Day 3

Sorry, I got lost in memories. Life in the gangs isn't easy, but it's not really easier anywhere else in this blasted, wasted world we've inherited. It's dangerous, and it's harsh, and if you're not careful it'll strip away any joy you can take in what life can be had.

And humanity is not alone. Fully understanding that statement generally depends on who you talk to. 

Naturally, radiation has changed plants and animals, some more drastically than others. I'm not an expert or anything, but I've seen a few books and magazines, some pictures. Dogs seem pretty much the same, though without the same number or variety. Cats, on the other hand...cats are an entirely different story.

I've seen pictures of large cats, like lions. Even saw something about “bobcats”, saying that they used to live in the area. But it seems like they're all gone. The bigger problem is the housecat. They're a little bigger than in the pictures I've seen, but they're a LOT smarter. Most of the pictures show them just being sweet, cute pets. Sometimes with little captions, making jokes about them being uncaring, or smiling, or with bad speech. 

I've never seen one talk.

What I have seen is a nest, down in a basement bunker. Like, an actual armored, sealed bunker. Big steel door, lockable with a big wheel and a pair of turnbolts. Looked like about 20 people had lived in there when the Cataclysm happened. Some adults, some kids. Hard to tell if they were one family, or more, or what. 

The cats had gotten in. Every person inside was dead, shredded and torn, partly eaten. And the cats were there. It was dark, but my flashlight lit them up well enough, reflected off their eyes as they slowly advanced on me, growling. One big one just sat there on a table in the middle of the room, watching me.

I raised my gun, aiming for them and ready to fire. The big one just sat there, but he snarled in this high tone. And all the rest stopped moving. I'd swear it smiled at me. I backed out of the room, slowly, gun up. And as soon as I got through the door, I pulled two grenades, tossed them in, and I ran like my ass was on fire.

I already told you about the possums. I've never seen a deer, or heard of anyone else who has. Same with a bear, or any number of other things. Seen a couple foxes. Couple crawfish near a stream, not nearly so tiny as the old pictures. Seems most of what survived in this new world were creatures that lived mostly underground, or were smart enough to run for some kind of shelter.