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Chronicles Of The Apocalypse

Page 5

by Simon Neilson


  ANNA: NO

  EMILY: YOU’RE HORRIBLE. I WISH MUM WAS HEAR

  ANNA: WELL SHE ISN’T AND I DON’T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT

  EMILY: MAYBE SHE WON’T EAT US

  ANNA: EMILY OF COURSE SHE WILL EAT US SHE IS INFECTED AFTER ALL

  EMILY: BUT MAYBE SHE WILL GET BETTER?

  ANNA: I DOUBT IT. UNLESS THEY FIND A CURE.

  EMILY: IS THAT WHY YOU LOCKED HER IN THE CELLAR?

  ANNA: MAYBE

  EMILY: IT’S DARK OUTSIDE.

  ANNA: THAT’S BECAUSE THERE ARE NO STREET LIGHTS

  EMILY: WHY ARE THERE NO STREET LIGHTS?

  ANNA: HOW MANY QUESTIONS CAN ONE PERSON POSSIBLY ASK?

  EMILY: I DON’T KNOW.

  ANNA: THE WHOLE COUNTRY IS IN CHAOS, THAT’S WHY THERE ARE NO STREET LIGHTS.

  EMILY: I’M HUNGRY

  ANNA: THERE’S A TIN OF TUNA IN THE CUPBOARD

  EMILY: I DON’T LIKE TUNA.

  ANNA: LOOK, EMILY I’M TRYING MY BEST HERE

  EMILY: SORRY.

  ANNA: NO I’M SORRY. I SHOULDN’T SHOUT AT YOU.

  EMILY: LOOK THERE’S ONE OUTSIDE

  ANNA: STAY QUIET

  EMILY: IS THAT MISTER JONES FROM NEXT DOOR.

  ANNA: WAS MISTER JONES FROM NEXT DOOR YOU MEAN.

  EMILY: I’M SCARED

  ANNA: YOU ARE GOING TO BE FINE. I’LL LOOK AFTER YOU.

  EMILY: WHAT ARE YOU DOING NOW?

  ANNA: TURNING OFF THE VIDEO, I WANT TO SAVE SOME BATTERY.

  EMILY: OK

  ANNA: IT IS THE 16TH APRIL. I AM HERE WITH MY YOUNGER SISTER EMILY IN OUR HOUSE IN SOUTH LONDON. THERE ARE A LOT OF INFECTED OUTSIDE SO IT IS TOO DANGEROUS TO GO OUT. WE ARE LOW ON FOOD AND WATER AND OUR MOTHER WHO IS INFECTED IS LOCKED IN THE CELLAR. IF ANYBODY FINDS THIS RECORDING I AM THINKING OF BUGGING OUT TO TOWER BRIDGE.

  EMILY: WHAT’S BUGGING OUT?

  ANNA: SSSSHHH…..I’M TRYING TO RECORD THE ENDING

  EMILY: MY NAME IS EMILY AND I AM 11 YEARS OLD.

  ANNA: CAN SOMEBODY PLEASE SAVE US.

  CHAPTER 37

  A young woman in France, recorded the moment she found her home town sealed off. It became pretty clear, very quickly that the infection had now spread across the channel and had landed on mainland Europe.

  My name is Francois Evra.

  I am currently standing on the outskirts of Calais, my home town in France and I have been told that it is under lockdown because there has been an infection outbreak like there is in the United Kingdom.

  I don’t know what is going on inside, nobody will tell us anything and my family and friends are trapped. I am unable to contact anybody there.

  What I have found out is that a group of British tourists who came to France to play cricket were stopped after one of the team fell ill. It turned out they came from the same area that was affected many days ago now, Wakefield.

  This is only information I have managed to get from a friend of mine in England.

  I have no way of knowing what will happen so I have recorded this message for my friends and family to say that I love you so much and that if anything was to happen to me then I do not want you to be sad as I will no longer be that person who you once knew.

  When the infection was isolated to the United Kingdom, we were worried but not overly concerned. It is now on mainland Europe and from what I can tell there is no way of stopping it.

  It will only be a matter of time before it spreads rapidly like it has in the United Kingdom.

  I can hear sirens now and we are being told to move away from the area, I can hear people screaming in the distance. I think it is too late for us here now.

  If you have a chance to get away I would do it now if I were you.

  God bless every one of us.

  CHAPTER 38

  After a clear up team was sent in to the town of Scunthorpe to search for possible survivors and to try and clear the area, they stumbled upon a house where they found this note.

  Today is 16th April. 7 days since the first reported case in the North of England.

  I haven’t slept properly days. My name is Gregory Allen.

  During the day I have been trying to find supplies. I have had to ration what I eat and drink. I remember before when I could go to the cupboard and just pull out whatever I wanted. That soon stopped.

  Scunthorpe, where I live, is now just a ghost town. The only people I see now are those that are infected.

  Every normal person was evacuated once the town was overrun with the infection. I stayed because I did not want to be taken to some godforsaken camp where I would be living behind barbed wire fence. That’s what I imagined it would be like.

  As soon as the army and the healthy people left I came out of my hiding place in the attic and waited. It wasn’t long before I saw them lumbering by my window, hundreds of them.

  I would go out during the early morning, strangely they didn’t seem so active then and collect what I needed. It’s free shopping and nobody around to arrest me for stealing so it wasn’t long before my cupboards were full to my satisfaction.

  At the moment I still have electricity, gas, internet connection and television, although the internet is slowing down and the television stations are just on a continuous loop. For how long I have these things I do not know.

  It all happened yesterday. I was out just collecting some sheets of aluminium hoarding that I wanted to use to board up the window. I hate looking at those things outside. I was just put the last one on the shopping trolley that I had borrowed when I heard a sound behind me.

  I have no idea where this thing came from, but there it was right in front of me. It lurched forward and swung with its arms. I dived out the way and as quick as I could ran down the street to the safe haven of my house. Once inside I locked the door and slumped down in the sofa, my heart beating fast.

  It was then I felt the stinging sensation to my arm and as I looked down I saw the scratch marks with the blood seeping over the ridges where the skin had been broken. I panicked and I knew straight away that the thing had caught me. I was infected.

  So that’s it really. Today is 16th April. 7 days since the first reported case in the North of England and I got infected.

  Fortunately I managed to obtain a gun for emergencies and well this is one hell of an emergency. And had enough time to write this note. So whoever finds this note, if you would be so kind to go in the bathroom, you will find me in the tub with my brains blown out. Now I can’t infect anybody else.

  It was a good run while it lasted.

  CHAPTER 39

  A young woman called Susan living in Australia sent an email to her relatives in the United Kingdom. She was obviously worried about how they were coping and as she says in her email, Australia, fearing the spread of the infection could go global has closed its borders.

  Dear Aunt Glenda,

  Hi, it’s me Susan.

  I can see on the news that things are pretty bad over there in the U.K. I am unable to call you as all your lines seem busy over there, so I thought I would send you a quick email.

  What is this infection that is going around?

  I am really worried about you guys over there. How is Uncle Bill? I wish I was able to speak with you so that I could hear you tell me that everything is ok. I’m not even sure you will get this email.

  It has got everybody scared here in Oz, they have closed the borders, but I don’t think it is here. It must be just in Europe. There aren’t evacuating any of the major towns and cities, so I guess they are not too worried at the moment.

  That said, it’s the talk of Adelaide. Everywhere I go there are people talking about the infection and awful it is.

  I saw on the news that France, Italy and now Spain are reporting infections. I guess it is only a matter of time before it spreads further.

  There are rumours that this infection has cropped up in South East Asia and in the United States, but that’s just rumour, I haven’t seen any reports on the news.
/>   Well, I hope you receive this email as we are not getting a lot of news about what is happening in the U.K. If you can email me back as soon as you read this then my mind can be put at rest.

  Sending my love

  Susan

  CHAPTER 40

  Spain is the next location in Europe to come under the grip of the infection.

  Gary Bishop, a U.K. resident on holiday in Spain with his family is caught up in the madness that is sweeping the world.

  This video message was picked up on his social network site. Spain was now facing the spread of this nightmare.

  This is Gary Bishop. I have been on holiday here in Spain for the last week with my family. There is chaos on the streets as the infection that has ravaged the United Kingdom spread reached this beautiful holiday resort in Malaga.

  The police are struggling to control the situation as people leave in their thousands. The Spanish government are trying to control the exodus as they fear that people who are infected will spread the virus further, but at this stage there are no strategic plans for this.

  Spain has asked the United Kingdom for further updates on how the infection spreads and to ask them to share information so that they are able to combat the disease, but as yet the British government have not responded.

  Apart from the United Kingdom there are reports of infection outbreaks in France, Italy, the United States, Canada, Mexico, Germany, Portugal and Switzerland.

  It is not known at this stage how this infection can be stopped. Governments from around the world are monitoring the situation in Europe and North America. All I am concerned about right at this moment is keeping my wife and children safe.

  Oh my god….

  I can see thousands of infected people heading towards us. I have never seen such a sight. They look like savage beasts foaming at the mouth, covered in blood.

  People are screaming…..they are coming straight towards us…….

  Oh no…..where are my wife and children?

  CHAPTER 41

  David Travis uses his Live Talk account to broadcast a Web message to his friends and family. Appears that the British warning to Canada was correct, as Toronto comes under the grip of the infection.

  Hi. This is David Travis using my Live Talk webcam account from Toronto.

  We have all been hearing about the infection in the United Kingdom. It is with horror and sadness that as I look out my apartment window I can see police and soldiers on the streets of Toronto.

  Yes my fellow Live Talkers, the infection as we feared is here in Canada.

  From what I can tell the police moved in on the hospital yesterday, not far from where I live. The news channel turned up next and then before anybody had a chance to digest the information, all hell broke loose and the hospital was closed down.

  I’ve decided to stay put in my apartment, it looks like absolute chaos down there. Most streets are barricaded off with checkpoints and people in white protective suits testing people as they walk through.

  I’m not actually sure if they know what they are testing for.

  So there we have it. Thanks United Kingdom for sharing your infection with the rest of the world.

  CHAPTER 42

  Jasmine O’Neill. This little girl has lost her mother and father to the infection. I have been told by Dr. McNamara that this brave little girl is not showing any signs of having the infection. But with this nightmare spreading throughout the United Kingdom, it was time for Jasmine to find a new place to call home.

  Dear Diary,

  All the doctors have been very kind to me since I have been here, especially the lady doctor who visits me.

  She told me today that it is the 18th April.

  I still don’t know what has happened to my mum but everybody seems really busy.

  Today was a bit weird. The lady doctor came to see me and told me that everybody was being evacuated to somewhere else. I overheard another doctor saying that this infection that makes people ill has spread very quickly and they have had to set up safe areas for people to go to.

  The lady doctor told me that as far as she was concerned I was not infected and that soon I would be able to leave, but she wasn’t sure where I would go.

  I miss my mum and dad and it makes me sad to think that they might be sick. I miss Libby. I actually miss school.

  I don’t think I will ever see them again and that makes me cry.

  People think I don’t understand what it going on but I know deep down my mum and dad are probably dead

  Jasmine O’Neill – aged 14 and I’m all alone.

  CHAPTER 43

  I received an email from Dr. McNamara at the Disease Control Institute. She tells me that due to the spread of the infection they are going to have to evacuate the medical facility to a safe zone.

  There are five safe zone camps set up in the United Kingdom.

  North Camp is situated just outside Bradford. South Camp is situated just outside Aldershot. East Camp is situated just outside Colchester. West Camp is situated just outside Bristol and Central Camp is situated just outside Birmingham.

  These Camps are like mini settlements and the only people inside are medical teams, the military and those people who are not infected and transported there in trucks.

  But herein is the problem. There is only enough space to house a certain number of people. Outside there are waves of refugees trying to get in and it pains me to say that some of them who try to break-in are being shot. These camps are ringed by huge concrete and steel walls manned by soldiers in machine gun posts.

  Then there is the problem of those people outside becoming infected. I have spoken to a soldier who is at South Camp. He tells me it is like a sea of tents outside the settlement and that as the infection spreads, these people are at real risk of becoming its next victims.

  I am still holed up in an underground facility trying to put together all the information I can. There are around 100 soldiers here and other staff who work for the Disease Control Institute. The commanding officer of the soldiers has told us it is too dangerous to leave as there are thousands of infected roaming around.

  It looks like we are stuck here for the foreseeable future.

  Dr Marco van Breukelen

  18th April

  CHAPTER 44

  I was sitting in my study going through some documents when a soldier arrived at my door. They would usually drop off any documents that they had found whilst conducting searches, anything that I may find of interest.

  The young soldier placed a CD on my desk and told me it was some music. I stared at it a while and then asked him if he thought I had enough time to listen to music.

  He then told me that they had been inside a recording studio. This CD had been left on a desk.

  The soldiers had listened to the disc, it became apparent it was a song about the infection.

  There was a note attached to the CD that told me the song was written and sung by a musician called “Ray Cordell”

  Here is an extract of the lyrics from the song which seemed so profound in the current situation we find ourselves in. I wonder where he is now?

  Infection, it burns into me

  Chaos and plague, it’s just surrounding me

  The cries of pain, that hunt you down

  They bare your name

  You have been found

  Infection, this infection

  Infection, this infection

  It’s killing me

  CHAPTER 45

  The two young girls Anna and Emily had left their house and, as Anna suggested in her last recording, they bugged out to Tower Bridge hoping to find help.

  Anna: Right I’m recording

  Emily: Ok

  Anna: We are at Tower Bridge on the south side of the river. It’s been a bit of a challenge getting here

  Emily: Scary

  Anna: Emily please be quiet

  Emily I was just saying.

  Anna: Fine. It’s been a bit scary getting here. The
re were so many infected we had to hide most of the time.

  Emily: My favourite place was the sweet shop

  Anna: Yes, Emily. I know. Your pockets are filled with chocolate bars.

  Emily: So what do we do now.

  Anna: I’m not sure.

  Emily: It is very quiet

  Anna: I’d rather it be quiet than full of infected people.

  Emily: I can see one.

  Anna: What!! Where!!

  Emily: On that big bridge.

  Anna: For god’s sake Emily. I thought you meant here.

  Emily: Sorry

  Anna: And that big bridge is called Tower Bridge.

  Emily: And is that the Tower Of London.

  Anna: Yes, Emily. Is this really a good time for a history lesson?

  Emily: I can hear something.

  Anna: It’s an engine.

  Emily: What a car?

  Anna: It’s coming from the river.

  Emily: A car can’t go on the river?

  Anna: Noooo…..A boat. Be quiet and stay in the shadows.

  Emily: It might be help.

  Anna: Maybe

  Emily: What are we doing?

  Anna: I just want to see who it is.

  Anna: I’m going to stop recording to save the battery and to see what this noise is. This is Anna and Emily at Tower Bridge.

  CHAPTER 46

  A new charity Voice Of Hope was set up to try and help those trapped by the infection. They wanted to see if they could help them find help.

  Little did they know the chance of help was quickly disappearing.

 

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