The beginning of the end

[Ebizu Veuship]

Victor was a great student; he did the best effort he could to keep his scholarship. Being in Yale wasn’t easy, but he got to live outside the campus, because his parent’s house was really nearby.


How everything started for Victor is a great contrast. He was so calm; he was sleeping for the first time of his life in a lecture. He had never done that, but that day was special after all.


He heard a scream that woke him up from his tranquility, a girl near him was puking blood and her friend was trying to help her, everybody gathered around. When the teacher asked why she was in that condition, her friend answered: -Yesterday we fought against a girl outside a bar and she bite her in the leg, Amanda has been sick ever since-. Then Amanda woke up as well and took a grandiose chomp out of her friend. Victor was terrified, as everyone else: -She has rabies- He yelled. Then he backed out and ran for the college nurse when he saw the unthinkable. Lots of people biting each other, it wasn’t just rabies and Victor had watched enough zombie films to understand what was happening.


He needed to get to his car, it wasn’t far away. He grabbed his Bokken (A wood Katana) from his locker, which he had because he was a founding member of the Kendo and Pa-kua (Martial art) Club.


In his way out, Victor tried to save many people, only rescuing a girl and her little brother: Carla and Hugo. They got inside his Chevrolet Astra and Victor drove away as fast as he could. The city was a chaos worst than the campus; he left the siblings with their parents before going with his: Michael and Rose. Victor found them packing their things in their RV, so without further ado he helped them. It was a big RV, 2 beds, one bathroom and a little kitchen in front of a sofa. Also it had a stair that lead to the rooftop. Victor was the one driving because he was a bit better at avoiding obstacles or in this case, Zombies.


They arrived to their private neighborhood. It wasn’t that small but it was safe, or so it seemed. After 2 months of “safety and relaxation” Rose found herself bitten by the gardener, who was infected defending the place from a horde, when Victor and Michael were trying to get inside the RV. Victor’s father came to Rose rescue, even though Victor told him not to. Not because he didn’t love his mother, but because it was too late for her.As soon as Michael got outside the vehicle he got attacked by 2 walkers.


Victor, still in shock, drove away in tears. He needed peace but his head was full of horrendous images. He turned on his IPod Nano in order to calm his head down. But he noticed the lack of battery. He decided to go to a city nearby in search for a replacement for his Mp4, maybe an Mp3 with batteries: -I used to have one, their battery lasted ages- Victor said to himself. Obviously this stupid choice was a direct result of his troubled thoughts.


He arrived to Electroniacs, the biggest technology center in that city. He cleared his way with his Bokken, until he found a suitable replacement and some batteries. After accomplishing his over 1500 songs download he played: @ThatOneCrazyPerson ready ^.^)

 

[TheFlyingWriter]

Sam had been waiting in the apartment for ten hours straight before finally actually listening to the TV. His mom was late, which wasn't normal, and he was worried. Now the TV was talking about something he didn't understand. The eight-year-old had tried to watch cartoons, but the channels were either automatically set on the news, or they were that static-y stuff his mom called 'popcorn fuzz'.


He didn't understand a lot of what the TV was saying. There weren't even any pictures. He heard something about fires, and explosions, and 'Infected'... and something about leaving your homes and moving to the nearest... something.


Sam knew his mom would fight tooth-and-nail to get to him, but he also knew that she knew how well he knew her. Wait, what?


He knew she knew he was smart, and he knew she would expect him to go to the... whatever place he was supposed to go. So she would go there too, and wait for him. He knew she would. So he made up his mind. He was going to... that place they said on TV.


He took is school bag, dumping out the contents on the floor of his bedroom, before packing the necessities-- his favorite cereal and about four Capri-Suns. Then he made sure to put on a jacket (his mom always made him, you know), and set off.


He made his way out of the apartment pretty easily, though he was a little perturbed at the extreme isolation-- there was no one around at all. Finally, he made it to the street, but stopped cold when he saw a few people walking around a bit further down. They looked pretty normal... too normal. They didn't seem scared at all, like the person on TV. He backed up slowly, before turning and running. Besides, his mother told him not to talk to strangers.


He walked for a while, and he didn't see a lot of anybody. He was starting to get lonely, but before he could begin to question whether or not he was going the right way, a sudden honk startled him. He jumped back, stumbling a little over the potholes in the ground, before catching himself. He turned, now fully alert, before catching sight of a car not too far away. Inside, Sam could see a man in the driver's seat and a woman in the passenger. They seemed older... maybe in their sixties or so...? But the man beckoned him over silently. He probably didn't think yelling was a good addition to the loud honk that had erupted mere seconds earlier. Sam didn't think they looked like those weird people from before. These two seemed worried, like they knew he was in danger. So he moved towards them, albeit hesitantly. The man rolled down his window as he approached, then leaned out a little.


"S'cuse me, young man," the old man said, "My wife couldn't help but notice that you seemed by yourself. Now, this isn't to seem at all in a weird way, but where are your parents? Don't tell me you're by yourself out here." The woman beside him shared his concerned look.


Sam simply nodded slowly, and after a bit more talking, he finally agreed to go with them. Under normal circumstances, he would never have even gotten near them, but it was getting dark and he had gotten no close to reaching the place he was supposed to go. Besides, Sam had a way of reading people, and believe it or not, they seemed to be pretty okay. So he got in the car.


They drove for a while, until they made it to what looked like a fortified compound. Sam thought it looked scary. The man got out of the car, before trying to talk to a man who was positioned at the gate. The man kept shaking his head, and finally, Jerry returned to the car. He didn't say anything, but apparently he didn't need to. The woman seemed to understand, and nodded sadly before smiling at Sam and telling him they would have to go to a farm instead. During the drive, the old man introduced himself as Jerry, and his wife as Helen. Sam told them his name as they were exiting the truck, and was grateful when neither referred to him as 'Sammy'.


The farm was pretty big, and though Jerry told him not to go near the animals, Sam didn't mind. Helen took him in the house, where they made dinner together. She explained that the place (which Sam assumed was the place his mom was) was too full, and they didn't have room for them, but not to worry, because the farm was much more homey anyway. Sam asked about his mother, and Helen merely gave him a sad look. He didn't ask again.


Before he knew it, about eight months had passed. Sam saw Jerry and Helen as his honorary grandparents, and they saw him as an honorary grandson. While, of course, Sam still missed his mother, he was actually starting to feel... well, like nothing had ever happened. It was nice.


And then it happened. Helen was out in the garden, tending to her plants as she often did. Jerry was out in the barn, working on fixing something up. Sam had been helping him, and was heading to the house to bring some water when he heard screaming. The boy rushed to the source, only to find a wild-eyes person clamped onto Helen's arm. The woman thrashed and screamed, and suddenly Jerry was there, bashing the creature's head in.


Everything was a blur, and before Sam knew what was happening, he and Jerry were in the car together, driving away from the farm. The boy didn't think Helen had died... but where was she? Sam asked, but Jerry didn't respond. It was then, in that car ride that seemed to last forever, that Sam figured out how those... monsters... were made.


After a while, the pair came across an RV. There they met two men who went by the names Victor and Ian. Jerry, who seemed to be a lot more tired than he had been five hours ago, talked to them for a bit while Sam waited in the car. From the looks, the strangers seemed okay. But looks were deceiving. After a few minutes, Jerry beckoned for Sam to come over, and he did. But he stayed close to the man he trusted most, which was Jerry... for now.


((@Ebizu Veuship Sorry that was long/late; I had a lot to cover... =P))

 

[Ebizu Veuship]

It was a sunny day, the birds were singing, there was no sight of any zombie, the road was clear and a strange feeling of peace and comfort surrounded it all.


Victor was driving the RV and listening to: @ThatOneCrazyPerson finished haha)

 

[TheFlyingWriter]

(Ignore the cuss words... this was the only song that kind of worked... >n<)
Sam stood close to Jerry, lightly touching the man's jacket in an attempt to comfort himself. The strangers seemed nice enough; Jerry had told him they were going to stay with them in their RV for a while. While the boy was a little wary, he trusted the guy and simply nodded wordlessly.


"I'm Jerry, by the way," the man introduced himself, then pushed Sam a little forward, much to the boy's dismay. "N'this is Sam." The kid reeled back and tried to move away, not looking either of the men in the eyes. "Sam, this is Victor, and this is Ian. They're going to help us."


Sam didn't care if he was acting childish, and he knew Jerry was going to get annoyed with his behavior very soon, but he didn't want to be here. He wanted to go back to the farm, and see Helen. Or even better yet, see his mother. He stared at the ground stubbornly, and at another of Jerry's nudges he muttered, "Hi."


Jerry sighed, then with a pat on the back told Sam to get the bags from the car. With a quiet, "'Kay," he hurried away, pulling his ever-shrinking jacket closer around him. He didn't want to know what the others were talking about, and the thought to run away flashed through his mind. But he couldn't do that. Where would he go, anyway? It wasn't like he had anyone else who would help him. Besides, Jerry was the only stable person (or thing, for that matter,) in his life at the moment, and having it go away on purpose was absolutely out of the question.


Sam spent as much time as he possibly could getting the two bags from the car-- one his backpack, the other Jerry's old duffel bag. While his was rather light for him, Jerry's seemed to weigh as much as a baby elephant, and Sam ended up having to practically drag it across the ground.


((@Ebizu Veuship I edited it so Victor can help meh (>u>)))

 

[Ebizu Veuship]

Victor looked at Ian in the eyes, whom in Victor’s face saw reflected a happiness way beyond he expected. It was truly important for Victor to act like a human again, help and gather people, build a society or at least a family. Something Victor craved for a long time, longer than the apocalypse.


Victor always wanted a big family, he had never had siblings or grandparents, his parents were too old for that. Rose almost died having Victor, so it was unthinkable to have another kid and adoption wasn’t an option for that couple. Even with his outgoingness, Victor envied the other kids, the ones that had a brother or a cousin, something he always wanted. Having an elder figure in Victor’s life was also a goal, his parents were good but not so expressive nor affectionate.


Ian took Jerry inside the RV, while Sam was trying to carry the bags, this seemed odd to Victor, why would a little kid do all the work?


-May I help Samuel?- Victor asked to Jerry


-Do as you see fit, but he isn’t too talkative- Answered Jerry with a wide yet tired smile.


Victor approached to Sam who was struggling with a huge and old bag.


-Hey there! Name’s Victor- Said joyfully the childish adult –I can help you if you want to-


After that, Victor grabbed the duffel bag with one hand and proceeded to take out some dust with the palm of his hand.

 

[TheFlyingWriter]

"Hey there!" called a voice that sure as heck didn't sound like Jerry's. Sam whirled, startled, and now very alert. "Name’s Victor," the man introduced himself. Sam didn't respond, but it didn't seem to matter. "I can help you if you want to," Victor finished, but before the boy could reply, the man had snatched the duffel bag from his grasp and swat away the dust.


"Wh-- hey!" Sam cried, a frown taking hold of his face. "I don't need your help," he declared, trying to take the cylindrical carrying case back. "I can do it myself; I'm not a baby." He frowned at Victor again, though it was turning more into a glare. He didn't know this man, and he didn't like this man. He wanted Jerry. He wanted Helen. He wanted his mom.


((Sorry for the short post; I'm not at home so I have limited wifi... =P))