Aya peeked through the small window on the door to the emergence staircase. ‘Where are those emergency lights when you need them?’ She grumbled as she couldn’t see anything. She moved the baseball bat under her arm as she opened the door. She turned on her flashlight, sweeping through the narrow staircase. Finding nothing of interest, she closed the door as softly as she could. Still, a noticeable thud echoed through the staircase. Holding her breath, Aya waited to see what happened. After several minutes and a reminder that yes, she needed to breath, she went down the stairs. Today was the day. Or well, not THE day, but a test run before THE day could happen. ‘I really should stop calling it that. It sounds too much like D-day and well… A LOT of people died back then.’ she muttered to herself.

She shook her head to dislodge the errant thoughts. Today, she was going to scout the surrounding area to get a better feel of the situation. Were there monsters roaming around? Mutated squirrels throwing acorns? Swarms of rats roaming around? Please don’t let it be rats, she fervently wished.

Her plan was to make a loop around her block, maybe sidestep to the edge of Thornton Creek Park. That way, she hoped to get an idea of the dangers she could face. She was undecided yet if she should try to talk to people if she would meet them, but she figured she would decide based on the situation at hand.

‘Depending on what I find, I think the best route for tomorrow would be to walk on the I-5 until Everett. It’s not the most direct route, but this way, I should have a good line of sight. Downside is that I have no real cover unless I happen to walk by some trees. And that’s assuming there are no cars around, which would make the whole point moot. Maybe I should see if I could steal a bicycle…’. Aya blew out a breath. ‘First, let’s see what I’m going to face. Afterwards, I can make a definite plan for tomorrow.’.

Mind firmly back in line, Aya silently sneaked through the lobby of her apartment building. It was eery how empty everything felt. But not, at last, she got a good look outside. And she found… Well, nothing out of the ordinary, really. You know, in the summer, when all the sane people are sleeping in their beds at 5 in the morning? That’s how it looked. No, people, no cars… WAIT. Where are the cars?!

She peered out of the window, searching the street. Normally, the street was packed with cars but now… ‘AHA! Found one.’ She squinted at the sole survivor on the street. ‘Looks like an ordinary battered pick-up truck to me, but what do I know? Maybe it’s an older model with less plastic and simple mechanics or something?’. Aya bit her lip. ‘If the car still works, I can be home in an hour!’. She had to forcibly calm herself down before she ran down the street like an idiot with a death wish. ‘Don’t get your hope up, Aya. Would be stupid to run out and get killed by a pigeon. Focus.’.

Equilibrium found, she opened the door and slipped through, patting her pocket out of habit to check if she had her keys. She scanned her surroundings, but nothing jumped out. Still, slow but steady, she thought as she gripped the baseball bat in one hand and rested her other hand on the gun strapped to her right.

Aya slowly made her way to the truck, trying to keep everything in sight. It truly didn’t look like the end of the world. Sure, it’s kind of creepy that a city like Seattle is so quiet, especially since it’s like 10 o’clock in the morning. But barring that, no roaming mo… wait, what was that sound?! Aya froze as she heard something hiss in the alley she was just about to pass. She tightened her grip on the bat until her knuckles whitened before she took a peek around the corner.

A cat was standing on top of a garbage can, swiping down at a group of 6 rats. Aya’s mind froze for a second. Since when do rats hunt cats? She thudded her head against the wall to kickstart her brain. Since the apocalypse, you idiot.

Unfortunately, she hadn’t been as stealthy as she hoped. The cornered cat looked up towards Aya just as a rat jumped a meter high (what?!) and bit down on the cat’s paw. With a screech of pain, the cat jumped over the group of rats, dislodging the one biting its paw, and sprinted directly towards Aya. ‘Bad kitty!’ Aya yelled as she quickly moved two steps back and slightly away from the wall, leaving herself enough room to swing her bat. No way was she going to be able to shoot 6 running rats in time.

The cat tore around the corner, tripping as one of the rats latched onto the tail of the cat. ‘Fucking disgusting rats’ Aya swore as she took a step forward and swing low. Luck was by her side today as her swing launched two rats away from the cat. That left one rat chewing on the cat’s tail, one rat on the cat’s back (when did that happen?) and two more rats… Fuck, two rats were coming straight for her legs.

Now, she was not particularly proud of this, but she shrieked loudly as she punted one of the rats in the air. Unfortunately, one rat latched onto her shin, turning the shriek into a shout of pain. It felt like she was being stabbed by burning knives! With another cry, she dropped the bat on the ground. She quickly grabbed the combat knife which was strapped to her left leg and stabbed down. She skewered the rat through the middle and ended with the tip of her knife in her own leg. Worth it, she thought as she gritted her teeth. The rat released her leg with a pained squeal, wriggling to get itself free. With a grunt, Aya flung the skewered rat against the wall. She almost fell when she put some weight on her leg, but she managed to catch herself just in time.

However, the fight was not over yet. The cat had also managed to kill the rat that was on its back and was now going to town on the one clinging to its tail. The rat she punted was still recovering from the kick a few meters away. Meanwhile, one of the rats she hit with the bat was running back towards Aya. She quickly grabbed the bat off the ground and swing wide. This time, the bat connected with the rat’s head with a solid crunch. That was one rat who was not getting back up again. She limped over to the rat that was still recovering from her first swing. It seemed to have some trouble moving, but Aya was not feeling particularly merciful. With a snarl, she bashed the rat’s head in.

4 down, 2 to… no make that 5 down, 1 to go. Good kitty, she thought. The cat had made mincemeat of the rat who had taken a bite of the cat’s tail. The last rat decided, in its infinite wisdom, to charge straight at Aya. ‘Fuck you too’ she grunted as she smashed the suicidal rat against the wall.

Panting, Aya looked around before letting herself slide down the wall, her leg aching fiercely.

Ding.

You have slain 4 [Homicidal rat], level 2…

‘Not now’ she groaned as she mentally wiped the message away. She was not in the mood for it. Besides, she had better things to do, like bandaging her leg. She wanted to clean her wounds before healing them. ‘Thank god I thought of taking a hand towel with me’ she muttered as she wrapped it tightly around her shin. That would do for now.

In the meantime, the battered cat meowed pitifully as she crawled onto Aya’s lap. ‘I know how you feel’ she said as she scratched behind its ear. ‘It was your mess though.’ She informed the cat. It meowed again, butting its head against Aya’s hand. ‘You’re in luck today, kitty.’ She said as she held the cat down. ‘You have your own private healer at your service.’ She focused her mind, willing the skin and tissue to heal with her spell. It took a minute or so before the wounds seem to close completely, leaving a few bald spots behind. The cat started to purr loudly. ‘You’re welcome.’ She answered as she gave the cat one last pat. ‘I however, will not be satisfied until I’ve poured at least a gallon of water over my wounds before healing it. God knows what was on their teeth. And I have no clue if my spell does anything against these bacteria. Let’s not risk it.’.

Aya casted one last look at the truck. ‘I’m coming back for you today.’ She promised the truck.