“Smith?” Knight said, barely more than a whisper.
The figure in front of him shifted its weight and replied. “What about Smith?”
Knight felt confused, wondering why Smith would ask such a question about himself. He shook his head and blinked his eyes some more. The figure in front of him changed from the familiar look of Smith to another, Ramirez. Ramirez stood before him and had been calling for him. He had been so sure that it was Smith calling for him, not anyone else.
How had he been wrong? He was so sure, confident, that his friend had come back to find him. Knight saw Smith standing before him; saw his face staring back at him. Had he really seen Smith, though? It had to be his mind playing games on him; it wasn’t easy being the leader in such a mission. Maybe it was the stress; he wasn’t sure.
“Sir?” said Ramirez, breaking Knight’s thoughts.
“Huh? Oh yeah, what’s up, Ramirez?” replied Knight.
“I was just coming to check on you. I know it wasn’t easy for you to see Smith die like that. You were both good friends and had a lot of history; I just wanted to make sure you were alright.” Said Ramirez softly.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.” Retorted Knight, absent-mindedly.
“Are you sure, I have seen good men crack from losing their friends in the field. Hell, I have seen men lose their shit for less. I can tell it's bothering you and figure you might want someone to talk to about it.”
Knight smiled forcefully at Ramirez. “I’m fine, I have been through worse. There will be time to grieve later. We have a mission to finish first.”
“Alright, if you say so. Just remember, I am here for you, man. Also, I think the leader of the civilians, or, at least, their spokesperson was looking for you. He said he had some questions for you, mainly about us.”
“Ok, I will be right behind you. I just need to go back and grab something I left.” Said Knight.
Ramirez walked back towards the central part of the warehouse, where all the civilians had made their living area. His footsteps echoed down the hall; Knight retreated to the room he had just been hiding in. He closed his eyes and rubbed them, still slightly confused about what he had seen and heard. He wished he could forget about it and feel better, but his mind kept coming back to it.
Knight had lied about needing to go back and grab something. He just wanted a few moments to himself before he went back out to talk to the civilians. He told himself that he needed to get it together, steel his nerves and it would be ok. Slowly he fought to feel as though he was in full control of himself. Once he felt he was himself, Knight made his way back into the hall and made his way towards the rest of the group.
✽ ✽ ✽
Knight walked back into the main room of the warehouse, looking around for the man they had met earlier. He scanned the room, trying to see in the dark. The civilians had set up several L.E.D. lanterns in the warehouse, which cast enough light to create a glow in the enormous room. Ramirez waved him over, and he moved towards where his men and the pilots were standing.
“Knight, this is Tiller and Kinders, the two pilots,” said Ramirez.
Knight shook their hands, “Glad to see you both ok.”
Tiller spoke first, “I’m just glad we found people alive. After what we found on the command ship, we weren’t hopeful.”
Kinders nodded his head agreeing, “We just want to get back to the base and find figure out the plan.”
“That will be our next course of action,” replied Knight with some steadfast.
Ramirez and Knight talked for a little longer before Ramirez pointed out where the leader of the civilians was waiting. He looked around at the warehouse; the people inside seemed more at ease, but he found many of them looking over at him. It made him uneasy, knowing that they were waiting to see what he said or did. Finally, across the room, he made out the man that had brought them in; he decided to make the civilians wait no more.
Knight made his way to them, cutting through the spacious room. The man who was looking for him was talking to the same teenage boy he had seen outside, half facing the boy and the way that Knight was moving from. The man stopped talking to the boy and started off towards Knight.
“Follow me.” Said the man.
Knight followed the man into another corner of the building, to a small room which turned out to be a foreman’s office. The man reached over the desk and lit a lantern, bringing a sense of normalcy to the place. Knight noticed the maps, and what looked like lists of items strung throughout the room. It was clear this where the civilians had set up their command.
The man turned and spoke to Knight, “I am sorry that I didn’t get to introduce myself. I am Kenji; I lead the group here.”
The man raised his hand to shake Knight’s; they shook hands. Knight replied, “We had more pressing matters to tend to, it didn’t leave much time for introductions.”
“Who sent you, the United States?” asked Kenji going straight into his questions.
“Yes, we were sent here by the US government, to assess the situation here in Tokyo, figure out the details.” Replied Knight.
“So, you are part of a rescue team then?” asked Kenji excitedly.
“No, we are just a small recon team, a token force. The main force was supposed to come in after we gave the go ahead, but this infection messed that plan up.”
“Oh, well I am glad to see a friendly face from the outside world! We were beginning to think the world had forgotten us.... or worse.”
“Look, I want to thank you for you helping save my pilots, but we need to get out of here. So, if you don’t mind, we will leave within the hour. But first I have a couple of questions I would like to ask you myself.”
Kenji nodded and waited for Knight to ask his questions.
“So, this infection is bad, nowhere survived?” asked Knight
“No, it spread throughout the country in a matter of a week, and fully took hold in two. The people you saw out there only survived because we were either lucky or just hid through the worst of it.” Replied Kenji.
Knight moved towards the maps, “What do you know about the infection? Were there any details released about it before it got bad?”
Kenji shook his head, “No, the government thought it best to keep the population out of the loop. It probably made it worse, no one was prepared for it, and when they decided to prepare it was too late. The infection was already out on the streets, right outside your door. The only thing we know about it is that once you are bitten, there is no turning back, and the only way to stop them is to damage their brain.”
“So, what is your plan then? Stay in this warehouse until there are no more infected? I mean if you get infected you are as good as dead, and there are lots of infected out there, why not just try to leave?” asked Knight.
“It’s not that simple; we tried to find a boat to get out of the city. The only thing we found was an empty marina, everyone who had a boat took off already. Getting through the city on its own is a death wish; you run the chance of running into a horde of the infected. For some reason, they are drawn to sound, so moving a large group is almost impossible. When we go looking for supplies, we stay in groups of four, much easier to stay undetected and out of the way of the infected.”
“Well as I am sure you can guess, those men you saved out there are pilots. We have a small camp ourselves set up not too far from here with supplies: food, water, medicine. I was beginning to think that maybe we should just cut our losses here and make for a Military base just south of the city, a military base with aircraft. Once we get to the base, we take a couple of helicopters and get off this island. Would you want to come with us?” said Knight, still looking at the maps.
“It sounds like a good plan, except for crossing the city. Your base does intrigue me, though; food and water are becoming scarce in this area. Maybe we could come with you, but I would have to ask everyone and take a vote on it. I don’t want to speak for everyone.” Replied Kenj
i.
“I hope they agree, because if they don’t come with us; we aren’t coming back. Go and take your vote, I will give you a couple of hours.”
Kenji stopped and turned towards Knight, “I also want to tell you how sorry I am for the loss of your friend.”
“He isn’t the first one I have lost, but he was a good friend. We knew each other for several years.”
“I understand how you feel,” Kenji said with sorrow in his voice.
“Who did you lose?” asked Knight sincerely.
“I lost several friends trying to move us all here and to keep it safe. I also lost someone else, someone very dear to me. I made a mistake.”
“It sounds like it hasn’t been easy for you. I hope now that we are here that changes.” Said Knight.
“Me too.” Replied Kenji softly.
✽ ✽ ✽
All the civilians had gathered in the warehouse and had talked to Kenji, who told them the plan. Some seemed happy to hear the news of getting out of the city, and even better the country. After they talked it over Kenji told them he wanted to put it to a vote. All but one couple decided to go, meaning the group would be substantial, and as Kenji feared hard to move.
Kenji dismissed the meeting, telling those wanted to come along to pack up what they could and would need for the journey. Everyone broke away into their separate areas and began to do just that; pack up their belongings. It only took about ten minutes for everyone to be packed and ready to go, meeting back in the central part of the warehouse, where the soldiers were.
Kenji tried to talk the couple that decided to stay into coming one last time, telling them they wouldn’t get another chance to leave. The couple denied him again, saying it was safer to stay. Kenji wished them luck and gave them the keys to the building and left them with most of the supplies the others had decided not to pack. After Kenji did this, he approached Knight.
“We are ready to go; I told them you would lead us to your base. You are in charge of this group now Knight,” said Kenji.
Chapter 32
Sleep
It had only taken the civilians fifteen minutes to gather their supplies and weapons. All of them had melee weapons, with the crowbar being their favorite choice. It was a good weapon for breaking into doors, had enough weight to use as a bludgeoning weapon, and if need be they could use the straight end to stab. Others carried metal baseball bats; others used pipes, but most kept, at least, a small knife with them.
The group had a few handguns with them with limited ammo but had decided not to use them. The noise was too loud and would bring in more Yokai with each shot. Each civilian in the group had learned quickly to be quiet, or it would mean almost certain death. With such knowledge, they decided to leave the firearms they had accumulated with the couple that stayed behind.
The group all stood in the main area waiting for the soldiers to tell them it was time to leave. They all talked in hushed tones, nervous about the journey they were about to take, understanding the risk of traversing the city. The soldiers looked at the group taking in everyone, accepting of the trials these people had endured. The people that stood before them were the kind that would not give up easily and held the fighting instinct.
Each person in the group had suffered significantly to be alive. Most had been lucky, while others had to fight for their lives to even make it outside. The soldiers knew that if they ran into trouble, the group of civilians could handle themselves. It was a nice thought since the soldiers were used to it being the other way around; them taking care of the civilians.
Knight and Kenji approached the group.
Knight spoke first, “The plan we have devised is that we are going to split into two groups, eight in each. Both groups will take the same route but will be on different sides of the street, to cover both sides and make sure we aren’t cut off. We will be traveling in what is called a column formation. It’s one giant line, with someone leading, and someone watching behind. If while we are moving down the street and we spot a horde each group will hide on their side of the street, so we aren’t caught out in the open.”
Knight stopped to allow Kenji to translate what he had said to those in the civilian group that didn’t understand English. After a few moments, he continued again.
“It should take us only about two or three hours to reach our base. Once we reach our base, we will rest for a little bit, have everyone grab supplies, and shortly after beginning the trek to get out of the city. Now, it’s still early morning, and with no power, we have no way of moving such a large group of people through the city in the dark. So, we are going to wait a few hours here, until the crack of dawn and then leave. I suggest everyone try to get some sleep because we are going to have a long day ahead of us.”
Again, Kenji translated this to the group, who nodded their heads in agreement. Many set down their packs and started to do just what Knight had suggested. The soldiers decided to try but knew they most likely would not be able to. Kenji took his suggestion as well and went off to his sleeping bag in the office. A silence overtook the warehouse, only broken by an occasional cough and the faint whispering of the few people that were not asleep.
Kenji lay awake staring at the ceiling for some time before he felt himself start to drift off. He had hardly slept since he had watched Kiyomi fall to the infection. Most of his thoughts ended in him thinking about her, and every time he wanted to be comfortable his mind and body were never in sync. A constant heaviness hung in his chest, an unbearable pain that would never go away.
It seemed like the only reason his body would allow him to forget his anguish was when it was too exhausted to care or remember. Today in the early hours before dawn was one of those times. He had been awake for almost thirty-two hours when he laid down. Finally, his brain shut down its activity and drifted off.
✽ ✽ ✽
Kenji was in the office sitting at the desk with all the maps and lists they had accumulated searching for supplies. He was busy marking off which blocks had been raided today, so they knew not to go there again. He was focusing hard on the maps, studying each one carefully.
“Kenji.” His named whispered through the dark building.
He stopped and looked around seeing no one nearby and went back to his maps.
“Kenji!” His named was yelled from the other room this time.
He set down his pen he was using to mark the map and stood up. Kenji walked towards the office door, which opened before he could get to it. It was someone he didn’t recognize, but they were shouting at him.
“Kenji! You have to help, the infected are everywhere!” said the unknown person, pointing to the warehouse’s main room.
Kenji rushed into the central area where most of the civilians had made their residence. The infected poured from every crevasse they could find. Many of the residents were fighting them off, but one by one they were overrun. A small group had made a circle in the middle of the chaos, protecting a woman. She was facing away from Kenji, but he knew her.
Kenji started to run towards the group in the middle to help them and looking down at his hand; he had produced his trusty sword. The infected approached him, and he swung his sword at each one, taking them methodically. The infected then ignored Kenji completely, only focusing on the small group in the middle with the woman. The more infected that he killed, more infected flooded around him.
He tried as hard as he could to reach the group in the middle, but more Yokai blocked him. Soon the group in the middle would be overwhelmed like the ones caught outside the group. Kenji wanted to help them so badly but couldn’t seem to get close enough. No matter how many infected he killed and far he moved towards the group he was always the same distance.
“Help us!” they began to scream.
Kenji began to feel like he had let down all the residents that looked to him to lead them and keep them safe. He could see it in their faces, the disappointment of putting their faith in him. Kenji helplessly watched as they wer
e torn apart by the Yokai. Only the woman in the middle was still alive, but she still was facing away from him.
He stared at her unable to look away and moved to her. Kenji ignored the rest of the infected, who were busy elsewhere. His single drive was to reach this woman, nothing else mattered anymore. With each step closer, everything around him melted away until it was just him and her. Kenji felt an odd sense of calmness sweep over him, a sense of familiarity hung about now that he was only a couple of feet away from the woman.
Kenji started to reach out to the woman, to see if she was hurt. Only upon coming this close to her did he notice she was muttering something over and over. Kenji hesitated, stopping mid-reach. He didn’t understand what she was saying, but it didn’t sound right.
“Are you ok?” Kenji asked softly.
The woman stopped muttering and started to turn around towards Kenji.
“It’s all your fault!” she said louder.
“It’s all YOUR fault!”
“IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT!” she screamed at Kenji.
He backed away from the woman, who had fully revealed herself to Kenji. It was Kiyomi. She held up her hands for Kenji to see; they were covered in blood. She quickly reached out and grabbed his hands smearing her blood all over his hands.
“Now it’s all over your hands!” she said, laughing hysterically.
Kenji pulled away in disgust, looking down at his hands He looked back up at Kiyomi, who was still laughing hysterically, horrified. Her eyes were now red, filled with blood; she was infected. Kiyomi started her slow shuffle towards Kenji, still laughing. Kenji stood, dumbfound, broken, unable to do anything as she approached. She opened her mouth revealing her teeth and a black mouth.
She lunged forward, attacking Kenji. He screamed in pain and surprise.
Chapter 33
What Remains: The Outbreak Page 21