehow. Luckily, I'm good at hiding. Guess that military training paid off somehow.

I don't know why they chose to hole up in the radio tower, of all the damn places... but that doesn't matter anymore. Shit... I'm rambling. Why I got here doesn't really matter. The point is, I was trying to get here to relay a message.

My name's Tanner... not that that matters... I'm part of the military. Nobody that important really, but I know some things. Well, I guess more aptly put: I WAS part of the military. The stuff we're doing... it just didn't sit right with me. I don't see how it could sit right with anybody who's sane. Others felt the same way. We... defected. We fought tooth and nail to get somewhere to spread this message, to find anywhere where there was some semblance of society remaining. I'm the only one left. The others were all killed by all manners of whatever these things are, or by the military. A few of them got lost... Damn it, I'm rambling again...

The point is: the military has holed up in Washington DC and Texas. They aren't letting anybody, or anything, get in. Anybody who even comes within firing distance is taken out without a second thought. I think they've got the president and the other ratbag politicians and their families protected in Washington. That's where they're making their final stand. How nice of them to leave all the people that built their country to die, huh? The bastards...

I'm in New Jersey now. We wanted to send out a transmission to warn everyone. Stay away from Washington DC, stay away from Texas.

We also wanted to contact other survivors, try to form a place where we can all work together, live and fight against these things. Our plan was to set up a camp and tell people to come to us for safety, but... that fell through. If there's anybody out there hearing this: the only way we're all going to survive is if we band together. I'm starting to doubt if we can ever fight these things. Almost every fight against them is a steep uphill battle, and you never know what the fuck they're capable of. From what I know, this is happening all over the world. Last I heard, the... big one... was heading towards the capitol. They've got a lot of tricks up their sleeves there, things you wouldn't even believe, but something tells me it isn't really going to do them much good. That thing is... unlike anything else. It's definitely an even better reason to stay clear of Washington than the military.

He paused for a moment.

But even so, we're human beings, God damn it! We've got to struggle and fight on! We've got to live! I know there's people in hiding everywhere. There has to be! So find each other! And work together! Think about everybody that came before you! Over four million years of humanity can't be wiped out just like this! We need to-

A loud crash and rumbling interrupted him. I heard him curse, and start to breath heavily.

I think... they came back. Shit. They never come back this early.

I heard... a goat bleating loudly. Heavy footsteps echoed through the speakers and then a whole chorus of bleating goats followed.

The man chuckled. Guess this is where it ends for me, huh? To anyone listening to this: You can NEVER give up! Keep fighting! Don't let the human spirit be extinguished!

I heard the sound of a door being smashed open, and what must have been things stomping into the room he was in.

So there you are you... his voice trembled.

He was answered by another chorus of loud bleating.

Damn... you really are more ugly up close, huh?

His voice was trembling despite his bravado.

Gunfire, the sounds of stomping and crashing, yelling and angry bleating filled the speakers for about thirty seconds.

Then, a cry of pain and the noise of flesh being torn brought an end to the struggle. The bleating started again.

I'm not gonna let... you have your fun with me... I need to send a message, and what better way than this...

I heard the sound of bones cracking, and the man screamed in pain.

I've got a little surprise for you...

The bleating grew frenzied.

No matter what... don't let the human spirit... be extinguished. That is the message... I wanted... to pass... on...

The noise of an explosion erupted through the speakers.

Silence followed for about two minutes before the transmission repeated again.

Sarah shut the radio off. Everybody's eyes were wide with shock, but underneath that shock was a sense of a reignited flame within us.

Sarah was the first to comment, "Well... I... Wow."

Jared smirked, "Yeah, wow is right. What a crazy, glorious bastard. If there's still people out there alive and fighting... it makes me feel a lot more confident," he eyed his missing limb.

But then... there was also something absolutely chilling in his message, "About Texas and Washington though... that's insane," I said, "That is absolutely insane. I don't know what I expected, but to think they'd just toss everyone under the bus like that! What exactly do they know, anyway?"

Jared shook his head, "I don't know, but I expect that this guy's message will inspire others to send out messages of their own, find each other and group together. We should keep fiddling with the radio, we might catch another transmission soon."

"Yeah, it would be nice if we could get a radio that actually lets us communicate with other people instead of just relying on transmissions like this. I wonder if there's anything we missed out on."

In part, this transmission had brought both good news and bad news. The world wasn't completely done for yet. But... just how many normal people were out there, fighting and surviving? We still had no way of knowing. For all we knew, that guy that sent the message out might have been the only other person left other than the bastards holed up in the capitol and Texas. I tried to stay hopeful though...

"If we make it to the manor, maybe we can give other people shelter there too," Aaron said.

"That's right, Aaron. We'll make it there for sure."

Sarah perked up, "Manor? What do you mean?"

"Oh yeah, guess we didn't tell you." Jared said.

I cleared my throat, "Right," then told her about the letter and the manor in Ertonburg.

She clapped her hands together, "You mean... there's actually a place we can be safe?"

I nodded.

"Oh... thank God... I'm so glad you came here... Alright! I'll stick with you guys, if that's alright!" but then she stopped and looked downcast, "No, wait... My parents. I can't forget about my parents... It's been a month, but they might still be alive. I told you they lived near Arborline, right? I've been holed up here all this time, afraid to leave... but I'm worried about them. I'm sure they're worried about me too. They're pretty old though, and although dad's resourceful... chances are they aren't alive." she thought hard for a long moment, "Alright, I'll think about it tonight, and decide in the morning whether I want to come with you guys or try to find my parents."

"Going alone isn't a good idea," I said.

"It's your decision," Jared spoke up, "Once we've got a secure place of operations, I plan to help more people get there. So first and foremost, I want to get to the manor."

"Yeah, I really don't want to wait around any longer than we have to anymore," I started, "We'll leave in the morning. I really think you should come with us Sarah. I don't want you to go all the way to find your parents only for it to end up... like it did with my wife."

She looked solemnly at her hand.

"Hey, you said that eye thing comes around here a lot right? Does it usually come around the same time?" Jared asked.

She nodded, "Yeah, it shouldn't be around here anymore. I've never heard or seen it come around again during the day once it leaves..."

"Well," I said, "I guess we should leave after that thing leaves."

Jared and Sarah nodded, "Sounds good."

"I'll let you know my decision tomorrow morning," she said as she stared at the candle.

Sarah gave us all some blankets, she had horded a lot up in the attic. For the remainder of the day, she played some games like tic-tac-toe with Aaron using a journal while Jared and I toyed with the radio. It didn't take long for the two of them to warm up with each other. Aaron could finally feel a little at ease.

"Say, Sarah, what was your job in the city anyway?" I asked.

"Oh, I was a tutor for young children, though I guess I was really more of a babysitter than anything."

"A tutor?!" I was surprised, that was actually a pretty well off job. The only people who could afford to not send their children to mandatory education were pretty rich.

Her face reddened a little bit, "Oh it wasn't that big of a deal. Like I said, I was only "tutoring" really young children. Basically a glorified babysitter."

Maybe that was part of why she was getting along so well with Aaron.

The day passed in leisure and before long it was night. We had some canned food to eat, and not long after we were lying down on bundles of blankets.

"We better get a good rest tonight!" Sarah said as she went to lay down, "We'll need a lot of energy to be ready for tomorrow."

I admired her enthusiasm. I hoped for all of our sake that we wouldn't run into many problems.

Still though, as I was laying down staring at the ceiling of the attic, I couldn't shake that feeling that I had seen Sarah somewhere before. But I still couldn't put my finger on where.

Maybe sleep would bring me answers.

The sound of the rain pattering on the roof lulled us to sleep.