The Plague War

2

I marched up the hill that leads to the camp. Breaking into the clearing of our camp, there stood a person, a female to be exact. With long blonde hair, and steel blue eyes. "Hello?" I yelled.

"Hello, who are you? Do you know why there is a camp here?" She answered."Yes, I do, I am Samantha Sprewton, who are you?"

"I am Clara Kiser, and I need to know if you know where the commander of this joint is." The woman demanded. "Down that path, to the right, you'll know you found them." I spat as I walked past the woman, shoulder checking her in the process. Instantly made my way to the training room. I hung up a punching bag.

"One, two, three, four, five," I whispered to myself as I hit the sandbag. I became unaware of my surroundings, three hours had passed when someone had finally found me in my hiding spot. My knuckles bloodied and my skin was hot and tomato red.

"Uh, Sergeant Sprewton, dinners ready," French said in a whisper. I glared at him through bloodshot eyes and nodded pushing past him to the dining hall. Whispers filled the room as I walked in. All eyes were on me. After grabbing my food I sat down at a table all the way in the back. I was alone, as I wanted to be. I didn't want anyone around me. I knew deep down that I did want to talk to someone, rant to them like they were my therapist. "Sam?" My eyes shot up from my plate. "Rosalind," I said blankly. She sat next to me. "You okay?" She asked. I nodded, not wanting to admit that I wasn't OK. I would have rather it had been me that was bitten, but instead, it was Breal. Someone Rosalind and I had a connection with. "Why did it hurt you so much when Breal died?" Rosalinda's eyes dropped and her cheeks went rosy. "I-uhh- I kinda liked him." My eyes went from my plate to hers in an instant. "You what?" I was in shock. I knew that he liked her but she liked him. Were they in a relationship without telling me?

"You heard me!" Rosalind spat. I looked around making sure that no one was going to potentially eavesdrop."Were you two together?" I whispered. Rosalind and everyone else knew that being in a relationship with a fellow soldier was against the law. "Yes. We were but please don't tell anyone."

"Seriously Lindy, who else would I tell?" I rolled my eyes. "I don't know, a boyfriend or something." I looked at her astonished. "Me. A boyfriend? Let's go with or something." I said as she broke out in a giggle fit. "Yeah, or something," Rosalind replied. We laughed for a little bit then the second it hit us what we were laughing about we instantly stopped. Our faces dropped in realization. The realization that we were laughing at Jacobs' death. Why would I laugh about one of my friend's deaths, the one I killed.

"I should go," Rosalind stated. I shook my head as she stood to leave. I watched her leave, I still sat letting it all set in, my best friend was illegally dating the guy I killed. I mean, he would have died anyway, even if he fully transformed, he could have run off into the bush and in twenty-four hours he would have been unrecognizable.

A while later I headed to bed. I dreaded going to sleep, knowing that I would wake up in the middle of the night because of nightmares, Jacob's death replaying in my head.

Darkness. Nothing but darkness, no sound, no light not even a sliver of light. Then a rustling sounds off in the distance. Then my name was whispered. "Samantha'' silence "Samantha, why?" The world started to lighten, dim lights flashed in the corners of the room. I looked around. Nothing, the dim lights did nothing for my vision. "Sam, I trusted you." I tried to search the room, the lights started to flicker faster and brighter. Despite the brighter lights I still couldn't see who was talking to me. They kept on repeating my name over and over again. "Samantha" the voice merged into two voices. A deeper, manly voice. "Samantha Jewel Sprewton, Granddaughter." Grandpa? "Hello?" I squeaked out. "You made a mistake." the voice god louder in my ears. The dark walls turned into mirrors. I saw my reflection, scared and scarred. What happened to me. I looked at least four years older. "What-" I was cut off. "Killing Jacob breal"

My eyes opened, I darted straight up. I shouldn't have killed breal, I thought it was the right thing. My mind was racing, nothing was processing. A zombie could be sitting right in front of me and I would have no idea. I stood from the bed and walked outside the tent. I just ran, my cheeks red from the midnight frost. I knew the snow was coming. It was October. Cold weather wasn't uncommon in October, usually, by the thirty-first, there were seven inches of snow. I ran faster and faster until I lost myself in the bitter cold. I followed my tracks back to camp. I was completely and utterly unaware of what was happening back in the camp. I looked around, fire was raging. I assumed that everyone had fled, but still, I decided to run into the blaze to make sure. I yelled for someone. I got to the hall, hearing yells echoing off the walls. I whipped the door open, burning my hand in the process."Hello!" I yelled, "Whoever's in here I'm here to help." "Say it again. We'll follow your voice." A feminine voice yelled back.I hesitated, thinking of what to yell for them to follow my voice. Whose voice was that, I struggled to hear it over flames.

"I'm right here." I coughed, unable to get fresh air. The fire around me started to get warmer and I felt myself beginning to feel faint. I could see the figures through the fire, they were slowly getting closer to me. A scream sounded as a beam fell from the roof, crushing all who were still alive apart from myself in the hall. I turned around and fled the building. Following the path of footsteps from the hall that were left in the snow. I followed the tracks like a police K9 sniffing for drugs, unwavering focus, trying not to lose the scent. I rounded a corner and through the trees, I saw movement. My body stilled, my heart pounding in my chest. I reached for my gun. Working quickly and silently I snuck around the corner. They weren't zombies, it was my group, the squad.

"Sam?" My head shot up."Lindy," I said running forward I fell into her arms. Though I knew we were in the open and could easily be being watched right now, I felt safe. "You do know that your whole side is burnt, right?" Rosalind asked, all I could manage was a small nod before my vision went dark, all my weight fell onto her. All sound subsided.