To the Ends of the Earth

“Hey! I uh, found my old tape recorder in what… used to be my house. It took a while to dig through the rubble and find anything worth keeping, since, as you probably know while you’re listening to this, everything kind of got… nuked. Because of the wars, obviously. I’m not sure why I’m explaining that. Everyone knows that just happened, it was happening all over the world. Talking just… calms me down. Which is why it’s great that I found my tape recorder! It can be like an audio diary, or… something!”

“Well, anyways. I was actually just looking for supplies to go and find my girlfriend, Penny. She lives halfway across the country, and she hasn’t replied to my messages or anything since yesterday. I’m… really worried. And there’s no reason for me to stick around here anymore, so I’m gonna go find her! Uh, hopefully. Anyways… I’m going to keep looking for useful stuff now. Adeleine signing off!”

—

Adeleine woke up to the sound of wolves. She had set up camp for the night in the middle of a forest, and she was beginning to think that may not have been the wisest decision considering the current looming threat of bloodthirsty wildlife.

“Oh, hell.”

She scrambled out of her sleeping bag, cramming it in her bag and sweeping her sorry excuse for a camp for any stray belongings. She was wearing the heart locket that her girlfriend had mailed her, as always. She never took it off, and Penny had a matching one. There were the remains of a campfire, extinguished before she turned in for the night. Fire safety is important, of course — even in the aftermath of a man-made apocalypse. Her small tent was missing a wall, which wasn’t very useful for entirely shielding her from the elements, but came in handy when a quick escape was necessary… like right now.

She folded up her tent and tucked it under one arm, then paused to listen to the sounds of the forest. It was quiet, save for the singing cicadas, until another howl broke the silence. They were distant, but still too close for comfort. Time to go. Adeleine crept through the forest, keeping an eye out for any alarming movements in the trees. The wolves howled intermittently, but seemed to consistently come from the same direction, growing more and more distant as she moved away. Eventually they stopped altogether and she breathed a sigh of relief.

She kept quiet as she trekked through the forest, remaining cautious of her surroundings. Day seemed to be breaking now, which certainly helped with visibility, but she wasn’t out of the woods yet — literally.

“I’ve gotta be close now, it’s been like, two days of nothing but trees,” she muttered to herself, consequently breaking the silence. The forest was waking up now though, with the sounds of birdsong filling the sky. The bombs seemed to have missed this corner of the world, providing Adeleine with a brief respite from the wreckage and decay she was used to. It was peaceful… if you ignored the wolf incident. However, all good things must come to an end.

She reached the outskirts of the woods, and found herself looking out over a surprisingly decent settlement situated in the remains of a city. There were already a few early-risers going about their business in the small town, but it seemed like there was still a lot of work to do in regards to cleanup and repairs. The roads were the cleanest, an obvious necessity, but that wasn’t saying much considering the surrounding environment of dust and rubble. Overall, the place seemed nice enough, so she made her way in.

—

“Diary entry… uh. I’m not sure what number this one is. I lost track, but that’s not important. What is important is that I’ve been making pretty good progress getting to Minnesota! I’m not sure how long I’ve been going at this for, but it must be a week or two by now. Maybe a month? I really don’t know.”

“Oh, I also found a map! It’s actually of the entire United States, so it’s mostly useless. Well, it did help me figure out where Minnesota is, so all things considered I’m doing okay! I don’t mean to brag or anything, but I think I’ve gotten pretty good at surviving on my own. I think most people have at this point, because, well, you kind of have to with the current state of everything. There’s no formal leadership for anything anymore, so people just have to make do. It’s kind of surprising how resourceful people can be after everything! When everyone works together, a lot can actually get done.”

“Anyways, there’s really not much left. The Internet doesn’t even work anymore, which is pretty unfortunate. I haven’t been able to get in contact with Penny since this all started. Thankfully I know what her house looked like, so I’ll probably be able to recognize what’s left of it when I get there… I guess I’ll sign off for now. Addy, out!”

—

Adeleine made her way through the densely populated town, weaving through the crowd as she walked in… a direction. She didn’t actually know where she was going. She made it out of the thick of the crowd, emerging into a shabby town square. There were a few buildings that seemed to be newly constructed, considering the fact that they weren’t half-destroyed, along with some stalls and tents. The citizens of this settlement seemed to be doing pretty well for themselves.

She gave the area another look over, trying to find the least threatening person to ask for directions. Eventually she noticed two kids near the center of the clearing, kicking around a ball. Coincidentally, right as she took note of them, the younger of the two miscalculated the force of his kick and launched the ball… directly at Addy’s face. Fortunately, she managed to catch it before it broke her nose, and rolled it back to the children before making her way over.

“Oh god, we’re so sorry miss!” The older boy picked up the ball as he apologized, and a short silence followed. He nudged the younger boy impatiently, prompting him to stutter out an apology as well. “Um, yeah, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.” He was staring a hole in the ground, mortified. Adeleine smiled and waved it off, hoping a positive attitude would ease their worries. “No worries! These things happen. But hey, while I’m here, do either of you know where I could get some food? I need to get some travel supplies.”

The two of them pointed towards a building at the edge of the clearing, perfectly in sync. It had a small awning to provide shade to the fruit stand out front, or any passerby who just wanted a break from the hot sun. Adeleine nodded approvingly and thanked the boys, who waved goodbye and resumed play.

She strolled into the shop and was greeted by the sight of a tall, broad man who welcomed her enthusiastically. “Hello there! We don’t get many travelers these days, it’s nice to see a new face around here. I’m Thomas, how can I help you?” Addy looked around. The store was decorated nicely, with a few potted plants scattered around and and a cute mural of a meadow on the back wall. It looked as if children had painted it.

Adeleine smiled back at him, albeit a bit nervously, before responding. “I’m Adeleine! And believe me, it’s great to see this many people in one place. I don’t see much of that in my travels. I’m just looking for food before I move on from this nice town. What do you have to offer?”

Thomas hummed thoughtfully. “Well, this establishment is just for fresh produce from the farm out back. Fruits, veggies, and nothing but. There’s other places nearby that have more to offer in terms of food. Bakeries and the sort. Also the general store around the corner, of course. I hope that helps!”

Addy smiled and nodded, feeling more at ease. “Yes, that helps a lot actually, thank you.” She gave the store a quick look while she stood in place, then turned back to Thomas. “I think I’d just like some apples if that’s okay? I don’t have much to offer in return, and I’d like to get going soon. I’m looking for someone, you see.” At that, her eyes lit up and she looked eagerly at him. “Oh, by the way, would you happen to have a map of the area? Mine’s useless, and I’m trying to get to Minnesota.”

He laughed heartily for a moment, only stopping when he noticed the strange look Adeleine was giving him. He spread his arms out and exclaimed, “You’re in Minnesota! Or at least, what’s left of it. You know how it is.” Thomas reached under the counter separating them and rummaged around for a bit before straightening back up and placing down a state map on the table. “You can take the apples, free of charge. There’s plenty to go around.” With that, he placed a hefty bag of apples and other food items on the counter as well.

Adeleine’s eyes widened and she picked up the map with shaky hands. “I’m… so close. Thank you, so much!” She snatched up her things and dashed away, yelling back to Thomas as she went. “I’ll come back when I find her, and I’ll help out however I can to repay your kindness! Bye, Thomas!” He only waved with a big smile as she went on her way.

—

“It’s diary time! I think it’s been a few months since I began my journey. Not sure how close I am, but I know I’m going in the right direction, because I have a compass now! I’m sure I’ll get there soon enough.”

“You know, it’s surprising how kind people still are. You’d think everything would be a lawless wasteland now, but most of the supplies I have were gifts from strangers. The only real crimes that occur are theft. Which is honestly understandable, it’s hard to get by on your own.”

“… I wonder how my parents are doing. We haven’t spoken in years, even before the war. I don’t really care about finding them again, since they were honestly pretty awful, but… I can’t help but wonder. I… I’ll keep going now. Adeleine, signing off.”

—

Adeleine was currently sprinting through the suburbs. She had stashed her new map away in her bag for now, seeing as she was in Penny’s old neighborhood. It wasn’t exactly reassuring to see that it was destroyed and lifeless, though.

“Here it is!” She skidded to a stop outside the remains of a small, blue house. The house from the photos. It was completely ruined. “Oh my god… there has to be something here to help me find her.” She began to frantically dig through the rubble, disregarding the pain of the bricks scraping against her hands. She only stopped when she found Penny’s heart locket. It was battered and broken beyond all repair, but instantly recognizable to Adeleine.

“No… she never would have left it behind.” She gently lifted it out of the rubble with shaking hands, clutched it to her chest, and began to cry.

—

“This might be my last diary entry for a while. I found Penny’s locket and… I don’t think she made it. There was nothing left and no sign of her. … Well, I went back to the town I mentioned, after a while. It’s been probably a few months since I found what was left of Penny’s house? It took me a while to come to terms with it and head back there. I’m working in Thomas’s shop now, and it’s nice to keep busy like this. The people here are friendly, and… I think I’ll be okay someday. Not today, but, someday. Addy, signing off.”