“Tori, hurry up. The train is about to leave!” Jake’s dream self yelled at his lover.

“Jake, wait, what about all of the people who we left?” Tori asked Jake. Jake hesitated before he answered. “Tori, they told me to take you and leave. So I did. Sorry, Luv.” Tori looked at Jake with very gentle eyes. She moved into Jake’s body like she was going to kiss him, when she suddenly went for his throat, like a savage animal.

Awakening suddenly with a jolt, Jake, a 17-year-old, whose black hair was hanging past his shoulders, and hazel eyes were red from crying, pale skin, sat up covered in sweat. He hugged himself, as he rocked back and forth crying, wishing he knew where Tori was, longing for her embrace.

* *

After having fitful dreams during the night, and hearing the moans that haunted the city streets, Jake got up and stretched his weary body.

Great, he thought, another day of this hell. If only I had died in my sleep. Jake went to the window and peered out. The site didn’t shock him like it did the first few times. Hundreds upon hundreds of living dead, not like the ones from a game or movie. These things weren’t the typical slow or fast zombies. And these things ate each other for nourishment. He suddenly saw something that let hope over take his body. Two figures running toward his bunker, the Holiday Inn, and they didn’t look infected.

Jake grabbed his katana and a random gun, which was a M-16, then started towards the door, till he saw his face in the mirror. His, once, short black hair he had during is school days of MCJROTC, was now to his shoulders, and he was growing a beard. His eyes, once shining and changing colours, were now gray and glazed over. Giving him a frightening image. Still, non-the less, he ran out to meet his guests.

“Come one, Mike.” Rachael, a 19-year-old female, whose blond hair went with the wind, blues eyes like the ocean, and tan skin, whispered impatiently to her brother.

“I’m trying sis, I am.” Her younger brother whispered raggedly.

“The doors are right----” Rachael started till she stopped dead in her tracks. Her brother nearly rammed into her. There was about fifteen zombies that were all missing body parts. Suddenly both brother and sister heard gunshots. Having their head imploded then exploded killed ten of the creatures. A blade killed the last ones. And in the bloodshed Rachael fainted at the site of a man who looked like a fallen god.

* *

Jake saw some zombies block the two ‘clean’ people, and neutralized the targets. When he was done he saw the woman faint. He sheathed his katana and rushed over to the two. He pointed to the boy and then to the door, the young man understood and sprinted to the doors. Meanwhile Jake picked up the girl and ran to the doors. After he got into the hotel he closed and locked the doors. Once again he pointed to the boy, but he pointed to the elevator. The young boy ran to the elevator and punched the button indicated “up”. Jake entered the elevator a few second after the boy did. After he was in he pushed a button indicated the number “3”. While the elevator doors were closing, Jake heard a loud, crashing noise. He looked back to see the Holiday Inn doors broken, with a swarm of infectees entering the lobby.

* *

Jake took the boy and his older sister into one of the rooms that was connected by huge, gaping holes. Jake laid the woman onto a bed that wasn’t used. Afterward, Jake handed the boy a Root Beer. Then he went into the washroom to shave, and cut his hair. When he looked into the mirror, he looked years younger. Satisfied he went to go ask the boy how he and his companion survived the horde.

“Ok, introduction time. I’m Jake Worn.” Jake told the little boy. “I’m 17 and I survived this, cataclysm if you would, by my training in MCJROTC, and losing what was most precious to me, now it’s your turn.” The young boy looked at Jake with tired blue eyes, before replying.

“My sister, Rachael, and I, Mike Bleaske, ages, 19 my sister, and 15, me.” Mike started. “We survived the infection by keeping our wits about us.” Mike, whose brown hair was just getting his shoulders, tan skin like his sisters but had dark brown eyes, then went on an entire recognition if what had happened to his sister and himself. Once done, they both realized Rachael had awakened during the story.

“Now that Mike told you what happened, why don’t you tell us what happened to you.” Rachael demanded.

“Ok, then, where to begin.” Jake mumbled to himself. “I will start with the beginning of the outbreak.”

“Jake, buddy-ole-pal, I have a feeling something out of the ordinary will happen today.” Kyle, a 15-year-old, chestnut hair, green eyes, and tanned skin said to a younger more alive Jake.

“You always think something is going to happen.” Jake replied.

“Yea, Kyle. Just like when you thought I was going to ask you out.” Tori, a 16-year-old, whose brown hair reached her waist, and brown eyes were trying to determine the best way to take you down, all completed with smooth, pale skin, scoffed as she went to stand behind Jake, wrapping her arms around his neck letting her slender arms hang loosely above his chest.

“That was funny as hell.” Rikki said, a 15-year-old, blue eyed, blond hair girl said as she wrapped an arm around Kyle’s waist. She planted a kiss on his lips, in which Kyle blushed. Jake looked up to Tori with puppy-dog eyes. Tori laughed and kissed Jake passionately on the lips.

“Kids, no kissing.” A teacher told them. “You still have half a day to go, this is only lunch.” As the teacher was walking away Jake and Kyle both, in unison, gave the old man the bird. Then the bell rang, meaning the end of lunch, and life as they knew it.

* *

“Ok, today is free-day. But you must do something.” Coach Winakeg told Jakes sophomore gym class. Jake went and got a volleyball so he could get a game started, when he heard a scream. He was about to go out of the gymnasiums storage room, when Tori came running in, with some other people. When they were in Tori shut the doors and place a cart with soccer balls, basketballs, and volleyballs, in front of it. Jake placed his volleyball back into the cart, while trying to be sneaky.

“Tori, what happened?” Jake asked.

“Jake, first, let me thank you.” Tori started breathlessly. “If it wasn’t for those games you played with zombies---”

“What about them?” Jake asked.

“I believed that zombies were supposed to be slow, but it was wrong.”

“Zombies are fast in some games!” someone in the back yelled.

“Oh then those are right then.” Tori concluded.

“Fine what’s the second thing?” Jake asked.

“Somebody let a person in without checking him, right, the guy died. Then came back to life. The bastard bit Kyle, Jake, Kyle tried to get Officer Kenneth to shoot him, after Kenneth shot the stranger in the head, but Kenneth didn’t. Then this happened. At least Kyle tried to stop it.” Tori told Jake, in which Jake slumped to the floor. Tori bent down and embraced him, in which the spectators turned away. A big Caucasian man wearing all black came up to the couple. He had long black hair, and intense red eyes.

“You need to find a way out of this mess, for if someone was bit, this room is perfect for infection, don’t you think.” The boy said.

“Yea you’re right.” Jake said as he started to stand, feeling sick to his stomach, wondering if there was a way out.

“Heh, don’t worry you will get used to this feeling you’re having, trust me.” The boy said.

“How----” Jake started only to be the cutoff by the boys’ hand.

“Names are unimportant just know that I’ve gone through this before, I came back to try to stop this from happening but I have failed my mission. Shit, I think I’m the reason it happened.” With that he was gone, like a specter.

“Ok, that was strange.” Tori said.

“The vent, we’ll get out through the vent.” Jake said in a low voice. “Everyone I know a way out. We will go through the vents. I will go first if no one as any objections.”

No one said no. So Jake opened the main ventilation shaft and entered. He waited a few seconds to let his eyes adjust to the darkness. After those few seconds he was gone.

* *

Jake was in the vent for only a few minutes when he noticed a light. The light led to an opening, which led to outside! Jake felt a rush of adrenaline, as he saw his friend, Kyle. Or what was left. His clothes were in tatters, from having his meat torn out of his limbs. Blood started to cruise down towards Jake, as he felt his first real impulse of fear. But instead of running he started forward. Kyle turned towards Jake and Jake saw that white pearls of death replaced Kyle’s once radiant blue eyes. And his skin had started to pale, and started to come off his face. Jake held back his impulse to hurl.

Think, Jake, think. I need to get this fucker out of this vent before the others. Think man think. Oh, I’ll knock him out of the vent, that won’t be hard right. Right? Jake thought to himself. He started forward with determination in his eyes. He did his level best not to get bitten as he forced what was Kyle out of the vent. But Jake miscalculated, he went out of the vent, also. Jake landed a few feet away from Kyle, on his stomach. He quickly got up and curve stomped Kyle’s head, letting out Kyle’s gray matter, and some skull fragments. After he did that he saw Officer Kenneth stumbling towards him. Jake ran, jumped, and kicked the dead Officer in the face, making the thing fall to the ground. Jake then did to the Officer what he did to Kyle. Jake looked on the officer body for any type of weapon, and found a Beretta Model 92, and a Ruger Blackhawk, both were loaded. Jake heard a noise and pointed the Blackhawk towards the opening of the vent. Out came Tori and the others.

* *

“Shortly after that we were separated.” Jake concluded.

“But how did you get all of these weapons.” Mike asked.

“From my ‘friends’.” Jake said. “Speaking of which I need to give ‘em a call.” Jake walked towards an intercom. He paused a few buttons then started to talk to whom ever was on the other line.

“Look sis, there’s a Beretta BM70, a browning BBR, oh, and a Heckler & Koch PSG-1 sniper.” Mike said with amazement as he named three out of six rifles that Jake has, the last were an M6, a Remington Model 572 Fieldmaster, and the M16 that Jake had used earlier.

“I know, Mike. He also has an Uzi pistol, a Smith & Wesson Model 48, and a Beretta Model 92SB.” Rachael told her brother.

“I also have a Smith & Wesson M3000 12-gauge, a Beretta RS200, and a Winchester Stainless Marine.” Jake said making both brother and sister jump. “My ‘friends’ will be here shortly.”

“Huh?” both Mike and Rachael said in unison.

“The infected have entered this safe haven, you must be transported to another location.” Jake said.

“NO!” Rachael yelled, her face flushed, startling Mike.

“Yes, it isn’t safe with me.” Jake said calmly.

“I won’t, I will stay with you.” Rachael begins only to be stopped by Jakes hand.

“I’m a lost cause.” Jake starts, causing Rachael to flinch. “Plus, my girlfriend is still out there wait for me.”

Vincent Coun, a 25-year-old male, whose long black hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and electric blue eyes popped out compared to his tan skin, was running with his new found acquaintance, Kym Dravgh, a 21-year- old female, who has white hair, pink eyes, and snow white skin to finish her curse of blood, were running out of a D.C. Metro Station when they were greeted by an AK-74 and a Ruger Blackhawk.

“Infected?” a strong female voice questioned.

“No, we haven’t been bitten.” Vincent replied calmly.

“Ma’am, should we take them?” another voice, still female but with less power in it.

“Yes, we need all the help we can get,” the woman replied. “You two into the jeep, now? I’m sure you don’t wan to be here when the swarm comes, right?”

“Right.” Kym said as she ran toward the military humvee. As she did, she tripped on a rock causing her to fall onto the pavement. She suddenly heard a faint scratching noise, and, in her stomach, felt dread.

“C’mon, Kym, we’re ready to leave!” Vincent yelled to her from the humvee. But as she started to get up, hundreds of vermin scampered out of the sewers. Kym heard the humvee sped off, and heard Vincent’s cry for her to run. She froze. Kym stood up slowly and turned around, to see a swarm of infected, mutated vermin.

Some vermin were missing all of their flesh showing muscle and sinew. The mutated ones were as big as a medium sized dog, with teeth sharper than an alligator’s. They also had no eyes, none of them. Instead they only had dark pools where their eyes should be. And Kym did the one thing, the one mistake when dealing with infected animals. She screamed.

It was like a signal, the vermin swarmed in on her. Jumping onto her body, ripping away her pale skin, with every bite they took, and when she tried to tear them off. Kym felt unbearable pain. She continued to scream. One of the rats forced themselves into her mouth, going down her throat, and another and another followed that one. With infected rats eating Kym’s internal organs, and her outer muscles, one of the mutated vermin came and tore off her head in one bite.

* *

“C’mon, Kym, we’re ready to leave!” Vincent yelled to Kym, who was sprawled on the pavement stunned.

“To late.” The girl in the passenger seat said.

“Yup. Time to leave.” The driver said as she put the humvee into drive. She then sped off.

“NO! KYM!” Vincent yelled, as she became a spec on the horizon. He continued to yell until the woman in the passenger seat hit him on the back of his head with the butt of her AK-74 knocking him out.

* *

“Damn, remind me when we get to HQ to take a long shower. Would you, Areol?” Tori, a 17-year-old- brown eyed and hair, tanned skin woman asked her friend.

“Ok, Ma’am.” Areol, 16-year-old, red eyes from a birth defect, and raven black hair with pale skin, replied to Tori.

“Areol stop calling me ‘Ma’am’, it makes me sound old, I’m only a year older than you.” Tori pleaded with Areol.

“But you my elder in rank.” Areol replied.

“None the less we’re somewhat the same age, we’re peers.”

“Find then…Tori.”

“Thanks.”

“No prob.”

As they finished the conversation they came up to a make shift wall. There was a large metal gate in front of them. Somewhere above someone shouted something in which Tori replied “Uninfected.” The gate opened up and Tori drove the humvee into the complex.

The complex inner structures were old buildings, some were starting to crumble from decay, and lack of work on them. A majority of the buildings had blood splattered on them, from all of the Infected that were neutralized before inhabitation. One building was white, and didn’t have a single stain on it. It was the White House. The, once green grass, was now brown, with sickness. Every now and then an Infectee would manage to find a way into the complex only to be shot down, before they could contaminate others.

“Sometimes, Tori, I hate this place.” Areol said.

“Yea, me too.” Tori replied as gunfire erupted signifying that something must of broken into the complex. “Sometimes, I think of this place as a living hell.”

Unknown to Tori and Areol, a Swarm of canines were coming up to the make shift walls of the complex. There were all breeds of grotesque dogs. A majority of them had no fur, their muscles and bones showing in the late afternoon light. All of them were leaking saliva from their gapping jaws. Suddenly one howled, signaling the start of an attack. Suddenly all the canines swarmed the walls.

“We have named the type of creatures that have been infected with whatever it is that got them.” An Ex-Marine told the counsel of men and women that surrounded him. The man was around 6 foot 1 inch, with a flat top, and sharp, blue eyes, that would remind you of a predator. “For the humanoid type, we will be calling them, ‘The Reanimated’. Animals such as dogs, cats, birds, rodents, reptiles shall be called ‘The Swarm’. As for insects and arachnids, they will be called ‘The U.C.’ or the ‘Unable to be Classed’. It has taken us a while to come up with these names, for we didn’t know how they worked.”

Suddenly there was a shout from the courtyard. Then the intercom came on.

“All Personnel, Please Evacuate The Premises.” A womanized robotic voice said. “I Repeat, ‘All Personnel, Please Evacuate The Premises.’ Confirmed Infection Outbreak Near Front Gate And An Infection Outbreak Near West And East Gate. Infection Type One-One-Zero-Six. Canine.”

“Ooooh, shit!” one of the old businessman exclaimed.

“‘Oh, shit!’ is right. Come Areol, we have to get out of a highly infectious area.” Tori said. Areol stood up and started to follow Tori as gunshots were heard outside of the building they were in. Tori stopped and looked back at the counsel of twenty five people.

“You can come to us if you want.” As she said this almost everybody stood up, Tori smiled. “I thought so.”