Chapter 17 October 11th, 2037

My head is pounding as I force my eyes open. The smoke has put the fire out before being sucked out the air filtration system. Not a single ounce of smoke is found anywhere. It takes me a moment to get back onto my feet, but somehow, I manage to stumble over to Natalie’s unconscious body. She’s still breathing but I’m unable to wake her up. I waddle over to Mason’s body, his eyes are twitching, and I know this look, he is trying to wake up. I can even hear him snort.

“Connor?” I ask hoping for a response. Nothing. I hear movement coming from outside the laboratory.

Hissing and groaning sounds grow louder. I stumble over to Jeremy’s body and shake him wildly trying to get him up.

“Huh?” Jeremy moans as he starts to wake slowly.

“Jeremy get up,” I say softly but sternly, “I don’t think we are alone anymore.”

Scratching sounds are heard getting louder on the glass, all I can make out is shadows on the opposite side.

“What’s going on?” Jeremy asks sitting up.

“I’m not sure, but my guess is the Zombies you had locked up in the detainment area have freed themselves,” I whisper.

Jeremy gets back to his feet, wobbling back and forth until he gains his balance, “We have to get the others up.”

“How did they get free? I thought the detainment room was impenetrable,” I ask, cocking my gun.

Jeremy slowly makes his way over to a cabinet. It’s clear his head is still fuzzy as I watch him walk. He pulls out a box of smelling salts and makes his way over to Natalie.

“I’m not sure,” he replies eventually, “The fire suppressant system must have over ridden the security protocol for the detainment room.”

“In English?” I ask more confused than before.

“When Natalie set fire to my documents it set off the fire suppressant, it must have unlocked the detainment room as a safety feature. Which released the Zombies,” he says in a somewhat mocking tone.

He cracks open one of containers, releasing a foul scent into the air. He waves the container under Natalie’s nose, prompting her eyes to open wide, choking as she pushes the salts away.

“That smells like shit,” she complains between coughs.

Jeremy laughs, “But it did the job.”

“We need you Natalie,” I say adding tension back to the room, “The Zombies escaped their prison.”

“Is that so?” Natalie says with a non-surprised look on her face, “Guess that room wasn’t as secure as you thought was it?”

“Actually it was plenty secure until you set off the fire alarm,” Jeremy retorts. Natalie rolls her eyes and lets out a sigh as Jeremy walks over to Mason’s unconscious body.

He waves the foul smelling container under Mason’s nose causing him to cough uncontrollably before finally opening his eyes.

“How are you feeling?” Jeremy asks.

“I’ll be better when I get that smell out of my memory,” Mason coughs.

Jeremy smiles at him, nodding his head before he walks over to Connor. Natalie and I share a quick glance with each other as Jeremy sticks the container under our friend’s nose. Connor’s eyes open slowly, his arm stiffens with his hand clenched in a fist. He punches Jeremy in the chest sending him backward to the ground before he sits up, dazed and confused.

“What’s going on here?” He asks holding his head.

“Short version?” I ask, “Natalie set off the fire alarm, which set off the suppression system, which knocked us out while in avertedly unlocking the door to the containment room. Now the Zombies are free and trying to get in here to kill us. All caught up?”

“I only heard Zombies are trying to get in here,” Connor says.

“That’s all you need to know,” Natalie says.

“Ok, so let’s kill some Zombies,” Connor smirks.

“How do you plan on killing them?” I ask, “We have a few handguns and no way to remove their heads.”

“We could always set them on fire,” Natalie speaks up. We each glare at her, “I was joking.”

“Doctor,” Connor says, “is there anything down here we can use?”

“No,” Jeremy sighs, “we never came up with a contingency plan for a containment breech.”

“What a surprise,” Natalie says rolling her eyes.

“It’s hard to foresee someone being so stupid that they would purposely start a fire in here,” Mason shouts back at her.

The sound of glass shattering stops Natalie from sniping back at him. More glass breaks and I can see an unnaturally pale arm reaching through the hole it created. Several pieces of skin are hanging down from the arm. I raise Mason’s gun and fire three bullets through the glass, chasing the arm away.

“We need a plan, quick,” I shout.

“What about the elevator?” Natalie asks.

“I might be able to get the doors open if someone else could draw their attention,” Mason suggests.

“Why is it you that gets to open the elevator?” Natalie asks.

“Because, only mine and Jeremy’s voice will activate the elevator and I stand a better chance than Jeremy by myself,” Mason argues.

“He’s right,” Jeremy agrees, “it’s the best plan we’ve got.”

“Fine,” I nod, “Natalie and I will distract the Zombies, and Connor you protect Doctor Fairfield while Mason calls for our ride out of here.”

Everyone agrees to my plan. Natalie breaks down one of the glass windows, furthest from where the Zombies were trying to attack and starts firing multiple shots at the undead creatures. I join her outside the lab just as they start dragging their legs toward us. They are hideous looking, no clothing draped over their bodies. One looks like it was formally a man, the other once a woman. Their bodies are bleach white with whole chunks of flesh missing. I can only imagine they have been fighting with each other, literally picking the skin off the other, most likely to feed. They start to pick up the pace, they almost get to a run before Natalie and I each unload another bullet into each of their skulls. I can almost make out Mason crawling out of the previously broken window, making his way to the elevator door.

“We have to get around them,” Natalie calls out to me.

“No, not until Connor and Jeremy get out,” I shout back, firing another shot.

“Well they don’t have long,” Natalie says releasing one more bullet, “I’m almost out of bullets.”

The Zombies continue to rush us, our bullets not doing much to slow them down. My gun begins to click as I pull the trigger numerous times.

“I’m out,” I cry as the male Zombie grabs my arm. I fight back, knocking the Zombie to the ground as the female reaches out for Natalie. I jump in front of Natalie, both my hands clamped around her wrists. “SHOOT HER,” I cry as her teeth draw nearer to my neck.

Natalie’s gun goes off right next to my ear and I can almost watch the bullet slowly release from its chamber and enter the female Zombies head, dropping her to the ground squealing.

“Come on, they’re out,” Natalie says to me pointing at Jeremy’s body outside of the Lab.

“And Mason has the elevator open as well,” I say as we rush past the fallen Zombies.

We sprint across the hall rejoining with the others as Mason gets inside the elevator. Connor guides Jeremy to the open elevator as I look back and catch the Zombies getting back onto their feet.

Jeremy places a foot inside the elevator only to be knocked out by Mason, “I’m sorry, but I do have my orders. If you can’t complete an antivirus, then I am to terminate you. But don’t worry about the others. I’m going to eliminate them too.”

“You bastard,” Natalie says pointing her gun at Mason.

The doors close in front of him before she can fire. The sound of feet rushing is heard behind us.

“We can’t hold them off much longer,” I cry.

“Can you recall the elevator?” Connor asks almost shaking Jeremy.

“No. Not until the light turns green. And it will only do that once Mason has gotten off,” Jeremy says.

“Then we fight until the light turns green,” Connor says cracking his neck.

Connor stands tall behind Natalie and myself, his gun pointed at the Zombie couple.

“Don’t waste your bullets,” Natalie says fighting off the male Zombie, “it has no effect on them.”

“Then I guess we do it the hard way!” Connor snarls before jumping the female Zombie.

I stay back, making sure to protect Jeremy as we watch Connor wrap his arm around the Zombie’s neck. His face turns red as he squeezes his arm tighter. The Zombie flails its arms and teeth, trying to do anything it can to free itself.

“How much longer?” I ask.

Natalie struggles with her opponent, screaming loudly as it bites her on the shoulder.

“It should be almost ready,” Jeremy replies watching the red light start to blink.

I nod in understanding and rush over to help Natalie. I pull the creature off her, throwing it to the ground. “Are you ok?” I ask her.

“I’ll live,” She replies.

Both our attentions are drawn to Connor who now has the female Zombie on the ground, her neck still caught in a headlock. He grunts and groans until a loud snap is heard and we watch as her head separates from her body.

“I got the doors open,” Jeremy yells.

“GO!” I yell to the others.

I join Doctor Fairfield in the elevator, followed closely by Connor and Natalie, the male Zombie struggling to join us.

“Come on, come on!” Jeremy says frantically pushing the ‘door close’ button.

The doors start to close slowly as the creature eventually makes it to the door. It manages to get the top half of its torso through the door before becoming trapped.

“Main bunker!” Jeremy screams, avoiding the Zombies floundering arms.

The elevator starts to rise, the being screams and squeals as it slices in half.

“Oh come on! Why won’t these things just fucking die?” Natalie grunts, kicking the Zombie in the head multiple times.

Connor stomps his massive boot down on the back of the Zombie’s neck holding it still as we finish our ride up the shaft. We manage to fall out of the elevator, Connor still fighting back the creature.

“Get out of the elevator,” Natalie shouts to Connor.

“Street level,” Jeremy calls out as Connor dives between the closing doors, trapping the beast inside and sending it back to the surface.

“Are you ok?” Natalie asks

“I’m fine. Now Find Mason,” Connor says in obvious pain.

“I’m not leaving you,” Natalie cries.

“I’m fine,” Connor insists, “just go and stop Mason.”

“He looks fine,” Jeremy assures, “just a loss of adrenaline.”

“Natalie stay with Connor. Jeremy come with me,” I say, knowing Natalie wouldn’t leave his side.

Jeremy and I hurry toward the rooms as fast as we could until we see Mason standing in Penelope’s doorway, a gun behind his back.

“Get away from them,” I grumble.

He turns around slowly, almost surprised to see us, “how did you survive?”

“I said get away from them,” I growl, pointing my gun at him.

“Come on Damian, don’t do this. You know you don’t have the balls to kill me anyway. You value all life, even mine,” Mason gloats, “now just put the gun down and I’ll make this quick.”

He takes a few steps toward us, and we take a few steps away. I can see Matthew and the girl’s peering out of the doorway watching us.

“It doesn’t have to be like this at all,” I plead, “we all stand a better chance of survival if we all work together.”

“I have my orders,” he remarks.

“This shouldn’t be about orders,” I argue, “those people aren’t here. They don’t know what we are experiencing, and they sure as shit don’t understand any of this.”

Mason’s arm starts to shake, I can see his gun trembling. “It doesn’t matter, they are still my superiors.”

“Shoot him already,” Jeremy whispers into my ear.

I sigh as I pull the trigger of my gun. ‘CLICK, CLICK’ the sound my gun makes before I remember the clip is empty. “Fuck,” I sigh dropping the gun onto the ground.

“I must say I am impressed,” Mason smiles, “I would never have guessed that you would have actually pulled the trigger. Too bad your gun was empty, but I can assure you mine isn’t.”

I stand still anticipating the end until I hear a gun shot. I gasp, my eyes tightly shut not sure why I don’t feel any pain. I gently open my eyes just in time to see Mason’s body fall to his knees, a small hole starts bleeding. I turn my head and find Natalie and Connor standing behind us, the gun in Natalie’s hand still smoking.

“I bet nobody doubted that I could pull the trigger,” Natalie winks.

“Is he dead?” Kennedy asks coming out of the room.

Jeremy walks over and checks his pulse, “yes.”

“Good,” I say unsympathetically, “but what do we do now?”

“We have to leave,” Connor rations, “With Mason dead, his superiors will most likely send troops to come in search of him.”

“Really? They would still send others here even knowing how dangerous it is out there?” Matthew asks joining the rest of us out in the hallway.

“Yes. They don’t care how many lives they have to sacrifice as long as their will is done,” Connor answers.

“Who is the one most likely to be calling the shots?” Kennedy asks.

“President Quinn,” Connor nods, “Commander and chief of the military.”

“Former commander and chief,” Kennedy says, “hard to be commander if there is nothing to command.”

“It’s also harder to have that power taken from you,” I sigh.

“What are you saying? That this whole thing is a conspiracy so that Quinn could keep his power?” Kennedy asks.

“Not the craziest theory I’ve heard,” Jeremy says.

“Alright, so either way, where do we go now?” Penelope asks from the doorway, Fanny close beside her.

“We stick to our original plan,” Connor speaks up, “we continue south.”

“There are three bunkers to the south of here,” Jeremy says, “there is one in Mobile, Alabama. One in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and lastly, Miami, Florida.”

“Each one a major city,” Natalie says.

“Yes, and most likely over run by more military personal,” Connor reasons.

“We’ve had contact in both Mobile and Baton Rouge, but there hasn’t been any word from Miami,” Jeremy says.

“Alright then we head for Miami,” Connor says.

“We are going to need a lot of weapons,” Kennedy utters.

“Then I guess we are lucky to have a whole armory to ourselves,” Natalie replies with a shrewd smile.

Chapter 18 October 19th, 2037

We fled the bunker the next day, against Jeremy’s request. Connor insisted, not wanting to wait around for any tactical groups to finish what Mason couldn’t. We ransacked the Armory before heading out. I didn’t take much, seemed useless after fending off the Zombies in the sub-basement. Still I know it’s better to be prepared for anything, so I loaded up on ammunition. My sword hasn’t left my side since I reclaimed it, I never want to be caught without it again.

We are almost out of Virginia by the time I am writing this, slowed down by a tremendous rainfall. A small, former farmhouse has become our latest safe house. Jeremy hasn’t been doing well out of the bunker and away from his lab. I worry about his safety, especially seeing as how it is my fault he has been ripped away from his comfort zone, away from safety. Kennedy still hasn’t said much to me, outside a couple of spiteful remarks. She and Matthew have also become more open about their involvement together. I have often wondered these last few days if she really likes him or is just using him to piss me off. Natalie has been taking care of Connor who managed to bruise his ribs jumping out of the elevator. Fanny and Penelope have been getting close as well, Penelope even told me she has been thinking of Fanny as a younger sister.

Its dark and cold outside, the broken window does little to protect us from the strong wind. The fireplace in the living room is our only source of heat and light. Most of the others are asleep on the floor, with the exception of Fanny, Natalie, and myself. Natalie has been sitting beside Connor since he slipped off to sleep. Her attention to him since his injuries has been unwavering. Fanny is sitting next to the window watching the rain dance off the glass. She says it’s relaxing, that the rain reminds her of a more peaceful time.

“I remember just sitting on the porch at home with my mother beside me. It was always my favorite thing to do, especially in the rain,” Fanny says continuing to look out the window.

“What made it so special?” I ask, closing my journal and walking over to our young friend.

“I don’t know,” Fanny smiles, “because it’s relaxing I guess, and because it was always one of things my parents enjoyed to do.”

“You miss them don’t you?” I ask.

“Very much,” Fanny answers, “but I knew they loved me, and that helps me get through the day.”

“You’re a very wise young lady,” I smile.

“My dad used to tell me that too,” her smile fades.

“I’m sorry,” my eyes drop to the ground, avoiding her tears.

“No, it’s ok. It’s like part of him still exists,” she says forcing back her tears.

“Part of him does and always will. You are your father’s daughter and will keep his memory alive for as long as you need it to be,” I say bracing my hand on her shoulder.

She can’t fight back the tears any longer, she sniffles, her breath staggered as she starts to sob. I pull her head close to my chest and hold her closely until she cries herself out.

“I’m sorry,” she sniffles, wiping away the remaining tears with her free hand.

“Don’t be,” I say brushing her hair away from her face, “this is a sad, confusing time, and we all need to let it out every now and then.”

“But you always seem so brave,” she says.

“I promise you that is not always my intention,” I smile, “I’m scared and sad just like everyone else. No one else in this room knows this, but before the virus broke out I had a wife.”

“Yeah?” she asks.

“Yeah. She was my whole world. We met back in high school and it was love at first sight,” I smile, “or maybe it took two or three looks to fall in love, but I knew from the moment I saw her I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. It seemed like it was going to happen too, right after high school we got married. Her parents didn’t approve of us wanting to start our lives together so young.”

“What happened?” she asks as I pause briefly.

“A friend of my mother’s owned a house and offered us her furnished basement for as long as we needed it. We stayed there over a year while we worked, and scrimped, and saved before we were finally able to move out on our own. It was also about that time that my mother fell ill. Unable to take care of herself, Chloe offered her one of our extra bedrooms,” I continued.

“What was wrong with her?” Fanny asked.

“She started showing signs of dementia,” I explain, “but Chloe was very compassionate and wanted to help her and make her as comfortable as possible. Its funny thinking back now, but she treated my mother better than I did. Don’t get me wrong, I loved my mother but sometimes I would get so frustrated with everything. But it didn’t stop us from being a happy family. Six months after my mother moved in with us Chloe surprised me with some incredible news, she was pregnant. It was an amazing feeling of joy and excitement. That feeling went away quickly though, the next month the bomb went off and I watched both my wife and mother succumb to the change. One of the hardest things I had to do was kill my mother and expecting wife.”

“I’m sorry,” Fanny says.

“Don’t be,” I say, my voice in an almost whisper, “while it still hurts thinking about it, I still have an incredible opportunity to continue living.”

Fanny smiles and gives me a big hug, “thank you for sharing that with me.”

“Any time,” I smile, “we’re family now and there is nothing I wouldn’t do for you. For any of you.”

“Do you mean that?” Fanny asked wide eyed.

“From the very bottom of my heart,” I smile, “but it’s getting late now. Why don’t you get ready for bed?”

Fanny hugs me again before getting up and snuggling up next to Penelope on the floor. I watch her momentarily before turning my attention back to the window and the falling rain.

“Was everything you said true?” Natalie asks.

“What do you mean?” I ask not turning around.

“What you said to Fanny,” Natalie asks again, “was it true?”

I turn my head around and stare at Natalie, “for the most part what I said was true.”

“What does that mean?” She asks.

“It means I did watch my mother and wife turn into Zombies, and yes I killed them, and it kills me on the inside to think about it,” I start, “but in no way am I thankful to still be alive.” I get to my feet, “honestly I think about putting a gun in my mouth every morning and ending it all.”

“Then why would you tell her all that?” Natalie asks shocked.

“Because she is still young. She is an opportunity for the human race to survive,” I explain, “She is the future, with a lot of stress and shit on her plate already. She deserves at least one positive memory in all this.”

Natalie looks at me in silence before finally nodding at me, “you did well. Connor was right you are a good leader.”

“Thanks. But most days I don’t feel like one,” I say.

“Well, things are stressful and you have to make a lot of tough choices. But you do what you need to do, and unlike many others you do what’s best for us as a whole rather then what makes us happy, ” Natalie tries to comfort me.

“I got almost two hundred people killed evacuating a bunker. Your friends,” I argue.

“They were dead anyway,” She says.

“What are you talking about?” I ask.

“Our food situation was actually worse than you were told,” She sighs, “our rations were basically depleted. Our scout teams were having more and more trouble finding any food, much less enough for a whole bunker. I knew we were doomed staying there, but I kept my mouth shut not wanting to cause any problems. We would have starved to death long before the Zombies would have breached our security.”

“Everyone in the bunker was willing to sacrifice everything for a false since of security?” I question.

“There were only a few of us who actually knew the food situation. Emmanuel, Matthew, and myself to be precise,” she replies.

“Matthew knew that the food was running out? But he fought the idea of leaving. Actually, I think he still resents me for getting everyone out of there,” I growl.

“Yeah well, Matthew is a shit head,” Natalie smirks.

“I’ve noticed,” I say sharing a laugh with her.

She continues to smile until Connor starts to grunt in his sleep. Her attention turns to his sleeping body, I urge her to go to him. She smiles before thanking me again for our talk before creeping over to Connor, stroking his head and calming him down. I turn my attention back to the window watching the rain fall, feeling a little bit better about our current situation.

Chapter 19 October 24th, 2037

The rain had stopped a few days ago, freeing us from our drafty farm house setting. The weather is warm and slightly sticky, even in this late October date. I’ve never been this far south before, it feels like a whole new setting. It even smells different, with wild flowers still in bloom releasing a sweet smell that is almost relaxing. Connor says we are almost in South Carolina. I’m slightly surprised by that because North Carolina as of now has been quite uneventful. Not that I’m complaining about the slight peace and calm surroundings, but I have learnt that usually the quiet places normally cause us the most pain and grief.

“Where are we even going?” Matthew complains from the back of the pack.

“I’m not sure yet,” I reply.

“Well you better figure it out soon,” Kennedy bitches, “it’s going to be dark soon.”

“I know,” I grumble.

“There is an old base, Fort Bragg near Fayetteville,” Connor says speaking up, “if it’s empty it might be a good place to camp out.”

“Are you sure that it’ll be safe there?” Penelope asks.

“Yeah,” Connor nods, “chances are if anyone from the base survived they are either in a bunker acting as security, or have left.”

“What about weapons?” Natalie asks hopefully.

“Not likely. Any survivors most likely cleared out the armory,” Connor answers.

“How do you know about this place?” Matthew asks snidely.

“I trained here right after high school,” Connor answers keeping his cool.

“What if this place is overrun by Zombies? Did you think of that?” Matthew continues to rant from the back.

“Honey maybe you should relax a little,” Kennedy whispers.

“Sorry if I sound a little rude, but so far since joining your friends I’ve watched everyone I care about die,” Matthew starts, “dragged into another bunker where we were almost wiped out by a deranged military super, all for what? Supposed safety in a bunker in Florida? What do we know about it? What do we know about this fort we are headed for now? Nothing! And I’m supposed to just trust them?”

“No,” Kennedy answers, “but you are supposed to trust me.”

“That’s hard to do when you just follow them blindly,” Matthew hisses.

I can’t handle listening to his whining any longer. I stop dead in my tracks and turn around my fist clenched as tight as possible as I crack him hard in the side of the face. “Shut up,” I yell, “Alright? If you are just going to continue complaining then you can just leave. We don’t need you, or your negativity.”

“Damian you don’t have to be such a dick,” Kennedy growls from her knees, tending to Matthew’s bruised cheek.”

“He’s right though,” Penelope says, “Matthew has been nothing to our team but dead weight.”

“You stay out of this you slut,” Kennedy barks.

“There is no need for name calling,” Connor orders, “now get along or I’ll separate you all.”

Fanny pulls me and Penelope away from the rest of the group, bringing us over to the shady side of a tree. I look back at the group, Jeremy has a worried look on his face as Connor begins to lecture Kennedy and Matthew.

“Why did you do that?” Fanny asked.

“I don’t know,” I sigh, “he just pisses me off so much sometimes.”

“But I thought you said you’d do anything for this team. That we were a family,” Fanny rambles.

“I know. I’m sorry, I really am,” I sigh again, “I didn’t mean it.”

“Don’t apologize to me, apologize to him,” Fanny rations, “and Kennedy too.”

“I didn’t do anything to her,” I defend.

“Your right,” Penelope says cutting Fanny off, “we did. And maybe it’s time we all made peace.”

“But we didn’t do anything wrong,” I debate.

“Then do it for me,” Penelope says with a half-smile.

“Do it for us,” Fanny says taking my hand.

“Fine,” I say giving in. These two girls really know how to tug on my heart strings.

I take a few minutes straggling around before finally walking over to the rest of the group. Pride is building in my chest, I hate admitting when I’m wrong, and especially when I don’t think I was. But instead others played on my emotions and forced me to do it.

“What do you want?” Kennedy snarls.

“To apologize to you and Matthew,” I force myself to say.

“Do you mean it?” Kennedy asks, not letting her guard down.

“Yes,” I nod, “I let my emotions get the best of me, and I’m sorry.”

Kennedy and Matthew glare at me, it’s almost as if they know I’m lying.

“The bible teaches us forgiveness,” Matthew sighs, “so let me be the first to accept your apology.” He reaches out his hand for mine, I hesitantly accept his hand to make peace.

“What about you?” I ask Kennedy.

“No,” She utters, “you hurt me in such a way that I can’t just let go just because you want to get along.”

“Fine then,” I say, “that’s fair.”

“Perhaps we should continue on?” Jeremy says, “I don’t think I want to be out here when it gets dark.”

Kennedy helps Matthew to his feet and follows Connor as he starts back on his way.

“I wouldn’t worry about the Zombies,” Natalie says softly to Jeremy, “after all of this, I’d be more worried about being locked up in a house with them.”

We reached Fort Bragg a little after sundown. Connor walks though the fort with his head held high and his gun held higher. There are a lot of different buildings surrounding us, each one we pass fills me with a little more anxiety.

“Are we going to have to check each building?” Fanny asks, sharing my worry.

“No we should be fine if we just stick with the barracks and mess hall,” Connor says.

“What about light?” I ask, “I’m guessing there isn’t a way to keep a fire going.”

“The supply room should have a portable generator, or possibly a lantern,” He reasons.

“Alright, so what’s the plan?” I ask.

“We secure the barracks firstly,” he answers continuing to head for the barracks.

“And after that?” I ask rushing to catch up to him.

“I’m not sure. I’m kind of winging this,” Connor admits.

We follow him across the grounds, sprinting to keep up with him. We are out of breath by the time we make it to the door of the barracks.

“There are two doors in this building,” Connor calls out to us, “this one and one in the back. There are also multiple windows.”

“Do we need to barricade them all?” Penelope asks.

“No,” Connor remarks.

“Ok we have a plan,” I say, “now who wants to be the first one inside?”

Everyone nominates Connor, who accepts his responsibility. He slides the shotgun off his back and pumps it twice. He gradually opens the door and enters the barracks. His hand reaches out and clicks the light switch hoping for a tiny bit of luck. I follow behind him after he gives the ok. My sword is drawn in anticipation as I enter the hot, dark room.

“This room brings back memories,” Connor reminisces.

“I’m glad, but do you think you could save the reminiscing for after we clear this room?” I ask

“Yeah, sorry,” he says, “I just didn’t think coming back here would feel like this.” He says making it to the other room, “CLEAR!”

“Clear over here too,” I call back to him. I put my sword back in my sheath and meet back up with him in the middle of the barrack floor. “So you really trained here?”

“Yeah. Right out of high school,” He says tossing his gun back over his shoulder, “I didn’t have much in the way of family. My mother died when I was young. She was coming home from work one day and a drunk driver hit her as she was crossing the road. My father didn’t do too well after she died, he took to the bottle, hard. Everything I did after he ‘medicated himself’ bothered him. He used to beat me something senseless too, with his belt, an extension cord, basically anything that he could find lying around.”

“I’m sorry,” I said sympathetically.

“Its fine,” he declares, “I just learned to stay out of his way. I studied hard, played football in school, you know anything that kept me out of the house. I signed up for the military when I was seventeen and as soon as I hit eighteen I was sent here for training. Best six months of my life.” he continued as we opened the door up for the others.

“Alright, what’s next?” Natalie asks.

“We need food and supplies,” I remind everyone.

“The supply building is in the back. We passed the mess hall on our way here,” Connors explains.

“Alright, Connor, you and Natalie head to the supply building. Gather whatever you can find to supply light and anything else useful. Penelope come with me, we’ll gather food,” I say.

“What and the rest of us just wait here?” Kennedy questions, her face turning bright red as she continues to get madder.

“Yes. Stay here and protect the others,” I order.

“No,” Kennedy replies getting right up into my face, “why don’t I go and get food with you?”

“I don’t think that is such a good idea,” I say, trying to remain calm.

“Why? Because I’m just the healer? Because you don’t trust me? Why? What is your reason?” she growls.

“Because I think it would just be easier if you stay here and protect the others,” I reply.

“Just let her go,” Fanny says tugging on my sleeve.

“Yeah, I’ll stay here and protect the others,” Penelope says giving in.

“Fine,” I groan knowing that I’m out numbered.

The four of us walk out of the barracks. Connor gives us directions to the mess hall. We part ways, but I can’t help from watching the two disappear into the darkness. Kennedy and I walk quietly across the base until we come to a rather large building, the words ‘MESS HALL’ written across the top. I gesture for Kennedy to watch my back as I push the door open and slink inside.

“Do you still have that flashlight?” Kennedy asked.

“Yeah,” I say pulling the small flashlight out of my pocket. The light is dimmer than usual, I haven’t been able to switch out the batteries in a while.

Even with the dimmer light I can see the paintings on the wall. The paintings line the right wall, the first one a commemorative painting of a corporal who died on the base. I continue to follow the paintings down the wall. They continue on down the wall according to rank. After the fallen corporal there is a picture of the master sergeant who is in charge of the base. He looks like a relatively younger man standing in front of the flagpole out front, dressed in his army greens his arms folded behind his back. The next is a close up painting of a bald man, also wearing army greens. He has a thick white mustache that covers his stiff upper lip. His eyes are a piercing blue, even in a painting he commands respect. He has four stars on his shoulder that seem to just leap out of the frame.

“General Paul Kissner,” I read off the name plate.

“Who’s he?” Kennedy asks.

“General Kissner,” I reply.

“I see,” she says still lost.

I continue to work the light down the line of paintings, passing over the Secretary of defense and Vice President, both with red X’s over their pictures. I stop the light on the painting of the president. He also has a close up painting, cut off just under his chest. His white button down shirt is still visible even behind his bright red tie and royal blue blazer. He has a half smile on his clean shaven face, and sensitive eyes that seem to follow you as you move.

“President Keven Quinn,” I read, “Elected November 15th, 2036.”

“Yeah I know that,” Kennedy snips at me.

“Ok. Just trying to help,” I laugh.

“But why are the Vice President and Secretary of Defense Paintings crossed out?” Kennedy asks, looking back at the other paintings.

“I’m not sure,” I say, “but I do remember seeing the Secretary of Defense on the news before the virus was dropped. But I can’t remember why.”

“Hmm, that’s peculiar,” She says.

“Yeah, but it’s not why we’re here,” I say breaking our focus away from the paintings, “let’s see what food we can find.”

“Fine,” Kennedy says with a grumpy tone.

We continue on through the hallway, checking any door we find along the way. We make it around the corner, stepping foot on the linoleum floor of the cafeteria. Several rows of tables line the floor of the cafeteria. Vacant lines that pass by the service area haunt my vision. The thought of how many men and women passed through that line morning, noon, and night send shivers down my spine.

“To think, no one will ever wait in that line again,” I mumble.

“Someday they will,” Kennedy says placing her hand on my shoulder trying to comfort me.

“I hope so,” I say looking at her with a smile. She quickly removes her hand and turns her head away from me.

It is the first time she has been decent to me since I slept with Penelope. I shake it off and start walking through the cafeteria and into the kitchen. The kitchen is rather large, with stainless steel lining the walls. Big metal tables are placed around the middle of the kitchen with four big stoves line up along a middle wall sitting underneath vents. On the other side of the wall there are three metal racks filled with a huge assortment of canned goods.

“That’s enough food to last us for weeks,” Kennedy gushes.

“Yeah,” I say picking up a can, “it looks like this base just up and left.”

“But why?” Kennedy asks.

“I’m not sure,” I reply, “We should find the walk in. Hopefully there is some water left.”

“Yeah, but how are we going to carry all this back anyway?” Kennedy asks.

“I don’t know yet,” I chuckle.

We walk through the kitchen looking for the walk in. We follow the back wall, my flashlight starting to flicker as we come across a large metal door. Kennedy readies her gun as I swing the door open. We choke and cough when the door is open, a rancid smell coming out from the walk in.

“Oh god, everything in here has rotted,” Kennedy gags.

“Yeah, but water doesn’t rot,” I say taking a deep breath and walking into the foul-smelling cooler.

My light has almost died out by the time I make it deep inside the walk in. The smell coming from the walk in is so bad that I can feel my eyes burning even without taking a breath. The dull light cuts in and out, I whack the bottom of the flashlight hoping for just a few more moments of light. The light comes on again, slightly brighter than before. It glows just bright enough for me to see the case of bottled water sitting on the bottom shelf. I can feel my lungs begging for air as I reach down and pick the case up. I rush back out of the cooler, the case of warm water firmly in my grasp, gasping for fresh air.

“You ok?” Kennedy asks standing in front of a large stock pot.

“I’m fine,” I say still gasping for air, “what’s that for?”

“I thought we could throw some of the cans in here. You know, make it easy to carry them back to the barracks,” she answers.

“That’s a good idea,” I say.

She carries the pot while I carry the case of water back over to the cans. My flashlight is now dead and we fumble through the dark. We bump into walls and each other before finally finding the cans.

“How many should we take?” Kennedy asks.

“Fill the pot,” I reply.

The pot takes a few cans before we start back out of the mess hall. We sort and stagger around the dark kitchen, somehow managing to find our way back to the cafeteria. Kennedy drags the pan behind us, the grinding sound of the pan on the floor echoes loudly through the otherwise quiet building.

“You’re going to have to carry that,” I say stopping her, “that sound is giving us away.”

“I can’t. It’s too heavy,” she says upset.

“What about the water? Could you carry that instead?” I ask.

“I can try,” she groans.

I place the case of water in her arms, she grunts, struggling to keep the case wrapped in her arms. I lift the pot off the ground with much effort, as we struggle to make our way out of the cafeteria and back into the hall. I waddle ahead struggling to keep the pot off the ground. I stop near the door waiting for Kennedy, the light of the moon shining through each of the windows on the double doors. I look out the windows, admiring the moonlight when a shadow sneaks by slowly just past the door. I back away, leaving the pot near the door, until I reach Kennedy a few paces behind me.

“What’s wrong?” Kennedy asks.

“There is something outside,” I answer, my voice a whisper, “slowly put the water down and follow me back to the cafeteria.”

Kennedy drops the case of water on the ground with a loud thud before giving me an apologetic look. We back pedal around the corner back into the cafeteria, hiding ourselves behind the wall.

“Are you sure it was a Zombie?” Kennedy asks, “I mean what if it was one of the others looking for us?”

“I’m not sure, but if you would like to go check be my guest,” I reply sarcastically.

“Hey no need to be an ass. I was just trying to think rationally,” Kennedy says snidely.

“Your right, I’m sorry,” I say with a sigh, “I was just taking precautions. Let’s take a minute then we can go out and look.”

Kennedy nods in agreement. I can barely see her face but I can sense the fear her body is emitting. I want to comfort her, but I don’t know how to go about it. Are things different because of the situation we are in? Or should I just let it go?

“How are you holding up I ask?” breaking some of the tension.

“Better than can be expected,” She answers. I can feel the vibrations from her leg shaking, “starting to miss the whole, ‘waiting at the safe house.’” She chuckles

“Sorry I didn’t prepare you better,” I utter, “I should have let you out every once and a while.”

“It’s fine. I mean, I know I complained about not getting out more. But the truth is it wasn’t about doing more for the group, I was mostly trying to impress you,” She says, her voice raspy.

“Really?” I ask feeling a renewed sense of pride.

“Yeah. Ever since I first saw you,” her voice fading out as she talks, “I guess Penelope just did a better job at getting to you first.”

That one hurt. I feel speechless, leaving the room cloaked in an awkward silence, Kennedy’s constant sighing the one exception.

“I’m sorry I hurt you,” I mumble, “but I swear it wasn’t intentional.”

“I know. Still didn’t make it hurt any less,” she whispers.

I move my hand close to her outline, I can feel the smoothness of her arm. My hand slides up her arm to her shoulder and I pull her close to me. Both of my arms wrap around her tightly, my chin resting on her head as she rests against my chest. Our tender moment is cut short by the sounds of slamming outside of the building. We both perk up, getting into ready positions. I hear Kennedy’s gun cock as I release my sword from its scabbard, the metallic hiss ringing through the room. We stand back to back, trying to scan the darkness for any sign of trouble.

“I can’t see anything,” Kennedy utters.

“Me either,” I agree, “We need to make our way outside.”

I grab Kennedy by the arm and keep her close to me as I hug the wall following it back to the hallway.

“What about the food?” Kennedy whispers.

“Leave it for now. We’ll come back for it if we can,” I answer.

We make it back to the door and I let go of Kennedy’s arm, “you ready for this?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” she stutters.

We burst through the door spinning around, searching for any sign of trouble.

“Clear,” I call to Kennedy.

“I don’t see anything either,” Kennedy says back to me, “what now?”

“Do you remember where the barracks are?” I ask.

“Yeah?” she says confused.

“Good, on the count of three run for it,” I say, “ready. One… two… three!”

We take off running, my sword swinging wildly with each step I take. I can hear Kennedy panting closely behind me as we follow the dirt path toward the barracks. I hear Kennedy scream, her gun letting out a loud bang causing me to wrap my hands behind my head and drop to the ground.

“Kennedy!?” I yell.

“I’m alright,” she replies, “I just tripped.”

It takes me a moment to peel myself off the ground. I find Kennedy a few steps behind me sitting on the ground, her hands wrapped around her right ankle.

“Is it bad?” I ask.

“No, it just feels like a sprain,” she replies, “but I don’t think I can walk on it.”

I slide my sword back into scabbard and extend my arm and help her off the ground. She stumbles to walk, slowing me down. I lift her off the ground cradling her body between my arms and finish bringing her back to the barracks. Connor and Natalie have already returned. The barracks is now dimly lit, a soft glow comes from the lamps still plugged in a soft hum comes from the other side of the room.

“Jeremy we could use your help,” I call out.

Jeremy rushes over as I sit Kennedy down on the closest bed. I walk away, leaving Jeremy to tend to Kennedy’s ankle. I walk over to Connor, a feeling of disappointment on my face.

“Everything Ok?” he asks.

“I’m not sure,” I sigh, “I mean we were leaving the mess hall when I could have sworn I saw a shadow pass by.”

“I was actually asking about Kennedy’s leg, but tell me more about the shadow you saw,” Connor says.

“Well firstly Kennedy said her ankle felt like a sprain, so it will just need time to heal,” I start, “secondly, as I was saying, Kennedy and I had just gathered supplies and made it out to the hall. When I was waiting for Kennedy to catch up to me, I saw something rush past the windows in the doors. I didn’t see what it was but I think something is here.”

“What about the food? Is it still in the mess hall?” Connor asks.

“Yeah. We gathered it in a pot and carried it out. When I saw the shadow I left it there. It would have just slowed us down,” I nod.

“Smart move,” he says.

“What do you think? Is it worth going back out tonight?” I ask.

“No,” he says, “we should have enough to get us through the night. We can get it in the morning. Should be safer in the light.”

“Sounds good, because I am beat,” I chortle.

“Why don’t you get some rest? I’ll take first watch,” he offers.

“Alright. But there is something I have to do first,” I say, getting onto my feet.

I walk over to Kennedy, still in bed, Jeremy has wrapped an ace bandage around her ankle.

“How you feeling?” I ask sitting at the edge of the bed.

“I’m fine,” She nods, “Jeremy confirmed what I thought. I sprained it. Was Connor mad about the food?”

“No,” I smirk, “he says we’ll make it through the night with the provisions we got. We’ll get the rest in the morning. He then told me to get some rest because I am completely wiped. I just wanted to check on you first.”

“Well I’m fine, thank you,” Kennedy smiles, “Jeremy also gave me some pain medicine.”

“I hope it helps. Why don’t you rest up,” I say getting back to my feet, exchanging smiles one last time before I walk back to the other side of the room and cuddle up beside Penelope in one of the beds and drift off to sleep.

Chapter 20 October 25th, 2037

It wasn’t the best sleep I ever had, but it was definitely better then I’ve had lately. Connor had never woken me up during the night for my shift. Sunlight peaks through the glass in the windows. The sounds of birds chirping outside gets me to sit up in bed. I look around the room and find Connor and Natalie sitting up near the unblocked door playing cards. The rest of the group is still asleep as I climb out of bed and walk over to the pair.

“Why didn’t you wake me up?” I ask.

Connor looks down at his watch and then back at me, a look of amazement washed over his face, “I just lost track of time. Natalie and I have been up all night talking.”

“Oh, sorry if I bothered something intimate,” I say backing away.

“Oh not at all,” Natalie smiled, “we were actually entertaining ourselves with ridiculous theories about the Omega Virus.”

“Sounds…interesting,” I say confused.

“I know it sounds insane,” Connor says, reading the look on my face, “but you know what it helps pass the time. Now what do you say we go and get that food? I’m starving.”

I nod, not knowing what to say to either of them. Connor and I leave Natalie to watch over the others as we sneak out of the barracks and head back to the mess hall. I draw my sword before we enter the eatery. Connor enters first, I follow right behind him after taking one last look around at our surroundings.

“Where did you leave the food?” Connor asks.

“Right…here,” I say walking next to Connor and realizing the pot of canned goods missing, “I swear I put it down right around here.”

“Well this isn’t good,” Connor says frantically, “tell me again where you saw that shadow.”

“Right out these windows,” I say turning my back to him, pointing at the doors. I feel a hard clunk on the back of my head, I fall to my knees before another hard thump knocks me out.

I awake sometime later with an extreme throbbing pain in my head. My arms are chained together above my head, my feet still firmly planted on the ground as I look beside me and see Connor still unconscious.

“Oh come on, not again,” I moan. I turn myself around, trying to figure out where we are being held.

“You are being held in the armory,” a voice calls out from the shadows.

“How did you know?” the words stagger out of my mouth.

“You were looking around,” a man walks out of the shadows, he looks slightly familiar.

It takes me a moment staring at his face before I recognize him from the painting in the mess hall, “I’ve seen your painting in the hallway leading to the mess hall.”

“That’s right boy,” the man says, his voice deep and raspy like someone who smoked cigars most of his life.

“What are you going to do with us?” I ask.

“It depends on how much you’re willing to cooperate,” he says lifting a rather large knife of a shelf in front of him.

“We’re willing to do whatever it takes,” I say.

“Ugh,” Connor grunts as his eyes open slowly, “what? What happened?”

“Great, you’re both awake,” the man says taking a few steps toward us, “it’s only sporting when everyone is participating.”

“Participating in what?” Connor asks in a slurred voice.

“Why the Q and A portion of our day,” the man says with a wide grin.

“Before anything happens to us I think you should know that we aren’t alone here,” I say.

“Yes, I know. I believe you were all camping out in the barracks last night,” the man answers.

“You seem to know a lot about us,” Connor says, the slurring fading away, “what more is there for us to answer?”

“You could tell me who sent you here!” He yells, driving his knife through the shelf. “Was it Kissner or was it Quinn?”

“No one sent us here,” I protest.

“Yeah we only came here because it seemed safe,” Connor added.

“Liars,” he spits.

“No, honest,” I cry out.

“Then what made you think this place would be safe?” He growls.

“Sir, I trained here as a boy,” Connor barks, “It was the first place I called home.”

“Is that so? Then you’re telling me you are a military man too?” he questions.

“Sir, Yes sir,” Connor call out “Active until my wife’s death sir.”

“Sorry about your loss soldier,” the man says, “but that isn’t enough for me to release you.”

“Why would you think President Quinn would send us here?” I ask.

“Why would you think I meant President Quinn boy? Got something to hide?” the man growls.

“No but like I told you, I saw the paintings. Kissner is the name of the General, the one a few paintings away from President Quinn,” I explain, “come to think of it between the two paintings there were ones of the Vice President and Secretary of Defense. Both of those paintings had giant red Xs across them, any explanation about that?”

“Oh I added the Xs,” the man admits, “the day I got word of their deaths.”

“What is your name?” Connor asks.

“I am Master Sargent Erik Summers, well former Master Sargent anyway. I doubt the title still holds after I shot at a superior officer,” He laughs.

“Sargent Summers,” I start.

“That’s Master Sargent boy,” He yells.

“I’m sorry, Master Sargent,” I fix myself, “but I think things might go smoother if you cut us down and we all talk about this rationally.”

“I can’t do that. Because I know as soon as I cut you down you’ll cross me,” Eric says, “they always cross me.”

“No sir, I give you my word that we won’t cross you,” I plead.

“He’s right Master Sargent,” Connor chimes in, “we are just trying to keep you alive.”

“What are you going on about boy?” Eric asks.

“The others waiting for us in the barracks are all armed, and they will come looking for us if we are gone too long. Now you seem like an understanding guy and I’m sure we could help each other out,” Connor reasons.

The Master Sargent scowls at both of us, the gears in his churning as he analyses us, debating with himself. “If I let you down, and you betray me, I will kill you. And I’m not talking about a fast kill, I’m talking a slow tortuous death. Understood?”

We both nod. He takes one last look at us before unlocking each of our locks.

I rub my wrists when he frees me, “Where is my sword?”

“It’s safe,” Eric says, “you’ll get it back when I know I can trust you.”

“Do you want to go back to the barracks and talk?” Connor asks, “We could introduce you to the rest of our group.”

“You mean out number me,” Eric hisses.

“I mean showing a sign of faith, from both side,” Connor answers.

“Fine,” Eric sighs, “but if I feel ganged up on at any point…” he runs his index finger under his throat.

“Understood,” Connor and I say in harmony.

I watch Eric grab my sword from behind the shelves and slide it onto my back. I feel a jealous rage inside me, like he had just slept with my wife. He leads us out of the armory and back to the barracks. Connor and I walk through the doors, the others watch as we step aside revealing Eric.

“Who’s this?” Natalie questions.

“A survivor,” I say, “The same as us.”

“But he is military. The last time we trusted military we all nearly died,” Matthew says, noticing the faded army greens the Master Sargent is wearing.

“I am former military,” Connor growls, “don’t forget that.” Matthew backs down.

“Does he have a name?” Penelope asks.

“Ma’am I am Master Sargent Eric Summers,” he replies.

“Nice to meet you Master Sargent,” Jeremy says moving in closer, “just so we make no mistake, have you ever had any connection with a Lieutenant Mason Daily?”

“No sir,” Eric replies, “Former military?”

“Something like that,” Connor laughs, “see the short version is Doctor Fairfield here was one of the scientists who worked on the Omega Virus.”

“SERUM,” Jeremy interrupts.

“Sorry, Serum,” Connor clarifies, “He was ordered by his superiors to work on an antivirus. When we talked him into scrapping his work, Mason went crazy, saying he had orders to make sure Jeremy finished. He tried to kill us, but instead Natalie killed him.”

“Do you know who gave orders to the Lieutenant?” Eric asks Jeremy.

“Not sure,” Jeremy answers, “but he said it came from someone up top.”

“Kissner!” Eric growls.

“Who?” Kennedy asks.

“General Paul Kissner. He was formerly a three star General, but he gained his fourth star a week before the virus hit,” Eric explains, “Matter of fact this very base had a ceremony for him. President Quinn was here as well, honoring the newly promoted General.”

“Wait. Were they both here when the Virus hit?” Connor asked.

“Yes, actually they gave the orders for the nuclear strike in the court yard,” Eric replies.

“They knew,” Jeremy gasps.

“What do you mean?” Fanny asks.

“The President and the General had to have known that the virus was going to hit. How many promotion ceremonies does this fort see on a regular basis?” Jeremy asks.

“Usually we see a few, but never a General. That is usually reserved for a Senate hearing. But Kissner asked for his ceremony to be here,” Eric said.

“That does seem rather strange,” Kennedy says.

“That’s also the day I crossed out the Defense Secretary and Vice President’s paintings,” Eric groaned.

“They were left in D.C. weren’t they,” I ask.

“Yes,” Eric says bowing his head, “They were among the first confirmed dead.”

“But what possible motive could the President have in killing millions of people,” Matthew asks.

“What is the only motive for doing anything?” Connor says, “Power.”

“It does seem plausible,” Eric says, “I mean during this time of crisis it’s not like the President will be asked to step down anytime soon.”

“But what good is power if you have no one to lord it over?” Natalie asks.

“He does have people,” I say, “look how easy Mason was controlled, just because he was ordered.”

“It’s really quite genius,” Jeremy says, “I mean he basically took out anyone who would oppose him, while those closest to him, willing to obey his commands have been given shelter inside bunkers.”

“But what if it’s not President Quinn,” Natalie asks.

“What do you mean? It has to be him, he’s top of the food chain,” Penelope argues.

“Unless someone else is pulling his strings,” Natalie replies with a grin.

“Kissner,” Eric says punching his fist through the wall of the cave.

“But is there any logical way of stopping them?” Kennedy asks.

“There is a group of resistance fighters who make their base one of the smaller keys, just off of Florida,” Eric says, “I’ve been in radio contact with them sporadically.”

“Wait, resistance fighters? Like they knew President Quinn was evil already?” Fanny asks.

“No. They are more like a last resort, protection team,” Eric replies.

“Any way for us to contact them and figure out a plan to stop all of this?” I ask.

“Not currently,” Eric sighs, “There communications went down the other day, most likely ran out of power. But they will be coming ashore late December to replenish their supplies. There is a hidden bunker in Miami where they stock up.”

“That’s where we are headed,” Kennedy says.

“After blowing up a bunker in New York, then killing one of their men in D.C. the Miami bunker seemed to be our best bet. We were told there was no personnel there,” Connor explains.

“You guys sure get around,” Eric jokes, “But yes, technically the bunker is empty. Like I was saying it’s really more of a docking station. Smaller than most but still stocked with plenty of supplies and completely impenetrable to attack.”

“Do you know how to get in?” Natalie asks.

“Yes, I have been there several times,” Eric nods.

“What about the resistance, will they help us?” I ask.

“We may have to coerce them more then I’d like, but yes I believe they will,” Eric answers.

“Alright, then we continue on,” Connor says, “tomorrow morning.”

We all agree. Eric even shows me and Connor where he stashed our supply of food. The day continued on slowly, part of my brain continued to wonder if we were really going to be able to take down what’s rest of the government.