Omega Virus (Book 1): Surviving the Horror

by Mendonca, D. Manuel

  “Did you get it?” she asks full of tears.

  “Yeah,” I reply showing her the small piece of metal, “now why don’t we wrap you up.”

  She nods in agreement. I pull out whatever gauze I can find in the bag and place it on top of the gash. I have her hold it tightly as I search frantically for something to wrap around her. There is nothing in Kennedy’s bag that will do me any good. I start digging through Connor’s bag hoping that he might have something. I continue to dig until I find a roll of packing tape at the bottom of his bag.

  “What are you going to do with that?” she asks, a nervous look on her face.

  “I have to wrap the dressing so that it doesn’t get infected,” I reply, “unless you have another idea.”

  She sighs before giving in. I start to unwrap the tape, gently applying it around Natalie’s stomach. I go around one more time to make sure nothing gets through.

  “There, good as new,” I smile at her.

  “Yeah, just like the day I was born,” she laughs before cringing in pain. “What are we going to do now?”

  “I don’t know, but I need to find us shelter, fast,” I reply.

  “No, I meant about that,” she says pointing behind me.

  I slowly turn my head not wanting to deal with anything else, only to find half a dozen Zombies coming my way.

  “Son of a bitch,” I say exasperated.

  I pull out the guns in both Kennedy and Connor’s bags before rushing back inside the van for my sword. I swing my sword over my back and check each magazine, both full. I run back to my friends and stand in front of them, both guns cocked as I wait for the Zombies to engage us. The first Zombie swipes at me, its mouth wide open, saliva dripping from its mouth. I unload two bullets through its mouth. It staggers backward a few steps before regaining its balance. It starts back at me, more enraged then before.

  “On your left!” Natalie calls out.

  I turn sharply to my left just in time to see another Zombie coming at me. I shoot another bullet, hitting this one directly in the forehead. I press my boot down on the felled Zombie’s neck keeping him on the ground as I pocket one of the guns and reach for the handle of my sword. I shoot the first Zombie in the chest, again backing it up. I remove my foot before swiping downward, removing the head from the second Zombie. I look around and find myself cornered by the remaining five Zombies, one making his way towards Matthew’s body. I shoot the one working its way toward Matthew, knocking it to the ground. I continue to unload on the rest of the Zombies until the gun is out of bullets. I toss the empty gun backward and start swiping my blade back and forth. I manage to decapitate one more Zombie before my right arm is grabbed by a Zombie who digs its teeth deep into my arm. I stab my blade through the beast’s face, peeling it off my arm. My sword still stuck in its head as it starts coming at me again. I look down momentarily reaching for the second gun and blood flowing from the teeth marks but adrenaline is pumping that allows me to block out the pain.

  “Natalie?” I call back.

  “Yeah?” she says slightly drugged.

  “I’m sorry, but I think we are going to die,” I say waving the gun randomly back and forth unsure of who to attack first.

  Smashing sounds catch my attention as fire starts burning. I look up and see a bottle overhead, fire trailing behind it until another smashing sound is heard releasing another rush of fire on the ground. A grunting sound can be heard before a third burst of fire is seen, this one connecting with a Zombie. The Zombie squeals as the fire consumes the entirety of the Zombie. The rest of the pack back away from the fire growling as they do.

  “Don’t go away, I have enough for you all,” a man calls out beside me. He is dress in brown pants that are stuffed into his black army boots, a white tank top is noticeable under his camouflage jacket. He has another bottle in his hand half full with a brown liquid, a rag hanging out from the top. He has a sheath strapped to his waist and shotgun on his back. He lights the rag and I take a step back as a smile grows on his face. He tosses the flaming bottle connecting with another Zombie, sending it bursting in flames. He then pulls the shotgun off his back and struts over toward the remaining three Zombies, cocking his shotgun as he walks. He points his gun at the closest Zombie and pulls the trigger sending the shell scattering out of the barrel. The Zombie’s head explodes as the man pulls the shotgun back and cocks it again. Another Zombie heads his way hissing as he points the shotgun at the approaching Zombie, the barrel slides into the creature’s mouth as the man smiles. “Good-bye,” he taunts before pulling the trigger again blasting the head completely off the undead creature. He slides the shotgun back over his shoulders and onto his back. He then reaches down for the handle at his hip and pulls out a curved bladed machete. He tosses it sideways like a boomerang, the curved blade slicing through the last Zombie’s head.

  “Alright, that was freaking awesome,” Natalie says her voice slurred from the pain medicine.

  I look back at Natalie who keeps falling in and out of sleep, “my friend is right, that was pretty intense,” I say to the man as he gathers his weapon from the ground.

  “Thanks. I’ve killed so many of these things I’ve started to make a game of it,” he laughs walking over to me, “The name’s Mason, Lieutenant Mason Daily.”

  “Nice to meet you Lieutenant,” I say shaking his hand, “I don’t suppose you have any medical training? My friends are hurt.”

  “Me? No, I prefer to cause trauma, not heal it. But Dr. Fairfield does, that’s why he sent me here to help you,” he says.

  “Wait, who is Dr. Fairfield? And how did he know we needed help?” I ask.

  Mason points to a surveillance camera pointing toward the van, “Those cameras are placed all over the city. The doctor hacked into the system and has been keeping an eye on everything.”

  “What about other survivors?” I ask.

  “No, it’s just me and Dr. Fairfield,” Mason answers as a soft rumble is heard above us, “We should hurry up, a storm is coming.”

  “But how are we going to carry them all?” I ask.

  “Who said anything about carry?” Mason asks with a smirk before walking back the way he came. I hear a loud noise that sounds like ‘la cucaracha’ coming from where Mason went. A few seconds later I hear the rev of an engine as Mason pulls up in an El Camino. The El Camino is black with bright orange and red flames along the side. He revs the engine a few more times before getting out. “Pretty sweet huh?”

  “Isn’t it a bit much?” I ask.

  “I like it,” Natalie says with a thumbs up.

  “Hey, if I’m going out during the apocalypse, I’m going to do it in style,” He replies with a smile.

  “Are we all going to fit?” I ask.

  “It will be a tight squeeze, but I believe so. You and the other one can ride up front with me. The others will have to manage in the back,” he answers.

  I don’t know how we manage to do it but somehow we manage to fit all eight of us into the El Camino with little problem. Mason is the last of us to jam himself in, just as the rain starts to fall. He revs the engine a few times before peeling out. He flies through the city wildly, taking sharp turns and aiming for dead bodies in the road. I can feel the thumps under the tires each time.

  “Don’t you think you slow down a bit? I mean what if the others fall out?” I question with my hands wrapped tightly around the safety bar.

  “Nah its fine,” He replies, “I made sure to strap them in before we left.”

  He speeds around another corner, coming to a long stretch of road that leads to the Lincoln monument. He picks up speed as he drives straight for the side wall.

  “Um Mason?” I start, fidgeting in my seat, “Wall. WALL! WALL!!” I scream, my eyes closed as I brace for impact.

  I hear Mason laugh and I open my eyes slightly and watch him push a button on the dash. An opening in the side of the monument opens up just big enough for Mason to drive through it. Lights line the inside of the t
unnel, but there is nothing to see with the exception of cement. He drives a few moments longer before slamming on the brakes.

  I jump out of the passenger side door, my heart still beating fast as I walk around the front of the vehicle, reaching the driver’s side just as Mason gets out. “Alright I want a straight answer, who the hell are you? Batman?”

  “No, I’m just a soldier. At least I was. There are many of these secret bunkers hidden all over this country,” he starts.

  “I know that. We found one in New York a while ago that had about two hundred survivors in it.

  “Really? That many. Are they still there? How is there food situation?” he asks visually concerned.

  “They aren’t there anymore. Matter of fact the whole bunker is gone. Emmanuel, the leader of that bunker blew it up when we were forced to evacuate,” I answered.

  “What forced you to evacuate a six billion dollar government secret bunker? There should have been enough supplies to last them at ten years,” Mason asks.

  “Food and water became scarce, they squandered it, eventually having to send teams out in search of supplies. A massive horde surrounded the bunker leaving us little choice but to evacuate,” I respond.

  “How many made it out alive?” he asks.

  “Out of the two hundred? Six,” I answer feeling sick as I answer, “Of those only the priest, the little girl, and one in the front seat are still alive. That we know of. I got knocked out as we started fleeing the city.”

  “Either way, I’m glad you survived,” a voice calls out from the shadows. A figure steps out of the darkness, revealing himself in the light. He looks older than the rest of us, somewhere in his early fifties. He has brown hair with graying patches, small glasses sit on the bridge of his nose and a three day beard graces his chin. He has on a white lab coat over black slacks and a blue button down shirt. His fingers fidget at his side before he clasps his hands together.

  “And who are you?” I ask suspicious.

  “I’m sorry, allow me to introduce myself, my name is Doctor Jeremy Fairfield. Now what do you say we unload your friends and I have a look at them?” he responds.

  “How do I know I can trust you?” I ask softly.

  “You don’t,” he replies, “but how long do you think your friends can survive without my help?” he extends his hand to me.

  I stare at him, my mind racing as I decide what the best choice is. I sigh before giving in to him, “alright, heal my friends. Can you start with the one still in the front seat? I had to remove a piece of metal from her stomach.”

  “Will do,” Doctor Fairfield says with a smile.

  Mason rolls over a gurney before helping me lift Natalie out of the front seat. Doctor Fairfield and Mason roll her into an examining room as I wait patiently outside the room for Mason to come back out some time later with another gurney for the next of my friends. We load Fanny onto the next gurney. It continues one by one, Matthew, Kennedy, Penelope, and Connor each get rolled into the examining room before Doctor Fairfield comes back out and sits down beside me a pad of paper in his hands.

  “Thank you for being so patient,” he chuckles after the word patient, “I’ve finished examining your friends. The first one I examined…”

  “Natalie,” I say as he struggles to remember her name.

  “Yes Natalie. She had some minor cuts and bruises along her back and chest, along with a deep gash in her lower abdomen. I didn’t find any remnants of metal left inside. You did well, in both retrieving it and covering the wound,” he says patting my hands, “but I removed your dressing and stitched her up. I also gave her a shot of antibiotics to keep it from becoming infected.”

  “And the others?” I ask impatiently.

  He flips though his notepad, “the smaller male, he woke up during the examination. He became irritable so I gave him a shot of valium to calm him down, he’s resting now. Other than that he seems fine. The bigger male on the other hand looks as if he hit his head rather hard, there was a small abrasion in the back of his head. We managed to patch it back up without having to shave his head, but I’m going to have to keep an eye on him tomorrow. The young girl has a cracked sternum, nothing to serious, but she is going to be in some pain for a while. The two other girls I have Mason watching, they both have major concussions.” His eyes drop to the floor.

  “What does that mean?” I ask getting his attention back.

  “Quite simply they have head trauma and I don’t know when, or if they will wake up,” he says softly.

  “Can I see them?” I ask.

  “Tomorrow would be better. I can have Mason show you to your room. We have clean running water if you want to take a shower. We have some clothes in the supply closet that might fit you if you want to check,” he replies.

  “What about weapons?” I ask.

  “Oh don’t worry, we have plenty of those,” Mason says from the doorway.

  “What happened to your weapons?” Doctor Fairfield asked.

  “There wasn’t enough room in the El Camino for our bags. The only other thing I managed to take with me is my sword,” I answer.

  “Then it’s settled, Mason, take our new friend here to the supply closet for some clothes, the armory for a weapon and then show him to a room for the night,” Doctor Fairfield says with a smile before getting up and walking back into the examination room.

  “Do you always take orders from him like that?” I ask after the doctor leaves.

  “I’m a soldier, I do better when I have orders to follow,” Mason smirks.

  “Sounds familiar,” I whisper to myself.

  Mason extends his arm, gesturing me to follow him. I stare at the door to the examination room before letting out an exasperated breathe and following Mason reluctantly. He takes me down a hall rambling as we walk. I tune him out, not meaning to be rude but my thoughts were focused on my friends. I almost walk into him when he stops in front of a door. He opens it and flips on the light switch revealing clothes lined along each of the walls with several racks placed in the center, each one stuffed full of clothes.

  “This is insane,” I say as I step into the room.

  “Impressive right?” Mason says with a massive grin on his face, “Now men’s shoes and under garments are along the right wall, followed by pants, shirts, and then jackets.”

  “Why would you need jackets in a heated environment?” I ask.

  “You know what, I asked that very same question the first time I saw this room too. Know what Doctor Fairfield said to me?” Mason answers.

  “No, what?” I ask.

  “He said ‘don’t ask’,” Mason answers with another chuckle.

  I wander around the room searching for clothes in my size. I pick through each rack, unimpressed with the selection of clothing. Most of the items are tailored for scientist and politicians, slacks and button down shirts. I give in eventually, taking a pair of boots, black slacks, and a red polo shirt. Curiosity gets the best of me before I leave and I thumb through the jackets. I pull out a long black jacket and try it on. It fits perfectly, the bottom flowing near my calves.

  “That looks bad ass on you,” Mason says.

  “It feels good too,” I say, “may I?”

  “Take it,” Mason nods.

  We leave the supply room and he takes me further down the hall to another door at the end of the hallway. He presses his thumb down on a scanner and I watch as a red light analyzes his thumb print.

  “Access granted,” a computer voice says, “Welcome Lieutenant Mason Daily.”

  I can hear the locks turning from inside the walls before the door cracks open. Mason pushes the door open the rest of the way, ceiling lights come on as we walk into the room revealing a mass assortment of weapons.

  “Well I can see where most of the budget went,” I say amazed.

  “This is where I spend most of my time,” Mason says patting me on the back.

  “I can see why,” I say picking up on of the handguns closest to me, “this
feels incredible.”

  “It should, most of these guns never even made it out of research and development,” Mason says.

  “That’s the government for you, always keeping the best stuff for themselves,” I retort.

  “Yeah, well now it’s ours,” He says nudging me with his elbow, “so which one do you want?”

  “So many to choose from,” I say looking around at everything, “but I think I’ll stick with this one.” I say patting the gun still in my hand.

  “That’s a good choice. Now how about I show you to the showers, and your room?” Mason says.

  I nod, I can’t wait to take a shower I feel so grimy. I place the gun in the pocket of my new jacket as Mason walks me out of the armory and scans his thumb again.

  “Armory door locked and secure,” the mechanical voice says again after the door swings shut and the locks grinding closed.

  Mason walks me back down the sterile hallway, past the supply closet and down another corridor. We continue on down this new corridor until he stops me in front of another door.

  “This will be your room while you are here. Your friends will be assigned rooms later after they recover. My room is down this corridor, third door on the left. Doctor Fairfield’s is across from mine, but he spends most of his time in his lab. The shower is all the way at the end, think you can manage?” Mason asks.

  “I think so,” I answer.

  “Good, I’m going to head back to the Doctor now to see if he needs any help. You should probably rest after your shower, it’s been a busy day,” Mason recommends.

  “Thank you,” I mutter, “for everything today.”

  “No need to thank me. I’m just a soldier who wants to save as many lives as possible,” Mason smiles.

  I watch him walk down the hall and turn back toward the examination room. I open the door to my room, it seems pretty plain after seeing the other rooms. The room is all white, looking something like a hospital room, it even smells sterile. I place my sword and jacket on the neatly made bed and head down the hall toward the shower with my new clothes firmly in my hands.