Leveling up in Dystopia

Chapter 6, The Search.

The first light of dawn crept over the abandoned supermarket, painting the parking lot in pale gold. Shihab stood by the shattered glass doors, his rifle slung across his back, surveying the eerie quiet. No groans, no shuffling footsteps, just the distant cry of a crow circling above.

"It's... over?" Asma whispered, peering over the door of the supermarket.

Karam pushed past them, squinting at the empty streets. "I don't feel good about this. Where did they all go?"

The old man placed a weathered hand on Adam's shoulder as the boy darted forward. "Maybe they moved on? Like animals do?"

A beat of silence. Then, like a dam breaking, the reality sank in.

Jamal was the first to move, adjusting his torn cashier's vest. "I'm going home.I need to check on my wife our apartment is near the river. If she's..." He trailed off, jaw tightening.

Karima wiped her dusty cheeks. "We should all check. Our families might be waiting."

Asma hugged herself. "What if they're not?"

Shihab studied their faces, the hope warring with terror, he made a decision. "We meet back here in three days. If anyone finds supplies or... signs of others, we share." He hesitated. "And if you don't come back, we'll assume you made it somewhere safe."

Handshakes turned to desperate hugs. Karima pressed a scrap of paper into Adam's palm, her address scribbled in shaky letters. "If you find no one," she murmured. The boy nodded, eyes too old for his face.

Then, one by one, they walked away until only footprints remained.

Shihab's boots kicked up ashes as he staggered to a stop where his apartment building once stood, only a blackened rubble remained. The stench of burned plastic and wood clung to the air.

"No." The word tore from his throat.

He stumbled forward, kicking aside a melted toy truck, his little brother's favorite. His knees hit the rubble. Heat still radiated from the wreckage days later.

"The fire took everything." Mrs. Hassan from 3B limped past, dragging a suitcase. "Suddenly your family's house was set on fire, then the zombies flooded the block."

Shihab whirled. "My family did you see them?"

The old woman paused. "Your brother carried your mother out before the flames spread. Headed toward school, I think." Her voice dropped. "But that was four days ago."

He was already running.

School. Mosque. Hospital. Shihab mapped the route in his mind, sweat dripping into his eyes. Every boarded-up window hid shadows that could be them. Every corpse face-down in the gutter made his heart stop.

His shouts echoed off the walls of abandoned houses . Only the wind answered.

By dusk, his voice was raw. He collapsed against a pharmacy's graffiti-tagged shutter, gulping warm water from his canteen. The reflection in the glass startled him, he saw a stranger with hollow eyes and a pale face .

He had searched everywhere he could think of, not only his family had disappeared but also all the neighbors and friends of their family.

He didn't even realize he was crying till he felt the hot tears streaming down his face, he sighed and wiped his tears with the sleeve of his shirt. "They're alive."

The thought burned brighter than the ruins behind him. "Mom wouldn't let them die." He told himself. Then he heard a sound, it was a scrape of metal.

Shihab spun, rifle raised. A feral cat hissed from a dumpster. He exhaled, trembling.

Then he heard a whimper. It was human and it was coming from behind the pharmacy.

The alley smelled like garbage and rotting fruit. Shihab edged past overflowing trash bags, pulse hammering.

There, curled beneath a fire escape: small figures hugging their knees.

Two little girls sat there alone, his eyes softened and he lowered his weapon, slowly he approached them and the little girls looked up, he crouched down and gently said "Hello little ones, what are you doing here alone?"

One of the girls, the bigger one looked up, she hesitated for a moment, then she said "Mama told us to wait here, she said she'll be back soon."

"Didn't she tell you were she was going?" Shihab asked.

"No, she said it was dangerous and that we should hide here till she comes."

Shihab looked around, the place was empty, no human in sight. His heart broke for the little girls, he asked them how long they waited, the little girl said they have been waiting for a while day. Shihab had a bad feeling about the situation, their mother might be lost of worse. He couldn't help but wonder if his little brothers ended up in the same situation, alone in an abondened allay.

He crouched down again and gently asked "how about you come with me? I lost my family too, maybe we can look for your parents and my family together."