Chapter 3:

Desolation Row

The whole ride, the trio were silent, they felt like their world was ending all over again and that there was nothing left for them but ashes and each other. Lena was wounded, her leg still having the arrow that pierced her, Tofer was scared, worried about Aunty Pai…and Vincent…was angry, he was enraged by what had just been done to his home, about anyone or anything threatening his only remaining family. But now was not the time for grudges, especially was it not one for vengeance, they had their mission, to meet Pai in the town of Smallwood. All three were confident that no matter what happens, as long as they reunite with her, they will be fine. She was smart, capable and more than experienced when it came to survival, she was the one who found the boys just a few years after the outbreak hit and was also the one to bring them to the town of Fishland, where all three lived together as a family for over ten years. To make matters even more unfortunate, the truck slowly began to lose speed, then eventually stopped altogether.

It didn't take them long to find the bullet holes and leaking fuel in the side of the truck, Vincent even cursed himself for not even considering it sooner, but Lena reassured him "It'll be fine…we just need to find a new vehicle…preferably one that's better off than this one." as she then tried to climb out but struggled and the brothers finally noticed her injury. "Oh my God" Tofer exclaimed "Are you okay!?" but Lena tried to reassure them "I'm fine, I just…need to find something to stop the bleeding before taking the arrow out." as she struggled to just limp, proving how deep the arrow was. Vincent and Tofer aided her though as the three walked down the road, trying to find a place to rest and heal up. Thankfully, it wasn't long until they found an old abandoned town, it was cold and dreary, but there were no clear signs of infected or raiders, so they knew it was relatively safe. After kicking down a door to a local inn, Vincent swept the area and saw that it was totally empty, he breathed a sigh of relief and said "It's clean!" as Tofer helped Lena inside and sat her down on a lounging couch. It was clear she needed first aid, so both brothers scavenged the place, looking for anything that could help. Vincent found a bottle of rubbing alcohol and some duct tape along with a nice new double barreled [Shotgun] that was in perfect working order, while Tofer found a sewing kit that they could use to stitch up the wound. While tending to her leg, the three began to converse as Tofer spoke first and asked "Do you guys think more people made it out?" to which Lena stated "Probably…I mean, WE lasted this long, right?" but Vincent was stoned face, unamused by the attempts to brighten the dark situation. Realizing that his brother wasn't going to say a word, Tofer asked Lena "Hey…is…is it like this…Everywhere?" As Lena seemed quiet and sad, she tried to be honest and say "…Yeah…but…I know that it's not like this all the time, there's still camps and other towns, I knew this one group in Las Vegas that managed to get the casinos up and running even." which did make Tofer feel a little better, but then he asked a question that was on both brothers' minds. "So who were those guys?" he asked Lena, hoping she could provide answers, and she explained "They call themselves the children of the Spore-an original name, I know…but…they think that the world ended because there were too many Humans…so their solution is to knock down the numbers." Vince then finally spoke as he asked "Couldn't they make it easier on everyone else and just kill themselves?" but Lena pointed out "Hey, killing yourself does only a little… running into a city with a huge ass bomb…now THAT is going to do way more damage…" though this explanation worried Tofer. He asked "How could anyone join a group like that?" but Lena then stated "I mean, there's raiders, cannibals and god knows whatever else is out there…some people like purpose…even if it is a morbid one…" Vincent then stood up and sighed "Alright, that should keep your leg from bleeding out at least, but I'd advised not walking on it for a bit." to which Lena chuckled "No promises." as the older brother began to walk away, informing his friends "I'm gonna go check the area, there's gotta be something here we can use." as he then heads off to find a vehicle that they could use.

Vincent forced the back door open and was immediately greeted with an unpleasant smell, the kind that anyone would experience when exposed to a rotting body. After plugging his nose and holding back the vomit, he got a good look at the scene…and his blood ran cold as he saw what body it was. He then backed away from the room and called "Lena…you need to see this." as he waited for her to join his investigation. Tofer helped her limp to the room as she and he saw what Vince was worried about, there was the body of an infected, but it was large and bloated. Lena said nothing other than "What the fuck…" as Tofer than asked "Wait, is that a Clicker?" but Vincent then says "No…Clickers are scrawny, remember?…I think it's-" "A Bloater" Lena answered, confirming Vincent's suspicion…and horrified him as they examined the corpse further. The Bloater was definitely dead, its body looked torn to pieces and the scars and ripped flesh indicate that the deed was done by another creature of some kind. Vincent then asked "Are Bloaters really as tough as I heard?" to which Lena explained "And then some, there was a job where I was helping these guys move some medicine and we ran into one…Fuckers are tanks with feet…there were 7 of us…only 3 made it out." as Vincent then urged "We need to get the fuck out of here before whatever did this finds us." as he then made his way outside and began to search for a vehicle.

Vincent was in luck, he found a group of vehicles clustered together, but knew not to get his hopes up, especially since most of them were rusted and covered in autumn leaves and dirt. But he still searched around, hoping to find something, anything that worked and could carry him and his friends to Smallwood. Then, he saw a beautiful red truck in the distance, it was definitely dirty but much less so than all the others present, he rushed to it, hoping this was the solution to his problem. Vincent then peered into the driver side window of the truck and saw something that made him more than excited. The Truck was empty, but the keys were still in the ignition and it looked more than roomy for him and his friends.

He couldn't help but smile at this sight, but when he was about to check if the door was unlocked, he saw a strange moving figure within the window's reflection. His heart sank and he quickly turned around to see an oncoming fist but he managed to duck out of the way just in time as his attacker missed and smashed open the window. He fell to the ground and crawled away as he turned to see what exactly was this thing that was ambushing him. He was astonished to see that it was an Infected man, his head flowered out like a clicker, only he was larger and vastly more muscular. It looked enraged and roared like a beast as it then smashed then flipped the truck he had just found, making it incapable of being fixed, it then turned to Vincent and roared before charging him. The brother then scrambled to his feet and ran as fast as he could while this thing rushed him, barely missing as it swung its huge fists wildly. Vincent could tell that it wasn't blind from the somewhat exposed eyes, but its behavior proved that sight was not its strongest sense either.

Vincent grabbed the gun from his holster and fired every shot he could at this beast, emptying clip after clip as it continued to swing and charge him. Eventually, one of its strikes hit a large propane tank, trapping its fist within the crunched up metal, Vincent then seized this chance and shot it several times in the head, but all it did was agitate the beast as it swung its free arm at the brother, sending him flying. After landing on his back, he saw the perfect opportunity as he aimed his gun at the tank and then pulled the trigger and the resulting explosion engulfed the Beast in flames, causing it to scramble and roar in pain and rage, before finally kneeling down in exhaustion.

Tofer rushed out to see what all the commotion was and saw his brother doing battle with this Bruiser infected, Lena gave him a shotgun for better protection, but upon seeing Vince and this monster, he shouted "Vince!" as he then threw the weapon to his brother. Vincent caught the weapon, rushed towards this beast while it was stunned and forced the double barrel against its head as he then pulled the trigger, ending the monster once and for all. After its massive body fell, so too did Vince from both the exhaustion and injuries this massive Infected made him endure. Tofer then rushed over to his brother and checked on him, after seeing that Vincent was still breathing, he couldn't help but say "I think we found out what killed that bloated one." as Vincent then grumbled "Yeah, no shit." as Tofer then helped him up to his feet. "Ouch" the older brother said as he still felt the strong impact of the Bruiser, he then stated "That thing was not gentle." as he and Tofer then went inside to help carry Lena again.

As they helped carry her through the desolate town, she got a good look at the creature that tried to pulverize Vincent. Her blood went cold as she got a good look at it, she had never seen any Infected like this, it was less of a creature and more of a weapon. But Vincent and Tofer already brought it down, now they were just focused on getting Lena to another house and investigating the town further. As they turned the corner of a house to reach its porch, they saw a large wooden bridge nearby and immediately Vincent groaned "Oh good, MORE of this dump town to explore." as they carried Lena up the stairs and sat her down on a small rocking chair that occupied the porch. Tofer returned the shotgun to Lena as a means of defending herself while they searched inside, the older brother broke down the door and the putrid stench of a rotting Venizen invaded their nostrils, causing both the gag instinctively. After composing themselves, they explored the House, top to bottom for supplies of any kind, before Pai found them, scavenging was their only hope of survival, but so much time has passed since they last pilfered any ruined spot, it was clear that many places were already picked clean. Tofer did manage to find a brick of handgun bullets, he smiled and said "Hey, Vince! Check it out, Ammo!" as he tossed it to his Brother, who examined the box and said "For a Magnum, not a glock…fuck, why couldn't people just use ammo types, like all shotguns take a specific shell and all pistols take bullets." as the younger brother chuckled and stated "Like a video game?" as Vincent then continued "Yeah, at least make it so we don't have to scour every god damn inch of a building." as Tofer then stated "To be fair, I don't think most pioneering bullet makers anticipated an apocalypse scenario…besides, gunsmithing's more of an art than a science." to which Vincent grumbled "Whatever, it's still stupid." as they both checked the rooms upstairs. From Bathrooms to Bedrooms, the brothers checked every place they could for anything of value, their last stop in particular being an old man's bedroom, judging from the old radio that was still somehow playing and even a nearby gramophone that had been coated in dust. Both brothers continued to investigate the cabinets and drawers of the room, but their searching temporarily ceased when the familiar broadcast that Tofer heard before began playing.

"My friends, tell me, does Mankind really deserve domain over the Earth, after thousands of years of reigning on top, we have done nothing but brought pain, misery and death…Tell me my child-"

*SMASHZZZZ!*

The radio was silenced as Vincent smashed the device with an Ax, causing it to short circuit and buzz with electricity as it shut down. He then blatantly said "Fucking hypocrite, lecturing us on Humanity…" as they then resumed their scavenging of the room. Eventually, Tofer noticed something out the window of the bedroom, he couldn't help but stare in curiosity as he told Vince "Hey dude, check this out." the older brother gave him his attention and saw what he was pointing at as Tofer explained "Someone left their ladder on the roof over there."

Vincent:"The Ladder's on the roof? WHY!?"

Tofer:"…Dunno…Hey, did you know the Romans used to throw their baby teeth on their roofs?"

Vincent:"Seriously? We gotta get you laid dude."

Tofer:"Aren't acts of procreation a bad idea at times like this?"

Vincent:"When was the last time a dude got another dude pregnant?"

Tofer:"Just saying."

Vincent:"If you get some action and come back pregnant, I'll eat my Jacket."

Tofer then laughs at this banter as he then states "Now I'm just imagining I come home with a Basketball under my shirt and then you just start gnawing at your sleeves." to which his older brother replied "You're so fucking weird dude." as he then chuckled himself. Tofer tapped back with "Hey, I'm not the one talking about eating his jacket." but their moment of laughter and comradery was cut drastically short as they then saw something in the distance.

A Jeep, carrying men in uniformed armor drives into the town's center and halts as the soldiers proceed to get off and search the area, guns raised. "Fuck!" Vincent said as he stopped staring out the window and began leaving the bedroom, he continued "We need to get Lena and get the Hell out of here!" as Tofer joined him and the boys rushed to the porch. Upon finding Lena, Vincent rushed to her and began to help her to her feet as he said "We need to leave, like right now!" as Vincent and Tofer stood by her opposing sides to help move her faster. Of course Lena immediately asked "Why, what's going on?" as Tofer then explained the best he could that "Some soldiers showed up, it might be Fedra but we don't know." as Vincent then added "You've had better odds seeing them in action, any chance they lightened up on people being outside of Quarantine Zones?" to which she stated "Not even a little, in fact they're on the new fad of shooting first and asking questions later." as they then made their way for the wooden bridge to gain better distance from the unknown group of Militia.

As they hurried their way across the bridge, Vincent failed to see the rotted wood spot as his larger mass caused his leg to break through it easily, trapping him in place. Before Tofer and Lena could even attempt anything, the hole grew as more wooden planks broke from the sudden addition of weight, causing Vince to shout "Fuck!" as he fell over 30 feet and into the river below. Of course, Tofer and Lena were worried and wanted to check on him, but Lena knew the sudden loud noise would've caused the nearby militia group to easily notice their presence and approach them. Lena then tried to get Tofer to move as she told him "He'll be fine, we need to go, now!" realizing the problem this just caused them, but Tofer refused as he said "No! I won't leave him!" but then they were spotted by one of the soldiers, Lena was the first to notice his presence and stated "Tofer! We need to MOVE!" as Tofer tried to ignore her words, but then a sudden shout of "HEY!" The soldier snapped Tofer back into the situation they were currently in and begrudgingly complied as he helped Lena across the bridge and into the next cluster of homes and buildings.

At the bottom of the 40ft chasm, somewhere within the flowing waters of the large river, Vincent emerged, soaked and gasping for air as he tried to gain his bearings and understand where he was and what had just happened. After figuring out his position and that Tofer and Lena were still above him and in threat of this unknown group of soldiers, he quickly swims to the edge of the river and grips onto one of the rocks. He wastes no time pulling himself out of the water and examining the wall as he then saw his next challenge, he proceeded to scale the chasm's wall, slowly but surely. Failure was not an option for him, for both his life and the lives of his friends, he slowly moved faster and faster up the jagged rock wall, but a simple mistake caused him to slip and nearly fall back down into the raging waters below. After a quick panic and carefully cycling his breathing, he calmed himself and continued his climb, once again at a slow and steady pace.

After ten minutes of climbing, Vincent had finally reached the town once again, rolling onto his back as he was practically beaten with exhaustion, but once he heard the rapid movement of booted footsteps, accompanied by the slight clacking of guns and a mysterious voice shouting "They went over here!" He began to climb to his feet and rushed to the cover of a tree, where he then got a good glimpse of who these mysterious soldiers were. Their armor was practically black with how dark the green fabric and plastic was, they wore gas masks that concealed their faces to totality and they were plenty armored in various parts of their uniforms. It was obvious the older brother knew he was going to have a drastically hard time fighting these men one on one, so he stuck to the darkness and began to sneak his way to his friends.

While he snuck through the backyard of someone's former home, he noticed an approaching guard and hid behind one of the house's corners, waiting patiently for the soldier to get close enough, so he may take them down quietly. Noticing a nearby Ax for chopping wood, Vincent grabbed the lumber tool and gripped both hands firmly on its handle as he was still and held his breath…then swung the Ax into the soldier's neck, nearly taking the whole thing off with one swift strike. The soldier had no time to react and fell to the floor with a loud thud, bleeding out in just a few seconds as Vincent then stole the rifle they carried and slung it around his back as he proceeded to drag the body into a dark place, out of view of the other soldiers.

As for Tofer and Lena, they managed to break into a small shop that provided them cover from the soldiers, though their evasion didn't discourage these rifle wielders as they continued to sweep the town in search for the two people they spotted just moments ago. Vincent continued to execute soldier by soldier, stealthily as he managed to better his odds against them should it turn into a shoot out, all while trying to reach his brother and ex girlfriend. After executing a particular one, he then notices the ring of keys on the dead man's hip, Vincent then turned back to the general direction where he saw them arrive and realized that he could use their own jeeps to escape. He pocketed them as he proceeded to sneak past more and more of them, searching each and every house carefully and quietly as he would occasionally whisper their names after he knew the soldiers were absent or dead, hoping they would respond. Tofer and Lena continued to remain silent, only sound they could hear was the occasional creak from the wood being swayed by the wind or their own heartbeats as they quickened with the rising tension. But the adrenaline kicked in when they heard the sound of the front door being kicked open, revealing one of the soldiers had entered with an ally entering the building right after him. As they neared their location, Lena grabbed her shotgun and readied it against the approaching soldiers, just when Lena got a good enough view of him, she pulled the trigger. Unfortunately, the soldier managed to notice her just in time and managed to duck out of the way of the shotgun blast as it just grazed him, he then retreated and warned his partner "Subjects are armed! Gas 'em!" as Tofer then tried to pick up Lena and carry her out of the building. Metallic clicking sounds could be heard as Tofer managed to get a glimpse and noticed that a canister was thrown into the building, hissing as it quickly filled the room with knockout gas. Tofer hurried to the back door as he tried to help Lena out of the store, but just as they reached for the handle, the door swung open, knocking the two onto the floor as even more masked soldiers appeared, guns raised and aimed at the two as they struggled to stay conscious. Eventually, Tofer blacked out and Lena wasn't far behind him as the soldiers then investigated the two survivors they had just captured, one reached for his ear, clicked a button and then said "Sir, we found two more survivors…" as he then paused and awaited further instructions. The soldier then spoke into his radio again "One male, blonde caucasian, the other female, ginger…" as he then instructed a teammate to check on Lena's wound, which had reopened during the chaos. As the soldier inspected the wound, the one who ordered him spoked into the radio again as he then added "The Female's wounded, it looks bad…" The soldier that was examining her wound then turned to his commanding officer and stated "Real bad, she's losing a lot of blood…She needs medical attention and the drive's a long way." as the soldier then spoke into his radio again and stated "40% sir…she'll need a lot of help…" as he then remained silent, gun still traced on Lena as the improv medic stood up, grabbing their gun and joining the others as they all awaited their orders. After five seconds of silence, but felt like an hour, the soldier spoke and said "Acknowledged." as two of the soldiers then grab Tofer's unconscious body and carry him away for whatever reason they were told. Lena protested as she shouted "W-wait, where are you taking him!?" but was still too injured and tired to take action, but one of the soldiers simply stated "Classified!" and as soon as Lena attempted to stand up, the soldier knocked her down to the floor as he and the others rushed out of the store's back door. But before the last one left the room, Lena managed to reach and grab her shotgun as she then blasted one of them in the leg, crippling them and causing them to bleed profusely as he collapsed to the floor. In response, one of them shouted "Shit! Baxter's wounded!" as the other soldiers then grabbed their injured comrade and carried him away, and out of range of Lena's shotgun. One of them tried to rush back, rifle in hand but was stopped by a fellow soldier, who simply said "Focus on the mission!" as she tried to calm her friend and after a moment of silent tension, she decided to add on "Trust me, bleeding out's worse." as the ally then accepted that fact and joined the rest of the team as they continued on…Leaving Lena to die a slow death.

Soon after, Vincent then followed the gun shots as he rushed to the store, reaching it as he quickly went through the broken door and saw Lena on the floor, nearly dead. Tears welled up in his eyes as he rushed to her aid, muttering "No-no-no-nonononono!" repeatedly as he tried to help heal her leg. But she stops him, dragging his attention to her face, which too was covered in tears as she looked at him and said "I…I'm sorry…I…couldn't stop them…" just as Vincent was asking "Stop who-" Lena interrupted him as she explained "They…they took him…they took Tofer…I tried to protect him but…I'm so sorry…" as she was a sobbing mess. Vincent was already leaking tears, he realized that the woman he still had feelings for was dying in front of him, his only family left was taken…and there was nothing he could do about either tragedy…before he knew it, Lena was dead, lifeless as she lied still. Vincent was practically breaking down, he was sobbing and pouting as he held her body close and just cried, it was all he could do…but then…a new emotion consumed him…one of rage, vengeance and spite. He knew Lena was gone, but Tofer was still alive…and he was more than Hellbent on getting him back.

Soon after, more soldiers arrived, slowly approaching the building with raised weapons and an intent to kill. But Vincent was aware of their presence, he even anticipated it as he took the rifle from his back, made sure it was locked and loaded…then proceeded to kill every last soldier he found in the area, leaving none of them alive. After the empty town grew silent again, Vincent calmly walked towards one of the parked jeeps on the other end of town, got in and revved up the motor as he then had a new purpose, a mission he refused to taper from until it was completed. He was going to rescue his little brother and make sure the promise he made all those years ago was kept, even if he had to kill every last person he comes across.