This morning's prompt is 'nails'.

(Aside from the obvious question...)

I need to finish something. One story a week is ludacris, but one a month is the bare minimum, dongma?! 8-P

So let's talk about character.

Covenant of Stars story-

Wendy's an earthling from a wrecked future Earth and did okay. She's from Montana and  people rebuilt into the death zones eventually, with toil, blood, tears and sweat! And aid from the habitats.

Jake is a clueless and reckless habitat rat

Zpocalypse story-

Ben is a zpocalypse survivor with diabetes

Brenda is a zpocalypse survivor looking for a survivor buddy to survive, adapt and overcome. She's prepared to put even more  'skin in the game'

***

They found another head-scratcher the next morning while scavenging. The presumed home owner was still puttering around, barricaded in the garage. Ben watched him picking through shards of glass with ragged fingers, sorting nails by size. The thing looked up at them with clouded eyes, and, almost there was something there, soul searching. Then it moaned and crabbed over towards the obstruction, dragging a shattered left leg and spilling his forgotten piles.

"Did you see that?!" Ben was shaking.

"Yeah...  Mort here has latched on to something. It happens, like a last incomplete thought, maybe?" Brenda gave it the peace it deserved and they moved on.