Mike woke up the next morning feeling refreshed and better than ever. He had gotten eight hours of uninterrupted sleep. That was the best he had felt since as far back as he could remember.
After sitting on his bed for a minute or two, he noticed that he could faintly sense the aether around him even without focusing. The fact that it happened naturally made him wonder if it was a sign that his progress with aether manipulation was faster than normal, as he had never heard of this happening before.
After spending twenty minutes stretching and exercising various parts of his body to keep limber and healthy, Mike began working out a plan in his head.
His priorities were to secure supplies for himself and find a space that would be easy to defend. All the while building up as much strength as possible. He would use aether to become immune to the virus before the apocalypse began. He could not leave his survival up to chance again.
Mike dressed himself properly in preparation for going out, then went into the kitchen to eat breakfast. Once done, he grabbed his backpack from where he left it by the front door, and exited his house.
The sun was just beginning to rise, painting everything pink and purple. He loved mornings like these. "Morning," someone greeted him from behind. It took him a moment to realize who was there.
"Amber!" Mike smiled as she walked towards him, her arms crossed over her chest. Her long hair glimmered in the sunlight. She looked absolutely gorgeous.
"It's nice to see you," Mike said with a smile, still standing there staring at her. He wasn't sure how he felt about Amber right now. She had been his neighbor for two years, but they barely interacted. He did not see her once the apocalypse started, so she had probably died early.
"Hey! Don't you have classes today?" she asked after noticing his stare.
Mike shrugged. "I do... I guess."
Amber tilted her head sideways slightly when she saw that, and decided that it was time to change the topic. "You look different somehow."
Mike frowned as she was getting close enough to touch him.
"I think it might be my new clothes," Mike explained, trying not to give away how different he must be now. "What are you doing here? I thought you had no classes on Saturday."
"Oh..." Amber hesitated before replying. "I forgot something important last night, so I came back to get it before class started."
Mike nodded slowly. He could not say anything more without sounding strange. "Oh well. See you around, then."
"Sure thing!" Amber replied happily as they walked away from the apartment complex and into the streets. The sound of cars honking reached their ears. "Bye, Mike!"
"Bye," Mike answered back. Then he turned towards the city center.
***
As Mike made his way through the crowded street, he thought about what he should do with the information that an apocalypse would happen in a week. First off was to stockpile supplies. He needed weapons, food and water. Second was to find a safe place to stay while building up strength to fight the infected. Actually telling people that there was an apocalypse coming would be hard. It takes a long time for governments to mobilize, even when they have sufficient information at hand. Information that Mike couldn't provide.
After walking a couple of blocks in one direction, then turning back, Mike found himself at the entrance of the shopping mall he often passed by. There were many stores inside that sold everything you could possibly need: clothing, books, electronics and groceries. As he looked through the glass doors and saw the people milling around, he wondered how many of them would make it past day one. That was a very depressing thought indeed.
To build up the supplies necessary to survive, he would have to spend a lot of money. It wasn't a problem, Mike thought. He had been saving money for years, and still had the inheritance from his parents. He could spend it all now, given that money would be worthless in a week.
Mike entered the shopping mall, hoping he wouldn't bump into anyone he knew. A large portion of his university 'friends' died during the initial stages of the outbreak, so he didn't want to see any of them again. But luckily this shopping mall was usually empty on Saturday mornings. After looking left and right at every aisle, he finally spotted some items on sale. He grabbed thirty packs of bandages and sixteen two and half liter bottles of water before making his way over to the sports goods section. There he picked up two metal baseball bats. Nothing beat a bat as a primary weapon.
He spent the next few minutes going through aisles, before paying at the exit and leaving the mall. Then he made a quick stop by the supermarket nearby to pick up some canned foods and dry foodstuffs. He'd have to come back and grab more stuff every day. He wasn't going to buy everything at once, it'd be a pain to bring back home. He also realized he didn't really have a clue about what he was doing. He didn't run the camp back then, he merely did what he was asked. It's only after the camp was destroyed that he realized how much of a luxury it was.
Making the quick walk home, Mike left his purchases and went for another walk through the city. The goal now was to find a better place to use as base. He could take the same place as the survivor camp he had stayed at, but he knew that some of the people from the camp lived there before the apocalypse, and he did not particularly get along with them. Passing by his campus, Mike stopped in front of an older, unused building of the university. It was one of the old libraries. The school closed this one and moved the books to a newer, bigger building that finished construction during my first year here. "That should work well."
The building was surrounded by a garden and fully enclosed with walls, giving a second layer of protection. Not only that, being on a hillside gave him the advantage of elevation. After all, the unevolved zombies couldn't climb ladders. They could climb stairs though, with a bit of effort. So it would be smart to keep high ground when possible.
Checking that no one was around to watch him, Mike gathered aether in his legs and made to jump over the wall. He didn't jump high enough to make it over in one go, having to grab the ledge with his hands. With some effort, he made it to the other side. His landing was a little rough, but he got up without injury or falling damage. As he walked into the courtyard, he looked at the main entrance doors leading inside. It had been boarded up since the beginning of the semester, so he wouldn't go through there.
"I guess I'm going in through the window," Mike muttered to himself as he took out his pocket knife and dislodged the boards covering up one of the larger windows. He could see that this window was already broken. No doubt some students came through here before and hastily put the boards back when leaving.
Mike climbed onto the sill. Slowly raising his leg over the frame, he let it rest on the opposite side. Then with careful movements, he slipped inside. He grabbed his backpack off from where he left it outside and brought it with him. He then began looking for anything useful among the shelves while walking deeper into the library. He could use the shelves themselves as an extra measure of protection, and it didn't seem like anything else with use was left here.
Once done exploring, Mike decided to sit down by one of the many empty tables to rest.
After resting and eating a few energy bars, he got to work training his body with aether. Mike thought that with enough practice, he might even be able to affect his surroundings with it, like the higher-leveled zombies can. "I just need time."
***
By the end of the day, Mike had increased the aether levels in his body by about 1.5 times. Interestingly enough, the absorption rate of aether seemed to become faster. He was also feeling a knot form next to his heart, it was senselessly absorbing all of the aether he fed it. He couldn't control the aether once it went inside. It was also drawing aether itself, but not as much as when Mike actively absorbed it.
All that remained for the day was to return home and sleep. His stomach was growling louder than usual. He really wanted something to eat now, but he did not have anything left on him. Stopping by a take-out restaurant on the way home, Mike ate two meals worth of food in one go.
Back at his apartment, Mike locked himself inside, taking every precaution to ensure his privacy. He hopped on the couch before the TV. While watching, he absorbed more aether, until he fell asleep.
