The Infected Mind

Chapter 7

The moon was hanging at the top of the sky, midnight. The humans were all still asleep, I had waited for them to sleep before I came back to the group after my search for a new pair of glasses came up empty. Now that I was back, I could see Raven appeared to be struggling to sleep. I knew why. Crawlers were nocturnal, and on a night like tonight, with the near-full moon clearly visible in the cloudless night, sleep would be nearly impossible for me or other Crawlers. Raven may be able to get a few hours in during the early morning, but now? Impossible.

Unless it was a new moon, or the sky was clouded over, our instincts simply would not allow us to sleep during the night. They refused to let us miss the moon.

I had been pretending to sleep so I could see what she might do, I had to assume by daybreak her eyes would have blacked out, therefore she would start feeling bloodlust soon enough. I figured I might as well tell her what to be expecting. She shifted on the floor and sat upright, she was looking out the window at the moonlight.

I shifted around so she may assume I had woken up, I spoke quietly as to not wake the humans, but shifted my tone so I sounded half asleep just in case, "What are you lookin' at? It's like the middle of the night, why are you awake?"

Raven turned to look at me, appearing surprised to see me awake. I noticed she was wearing an eyepatch, but hadn't thought of any point during the day when she may have been hurt.

"I'm not really looking at anything. There's something about the moon though..." She trailed off as she turned back to the moonlit street. I could tell from her body language that she wanted to go out into the night and stay there until the sun came out, but I had a better idea.

Before I could even attempt to speak, a loud screech split the silence. The humans screamed and jumped up, even I jumped to standing. How was that so close? Wouldn't I have heard it if those guys from earlier came closer?

My thoughts were interrupted by Amber's shrieks, they were almost louder than a Crawlers screech. She was pointing at me, the others were looking at me. I'm not wearing glasses. In just a quick moment, the wall behind me was broken through, drywall and concrete was flung around the room. I shielded my face from the debris, and the moment it settled I whipped my head up. There was a man standing in the massive hole broken in the wall of the store, or at least, what could once be considered a man, who was standing on dust covered Crawler legs, blood pouring down his face. He charged at us with the girls screaming in the background.

I had to think fast. I let out my Crawler legs swiftly and silently, with his attention on the girls, he didn't notice anything until it was too late. I shoved myself off the wall so I launched at him, and with full force plunged my switchblade through his chest. I could almost hear his heart beating from where I had impaled it. I felt him try to inhale, before he went limp. I knew he was alive, I hadn't removed his heart, so I wasn't nearly done yet.

I pulled his body down towards me and grabbed hold of his head in one hand and his neck in the other. With a quick movement and a deafening snap, his head lay on the floor beside a steadily growing pool of blood. Glancing back to the girls showed the utter horror in their eyes.

The person they were starting to trust was not only a Crawler, but they had just watched me snap something's neck with my bare hands. 

Raven was about to say something before the glass doors shattered behind her, and two Crawler legs latched onto her torso. She managed a startled scream before being yanked from my view. Shit!

I darted out the newly broken door, ignoring the screams from those still inside at the sight of the Crawler legs on my back. In the middle of the street, there was a Crawler, holding Raven tightly and high above the ground.

I barely had time to run into the street before I saw one of her legs impale Raven through the gut. The sound that came from Raven's mouth was not a scream, a screech, a cry, or a gargle. I couldn't place what it sounded like, but it wasn't pleasant. I slashed at the female Crawler and sliced the leg clean off, in a few short moments, her neck was snapped and her head lay in the gutter.

Raven was on the ground, I went down to her as fast as I could and pulled the remains of the leg from her abdomen carefully, before she punched me in the face. I lifted a hand up to my now heavily bleeding nose and turned back to Raven. Her eyes were filled with fear. She knows I'm one of them, she probably can't even tell it's me standing here through her shock.

"Raven listen to me, there is a lot I have to explain, but I am not intending to hurt you, alright? If you pass out, when you wake up, it wasn't a dream, but at the same time, I am not evil. You'll understand soon enough."

I grabbed Raven crafully in my arms, I was able to carry her easily. I spun around to the store, only to see the three girls booking it down the street. I sighed heavily, and began running as my true Crawler self after them. Through the wind I could hear Raven screaming. It was a gargly, drowned out cry of agony and terror. Her screams subsided and her struggles grew weaker as time passed by. I could hear her heartbeat slowing, she was loosing blood at a fast rate. Her eyes met mine for a final time, I looked back with my empty black eyes that must've held nothing but a bad omen for Raven. I spoke a single phrase before she fell limp.

"Don't worry. I'm still the friend you know."

I held her tight, and continued following the three girls. Crawlers had six Crawler legs for walking, but four extra ones hidden in our backs. I extended the four and scooped up the girls. I used two to hold onto Savannah, pinning her arms at her sides so she couldn't shoot me, and ran.