In the World After: Chapter 7
#7 of In the World After
Holy freakin cow! This took long enough!
I have finally finished the seventh chapter of In the World After, and I really hope you all enjoy it.
A third shot sounded above the ruckus of the hoard trying to find its way towards us.
"No...no...please...no..." I murmured under my breath. I couldn't move. My body wouldn't budge as the realization flooded my mind in a tidal wave. I managed to take one-step backwards as I faced in the direction of the final shot. She was dead.
"Keon! Keon, we have to go! That hoard will find a way to us soon enough without us just standing here!" John spoke firmly as he shook my shoulder a bit, trying to break my stupor. I blinked a few times, then laid my ears back and nodded, grasping his hand-paw in mine.
"Shit...I can't believe I let her be so dumb...so freakin' stupid..." I heard Aaron mutter as I turned to face him and David. David didn't say a word, his eyes seemingly empty. I looked Aaron in the eyes and gave a sharp gesture with my muzzle, signaling towards our direction of escape. He nodded and spoke up, "We need to get out of here. Fast. I'm not sure how...but there has to be some way." With that, he wrapped one of David's arms around his shoulder and started in a loping run as he helped Clara's brother. I squeezed John's hand paw for comfort and started jogging after the two humans.
"I'd say we could use the car for a quick escape, but I think we've been effectively cut off from it." I yelled to Aaron as we ran along, trying to make some distance between us and the Infected.
"I think you might be right...but everything, except for our immediate possessions, is back at that house. I don't want to have to try and replace everything we'd lose. There has to be some way we can get back to it!" He called back. I definitely agreed with him, but I couldn't think if any possible way that we could get back even semi-safely. While I brooded on the subject matter, we continue to run, David limping, as fast as we could.
All the sudden, John called out, "Guys! Wait! I have an idea!" I came to a halt on my feet pads, and saw Aaron turn around, looking very reluctant to stop. I took a quick look at our surroundings; we were what looked like the beginning of a business area.
"What? Make it fast." Aaron sighed.
John looked around at everyone quickly before continuing, "Well, a couple days ago, before I found your group, I was being chased by a pack of 6 Infected. I didn't have anything suitable enough to even make a good final stand against them, so I was looking for a place to hide. I ran into an old fast-food building and hid in the big walk-in freezer in back. I think the same building is near here, and we should be able to all fit inside. The door was thick and metal, so we should be safe."
"Should be?" David scoffed quietly. Aaron simply elbowed him.
"A possibility of life is better than a definite death. You take the lead and find it again. Now let's go, fast!" Aaron said with a jerk of his head, signaling for John to go ahead. I could hear the sounds of the hoard approaching as we started up again, causing my stomach to flip. Trying to steel my nerves, I jogged at the back of the group as John led us along the streets.
He led us around a corner and pointed out a building. "That's it! Quick! Let's get inside fast, before they see where we're going!" He called out to us as he started to full-out run towards the place. I came up on the other side of David and took his other arm over my shoulders, then Aaron and I picked up the pace to try and keep up with John. "In here!" He whispered loudly, ushering us through the door into the abandoned fast-food joint.
As soon as I stepped in, I could smell the old grease and the long-expired foodstuffs, causing my ears to lay back in disgust. David, by this time, had pushed both Aaron and I away, as the time for running had passed. I tossed John a flashlight from my pack, and he led the way back through the dark, foul-smelling kitchen to the back of the restaurant. He tugged the metal door open for us, which squealed on rusting hinges.
We were in. The door was shut.
Now we just had to wait...in the dark. Déjà vu.
John kept the light on long enough for all of us to get settled in a spot on the floor. I sat next to him, while Aaron sat across from us. David, not that I was surprised or disappointed, sat as far away from us three as he could. Once we were ready, he flicked off the light and we were plunged into darkness.
Now that I finally had time to think, I did just that.
Clara...
I'd only known her for maybe a week, but I couldn't believe she was already dead. I wasn't ready for more death. She had at least tried to accept me, unlike her bigot brother. A few tears welled up in my eyes, and I quickly brushed them away with my forearm. The sounds of remorse came from where Aaron sat, but I heard nothing from David. Heaving a sigh, I scooted closer to John and leaned against him, laying my head on his shoulder.
Everyone sat in silence for about 45 minutes. I nodded off once or twice, but would be awoken by the creak of the building or by John's adjusting of his position. I was just drifting off again when I heard Aaron clear his throat. "So, I guess we can just sit here in silence for the whole time, or we could at least be social. I vote the second one."
I nodded in agreement as John spoke up, "I'd have to agree. My mute fox here also agrees." He nudged me in the side and chuckled softly. I punched him lightly on the arm in return.
"Well, since you seem to be the only talkative one, John, I want to hear about you. Keon told me of you two when you knew each other in school, but what happened when you left? Where did you go? Where are you parents?"
I'd been wondering the same things, so I stayed quite as John started, content to listen just so I could hear his voice...
~~~~
Well...I'm more than happy to share my story, but I'm not so sure where to begin....I guess I'll start on that day when we left.
The Virus had already been spreading along the east coast, and it was starting to spread farther west. One morning (I would guess about a month after the initial infection, though I'd only heard about the Virus a week prior), my mother woke me up very early. "Johnny...Johnny...it's time to wake up. We are going to be leaving." I'd awoken groggily, not really understanding what she was saying. I simply thought I'd overslept, and was going to be late for school. I was just walking over to my closet to get dressed, rubbing sleep from my eyes, when my mother came into my room again, holding two large suitcases. "Honey, I need you to pack these with as much as you can. Clothes and other necessities for on a long trip first, then you can fill the rest of the space with trinkets and things."
I turned to face her, a shirt grasped in my hand-paw. "Why, Mom? Are we going on a trip?" I asked her as I slid the shirt over my head, adjusting it a but so it sat comfortably over my fur. I saw her stare into nowhere and tap her muzzle, trying to find the right words. While she thought, I slid on a pair of pants designed for digitigrade legs. My tail fit into the dip in the back the pants, and I buttoned the designated flap over it, so the pants would not ride too low.
"Well...It is a trip. We're going to travel out west, maybe see the Rocky Mountains or something." She said finally.
"Oh, that's cool. Does school know about this impromptu trip? I should tell Keon I'm leaving..." I mused as I grabbed a few shirts from my closet and tossed them on bed, so I could pack them.
"There isn't a lot of time before we leave, and the house phone and our cell phones won't work."
"Huh...why is it?"
"Your father and I decided to cancel the contracts." I could tell she was trying to skirt around something"
"That's a weird thing to do; why would you do that? It's not like we're not coming back." I responded, slightly incredulous."
There was a brief pause before she answered. "We are not coming back, John."
***
"There's really no way for you to find a way for me to say 'goodbye' to him, Dad?" I asked stubbornly from the back seat as he drove out of our town. We were in a good sized SUV, packed to the brim for our exodus to the western part of the country.
The black panther, my father, answered gruffly. "We already discussed this. We're sorry, but both your mother and I decided that it would be for the best to get out of town as soon as possible. No room for detour."
"Dad...Mom...I'll probably never see him again! He was my friend. My best friend!" I growled, my tail tip lashing with annoyance. "We were...I love Keon, and you could at least take a few minutes for me to say goodbye?"
"Honey, please understand..."My mother, a leopard, tried to interject gently. My father interrupted her before she got far.
"Don't be silly, John. How could you two have been in love? I guess flimsy 6th-grade dating counts as love, now. Either way, now you'll be able to try and find a nice girl, and me and your mother can still have hopes for grandchildren." He laughed darkly.
He'd never really been on board with the whole 'gay' thing, and constantly tried to push me the other way. He also tended to be a jerk. Nothing I did was good enough, never showed up to my spelling bee contests, wasn't the son he'd really hoped for; you know...the usual fatherly jackass-ery. "Dad, you're really going to pull that card right now? Yes, I love him, and he loves me." I huffed. I then spoke directly to my mother, "You really think that we're not coming back, don't you? It can't be that bad, can it?"
My father tried to throw back some other remark, but my mother held up her hand. "Honey, that is enough." She turned around in her seat to face me, a sad look across her muzzle. "Yes, I do think we're not coming back. This thing has already infected or killed over a million people, and is spreading fast. Reports say that it doesn't seem to affect those who are Homo bestia, but that doesn't stop infected people from killing." She paused, for dramatic effect or just to gather her thoughts, I don't know. "Your father and I both agreed that it would be safer to get far away now, before things really get bad."
I sighed and slumped down in my seat, gazing out the window as we sped westward along I-72. "Yeah...I guess that all makes sense. I still wish I could have said goodbye..."
Mom reached back and patted my leg comfortingly, "I know, and I'm sorry that we didn't tell you sooner, so that you could. I do think it wasn't totally fair of us to spring this on you, and I apologize."
"It's not alright, but I guess I understand why you did this." That was as close as I would come to accepting her apology. "So, what are we going to do once we get out west? Where are we going? Are you just planning on living out of our car, or are we going to rent a place?"
"Well, you're mother and I thought that we'd head to Colorado. Specifically, Colorado Springs." My father answered. "I don't know if we ever told you, but we have a rental property there, for some extra cash in our pockets."
I blinked, slightly shocked. "No, I never knew that." Thinking about it, it did make sense that they had something for extra income. They always seemed to have extra cash around for vacationing and such.
"Well, now you do. Anyway, no one is currently renting it, so we'll be staying there."
My mother spoke up. "It's in a pretty nice suburban area, and it seems that there is a lot of families in the neighborhood. I'm sure you'll make some friends."
"We'll see..." I sighed and laid my head back.
All the way to Colorado Springs? This was going to be a long drive....
Luckily enough, my parents weren't ambitious enough to make the drive in a single go, so two day's driving later, we pulled in front of our new home. It was a good sized ranch style house in a young neighborhood. The house was also nice on the inside, understandably, since my parent's had to make it appealing to renters.
My father held open the front door for me as I hauled my suitcases in. Wiping my feet-paws off on the doormat, I stepped forward on to the warm, cream colored carpeting, it feeling plush under my toes. I turned and faced my father, who was now holding the door for my mother and her bags. "Where is the room that I'll use?" I asked the both of them.
Mom though for a second then answered, "Either of the two bedrooms on the right side of that hall there are fine for you to use. Take your pick"
"Alright, thank you." I said as I turned and headed down the only hall that was visible. Finding the first door on the right, i opened it to find a disgustingly pink room. I couldn't help but curl my lips up a bit at the sight of the room color. "I'm definitely not picking that one...." I murmured to myself as i padded to the next of the three doors on the right of the hallway. This one was a bathroom, painted a neutral white. Huffing, I opened the last door and found the second bedroom, the walls painted a pale blue and the ceiling white. This is an obvious choice.... I thought as I placed both my suitcases on the bare mattress in the room.
"You didn't want the pink room? I'm shocked!" My father said from the doorway with a devilish smirk. I knew exactly where he had aimed that comment.
"Oh my god, Dad. Just because I'm gay, doesn't make my girly, or effeminate." I was tired from two days in the car, and had no patience for his shit. I unzipped one of my suitcases and started pulling out a few of my clothes to put away in the dresser and the closet.
"Are so sure about that? A man liking men sounds pretty effeminate to me."
"Dad, why do you care so much about that? How does my liking men affect you in any way? Afraid it'll rub off? You're an adult with a wife and a kid, my decision is not going to affect you. I shouldn't even have to say that! We only just got our new home, and you're starting that all again?" I angrily threw a few more clothes down onto the bare mattress.
"Did you ever think about how your decision will affect me? I won't ever have real grandchildren, or a daughter-in-law to get to know. Our family line will end with you, all because of your selfish decision!" His black tail lashed behind him and he took a step forward, a furred finger pointed directly at me.
"Just shut up, Dad! I don't want to hear about my selfish decision when you have such selfish reasons for why I should change who I am. Just leave me alone. I'm done with this." Rage boiled deep in me as I turned to him and made a shoo-ing gesture with my hand-paw. I didn't care how rude it was. "We are in a new city, in a new home; why don't we start anew with this, too?"
My mother, how I love her so, came up behind my father and asked, "Would either of you like to come to the store with me? I've got to get some basic food things and other necessities that I couldn't fit or forgot to back." She pretended to have heard none of our spat, but I was positive she had.
Dad huffed, "I do not want to go, thank you. I'll stay and unpack"
As soon as he said that, I knew my decision. "Sure Mom, I'll go with you" I answered with a wide smile, flicking my tail with pleasure to have found a way away from my father.
"Alright, sounds good. I'll meet you out in the car." My mother called as she turned and went back down the hall.
I grabbed a rainbow bracelet from the front of my suitcase, and slipped it on as obviously as I could, as my father still stood in my doorway. I kept it mostly just to aggravate him, and now seemed like as good a time as any.
***
"Several cases of infection have been reported in or near city limits. Leading scientists still have not devised a cure for this epidemic. The east coast is nearly all Infected or in ruins. The spread of this disease cannot be contained, it seems, and local governments are already planning evacuations. More news tonight at 6. This is Jane Welsington, and have a good rest of your Monday, Colorado Springs."
It had been 2 weeks since we had moved to escape the spreading Infection, but it seemed that did us no good...
I sighed inwardly and flicked off the TV. I didn't really want to hear about such sour news. Mom and Dad hadn't bothered enrolling me in the local school; I suspected they'd thought that this situation might happen. There wasn't a lot to do around here, and I actually wished I could go to school, if only as a distraction.
Both my parents were out on a shopping trip, and had been gone about an hour and a half so far. They hadn't applied for work either, instead dipping into savings and 401K accounts, which provided ample funds.
Everyday, I carried the same thought in my head. Was Keon alright? I had no way to know, and my gut gave me no feelings to follow. With how fast the Infection had spread, I understood my parent's need for haste, but it didn't change the fact that I had no idea as to the well-being of Keon. I knew, deep down, that I'd probably never see him again...
"John, get ready to leave. I have plans for you." My father said as he abruptly came through the front door, carrying some grocery bags. My mother came in right behind him with more.
"I..uh...alright? Why?" I questioned as I pushed myself up and off of the couch. My feet joints cracked as I stood and stretched, a large feline yawn breaking across my muzzle.
"I'll explain more in the car. You don't need to bring anything." I nodded, not sure what to say, and followed him back out to the car after he had deposited his grocery bags in the kitchen.
As he was getting in the car, he started again, "I don't care whether your gay or whatever, because those Infected won't care. You will shoot a gun, and damn well, by the end of this week." He turned on the SUV and backed out of the driveway. "We're gonna go to the shooting range everyday for as long as they'll let us. The world we know is very close to it's end. I doubt anybody will be able to do anything about the Infection soon enough to make a difference. I bought lots of supplies, and I'm going to give you a crash course for surviving in the world after."
***
"Dad! Where is Mom! Do you have any idea where she is?" I shouted over the din of gunfire and the horrendous screams and groans of the Infected. Carrying a bag of ammo and arrows, I threw them quickly in the back of the SUV before turning and taking careful aim at a group of the monsters heading this way.
BAM BAM BAM BANG!!
They all fell on the spot.
It was about a week and a half since Dad had started his training with me and, thank God, I had been able to pick it up very fast. It might have been also that I wanted to prove to my father that 'gay' didn't mean I couldn't be masculine, or do manly type things, like gun-shooting.
"I don't have a clue where she is! She might have walked to the local store for something...it wasn't like we had forewarning to this." He yelled back, tossing two compact bows and series of small guns into the car. When he'd said he bought lots of supplies, he hadn't been over-exaggerating.
A huge swarm of Infected had come just over 15 minutes ago. They'd come from nowhere, and no one had been really prepared for it. I don't know how they managed to go unnoticed, but they had, and this was a big enough swarm to take down a whole city. Those who hadn't fled, like us, had been preparing for something like this, though, and fought hard as they tried to make an escape.
"Are you kidding me?!" I could already feel the tears start to form in my eyes as my ears folded flat back to my skull. There was only one logical option to what had happened to my mother.
Logic has a funny way of escaping you when loved one's deaths are involved....
"Dad! We have to find her! We have to save her!" I yelled out as my father turned and fired on another group of Infected.
"John, we can't! There is no chance she could have survived. She didn't have any weapons, and this was all so sudden!" The black panther bared his teach in frustration. "Go inside and grab the last bag. That's the most important; it has all our food."
"But..."
"No, John! Just do it." I nodded and swallowed my words, running inside and swinging the remaining pack onto my shoulder. I came back in a flash, tossing it into the car along with the other stuff. "Alright, quickly! Get in the car, we need to get out of here!" My dad yelled as more of these Infected monsters came down the street with surprising speed.
Climbing in the car, I spoke up again, "There has to be some way we can go get Mom..." It felt like something was stuck inside me, and wouldn't budge.
"Don't you think I'd do something if I could? Don't you think I thought about all the possible scenarios?" As he quickly backed up and then sped off down the street, I saw tears glistening against his black cheek fur, his ears laid back."John, she is gone. You're just gonna have to accept that. There is nothing you, nor I, nor anyone can do. The only thing we can be glad about is that the disease doesn't infect people like us, and she won't have to come back as a retched, festering beast..."
"Yeah..." I muttered as he pulled onto the main road along with the other cars carrying survivors.
Off we sped towards mountains and hopefully towards some safety.
~~~~
There was a moment of silence after John finished his recounting, then I shifted and faced the big leopard. "Well, what happened to your father? Where is he now? And what have you done for the past six years?"
I could see John's outline turn towards me, as my eyes had finally fully adjusted to the dark. "My father died about two months after we escaped to the mountains. As for what I've done? I've simply tried to survive. I mostly stayed in and around the mountains, as I didn't have any mode of transportation other than my feet. This is actually probably the farthest I've traveled. All the scavenging places around where I was were picked pretty dry, and it was starting to get dangerous."
"Oh...I see. I'm sorry about your father and your mother. I always remember her being very nice whenever I'd come over."
"John, what happened to your dad? I mean, if you're willing to share." Aaron asked from the where he sat against the walk-in freezer wall.
"No, it's fine." John answered. "We were searching around a small town in the mountains, hoping to find some useful things. We were ambushed by a hostile group, and my father got shot." He paused for a second, then continued, "He got shot trying to save me. His last words were 'Leave me, get out of here, and find yourself a nice girl'..." He chuckled a little, though I could tell it was half-hearted. "He could never really accept me..."
"Well, at least he really did love you. I doubt he'd have died saving you if he hadn't." Aaron mused.
"Yeah, that's true."
From the far corner of the room came the groan of David, whom I forgotten was with us. "It has to have been well over two hours, by now. Can we get out of this damn freezer? As much as I love listening to your stupid stories...I really hate it."
"It might be a little soon to go, but I'll go check."Aaron said with a mockingly cordial tone. We all groaned and covered our now light sensitive eyes as Aaron flicked on the flashlight to find the door. Locating it, he gave it a good shove, and it swung open, the hinges shrieking horribly. "Sorry" I heard him mutter as he, too, flinched from the noise. "I'll be right back, hopefully."
As we waited, we sat there, letting our eyes readjust to the faint light that flowed into the freezer. After a few minutes, my ears pricked at the sound of soft footfalls which I hoped would be Aaron's.
Luckily, it was him.
"Alright, so, here's the thing. There are still a few Infected around, but not nearly as many as there was. I think our best bet is to make a run for it back to the house where we were staying. I am nearly sure i remember how to get back."
"Oh, yeah...run..." David huffed, repositioning his injured leg."
"Shut up, David. We'll push you in the roll-y cart thing I found coming back here. It probably won't fall apart."
So, was it worth the wait? Or at least somewhat? I hope so.
As always, I love reading your comments, so please post any you have!