From Hell

by C. O. Amal

  Then with a crackling sound cracks appeared on the wall. The wall is truly glass.

  “Lady, you shouldn’t do that.” I tried. But, the lady is beyond my reach and she is so focussed on breaking this wall, like a deranged person.

  Then it happened. The glass broke and a black smoke rushed out through the now formed hole in the wall.

  I ducked. And the black smoke rushed through the tunnel. The sound of air flow filled the very air. From this position on the floor I saw the legs of the camera man. He must be in the middle of the smoke. The reporter is nowhere to be seen.

  One way or the other, all hell do break loose. The hell is breaking loose, no doubt.

  Chapter 4

  The flow of black smoke or whatever that was lasted only a few minutes. I slowly stood up and examined my surroundings. I found the camera man on the tunnel floor. I think he is unconscious. The reporter is nowhere to be seen. Then I looked at the purple wall. There is a wide hole in the middle and I could only see darkness in that hole. The black smoke might be some kind of pressurised gas.

  I slowly approached the camera man. I crouched down near him and I shook him.

  “Hello, are you okay, man?”

  He is not moving. Then it struck me. He is not breathing.

  “What the?”

  I took his left arm in mine and I checked for a pulse.

  None.

  There is not even a slightest indication of a pulse. His body is freezing cold. Panic and worry grew inside me.

  “Ahh ...” Suddenly a scream shot up through the tunnel. The scream is coming from the other end. Then I heard a shriek and a moan.

  With panic, I slowly moved forward. Will Andrew be okay? Will the workers be okay? Then I heard a shuffling noise from behind me.

  I froze. Someone is standing behind me. I can feel it. I slowly turned back. There stood the camera man.

  “What the hell?”

  He was dead. I am sure. Or did that smoke caused him to mimic death? Then the camera man shifted his gaze from the ground to my face. In the purple glow of the wall and from the flash light of the camera, I could clearly see his face. Then it happened. Without warning, the camera man screeched sharply and he rushed at me with his open mouth. I didn’t get time to turn away, and in the next moment he was on top of me. He is trying to bite me. I kept his head at bay using my hands. But he is shrieking at me and he wriggled violently.

  I struggled to keep hold of his head. His saliva sprayed on my face and a horrible stench came from his mouth. I am already in panic. Then I took all my might and I balanced my foot on his stomach and I threw him into a distance using my legs, like a spring. The trick worked and he fell down near the purple wall after a short flight in the air.

  I didn’t wait for him to regain his footing. I stood up and sprinted away through the tunnel, towards the other end. A moment later I heard sound of pursuing footsteps, but I didn’t looked back. I kept running at my maximum speed. A few minutes later I saw the bright light of the electric bulbs. Then I saw Andrew’s body. His chest is wide open and his head is barely attached to the neck.

  Suddenly I puked. Panic and worry coursed through my body. Then I saw the camera man gaining on me. I started running again. Then multiple pursuers came from the wide tunnel room where the driller machine lies. I looked back and found the camera man and few workers running at me. All the pursuers are running to bite me. How do I know? Well, all of their mouth are open and they made a horrible sound when they moved. I ran and ran. I need to get away from this tunnel.

  It must be the smoke. It gotta be. People who were exposed turned into rabid animals. One of this rabid people must be the one who have done that to Andrew. Poor Andrew.

  A moment later I entered into the region where the rail had partially built. Then I began to see dead bodies. I think they are dead bodies. Most bodies are drenched in blood. Men with white coats are here among the dead bodies. They may have been attacked by the mad people when they were escaping. That also means that there might be those creatures outside the tunnel. The black smoke may have went out of the tunnel. That means, I have more to worry.

  A moment later sound of pursuing footsteps lost and a series of screams came from nearby. My pursuers might have found survivors who were hiding. Before long I saw the subway platform. Blood marks are everywhere on the platform. I slowly approached the office of the construction workers. The office is empty and the door have been broken away from its hinges. Then I saw a trail of blood on the floor.

  I should call 911. I may don’t have to do that. People who were watching the news channels might have seen this horror. If my count is right, there was people from three news channels, apart from the people from the newspapers, and all of them were live. I hope that the cops and whoever who should control this situation might be here soon.

  I sprinted out of the subway platform. I need to get out of here before more of those things find me. I rushed outside and I found my sedan on the side of the road. Then it struck me. The city is dead silent. I took a quick glance at the nearby buildings and I found their doors broken. I rushed inside my car. I took my cell phone from the car and I quickly dialled 911.

  “Hello, 911. What is your emergency?”

  “Hello, I am calling from the Wyoming tunnel. There are mad people everywhere. They are killing people and there are dead bodies everywhere.”

  “Calm down, sir. Tell me what happened.”

  “We were studying this new tunnel system and a black smoke rushed out from one of the cave. I think the people who were exposed to this smoke have become mad. These mad people are very hungry for flesh, I think. They are everywhere. They are killing everyone. Please send help. There are no one nearby. I think everyone is dead.”

  “Okay, sir. Are you near any type of vehicles?”

  “I am in my car.”

  “Stay away from the infected people. Try to drive to a safer place. We will be sending help soon.”

  “Okay.”

  I ended the call and I started the car. I floored the accelerator and the car rushed through the desolated town.

  Chapter 5

  There aren’t any vehicles on the road and all the vehicles I saw were crashed onto the nearby buildings. The windows of the vehicles are all broken and there are trails of blood on the doors. I accelerated beyond the city limits. The black smoke must have spread to everywhere. I need to get back home and I need to save Emily and Aidan from this.

  I quickly took the cell phone and dialled Emily.

  “This is Emily, I can’t take this call right now. Please leave a message.”

  “Shit. Emily, this is me, Jerome. Are you okay, honey? If you’re inside the house, please lock all doors and don’t go out. I am coming right now. I will explain everything.”

  I put away the cell phone and concentrated on the road. A few minutes later the road got blocked by a series of vehicles. There is no way through this dead traffic. Then I chose the worst choice I could think of. I took my cell phone and I exited the car. I slowly started walking through the long line of vehicles. Most vehicles are crashed one another and smoke is rising from most vehicles.

  I cautiously walked through the footpath and whenever a block ends, I examined the street thoroughly before continuing the journey.

  Suddenly a screech came from behind me. I turned towards the street I passed and I saw a tall mad man rushing at me. I broke into a sprint. There are glass shards everywhere on the footpath and they shattered further when I moved over them. Sound of crackling of glass shards filled the very air. Then I saw the end of the traffic. And at the end I saw a land rover with its door already open.

  I rushed inside the land rover and I closed the door just in time. The mad man skittered to a stop near the land rover. Then the mad man started pummelling at the side window. It is now that I am looking at one of them clearly. This man’s eyes are dark as darkness can do at its best, and he is like a deranged hungry, thirsty, rabid dog. Then the side windows began to
crack. I quickly searched inside the land rover for a key and I found it just where I wanted - in the key hole.

  I turned the key and fortunately the land rover’s engine came alive with a roar. I put the land rover in drive and I floored the accelerator. Within moments I made a considerable distance from the mad man. But, the mad man followed the car.

  “Ahh ... Ahh ... Ahh ...” Suddenly loud cry came from the back seat. It’s a kid. It has to be. I looked at the rear view mirror and found the mad man still chasing me. I again accelerated, and before long I exited the town. This time when I looked at the rear view mirror I didn’t saw the mad man. I took deep sigh and I parked the land rover on the side of the road.

  The cry of the kid still came, but now it was a little low. I examined the backseat and found a baby, not older than two years. He is in his own custom seat attached to the land rover’s seat belt. Then I saw something else too. In the back seat, on the floor, there is a little girl. She is sitting on the floor cuddled into a ball and I saw tears steadily oozing down through her cheeks.

  “Great.”

  I felt my head getting heavier. These kids’ parents must have lost their lives or at worse, they may have turned. Land rover’s door was open when I saw this vehicle. That means, their parents must have got outside, probably for seeing what the black smoke is.

  “Hey, there. What’s your name?”

  The girl looked at me with cloudy eyes which are filled with tears.

  “My mom. They took her.”

  “Hey. It’s okay. Come on. Sit with me.” I lifted her from the floor and I slowly placed her on the front seat. “Here’s what we do. I need to get to my home. We could ... We could go together. Don’t worry about anything. Okay?”

  I slowly wiped her newly arrived tears using my index finger.

  “Put on your seat belt.”

  She obeyed. She has no other choice but to come with me. It’s a great weight for me, but I can’t leave two young kids on the road for those rabid animals.

  The baby is still crying. I need to do something about him.

  “Can you hold him?” I asked her.

  She nodded. I slowly took the baby from his seat and I slowly placed him on her lap. Surprisingly the boy stopped crying. I smiled at them and I started the land rover.

  A moment later the land rover started rushing through the road. Home. That’s where I am going, if it’s still there, of course.

  Epilogue

  I looked at my watch. It’s 2:35 PM. I slowed the land rover a little. Far away I saw my home street. All the buildings are in extreme quietness. Nobody is on the streets and there are couple of vehicles on the side of the road. Before long I saw my house. I parked the land rover on the side of the road and I examined the surroundings. It’s really quiet and then I saw the broken front door of my house. The infected are here too. I need to find Emily and Aidan and I need to get out of here fast.

  “Mia, you and baby Brent stay inside, and don’t make a sound, okay?”

  Mia nodded.

  “I will come back quickly, don’t move.” I exited the land rover. I closed the door and I slowly approached my house.

  Please god, Emily and Aidan be okay. I entered inside through the broken doorway. There are mud everywhere inside and thankfully no blood. It is then that I noticed that the windows are all broken. Something bad took place here, that’s certain.

  I wanted to call Emily and Aidan out loud, but that would reduce the advantage I have, if those things are nearby.

  I passed the living room which is a mess with broken furniture. There is mud everywhere here too. I checked the kitchen, but it was empty. I slowly walked towards the bedroom. Bedroom door is closed. I slowly approached the door and tried the knob, but it is locked from inside. That means someone is inside.

  “Emily, Emily?” I called in a lower voice. But, I heard no movement from inside.

  “Aidan, this is me, dad.”

  Then I heard sound of a furniture being moved. I patiently waited, and I didn’t forgot to examine my surroundings. A moment later the door slowly opened from inside and in the doorway stood Aidan.

  “Dad ...” He rushed at me and I crouched down and hugged him. “Dad, Mom ...”

  “What happened?”

  “Mom killed a man. She ... She bit him and she ate him ... Then she tried to kill me too, dad.”

  What the? So Emily is one of the deranged persons. A drop of tear oozed down from my eyes. Right now I can do nothing for Emily.

  “What happened to mom, dad?”

  “Where did you saw mom, when the last time you saw?”

  “She was at back porch. She was yelling something at our neighbour. When I went to the porch, I saw her eating our neighbour.”

  “Okay. Stay with me.” I slowly approached the back door. Aidan closely followed me. Before long, I opened the back door and stepped inside the porch. Then I saw movement near our neighbour’s house. I carefully examined and saw someone walking through the back side of the nearby house. Then all of a sudden he looked at my direction. Then I saw it. His face is filled with blood and he stared at us with dark eyes.

  “Run.” I said and we ran inside the house. Then we quickly ran towards the Land Rover parked outside. Sound of pursuing footsteps closely followed us.

  Part 2 – Run All You Want

  Prologue

  A large city. Mega story buildings are everywhere. The glass windows of the buildings reflected the noon sun light with an extraordinary glory. Suddenly all of a sudden the ground began to shake and the mega story buildings vibrated. Quickly scream of people filled the very air. The ground continued to shake and the vehicles parked on the parking lot swayed sideways. A moment later, large cracks appeared on the dark roads.

  Vehicles on the road crashed one another and smoke rose from most crashed vehicles. The cracks on the road continued to get widen, and the earthquake is still not ready to stop its play. Not far from the centre of the town, in a town square, a TV reporter and her camera man are recording everything. The ground near the town square shook violently. Suddenly the camera man dropped his camera and looked at a place beyond the reporter.

  “What the heck is wrong with you? Why did you dropped the camera?” The reporter asked.

  “Charlotte, look.” The camera man said. Something is really spooking the camera man. Then Charlotte, the reporter looked at where the camera man is looking.

  Then she too saw it. On the road near them, a wide crack have formed and this crack is gigantic. All the nearby vehicles fell into the wide crack. The sound of car alarm lingered in the air, but those alarm sound is nothing compared to the sound of destruction the earthquake is leaving in the city.

  Glass windows broke and a rain of glass shards dropped from the nearby mega story buildings. Suddenly with a violent quake, the earthquake stopped. Quickly silence filled the very air. There is not even people’s sounds. Everything is extremely quiet. Then the quietness ended by a sound of sudden flow of air. Charlotte and the camera man looked around them in horror. There are of course a lot of people nearby Charlotte, but nobody is making any sound. Everyone is in fact listening to the sound of the flow of air or whatever it is.

  Boom!

  Suddenly a loud noise came from the nearby crack on the road and that loud sound immediately got followed by a rain of soil. In fact the raining soil was thrown up from crack when that loud sound came. Suddenly through the crack a black smoke rushed outside like a jet of water. At the instant the black smoke reached near the people in the town square, it split into tiny jets and the smoke rushed inside the people’s body through their nose and mouth.

  Charlotte and the camera man ducked and they witnessed the horror happening around them. Most people, on who the smoke is entering, wriggled violently as the smoke rushed inside their bodies.

  Tears of fear uncontrollably oozed down from Charlotte’s eyes. She looked at the camera man who is lying on the ground with his eyes closed. The swoosh sound of smoke is everywhere.
In fact no other sound can be heard.

  The flow of smoke lasted barely five minutes, but to Charlotte, it was an eternity. At the moment the smoke died out, all the people, inside whom the smoke entered, all at once dropped to the ground. Charlotte and the camera man stood up and they examined the limp bodies of people all around them.

  Charlotte is too shocked to do anything. She just stood there and stared at the bodies, like her mind is blank. In fact she don’t know what to do.

  Suddenly a fallen women slowly stood up and she looked at Charlotte. Charlotte looked at the women and she saw the extra dark eyes of the women. The women’s eyes are in fact completely dark, as night. Then with a sharp moan the women rushed at Charlotte. Before Charlotte could make out what’s happening, the women jumped on top of Charlotte and she sunk her teeth on Charlotte’s neck.

  “Ahh ...” Charlotte’s scream ended quickly. The camera man stood there watching Charlotte and the woman with horror, without knowing what to do. Blood steadily oozed down from Charlotte’s neck. Then all of a sudden all the fallen people slowly stood up and they looked at the camera man and Charlotte with their extra dark eyes. Before the camera man could run, most of the people rushed at him. Some of the people rushed at Charlotte’s body.

  “Ahh ...” The camera man made a short yelp, and that’s it. Sound of a hurried eating lingered in the air, followed by a series of moans.

  Chapter 1

  I was playing on my smart phone when all of a sudden ground began to shake. An earthquake. I rushed towards the front door. Sound of plates clashing with the floor came from the kitchen. Books from the shelf fell down and furniture began to shake uncontrollably. I looked outside and saw people outside. Everyone must be discussing about the quake. All people seemed to be in worry. The quake continued.