A blind man and his female companion are left to wander the post-apocalyptic, dystopian world – but, things quickly take a turn for the worst.

(At the moment, this story preview does not have any formatting – this means character thoughts aren't differentiated from plain text.)

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Until I See You Again

A fiery orange fills my vision; I feel an inconceivable amount of pain – yet also none at all. A pained scream sounds, it’s far more tangible than the pain. I can’t move – not even to see if there is anything else to the orange. The screams only get louder, are they mine? The orange then quickly dies away, it fades into pure darkness; however, the agony persists. The screaming turns into gasps, quick and distressed gulps of air.
“Sean!” The darkness beckons to me, calling my name.
“Sean! Get up!” A firm hold attaches to my arm, I begin to panic; the darkness didn’t falter its grasp.
“Sean!” I read into the voice with more intent, it holds the same sensation to my ears that the screaming did. Like it was something from another world. I begin to get thrown about by my arms, the darkness shakes me.
With a gasp, I finally move – finding the strength to sit up. The pain isn’t there any more, was it even there in the first place?
“Sean, are you okay?” A voice calls from the darkness and a hand drops from my arm, it’s been relocated to rest on my shoulder. The sudden burst of sound and abrupt touch doesn’t startle me, however. They are both all too familiar.
“Y-yeah, I’m fine. Just a nightmare...” I place my hand over the one on my shoulder, hearing a sigh in response.
“I think it’s more than that, there’s something you aren’t telling me. I’m here for you Sean. If you tell me, it may help you.”
“Cory... I’m fine. It was just another bad dream, probably from having to sleep on the floor all the time – or so you tell me. What’s the time?” The hand leaves my shoulder and I hear some receding footsteps, followed by the shifting of some cloth.
“Looks like it’s time to go, we’ve got some more ground to cover yet.” She returns and a hand is clasped around my arm, helping me stand up.
I bend over and feel around to the left of my feet, acquiring a backpack and applying it to my shoulders. I then pat my right thigh a few times, ensuring that there’s still a gun strapped to it; one I never hope to use. A gentle hand then finds mine; it squeezes the slightest bit, only enough to guide me. The hand tugs at mine, I ease myself forward.
“Come on, door’s this way.” I slowly walk through the place, wood creaks under my shoes as I take each step. I then hear a metallic click and the sudden rush of noise, a slight breeze rustles my hair and the soft chirps of birds flood into the surrounding atmosphere.
I’m gingerly pulled through the door by Cory. She then moves my hand and places it on her shoulder, we begin to move forward. “Where are we?” I ask; I

like to try and pass the time by talking to Cory, our travels are rather uneventful otherwise.
She sighs and then falls into silence, I presume she’s taking in the environment so she can better describe it. “Well... we’re currently walking in the middle of the road; there are houses on each side, some are destroyed and charred while others look to be completely untouched. There are cars too, some parked neatly on the edge of the road and the rest appear to have crashed in some way. I would dare call it beautiful – but there’s just too much desolation that caused it.”
I gently squeeze and release my hand on her shoulder, looping the same sensation as a sort of massage to comfort her. She chuckles gently, only pausing for a moment before speaking. “What about you? Do you see anything interesting?”
“I see where you’re going with this, and I’m not falling for it.” I chuckle in response, immediately searching for another question to change the subject of the conversation. “So, how far away do you think we are?”
Once again, silence was present before answers met my questions. The quiet shuffling of our feet and the ambient shifting of trees’ leaves in the wind, it all lulled me into a state of tranquility. “I... honestly don’t know, I’m just sure that we’re travelling in the right direction. Another day or two at least, if my memory serves me correctly. You’ll know we’re there when you see it.”
“Oh, alright then.” I fall into silence for a while, hoping that a question will randomly pop into my head – any topic to start a conversation would be perfect right now. But, none came. Whilst awaiting a way to begin a dialogue between us, I decided to observe the surroundings. There’s the ever-distant sound of trees, probably a bit further beyond the houses Cory had just told me about.
Listening with more intent, a faint crack sounds – seemingly worlds away – and a beating of wings unleashes on the skies. “Huh, looks like there’s a bunch of birds flying over; I wonder what’s got them all riled up...” Cory’s voice sounds directly at me, I just continue to face upwards – listening to what sounds like at least a hundred birds flying over; though, I doubt it’s that many.
“I think you should keep an eye out, didn’t you hear that crack before they all flew away?” While the crack definitely could’ve followed after a gunshot, it could have also just been a branch snapping from a tree.
“Um... no, I only hear the birds. But, if you really want, I can make sure that I’m checking around.”
“That would make me feel a little better, thanks.” We continue walking in silence; although, I’m now listening with far more focus than before.
I swear I heard something out there, it didn’t quite sound natural either. But, if I’m constantly anxious and listening around, then I’ll only lengthen the walk

to our destination. I just now noticed that the air has been getting gradually thicker, and colder too. The shifting of vegetation and sound of animals has grown more predominant. “Where are we now, Cory?”
“We’re still walking down the main road, but we’re no longer out in the open; it’s all forest. It’ll only be like this for a little longer though, we left the town a good while ago and this forest doesn’t last for very long. I can see the next town, it’s not too far ahead.”
A slight breeze starts, chilling my face and causing a shiver to begin within my limbs. The breeze had a late-afternoon feel to it, sharp as a blade. I could hear Cory start to shiver too, looks like it’s going to be a long walk. Our steps become more staggered and laboured, the cold air caused my muscles to grow taut and only made advancing harder. However, it wasn’t too much longer before we seemed to pass the moist air. The wind also dispersed a little too, now that we weren’t in nature’s equivalent of a tunnel.
“So... are we in that town, then?” I managed to fight back my chattering jaw so I could speak a proper sentence, but shivers erupted throughout my body immediately after.
“Yeah. There’s not much to see, it’s jus--” A loud crack disrupts the air, followed closely by a boom that is almost immediately cut off by ringing in my ears.
I fall to the ground in pain, my left arm agonisingly burns. I quickly pull out the gun from my hip and fire in the direction of the shot, the pistol kicks and jumps in my hand; the recoil is hardly manageable from this position. After firing so many times that my right arm hurts too much, I stop. I nearly pass out from the sensory overload, and the newfound migraine. My ears ring, my head spins, my heart pounds, and my entire body aches.
I drown out these negative feelings, dropping the gun and crawling forward. I currently have no sense of direction, the pain in my arms and head are the only indicators that I’m still alive. “...Cory. Cory- please... Cory, where are you?”
I break down into tears, I have no idea where she is. Regardless of the immeasurable pain I’m feeling, I become completely senseless to it in search of my friend; extending both of my arms and searching the ground for Cory. My hand then comes into contact with a warm liquid, it seems to stain the ground. “Cory...”
My hands are soaked in the liquid, and my worst fears are confirmed when I find a body on the ground. “Cory... no--” She lays lifeless on the ground, getting colder by the second. Tears begin to flow down my face and I sit over her on my knees. Silent sobs begin to leave my mouth, followed by sharp gasps for air.
The ringing finally stops, but the headache persists; I begin to feel cold and light headed.

“Kid... are you ok?” A hand makes its way to my shoulder, I begin thrashing about and throwing my arms at the source of the voice.
“You killed her! You killed her!” I’m so overcome by rage and sorrow, adrenaline fuels my attacks and I seem to land a few hits; but the hand doesn’t let go.
“Kid, quit hitting me! I didn’t kill her-” His words fall on deaf ears, I continue to throw myself about. But, I’m quickly becoming more exhausted and cold.
“You did! You did it! You better start running, cause I’m going to kill you!” My attacks quickly lose their momentum, the loss of blood is finally having a lasting impact on me.
I have no choice, but to stop. I no longer have the strength to even lift a finger at the man, I return to crying – I’ve failed. “Kid... I didn’t kill her. I just heard the gunshots. Her killer... he’s dead. He was when I found you.”
Once again, I refuse to listen. The only thing keeping me from falling on the ground and passing out, is the man’s grip on my jacket. “You’re pale... we’ve got to get somewhere safe. Can you walk?”
I don’t reply, I’ve completely lost myself. I hardly feel him begin to drag me across the road, I only cry more. Exhausting myself further with the unfiltered sobs of desolation, Cory is gone. I don’t know where she is anymore, she’d never leave my side. But, I’m being taken away – away from her. There’s nothing I can do...
“C-Cory... I’m... I- I’m sorry.” My sobs and the man’s footsteps begin to echo, bouncing off a surface close to the right of my face. “Cory...” We stop, I’m lifted onto what feels like a bed – or a couch. “...Cor--”
The left sleeve of my jacket is slipped off my arm, exposing it to the frigid air. I shiver again, hearing a sigh from the man. I then hear him walk away, leaving me by myself. I don’t move; I wouldn’t be able to if I tried, anyway. The pain only gets worse, and I only get colder. “C- Cory...” Her name resounds through my mind, each time it passes so does the sound of the gunshot. But, I allow myself to continue thinking her name – fearing I’d forget her if I didn’t.
The man comes back, I hear the swirling of liquid in a bottle with each of his steps. “You monster... she did nothing wrong...”
“Kid,” his voice is right next to me. “I didn’t kill her. The man who did was dead before I found you, you shot him. Kid, you’re in shock. Just, calm down and let me patch you up.” I hear the tearing of fabric and some kind of packaging, as well as a metal bottle cap being unscrewed – the smell of alcohol fills my nostrils.
I want so bad to argue against him, to accuse him more. But, I can no longer muster my voice. He seems to pour the alcohol on my wound, the burning is

infinitesimal in comparison to what I felt earlier; I’ve become completely insensitive to any sort of pain now. My heart aches far more than any worldly, physical pain I could experience. Once he’s done pouring the spirits on my arm, I feel a sharper pain. It hurts far more than the alcohol, but I only flinch the slightest bit.
Minutes later, the sharp pain stops. My arm is then wrapped with something soft – the fabric. My arm is carefully threaded back into the sleeve of my jacket, and I hear the man withdraw. “Do you want me to take your sunglasses off?”
“No- just kill me... I don’t know what twisted game you’re playing. But, wouldn’t it be morally right to just end it? Instead of torturing me.” The man sighs once more, I just close my eyes and hope for sleep – I have to escape.
“Kid, I’m not your enemy. You killed him – the man that killed her. You’re safe, I won’t hurt you. Look at me, and tell me I’m lying-” I calm myself slightly, but mainly so I can get to sleep.
I don’t move to face him, not caring anymore. Although, facing him would prove anything anyway. “Well, just get some rest then. Call out to me if you get too cold, we can talk in the morning.”
Morning? But, we get up early in the day – it couldn’t be late now, we walked for barely an hour. “Hey, what’s the time?”
The man scoffs. “You were outside minutes ago... I don’t have a watch either-” He pauses, then continues with a restored tone. “...It’s the afternoon kid, just get some rest...”
Why’d she wake me up so late? We’ve been walking since I can last remember, always having the same routine of waking early. Sure, it’s been tiring, but-- She let me sleep in... Cory... I’ll never forget you~