To Die Unknown

I began choking on the putrid scent that nearly enveloped me. The scent of rotten, decaying flesh surrounded me. I walked forward, my curiosity outweighing the logic telling me to turn back now.

I was nearly blinded by the white walls around me. The floor was a hard linoleum. Pale blue lab coats rested on either side of me. Tables below them with disposable gloves, face masks, and disinfectant.

Metal tables stood in the middle of the room, different medical instruments lying across them.

A small shelf stood with dark blue binders lined up on them. Placing the seemingly useless candle on the table, I grabbed the last one flipping through the pages.

Sometimes, it feels hopeless. Like we’re getting nowhere. No, that’s not true. We’re always getting somewhere. Well, that’s what I have to tell them. To keep up the motivation. The drive. The want. We all want a solution. Who doesn’t?

My eyes widened at the writing across the pages. I continued flipping through the pages, stopping at a page with lots of ink smudges.

Damn it. What is getting into their heads? Why these thoughts now? We only ever take the men. It isn’t wrong. It’s for the greater good. Some of them want to stop. We can’t stop. We can’t stop without an answer.

What do they mean they only ever take the men? What were they doing down here. The binder was shaking in my hands. I breathed out slowly, hoping to calm my breath.

I flipped to the last post. Maybe they’d written something tonight.

Fail. Is that all there ever is anymore? Who was it this time? Samuel? Seth? Names aren’t something I care for much now. Experiment 119. That’s what he died being known as.

Experiment 119 responded different to the new vaccine. Well, at the beginning at least. And then, he turned like all the rest.
Would it be different if we tried it on the opposite sex? No. We can’t go there. There are so few women left alive today. We need all surviving women to stay that way. Surviving. Safe. There for repopulation. That’s their job now.

The binder fell from my hands. They had experimented on Sebastian. They had killed Sebastian. I blinked my eyes repeatedly, fighting back tears of fury.

He was gone now. As much as I wanted to, I couldn’t sit around and grieve. There were now more high priority things to do. I needed to get myself, and Victoria, out of here.

My head snapped up at a strange noise. A tall gray door stood at the opposite end of this room, a small glass window in the top half.

What was in that room?

My shoes made a soft smacking against the linoleum as I ran to the door, using my body to heave it open.

The smell I thought was bad before, suddenly had me bending over, gagging. I tried to keep in the vomit that wanted to come up.

A loud moaning met my ears. My body jerked up, hair rising on end. I realized I was surrounded by the dead.

On either side of me, were two rooms. Th walls separating us were barred. To my left, a handwritten sign read Gathered. Infected were strapped down to tables, their heads facing me. Their jaws were moving, letting guttural moans out.

To my right, a handwritten sign read Failed. More infected were strapped to tables. All were looking at me with glazed eyes. Never blinking, and always hungry. I brought my hands to my ears, trying to block out their noise.

In the middle of the room, was a large medical table. Still wet blood dripped down the side into a drain.

A trail of blood led me forward. The room of infected was soon behind me as I walked further on. The path wasn’t very wide, but bright fluorescent’s still guided me on.

I don’t know for how long I’d walked but when I finally reached the end, a sigh left my lips. The blood trail ended at the door before me. I tried to open the door, but it refused to budge. I stood at the tip of my toes, trying to get a glimpse out of the tiny window at the top of the door.

I could barely make out the rising sun. A fence surrounded a small area attached to the door. The forest surrounding it. This must be where they take the newly turned infected.

“Shit.” I exclaimed, when I realized the sun was rising. I’d been in here that long? I needed to get out, and now.

Turning around I ran as fast as I could, nearly slipping multiple times on the wet blood. I ignored the contained infected as I dashed past them. I pushed the door open without a second though. I slowed to a light jog as I passed the fallen binder, stopping to put it back on its shelf.

I looked back at the room, shaking my head in disgust. What had I gotten us into?

When I reached the top of the never ending staircase, my breath was escaping in short, quick gasps. I shoved with all my might against the bookcase, slamming it back into place.

I quickly left the room. After closing the door, I turned around, only to slam into someone.

Raising my eyes, I met the sneering face of Sophia. Her blonde hair was tied back in an elegant french twist. A pale blue dress clung to her tanned skin stopping just above her knee’s – a white unbuttoned cardigan accentuating it. White gladiator sandals showed off her blue painted toes.

“What do you think you are doing here?” She demanded? Her eyes narrowed as she took in my form. I was still wearing the clothes I had been previously given. I wasn’t used to changing clothes regularly anymore. It wasn’t important.

“I-“ A loud siren cut me off. I instinctively clutched at my ears, cringing at the noise. I tried to shout above the noise, “What is that?”

Sophia’s eyes widened drastically, her form stiffening. She turned on her heel and ran from me.
Not knowing what was going on, I assumed someone out in the streets could tell me. I took off running after Sophia.

“Sophia!” I cried out, attempting to get her attention. She stopped at the door, somehow hearing me over the blaring siren. A horrified expression graced her stunning features. Her lips turned into a smirk as she slammed the door shut behind her.

I ran to the door, attempting to open it. It refused to budge. But I had unlocked it. The door must lock from the outside. Raising my fists, I smashed them against the wooden door.

“Sophia!” I called out, “Why are you doing this?”

The siren wailed on as I continued pounding against the door. Someone had to know someone was trapped in here.

Exhausted, I slumped to the floor, my body leaning back against the door. I put my head in my knee’s, my hands against my ears. I felt as if I couldn’t think straight, the siren taking over my mind.

I banged my head back against the door in frustration. I shook my head, trying to gain my senses. I needed to find a way out of here. Using my arms, I pushed my body up. Stumbling around, I searched for another exit.

My eyes landed on an Emergency Only case. The axe stood in a class case against the wall, waiting to be used in case of a fire. Rolling my eyes, I smashed my elbow back into the case. I cringed at the pain, as the glass littered the floor around me.

Gripping the axe, I ran back to the door. I raised the heavy axe above my head. Bringing it down, I aimed it at the wood near the door knob. I repeated the action over and over again. A thick wooden section fell from the door, bringing the attached door knob down with it. The door swung open.

I ran into the streets, the siren only growing louder. My eyes widened at the sight before me.

It was pure chaos.

People were running around, their mouths opened in silent screams. The infected were everywhere, attacking anyone they could get their hands on. So many people were bleeding on the ground, infected eating away at their flesh.

There had been a break in.

Some had weapons in their hands, fighting back against the hungry hordes. Bullets flying in every direction, not all hitting their targets.

One mans gun appeared to have jammed. Throwing it at the advancing infected – he turned to run, only being attacked by the advancing infected from behind.

Where was Victoria?

Tightening my grip on the axe in my hands, I ran forward. Swinging the axe at an infected male who reached out for me. Its body dropped, the head rolling away from it.

A bright orange head caught my attention in the distance. He was running through the crowd of infected, barely missing the infected.

“Sebastian!” I screamed, running after him. I knew he couldn’t have been dead. There was no possible way. I couldn’t help but let a relieved sigh escape. In the midst of all this chaos, some how, some good came from it. I was going to be reunited with my missing companion.

“Sebastian!” I called again, hoping he would hear me over the siren. He suddenly turned around, eyes landing on me. I continued running towards him. He began running toward me, his arms outstretching.

“No.” I whispered. His skin was much paler, taking on a pale green hue. His eyes were glazed over, hollow. Blood smeared his face, his jaw gnawing at the air in anticipation. A man ran past him. Sebastian’s attention turned to the man. He ran after him, quickly catching and biting into him.

Experiment 119. That must have been Sebastian. He responded differently to whatever it is they did to him. And now, they’d endangered so many more lives. They had created an infected with speed.

Gasping I turned my back to my newly turned friend, slamming the hard edge of the axe into a nearing infected. The crowds were thinning. People must have been either barricading themselves in the buildings around them, being turned into infected, or leaving the compound altogether. I was opting for the ladder.

None of these buildings looked like they’d be able to hold out the infected for very long.

I fought my way through the crowd, slashing at the infected in my path. I needed to find Victoria. I searched for her through the hordes, but couldn’t find her.

A woman with long brown and blonde hair stumbled around, tears spilling from her blue eyes. Her arms were crossed over her pregnant belly, trying to shield her unborn child from the impending madness.

Shaking my head, I ran to her. I grabbed her arm, pulling her with me. She nodded, seeming to understand and tried to run with me. She moved slowly and I had to slow down, keeping pace with her.

A bald man reached at us from the ground, his jaws moving in anticipation. His legs were torn clean from his body, blood pooling under him. I swung the axe down at his neck, severing his head from what was left of his body.

I tugged back on the axe but it was stuck in the ground. I pulled on it, attempting to dislodge it.

I quickly looked behind me, the infected slowly approaching us. Sebastian, the fast one, was nowhere in sight.

A large black SUV pulled to a stop beside me. The back door swung open. The green eyed man I’d come to know as Zacky, poked his head out. He ushered toward the pregnant women with me, and she waddled forward He pulled her up into the truck. She turned around and waved me forward.

I shook my head, I had to find Victoria. I stumbled back, landing roughly on my side when the axe finally gave way. Hands grabbed me, pulling me to unknown bodies. Turning my head, I saw infected grabbing me. Their heads were lowering, bringing their rotting teeth closer to my flesh.

I struggled to get from their grasp. A bullet passed my eyes, landing in the forehead of the infected holding me. Brian had his head out of the SUV window, a gun aimed at the fallen infected. His eyes met mine.

Without a second thought I pushed myself up. The axe weighing heavily in my arms as I ran for the truck. I jumped into the backseat , slamming the door closed next to me. As a precaution I pushed the lock down on the door.

The siren continued blaring as Brian slammed on the gas.