The Day After's

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Reno

Already hundreds of fists he lay on the wall, but only obtained as small as peeling paint. Though his own hands were crushed and bleeding, although never a problem for him.

Reno stepped back, away from the wall that had been the target of her training since countless days. His breathing sounded irregular. But little by little he began to set it until stable again. He turned around while removing the thick bandage wrapped around his hand.

Reno walked towards the table and poured water into the glass, then drank it. Then he turned back and looked at the rest of his small house. Blank. There was no one but him.

He smiled and looked coldly at the photo of a man wearing an army uniform, mounted on the wall.

"The time has finally come. And you want to let me die here? Cih, it won't."

Reno put down her glass and turned on the TV in the living room. A news broadcast showing riots on the street was immediately posted. Reno widened her smile and lay down on the sofa, facing the TV.

It happened, as expected. The aftermath of the previous pandemic. The virus is over, it's done. But he left not because man cast him out, but because it seemed to have completed his task. It brings bigger problems. That forces humans to finally show their true nature when under pressure.

Reno clenched her hands and got up, took a sitting position and stared at her flushed knuckles. The effect of the exercise. There are a few red dots that indicate the rupture of blood vessels, but for him it is not a problem. It used to be the first time, it was even more than this, and it hurt. Now not at all. Even the blow gets stronger. And he was sure, soon he would be able to break the training wall. All for survival.

He then moved out of his place and into the room. The TV is still on, he deliberately let the atmosphere not be too quiet. Although he was sure his voice would not be heard in his soundproofed room.

The bedroom door was closed, along with the last piece of news that attracted him.

"Action begins to widen into looting and destruction. Some of our reporters are not able to connect but we will continue to deliver news about the current situation. Wait for... There's new news from the airwaves and CCTV cameras.... Yea? There is news that some masses are now moving eastward. Where will they focus their target?"

Reno smiled cynically. Isn't it obvious. Who their target is.

***

Indeed, it is man who is the most terrible. As great as any disease, disaster, or virus, still cannot rival human cruelty when it comes to certain aspects. Especially the stupid people out there.

The night has gone down. When it was supposed to be in that moment the city glittered under the sky, but not today.

In his parents' room, there was a small room behind a closet, where his father's various weapons collection was stored. And that's where Reno is busy doing things. Deftly he began assembling rifle parts, filling up the ammunition of the pistol, and taking out some active grenades. All set up so that it can be as effective as possible when used later.

He had heard about the eastward movement of the masses from the news. They're looters, it's certain the target will be random. But do not rule out the possibility, his house became one that was attacked by them. That's why he has to prepare. Although all this time he was ready in case of this kind of situation. Do they think the practice of hitting him is just playful? Wrongfully.

Reno walks out of his parents' room with the selected and assembled weapons. He took it all to his room and put it on the bed. Then he took his clothes from the closet. The clothes he had chosen for his plan.

Yep. From far away Reno had planned to leave the house. Long before the issue of this riot arose. Precisely when the new pandemic period ended, he had planned to leave. Really go away and never come back. After all, he was fed up at home, especially during that annoying pandemic. Imagine being alone at home with no one, befriending loneliness and sadness. His mother, who had previously accompanied and cared for him, died of Covid 19. And when he expected the presence of a father to comfort him, the man never came because he was on duty in the east.

Initially Reno tried to understand. He knew his father's duties were not easy and risky. But as time passed and days passed after his mother's death, not even his father gave any news. There was no phone call or letter or message to let him know his father was there. There was only a certain amount of money sent out once every few weeks, the rest was non-existent. This frustrates Reno. Loneliness and loneliness during the home made hatred grow in him. The hatred towards his father that he had been so proud of. The lack of news, which shows indifference towards him and his mother, makes Reno hate her father.

But now, the opportunity is wide open. It was time for Reno to make a decision that she had been holding back for a long time. Although it will be more dangerous and certainly, more challenging.

Reno had finished changing her clothes and took out a large keril bag. Inside there are already clothes, canned food, and equipment that may and will be needed later. In an empty room, he loaded up a few boxes of ammunition and a spare gun. While the gun that will be used later, he put on the belt on his waist. The rifle he shot in his pocket, in the gap between the keril and his shoulder.

And after feeling everything was ready, he walked out of the house, entered his pitch-black housing complex and walked along it. The gate of the house he left open. All valuables, whether it's furniture or electronic goods he has destroyed, so the looters will not get anything there. He had even set up some small traps to 'comfort' the looters. The only thing he regretted a little was the training wall that he had not been able to crack. But in the end he didn't care much about it either. There are still hundreds of faces out there.

Reno continued to walk through houses that were as dark as the streets. Not because of the power outage, but they themselves turned off the lights. Reno smiled cynically at the sight of all that. He thinks the action is free. Do they think the looters are like a virus? It can be broken just by staying at home. Nah! Those people will continue to roam, searching for prey until their endless needs are satisfied. And in the end, those who dwell in the house will be confined to their own fear, and starve to death within.

"Recent reports, reinforcements from the police began to be deployed at a number of points. The previously outnumbered troops began to successfully urge the masses around the city center. Now the desperate masses are beginning to disperse and move into different regions."

Latest informations. Reno listens to him from his little radio transmitter. An object the size of an old HP nokia with a small antenna, designed to capture any radio signal according to its frequency. He connected the transmitter with earphones on his earphones, to listen to information from any radio that is still operating today. Stepping without calculation is something sloppy. Therefore, the slightest report on the movements of the rioters was indispensable.

Reno finally reached the entrance of the complex. The residence housing is a special housing of the army, so at the entrance there is a small post where several soldiers in uniform stand guard there.

He knew it was impossible to get out without permission. Especially now that he was carrying a weapon and those guards knew his father. So Reno decided to wait behind the nearby bushes. He checked his watch. Time shows at eight o'clock. If the forecast is correct, there will soon be an attack. 

And it's true. Not for a few minutes, there was the sound of screaming from a distance. A glass bottle was thrown right at the post and exploded, causing a fire that ignited due to the gasoline liquid contained in the bottle.

The attack sent several guards into a panic and took their weapons. Not long after, the sound of gunfire filled the air. The silence had long since broken, replaced by the sound of screaming from across and the sound of gunfire from the guards.

Reno raised her head, peered over the bush and saw the scene that gave her goosebumps as well as interest. Hundreds of people, in tattered clothes and bloodied bodies, moved towards the entrance of the complex. Each of their hands grasped a wide variety of sharp weapons that were as shabby as their appearance. Fresh blood dripped from those weapons, indicating that on the way here, they had already killed many people first.

The men kept moving, no matter how many bullets ran out for warning shots from the guards. Until finally, feeling their warning was no longer useful, the guards pointed their rifle muzzles forward and began shooting.

One, two, of those people fell down and didn't breathe anymore. Their chests were pierced by bullets and shed blood. But it did not dampen the steps of those people. They even showed a look of anger and pushed forward, storming towards the guard post while brandishing weapons and throwing Molotov cocktails in their hands.

Chaos is happening soon. The guards came with guns and started firing bullets at the crowd. In the air, Molotov cocktails fluttered and exploded over their targets, burning anything they touched and making it difficult for the guards to take aim.

Some of the rioters managed to escape the hail of bullets and break into the defensive line. Blindly they took their machete and took the lives of the guards. Not a few of them were successfully eliminated before harvesting more victims. But after that, waves of time kept coming and they finally managed to barge in, killing all the remaining guards and snatching their weapons. 

A landslide victory from the rioters. Without wasting any time, they entered the complex environment and started looting every house that existed.

Shouts filled the atmosphere that night. Screams from slaughtered families and desecrated women. Fire raged from every house and burned the bodies inside. The property was taken to the ground and left nothing for the victim except charcoal dust from his bones, and his house.

While Reno was silent in her hiding. Behind the bush that escaped the attention of the rioters; cursing their vile deeds against the innocents there. He thought, of the slaughtered families, that there was a familiar neighbor. Those who were willing to take care of him when he was lamenting the death of his mother. Now those people might be dead, and Reno could do nothing but save herself.

Yep. Originally Reno was not a careless and cold-hearted child. He used to be so warm and smiley, as his mother always taught him. But after the death of the person closest to him and the hatred of his father, as well as the circumstances that were so pressing, inevitably he had to harden his heart and throw away his feelings. Even if necessary, become a killer to survive.