by Jesse Gagnon
“She what?” Savanna asked squinting while trying to identify Jane.
“I’ve dealt with that already. About Jason, get to the fucking point Mario.” Giselle dismissed the question.
“They leapt out of a window from a building in the alley. They were watching us. There were nine of them and after finally dealing with them we were left with the five that were immobilized by the electric tipped bolts.” Mario continued.
“More blah, blah, blah, where’s my brother Mario?”
“He got too close to the Alpha. It grabbed his leg…It was still being shocked. He was too close. I should have said something sooner. It sent Jason into cardiac arrest.”
“You should have.” Giselle mumbled.
“Then… it bit him. I shot it, but I was too late. He turned before he died from electrocution.”
The room was silent. Giselle began to cry. She was glad that she wore sunglasses. Savanna and John fought back tears while trying to be strong for Giselle.
“But that’s not all.” Mario continued.
“What the fuck are you talking about Mario?” Giselle asked.
“He didn’t change completely. He was aware… It was weird. He didn’t wake up and attack me. He just seemed drained and weak, nothing like when people usually turn into them. “
“That’s nuts.” John declared.
“That’s not the crazy part. I was able to communicate with him. He couldn’t talk or anything but he nodded and stuff.”
“What are you saying?” John asked confused.
“He responded to me with nods and gestures.”
“I don’t believe it.” John scowled at Savanna with disbelief. “So, how did you lose Jason then?”
“He said he’d stay there, well more like mimed and responded to my questions. I had to get those Azrael out of the city. When I came back…he was gone.”
“Maybe he was pulled with them, yanked along by the desire to follow the Alpha?” Giselle suggested as she searched through the window down towards the streets below.
“Maybe, he didn’t seem mobile enough to make it down the alley. Hell, he could barely keep his head up.”
“Or the virus took longer to settle. What if it just took over when all of the Azrael ran by?” Jane asked.
“I’m going to find him.” Giselle asserted.
“You don’t even know if he’s himself still. Maybe Jane’s right.” Mario added.
“I’ll find out for myself. He’s my brother, I owe him that.”
“I’ll go with…”
“No! I go alone. It’s too dangerous for you.” Giselle interrupted Jane.
“What’s with the glasses anyway Giselle?” Savanna asked while touching her brow with her index finger.
“We’ll cross that path another time. For now, stay in the city. Track and kill the remaining Azrael.” Giselle walked over and kissed Steven on the forehead. “Stay with them, they’ll keep you safe. I’ll be back.”
“When are you going to teach me to shoot?” Steven asked.
“He will. He’s probably the toughest of us all besides me of course.” Giselle directed to Mario but didn’t look at him.
“Okay, Miss Giselle.” Steven agreed. She exited the lobby floor and began to sprint away.
“I really want to help track Jason down. I feel responsible and started to like the guy.” Mario admitted to John and Savanna.
“Giselle’s right. We need to stay here and keep everyone safe. Of anyone who will find Jason, it’s Giselle.” John added.
“So, what’s your deal?” Savanna asked Jane.
“Well, I uh, kind of…”
“Let’s get these kids somewhere safe. We’ll interrogate her ass later.” John interrupted Jane.
“Then we should clean the streets completely.” Mario included.
After several weeks of hunting loose Azrael throughout the city, Simon finally released the safeguards that shielded access to the bottom floors of most buildings. Dead humans and Azrael bodies were taken to Soldier Field and burned. A respectful ceremony was held during the cremation process. Nice words were spoken about the dead by loved ones left behind. Speeches were given for the deceased although were intended for the living. Words like hope and resolve were mentioned, yet their meaning was diminished to just amplifying expressions to fulfill a paragraph that read as emotionless as the faces that spoke them. They’ve survived multiple outbreaks and have lost new world friends and loved ones. This may have strengthened their tolerance to loss but it’s deteriorated their confidence for a future.
Weaknesses in defenses were dealt with and the rebuilding process started all over again. Chicago had become a relatively safe place to live once more. However, the wake of the outbreak caused most to travel the streets only out of necessity. The roads were empty most of the day like a ghost town in fear of another outbreak. Chicago needed time to heal. It needed a reason to keep going and a reason to fight. Simon knew this and held meetings twice a week with Highwaymen personnel to address the problems with positive solutions. He needed to regain the trust of the citizens, a task that seemed unattainable.
CHAPTER 3 DAVID’S RECOVERY
A few weeks ago David’s body dragged itself to a low lying bank. His consciousness awoke confused as to the state of things. Where were Cooper and Riley? Why didn’t they find him? He thought about the defect that defeated him. It angered him and his body brought itself up while retching river water from its lungs. A herd nearby pulled at David’s body and it complied. He assimilated among the herd weakened from the battle and mentally defeated. The Alpha was half of his size but hunted with confidence and with stealth. His body wanted to help the Alpha. It wanted to please the Alpha. David wanted to lead the herd back up the river and kill that defiant defect. Unfortunately, his body ignored David’s desires. It sniffed the air and David smelled the aroma of fish. His body dismissed it as a dead fish on the bank or animal that fed on fish. However, the Alpha wanted to investigate further. His will urged David to pursue, to hunt the fishy smelling something. The other Azrael among the group were lean and strong but were not nearly as powerful as David was. Although it was in a weakened state, David’s body still took the lead to investigate what the Alpha desired.
The trees disappeared up ahead revealing a vast corn field. As David pushed through the field the aroma of fish entered his nose. They were a good distance away from a river or lake. What he didn’t notice were the many land mines that littered the corn field. His body stepped on a metal plate and as it stepped off an explosion sent David flying forward. Hundreds of shrapnel along with nails were littering his backside. Somehow he kept consciousness during the blast but his body was down, bleeding heavily and not moving. Several other mines went off behind him claiming the lives of the much smaller Azrael. The Alpha watched beyond the field and waited. As David’s body healed, it slowly pushed out all shrapnel and contaminants that would have infected and killed a normal body. His eyes searched the landscape. Gunshots fired off beyond the field ahead. Humans were there. The Alpha was right. He could smell the fish odor waft throughout the field as they waded through it with their guns aimed in front of them. His body stayed down, listening, waiting to attack, and learning that its next step could be its last.
A large man about six-foot five held a shotgun, while a child behind him, maybe twelve, followed behind with his revolver trained towards the sounds of dying Azrael. They were covered from head to toe in a fishy smelling aroma.
“Stay behind me boy. They could be hiding.” The man instructed while keeping a vigilant eye up ahead.
“Got it, Dad. Don’t want to end up like Tommy.” The boy said remembering the attacks a week ago. Tommy, a new Highwayman sent to help, responded to mine explosions. He dismissed them as a coyote or some other animal and walked back when he found nothing. An Azrael bit into him. It must have lost its legs during the explosion and crawled towards him undetected. He turned into one of them and ran towards Daddy wild and crazy. A mine blew hi
m up before he got close. Daddy found the hidden Azrael and fed the corn with its blood.
David’s body remained still, sniffing the air and waiting for the right moment to strike. He could feel the Alpha still watching in the trees beyond the field. It urged his body to stand and attack the man. His body ignored the Alpha’s impulses and listened intently to the two humans that walked through. David glanced up at the movement of corn that shook above the stalks and touched the sky.
They were close. They stopped about forty feet away and surveyed beyond the field. David’s body kept quiet. He wanted to kill them and eat them. His body waited.
“Come on Dad. They’re probably dead. If not we’ll hear ‘em when they hit the next set of traps.” The boy dismissed the threat.
“I don’t know son. They could be hiding out there waiting to attack.”
David agreed with the father that there was still a threat. He couldn’t wait for his body to get up and bite into them, bringing them into his herd. But it wasn’t his herd. He no longer was the Alpha. The sky grumbled, indicating another storm was on its way followed by a swift gust that ran its individual fingers along the tops of the corn stalks. The boy shivered from the sudden change of temperature. Within seconds raindrops started to hit the ground at varying intervals. After a few minutes, the sky opened up and released a volley of rain droplets soaking into the dirt and pooling up as the ground saturated with rain water. Visibility diminished as a thin veil of haze fell over the landscape like a blanket. David could no longer see the Alpha or the movements of the humans as they disturbed the corn up ahead. His senses were overloaded with the sounds of rain, wind, and trees swaying. The smell of the rain, like sipping from a steady stream, masked and rinsed off the fish smell on the man and child. Their sweet human aroma entered the air but began to fade as the two escaped back into their home. His body slowly arose to see beyond the corn and knew that it would be impossible to reach the humans without killing itself. It retreated to the trees careful in its step and joined the Alpha. It growled and hissed at David for his insubordination. His body walked past, unafraid of the Alpha and disconnected entirely.
As David entered the misty air towards no real destination, a draw on his body to direct the herd took root. Now the Alpha of a pack of two, he led his new companion to a new hunt somewhere else. It followed closely behind like an obedient dog. David learned that humans can smell like fish. He didn’t know why, but they could smell like fish.
David’s herd eventually numbered over three hundred and searched small towns and cities for more to infect. Nearly fifty of his herd came from small groups run by efficient hunters. The remote locations of humans usually carried a fish aroma. Before they were hidden from the Azrael, now they were easy targets for David’s herd. The scent of fish lingered among the infected turners for a bit causing the herd to have to avoid hunting those humans who reeked of it until the aroma faded. David’s pursuit for the defects went on the sidelines until he amassed a new army.
CHAPTER 4 BROOKE’S RELEASE
A new day emerged into the farm house shining swatches of sunlight through the cracks of the windows. A bright beam found Randall’s eyes and yanked him from a peaceful sleep. He had decided to leave the relative safety of the house on that day. Next to him, digging her right shackle into the wood of the floor, Brooke calmly stayed busy. She noticed his movements and stood up ready to leave the room that they were trapped in. Over the last few weeks, his body seemed to relax as it slept. Maybe it finally understood the fruitlessness of its efforts and in order to conserve energy, it stayed calm. It wasn’t a consistent change. At first, it only happened three to four times a week. However, after realizing his body could calm itself as it slept he decided to move Brooke in with him. Once he did, his body seemed to react to her presence and remained calm every night for the past week. He did it to keep her safe and to keep her from wandering off before he planned on leaving.
One of Brooke’s shackles on her left arm wore down enough that it fell off while she hunted a few days ago. The other one clung on by a few rusted up bolts. Both ankle shackles wore down and fell off two weeks ago from all of the river hunting. She noticed later that day when they didn’t clank on the porch when she went to bring breakfast to Randall. However, lately her attention had been solely focused on trying to remove the last shackle and she had been losing a lot of blood from cutting herself over and over.
Randall unlocked the door; Brooke quickly squeezed past him and stood in front of the mirror on the right. She placed her hands next to several other dried up bloody handprints and compared them. It looked like she smiled, but it was hard to tell. Her facial expressions changed every second. It probably was a by-product of her youth. He glanced over and saw his image. He knew that he was leaving this place and wondered if he would see his reflection ever again. He patted Brooke on the head and headed out of the house.
Brooke crawled towards the front door dragging her shackle against the ground until it got hung up on the bottom of the door frame. It was wedged and she couldn’t move it. She fought fiercely to get it lose only causing it to dig in deeper. She hissed and snarled as she struggled. Randall noticed her struggles, walked over and reached down to break it free. He shook it a few times until it released sending her on her back. However, the shackle remained in the door frame. She was finally free of the shackles and she celebrated her victory rolling around and raising her arm up into the air. When the sunlight hit her arm, lighting it up in a bright glow, she paused and inspected it. Randall felt good that her shackles had been removed. It could be interpreted as a freedom from being trapped, a sign of the move that would come on that day.
They exited their home and walked east towards the city, towards the unknown that may bring about their end. Randall had hope, beyond that of a simple life at the farm, a hope that he could find others like him and maybe answers to his purpose in this world.
The day was still young and birds sang a song in the trees that welcomed Randall and Brooke into the wilderness. Randall worried about his body and its primal violent behavior as he slept. What he noticed, however, was that he didn’t feel that desire to attack, infect or eat humans. On a few occasions over the past week, he found humans hunting in the woods nearby. The only desire was to watch them and keep them away from Brooke. She is still an unknown and unpredictable variable in his transit. He hoped the bond generated by his body and hers was strong enough to keep them together even after his mind slept.
A few hours passed and after a much desired lunch of cow meat, they encountered a small herd of Azrael near the barn on a farm house property. Brooke clung close to Randall in reaction to the place. As they neared them it was discovered that they were shackled to a steel beam on the side. Their bodies were skeletal in appearance and their stomachs were bloated from malnutrition. Their eyes appeared sunken in while their movements were slow and troubled. Upon further investigation, the shackles that bound them were the same that Brooke was recently freed from. She rubbed at her wrists in response.
Randall wondered if it would be wise to free them. They would do more harm to this world than good, but he couldn’t’ bear to see them suffer either. He was at a crossroads of a decision that tugged at him in two directions. Killing them would be the humane thing to do but he had no desire to kill his own except to protect Brooke or himself. He felt like maybe they could get an opportunity like him, however unlikely it was, to live a somewhat peaceful life. While he pondered the fate of the shackled infected Brooke was busy. She dragged over the remains of the cow with an exhausting effort towards the starving Azrael. She knew that the desire to infect would be outweighed by the desire to live, a creature’s most basic need. Still being overprotective, Randall walked over and helped her drag the carcass to the starved creatures so that he could be near her in case they were hungry enough to try a piece of Brooke. Without a thank you, the herd converged onto the cow cadaver and feasted on the remains. The sound of their teeth and gums smacking car
ried in the distance as Randall and Brooke exited into the trees and onto their quest. He knew feeding them only prolonged their painful agonizing death, but maybe eventually they could become liberated and have the chance to possibly awaken.
A few more hours passed and the day began to exit as night introduced the moon into the sky. It had been there all day but its glow from the reflection of the sun started to intensify as the sky faded from blue to black. No signs of awakened Azrael presented themselves. Fifteen humans and twenty-two Azrael were spotted and successfully avoided minus the shackled group of course.
Fear that he would lose ground and that his body would wander in the wrong direction, he searched for a place to lock himself in. He located an old pick-up truck in the driveway of a weather scorned house surrounded by wild grass and weeds that hid most of its lower structure. He pushed the button and tugged the handle of the door opening it. He gestured for Brooke to go inside. She complied and crawled onto the far side of the bench seat near the passenger door. She wiggled around the window crank with amusement. Randall shut the door, pushed down on the locks on both doors and tried to open them from the inside to see if they would unlock. They didn’t open. Almost satisfied he pulled over the seatbelt and clicked it. The more complicated he could make it for his body to escape, the safer he felt. He still wasn’t a hundred percent positive that his body would remain calm this time. It was a new place. As the darkness poured into the truck the peacefulness enticed his mind to escape into the world where Randall could be human once more.
CHAPTER 5 VIOLENT STREETS
Several days passed while Giselle scoured the streets of Chicago. She found and killed over twenty eight Azrael that remained locked within the walls. None of them was her brother and after a thorough search and cleansing, she could safely assume that he had left the city. Chicago was now Azrael and Jason free. She stopped by her apartment, packed for a long trip and headed for the Highwaymen Armory. She picked up several boxes of ammunition and two bottles of pepper spray for close encounters. She called and left a message with Simon stating her mission and informed him of what she took from the armory, a protocol all Highwaymen followed.
