Chapter Text
November 22nd, 1949:
Today mum's record player broke so I can't listen to music anymore without it skipping around or playing these awful scratching noises. Music was the only thing keeping me sane down here so that's a real shame.
On another note, I'm running out of food again so I might need to go out sometime soon although I'm not looking forward to that at all...
Shroud is doing well though which is surprising considering there are very few bugs down here for him to eat. How long can spiders survive without food?... I guess I just wait and see.
Speaking of questions I've been having a lot of those recently but most are not very positive so I try not to think about them too much or they'll bring my spirit down and it's important to be optimistic in times like these! Very very important...
Oh, and It's almost my birthday! I can't believe I'm almost fifteen years old....golly, how long have I been down here? it didn't feel like very long ago the grass was green and the skies were blue instead of the ugly shade of brown they've both turned into...I wish I could go back to those times and maybe see a family again? Did I even have a family? I can't remember...all this radiation must be getting to me...
"What else..." Tommy tapped the end of his pen on his notebook thoughtfully as he tried to think of any more notable events that happened that day. Keeping track of the days was important when you only have a hand-sized spider to talk to. Speaking of said spider Tommy looked at him to ask if he had any suggestions however he didn't have anything to add so Tommy decided that was enough writing for the day.
He finished the page with a "Signed, Tommy innit" in the bottom right corner and set down both the notebook and the pen on the floor next to him. He quickly slipped his hand into his pocket and retrieved the slightly cracked, possibly broken, pocket watch then squinted at the dashes and numbers for a moment "hm...about eleven or so... I should be getting to sleep soon" he noted as he crawled towards the mattress placed on the floor.
The bunker was quite a comfortable stay...at least compared to what it could've been. he slept on an unmade mattress with a single pillow and a very stained comforter (but the stains were more the fault of Tommy not being careful with his soup rather than whoever furnished the place) He had a few candles placed around, lighting up the otherwise pitch-black bunker while a few board games and cards sat in the corner along with a gas mask, a first aid kit and an axe to use as a weapon if he ever needed it. He had never touched it once. He could never hurt anyone.
He crawled onto the surprisingly cold mattress and flipped open his notebook once again. He had written a few short bedtime stories in there to help him fall asleep on nights where he was feeling especially unsafe and scared but that wasn't what he was going to read, he was going to give himself a quick refresher on the rules.
Tommy had ten rules in total.
Rule one: Never leave the bunker unless you're going out for supplies.
Rule two: Do not go with/follow anyone.
Rule three: If you see someone dying finish them off.
Rule four: never trust anyone.
Rule five: never take anything back with you unless you're sure it's safe.
Rule six: never EVER take off your mask.
Rule seven: don't put yourself in danger for others.
Rule eight: keep your distance from wanderers.
Rule nine: Never accept help from anyone.
Rule ten: always follow the rules.
He had come up with the rules himself over his years in the wasteland and he was rather proud of them but lately, he's been starting to feel like he missed something. An eleventh rule perhaps? But what would the rule be about?
He hummed as he read the description for the first rule over again hoping maybe some inspiration would strike him.
"In a world infested with radiation and wanderers you should try to go out as little as possible. Wanderers are completely blind and attack anything they hear so the less you go out the less they'll hear of you, makes sense right? You also have the chance of mutating which is when...I just can't write this down it makes me sick to think about...long story short you probably shouldn't leave unless you're running low on food or water."
Taped to the bottom of the page was a picture he managed to take of a wanderer. That one, in particular, had an extra set of arms, back bent legs (which was a consistent feature with all of the wanderers), and green-tinted skin along with pitch-black eyes. Tommy frowned. Wanderers were just humans deep down...scared humans, constantly suffering without the ability to vocalize their pain. Sure they were aggressive but that didn't give people the right to treat them like animals and kill them. Maybe if he managed to calm one down he could become friends with it...
That was something to test on another day though because for now, Tommy needed sleep.
He stared at the ceiling waiting for sleep to take him away to a better world, allowing miscellaneous thoughts to bounce around in his head. It was nothing but constant what-if scenarios.
"What if you didn't decide to hide down here that night?"
"What if they're not dead"
"What if you're just dreaming?"
"What if you die tomorrow?"
It was annoying, infuriating even.
He tugged the blanket over his head and curled up under it, trying to soak up all of the warmth he could but even so his toes remained as cold as ice.
Then he heard something. A very dull buzzing? No....it was static! Someone was broadcasting "I thought the radio towers had been abandoned" he muttered to himself as he rubbed the exhaustion out of his eyes and took the small buzzing device in his hands to turn up the volume.
"He....llo?" Even though the volume had been turned as far as it would go their voice was barely audible "h....llo? If....hear th....message" Tommy wearily pressed the speakers to his ear in an attempt to hear whoever was speaking better.
"....fol...low.....th..e....c....r....o....w...s"
Tommy's eyebrows furrowed "follow the crows?" He muttered before his eyes shot open, any trace of exhaustion dissipating on the spot "wait a second- holy mackerel! That was a person! A real live human person! Humanity isn't doomed! Golly- I'm so excited I-i think I'm gonna spew" Tommy rambled to himself as he flew out of bed and snatched his gas mask off of the floor then he secured it around his mouth and nose, briefly struggling with the straps in the back before he pulled on his goggles. They looked like ski goggles and Tommy honestly didn't care for the color but it kept his eyes from getting irritated so he would just have to deal with it until he could find some new ones...somewhere.
He then reached for the dirty bookbag he found when he was out scavenging and stuffed a few things inside. "Let's see...I should take my notebook, that's an obvious one....oh and a pen so I can write in it and maybe this map? And some food in case it takes a while to get wherever I'm going" he said as he shoved things into the bag "matches definitely but should I also take a candle?...it couldn't hurt to take a candle or two" he decided before he selected two candles at random and blew them out then waited for a bit for the wax to harden before stuffing them into his bag. He then looked around to see if there was anything else he should take with him. His gaze caught on the untouched axe. His smile faded away immediately.
"....maybe I....maybe I should take it in case I need to...chop wood or something" that was a lie. He hasn't seen a tree in years and part of him was convinced trees didn't even exist anymore. He knew why he was taking it but he refused to outwardly acknowledge it.
He zipped up his bag and slung it over his shoulder but just as he was about to climb up the ladder to the outside world he noticed a certain tarantula had settled by his shoe. He crouched down to speak with it "shroud, I'm going out for a bit and I might not be back for a long while....do you wanna come with me?" The spider didn't say anything, obviously, it instead crawled up Tommy's leg and set itself on his backpack "alright then, let's go"
He was taking a big risk but more importantly, he had no idea where he was going he just heard the promise of safety and ran with it. He hasn't felt safe in so long he desperately clung to the hope of it when it was offered, so much so that he didn't even notice he had broken rule one.
He unscrewed the hatch and pushed it open only to see a crow patiently waiting for him at the entrance. He wasn't exactly sure what he expected by "follow the crows" but he definitely didn't think he would be getting an escort in the form of a crow. The bird chirped and perched itself on Tommy's shoulder "oh um...hello" he greeted as he craned his neck to look at the small creature "I'm gonna be honest I didn't think you guys were still...a thing, I haven't seen one of you in so long I thought you took a powder and went to mars or something...I wish I could do that" Tommy rambled as he sealed the bunker, giving it a quick pull to make sure he had done it correctly. The last time he forgot to do that he came back to find all of his soup had mysteriously disappeared.
That was not a very fun day.
"so...are you in cahoots with the guy on the radio?" The crow nodded. So it could understand him. Good to know. "Well then, lead the way!" On command the bird opened its wings and flew into the sky, acting as a guide for Tommy to follow. He looked at shroud for reassurance before running after the bird, keeping pace the best he could on foot.