A/N – Thank you for the support on the first chapter. I have a good idea on where I want to go with this and hopefully you will all enjoy it.
Chapter Two
It was nine-thirty at night when Clarke's car screeched to a halt outside her parent's home. Despite the hour her mother and father were already on the sidewalk waiting for her. After they clambered into the car her mother turned to her from the passenger seat, "What's happening? I tried to reach you on your cell."
"Cell service is down, mom." Clarke answered as she began to follow the police vehicle in front of them.
"Where are we going?"
"They need you at Ark Station."
"Thirty minutes, Clarke." A voice stated from the radio on the dashboard.
Reaching forward she picked it up and quickly responded, "Copy."
"Is that Wells?" her father asked from the backseat. Clarke looked in the rear-view mirror before nodding to confirm his suspicions, "what is happening in thirty minutes?"
"They're sealing off Washington DC."
"What do you mean sealing off? They can't do that!" her father raged behind them. Her mother however sat quietly in her seat; unseeing eyes looking ahead as she silently pondered Clarke's words.
"Did you bring everything I told you to?" Clarke asked her.
"You said they need 'me' at Ark Station. You mean 'us', right?"
"A helicopter is going to take you to the airport and then from there you'll head down to Florida." Clarke said, deftly avoiding the question.
"Jesus, Clarke, did it jump? Is it airborne?"
"It may be," Clarke said. Sighing as the woman that raised her let out an audible gasp. Her father leant forward in-between them, about to speak when Clarke held up a hand to silence him, "he's announcing it," she said whilst turning up the radio's volume.
"Make no mistake, Americans, this virus threatens the survival of not only our nation, but every other nation, and so it is with great sadness, but even greater resolve that tonight I have signed an executive order initiating a military quarantine of Washington DC. God be with us all."
Reaching forward once more Clarke turned off the radio, "The window is still open. If we can find something in a week or two weeks, we can reverse the spread. I can still fix this."
"Please, Clarke. You can still do the same work on Ark Station. They sent for you not me." Her mother pleaded.
"They don't need me if you're there. This is ground zero. My site is down here not up in space. We spoke about this."
"What are you doing?"
"What am I doing?" Clarke asked incredulously, "I'm not gonna let this happen!"
"Let? This isn't up to you. You can't control this, Clarke!" her mothers shouting suddenly morphed into a scream when one of the infected crashed into Clarke's window.
The alarm on her nightstand went off at five-thirty and Clarke Griffin blindly reached out from beneath the covers to press stop. She lay there on her back, staring up at the ceiling as her hand ran mindlessly through Zeus's thick fur. After a few moments she decided to get up and made her way downstairs to the living room and opened the peephole carefully.
Outside see could still see the dark figures standing in front of her home. They always got the same look of disappointment upon their faces when dawn approached. It was pitiful, but Clarke got a kind of sickening satisfaction out of it whenever she saw the look. As she watched, some of them began to mumble discontentedly amongst themselves as yet another night came to an end.
Closing the shutter she made her way into the kitchen and began to make her morning coffee. As she grabbed her favorite mug from the cupboard, she heard Lexa Garrison cry out, "Come out, Clarke!"
And with that they left weaker than when they arrived. In the beginning the infected thrived in Washington, but when they began their rampage the number of those people who were immune dwindled, soon the only way for them to sate their unrelenting hunger was to attack their own. They did that often. There was no loyalty amongst them. Their thirst was their only priority.
As she waited for the coffee to brew she filled up Zeus's bowl with dog food before heading toward the basement, "What?" she said from the kitchen doorway when she heard him whine, "That's what happens when you don't eat your vegetables." she gazed at him sternly for a moment before leaving the room completely.
Clarke stood stoically in front of the door for a moment, praying that today will be the day. After making her way down the stone steps she put on her white lab coat, washed her hands in the basin next to the labs entrance and pulled on a pair of white latex gloves.
Walking into the sterile room she immediately made her way over to her computer and booted it up. As soon as her face flashed up on the screen she began to speak, "Dr. Clarke Griffin, March 16, 2019, GA series, serum 391. Animal trails. Streaming video." She stated before taking the web camera off the top of the monitor and clipping it to a pair of glasses.
Slowly she walked over toward the cages and took a deep breath before pulling off the black sheet she used to protect them from the harmful light. Immediately the infected rats viciously flew toward the shatterproof glass, "GA series results appear typical." She muttered with a shake of her head, "compounds 1, 3, 7, 9, 10, 12 did not kill the virus. Compounds 2, 4, 5, 8, 11 all killed the host. Wait a second," she said when one of the rats made her double-take, "compound 6 appears to be showing decreased aggression response with partial pigmentation returning," pulling out her medical flashlight she shone it in its eyes, "slight pupil constriction. GA series, serum 391, compound 6 is the next candidate for human trails. You hang in there, number 6," she urged as she tapped a finger against the window.
Making her way back over to her computer she stared at her reflection for a moment. Her blue, lifeless eyes almost judging her with distaste, "Is there even anyone up there watching this?" she questioned bitterly before ending the recording and sending the file up to Ark Station.
Breakfast was a brief affair: two slices of toast and a cup of the freshly made coffee. She ate quickly even though she had nowhere in particular she needed to be. If she wanted she could stay inside all day and do nothing, but then the day would feel like a failure, and she already had enough of that in her life.
After breakfast she went back upstairs to dress and wash up. She cleaned her teeth meticulously. She tried to take good care of them because not only was she her own doctor, but she was now her own dentist as well.
Before Clarke left the house she armed herself with an M-16, draped her satchel over her shoulder and bounced a tennis ball on floor for Zeus. The first thing she did when she stepped outside was look up at the sky. Not a cloud in sight. She could go out today.
She made her way down the steps and towards her jeep with Zeus trailing behind her, "Good, boy!" she praised when he jumped into the passenger seat. As she made her way around to the drivers side she gave one of the gas canisters a shake, listening as the last few dregs sloshed around inside, "guess that's our first job of the day."
As she drove down the abandoned streets she could feel Zeus staring at her pleadingly, she glanced over at him and smiled slightly before turning to her door and pressing the window button. Zeus's window rolled down and he quickly stuck his head outside.
She pulled up outside the ransacked gas station a short while later. Turning the key in the ignition she shut off the engine and took a moment to look over the place. Once she was satisfied she motioned for Zeus to stay and jumped out of the jeep, grabbing everything she would need.
Twenty-minutes later Clarke wiped her brow with the back of her hand as she leant back against the gas station pump. She'd just finished filling three canisters full of gas. After a short break she pushed away from the pump, deciding that whilst she was here she might as well check the oil, water, and tires. Everything seemed to be in good condition. It usually was, because she took good care of it. If it ever broke down out here she would be as good as dead.
With that she got back in the jeep and began to drive down the abandoned streets of Washington with no real destination in mind. Out of habit she kept her eyes open for any sign of game. There were herds of wild deer out here that she frequently hunted when the opportunity came her way.
Zeus barked from beside her when he caught sight of a flock of birds that had made flight from the sound of the jeeps engine. Clarke and Zeus both watched as they disappeared behind a huge skyscraper that had been covered in a huge plastic tarp; the biohazard signs always making her feel anxious.
Clarke swerved up onto the sidewalk a moment later when she realized that the street was overflowing with decaying cars. She drove underneath the walkway of the tarp covered building, then reappeared on the other side and swerved back onto the street.
All of a sudden Zeus became alert. His ears shifting back as he listened to whatever had peaked his interest. Clarke glanced over at him as she slowed the jeep down a little, "What you see? What you see?"
As soon as the words left her mouth a herd of deer leaped into the road in front of them. She turned the wheel sharply to one side, which caused the jeep to spiral out of control. When it finally came to a screeching halt further down the road, she quickly shifted back into drive and gave chase.
Zeus gave a bark of excitement as Clarke sped after the deer. The herd kept darting around the jeep, changing directions every few feet, but she managed to keep up with three of them as they fled up the main streets.
Clarke frowned when she caught a glimpse of what was up ahead. She slammed her foot down on the breaks and yanked the steering wheel to the left, now parallel to the retreating deer as they once more skidded to a stop. Her window rolled down with a flick of a switch and Clarke looked down the sight of her M-16, her finger hovering over the trigger, ready to fire when she got a good enough shot, "No, no, no," she chanted when they continued to elude her and before she knew it her chance was gone, "Damn!" she cursed when the deer leaped onto the sidewalk and disappeared into the subway tunnels.
Whimpering, Zeus leaned forward and began to bark uncontrollably. Clarke reached out a hand and started to rub his chest slowly, "Easy, boy." she soothed. He quieted, but continued to whine. As they sat there she contemplated following. Her hand was just about to open the door when she heard it. It was a sound she had never got used to and also a sound she hoped she never would.
She wound up her window when it got too much. Yes, she had planned to eat the deer herself, but listening to the infected feasting on them was something she couldn't quite comprehend.
Feeling sick to her stomach Clarke decided that was enough for today. She would return to the confines of her home, drink herself into oblivion and hopefully bypass the night altogether.
A/N – Thank you for reading. Let me know what you guys think of it so far.