Jenny ran for her life down the old town high street of Ryde, a bloody screw driver gripped in her hand. Her breath was fast and desperate as she grew tired. Tears streamed across her cheeks as she ran, faster and faster trying to escape the pack of creatures that had once been familiar faces. There was a sick smell of gangrene that wafted with the sea breeze and she could hear the sound of broken and sharp teeth snapping at the prospect of tearing her apart. She took a sudden turn into an alley that cut through into a car park filled with abandoned and broken down cars.

Suddenly as she turned a blind corner she ran into the face of a friend, but it wasn't a friend anymore. The new figure staggered forward snatching Jenny's arm making her drop her weapon, she screamed out loud and lashed out striking the creature. Blind in the struggle, Jenny didn't notice her other pursuers approaching until they were upon her. She ducked and fell to her knees scrabbling around on all fours like a monkey. She found a way out of the grabbing and scratching hands seeing the screwdriver and she reached for it. As she did one of the creatures grabbed her hand and sunk its teeth into her arm. The pain seared through her body and she let out another piercing scream wrenching her arm clear ramming the weapon into the creature's eye. It fell to the ground taking the weapon with it; Jenny had no time to get it back and turned, running up through the car park towards the front of a super market hoping to double back to her house. It was wrong to have gone out after her sister, she thought, but she had been gone for nearly six hours.
She came to the front of the supermarket and a small square; she made for the route from the square that lead back to the high street and home. Jenny ran for it, but as she did three creatures appeared to block her path with slathering and frothing mouths and cold dead eyes. She stumbled back and turned to flee only to be cut off again by the other group, she cried out in terror retreating into a small corner of the square, a dead end.

She slumped down trying to push herself back further as the monsters closed in, sobbing and clutching her injury she tried to push back into the wall. Despair struck as the end approached only to be shocked when the closest creature twitched and stiffened before falling face first to the floor, a black bolt sticking out of its head. Moments later and two more lay still on the ground. Jenny caught a glimpse of her rescuer near the entrance of the super market. Dressed in black with a mask of cloth covering their face, the person moved swiftly. They carried a crossbow with a small quiver of bolts at their side. The person moved in to engage the last of the creatures that turned their attention on the new blurry and fast moving target. As if lightning struck, a short straight edged sword came from the strangers back. The figure stabbed it methodically into the head of each of the creatures one by one until they all lay on the ground, truly dead. The moment died down and Jenny looked at the stranger as he collected bolts from the dead bodies; he kneeled down at the last corpse and looked up. She stared into a pair of ice blue eyes; his brown scruffy hair drooped over his forehead. He was wearing some crude plastic armour which had been sprayed black. He studied her before removing his mask of black cloth, revealing the rest of his face. He was a young man in his twenties, his face was without expression.

"Are you okay?" He asked his voice calm and collected which only served to unnerve Jenny further.

She stared at him unable to reply through the fear; he rose and approached her cautiously. Jenny stayed perfectly still as he studied her; noticing how she clutched a bleeding arm.

"Let me see your arm."

She shook her head looking at him with wide eyes.
"It's okay, I will not hurt you. Let me see your arm."

Jenny was reluctant but slowly held out her arm supporting it with her other hand, the wound already looked infected with blood still slowly pumping out, a rotten, broken tooth protruding from the edge of the bite.
"Can you help me?" Jenny stammered. "I'm trying to find my sister."
The man's face looked saddened like a terrible burden just landed on him but then he smiled trying to hide his feeling.
"What's going on?" She asked.
"Where are your parents?"
"On holiday in Spain, my sister was looking after me when the news stories began. She said she was going out to get some food and didn't come back." Jenny's face filled with tears once more as she began to worry.
"Don't worry, everything will be okay. What is your name?"
"Jenny." She replied.
"Hello Jenny, my name is Jack." He continued, calming Jenny's mood, making her feel safe.

Suddenly Jenny's arm twitched and there was a burning pain which made her yell out loud. Jack moved in swiftly to check what was wrong. Within the wound the blood began to bubble and in moments it erupted with maggots. Jenny screamed in panic and began shaking her arm scratching to get the maggots off.

"What's happening?!" Jenny screamed.
"Jenny, stay still!" Jack urged trying to help her.
"No, help me! It hurts!" She shouted back shaking harder.
"I'm sorry." Jack said grimly as he stood up, bringing her to her feet.

Jenny found herself staring down the barrel of something but was unable to see what it was before there was a flash of light and she felt herself falling. It was cold suddenly, then warm. Jenny saw her sister. She wasn't scared anymore.