The Green Flu

Chapter 17 - Micheal

"Alright, thank you." Blake said, noticeably happier. "I think I'll be on my way now. I'm going to head home and get packed. I know I'll be happy to be out of this city." He turned and started walking back the way he came. Man, I hope he makes it out of here safely. There's no telling how many more creatures there are lurking in this city. With that thought, my hope for Blake making it out of the city became worry for us. Blake's got a car, we don't.

"Hey, Micheal!" Leon called, walked over to me. "Sorry about that Jacob. He's kind of a jackass sometimes. But he has good medical potential. I swear, he isn't usually like this."

"Well, all things considered, I think I can understand. " Alexis said, joining in our conversation.

"Yeah, things are pretty rough," Leon said with a sigh. "And they're going to get worse before they get any better." He thought for a moment, then put on a smile. "But, we can make do with what we have. That baseball bat and that gun will keep you safe. Anyway, here." Leon held out a roll of bandages, medical tape, some liquid peroxide, and a small red pack with a white medical cross on it.

"I know that Jacob doesn't want me to waste supplies, but those scratches really need some attention. Whether or not you're infected with the Green Flu, those cuts could get infected and that's not something we want."

"Yeah, thanks. I'm no doctor, but I wrapped the cuts up as best as I could." I told Leon as I started unwrapping the bandages I had on. Once they were off, Leon opened the liquid peroxide and prepared to pour a little of it onto my arm.

"So this is going to sting a bit," He said barely pausing to take a breath before he poured the peroxide on.

"Ah!" I clenched my teeth and shut my eyes at the sudden pain. The stinging lessened when Leon wiped it off, but it was definitely still there. Then he put the bandages on it and taped it up.

"So it will be mostly closed up when you take this off in about 24 hours." He told me as he rolled up the rest of the bandages. "But if it's not, just give it some air and it'll heal up in no time. Okay?"

"Thank you, Leon." Alexis said for me. He nodded and gave us the red pack.

"Here. This is the standard first aid kit. It contains all kinds of bandages and creams to help heal anything. It isn't as good as having a doctor by your side, but it's good enough." Leon helped me put it on my back like a back pack.

"If you find any of these around, make sure to grab some." He told us. "They're very helpful."

"Leon! Come on!" Jacob yelled at him. Jacob and Brianna had packed all of the crates of medical supplies into a truck parked beside the tent. Looks like they were ready to head out.

"Well, I've got to go." Leon said, giving me a pat on the back. "Remember to take the bandages off in a day and look for more of those first aid kits."

"We will. And thank you!" I called to Leon as he started to run to the truck. Leon just waved in our direction and the truck started up as soon as the door was shut. The truck started driving off, and I found myself wondering what our plan would be now.

"I hope they get out of the city alright." I thought aloud.

"Hey, Micheal. Look at this." Alexis called to me with one of the CEDA posters in her hand. It was one of the ones that I just threw in Alexis' bag before we left the apartment building. "This has a bunch of the location of the CEDA stations." Alexis told me. "And it has some of the evacuation locations. The nearest one to us is... the International Airport. I know where that is!" She looked up with a smile on her face. "We just need to get onto Highway 95 and drive South West for an hour or two and then we'll be there!"

"Except...we don't have a car. That two hour drive will be more like a four hour walk, assuming all those creatures leave us alone." That took the smile off her face quick.

"So then we'll need a car." Alexis put her hands on her hips and thought for a moment.

"Blake has a car." I stated. "Maybe we can ask him for a ride? I mean, you kind of saved his life by shooting that...thing earlier and he's trying to get out of the city too." Alexis nodded.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. Let's try to catch up to him." Just as we were turning around to find Blake, we heard a shrill scream in the air. The same scream those monsters would make. We froze in our tracks and it wasn't long until a second scream cried out, this time it sounded different. It had a different pitch, like it didn't come from the same creature. Another shriek rang out, then another and Alexis and I knew we were outnumbered. Wherever these creatures were in the city, there must have been a ton. Our ears were quickly filled with constant screams. I turned to Alexis with what must have been a look of fear on my face. The look on her face matched mine and we started running towards the corner that Blake had disappeared behind.

We saw him rushing to get into his car, and I understood why. Down the street, running around the corner of an intersection, was about 35-40 of those creatures all running full speed toward us. They were all screeching and stumbling over each other. There were so many that the bat in my hands felt pretty useless. There is no way we could kill every one of those creatures. There's just too many!

"Micheal!" Alexis shouted, grabbing my arm. "Get to the car! Come on!" We both started running to the car. Blake was starting the car and waving us over. The horde of creatures was only a couple of feet away. Suddenly, Alexis pulled out her pistol and started shooting at the creatures. Since she was running and couldn't aim properly, most of her shots missed. We were only two feet away from the car when the first of the creatures reached it. There were only two or three, but that was enough to make me nervous. They started banging their hands on the windows and doors, trying to break in. Blake had a crowbar in his hands and he looked ready to use it.

"Quick, use your bat!" Alexis yelled as she shot one of the grey-skinned monsters in the head. We reached the car and I grabbed one of the creatures and pulled it away from the window. Then I held the bat tightly and swung as hard as I could. The creature fell to the ground and I looked up to see all the other creatures running closer.

"Get inside!" Alexis yelled as she opened the back door to the car. She hopped in and I got in just as the rest of the horde caught up. I slammed the door shut and gripped my bat, trying to ignore the blood all over it.

"Drive!" Alexis shouted and Blake put his foot on the gas. The car jerked forward and sped off, the creatures stumbling to keep up with it. A few followed for a couple of blocks, but they weren't fast enough. I looked back and watched them disappear into the dust the car was picking up.