Chasing The Cure: Age Of Madness - A Kurtherian Gambit Series (The Caitlin Chronicles Book 5)

by Daniel Willcocks

  He managed to pivot as the Mad came at him. He barely had time to pick up his sword before a flash of black streaked toward him and the Mad disappeared.

  Kain looked wildly to his left, then his right.

  “Oh. That one was mine!”

  Mary-Anne withdrew from the Mad she had now pinned against the wall. The brickwork had cracked from the impact, and a spray of blood now painted the old decor. “You snooze, you lose. That’s two for me.”

  “Snooze? I was about to strike.”

  Mary-Anne winked and streaked back into the fray.

  Izzy had drawn her sword and was now toying around with a Mad on the other side of what had once been a raised glass cabinet on a podium. The structure stood three feet off the floor and was roughly the size of a coffin. The Mad was on the other side, and every time it tried to chase Izzy around the block, Izzy ran away, teasing the Mad until it was practically foaming at the mouth.

  “Come now, don’t tell me you’ve got no stamina,” Izzy smirked.

  The Mad slashed its hands her way, then took several steps to its right.

  Izzy followed suit.

  Caitlin, engaged in her own fight a small distance away, caught Izzy’s game and let out a small laugh. “You know you shouldn’t tease them, right? It just revs their engine. Plus, remember, if you lose, you’ll be doing the hunting.”

  The Mad took two steps to the right, then began sprinting full force at Izzy.

  But Izzy was prepared. She held her sword in front of her and braced the hilt against her solar plexus. The Mad, building its own momentum, ran straight into the sword’s tip, impaling itself through the rib cage.

  Izzy took a step back to move away from the Mad’s reach and watched with smug satisfaction as it fell face-forward and drove the sword the rest of the way into its own body.

  “That’s one for me!” She grimaced as she nudged the Mad with her toes, realizing she’d need to move the Mad’s body now to get her sword back. “Ah, crap.”

  And then came the scream.

  Izzy scanned the room and saw the source of the sound. Miriam was backed into a corner, her face filled with fear as two Mad loomed over her. They were only feet away as Miriam held a rotten board as a shield and tried to deflect their clutching hands.

  Izzy reached for her side, hand finding the grip of her gun. She didn’t even think about it, it was all instinctual. Her friend was in danger, and this was the only way to protect her.

  She stared down the sight, locked onto the Mad. Her finger tensed.

  “No!” Mary-Anne sprinted past Izzy, knocking her off-balance. Her finger flexed, and the bullet found its way into the ceiling. Plaster crumbled and sprinkled on top of them.

  Mary-Anne spared a furtive glance back at Izzy. “Well, there goes our secrecy.”

  But Izzy wasn’t listening, all she could focus on was Miriam trapped in the corner.

  Mary-Anne was close. She had even managed to knock one of the filthy creatures aside, but the other one had its fingers inches away from Miriam’s face.

  I will not lose more soldiers to those filthy cretins, she thought as she aimed down the sight once more, finger tensing before Mary-Anne could turn. What else was left to lose? Their cover had been broken—if there were even any survivors left in this shit-heap city.

  The bullet raced through the air. The report left a high-pitch whine in their ears. The Mad’s head exploded in a spray of blood and gore.

  Miriam ducked behind her shield, the blood missing her by millimeters.

  Mary-Anne, however, had not expected a second shot. She stared at Izzy with her mouth open. She wiped the splatters of blood from her face. “You’ve got to be kidding me…”

  Caitlin ran across the room, leaping over ancient counters like stepping stones. She landed between the pair, eyes wide. From her point of view, all she could see was the blood spray and Miriam huddled on the floor. “You shot her?”

  Izzy shook her head violently. “No. No! I saved her. She was about to get attacked, and—”

  “And I was about to save her.” Mary-Anne’s voice was dark, her eyes staring daggers at Izzy. “Your little friend went gun-crazy and risked us all by spraying blood around the goddamn room.”

  “What happened to secrecy?” Caitlin asked, genuine disappointment on her face.

  Izzy softened. “I had no choice. The Mad was about to get her. Tell them, Miriam. You were about to be attacked.”

  Miriam rose slowly, her hands visibly trembling. Caitlin wondered whether she would actually be able to train her in time for them to continue on this mission. The last thing they needed right now was liabilities, and this was the very definition of one.

  “Yes. It almost had me, Cat. I swear it. She saved me.”

  Groaning sounded from the other side of the room was followed by rapid barks. Kain plunged his blade deep into the remaining Mad, clearly unaware of everything else going on around him. Kain cheered, “Take that you piece of shit! Huzzah! That’s three for me, everyone. Three!”

  Caitlin turned back to Izzy. “I believe you.”

  Mary-Anne scoffed.

  “But that doesn’t make what you’ve done right,” Caitlin continued. “We have no idea what other dangers are lurking around here, and you’ve just sent a smoke signal into the air to tell everyone that we’re here. We need to get moving. And fast.”

  Izzy nodded, hurrying over to Miriam to help her to her feet.

  Mary-Anne glared at Izzy, but Izzy refused to meet her stare. They called Kain and Jaxon over and hurried out of the room, searching for the nearest exit.

  Mary-Anne spat on the floor, the coppery taste of blood slipped off her tongue. She grumbled and sniffed the air. “The air is cleanest this way, follow me.”

  Kain followed behind with a huge grin on his face. “Anyone else take three Mad down? Nope? Just me? Guess who ain’t going hunting tonight?”

  Jaxon yipped.

  “That’s right, my fluffy amigo. Looks like it’s going to be newbie, over there.”

  Caitlin gave Kain a look.

  “What?”

  “Just lay off, okay?”

  Kain looked as if he was about to protest, then thought better of it.

  “Fine.” He took a brief pause, then began to sing. “Weeee aaaare the champions.”

  “Kain!”

  “What?”

  When they emerged from the museum, they had expected to be met by a hundred city survivors, or maybe a hundred Mad. They could certainly hear the Mad somewhere, but the growls and groans were far away, tucked inside some of the other buildings. It would be a few minutes before they freed themselves from their concrete prisons and began their hunt in the open.

  It wasn’t until they were several blocks from the museum that they did hear a familiar sound. Footsteps on stone. They ducked behind the shell of an old transit van and looked out as a small group of people walked the streets toward them.

  A woman and two children, a boy and a girl. They looked exhausted. Their hair unkempt, and their clothes peppered in dust.

  “They need help,” Miriam muttered.

  “Or, they’re bait,” Kain growled.

  They stumbled down the road. Their cheeks were gaunt, their eyes dark and shadowed. Their eyes didn’t glow red like the Mad, but they certainly walked like them.

  “Maybe they know where everyone is?” Izzy offered.

  Caitlin chewed her lip. “Maybe.”

  She was about to step out from behind the car when there was a sudden scuffle behind them.

  Caitlin turned and saw Mary-Anne holding a man from behind, her hands hooked around his throat. His shotgun fell limply to the floor. Kain was beside them, his sword pressing into the man’s stomach.

  “Who the hell are you?” Mary-Anne hissed into his ear, her eyes alight from beneath the black material covering her face. “And what do you think you’re doing trying to sneak up on us?”

  The man, clearly realizing that he’d picked the wrong group to fuc
k with, stopped wriggling. His eyes were wide, and a dark, wet patch appeared on his trousers. “What...what are you?”

  “Never mind us,” Kain grumbled. “Tell us who you are, or die.”

  Mary-Anne grinned and licked her lips, the faint copper trace of blood making her shudder.

  Chapter Three

  New Toronto, Ontario

  “My name…My name is…” the man struggled to talk through Mary-Anne’s powerful grip. “Please…I can’t breathe…”

  “Let him go,” Caitlin commanded.

  Kain withdrew his sword. Mary-Anne reluctantly released his throat.

  “Thank you…” He rubbed his neck. “My name is Doug. Those people you were spying on, they’re my family. We’re just looking for someplace to go. Please. We’ve come so far.”

  Caitlin studied him for a few seconds, scanning for any hint of dishonesty or mischief. When she saw none, she stepped out from behind the van and waved the others of his group down.

  They froze like animals met suddenly by a predator about to pounce.

  Doug stepped out from behind her and waved them forward.

  There came a screech of a Mad from somewhere in the city.

  “We should probably move this to someplace a little more private,” Kain suggested.

  Caitlin agreed, and the group made their way into a nearby building. It might once have been a boutique store of some kind, but now it was all bare shelves and rubble-strewn floors. They found a room in the back that housed several tables and chairs, with a door that had a manual lock.

  Once everyone had piled in, Mary-Anne clicked the lock and stood in front of the door with her arms folded while they all took their seats.

  “Well…” Kain rubbed his hands together. “This is cozy.”

  “Thank you for not killing us.” Doug’s eyes were lowered to the floor. “I realize now that you could have very easily. I’m sorry for the ruse.”

  “That was a ruse?” Kain sneered. “We could smell you a mile away. What did you think you were going to do? Pump your shotgun faster than any of us could kill you?”

  Doug shrugged. “It’s all I could think of to protect my family. We heard gunshots and knew that danger was nearby.”

  “Danger is always nearby,” Izzy added.

  “If you please,” the little boy said. He looked no older than eight summers and had a crop of blond hair with bright blue eyes. Although his frame was skinny and malnourished, there was admirable energy in him still. “We just want to find somewhere safe. Daddy said this city would be our home, but the city is destroyed.”

  “You’ve been through the city?” Caitlin asked.

  The woman answered. Her voice was dry and raspy. A tooth was missing from her upper jaw. Her shoulders sagged as she spoke. “We came from the north. We’ve traveled weeks to come to the city. People in our colony spoke of hope. Of safety. Of numbers greater than the world has ever seen, yet all we’ve been met with are desolate buildings and Mad everywhere we go. The kids are fast, but we can’t run forever. Please, tell us that you can take us to the leaders of this city.”

  Caitlin took a deep breath. “I’m afraid I can’t.”

  The woman’s hand found her mouth. She gasped, and silent tears began to stream down her face.

  “Where are you from, lady?” The little girl was younger than the boy, her hair as dark as her father’s. She looked up at Caitlin expectantly, eyes bright gleaming moons. “Do you live around here?”

  Caitlin shook her head. She noticed Jaxon skulking beneath the tables, crawling cautiously toward the newcomers. He nuzzled his way to the little girl and sniffed at her bare legs before he licked the skin.

  She began to giggle, the sound refreshing to their ears.

  “No, we don’t live here,” Mary-Anne answered. “Well, she used to.”

  Miriam gave a little wave, the color slowly returning to her face after the encounter with the Mad.

  “Then it’s true?” Doug bemoaned. “The world really is broken. It’s all over.”

  “I wouldn’t go that far.” Caitlin smiled. “What you’ve been told about this city might not be true, but we’ve got a group of people across the lake who are rebuilding civilization. There are several hundred of them. Humans and Weres, working together to repair the fences and create a sanctuary safe from the Mad and the outside world.”

  The woman swallowed. “Did you say Weres?”

  “Werewolves, werewolves,” the little girl said in a sing-song tone between giggles of laughter from Jaxon’s affections. “Mommy, he likes me!”

  The boy leaned forward and began tousling Jaxon’s head.

  “You like Weres?” Kain smirked.

  Doug shuddered. “Terrifying creatures. I’ve seen them. Rabid sons-of-bitches who want nothing more than to destroy all humans. Our own town had their dealings with Weres. Vile creatures.”

  Doug told them about how a group of Weres would come and visit their town once a month and barter with the town’s leader—a lank, sniveling excuse for a man who took great pleasure in spreading fear and giving the Weres whatever they wanted.

  “He wouldn’t care about hurting people. If the Weres wanted a shag-bag—”

  “Doug!” The woman exclaimed, covering her children’s ears. Not that they were listening, since they were too excited by Jaxon.

  “Sorry. They’d take women to…y’know…they’d claim men to practice their hunting on, they’d take children to…sate themselves.”

  “Sounds awful,” Izzy said.

  Doug nodded solemnly. “Let’s just say I’m glad to get as far away from those creatures as possible. I swear, if I ever see another in my life, I’ll… I’ll…”

  “Careful now, Dougy-boy,” Mary-Anne crooned. “You may be closer to a Were than you think.”

  Doug arched an eyebrow, then looked at Jaxon. He suddenly stood, knocking the table back as he lifted his daughter off the ground and out of reach of the dog’s tongue. “Wendy, grab Kit. The dog’s a fucking Were.”

  “Language!” She grabbed the boy and raised him onto her shoulders, arms shaking from the effort.

  Jaxon hopped back and cocked his head. His tongue hung out of his mouth, and he let off a couple of barks.

  Caitlin couldn’t help but chuckle at the ludicrousness of it all. “No, not him. He’s as much of a regular dog as you’ll ever meet.” She patted her lap, and Jaxon hopped up obediently. She tousled his fur and gave him a kiss. “Aint’cha, boy?”

  “Well, if not him, then who?” Doug clutched his little girl close to his chest, despite her best efforts to lean forward and stroke Jaxon again.

  “Daddy! I want to stroke the doggy!”

  Kain raised a hand and crossed one leg over the other. “I believe I’m the droid you’re looking for.”

  Mary-Anne tutted.

  “You mean the Were you’re looking for,” Miriam remarked dryly.

  Kain rolled his eyes. “Oh, come on. Star Wars? A New Hope? No? Oh, never mind.” He extended a hand to Doug. “Hi, pleased to meet you. I’m one of the vile, disgusting creatures you described earlier.”

  Doug’s mouth flapped as he sunk back into his seat. “I’m so sorry. I…”

  “Oh, don’t worry about it. I’ve called straight humans worse things.”

  “If we’re going to complete the introductions in this room, we might as well finish the rounds.” Caitlin turned back over her chair and looking at Mary-Anne standing by the door. She’d now removed her hood, and her dark hair framed her face.

  Mary-Anne didn’t bother speaking. Instead, she blazed her eyes red and let her fangs grow in her mouth.

  Wendy leapt back across the room. “She’s a vampire!”

  “Vampire?” Kit repeated, a fascinated look on his face. “Mommy, I thought you said vampires weren’t real?”

  “They’re… They’re not.”

  “Well, you better believe we are,” Mary-Anne countered. “And I’m not the only one, either. “

  “But the
only nice one I’ve ever met,” Caitlin remarked. “Look, all you need to know about us is that we’re out on a journey to try and help people. To help folks like you. Do you think if that wasn’t true that you guys would still be alive right now? No. We know a place where you’ll be safe. I can promise you that. We even have a boat that can take you directly there and set you on your way. All you’ve got to do is trust us.”

  Doug and Wendy were quiet for a long moment, each silently processing everything they’d just heard. Their kids paid no more mind, their focus back on Jaxon, who had hopped off Caitlin’s lap and was loving the attention he was receiving. By the time they spoke again, Kit and his sister’s legs were clean from dirt.

  “You haven’t told us what powers you have,” Wendy spoke at last. “If you’ve befriended a Were and a vampire, what strengths lie hidden in you?”

  Caitlin opened her mouth to speak when Mary-Anne interjected. “She’s got heart and honor. Two powers that have long been missing from this world. She follows through on her promises, and she wants nothing more than to unite the world and find a cure for the Madness.”

  “And she’s pretty badass with a sword,” Kain added. “Like, Jedi-level.”

  Wendy and Doug looked at each other, confused.

  “Oh, come on. Really? Star. Wars. The minute I can find a working DVD player, I’m educating the crap out of you guys.”

  Caitlin felt her heart warm. “There’s no trickery going on here. I want you guys to be safe. You seem like a nice family. Take the opportunity.”

  They were silent a moment longer before Wendy burst into tears.

  “What? What did we say?” Kain said, taken aback.

  “Nothing,” Wendy blubbered. “It’s just after everything we’ve gone through. To meet people like you who care just defies belief. It doesn’t seem real.”

  “Daddy,” the little girl asked. “Why is Mommy crying?”

  “Because she’s happy,” Doug replied.

  They sat in that tiny room a while longer, waiting for Wendy to stop crying long enough to talk properly.

  Caitlin and the others inquired about the family’s journey, wanting to get as much information as possible before continuing on their own adventure.