The Days and Months We Were First Born- the Unraveling by Christopher Hunter

are sworn enemies who would fight one another under other circumstances. But today, they are cooperating for the common cause. The common cause of taking out the threat.
    I was able to obtain a list of names. Names of the groups who will be fighting today.
    One moment, let me pull it up…ok, I got it right here.
    We have the Wall Street Battlers; The Last Jews of Williamsburg, The Elizabeth Ghosts, Riker’s Island Finest, The Last Standers of Manhattan, The New Astoria Peoples, Chinatown Village, Soundview Crew, The Fordham Mourners, The Mountaineers of Riverdale, Bayside, The Staten Islanders, The Mount Vernon Redeemers, and the list goes on , Terrence. These are the groups we know of so far, but there are many more already here and on their way. This fight is going to be epic before it is all said and done!

A Walk through Jersey
     
    Other than spotting the boats farther up river , my trip to Jersey was uneventful. The water sparkled with bright sunlight; a few puffy white clouds moved swiftly overhead across the rich blue sky; the only noise was the gentle swaying of the Hudson and the strokes of my paddle; and the Statue of Liberty was standing, tall, green, and pronounced—and oblivious to the devastated world around her.
    But looking to the waterfront of Jersey City, I was able to see how things had changed. The aura was e e rie and quiet. T he windows of the hotels, office suites, condos, and riverside cafes were broken, revealing nothing but darkness inside. The entire waterfront was de void of human activity. The only signs of life were the pigeons and the seagulls. They were flying, perching, and no doubt, shitting wherever they pleased.
    I landed the canoe along a bed of barrier rocks—right i n front of Liberty State Park. And i nside the canoe, there really wasn’t much I could bring along with me. The only thing remaining was a small strap bag. I nside the bag were three packs of Taiwanese cookies, a wad of useless East American cash, and a half-drunken bottle of water. The strap bag and cookies came with me. Everything else was left behind.
    After climbing the handrail and landing securely on the other side, I took in the scene before me.
    The entire park was a mass gravesite. It was similar to where we buried our dead in the city, but this was on a much larger scale. There were row upon row of brown dirt mounds, which stretched across my line of sight . There must have been thousands buried, maybe even hundreds of thousands, or even a million depending on how they were stacked. I wish I were exaggerating. To see such a thing in person a nd to know what it represented was such a surreal experience.
    I walked through the death-field toward the western edge of the park, hearing only the rustle of wind rattling the few thin trees and bushes. The air had a powerful, acrid smell. It was thick and sweltering. I could almost feel worms crawling all over me, tingling across my skin . I held the bottom of my shirt to my nose and took short, efficient breaths. For the most part, my eyes were half-closed. With so many deceased bodies in one location, the odor was expected, but that didn’t make it any easier to take.
    I didn’t have the gun out, but my left hand was very close to it in the event I would need it.
    ***
    Communipaw Avenue was the main street through a bustling Islamic community. In its time, the one-way strip was home to shops, open-air markets, prayer centers, cultural museums, and some of the finest Arabic restaurants of the East Coast. The wide sidewalks used to teem with locals and tourists alike.
    The shops sold a variety of goods, such as handcrafted jewelry and art, and tailor-made garments and shoes. The open-air markets sold items such as imported prayer rugs, imported produce, and freshly slaughtered meat that hung from hooks, skinned and sliced down the middle. The prayer centers were modern glass and stainless steel structures. Prayers used to blast from the loudspeakers and resonate