Things just keep getting stranger and stranger.

 Friday/Sept-25th-2009

I raided a nearby trailer park for canned goods, and non perishables. I would feel bad about it, but I still haven’t seen anyone. The unsettling feeling from the empty town to the south is lessened, but even out here it’s like I can hear the ballad of its silence over the singing birds, and the occasional deer.  The lot had maybe a dozen trailers, a tall chain link fence surrounded the property, but the front gate was wide open. A strange feeling lay thick in the air from the moment I entered the trailer park, it crawled down my throat and rested like a knot over my heart the entire time we were inside. Saxon was with me, and he also seemed unhappy to be there, as if the sense of unease affected him more severely. Occasionally as I rummaged through the remains of the trailers, he would whine anxiously or growl, but despite my admittedly casual investigation, I never spotted a source for the bad feeling that seemed to have taken up residence in the trailer court. There wasn’t much to find, some cans of food, a few bottles of water. The real prize was the extra generator, and a can of gasoline. I will have to find a way to transport the generator, but the gasoline I carried with the food and water that I found. I also got nearly fifty feet of rope, and I found a tire iron leaning against an old green car with no tires. Never hurts to be prepared, so I took that too.

It wasn’t until we were heading back home that we discovered something that I am at a loss to explain. The entrance to the trailer park is on the north side; just within the entrance a black pickup truck was sitting near a double wide trailer. I didn’t happen to glance behind me when we entered, if I had, I think we would have just turned around and searched elsewhere for supplies. Lying in the dirt was the body of a dog. It had been killed, but save for a few teeth marks on it, it was mostly whole. Further inspection left me baffled; the marks that scored its short tan coat were definitely from teeth. But the bite radius didn’t look like any animal I could immediately identify. Using my phone, which still has no signal, I took several pictures. I didn’t want to bring the body with me, for several reasons, none of them pleasant.

We left after that, I was nauseous, and uncomfortable, like someone I couldn’t see was staring at me. Once we were out of the gate I closed it, and with a bike chain that I barrowed from one of the absentee trailer residents, I wrapped the chain around the metal grating of the fence and locked it. Saxon and I beat feet to get home, making it in half the time it usually takes. Even though I’m almost positive there is nothing to be afraid of  I’ve locked my doors and windows. I haven’t seen anyone in nearly three weeks, but it made me feel better. I almost wonder if I should take extra precautions and board the windows permanently closed. At the moment my curtains cover them, but the thin fabric is a laughable suggestion as a barrier against anyone that wanted to get in.

I spent my evening researching the bite marks that I found on the dog, the crescent shaped mark dont fit for any breed of dog, wolf, mountain lion, or bear, natural to the area. The closest thing that I could find that matched the bite radius was an ape. Obviously there are no apes native to North Dakota, my guess is that if there are no more people then perhaps one escaped from a zoo and has made its way here. What other explanation is there? Honestly a part of me is afraid to know, I think I will board up my windows tomorrow.

How long was I unconscious? Where is everyone? There have to be people still out there somewhere. I will give it another week, if I still haven’t seen anyone I may just steal a car and drive to the closest city, anything is better then not knowing.

With Hope

-Jeri

Is anyone out there?

I got home almost a week ago; it’s taken me this long to get the power in my house up and running again. I live out on Belcourt Lake, if there are still people out there to read this, my coordinates are latitude 48.8753 Longitude -99.7492 If you can’t reply, but can somehow read this, come find me. I still have no idea what’s going on, or where everyone is. I had to get here on foot, no buses moving, there were cars crashed into buildings, twisted metal frames left on the road. No bodies, no people, no sign that anything violent happened while I was unconscious in the hospital, recovering from my accident. The silent town was unsettling, so I avoided it, and cut through the forest to get home. Saxon and I have walked the paths through the forest around my cabin for years; it was a small matter of finding familiar ground and following it. At least in the woods I could hear the birds singing.

Saxon was okay, more then anything that made me feel better. My four year old beloved malamute, with his charcoal grey markings was no worse for the wear after a couple of days without food. I gave him an extra helping of food to make up for my absence, and he seems to have forgiven me. Forgive me for rambling on, but this at least allows me to feel like I’m having some sort of human connection, even if no one ever answers, some memory of me, some record of what happened, will continue to exist no matter what.

Talking like this is starting to depress me, I think I’m going to take Saxon for a walk, maybe I’ll set a few snares for food, the idea of heading back into the empty town doesn’t sit well with me. I’ll explain about hoe I got the generator working and the strange sight at the edge of the lake the next time I can connect; assuming of course that the entirety of the internet doesn’t go down between now and then. I still am unable to access my email, or any of the other major websites. Please, if you find this, if your out there, answer.

With hope

- Jeri

Where is Everyone?

Monday 07-Sep-2009

I... I’m not sure what’s going on, but I figured that this was my best bet for finding out. However I can’t seem to access a good portion of the internet, I can’t get to my email, or to any of the places where I could normally contact people. Is anyone else having this problem? Honestly I’m astonished that this place had enough electricity to power up this terminal, I should get this put out quickly, or it may not get out at all. The lights keep flickering, and I don’t imagine I have much time before the power goes. The depthless silence that seems to have taken up residence in place of the hospital staff is creeping me out. Thankfully the sun is high in the sky, that’s something right? The wall clock in my room must have run out of batteries it still reads the same time it did when I woke up twenty or so minutes ago. The few digital clocks I’ve seen are just an ever changing jumble of numbers. Maybe it has to do with most of the internet being unavailable. No cell phone signals either, at least not that my crappy phone can pick up. This place is desolate, everyone’s gone… If anyone is out there, and reads this, please, please let me know what’s happening, hell just let me know your there.

I’m in a small hospital north west of Belcourt, ND just south of Belcourt Lake, on road BIA 7. I was admitted last night around eleven thirty, after a car accident. I had stopped at a four way intersection on my way home after work, and there was some sort of power surge. The nearby street lights on either side of the road exploded like fireworks. A taxi slammed into the back of my Buick, shattering the peaceful night with the sound of twisting, grinding metal. The other driver didn’t even stop long enough to see if I was okay, the jerk. I hit my head on the steering wheel. A little later on I woke up, still in my car, in the dark, and with a terrible headache. The power on the whole block was out. My cell phone was working, thank God for small favors, so bleary eyed I called 911, but they didn’t answer on the first try. I hung up on the busy tone, and had to call back twice before I got an operator. The ambulance seemed to take a really long time to get out to where I was, and while I waited I listened to the banshee’s wail of sirens as they went off all over the city. Once I arrived at the hospital it took nearly a half hour to get in to see anyone, all the doctors seemed to be burdened with a stack of patients, the emergency room was packed. Maybe the power surge wasn’t localized to just the intersection I was at.

My name is Jericho, and I am alone inside a public health building. It wasn’t until I noticed the flickering lights, and the stopped clocks that I got up to figure out why my nurse didn’t answer the call button. It didn’t take me long to realize there was no one to find; no doctors, no nurses, and no patients. It’s spooky, like everyone was evacuated, but no one bothered to wake me up. I have to get home; I have to make sure Saxon is okay.

Figuring it was better to be safe the sorry, I started searching my room for possible tools, or something to protect myself with. I’ve never been an overly paranoid person, but it doesn’t take a psychic to figure out things had taken a turn south. I found a laptop, with power cord, in a black bag next to the other bed in my room. Along with the clothing I was wearing last night in an adjacent closet, I nearly cried at the normalcy of laying my hands on my smokes, and my trusty Zippo. I also found my car keys; though the keys are useless the accident ruined my car. In the bathroom I found a hair pick, a can of hairspray, and some basic cosmetics. I know I shouldn’t take things that aren’t mine, but if I find the owner I’ll return them. I have to remember to call the insurance company once I get out of this. I pray this strange absence of people is only local to this area; I have to get out of here. If there is power once I get home I’ll check back, please if anyone is there say something… Anything.

With hope,
-Jeri