Mankind

by Stalletti, Matthew

  “Don’t be sorry for that. I know it can be hard to lose someone you love… it will never be easy.”

  Moxxie hesitates for a moment, “I don’t know if I actually loved him though… I don’t even know what love feels like… Do you?” Moxxie asks.

  “Umm… I mean, I loved my parents. I love my family.”

  “But what about other people… like girlfriends? Did you ever have a girlfriend?”

  “No? No… not really. I guess that kind of answers your question about love, right” Michael chuckles awkwardly.

  Moxxie smiles and looks down at the ground, “Yeah… I guess.”

  “Anyway… I just wanted to tell you that I have to go out for a little bit.” Michael says.

  “Hmm?” Moxxie looks confused, “I thought we were staying here.”

  “I know, but Sydney wants to look around.” Michael explains.

  “She’s not well. Why is she going out there?’

  “I don't know. She’ll go on her own either way, so I’m just gonna keep her safe.” Michael says.

  “Oh, well let me come with you then.”

  “No… you need to be here just in case something happens. I don’t want you out there anymore. It’s not safe.” Michael explains.

  “Oh… now it’s up to you what I’m doing around here?” Moxxie laughs.

  Moxxie smiles and looks at Michael. She realizes that he cares about her the same way she cares about him. Michael looks back at her, calm and happy. Moxxie leans in and kisses Michael on the lips. Moxxie leans back and laughs. Michael can't help but laugh as well. They both feel happy standing face to face with one another.

  Suddenly, Michael hears the doors to the store open up. Sydney comes walking outside, and quickly sees Michael standing close to Moxxie. She looks confused but gets an idea of what's going on between the two of them. Michael looks back at Moxxie.

  “I gotta go.”

  “Be careful, Michael.” Moxxie says.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”

  Michael turns and walks toward his sister. He never agreed to going with her, but she knows deep down that her brother wouldn't let her go alone. Michael meets up with his sister and the two walk down the parking lot toward the woods. Moxxie watches Michael leave, and smiles for a short moment. Linda walks over to her daughter holding the infant that they brought back last night. She had been secretly watching her and Michael as they spoke. She doesn't look very happy, and Moxxie notices this. Linda stops and stares at her daughter. Moxxie feels anxious.

  “I wouldn't get comfortable with these people if I were you.” Linda says.

  “What?”

  “We’re not going to Ottawa with these killers. You heard them last night… they aren't civil… they kill people and justify it to themselves.” Linda explains.

  Moxxie hesitates, “I killed someone yesterday too, Mom.”

  Linda’s eyes widen as she hears this. She never expected her daughter to stoop down to the levels of these kids. She begins to see how they have influenced her, and how she is turning into a monster, just like them.

  “Look at you, Moxxie! A few days ago, you were innocent, now look at you!” Linda shouts.

  “A few days ago, … I was weak. Do you know what those assholes out there tried to do to me!? Do you?! I’m better than those sick bastards. We aren't bad people, okay? We do what we need to do.”

  Linda shakes her head in disbelief, “You sound just like him. We can't stay here anymore. Don’t argue with me… it’s not up to you. We’ve had to do this kind of thing before, remember? We will make it on our own!” Linda says.

  Moxxie feels emotional after having to recollect the events of last night. She fights to hold back her tears, but her Mother doesn't care. Moxxie looks at her and accepts defeat. She was really starting to feel close to this new group of people. Moxxie stares off into the distance as she realizes what comes next.

  *****

  Michael and Sydney walk through the woods with pistols in their hands. They know that they have been in this area for a while, so they shouldn't expect too much trouble from any infected. Michael tries to stay near his sister just in case she feels like she can't walk any further. He knows that coming out here was a bad idea, but he can’t stop his sister from doing what she wants. As they walk, Sydney looks at her brother thinking about him and Moxxie.

  “So… you and Moxxie?”

  “Oh, yeah.” Michael chuckles awkwardly, “I don't know actually. It kind of all happened so quick, and I think she just misses her boyfriend.” Michael says.

  “I don’t know about that, Michael. I saw the way you guys were looking at each other.”

  Michael hesitates, “But it hasn't even been that long since he died. It’s just feels weird to me.” Michael explains.

  “Well, some people cope differently with loss. Or maybe it’s just that she really likes you.” Sydney says.

  “Maybe… I guess.”

  The two continue to walk through the woods. Michael thinks about what Sydney just told him. He doesn't know why he tells himself that she doesn't really like him. Clearly, she does, and Michael decides in his head that he is going to talk to Moxxie about it once he gets back. Sydney thinks about her family for a moment, and whether they are doing what’s best for them. She isn’t confident with Matthew’s plans, but she trusts him as her cousin.

  “Hey, about last night… do you agree with what Matthew said?” Sydney asks.

  “Yeah, I guess. Part of me doesn't want too, but it’s how things are now.”

  “You don’t think we can survive without killing people? You don’t think we should be giving others a chance?” Sydney asks.

  “I don’t know. If you had to do it, you’d understand, maybe. I trust Matthew… he knows a way that we can have a peaceful life again.” Michael says.

  “I trust him too, but who are we if we just go around killing everyone we meet?”

  “We won't do that. But you have to understand… everyone who is still alive is still alive for a reason. We’ve all had to do bad things. Just yesterday… I killed a man. I thought it was justified, but I soon learned that the baby we found was his… I felt the guilt eating away at me all day… but when Matthew spoke to us, it all made sense. I don’t like what this world is, but we have to listen to him… he knows what’s best for us.” Michael explains, “Once we get to the military base, we can start over… we can let go of all of this.”

  Sydney looks at her brother. She doesn't know how to feel about him being the one who killed the baby’s father. She listened to everything he had to say, but she doesn't want that to be what their lives are. She doesn't want to be someone who has to shoot others just to stay safe. She believes that they can be peaceful and not have to hurt those around them, but she doesn't know how to say it. She knows that if she does, no one will agree with her. They have come too far to change. They have to be safe and put themselves before others.

  They continue to walk through the woods. They both think about their future, and their journey to come. They want to be safe, but they also don't want to devolve into animals like the people that they have come across. Michael knows that he must keep his family safe, but he doesn't know the limits of how far he is willing to go to do that. Both Michael and Sydney feel closer after this conversation.

  As they walk, Sydney suddenly notices something up ahead. Just a few dozen feet away is an infected hanging from a tree. Underneath the infected is 5 more infected. Sydney sees the hanging body and feels sympathetic; she feels that it’s wrong for someone to suffer like that, even after death. Michael looks at the hanging body and instantly thinks about the woman he found in the woods, and her dead son. Michael thinks about them, and how they wanted to die. Both the woman and the son wanted to die. It starts to make sense to him now; if he wants to live, he must be what no one else wants to be. They couldn't handle this world, so they took the easy way out. Most of humanity is gone as well, because they wanted to be gone, or because they wer
e too weak to stay. Everyone who is still alive are all the same; they are all monsters.

  Sydney walks up to the group of infected underneath the hanging body and pulls out her machete. Michael is confused by this but realizes that she wants to kill them. They are too close to speak and interject without luring the infected over, so he has no choice but to help his sister. Michael pulls out his knife and walks around to try and separate the small group of infected. Michael whistles and attracts some of the infected toward him. Three of the five begin to walk toward Michael, ready to tear him apart. Michael walks backward and tries to get far away so Sydney can deal with the other two.

  Sydney walks up behind the infected sneakily, but her loud footsteps attract their attention. The two infected turn around and walk toward Sydney. She backs up and gets ready to swing her machete. Sydney slashes at the first infected, and lodges the machete in its skull. She didn't swing hard enough, and the machete did not penetrate the brain. The infected is still alive with the machete stuck in its head. Sydney panics and let's go of the machete. She tries to run backward and make some more distance, but quickly feels a sharp pain in her hip. Sydney knows that she just pushed herself to hard, and probably opened the wound on her hip up. Sydney screams in pain and falls on her back. The infected with the machete approaches and lunges down at Sydney. Sydney grabs the infected by the collar, preventing it from biting her. Sydney feels weak and tired. She looks over its shoulder and sees the second infected coming near. She must act quick if she doesn't want to die.

  Michael lunges his knife into the first infected, and then walks over to the second one. Michael stabs the infected through its eye, killing it. Michael gets ready to pull the knife out of the dead body, but quickly hears his sister scream. Michael panics and quickly pulls the knife out from its head. He rushes toward the last infected and stabs it from the side of its head. Michaels pulls the knife out and looks over toward his sister. She is laying on the ground with an infected on top of her. Another one is close and is about to lunge down at her. The second infected lunges down and gets ready to bite. Michael knows he can't stop them quick enough with his knife, so he pulls out his hand gun and shoots. Michael hits the second infected, and then the first one with the machete in its head. Michael runs over and pulls the bodies off his sister. He puts his gun away and helps her stand up. She looks scared and emotional. He knows that it must have been scary for her.

  “You okay?”

  Sydney gathers her breath, “Yeah, I’m fine.”

  Michael feels relieved to hear that. Sydney looks up at the hanging infected for a moment before pulling out her handgun. Sydney raises the gun and shoots the infected in the head. She looks at the hanging body for a moment and feels calm. She did what she wanted to do. She freed that soul from its eternal suffering.

  Sydney rips out the machete from the infecteds head on the ground, turns around and walks the way they came. As she walks, she looks down at her hip area to observe her wound. She realizes that she made a mistake venturing out into the wilderness. Michael watches his sister walk away. He looks confused.

  “Where are you going?” Michael asks.

  “I’m going home.”

  Michael doesn't understand why she wants to head back suddenly, but he's not complaining. He never wanted to be out here to begin with, so he's not going to question her. The two walk back through the woods. Sydney wipes the sweat from her forehead. Her eyes fill with tears, but she holds it back. She looks anxious and paranoid, but Michael can't tell that his sister seems off.

  *****

  Some lone infected roams on an abandoned street. It walks aimlessly, but it suddenly hears something coming from behind him. The infected turns around to look toward the sound but is too late. Matthew and Shelby zoom by the infected in their car. Matthew seems calm driving as a beginner. Shelby looks at Matthew. She doesn't trust him to be a good driver just yet, but he seems to be doing okay for her standards. Matthew continues to focus on the road, but he is thinking about so many things. Shelby wonders why he asked her to go with him on this supply run, but she doesn't want to ask.

  “We haven't gotten around to talking that much since all of this started.” Matthew says.

  “Yeah, I know. It feels like weeks have gone by since you showed up at our front door, but it’s only been a few days.”

  “It’s crazy how quickly everything goes by when you know any day could be your last.”

  Shelby hesitates, “Why did you ask me to come with you today?”

  “I thought you should. Michael and Moxxie just got back, and Sydney’s not well. Besides, it’s been a long time since it’s just been the two of us.” Matthew explains.

  “Yeah, I guess it has.” Shelby pauses, “Can I tell you something without you getting mad?”

  “Yeah, of course. What is it?”

  Shelby hesitates, “When we were waiting for you to show up at our house… I thought you were dead. I told Michael that we should stop waiting for you, and that we should move on.”

  Matthew doesn't respond for a moment, thinking about what she just told him.

  “I mean… I can’t blame you for thinking that. It did take me a month so… and to be honest, I wasn't even sure if you guys were gonna answer the door when I showed up. It felt like ages had gone by since I last saw you guys, so I had my doubts too.” Matthew pauses, “That shit ate away at me for a while. I was alone for so long… so I didn't know what to expect.”

  Shelby feels better now after opening up to Matthew. The two of them hadn't spoken to each other in a while, so It feels good for both of them to come clean.

  “Now we’re all together… and we can’t let anything get in the way of that.” Matthew says.

  Matthew continues to focus on the road while driving. Shelby looks out the window and watches as the trees pass by the car. She thinks about what he just said, and what the implications of that are. Matthew thinks about the people that he has killed. He wonders if he could have tackled each situation differently, but he ultimately doesn't regret what he did. Matthew knows that his family is his priority, and that opening up to strangers might lead to bad things. He continues to drive as they reach a hill in the road. They drive up the road and over the hill. Once they reach the top, Matthew quickly notices something down the road. Just a few yards away is a man on the road. He is alone and seems exhausted. Shelby notices the man and becomes curious. This is the first sign of life she has seen in a while. Matthew continues to drive down the road toward the man. The man hears the sound of the car and turns around. He is filled with joy and starts waving his hands. The man wants them to stop the car, but Matthew doesn’t seem to want to. As they approach him, they notice his bright blue mountain backpack. Matthew can hear him screaming, begging them to stop the car. Matthew doesn’t. He continues to drive and eventually passes the man on the road. Matthew doesn’t look back, but Shelby does. She was expecting her cousin to stop the car for him, but that's clearly not what happened. Shelby turns and looks at Matthew.

  “Why didn't you stop?”

  “We don't even know him… and we can’t keep trusting strangers that we meet. He could be dangerous for all we know.” Matthew says.

  Shelby doesn't like that Matthew ignored the man. She had hoped that they would let in others like they let in Moxxie and her own family. She doesn't want to argue or challenge her cousin, so she tries to justify what he did in her thoughts. Matthew continues to watch the road and tries not to think about that lone survivor.

  Matthew and Shelby approach a small abandoned town. There seems to be a small plaza of stores and restaurants on one side of the road, and a small elementary school on the other. Matthew decides that the plaza is their best bet to finding anything useful. Matthew proceeds down the road and turns into the plaza. Matthew looks around while driving through the large parking lots and sees a drug store at the end of the plaza. If they are lucky, there still might be some supplies waiting for them. Matthew pulls up in front of the store and
parks the car. Matthew pulls the keys out from the ignition and steps out of the vehicle. Shelby exits as well.

  Shelby walks in front of the car and glances through the windows of the store. It’s dark and seems mostly empty. This isn't going to stop them from searching, however. Matthew walks up to the store and peaks through the windows for a moment, and then looks back at his cousin.

  “We should try and make this quick. Look around for general stuff. Anything could be useful.”

  Shelby nods her head and walks up to the front doors. Matthew opens the doors to the store and enters slowly with his revolver drawn. Shelby does the same. Matthew walks off into one corner of the store and begins looking for things to take. Shelby goes off in her own direction. Matthew walks over to a shelf where band aids and other similar supplies would be kept. He crouches down and looks at the things on the shelf. All that remains are band aids for small cuts, and tubes of polysporin. None of this is really that useful right now and will probably never be. Matthew moves the items around, trying to reveal anything that could possibly be hidden. There is nothing. Frustrated, Matthew stands back up and walks away. As he does, he notices a shopping bag filled with stuff in one of the isles. Next to the shopping bag is a dead infected that looks like it was already killed. With caution, Matthew walks over to the bag and picks it up. Matthew looks inside and sees all sorts of pills and bandages. Matthew picks up one set pills and reads the labels. He sees one that is anti-inflammatory pills, and another that are antibiotics. He doesn't even need to look through the rest, because those two are good enough. Matthew realizes that these can help Sydney heal quicker, so he decides to take the bag with him.

  Shelby walks around in the store and notices a shelf where magazines were sold. She walks by the shelf and looks at the few remaining magazines. One of them catches her eye. She walks over to the magazine and picks it up. Upon inspection, she realizes that the magazine is for a video game that her and her cousins used to play together. All the memories of them playing together and having fun come back into her mind. She never thought about all those good times in a long time. Shelby begins to flip through the pages with a smile on her face. Matthew walks up behind her, holding the shopping bag with all the medication.