Story

I left this note:

"If you are reading this, then you have found something to remind you that you are not alone. That someone just like you, trying to survive, was here. I don't know if you are alone, or if you even care about anyone else, but nonetheless, This is my story..

My name is Jakub, and I was born in New Jersey. Had a pretty simple early childhood, the usual 'go to school, get bullied a bit, but get on with it and do well' sorta thing. My parents decided to move to Ireland when i was twelve, they mentioned something about an old relative that lived there, but I didn't wanna listen. I was too upset that they were taking me away from everything I knew.

Of course when we got there I thought it was complete garbage.. Some place called Cork. People there thought they had a big city, idiots didn't know shit. I used to just walk around, imagining what was happening back in the States, what my friends were doing.. I missed all of that, my old life.
Anyway, I got used to it, finished school and got a job as an apprentice baker in a town not too far from home. I liked it, it was peaceful, relaxing work and I always loved good food. The fact that this very pretty girl worked in the cafe across the road helped too. Heh, I used to go there for lunch even though I could have something for free in the bakery, it didn't matter to me. We got to know each other and lucky for me she seemed interested in getting to know me better. A few trips to the cinema and a couple of nights out and that was that. We were very happy together.

Months became years, and instead of going to college I moved to this small town and took over the bakery. What's more than that is, the 2 became 3, we had a little boy after 4 years of being together. The day before he was born was the last time I thought about missing New Jersey. He just.. fixed everything, made everything worth while, you know? Well maybe you do maybe you don't. He grew up to look like a perfect mix of me and Sara, my eyes, her jaw, my hair from when i was a boy.. you get the picture.

So skipping forward, to his tenth birthday. We were on a trip around Europe, I had saved enough to hire someone new in the bakery and we just took off. Felt like we needed a break, so like I said we just went. Sara had always wanted to visit Turkey so we were making our way West to East across the continent, and we were passing the border of this old ex-USSR country called Chernarus. There was a big bus of us, like 30 or so and we came to a roadblock.

I told Sara and Jake not to worry and went up to the top of the bus to see what was going on. The bus driver was talking in some kind of Russian to a military looking guy outside the window and swiftly turned around to me, telling me to get back to my seat. As I did so I caught a glimpse of some kind of argument going on next to one of the military vehicles. Just as the shouting elevated, there was a gunshot and then utter chaos broke out. Everyone on the bus started screaming, trying to grab their things and get out the emergency door at the back. Another gunshot rang out, and another, I could hear a couple hitting the metal of the side of the bus. I grabbed Sara by the hand and pushed Jake ahead of me towards the back of the bus. We managed to make it off the bus and into the woods next to the road that we were on, and followed the wire fence that was the border of Chernarus until we found a gap big enough to fit through.

We had no idea what was going on, no idea why that fight had broken out back at the roadblock, but one thing was certain, we had to stay away from those army forces. There were 4 others with us, two women two men, and we managed to escape the search party of military forces. You would think this was a good group to stick together, but one of these guys didn't have our best interests in mind. One night he tried to force himself on one of the women, a 36 year old doctor from Pakistan. Sara woke me and told me she heard a struggle, so I went to see what was going on. Behind a tree, this bastard had one hand over the doctors mouth, and the other prying her skirt from her legs. I grabbed him and gave him a swift elbow to the jaw as he turned, and he fell to the floor. Old smelly fucker never saw it coming. The doctor, trembling, thanked me and went to recompose herself.. I never told Sara this but, I killed him. I didn't find out who he was, why he did what he did, I just killed him.. Sara thought i scared him off, and that's what she told Jake as well. I'm glad it stayed that way. At least I was glad..

Like I said we had no clue what was happening until we came across a farm just at the edge of the woods. It was littered with bodies, there were flies everywhere, and no one living to be seen. It was disgusting. We were all very hungry, so while the women and Jake waited at the tree line, myself and Stavos, a Greek office worker went to check the house for food. We found a couple of bags in the bedrooms and filled them with supplies from the pantry, and i even managed to find a couple of pistols, a nice M1911 among them. I was an airsoft enthusiast you see, so I knew about guns, just had never fired a real one. Anyway as we were walking out of the house, Stavos stopped me in the doorway, his face a pale green, his eyes sick with fear. "The bodies, Devon.. They're gone!"

That's when I heard it. The sound I hear every night in my nightmares, the sound that drives me almost to suicide every godforsaken day and night in this cesspit, a shriek that I knew came from my Sara. We ran out to the fence around the farmstead and saw them, these dead things sprinting for the trees where the women were shouting for us, but we were too far away. I ran towards them, ignoring Stavos wailing in argument behind me, that we had to go, had to run. I made it close to one of them and i could see that he was right. I was too late.. The thing turned on me and i saw its face.. Rabid eyes fixed on mine, tongue black in its blood-filled mouth. And there they were, in the grass. Sara. The doctor. The other older lady who i never managed to speak to. Each of them lying there getting eaten alive. Everything in my head was completely overwhelming me, utter rage and sadness, despair, all of it at seeing her. But I couldn't see Jake. He was nowhere...

So we ran, the only way we could; away. Stavos had soiled himself in the midst of it all, and I had just lost my wife and my son. I could not think, so we just ran...

And then clearly somewhere along this morally-questioning, survival-of-the-fittest, blood-stained line, I ended up where you sit now, reading this. For all you know, I could have died moments after writing this, or I could be miles from you, eating some piece of a goat..

All I will say to you is this. Do not hesitate, do not trust, do not Miss. They are not just bodies on the ground. I have seen them get back up myself, and they will not tire in chasing you.

Stay safe, and carry this with you if you will. If i am dead, you will be sharing my story. If I live, then maybe someday we shall meet.."