Re-edit.
Guest1: Thank you for the support!
Guest2: No one actually ever pointed that out to me, repeating name's the way I did, I didn't realize that it can take away from the main plot. Thank you very much for correcting my mistake my love!
Now! Remember, there is going to be humor in this story, so a head ups if you feel or get confused!
Enjoy my loves!
I walked away from the stained, broken glass window and grab my discarded sweater that I always wore when I leave my safe house, in case I ran into humans, like bandits for starters. Those bastards are a pain in my rear. The last time I went on a food run was nearly a month ago. I was the using the rooftops to get around and I accidentally mistaken a certain area on one roof to be completely solid, since it was covered by moss, leaves, and vines. It wasn't my fault, I couldn't tell that it was actually a glass roof that so happen to be conveniently cracked in the center. Lets just say I fell through the glass roof like an angel that fell from the heaven's and landed right smack in the middle of group of bandits that happen to be looting the building at that very moment. Just my sweet luck right? I was leaping around for my life, till I managed to find a window that I was able to jump through, not before one of them managed to get a bullet in my right thigh.
My god, I was in pain for weeks trying to get the bullet fragments out. And that's how I got my nickname 'The Leaper' by humans after my little run in with the bandits. Now every human assumes that there is some new type of mutation.
I quickly slip on my sweater, being careful not to irritate my right arm that will not stop itching, and it was starting to smell due to the pus that started to seep around the mushroom tops again. Now I have to add medical supplies to my list on my food run...again. I zipped up my sweater and pulled my hood up to mask my face under the shadow it provided. It was safer to hide my arm and my face, due to the discoloration of my right eye, so I wouldn't get shot on sight, unlike last time when I didn't have my sweater on. I looked human...if I just bathed in the river. But I'm a bit to paranoid that I would get spotted and get murdered. The last time I looked at my reflection was the day I left the house and entered the city. I remember long, lush black hair and dark-brown eyes, with a slight discoloration in my right eye. Soft skin that was caked in blood after Lily bit the hell out of my shoulder.
Probably now, look like a swamp monster by now. Hair clump in knots, with weeds and leaves sticking out of my hair. Skin covered in dirt, grim, sweat, blood and tears. Clothes torn and worn out as the years gone by. And I most likely look like a crazed women just moving about and living in a collapse abandoned office building and staring out the window doing nothing better with her life but just stare at the damn sun all day like it was her version of television entertainment.
I walked down the hallways, the only sound that could be heard is the distance screeches and hysterical crying of a group of Runner's that were somewhere nearby, beside's my boots that made the soft tapping sounds on the stained tile floor. I dislike runner's. They are utterly annoying, especially in number's. Their even worse at night when I try to sleep. All they do is just freaking screech! And I thought Clicker's were bad! I prefer a Clicker's clicking then a Runner yelling random things. One time I even spotted a damn Runner yelling at a dumpster. Yeah...I got annoyed so I give the Runner an encouraging push into the dumpster and I left it in there. Screaming, yelling, kicking like a child demanding to be let out.
I'll admit, it was really cruel...but it was funny! But it can't over top the incident I had with on of my Clicker brother's. I was just innocently sitting on the edge of a twelve story office building. I had my legs dangling through an opening on the twelfth floor, where a big window should have been, and gazing at the beautiful view, when one of Clicker brother's came out of nowhere. He was just making that bizarre clicking sound that they all made, but I paid no mind to it. Years of living among them, I've gotten use to their sounds...well, somewhat got used too. Anyway, I have no idea what came over him, but he slap the back of my head. Mind you, I was really surprise for one, how did the hell did he have such good aim when he doesn't even have the top half of his head and two, why did he even slap the back of my head! Well, let's just say he took a wonderful swan dive from the twelfth floor to the welcoming street that was coming at him eighty miles per hour that flatten him like a pancake.
I peered down through the hole that was made due to years of water damage. I was currently on the third floor, and I needed to reach the first. Good thing the water that made this hole made an exact same hole on the second floor that went straight to the first floor. Quick way to get down if you ask me. I took one step forward and I felt myself fall down with gravity. I landed hard, but safely on the first floor. Loose dirt, rocks, and debris that was nearby slightly rattled at the after shock that vibrated through the dirty tiles. I slowly stood up, feeling no pain at all. That was one of the few advantages of being infected. I had super human strength...but not literally though. Its just that my body is now able to withstand things that would've killed a normal human being. Just now for instance. Falling through two floors would have broken both legs of a human, hell maybe even shattered their pelvis, left them paralyzed or even killed them.
I looked around the lobby, that once held so much life was now a waste land of personal items that were left behind by their owner's that fled in a hurry to escape before the infection reached here or when it got here. Chairs and tables were either kept in their usual place, turned over, or used to barricaded the entrance of the building to keep the infected out. But from the dead bodies that looked like mummies, I could tell their little barricaded didn't work. They got in. The elevator's were not working, one had its door slightly open, but I could see the little metal box that carried people up and down was tilted on its side. The wire, it must have snapped. Then there were those strange locks that the military put on door's to prevent them to be open if the infection got inside. They blocked off that certain area, leaving those who weren't infected inside to die.
I know they didn't have a choice. They were told to save as many people as they can. Which I find utterly stupid, because in the end, at the check-points, they scanned you with some scanner thing, and if you were determined positive for being infected, that was it for you. They put a bullet between your eyes. Kill one save a thousand is what they followed. They didn't care how young you were either, that was the really sad part about it.
I saw vines and grass starting to grow inside the building. It surprised me how much the human race created, and how much they have taken from Mother Nature, only to have Mother Nature reclaim back her land. Taking back everything that she had lost over the million's of years that had passed by and that have been taken by human's that were destroying everything that they touched. It just amazed me how Mother Nature started to take back everything.
I exited out the building, escaping the musty odor that swam inside, and walked down the street. Car's scattered the street like toys and bodies. They were long rusted away, but provided excellent homes for animal life and plants that ravaged everything in sight. The sun beamed down on me, and I enjoyed the radiating warmth that penetrated through my black sweater. The bad weather lately has kept the air a little chilly, since constant pouring rain has fallen for the past few weeks and it seems it won't let up. I could see dark clouds in the distance, so I know already there is going to be later storm tonight. I have to enjoy the sunshine while I can.
I knew that the buildings around me were already looted of all their valuable items, such as canned food and medical supplies, so I have no other choice but to go further away from my safe zone to unfamiliar territory. Which happens to be near the quarantine zone, its concrete walls separating the people within from the forgotten cities, towns, destruction and horror's that I run through everyday. I have to be mindful, the last time I ever got close to the walls of quarantine zone was when I brought back an injured soldier that I managed to rescue. To this day I don't know what took over me to make me save him. He had a sprained his ankle during a scuffle with one of sister runner's and he was nearly about to get torn apart and I just...sprung into action. I grabbed him while I just rammed my way through the group of runner's and jump out the window behind him. I had his face buried in my sweater so he couldn't see me and I leap from building to building till I got him back to his zone. I left him where a search light would spot him and I left in a hurry before he could see me.
I remember seeing sniper's patrolling the walls. But I doubt they would be patrolling at this time of day, since I haven't heard a gunshots in a while from that area. Guess threat levels is at all time low down there. Won't be surprise, since that area seems to send patrol troops into the my area. And where my area is, threat levels are very high. The last group of soldier's I saw was a few days ago when they entered an office building across from mines, and all I saw where flashes of white lights and screaming that echoed through the rainy night. It was horrible. The soldier I saved, he was on his own, so I didn't have much to be concern about. But I have no knowledge of what has become of him behind those foreign walls.
I kept walking, until I came upon the blockade of cars that separated me from the quarantine zone. I crouched down slightly, and using my 'powers', I call it my free-running skills, with out all the flips and such, and jump into the air, landing softly on the PVTA bus. I gazed at the new territory from where I was standing, then I gazed back behind me, debating if this was a smart idea.
"Fuck it. What do I got to lose?" I questioned to myself, as I hop of the bus, nervous but ready to search for supplies and food in this new territory.
"Joel. Over here." I followed Tess, as she opened the entry way that was blocked off and hidden by a large board of wood. She entered first, then I. "Make sure you close the entry."
"Yeah. I got it," I answered, as I pulled back the wooden board, hiding the entry once more. Tess and me made our way down the lit hallway, only to see the a fog coming out of the door at the end of the hallway.
"Shit. Spores," I grumbled, as I put on my mask, as well as did Tess.
"They weren't here the last time we went through here. How the hell did they get inside here?" questioned Tess, as we entered the building. We crouched down, since the floor above us caved in years ago. I went first. As we rounded the corner, I could see the fungus starting to form. I followed the trail with my flashlight and saw dead infected bodies that the spores were growing out from.
"There's our culprit."
"Do they look fresh?"
"Yeah. Maybe a few weeks old, at least. Lets hurry up and get out here before we alert the house guests." Tess snorted at my comment. We made our way out and started looking for the way out. The fog like cloud the spores unleash is making it difficult to find the way out of this infected building. We walked around, searching for usable items. There were a lot of work stations. Many containing photo's of its dead owner's family taped up against the small walls that surrounded the little work space.
It made me sick to think if these people made it out alive or became a victim of this fungus. We were all victims to this fungus, ain't no doubt about that. Everybody suffered. I noticed a possible way, which was a tight spot to squeeze through, since two filing cabinets were sort of blocking the way. "Tess, this way," I sucked in my stomach, and eased my way through the little space. I pop out, and turned to help Tess, when a ragged voice startled me.
"Please! Help me!" I pushed Tess behind me and gazed down at ground where the voice came from. A young man was pinned to the ground by a filing cabinet, that was being weighed down by collapsed wooden beams and other debris. "My mask...its broken! Please! Don't let me change!" pleaded the young man.
"How you wanna play?" questioned Tess. I gazed at the young man and he stared at me with eyes full of despair. I could tell he didn't want to become a mindless creature. I took out my gun and pointed it at his head. He closed his eyes.
"Thank you."
I pulled the trigger.
I got distracted while I was jumping on the rooftops when I spotted a Runner chasing a dog around. Not something you would usually see, but I found it quite amusing. I watched as the dog barked at my infected sibling, who in which screeched at it and lunged at, only to fail when it kissed dirt rather than meat when the dog ran from it again. Suddenly, I heard a loud bang on the other side of building I was on. I turned around and saw a flock of birds fly away, spooked by the loud sound. I walked to the other side, and saw nothing. Just bricked building, either standing up or in the progress of collapsing. Then there was a scream.
A scream that I immediately recognized.
It was the scream when a human is being torn apart by my infected brother's and sister's that have found them. "Not another..." I whispered softly as I tried to determine where the scream came from. I knew I couldn't do anything now. Once you're caught, you're caught. Either they fight for their life or die trying to get away. Suddenly, flash of white lights came from the brick building on my far left, through the windows. My attention was immediately fixed on that one building. I watched as a man and a woman jump out from the hole that was on the side and landed on the grassy ground, safe from harm. The man had short black hair. He was wearing some green shirt, and worn out jeans, he had a brown backpack that he was carrying on his back. The woman had short, long brown hair and was wearing what looked like a dark purple pinkish shirt and worn out jeans, also carrying a brown backpack.
I watched as they talked about something, but I was way to far to make out what they were saying. Then they started on their merry way again. I don't know why, but they gained my curiosity. Something that I rarely let happen. Remember the saying curiosity killed the cat? Well that's what going to happen to me, but the temptation of following them was to great. I just couldn't let go of an opportunity like this! But then again I didn't want to end up dead and become fertilizer for the plants and become a next meal for crow and such! Oh to hell with it! I jump off the roof, which was a good fifty feet up, to the ground below and started to follow them. I mean, what's life if you don't take a risk once in a while?
"I'm going to regret this dearly later, I know it."
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