It could Kill you, ya know

                             

It could Kill You, Ya know

Day 24: Wall Township, NJ.  0600 hours

         Twenty four days, that’s all it took, 576 hours; 34,560 seconds and the world was gone. As the sun climbed up into view, a cigarette burns slowly as the smoke settles. Beams of light came in through the window, and shone on the small group of people huddled in the corner. “Time to get up, come on lets go, the sun is up.” Ralph said as he light another cigarette. “We have to check outside.” Yawned Jeff, “Some of the traps went off in the night.” Jeff continued. “Yea I know, they are getting close, we’re going to have to find a new place, or risk not waking up in the morning.” Ralph said as he neared the heavy metal door, holding his shotgun. “I’ll be back, you know the challenge, Fallen, respond with Angle. Get the rest up and fed, we move today.” Ralph shut the door behind him, as he looked out into the street, still smoking the cigarette.

         “Come on guys, come eat.” Jeff said with food in his mouth. He was one of two in the group with military training, the other one was Ralph, but he was on patrol this morning, and it was Jeff’s turn to cook. Crawling over to the fire came Emily, John, and their mother, Joan. As they settled in, a shotgun blast echoed in the distance, that was a good sound. “Why mom, why is this happening?” asked Emily looking up at Joan as little rivers carved their way down her dirty cheeks. “I don’t know baby girl, all I know is if we stay together, we will be fine.” Joan responded, giving Jeff a worried look.

         The government is gone. They thought they had this under control, but when Washington D.C. fell, the country fell. Our once prized documents, in their bullet proof cases, lay under blood smeared glass, and our cars that we once drove freely, clog and chock the streets. Broken glass with blood splatter on most of them. They were the first to go. Sitting in traffic while the area around you goes from lush greenery to a gut retching blood red, then your turn to join this new life comes. They drag you through your window, from your car kicking and screaming, fighting… Fighting was useless, once they took hold of you, you were gone. They encompass our fear, and they devour all signs of life from your body. One bite turns to shredding your organs all over the pavement. Once they’re done with eating your life, you join them. This is how they spread, how they survive, and how we die.

         Ralph and Jeff were at the window looking out into the waste land, “We have to get out of here.” Said Jeff to Ralph with the last cigarette of the day, “I know, tomorrow we move, we have to get to that green zone, if it exists, it’s our only hope” Ralph exhaled a plume of smoke. “I reset the traps, they should hold, I hope.” Jeff said turning to gaze on the sleeping family. “Good, get some sleep.” Ralph said as the sizzling sound of burn flesh reached his nostrils, as he extinguished his cigarette.

Day 25: Wall Township, NJ 1201 Hours

         Ralph sat up loading his shotgun, as Jeff woke up. “Traps; one, two, and three triggered. One more to go, get the others up and ready to move.” Ralph whispered to Jeff as he looked through the peep whole in the door. The street seemed to be alive, glass being broken, bushes moving, doors slamming, they’re searching, searching for the group. “Mommy,” whimpered Emily all of a sudden, bang at the door. Flesh against metal, the sound of the night. Ralph tip toed to the door to see what it was. Peering through the little round glass hole, he saw nothing. A sign in relief was just enough to undo all that has been done to stay hidden. Looking again through the hole, was an eye ball peering right back. Red blood shot eyes looked into Ralphs cold dark eyes. Through the glass Ralph watched as he, she, IT, licked the door, covering the peep hole with a film of blood. Backing slowly Ralph pushed everyone behind him, “Make sure they get out.” He yelled to Jeff as the door gave way to bodies upon bodies running through the door. Shell after shell fell to the ground as Ralph pumped his shotgun to hold off the onslaught before him. As he started to reload Ralph turned to Jeff and said “Take these,” Ralph handed Jeff his dog tags, “now get them out the back door.” Ralph threw Jeff, and continued his methodical slaughter of them.

         “Go, Go, Go, and crawl through!” Jeff yelled at Joan, Emily and John, as he moved a heavy piece of wood. The gun fire started to fade off down the tunnel, no light, they continued to crawl. John emerged at the end of the tunnel and began to help his sister and mother out of the hole. Jeff was looking back hoping that Ralph had made it, but knowing he probably didn’t. “Alright, we need a place to hold up in till morning. It will be six hours before day light, but till then, we’re on the menu.” Jeff said to the group as he checked his rifle.

         Ralph’s dog tags bounce on Jeff’s chest as they continued their search for shelter. An hour passed, just as they had given up hope on finding a place to stay, Jeff found a small shack to hide in. “I’ll check it out, any sign of trouble yell Fallen, and I’ll yell Angle,” Jeff said kneeling down looking John in the eye. Jeff slowly crept up to the wall of the shack, and peered through the window. “Nothing, nothing in view,” he though to himself, as the floor creek under his weight, pushing the front door open with the muzzle of the rifle. “Clear!” Jeff yelled to the John, Emily and Joan, in a minute they were panting hard at the door. “Come on in, make yourself at home” Jeff said emptying the grab bag that is set up for emergencies. “A days worth of food, two days worth of water, and two bricks of ammunition, a 100 rounds total.” Said Joan as she laid everything out on the floor. “Mommy I’m hungry” moaned John as he held his stomach. “I know bab…” Joan was silenced by Jeff’s hand on her mouth. With a finger over his mouth “Shhhhh” Jeff whispered as he walked to the window. Just as he reached it, a hand came though a hole and grabbed Joan and started to pull her out through the wall. “AHHH MOMMY!” yelled Emily and John as they ran to help their mother. “Jeff, Jeff. HELP!!! They got my leg!” Joan yelled as she dug her nails in to the wood of the floor. Jeff dove and grabbed her hand, but there were too many of them, and they started to break the door down in the front. “Save my children,” Joan said as the tears began to fall, then she was gone. Jeff looked at the nails, still dug into the wood, and the nail trails that lead out through the hole, and thought “Now what.”

         Surrounded and low on ammo, Jeff picked up the two kids, Emily and John still in shock. “Close your eyes kids it will be ok,” Jeff said as tears fell. Jeff took out a hand grenade,”They will not have us” he said, as he was about to pull the pin. Out in the darkness came lights, and over powering the groans and moans, came a song, the Mexican hat song. Plow attached, pushing through the masses, right up to the house then some. As the window rolled down, smoke fell out and a familiar face reappeared, “You three need a lift?” Ralph said, smiling with a cigarette in his mouth. “Yea, yea we do,” said Jeff with a smile on his face. Climbing in, Jeff asked what happened, “Nothing much, did my usual killing,” Responded Ralph, “My best find was this truck, with all these smokes!! I then spotted the house surrounded, and drove over here.” He continued and lit another smoke. “You know smoking could kill you.” Jeff said as he buckled his seat belt. Taking a long slow drag, the orange glow filled the cab, “Yea I know, but there are worse things out there.” Ralph tossed the cigarette out the window, and drove off into the rising sun. 



Day 83: New York City, New York 2030 Hours

         The Empire State building, the tallest building in the United States of America, now became our home. People come and go, but we stayed together since the beginning. Ralph still smokes like a chimney, not a minute out of the day is there not a light cigarette in his mouth, he wasn’t worried about getting cancer. Jeff took over taking care of Emily and John. They needed his help and support after watching their mother get dragged away and killed. The group made it; they made it to the green zone, and what a safe area it was. Manhattan Island, the big apple, completely surrounded by water, with tunnels and bridges the only means of getting onto the island. Only two ways exist now, the Holland Tunnel, and the Brookline Bridge, all others were blown by the military to keep the enemy away. The military had an overwhelming show of force on the tiny little island, check points on every street, razor wire on top of fences, and spot lights lighting up the sky. From the top of the Empire State building, Ralph stood smoking a cigarette, looking out to the other parts of New York. Brookline, Queens, and the Bronx and saw flames shooting up into the heavens, and heard the screams of women, children, and the hungry moans of the infected echoing in from the distance.

Day 84: New York, NY 0030

         Air raid sirens sounded, men shouted, and guns fired. “We are under attack, Report to safety areas.” Came over the load speaker, the women and children ran for safety, but there was none. Ralph stood up, put on his tactical vest, heavily loaded with ammo, and grabbed his gun. Jeff stood and did the same. “This is bad, this is real bad” Jeff said, “They have never massed an attack like this, their too dumb to!” Jeff continued to rant. The spot lights shown on the bridge, and even without binoculars, Ralph could see bodies hitting metal, and fall over the side and into the river. Lighting a cigarette, Ralph turned to John and Emily and said with a most sincere look on his face said, “It’s up to you two, if we don’t make it and those monsters start to run through the city, it is up to you to do it, John, Emily, you have to hit the fail safe, you must stop them.” Ralph took a deep drag and exhaled. “I love you both, stay low, and have no fear. They feed on fear.” Ralph finished with a hug, and then turned and walked out. Ralph could never do goodbyes, he has seen too many friends killed, but these two kids were different, they are innocent. Jeff leaned down to say his goodbyes; he ended them with giving each a kiss on the fore head. Jeff stood, tears rolling down his face, turned and ran into the battle.

         Through the window John and Emily could see all was lost. The gun fire had stopped, and no one was on the radio, only static. In the street below the command post, kids that once played with John and Emily ran around, blood pouring from their mouths. John and Emily were the only ones left, and they knew it. On the other side of the came a noise, Emily clutching John, “I don’t want to die!” the moans from behind the door grew louder as it hit the door repeatedly. “It will be ok Emily, were just gonna fall asleep, and feel no pain.” John said as he began to cry. Holding his sister tight, he pressed the read button on the transmitter. A flash of light, and that was it, eternal sleep