House
"Sarah! Wake up!" I open my eyes to see Dexter hissing in my ear. "We found something cool! Come on!"I groggily stand up and stretch, and then I sling my pack over my shoulder and follow Dexter, Holly, and Nick.
They lead me to a large house. It's painted white, with a black door, and brick steps. There's even a little garden. My mouth drops open. "Is this another silver parachute?" I whisper. "Or is it a trap? Should we go in and stay there? Should we raid it? Should we leave? What?"
Dexter shrugs. "I don't know about you guys, but I kind of want to go inside and see what's in it." He ambles over to the front door and slowly opens it. Nothing happens, so he disappears inside the house.
A second later, we hear, "Whoa! Guys! Come look at this!"
We head inside and see what the fuss is all about. Dexter's standing inside the main room, gaping at the area. There's a beautiful woven rug on a hardwood floor, a glass coffee table, leather couches, a fireplace, and even a ceiling fan. Nick closes the front door and locks it, and pushes a couch in front of it for good measure.
"So can we stay here?" Dexter asks. "Please? Pretty please? It has magazines, books, couches, probably even real beds, and maybe food." He flicks a switch on the wall and the ceiling fan comes on. "And electricity."
Nick goes into the kitchen and turns on the sink. "Plus running water!" he calls, and turning off the water and coming back into the living room. "I think it's okay, Sarah. What do you say?"
I bite my lip. "Well..." I trail off. "I do think it's good to have a safe place for a while, but... we should probably check it out first. See if there are any zombies or people in any closets or rooms."
Nick nods. "Yeah, that's a good idea." He grabs a knife and heads upstairs. I beckon for Dexter to come with us, so he takes a weapon and follows.
Upstairs, the first thing I see is a bedroom. The door is open. I check inside, including the closet, and it's clear. The bed is comfortable, and it's all I can do not to doze off. Then I notice a small metal cube on the bed. I pick it up, and it lights up.
"Fingerprints recognized," it says in a mechanical voice. "Subject identified as Sarah. Skills analyzed. Printing suitable supplies." A stream of light shoots out, projecting images of some things on the bed. It shows a bow, some arrows, and lace-up boots. They all look so real. I reach out to touch the 3D image, but my hand is met with actual substance! I realize the cube has stopped projecting light, so I put it down and pick up the supplies. The bow is made of slender elm wood, and the arrows are finely crafted yet sturdy. The boots fit me perfectly, and they're comfy.
"Nick! Dexter!" I call. They come in. I show them the cube. "This thing was on the bed. I picked it up and it analyzed my fingerprints to tell who I was, and then it had some way of identifying my key skills, and it projected this light thing on the bed, and when I touched the images, they were real."
Nick rubs his chin, nodding. "Can I try?" he asks. I give it to him, and it beeps.
"Fingerprints recognized. Subject identified as Nick. Printing suitable supplies." Nick gets some brass knuckles to give his prosthetics more punch, and an armored chestplate. Dexter tries, and he receives a staff, a sturdy helmet, and real binoculars.
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