In the Darkest Days

[Kazanna]

Snorting, Derrick shook his head, and nodded towards the setting sun, "We've done enough for today. Let's go inside, dig up something to eat, clean up. I'll start the water pump. With the electrical working, the pump and heater will work." He smiled, "A hot shower, something I'm sure none of us have had for weeks..." He got an almost nostalgic look in his eyes.


Derrick moved towards the house and pushed the door open, he stood at the threshold and nodded to Ally, "Come on you two, Come inside before the monsters eat you up." His words were halfway in jest, but half way in truth as well.

 

[Sequoia]

Ally set AJ down who raced past both of them into the house. Ally came and stood next to him, leaning into his chest. She grinned up at him. "Would you mind I joined you in the shower? We can set AJ up with a movie in the bedroom and I can have you all to myself." She kissed his cheek, making her way to his mouth as her hands skimmed over his chest to lock around his neck and pull him closer to her own small frame.


She glanced into the house at AJ who was busy setting up plates for them to use. She looked back at Derrick and raised her eyebrow in question.

 

[Kazanna]

Derrick had closed, and locked the door behind him. He smiled at Ally, his grin would be more then telling enough. He moved to the basement first however, "Let's get something to eat first though, none of us really ate much today, with the way things are... anything could happen." He said sensibly, "You and I might be able to stave off hunger for a long time, but AJ shouldn't have to."


Derrick shifted things around down in the basement, he flicked the power back on, and it locked the doors and windows throughout the house. His father had always tinkered with electrical engineering and had been the paranoid government conspiracy type, so the house was basically a bunker, with amenities. Derrick had appreciated this, because when he eventually joined the military, the changeover wasn't that intense, but it had put a wedge between him and his father, one he had worked as hard as he could to remove. It wasn't until the event had happened that he and his father had rebuilt a lot of their burnt bridges to one another.


When his father had died, he had just gotten to being on level terms with the man, so now as Derrick stood in his family cabin, he sighed, recalling his childhood, and how much work his father had put into the place. It was about then he had a recall of memory.


"Ally... Dad had a gun cabinet in here... But I haven't seen it... He built hidden compartments all over the house at home... Look around for a trigger switch. A bit of the wall that looks wrong, might even be a blended in knot of wood." Derrick said, musing about his father's logic slightly.

 

[Sequoia]

Ally grinned back at him, happy that they could still be together in that way. She nodded her head and looked about for food, pulling her hair tie out and letting her curly locks tumble down around her. She smiled over her shoulder at Derrick and winked. She spotted some cheese that hadn't gone bad and some more crackers. She nodded. These would work with the jerky they already had and some canned soup thst Ally had in her pack.


Ally brought everything into the kitchen and dumped on the table and looked for a pot, starting make the soup. As she did, she thought about her own family and life. After her parents found out she was pregnant, by rape, they tossed her out, not wanting to sully their reputation. But Ally didnt regret anything, AJ was the best thing that had ever happened to her. Thank god he didnt look too much like Alex. She loved AJ and Derrick with all her heart, they were her family now.


When Derrick mentioned the gun cabinet, Ally bit her lip. "AJ wouldn't be able to get into it, right?" She asked, her eyes finding her son who sat on the floor in the kitchen, playing with Jackson as his mother worked around him. Ally's eyes began roving the wall. Her eye caught on a plank that had the grain going the wrong way. She pressed her hand and the plank clicked, opening a latch to the rifht of it. Ally opened it to find the cabinet and she called her boyfriend over, smiling.

 

[Kazanna]

Derrick stepped over to it, glancing inside, he shook his head, "This is only one of them. A dummy really. Those are all vintage antiques, worthless to us. Were looking for a much more subtle trigger, Dad was clever... More like... this..." He reached forward, into the cabinet, and pulled down on the barrels of one of the guns, it clicked, and he pulled it's trigger, a mechanism released and the cabinet slid closed and away, Derrick pulled his hands back and watched as the walls unfolded with firearm cabinets. He had a grim look on his face.


"Yeah... kind of like that..." He sighed and shook his head, "Don't worry though, Dad never stored a loaded firearm. The ammunition is in a safer place I'm sure." He gazed about at the hardware, and muttered, "Besides... I'll teach him gun safety, If he's going to grow up in this world, he's gotta learn eventually."


Most of the weapons were scoped hunting rifles, single shots, but a few of the firearms were those Derrick had sent to his father while he was in active duty status. He'd bought weapons, dismantled them, and sent them home in jumbles of parts. His dad had rebuilt them, and stored them here. Derrick frowned. "The big guns are missing... Weird... Maybe he kept them in another room..."

 

[Sequoia]

Ally gave a bark of laughter as the wall opened up further. When Derrick talked about ammunition and gun safety, Ally relaxed. Although she didnt like the thought of her son using a gun at all, she knew it was necessary. Ally kissed her lover and ran back to the stovs to finish cooking." Derrick, foods almost ready!" She called over her shoulder.

 

[Kazanna]

Derrick nodded and looked down at the firearms, he sighed and slid the cabinet closed again, muttering, "I bet this is only part of it too... crazy old nut... who would have guessed you'd be right all along."


He pulled the lock down with a bit of effort, the device was designed to be child-proof. His father had always been thorough, designing things to keep him out of them until he was old enough. He pushed the cabinet closed the rest of the way until it was hidden again and heard the soft click of it closing the rest of it's partnered locks and tumblers. He moved back to the kitchen and leaned against the counter-top.


"I've closed it all up for now. We'll take some time after we get the house and the surrounding area secured and scouted to teach AJ how to shoot and how to be safe." he said almost automatically, he shook his head, "Never thought I'd be teaching someone else how to fire a gun... at least I've got good marks..." He glanced to Ally, his face looked calm, but worried at the same time, "This won't be easy..." he started, "Surviving like this... were going to have to do a lot that we don't know how to yet..."

 

[Sequoia]

Ally smiled and poured soup into three bowls, along with the crackers. "It'll be okay. We have each other and we will learn together. Just...be careful when you tech AJ. I don't want to patch my boys up more than nessacary. "


She turned to look up at him, smiling softly. she moved around the counter and cupped his face. "Hey...as long as we stick together, we'll be fine. And besides, there is no way I'm letting my boys get away this time." She leaned up to kiss him.


"Yeah?"

 

[Kazanna]

Derrick smiled as he put his arms around Ally. He kissed her back gently before he let his forehead press against hers, "There are a lot of hard lessons were all going to learn, First..." He motioned to the windows. "We need to board those up, and put something heavy in front of the door. Then we need to disguse the house eventually from the outside to look as though it's been abandoned."


Derrick released his grasp on Ally, and rolled his shoulders, "I've got a whole list of things we need to do, things you and I will have to focus on, and then other things that AJ will be able to help out with. Like growing food, trapping any remaining wild animals fishing if we can secure a path to the lake that will be unnoticed... after that we need to make sure that any canned foods we open, we save the cans for more canning, same with jars. Bagged food will be kind of dicey..." His voice lowered, and he almost started muttering. He'd been taught in the military how to survive for durations without very many resources, even if his stint was a short one, he had taken the training to heart.

 

[Sequoia]

Ally leaned into him as she looked and listened to what he was saying. As he continued talking, multiple ideas sprung up in her head as to how they could get everything done, and fast.


AJ brightened at the idea of a garden, being a boy in love with dirt.


Ally smiled at Derrick's muttering as she sat down and began helping AJ to eat.


"There are some thick planks in a corner of the cellar that we could use to board the windows. A wardrobe from upstairs to cover the door. AJ and I can start the garden after we finish building that wall outside...a path to the lake can be made through that natural tree tunnel that curves to the north on the left side...remember where we used to hide and you mom said it was the way to Totoro?" Ally interrupted his ramblings.

 

[Kazanna]

Derrick moved to sit down, and eat, his fatigue from the day setting in rapidly as he did, he nodded slowly, "Yeah, We'll do the windows soon, not tonight though... They'd hear the work on it and put two and two together... tonight..." he glanced at the window again. "I think we should barricade ourselves in the basement, sleep down there. Until we have positive barricades on the doors, we can't be certain something wont find it's way in while were sleeping."


He looked at the food, it brought back memories, old, and recent, of life before the chaos, and of his own survival afterwards. He'd planned to just keep scavenging around, looking for some place to hole up now and again. But as things stood now, with Ally and with AJ, he had to figure out how to set up proper defenses around the house, how to throw the monsters off their scent entirely, and set up long distance trip wires that would alert them long before anything got close.


"Lot of work to do over the next few weeks..." he muttered.

 

[Sequoia]

Ally came up behind him and rubbed his shoulders. "We'll get through it. As a family. I have faith." she whispered in his ear, placing a small kiss there.


"AJ, come help me bring some blankets down to the basement. We'll make a little fort!" She said.


AJ raced up the stairs, leaving the two adults in the kitchen. "Derrick...we can do this. If you think it would be safer to go somewhere else, I fully support you." She said, sitting next to him as she reached to rub his arm.

 

[Kazanna]

He shook his head slowly, muttering, "It's not that I think somewhere else would be safer, honestly, I know these woods, I can hunt and track in them... I know I can survive this Ally..." He gazed at her and what was on his mind nearly broke his heart, "It's... More that I don't know if I can keep you and AJ safe from what is out there... what is even now... racing towards us as the sun begins to set." He motioned towards the window, emphasizing his point as the sun began to drift below the tree-line.


"I've killed... and been harmed... I've managed through scrapes that would kill most others, because I was trained to do so... But Ally..." He shook his head, "There have been rumors... they're almost done with us... they're going to start wiping us out soon... The kill squads... they're going to get more intense..." The look on his face showed he was torn between terror and an emotional break-down. "I don't know what were going to do Ally... I just... I don't... I was prepping to march to Alaska... Then further north until it was just me, some ruddy bears, and a couple of stupid seals I could club at for food..." He murmured out.

 

[Sequoia]

As Derrick spoke, Ally's heart began pounding, her breathing increasing as fear started to over take her mind. She moved closer, a small whimper moving out of her mouth. "Then let's all go to Alaska. W-we can do it...I know....AJ can learn to fight and hide since he's so small....I can fight, you've seen me..." She took a deep breath.


Wrapping her arms around him, she hugged him tight, knowing he needed her to be stronger than him right now. "We'll stock up on food and warm things and we'll start moving...up there, we can make a sled for the snow...train the bears to pull us...We can survive...as a family Derrick. I believe in us..." She murmured, chest heavy and voice rough with tears.

 

[Kazanna]

With a slight shake of his head, he seemed to condemn the idea he'd had only a few days before. He looked back to her, and spoke carefully, "It was a plan for if I was alone, if I was surviving on my own. I'd planned to eat little, survive off of next to nothing. Keep enough reserves to last for decades without needing to resupply. But AJ is a growing boy, He'd either not survive it, or be so stunted we'd be committing a greater crime on him then if we stay here." He paused, and let his eyes fall slightly, "He's going to have to view things... differently then the world we grew up in... I think he already does... things are going to be cruel Ally, they'll seem... sick... and twisted... but..." He closed his eyes pausing again.


"It's going to be alright. For now I'll board the windows up and take a watch." Derrick said as he shifted in her grip, He embraced her, until he had a firm grasp of her, and lifted her bodily from the floor again for a moment, nuzzling her, before he set her back down.


"We'll stick to the plan where we survive as a group, rather then me going off into the wilderness like some wildman." He snorted and chuckled lightly, to lighten the mood. "But for now, you and AJ need to get some rest."

 

[Sequoia]

Ally sighed. "You know I trust you, right? I need you to trust me too. AJ can live without food for weeks. Mrs. Rogers wasn't the kindest to him." she smiled when he picked her up, kissing his shoulder. "I can take the watch. I slept during the day, you and AJ need the most sleep out of all of us. Go shower and strsight to bed." She ordered. "I need you in top form tomorrow." she hhefted up her axe and walked off to the living room to start her watch.

 

[Kazanna]

With a resigned sigh, Derrick rose and made his way up the stairs to the bathroom. He pulled his shirt off, and stood in front of the mirror, in the low light of the bathroom, he barely recognized himself, his eyes were sunken in, and bloodshot, his hair was a mess, and his beard had grown in with a vengeance. He sighed quietly and cast his gaze elsewhere before he sat down on the edge of the bath-tub. It was a built in set up, his father had built it to be able to lounge in for his mother, and for his grandparents when they came to visit. it reminded him of a steaming room's bath when he was younger, but then, at that moment, it was a place for him to sit, to gather his thoughts, to listen to any approaching dangers, and to fret endlessly over what was left to be done to ensure their survival.


A slight resentment was bubbling in him, enough so that he brooded over what was happening intensely. His whole life had been stripped away from him, he had desired a future free of pain, that he could pick a profession that suited him and advance along it.


"Only thing I've ever actually been good at is combat though..." He muttered coldly to himself. The resentment in mind sloughed off as he realized that while a peaceful life would have been better, in this moment, in this world of bitter agony, he was stronger then he ever had been before. His CO in the military had always told him he was a bit less of a modern man then he was a monster ready for war.


Derrick reached over, and locked the door before he showered, he was fast, in and out, like he had been since basic. So when he unlocked the door minutes later, cleaned and dressed, it felt as though no time had passed for him. He knew despite Ally's urgings, he would find no sleep that night.

 

[Sequoia]

Ally heard him as he moved around upstairs and sighed, eyes trained outside as she walked, peeking through the windows and making sure they were locked.


"Mommy?" AJ piped up.


"Yes baby?" she replied, not turning away from the windows.


something in the shadows moved and Ally froze, cutting off her son. "Baby...I want you to go upstairs and find daddy. Tell him mommy needs help and lock yourself in the bathroom. Now AJ!" she said urgently, arm flexing as she lifted the ax. She kept eyes on the demons at the edge of the forest as AJ ran upstairs.


"Daddy?" He said, knocking on the door. "Mommy said she needs you."

 

[Kazanna]

There wasn't even hesitation as Derrick swept out of the bathroom, he opened the door and looked down to AJ, "Go to the Basement, don't open the door unless I tell you the sky is blue. That's the password okay AJ? The Sky is Blue." He said "Be as silent as you can, and lock the door behind you, then go under the stairs and stay quiet. The door is really thick so you'll be safe." He said before he gave the boy a pat and walked on.


Derrick moved down the stairs swiftly, and came up behind Ally quietly, his hand came to rest on the handle of the axe, he muttered, "What is it?" in question. His voice was just above a whisper as he did.

 

[Sequoia]

AJ ran to do as he was told. He grabbed his bunny and ran to the basement door, locking it behind him. He hid under the stairs, breathing fast and the bunny clutched to his chest. If both his parents were scared, something was very wrong. He hoped they would be okay.


Ally glanced behind her. "A lone demon, there at the edge of the woods. Why is it alone?" She responded, voice low and eyes still trained on the beast. It moved closer, the moonlight outlining it and raised it's snout to the air, sniffing. then it let out a loud, long howl.


Ally's eyes widened in alarm as the beasts face swung to look right at them, snarling.

 

[Kazanna]

Derrick peered at the demon, muttering quietly, "I've... seen this... only once before, It was a lone demon just like this, it was scouting around on it's own... it passed us... the first time, and when it found a target, it just moved on, but it made a sign in the air, then... a bigger... meaner..." He shuddered, "Thing... showed up and..." He shook his head, "It pushed over a two story building like it was nothing..." nodding to her, he mutters, "We need to hide, and pray that it passes us by..."

 

[Sequoia]

She nodded. "Hide us or hide the house?" She whispered, glancing to the basement door.


The demon moved closer, nose on tge ground as if it were sniffing them out.


Ally looked up at Derrick, eyes panicked and . Fearful.