The Carnage Trilogy (Book 1): The Carnage [Unbending, Unyielding, Unforgiving]

by Birch, Matthew

  "Yeah, it's all a great time until you fucking die!" I spit at him, disbelief in my expression as to how he could ever get a kick out of this. People are dying, the resort up here has to go to shit and no one knows why. Heck, those campers we bumped into were only so useful until they got torn into pieces...

  I-

  I don't think I can do this.

  Marcus heaves himself up, already back on his feet. His eyes focused on the direction we came from. The trail we left behind through the ruined bushes lays out an easy path to follow. Hopefully, the mad bastards aren't smart enough to see it. They don't seem too smart. I mean, they do just walk straight into the path of every bullet that comes their way. Nor do they go down when shot either...

  "Let's get going mate" Marcus mumbles in a low tone, already turning and on his way through a path we do not know. His adrenaline has evaporated all at once, revealing a tense, frightened fool underneath. Holding up my hand, I give the gesture that I need another a minute. I can tell he needs to rest too. We can't exhaust ourselves otherwise we become nothing more than another easy target. My sign for more rest time is ignored. In spite of my peaceful asking, I retreat to plan B. Plan B entails a simple device known as, GUILT. I clasp my hands together in a prayer-like fashion and hope to appeal to his good side. Marcus just narrows his eyes at me, crosses his arms and gives me the almighty death stare. He turns, rummaging his way through another bush and disappearing into the wild.

  "Fuck you..." I mutter under my breath. Gasping one last time, I muster all my courage into standing up. It's not just feeling fatigued from the sprint. It's the fact that I have just watched all those people die...

  My legs feel like jelly for a whole other reason. My heart won't stop racing. My head spins. Thoughts twirling around me like a tornado. Images flash through my mind, only making things worse. I can't will them away.

  I'm going to die, aren't I?

  "Ed!" A hushed voice calls out, breaking me from my self-torment. Taking a breath, I push my way through the vegetation; following the sound of his voice until I find him waiting for me. He's clearly not impressed when I find him. A frown on his grumpy face. Avoiding his stare, I focus on what's ahead of us. I haven't got the brain capacity right now to deal with a lecture from him how 'We need to keep moving or else we die' I can imagine him saying. All I think is, no, if we keep moving to the point we can't move, we'll be dead anyway. We move through the forest as one, staying hidden, keeping undetected from literally anything that could give us away or find us. Then, one last thought crosses my mind.

  Marcus could be so much further without me to be fair. I am dragging him down...

  Marcus

  A clearing comes into view. An unused campsite sits in the distance; undisturbed from the chaos. Stopping at the last tree before the clearing, I take a moment to survey the area. Peeking around the tree so I could gather information is a good place to start. Behind me, Ed hisses, whispering something under his breath. Looking back, I see that Ed, while moving his leg forward, got his jeans caught on a loose, low hanging branch. The fool pulled it away, only for it to swing back and whip his leg. A small gasp of pain escaped his lips. Already giving off more sound then we can bargain for. Putting his hands over his mouth, his dark blue eyes look at me awkwardly. I give him a serious glare. I hate to be so harsh on him but we really can't deal with any of those bastards right now. I know Ed's jumpy about this. I can see it on his face. Dudes scared shitless. Me? I'm terrified, to be honest. How could I feel anything else? All I want to do is sit down and think so I can get just enough time for me to contemplate what the hell’s going on. Just enough time for me to... Figure out a way to cope. Instead, we have no time. Danger could be anywhere and I am not a coward no matter how scared I am. We need to keep moving, no matter what.

  Once I feel the area is clear, I move out. Leaving my crouched position and entering the empty campsite. Nothing else is here other than a single firepit and a built-in BBQ. Out of the corner of my eye, I see the man baby rubbing his leg with a passion. Wow. He got whipped by a little stick and he's acting like he's been shot in the leg. "Stop rubbing your fucking leg for fuck sake" I don't even need to look at him to know that he's flipping me off.

  A stick cracks. Bushes rumble. My ears perk up. Following the sound, I find a lone human-

  It's not human anymore.

  Standing there in plain sight, it watches us lazily. Several bullet holes in its torso and a knife through its knee. Judging by its gory look, and the mouth full of grub, it's just bagged a recent kill. Most likely a hunter from the damage dealt. Whoever it was must've just kept shooting and shooting until forced to use melee to survive. Of course, that wasn't enough to halt the creature. So, in the end, the creature killed the hunter into nothing...

  Sighing, I reach into my back pocket. Hanging on my belt is a leather holder for a machete my father brought me. I stop, my hand twitching. Fingers start to jump slightly, the tips of my nails dancing around the hilt of the blade. It was a special gift from my father before I left for this vacation. He brought it for me in the hopes that I would go fishing. He thought I could make use of the knife when gutting every fish I catch.

  See, I hate fishing. I hate fish. But I appreciate the sentiment... The memories of my dad only push me to want to survive even more. I promise I'll get home eventually Dad. I will.

  "Marcus" Ed whispers; frozen in place behind me. Edging tediously slow towards us, the creature makes its move, limping weakly in our direction, its injuries hindering its attack. My hand wraps around the blade. I close my eyes.

  Do I really have what it takes right now?

  Opening my eyes, I take another look at what was once another human. Someone who lived and breathed as I once did. Someone who probably had a family and plenty of friends...

  I release the blade. My mind made up.

  I can't. I'm sorry.

  "It's weak. Let's go" I say sharply, jumping to the point that we can escape without any problems when the reality is, I don't think I have what it takes to kill it. I know it's not human. There's nothing human left about it. But it's still the appearance of what was another person.

  Picking the direction opposite the creature, I make up my mind. I won't be killing today. I know deep down I may not get a choice next time. Ed steps beside me, watching me intently and waiting for a plan for our next move. "We go the other direction. If it came from that way, I can only bet there is more" I explain, already on my way through the forest again. Ed jogs lightly to keep up with me. He says nothing. Instead, he is choosing to keep to himself. Within what could barely be half an hour. The chirpy asshole has become a walking statue of dead emotions. His face ridden with fear. I think we were taking our security for granted. Now here we are, running for our lives.

  Something whistles in the distance. It's far. I'm not stupid though, that's a gunshot. "What do we do?" Ed asks, looking at me for answers. Someone out there is currently fighting for their life. From the direction it came, I can only guess it's from one of the various campsites. I don't know the grounds here too well, so I can only guess that's what it is.

  "Marcus?" Ed pries at me. I can tell he's worried. Is it for whoever is out there, or his personal safety? I could make a bet on which ones the right answer and always win. Sad truth really that he’d be more concerned for himself than others.

  Sighing, I look at him wearily. "I don't know. We go there and help whoever it is or we keep on our path and you know, maybe we don’t die..." I put it simply. There are two ways of going about this. We either go, or we don't.

  Then again, whoever it is could help us just as much as we could help them...

  My heart feels like its being wrapped up in a vine and strangled. My gut tells me it's a bad idea. My brain can't make up its mind, as if no matter what logic I use, I'm wrong. It's the heart that tells me what I need to do. I couldn't leave someone out here to die. Not after the last group, we bumped into...

  But I’d rather not talk or think
about that one if that is okay.

  BANG

  Another gunshot, louder, and closer. I feel a wave of forced confidence wash over me. "Who is it?" Ed asks dumbly. "We're going to find out"

  Chapter 3 - Patrick Ross

  Ed

  I shove my way through bushes, branches, vines and the occasional thorn that slices my skin ever so delicately. Red rashes develop in little patches around my exposed ankle, poison ivy keeps up the attack, leaving my skin raw with a stinging sensation. Marcus is ahead of me, scouting out the path despite the fact that I still end up hurting myself somehow. Yelling, Marcus tells me, “We’re almost there!” As if it wasn't obvious enough with the gunshots thundering through the cloudy sky.

  Seconds later, the gunshots cease. Marcus slows down, inevitably making me bump into him when I can't pull my own brakes quick enough. He grunts at the impact but sucks it up. Not budging from his spot. Before I can mouth an apology, the weight of the situation dawns me as I already begin to fear the worst. The gunshots have come to an end.

  "We're here..." Marcus says cautiously, a slight jump in his voice as he scrambles through one last obstacle, over a fallen tree and-

  We find what we were looking for; a young woman. She has her black hair tied up, forming a lengthy ponytail. No makeup, because why the fuck would you be wearing makeup in a place like this? She sports a bumble bee styled jacket. A mix of yellow and black gives her a unique look. To finish it off: black tights and hiking boots. She wields a professional looking hand axe, her fingerless gloved hands wrapped around it tightly. She looks fierce, a look of determination and anger in her eyes. Her campsite is a mess, the invasion of the creatures having reduced it to nothing. Whoever she is, she put up a good fight. Leaving a mass of mad people around her on the ground we walk on. Although, I don't think that was all her though. Fresh bodies also litter the site... Friends, family? I don't know...

  Not far from here, we see why the gunshots ceased to exist. Her rifle lies out of her reach.

  "Ed, you grab the rifle, I am going in!" is all Marcus says before taking a running start, leaping and sliding down a dirt hill into the clearing. What's gotten into him? He's already dashing forward, hoping to intervene with her fate. If he couldn't do it before, why does he think he can do it now? Is it guilt from doing nothing to protect the family we met? It was only a short and sweet encounter, but now, it's nothing more than a memory. Also one I don’t want to think or talk about.

  Marcus turns, looking back at me and screaming my name. A-am I actually having to shake so badly, especially now of all times?! What do I do? I don't know-

  Marcus only gets so far before being cut off, more of the mad people stepping in his way.

  The woman’s struggle becomes real when she finds herself being slowly surrounded.

  "DO SOMETHING!" Marcus screams, in the process, we catch her attention as well.

  I don't know what to-

  "THE GUN ED, GET THE GUN!"

  I need to grab the gun! Adrenaline hits! Running down the hill, sweating, heart racing. I grab the rifle! Taking a deep breath, I steady myself. Taking aim, I prepare myself. Taking my index finger, I wrap it around the trigger.

  And-

  I can't will myself to pull the trigger. It still looks so human...

  Marcus looks to me for help, his eyes wide with dismay. Regretting every decision he made to come this far because he had placed his trust in me during the heat of the moment. Marcus quickly finds himself being cornered, just like her. His eyes gaping widely as a blood-lusting crazy madman makes him the next target.

  Like a coward, I stand here. Knawing my lip and trying my best to calm my nerves.

  "FOR FUCK SAKE" The woman shrieks, (I can only guess she was counting on me too) barrelling her way through the horde towards Marcus and swinging the hand axe effortlessly, perfectly cutting through the neck of the madman who had chosen Marcus as it's next meal instead of her. Though, she did not cut deep enough to take the head off, but decent enough of a swing to kill it. She huffs, ripping the hand axe backwards before turning to the petrified Marcus, his machete shaking in his hand. He's in the same position as me, scared.

  Just like with the family. Just like with that lone creature. Just like now.

  Then it's all in the heat of the moment again. I want to call out. No words come to me though. Mind stunned and gut empty. There is nothing I can do as one madman grabs onto her tightly, its bloody hand wrapping around her upper arm like a vice. Baring his teeth, he goes straight for the nearest body part he can dig into. She yelps, taken by surprise and left defenceless. All in the same second, Marcus snaps. Driving the machete forward as precisely as possible and cutting the mad person off half-way. A sharp chunk of polished steel cuts right through its mouth, severing the spinal cords in the process. I take a single step forward. Lowering the rifle and watching helplessly as the woman grabs Marcus's arm and tugs him away from the incoming horde. At the last moment, they escape through a gap in the circling formation and make a break for it towards me.

  I didn't shoot when I should have done. A dreadful shame creeps its way over my heart.

  Behind the two lucky survivors are the mad people who continue on their path. They're slower, fresher. Which makes them an easy target, right? I can still redeem myself. Shaking again now, I take aim at one of the mad people and-

  "Oh, no you fucking don't!" the woman roughly grabs the rifle out my hands. "That's my rifle kid!" Her words pierce deep. A fury is in her eyes. "I was gonna use it to shoot them!" I shout back, immediately jumping to defend myself but I know for a fact it is already too late...

  "I bet you don't even know how to use it!" she's pissed. I hesitate; she's kinda right on that one.

  "Look I know what to do! You take aim, fire. Boom, they are dead!" Why do I continue to fight? I didn't shoot. I could have done something and I didn't. I am weak. "Shut the fuck up, you didn't do nothin'!" she seethes through slightly yellow teeth.

  Marcus finally speaks up, having regained his senses after his first kill. The blood stains his machete which he keeps firmly in his hand. "Will you two shut the fuck up?" he's eerily calm out of nowhere.

  "Oh my, I'm so sorry. I should just let this fucking idiot keep the rifle should I?" The woman gets brash, acting like she's done something wrong to add to her sarcasm. Marcus holds up a hand, ready to argue except his tongue stays in place. I watch him as he retreats back into himself. He knows she is right. I feel terrible. Their life's rested in my hands...

  All of our attention is caught by the groaning horde. The woman grits her teeth, dropping the hand axe before rushing over to one of the various tattered tents. Marcus follows after her and soon enough, so do I. We move around the edge of the campsite, making some distance between us and certain death. Having caught up, we see the young woman place her boot over the chest of another mad person. Leaning over and wrapping her hands around a cool looking hatchet with a yellow hilt. I notice someone's initials are carved into the side. Letters being: M.V

  She tears the hatchet free in one fatal pull. The woman looks at us, spinning the hatchet around before clipping it on her belt. "We should probably go..." She gives a nervous glance at the incoming horde and nods in the direction we should go. Without protest, we follow her words. Running in that direction without end, the woman staying in pace with us.

  "Do you have any idea what's going on?" Marcus questions as we run. She just raises an eyebrow at him, giving him a quick look of, 'You can't be fucking serious' before giving her attention back to the forest. Marcus doesn't continue, I can tell he just feels stupid from the look on his face. His head is probably as much of a mess as mine right now. Soon enough, we find the country path again and we all come to a stop. The woman takes a moment to catch her breath.