-Day 4-
A flicker of light shone on the stairways. Running up to the 17th floor was tedious and exhausting, but Tim Crowley couldn't risk exposing his face to the cameras in the elevator. The papers and documents in his hands remained unopened, but the longer he waited, the higher the chances he would be caught reading private military documents. Tim reached his room and was met with the face of two disapproving adults.
"Mr. Simmons, you gotta stop bursting into the room like this," said Angelica, a mother from Huntington Oaks.
"Indeed, it's very frustrating," said Mark, the husband of Angelica. "Don't you agree, Carol?"
Carol took off her headphones. She looked at Mark and shrugged.
"I don't really care about that. Have you seen my parents? They were supposed to come up here like, five minutes ago."
"No, I haven't seen them. Bringing coffee upstairs is a lotta work, Carol. Don't you think you should've went with them?"
"Sorry, to interrupt, but can you guys leave for a couple minutes? I need to talk to Mr. Crowley for a little," said Tim.
"No, this is our room. You guys can talk outside if you want–" said Angelica before being interrupted.
"It's fine. I'm going downstairs to find my parents," said Carol, putting her headphones in the bed. "Don't touch that."
"Fine. We're going to accompany you," said Mark. "We're feeling kind of hungry, don't we, my wife?"
"Yes, my husband. Yes, we are hungry. Let's go, Carol!"
Angelica, Mark, and Carol left the room, allowing the two men to have their privacy. Tim Crowley placed the documents in the table and pulled down the curtains of the window.
"I got 'em," said Tim. "Time to find out what Black is planning to do. Here, take this, Jonathan."
Tim handed a set of folders to Jonathan. He opened the folders and found dozens of grids and blueprints. Tim opened a folder and noticed that one of the papers explained a timeline. The day he had to watch out for was Day 10. He shuffled through the papers and found a report on the body counts of the cities and towns of Michigan. On the first day, there were about 34,000 casualties in the town of Royal Woods, 13,600 casualties in Huntington Oaks, 20,000 casualties in Ann Arbor, and 500,000 casualties in Detroit. He then looked at their current status. Detroit was secure, Royal Woods has fallen, Huntington Oaks has fallen, most of the other neighboring towns has fallen, but Ann Arbor was secure.
Tim sighed in relief, knowing that his daughter was safe for the time being. He looked at his watch and peeked out of the curtains. The Safe-Zone was still taking in more refugees, and Tim had to do something about it.
"If you are heading to Detroit, you might want to reconsider that decision."
Over the course of days, Tim sat by his radio, revealing plans that the military had in store for the refugees in Detroit.
"It is not safe in here. I repeat, it is not safe in here. This is a warning for everyone."
General Black convinced the chief deputy in Ann Arbor to order his men to slaughter the protesters outside of the stadium. He had to act fast before the residents could find out about the radio messages.
"In June 10, 2016, the soldiers are going to enact a major evacuation of all minors, meaning anyone under 18, presumably in underground bunkers."
Before Gerald Brooker arrived at the Safe-Zone, he was able to warn a few survivors away from Detroit.
"He will order the rogue soldiers to slaughter anyone inside the buildings in Detroit. Those who manage to escape… will be captured by the rogues…"
Lieutenant Lead stormed into a room, demanding information about a man named Tim Crowley. The frightened residents couldn't give an answer to which General Black apologized for.
"The Safe-Zone will be bombed by napalm. All the buildings will burn to the ground while the minors are left without their parents…"
Tim Crowley recorded Gerald Brooker in his tape, "The Truth about the Safe-Zone." Jonathan Simmons stood on guard by the door.
"The remaining hostages will be transported into Royal Woods where Operation Exodus will soon take place."
Gerald Brooker headed downstairs, nervously wiping his glasses. He read his note from his son, and he felt his heart warm up.
"The adults will be transported to a designated area set up by K.H.A.N., that is the group responsible for the spread of necrosis influenza. And they will be subjected to horrible experiments."
A gunshot sounded from below the General's building. General Black calmed the refugees down, convincing them that he killed a terrorist threatening the lives of everyone.
"It's all a part of a grand plan. This is what they believe. 'Those who enter a Safe-Zone believing in an easy solution are not fit for survival. However, their children can't be blamed for the actions of their foolish parents. The children that are able to escape the herd that they will inevitably encounter are fit to inhabit the new world that will be formed after Day 10'. Yup, you heard that right. Watch out for Detroit."
Jonathan Simmons looked into the mirror and congratulated Dr. Frederick for his successful plastic surgery. He now appeared identical to Tim Crowley and was ready to undertake a tremendous sacrifice.
"Are you ready, Simmons?" asked Tim.
"I am. Thank you for everything you've done for me. I hope you make it back home to Vonda," said Jonathan Simmons.
"Thank you for making it possible."
Simmons loaded his gun and ran ahead towards the gates. His hair rode along with the wind as he pulled out a pistol and shot the guard. A few soldiers chased after Simmons out of the Safe-Zone. Tim silently hopped over the gate and ran into the houses outside of the fences and barbed wires.
The soldiers shot their M4s at Simmons, causing him to fall into the ground. Tim climbed up a ladder into the attic of the house where there was a small window. The cobwebs and spiders infested the dark corners of the attic. Tim peeked out of the window and saw the soldiers shoot Simmons in the head.
Tim took out a bottle of water and drank it, hoping that the last step to his plan would work. If it didn't, then what Gerald Brooker and Jonathan Simmons did was for nothing. He looked out the window again and saw General Black walking towards the corpse.
General Black circled the body and leaned closer to inspect the face. He then waved his hands, ordering the soldiers to come closer to the body. The rogue soldiers lifted the body up and the general nodded his head. They walked back into the Safe-Zone with a soldier guarding the entrances again.
"Don't worry, Vonda," whispered Tim. "I'm coming. I'm alive. The last step worked."
The roamers swung their hands on the windows, moving their jaws up and down. The wind blew the saliva that dripped from the roamers' mouths, creating a monster-like image for the children to remember in their sleep. Their yellow eyes seemed to glow in a demonic manner as the sky darkened and the shadows of the trees appeared in front of Vanzilla. The children huddled closer together, with Bobby attempting to find a solution to get the roamers away from the van. The van kept shaking, with roamers shaking the surrounded and infested van. Some of the children were ready to cry, while the others were frozen in fear. Lily cried, not making the situation any better.
"Please, don't cry," whispered Bobby, as Leni handed Lily over to him. "Shh. It's okay. We're going to be okay."
"It's not going to be okay!" exclaimed Tabby as she noticed one of the windows cracked slightly. "What are we going to do? I don't want to die!"
"I don't want to die either!" sobbed Darcy. "Save us, Bobby!"
"Darcy, please calm down. We're not going to die."
"Bobby, you gotta do something," whimpered Leni. "Please, I'm too young to die!"
"I don't know what to do, Leni. I wish I did know, but…"
"We're going to die!" sobbed Zach.
"Hey!" yelled Ronnie Anne. "Everyone, SHUT UP!"
The thumping of the roamers' fists and mouths grew louder as the cries quieted down. The van continued to shake violently. The children focused their attention on Bobby's younger sister, who frightened them enough to keep their eyes away from the windows. Noticing that everyone calmed down, Lily's cry softened until she was just sniffling.
"We're not going to die!" exclaimed Ronnie Anne. "Did you guys forget about Lori and the others? They will come back."
"Sorry we're just scared," replied Liam.
"I wish there was only some way we can contact them," said Lincoln. "I could try using my walkie-talkie, but I doubt it would connect to their channel."
"May I tinker with it?" asked Lisa.
Lincoln handed his walkie-talkie to Lisa. Ronnie Anne smiled until a roamer threw its own head at a window, making her jump. Another roamer cracked another window, causing Darcy to shriek as it stared at her.
"The roamers might break inside before the others get here!" shrieked Tabby.
"In that case, grab your weapons!" said Ronnie Anne. "Kill them ONLY if they get inside. Don't smash any windows and don't try to provoke them!"
"I don't have a weapon!" said Luan. "I gave the katana back to Benny!"
"Stay in the middle of the van, then!"
Blood stopped pouring out of Doug's van. A couple roamers passed by it, not minding the corpse inside it. There was no reason to pay attention to a corpse living among them. A turned-Doug limped out of the van, moving its head around. Hearing thumpings nearby, Roamer Doug walked towards the van. However, in a blink of an eye, its head was shoved into the damaged van and stabbed with an ice pick. Roamer blood splattered into the shattered window of the van. Roamer Doug dropped to the ground as Sam pulled out her ice pick out of its head.
The thumpings became less frequent as the roamers turned around from the window. Dana swung her machete at one of the roamers along with Becky, while Wavehead dug his trench knife inside of a roamer's head. Luna followed Sam and beat any roamer approaching the girls with her crowbar. Chunk stabbed a roamer in the eye and twisted it out. Jason shoot down roamers with his compound bow. Richard walked steadily towards the van, letting out a yell after killing a roamer.
The children watched with wonder. Bobby felt his heart warm up as the group returned to save them. However, his warm heart turned cold as soon as he saw Lori, choking in disbelief. Her eyes were bruised, her lips were bleeding, her nose, cheeks, jaw, and many other facial parts were lacerated. Despite her wounds, she walked through the fight that her group were leading, with an AK-47 in her hands. Lincoln smiled, knowing that whatever moment of distress Lori went through, she made it out alive.
George and David fought off the roamers that approached them and Lori. They admired Lori's character a lot more than before, knowing that Lori valued her humanity and the people she cared about more than her wrath. Both men hoped that it would stay this way, and in order to preserve her humanity, they must get Lori and her family to Houlton as soon as possible. However, David knew that this wasn't going to remain forever, and just one brutal moment could change Lori's behavior for the worse.
Lori continued to walk to Vanzilla in a striding manner. Her stride was one of a warrior who walked out of battle with her sword after a long battle.
The roamers were killed off, so now the survivors were able to return to their respective vehicles. As Lori entered the driver's seat, she noticed that she wasn't able to see well. Carol tapped her in the shoulder.
"Lori. You need to come with me to the RV."
"No, I'm good."
"Lori, look in the mirror."
Lori looked at her own face in her car mirrors, noticing how beat up it was. Lori sighed, wondering if she should've ignored George and killed Sherry. She looked in the mirror and looked at her cuts once again. She then followed Carol to the RV.
"George, drive the van. Sergei, go ahead ride with Chunk. We gotta go back to Sergei's car and get our weapons back. Then we can go ahead and continue to Houlton."
Lori smiled as she walked into the RV. George looked at Richard and softly smiled before looking away. Richard clenched his teeth as he looked at George. He looked away and thought about how he couldn't get justice for the woman that he loved. He followed Lori into the RV, along with Jason and David as they prepared to leave the woods.
After many minutes, the group returned to the road in which many of their lives were almost lost to the hands of John. A lone roamer lurked near Sergei's car, eating the flesh of a squirrel in the ground. The RV, Vanzilla, and Chunk's van stopped near the car. The roamer looked at the group, revealing a familiar face.
"I gotta take care of this asshat again?" said Lynn.
The doors opened in which some of the group members got out. Roamer John turned its attention to George, standing up and growling at him, holding out its partially consumed arms. Just as George took out his knife, an arrow flew through the air and struck Roamer John's skull. The roamer dropped to the ground with the arrow stuck in the right side of its head. George looked at Lynn and nodded while he placed his knife back into his belt.
David, Richard, George, Chunk, and Sergei approached the car. The wheels were flat, the windshield was shattered, the mirrors were gone, and bullet holes riddled the vehicle. Lori and Bobby walked together, along with Lana. Lori's face was covered with many tiny bandages, although none covered her bruised eyes.
Lana walked around the car, inspecting it. Upon closer observation she was able to confirm her thought about repairing the vehicle.
"This car can't be fixed anymore. It's too damaged."
"We can do fine with three cars, right?" said Lori. "We have 33 people. Fourteen people in Vanzilla. Ten people in the RV. nine people in the van. We can move the remaining boxes of weapons to the van. We don't need the empty ones anymore."
"Let's move them out quickly then," said Luan. "I can't see anything in this darkness."
There was a long silence when the group moved the boxes from Sergei's car to Chunk's van. After finding out that all of the Piranhas, except Bruna, were exterminated, the children felt somewhat relieved, but it did not remove any of the emotional baggage that they carried. It was one of those somber nights in which no words were spoken for hours. What made this somber night different than the others is that justice has been done to avenge the fallen souls of Missy Bolts, May Hannas, Martin Briggs, Henry Burke, Francisco, and the rest of the list.
Lori, Lynn, Richard, Luna, Tabby, Dana, and Becky all felt the fury that built up inside of them from not being able to avenge those closest to them. Despite this anger, most of the group knew that George deserved the kill. Not only was it George's personal mission to bring Sherry justice, but he was an enforcer of the law, meaning he knew how to kill Sherry in such a way without letting his emotions overwhelm him. Most of the group understood this, but Richard did not.
-One Month Later-
Footsteps flocked the pavement near a few abandoned stores. The day was bright, the air was dry, and the road was hot. Lori's shoes burned her feet as she rubbed her hand on her forehead, wiping off the sweat on her skin. Feeling very lightheaded, she walked towards a tree to rest under its shade. Upon coughing again, Darcy was given a few more sips from the canister that Bobby held attached to his backpack. Sergei, Chunk, Lisa, and Lana walked towards a car with a plastic tube and an empty jerry can. David walked towards Lori, grabbing his canister and offered it to Lori, but she raised her hands and shook her head. He insisted again, but she shook her hands and her head.
"Lori-"
"No. Save it for someone who needs it. Like Clyde."
David looked back at the group and noticed that Clyde was having a hard time keeping up with the others. He rubbed his stubble and took off his shades. He walked towards the boy who limped with his makeshift crutches.
"Need some water, kid?" asked David.
"Yes, please," said Clyde. "Thank you."
Clyde took the canister and took three sips before handing it back to David. He shook his head.
"Lori wants you to keep it. She doesn't need it."
Clyde looked at Lori lying down in the shade and decided to walk over to her. Lincoln and Lynn walked close to the tree, and Lincoln headed towards the shade but Lynn drifted away from the boy. He walked back with Lynn and scratched his head, keeping a perplexed gaze at his sister.
"What?" asked Lynn.
"You don't want to sit in the shade?" asked Lincoln.
Lynn shook her head and looked away, walking ahead of the others.
"Wait. You're going ahead of the others!"
"Can't stop," stated Lynn.
"That's right," said Richard, his growing stubble moving along with his jaws. "Every minute we stay out here in the sun, we detoritiate, from dehydration and from the heat exhaustion."
"Don't worry about me, Lincoln." said Lynn. "You can stay with them. I'm going to get us water. The less people, the less trouble."
"Let me come with you. Lynn!"
Lynn continued to walk ahead with Richard, Jason, Becky, Dana, Wavehead, and D. Lincoln caught up to Lynn once more. Lynn turned around and let out a quick but deep sigh.
"Come on! You've been acting strange these past weeks! Is this about what happened to Lucy?"
"Yes. Thank you for reminding me."
"It's not just about her, is it?" asked Lincoln. "Lynn, I'm your brother, you can tell me-"
"What do you want me to say? That I want to stay away from all of you? Because that's how I feel!"
"What do you mean?"
"First, I couldn't protect Lola and Clyde from the roamers back in New York! Lola almost died and Clyde can never walk without his crutches ever again! Then…"
Lynn choked back her tears. She didn't want to seem weak again, but here she was, pouring out her emotions, she thought to herself.
"I told Francisco to run to the RV," said Lynn, her voice breaking. "I told Lucy to stay inside the RV. I sent him to his death. And Lucy lost her arm. I'm bad luck, Linc. It was never anyone or anything else. It was me this whole time. I think it's better that I stay away from everyone that I love."
"Lynn, that's nonsense! You're not bad luck! It's just the way this world is and you have no control over it!"
"It's what I believe," sniffled Lynn. "Stay with Lori. I love you, Linc. I'll be back."
Lynn walked away and followed the other survivors that were moving towards a specific direction. Lincoln lowered his eyes and felt defeated. He then felt someone place their left hand on his shoulders.
"I kinda overheard what you two were talkin' about," said Tabby. "Think you can help me out? I'm feeling kinda low and I just thought you could cheer me up."
"Sure. Let's head back with the rest of the group."
"Hey Lincoln, Tabby, your feeling okay?" asked Liam.
"I'm fine just feeling kinda low. Are you feeling okay, you look down?" replied Tabby.
"Is something wrong Liam?" asked Lincoln.
"I... I can't stop thinking about it," said Liam.
"About what?" asked Tabby.
"Back on the boat, when that Piranha pulled me into the water, I killed him. I haven't been able to stop thinking about it, I never thought I ever kill someone," replied Liam.
"Liam you did what you had to do. If you didn't he would have killed you," reassured Lincoln.
"I know. I just wish I could stop thinking about it so much," said Liam.
"Hey. Sometimes we have to do things we don't like, but we do them with good intentions. And you know you can always talk to me," said Tabby.
"Yeah I know. We should had back to the other."
Vonda shuffled around the road, looking at every tree surrounding the group. Her dry throat and stinging throat attacked her with a variety of negative-riddled emotions. She heard a voice and turned around, drawing her bow towards the voice.
"Hey there, my daughter."
Vonda's pupils dilated. The ghostly figure had a bullet hole on its forehead and was back to wearing the vest that she has received from her mother as a gift.
"Can I even call you that? I see that you're lost. Your group ran out of gas in the middle of whatever fucking nowhere in Massachusetts. Want me to help? Or do you just want me to get shot and tossed into a river? I know you would. You did that to me after all."
"No, that was you! You put yourself into that position! I gave you a chance! You didn't deserve that chance! You deserve death!"
The figure cackled as Vonda continued to hiss with anger. She released the arrow on the string and pierced a roamer through its skull. Her pupils expanded once more and she quickly looked around her surroundings.
"Vonda!" yelled David.
Vonda quickly turned her head towards the group under the tree's shade, noticing that the group were holding their weapons. David stood tall and was ready to walk towards her.
"Something's wrong? You shouted remarks at the roamer before you killed it."
"I… I'm fine."
"I think you need some shade. Put down the bow and lie in the grass with us."
"I can't. She could still be around here."
"Who's she?" asked David.
"My mother, of course," replied Vonda, bluntly. "You guys saw her, right?"
"You definitely need some shade," said David.
Vonda closed her eyes and palmed her temples. She shook her head and let out a deep sigh before walking towards the tree. David looked at her, wondering why she was hallucinating her mother. He then realized that Vonda's mental state was in trouble, and if nothing is done about it, she could possibly lose her sanity.
"How do you feel?" asked Lori.
"Not so good," replied Vonda. "I'm thirsty. Hungry. I'm losing my mind. I'm seeing things that aren't there."
"It's the heat. Our supplies are running out quicker than we can scavenge them. But, we will come across something. Keep your hopes high."
"I didn't kill you. I didn't kill you."
"What?"
Vonda's breathing paced more rapidly and she started shivering. Lori grabbed Vonda and hugged her, rubbing the back of her head.
"It's okay. We'll get more supplies. Just relax."
"I didn't kill my own mother, right, Lori?"
"No. Of course not."
"I could've allowed you guys to take her to Houlton with us. I could've given her another chance!"
"That wouldn't be so smart. No one is to blame for her death but her. Don't feel guilty."
Jason walked over to Lori and Vonda.
"She's right Vonda. It isn't your fault she dead," said Jason. Your mom chose not to change, if she chose a different path maybe she would have a chance to earn your love. I want you to know Vonda that you not alone you have me and Lori."
"He's right. Your not alone, and like I said it's her fault she's dead not your's," said Lori.
Lincoln, Liam, and Tabby arrived near the tree, catching the group's attention. Ronnie Anne looked at Tabby and noticed how she was touching Lincoln's arms. She shrugged it off and lied her head on the tree. Lori stood up, ready to walk to Lincoln.
"Lori?" called Vonda. "Why do you care so much about me?"
"No one deserves to be alone," said Lori.
Vonda smiled softly and closed her eyes. Lori waved her hands at Lincoln.
"Hey, Lori. What is it?"
"I want to get some supplies for the group. I want you to come with me. And only you."
"Sure thing. Let's go."
Lori looked back at David.
"Lincoln and I are going to go ahead in the road. We're going to be back in less than an hour."
"In this heat? What about water?" asked David.
"Lincoln has a water bottle. I'm going to be fine."
David nodded. Lori and Lincoln walked ahead in the road, leaving the group behind in the shaded tree. Lori took out a hatchet from the side of her backpack and Lincoln held a knife in his left hand. The heat continued to bully the survivors.
Jason was currently in the woods hunting, so far all he was able to get was three rabbits. As he was walking through the woods he saw what looked like a person running, along with roamers following the person.
He pulled out his compound bow and followed the figure. Jason ran to where he saw the figure run off, he heard low growls and got behind a tree.
There were three roamers surrounding a abandon car trying to get whoever was in. Jason aimed his bow at the roamers, he released arrow on the string pierced a roamer through its left eye.
The two other roamers turned to Jason and made there were towards him. Jason pulled the string of his bow and an arrow went through another roamer's skull, he then speed walked to the last roamer stabbed its head.
"Hey I killed them all. You can come out now," said Jason.
The back door of the car slowly opened. Jason got his bow ready just in case this person was a threat, the person that came out the car was revealed to be a little girl around Lola and Lana's age.
The girl has long dark hair in two braids, she wore a gray dress that was covered in blood, her face was also covered in blood, and a gray bow.
"Are all the monsters gone?" asked the girl.
"Yeah there all gone, your safe now. Your covered blood."
"Its not mine. Are you going to hurt me?"
"No I'm not. Here let me clean your face."
Jason took out a rag and approached the girl. She allowed him to clean her face seeing he was not a threat.
"What's your name?"
"Meli. Meli Ramos."
Jason didn't recognize her at first because of the blood. When he was finish cleaning her face, he started at her in shock for a few seconds before shaking it off and finished cleaning her face.
"Nice to meet you. My name is Jason Wilson. I have to ask you something, what were you doing out here by yourself, were are your parents?"
Meli started to cry quietly, as tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Me and my parents were trying to get back home. We were away visiting my grandparents when the monsters came, we end up running into some bad people," sobbed Meli.
"What happened next?" asked Jason.
"They said they wanted all are stuff and they also wanted my mom. But my dad wouldn't let them, he attacked one of them and told my mom to take me run. When we were ran away we heard a gun shot as we were running."
Mali cried every hard, it broke Jason's heart seeing her like this. He crouch down and hugged her as she cried into his chest.
"Shh... It's okay. I got you."
"After they shot my dad, they chased after us. Then my mom was shot. We got away from the people chasing us, and then those monsters started chasing us, my mom told me to run and I did, I heard her scream as the monsters started eating her."
Jason wiped away Meli's tears and picked her up.
"How long have you been out here alone?"
"Five days."
"Okey then, I'm going to take you back with me."
"Were are you taking me?"
"I'm taking you to my group we'll keep you safe."
Meli held on to Jason feeling safe near him. Jason felt bad for she last both her parents to this new world, he held her close as he walked through the woods, comforting her until she fell asleep in his arms.