Dragon Rising Excerpt 5

Entry in Asher's Journal:



June 7, 2033

Body count – 48: 21 men, 22 women, 5 children.
Days without food – 0. Found a stash of nuts and mints in a desk in the writing labs, TG. The nuts are giving my stomach fits, but hey, at least mint helps, right?
Days without sleep - 6
Temperature – Surface of the Sun and Rising

Too damned tired to think. All this hiding by day and scrabbling by night is making me feel like Gollum. Not that it helps the way a stupid mint brings tears to my eyes. Food’s become the goddamned Precious.

I’ve decided to stop keeping a body count after today. All 11 additions are from one site, a grocery store on 93rd. Someone trapped the family inside - easy enough with steel plates over the doors. Do you think when the soldiers barred those doors that they imagined what would happen if some sickos trapped people inside and lit a match? The ones that tried to run had been gunned down but most were still inside, pressed against the bars.

Human kindling…

Why am I still writing the date? Scratch that. Day 9 in HELL.