Featured Fiction: The Plague S:1 E:4

More weight to carry

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Chapter 4

A day into our walk we decide to take a break and just set up camp under a small overhang off the edge of the mountain road we’ve been trekking uphill for 6 hours now, so we need this. We pitch the tarp up on the top of the overhang and angle it down and tie it to two trees. We angled it down to act as a gutter incase it rains, which it looks like it could do any minute now.

“Shawn, You ok? How’s your pain doing?” I ask.

“Ok, it still hurts But I’m managing.” Shawn said, obviously in pain.

“Good, this is your chance to rest up if you want so take advantage of it.” Lance buts in.

Shawn nods and falls back onto some moss, and falls asleep. He’s been exhausted since we left and without his good arm, he’s been useless. He’ll learn how to use it in the coming months. It’ll take some time for him to learn so I’m trying to be easy on him, William, on the other hand, doesn’t understand that it’s hard to relearn everything again with a different arm so I constantly have to remind him of this. It’s good that William is an open thinker when he’s reminded of something, if he wasn’t, Shawn wouldn’t last a week. But I’m afraid Will won’t stay that way forever.

“We might want to go collect dry wood and other whatnots for a fire before that storm gets here” Jamal says.

“Ok, Ryan, go find rocks. Hailey, small sticks. Lance, dry ferns. I’ll go looking for larger pieces of wood. Kenny, Jamal, keep an eye on Shawn while we’re gone.” William Commands.

We all hop to our jobs, it doesn’t look like we have much time. Nobody can really oppose him. He is the oldest and we can’t hesitate or else we’d be dead.

I come back with one boulder at a time, by the time we’re all done we have enough rocks for the fire ring, and seats.

We build the fire outside the tarp, the worst of the storm missed us thankfully, just a drizzle, but we kept everyone dry.

We lay near the fire looking up to the stars talking about life before the outbreak. How there wasn’t memory-less monsters wanting you, and your flesh. How horrible it was to wake up on a Monday morning, wishing that’s all we could have back.

“Remember Steven’s Donut Shop & Smoothie Bar?, We went there for smoothies and the county’s best doughnuts every Friday.” William Asked.

“Yeah” I say, with a giggle.

“I remember we always went to the river by the library and jumped off of trees into-” Lance was saying until he was cut off by a moan. First one then two then four.

“Zombies, Ryan get the hatchet, Lance get a stick? Maybe?” William whispers.  He’s nervous, he never second-guesses himself or ask “Maybe?” unless he’s nervous.

“No, Lance gets the hatchet I’ll take a stick and go over with Shawn” I whisper

“Ok, Go” William whispers. We’re all on edge except for Shawn who’s fast asleep. We all go silent for about an eternity, while we just listen to the slow crackling of leaves until whatever we’re hearing falls over. I change my mind about staying and ask Will, “What should we do? Should I go up?”

“Yeah, take the hatchet from Lance.” He instructs, still whispering. We don’t want to draw attention to ourselves with sound.

So I do as I’m told, I take Lance’s hatchet and make my way up on top of the overhang and see, blood trails. People are alive trying to get help, zombie’s blood doesn’t pump so it wouldn’t make a tail this long. I follow the trials, about 20 yards to the right of where our fire is, and find a woman, a man, and three kids. They seriously need help. I drop the hatchet pick up the woman and take her down to William, and explain what I can, and tell him to patch her up, before going back to get the husband and kids.