Apocalyptic Love

Carson was missing.

Though I had no idea who Carson was, I very well knew that he hadn’t made it. This shockingly numerous amount of humans made sure to repeat the fact every second or so. Some with tear filled eyes and choking sobs. Others with fiery determination to find their missing friend. For a loner, I seemed to be the most sane person left in the world.

The group had been cooped up in my safe zone for about a quarter of a day, mulling about aimlessly, and murmuring amongst themselves. Countless times I’d felt the unsettling gaze of curious eyes on me but I tried my best to ignore it. I honestly didn’t know what else to do. I’d finally found another human being, many in fact, and yet I had no idea what to make of it. I had no idea what to do next.

The small hollow was beginning to sour of sweat the longer we waited and though I guessed it was probably okay to venture out, with this many people I didn’t want to take the chance. Instead I shuffled silently to the hollow opening, slithering out when I had the chance.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

I groaned inwardly at the strong whisper, knowing full well that my chance of escape was slim. Still, the fresh air compared to the sweat of the dozen or so people inside was enough for now. Not bothering to turn and face the arrogant human leader, I simply glanced over my shoulder, narrowing my eyes at his glare.

“Wherever the hell I want,” I replied haughtily. “This is my jungle.”

The man gave a bark of laughter. “Your jungle?” He asked callously. “Should I call you Jane?”

Not quite understanding what he meant, my brows furrowed slightly, causing another bark of laughter from him. If it weren’t for the man’s intentional whispering I might have been worried that he might be giving us away again. Except my safe zone was in a section of the jungle that was significantly uninhabited compared to the rest.

“It’s Harley,” I snapped, annoyed at the mocking look on his face. “Should I call you subtle?”

The man was silent, seemingly unable to think of a comeback to my lame retort though the game had barely started. My lips tilted up at the corners feeling somewhat witty and proud to leave this arrogant human speechless.

“Harley?” He whispered finally. I nodded, frowning at the softening of his features. “It’s me, Jared,” he added.

My brow rose, clearly sending him a ‘what’s your point?’ glare, but by then he was scrambling to his feet and coming at me with arms wide open.

“Harley, it’s me. Jared,” he continued when I stepped back. “Don’t you remember? We looked everywhere for you. Dad, he – well, he wouldn’t stop. We thought you were dead.”

Before I could stop him, his arms were wrapped around me and he was breathing words of disbelief into my hair. Stunned, I simply stood there, my brain wondering what the hell was happening. The air in the jungle was still sticky with humidity, I felt like I was melting within his body heat. A sudden cough made me jump, but even then Jared still kept his arms around me, shifting slightly to turn to whoever had alerted us to their presence.

“Don’t waste no time, do you?” came an amused laugh. It was the man who’d had the gun pointed at me.

Slowly I was released from Jared’s clutches and the usual smirk covered his features. “Make yourself useful and grab my mum,” he answered, resting his forearm against my shoulder.

“Meeting the parents too,” the man cooed teasingly as he slipped back into the hollow.

Barely a second later, the man re-emerged with an older lady in tow. She had the same eyes as the boy leaning casually against me; a hardened brown that had seen too much death for her beautiful face. Blonde locks wrapped her head in waves, greying slightly from age, but even then I remembered. My eyes widened and I hesitantly stepped forward.

“Anna?”

At the sound of her name coming from an unknown voice, Anna’s eyes snapped to mine, eyeing the distance between me and Jared. I stepped forward again, glancing briefly at Jared’s grinning face and suddenly connecting the dots.

“Joker?” I squeaked.

If it were possible, his grin grew wider and I was jumping back into his arms. For a second the moment was perfect. Re-uniting with a long lost friend and his mother, the Doc’s wife. And then he decided to grab a nice handful of my ass, and I flung myself away from him with a glare.

“You got… womanly, Quinn,” he teased.

Piecing together our childhood nicknames, Anna suddenly burst into life, flying at me with worry and relief as she fussed over my well-being. Reiterating Jared’s display of disbelief she mumbled the search they’d commenced. The war between the wolves and the bears and how both sides had barely walked away alive. Then came the most heart-breaking news of all, tears escaping the rims of her eyes as she tried to be strong as she told me.

The Doc was dead.

Things seemed to move quickly after that. My eyes had deceived me previously by thinking there were an unthinkable amount of humans in my little hollow. There were, in fact, only seven not including Anna and Jared. Or their missing friend. I blamed the loneliness of nine years.

Introductions were made immediately as I was brought into the group’s heart. The once curious stares turned to welcoming smiles and I tried my best to remember their names, nodding politely as they all recapped their journeys during the hard times.

“So you’ve lived here your whole life?” Asked the man who’d had the gun. Jimmy if I recalled.

My eyes swept over him, his arm wrapped affectionately around a petite girl curled in his arms. The sight was endearing, and I realised just how close the group was with each other. They looked so calm, so relaxed in each other’s presence. And they looked at me the same way I studied them. Like a new species.

“I’ve been here for a while,” I answered, chewing on my bottom lip. “About nine years if I counted correctly. Since I got separated from the Doc and Anna.”

“You knew the Doc?” He asked, surprised. I nodded, flinching slightly when the burly man suddenly threw himself at me in a bear hug. “Well, shit, little lady. You’re part of the family!”

His knuckles pressed against the top of my head, rubbing it painfully as he held my neck in the crook of his arm. I glared at Jared as he cracked up in laughter, followed closely by his companions and an objective Anna.

“Well then,” Jared started with a wide smile. “Looks like we’ve got ourselves a guide, ladies and gentlemen.” He paced the small space of the hollow, rubbing his hands together as if the matter was settled. “Harley here knows the jungle like we don’t, so she’s going to show us the way.”

“We can’t just leave,” piped up an older woman I remembered was named Helen. “We haven’t found Carson.”

“We can’t go back for him,” Anna reasoned.

“It’s too dangerous,” Jimmy agreed. “You know that, Helen. He’s a goner.”

Helen’s face turned a beet red. “How can you just drop him like that –?” She gasped, before being interrupted by another man who’d been silent until now. I couldn’t quite remember his name.

“What about Harry? And Jason? Samantha and Keshni?” He spat furiously. “You didn’t have a problem leaving them, did you?”

The second the words left his mouth, Helen blew up in a fit of rage screaming at the man who was apparently named Ellis, accusing him of being a soulless bastard. At this point I’d snapped out of my trance, knowing that petty arguments would have beasts crawling to our doorstep in seconds.

“Quiet!” I hissed viciously, effectively stunning Helen into silence. “Your Carson is dead,” I continued cruelly. “This is my jungle, and I don’t run from a threat unless absolutely necessary. Those banshees would have stripped the meat off his body the second they caught him, and used his bones for toothpicks. He’s dead. Get it through your head before you bring them to the only safe zone you have.”

I glanced at each of them in turn, challenging them to mess with me, from Jared’s smirk around to Ellis’s amused smile.

“Okay,” I said, a little more calmly. “Now, will someone tell me why exactly you think I’m guiding you anywhere through this jungle and what it will accomplish?”

Bursting into tears, Helen shuffled to the back of the room, led comfortingly by the petite girl that Jimmy had been curled around. The burly man gave me an encouraging smile, his face beaming with happiness. I smiled back, wondering how in the hell he could be so happy in a world as shit as this.

“Well, there’s a reason we came here,” Jared answered, holding himself up confidently. I’d almost missed it, but his tone had changed from silky smooth to a hardened briskness. As he spoke I realised that this was why he seemed to lead the group despite being one of the younger men. He reeked of authority.

“And that would be?” I dared, straightening to my full height.

Jared shifted, moving to stand in front of his group as they all turned to me with determination burning in their eyes. Despite their differences, they all had a goal. They all had a collective purpose.

“We’re going to kill the Kings.”