The Land After Tomorrow (Completed)

Chapter 27: Pain is Humanity

Blair watched from afar as Drew approached her father. She tried screaming for him, but he didn't hear her. She felt her heart beat twice as fast. The fear rising within her mind. He can't win.

Fire still erupted along the walls. Shots still broke out. Screams cried for release. In the midst of it all, was Drew and her father. From the tower, she could see the fight break out and Drew landing the first punch. She picked her rifle up aiming it towards her father. Drew stood in the way of her shot and even if she shot, Drew could still be instantly in the cross fire.

Blair took a deep breath trying to gain her focus. She kept moving her aim gently with the movement of her father, but Drew remained in the crossfire. Blair was not the best shot to begin with, not from this distance. She watched intently as Drew was sent flying onto his back. Her eyes stared in horror at the weapon that her father possessed over Drew's helpless body. She aimed her rifle trying to lock on her target. Nervously, she pulled the trigger sending out a wave of a loud boom throughout her ears. Looking down, the weapon was now in Drew's torso. His scream could be heard from where she was standing. She could feel his pain, his cry. It creeped eerily down into her body piercing her heart with fear and pain.

She quickly shot her rifle once again towards her target. He was just about to stab Drew once again, but this time, it hit. The bullet hit him in the chest sending him tumbling backwards from the impact. Drew had now gone quiet. His screams were no longer apart of the turmoil below. It was silent. Thoughts sprang into Blair's mind of his death. Her body felt cold with the fear that overcame her thoughts, body, and mind.

She quickly descended the ladder from the tower making way towards Drew. The flames gave her warmth, but the smoke started to blow over the camp making it hard to breath the air. She stepped over dead bodies bloodied and battered by shots and weapons. Closer to the fire, she stepped over the bones of those whom had been burned alive. She grimaced from the sight of the skin hanging of the bones and the charcoal ashes that surrounded the body. Some of them, she couldn't recognize and that was the scariest part. Burning pieces had flown into the air and the smoke increased. Her eyes burned from the dense smoke that surrounded her.

Through the smoke, she could see Drew's body laying lifeless on the ground a few feet from her. "Drew," she whispered. She ran quickly by his side staring at his wound. Blood escaped it dripping down his side onto the ground he lied on. Soot was smeared along his face along with fresh blood dripping down his nose. His eyes were shut, but his left eye swelled with a black-blue color.

Her fingers rested along his carotid artery feeling for a pulse. It was like placing fingers along a wire waiting for a slight sign of movement. The artery pumped slightly jumping the artery in a slight amount. Blair pressed her hands into his wound trying to stop the free-flowing bleeding. Staring deeply into the wound, she didn't see the shadow that stood over her. It was now dark, the smoke had taken over visibility, and the fire was the only source of light. Blair coughed as the smoke entered her lungs.

The shadow now stood behind her, "You will die with him." Blair turned quickly around to face the monster that her father was. A vest could be seen from where she shot him, but no blood. In his hand, he still had the knife that dripped of Drew's blood. He raised it, as Blair tried to swing around her rifle to jab him. She knew he would get her, even if she jabbed him. She closed her eyes preparing for the impact into her skin. Instead, a shot was fired that jolted her body. Opening her eyes, her father had queasily taken a few steps backwards. Another shot sent echoes through camp. The bullet whirled the air striking her father into the forehead. He stumbled backwards eventually crashing to the ground. His cold eyes remained open while his heart stopped beating. The blood poured from his forehead slipping down to the ground.

Blair looked to where the shot was fired and saw Ian's figure standing next to a building now staring at the monster that lied on the ground. He then exchanged focus onto his son that lied unconscious on the ground. He took a step forward, before halting.

It happened so fast, but the moment was so slow. It was first the sound, then the bullet. The sound that seemed silent, but it could be heard from miles. Blair could barely hear it. All she saw was the bullet as it flew into Ian's body close to his heart.

Blair flipped her rifle around aiming it towards the shadow that sent the grim reaper with it. She watched as the shadow fell from him place. Feeling lost, she continued to stare unable to mentally process what had just occurred. She continued to wait, expecting to wake up from a nightmare, but nothing happened. Ian's body remained motionless and Drew's body before her was just barely breathing. She coughed and wheezed from the smoke going lightheaded from the lack of oxygen within her lungs.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw two figures approaching. She aimed her gun about to fire, before a familiar voice called out. "Don't shoot," it cried. They approached further with hands raised. Blair could make out the faces of Emily and Ryder approaching her.

"I.." she looked down at Drew unable to continue her sentence for even she didn't know what to say. She was too disoriented to feel, to see, or act. She just stared.

Ryder was mouthing words towards Blair, but she couldn't understand. She saw his mouth move, but no words came out, or what she thought was words. All she heard was muttering or another language unknown to her, so she just continued to stare with a questioning look. Emily pushed Blair out of the way taking over Drew's wound. Ryder was now talking to Emily, Blair thought anyways. Everything was so fuzzy she couldn't understand. Ryder lifted Drew and started running towards a building. Blair felt her arm spring up in front of her being pulled. To keep up, she ran with it seeing Emily up ahead of her with her own arm falling behind her. Emily dropped her off along the side of the building while they went in.

Blair couldn't hear anymore shots or screams. All she saw was smoke and a burning light that seemed to be dimming up ahead. People were running towards it, with buckets of water. For once that night, it was silent. The darkness surrounded her, and the smoke started to slowly clear. The wind howled carrying the smoke with it along with screams of the dead. Visibility started to appear as the smoke was lifted. The fire that burned dimly in the distance was being smothered out by buckets of water. The silence sent a sting of pain through Blair's body. The reality was setting in. Ian was dead, and Drew was barely holding onto life. Blair could feel the tears start to form in the back of her eyes. Her emotions started to set in and an overwhelming sense of mourn overcame her. Her chest tightened. Tears started to stream down gently over her cheeks. She looked around the ground staring at bodies of both her enemy and her once friends. The tears now streamed endlessly down her cheeks unable to control them. The pain washed over her that was too unbearable to take hold over. Imagine everything you once knew was taken away from you. Too much loss to bear and hold within. Her bottle was finally capped and everything she felt poured into tears and whimpers.

She felt the weight of all her sorrow pour into the world. It was a great relief like all the rocks that dragged her down had finally shifted and disappeared. The pain of her mother, the pain of destruction, running as a child scared and frightened, the pain of her brother abandoning her, to be alone, to be scared, to feel lifeless and empty, the pain of Jasmine, and the pain for the loss of the only father she ever had. Everything she ever was hurt by was poured into those tears and cries. Most of her life was taken from her and most of the people she cared about. The only family she had left was Drew and Ryder.

Blair looked around once again at the dead bodies that lied around her in realization that they are going to be missed too by sons, daughters, wives, husbands, or as friends. Everyone here had lost something or someone. Everyone had their own losses and pain. Even before the virus, there was pain and suffering. Most people hid it, and that's what drove them mad. A loss of a father who abandoned them for his ego and pride killed her only brother. A sense of revenge from the pain of his sister and the pain of his own father could kill what has been like a younger brother to her. The pain of Ian, a father to her, died from the pain of the thought of losing another child. Jasmine...she died from the pain of everyone around her. Killed in the crossfire as an innocent victim from the hatred that rose from pain. She was always looking to the stars while everyone was looking towards the gutter of suffering and pain. It is not one's fault of their own, but a lack of recognition that pain can't be buried. It comes out soon enough with possible victims in the crossfire.

Pain is what makes us human. Understanding the pain of our own and others is what makes peace. Don't dwell on it, understand, and accept it.