Exterminators Infected (The Exterminators Book 1)

by DeSantis, James

  “I look forward to that,” Riven smiled. He turned back towards the forest and headed off. The boys sat there. The Cyclops was dead yet they felt they had still lost. They lost their friend. The once four man team was now reduced to three.

  Chapter 29 – Gone

  The boys sat in the gym. They weren't allowed to leave so they sat next to each other not saying a word. Nothing needed to be said. They had killed the Cyclops. It was a fearsome monster that nearly killed them all. Somehow though, their teammate, their friend, saved them all. He gave himself up and a demon took his place. Riven was its name and it was able to easily dispose of the Cyclops. It warned them something else was coming. The boys simply did not care. They were still in shock over having their friend there one moment and gone the next.

  In the gym, stood Carl and Ram. Joined by them were a couple of Protectors and Aric. He was terribly upset. He wouldn't let anyone leave till he figured out how Fred had escaped in the first place. The boys were wondering that, too. They remembered seeing the note but that's all they saw. The note could have been from anyone.

  “So, let's go over this one more time,” Aric said walking over to the boys. Carl walked near them, guarding them in case Aric flipped out. “You say Fred just showed up at the field? Despite no one being here to set him free?”

  “Yes,” Nick answered.

  “No one set him free? Not one of you let him out of here?” he asked again, the exasperation evident in his voice. He had already convicted the boys for doing the deed despite having no proof.

  “No,” Peter answered.

  “And he just transformed into this creature? He transformed and walked off? Not walked off ‘cause he was going to be convicted for escaping?”

  “No,” Marshall answered.

  “I find it very convenient that he transformed on the field and walked away, yet no one besides you three saw this. He somehow escaped despite being in top security. I mean, honestly boys, is this the best you can do?” Aric laughed.

  Marshall looked up at Aric. “Shut up.”

  Aric looked back at him. “I don't know how you boys freed him. I really don't. Those codes are impossible to know unless you have high security. Just so you know though, when I find out how you did it, I won't let any punishment go undone. You will all suffer for disobeying a direct order. To leave your teammate to his fate!” Now he was yelling. The boys didn't move, didn't even flinch.

  “We didn't do anything. He somehow escaped and got to us. Then he...” Marshall wanted to continue. When he thought about the events, things just got worse. He wanted to forget about all of it. All the problems that circled around him. No one felt as horrible, about the fact his best friend was gone, as he did. He still couldn't fully grasp that.

  “Then he transformed into a wolf hybrid. I saw it with my own eyes,” Peter spoke up. All attention went to him. “He became a beast. It was a wolf body and face. It tore the Cyclops’ eyes to pieces. If you go look at the scene, you'll see that. After Riven killed the Cyclops it walked into the forest, giving us a warning that they are coming. That “they” will unite. That is all we know. That's all we saw.”

  The silence swept the room. Aric half believed it. The boys were badly hurt and tired. They used everything they had on the field yet the beast was clawed to death. By very long claws. The only thing he could think to do that damage was another monster, yet his Exterminating years were reminding him demons just weren't real.

  “I still don't fully believe it. I will look more into it. Something is fishy and I'll find out what it is,” Aric spoke loudly. He wanted to make sure the boys understood.

  “I think that's enough questions for today,” Carl said tersely. “Let them rest. We'll go into a full blown investigation down the line.”

  Aric nodded and walked away. Most of the Protectors followed him. Carl watched as he walked away and then looked back to his students.

  “Are you guys okay?” he asked worriedly. He could see each and every one of them giving a blank stare, their minds were far away from here.

  “They're hurting. Both mentally and physically. I think its best they get home,” Ram said quietly, walking near his friend.

  “I think you're right. Boys, go home and get some rest. I'll be in contact with you soon. If anyone wants to stay and talk I'm available.” Carl tried his best to show he cared. The boys had just lost their friend. He lost another of his students. He felt like he wanted to slam walls and break tables yet he stood there with his best poker face, trying to support the remainder of his unit.

  The boys all got up and began walking out of the gym. No one said a word. Just complete silence, no one wanted to talk.

  “Ram, let me talk to you in my office.” Carl trailed behind the boys while Ram followed closely.

  Kelly waited on her steps. It was raining now, nothing too heavy, just a light drizzle. The air felt heavy, as the humidity was high. No one was out on the street. Everyone was in their homes nice and cozy. Kelly couldn't stay inside though. She waited on the steps for Nick. He had promised her he'd be back hours ago. She knew it was best to just go inside and expect to speak to him tomorrow. She didn't want to let go of the hope that maybe her boyfriend, her lover, would show up again though.

  She had never dated because she was afraid. Strong fears of being left by someone she trusted were proven by little dates she had been on before. They just wanted her body, not who she was. So she stuck to the non-dating rule. It worked for the most part. That is until Nick came along. “Stupid pen expert...”

  She loved him very much. He was kind-hearted, brave, and always caring man. She couldn't imagine finding a better person to love. He had secrets, though. She wasn't sure if they were bad but they were certainly breaking up the relationship. He would leave for hours without telling her anything. He'd come up hurt and again not tell her anything. These things had to stop. Either that or she had to know what it was. Because if she couldn't figure it out, she was going to give up. As much as it pained her to do so, it hurt more to continue going on this way.

  She looked down the side of the street. She saw someone walking towards her. She knew before he even lifted his head, it was Nick. She rose from her seat unsure if she was angry or happy anymore. She wanted to go hug him, kiss him, to bring him as close as possible. At the same time she wanted to slap him and ask him for the last time where he was.

  He took another step and stood waiting on the bottom of the stairs. The rain was hitting the top of his head. His beard was dripping water. It was a mix of tears and the walk in the rain that had his face soaked. He looked up at her. He didn't know what to say.

  “Where were you?” she asked. Not harshly. Not mean. Just worried.

  “I-” he didn't know where to begin. He didn't know what to tell her. He didn't even register the events fully in his mind. “-I've lost...”

  “Lost what?”

  “Everything...”

  “What are you saying?” She stepped down to another level. The rain teasing her as it hit her shoe. She was still under the cover of her house, but barely.

  “I can't tell you.”

  “Why the hell not!?” she yelled, her voice almost breaking up. “Why do you hide everything from me?”

  “’Cause I have to.”

  “Why do you “HAVE” to?!”

  “I just do...”

  “Not good enough! Tell me why right now!” She stepped hard on the next staircase level, yelling with everything she had.

  “It's to keep you safe! I have to keep you safe! I do this to keep you safe! Goddamn it, Kelly!” he was screaming, waving his arms in the air. “I need to keep you safe ‘cause I won't let them hurt you! I won't let anyone hurt you!” People began to peer outside their windows. “You think I like this!? This goddamn life I now live?!”

  “Your life with me?” she asked sadly.

  “No, damn it!” he yelled, but lower this time. “I love you. I want to stay with you. To do, that I must protect you.”

/>   “From what?” She wanted to know so badly.

  “I can't tell you that.” He walked up a stair, reaching out and touching her cheek. His cold wet hand against her dry soft skin. “I can't tell you ‘cause it'll put you in harm’s way. Do you understand? I want to but I can't. It's to protect you. I swear.”

  She looked at him. She wasn't sure what the secret was. She knew that he was fighting himself internally, trying to decide what to do. She loved him too much to make him suffer between choosing. “It's okay. I trust you.” She stepped down and put her arms around his wet clothes. She pulled him closer, holding him tightly.

  He began to cry. She had never heard him cry like that. It was loud, so loudly it was the only thing she could hear even with cars passing. He was crying hysterically. He held her tightly, pulling her tightly to him. She held tightly back. She didn't want to let him go. He needed her more than anything. She cried with him.

  “I lost him,” he muttered between the sobbing. She tried to understand but didn't. So, she did what she could and held him, rubbing his back, and telling him it would be okay. All he could say for the next twenty minutes were the same repeating words: “I lost him.”

  Carl sat down in the chair. Ram looked at him oddly. “Why aren't you sitting at his desk?” Carl just looked down at the floor. He let out a huge sigh. “Hey, are you okay?” Ram bent down and could see his friends’ eyes were closed. A tear began to roll over his cheek and fall to the floor.

  “I failed again,” Carl said softly. He felt the pain from years ago return.

  “You didn't fail.” His friend placed his hand on Carl’s shoulder. “You had no way of knowing what would happen if Fred went out there.”

  Carl looked to his side, eyes teary. “It was my fault he even went out there. He should have been locked in here. What the hell happened?!” He wanted to cry more but his tears didn't come. It came from too many years of losing people to cry like he used to. He wasn't sure if that made him feel even worse. That he couldn't cry for the fallen ones anymore.

  “We'll figure out what happened. You can't just sit here though and blame yourself. Never again, remember?” Ram watched as his friend nodded. “Come on, we will get through this. We always do, right?”

  “Yeah...” Carl let his voice drift. He wasn't sure how to react anymore to situations like this. He stayed distant for this fact alone. The loss. It's harder than anything.

  “You changed that boy’s life.”

  “Yeah, by ending it,” Carl laughed an empty laugh.

  “You gave him a life he never had. His mom and dad don't even know their own kid’s age. You cared for him. You introduced him three other boys who loved and cared for him. He, for once, fit in with people. You told me he was an outsider. Then he met these boys and reunited a friendship and made new ones. You changed his life forever. Don't ever let anyone tell you different. We all pass away one day, it's the memories and experiences we have during life that make us truly live.”

  Carl looked up at his friend. He knew he could count on support. He had it last time, but the betrayal was far worse then. He knew he could bounce back from this. He knew he could help the others live on and not give up. “You're right. I have to be strong for the others.”

  “That's right. They are young. They haven't been through anything like this before. We won't let them do this alone.”

  “It's a terrible life to live at times. Losing so many.” Carl looked towards his friend for a response.

  “In life, we always lose the ones we love. Exterminators or not. It's the way it goes. We have to live for the ones who aren't living anymore.” Carl nodded to that and got up. “What do you wanna do now?”

  “Find out who would free Fred.”

  “And then what?”

  “Kill the son of a bitch.”

  Peter was soaked. He walked into his home and went right straight to the bathroom. He threw his clothes off and into the basket on the floor. Placing his hands on the counter, he looked into the mirror at himself. He had gained so much muscle. He felt amazing in terms of body strength. He came so far in a few months it would be impossible not to feel this way. Eeven with all these new improvements, he still failed to save his friend.

  He slammed his hand down hard on the counter. He could feel the sharp pain instantly shoot up his arm from his hand. He bit his lip as he slammed his hand again. The pain soared again through his entire arm now. He did it again, this time yelling. He did again, yelling louder. He did it again, screaming. He did it again, this time feeling his face getting wet. It wasn't the rain. It was tears.

  He never cried. He looked into the mirror and saw them flowing down his face. They came without him noticing. Was it the anger? He sometimes cried when he was angry. Short little tears though, not like this. He could feel emptiness in his chest. He had lost something important. It was like having your favorite toy stolen from you.

  This was losing someone.

  Peter never had before. He wished death upon his father at times, but his father was still walking around drunk every night. Now, he never had to see him, thanks to the police, but he still wasn't dead. Fred was dead though.

  “That doesn't make sense. Why is my dad still alive and breathing and my friend is dead? Someone who helps the world is dead and someone who wastes his way in the world is alive? This doesn't make sense.” For all his book smarts, Peter couldn't understand it. Life was the hardest problem in the world. He felt the balance was so shifted. It made no sense why the good leave and the bad stay. It doesn't make any sense at all.

  Peter turned on the shower. He let it run hot so the steam would build. He wanted to wipe away everything. Usually the shower helped with that. To clear his mind of everything. He was able to do it a lot easier than others anyway.

  He stepped into the very hot shower and let the water splash on him. He could feel the steam building up. He laid his head on his arms while leaning on the shower wall. He let go of everything, trying to free up his mind. It was a simple way of having a completely empty slate.

  No matter how hard he tried though he kept picturing Fred. He saw Fred when they trained together and when they fought together. He even saw flashes of Fred in his final moments when he was getting crushed be the Cyclops. “Why didn't we stop him?” Peter questioned himself. At the time of fighting he thought having backup would be great. Now, all he could think about is if Fred never came then he might have been saved. He might still be with them. Instead, he was gone and replaced by a demon called Riven. Everything went wrong.

  Peter didn't want to blame himself but he still felt the guilt. He felt the sadness building. Most of all, he felt the emptiness, the missing feeling, tugged at his heart. He never felt it before. That just made it far worse to experience.

  Marshall opened the door to his room. Lucy sat on his bed, looking up at him. He pulled his shirt off and threw it to the floor. He unbuckled his wet pants and kicked them into the corner. He grabbed an old shirt to dry his wet hair and flung it to the side afterward. He lay down on the bed, putting his face on her lap.

  “Baby...” he said softly, his voice cracking slightly.

  “Yes, babe?”

  “I..”

  She put her hands through his hair while looking at him, feeling sad.

  “I lost...I lost...” he began to cry. It was just a small sob.

  “You lost what, babe? Tell me.” She stopped going through his hair and laid her hand on his back. He rolled over and looked up at her.

  “Fred's gone.”

  “Gone?”

  “He's dead.” Marshall hadn't said it till that point. He hadn't even told himself that. He kept the words out of his mind and mouth. Now that he said it everything hit him at once. He felt such a heavy pain it made him cry instantly. He rolled back over and buried his face in her legs. He grabbed her shirt and pulled strongly on it. So much pain. He couldn't breathe. He gasped for air between the sobs.

  “Babe...I'm so sorry,” she said softly, holdin
g his head while putting her head on his back as he cried. “I'm sorry,” she repeated.

  He remembered meeting Fred for the first time, just as little kids playing around on the playground. He saw Fred had a Godzilla comic. He went over to him and asked if he could read it. Fred said no. Then he let him read it, but only together. Marshall let him borrow one of his Godzilla tapes. Ever since then they've been best friends.

  He cried harder.

  He remembered third grade with Fred. Marshall was getting yelled at by a teacher. Marshall said a curse word at the teacher. Back when you were that young you weren't allowed to say that. He was about to be sent to the principal’s office when Fred cursed too. They both got detention for a week, but together.

  He cried even harder feeling the tears coming out like a river. He couldn't stop thinking about the past.

  She let him cry for several minutes. After a while he slowed down. The amount of sobs decreased, his tears didn't come out as quick, and his face returned to his regular color instead of bright red. He let out all the pain that was going through him.

  “Baby...” he muttered, his voice still sounding high-pitched.

  “Yes, babe?”

  “I love you,” he said without any regret. He wasn't going to wait anymore.

  She was shocked by the words as she looked at him. He rolled over again and looked back up. She didn't know how she would handle her future with him but she did know one thing.

  “I love you too.”

  Jin pushed open the door. It a two story apartment building. He folded up the umbrella and placed it on the floor before he ran up the stairs. He could feel his cold hands heating up. He was angry. Upset. He needed to figure out what happened.