Disease X

by Garrett Williams

  The artist between the monster and the colonel looked over to his beastly friend and asked, “You ready for this?” The colonel looked over to the monster at the very moment he heard the artist’s voice. The colonel was clad in similar armor, but it was heavier. There was more prominent plating over his exoskeleton, enough to stop alloy in its tracks. The soldiers behind him bore automatic weapons, and blades were wedged in between the mechanism and the hand, a single switch when in danger would cause the blades to stretch out like small swords. Several people began testing them and they came out of their wrists with a sharp shining noise, sparks had flown as they came out as the soldiers had enabled voltage to travel through the synthetic and invincible blades. The colonel held only a single small side arm on his hip and strapped to his back was a large, two-handed, sheathed handle.

  The monster glanced back over to them and nodded his head. The trio stared down from their giant of a skyscraper down on the behemoths walls and the people that resided in it.

  “Logan, you seem unsure,” The colonel accused. Logan looked over to him and the two locked eyes.

  “Please. I’ve killed before. What are a few animals to me?” The moment he answered a soft buzz was heard and the colonel placed a finger into his ear.

  “What’s your status?” Huntington asked. All that could be heard for Logan and Gavin were faint mumblings. “Affirmative, as soon as they arrive, neutralize them.” Huntington ordered. Huntington lowered his arm down to his side and rested his hand on the hilt of his side arm.

  “What’s the news?” Gavin asked.

  “The scouting squad I sent earlier located a whole armada of Immortals closing in on their home base. More specifically, I’ve been informed that the boy is with them as well.” Gavin looked up to him in faint surprise and asked.

  “You mean THE boy, the one that ran into Logan on his first job?” Logan gazed back over to the two and asked in sheer curiosity.

  “What boy?”

  “You know. The one that ran into you in the gun shop,” Gavin stated. Logan then remembered the day he had taken out Michael, before that a single boy in a grey hood had knocked him over that day.

  “Did I not tell you?” Gavin asked.

  “Tell me what?” Logan asked in retaliation.

  “I found out the boy’s a demigod,” Gavin stated casually. Logan’s eyes had widened as he then wondered about the safety of the people there behind them. He looked back at them and saw them preparing for what could possibly be their death, if the boy had learned about his abilities by now they would all surely die. He saw many of them preparing and even telling jokes to each other, mocking the infected.

  “Don’t worry,” Huntington intervened. “It’s only been four days now; he couldn’t have gained that many ailments that quickly. Even if he did we’re going the extra mile and making sure that as soon as he reaches the gate I’ll have a group led by Purge soldier Arlington looking to intercept. We’ll get him before he even has a chance.”

  “But…he’s just a kid. He might not even understand what he can do, and for all we know he might be scared out of his mind,” Logan lectured.

  “I’ll ask again, when did you get sympathy for them? It’s just money to you, isn’t it?” Huntington reminded him. Gavin looked over to Logan with the same look of confusion as Huntington. Gavin stepped in.

  “He has some matters at home he’d rather not talk about,” Gavin said to Huntington trying to keep Logan’s personal life a secret to them alone. Gavin looked back at Logan with reassurance; Logan nodded his head to both of them. Huntington looked over to Logan and then nonchalantly looked back down on the behemoth.

  “Fine,” He stated. “As long as you keep doing your job.” Logan looked down with him and stared into the gaping maw. It was the calm before the storm. All it would take would be a single spark to ignite the chaos. He stared down at the maw and saw many of its inhabitants wandering amongst, unaware of the oncoming maelstrom. He saw them interacting with one another and working in unity with each other, there were smiles. He saw as one group was gathered around in one small huddle as though they were playing a game on the concrete. He even saw something that the others never dared to allow live with them, children.

  He watched them with growing concern but hid it underneath his mask. He appeared void of all emotion underneath it except for his eyes, for the mask covered only his mouth and nose, it did not wrap around his eyes. The red code running down his mask was touched by precipitation from the sky. Logan looked up as it had now finally started to drizzle. Logan stared at the children running amuck with their families and newfound friends. He watched until his brain finally reminded him of the single sentence, spoken to him by Huntington only hours ago.

  It was back when the sky was still clear but gave way to clouds blocking sunlight from the earth. A single street housed a small white building in the middle of a run down and poverty stricken environment. The homes around it were mangled and riddled of filth and muck. The yards were torn up and the hedges cut or even stripped from the soil completely. Malfunctioned automobiles filled the streets. They were garnished in scraps, destroyed beyond restoration. But not the single white building, it did not succumb to the chaos around it. There were grey patches and scratches carved into the pale white wood. A single small sign hung from the top of the door post. The sign was stripped in half. The other piece had vanished and was never recovered. It was illegible, the letters scratched and chipped away to the point of extinction for them.

  Other than the small impediments, the building stood out among the shambles that lay around it. Military jeeps and a single civilian car had been left on the side yard beside the jeeps. The neighborhood appeared quiet, almost vacant in its entirety. It was the one moment of peace that the large party had received in a very long time. The inside of the building had long, stretched out benches that could fit twenty people. They were scattered about the room and papers and dust covered the floor. The inside wall paper was cut to ribbons, revealing the hazel wood beneath. Logan sat on one bench in the front while the soldiers sat behind him strapping on their braces. Beside him sat his friend Gavin, and directly behind him was Huntington. Logan stared up at the front where there appeared to be the remains of what was an altar. It was in shambles and the wood was splintered to several shards.

  Behind the remains of the altar was a mural of a single dying man. His head was adorned in his own blood and it fell from his face. His arms were pinned by steel to wood and his feet were impaled by the same steel. He hung, half dead with his eyes shut, in front of the men and women in the house like a spectacle. Logan turned to Gavin, whose head had appeared focused on the floor. Logan did not want to disturb him. Huntington had checked behind him and stared at his men. They were the only ones who were in on his deal with the militia. If anyone else knew he would be discharged and court marshaled. He knew there was something different about that single team with him. He looked at one of his soldiers, a blonde haired woman with a high powered rifle in her arms while loading single ammunition clips of six shots.

  She cradled the rifle as though it were a child and loaded large clips that could fit into the colossal weapon. Her hair was pulled back into a single pony tail and it shone with what little light there was in the room. Her blue eyes were fixed on her own actions and did not notice Huntington’s gaze. He watched and felt as though there was something that was unique about the squad given to him. He saw that they had a sort of light in their eyes. It was the very light that people would give anything to regain. It was a sense of reliance; they trusted each other, a rare feat found only within that single circle of friends. Huntington looked at the way they communicated to one another. They impishly harassed, and they offered enlightenment in the time of grief they were caught in. Huntington envied them in such a way. He turned his head back to face the single mural of the dying man in front of him and thought simply, if I die tonight, at least I’ll see all of you again. It was true, he envied them because he had
lost his circle, the people he cared for and spent his life with. The day it all began was the day that every core in the domain had been shattered.

  He looked back at the young, attractive woman, and turned to speak to his business partner. “Logan,” he whispered softly in his ear and he turned to face him. “What will you do after this? If we finally wipe them out here and now, then what will you do to get by?”

  Logan shrugged and replied, “I don’t know, probably just go straight to whatever job is next.”

  The colonel stood and adjusted the parts of his armor and proceeded to equip himself with the remaining components. “Why do you ask?” Logan continued.

  “Well, despite your rather reluctant behavior, and the fact that you have the social skills of a porcupine, the way I see there’s more than just this rag tag bunch.”

  “The terrorists?”

  “Yes. The world’s full of monsters.” Logan stood to meet the eyes of his superior.

  “But not everyone is one,” Logan retorted. Huntington looked up at Logan’s green eyes and strayed from his equipment.

  “I understand that, I also understand that they took people from the Times Square attack against their will.” Logan looked at him with regretful curiosity and final asked what he had wondered.

  “I know that. Tell me, what will you do with them, the sick that were captured I mean.” Huntington suddenly looked down to the ground in arbitrary sadness, as though he was hoping that no one would ask.

  “That’s classified,” He said apathetically.

  “Classified? What are you going to do with them that can’t be spoken of?” Logan asked insistent on an answer. The colonel looked up at him more serious now and answered his question with another.

  “Do you know how much the zones change people?” Logan just stared at him until he answered his own request.

  “They become worse, hardened by circumstance. Their own bodies change, even without knowing it. Their minds alter in the face of desperation, they become frightened, and that leads to anger at one’s own fear. Once their past it, those fears grow to hate of the ones who ensue fear into his or her own heart. Even after they’re dead, it will only lead to suffering for them. We keep them in the zones despite everything that happens there, because what I just said will happen to our families again. It already happened back in twenty-eight with the Giganticus Incident.”

  “You people are no better than those monsters if you choose to let innocent people suffer and change.”

  “At this point were more at war with them. In war, sometimes the only way to destroy monsters is to abandon humanity and become one yourself. I understand your concern, sometimes I don’t even think were worthy of winning this war if that’s what it’s come to,” Huntington said morose and his eyes shone pure apology. Logan sighed and lost the intense flair in his eyes.

  Gavin had finally risen from his seat beside Logan and stated. “Alright, let’s roll.” Huntington nodded and passed onto his squad.

  “You heard him, move out men!” He exclaimed with authority. The soldiers began to pile into the entrance door and in a matter of moments, they completely loaded into the vehicles. Logan watched as they obediently filled the seats of the vehicles and fastened in. He then looked back over to the colonel and spoke.

  “You said something about their being more than just these criminals were going to fight. What were you implying?”

  Huntington looked back at him and confessed. “I was implying that unless you want to find another, well-paying job, then I was going to offer you a permanent place in our services to the people. I understand that the militia isn’t too fond of authority and vice versa, but I can still keep it classified if you so wish.”

  Logan was stunned at the sudden offer. He stood and thought back to the people that he had met and what had happened to them. He remembered the death of unfortunate Michael and the family that witnessed his murder, as well as the Dealer who had stolen people and used cattle for profit. He hated himself for his own actions. He murdered a single man, a thug, whilst he allowed a kingpin to walk as nothing more than a prisoner. He remembered what Huntington had said to him and it was true, Michael truly could have been nothing more than an animal. He looked down as though he were ashamed of himself. However, he needed the profit for the one he loved that he allowed only his dear friend know.

  “I’ll let you think about it,” The colonel closed and walked out the entrance and joined his small legion. Gavin walked past Logan, looked over his shoulder to get one final glimpse of his despair, and joined the legion. Logan stared at the torn wooden boards that made up the floor of the old white building. He glared morose until he gathered whatever strength he could muster and shut his eyes…then he was back at the head of the giant, staring down on the people.

  In war, sometimes the only way to destroy monsters is to abandon humanity and become one yourself. He remembered the colonel’s words as he watched the children play in the mouth of the behemoth offering refuge to them.

  “I’ll take your offer, but I won’t help you fight today.” Gavin and Huntington looked over to the hunched head of their fire, their chance at facing them.

  “What?” Gavin asked harshly. Logan looked back up to them with sullen eyes, his only means of expression through his mask. Huntington sighed and looked back down on the people.

  “Very well.” Gavin turned toward his business partner and contorted his face into a look of frustrated confusion.

  “But he’s completely blowing us off!” Gavin exclaimed furiously.

  “Calm yourself, Mr. Freeman,” He said and raised his hand to him collectively. “We have all that we need to take them out. Soldiers, explosives, we even neutralized their leader. The military can take it from here, bringing you two along was merely an offer you chose to accept, your comrade on the other hand…” Logan looked at him with a face that beckoned sincerity. Huntington nodded to his face and a soldier with an exoskeleton converged.

  “Colonel, the other uniforms are prepared sir,” He informed respectful of him.

  “Good, move out.”

  “Yes sir,” The soldier stated and turned to his fellow comrades. He raised his thumb to signal approval and in one moment, they ran and plummeted off of the building past the three. Logan watched them fall until they finally landed on their feet, protected by the bars around their bodies. The ground crumbled at the speed at which they landed. They ran around the wall behemoth undetected as there was now no one to warn the monsters of intruders.

  “With Daniel preoccupied doing God knows what, we have a chance of neutralizing them here and now if were fast,” Huntington lectured as Logan watched as the man the colonel had previously called Arlington place and explosive on the front gates. Arlington ran back from the bundle of combustion that latched onto the gate and stood down the middle of the road several yards back. Logan stared until he saw that several purge units had somehow managed to make it to the roof with ease in seconds. He glared back down at Arlington as he slowly raised his hand. He raised three fingers, then two…then one. The door collapsed in a thunderous clap and smoke surrounded the remains. Debris soared into the sky and in all directions. Monsters were wounded by the shockwave and the rubble. Logan heard screams of shock and anguish and orders as the monsters latched onto their kin and others scrambled for cover. They had their sights set on the cloud of smoke, seconds passed and tensions rose.

  The monsters had their fingers twitching and their legs shaking. Their weapons began to feel as heavy as the earth on Atlas’s shoulders...blurred white figures then zipped across the sky over head of them and landed either on the concrete or onto the behemoth’s teeth. Others landed on smaller buildings.

  “Cloud dancers!!!” Screamed one of the voices from the behemoth and followed a maelstrom of lead and alloys. The dancers scrambled faster than their own eyes could process through the sky in clouds of grapples and soaring figures…then bullets came from the smoke, killing several monsters. The remaining tu
rned and saw their fallen soaked in life liquid. They opened fire into the figures approaching from the cloud of smoke while other dancers swooped down and skewered the defenseless beasts from behind. Logan had spotted men and woman running from the fire either in fear or protection of the ones they cared for so. Logan stared in agony at the lifeless shells that littered the street. Their inner metamorphosis had commenced early for them, even for the kin. Logan then shut his eyes as he did not wish to see more. The colonel jumped from his perch, and fell several feet before grappling the behemoth. Logan walked from the scene. Gavin watched helplessly as his partner left him. Nothing he could say could convince him otherwise. Logan walked back a few more steps then looked back over his shoulder to his friend. He removed his mask from his face, put both hands into his coat pockets…and he was gone.

  XI

  Judgment

  Amongst the catastrophic ruins in that single outpost lay a man with both eye sockets burned to soot, along with the rest of his body shortly after. Sitting atop of rubble was the single demon that had done in the everyman in the checkpoint. The demon wandered about, scrounging together materials that the fallen may have left behind. He rummaged across a single body and eventually drew a canteen containing spare dihydrogen monoxide. Without a moment’s reckoning he had already uncorked the vessel and drank from it in large swigs. He stood from his crouched position and sauntered to the heap of rubble that had originally composed two great giants connected by a single man-made chain binding them. He turned and sat against the corpses of the giants. The demon had abandoned his single cap and grasped it into his own hand. With his other hand, he wiped the perspiration from his brow with his bare forearm as the entire sleeve to his leather jacket had melted to a mere puddle by his own searing hatred. He brought his forearm down and the raised the vessel to let its contents shower his face in cool bliss from the scorching anger.