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kapuchuMonday, June 1st, 2111
Eli reclined back in his seat while exchanging pleasantries with Garsin between bites of his protein block. Eli never saw what the big complaint was, but maybe it was because he'd seen, and eaten worse to survive. The protein blocks, especially the fish flavors, were a bit gamy, a little gritty, but overall pretty good and they gave you all the important stuff—Even if they managed to be soft, firm, and more than a little gooey all at the same time. He never saw anybody eat a second one, lest they brave the kinds of jaw cramps only born from nightmares.Garsin on the other hand was a good fellow. A bit of a big oaf, and more than a little quirky in that suit of homemade armor, but he was definitely likable, and a good smith to boot. Eli stepped from the vehicle and took a gander around. There were a lot of faces he recognized, though in his line of work that much was to be expected. Roland came around from the front of the vehicle as Eli licked the last vestiges of his lunch from his fingertips. Roland, still looking every bit as horrified that Eli enjoyed protein blocks, held out his tin of smokes and Eli gladly accepted one, as did a few others milling about the lead car. It wasn't that Eli particularly was in need of one, but it was more of a gesture of kinship. Something from the old world, sharing cigarettes. Perhaps it was just one of the few things people liked to hold onto, the last remnants of familiarity in this new, fucked up world. Eli was taking his first drag off the little white stick when jumble of rocks tumbled down the blockage across the road. Somebody shouted a warning a little too late, as people were already diving out of the way. The tiny little snapping plants hissed and screamed as the miniature rock-slide crashed through them.
"Well, I suppose that's progress?" Eli remarked wistfully, casting his gaze up towards the sky and finding only the thickly interwoven canopy of the jungle. Another familiarity, even if he couldn't see past the veil of green slashed with bright colors. He did however see a strange, shadowed creature leap across the branches high above the ground.
With a nod of his head, Eli signaled his intent to scale the more manageable part of the rubble to scout the area. Roland nodded, but stayed behind. As the driver, with the keys, he had been trained to stay near the vehicle. Just in case. Rocks shifted and crunched beneath his boots as Eli walked up the precarious pile of rocks and broken concrete. Within the debris he saw tell-tale signs of what was probably some sort office at some point. He wondered if it had toppled before, or after. How many people had it provided for? How many people had died because they had been here? He shook his head, as if to shake off his odd musings, just as he crested the top. He crouched low, weapon aimed over the top as he took in the area.
Fortunately, it was still relatively clear beyond this. There path should become easier once they got through this. He didn't want to go around because the land was unpredictable, and the closest recorded route would cut them a little too close towards comfort. He'd rather the teams bust ass to clear enough of this crap for the trucks to drive over than risk being out past night. Besides, all of the vehicles were meant for a little rough terrain, that's why he didn't pick the mayor's 4-door. Eli chuckled as he stood atop the hill and waved back down towards the others. Other than a little thick undergrowth and some large potholes in the road, the way beyond was clear enough. His arm hadn't even come down when he heard the crack of thunder overhead.
Not just any rumbling of thunder, this was loud. Like a bomb had been set off right next to him. He could actually hear glass shattering from the force of the reverberation the boom made. Down below, windshields cracked and the side-mirrors blew out in a dazzling spray of glass. "What the f-" Eli began, but a second crack resounded with enough force to actual shift the rubble beneath him. Before he knew it he was sliding back down the way he had just come amidst tumbling rocks and jagged refuse. Eli tucked his limbs in, bear hugging his gun, and simply let his body roll. It was probably that instinct that kept him from breaking anything as he hit the ground. He must have hit his head pretty hard however, as the world seemed to be growing dimmer before his very eyes.
"Eli!" somebody shouted, but it was fuzzy. Maybe he had hit his head, his bearings felt all off. Eli picked himself up, the world toppled and spun for a second before righting itself. He groaned, straightening up and feeling pain in his legs and back.
"That's gonna bruise," He complained as he straightened his helmet. Once more oriented, a chill washed down his spine, followed by a heavy sense of dread. It was dark.
"How?" Roland asked, Eli hadn't even noticed him approaching.
It wasn't just dim, or overcast. It was steadily growing darker and darker. Eli glanced at his now cracked watch, and for a moment he could only stare at the L.E.D display: 2:37pm. It was laughter that broke him out of his momentary disbelief. Despite the fact that it was the middle of the afternoon, and while the jungle was usually gloomy, this new phenomena was..—It was a little girl, laughing. She was giggling so uproariously, so unnaturally. It was unnerving. It was echoing all around them. How hard had he hit his head? Abruptly, the laughter stopped. Barely a moment passed before he heard humming. Quiet, and soft, but still somehow present all around them. The hums grew in intensity, louder and louder, becoming a cacophony of white noise and buzzing bees. A sound so loud and wretched it made his eyes water. Eli clamped his hands to his ears as the noise split his skull in two. It actually doubled him over in pain. And then, just like that, it was gone.
"What the fuck was that?" Roland cried, wiping the last traces of vomit away from his mouth.
"I.." Eli started, picking himself up off the ground. When had he fallen? His ears were still ringing, and his eyes were watering. "I..." He tried again, but he had nothing. There was no explanation for what had just happened. "I.." He was stuck on a loop, that was all he could say. His instinct was to answer Roland's question, to be the assuring leader. But he had nothing.
Eli stared out at the deepening darkness around them, and then it hit him. It was Dark. It was Dark. "Oh shit.." he whispered. As if to punctuate his words, a howl picked up in the distance. A bloodthirsty, human-like growl. It was guttural, hungry, and it grated across the ears. Eli shivered. He knew that kind of yowling.
Another howl answered, followed by another, and another. The air was filled with a chorus of hungry calls. Eli almost felt as if he could feel the ground vibrate as a small, but thunderous rumble tickled the edges of his hearing. It was growing closer.
"What is it?" Somebody asked him, but he wasn't listening. He was staring at the blockage in horror. In horror and.. and fear? There were others too, the others who knew those sounds, but Eli didn't see them. He was transfixed, as if his brain were blocking signals and he was stuck in disbelief until he actually saw the proof of it. In his mind the numbers just kept blinking..2:37pm.. 2:37pm... 2:37pm. He kept asking How, while simultaneously telling himself "No", this was insane.
The first figure crested the hill, like a hungry beast that had finally found a meal. It stalked up on all fours, before righting itself into the silhouette of a man. But the wrong kind of man. The shape was wrong, it looked broken, with shadowy scraps dangling and flapping from it's body. It emitted a series of clicking noises, it's body jerking with each motion as it forced the sound out of its body. A second and a third joined it, and they too stood and sent out their signals. There was no tempo, no rhythm to what they were doing, only the sporadic bursts of clicking.
"Run," Eli breathed, taking a step back. He didn't even bother to shoot at them. Several shadows crested the hill with reckless speed. The ran on two legs, tripped, crawled, and tumbled, never slowing and uncaring. They just kept moving as fast as their bodies would allow them. Somebody screamed, which signaled a round of gunfire. One of the runners fell, but more were spilling over the hill, a few here, a couple there. Eli raised his gun, trying to help the others, his finger squeezing the trigger. He flicked on his weapon's flashlight to help eat away some of the darkness. It wasn't so dark you couldn't see, but it was dark enough. He wanted to run, but his body's response was to shoot, like muscle memory. Light flared from the end of his gun's muzzle, and all the while his brain screamed at him Run! Run! Run!. There was no shooting at this problem to solve it.
A blanket of shadowy bodies came crashing over the top of the rubble. The creatures tumbled and became a wave of limb and flesh that couldn't right itself. Like a glass of spilled water they all crashed towards the bottom, a bubbling mass of shaded features. Unflinchingly they righted themselves, they didn't care, they didn't even feel it. A collective roar issued forth from them and Eli damn near pissed himself.
"Run!" He screamed, at the very same moment the ghouls gave chase. They had downed the runners, and Eli knew he could probably outrun the normies. But there would be more, things that he couldn't deal with. He couldn't run forever, they could only hide and pray. He threw a glance over his shoulder, and regretted doing so. They were still spilling over the blockage, like a wave breaking upon the shore except it never ended. How many must there be? Hundreds? Thousands? That was enough for his body to throw itself into seventh gear. Eli ignored the vehicles as he hauled ass out of there. He thanked whatever lord or god was left that it wasn't pitch black, otherwise they'd all be dead.