INTERIM · BEN PARISH | ✓

Thirteen

I remember blinking a lot; my vision had gone so blurry and all I could hear were gunshots and the occasional car exploding.

Everything was blurry when I finally could open my eyes. There was a massive fire in the middle; a Toyota Camry had been set on fire. When I looked down, I saw a stream of blood drip down my leg from a large gash just above my knee. I tried to force down the bile rising from my throat. Never had I seen this much blood, not since the plane crash left my parents drowning in blood and insides.

"Red!" Musket was by my side immediately, already wrapping around a torn piece of cloth (probably from his shirt). "What happened?"

"I don't know, I shot someone and then all of a sudden there was a searing pain.. and I just knocked out, I think," I mumbled. I watched helplessly as Barrel fought with an infested for a gun.

"Snow is falling," he whispered. "You could be susceptible to infection."

"Go help Stil," I ordered. "I'll tie this myself."

He nodded once and ran over to where she was, hiding behind a bush to look for anyone other than our squad.

I finished wrapping my nearly blood-soaked leg when Pluto came running, carrying Dot with both arms. I never though I'd see the day..

"Red, help! Dot's been shot from the back in the stomach, and he's bleeding and there's guts everywhere and I don't know how he was so open like that but I don't know what to do and-"

"Stop, Pluto! Just take a second and breathe! You need to calm down," I commanded, but he continued blubbering nonsense with snot pouring down his nose and tears streaming down his cheeks. I've never broken down to the point I couldn't understand what I was saying. Not like Pluto.

He nodded and muttered random words again. I caught a "Holy Mother" somewhere in the middle of all the gibberish.

"Okay, get me a water bottle from my backpack, and some tissue paper."

"Why do you have-"

"Just do it!" I hissed. "I'll signal the helicopter that's nearby and get him over to them."

He took the crumpled tissue and half-filled water bottle. "Red, they left us. You knocked out when they flew over the forest down Dayton, I think."

"What?" I screeched. "We have to wait until tomorrow morning? We don't have that much time!"

Scarecrow came running. "Hafta... take shelter."

I nodded. "You're right. Eliminate remaining infested personnel and round up the squad. We'll camp outside the building and I'll take anyone injured inside to see if we can salvage anything. They can't be exposed to the cold weather for too long."

"Yes, ma'am. You're hurt too."

"It's nothing major. Bullet wounds are the number one priority that I need to treat." I looked over to Pluto. "Pluto, wet the tissue and apply it to the wound. The water should be lukewarm." Scarecrow took it as his cue to leave and round up everyone.

"O-okay," he stuttered. He shakily wet the tissue and pressed it firmly against Dot's skin. Dot moaned but his eyes remained closed. "Now what?"

"Uh.. I... We need to wait. I might have an emergency thermal blanket somewhere in my backpack. We need to wrap it around him and check the area to see if it becomes swollen."

"I'm gonna vomit," he stated.

"Then do it and then look at the bullet wound," I said matter-of-factly.

After a few minutes of Pluto retching and checking, Scarecrow came back with everyone. Barrel had a bullet buried deep in the shoulder. He screamed in agony every time it moved a fraction of an inch. "It hurts!"