Original Stories Fan Fiction / Horror Fan Fiction ❯ Plague 11: The Outbreak ❯ Rude Awakening ( Chapter 1 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Chapter 1: Rude Awakening
John awoke to a sound of knocking. He looked at his watch: 10:37 A.M. Pains and dizziness overwhelmed him as he stood up and made his way through the hallway of his house. John's head hurt. He figured it was the result of his reckless partying the night before. It was a graduation party at his friend Luis' house. He had come home drunk and sick and had immediately fallen asleep. The house was strangely quiet. John knew his parents had already gone to work many hours before. John rubbed his head, which thudded with every knock at the door. John looked through the window. His friend Trent was standing outside.

The door swung open and Trent stepped in quickly. He looked at John inquisitively. It was clear he had partied a little too hard. He slid off his jacket and spoke, "Dude, I just saw the freakin' weirdest thing ever. Like, it's just plain strange, man. On my way over here, There was a group of people just walking around the street. I drove past them and they started following me. They all looked like a bunch of druggies or something, man. Speaking of which, you look like shit."

Trent's voice rattled in John's head. He finally answered. "Yeah, I really went crazy last night. Totally knocked myself out." John said dazily. "But wait," he continued, "You said there were people following you? That's pretty weird. How far did they follow?"

"Um... yeah, about that..." Trent started. A bang came from the door that sent a shiver up the boys' spines. John looked out the window and saw a woman with a blank look in her eyes waiting outside. John looked at Trent. "That one of them?" he asked.

"Yeah." Trent said. "The thing really crept along. Scares the crap outta me."

John walked into a room nearby. He rummaged through his dad's desk drawers. Trent looked out the window and saw the woman. He tapped on the glass of the window and caught her attention. John pulled open one last drawer and reached his hand inside. As Trent tapped on the glass, the woman lifted her arm slightly. Trent looked at her with confusion. The woman thrusted her hand at the window and shattered the glass. Trent fell back with a yelp as the hand swiped for anything. The woman's hand was bleeding now, as glass sliced through the skin. She let out grunts and moans while reaching through. John walked back into the foyer holding his dad's pistol.

John's father, George Thompson, was a police officer for the local department. John knew he left a gun in desk in the event of an emergency. John had actually used the gun as a threat for a guy who was harrassing his sister, who had gone to college only a few months prior. He walked over to the door and pulled it open, revealing the woman completely. She was in dirty clothes and had a grey tint to her skin. Her eyes were devoid of color and on her left leg was a blood wound. John pointed the gun at her. "Get the hell of my yard." he ordered. "Get away now or else." The woman waited for a second before lunging at John with a shrill cackle. John stumbled backward as the freak jumped at him. His finger reacted before his brain did and he fired off three shots into her stomach.

The woman fell to the ground. Trent helped John up. John looked from the gun to the body and back. He had just shot a woman. The gun slipped from his hand and thudded onto the floor. Trent only stared, wide-eyed, at John. John closed his eyes and let out a confused, angry, tired, and annoyed grunt. He took one more look at the woman. But his eyes didn't see the corpse of a person he just murderd. The woman was up and mid lunge at him. John braced himself as the woman slammed into him and started figting him sloppily, much like a wild animal. Trent stood in awe of what was happening. John tried to push the woman off as she snapped her jaw at his face. He called to his friend. "Trent! Grab the damn gun! Shoot this bitch! Now!"

Trent snapped back into reality and quickly grabbed the pistol. John kept fighting off the monster lady. "Trent!" John called, "Shhot her brains out! Get her in the head! Now!" John shouted. Trent took aim and when her head rose high enough, he pulled the trigger. A small metal projectile rocketed out from the barrel and crashed into her soft head, splattering blood and brains across a near by wall. The room went dead quiet with the exception of the echoing blast. John pulled himself up and looked at the corpse. Trent looked at his friend. "Um.... zombie?" he asked.

"I doubt it." John said, rolling his eyes. He turned to close the door and froze. Outside, half a dozen people, all with that same creeper look on their faces, were flocking toward the open door. John closed the door quickly. "Maybe it's not such a crazy thought. Did you park in my drive way?"

"Yeah. Why?" Trent asked.

"Ten minutes. We'll gather some clothes and stuff. Then we'll go out my garage. Let's not waste any time." John explained.

Ten minutes passed and the two met at the garage door. Together, they had packed two back packs and one duffle bag with clothes, food, water bottles, and other resources. John had broken into his father's locked closet and had found a few more clips for the pistol and a night-stick. They entered the garage and Trent reached for the electric opening switch. As the metal door creeked open, John grabbed a wooden bat that was leaning against the wall. He passed the gun to Trent and the pair ran out into the driveway. The group of freakish citizens, who had been battering at his door, now turned and saw them darting toward the car. The plethora of monsters flew at them with increasing speed. John reached the car and dove into the passanger seat. As trent haulted at teh vehicle, he turned and fired the remaining four shots from the used clip at the horde. Two went down and the others continued as if nothing had happened. Trent quickly ducked into the car and started it up. The engine roared to life and the flew out of the driveway and down the street.

Trent set the gun on the dashboard. He steered the car around the empty streets. Every so often he and John would see the strange people roaming around either quickly or slow. John felt the cool air from the air conditioner flow across his face. He looked at a street sign as they passed it. "Luis. We need to go get Luis." he said quickly.

"You think so?" Trent asked.

"Yeah. He could be in trouble." John answered.

The car turned on Yansee Street. Shock overtook John and Trent. The streets were littlered with cars, bodies, trash, and more of the creature-like people. The car swerved around the debris and cruised to the very end of the street. John and Trent stepped out quickly and darted to the front door, which hung open. John walked into the house wielding his wooden bat with Trent behind him holding the gun. The house was dark and messy, both from the party and from what ever had gotten in. Footsteps could be heard from upstairs. John moved to the staircase. "Luis? You up there, man?" he called. No answer came.

John looked at Trent in anxiety. Slowly, they walked up the stairs, step by step. Toward the middle of the staircase, a step let out an obnoxious squeak. The footsteps stopped. John readied the bat and continued up the stairs. He saw a shadow of someone standing down the hall. John reached the top and looked down the curving hall and at the shadow. "Dude? Luis? That you?" he called again.

A shrill cry echoed through the hall. John watched as another of those people ran at him. He swung the bat at the creature, making a cracking splat sound upon contact. The attacker fall to the ground and writhed on the floor letting out grunts and cries. Trent ascended the stairs and took aim. He fired a single shot into her head. The creature fell silent and still. John looked at her. He recognized her from the party. Then he snapped back to his current objective. He moved down the hall, bat in hand, until he reached Luis' room. Jogn pushed the door open and the pair stepped inside. Trent saw him. Luis lay on the ground across the room clutching a bloody wound on his left arm. "Luis!" Trent shouted.

"Damn thing bit me bad." Luis said quietly. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We came to get-" Trent began, before being pulled away by John.

John turned himself and Trent away to talk. "If these things are zombies, like you said, then we can't take Luis with us. That bite will turn him into one of them. I hate to do this but we have to go." John explained.

"I'm not leaving Luis. No way." Trent stated firmly.

The two heard a huffing sound come from behind them. They turned around to see Luis convusing on the ground. He spasmed as if having an epileptic attack. Luis let out a yelp and fell still. John and Trent stared at the motionless body. John turned to Trent. "Shoot him. In the head." he ordered.

Trent looked at John in disbelief. He shook his head and backed up. John turned to him. "Trent, shoot him or give me the gun. Now." he said.

"No way, man. No way." Trent stammered. He took another step back. John saw his eyes were filled with fear. He moved slowly over to Trent and pulled the gun from his hands. Just as he turned, Luis sprang up and leaped at Trent. They fell out into the hallway and Luis pinned Trent to the wall. John took aim and fired a shot. It broke into the wall, missing them. Trent screamed and fought, trying to get away. Luis snapped at his face. John ra up and pulled Luis away. The zombified friend toppled to the ground, but quickly recovered. As he strained to get up, John fired two shots. One hit Luis' stomach, making him flinch. The second grazed the side of his head, sending a chunk across the wall, painting it red. Luis fell to the ground, dead, his head practically blown in half.

John was silent. He walked out of the room, past Trent and down the stairs. He clenched the bat in one hand and the gun in the other. Trent took a breathe and followed slowly. They stepped outside. John and Trent saw the zombies coming toward them. They moved quickly to the car. As they got in, the zombies crowded the vehicle. "Let's go, Trent." he said. The car didn't move. Thoughts of what if entered his brain. He looked at Trent, who was staring at the floor. He grabbed his shoulder. "Trent!" He looked at John.

"I know it was bad. I feel it too. But we need to go. Slam the gas and let's get out of here. We'll breathe and think when we're out of this nightmare." John said.

Trent nodded and started up the car. He shifted into reverse and flew backward, knocking away four of the deadites. He shifted into drive and drove back toward the main road. "Where do we go?" Trent asked.

" I don't know." John said. "I really don't know."