Wormwood Dawn (Episode VIII) (14 page)

He raised his head just in time to see the creature burst into a cloud of flesh and black ichor. Chunks of Robert’s body went everywhere, flaming like meteorites as they sailed through the air. Still in slow motion, Drew and Cliff leaped out of the truck, their rifles firing into the crowd of corpses that staggered toward them.

Dan struggled to stand, his head spinning. Eric, Toni, and Gena were holding their heads as they stood, and they all held onto each other for support as the others finished off the dead. Dan broke off, heading toward the scattered remains of Robert’s corpse. There were flaming piles of flesh everywhere, but he had one goal in mind; Robert’s head.

Through the deafening sound of gunshots, Dan searched the remains. He found Robert’s head and left shoulder lying face down a short ways away. He kicked it over with his foot, gasping as he realized the thing was still alive.

“It’s time for you to die, Mr. Rathburn,” he said kneeling next to the head.

Robert’s mouth opened and closed as he attempted to speak, but nothing came out; only a glop of black fluid that sprayed out with his breath. Dan raised his machete, grinned, and hacked the remains to pieces. He struck over and over again, laughing and growling as the black blood sprayed everywhere. He felt strong hands grab him from behind and pull him away.

Then, Cliff stepped forward in his vision, pouring the contents of a gas can onto Robert’s chunks. Drew threw a flare down and ignited the gas, and everyone stepped away. Slowly, the world returned to normal.

“What was that?” Jake asked.

Dan chuckled, shaking his head. “That was the creature I told you about,” he said. “The serial killer.”

“Wow,” Drew said. “So you were right. You weren’t imagining things?”

Dan sighed. “Nope,” he said. “What are you guys doing here? Is everything alright back home?”

“We saw the fire from there,” Cliff said. “So we figured you could use some help.”

“Shit!” Dan said. “Toby. Let’s go.”

He started off toward the fire in the woods. Though everyone followed, they seemed to lag behind for some reason. Dan, wanting them all to get there as soon as possible, turned to urge them on. They were all turned toward the east as they trudged through the snow.

“Come on,” Dan said, but looked in the same direction.

Through the thick clouds, Dan could see the rising sun. It showed orange through the gaps in the cloud layer, and its rays seemed to spread across the sky in full force. The clouds were dissipating, and they all watched as the blackness swirled and faded.

There would be daylight today.

The darkness had lifted.

Chapter Fourteen

The cabin was in ruins. Though Dan had expected there to be some damage from the fire, he hadn’t expected such destruction. A large tree had collapsed most of it, and only a small portion of the two chimneys and a larger room remained. Even the floor had collapsed, and a dark cellar could be seen through the rubble. There were cackling sounds coming from the nearby stable, and Cliff and Drew broke off to take care of whatever was in there.

Dan’s heart was heavy as he scanned the rubble. If Toby had been in there, he was surely dead by now. He felt Toni’s hand on his shoulder, and he knew that she felt his pain. He loved the kid, and he knew in his heart that he had failed to protect him.

“I’m sorry, Dan,” she said. “You did all you could. It’s not your fault.”

Dan sighed, lowering his head.

“It’ll be light soon,” Jake said. “Thank God. Maybe we can look around some more. I’m sure it’ll get warmer and all this fucking snow will melt.”

A coughing sound suddenly caught Dan’s attention. His heart jumped, and he took a step forward to listen. The coughing sounded again, and Dan laughed out loud as he raced toward the rubble. He picked his way through, moving logs and boards out of the way. Though the smoke was still thick, the fire was out thankfully, and he could see into the remaining room.

There was a scorched couch, a crumbled hearth, an end table, and a large pile of what looked like black and brown clothing. He went toward it, his heart racing as he saw a pair of heavy boots sticking out. They were too big to be Toby’s, he realized, and he felt a wave of sorrow rush over him.

But then the pile of clothing moved.

He crouched next to it as Toni came up behind him. He reached out, nudging the man that lay there still. There was no movement, but there was a slight moaning. Dan reached out and flipped over the body, and his heart jumped.

“Dan?” Toby said as he sat up, rubbing his eyes.

Dan laughed out loud, grabbing the boy and squeezing him tightly. “Toby,” he said. “Are you alright?”

He could feel Toby nod. “I’m alright,” the boy said. “Is Maynard dead?”

He let Toby loose, looking over to the body that was now face up. The man’s face was odd; pale and veiny, with deep-set, pale blue eyes. His upper abdomen was covered with blood, and Dan could see a puncture wound there, open and black.

“I think so,” he said. “Who was he?”

“I don’t know,” Toby said, looking at the man sadly. “But he saved my life. He wasn’t bad.”

Toni knelt next to them, smiling. Toby grinned, leaping across Dan’s lap to hug her. “Toni,” he said. “I knew you guys would find me.”

“You gave us quite a scare,” she said.

“Yes you did,” Dan added. “Why did you leave?”

“I thought I saw my mom on the monitor,” he said. “Did you find her?”

Dan looked at Toni. She pursed her lips. They both knew that they would have to explain the situation to Toby. That was something that neither of them looked forward to. But one thing was certain; Toby was an orphan now, and the group was now the only family he had left.

“We’ll talk about it when we get home,” Dan said.

They led Toby outside, where the rest of the group waited. Everyone smiled when they saw Toby, and the boy ran out to greet them. After hugging his friends, he looked up at Gena, who smiled back at him.

“Who is this?” Toby asked.

Cliff put his hand on Gena’s shoulder. “This is Gena,” he said. “She’s one of our new friends.”

“One
of them?”

“We’ll explain that, too,” Dan said, laughing. “But first, tell me about this Maynard.”

The sky gradually brightened as the sun rose, becoming a gleaming golden color that cast a surreal light on the landscape. Soon, the debris would completely clear out, according to Max, and the familiar and comforting blue would return. For now, even the odd color was welcome, and it wouldn’t be long before winter was gone, and spring would bring new life.

Dan felt the warmth of the new sun as he stood over Maynard’s grave. He didn’t know the man, but he felt that giving him a proper burial was appropriate. Toby’s story had been disturbing, but Dan knew that Maynard had saved Toby’s life that first night, and had used his own dying body to protect him from the cold and the fire.

That, Dan felt, made him worthy of his respect.

Why he had kept the infected in his cabin was still a mystery. How he was able to control them was another. He thought it was odd that the ghouls that were found wandering the forest seemed to be attracted to the cabin. It was almost as if it was their home. He wondered if maybe they were Maynard’s family, or if he had simply befriended them somehow.

Strange,
Dan thought. The weirdest things happen when the world ends.

He was startled by the crunching of underbrush nearby, and spun to look. A deer was there, staring at him with those fearful eyes, and chewing on a mouthful of newly sprouted greens. He stared at it for a moment, realizing the importance of its presence. It meant that things were returning to normal; as normal as things could be during the apocalypse.

He smiled.

A deafening gunshot sounded, and the deer collapsed.

“Woohoo!” Travis shouted, bounding over to the carcass. “Got him.”

Dan laughed, shaking his head as Eric joined his dad. The two of them began strapping the deer to their game sled, surely dragging it back to the camp to slaughter. That was okay with Dan. It had been a while since he, or anyone else for that matter, had eaten a good meal.

Tonight, the feast was on.

About the Author

Edward lives in the rolling hills of Brown County, Indiana, where he shoots things, eats things, and tries to grow things. Unfortunately, nothing grows well on his land, since it’s in the middle of the woods… dang it.