Mankind

by Stalletti, Matthew

  The group hikes up the tall hill that leads toward the camp. Michael and Moxxie walk in the back cautiously, making sure that they aren't leading them into a trap. Michael can't help but be paranoid, especially after what happened to him when he was in a forest with a stranger. There's no turning back now for them. They made it this far so they’re going to save Matthew no matter what.

  Finally, the group reaches the top of the hill. Zak looks forward, and only a few yards away is the fence to the camp. Zak crouches down to try and stay hidden from any patrols that they have. The rest of the group crouches down to stay hidden as well, except for Michael and Moxxie. They are confused by this, but Michael quickly remembers that they are just outside of hostile territory. Michael crouches down, and Moxxie follows. The group sneakily begins to walk through the woods toward the fence with their rifles ready in hand.

  After a few minutes of sneaking, they finally reach the tree line right outside the fence. Only 30 feet away is the fence, and on the other side is a long, wide propane tank. Michael looks inside the camp from behind one of the trees. He sees the patrolling soldiers, as well as the civilians living their everyday lives. He never imagined a small community like this even could exist in a world like this. He wonders if attacking this camp is the right thing to do. Michael looks around, and also sees the dozens of deadly infected right outside of the fence. Michael looks around him to see each member of the group hiding behind one of their own tree’s. Michael looks to his left and looks at Moxxie. She looks scared and helpless. She isn't ready for whatever they have planned for this camp. Michael looks back at Zak. He whispers something, but Michael can't hear him. Suddenly, Zak and the rest of his men plug their ears with their fingers. Michael is confused. He doesn't understand what they are doing. Michael looks back at Moxxie, and she is also plugging his ears. Michael doesn't understand what is happening and is very confused. Somehow, they all know what is about to happen, but he doesn't. Michael decides to copy the rest of the group and plug his ears as well. Michael crouches down and looks back at Zak. Suddenly, Zak stands up and pulls out the handgun from his holster. It’s a Glock 19. Michael knows this as the handgun with the fully automatic capability. As soon as he sees the gun, he quickly realizes what is going on. The propane tank, the fence, the gun; it all makes sense now. Zak raises his pistol and peaks from behind the tree and aims at the propane tank on the other side of the fence. Zak plugs one of his ears with his free hand and hesitates, but inevitably starts firing. Zak unloads his entire magazine into the tank, and each bullet causes fuel and subtly flames to leak out. Zak pulls out a grenade from behind his jacket. Michael is shocked. A grenade is the last thing he expected a stranger to have concealed. Zak pulls the pin and throws the grenade at the fence. Zak crouches down and plugs both of his ears. 3 seconds later, the tank explodes. The grenades blast combined with all the gasoline makes for a huge explosion. All the infected next to the fence, as well as the fence itself get blown up in the explosion. The ground shakes, and Michael almost falls over in fear.

  After a moment, Michael unplugs his ears and hears the sound of fire and screaming from inside the camp. Michael peaks over the tree and sees the aftermath of the explosion. The remains of the dead infected lay on the ground, some of which are on fire. There are also infected that are still alive but are crippled. Michael looks shocked. He never imagined that anything could survive something like this Before he knows it, Michael looks over and sees Zak and his crew running out from behind the trees with their rifles aimed. They suddenly begin firing their automatic rifles at the people running around and panicking inside. They hit a few, but most run to cover. Zak looks angry, but quickly decides to run through the giant hole he made in the fence.

  “Come on boys!” Zak shouts.

  Zak runs through the hole in the fence, and his friends follow. Michael looks at Moxxie. They don't know what to do. They know that Matthew is most likely inside, so they should follow the Legion. Michael is conflicted though; he doesn't want to have to kill any more people. Michael decides to get up any way, and he steps out from behind the tree. Michael runs through the hole in the fence, and Moxxie follows.

  Michael and Moxxie run toward the group who is firing at people running by. Suddenly, soldiers run toward the group. Zak and his crew run behind cars and objects as cover. Michael and Moxxie are too far behind to help them, but they run behind a small military tent nearby. Michael gets behind it and peaks over the edge to look back at Zak. The soldiers run in the open toward the group carelessly. Zak and his crew pop out from behind cover and gun down the soldiers. They do it like it’s so easy, and don't hesitate at all. Michael can't begin to understand what must happen to someone for them to just kill like that. When Michael killed someone, it was in self-defense, but this time, they are all on the offensive side. Michael gets back into cover and looks at Moxxie. They are soaking wet from the rain and look scared. Michael looks into Moxxie’ s eyes. The fear he sees bothers him. She has clearly never been put in a situation like this, but neither has Michael. He decides to suck it up and try to be strong. He doesn't want Moxxie to think that he is weak and scared. He needs to show her that she can be strong and can pull through and stay alive. Michael thinks about his parents before they died. They had stayed inside their house for most of the time after the world ended. They never exposed themselves to the outside world, so when they encountered the infected for the first time, they were weak. Michael thinks about where he would be if his parents could have just saved themselves from the dead like he had been doing this entire time. He realizes that they did not survive because they were weak. Michael now knows that he can't be like that, and that he has to act strong, even if he isn't. He needs to be able to handle whatever happens next.

  Michael peeks back out and sees Zak and his men pushing forward, further into the camp. Michael grabs Moxxie’ s hand, and the two step out into the open. Michael and Moxxie make their way over to the group, but they all suddenly stop. 6 civilians step out from a military tent with their hands up. Zak is caught off guard by this and raises his rifle at them. Lucas, Jonathan, Henry, and Tony all raise their guns as well. The civilians get down on their knees. They look scared and helpless. They begin to beg for the mercy of the Legion.

  “Please don't hurt us!” Says one of the civilians.

  Zak looks at them. He looks angry. He lowers his rifle and pulls up his left sleeve. Zak raises his hand and points to the distinct tattoo on his arm.

  “Where the fuck are the guys who have this tattoo?” Zak shouts.

  The civilians look confused at first, but one of the men kneeling stands up and points toward a smaller barracks near the back of the camp.

  “They’re being held in those barracks over there!” He screams.

  Zak looks over to where he’s pointing and smiles when he sees the building. Zak now knows where his friends are. He looks back at the civilians and smiles sadistically.

  “Will you let us go now?” A woman asks.

  Zak slowly raises his gun and points it at the people, “Of course…”

  Zak looks back at his crew and nods his head. All coordinated, the Legion opens fire on the small group of civilians, killing all of them. Zak lowers his gun and looks over to the dead bodies. Zak looks back at his crew, but quickly notices Michael and Moxxie standing behind them. He looks at their faces and sees their shocked expression. He knows that these two are not the type of people who would fit into his group, so he doesn't even want to bother helping them find their friend. Zak turns around and begins to run toward the barracks where the rest of his friends are.

  “Come on!” Zak screams.

  The rest of the Legion follow Zak toward the building.

  Michael looks at the dead bodies of the innocent survivors. He feels guilty for even being on the same side as the Legion. They killed those innocent people in cold blood, and Michael let them do it right in front of him. Michael slowly steps forward to look at the people. Michael looks down in horror at the
sight of their dead faces. He knows that no matter what they had done up until this point, these innocent people didn't deserve this. Moxxie steps forward and looks at the bodies as well. She looks at their faces and can't help but cry. She feels so bad for what just happened. Michael looks back and sees Moxxie crying in the rain. He wants to comfort her, but they’re in a warzone. Michael turns and looks around the camp to try and see where Matthew could possibly be.

  After a moment of observation, Michael finds a possible building that Matthew could be at. It’s a two-story building that looks like it has a communication tower on top. Michael looks around the camp more and sees soldiers and infected lingering near the back. He knows it’s too dangerous to go there, so the communication tower is his best bet. Michael looks back at Moxxie who is still crying.

  Michael grabs her hand, “Let’s go.”

  Michael and Moxxie run towards the communication building. They reach the front steps that lead up to the doors. Michael lets go of Moxxie’ s hand and aims his rifle at the door. He slowly walks up the steps and approaches the doors to the building. Moxxie stands back and looks at Michael. His courage makes her feel comfort for this short moment. Finally, Michael reaches the door and opens it. He looks back. Moxxie looks at Michael and begins to walk up the stairs. Michael enters the building without Moxxie, most likely to make sure it’s safe. All around Moxxie is death. From every direction are distant gunshots and screams of agonizing pain.

  Suddenly, as she’s walking up the stairs, Moxxie hears something coming not too far behind her. Moxxie turns around and sees a soldier holding a grenade launcher in his hands. He is running toward the building that Moxxie is about to enter. The sight of this intimidates her and causes her to freeze in fear. The soldier looks at Moxxie from about 25 feet away and stops running. He doesn’t recognize her. It’s his job to defend the camp from any intruders. He can't shoot her, because he doesn't have a gun. The soldier looks down at the rocket launcher and realizes that it’s the only weapon he has. He looks back up at Moxxie and sees her scared face. He hesitates, but ultimately raises the grenade launcher and points it at Moxxie. She doesn't know how to react. She can't function under this kind of pressure. She stares at the soldier as he aims his gun, but suddenly notices an infected behind him. The infected lunges at the soldier and bites him on the neck. The soldier screams and shrivels up. He misfires the grenade launcher toward the ground. Just like that, the soldier and the infected are dead. The explosion is so loud and powerful that it causes Moxxie to fall over on the steps. She can't hear anything but an eerie ringing sound. The dust settles, and the only remaining thing is blood and gore where the man was once standing. Moxxie looks at the blood and starts crying. She can't handle this anymore.

  Michael walks down the hall way of the first floor inside the communication building. There are doors on both sides of the hallway, but there is one in particular that Michael sees. A door wide open, with the sound of an engine, directly at the end of the hallway. Michael has his weapon drawn, pointing straight toward the open door. Michael reaches the end of the hallway and slowly enters the room. Michael is surprised to see a long empty room that looks unmaintained. There are pipes and shards of wood protruding from the walls, and the windows are filthy. In the center of the room is a support pillar. Michael looks around the room and sees a door at the other end of it. Michael has no other option other than to continue exploring the building. Michael slowly approaches the door at the other end of the room.

  Once he reaches the door, he puts his hand on the knob to turn it. To his surprise, the door is lock. Michael wants to know what's on the other side of that door, but before he knows it, someone tackles him from behind. Michael gets slammed into the door and hits his head hard. Michael feels light headed and falls to the ground. Michael drops his gun and looks up to see who is behind him. An ordinary man stands over Michael as he lays on the ground. The man seems like he is in his 30’s. He is tall, built, and has a fully-grown beard. Michael looks over to his rifle, but the man quickly grabs it and attempts to point it at Michael. He has no idea why, but Michael quickly understands that this man is trying to kill him. Michael quickly stands up and tackles the man holding his rifle. Michael runs at him and charges him into the support pillar. The man slams into the pillar hard and drops the rifle. Michael catches himself and looks up at the man in pain. Michael lunges at him and punches him in the face. The man quickly recovers from Michaels weak punch and knees Michael in the stomach. Michael falls onto his back, and quickly rolls over onto his stomach. Michael sees his rifle on the ground and begins to crawl over to it. Michael knows that he is to small and weak to take down this large man, so he must get the gun. Michael reaches out his hand and tries to grab the rifle, but suddenly, the man steps on Michael back. His weight crushes Michael and makes him scream. He quickly begins to lose his breath and suffocate under the man. The man leans down and grabs Michael by his neck, pulls him up, and puts him in a choke hold. Michael rises to his feet and begins to squirm. He is running out of air and will die if he cannot break free from his grasp. Michaels squirming does nothing. Michael begins to run backward and slams the man into the support pillar, but the slam isn't enough to break the choke hold. Michael starts to panic in the man’s tight grasp. He has to think of something quick to break free. Michael moves forward into the open of the room, trying to think of something to do. The man's grip tightens around his throat. Michael’s slowly begins to lose his vision and loses all control over his body. This man is about to choke Michael to death. There is truly no hope for Michael. Michael thinks about everything leading up to this moment. He doesn't know what he could have done to better prepare for this. Michael begins to give up in his mind as he slowly loses consciousness. He is willing to accept defeat and die in a peaceful way that doesn’t involve being shot or being torn apart.

  Suddenly, the human drive that's deep down inside of everyone gets ignited. Michaels opens his eyes and begins to look around. He is not giving up just yet. The pipes and wooden shards protruding from the walls pops into Michael's mind. Michael takes a gasp of air and regains control. He spins around and runs backward to the walls with the man's back facing it. Michael slams into the wall and feels the man's grip loosen. The man ends the choke hold, and Michael falls forward, gasping for air.

  Michael lays on the ground, gasping for air and regaining his strength. Out of nowhere, Moxxie barges into the room with her gun drawn, but she is too late to help. She recovered from her experience outside and came as soon as she heard the screaming. Moxxie sees Michael on the ground breathing heavily, but quickly notices something more disturbing. Michael turns and looks at Moxxie. He quickly notices how shocked she looks and sees the subtle tears in her eyes. Michael rolls over and looks behind him. He quickly sees the man who had been choking him up against the wall, with a pipe sticking through his chest. The man is being held up by the blood drenched pipe stick out of the wall, and through his chest. Michael looks at him and notices that he is not breathing. The blood from the chest wound moves down his body and drips onto the ground, quickly making a puddle of blood.

  Michael slowly looks up and watches the man, hoping to see him move. He didn't want to kill him, but he needed to save himself. The harsh reality quickly sets in; Michael had murdered this man. All he sees now is the product of his wrath. Michael slowly gets up and walks over to the man and looks at him. He looks at the pocket on his polo shirt and sees a lump inside of it. Michael reaches into the man's pocket and pulls out a pair of keys. He quickly remembers the locked door at the other end of the room. Michael looks over to the locked door, and then slowly turns and looks back at Moxxie. She looks disturbed, but a little understanding.

  “I had to. He was trying to kill me.” Michael says.

  “I know…”

  Michael feels a small sense of comfort hearing Moxxie validate his actions. Michael turns around and walks toward the locked door. On the way there, he picks up his rifle and aims it, ready for anyone e
lse who might try and hurt them. Moxxie follows Michael to the door, and once they reach it, Michael slowly inserts the key, unlocks the door, and swings it wide open. The door makes a loud screech sound. The door hinges are not in a good condition, so the sound it just made might attract anyone else who may be inside. Michael steps into the room with his gun drawn. He quickly notices that the walls are a baby blue color. This is unusual but isn't going to stop Michael from looking for his cousin. Moxxie enters the room and looks to her left. Her eyes widen when she looks at what's in the corner of the room. Moxxie steps forward and walks toward what she sees. Michael notices this and looks over her shoulder to see what she's looking at. Michael is shocked to see a crib with a sleeping baby in it. Michael slowly realizes what just happened. He tried to go into the baby’s room, and the father attacked him, defending his baby. Michael walks over to the crib in shock. He needs to make sure that what he's seeing is really there. Unfortunately for him, the baby is real. Michael starts to cry to himself, but quickly puts his hands over his eyes and wipes the tears away. Moxxie also looks shocked and turns to face Michael. She notices that he is emotional and quickly understands why. Michael looks at Moxxie. The guilt on his face is extremely apparent.

  “I… I didn't know… I swear.” Michael cries.

  Moxxie feels bad for Michael, but also for the baby. There is a warzone outside, and this baby’s father was just killed. Moxxie looks back at the baby and sees that it’s still asleep. She has no idea how any baby can sleep through all the gunshots and explosions coming from outside. She looks at the baby and sees that it’s wearing a blue shirt. She also notices that the walls are blue. The baby looks like it is only a couple of months old.

  “I think it’s a boy.” Moxxie says.

  Michael does not respond. He just stands behind Moxxie in shock and continues to wipe the tears away from his eyes. Moxxie hesitates, but ultimately reaches down and pulls the baby out of the crib. She holds the baby properly and holds his head near her chest. Michael looks confused. He has no idea why she's taking the baby out of the crib.