The Week of the Dead (16 page)

“We were at a rodeo at the Agricenter when it all went down. We thought they were just people in costume until they started eating people,” Junior said with a slum face. “But we got out of there as fast as we could.” The campfire light had shown every one looking at the fire.

“I did pretty well with my shotgun, but someone stole it,” Ethan said.

“Yeah, the military folks took everyone’s firearms. They let us keep simple things like sticks or knives,” Junior said.

“Let’s talk about that. What’s the plan? I heard they are flying people out of here?” Ethan asked the group, and he tossed his used napkin into the fire.

“Yes, they show up every so often in huge helicopters and take people somewhere. No one will give us a clue. Their tent is over there,” Junior told Ethan as he pointed.

“Have you asked?” Ethan asked to a sea of quiet faces.

“Well, fuck this. I’m going to get some goddamn answers,” he said as he stood. “Will you stay here?” he said to Jenna.

“I’m going to find Josh and Ashley.” She reached in for a hug. She whispered in his ear ‘Come back to me.’”

“All is well. I’m just going to find some answers.”

Ethan turned and pointed at Josh who was squatting next to Ashley, and they were both listening to something. He motioned to Jenna to go to them. Ethan slowly walked toward the military tent. It was a small tent filled with people in camouflage, all standing around computers and tables busily doing tasks, with two men standing guard out front. Ethan walked up to the guard. “You can’t be here, Civilian,” the left guard said.

“I want some answers,” he said.

“We all do. When we know, you’ll know,” The right guard said.

“Yeah…sure you will,” Ethan said as he stared at the two men. He turned to the left and made his way around the side of the next tent. He quickly made his way between the tent and one of the food tents. He quickened his pace and made his way to the side of the military tent. He stood still as he heard voices. “Everyone shut up!” a booming voice was heard from inside the tent. “Michaels, you have the floor,” an electronic voice filled the tent.

“
The reports just came in. This outbreak has taken most of the major cities along the Mississippi River and
the Coastal areas. There are small pockets of survivors and military presence in those sectors, including yours. We are continuing to fly people inward. We are setting up camps at our bases in Wyoming, Idaho, Colorado, South Dakota, Oklahoma, and the northern tip of Texas. Our outposts in the surrounding states are taking people to the bases.
” What about us?” the commanding voice said. “
Your sector is convening at Fort Knox. We established a stronghold there. As far as we can tell, this is a biological attack, but we must protect our assets. General Bartlett, you are to remain there until we evac the population.
” “I understand. Sir, what about the president?” “
Unknown. At first word, he was transported to Air Force One. No word since.
” “What is the cause of this outbreak?” “
Unknown. It is not airborne. It only travels by blood-stream contact. So cover your asses.
” “Is there anything else, sir?” “
Aim for the head. Over and Out.
” The electronic voice stopped. “Well, you heard the man. We will hold this ground until we get out of here.” Ethan swiftly made his way back to Junior and his band of followers.

“What did you find out?” Junior asked.

“Has the world has gone to shit?” another man not in cowboy clothes asked.

“Close. They are flying people…” Josh, Jenna, and Ashley ran to them holding a phone.

“Dude, you gotta hear this.” Josh handed Ethan the cell phone from his hand. The name
Phoenix
was displayed across the screen. There was just a link to a YouTube video.

“We don’t have time for this,” Ethan said as he tried to hand the phone back.

“Watch it, dude.” The cowboys all huddled around Ethan who held the phone sideways as the video played.

Children

Chapter 34

Monday 1500 CST

St. Louis

D
anny made it to his apartment. Along the way, he put his tire iron in his belt loop and grabbed a fire ax off the wall. It made him feel better. He came to his floor. He slowly opened the heavy stairwell door. There wasn’t any movement from where he saw. He slowly moved through the doorway and ran to his apartment door. He panicked as he dropped his keys. He heard a moan come from around the lit corridor. Danny bent down and fumbled with his keys. He put the ax on the ground and picked up his keys. He was on one knee when the pitter-patter of feet coming toward him. He grabbed his keys and ax in one sweeping motion. He swung at where the head should have been, but he connected with the wall on the other side of the hallway. He tried to retrieve the ax when he felt a searing pain in his abdomen. He looked down at a child pulling a knife out of his rib cage. “Kyle!” he shouted as he recognized his attacker. The boy grunted as he forced the knife into his rib cage again. “You little shit!” Danny said as he gave the kid a good kick to the chest. The little boy flew backward. Kyle picked himself up and went crying back into his apartment and shut the door. “What the fuck!” Danny said as he saw two small stab wounds coming out of his shirt. He made his way into his apartment. He was holding his bleeding side as he made his way to the bathroom and began patching up his shallow wounds. “Fucking little bastard!” Danny said.

The Prison

Chapter 35

Monday 2000 MDT

Idaho

N
ight had fallen on the Crimford Penitentiary of West Idaho. Most of the guards remained at their posts. They figured the prison was the best place to be. Father Gomez came to the prison before the outbreak had reached the town of Sandpoint. He brought news to the guards and asked to stay. Since the guards knew the father well, they let him come to the prison. As he sat quietly in one of the offices, he was reading the Bible. He came across Exodus 23:7. He stopped in his tracks. “Lord, if this it, please give me a sign!” The father said looking up. Suddenly, the florescent bulb above him blew out. “I understand, Lord. Your will shall be done.”

Father Gomez found himself in the cell area. He was walking alongside Guard Rook. Father Gomez bent down to tie his shoe. The guard stopped with him but found himself staring off into space. The old father stood up and pushed the guard into an open cell. Father Gomez pulled the pistol from Rook’s holster as he pushed him into the cell. It didn’t matter what the guard shouted at the father; he was busy speaking in tongues as he walked up to a prisoner’s cell and pulled the trigger. Down the way, the father shot the inmates one by one. Rook got on the radio and told his fellow guards, who turned the alarms on.

After the father had run out of bullets, the guards cornered him on the ground floor. He was on his knees and looking to the heavens as four guards came down upon him with shotguns. After the father had dropped the pistol, he was praying. The four guards continued to shout, but all Father Gomez heard was the alarm system. The entire time the guards were looking for the father, by following the shouting and gunshots inside the prison, they left the sirens on. Outside the prison, creatures became attracted to the sounds.

On his knees, Father Gomez was praying as the horde of shambling bodies broke into the cell area. The four guards turned to see a thickening group of red eyes and something that reeked of sickness coming toward them. They all turned and opened fire. As they were opening fire, Father Gomez grabbed the pistols out of the two closest guards’ holsters and fired a round into each of their skulls. He began firing wildly in the air as the group of humanoids bite through his clerical collar.

Darwin

Chapter 36

Tuesday 2200 CST

Memphis

“G
reetings and Salutations, If you’re seeing this video, congratulations. You’ve survived this far! And you’re smart enough to look for answers. The answer, I’m afraid, isn’t a good one. The truth is that there are over eight billion people living on this planet. There is no stopping the spread of human procreation. We’ve tried. China limited the number of children born. Pretty soon, we would have to sterilize the whole population for a number of years. Maybe some wars would be invented and hopefully kill off a few thousand people, but that won’t be enough. We needed to do something drastic. The governments are more worried about where they are getting their money from, and the more people, the more money they can take. I had other plans. I have engineered the future.

My creations will take over the world with brute force and determination without restitution. With just one offspring, entire towns and cities will be wiped off the face of the earth. It is time to restart the human race. Many of you will think of me as a monster. Many of you will deny that which is true. I am saving the world and the human race. Millions will perish in this time of change. Many of you will not see the sunrise. Many of you will turn into that what you fear the most, evil.

Darwin’s theory states that ‘Only the strong survive.’ It is with that quote that I did not alert the world of my doings until now. I cannot raise an army to do my biding by killing off the weak and worthless. What makes a man weak and worthless? Because he is poor? Is he not masculine? Does he pay his taxes by working a job that he hates? I do not have the answers to these questions. I simply have results. By the time you see this, my creations would have swept across the lands like a shade over the sun. If you are…lucky (for a lack of a better word)…enough to see this, welcome to the future of the human race. We will rise from the ashes; we will rebuild that which was dear to us. We will survive.

My creations were empty shells. I took seven thousand deceased humans, all who died of natural causes. I turned them into something. Something of nightmares. Pure fear has been born. Long ago, I was on a scientific-experiment team. We were working on a scientific experiment involving the reanimation of dead soldiers. The program was scrapped. They tried to kill us off one by one, but I was the only one who survived. The military tried to eliminate me numerous times until I faked my death.

NanoBots and animal proteins were implanted into their bodies. Instantly, the bodies were reanimated. Although, there were not themselves when they awoke from their deathly sleep, they do not live like they once did. They do not feel. All that matters to them is hunger. Somewhere from the darkness back to the light, they picked up the frenzy for human blood. They crave the angiotensin in your blood. Although I never imagined it, the longer the Nanos stay in the body, the more mutated the creatures become. The NanoBots had to be laced with animal proteins. Sometimes, the animal proteins caused the beings to…evolve. Profoundly, the animal proteins bonded with the empty cells of the creations caused the proteins to overtake everything human. Since their cells weren’t being used, the NanoBots and proteins reactivated their empty cells. Something that was unfathomable. These proteins took shape in the empty shells and became something more. My plan worked better than expected. I hired boats and planes to strategically drop my creations all around the world. Starting with heavily populated areas and areas around the coastline, I entrapped those who will become their food source inland. Build your strongholds and survive. Rebuild the world in a better image. That is your goal now.

Many of you are wondering why I did not warn the world so they may survive until now. Simply put, there cannot be a victory without sacrifice. Since you have survived this long, I will tell you this. Their bodies rot, but their brain survives. A single bite transmits the NanoBots from the host to the prey. From the data I gathered, the longer the NanoBots stay in the body, the faster and stronger the creatures become. These are called ‘Alphas’ because they are the first of their Alpha-male stature. Also, if you destroy the brain, you destroy the NanoBots. They cannot survive outside the body. If you survive this, there will be many deaths. Americans will lose weight finally. Because the world wanted to save every weak life, there will only be the death. If they are not turned already, the weak will die. The sick, weak, and dying will perish within the first few weeks. There won’t be any pharmacies open, so those whose lives depend on pills will perish. Drug users will have to go cold turkey. Apologies for those who you think their lives are worth saving. Kill them now. Drug addicts are not going to be part of the new world. You should take this time to make a list of people you don’t think should survive. This is a changing of the world to the way I see fit.

This is not the end, this is only the beginning.

Your Savior, Darwin. P.S. Don’t bother looking for me anymore. I will not get to see the world I have created.
” A gun appeared at the side of the man’s head. It was held by his hand.
Bang
.

The man’s dead body slumped down onto the desk he was sitting at as blood began to pool from his head wound. After many seconds, the video ended. “It was uploaded twelve hours ago. That’s why Parker went nuts at the microwave!” Josh said with a bright-eyed look.

“Well, this just fucking sucks!” the plain-clothed man said.

“We need to tell them,” Junior said as he motioned to the military tent.

“Who is Phoenix?” Ethan asked.

“Parker’s cousin. He has an underground shelter somewhere close by. He said he was taking in people. Where are they flying people?”

“Fort Knox,” Ethan said as he began pacing toward the military tent again, only with backup from his companions, both in big hats and clothes.

He arrived to the same two guards who stood guard at the military tent. “I need to talk to General Bartlett. It’s urgent.”

“Get the hell out of here,” The left guard said as he pushed Ethan into Junior, igniting the fire in his shoulder. “You guys shouldn’t be here,” the left soldier said to them as he raised his rifle.

“Boy, I oughta whoop your ass for that,” Junior’s companion said.