The Carnage Trilogy (Book 1): The Carnage [Unbending, Unyielding, Unforgiving]

by Birch, Matthew

  "Plan B?" He asks.

  "Plan B" I repeat. "We haven't got a choice, it's now or never..."

  "AH!" We yelp in unison. There was a bump in the road, startling us both. Ed sighs, holding a hand over his heart. I half-heartedly smile. It's just a bump. We're fine. We are safe. Nothing to worry about! We've already discussed the chance all this is some horrible trap. We are relying far too much on luck right now, literally wishing for the best is the only real weapon we have.

  Coming to a stop, we freeze up in our seats. Finally, back at the edge of town, we halt ourselves in front of the smouldering remains of ash and tree stumps. What was once a large, luscious part of a bountiful, wild forest is nothing more than lifeless remains? The whole forest wasn't taken out, but a large section has been carved in. Ed makes a witty remark beside me. I don’t even pay him attention. Heck, I don’t even hear what he said. I haven't got the time to roll my eyes like I normally do because already; I'm grabbing the machete and tossing the door open. Jumping out of the garbage truck, I land on the floor, vibrations rattling my poor, skinny legs. I suck it up, sliding around to Ed's side and opening the door for him. He raises an eyebrow at me, and I shake my head at him. "Come on you big lug" I bite my lip, stepping up, undoing his seatbelt and wrapping an arm around him.

  "Ed!" I shout as he pushes me back. Ed snidely utters, "I don't need you mothering me" To which he does remove himself from the truck ever so slowly. Sighing, I start moving out. Placing my first step into the wasteland of ash and carefully moving my way through it. We're not far now, we can make it.

  But this world is ruinous and full of death. The very scent of it disgusts me. I hate it to my very core. We may be all that's left. We haven't come this far to die now. All I know is that this carnage has broken us. After all is said and done, I turn to the last hope I have, my waning humanity. That is all I have left and I wish to never lose it...

  This world is changing us, for the better, or the worse.

  We will survive.

  Chapter 27 - We're... Alive

  Am I dead?

  I feel so inadequate and superficial. Yet, I feel so warm and fuzzy. Is death supposed to feel this warm? I open my eyes to find the dark. I can barely see. I feel about, gripping the duvet in my hands and moving it around between my fingers. So soft, so comforting...

  I can't be dead; death isn't this kind. Leaning up, I peer around the shady room. Very quickly, as my pupils adjust to the enclosing darkness, I can make out the brief features that make it my room. Well, the room I share with Marcus. For one, his Dad's machete is the first thing I notice, intricately placed vertically up on his pillows. This could only mean one thing, I'm alive.

  Turning my view, I look at the slightly parted door, a minimal amount of light shines through the slit. Hushed voices bounce back and forth. "He's been asleep for a while now..."

  It's Marcus...

  Huge surges of relief wash over me! He survived the onslaught of the monster uprising. "If it wasn't for Maya, he'd already be dead" The other voice is Officer Davis. He sounds uneasy, but a sense of relief settles in his tone afterwards.

  I think I've waited around long enough.

  Taking a deep breath, I prepare my rough vocal cords. “Someone help!” I finally speak. It’s nowhere near as loud as I wanted, but the bellowing of my voice worked. Seconds later, the door is flung open so hard it smacks against the wall! Weary-eyed, fierce and fearful all at once, Marcus storms into our room and yells in a panic, "ED, ARE YOU OKAY!” He squints his eyes in the darkness to find me, he searches until he lays his gaze on me and then he instantly relaxes. He sees me sitting up with a proud grin on my face. Smiling, Marcus steps over to me, dropping down to my height and wrapping me up in a tight hug.

  "I was so fucking worried about you..." He whispers. Laughing into his shoulder, I hug him back with my left arm. My right arm is feeling ridiculously numb.

  "Don't worry about me mate..." I reply just as quietly as him. After the moment of rejoicing that I'm alive. Officer Davis steps in, "Don't be so rough with him Mark"

  Shifting my tired gaze to Officer Davis, I watch as he steps inside, crosses his arms and leans against the metal frame of the bunk bed on the opposite side of the room. "Officer Watson did a good job of redoing your bandages. The fellas even gave you stitches" Davis overlooks me, his eyes widening as he takes in the full view. Marcus moves away after ruffling my hair.

  Clicking his tongue, the Officer finishes his prideful greeting with, "Maya did a pretty handy job of keeping ya' alive" I note his remark about the vixen. Which reminds me, I need to thank Maya for all that she has done for me.

  "You passed out when walking through the burned down part of the forest. The poor girl literally carried you all the way back to the ranger station. Took her hours, but she did it in the end" Marcus says, a wide smile on his creased face. Looking away, I take a moment to think to myself. Maya dragged my sorry ass back to the ranger station. I don't even remember passing out. It must've happened so suddenly. I have no memory of any of it. How far did we even get? I have said it before, I'll say it again, I owe her my life. Getting over the disbelief is still too much for me. All I can barely mutter past my crackled lips to the other two men are, "I owe her my life"

  Nodding, Marcus places a hand on my shoulder. "I'll be back in a few minutes, you'll be okay right?" His voice is sickly sweet. I give him a nod back in return. Slumping back down onto my bed and resting my head on the double pillows, I rest my dizzying head. While the two men leave the room, I hear the last of their conversation. Officer Davis says he'll ask Patrick to check me over one more time and Marcus says he agrees and that maybe Patrick can give me something extra if I don't feel too good. Before the door is closed, Marcus looks back. Offering me one last smile, he says, “It’s good to have you back”

  Sighing, I look up at the top of my bunk bed. I prefer to sleep on top, but this is nice I guess. Can't be picky, not while I'm in this state.

  I close my eyes, open them, close them again, and I am already drifting asleep again...

  * * *

  When I wake up the second time, I feel colder than I remember. Something wet dabs against my right arm. Looking to my side, I see Marcus leaning forward in a chair. He makes no reaction to my awakening, he simply gives me a confident nod as Patrick who sits next to him, inspects my wounds quite thoroughly. The first thing I notice is the three distinct claw marks that tear across his blotchy, stitched up face. Patrick says nothing. The last thing I remember is him calling out for me and Maya. We thought he was dead.

  "What the hell happened to you?"

  Patrick

  "Shit" I drop the bullet, again. "S-shit" I try again, dropping it a second time. Narrowing my eyes, at the bullet between my legs, I give up. Nerves are too rattled to do it. Throwing my head back, I lean against the tree that is keeping me alive right now. Not far from me is one of those things. No longer a creature, now a monster, it haunts me like a bad dream, cutting me off at every turn. Any creatures that followed me were picked off by the monster. At first what I thought was a blessing became a bloody nightmare! Using my spare hand, I run it gently across the left side of my cheek where three claw marks have been engraved. It's not slowing down. It keeps coming back after every shotgun burst I put in it. It's ridiculous how much punishment I can give it, yet it doesn't give up! It's ruthlessly come back to carve me up...

  I can hear it sniffing around. It's close. I need to be expeditious. I take a deep breath to calm my rattled breathing pattern.

  I reach for the final bullet I have and with ease, reload it back into its home. Twigs crunch behind me. I close my eyes, knowing I just have to wait for the right moment. It's then that I feel the nasty, warm scent of its breath on the side of my neck. Chills are sent down my spine and my hairs stand at attention. Goosebumps litter my skin, warning me of the threat that slowly but surely, moves around the base of the tree. Advancing closer and closer to my side, the monster is almost there. Without taking
a breath, I stop any sign of breathing. I go absolutely silent.

  Not. A. Sound.

  And it growls-

  It knows-

  If I hadn't blown its eyes out - I would surely be dead by now-

  A gentle humming becomes a low growling that turns into a roar! Pushing myself forward and off the base of the tree, I barrel towards the ground. Spinning as I go so I am facing the monster and with the pull of the trigger, the shotgun meets the creature half-way. Sending it flying backwards mid-pounce! Crawling backwards, I scrutinize the monster that shifts slightly on the ground. No, no, no! Please be dead! Just fucking die already?! It stumbles, waves about, then drops, thumping against the grass lifelessly. It's dead. I have survived. I'm alive.

  "Patrick?" A voice calls out. Seconds later, Marcus, Chloe and Ben come rushing through into the clearing. Ben limping while Chloe lifts him up. "Where are Ed and Maya?" is the first thing that he says to me. Marcus, the man who has so much potential, yet wastes it on the weak. I remember calling for them one last time before bolting into the forest. I didn't have a choice; I have to stay alive for Linda.

  "I don't know" Unfortunately, I give all that I can offer. I haven't got a clue where they are or if they are okay. The last shots of Maya's assault rifle ended long ago. Marcus comes to my side, already kneeling down beside me.

  "Are you okay?" he inspects the three claw marks. Being too lost for breath to keep talking; I lift my index finger and point at the rotten piece of shit that I, killed.

  "I know the way back to the ranger station from here. Let's go" Marcus says like he has been here before. I raise my palm to stop him from helping me. I don't need his help. Pushing myself off the ground, I get up without any assistance. "I'm fine" I gasp as I lean down to pick up my shotgun. Then I hear it, that same screech from the same monster that I thought, I killed.

  We all turn to see the monster that is most surprising to see standing. Its jaw hangs loose. Its torso shredded. Its face is crumpled up like a paper ball. It limps forward, relying on hearing and smell to track us. Marcus advances on the monster. "Be careful, it is stronger" I warn him. "Oh, I know" Marcus swings the machete around skilfully. A glint of passion rests in his eyes. The monster's head follows each swish of the knife carefully before-

  Oh no.

  It's already too late to warn him as he is pounced on in the blink of an eye, sending him to the ground in a heap. Wrestling, Marcus fights for life as the monster snaps away at his neck lustfully, but can’t reach him. Chloe dashes forward, literally holding the creature at gunpoint, the nozzle of the pistol pressed against its skull. Looking away, she pulls the trigger several times. It works, causing the creature to bounce away, its head waving around like it hasn't got a clue what's going on. She shouts in surprise, confused that it's not dead. In that moment, she realises the same terrible realization I had before. Its skull is thick, almost impenetrable. Whilst she and Marcus scramble to safety, I turn to Ben who leans against a tree, his ankle looking intensely swollen.

  "Ben! Flare gun, NOW!"

  Ben pulls the flare gun out from his pocket and throws it at me. Teetering, the monster stumbles away, its head probably ringing from the gunshots.

  I take aim and-

  The monster blows up in flames. A cloud of red smoke surrounds it, and we all wait to see if we are going to die or not. If my shotgun couldn't kill it, I don't know what will! Stepping out from the smoke alight in flames, the monster shows no sign of pain or any reaction at all for that matter. It just continues to walk forward like nothing had happened.

  I hold my breath. Watching, waiting, hoping it dies.

  As needed, it drops to the ground. Though, it does set the surrounding area in flames...

  Crap.

  "WE NEED TO GO, NOW!"

  Ed

  It all makes sense now. It was Patrick who caused the fire...

  Patrick's stony eyes are unmoving as he checks my wounds. Sighing, he takes one long breath after finishing his side of the monster event. He doesn't look at me, but his face still turns into a hardened smile. "I'm glad to see you alive and well," he says.

  I nod, staying perfectly still as Patrick proceeds to dab a wet cotton ball against my wounds. No doubt it's covered in disinfectant. "So, while I have the chance, I want to take the moment to explain our situation," He says plainly. But his voice gets all the direr when he speaks again. "As you already know, the monsters have made an uprising, and with that, the creatures have vanished. Luckily for the living, no one is dead, only hurt"

  "Thank God..." I whisper when Patrick pauses for a moment. Stopping the dabbing, Patrick lifts his stone cold face to stare me down. Our eyes meet.

  "God left us long ago"

  I stay silent, not sure how to respond. I glance at Marcus who effortlessly sits back in his seat, saying nothing about Patrick's comment. I mean, I was only using Gods name as a figure of speech just now but sure, whatever. Finishing, Patrick sits back and begins gathering his things. "Are you hungry?" He questions dully. "Yep" I reply, not quite able to look him in the eye.

  "Kinda a stupid question don't ya think?" It's Ben who passes by, leaning against the door frame and peering in at us. Patrick nods, standing up. "Would you be up to the task of cooking him dinner?" Patrick asks, but I bet it's an order.

  Judging by the drop on Ben's cheery expression, he accepts that he is now cooking me dinner. I grin, feeling slightly smug at his burden. Shrugging his shoulders, Ben fully hobbles inside and I get a full look at the man with crutches. Patrick coughs, whispering something to Ben as he passes. Ben bites his lip, nods, and continues limping into the room. The door is closed slightly behind Patrick as he leaves.

  "What'd he say?" I ask Ben who lowly says, "He said he'll ask one of the Officers to assist me in cooking you dinner"

  Marcus readjusts what was once Patrick's seat so that Ben can easily sit on it. Ben sits down for a moment, wincing as he unsubtly drops onto his ass. I raise an eyebrow. What happened to him?

  "My ankle is pretty fucked..." Leaning down, he grabs the hems of his tracksuit bottoms and hauls them up to reveal his disturbingly swollen ankle. I gasp, unable to find the words in response. "Yeah, I know. But I'll be better before you know it. You'll see..."

  I nod, turning my mind and view to Marcus. Did he get hurt? Marcus seems to get the hint from my worried look and holds a hand over his chest. His jaw tightens, and he lifts his top with a grunt to reveal his disgusting, swollen purple and black skin over his chest where the skin has been beaten till broken.

  "What the fuck Marcus..." I breathe through my clenched teeth. What the fuck happened on that first day?

  "Whelp, we'd better catch up soon Eddy" Ben grunts, putting in as much effort as he can to stand. Marcus leaps to his aid, holding him upright. "I've got some dinner to cook you anyway..." In his words, I can tell Ben isn't too fond of doing that for me. Marcus comes to his rescue a second time today. "Go rest mate, I'll catch up with Ed and then I'll take your duty" After his kindness has passed, Ben thanks him, showing how grateful he is before leaving us be.

  Once he had left the room, I shoot the question at Marcus. "What happened?"

  Marcus narrows his eyes and takes a breath.

  Marcus

  "Is it that one there?" Ahead of me at the end of the cobbled path is the last cabin, looking a little higher class than the one Ed and I rented for the week. Chloe releases my hand and rushes ahead. The cabin looks almost, untouched? Eerily, the door is left wide open. Swinging backwards and forwards in a gentle lifelike motion, it looks like something out of a horror movie.