Feral - A Septiplier Fanfiction

Ch.18

Ethan's hair had grown out a lot, and his skin, rather than being riddled with acne, was now covered in scars: thick, long and nasty ones. His eyes seemed slightly more droopy but still seemed just as affectionate as he had been before the plague. He also had built a lot of muscle in his body, which also looked to be covered in scars.

"E- Eth..." Jack stuttered, feeling faint. This couldn't be happening. How was it possible to keep finding his friends by pure chance and luck? Was this the world's way of blessing him after all the torture he went through?

"Hey Jack-a-boy," Ethan said softly, and a shiver ran down Jack's back. He hadn't heard that in so long. Mark let out a low growl in his throat, and Ethan turned to him. "Hey buddy, long time no see," he said simply.

"Mark, he's... Feral." Was all that Jack could spit out in a dumbfounded manner.

Ethan raised an eyebrow at the Irishman. "I know Jack... I was there."

They all had settled on the bed around in a circle (with Ethan as far away from the aggressive Feral as he could) to tell their stories, Jack being the first to start.

When Jack finished explaining, Ethan just nodded his head for a few seconds while staring down at the bed underneath them. "That was some serious determination to find Mark. I know it must have disturbed you deeply to see him change so violently... and I'm so sorry about Signe."

Jack also nodded, then leaned in and said in a shaky voice, "So were you actually there when he turned or just...?" Jack wanted to know what happened with the live YouTube video incident.

"Yeah, well I was actually hiding out... Honestly I shouldn't have. I should have been brave and went inside the house, maybe I could've done something.." Ethan shut his eyes tightly. "But... they snuck in, I guess they subdued Chica and just kinda made a small base right in Mark's house while he was setting up to record... He sent me a text just twenty minutes ago saying he felt weird but he wanted to record a livestream, even though it was way too late for that. I thought maybe he was sick and feverish and kinda delusional, so I went to see him, and they were already making their way in the house. There were tons of them, and they had gas masks and these big, weird looking things where you grab the ends and push them together to blow air out. Forgot what they were called..."

Ethan stopped to catch his breath, looking slightly overwhelmed. "Anyway, maybe it was some kinda gas that messed with his head but he was getting ready to start recording, and they had their own laptop downstairs. I watched through the window as Mark clicked record, and as soon as he did that it was like static came from his equipment, and that's when shit went down. A minute later, as he was tossing and turning and going crazy, I started to hear other people moaning and freaking out too. Then those researchers caught me, and took off with me and Mark. The power went out everywhere but not Mark's house, though it could have been because there was some of those guys left in his house, with their crap everywhere. Maybe they did something to keep his power on. I don't know."

"They told me I couldn't leave, because I saw too much. So I was stuck in a cage at their base most of the time, and the few times I had to interact with Mark as an experiment... that's where all these scars came from. He didn't recognize me and saw me as a threat I guess."

"So is that why the livestream was left on so long, it was just forgotten?" Jack said softly, slightly disappointed with the lack of detail.

"Listen, I didn't tell anyone else this but I'll tell you guys because I trust you." Ethan's eyes narrowed at Jack. "I think they spread this infection via electronically. I don't know how, I don't know the science behind it. But that static... must have done something to his brain, and maybe, just maybe, that livestream is where it originated from. It could have spread to everyone's device that they had been watching it on. I only think that because those scientists always mentioned electronics, and what a waste of an experiment it was since not many people were watching 'it'. I think that's also why they, as you claim, left it on so long and a few of their people stayed behind. So that they could make sure it would keep infecting people who were late to the party. I'd say you're lucky to have clicked on it after it was done recording, because if I'm right, and you tried watching before it ended... you could have turned into a Feral too."