Epidemic 7.3K Read online

  Empressed for Life

  Presents Publishing Group, LLC

  Copyright: © EPIDEMIC 7.3K: Dean Hamid

  Publisher: Empressed for Life Presents Publishing Group, LLC

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  Editor: Artessa Michelle

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  EPIDEMIC-7.3K

  BY

  DEAN HAMID

  CHAPTER ONE - KALENE

  January 9, 2032

  The sounds in the darkness of the night would come and go. Sometimes loud, but many times not as loud at all. For sure, they were never quiet. Never. The screaming, shrill like sounds that would almost chill the insides of your soul, if that were any more possible than it was anyway.

  The nights were bad. Real bad. Whenever we needed to move, it would always have to be during the day. At sunup. Approximately.

  We never saw it coming. One day, we were just getting reports that it was a virus with flu-like symptoms. It started in the Midwest and soon escalated quickly to the East Coast. Of course, measures were taken, but it was never considered serious. Even the Government wasn’t too hard on it. Yeah, wash your hands and stuff like that but it didn’t command any more respect than the common cold.

  But, then, one day it just happened. People started dying. By the hundreds. Then, the thousands. It quickly spread throughout the nation and, soon afterward, a panic ensued. The Government tried to calm everyone down, but it was to no avail. Right afterward. Like days afterward, something horrible happened.

  The people who died because of the virus started coming back to life. The corpses wouldn’t stay dead. They were clawing their way out of the ground. Walking among the living.

  Some thought it was a miracle. Something Biblical. The second coming or something. They even welcomed them into their churches, synagogues and, some, even their homes.

  Then, it turned ugly quick. The dead would seem to sleep during the day but, at night, it was different, everywhere. They would want to eat. People even tried to feed them, but the food they fed them wouldn’t stay down until, one day, one of them took a bite off the living and it was then that all hell broke loose.

  Pandemonium spread quickly among the country. They were eating people indiscriminately. And, what made it worse was that they could not be killed. Hell, they were already dead.

  We, my mom, and brother, lived in a neighborhood located on the South side of Chicago. A place called Lincoln Park. Even before the epidemic got worse, we were plagued by gang violence in our neighborhoods. Children were getting killed indiscriminately by stray bullets. Violence between gang rivalries erupted in the streets all the time. People were killed, sometimes in their own homes as they slept.

  As bad as that was, this was worse. Some of those same members of those same gangs were now the walking dead. And, even worse, they were now side by side with their unfortunate victims hunting down and feeding on the living.

  Me and my family and some others stayed downstairs, hunkered down in the basement of the Tribune Tower building. Safe. For now. The windows were blocked and sealed up in boards. Men with guns patrolled frequently at night, keeping an eye out. Food was gathered throughout the day.

  Even that became dangerous, the gathering of food. Some of the food itself had become infected. And, then, the people that became infected started hunkering down in those same stores. Like they were waiting. Setting traps. It was difficult and extremely dangerous, making your way in without being attacked.

  There were also the battles between other survivors for food. Food was scarce and short all over. People were being killed, not only by the undead but the living as well. Many resorted to living like savages, attacking others in droves.

  I started this journal just in case I didn’t make it. So, that someone would find it in case I don’t make it out of this alive. I mean, I’m not scared. I just want someone to know what happened because I’m afraid there aren’t going to be too many left at the pace this is going.

  I figured if I secured it at the Harold Washington Library it would be safe there at least. There’s nothing to eat there. Just quietness. Darkness. And, a lot of books. I spend a lot of my time there. Reading. It’s been my sanctuary of sorts.

  But, on the way there, one morning with my brother, we were attacked. We fought the creatures off as hard as we could. Finally, we broke free and made it back to the shelter. We told no one about it because we weren’t supposed to have left by ourselves anyway. Unfortunately, though, I noticed, a few days later, a sore on my brother’s arm started to spread. He’d been bitten.

  We’d have to leave soon, or I feared he would become like the undead. So, I am leaving this journal behind. A record, in hope that whoever finds it may know the truth of what happened to us. To my family. To my world.

  I’d have to leave it somewhere. Somewhere where, hopefully, someone would find it. This epidemic can’t last forever, I hope. Humanity will have to live again. That’s the resilience of the human being. But, where?

  Of course. The library. Amongst all the literature. Someone would have to find it. I’ll leave later tonight. And, subsequently, forever. I’ll sneak out before sunrise. Take a candle, so I can see. Be careful, the atmosphere there is bone dry and just one spark could set off a flame. I’d never forgive myself if I set fire to the place.

  Chicago Tribune

  January 10, 2032

  Virus under control. Thousands Worldwide saved.

  Scientists have found a cure. They’re calling it 7.3000. Because of the onslaught, prolonged testing will not happen. The President has agreed, along with other World leaders, that this cure should work to paralyze the undead creatures long enough for them to be destroyed.

  Scholars are afraid that humanity will never know it’s past or exactly whatever happened to start this awful outbreak. And, more so, how this untested cure that they created can further stop the onslaught of mankind.

  It didn’t. In fact, it got worse.

  CHAPTER TWO – JAMAL / KEVIN

  February 15, 2033

  It’s getting harder and harder to find food. Supplies. Anything. The stores are wiped out and it’s becoming more dangerous now to even walk the streets, much less go inside a store. The last place we got supplies was at the Mall and making our way out of that hell hole cost us supplies.

  These creatures seem to be setting up traps. How can something be dead? Something that can’t even think, set up traps. Stalk its prey? They’re doing it though. And, they’re getting better at it.

  Ever since the so-called great cure when people came back out thinking it was safe again. The cure that the so-called scientists told us had killed off the virus. People finally came out of hiding. Walking around these creatures who were presumedly dead.

  Then, suddenly, they came alive. Just like that. The massacres were unbelievable. People were being killed in droves. Children. The elderly. All killed. They invaded hospitals that many
had gone to for treatment. For help. They attacked these places and slaughtered people by the scores.

  The ones who escaped made their way back into hiding. But it wasn’t safe anymore. Those who came out of hiding and were infected came back to those same places and slaughtered them like cattle.

  Panic ensued right afterward. The Military. At least what was left of the Military opened its bunkers to the remnants of the remaining survivors. Places that were hidden for decades. Some even centuries. Secret underground warehouses. Places that were now homes to the survivors of this hellified holocaust. But, they only did it for the select. People who had money. Like, what good was money now? But they turned the ones who didn’t have any away.

  Me and my homies stayed in the Bronx, in the projects. A place called Edenwald. Many of us held out there for a long time, staying protected by the code of the streets that we lived by. We kept watch and looked out from on top of the buildings. Keeping the doors secured in these brick and mortar concrete ghettos that New York City once called dilapidated, but was now considered safe havens, citywide.

  Oh yeah, there were some that tried to infiltrate. Some that even tried to disguise themselves as decrepit. The same ones that looked down on us. That treated us like shit. They came begging. Many were turned anyway, but some weren’t. Others were even used as sacrifices. Letting the infected feed on them until they got their fill and subsequently leaving us alone until the next time.

  What a hell of a way to exist. But we were existing, and that was good enough, for now. Still don’t know what started this virus. Don’t know about no cure. Nothing. All we concentrate on is living day to day. Surviving. Hell, of a way to live for cats like us, like myself, my homie Jamal, but it was living.

  CHAPTER THREE - ED

  Ed didn’t know what started this whole thing, and he really didn’t give a damn. He was about his business, and that was survival. When the virus came and the Governor locked the city down, he knew shit was about to go bad quick.

  At first, most folks stayed calm and started doing whatever they, they being the Government, asked them to do. But, after a while, things went sideways.

  People started dying. And, then, those things; they just wouldn’t stay dead. As crazy as it was, most people called it a miracle. The government laid claim to it, of course. Said they discovered a cure. A way for people to live forever. It sounded good. Real good.

  But, for those people like Ed. People that lived in the inner-city. It didn’t last long. Hell. Not only did they not die. They also didn’t sleep. At first, their skin stayed right, healthy, at least until all the blood ran out of their body. Then, the flesh started falling off their bones. Their hearts weren’t beating either. They were dead.

  Then, out of nowhere, they started biting people. Nibbling at first, but not long afterwards if you were caught alone. They would attack you. Eating people. It was crazy. Then, you couldn’t kill the bastards. You could shoot and shoot, but they kept coming at you. At first, the Police came to their aid. Then, the National Guard. Then… it was just people. Everyday people. Cooks. Bus drivers. Office workers. Just everyday people.

  Ed was a Corrections Officer that worked on Rikers Island. He wasn’t at work on the day when all the hell broke loose, but he wished he had. Being that it was an Island, they stayed safe for a while. Locked it down. But all it took was one. One person. That person turned into a creature. Started biting everyone. Staff. Inmates. The next thing you know, people were swimming across to LaGuardia Airport trying to escape. Some had even made it. The ones that didn’t drown were infected.

  Right afterward, it spread across the city like wildfire. The cops panicked. Hell, there was an ass of looting everywhere. Stealing. They couldn’t be everywhere. When they did send the National Guard in, they started shooting at people indiscriminately. Everything that moved. That’s when they found out that the infected couldn’t die. They quickly left, and the city had to fend for itself.

  That’s why guys like Ed became assets. They had guns. They were trained to protect. And many were Civil Service workers that lived in the inner city. They, in a sense, became the Police. The Court Officers. School Safety Officers. Any job that required a gun.

  *****

  It was just before sunup, and Ed was leading a crew to get some supplies from downtown Brooklyn. A few years earlier, Barclays Stadium was set up for a food bank of sorts. But, when those things, those creatures, caught wind of people coming that way, they set traps. Slaughtered hundreds. So, now you had to be very cautious. Overly cautious indeed.

  Ed had made this run many, many times before, but he remained as cautious as if it was the first time. He’d been attacked once before and lost some people because of.

  He crossed Flatbush Avenue from Ft. Green and looked back at his people. Jamal, Kevin, and Kalene. The only other one toting a gun was Kalene. She was from Chicago. She’d made her way to New York after the first big cure wave in Chicago. Kevin and Jamal were gang bangers from the Bronx. They just migrated to Brooklyn, at least that’s what they said. Don’t know what set they banged, Crip or Blood. At this point in the game, it really didn’t matter. Ed just wanted and needed people with enough guts and balls to make these runs with him.

  It would have just been another one of those days too. Another run, but something about it seemed off and Kalene noticed.

  “Ed, something doesn’t feel right.”

  “Kalene, just let it go. You’re always trying to jinx something. Just let it go,” Kevin said.

  “No Kevin. For real. It’s just too quiet.”

  “Come on Kalene with the bullshit-”

  “Quiet,” Ed said as he gave the sign to stop. “She’s right. Something does seem a little off.”

  “What do you mean?” Jamal asked as he looked around.

  “It’s just too damn quiet.”

  “It’s always quiet. Those things aren’t out yet,” Jamal said.

  “But still. The birds. Anything. Stray dogs. Hell, they scavenge during the day as well too. But nothing.” He pointed around them. “Do you hear... anything?”

  “Yeah, yeah…” Jamal listened.

  “Well. What do you want to do? Turn back around?” Kalene asked.

  “Maybe we should-” Ed started to say.

  “Fuck that! We’ve come this far. There’s no food. We’re running short as hell and no telling when we’ll get another shot,” Kevin spit.

  Ed sighed. He knew he was right but, still, there was something that didn’t sit right with him about it. “Ok. Let’s go. Everyone, just be on point.”

  They crept closer towards downtown. They’d pinpointed Concord Market. Their target. Figured they’d go in and fill up on can goods and hygiene before nightfall and get on through.

  Ed pointed Kalene and Kevin inside. They carried duffel bags over their shoulders. Jamal stood point towards the entrance of the alleyway that ran towards the side into the back alleyway. Ed kept his eye out in front.

  Kalene and Kevin made their way towards storage. It was ransacked, but there were still good selections of can food, so they stuffed their bags. Remaining close to one another, they made it over to the utility section. Kevin snatched up some batteries and some wiring to repair some broke lighting, and nails to seal the boards on the windows and doors. Things that were needed to keep the building they lived in safe.

  He turned towards Kalene, ready to go; then, he saw something move behind her. He pointed, and she turned around. Not seeing anything, they started back out the same way that they came in. Then, a few steps short of the entrance, out from the shadows, something or someone jumped out in front of them. A creature.

  Kalene turned and fired a few rounds, and it only slowed it down some. She took aim again and fired a few rounds at its head and, finally, it went down. Ed rushed inside the building. “What the fuck! Come on! Hurry!”

  Jamal came from around the corner hauling ass inside. “Ed, there’s an ass of them! They’re coming out the back of the build
ing!”

  Ed looked outside at the sky and said. “Why? It’s still daylight.”

  “Something changed!” Kalene shouted. “We’ve got to get the hell out of here. We can’t get trapped.”

  “She’s right Ed.”

  “Alright. Kevin, you got to get rid of some stuff, so you can keep up! Kalene, you play the point. Me and Jamal will be right behind y’all, trying to keep them at bay.”

  “Which way!” Kalene looked around.

  “Ft. Green side. Towards Myrtle Avenue. Straight up the avenue! There’s some people I know down that way that will give us cover if needed.”

  Kevin heard them coming. The noise. The screeching. Peeping around the corner, he saw a few coming towards them, getting closer. “We’ve got to go now!” he yelled at them.

  They ran out the building and Kalene led the way, running up DeKalb Avenue towards Ft. Green. Kevin was right behind her. They could hear the gunshots as Ed fired into the thong of creatures that chased behind them.

  Flatbush Avenue and the distance between them widened, and they could see some fall behind. But, still, they kept it moving until they couldn’t see any of them at all. It wasn’t until they got to Fulton Street, about a few miles away, did they stop and rest.

  “Is everyone alright?” Ed asked.

  They all answered in the affirmative. They were all just winded.

  Kevin looked behind them, then said, “What the hell was that about?”

  “Yeah, I know. It’s still daylight. I thought they didn’t come out during the day, Ed,” Jamal said.

  Ed looked behind them as well, then solemnly said, “I did too.”

  “This is definitely a problem. Just like in Chicago,” Kalene sighed.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Kalene drifted back to Chicago. She couldn’t get it out of her mind. Along with it came the headaches. Migraines. That day.