Tainted

Chapter 1: Captured

Cover made by dumbledorepls.

Copyright © 2013 Samantha Torres All Rights Reserved

Tainted-a trace of a bad or undesirable quality or substance, to contaminate or pollute.

In the dictionary, that’s just a word. But in the real world, it’s the process of how those monsters would create more of themselves.

At first, it was just a small outbreak. No one would think twice about a uprising disease, that was until it spread like wildfire. Many people died. The problem was that they didn't stay dead.

My mother and I hid in our attic. She told me that we would be safe because it’s difficult to point out a string hanging from the ceiling. 

We hid for months. Our food supply was beginning running low. I was barely seventeen. I wanted to grow up and explore the world; not hide because of the creatures that dominate it threaten my life.

My mother’s eyes were weary and tried from the lack of sleep. The horrid screams from outside would haunt us both when we tried to sleep. She grew ill because of the exposer to the cold Alaskan air. Her coughs were dangerous, they could lead the monsters right to us.

“Honey, I love you. You know that, right?” She reminded me.

“I know.” I announced.

“Good. Now go to sleep.” She ordered.

I woke up the next morning alone in the attic. I looked around the room, she wasn’t here. That night was a cold night. On cold nights, I would use my mother for her warmth. She would cradle me in her arms and remind me that in a world full of hate, there’s love. 

In the middle of the night, I heard a scream. Not just any scream, it was my mother’s voice; I was sure of it. Tears quickly flooded my eyes. An ache filled my stomach. I lost the only person I had left. She sacrificed her life for me to live a longer one. I’ll never forget that.

A couple more days went by. The screams that would own the night slowly began to decrease. I was on the last can of food. I waited more to make sure that my town was hazard free. The night finally came that the screams were gone. Can it be that they moved on to the next town? I was unsure of what to do. 

The next day I waited until the sun was at its highest peak. I knew the effects that sunlight had on those creatures. If one beam of light even comes within a distance of them, they would devolve into a ponderous puff of smoke.

I slowly pulled down the wooden latter and for the first time, I used my legs to walk. The attic had low roofing, if I needed to access another area I would normally crawl. It was for this reason that my legs would shake. But I knew that I have to be quick. Sliding outside, the sun blinded me. I wasn’t used too so much sunlight. 

The streets were vacant as I limped my way around. Houses were demolished into ashes. Cars stood still, some had crashed into telephone poles or streetlights. Those streetlights flicked their lights.

The roads and path-walks had snow that piled high. It’s nice to know that the current events didn’t effect the weather. Some corpses laid on the ground, covered in scratch and bite marks. The sight made me sick.

Chicago. It all started there. Such a booming city and yet, how careless they were to such a disease they overlooked and considered innocent. I saw the reports on television when they announced that they had everything under control. 

Oh, how they lied.

What they didn’t know is that one day you can only have one infected subject, but the next that one person turns into two, and then the next day the numbers double. Next thing you know you’re out numbered.

Once the disease got out of control in Chicago, many moved out of the states before the area was put under quarantine. The infected and the uninfected moved up towards Canada and downwards to Mexico. It only took one month for those demons to contaminate Alaskan lands.

Here I stand, glaring at the corner store’s fallen sign. Everything from food to supplies was sold. Most selves were empty or knocked over. The electricity was out. With that known, I knew that I couldn’t take anything that had to be refrigerated. I grabbed all I could; water and chips filled my shopping basket. 

When would be the next time that I would go out? With that thought burning into my mind, I quickly made my way home. The sun started to fall into the darkened horizon. I made my way back into the attic.

Finding no comfort in the fact that ten bags of chips will keep me hunger free, I ate one bag a day. Every week I returned to the store to get supplies. I worry about the day that even the food from the store will spoil or run out. It’s difficult to depend on something, especially when those creatures run around at night.

Then, I heard it. Footsteps. In my house. I thought that all the creatures were gone. I stop breathing, I’m paranoid of even the smallest noises. The footsteps walk all amongst the house. I know that they can smell me, but they can’t find me. Staying frozen, I realize that I may only have minutes until they find me. Finally, the footsteps stop. I slowly exhale feeling safer.

Boy was I wrong to feel safe.

But then, the attic’s door begins to open. I close my eyes to prevent tears from flooding them. Finally, I see a head pop out of the top. A female with brown hair smirks. Her pale face is covered in blood. Her eyes are a deep red. Fangs shoot out of her mouth. She’s one of them. 

She walks over to me and kneels. I find myself breathing crazily. She grabs me by my hair and begins to drag me down the stairs.

I scream. My scream copies the ones that I would hear every night, but this time it comes out of my mouth. She drags me outside and lays me on the dirty street.

“Melissa, I found one.” She reports happily.

I try to cover the blood that escapes my head. A woman with identical features stands next to the woman who found me. Melissa smiles. Her cold hands pin me to the ground and her fangs shoot out. I close my eyes and wait for the pain to kick in.