Thursday, October 10, 2019

Day 10: Emergency Meeting



David felt the tension boiling in his gut. He knew he had mere moments to get to the truck before the horde set upon him and with a blockade of eight festering corpses in front of him, his options were limited. Suddenly, he saw Cristian turn the wheel of his vehicle toward him. He was preparing to run them over. Diving out of the way, he listened at the sound of decayed carcasses bursting upon impact with the front grill of the truck.

Knocking up against a stack of pallets, he rushed to his feet as he heard more zombies closing in. “Get in!” Liz shouted. “Hurry!”

Jumping into the passenger seat, he heard the door slam shut as Cristian maneuvered the vehicle into a U-turn, starting toward home. “That was a close one,” David replied. When they reached the main street, they noticed a number of fires burning around them. 



Cristian’s driving slowed a bit when his attention was momentarily distracted by the sky to the east. In the distance, over the tall line of buildings, dark columns of rising smoke was visible. It appeared that quite a bit of the city was burning. “These guys are everywhere,” Liz said. “We need to get out of here. Fast!”

A single car with its hood up was the only thing visible ahead on the street and Cristian drove closer slowly. Moving to a corner occupied by the fire station and a convenience store, he came to a stop. “What’s that?” he asked, waiting for the others to see what had caught his attention. A large military vehicle was blocking the main road. The engine revved. And a few moments later, three members of the BioCore Militia exited the truck.

“Go,” David said in a low tone, staring at the men as they readied their weapons.

“Are they…they wouldn’t,” Cristian said. One of the men took aim at the group. “Holy shit.”

“Go!” David yelled.



Slamming his foot on the gas, Cristian raced down an opposite street, heading east away from the prison. Taking as many back streets as he could, he made a few turns and started north, ensuring they weren’t followed or driving down any barricaded roads. “Did we lose them?” he asked, not daring to look behind him again.

“Yeah, we’re good,” Liz replied as Cristian turned down the road toward home.

Dominic gently placed Elise on a cot in the infirmary and watched a moment as Natalie tended to her wound. “How bad is it?” she asked once the blood had been cleaned up.

“Actually,” Natalie replied. “You’re gonna need some stitches but you should heal just fine. I’ll grab you some antibiotics and pain meds from the back once we’re done here.”

A beeping alarm alerted them that the others had returned and Matthew met the group at the door. “Is everyone alright?” he asked, hoping they too had not met with unexpected injuries or trouble.



“We’re all fine,” Liz replied, “But we need to talk. All of us.”

“Agreed.” Matthew called an emergency meeting. After everything that had happened in the last three days, there was much to discuss. “We need to figure out exactly what is going on,” he said. “There are too many accidents for any of this to be coincidence.”

“Exactly,” David chimed in. “Someone has to be orchestrating these run-ins with all the zombies. We are always extra careful and vigilant when we go out, yet the last four time we’ve all met with hordes of these creatures who seemingly appear out of nowhere.”

“Not to mention the fact that they run now,” Cristian stated. “It makes for extremely dangerous situations.”

“We found a couple of BioCore’s guys while we were out. They may be able to give us Intel on the company and what they have planned for survivors,” Troy said. 



“One thing interesting about that, they were held in a room with a couple of zombies and neither were attacked.” Dominic added. “I don’t know if they’ve figured out some way to repel zombies but I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“Could it have something to do with the black ooze coming from them?” Portia asked. “My last kill, the zombie spewed this slime that I’d never seen before.”

“Anything is possible,” Josh replied. “We just need to be careful. Since learning that a person can turn whether or not they’d been bitten or scratched, everything has an added layer of danger.” The group nodded and the room fell in silence for a moment. 



“There’s something else I think you should know,” Matthew said. “James and Nicole found a girl hiding in their truck. And after a lengthy and insightful conversation Sumiko revealed to us that she has been bitten on numerous occasions and survived without infection.”

“What?” Liz gasped. “How is that possible?”

“The only explanation I’ve been able to come up with is she’s immune. But more importantly what that means is she’s the key to a possible cure.” He replied, standing more erect at the front of the room. “There may be an end to this apocalypse once and for all.”

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Continue Reading: "Day 10: Emergency Meeting"

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Day 09: Proceed with Caution


“We need to do the humane thing and shoot her already!” Josh replied. Sumiko had been placed in one of the cages in Cell Block C awaiting the group’s determination about her.

“Wait,” Nicole yelled. “She hasn’t shown any signs of infection and the bite appears to be days if not weeks old.”

“And? Last I checked, you didn’t have a medical degree and we all know this virus affects everyone differently,” Josh continued. “We can’t take the chance she’ll infect any of us here.”

“I think we should wait,” James chimed in. “Nicole is right. The girl hasn’t shown any signs she’s sick. For all we know it could have been a dog bite or something.”

Just then, the front door opened and the group was joined by Natalie, Portia, JC and Matthew who was carrying an unconscious Aisha. “What happened to Aisha?” Jeremiah asked, rushing forward. 


“We had an accident,” Portia replied solemnly without looking up.

“Well is she ok?” he continued, watching as Matthew carried her off toward the infirmary with Natalie in tow.

“We don’t know yet, Miah. Natalie is going to look her over and we’ll know more from there. Don’t worry ok? She’s a tough girl. She’ll be fine,” JC replied, hoping to calm the young man. “What’s going on here?” he asked, noticing the tension in the air.

“We found someone in our truck,” Katrina said, as she hobbled over to a chair.

“What do you mean you found someone in the truck? Are they here? Are they hostile?” Matthew asked, hearing the tail end of the conversation.

“We don’t really know. She’s a young girl. Maybe 17. Japanese. Says she became stranded here and separated from her parents when the outbreak occurred,” Nicole said, filling the others in on what they’d learned so far. 


“She’s also been bitten,” Josh added.

“What? Where is she?” Matthew asked. “Why hasn’t she been taken care of? We can’t let her infect anyone else.” Josh threw his hands up in agreement.

“See that’s the thing,” Nicole started. “Her bit is old and she’s not sick. We didn’t want to just take her out without hearing her side of the story. We should figure out what happened first. If she really was bitten then why wasn’t she turned? How is she different than anyone else?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Josh again said. “She’s dangerous and the longer we stand here arguing about it, the greater the risk of her getting out and harming us becomes. We don’t know her or where she came from and we don’t need to know. The facts remain. She’s bitten. She dies.”

“No,” Matthew said. “Nicole is right. We need more information.”

“What? This is crazy!” Josh exclaimed.


“What if there’s a cure or something, Josh? A way to protect ourselves against whatever has infected everyone else? This girl might be the key to stopping it all or maybe shedding some light on how we can keep ourselves safe. We owe it to ourselves and our loved ones to explore that possibility.”

“Fine,” Josh sighed and shook his head. There was no winning the argument and continuing to state his opinion was futile. “You guys do what you want but when you get infected by the Trojan horse, don’t come crying to me.” He stalked off in the direction of his room, leaving the others to handle the fate of their new friend.

“Where is she?” Matthew asked.

“Cellblock C,” James replied.

“JC, can you and Theresa go and give Natalie a hand in the infirmary, please? James, Katrina, Nicole Sophia, and I will go and have a chat with…”

“Sumiko,” Theresa said. 


“Right.”

Sumiko sighed as she was once again tied down to a chair in the center of the day room. “Why don’t we start with your full name?” Matthew began.

“Fujikawa Sumiko,” Sumiko responded.

“And where did you come from? Why did you jump into our truck” he continued.

“I was here on vacation with my parents. I’d just been accepted to Oxford and as a gift, my parents brought me to America to visit the sites on my traveler’s list; places I’d always wanted to see. But something happened. While we were in New York, one of the passengers on our ferry became ill and bit someone.”

“I saw that video!” Nicole said. “Before it was taken down from YouTube!”


“We were taken back to the shore and examined by a physician before being released. Our trip was cut short and we started home with a layover here but…the infection had already spread and the airport was quickly overrun. Everything was chaos. After my parents and I became separated, I found myself alone. I didn’t know anyone here or where I could go for help. I’ve been by myself ever since. Doing whatever I could to survive.” Sumiko said.

“How long ago were you bitten?” Matthew asked, motioning toward the scar on her lower arm.

“I’d gone into a convenience store to try and find some water but, there were three of those dead things in there. I was able to bring down two of them but the third caught me by surprise and before I could hit him, he grabbed my arm and bit me. I managed to escape and get back to my hiding place and care for it,” Sumiko explained. “That was two weeks ago.”


“Are you telling us you were bitten two weeks ago and not turned?” Matthew asked in surprise. “Have you shown any signs of illness? Been sick at all or have some weird symptoms?”

“No,” she replied. “It was just a bite that’s healed over time.”

“How is that possible?” Katrina chimed in.

“I don’t know,” Sumiko said. “This one was two weeks ago, however, the first time I was bitten was on the ferry in New York…three years ago.”

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Continue Reading: "Day 09: Proceed with Caution"

Tuesday, October 8, 2019

Day 08: New Information


“What the fuck is this?” Troy asked, finally shutting the door. “Who are those men?”

“They work as part of a militia,” Pete said. “They broke into the store and were rifling through my stuff. I waited until they split up and one-by-one I attacked them and got them subdued.”     
  
“You took them down by yourself?” Dominic asked. Pete nodded. “Were there any others? They don’t usually move without groups.”

“As far as I know it was only those two. I-I didn’t want you to see. I was hoping the zombies would take care of them.”

“Yeah they don’t appear too interested in your hostages but I know someone who might be,” Troy replied.

“What are you thinking?” Dominic asked.
Continue Reading: "Day 08: New Information"

Monday, October 7, 2019

Day 07: Decisions


“They have this building surrounded.” Cristian announced once David and Liz rejoined them in the lobby.

“What? How? We were being careful,” Liz replied, taking a peek out of the windows to confirm what she’d heard.

“My guess: it’s the same thing that happened when we went to the fire station and corner clinic. Someone is doing this,” Cristian replied. “There is no other explanation.”

“Who would cause a horde of zombies to come after us? Why?” she continued, trying to figure out how they would get out of this mass of undead.

“Have you not been paying attention? The world is a different place these days. Any number of survivor factions could be after us to loot our stash. It’s a competition for survival. If you don’t beat the others to the last remaining can of peaches then prepare for war.”
Continue Reading: "Day 07: Decisions"

Sunday, October 6, 2019

Day 06: Splintered


“We have to go back!” Aisha declared as Portia checked her rearview.

“Hold on,” Portia said, performing a quick U-turn and gunning it back toward the alley.

Matthew pushed at the mob of undead, swinging and slashing with his knife, he severed fingers, ears and even a nose. The blade met true with a few skulls but he hesitated to really reach into the group for fear of being scratched or worse, bitten. Deciding it best to run for cover and wait for help to arrive, he turned up the alley and ran, gaining much needed distance between himself and the horde behind him. The sound of their ravenous moaning fell into sync with the beating of his own heart as his feet pounded the pavement. Turning down another corner of the alley he was abruptly faced by a dead-end as the pack of rancid zombies grew steadily closer behind him.
Continue Reading: "Day 06: Splintered"

Saturday, October 5, 2019

Day 05: Stowaway


Blood splattered her skin and soaked her clothing. A gash ripped through her thigh. James fired. Josh fired and Katrina jumped for cover. A severed arm fell to the ground beside her. Its rotted fingers twitched as if trying to hold on to what little life remained. Nicole grabbed Katrina and pulled her to her feet as more zombies broke through the tree line behind them.

Together, they made a break toward the vehicles as Sophia and Josh laid down cover fire. “Where are they coming from?” Sophia shouted over the shooting.

“I don’t know but, we can’t stay here much longer. James, get over here!” Josh called as he rounded the front of his vehicle preparing for a getaway.

The groups piled into their trucks and sped from the area. “Are we whole?” James asked, looking over at Nicole. She was staring out of her window looking back at the others.

Continue Reading: "Day 05: Stowaway"

Friday, October 4, 2019

Day 04: Lawless


Elise drifted through darkness, floating weightlessly in an inky black void. Slowly she realized she must have passed out for some reason and was not quite awake. Muddled voices could be heard as her eyes blinked behind closed lids and she shook her head as she came to.

The first thing she noticed was a sharp stabbing pain in her head. Reaching up, she felt her hair matted in blood and grimaced as she ran her fingers over the jagged edges of what must certainly be a serious head wound.

In addition, her left arm, shoulder, and side were numb. Moving them slightly, she winced at small twinges of pain here and there, but was relieved to see that they were not broken though it did seem that she had been thrown down on that side recently and with significant force.
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Thursday, October 3, 2019

Day 03: Not Alone


“Keep moving,” David said, “We have to make it back before night.” Nina and Lucky followed close behind him as he rushed through the dark theater with Liz and Cristian pulling up the rear. Another night out in search of supplies yielded a small case of bottled water, a few bags of popcorn, soda syrup, and some bags of stale nacho chips. Still, it was a much better haul than the week before.

As they made it through to the next hallway, Liz stopped and turned her attention to the utility closet. “Shh,” she said causing the others to halt in their tracks and listen. “Do you hear that?” Gesturing toward the closed door, she silently made her way forward. David moved in behind her while Cristian stayed put beside Nina.

Liz tried the handle but, it was locked. Keeping her voice low, she knocked lightly and whispered “Hello. Is someone in there?” The group listened and could hear a frantic whimpering coming from inside.

Continue Reading: "Day 03: Not Alone"

Wednesday, October 2, 2019

Day 02: Scavenging


“Almost out,” Matthew announced as he, JC, Natalie, Aisha and Portia trudged down the murky tunnels beneath the city. In recent days, the group had discovered that the sewers were devoid of undead…well, mostly. And with them running the length of the entire town, they made for easy navigation on scavenging runs. They smelled about as foul as one would expect but, a decent shower once home cleared away the fetid stench and soiled clothing.

Looking down the dark tunnel Matthew could see a smoky silhouette of shadow in a vaguely human-like shape. He appeared stooped over some object in the distance unaware he and JC were approaching. With very little light entering into the compact space, it was difficult to make out much.

Continue Reading: "Day 02: Scavenging"

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Day 01: Whole New World


Two years later…

James studied the tracks the thief had left: short, widely-spaced prints pressed deep into the damp earth; he was getting closer. Reaching down to his side, he unbuttoned his sheath, preparing himself for what lurked around the corner. With a nod towards Nicole, she broke off and started around the other side of the building. As he waited for her to get into position, his eyes fell on a separate set of prints. These were different; deep toe-to-heel impressions. This person was running. The thief had a partner. 
Continue Reading: "Day 01: Whole New World"

Monday, September 30, 2019

Prologue: No Escape


“Pick it up, Theresa. We have to keep moving,” Billy said as he lifted his backpack higher on his shoulder.

“I need a break, please,” Theresa huffed and nearly collapsed against the brick wall of the alley. “We’ve been running for three blocks. We had to have lost them by now.”

Billy turned to look at his sister. Her face was flushed and sweat poured down her forehead. If he didn’t agree to let her catch her breath, he’d be forced to carry her until they found a decent place to hide. “Fine. Three minutes, then we need to go.”

As Theresa took a seat on a stack of pallets, Billy paced around the area, keeping watch. He couldn’t relax, not with the horde so close. But they weren’t the only impending danger. “Do you have any water left?” she asked, tossing her bottle into the dumpster behind her.
Continue Reading: "Prologue: No Escape"

Monday, October 31, 2016

Day 31: What Now?

Group: Natalie, David, Amélia, Mike, Edward, Nicole, Josh, Matthew, Liz, Nina, Lucky, Eddie, Elise, Dominic, Mathew, Ryan, Troy, Aisha, Jeremiah, Katrina, Jake, JC
Location: BioCore Safe Zone


“They’re walking into their deaths. We need to stop them!” Elise exclaimed, but Natalie was already running forward.

“MATT!” she shouted, frantically waving her arms as she called his name, “MATT!!” It wasn’t his name that made him freeze, it was the sound of her voice. A voice he thought he’d never hear again.

Matthew glanced towards the cluster of trees. She appeared through the forest, arms outstretched and a smile on her face. Tossing Dominic his weapon, he rushed forward. They met halfway, his arms instantly enclosing her in a warm hug as she bounded into him. “I can’t believe it’s you,” he whispered against her ear before their lips met. He could feel the moisture on her cheeks as her hands slipped around his neck.

Continue Reading: "Day 31: What Now?"

Sunday, October 30, 2016

Day 30: Day of Reckoning

Group: Natalie, David, Amélia, Mike, Edward, Nicole, Josh, Matthew, Liz, Nina, Lucky, Eddie, Elise, Dominic, Mathew, Ryan, Troy, Aisha, Jeremiah, Katrina, Jake, JC
Location: BioCore Safe Zone

Dominic backed away from the window and started for the stairs. “We need to get to the weapons and get out there to help,” he said.

“Well, you might wanna hurry,” Aisha stated, moving out of the office, “Those zombies I told you I saw before, they’re coming back towards us now…and it looks like they picked up some friends along the way.”

“Shit,” Ryan hurried after Dominic, followed by Troy, Mathew and Katrina. Grabbing up a couple rifles and handguns, they geared up for a fight.

“We have maybe thirty seconds before those things are up our asses. We get out there and we move quickly. Stay together and watch each other’s backs. This thing is gonna get crazy real fast,” Dominic said. “Everyone got it? Let’s move.”
Continue Reading: "Day 30: Day of Reckoning"

Saturday, October 29, 2016

Day 29: City of Bones

Group 1: Veronica, Elise, Natalie, David, Amélia, Eddie
Location: Warehouse


“That’s where they prep the intake for treatment,” David said as he, Natalie and Elise scouted the safe zone. He had led them there shortly after the attack. Natalie was seeking revenge. Ignoring the dangers of walking into such a heavily guarded location and against David’s advice. Eddie and Amélia hung back to watch over their prisoner. She’d blamed the man for Veronica’s death, but deep down she knew the real source of the problem was the medical company that started it all. BioCore workers transported boxes into the facility out the back of unmarked trucks.

The place was cordoned off by a large electric fence and several armed guards. Working cameras were posted on every corner of the building as well as what appeared to be command dogs and even alert sirens. “Where do they go from there?” Natalie asked, formulating a plan.

“There are several research rooms within the facility, there’s no telling where each individual is taken,” David replied. “I can tell you, however, it’s never good. Some of the ‘research’ I witnessed…it makes prison look like a trip to the spa.”
Continue Reading: "Day 29: City of Bones"

Friday, October 28, 2016

Day 28: Bereavement

Group 4: Matthew, Josh, Liz, Jeremiah, Edward, Nicole, Jake, JC, Nina, Lucky, Mike, Katrina, Troy, Dominic, Mathew, Ryan, Aisha
Location: Barn/Farmhouse


Edward scratched at the bandage on his arm. That damn mongrel really did a number on him and now his skin felt like it was on fire. He eyed the animal as it trotted along beside Nina, playfully nudging her arm making her rub her head. It was bad enough he was forced to wear a dead man’s clothes but now he had to deal with that mutt; and he hated dogs. Five minutes along with that animal and he’d send it to doggy heaven where it belonged. Sensing the man’s eyes on her, Lucky looked back with a happy expression as the group continued down the road.

“It’s just up ahead,” Matthew said. The group had been walking for nearly an hour, heading to the rendezvous. Upon arrival, they could see no one was waiting, but it appeared someone had been here recently. Tire tracks, two distinct treads, were imprinted in the soft dirt. One appeared to belong to a large vehicle of some kind while the other, possibly a truck. The wide wheel base gave Matthew the impression that it could have been one of the pickups from the compound.
Continue Reading: "Day 28: Bereavement"

Thursday, October 27, 2016

Day 27: Fatal Error

Group 3: Jake, JC, Nina, Sara, Lucky, Mike, Chloe
Location: School


The door wouldn’t budge. JC tried putting all of his weight into it, but it gave resistance. Lucky sniffed the ground, her head lowered to the floor as she followed the scent around the side of the building. She was onto something. Giving up on the barred entrance, JC followed the dog. Directed by her keen sense of smell, Lucky led him to another point of entry. She whimpered and clawed at the bottom frame. JC immediately pushed against the door. It inched away a tiny bit. Placing his gun in the waistband of his jeans, he pressed both hands to the weather-beaten wood and shoved. The door swung open with a whirling gust of air, and out with it the smell of rot.

Continue Reading: "Day 27: Fatal Error"

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Day 26: Overkill

Group 2: Katrina, Troy, Dominic, Mathew, Ryan, Aisha
Location: Police Station


“You sure this will work?” Dominic asked, watching Troy prepare himself to crawl through the opened vent above them.

“I’m sure we have no other choice,” he replied, checking the load on his weapon.

“The vents won’t get you downstairs,” Mathew said.

“I know, but with any luck, it’ll get me some place where we can maybe make a decent stand, or even an escape,” Troy replied.

“Remember, five minutes. If you’re not back by then, we’ll assume you’re gone,” Dominic said.

“And then what?”
Continue Reading: "Day 26: Overkill"

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Day 25: Deadly Darkness

Group 1: Veronica, Elise, Natalie, David, Amélia, Eddie
Location: Warehouse


Eddie rushed forward, tackling one of the men to the floor. His gun flew, landing near the door and misfired another round. Amélia fell to the ground, covering her head with her hands as chaos erupted. Elise fired at the second gunman as he rushed towards the other injured shooter, hitting him in the leg. He turned to fire at her and David moved to wrestle away his gun.

Finally grabbing hold of the glock 19, David quickly aimed and fired. The bullet drilled through the man’s chest and he fell on top of David. “No!” the injured shooter screamed, watching the life drain from his brother and pool around him. “You son of a bitch!’ The man struggled to retrieve a knife from his boot. Natalie stood to help. The throb in her knee crescendoed and she tumbled to the ground.
Continue Reading: "Day 25: Deadly Darkness"

Story delay

Hello, Readers,


I wanted to drop a line and let everyone know why the posts have stopped on Outbreak: Extinction. A family emergency this weekend has left me really far behind and scrambling to play catch up. And because of this, I think the best plan of action would be to just release the last 4 episodes sans pictures so that we can get back to our regularly scheduled programming. Very sorry about that. Tonight, I will have 21-24 posted and get the votes up so we can figure out what happens next.

Thank you for understanding,


~ Daijah
Continue Reading: "Story delay"

Monday, October 24, 2016

Day 24: Red-Handed

Group 4: Matthew, Josh, Liz, Jeremiah, Edward, Nicole
Location: Barn/Farmhouse

“I’m telling you, we need to run! We need to get out of here while we still have a chance,” Edward bemoaned, backing away from the door and deeper into the barn.

The door to the outside stood open and Josh took careful aim above Matthew’s head before firing off a shot, sending an approaching zombie to the ground. Matthew immediately got to his feet and shut the door. “No,” he said sternly, eyeing the room as he searched for handy items with which to bar the door. “We’re not going anywhere. It’ll be dark soon and there is no way I’m putting anyone in this group in more danger out there. We’re going to stay and fight. We can defend this place; all of us.”

“That’s suicide!” Edward said, pushing himself once more into the corner.

“Do you ever shut up?” Liz yelled, turning to face Edward. “I’m so sick of your whining! Get up and help or we’ll throw your ass outside as bait while we run!”  

His face turned ashen and he nodded as Liz gave him something to do. With Josh’s arm not at a hundred percent, he, Matthew, and Jeremiah were tasked with rebuilding the barricade. Large crates from inside the barn were once again placed in front of the door. This time, however, they took the extra step of nailing broken boards across the windows and doors, leaving just one area for escape and one, they’d hoped, would be where their visitors would enter.

“I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m hungry,” Jeremiah said once everything was in place. It was almost a simultaneous realization that it had been a while since any of them had eaten. He dropped his bag beside Nicole and started into the kitchen. The place was a health hazard at best. Blood soaked into the linoleum floors as well as stained the walls. Someone had been brutally murdered in this room and the smell was enough to put him off of food for a month.

Jeremiah started to leave when something in the corner of the room caught his eye. Someone else was in the kitchen. They were lying on their back beside the refrigerator. The only visible part of them were their two, booted feet sticking out from near the wall. “Hello?” he called as he slowly approached. The man didn’t move. He just lay there, staring blankly at the ceiling and Jeremiah quickly assumed he had been the source of the bloodshed.

Slowly, Jeremiah leaned closer, lowering his head to get a better look. It didn’t appear as though he was breathing. Blood dripped from his forehead and he was suffering from an apparent bullet wound to the stomach. A gurgling sound emerged from the man’s mouth. Startled, Jeremiah fell backwards—just as the man sputtered blood all over himself. His eyes darted around the room before he lifted his arms, reaching for Jeremiah. “Matt! Liz!” he yelled, quickly scrambling towards the other side of the room.

Matthew was the first to enter, gun at the ready as he moved around the corner. “Are you hurt? Did he touch you?”

“No,” Jeremiah’s swift response made Matthew turn to look at him.

“You sure?”

“Positive. But I don’t think he’s dead…not yet.”

Matthew redirected his attention and called over to the man who was now sitting against the countertop, resting his head on the wall. “Who are you?”

“Help me, please.”

“Who are you?” Matthew repeated, ignoring the man’s plea for help.

“Jason McMann,” he angrily replied. He grabbed hold of a stool nearby and tried to lift himself up, glaring at Matthew as he continued grilling him. Groaning in pain, he placed himself in a seated position, applying pressure to his bleeding abdomen.

“You were with them, weren’t you? Who are they and why are they after us?”

The man laughed, the motion causing him to choke in pain and another mouthful of blood to spill from between his lips. “We were hired for a job. You and everyone in the area were on the list.”

“Start explaining or I will stand here and watch you bleed to death!” Matthew shouted, outwardly frustrated at the man’s half answers.

“BioCore hired us to assassinate anyone we found outside the safe zones.”

“What? The sons of bitches that started this shit is trying to take everyone out? What about the ones who aren’t hurt? Like us. We’re not infected.”

“Doesn’t matter,” the man shrugged, again choking on blood. “We have orders. Anyone in the red zone has to be exterminated.”

Matthew thought for a moment, taking stock of the group and their reaction. Exterminated. The word bounced around his head. The idea that someone would hire a group of mercenaries in a time like this to kill living, breathing humans trying to survive outraged him. He took in a deep breath and transferred that energy back to the man in the kitchen. “Where are these safe zones?” The man smiled but didn’t speak. “WHERE?” Matthew shouted aiming his weapon at his head.

“Go ahead. I’m as good as dead anyway,” he coughed, no longer afraid by the threat of death. A loud crash made them all jump. It took a moment to realize it was the outer barn door. Once again, they were in for a fight.  

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The polls are now open. Vote for your chance to control the action! Remember, you can add your own choice to the plot through the comments section or the poll below. Polls close at 12 noon EST tomorrow and reopen at 8 pm EST.

Continue Reading: "Day 24: Red-Handed"