Original Stories Fan Fiction / Horror Fan Fiction ❯ Plague 11: The Outbreak ❯ The Virus Revealed ( Chapter 6 )

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

Chapter 6: The Virus Revealed
The helicopter descended on the safety camp, having saved John and his friends. It was still the middle of the night and only a few lights were on. The enitre station was simply a mass of tents and trucks surrounded by strong steel fences. Only a few people walked around in the camp. John figured everyone else was asleep. He hoped that of all those people, two were his parents.

The helicopter landed and they all climbed out. A group of soldiers came over. John, Trent, Lauren, and Andrews were stripped fo weapons and directed politely to a tent to sleep for the night. They vetured into the camp and found the tent. It was white and made of a convas-like material. The inside was filled with three bunk beds and nothing else. None of them argued with this arangement. They climbed into beds and fell into a slumber. John thought this night would just as bad as the others. He completely underestimated how tired he was. As his head hit the soft pillow, he left consiousness.

The sound of people talking and moving around woke John up. He rubbed his eyes and and looked out of the tent flap. Tons of people were walking around the camp. He climbed out of bed and looked at the others. Trent and Lauren were gone. Andrews layed on his cot and looked at John. "I freakin' hate the mornings, you know?" he scoffed.

John exitted the tent and walked around the camp. He saw hundreds of people weaving in and out of tents, but didn't see his parents. Then he caught a fmiliar sight. He saw Trent about one hundred feet away. John jogged over to Trent and saw him standing with two people he recognized. "Oh, hey! Mr. and Mrs. Walters! It's good to see you guys!" he said. They were Trent's parents.

They told Trent and John of their own crazy adventure as they tried to get out of the city. They had left their house early on the first day of the infestation and when the attacks started, they had to go from the city to the country side. They had been traveling in a group of eight people, but in the end, it was only them. Trent's parents had arrived at the camp the first day it was opened. They were lucky.

John turned to Trent. "Have you seen Lauren today?" he asked.

"Yeah. I saw her go off in that direction." Trent said pointing toward the front of the camp.

John traveled in that direction and eventually saw her. She was standing next to two old men. John walked up to her. She turned and saw him coming. With a wave she signaled him over. "John! I want you meet some people. This my grandfather, who I live with. And this is the owner of the antique shop we met in." she said.

They had their own story to tell and while he listened, John wondered if he was the only one who's parents didn't make it. The thought sickened him. But he had to keep the faith and believe that they were alive until he gained complete closure. John spent the next few hours making sure he checked all tents and people. No one even romotely looked like them. There was nothing for him to do but wait.

As John walked through the camp, he looked inside of a tent where a small television had been hooked up to a generator and was surrounded by a small crowd of people. John joined the group to see what was being broadcasted. The screen was flashing shots of cities on fire, streets filled with corpses, and more destruction. A news reporter came on and released some chilling information. "I have just recieved a message that the United States of America is now under a Code-Red national emergency. At this point in time, I am required to tell everyone watching this that all major cities of this country are being quarentined off and any living residents are highly recommended to report to on of the many safety camps set up around the U.S. I am also getting word that large cruise and cargo ships will be used as improvizational transports for the masses wishing to leave the country. No word at all has risen about the condition in other nations. And before we go to our senior corraspondant for more information of the development in San Diego, California, I remind you that at seven o'clock P.M., we will have a live feed of the scientists and medics working at Harvard Medical who claim to have discovered more on the virus."

John left the tent, thinking of what he just heard. The country was in danger and people were leaving for other nations. This only made John worry more about his parents. He was about to go and lay down, but was side tracked by the sounds of a scream. The multitude of survivors ran toward to source. The crowded around one area of the fence. John was able to get near the front and saw a man running straight for the safety camp. He was being persued by three zombies. The hundreds of spectators at the fence leaned forward, cheering for him to run faster. The fence budged and swayed under the pressure of everyone's weight. Gunshots rang out and everyone scattered about. It was a sharp-shooting soldier that had taken out the three infected.

The man was let into the camp and everuthing returned to normal. John had taken notice that the fence wasn't very stable when many people were on it. It only compounded upon the other things on his mind. He walked back to the tent and saw Andrews still laying on his cot. "Did you stay in here all day?" John asked.

"Yes, ma'am." Andrews said sourly. He stared at the white tent roof.

John thought for a moment and responded, "Are you okay? Because I know you were close to Morrison and Franklin. And I was just thinking that you-"

Andrews snapped and jumped off his bed. He grabbed onto John's shirt with an intense grip. "Listen, you idiot. I don't need you or your little friends trying to cheer me up or be there for me. I'm fine. So stop with whole caring mother bullcrap! Got it?" he yelled into John's face.

Andrews dropped John and stormed out of the tent. John stood in silence for a while and thought about what he said. I guess there's no getting to a guy like that, he thought.

He later join up with Trent and Lauren as the sun was setting. The people in charge of the camp had set up a large projector and screen that was hooked up to the television. They were going to screen the live report on the virus. If the world was back to normal, it would look like people seeing a movie out in a field. Everyone either stood or sat down. As the clock hit seven, the started up the projector and within seconds, the reporter from before was on the screen. He spoke in a much more frail and tired voice. "We are now going to broadcast, live, the scientists of Harvard Medical on their discovery about the virus. Please stay with us."

The camera cut away to the live feed. On the screen was a large and dishelved lab. A man walked on wearing a lab coat, holding a few sheets of paper. He spoke up with a slight stutter. "H-hello, America. We here at Harvard Medical have discovered some facts about the virus that has plagued th-this country. After a massive study that has spanned over 50 straight hours of research, we have determined the workings of it. This virus is highly contageous as everyone should know. It seems that it is spread via bite, much like the rabies virus. But this disease is different in two huge aspects. The first is that upon being bitten, the victim will perish within half an hour, as apposed to nearly half a month, when dealing with rabies. The next big difference is the time at which the virus takes control. The virus will only take over after all brain function and organ function has stopped, which is caused by a bite from the infected. Once reanimated, the infected will proceed with a rabid like attitude, which consists of a lack of reasoning and common sense. This is coupled with an undying hunger for human flesh. For some reason, they will only go after live humans. Other infected and animals are not targeted by these creatures. Because of the deadly components of the virus, we have decided on a name that fits its destructive nature. We have dubbed it: Plague 11, being named after the ten plagues of biblical proportions. It is also evident now that destruction of the brain, head trauma, or seperation of the head from the body results in immediate death in the infected. They do not feel pain. So any attack to their bodies is not an effective strategy for defense against the-"

There came a crashing sound and screams from off screen. The scientist looked beyond the camera and stumbled backwards. He called to others off screen. After a few seconds, he gave a gasp of terror and began moving quickly to a door on the far wall. Everyone in the camp watched as a swarm of zombies piled in, knocking over the camera. Static fuzz filled the screen and it cut back to the reporter at the television station. "Oh god.... It seems that Harvard had been attacked. Please stay tuned for more details." he said.

Not far from the base a massive crowd of yndead ran toward the light projecting from the camp. As the people in charge turned off the projector, the sounds of hundreds of snarls filled the air. Everyone stood up and looked into the night filled forest view. John, Trent, and Lauren tried to see what was happening. Some soldiers turned large, mounted search lights into the fields. In the light hundreds upon hundred of zombies became visible. They roared and shrieked as they all ran to the fences. The survivors inside the camp all backed up. The zombies slammed up against the fence and started crowding at one point in the barracade. As they blitzkrieged the fence, it shook violently. Soldiers fired into the crowd of infected, but to no avail. As more zombies came flocking to the source of the lights, the fences heaved forward, followed by a clanging crack.

People screamed and ran as the fence portion came toppling down and the countless zombies poured into the camp. John started moving and called to his friends. "Trent! Lauren! Come on! Hurry up!" he screamed over the crowd.

Trent looked around in circles and kept calling for his mom and dad. Lauren grabbed his sleeve and pulled Trent along, following John through the crowd of screaming people. The three teenagers ran as fast as they could to avoid a fate worse than death. As the soldiers were overpowered, their gunshots ceased. Things were growing desperate. There was no other way out of the camp. As John and his friends ran through the crowd, someone called out to them. A military SUV pulled up. Andrews poked his head out of the window. "Get the hell in here, now! We're outta here!" he yelled. They jumped into the vehicle and Andrews slammed on the accelerator. The car jutted forward, leaving behind all people who tried climbing on. John stood up in the back and grabbed onto the mounted machien gun. He took aim and pulled the massive trigger. Hundreds of bullets carved a path through the crowd of undead as the car plowed through the others.

They cleared the sea of disgusting bodies and flew across the grassy field. They cruised as fast as possible, bumping over tree stumps, rocks, and small hills. Trent looked back. There was nothing there. They were going far too fast for any zombies to catch up. Lauren poked her head through the window and looked at Andrews. "Where are we gonna go?" she asked loudly over the humming of the engine.

"No clue!" Andrews yelled back.

After almost an hour of speeding across the country side, they mounted a lone road. As they moved from dirt and earth to paved asphalt, the car slowed to a comfortable, yet still fast speed. Once they felt safe, They stopped so John, Trent, and Lauren could get off the back and inside of the car. They settled in and the car took off again. John spoke first to kill the silence, "So why's you decide to help us, Andrews?" he asked.

"I guess I felt as though I owed you for stickin' with me in the forest. And at least you kids know what's going on in the world. I'm not taking anybody who doesn't know how to fight." Andrews told his comrades.

They drove until the sun came up. Trent and Lauren had either slept or rested their eyes, but John and Andrews didn't sleep. During the middle of the next morning, it hit John. He nearly jumped out of his seat when he realized where they'd go. "Guys! We need to get to the California coast line! They said on the news that ships were taking people away from here. I think we should go all the way there and get out of this cursed country. It'll only take six days or so with minimal stops!" he explained in detail.

Andrews and Trent gave him a weird look. "Are you saying we should go across three and a half states, all infested with thousands of those freaks, and try and make our way to the shores of California for some ships that may already be gone by the time we get there?" Andrews asked.

"I like the idea." Lauren butted in.

"Yeah," Trent backed them up.

Andrews looked at the road ahead. He let out a short sigh. "Well then, it looks like we have a plan. We're going to California." he said.