What Remains (Book 2): Quarantine

by Barrett, Tyler

  The new group of soldiers left the command and began their way towards the sector they were clearing. They passed a few other groups of soldiers already starting their task. Piles of bodies had formed along the sidewalks. Some bodies were unrecognizable, while others looked like ordinary people.

  Yuuto tried to keep his eyes forward and ignore the bodies, but he couldn't look away. He felt like every pair of eyes followed him as he walked by. The few infected that he could see their eyes were completely black, no trace of anything human. He felt no connection to the people, these things once had been.

  He felt no remorse as he walked by countless dead that no more than a week ago had been people. He had detached himself from it all. Yuuto followed the rest of the group until they reached their section of the of the district. He tried to pretend they were back at base moving equipment around, rather than dead bodies.

  The section assigned to Yuuto had seen some of the heaviest and earliest fighting. There were far more bodies here than they had seen walking by anywhere else. It was a hot zone, an area where the hordes of infected first broke through the lines. Judging by the wounds on the bodies of the soldiers who defended the area, had put up a good fight.

  The lack of soldiers though showed that they had most likely been killed or had fled. Yuuto didn't like the idea of either of those options and kept his rifle firmly to him. It dangled from his sling as bent down to pick up a body. It was the start of a long day.

  They started at the end of the street and worked their way to the other end of the block, piling over two hundred bodies, all of them infected. As they reached the end of the block, they realized that it was one of the checkpoints that had been overrun. All the barricades, as well as a small watchtower, had been knocked down as a horde overwhelmed the checkpoint.

  They all stopped for a minute, staring at the wreckage of the checkpoint, hoping that these soldiers had been lucky enough to escape the engulfing infection. Beginning to clear bodies from the checkpoint, they piled them in a corner that already had several bodies piled up from the battle the night before. In the center of the checkpoint, they found an almost unidentifiable body that had been torn up so badly they only way they knew it had been a soldier was the helmet and pieces of his uniform strewn around.

  Arata threw up after seeing the body, as did a few other soldiers from the group. It seemed that at least one soldier wasn't lucky enough to escape the horde and was torn apart. Yuuto approached the toppled remains of the tower; it had crashed and pinned several infected underneath it. Someone had shot all of them in the head, which he thought was odd. Who would have time to make sure to kill those infected?

  It was at this moment he saw the fatigues of a soldier, who had also been trapped under the tower. The soldier's arm pinned under debris, and then he was surrounded and attacked by infected much like the body they had found moments before. Yuuto walked through the scattered bodies of the infected to get closer to the soldier.

  As Yuuto got closer, he could see that the soldier had been ripped apart. Chunks of flesh were missing from his arm, that was free, and his legs. Yuuto stopped a few feet away from the soldier, hands ready on his rifle. He stared, wondering what thoughts his former comrade had running through his mind as he saw the infected closing in on him.

  Yuuto felt respect for the two soldiers that had given their lives to stop the horde of infected. They had done their duty to their nation and gave the ultimate sacrifice. He bowed his head, giving a prayer for their souls, softly under his breath.

  Before he could finish his prayer for the fallen, the soldier in front of him stirred. Yuuto quickly looked at the soldier and brought his rifle to his shoulder. The infected soldier snapped to life, the bone in his arm catching as he tried to free himself to get to Yuuto. The infected soldier stared at Yuuto; this was the first time he had seen an infected.

  The infected soldier's eyes pierced Yuuto, and he felt as though he was prey to this being, if it could be called a person. The piercing gaze unsettled him to his core, and his hands began to shake with uneasiness. For the first time in his life, he felt genuine fear. This creature that was before him bore no resemblance to a person.

  It was an empty shell of a person, a body without its mind. It was using all its strength to lunge towards Yuuto. This infected being only wanted one thing, and that was to tear into him. He could see no soul, no chance a person remained within. The blackened eyes of the infected showed the true demon within. There was no worse fate than to be turned into this creature, and Yuuto no longer held onto hope.

  Snapping back to reality Yuuto took a deep breath, aiming at the infected soldier's head. With a bang, he was finally laid to rest. Yuuto took several more deeps breaths before finding the courage to approach the body. He slowly reached towards it expecting it to come back to life. Finding the soldier's ID tag, he took it to give to command.

  ✽ ✽ ✽

  Yuuto and Arata had finally made it back to their platoon. Twelve hours of collecting bodies and making piles for disposal teams to clear away with fire, twelve hours they saw the true devastation that the virus had on the population. So many people dead, so many lives extinguished. It haunted Yuuto, the black eyes peering through him.

  Arata had already laid down on his cot and was asleep. Yuuto laid down and shut his eyes, but horrific images of the infected soldier filled his mind. Horrible, terrible, dreams that he was the infected soldier.

  He didn't sleep well. It wasn't the only reason however why he didn't sleep well. Throughout the night small arms fire was heard in the distance again, although this time more sporadically. With each gunshot, his eyes popped open, and he could only think of shooting the soldier earlier.

  It seemed however that they were not able to clear out all the infected. Some made it past the soldiers performing clean up. Yuuto began to wonder if they genuinely could hold back the tide of infected from spreading. Yuuto fell asleep once more wondering how many soldiers they would lose tonight to the infected.

  Chapter 14

  Isamu had heard the gunfire throughout the night again. He was glad they had relocated so many people away from the fighting and chaos that had crept into the city. He felt like he had made a difference driving the civilians to safer areas.

  He went to work knowing today he was going to be doing the same. His boss was no less stressed today as the previous days. He quickly gave assignments to drivers and went back to his office. Isamu climbed onto his bus and set off for another camp that the military had set up to try and evacuate people. They rounded up as many people as they could and would then ship them via bus to another camp that was safer.

  As he pulled up, he noticed fewer soldiers than the last time helping sort people into buses. It became a mad dash for the buses as the small number of soldiers couldn't contain the population. Soon people had surrounded the buses trying to get on. Isamu didn't know what to do, because he couldn't open the doors and have people fight over seats.

  A soldier shot his rifle into the air, causing the people to stop their stampede. The soldiers moved up to the buses, forcing people back into their lines. After that people calmly, formed lines to board the buses. Isamu watched as people boarded the buses, they did so without hesitation.

  The demeanor of the people boarding the buses was fearful. It was nothing like his previous jobs he had been on; those people were just confused but otherwise fine. It was his turn to load up, and people quickly scrambled onto the bus, finding seats. Isamu noticed these people didn’t have any belongings with them. Everything was in a hurry as if time was short.

  As the last person found a seat, the soldier that had been making sure that people had seats or had a place to stand, left, giving Isamu the all clear to leave. It was also the first time no soldier accompanied them to the next stop. As soon as the doors closed, and they took off the chatter began.

  “These riots are a cover-up story they are trying to feed us. I'm telling you something way worse is happening. It’s just to
o convenient,” one man stated.

  “I complained about my neighbor banging on his door. I told the soldiers about his odd behavior the day before. Next thing I know in the middle of the night I wake up to soldiers breaking down his door. What made me wake up was the gunshot I heard though. I was too afraid to check and see what was going on, but the next day I checked, and they had locked the apartment uptight,” a scared woman proclaimed.

  “I haven't seen my girlfriend since they separated us at one of those checkpoints. They said they were going to take her to the hospital to make sure she isn't sick. I'm hoping she’s already at the next camp,” said a younger man to the person next to him.

  “I can't understand why my neighbor decided to stay behind. I get that the evacuations aren't mandatory, but why would you want to stay behind in all this chaos. The closest store to me ran out of food to sell two days ago! What are they going to do for food?” Asked one older man.

  It was easy to forget the chaos around him as he did his job, almost the same as every day. Listening to the people behind him awoke a sense of dread within him. Isamu’s worry about what was going on in the city crept back, and if his original idea about the military was right. If he was right, he was sure that something terrible was happening and it was beginning to reach a breaking point.

  The tension in the air was thick and ripe for slightest pinprick to burst the bubble. The ensuing storm would affect everyone, sweeping them all in the tide of the unknown.

  ✽ ✽ ✽

  Yuuto and Arata had been allowed to sleep extra because of their assignment of body clean up. It was now night, and they were sent out to patrol the streets. This unsettled Yuuto greatly, the horrors of the infected soldier earlier burned into his mind. He felt like at any moment they would stumble upon a horde of infected and he would share the same fate as the soldiers earlier.

  He carefully checked every possible hiding spot he thought an infected person could be hiding. Slowly patrolling the neighborhood, the occasional gunshot in the distance didn't help calm his nerves either. Yuuto felt ridiculous being so jumpy; he was a trained military personnel, trained for war. He wasn't prepared for this though.

  Sensing Yuuto's tension, Arata asked, “You still shaken up from earlier?”

  “I... I guess,” Yuuto replied with a heavy sigh.

  “Don't feel bad. I may not have shown it, but I haven't felt okay since earlier... just moving all those bodies... it showed me that this is serious. Then we found that infected soldier... I don't think I could have done what you did...” Arata replied quietly.

  “I almost didn't. For a second, I thought I was going to run,” Replied Yuuto.

  Arata stopped, looking Yuuto in the eyes, “Promise me one thing. If I get bitten, end it for me right there, I don't want to become one of those things.”

  Yuuto took a deep breath, “You have to promise me the same.”

  Arata nodded, before continuing their patrol. Yuuto felt a little better knowing that he wasn't the only one that was unsettled by the events earlier. While before he was annoyed by Arata's incessant need to do his job, he now felt a connection with him. They now shared a bond to watch out for each other.

  Not that he wouldn't have looked out for Arata before but being on the same page helped calm him. Not fearing an infected biting him and turning into one of them eased his terror. Together they would do their best to make it through this disaster.

  ✽ ✽ ✽

  The patrol went without a problem, and they had returned for a quick meal to recharge. It took three hours to patrol the full area, and they had already done two complete patrols, so they needed any recourse they could get. After all they had to complete the patrol two more times.

  After a meal and a quick rest, they picked up their gear, setting out for the third time. Yuuto couldn't shake the feeling that something was different this time around. While earlier he had been jumpy, this time he felt a sense of dread. Arata looked on edge as well, sensing something different too.

  They walked their patrol with caution, making sure they make any mistakes. A little further than halfway through their patrol they turned onto a new block. Arata stopped dead in his tracks, raising his rifle.

  “What do you see?” Asked Yuuto.

  Arata nodded down the street, “At the end of the block there is someone just standing there.”

  “Let's move in to get a better view,” replied Yuuto.

  Slowly they moved down the street, careful to check any side alleys they came across for any infected. After a few minutes, they could see the man more clearly now. He was still in the same spot, covered in blood.

  “Do you think he's infected?” Asked Arata.

  “I don't know,” replied Yuuto, “Stay here, and I'll get closer and try to talk to him.”

  Yuuto began to make his way towards the man slowly, rifle ready and poised to fire.

  “Identify yourself!” Yelled Yuuto to the man.

  The man didn't move, as if he didn't hear Yuuto's command. Walking closer to the man Yuuto raised and aimed his rifle. The man was facing away from him so he couldn't tell if he was infected. The blood didn't seem to be his though, as there was no pool of it around him.

  Yuuto was finally close enough to poke the man in the back with the tip of his rifle, “Hey, identify yourself!”

  The man stirred at this, “Don't hu...hurt me... I tried to get her to s...stop. I had to...”

  The man collapsed to his knees, weeping. Arata moved forward seeing that there was no threat.

  “What's wrong with him?”

  Yuuto shrugged, “I don't know he wasn't making too much sense. I would say it’s safe to assume an infected person tried to attack him though. Call it in for them to pick him up; we can search nearby for the infected once back up arrives.”

  Arata called for the checkpoint to send help, requesting a transit pick up for the man. Yuuto looked the man over, trying to see through his blood covered clothes to see if he was hurt at all. He couldn't see any bites or anything suggesting the man was infected. He was going to leave the full exam to the crew back at the checkpoint.

  After waiting for a few minutes, a transport truck turned on to the street they were on, rolling towards them. The heavy truck echoed in the empty city, making it sound louder than it truly was. It idled nearby them as two soldiers jumped out from the back and approached them.

  Yuuto gave them all the info they knew, “We found this man just standing here in the streets, covered in blood. No visible wounds. I don't think he will be any trouble.”

  The two soldiers nodded and led the man back to the truck, helping him climb into the back. Yuuto went back to Arata, who knelt over a trail of footprints.

  “Looks like he came from this direction,” pointed Arata.

  They followed the footprints, each one got darker as they followed the trial, leading them to a small five-story apartment building. The door was left open, a bloody handprint smeared on it. Entering the lobby slowly, they swept the room with their rifles ready. Near the back of the lobby, they found a body of an infected man, a blood-covered wrench nearby. They assumed the man they found on the street had fought his way out of the building, dropping his weapon and running for freedom.

  However, this was not where the trail of bloody footprints began. Continuing to follow the trail of bloody footprints they led to the stairwell. Blood covered the window blocking their view of inside. They opened the door slowly and peered in, finding a body at the bottom of the stairs.

  This one was an older woman, who was also infected. Her head, much like the man in the lobby area had been beaten in. The man they had found on the street had killed two infected before escaping the building. Yuuto was impressed that the man had the nerve to do what he did to survive.

  “We had better call this in too,” said Yuuto to Arata, “Command five, we need backup about a block west of our last call. Definite presence of infected, request sweep of the interior. How copy?

  “Comma
nd to patrol, we copy. Backup on the way eta five minutes.”

  They both retreated to the entrance to the building and waited. Several minutes passed and the low rumble of the truck indicated that once more reinforcements were on their way. The truck stopped in front of the building, and four soldiers got out, one a Sargent.

  “Two confirmed dead, lobby clear,” stated Arata to the soldiers.

  “Let's clear floor by floor, three teams of two, apartment by apartment. Check corners and watch each other’s back,” stated the Sargent.

  They made their way to the back of the building and began to climb the stairs; luckily the building was only five stories. Finding nothing the first three floors, they made their way up to the fourth. The blood trail picked back up here as they found two bodies, one an infected, the other a normal person. At the foot of both bodies, the door to an apartment was open, as was the one across from the hall.

  The Sargent signaled Yuuto, Arata, and one of the soldiers to go into the apartment opposite of the bodies. Yuuto complied, happy he wasn't going into the apartment with the dead bodies outside it. Arata took the lead, while Yuuto was second, followed by one of the other soldiers. Furniture and items had been flung everywhere in the apartment, indicating a struggle.

  The layout of the apartment was simple, upon entering they were in a hallway leading into the apartment. At the end of the hall, it opened into the living room, which connected to the kitchen, with a half wall splitting the two rooms. They quickly cleared both rooms but took note of large quantity of blood coating most of the kitchen. Another hallway led back towards the front of the apartment, leading towards the bedrooms.

  Arata stopped before turning to clear the hallway, which was dark; someone hadn't bothered turning the lights on. They could make out three doors towards the end of the hall, two were closed, and one had been left ajar. Arata and the other soldier moved down the hall. Arata took the closest door on the right, while the soldier watched the door that was open. Quickly Arata opened the door and went to the right, while Yuuto moved into support Arata, leaving the other soldier to watch the other rooms.