My Empire of Dirt

The darkness slowly faded from my vision and the warmth on my face alerted me to the fact that I was outside. The sun was so bright and Parker... where was Parker?

I sat up quickly, but stilled when my vision went black around the edges. Something happened. Something bad. I was sitting in the middle of a forest, but the trees had been burnt near the tops. What could have done this? Where was I, anyway? Panic bubbled in my chest, but I forced it back down. There was no point in panicking. The first thing I needed to do was figure out where I was. And who exactly I was supposed to be looking for.

I looked up again, taking in everything I could. The trees were dense, the sun was starting to go down to my left, and the ground was mulchy and damp. From what I could surmise, there was running water nearby and I was facing north. I slowly stood up, taking inventory of my body. Everything seemed to be intact, even if my back and right shoulder were a little sore. I looked down. I had on a pair of skinny jeans that were ripped at the knees, a lightweight army jacket, a sports bra, a black tank top, and a worn old pair of hiking boots. I guess I had been prepared for whatever happened.

My hand went up to my face, suddenly becoming conscious of the liquid trickling down. I had a bandana on my head, my hair was falling out of a french braid, and there was blood trailing down from above my eyebrow, maybe? I picked up the end of my tank top, wiped it, and started walking. I decided to go in the direction of the sun, since that part of the forest seemed to be lighter. Only a few feet in, my foot hit something soft, and I stumbled. I leaned down and found a backpack.

It was drawstring, and somewhere in the back of my mind, I recognized it as mine. My fingers trembled as I pulled the sides of the small bag apart, and I was relieved to find all kinds of survival materials in there. I really had known this was coming. But why was the bag so far away from me? Maybe whatever caused my head wound also caused me to throw my backpack.

I walked for a while until it got dark, then I plopped my butt down and started building a small pile of sticks. I pulled off my jacket, laid it down on a small, dry patch of grass, and dumped out the contents of my bag on it. I had a lighter, a watch, some matches, a coupled granola bars, two bottles of water, a jar of almonds, a flask, some band-aids, two knives, a notebook, and some pens. I flipped through the small notebook, and only the first few pages were written on. A small slip of paper fell out while I was looking, though.

"Dear Parker, if you're reading this, run. They said the nuclear apocalypse would take out the entire earth, but my father said he knew some place in the mountains it couldn't reach. I'm going to Blue Valley Ridge today with some supplies to see if I can find a safe place for us to hide out. If we get separated, find that rock we always used to play at by the lake. I'll come and find you. I love you, Smith"

I flipped through the rest of the book and found some basic survival tips and a bunch of empty pages. I smiled at the little note. Whoever wrote this must have loved Parker very much. Or was I Parker? I mean, I am in the mountains and the note is in my hands. But where is this rock? An image flooded my brain of a small, serene lake surrounded by a tall stand of trees. I was looking into some boy's eyes. He had a hat on and lots of freckles and I felt really safe. I knew that's where I had to go.