by C M Hoffmann
Chief, “Excellent idea. I’ll get the radios and some chargers for her. And good job on the houses, you can go back to it tomorrow. Just take care of the hospital and this crazy preacher at, um, I believe it’s named the ‘Church of the New Age Resurrection’ before you call it a day. And we’ll talk about Laplace soon”
“Can do. Boys, let’s go.”
Trey, “Not even on duty and still gotta make a hospital run.”
Cane, Rapp, Fitz, and Fred all snicker remembering all the instances they were stuck with an inmate at the hospital because of some minor ailment. Two-Six lines up their vehicles in the convoy position they’ve become accustomed to and drive to the hospital. Pops in the bed of the truck keeps his gun trained on the ravager sprawled out and bouncing around the bed with every bump in the road. The convoy pulls up to the Emergency Room Ambulance Entrance and is met by fellow Kenner Police Officer Bondio.
Bondio, “Oh, Hollanns, whatcha got? Damn that vest looks sick! Where’d ya get the logo?”
Pops, “Cane’s wife made it. You got a doctor in charge here?”
Bondio, “Yea Dr. Wilcox. I’ll get him.” He jogs off and returns with an older man in a scrubs style shirt, blue jeans, a white coat, and a very conspicuous large frame handgun in a hip holster.
Wilcox, “I’m Wilcox. Chief said you got something for me?”
Trey, “Latest and greatest in steve evolution. Meet the ‘Ravager’.”
“Interesting. I almost forgot about the chief’s memo about calling the monsters steve. Who’s idea was that again?”
Cane, “That’d be me.”
Wilcox looks Cane up and down, “Hmm clever, how did you survive all this?
Trey, “Careful there, Doc.”
“Ah don’t like your size mentioned, got it. Anyway, now this new one: the ‘ravager’ I believe you called it.”
Gavin, “Yep, took down a whole patrol by itself.”
“Really? Well let’s get it inside. I’ve got a secure room for it.”
After moving the ravager into the room and securing it to a bed by handcuffs and leg shackles, just in case, Pops relays meeting the ravager and the destruction it caused.
Wilcox, “So it seems more hell bent on killing than infecting and eating, huh? Well, let’s hope there’s nothing else after this.”
Cane, “Agreed. So what you been up to here, Doc?”
“Oh you know, little of this, little of that, trying to find a rhyme or reason, experimenting, and trying to find a cure.”
Gavin, “How’s all that working out?”
“Well we’ve figured out that the MRF Virus did cause the steve-ification, and we’re pretty sure we know how the dead decided to walk, but a cure unfortunately has eluded us thus far.”
Cane, “Figures.”
Pops, “Doc, I’m sure we’ve all been dying, metaphorically, to know why this all happened.”
Wilcox, “Well we still don’t know where the hell MRF came from. Appears to be lab-created. Could have been a biological attack. Chief got reports in, mostly second- and third-hand, that it did indeed infect the whole country and most probably the rest of the world. The way we think it works is the virus is introduced to the endocrine system, of course we don’t know why only some people are affected and others aren’t, and then the flu portion of the strain takes over. Most people pass due to dehydration, or malnutrition when the vomiting starts. The most interesting thing though is when the virus enters the kidneys. Come into the next room and I’ll show you.” In the next room, several human organs are scattered about a maze of tables and shelves: from hearts, to lungs, kidneys, stomachs, and brains. “Obviously, you can see we’ve been dissecting steves left and right. Now on this table are normal human organs. See the coloration and size particularly of the kidneys. Now these are steve kidneys, still a variety of sizes and colors but definitely distinctively different from humans pre-Turn. See this almost orbital protrusion on the top of the kidney. Anybody know what that is?”
Wade, “Not a clue.”
“This is where the kidneys produce erythropoietin or EPO in response to low levels of oxygen in the blood. So when people get sick, their breathing is inhibited, thus less oxygen, then more EPO. The EPO increases production of red blood cells to move oxygen through the body. Unfortunately, it’s also how MRF moves through the body. It manages an attachment to the red blood cells for transport and protection. Somehow the white blood cells almost totally ignore the virus as it buries itself in the reds.”
Fred, “Alright, so that explains how the infection spreads...”
“Not done, it gets better. If you’ll look at the steve brain here. The pituitary gland has ruptured in the brain. It’s supposed to be the size of a pea. These are not, this is roughly the size of a golf ball even after bursting. This leads me to believe that the reason at hunter status, when they first turn, steves tend to be a little faster than us. This portion is what produces antidiuretic hormones or ADH which prevents water loss in the body by increasing water reuptake in the kidneys and essentially shutting down sweat glands and since we usually sweat out the toxins in our bodies with increased ADH we’re holding those toxins and it kills us. Also explains why, even though fever and then sweating are big indicators of sickness, no one with MRF has shown signs of sweating profusely like they should with over one hundred degree fevers. This other section, is the anterior pituitary and this very large spot is what produces the adrenocorticotropic hormones or ACTH. ACTH stimulates the adrenal cortex to help the gland produce more hormones. I’m sure you’re all falling asleep on me now...”
Wyatt mumbles, “Only a little.”
Wade, “Or a lot.”
Wilcox, “So this is the pineal gland. In short it produces melatonin. See how it has shrunk? Means steve doesn’t get the urge to sleep like the rest of us.”
Rapp, “Good thing most of us are used to sleeping weird hours.”
Cane, “Well we’ve all been creatures of the night for a while. Now it's creatures of the night versus the monsters in the dark.”
Trey, “Well that explains why you’re afraid of the dark.”
“Just because it’s the end of the world doesn’t mean I won’t shoot you in your damn foot.”
A shoving match soon ensues between Trey and Cane, but it’s cut short by Pops. “Enough, pull your heads out of your asses and learn something. Go head, Doc.”
Wilcox, “Um, yea, so, back to the kidneys,” he spins like a dancer, searching for the correct specimen. “You’re kidneys are actually what produce adrenaline. That’s where your adrenal glands are located. Look here these triangles, more like fat pyramids now, are the glands. The Adrenal Medulla section is the actual area where epinephrine and norepinephrine are created. Now both of these hormones increase blood flow to the brain and muscle and thus we have the fight or flight response. Actually it should be called the body alarm response, because freezing is also a response to adrenaline and danger. But, oh well, we can discuss semantics and logic later. Those hormones increase heart and breathing rate; also, they decrease blood flow to non-essential organs in an emergency: example: your intestines. Fascinating stuff really.”
Trey, “Yea but that doesn’t quite explain why steve decided to get up and walk with the rest of us.”
“It doesn’t? Isn’t it obvious? No, I guess not if you don’t know medical terminology and functionality. Well to put it plainly, steve is locked in a perpetual state of fight or flight. Hence, when they first turn, they are hungry and aggressive and more likely see us as threats. Then they ‘hunt’ down prey and leave them to feed on later. Also why they seem faster and stronger at first. Then after the epinephrine bleed off, since their secondary organs have begun to shut down due to the increased adrenal hormones in the beginning, they seem to laze about waiting for food. That’s lurkers. And this new one, the ‘Ravager’, I simply cannot wait to see what caused such a transformation.”
Pops, “Doc, but how do dead people get up and walk?”
“Oh yes, it seems as though, once the body dies the hormonal glands rupture and continue to create the hormones for about a week or so. The body, including the brain and heart and muscles, are almost literally FLOODED with adrenaline! Absorbing straight through the tissues. It works like an adrenaline shot to the heart to wake up an unconscious and unresponsive individual. Have you seen them turn? They shake violently and then sit up lightning fast. They HAVE to get up. They can’t control it. As the rest of the body shuts down and they die, they revert back to our most primal instinct. Food. Again I really must open the ravager, I need to see if I can figure out how it happened or maybe all of it. There are still many gaps in what we know. Since the brain is generally, even before the Turn, unexplored, we have no idea how they really get up. The adrenaline helps, but it still shouldn’t happen.”
Wyatt, “Well, I’m even more confused.”
Cane, “Ditto, Big.”
Rapp, “I think we all are.”
Fitz, “I understood... most of it.”
Pops, “Alright, Doc, we’ll leave the ravager to you. We’ve got some other things to take care of. Two-Six, move out.”
A shout resounds through the hospital halls, “BREACH! Steves in the ER!” Gunshots echo as they bounce off the walls of the maze like hallways. Two-Six flies around the corner with weapons up into the Emergency Room area with Dr. Wilcox in the lead. Six steves are attacking a security guard. with more guards surrounding the group ruining any hope of clean shots.
From the other end of the room, Bondio comes sliding in with his departmental M&P in his hands. He runs towards the group, and begins to contact shot the nearest three. Putting his muzzle to the steves’ temples as they are distracted by a fresh meal. Another steve exits a room and approaches from behind Bondio.
Cane, “BONDIO! On your six!”
Before he can react, the steve bear hugs Bondio from behind. He aims his firearm up, dangerously close to his face, and fires catching the undead creature under the chin. The top of its head explodes in a rain of blood.
Pops, “Two-Six get a move on!” The Task Force members quickly enter the fray and finish off the remaining steves.
Fitz, “Damn, Bondio, you got some powder burn there on your chin.”
Bondio, “Yea it seemed like a good idea at the time. A few battle scars never hurt anyone.”
Pops, “Well now that that’s over, Two-Six, let’s roll out.”
♦ ♦ ♦
On the way to the Church of The New Age Resurrection, the radio crackles.
Chief, “Two-Six, you out there?”
Pops, “Ten four.”
“No need to go looking for the preacher... He’s out front the building.”
“Still need us to deal with it?”
“I think we got it handled but I also think you’ll want to hear what he has to say.”
“Roger that.”
Two-Six pulls up to the front of the Kenner Police Complex and they see a large group of people is standing outside. A lone man in a long blue overcoat, is standing on the steps shouting to the people.
Preacher, “Come, everyone, come and rejoice! The end is not here! The end only starts with the beginning! We must overcome our fear of our resurrected friends and families not through violence but through prayer! Prayer heals all! Prayer sets us free! Prayer can cure the demons that plague our homes!”
Cane, “Is this guy for real?”
Trey, “I think so. He seems rather excited.”
“This is a whole new pot to stir, T. He could literally get the rest of the city to riot and invite steve in.”
“And then we’ll be able to kill every steve at once.”
“Fish in a barrel.”
Preacher sweeps his arms outward drawing the crowd’s attention to the members of the Two-Six, “Behold, my friends, the demons in black! See how they wear their armor in fear of the resurrected! They do not believe! They do not have faith! Bring them into the herd!”
When the followers of the preacher advance on the group, all of their weapons come up.
Pops, “No thanks. You want to pray, by all means pray. You will not force other people to believe as you do.”
Preacher, “OH HO! We have a leader amongst the fallen! See how they worship this man!?”
“No one worships me, these men are my family, and we are protecting this city.”
“The city does not need protection! The city needs prayer and the Holy Light!” Murmurs of ‘Amen’ flow through the crowd.
Trey, “Pops, say the word.”
Pops, “Not yet, we’ll let him be crazy elsewhere.”
Fitz, “Blasphemer.”
Preacher, “I do not blaspheme! We will cure this city! We will cure the world!”
Pops, “It’s time to move on, go back to your place of worship. Anyone who wants to believe you can go. But, I’m afraid you’re scaring these other people; the ones who want to live out their earthly lives just a little longer.”
“Ah! You have not yet made your peace! Well the time will come when you will meet your maker!”
Cane, “I’ve heard enough! I’ve made my peace. You’re about to ruin that. Now march your sorry ass out of here!”
“As you wish small one. We will leave in peace as we came in peace. But, let the words be marked: This is the Second Coming. When Hell is full, the dead will walk the earth! They are not your enemies, they are reincarnations most holy. You will come to us when we cure this decimation.”
Wyatt mumbles to Gavin, “If he calls Cane small again, he’ll probably decimate that guys face.” Gavin snickers and repeats the comment to Wade who laughs aloud.
Cane , “And when the dead walk, the living will fill the ground.”
Pops, “We won’t ask again, move along.”
Preacher, “We will leave, but the day of reckoning is at hand. You will rue the day you rejected the Holy Ones.”
Fitz, “Screw this,” He starts to step forward.
Rapp, “Fitz, just let it go.”
“No, screw this jerk off.” Fitz stands nose to nose with the preacher. His followers and Two-Six close in waiting for the situation to take a turn for the worst. “You hubristic, two-bit theologian. You’re talking about one percent scripture and ninety-nine percent scare tactic lies and using it to manipulate people to follow you. I’ve held God in my heart my entire life, and I think I’ve done a pretty damn good job of it. If you knew even a marginal percentage of what the hell you’re talking about, you would know that God doesn’t want you forcing religion down someone else’s throat or talking down to brow beat people into following you. He’s much more concerned with living a good life and trying to lead by example than he is about putting fear into the general populace. You want to preach your mistaken, paltry prophetic interpretations: fine. You want to worship the dead: good luck with that. But you will not call into contention my faith to influence others with me standing idly by. And you won’t talk down to anyone else around me for that matter; just so you can get your onanistic pleasure from pretending to be a believer. On the real Judgment Day, we will all answer for our sins. Oh and I don’t recall the dead coming back to life and eating the living being in the book of Revelation or any other part of the Bible. So, go back to where you came from and let those who would rather you shit false beliefs down their throat over actually reading scripture themselves come to you.”
Preacher, “I see. Well, I bid you adieu, sir. We will be at the Church of the New Age Resurrection when you change your mind.”
“I won’t see you there.”
The preacher and his followers gather and leave the area. More than a few look over their shoulders as they wander away. Fitz stands red-faced with rage.
Pops, “You alright there, Fitz?”
Fitz sighs, “I’ll be fine, I just have an issue with forcing beliefs on people.”
Chief, “We all do. I have some things to run by you guys. If you’ll join me in my office.”
♦ ♦ ♦
/> The preacher and his followers arrive and enter the Church of the New Age Resurrection. An old church from before the Turn. High ceilings, multiple rooms, and large decorative stained glass windows decorate it all. New spray paint covers the various theological displays as the new ‘church’ has decided their Preacher’s teachings are more worthy than traditional art.
Preacher, “Bring the resurrected from the rectory, it is time for their daily prayers.”
Two followers bow deeply to the preacher and go to the rectory. They return shortly with two lurkers bound with chains and ropes. The rest of the followers aid in strapping the lurkers to two makeshift altars and they all gather around and join hands.
Preacher, “Holiest of Holies, please cure this man and this woman. Give us the proof we need to convert the non-believers. They have rejected your teachings and the visions you have blessed me with. But, I and my followers, believe in You. We have the faith required to reverse this plague and bring the world under Your wing. Let their bodies, minds, and souls return to this earthly prison. Please, let them be whole again. We will do your bidding at the first spoken word. Allow us to end their suffering and we shall, require our prayers more and we shall. As your chosen few we pray.” A chorus of ‘amen’ and ‘bless us’ sound around the crowd.
Follower, “Look! The demons have come to rest!”
The preacher looks down to the man and woman tied to the altars. Their condition has not changed in the least; however, the preacher hears murmurs of ‘the beasts have calmed; see how their skin color changed; look their eyes are returning.’ The preacher rolls his eyes and faces his followers. “Behold they begin to change. Please continue silent prayers in your hearts so that they may be healed.” The preacher steps away as his followers close in and bow their heads. “Joshua, come with me.” The preacher and his right hand devotee, Joshua, enter the rectory, five more steves are chained to the wall.
Joshua, “Preacher, what is to be done about the non-believers? They thwart our efforts to convert and bring others under the Holy’s wing.”
Preacher, “What does your heart tell you, my son?”