Rule # 2 Safe zones aren't always really "safe"

It was already dark by the time we arrived at the safe zone, there were cars scattered everywhere we also managed to sneak over a group of those humanoid muscly figure who was feasting on a corpse, I decided to call them colossals.

They aren't huge but what they looked like reminded me of an anime that I used to watch, minus the sharp teeth, claws and hollows eyes. Luckily, we had a smooth trip over here, we stopped in front of a tall gate, and two snipers were positioned in a watch tower. Barbed wires decorated the top of the gate and high-voltage electricity ran through the fence, the soldiers took a while to confirm our identities then welcomed us and took us to my father.

" I'm so glad you made it here safely! I was so worried. " He cried while hugging us in his arms, he looked around and asked, "How about grandmama and pops?" My mom just stared at him and he just gave a dejected knowing nod, he understands what needs to be done.

Once we were settled, dad toured us around his base, there's a few refuge and survivors here and there. We passed by a medical tent and I caught a glimpse of fatally injured soldiers, wounded not from gunshots but from a variety of scratches and bitemarks, some of them may not even make it as our facilities are not fully equipped for this type of disaster.

There are a few kids around my sisters age, my baby sister can have playdates while Agatha has made new friends, days to weeks passed everything was going smoothly till the danger of famine threatens to sweep over us. Everything was quiet outside the gates, there's still the occasional screams outside, inhuman screeching followed by gunshots but most of the days it's quiet which is kind of suspicious as it makes us think that it's safe making us lower our guard.

A poor soul once went out the gates at night, drunk. He was screaming at nothing, threatening the so-called monsters. I was outside our tent at that time trying to get some fresh air, the drunk man was a soldier on night watch and there was no other armed personnel in sight. It was wrong for me to not look around for help quickly, and I would forever blame myself for his death.

I watched the soldier as he kept on cursing at the wind. That's when I noticed a pale man appeared out of nowhere and then shapeshifted into a woman, I haven't seen any other features yet except its abnormal skin color as is it dim, apparently the drunk soldier didn't notice anything strange as he kept on crying and shouting curses at the monsters for taking his family. I wonder why the screams haven't called the attention of any other soldiers yet, I briskly walked towards the entrance and then watched the drunk soldier and this shapeshifted woman.

I was mesmerized, the man suddenly calmed down and stared at the woman with happiness, confusion, and hesitation " Honey! is that really you? y-you're alive! you're alive thank God. I'm never gonna lose you again. I'm sorry I ran and left you all to die, I was a coward it's all my fault." The man was bawling his eyes out but the woman just stood there unmoving, not saying a word. Honestly, it just gave me the creeps. The drunk man just kept sobbing, a heap of a crying mess at the foot of the woman. The woman still stared ahead not making any sounds, not blinking.

I took a step back when the woman's features started changing, the soldier still unwary at its feet, I can hear bones cracking as its limbs contorted in an inhuman length, its arms skinny reaching the floor, the monster grew to around 7 feet, its spine protruding against its skin on its back, the skin pale and a sickening color of gray, it's naked but it has no reproductive organs, and its facial features there's just skin over where its eyes are supposed to be, no nose but an unnaturally huge mouth that is etched into a wide grin, its lips blood red the only distinguishable color on its body.

It opened its mouth which revealed an eye, the soldier finally looked up and he screamed, he fumbled for his gun but his panic and drunken state caused him a delay in his movements. He pointed the gun at the monster but it was too late, the monster stretched its mouth long enough to swallow a whole cow. The soldier looked at me with fear then whispered " Help me. " Then the monster swallowed the soldier whole leaving nothing behind, then in a blink of an eye it disappeared. I was glued in my spot, can't believe what I just witnessed. I just returned to reality when I heard screams coming from the refugee tents while the sirens blared.

We've been breached, I ran as fast as my legs could take me to our tent. Not a soul was found but the smell of fresh blood hit my nose like a wrecking ball. Everyone was running away from something, it was a stampede and my family was still nowhere to be found. " MOM! DAD! " I screamed but no one answered, what do I expect of course they wouldn't be able to hear me in all these screams, still I called out " AGATHA! OLIVIA! WHERE ARE YOU I'M HERE! " I kept running towards the crowd, hoping to bump into my family. I kept running towards the crowd till they thinned out and came to the source that they were running from.

It was eerily quiet, the rows of tents that were originally the color of dirt were painted red. There were body parts scattered everywhere, most bodies were unidentifiable. I felt a bile rising in my throat but swallowed it, disgusting I know but I can't risk attracting unwanted attention. I kept walking in case I find some survivors but it was a massacre, what I did find though was a huge hole in our electric fence. I inspected it and the hole wasn't made by a monster but by a wire cutter, someone has sabotaged the fence, turned the electricity off and cut the fence so it was easy to break through. It seems like I was out of luck since I ran into a group of colossals, fucking colossals there are around 3-4 of them. Why the fuck are these colossals always in a group it's like they're forming a boy band, these colossals are trailing blood in every step, and their smell disgusting. It smelled of rotting burned corpses, the smell was so bad you'll wish that you were one of those pale monsters with no noses.

I wiped blood all over me to mask my scent and luckily I was near the communications center, I hid in the room locked the door and turned off the lights, I checked if I can contact someone to ask for help but upon inspection it was sabotaged, it's as if someone was planning to kill everyone here. I stayed under a desk in hopes nothing will see me. The group of colossals are screeching as if calling more of their friends. My heart was beating out of my chest, as I listened to screams and occasional banging on the door as the chaos went on outside, I kept checking through the window if there are still monsters roaming outside and there are still tons, tears started rolling out my eyes as I worry for my family, but I was stuck in this predicament due to my stupidity. I kept listening, and it felt as if moments had passed, me crying, shivering under a desk eventually I nodded off.

When I woke up, the sun was already rising. I looked out the window and the coast was clear. I immediately looked for a makeshift weapon, luckily I did find a swiss knife even though it's technically useless, it might help me in a pinch. If only the soldiers hadn't made me surrender my mom's gun I could've something decent to protect me. I backtracked to our tent and investigated well more like sneaked around groups of colossals, I wasn't able to look around much earlier since everyone was panicking, but now almost no one is around, and the working vehicles are also gone. I wonder where they evacuated to most likely run out of camp and why the fuck did I wander off alone like I'm a protagonist in a cheap horror movie, how stupid of me.

There are certainly pools of blood everywhere, although fewer corpses but still a lot of blood, our tent was a mess but most of our stuff where gone, I kept hoping they were safe. I took a long time snooping around the tents and corpses, looking for any survivors. I even ran into some colossals and strippers--- oh, I started calling those pale monsters strippers since they would strip your mortality out of you...and also they're naked. I came to the barracks, and there was a pile of dead bodies everywhere a mixture of soldiers, civilians, and monsters. I can't even find my family or any survivors it's all just dead bodies. Are they safe? Where were they?

Most of the people are dead, I don't know how many of us survived but our population wasn't that big enough, to begin with. The unidentifiable corpses doesn't help and I only hope none of my family members are there chopped into pieces. I looted some soldier's corpses and took a gun that was easy to carry, I could've taken something with more firepower but with my lack of strength and experience it wouldn't take a while for the monsters to kill me, so I went with something more efficient. A handgun, some magazines, and a combat knife.

I went back into the tents and grabbed the first backpack I found lying around, most of the monsters were gone and the remaining few are are asleep maybe? they aren't moving but I still sneaked past them. Better to be safe than dead, the sun was almost up, and moving was easier. Maybe the monsters are inactive in the morning. I looked around in the bloodied and ruined tents and scavenged all the food, medicine, and bandages I can find, strapped the weapons where I can easily access them, and prepared for my journey.

A city was only a few kilometers away from here and maybe, just maybe some soldiers went and drove there amidst the chaos and brought some survivors with them, I went out of the base, and for the first time I was alone in a world once deadly now deadlier. Since today, I kept in mind that not every high-security places are really secure and that's Rule # 2 some places take a longer time to be breached.