VIRUS

Chapter 2- Red Wolf

    I awoke to the sound of silence.

    No birds. Nothing.

    Just chatter chat from the squad downstairs.

    I sighed, quickly getting up and getting dressed. I grabbed my sword and walked downstairs. No one seemed to be in any rush for Red Wolf- unsurprising, considering we could all die. Hamada finally noticed me, her eyes flickering with so something.

    "Ah! Here he is now!" she said with a smile. "Alright, everyone, let's head out!" She turned and walked out of the inn, and the others followed her. I assumed the others had already thanked the family, but I didn't get a chance to. I only got a quick look at a smiling little girl.

    We didn't go by train, this time. Red Wolf wasn't that much of a walk from there, probably only three to five miles. The walk was oddly quiet for the squad. Everyone just walked in a line, with Hamada at the front. I found myself staring at Hamada. She didn't seem right. Her long blonde hair was silky and fine, and she had a red bandana tied in her hair that was tied to look like bunny ears. When you looked at her, she seemed like a sweet little girl, or a popular teenager who was loved by all. But her actions spoke differently. She walked with determination and confidence. It wasn't hard to tell that she knew what she was getting into. And her sword. A monsterous thing with swirls of iron. It was probably heavy, but even a girl like her could manage to lift it. But there was that thing that happened on the train. How come she didn't get affected that burning spell on her sword? And there's no way she cast it- magic has been dead for centuries.

    And everyone seemed just a bit afraid of her...

    "We should call it by it's real name," Sam spoke, shaking me out of my thoughts. People glanced back at her, but everyone kept moving.

    "Call what by it's real name?" Hamada asked.

    "Red Wolf. If we're here to slaughter others on the ground where people once lived happily, we should call the town by its real name." No one spoke for a while. Hamada didn't say anything. She just walked with that same determination as before.

    "Hawan. The village was called Hawan," Hamada replied eventually. I caught a glimpse of a smile on Sam's face. "But we're not fighting Hawan's battles. We're fighting for Red Wolf."

    No one spoke.

    We just kept walking.

----

    We finally made it there, and it was horrifying how drastic the changes in scenery were. There were no trees or anything before, but there was a brilliant blue sky and a path for us to walk.

    All of that was gone.

    The soil was black and splattered with all the colors of the rainbow. Death was in the air and forced its way into your nose like a bullet forced its way out of a gun. Wherever you looked, you saw the body of someone who once lived- be it demon or human. Looking into their eyes was like seeing every ounce of life they gave before they surrendered.

    And yet, the sky was still blue.

    It was a little startling to still see that brilliance in the sky above us when we knew what was below us.

    We wouldn't get to see that sky when we were fighting...

    We looked around, wondering where they were. All I saw were bodies. Thousands and thousands of bodies...
    "Guys," Logan spoke. We turned to see what they were talking about. Large creatures moved towards us slowly.
"I think they're here."
    "No. No, no they're not!" Sam cried, clutching her sword in fear. She trembled to the point of collapsing, insanity taking over. I couldn't process what was happening.

    "Get a hold of yourself, Sam! We need you for this!" Hamada shouted. I stared at her. I thought she was yelling out of nervousness, but she was completely calm, apart from the yelling. She was yelling in anger.

    "I can't do this, this- this too hard! I-I could die! I'm not ready to die yet!" Sam shouted quickly.

    "None of us are, Sam! But we're still standing because that's all we can do! So get the hell up and fight!" Hamada screamed. Logan glanced at her nervously. Or maybe it was worry.

    "No, no, no, no, no, I-I can't- I can't do this!" Sam screamed, her hyperventilating getting faster. The demons were right on top of us now, their size overwhelming. Hamada took one look at the demons and drew her sword, and stood in front of Sam, her eyes glowing with mixed emotions. I just stood there, staring at them, caught in their flaming red eyes.

The eyes of a virus.

I was standing just a few meters away from the thing that killed my family, and I couldn't do anything.

    "Are you all they sent this time?" One of the viruses asked with a laugh. The demon they had possessed was big, probably five times as big as me...

"The other squads got sent to other broken towns and villages," Hamada replied with a stern voice,
her sword glistening in the sun. "Sorry if we've disappointed you."

"Clari... Don't protect me, you've got enough baggage on your own," Sam said, grabbing Hamada's skirt.

"If you don't want me to protect you, then get up and fight!" Hamada shot back, eyes still glued to the viruses in front of us. My sword fell to the ground suddenly, sinking within the bodies. I looked down and realized my hands were shaking.

"Why are you waiting? You've had more than enough opportunities to kill us," Hamada asked suspiciously.

    "That wouldn't be any fun, would it? Destruction is our nature, but we fight for fun. No fight, no fun."

I picked up my sword quickly, gripping it harder this time. The virus grinned.

    "Try not to disappoint, yes?"

----

It was all a blur from there.

My mind just couldn't handle it all.

I remember Hamada charging them, the viruses striking back, but then it all just disappeared.

I heard some things. Like screams, human ones. But I couldn't see who they belonged to.

The last thing I remember is noticing how clear the sky was.

What a day for a clear sky.