IN NO WAY IS THIS A FINISHED PRODUCT

Day 1

Chapter 1
Friends.

A young man ran out of the front doors of an immense three-story school, anxious to get home.
Joe was 17 years old, he had feathery brown hair and sky-blue eyes. He was donning dark blue jeans, a black T-shirt, black converse, and carried a light-gray backpack.
He looked up into the clear blue sky. A refreshing breeze welcomed him back into the world of freedom outside the confines of school.
From behind, he could hear one of his friends calling for him.
He turned around and saw a good friend of his. It was a young man named Jorge, he was about Joe's height, but more built and muscular. He was 17, and of Costa Rican descent. He had brown eyes, very short black hair, and a slight black beard.
He wore black cargo shorts, black shoes, and a black hoodie with the sleeves rolled up, exposing a long scar that ran down the entirety of his left forearm; from elbow to wrist.
Jorge: Are we still going out later?
Joe: Yea, are the others coming?
Jorge: I'll call up Jake and Tom to see if they're still up for it.

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Jorge had a black sedan with a spotless white interior, Joe hopped in the passenger seat.
They pulled around the front of the school and looked for their friends.
Conveniently, Joe spotted Tom and Jake, the people they were looking for.
The two kids were sitting underneath a tree, in the shade, talking to each other.
Jorge pulled up and half-honked his horn twice before rolling down his window.
Jorge: Hey lovebirds!
All the way from the passenger seat, Joe could hear Tom giggle.
Joe: Uh oh, nobody tell Ashley!
Jorge: She's gonna get jealous, Jake's always flirting with everyone.
At this point, Jake and Tom were already at either end of the car, opening their doors and getting inside.
Jake was 19. He was the tallest and oldest out of all of them, despite having a clean baby face.
He had short black hair, light brown eyes, and the tan skin of his Native American family. He had his bright green track shoes on, white shorts, and a light grey t-shirt.
Tom was 17, has short black hair, and, although claiming he's German, he had tan skin similar to Jake. Tom had dark brown eyes, wore blue shoes, khaki shorts, and a grey T-shirt.
Jake: Why ya gotta be like that, man?
Joe cut him off, changing the subject.
Joe: Okay, let's go!
Jorge: Woah Woah Woah... not without seatbelts. If I crash, the only thing I wanna have to pay for is the car.
Joe: Well, in that case, I think we should all undo our belts and send Jorge into debt.
Jorge: I'm not like Tom, I don't crash into trees.
Tom: Are you seriously still on about that? That was one time.
Jorge: "I went 20 miles per hour on gravel and crushed my convertible like a tin can underneath a steamroller!"
Tom: I was going below 40.
Jorge: Yeah, more like 40 kilometers per hour.
Joe: I'm pretty sure that's slower.
Jorge: Is it?
Joe: Yeah. We'll look it up when we get to his house.

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The party at Jake's house was winding down.
Jorge threw down his phone in disbelief.
Jorge: Son of a bitch.
Tom: Damn, Joe really got you.
Jorge: How the fuck did he know? Isn't he the idiot of the group?
Tom: He's smarter than he makes himself out to be.
Joe walked down the steep, narrow staircase into the basement. At the bottom, there were two couches next to each other, both facing the TV.
A coffee table remained in the middle of it all, stacked with game controllers, empty DVD cases, and a tiny carpet underneath that covered the concrete floor.
The TV was raised up in the corner of the room, almost at the ceiling, on a wooden stand filled with other video game cases.
Far off in the other corner of the basement was a dull, spacious area which was separated by a set of curtains right behind one of the couches.
The curtains made the basement into a small, cozy area rather than a cold cellar. The only light present was the yellow glow that came from upstairs, and the bright flashes from the action movie they were watching.
Jorge: Was that doorbell the pizza guy?
Joe: No... that was just the mailman.
Jake came walking down the stairs with two pizza boxes stacked on top of each other.
Joe: Aw, there goes my ruse.
Jorge: Hold up, where's the soda?
Jake: They ran out.
Tom: Seriously?!
Jake: Yeah. They gave us the money back, though.
Tom: I can't eat pizza without soda.
He got up from the couch and walked towards the stairs.
Jorge: Where are you going?
Tom: There’s a 711 around the corner. I can get us some drinks.
Jake: Uh... can I get a coke?
Joe: Yeah, but Pepsi goes better with vodka...
Jorge: Joe, we’re not drinking.
Joe: Why? You afraid your mom’s gonna catch ya?
Jorge: You have work tomorrow. AND school. AND you have to go home tonight.
Joe: Does that mean a man isn’t allowed to drink?
Jorge: No.
Joe: When did you turn into the mother of the group?
Tom: Jorge is literally the most responsible one out of all of us.
Jorge: Got that right.
Joe: Fine, but this weekend we gotta do something, okay? I need to try out this new thing.
Jorge: Explain?
Joe: Getting fucked up and meditating. I hear it’s really relaxing.
Jorge: I’ll supervise you on that.
Joe: Just don’t post whatever I do on snapchat.
Jake: Can you just go get the coke?! Jesus… I’m dying here.
Joe: Fine. Let’s go, Tom.
Tom: What? I'll be fine on my own.
Joe: Yeah, but... the buddy system! Also, I wanna get some candy.
Tom: Fine. Let's go.

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Joe and Jake were walking down the street. The sky was cloudy, and the 5 lane street they were walking next to was performing a rush hour traffic concert.
Joe checked his phone. 6:30 PM. He found a text from his mom.
"joe its a school night n you have work tm, when are you coming home???"
He turned off the screen, disregarding the message, and put it back in his pocket.
Joe: I can’t wait for work tomorrow! Yippee!
Jake: Where do you work again? It’s been so long since we caught up.
Joe: I work with Tom and Dan at our shitty little restaurant.
Jake: Oh right. I forgot, Ashley tells me all about it.
Joe: I forgot you two were together still… what does she say?
Jake: Eh... just stuff that makes it sounds like you work in hell.
Joe: Yeah, not compared to the hell school is gonna be tomorrow. I hate this grind. School, work, school, work, school, work... and my mom won't let me quit! I have no time for games anymore.
Jake: At least you’re making money.
Joe: Yeah, good ol’ Pennsylvania minimum wage. Apparently, we still live in the fucking stone ages. 7 dollars an hour my ass.
Jake: What do you need that money for?
Joe: Video games and porn.
Jake: That’s not the right answer. What else do you need it for?
Joe: To move out one day.
Jake: Exactly. That is if the housing market isn’t shit again. You know… my parents had to sell all their property back in like 2009 because of all that shit.
Joe: Your parents owned property?
Jake: Yeah. Seaside houses on both coasts. You remember when we went to Wildwood, though, don’t you? That apartment was ours. We rented it out.
Joe: Maybe we can go back one day. Knowing my line of work, I’ll be in a penthouse in NYC someday.
Jake gave him a look.
Jake: Yeah, you’ll be the maid cleaning it.
Joe: Fuck you. You know how much network admins get these days?
They pushed the doors open to the 711.
The clerk said hi to them as they walked to the back of the store.
Behind the slightly fogging glass, inside the humming refrigerator, were a wide selection of drinks.
Jake: Didn’t you say you wanted candy?
Joe: Yeah. I came here to get my own stuff, just seeing what would go good with sour patch.
Jake: Try monster and sour patch.
Joe: Oh shit dude, and put them all together in my mouth at once?
Jake: Yeah… pizza, sour patch, and monster. You ever see that shit in ratatouille where they close their eyes and they see the colors of what they’re eating?
Joe: Yeah.
He burst into laughter.
Jake: That’s exactly what you’re gonna go through, my dude. Fireworks.

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Before they left, they all made it back to Jake's home and gathered around after a group session on Guitar Hero.
Joe: Friends, please listen. I'd like to raise a toast.
Everyone had soda in plastic cups - they all leaned in and listened to his speech.
Joe: To Jake's amazing success in his track & field team, as well as officially being accepted to over THREE different colleges with insane scholarship opportunities. I envy you, man. You're gonna go far.
Yes, that's why they were partying on a school night.

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It was time for school, Joe squinted as someone on the far end of the room lifted up the shades.
To his left, Jorge was picking up two large textbooks with one arm.
Jorge: Come take one, bro.
Joe: Do we need these today?
Jorge: It says it on the board.
Joe: Fuuuck... I thought today we'd be watching the movie.
Jorge: We still haven't finished the chapter. The movie's tomorrow I think.
Joe: Yeah but the reading is so fucking boring dude.
Jorge: I kinda like it. Next unit we read Macbeth. This old English literature shit's interesting.
Joe: I just wish I could understand what they were saying half the time.
Jorge: Yeah, it is weird trying to interpret old English... but when you have a teacher like John, who can put something complex into simple words, learning it is fun.
Joe: Beats the shit out of opening some fucking packet all day every day.
Jorge: Now that I think about it, all of my English teachers have been great. Only in English classes was I actually entertained throughout the last four years.
Joe: Damn, what an eye-opener. Remember last year with Mr. Newman?
Jorge: Yeah. He was the fucking boss.
Joe: I'm glad he's the principal now. It's sad to see him go from the classroom to a boring office... but at least he's making more money.
In the corner of the classroom, the door slammed shut as the lights turned on.
In unison, the entire classroom flinched and squinted.
John: Ladies and gentlemen, may I ask you to please take a seat.
Joe turned to his right to see John, their English teacher, walking towards his desk. He was carrying a small folder under his left arm and held a cup of coffee in his right hand.
Jorge sat at the closest desk and looked at the front of the class while resting his head on his arm.
Joe, taking a seat next to him, sighed as he sat down. He let his bookbag fall down to his side as he took his phone out.
John: I know we're all tired. It's a Monday and we all just got home from Spring break, but let's make this as quick as possible so we can finish the movie we began over a week ago. I know you're all dying to see it.
In the back corner of the classroom, John's co-teacher sighed and opened up his computer.
The clacking of his typing was the only audible presence in the desolate classroom.
John, after setting his coffee down on his desk, walked back up to the front of the class.
Behind him, the projector screen was booting up.
John: So behind me, you'll sorta see what we have planned out for the rest of the week. As usual, current event articles are due on Friday. In case you forgot - write one paragraph summarizing the event, and one paragraph of your thoughts and opinions.
He cleared his throat.
John: Some of your grades are being held up by these articles, so I suggest you keep doing them. Naturally, doing four of them a week, they're gonna be a big part of your grade. Don't get lazy.
The projector screen was finished warming up and the image behind him was getting bright enough for him to read off of.
John: Your short stories are due by the end of next month. They're gonna be however long you want it to be, with a minimum of 30 pages. It must be school appropriate. They can be fiction or nonfiction.
John: If you'd ask me for storytelling tips from personal experience... if you have a short story, you're not gonna have much time to develop a character. If a character isn't a complete stereotype of something, they're gonna be your main character. Also keep in mind your theme, tone, mood, and everything else we learned about that can emotionally move your reader.
Joe checked his phone. 7:40 AM.
Today was gonna be a long day.

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Later that day at 3:00 PM
Jorge punched Joe in the arm, waking him suddenly.
He shot up in his seat, now wide awake; he was in the library with a few of his friends.
Jorge: Stop falling asleep.
Joe: I have work later... I wanna get rest...
Jorge: If you sleep, you're gonna wanna stay asleep.
Joe: Fine, I'll stay up.
Around him at the large circular table were two of their other friends; Tom and Dan.
Tom: C'mon now, our job's not that hard. We're on the running squad tonight.
Dan: How do you know?
Tom: I asked our managers to put us on it.
Joe: But... how do you know that's a yes?
Tom: We got a lot of newbies joining us. They'll throw them on the floor with the other servers.
Jorge: Your job sounds so stressful. I make eleven an hour, and half the time I just sit in the corner playing on my phone.
Joe: I'd get fired for just thinking about my phone. You make almost double what we make there.
John: Hey.
Joe turned around and saw their English teacher walking up with a few books in his hand.
John: I never thought I'd see you spending time after school, Joe.
Jorge chuckled: It wasn't easy, but we convinced him.
Joe: Yeah. Six hours a day is enough for me...
John: I feel ya man, but my job is never over as a teacher. Working on your short stories?
Jorge: Hell yeah.
John: Well good luck then. I gotta go take these back to my class... got some kids in detention.
Tom: Let me guess, Jack is there again?
John: You better believe it. That kid could not be more obvious when using his phone during a test.
Jorge: Joe uses his phone all the time in class.
Joe elbowed him.
Joe: Dude!
John: I really don't care. Your grades are up good enough so I don't care if you slack off.
Jorge: How's Jack's grades?
John: I would tell you as a friend, but I'm not allowed to tell you as a teacher. I'd get fired. It's confidential. Anyway, I gotta go. If you have any questions or need help just email me or see me after school. I'll be here tomorrow and Friday.
Dan: Seeya.
Joe turned back to his work as John walked out of the library.
Joe: Where the hell do I begin?

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Work time. It was 4:00 PM on the dot.
Joe tightened his apron as he approached the host stand. All of his coworkers were standing around, looking at the lineup taped down on the table.
His friends, Tom and Dan, were standing there. All in uniform, a maroon top, and black pants.
Joe: So?
Dan: We're running food out today.
Joe: Fucking awesome. I knew today would start looking up.
He walked through the crowd and looked at the lineup.
Along with Joe and Dan - two new people were running. "Naomi" and "Angie" it read.
Joe: Who are they?
Dan shrugged.
Dan: New people I guess. I think one of them was with us when we made the dick jokes, Tom.
Tom: Oh right, she stepped in when you said your semen in your mouth or something.
Joe: Stop saying shit like that so loud, we're gonna have customers lining up any minute!
Tom: Alright, jeez.
Joe: So who the hell is training these new kids?
Dan shrugged again.
Dan: One of us, I guess.
Joe: I hope it's not me. I'm not good enough.
Dan: Aw, Joe. We already know that.
Joe: Fuck you, only I'm allowed to bully me.

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The group turned around and walked across the restaurant into the kitchen, where the machine was where they'd swipe their badges to clock in for the day.
It was the calm before the storm, the kitchen was clean and everything was quiet. The chefs were preparing all the food and supplies for later.
Joe swiped his card down the slot and a green light came on. His shift has officially begun.
Everyone walked back out of the kitchen and stood in a semicircle in the middle of the restaurant. As the workers all came together, the two managers came through and stood in the center.
Their head manager for the night, Justin, was going to give the pre-meal speech.
Justin: Alright ladies and gents may I have your attention, please. So tonight we have a few new people on the lineup so please welcome Angie and Naomi.
Thus followed the weakest applause ever.
Justin: Tonight's their first night off host stand, so welcome them onto the floor appropriately. Joe, you're training Naomi, and Dan you're training Angie.
Joe: What?
Dan: Yes!
Justin looked at a few papers he held in his hand.
Justin: Alright, so corporate will be visiting tomorrow so let's make sure this place is nice and clean. Bussers wash out the drains, runners make sure the ice cream machine is cleaned all around, and servers make sure when you're wiping down the tables that you get around the sides as well. I found some grimy shit around the edge of table 10, and I was not happy.
He turned to his right and looked at a peer trainer - someone with a higher rank than the rest, as shown by their tan shirt rather than the regular maroon shirt. Her name was Rita, she was about 20 years old, and was really calm and shy.
Justin: Anything to add on?
Rita: Make sure you know the menu. We had a lot of trouble last night with people not knowing what we served, and there was a lot of confusion.
Justin: Alright we're gonna do a little quiz.
Joe: God dammit...
Justin: Joe, do we have corn on the cob this week?
Joe: No.
Justin: That is correct. Be like Joe and study our menu. We had a ton of people last night asking for stuff we didn't have.
Rita shrugged.
Rita: That's all I got.
Justin: Alright, let's get out there. Let's make tonight a good night.

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Joe was part of the running "squad", as they called it, they were people who carried the food out to the table. Most of the time, they stood around in the kitchen waiting for the chef to call someone up to bring it out.
Dan and Joe were now the official trainers of Angie and Naomi, the newest addition to the crew.
Since they usually have 5 runners in the lineup, Tom came back to help.
Angie was about 19; she had long blonde hair, was about 5'9 and had grey eyes.
Naomi was also 19; she was a bit shorter than Angie, and her hair was light brown. She had blue eyes and a rounder face.
The new kids were pretty quiet.
The kitchen, usually a place that's hotter than the inside of the furnace, was cooling down slowly. It was nearing the end of the dinner rush.
Angie and Naomi barely spoke outside of acknowledging Tom and the chefs during training.
The kitchen was a large one, two sets of double doors on the opposite ends.
One exit leads to the place where Joe worked, and the other exit leads to the cafe.
If you were to walk in from Joe's side, on your right would be the dry storage room. There, they kept stuff such as honey, napkins, rags, crackers, spices, and other bins. Dry stuff.
Past that was three separate doors, each leading to a small office. The head chef, the managers of the cafe, and the managers for the whole operation (in that order).
If you were to look to your left, immediately through the doors you'd see the place where all the dishes were processed and washed. There was a small window where people would feed dirty dishes to the dish people, so they could rinse them off and put them in the cleaner. Above that window were several racks for places like glasses and cups.
Past that, in the back corner, there were two rooms where dishes were put away.
As you walked forward more, you were lead to the main operation. On the far end of the wall were a series of grills, stoves, ovens, and chopping boards. The chefs did their thing, then turned around and put it on a plate for the line chef to pick it up and organize them on a tray.
When they were all organized, they'd call for a "runner" to run the food out. Get the picture?
Get to the end of the line, in the far back corner of the kitchen, and you'd get to the cargo elevator, and next to that - the entrance to the walk-in freezer.

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It was almost 7 PM, and the kitchen was officially closed. No more food was being run out, so all the runners were tasked with helping the chefs clean the kitchen.
Joe let out a long sigh, he felt like he was going to die of heat exhaustion.
Tom walked up with Naomi at his side.
Tom: Joe, let's go do linens.
There was a clear garbage bag setup next to the dry storage doorway where people would dump used linens in. Anything from tablecloths to napkins was there, and when they got full someone would have to take them down the cargo elevator to the outside.
Joe: Yes!
He turned to his right and looked at Angie standing against the wall. She was watching the desert man, whose name was Kyle.
Kyle, 16, was about Joe's height and a bit heavier. He had curly black hair and freckles. His calm and comedic personality kept people from hating him no matter how annoying he could pretend to be.
Joe: Oh, I think you should show Angie and Dan instead, she needs to learn too. Ryan and I can do deserts.
Tom: Ryan?
He turned around and saw Ryan standing right behind him.
Ryan: They don't need me out there anymore. I'm here to help.
Tom: Aw. That's sweet. He's trying to give the new people a chance to do the funnest job!
Joe: Exactly.
Naomi: Doing linens is... fun?
Tom: You get to carry all the linen bags down the elevator and take them outside.
Joe: It's better than cleaning the ice cream machine. You get to ride the elevator!
Naomi: This place must be so dull for that to be considered the most entertaining thing.
Tom: Oh, Naomi... if only you knew what you signed up for.
Suddenly, a large bang shook the ground, and the lights flickered.
Joe: Wohohoah!
Tom: Oh damn!
Joe: It's really coming down out there... how are you gonna drive, Tom?
Dan walked over to the far end of the kitchen, where the dishes were washed, and looked out the window.
It was a bright pink sky, as the sun was setting. A clear sky. A sky with... no clouds.
Dan: There's no rain out here, guys.
Tom: Wait, what?
Dan: No clouds, either.
Another bang. This time the lights went out and things started falling off shelves.
The blood drained from Joe's face... he felt his heart beating rapidly.
Joe: What...?
He looked around, everyone was standing still in shock. Ryan was in a conversation with Kyle before the strike, and now they were just looking at Joe and the group of friends around him.
Ryan: Guys?
Another large bang.
Joe: What's happening?
Ryan: Are those explosions...?
The lights suddenly came back on after the floor shook again.
Justin came out of his office and addressed everyone.
Justin: I see helicopters flying around outside shooting and shit... I don't know what's happening but we all need to get out of here NOW.
He looked over at Ryan and Kyle.
Justin: Well? Get moving!
He turned around and ran out of the kitchen as everyone scurried around in a panic.
From outside, there was a screeching sound of jets as they flew overhead.
Joe: Guys...? What's happening?
Ryan: I dunno, but we gotta get home.
Tom: The cargo elevator leads to the back door, that's where we're parked. Anyone here drive?
Ryan: I do.
No one else spoke.
Tom: No one?!
There was even more silence as everyone exchanged looks.
Tom: Fuck. Alright, we'll get in our two cars and get you guys home... or wherever the fuck we can go.
Ryan: Alright let's do it.
Tom: Kyle and Dan, go get your things.
Kyle and Dan ran into the manager's office and grabbed their backpacks, which Justin kindly allowed them to put in for the night. They were planning to go out later, which means they needed a different set of clothes, but it looks like those plans were now foiled.
Ryan and Tom had their belongings in their cars, but Naomi and Angie had their bags in the employee lounge. There was no time to go all the way over there.
Tom lead the group as they ran to the opposite end of the kitchen, where the elevator was.
He punched the button, and immediately the doors opened.
Kyle, Ryan, Dan, Naomi, Angie, Tom, and Joe piled in. It was a tight squeeze.
Angie was closest to the button panel.
Dan: Ground floor hit it.
The doors closed and they descended down the elevator shaft... the silence was unbearable.
Everyone was on edge; no one knew what was happening, and they didn't know what to expect.
Tom: These explosions and jets... are we at war?
Ryan: I... I don't know.
Suddenly, the lights turned off again and the elevator stopped.
Tom: Oh fuck!
Ryan: Stay calm...
Dan: It'll come back on, right?!
Ryan: Does anybody have a light?
Tom: I do! Here.
He pulled out his phone and turned the flashlight on.
Wherever he shined it, the person on the receiving end covered their eyes from the blinding light.
Ryan: Give me light on the ceiling.
Tom shined it upwards, illuminating the top metal panels.
Ryan pushed up on them and moved it out of the way.
Ryan: Alright, someone give me a boost.
Dan: I gotcha.
He got down on one knee and put his hands together.
Dan: Up you go.
Working together, they managed to hoist Ryan through the hole.
From above, his voice echoed in the shaft.
Ryan: We're at the bottom! We just have to pry those doors open!
Tom made his way through the crowd and stood in front of the door.
Tom: Angie, get that side. We're gonna pry it open.
The elevator went dark again as Tom put his phone in his pocket.
Together, Tom and Angie pried their fingers into the crack and pulled with all their strength.
Slowly, the doors came open, and a small light came through that dimly lit the interior.
The elevator doors were completely wide open, but the opening to get out was about half the size of the doorway.
Tom: After you.
With that, Angie was the first one out.
One by one, she helped people through the tight squeeze from the other side.
At this point, Dan had already helped Ryan back down and they all were out.
They were now on the bottom floor. Normally you'd see a long hallway to the right, but there was a pitch black nothingness. It was eerie and creeped everyone the fuck out.
Joe was mesmerized by this abyss in front of him, and stared into it, trying to imagine what once was there.
The lights flicked quickly, once, and Joe could've sworn he saw someone.
No, he definitely saw something.
It was a man... and he was just...
Standing there.
The lights came back on, and the elevator finished its trip and reached the bottom. Joe must've been seeing things because now the hallway was completely empty.
Tom: This way!
In their hurry, Tom bashed the doors open, blinding everyone as they were immediately released outside.
Compared to the hot, humid conditions of the kitchen, being outside felt like heaven. The springtime was a sight for sore eyes after a long day of work.
While running, Joe looked up into the sky and saw that the once beautiful pink sky was now starting to get progressively darker. It turned an ugly shade of yellow as the sun set further.
Everything outside was monotone, almost, because of the light. There was no saturation of color, it was dark and gloomy.
Everyone ran at a different pace, but Tom and Dan managed to stay with the people they were training, almost as if they were still responsible for them.
Naomi: That kid's ahead of all of us... damn.
Dan: You mean Ryan?
Kyle: He's going into the Air Force, he's probably more fit than any of us.
Dan: Are you kidding? Check me out bro!
Tom: You're the reason we shouldn't wear short-sleeved uniforms. What are those, sticks?
Up ahead, in the middle of an open lot, sat Tom's red Mustang convertible. Right next to it was Ryan's car, a black VW Jetta.
Ryan took his keys out of his pocket and pressed a button,  unlocking his car; Tom did the same.
Ryan: Where do you two live?
Naomi: I live in-
Angie: I live in Southampton.
Naomi: -Warminster.
More jets flew overhead and explosions grew louder...
Ryan: Fuck it. Joe's house is closest to here. Everyone, we're gonna carpool there and see what's happening.
Tom: Woah, don't you at least wanna ask anyone if they want to come with us?
Ryan: Why, would you have a problem?
Tom: I'm talking about the new girls. They don't exactly know us very well, yet.
Angie: I'm fine with staying with you guys... I just don't like this...
Naomi: S-same...
Ryan: What about you, Kyle? You're the youngest, I'd feel bad if I didn't ask.
Kyle: My parents are out on vacation... I don't want to be home alone.
Ryan: Wait, who the fuck is this?
They all turned around and noticed a speeding car screech to a halt in front of them.
Out of the car came out several men, all holding long rifles.

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Joe: What are you doing here?!
Tom looked at Joe with an eyebrow raised.
Tom: You know these people?
Joe: This... this is my uncle!
His uncle smirked and sighed heavily.
Uncle: Thank god we found you!
Uncle was 6 feet tall, had an above-average build, and had a receding hairline.
Dan: What's with the tux?
Uncle: Business dinner. It ended earlier than I expected.
From behind him, his son, Joe's cousin, walked up.
Joe: Vincenzo! You're here too? What's going on?!
He slowly started to have an anxiety attack.
Joe: Oh Jesus... oh god... what the fuck is happening?
Vincenzo: Just calm down... it's all fine bro.
Everyone else looks around awkwardly as Vincenzo tried to comfort Joe.
Vincenzo: Sup everyone.
Vincenzo, also known as Vin or Vinny, was 19. He was a little bit taller than Joe, had light brown hair and dark brown eyes. He wore a white t-shirt with some brand writing on it, black jeans and black & white sneakers.
Uncle: We need to leave.
Joe: W-where will we go?
Uncle: My house. I promised everyone I'd bring you back.
Joe: What? Who's "everyone?"
Uncle: Our family. Your parents.
Joe: My parents! Where are they?!
Suddenly, another door of the car opened.
Uncle: Stay in the car!
Tom: Who's that?
Joe: My cousin, Sev.
Sev kept walking closer.
Sev: What the hell are we doing still standing around?!
Sev was the oldest child, at about 22 years old. He worked with his dad and stayed at home. He had fluffy black hair, a thin black beard, glasses, and was around 5'11. He wore a dark-purple jacket that was open, a black t-shirt underneath, black cargo pants, and black sneakers.
Vincenzo started getting antsy, moving back and forth as he kept a lookout throughout the neighborhood, which was nearly empty by now.
Vin: Hey, I hate to interrupt, but don't we like... wanna get moving?! Sev's right!
Uncle: I'll tell you when we get home, okay? I promise.
Ryan: Well? You heard the man, let's get moving! Into your cars, people!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

8:59 PM

Ryan: Who the hell spray painted this shit on your door?
Uncle: I don't know, that wasn't here before...
Ryan: Wait, look around... it's on every door in the neighborhood!
Uncle stepped up and squinted, trying to read the letters.
Uncle: Oh fuck, you're right.
Ryan: What is this?!
It was a white X, on the left it showed some weird numbers, on the right it showed "BIOHAZARD", at the top it showed today's date, and on the bottom, it showed the number 7.
Uncle: I remember seeing this somewhere... but I don't know what it means, but the number on the bottom is the same amount of people we had in this house. Seven.
Uncle's house is huge; once you open up the red front door you're welcomed in by an open staircase leading up to the second floor. The house was a very open design. At the top of the stairs, a catwalk connected the rest of the bedrooms.
The kitchen and living room were merged together in one big open space. The ceiling was about 15 feet overhead. On the far end of the room, facing the backyard, there was a large window that made up most of the wall. It was fully covered with blankets and curtains.
As Kyle entered the house with Joe, his Uncle, and his two cousins, he looked clearly surprised.
Kyle: Woah, this place is huge!
Joe called out, hoping his family was still there.
Joe: Hello?!
Dan looked around, raising an eyebrow.
Dan: Where is everyone?
Sev and Uncle looked at each other.
Joe: What's happening? Where are my parents?! LOOK AT ME!
Uncle: I think... they were either taken away or...
Joe suddenly felt really light headed...
Joe: W-what? They were what?
Uncle: Sev, Vinny, search the house. Everyone else sticks with me, let's settle down in the living room.

As Joe was pacing around anxiously, everyone else took a seat. Uncle was unbuttoning his suit and took off his shirt; he was sweating extensively.
Joe: What the fuck is happening? Why's the military running around, why are there gunshots and explosions, why's all this shit... where-?
Ryan: Are we being invaded or what?
Uncle: I don't know much. Like I said, I was at a business dinner. It started in the city, and that's all I know.
Joe: Bro, WHAT happened in the city?! Can you stop being so cryptic?!
Uncle: There are these creatures running wild in the streets, they're... like zombies.
Joe: What?
Sev: I object; they're not zombies. They're much worse. These things are stronger, and they're crazier. I don't know how they work. I don't know anything about them besides the fact that you have to kill them before they kill you.
Uncle: So what do we call them if we don’t call them zombies?
Sev: Let's settle that later, ok?
Ryan: Wait, why didn't we see any “zombies” on our way over here?
Uncle: That's the weird thing... all we saw were cars speeding past.
Sev: We also took the back roads, maybe they're attracted to the traffic?
Ryan: Christ, this is madness...
He buried his face into his hands.
Joe: What else can we do?
Uncle: Well, considering everyone in the area, including all those left in the city, are rushing to get the fuck out of here - we're going to get caught in traffic. We don't want to stay parked, I've seen those things bash through glass like it was tin foil. We CAN'T afford to be in traffic.
Kyle: Wait, what?! Are they that strong?
Uncle: Yeah.
Kyle: God, we're fucked.
Uncle: So as of right now, I say we hold out here. As long as we stay quiet, and remain vigilant, no one is gonna get into this house. Our utilities haven't gone out yet, so maybe we can look stuff up on the internet or see what's happening in the news.
Joe: How long do you think this’ll last?
Uncle: I don’t know… it depends on how long the military takes to get situated. I hope they contain this thing before it goes any further...

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sun had fully set, and all the lights in the house were off. Occasionally, outside, gunshots and screams could be heard in the distance.
Someone knocked at the door frantically, about five times.
Uncle quickly closed his laptop and grabbed his pistol, which was sitting right next to him.
Everyone else stirred in their sleep, but Joe, being the light sleeper, was alerted when Uncle began moving.
Uncle had been sitting on the large couch facing the TV, and everyone else was on the floor in sleeping bags, and Sev took the other couch.
Uncle: Everyone stay down. I'll go check.
Uncle slowly moved towards the front door, being careful to not make any sudden noises. Suddenly, the knocking came again.
"Is anyone in there?!"
He looked out the small hole and saw two guys, both smaller than him, standing there. They had no weapons, but they looked like people Joe's age.
"I told you they wouldn't be here. Now what?"
"Maybe he's not here... Let's try to find Tom."
Uncle tilted his head to the side in curiosity, then his eyes opened wide. Immediately, he opened the door and aimed his pistol at them.
Uncle: Don't move.
Jorge and Jake both put their hands in the air.
Jorge: Woah now... no need for this!
Jake: Don't shoot!
Uncle: What are you here for?
Jorge: We're here because, well, we were told to come here.
Uncle slowly put down his pistol.
Uncle: By who?
Jorge: Joe...?
Uncle: Do you know who I am?
Jake: No...
Uncle: I'm his uncle. You came to the right place.
Jorge smiled and hit Jake in the arm.
Jake: Ow!
Jorge: That's what you get for doubting me.
The sound of crickets outside became louder as the sun went down. The sky was dark grey, and some stars began to appear. Large gusts of wind started coming by.
Uncle: Were you followed?
Jorge: We pushed our car here just in case they followed the engine noise. It was a bitch, but every zombie seems to be focused on the main roads. This area has some stragglers, but your block seems clear.
Uncle: Come inside, quick. Make yourselves at home.
Joe ran around the corner and saw his two friends, overwhelmed with joy.
He ran up and hugged each of them, it was a very emotional reunion.
Joe: Thank god you're okay... oh my god! I never thought I'd see you again!
Jorge: Luckily I got your text!
Uncle: Your cell service works?
Joe: Yeah.
Uncle: Awesome. Hopefully, it stays up so we can make some calls...
Kyle walked around the corner.
Kyle: Who are these guys?
Joe: Kyle, this is Jorge and Jake. They're friends from school. Guys, this is Kyle, my coworker.
Everyone shook hands, now introduced to each other.
The sound of the wind howling outside was muffled, and most of the house was pitch black.
Jorge: It's so dark here...
Uncle: We never know if there are any openings in our curtains that might let out some light, it's just to be safe.
He escorted the two kids into the living room, which was a large, dark open space at this point.

Sev: So what happened to you guys? Where are your families?
Jorge: We went to our homes and no one was there. We almost got caught by some guys driving around in an armored car or something... we were shot at a bunch of times.
Jake: A bullet went straight through Jorge's car door and into my backpack. Luckily those textbooks are thick enough as it is.
Uncle: Christ... you were shot at?
Jorge: Someone tried to carjack us, but I sped up outta there.
Uncle: Good thinking.
Jorge: So what's with the FEMA markings on your front door?
Uncle: Is that what they were?! I couldn't find anything on the internet about it!
Jorge: Yeah. I haven't seen anything like that before, but I remember what it all means.
Uncle: Don't leave us hanging!
Jorge: Well, you're probably wondering what happened to the 7 people.
Uncle: So that IS what the 7 meant!
Jorge: Well, according to the FEMA team, they labeled this place as "BIOHAZARD." The 7 means how many people were inside... and they rescued them.
Ryan: So your parents just left you?
Joe: I don't think they had much of a choice,  it's not like the rescue team would've left them behind.
Jake suddenly looked really confused.
Jake: I didn't see this in our neighborhood, Jorge.
Jorge: Maybe they didn't come to us yet?
Sev: So wait... we missed the rescue?
Jorge: Here? Yes.
Uncle: Actually, I'm not so sure.
Jorge: What?
Uncle: We still have internet and TV here. When we all got together, we decided to figure out as much as we could. Right now... there's a lot you should know. The White House issued a statement earlier… they said the military contained the outbreak and set up a perimeter.
Jorge: Perimeter?
Uncle: Southeast Pennsylvania. Nothing is getting into New Jersey, Delaware, or Maryland. They’ve secured all borders, and the farthest out into PA the infection goes is into Amish territory, as far as Harrisburg. The zone we’re in is called the quarantine zone… over 10 million people are trapped here with us. No one is allowed in… and no one is allowed out.
Jorge: Christ…
Sev: Did you learn anything about the zombies?
Uncle: No one knows much about them, unfortunately. Most people don’t survive the encounters. Those who are lucky enough to refused to talk about it online. Estimated casualties in downtown Philly is pretty much fucking everyone.
Sev: Jesus…
Ryan: Fucking hell…
Joe: Where the fuck is our army? Why aren’t they rescuing us?
Uncle: No clue. Honestly… they might just glass the area with a ton of nukes.
Ryan: They wouldn’t do that…
Uncle: If it gets bad enough, I bet they will. So here’s the game plan - when we get the chance, we need to get the hell out of the area. If they nuke Philly, we’re in the blast zone. We need to get as upstate as possible, somewhere in the mountains where we’ll be safe. I have a cabin up there and some other real estate… hopefully we can make the trip. As of right now, we can’t leave this house.
Joe: Wait, if the military isn’t coming in… where did our family go? Why were they rescued?
Uncle: I don’t think they were rescued by the military. Those markings were FEMA markings, not military.
Jorge: FEMA?
Uncle: The Federal Emergency Management Agency. I don’t know how they got here so quick…
Sev: Maybe it was planned out the whole time?
Uncle: Or maybe they were expecting it to happen...
Joe: Uncle, was our family rescued though?
Uncle: I don’t think they were rescued. I think they were relocated.
Sev: Why do you think that?
Uncle: Because the military said no one is allowed out of the quarantine zone. FEMA isn’t related to military operations, so they need to abide by those rules. My guess is that they set up a base of operations in the quarantine zone.
Jorge: It could be local in the area…
Joe: Turn on the local TV station, let’s see what they have to say.
Uncle: Let's do that, keep the volume off, though.
They turned on the TV and IMMEDIATELY hit the mute button, letting a single noise play.
The only channels that were up on their Comcast service were local cable channels.
"Warminster Local News" was playing, it was a very low-quality station, almost as if it were amateur work. It showed a still frame of a large block of text.
DO NOT LEAVE YOUR HOME UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. BARRICADE YOUR WINDOWS AND DOORS, KEEP ALL LIGHTS OFF AT ALL TIMES. DO NOT OPEN UP FOR ANYONE EXCEPT FOR THE PENNSYLVANIA ARMY NATIONAL GUARD. THEY WILL TRANSPORT YOU TO THE NEAREST SAFE ZONE - TENANT HIGH SCHOOL.
Uncle: Oh shit, so the National Guard actually rescued our family, Joe. They must be working with FEMA operatives.
Ryan: No wonder they moved in so fast!
Joe: That's awesome, but we didn't see them going around!
Uncle: We must've missed the convoy. We weren't out for long, but by the time we came back, they already cleared the neighborhood. They must've been quick as fuck.
Jorge: Joe, it says our high school is a safe zone!
Joe: Jesus, even in a disaster I have to go back to school?
Uncle: Well, it's settled. We go over there as soon as everything clears up.

The sound of rain picked up, and a few cracks of thunder and flashes of lightning could be heard and seen.
Uncle: Are any of you hungry?
Dan: I could go for something to eat...
Joe: Eating this late? What time is it?
Uncle: It's 11 at night now.
Joe: Well none of us ate dinner... damn... I usually eat when I get back home.
Sev: Dad, are you sure? We should start saving up.
Uncle: These kids haven't eaten in hours. If we want them to help us we gotta make sure they're well fed so they have energy. I'll bring some stuff out for you all. What do you all like?
Ryan: I'll take anything.
Kyle: Same.
Jorge and Jake were sat down in the corner, peeking out a small hole in the blankets, watching the rain.
Jorge: I'll pass...
Jake: Jorge, you gotta eat.
Jorge: After what we saw out there? I don't think I can stomach anything right now. I just wanna go to bed.
Uncle: Go upstairs and take one of our rooms. We're gonna be down here talking for a while.
Jorge: Thanks, guys...
He got up and walked out of the room.
Ryan: Where will the rest of us sleep?
Uncle: Upstairs we have Sev and Vinny's bedroom, as well as mine and a guest bedroom. The girls can have my master bedroom if they promise not to touch anything in there.
Naomi: I promise.
Angie: We won't touch anything.
Uncle: The rest of us can take turns with sleeping spots. Vin and Sev's bedrooms are up for grabs, and there are a few couches down in the basement as well.
Jake: The basement...?
Joe: Don't worry. His basement is luxurious, not one of those cold cellars like yours.
Jake: I guess you can show me tonight.
Joe: Yeah. I was gonna volunteer to sleep down there anyway. I could live there forever.
Uncle: Ryan, you can take one of the bedrooms upstairs. Take your friend with you.
He then pointed to Kyle.
Uncle: And you can take the last room.
Kyle: Thank you.

Lots of talking happened today, but now that everyone is situated and educated… it’s time we realized that actions speak louder than words.

Day 2

Uncle: I don’t know if I want to go out there, Sev…
Sev: Dad, what do you mean?
Uncle put his AK back on the queen sized bed he and his wife used to share.
Sev: Don’t you want to see our family?
Uncle: I don’t want to go out there.
Sev: We can’t stay in here forever, dad.
Uncle: I know, man… I know… something still just doesn’t seem right, ya know? It seems too easy.
Sev: Too easy?
Uncle: It wouldn’t take the National Guard less than an hour to mobilize and start a rescue operation. I think this was an inside job. I’m worried that if we go to that safe zone, we won’t be allowed to leave.
Sev: What are you saying?
Uncle: I’m saying we shouldn’t all go there and risk getting caught. I think we should send a few people to the school to scout it out.
Sev: Who are you gonna send?
Uncle: Let’s go downstairs. I want to address everyone as a group.

Uncle: Everyone listen up, please.
Joe: Yeah?
Uncle:I don't want everyone carpooling over to the safe zone. I want just one car, that'll draw little attention. I'm gonna choose those who I trust the most, and those who have really good reasons to go there, to go scout it out.
Joe: Is it wise to split up like this?
Uncle: It's better than bringing a dozen people halfway across town to a place where we don't even know if it's a trap or not.
Sev: Fine. Who wants to go?
Angie raised her hand almost immediately.
Uncle: You?
Angie: Yeah, got a problem?
Uncle: No, I just... thought you were a quiet one.
Angie: I only speak when necessary.
Uncle: Nice. I like that trait. Okay, who else?
Joe: I want to go.
Sev: There's no way in hell I ain't going, either.
Ryan: I want to go, too.
Uncle: And that's plenty of people already. You four will go on to the safe zone. Joe, you have my phone number if your cell service is still up. If not, use their wifi and just message me. Tell us if it's good, and we'll travel there one car at a time. Okay?
Joe: What if I can't contact you?
Uncle: Then you come back here yourself, okay?
Joe: Sure thing.
Uncle: Sev, take the AK-47 from my room and put it to good use. Take whatever other guns you want. I trust you guys.
He was preoccupied opening up a cabinet beneath the TV stand.
Ryan: What're you gonna do?
Uncle lifted up a shotgun and cocked it.
Uncle: I'm gonna go get those neighbors to shut the fuck up.
Sev: Woah, what the fuck?!
Uncle: They're gonna attract the entire fucking horde of zombies to this area. Something needs to be done. I couldn't sleep all night.
Sev: Just... be careful, okay? They might have guns, too.
Uncle: Don't worry, I won't do it alone.
He nodded to Vincenzo, who nodded back.
Jorge: Such an unnecessary conflict.
Uncle laughed and dropped the shotgun, putting it back into the stand.
Uncle: Guys, I'm joking. Go have fun, be careful.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The rest of the parking lot was completely empty and desolate.
Sev, in the passenger seat, undid his seatbelt; his increasing anxiety made him jumpier as he held a tight grip on his AK.
Sev: Where the fuck is the National Guard? I was expecting this place to be some fucking epic military stronghold.
He put the car into park and took the keys out.
Ryan: I guess the least we can do is to find out what's happening...
Almost immediately, Sev opened up the door and jumped out, lifting up his AK. Out of all of them, he was the only one with a backpack on. It was filled with extra ammo, and some light snacks and water.
Joe: Stop pointing that thing around! If there are people here we don't want to let them think we're hostile.
Sev: Yeah, if people are here. What if there are zombies here?
Joe: We'll be fine.
Sev: Easy for you to say. You only experienced one get shot in front of you. You don't know how quickly they can get the jump on someone, and how devastating it can be. The fact that we have two guns with us, one of them being a pistol, doesn't comfort me. I hope you guys are fast runners.
 Suddenly, the humble feeling of being back at his school left him as the cruel reality set in. Everywhere he went was a war zone. The sky was bright blue, not a cloud in sight, and it was a perfectly comfortable temperature out... but it felt gloomy.
Angie: This place... it used to be so lively, now it's a ghost town.
Ryan: We'll see what awaits us inside.
They all walked up to the front doors, Joe put his face up to the glass to see what was inside.
Joe: It looks empty.
Sev: See? I told you.
Ryan: I wanna take a look around inside, though. We should see where that transmission is coming from.
Sev: What if the transmission is just bandits trying to lure people in? Stupid people like us.
Suddenly, from the speaker in the door, a beep sound came as the microphone turned on.
Hey, what are you all doing here?
Joe: Can you hear us?! I didn't think the intercom would still be working.
Yeah. It works. We have power here, I can hear AND see you. Are you here for shelter?
Ryan: Yeah. We heard the transmission you sent out.
Sadly we have no more room left.
Ryan: We're not here to stay, we just need to look for something.
What do you need?
Ryan: Firstly, we were curious to see if this place was a beacon of hope for survival. How many people are in there?
We have hundreds of residents here, protected by a local militia.
Ryan: Whatever. We just wanna come in to get some items from our lockers. We were students here before the outbreak.
Just got word from my boss; you can come in and out, but keep that AK on safety, will ya?
The door was then unlocked.
As they stepped inside, the cool air welcomed them.
Joe turned around and noticed that there were handprints all over the glass doors behind them.
Joe: See that? They tried getting in.
Ryan: Luckily this glass is super thick.
Joe: Thicc with two C's?
Ryan: Shut up.
Sev noticed a piece of paper taped to the front door inside "Leave all weapons at the security desk"
Sev: Is that the best they can do?
Suddenly, a voice called out to them.
"Welcome travelers!"
They all turned around, changing their attention from the handprints to this mysterious person.
Joe's eyes widened.
Joe: Jack...?
Jack was a pale, skinny guy who was a bit taller than Joe, he had blonde hair and green eyes, he wore an open black jacket with a white T-shirt and blue jeans. He was 17 years old.
Jack: It's good to see you again.
Joe: What are you doing here?
Jack: My dad and I are part of the group that runs this place. I saw you on the camera feed and decided to tell them to let you in.
Joe: What? How'd you-? Ah, forget it. Let's drop the formalities. It's been way too long.
They came in for a hug. Even though they weren't necessarily friends, it was still good to see a familiar face.
Jack: So who do we have here?
Joe: These are my friends, Ryan and Angie. I've also brought along my cousin, Sev.
Jack: Well guys, welcome to the unofficial safe zone of Bucks County. I'm glad more people got our transmission, it really pays off to have people of all trades here. I'll tell my dad that we should probably reward our communications team a fuck ton for getting that signal out successfully.
Joe: You have a whole team?
Jack: Well... we just have one guy who was a radio operator and some other guy who talks into it.
Joe stifled a laugh.
Joe: Oh.
Jack cracked a smile.
Jack: Okay, so let's get you guys to our main... chamber. I dunno what to call it. It's basically where everyone stays and stuff. We don't have beds, but we took out as many mats as we could from the gymnasium and set them up on the floor. Everyone else stays in the cafeteria. No one else is allowed outside these two areas, for safety reasons.
Ryan: Safety?
Jack: If something or someone breaks in, we don't have guards patrolling the far far ends of the building. If they were in trouble, it may be too late before someone comes to help. Without order, they would be up the walls like it's a daycare. A lot of people here are students who stayed for after-school activities on the day of the outbreak. Others came in later.
Joe: So what is there to do here?
Jack: Well we have several clubs who do sports inside the gym and stuff, people exercise, we have a sparring club for boxing and wrestling, which I'm part of. We have swimming, the pool is open. In the long term, we're Gucci. We have emergency generators. You guys look like you've been through a lot.
Joe: It's been rough.
Jack: Well the showers are also open and ready to be used, we still have warm water and everything.
Joe: Thank god... I still feel like I'm covered in shit from work.
Angie: I literally am still covered in shit from work. I smell like shit.
Jack: Haha... well you guys go clean up, and I'll talk to you later. If you want any lunch, they're serving it in the cafeteria in ten minutes. Hop in line if you want any. It's free of charge.
With that, Jack walked away, leaving the 4 friends in the middle of the spacious lobby.
Ryan: I thought that guy was a prick?
Joe: Hm... well I guess maybe he was secretly super nice and everyone just bullied him for some reason. Poor guy.
Sev: Well, let's all get cleaned up.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Joe wrapped a towel around his waist, sighing in relief as he sat down on the bench. His hair was dripping wet and he felt absolutely fantastic.
The lockers were next to a large shower room, all of which had stall doors and walls that separate each shower, all tall enough to cover your important areas but not tall enough to keep your head and shoulders peeking out.
Ryan was brushing his teeth in the shower, foam coming out of his mouth as he talked.
Ryan: So Joe, do you think we should've left Angie alone? I mean Uncle always said the buddy system-
Joe: She's a girl, dude! We can't follow her into the shower!
Ryan: I mean... technically we could.
Joe: Don't be so pervy.
Ryan: It's not like that...
Joe: Sure.
Ryan: Well I did always wonder what the girl's locker room looked like.
Joe: It looks exactly the fucking same, I don't know why everyone asks that.
Ryan: How do you know?!
Joe: I don't
Ryan: You wanna go find out right now?
Joe: Bro. Stop trying to find an excuse to see her naked.
Ryan: But this is our one chance-
Joe: Don't you have a girlfriend?
Ryan: Not anymore.
Joe: Since when?
Ryan: Since right now.
Joe: Jesus you're weird.
Ryan: You know I'm just joking. I don't objectify women.
Joe: Well then you can take Jake's place for biggest white knight award.
Through this whole conversation, Joe was getting dressed again.
Sev came around the corner, not showered.
Sev: Can we hurry? I wanna go get in that food line before it gets too long.
Joe: You can go by yourself.
Ryan: Nuh uh.  Buddy system.
Joe sighed in aggravation.
Joe: We're not gonna get fucking killed or some shit in here, okay?! Stop being pussies and just go.
Sev: Fine.
He walked out.
Ryan: Jeez, what was that all about?
Joe: I'm just tired of doing nothing!
Ryan: What do you expect to happen?
Joe: I don't know! Something! Anything!
Ryan: You want action?
Joe: Fuck no! You think I wanna do anything violent or experience it?
Ryan: No, but it sounds like it. There are zombies out there that would be perfectly fine to shoot at.
Joe: I couldn't hurt a fly, let alone shoot something that looks like a human.
Ryan: Just remind yourself that they're not human. Not anymore, at least...
Joe: That's easier said than done. I mean back at my house... the day it all began... I still can't get that man's image out of my head... the way he fell to the ground after Sev shot him. Damn...
Ryan: Well there's no use in focusing on past events. We have to just move on.
Joe: That is also easier said than done.
Ryan: You'll find a way. Just try to keep your mind off of it.
Joe: Yeah...
Ryan: You should go check to see if Angie's finished. I'd like to be alone for the next part of my shower if you know what I mean.
Joe: That's fucking disgusting.
Ryan: It's natural.
Joe: Speaking of natural, how the fuck do you expect me to "check" on her?
Ryan: Walk in and see if she's okay.
Joe: RYAN! I'm not going into the girl's locker room!
Ryan: Just get going!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Joe walked out of the locker room, his hair all dried up, feeling relieved. It felt good to be cleaned, and it felt even better to feel safe. He didn't want to leave.
He walked down the narrow, white hallway that was dimly lit over to the girl's locker room entrance.
He thought to himself, am I really about to go in there and check on her? What if she's naked?
As he turned the corner, someone grabbed him and pulled him close, covering his mouth.
Joe: Mmph!
Angie: Shh! Keep it down!
She was finally changed out of her work clothes and wore white shorts, a tight grey t-shirt, black running shoes and low grey socks. On her back she carried a black duffel bag that was wrapped around her chest; the strap was supported on her left shoulder and traveled beneath her right arm.
Joe: What the fuck is happening?! Why are you touching me-?
Angie: Down the hall. Near the art room. I heard banging.
Joe: Some banging?
Angie: Yeah.
Joe: You mean... people... having sex?
Angie: Fuck no. Violent noises. We should check it out.
Joe: Jack said we weren't allowed there!
Angie: The thing is, I also heard a small shriek. Sounded like a girl.
Joe: Fuck. Fine. If someone needs help let's just get in and out. Okay? I don't wanna get in trouble.
Angie: Okay, stay close to me.
Joe's eyes widened.
Joe: Stay close to you?
Angie: Yeah, why?
Joe: Nothing. Just didn't expect you to be so tactical. How close do you want me-
Angie grabbed his hand and dragged him off.
Together, they ran back down the hallway and ended up in one of the main wings of the building. It was a large, open room filled with lockers. Several hallways branched into different directions, one leading to the art wing, one leading back to the lobby, and one leading to the locker rooms.
Angie: The art wing is this way.
Joe: Okay.
As they ran down the hallway, Joe took in the scenery.
Joe: I haven't gone down this hall before. I never exactly signed up for art classes.
Angie: I had a few in the past years, and because of that, I think I know where exactly these noises are coming from.
As they traveled down the hallway, the lights kept getting dimmer, one after the other, until it was completely black at the end.
There was a door in the shadows, the glass was covered up with a sheet from the inside, and there was a light that was barely visible from the inside.
She pressed her ear up against the door and heard nothing.
The voices of other people could be heard coming from behind them.
Angie: Get inside!
Joe: Wait, wha-
Angie grabbed his hand, swung the door open, and pulled him into the room.
As soon as they did so, a door in the hallway, one that was behind them, opened. Out of that room came three men with automatic rifles. They casually walked down the hallway back to the main part of the building.
Joe: Damn... who were those guys?
Angie: Guards, probably. We'll be in big trouble if they find us snooping around.
They turned around and were faced with a room that was absolutely terrifying. The art room was completely cleaned out and replaced with various equipment, something you'd see out of a medical lab.
On the walls were sharp objects, and in the center table, there was a bunch of blood.
Joe: What the fuck?
Angie: Let's check it out...
They snuck over to the center table and saw that they were human remains.
Joe: Oh god... what the hell?
Angie: Are they eating people here?
Joe: Fuck no! By the looks of it, they're experimenting on them.
Angie: What? But why?
Jack: We're looking for a cure.
Joe and Angie practically jumped out of their skins as they turned around. The pale figure was sitting in the corner.
Jack: Why are you guys here?
Angie: We heard someone scream, and decided to check it out.
Jack: Understandable.
Joe: What the fuck's really going on here? And how the hell did you, of all people, get involved?
Jack: As I said, we're looking for a cure. Unfortunately, it makes quite a mess.
Joe: You've been dissecting people?
Jack: Not on people, on the zombies.
Joe: Oh...
Jack: But sometimes, people need to be hurt. See, test subjects who comply voluntarily are hard to find. We're still figuring out how it works, and we have to do that on people who... are infected. People from this area. People who have been bitten. People who are less than willing to comply...
Joe: You've been kidnapping people to test on them? That's fucking sick.
Jack: It's what necessary to survive this all. It's beneficial to humanity.
Joe: It's inhumane, is that why you sent the signal out?
Jack: No, that was a legitimate signal. We're here to help people, but sometimes people come here with infections. This is where we take them.
Joe: Fuck this. We're getting out of here.
Jack: You've seen too much, I'm afraid.
Joe: Yeah? Have I?
Jack: You don't seem to agree with our research. Are you planning on telling people what we're doing here?
Joe: You really think I'm gonna let this fucked up shit go unnoticed? Those people out there trust you. This isn't a safe haven, this is a lie.
Jack: You're insane.
Joe: I'm insane?!
Angie: Joe, they're only doing it to people who're already infected. Jack has a point.
Joe: That still doesn't make up for the fact that this is torture. I'm out of here.
Jack: I'm afraid I can't let you do that.
Joe: What?
To his left, a man came up behind Angie and grabbed her in a chokehold.
Quickly, Joe turned around and saw a baseball bat crunch in on his nose, knocking him out cold.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Joe woke up, he was restrained and was being carried away by two men. One of the men was Jack's father, Joshua, and the other was the Principal of the school, Mr. Newman.
He was still in a daze, and was disoriented from being carried around... but he looked around and found Angie was being carried over the shoulder of a large, muscular man who he couldn't identify.
They walked down the hallway and entered a small room, throwing them both off the floor and turning the lights on.
Mr. Newman closed the door as the three men observed their captives.
Angie was gagged, but she was struggling and making noises, Joe was too tired to do anything but lay there.
Newman: So, what do we do with them?
Joshua: This boy... my son knows him, we should see if he's the one we're looking for.
Newman: You can't be serious, we've tried dozens today. I can't bear to see another poor soul destroyed.
Joshua: In the name of science, and our humanity... I think we could at least spare another.
Joe: Wh... wha...ugh...
Newman: Joe, was it?
Joe: Principal Newman?! What are you doing here?
Newman: There's no easy way to say this, but you're our new subject.
Joe: What?
Newman: I'm sorry, but if we're going to find a cure, we have to do it-
Joe: Fuck you! I’m not infected! Let me go!
Newman: If only you knew what this was truly all about…
Joshua: If he's gonna die, I might as well give him some closure.
Newman: What, monologue to him about our secret plans and who we really are?
Joe: You’re a fucking fake, Newman. You turned from principal to this in a matter of days.
Newman: That’s what this situation does to the best of us, okay?! This is for the greater good, god dammit!
Joshua: Calm down, dickhead.
Newman: Sorry.
Joshua: So, Joe… we sent out that transmission because we need people to test on, but I never told Jack. I've been feeding him this facade of being the good guys, but we've been working with the organization who started this whole mess. We already have the cure for the infection, but we need to perfect it. It’s used in many other ways… it’s a medical miracle. We need test subjects, though. The organization we work for set up safe zones saying the “National Guard” did it. I find it hilarious that people are actually falling for it.
Joe: So what are you going to do to me?!
Joshua: You'll have to figure out that one yourself. I'm sorry, kid... but this is for the greater good of science.
Joe's eyes started tearing up, his face turned pale and he began to struggle on his bonds.
Joe: Please! Please don't! I don't wanna die! Please!
Newman: I'm sorry, but I've become too numb to listen to my own students cry anymore... let's go.
Joshua: What about the girl?
Newman: What about her?
Joshua: Are we going to test on her, too?
Newman: We'll see how Joe goes. She’s our backup plan.
Joshua closed his eyes, sort of in distress, at the whole situation. He clearly didn't like what Newman just said.
Newman: Come on Joe, your destiny awaits.
Joe: No! Please!
Newman and Joshua picked up Joe, carrying him out of the room and slamming the door.
The third man, the large muscular one, was left behind in the room with Angie. Just the two of them, all alone, where no one could stop him from doing anything he wants to her.
He turned the lights off, chuckling quietly to himself.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Joe was forced into a metal chair, one that was bolted down into the center of a room. Dried up blood covered the walls and the floor around him.
He cried as Joshua cuffed his wrists and ankles to the chair.
Joshua: Please don't cry on me, I don't need to feel more guilty about this than I already am.
Joe: Just let me go, I can help you! I swear, I won't say anything! Please!
Newman pressed a button on the desk that sent electric shocks through Joe's body.
Joe: Grrrgh!
His muscles tensed up, and he tried to contract all of his limbs but ended up only flailing due to the restraints.
Newman: The stimulation system is working like a charm. I was afraid our last subject may have overloaded the system.
Joshua: Go bring it in.
Newman: Ugh... okay...
He walked towards the door, slowly opening it, which let in just a bit of light that lasted shortly.
The principal called out into the hallway for someone, and they called back. Joe could hear a lot of activity out in the hallway, a lot of footsteps and a metal cart being pushed along.
Strangely, he could also faintly hear the sound of chains.
Newman appeared back in the room with a small metal cart, various needles and sharp objects on the top and some sort of jars of liquid on the bottom, but it was too hard to verify.
Behind him were two guards, one male, and one female, both masked and dressed in camo uniforms.
They came in wrestling with a zombie, who was bound by chains everywhere except for its head.
Joe: What's going on?!
Newman: Joe, this first part is going to be difficult, but we're going to test how the cure affects you without the infection. Are you ready?
Joe: What kind of question is that?
The two men walked to the left side of Joe. Joshua took out a large knife as Newman held onto his hand with a firm grip.
Joe: What the fuck! What are you doing?! No!
Joshua swiftly stabbed the knife into his hand, going all the way through.
Joe screeched at the top of his longs in pure agony.
Newman: Give him the cure! Now!
He ripped the knife out of Joe’s hand, blood came pouring out like a dark red waterfall...
Quickly, Joshua grabbed a syringe from the table and stabbed it into Joe's neck, which caused him to stop breathing for a split second. He could feel his heart begin to race as the liquid from the needle slowly entered his system.
Suddenly, the blood squirting out of his hand stopped, and Newman looked on in awe.
Newman: No way... we found one on the first go!
Joe: What... what the fuck?! What the fuck!
He looked down at his hand. There used to be an ugly gash… but now the wound was all gone, leaving behind a fresh line of pale skin where the knife was.
Joe: What is this?! Why did you do this?! WHY?! WHAT IS THIS?!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Angie started backing up into the corner as much as she could, her restraints slowing her down. Her pleading eyes stared straight into her captor.
He walked up to her and got down on one knee.
Angie: Mmph!
"Quiet. I'm not going to hurt you, or even touch you. I'm here to rescue you."
She tilted her head curiously like a dog.
"My name is John. I used to be an English teacher here before the outbreak. I can't leave with you... but I can set you free and you can find Joe. You have to get to him in time."
He undid her gag and started to untie her hands.
Angie: Thank you... I was so scared.
John: Those men are sick for thinking they could do this... we'll make them pay.
Suddenly, the door opened, and a man walked in. Angie and John both looked at him.
John: Carl? What are you doing here?
Carl: Hey. I heard you were gonna have some fun. I was thinking we can soften her up together?
He smiled and cracked his knuckles.
John began to roleplay, turning his head, and winking at Angie, before continuing his conversation.
John: Nah man, she's all mine. You can get the next one.
Carl: But this is the first one we've ever had!
John: Maybe not the last one, too, so you can wait your turn.
Carl suddenly noticed her gag was undone and her hands were untied. His eyes widened.
Carl: John, are you...?
John: Nah, I just like to hear them scream.
Carl: John, are you trying to let her go?
John: You really wanna argue about this?
Carl: You're turning against us?
John: You know what? Yeah. Yeah, I am.
Carl suddenly ran for the door, but John grabbed ahold of his hair and pulled him to the ground. He fell on top of him, and John wrapped his arm around his neck, starting to choke him out.
Carl thrashed around wildly, trying to pry himself free.
John: You brought this upon yourself!
Suddenly, Carl stopped thrashing around, and John let him go.
John: Christ, Carl...
Immediately, Carl jerked back up and flipped himself around, getting on top of John.
Carl: You let go too early!
A sneaky move, pretending to be knocked out so early, but John was strong enough to pry him off and get back up to his feet.
Angie started struggling with her bonds, trying to break free to help John.
Carl: You fucking traitor, I knew something was wrong with you! Help! Someone help me in here!
John shoved his hands into his face, grabbing his nose and ears, causing Carl to scream as he pulled on them intensely.
He pulled him in close enough for a headbutt straight to the nose. Carl, at this point, started to bleed from there.
He was in a daze, sort of in disbelief at John's strength, and was pushed backward, hitting the ground hard.
John got up to his feet and stepped on his chest with one foot.
Slowly he took out his pistol, a Beretta M9, which was in a side holster all along, and aimed it at him.
John: You better get out of here while you still can!
Angie struggled with the bonds around her ankles, eventually setting herself free.
John: Here, take my gun. You'll need it. I'll hold him here.
Angie: You can still come with us. Our car is out front!
John: I'll be there, don't worry.
Angie took the gun from him, and immediately John put all of his weight on Carl, tying him up with Angie's previous bonds.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Joe: How... how is this possible?!
Newman: Here's the deal... the infection slows down your brain and creates you into this creature, as you've seen, almost like a zombie. The cure reverses that and speeds your brain functions up to normal. If you’re not bitten, you can inject yourself with this to be a superhuman. You’re using so many more parts of your brain than usual. This, however, doesn’t work on everyone, so we do several tests with and without the infection present. If we can perfect this cure… we can make an army of super soldiers. Isn’t that awesome?
Joe felt like he was going to throw up.
Joe: So am I superhuman now?
Newman: Heh... essentially, but none of our patients make it past a day in this form. Their bodies can't take it. Humans are generally weak and fragile, so we need something to reverse that. We're going to re-infect you to cancel out the cure and bring you back to a normal state. This will level the playing field.
Joshua: That's your cue, guards.
With that, the two guards unhooked the beast and let it run towards Joe.
Joe: No!
The beast sunk its teeth into Joe's cheek, ripping off skin and flesh as it bit away.
Newman: Christ! That's enough! Take it away!
The two men grabbed the beast, wrapping the chains back around its neck, and threw it up against the wall.
Joe's cheek was bleeding like crazy, and it just kept bleeding and bleeding.
Newman: See, Josh? The regeneration is gone. That means the infection beat the cure.
Joshua: Damn... how about that!
Newman: We basically saved your life by having that beast infect you again to counter the cure's chemicals inside your body. Otherwise, your heart would've given out due to the increased acceleration.
Joshua: Either that or you'd have a brain aneurysm.
Joe: So that's the cost of being superhuman, huh?
Newman: Yeah. You don't last longer than an hour.
Joshua: So what do we do with him?
Newman: We still have more testing to do. Right now, call up headquarters and tell them we've got another one. Do you feel any pain, Joe?
Joe: Go fuck yourself.
Joe's eyes turned from his normal color, blue, to red.
Joshua: Holy shit...
Newman: What?!
Joe: You're following the orders of these cruel scientists, and you're killing innocent people for your own gain. You're selfish. You're scared. I'd like to see you sit in this chair and receive a fucking paper cut without crying like a baby, you weakling.
Newman: The fact of the matter is that you're the one that's in the chair! And the one in the chair should NOT BE TALKING!
He slammed his fist down on the desk, hitting the button, initiating the electric shock.
Newman sat there, looking pleased as Joe suffered. The two guards looked sickened, and Joshua tried to ignore it as he wrote a formal report on their findings.
About ten more seconds passed, and Joshua looked angry.
Joshua: Hey! Can you fucking turn it off before you kill him?!
Newman: Fine.
Suddenly, something hit him. It was a button. It was supposed to be pressed by him to keep going, so why was it going without him?!
He turned around and saw that the button was stuck, the blood drained from his face and his heart fell to his stomach.
Newman: Help! Josh!
Joshua jumped up from his desk in the corner and ran over to Newman.
Joshua: What?!
Newman: The button, it's stuck!
Joshua: You fucking moron!
He tried prying the button upwards, but nothing happened. Joe continued to be electrified.
One of the guards spoke up.
"Let's just get him out of the chair!"
Newman: Wait!
He ran over to the chair and touched the left handcuff, but collapsed instantly.
Joshua: What happened to him?!
Newman: The chair isn't grounded. Touching it from an ungrounded area would cause the wave to travel straight through you and kill you instantly.
Joshua: Are you fucking stupid?! I told you we shouldn't play with electricity! I told you we could've stuck to some other form of stimulation and pain! You fucker!
Joshua punched Newman in the nose and ran over to Joe, looking at him in the eyes as he had his final breaths.
Suddenly, all the lights went out. All the electronics, even the chair, were turned off.
Joe, who was smoking hot at this point, was sat there, dead.
The other guard came running back with a defibrillator device, she collapsed on the floor next to her partner and began to follow the instructions, opening up his front vest.
Newman: I'll go tell the engineers to get the power up.
Joshua: Yeah. You go, I'll finish our report.
Newman ran out the door and bolted down the hallway, running towards the stairwell.
The guard, working on her friend, began to panic as she fumbled with the device.
Joshua went down and helped her, trying to calm her down as they turned it on. Together, they began the process of bringing the guard back to life.
Suddenly, Joshua felt a kick in the back of the head, knocking him over.
The woman guard looked up, staring straight down the barrel of a pistol.
Angie: Don't move.
Behind her, she could hear footsteps. She turned around and pointed the gun in that direction, only to see it was one of her comrades.
Sev: Good work, Angie. You go get Joe, I'll take out the trash.
Angie: How did you find us?
Sev: You guys aren't exactly the quietest bunch. Now go!
Angie ran past them and began to rescue Joe from his bonds.
Joshua turned over onto his back and looked up at Sev in a daze.
He aimed his AK47 straight at his nose as he stood on his chest with one foot.
The woman guard looked at Sev with puppy eyes, and Sev nodded at her to keep continuing her work so long as she didn't interfere with this personal matter.
Joshua: Wait...
Sev: I'll blow your fucking head off if you say one word or try to make a move, you think I'll hesitate, mother fucker?!
Joshua: I can help you.
Sev: Yeah?! Some fucking help you gave them!
Joshua: Your friend Joe... is dead...
Sev: WHAT?!
Joshua: Mr. Newman tortured him for too long... I tried to stop him but... he wouldn't listen.
Sev: Where is he?!
Joshua: He ran upstairs to get more guards.
Sev: And how the fuck can you help us at this point?!
Joshua: Because Joe is still savable.
Sev: With that defib these guards are using?
Joshua: No. With our cure.
Sev: Cure? What cure?
Joshua: There's no time to explain. Tell your friend over there that she needs to inject the red needle into his arm. That will bring him back alive.
Sev: How the fuck...?
Joshua: Joe can explain it to you when he's back... we told him everything we know about the cure. We’ve sinned… my god we’ve sinned… please just get out of here...
Sev: The cure for... this... infection?
Joshua: Yes.
Sev: So whose side are you really on?!
Joshua: We did it to save ourselves, you know... we didn't know what we were doing. I'm sorry...
Sev: You wouldn't be sounding so sorry if I didn't have a fucking gun pointed at your face! You fucking liar! I might as well kill you right now-!
Joshua grabbed the barrel of the gun and pushed it to the side, causing Sev to fire into the ground.
He lifted his legs up and kicked him backward.
Sev looked up and raised the AK, but Joshua was already on top of him and tackled him to the ground.
Angie carefully injected the red needle slowly into Joe's arm and saw him start to breathe again.
Outside, Sev got the best of Joshua and flipped himself over top. It was a wrestling tournament like no other, but Sev ended up on top and pushed himself off. He backed up, now on his feet, and fired into Joshua's chest once.
With a scream of pain, he fell to the ground and remained motionless as a pool of blood slowly formed.
Meanwhile, the defibrillator device successfully started up the guard's heart again, he moaned in pain as he laid there on the ground.
Angie: You!
The woman guard looked over at Angie.
Angie: What's your name?
"My name is Brit."
Angie: How long will this take? How long until Joe's back?!
Brit: He'll be back in one minute.
Sev: Oh great... looks like I'll have to cover you until then!
The beast, which was still chained to the wall, was barely moving at this point.
Sev: You better hurry up! We're making a fuck ton of noise!
Suddenly, from down the hall, Jack came running in.
Jack: What's-
He stopped dead in his tracks and fell to his knees.
Jack: Dad!
Sev raised his AK and pointed it at Jack.
Sev: Not a move from you, kid!
Jack: You mother fucker! What the FUCK DID YOU DO TO MY DAD?!
Sev threw his AK to the ground.
Sev: You don't deserve to be shot, you deserve to be taught a lesson!
He slowly walked over to Jack.
Jack: You mother fucker!
He stood up quickly and ran at Sev.
Jack: I'll fucking kill you!
When he was close enough, he leaned in and threw a right hook at Sev.
Sev grabbed his arm and pushed himself into his body, turned around, and threw him over his back.
Jack hit the ground hard but pushed himself away when his opponent tried to knee him in the face.
He quickly stood up and looked at his opponent, who chuckled and raised his arms in a Muay Thai stance.
Jack examined his stature, tears falling down his face and clouding his vision; he was overcome with rage.
He threw yet another right hook at Sev, but it was caught. Sev had blocked it with his right arm and trapped it with his left.
With his arm in a lock, he pulled Jack closer as he flailed around, trying to free himself.
Sev slipped one of his legs behind Jack, and when they were face to face, he pushed him backward, causing him to trip on his leg and send him crashing into the ground hard.
It was a loud thud, but Jack quickly sprung back up and tackled him in a fit of rage.
Sev tried crashing his elbow down on his back as Jack grabbed his lower body, but he was already pushed far enough to the point where he hit the wall.
Jack used all of his strength to lift him up and eventually had him off the ground.
He leaned himself backward and suplex’d Sev into the ground face first.
Sev held his hands over his face, moaning in pain, as Jack mounted him and grabbed his arms and used his legs to lock down the rest of his body.
Consumed in a fit of rage, he let go of Sev's hands and grabbed his neck, strangling him.
Sev, with his hands-free, lifted his arms up and pushed Jack's arms to the side. Now that he was on the inside, he came in for a hug, wrapping his right arm around Jack's neck, and reaching his left arm down near his back leg.
Jack started clawing at Sev's back, scratching him, but he was flipped over, leaving Sev on top now.
Sev started punching him in the face repeatedly, his face started bleeding like crazy.
Angie: He's had enough! Let's get out of here!
He fit in one final punch, the one to knock him out cold.
Sev: Piece of shit.
He looked up and saw Angie was carrying Joe in her arms.
Sev: Is he...?
Angie: He's alive. I don't know how... but that medicine worked... let's get out of here.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Joe slowly opened his eyes... although his vision was blurry, he could see his uncle's face.
Uncle laid Joe down on the bed slowly.
Uncle: Ryan, get him some of the bottled water in the fridge downstairs.
Ryan: Okay.
Jorge: Jesus Christ... what the hell happened to him?!
Angie: It's a long story...
Jorge: Well we have plenty of time!
Angie: Joe and I went to the school, but we saw something we weren't supposed to see. One of Joe's old friends turned on us and had us captured. They killed Joe, torturing him to death.
Jorge: But... how is he alive?!
Angie: I don't know... the scientists said that when he was back, he'd explain everything to us.
Uncle: It's a medical miracle... but he knows a lot that we don't Joe became semi-conscious, looking around the room.
Uncle: Stop, relax your head, you're safe now.
Joe: Where am I...?
Uncle: You're back at my house, you need rest.
Joe: There's so much I have to... tell... you...
Uncle: It can wait. You were dead for a while, but they brought you back somehow.
Joe: I was... dead...?
Uncle: Yeah. Just, please, go back to sleep. We're gonna take care of you.
He stopped supporting Joe's head and let him lay down on the bed, he drifted off to sleep.
Uncle: Jorge, I want you to be Joe's personal assistant. Make sure he gets the rest and nourishment he needs. We've all had a long day.
Jorge: Got it.
Uncle: And Angie... it is Angie, right?
Angie: Yes.
Uncle: How did you escape your capture?
Angie: I didn't do it alone... a man named John helped me.
Jorge: No way...
Angie: You knew him? He was a bald guy and said he was an English teacher.
Jorge: That's him. Holy fuck, that's him...
Angie: He told me that he couldn't come with us...
Jorge: I knew him for a long time. He wasn't just my favorite teacher, he was a good friend.
Angie sighed heavily.
Angie: I'm sorry, there's nothing I could've done.
Jorge: Just... get out of here… I need some time to think...
Angie: Sure.
She got up and walked to the door, looking back at Uncle, who nodded at her. With that, she stepped out and went downstairs to talk to Naomi.
Uncle: Take a seat, Jorge. It’s Jorge, right?
Jorge: Yeah. I’m Jorge.
Uncle: Okay, Jorge. Here’s the deal. I can see you’re attached to this guy, he’s a good friend… I understand… but there’s no way we’re going back there. As a matter of fact, we can’t even stay here anymore. I’m planning on having us pack up and leave by tomorrow evening.
Jorge: What? Why?
Uncle: They know our names. The school has a database on all emergency contacts, I’m one of them. It won’t be long until they find the address and eventually track us down.
Jorge: So we’re running away…
Uncle: What do you want us to do?
Jorge: I don’t know. I feel… weird…
Uncle: I know how you feel. On my third tour of Iraq, there was a lot that needed to be done… but couldn’t be done due to unfortunate circumstances.
Jorge: Such as?
Uncle: Something like this, actually. I underestimated the enemy, and I wanted to go in. The chain of command fucking sucks, because as a Sergeant you’re caught in between all the brass idiots and enlisted lowlives. I argued with command and it cost me my rank. I was busted down to a regular Sarge rather than whatever-the-fuck I was before, some other stupid fucking rank I “earned” by fighting in a war that never should’ve started.
 Jorge: Damn… so you really think we can’t fight these guys?
Uncle: If we tried to fight them, it’d be a fucking slaughter on our end. No offense, but you guys are children. You’re kids. You might think you’re capable of combat, but not even well trained grown men are. The difference here is that they have more resources, bigger guns, and more people… and connections to that fucking organization that started it all. We’re on their radar, now, and all that matters is that we get the fuck out of here.



Day 3

Jake was lining up his shot, he planned so that he'd hit his ball into Ryan's ball, but it would ricochet into the hole behind it. Not only would he score a point, but he'd fuck Ryan over.
Suddenly, the door slammed and someone came running downstairs.
Uncle: One of the cars is missing.
Sev: WHAT?!
Sev immediately got up off the couch.
Jake canceled his shot and turned around, looking at Uncle in his blind rage.
Uncle: One of our cars is missing, Sev. ONE OF THEM IS GONE!
Sev: How can that be?
Uncle: I want a head count. Find out who's missing.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Uncle sat down in his room with Joe, Angie, and Vinny.
Sev stepped in the room, followed by Tom, Ryan, and Jake.
Uncle: Who are we missing?
Tom: It's Jorge. He took his car with him.
Ryan: No other supplies are missing, though.
Angie: He was sad that we left his friend behind at the school.
Ryan: He went back to the school?! What do we do?!
Uncle: Is there really anything we can do?
Angie: Maybe we can send in someone to go find him!
Uncle: No one needs to go out there. Jorge made his own decision. Sending in another person to go start a scene would cause just as much trouble and lead them here.
Tom: We have guns, why don't we just go over there and show them what we're made of?
Uncle: I know how you feel, but you've seen too many action movies or games or some shit... real life isn't like that. You go out there, and you get into trouble, chances are you will die. Plot armor doesn't exist in real life. If someone else gets the jump on you, they won't hesitate. They could have no problem killing people, but you... what if you hesitate and get buck fever? You'll be dead.
Tom: I won't hesitate.
Uncle: Have you ever killed anyone before?
Tom: No.
Uncle: Then how do you know you won't hesitate?
Tom: If Jorge is in danger, I'll do anything. I'll kill anyone who tries to hurt my friend.
Uncle: That's what you think. That's your rage. When you're out there, and the adrenaline is pumping in you... you don't know what you'll encounter inside your own mind. You haven't been trained; you'll miss your shots, you won't know how to reload quickly, you'll forget to peek corners and do basic shit. You will die if you go out there.
Tom: You should train us, then.
Uncle: When I was in service, my training took months.
Tom: What if-
Uncle: NO!
The sudden raise in his voice surprised everyone.
Uncle: This conversation is OVER. If anyone leaves this place, you are NOT welcome back.

Joe was laying down on the bed, staring at the ceiling, trying to recall the events that happened earlier...
Joe thought to himself: What happened last night? Well… we went to the school, we met Jack… I smell good so I must’ve taken a shower, but I also smell burnt? My hand feels weird… what’s this scar? Was I stabbed?
Suddenly, a knocking came at the bedroom door.
Joe: Come in.
He couldn't believe his eyes... in the doorway stood his old friend, John the English teacher.
John: Joe!
As John came over to his side, he could see Jorge standing in the doorway. Uncle tapped him on the shoulder and motioned him to come with him into the next room.
Joe: How? How did-?
John: Jorge found me.
Joe: At the school?
John: Hell, no! After you guys escaped, they knew I was against them... so I went back to my home and boarded it up. Jorge found me there. Thank god he checked there first, otherwise he'd be walking into a trap.
Joe: Did you two run into any trouble?
John: Yes… heavy resistance with a bunch of zombies, but we didn’t draw any here. We parked his car somewhere in the woods and camouflage it. I didn’t wanna drive here and draw more zombies to the noise.
Joe: Heavy resistance? What?
John: We had to fight off some. I got some blood on my favorite suit… Jorge didn’t take it well.
Joe: Why?
John: I guess you guys didn’t see as many zombies as I did. I’m desensitized to it by now… but him… I think that was his first time.
Joe: I haven’t seen any either…
Suddenly, it hit him.
Joe: Wait a minute… I remember now. I did see one, as a matter of fact it fucking bit me on my cheek.
He reached up and felt his cheek where he remembers being bitten, but felt nothing.
John: Nothing’s there. Just a bit white patch of skin.
Joe: I’m white.
John: No, like paper white. A scar, sort of.
Joe: I have that on my hand, too. Christ, what did they do to me?
John: I wasn’t there for your interrogation, and I’m not sure what they’re up to in there, so I don’t know how you would have survived a bite. Maybe you’re just thinking things.
Angie: There was a huge argument about you, I hope you know that.
John turned around, startled, to see Angie standing in the doorway.
John: Oh! You're okay too!
Angie: Yeah. I am, thanks to you.
John: And what do you mean, argument?
Angie: Joe's uncle likes to stay indoors to not attract attention, and for good reason, too.
Joe: They were really debating if we should go after Jorge and save him.
John: Well, looks like those negotiations were short.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jorge, Ryan, and Tom all walked downstairs. They closed the door behind them.
Tom walked over to the couches and sat down on the large one; Jorge sat on his right, and Ryan stood in the corner with his arms crossed.
Tom: Okay... do you guys understand how fucked up today was?
Ryan: I don't even know where to begin.
Jorge: What happened?
Tom: There was a huge fucking debate to even see if we should go after you.
Jorge: What, to save me? I don't need saving!
Ryan: Yeah, that's what I figured you’d say.
Tom: You don't understand... they practically have an army and Jorge could've been in a lot of trouble.
Jorge: Okay, so what's the big deal?
Tom: I'm saying that Uncle is keeping us here against our will.
Ryan: Give me a break, Tom! Are you serious?
Tom: Listen to me... what if it were you out there? No one would come to rescue you. We'd all just sit here and wait to fucking die of starvation. The only time we went out there was for his interest in that radio transmission. Suddenly everything’s unimportant and too risky?
Ryan: It wasn't like that before. We had no idea what was truly out there.
Tom: Oh, according to how Uncle sounded, he had a pretty good fucking idea of how it was. He was all like “Oh, you kids don't know what it's like out there! It's dangerous!” as if we haven’t been going through the same fucking thing he’s been through.
Ryan: What do you want, Tom? You want us to constantly go out there whenever you want some action?
Tom: It's not about action, it's about security.
Ryan: Well what's done is done. Jorge is safe with us, now.
Tom: That still doesn't excuse the fact that Uncle is quick to leave some of us behind.
Ryan: Tom, calm down and listen to what you're trying to say. Jorge ran away on his own terms, and brought back John. That's it. Uncle didn't want to go after him and risk losing more people. It's not that he doesn't care about Jorge, it's just that he cares about everyone.
Tom: You've been strangely not apprehensive about someone you never knew taking control. Maybe that’s what the military does to pricks like you, it turns them into obedient little pussies.
Ryan was visibly shocked, his eyebrows raising and his eyes widening.
He stood up and got in Tom’s face.
Jorge stepped forward as well to separate the two.
Jorge: Gentlemen! This has gone on long enough-
Ryan: Firstly, he doesn't have control over me. Secondly, I trusted him as soon as I saw his ability to organize, strategize, and keep us safe. Lastly, we're living in an event that will be taught in schools hundreds of years from now. You want to be part of that history. I do, too, but I want to tell my grandchildren stories about how I was in the contagion zone. But you know what? We don't always get a choice. People who survived the holocaust hid away in the attic for years and years. We have to survive by hiding in here for however long we need. I don't have a choice in whether or not I'll die here, and I don't have a choice in what will happen next. We're a small part in a big event. Like it or not, we're only two teenage boys living in a cataclysmic event that claimed the lives of millions already. If Uncle's plan were flawed, we'd be dead by now.
Tom didn't know what to say next, he simply stared at the ground.
Ryan: You want to go find more. That's it, right?
Tom: Yeah.
By "more" he clearly was talking about Tom's urge to look for more of his friends.
Ryan: Well, you can't save them all. I know Evan is out there somewhere. I know Ashley is out there somewhere. However... I don't know their state. Are they alive? Or are they the walking dead we see out there? We're not the only ones trying to survive. You should've seen the amount of people we saw at the school. You should've seen the amount of barricaded homes, just like ours, that are in the area and neighboring areas. We're not alone. You just need to calm down.
Tom: Fine.
Jorge: We'll give you some room to think. I'm fucking starving.
Jorge went upstairs. Ryan sighed heavily and sat down.
Ryan: I know you're apprehensive about Uncle taking control. But if we go out there... we're as good as dead.
Tom: Someday we'll have to leave this house. And will we be prepared?
Ryan closed his eyes and gulped.
Ryan: No.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So now we have Joe, Jorge, Jake, Uncle, Sev, Vin, Kyle, Ryan, Tom, Dan, Angie, Naomi, and John.
13 people staying in one house.
It was 9 PM, everyone was asleep except for Sev, who sat on the floor upstairs, looking over the balcony and seeing the people sleep below. After some strange noises outside, most of them elected to go to the basement and sleep. Others took the bedrooms, or other obscure places. The only people who remained in the main living room were his father and his brother.
Suddenly, he heard a tapping noise at the door.
Sev dismissed this as the wind, as he could hear it beginning to rain outside. He was too on edge, and every little noise freaked him out.
Sev thought: How could my dad, despite saying all of this shit earlier, sleep like an angel after what's been going on?!
He scoffed and laid on his back, slowly closing his eyes. Then, he jerked back awake, remembering that he can't fall asleep while on watch.
The deadliest game to play is "I'm just gonna let my eyes rest for five minutes".
It's second to Russian Roulette.
Again, he heard a noise at the door, it sounded like scratching.
He sat up and looked over at the door, but saw a tree branch scraping at the window.
Sev: Calm down... it's nothing.
...
Vin: DAD!!!
Sev turned around and saw Vin jump up off the couch and grab his gun.
Sev: What happened?!
Vin: We have to leave!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Uncle shoved everyone out of the way and turned up the radio.
Uncle: Shush! Listen!
"I will make this broadcast as quick and simple as possible, and it will be set on repeat until the objectives have been fulfilled. It has been brought to my attention that one of the survivors within the quarantine zone is immune to the virus.
I demand that this civilian be brought alive to my office located in center city, up at the top floor of Liberty 1. I guarantee that you, your family, and your friends will be given the cure immediately as soon as our scientists release it. We need this man, or we can’t make the cure.
You will also be transferred outside the quarantine zone and brought to New York City to live under our protection agency, dedicated to protecting survivors of the outbreak due to their heroic actions... you will never have to worry about anything in life ever again. No taxes. No work. No bills. Nothing.
Unfortunately, if this man is not found within 10 months, the quarantine zone will be... cleaned. This leaves no room for human life. There will be a crater where Philadelphia once was."
Uncle: When the FUCK was this broadcasted?!
Vin: I don't know... but this one just came on just a few minutes ago. Listen!
"...this announcement will be different than the usual. I announce the beginning of the hunt. We've found the address of the patient-"
Before Uncle could hear his address be broadcasted, he stood up, shaking, and yelled at everyone.
Uncle: Everyone get to the cars! I want EVERYTHING out of here! Food, weapons, ammo, clothing, sheets, ANYTHING YOU CAN CARRY. Sev, come with me. We're burning this place.
Sev: What?!
Uncle: We're going to our cabin upstate. There are tons of things in here that could give people a clue as to who we are. They'll track us, find what real estate I own, and that'll lead them to the cabin. We're going off the grid, people!
Vin: What guns do we have?
⦁    AR-15 Semi Automatic Rifle
⦁    M9 Beretta Pistol x2
⦁    AK47
⦁    500 Magnum revolver
⦁    Mosin Nagant bolt action rifle
⦁    Winchester 94 Sniper
Vin: The Winchester belongs to Sev. My dad takes the AK. I'll take the AR-15.
Ryan: What do I get?
Uncle: Give him the Mosin.
Ryan: Beautiful. What a great weapon.
Uncle: Give the two girls berettas.
Uncle: So... who has the strongest wrists?
Jorge: I would say I do!
Jake: I can't dispute with that. Jorge is a powerhouse.
Uncle: You take the revolver.
Sev: We have some other weapons, too, right?
Uncle: No. I have an axe and other shit in the garage. Unless we wanna look like an angry mob... the rest of you should get your hands on anything sharp or blunt.
He had a variety of baseball bats in the garage, so everyone took some. Tom took an axe; Dan, however, took a bowstaff type thing that Uncle used for martial arts.
Uncle: What're you gonna do with that?
Dan: I dunno, I used to be one of those guys who spun the flags in marching band so I know how to bash someone's head in with this pretty well.
Uncle: One end is a bit sharper than the other, so use it as a spear.
Uncle was completely geared out. He had a vest on with pouches filled with extra ammo. At his hip, he had a small one-handed sword in a sheathe.
He turned around and saw John empty handed.
Uncle: Where's your weapon?
John: I'm a school teacher... I can't... I mean... not in front of my students.
Uncle: Shut your pacifist mouth up and grab a bat.
So now we have Joe, Jorge, Jake, Uncle, Sev, Vin, Kyle, Ryan, Tom, Dan, Angie, Naomi, and John crowding in the garage.
Uncle walked in and shut the door behind him.
He then pressed the button next to the entrance, slowly opening the garage door.
Everyone shielded their eyes as the light came through...
Suddenly, the door broke open behind everyone. A large spike came through the door and impaled Kyle through the stomach.
Speechless, he looked up and saw everyone slowly turn around in disbelief as the spike was pulled back into the door and his body slumped to the ground.
Before anyone could say anything, the door flew off its hinges and slammed into Sev.
Uncle: RUN!
Everyone ran away as a 7 foot tall figure squeezed through the door frame.
The figure was incredibly muscular, wearing no clothing but appearing to have no genitals either. It wore a metal facemask, and on one hand it had a large barbed metal sword. The other hand was larger than a watermelon.
Uncle immediately swung the AK onto his back and unsheathed his sword, walking backwards slowly.
On his way out of the garage with everyone else, Sev stopped; he looked behind him to reveal that his right eye was cut by the door shrapnel. Light-red blood was oozing out of the wound rapidly.
Sev: WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!
He kept walking backwards, staring down the monster as it slowly stomped towards him.
Uncle: I'm holding this thing off! Get to my car and swing around, I'll jump in!
Sev fought back tears as he led the carpool out of the neighborhood.
One car stopped in the middle of the road, though. All the doors opened, and out came Dan, Tom and Jake.
Tom had a pistol & an axe, Dan had a bow staff, and Jake had a baseball bat.
Uncle: What are you doing?!
The monster slowly came out into the sunlight, stomping forward menacingly.
Dan: We're done running! Let's kill this thing!
Uncle: Fine! Just stay out of my way!
He ran up and ducked underneath its punch, slicing it in the stomach while he was crouched down.
The beast growled and kicked him, sending him flying back.
Dan jumped over Uncle's body as he charged in. The beast walked up and swung its sword, aiming for Dan's head.
He ducked down and held his staff overhead, letting the sword slightly glide along the surface, cutting off a thin piece of wood.
Tom and Jake looked at each other in disbelief, still not entering battle.
Jake went straight up to Uncle and helped him up.
Tom was about to go in, but Uncle shouted.
Uncle: Wait for a clear shot!
The beast’s sword was swung again, this time aiming at his legs. Dan jumped over that and stabbed deep into its heart.
The beast brought both its arms in and wrapped them around Dan, squeezing him against his chest.
He screamed in agony, bones cracking, as Tom came in, chopping off the sword-hand with his axe.
Dan was released, falling to the ground with the sword.
Tom quickly dragged him back, barely saving him from being stomped into the pavement.
The arm that was once cut off was now regenerating, revealing a pale, spotless hand. It pried its foot out of the crater it made in the driveway.
Uncle: It's too strong for one on one attacks we need to hit it together!
Jake: How the hell do we do that without hitting each other?
Uncle: It’s a big enemy, but it’s slow. We have to surround it,  hit it one by one, and not get caught. We’ll back each other up if we need it - just strike in turn, okay?!
Suddenly, the beast let out an ear-piercing shriek as all of its veins became visible, pumping blood extremely quickly.
It crouched down and picked up its long sword again. It stared at Uncle.
Uncle: Uh oh...
It charged forward, winding up another right hook; Uncle charged back, ducked underneath the punch, slid between its legs, and ended up behind it.
He spun around, almost like a beyblade, and sliced the back of its thighs.
As it fell to its knees, he stabbed into the skull, lodging his sword in the thick cranium. He yanked it out, leaving a huge gash. The beast was dazed, but he could notice that the wound started healing.
The monster was about to reach behind itself to grab Uncle, but Tom came in and chopped into its shoulder, immobilizing it.
It took its sword and readied to slice into Tom’s torso, but Jake grabbed its arm and wrestled it down for control.
Uncle kept smashing its head in with its sword.
Uncle: FUCK! IT’S NOT DYING!
He swung his AK from behind his back and shoved the barrel through the gash that began to mend itself. He held down the trigger, firing full auto until the magazine was empty. On the faceplate, the dents of the bullets could be seen, but none went through.
Blood spewed all over Uncle's face, it started sizzling, stinging like hell.
It stuck to his skin as it burned into his face; luckily, he wiped it all off before it could do any permanent damage.
He looked around, stumbled flat on his back, and passed out.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few hours later, Uncle finally woke up, his eyes shooting wide open as he recognized where he was.
Sev was sitting right beside him, holding an AK, looking out the window.
Uncle groaned, catching his son’s attention.
Sev: Oh my god, you’re awake!
Uncle: What… what happened?
He slowly tried to get up and check his surroundings, but Sev forced him back down.
Sev: No no no, you need rest. You’ve been unconscious for ten hours. It’s way late at night.
Uncle: I’m… at the cabin?
Sev: Yes, and we weren’t followed. Looks like that teacher is genuine after all.
Uncle: Hmph…
Sev: I heard about what you did to that fleshpound.
Uncle: Fleshpound?
Sev: Yeah, that’s what we named it.
Uncle: And what did you hear?
Sev: From what I heard, your spectators were in awe.
His memory suddenly got refreshed, almost as if it were just a few minutes ago. The panic settled in.
Uncle: W-where’s the boy?
Sev: You mean… Kyle?
Uncle: Yeah, is he…?
Sev: He’s out back, and six feet under. It was hard to see him go. Such a nice kid. Everyone’s been quiet since then.
Uncle: What about the cabin, did you get every-
Sev: Don’t worry. I boarded everything up with planks, put curtains and sheets everywhere, organized all our food and ammo, and had all our cars parked out back in the woods where no one can spot them.
Uncle: Good… you’ve done well.
Sev: Thanks, dad. Now get rest.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jack was sitting at a large desk, facing the wall.
Jack: They got away?
Newman: Yeah.
Jack: And the fleshpound?
Newman: Dead.
Jack: Did you find anything at the house?
Newman: No. They burned it down.
Jack: Fuck.
Newman: Yeah…
Jack: We can find more records of him, though. You have access to the teacher’s database, right?
Newman: Yep.
Jack: Let’s find his home address, we’ll start there, then we can track any of his emergency contacts and go down the rabbit hole.
Newman: Good plan. I’ll talk with my people.
Jack: Good, and if you see Shepherd, tell him I wanna see him. Immediately.
Newman: I don’t understand him.
Jack: Why?
Newman: His motives. Why make this deadly virus? Why make these other abominations he calls “fleshpounds?”
Jack: We’ve been spilling a lot of information here, recently. You’ve told Joe pretty much everything we do here. Do you know what’ll happen if he gets across the border with all that?
Newman: Don’t get hysterical, he’s not going to escape this fucking place… none of us are…
Jack: Well, if you really want me to give you some clarification, Shepherd spread the infection to test the world’s response to an outbreak. So far, I think he’s liking the fact that the military isn’t moving in. If this was spread worldwide, there would be chaos. It’s the perfect negotiating weapon. You can get anything you want.
Newman: So what, does he want power? Does he want to rule the world?
Jack: I’m not sure, but I am sure that he’ll monologue it all to me someday.
Newman: What about that nuking the area thing? Does he really have a nuke like he said in the transmission?
Jack: The whole thing was a bluff. He doesn’t have anything bigger than his small task force downtown near his office.


As Newman walked out of the room, General Shepherd walked in.
Jack turned around in his chair and stared at him blankly.
The general cocked his head to the side, confused by Jack’s facial expression.
Shepherd: At ease.
Jack simply shook his head.
Jack: You’re the reason they got away. You just HAD to announce to the whole area we were searching for them. Why?
Shepherd: Oh, killing them wasn’t the point. We wanted them to get away.
Jack: What?! You know that we have to find them AGAIN, now, right? Their only choice is to hide.
Shepherd: Let me tell you something, kid. This is all a test. You might not realize it, but your friends don’t matter at all.
Jack: They’re not my friends. Not anymore, at least.
Shepherd: Good. Well, that beast they killed, something you’re very familiar with…
Jack: Yeah, the fleshpound. Such a waste of good genes…
Shepherd: We’ve made a new one. Its nose makes it the deadliest bloodhound in history. All we needed from the last one was a drop of Joe’s blood, and it found them successfully.
Jack: So if it worked so well, why do we need a new one?
Shepherd: Oh, that’s because we know that they’re going far far away from here, probably somewhere upstate in the mountains. That’s perfect for our testing. Do you know how many variables there are in the wilderness? Different animals, regular bloodshed by nature, lots of pollen, more open areas for the scent to travel around and get lost… scent is a very very fragile thing the farther away it goes.
Jack: So you start a city-wide manhunt for people to go out and kill each other & get killed. You think no interference will happen then.
Shepherd stepped forward, excited.
Shepherd: Exactly! All of these variables NEED to be tested! Not only that, but do you realize the pressure the army will be under if more and more people are dying? More and more people are going to be reaching the border, trying to escape. Do you realize how great this whole thing is for the experiment itself?!
Jack: I don’t see this as an experiment. I see this as mass murder, but I’m numb to it all. I guess that’s how you swindled my father all those years ago.
Shepherd: Your father had a choice, and he knew what he was getting into.
Jack: Right now I’m putting my faith in a fucking genetic abomination. How do you know it’s gonna work?
Shepherd: Oh, it’ll work. These have worked before. We’re just testing out some new… enhancements on it. Your friends managed to kill the last one… but I assure you - there is no way an entire army can kill the new one we’re about to send in on them.
Suddenly, the door opened and Brit walked in, the girl security guard from before.
Shepherd: Captain. Have you packed my things?
Brit: You’re all set for HQ, sir.
Shepherd: Good. Please, can Jack and I have a few more moments?
Brit: Sure.
She left.
Jack: Does she know what you’re doing?
Shepherd: None of my soldiers know what I’m doing. The US Army doesn’t even know what I’m doing. This is illegal, all of this. I’ve been working with this fucking company for years, taking money from them in exchange for military equipment and all this other taxpayer spending yada yada bullshit. It’s been difficult to keep it concealed, but I had people like your dad on my side. When I get to NYC, the only thing they’ll care about is the fact that I’m alive. I’m important to them.
Jack: So what do you tell them when they say you conducted a city-wide manhunt, but couldn’t give a phone call to your peeps?
Shepherd: I’ll find a way.
Jack: What, you’re gonna say you left your phone on silent?
Shepherd: Sorta. In the meantime, just don’t forget your place in all this, little one. If you slip up, you fall with me. You’re officially an accomplice.
Jack: I’ve heard this all before.
Shepherd: I’m sure you have, but I promise I won’t forget your sacrifice in all this. Your father was a great man… and I’ll make sure you reap as many rewards as I do when our plan succeeds.
Jack: What if it doesn’t succeed?
Shepherd didn’t say a word.