The truck rolled slowly down the empty street as we approached the downtown sector.
The silence out here was always unsettling.
Inside the bunker there was constant noise—voices, footsteps, metal doors slamming—but outside Haven Creek the world felt... hollow. Like the town itself had been abandoned by life.
I slowed the truck as the large shape of the downtown mall appeared ahead.
Five years ago it must have been the busiest place in town.
Now the massive building sat dark and broken. Several of the front windows had shattered long ago. Vines crawled up the sides of the walls, and the faded sign above the entrance barely hung on.
The parking lot stretched wide and empty in front of us.
Empty except for the scattered abandoned cars and the slow-moving shapes wandering between them.
Infected.
Even from this distance I could see them.
Some stumbled aimlessly between the rows of vehicles. Others stood still like statues until movement caught their attention.
Low groans drifted across the parking lot, carried by the wind.
I eased the truck to a stop behind a rusted pickup truck near the edge of the lot.
Behind us, Marcus parked the second vehicle beside mine.
The engines shut off one by one.
For a moment the only sound was the distant shuffling of infected and the wind rattling loose metal somewhere on the building.
Then Jacob leaned forward between the seats again.
"Alright," he said quietly. "Listen up."
Everyone in the truck leaned in slightly.
He tapped the map spread across his knee.
"Our target is the pharmacy and medical supply stores inside the mall. According to Marcus' last scouting run, there's still a decent chance we'll find antibiotics, bandages, maybe even painkillers."
Medical supplies were one of the hardest things to keep stocked in the bunker.
Every injury mattered. Every infection mattered.
"Here's the plan," Jacob continued.
He pointed toward the mall entrance.
"Gemini, Xavier, Sophie, and Johnson will head inside to collect whatever medical supplies you can find."
I nodded once.
Makes sense.
Small team. Faster movement.
Less noise.
Jacob's finger moved across the map again.
"The rest of us stay outside. Alex, Max, Oliver, David, Marcus, Matt, and Ted will secure the perimeter and deal with infected in the parking lot."
Max's voice crackled through the radio from the second truck.
"Finally," he said. "I was getting bored."
Alex laughed faintly over the radio.
"Don't worry, big guy. Looks like you'll get plenty of exercise."
Jacob rolled his eyes.
"Just keep the noise controlled," he said. "We don't need the whole town showing up."
I opened my door and stepped out of the truck.
Cool air brushed against my face.
The smell out here always hit you first.
Rot.
Dust.
Decay.
The others climbed out of both vehicles and gathered between them.
Sophie walked over from the second truck, her rifle already slung across her chest.
She gave me a quick nod.
"Ready to go shopping?"
"Always," I replied.
Johnson jumped down from the back of the second vehicle and stretched his arms over his head.
He was tall, broad-shouldered, and always carried an easy grin like the apocalypse had personally failed to ruin his mood.
He walked toward us, eyes landing on me almost immediately.
"Well damn," he said.
I sighed quietly.
Here we go.
Johnson leaned against the hood of the truck casually.
"Gemini leading the mission again?" he said with a smirk. "Guess that means I picked the right day to volunteer."
I crossed my arms.
"Oh yeah?"
"Absolutely."
His grin widened.
"Nothing like risking your life with the prettiest fighter in Haven Creek."
Sophie snorted.
"Careful," she said. "Flirting with Gemini right before a mission is a dangerous hobby."
Johnson placed a hand dramatically over his heart.
"Worth the risk."
I shook my head, but a small smile slipped out anyway.
"Focus, Johnson," I said.
He held up his hands in surrender.
"Hey, I'm focused."
Then he winked.
"Just motivated."
Behind us the others were checking weapons and spreading out around the vehicles.
But I felt something shift beside me.
A presence.
Xavier.
He stepped up next to us silently, his rifle already in his hands.
His dark eyes flicked once toward Johnson.
Then toward me.
Then back to the mall.
His expression didn't change.
But the temperature of the moment definitely did.
Johnson seemed to notice it too.
He glanced between us, then chuckled quietly.
"Relax," he said lightly. "Just trying to keep morale up."
Xavier didn't smile.
Didn't respond to the joke.
Instead he looked at the group calmly.
"Medical team," he said.
His voice was low but carried easily.
"That's Gemini, Sophie, Johnson, and me."
He shifted his rifle slightly on his shoulder.
"Everyone else stays outside and keeps the infected away from the entrance."
Marcus nodded.
"Got it."
Xavier's eyes moved across the group slowly.
There was something about the way he looked at people before missions.
Like he was measuring odds.
Calculating outcomes.
Finally he spoke again.
"Once we're inside, we move fast," he said. "No wandering off. No unnecessary noise."
His gaze landed briefly on Johnson.
Then on me.
Then he added one final sentence.
Cold.
Calm.
"Try not to die."
Johnson let out a quiet laugh.
"Man," he said. "You really know how to give a motivational speech."
But Xavier had already turned toward the mall entrance.
I adjusted the grip on my rifle and started walking after him.
Sophie fell in beside me.
"You ever notice he talks like a guy who expects things to go wrong?" she murmured.
"Probably because they usually do," I replied.
Johnson jogged a few steps to catch up with us.
"Alright team," he said quietly. "Let's go raid a pharmacy."
Behind us, the rest of the group spread out across the parking lot.
Alex and Max moved toward the far side near a line of abandoned cars.
Oliver and David took positions closer to the mall entrance.
Marcus climbed onto the hood of a truck for a better vantage point with his rifle.
The infected in the distance were already starting to notice movement.
A few of them turned slowly in our direction.
Groaning.
Stumbling closer.
But they were still far enough away.
For now.
I stopped about ten yards from the mall entrance.
The glass doors were shattered.
Darkness filled the interior beyond them.
Broken tiles.
Abandoned kiosks.
And somewhere inside...
More infected.
Probably a lot more.
Sophie checked her rifle beside me.
Johnson cracked his neck.
"After you, boss," he said quietly.
I exhaled slowly and stepped toward the entrance.
The moment we crossed the threshold, the air changed.
Cooler.
Stale.
Dust hung thick in the dim light filtering through broken skylights above.
The mall was silent.
Too silent.
Our boots echoed softly against the tile floor.
Shattered storefronts lined both sides of the wide hallway.
Clothing stores.
Electronics shops.
Restaurants.
All abandoned.
All looted years ago.
Somewhere deeper in the mall, something moved.
A faint dragging sound.
Sophie heard it too.
She raised her rifle slightly.
"Pharmacy should be two floors up," she whispered.
I nodded.
"Escalators are straight ahead."
Johnson stepped closer to me as we moved forward carefully.
"You know," he murmured quietly, "I meant what I said earlier."
I glanced sideways.
"What part?"
"The pretty fighter part."
I rolled my eyes.
"Focus."
He grinned.
"I am focused."
Behind us, Xavier's voice came quietly but sharply.
"Movement."
All of us stopped instantly.
A shadow shifted near one of the escalators ahead.
Then another.
Low groans echoed through the empty mall corridor.
Three infected stumbled into view.
Their eyes locked onto us immediately.
Johnson lifted his rifle.
"Shopping just got interesting," he muttered.
I raised my weapon and steadied my aim.
"Let's get to work."