“Save us some food,” said Brown, his face glowing next to the flaming torch.
Sergeant Adler grabbed a rifle and followed after him.
“Your boys seem awful touchy,” said Maurice, tipping the last of the dry pasta into the pan.
“They’ve been through it,” said Li, holding his hands out to the fire.
“Well you can relax now. You guys have lucked out big time with this household, take it from me. These two right here – they’re special,” said the Canadian, pointing towards Lucy and Lopez.
“Special how?” said Li.
“We’re really not,” said Lucy, anxiously.
“She’s just being modest. She saved me from the creatures with her bare hands,” said the Canadian.
“You did?” said Li, his eyebrow raised.
“That’s not even close to what happened,” said Lucy.
“Don’t be so modest. There’s something about you, like a gift. A lucky charm,” said the Canadian.
“We could use some luck,” said Li, eyeing her up intently.
“Where’d you say you fellas came from again?” said Lopez.
“All over. Willis is from Detroit, I’m from Atlanta, the Sergeant’s from-” began Peters.
“I mean which regiment?” interrupted Lopez.
“Thirty Fourth Infantry,” replied Li.
“You’re a long way from Minnesota,” said Lopez.
“Our division got attacked. We got scattered,” Li replied.
“When?” said Lopez.
“About a month ago. We’ve been trying to get down south – to the coast,” said Li.
“Tiny issue of the country’s crawling with fuckin’ aliens,” said Peters. His features were small, and neat, though his lips were chapped.
“It’s Armageddon, I been sayin’ it for years but none of y’all believed me. We pissed off someone upstairs, and here we are,” said Willis.
“Wrong, dumbass. It’s the Russians gone done this. They got their labs, doing experiments and shit, and one of their creatures got out and wham, that was it. Now they’re all over the world,” said Peters. His eyes lit up as he espoused his theory.
“It’s not the Russians,” said Lucy.
“And you know that how?” said Peters.
“Because it started in space,” she replied.
“Bullshit. I don’t see no spaceships full of big-assed wolves,” snorted Peters.
“It was a bacterial cloud,” said Lucy.
“Like, a virus?” said Willis.
“Like a bacteria, moron,” said Li.
“The bacteria broke the satellites, then infected some astronauts, who brought it back to Earth,” said Lucy.
“Assholes,” cried Peters.
“Fuck’s sake, Larry, they didn’t mean to,” said Li. “Right?” he added, looking to Lucy.
“Right,” said Lucy.
“Hey that kinda figures – we all got given masks right after, cos the disease was in the air,” said Willis.
“How’d you explain the wolves, and the bats, and the weird moss stuff on all the buildings?” protested Peters.
“Ever heard the phrase ‘you are what you eat?’. That pretty much sums this pathogen up. It kills you, steals your DNA, then does a genetic lottery when it respawns. It’s how it’s scaled up,” said Lucy.
“Respawns?” said Li.
“They don’t breed like we do. D4 creatures are self-replicating. They don’t need the genetic variance of two parents, because they get it from their prey. But their mechanism is insane – it’s a reversal of what happens in human wombs. Every cell in the creature’s body reverts to a base state, so that you’re effectively left with a ball of stem cells, which then turn into something based on stolen DNA.”
“But if there’s no parent, how come you got whole packs of wolves?” said Peters.
“I’m guessing there’s some kind of horizontal gene transfer at play. Like in bacteria, which share successful adaptations – they could be sharing entire genetic maps. Maybe they infect each other with those maps, in the same way they infect their prey with some kind of enzyme. But that’s the crazy thing – here you’ve got a single pathogen taking a huge number of forms and competing against itself.”
“She gonna eat that?” said Willis, pointing to Jackson’s half-eaten plate of pasta.
“Maybe in the morning,” said Lucy.
“Huh,” grunted the soldier, scratching his bushy cheek.
“How often do the creatures respawn?” said Li.
“We actually don’t know what prompts the respawning, but the rate seems to correlate to size. Bigger variants take longer to breed, and will need more food, so you’ll see fewer of them. Plus they may be outcompeted by smaller ones,” said Lucy.
“How’d you know all that?” said Peters, eyeing her up suspiciously.
“She’s a scientist,” said Lopez.
“My colleagues figured it out, actually,” said Lucy.
“Where are they now?” said Willis.
Lucy stared at the fire.
“What kind of question is that?” hissed Li.
“I’m just asking, maybe they in a bunker or somethin’?” muttered Willis.
“They’re dead,” said Lucy, loudly.
“A’ight, so now we know. No bunker,” said Willis, shrugging.
“You said it is what it eats. You reckon that explains the zombie people?” asked Peters.
“They’re not ‘zombies’, man. They don’t eat brains, or bite people,” said Li.
“They look like shit and everyone avoids them, they might as well be,” said Peters.
“That sounds more like leprosy,” said Lucy.
“I heard Boston’s crawling with ‘em,” said Willis.
“I’ve heard your rumors before, and you boys ain’t seen shit to prove it,” said Li.
“I have,” said Maurice.
All eyes fell on the Canadian.
“I’ve seen them. They’re definitely not zombies, by the way,” Maurice added, passing around bowls full of hot pasta, which the soldiers devoured ravenously.
“But those people are sick, right? Like, alien sick?” said Peters, chomping away.
“Yeah, they’re pretty messed up. No-one knows what it is, but it’s spreading” said Maurice.
“D’you find her in Boston?” said Willis, nodding at Jackson.
“She drank some bad water is all. Be glad she’s stopped shitting everywhere,” said Lucy.
“If one of you starts shitting everywhere, I will one hundred percent leave you to die in it. Just sayin’,” said Willis, prompting Li and Peters to laugh.
“All of them die anyway,” said Maurice.
“I heard they found a cure – some doctor lady?” said Peters.
“You can just say ‘doctor’,” said Lucy.
“So she’s real?” said Li.
Maurice shrugged.
Jackson spluttered from the mattress, muttered some incoherent words and rolled onto her side.
“Yo, you got any more?” said Willis.
“How are you finished already?” said Li.
“I’m done too,” said Peters.
“You two are animals,” said Li.
“That’s it, I’m afraid,” said Maurice, collecting up the bowls.
“Fuck it, I’m having hers,” said Willis, reaching for Jackson’s portion.
Lucy leapt up and kicked Willis’s hand away.
“That’s hers,” said Lucy, sharply, scooping the bowl up from the floor.
“The fuck?” said the soldier, leaping to his feet. He lashed out and struck the bowl from Lucy’s hands. It fell to the floor and smashed, sending shards of porcelain and pasta across the vinyl.
“The hell are you doing?” cried Lopez, leaping to his feet.
“Bitch just kicked me!” yelled Willis.
“Woah, easy there, let’s all keep it friendly,” said Maurice, raising his hands.
“I’ll be calm when I’ve kicked
this bitch back,” fumed Willis.
“You’re not hearing me, soldier. I said take a seat,” said Lopez.
“Or what?” said Willis, squaring up to the Major.
“You don’t like our hospitality, you’re welcome to leave,” growled Lopez.
“I’m liking it just fine,” said Willis.
Lopez’s hand edged towards his pistol.
“Try it,” Willis grunted.
The front door clattered open. Sergeant Adler and Private Brown appeared in the threshold.
“The hell’s going on here?” said Adler, seeing Lopez and Willis standing across from one another, each with a hand on their holster.
“It’s nothing, just a misunderstanding. We’re all good,” said Peters, rising from the couch and patting Willis on the back. Willis didn’t move.
“We’ve set up the house across the yard. Fire’s going,” said Adler.
“We’ll be turning in, then. Come on boys,” said Peters, steering Willis towards the door.
“We’re gonna keep a night watch. You guys want in? We rotate every two hours,” said the Sergeant.
“We’ll do our bit, of course. Who goes first?” said Lopez, smoothing his uniform.
“I could take first shift – I do owe you guys,” said Maurice, shrugging.
“Yes, you do,” said Lopez.
“Does he know what he’s doing?” said Adler.
“He knows how to cry for help loudly,” said Lopez.
“I guess that’ll do,” said the Sergeant, departing, followed by the other soldiers.
“I get a gun, right? I’d feel a lot more comfortable if I had a gun,” said Maurice.
“I’ll make a note of that for next time,” said Lopez.
The Canadian let out a nervous laugh and lingered a moment. Then, realizing the gun was not forthcoming, he headed outside, cursing.
Lopez grabbed a dustpan and brush and swept up the shattered porcelain, while Lucy gathered the pieces of pasta into a new bowl. Once it was cleared, the pair headed to the bedroom to retrieve the second mattress and move it into the warm room. A glow outside caught Lucy’s eye.
“You see that?” she said, pointing outside.
Three cigarettes glimmered in the darkness.
“Grab the goggles,” said Lopez.
Lucy fetched the night vision from her back pack and handed them to Lopez.
“What do you see?” she asked.
“Maurice – that asshole’s smoking with two of them,” said Lopez.
“Which two?” said Lucy.
“The Sergeant and your new best friend, Willis. Hold on, they’re going inside,” said Lopez.
“I thought he was on watch?”
“This isn’t right. I don’t trust any of them – none of their stories hang together, and that Canadian’s a piece of shit,” said Lopez.
“You think they’re gonna attack us?”
“I don’t know. They know we’re outnumbered, and outgunned But they know the blood rule, surely? What would they gain from killing us?” said Lopez.
“What if killing’s not the aim?” said Lucy.
“So what, they just wanna take us prisoner?”
“You heard Maurice back there, he’s figured it out. He knows we’re immune to the creatures, and the soldiers know we’re heading to DC but they want to go south. What if they want to capture us for safe passage?” said Lucy.
Lopez peered through the window again.
“Get down!” he hissed, hitting the deck.
Lucy copied.
“They’re moving on us. Two left, two center, two right. We need to get to the forest. On me,” said Lopez, running through to the lounge room.
“Hostiles incoming, we gotta move quiet and fast,” said Lopez, rousing Jackson.
Jackson, staggered to her feet and grabbed her rifle while Lucy grabbed her backpack.
“Get to the next house. Get behind it, then move to the end of the row. Then run for the trees,” ordered Lopez.
He clicked the rear door open and hurried them out, sealing it behind as he followed.
The snow glowed as if under a UV light. Their footsteps crunched as they rushed to the next house. Lucy sped around the corner and sprinted to the end of the row, pushing out wide to avoid the snowdrifts. She reached the last house and halted. The forest was at last a hundred yards away. Jackson was lagging behind – aided by Lopez, who was supporting most of her weight. Lucy ran back and took Jackson’s other arm. A crash came from their deserted bungalow as the rear door was kicked open.
“Hurry!” whispered Lopez, as they dragged Jackson forwards. Jackson pulled her arms in and fell to her knees as they reached the end house.
“What are you doing?” urged Lucy.
Jackson swung her rifle into position and took the safety off.
“Covering you. Now go.”
“You heard her, go!” said Lopez, shoving Lucy forwards.
She sprinted towards the forest, past an abandoned car. Lopez drew level beside her. A whistle blasted. Shots rang out as Jackson opened fire, silencing the scout. An engine roared into life and the soldier’s truck sped towards the gunfire.
Lucy glanced back as she ran, terrified. The truck swung out onto the final lane. Jackson took up position behind the abandoned car and fired upon the Hummer, but couldn’t penetrate the windshield. With a crunch, the Hummer shunted her covering place. Jackson jumped but the car clipped her legs, knocking her to the ground.
Lucy sprinted into the dark forest.
“This way!” called Lopez, changing direction from the trail of footprints they’d left in the field.
“We got your girl,” came a shout from the yard.
Lucy and Lopez stopped abruptly, panting. They peered back between the slender trees. The Humvee’s lights shone across Jackson’s crumpled body. Looming over her was Adler. The Sergeant grabbed her by the hair and hauled her onto her knees. Her right leg was broken, and swiveled outwards perpendicular to its normal positon. Jackson screamed in pain.
“I’m gonna give you fuckers till the count of five to surrender,” yelled Adler, looking around the treeline.
“Either we surrender now or we keep running. She can’t suffer for nothing,” whispered Lucy, to Lopez.
“In fact, your girl’s gonna help me do the counting,” yelled the Sergeant. “Here goes. One!”
He snapped Jackson’s index finger back, splitting the bone, and extorting a guttural howl from her.
Lopez drew his handgun and took aim. Lucy covered her ears.
“Two!” cried Adler.
Lopez fired. The bullet ripped through the side of Jackson’s head and her body went limp, slumping to the ground.
“Run!” cried Lopez, as Adler leaped into the Humvee.
The truck raced towards the forest, heading in the direction of the gunshot. Its lights cut through the thin trees like trip wires. Lucy and Lopez sprinted further into the forest, dodging the solid trunks as they ran, trying to escape the lights. But as the Humvee reached the forest edge the lights went dead. Lucy suddenly stopped, finding herself in total darkness.
“Young, keep moving!” called Lopez, in a coarse whisper.
She hurried towards his voice, ricocheting off invisible trunks.
“Major!” she whispered, trying to keep up.
The reply was imperceptible.
“Major!” she implored.
Silence.
Lucy came to a halt and an icy chill swept over her. The snow had gone. Twigs and leaves crackled in all directions.
“Hurry!” came a whisper.
She rushed towards the sound.
“Come on!”
She stumbled onward, desperately feeling her way.
“Young!”
She tacked to her left, struggling to keep pace with the zigzagging voice.
“Young, come on!” urged the voice, from the other direction.
She stopped.
“Quickly!”
The whispering was on
both sides.
“This way!”
It was closing in.
“Hurry!”
“Lucy, no!”
A blow from the side. Someone tackled her to the ground with immense force. She landed hard on her shoulder, tightly bound by the stranger’s arms. Lucy squirmed as the assailant wrestled her onto her front. Leaves and dirt rubbed against her face. The soldier straddled her back, pinning her down with his weight, and stifling her breaths.
“I got the girl!” cried Peters, pinning her.
“Major, it’s time to give up. Accept that you’ve lost, and we can avoid further tragedy!” called Adler, somewhere ahead of Lucy.
“In case you’re thinking of shooting one of us, I promise you we’ll shoot your girlfriend right away, and we really don’t wanna do that – not after all this,” the Sergeant continued. “We don’t wanna shoot you at all. Word on the street is that you two are quite the catch. But it’s all or nothing now, Major. Either both of you get to live, and we settle this like adults, or we’ll kill her right here, right now. Then after that, we’ll find you, and we’ll kill you too. I’m a man of my word, sir, so I really suggest you go for the first option.”
“Just listen to him, Major, it didn’t have to go like this,” called Maurice.
Lucy’s blood boiled.
“Freeze!” cried Brown, somewhere in the darkness. “Drop your weapon. Get down on the ground, hands behind your back!”
“Good choice, Major. Alright team, let’s get back,” cheered Adler.
Peters patted Lucy on the back. “Sweet dreams,” he chuckled, before delivering a sharp crack to the back of her head.
THREE
Citizens
____________________________________
“The principal will see you now, my dear,” said the receptionist. Lucy thanked him awkwardly, unsure why the world’s surliest front-desker was suddenly being nice – especially when she’d been summoned out of her math class. Maybe it was a trick. He probably knew what kind of telling off she was in store for.
Convulsive Box Set Page 36
