Eliminus - Our Last Stand #Wattys2016

DAY 1

All was dark. My phone clock read 9:15AM and I was supposed to be at school. "Slept in again, you idiot," I thought to myself. Concerned about my status of 45 minutes late, I ran into my living room, stuffed a bread roll into my mouth and tried to get my clothes on. "The jacket doesn't matter until later," I thought.

Carrying my light grey jacket, I ran out of the front door and made my way to school. My school is fairly modern, but earned the name 'St Ress Academy'. I'm still not entirely sure why Ress is a saint. If you're not familiar with Asrey Coast history, then Ress was a warrior that grew up in my hometown of Crowsfield and served Eliminus in the Great Capitol War. In case you're not sure what that is, the Great Capitol War was a battle held in 1976 which would determine which city got expanded and became our capitol: Eliminus, Elitarus or Elterus. Ress moved to Eliminus at the age of 30, and destroyed Elterus AND Elitarus using homemade bombs, winning the war for Eliminus.

Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but killing thousands of people and being proud of your doings has NEVER made anyone a saint. And why not name a school in Eliminus 'St Ress Academy'? Honestly, I'm not sure if anyone put any effort into deciding these things. I think I would be able to make up a better name than that!

BONG

The church bells struck. This was not ordinary, as the bells usually only go off on Sunday's at 11AM. However, the priests set messages for certain numbers of strikes. For example, 3 strikes means that there is a high tide and a flood could be possible. 4 strikes means that a military test fire is going to take place in our town. And 5 strikes means that the city should be evacuated due to a disease or virus. Out of all of those, high tide is the most common, yet we rarely ever get flooded. There was once a military test fire, but it had to be abandoned because I got lost and couldn't evacuate in time. Believe me, that sort of thing ISN'T fun! I was called 'nuke boy' at school for the rest of that year. So I listened attentively.

BONG.

Was there going to be another high tide? Quite likely at this stage.

BONG.

I started to evacuate the town just in case it was a high tide or military test fire. You can never be too prepared!

BONG.

It was a military test fire. Our town was about to be destroyed; for real this time. We were about to face what Elterus had faced previously.

BONG.

All was silent for around 15 seconds. Then, one stupid individual decided to scream "WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!" After this, the whole town started screaming and running for their lives. I swear it was louder than a sonic boom; I could hardly think for myself. A few people started smashing the windows of shops, stealing items and then trying to pick-pocket others, yet there was no sign of the local police.

An old lady walked up to me, grabbed my jacket, and ripped it with her dentures. I started pulling it as hard as I could, but her grip was solid. Eventually, she gave up and spat out the jacket, her dentures falling out with it. She didn't notice this, however, as she tried to do the same to a woman's purse. It was already too late; the dentures, along with my ripped jacket, were already in my rucksack.

Seeing people like this freaked me out more than a virus ever could. The people I'd once been close to were now monsters. I decided to run away to Alles and Son's Farm, a small farm to the east of Crowsfield. "They're sure to have good supplies," I thought. Then I started to wonder if Alles had actually heard about the outbreak at all. But before I could come to a conclusion, the TV in the shop next to me turned on.

"We interrupt your doings with some important local news. Infunction Corp, the genetics company lead by Gene Hughes, has announced that two projects have fell victim to cross-contamination, creating a deadly virus. This virus is now spreading mainly towards the east, infecting anyone who touches it. We advise you to head to Eliminus, which is being heavily guarded so that none of the infected can enter."

I turned around in horror. Listening to any more would quite possible make me throw up. Suddenly, the butcher burst out of his shop with a large knife and shouted, "WHEN THE ZOMBIES COME, I'M GONNA HAVE HUMAN MEAT!" After hearing this, I ran as fast as my legs would take me. I didn't want to die on the first day of the virus! Plus, the infected aren't technically dead, just stunned. They are definitely not zombies!

After running for what seemed like forever, I came across a small cavern. It wasn't much but it would do for now. It was only around 10AM, but I wanted to be ready in case I was attacked. It wouldn't be the most farfetched thing that had happened today. I opened up my rucksack and started separating what was useful and what wasn't. My lunch consisted of a ham sandwich, some Tangy Cheese Doritos, a small bottle of Pepsi, a banana, a Dairy Milk Orea bar and a small packet of Peanut Butter M&Ms. "This might last a while," I thought. I also found a a litre of water, just in case I ran out of Pepsi.

Suddenly, I heard some footsteps from outside the cave. I picked up a large rock and edged towards the cave's opening. As the footsteps got louder, I became more tense. Quickly, I jumped out of the cave and threw the rock at where the noise was coming from.

BANG

I couldn't breathe. Intense pain was coming from my right arm. This was the arm that I needed to perform basic tasks like feed myself or open cans. I couldn't see skin anymore; only blood. I was surely about to die.
"MOVE ANY MORE AND YOUR FACE GETS THE SAME!" A tall boy stood on top of the cave. He had long brown hair and, upon further inspection, a lot of freckles.
"Please... I'm only twelve years old and I mean no harm," I said before falling to the floor.

I must have fainted, because when I woke up my wound was bandaged and I was sitting inside the cave, alone. "The boy must have felt pity for me," I thought. Soon after, he entered the cave, with my phone at hand. He passed it to me, and said, "Look at the time." It was 9PM! Had I slept for 11 hours?
"You passed out as soon as I shot your arm. I'm sorry, by the way. I shouldn't have been so quick to judge you."
"Don't worry, I would have done the same. Could you pass me the black rucksack? I must have lost a lot of blood and need sugar," I replied. To be honest, I was also incredibly hungry at this time.

"So, where are your parents?" Asked the boy.
"My parents both work at the Eliminus Car Dealership. They always leave at around 6AM, so I go to school myself. I just happened to be on my way to school when the church bells rang."
"My mother died when I was very young. My father, however, works at Infunction Corp. When he didn't come back last night, I got worried and scavenged the house. This was all I could find." The boy held up a Desert Eagle handgun, the same one he shot my arm with earlier.
"I tried to get a signal on your phone to call your parents, but I came back with nothing. I'd save the battery if I were you," He continued. "The name's James Gray, by the way. Nice to meet you."
"Lee Enfield, nice to meet you too!" I replied. "So, what should we do now?"
"We should wait this one out, and head off in the morning. I was thinking about going to Alles and Son's Farm for a tractor. Any kind of vehicle will do," He said. I nodded, then lay on my rucksack and tried to get to sleep. The next couple of weeks were going to be rough...