I l l u s i o n.

Bugs crawled from the pot of old stew  and he let out a sound of disgust as he pulled his hands back from the table, dropping the lid on the floor. His sister whirled around holding a bottle in her hand as her blue eyes stared at him, widen with shock, she nearly yelped. Her hand shot to her chest as she took a deep breath, "What's wrong with you?!" She paused and watched as he made a face. "We're not supposed to make that much sound you blonde!" A year ago her attitude would've made him laugh but now it only made him worry because he knew her words were no lie.

They made their way to the front where the canned food was and began to stuff their bag full of goods before Bryce finally stopped her. "I saw a girls bedroom upstairs. Go look for a pair of clothes and new shoes. When you get back I'll go check the other one out for some new clothing and then we will leave." She nodded before taking off upstairs, leaving him alone. Bryce made his way to the couch and pressed his weight against the arm as his fingers gently grasped the quilt that hung on the window and looked outside to the snowy area. He hated cold weather.

Snow was also a problem for him an Meg.

They never had coverage and it sucked because of how dangerous the street was nowadays and his sister being the only girl was enough to convince him to stay off of them. The glow of the snow reflected in his blue eyes until something caught his attention, in the snow were a group of three men. They were dressed in heavy clothing and had guns equipped in their hands but no bags mounting their back which meant they were part of a group. No one was new to this apocalypse.

When he felt weight press down on the couch arm behind him he dropped the quilt and put his finger to his lip and watched her nod slightly causing him to then point to the upstairs. They made their way towards the steps before slowly going up them in hopes of escaping the hallow room. Bryce entered a room and closed the door before looking around to see they were now I'm the boys room.

"Bryce here change into this shirt," Meg whispered as she tossed him a white long sleeve t-shirt. He didn't waste time throwing down his backpack and slinging his jacket to the floor to change. Once he changed she tossed him a big brown coat that was so noticeable but not as noticeable as her same old jacket which she refused to replace.

The sound of footsteps made the two freeze as Bryce slowly went for his knife that was in his pants. He motioned for his sister who had done the same in response and he watched as she backed against the doorframe. This wouldn't be the first attack–in fact it wouldn't be the first they killed.

Many have fallen to their feet and for what purpose? Survival?

Bryce couldn't even tell you anymore. He had lost count on how many people he had left for dead and how much blood he had shed to protect his sister. But it no longer mattered. All that did was their survival and he would see to it that they lived. He could remember the first time he killed someone, the fear and realization hit him like a bus. It was a normal human and not a mutated one but it shook him to the core.

He watched as a man in a thick black coat walked into the room, his eyes widened at the sight of Bryce. "What the-" before he could finish his sentence a cry came from the side as Meg jumped onto his back, stabbing into one spot then holding on for dear life. The man let out a cry as he nearly fell back causing Bryce to gasp and burst out into a sprint, his fingertips barley grasping the man's green shirt to pull him from the railway. Meg jumped off his back and Bryce let him go to watch as he pulled out the blade from his shoulder with a cry.

"Tyler what's happening?!" Someone yelled. Tyler however, didn't respond as he let out a mumbled growl and tackled Bryce to the floor. "Bryce!" Meg squealed as she watched her brother fall to his feet and the knife fall from his hands.

Meg looked up to see a man staring at her in shock and disbelief, neither moved. Her eyes studied him before she turned and dashed for the knife which lay across from her but her feet were grabbed and she stumbled to her feet. It didn't stop her though. Determined, she grasped the knife between her fingers and stood to her feet to attack only to have an arm push her back down. A male mounted her and she let out a cry as he bent her wrist back.

Bryce heard the cry and did the best he could to fight against the weight on him but his tries were in vain for the man knocked him out. Everything faded into darkness.