VIRUS Phase 1: The Survivors
Forward: Something kinda new from yours truly; A horror story without serial killers! What a concept! A classic horror scenario with a twist my readers should all enjoy. Criticism appreciated, as are praises and flames! So, without further adieu, I give you...
VIRUS phase 1: The Survivors
Chapter 1: Breakdown
The bus rumbled it's staccato note, the engine droning on endlessly as it pushed the massive vehicle down the small interstate. Past distantly spaced houses and gas stations the bus drove, old mills, farms and county stores. The passengers on the bus, all assorted species with assorted stories, most shaken up from their last rest stop only thirty minutes before. An odd little beaver of a store clerk had told them strange things about the town ahead. Most assumed him just an old fool, but after getting a few of the females riled up some of their male counterparts began jostling the country clerk causing the fellow to kick them all out. The last thing he said before the old wooden door had slammed shut on it's spring hinge was "I hope they bring you all down there next!"
Conversation between the passengers on the large silver machine was kept fairly private due to the engine and road noise, only letting one hear a few rows around them at best. In the back seats of the bus, a pair of young grey wolves occupied one set of seats. The two nearly identical furred lupines looked to be in their early twenties, both wearing blue jeans and sneakers. The female was sporting a white tanktop while her companion wore a black sleeveless shirt.
"Sis, you awake?" Greg asked as he gently let a paw fall on his sister's shoulder, who was leaning against the window of the bus in a very painful looking manner. Molly groaned a bit and turned her head, still pressed on the window, to smile at her twin brother. "I'm ok, just worn out from all this travelling." The female wolf growled a bit at the loud music she could hear blaring from the headphones of the fox in front of her even over the noises of the old bus.
The red vulpine in front of them had decided that his fur would be much better accented by dying the swath of headfur a bright pink. He bobbed his head to the painfully loud tunes while flipping the pages of a car tuning magazine slowly. Sat next to him, and only due to a lack of other seating options was a slightly ticked off looking blond raccoon. His light fur mixed well into his khaki cargo pants, tan hiking boots and likewise colored jacket. A backpack lay at his feet, the strap hooked around one paw to ensure no other passengers would 'accidently' mistake his pack for their own luggage. The coon was well traveled and fairly streetwise, but found himself nearly unable to make the fox next to him eat his headphones.
With an exasperated sigh and a shake of his head he turned to look at the two furs next to him, a pair of horses who eyed him as if he was a drifter scumbag. Drifter maybe, but rude country folk were a fairly common annoyance when one was travelling for sheer fun. A flash caught his eyes and the coon looked back at the bench behind the two hostile horses.
Grinning in a playful way the little husky waved at the raccoon and flashed the laser pointer he held onto the striped fur's chest. Making a gun of his other paw the husky, tail visibly wagging even though he partially sat on it, the ten year old pup 'shot' the backpacker!
With a gasp, Val grabbed his wounded shoulder and flipped out his folding lunch tray from the arm rest. He ducked behind it and fired off two shots from his own hand cannon, thumb acting as the trigger in their silent death match. The little grey husky giggled, pulled out what could only be an imaginary bazooka or rocket launcher and hoisting it to his shoulder, obliterated the entire bus.
Luckily the war was ended by a stern paw on the pup's shoulder and an equally stern glance towards the vagabond ringtail. The mid thirties german shepard sighed "I know you're bored, Trevor but you have to behave. Some of these people may not like your games, ok Sweetie?" The little husky in his tan shorts and grey shirt with the logo from his favorite cartoon show nodded solemnly and shrugged at the raccoon sticking out his tongue to mock the red bloused and high-heeled social worker. "Sorry, Betty." The pup added sarcastically.
Val laughed a bit, shaking his head and leaning back only then noticing the blasting, tinny sounding music again. The ringtail grit his teeth, and closed his eyes.
A sudden bump and the bus began rocking up and down as if the road was a constant series of speed bumps. The brakes shrieked as the bus slowed itself down to a halt, the front left tire shredded badly. With a hiss the air brakes engaged and the driver turned to calm her passengers, the old leopard speaking into her intercom. "It's ok, people. It's just a flat. I'm sorry for the inconvenience but a truck will be on it's way soon to repair us and get us back on the road, alright folks?" A unified grumble was the response as conversation began anew, now people who had been sleeping joining in.
The first one was spotted by a family of rabbits occupying two entire rows of the bus. A scream from one of the teenage daughters and then much pointing and talking. The rest of the bus rushed to the driver side of the bus, looking over the corn field next to them. The high, golden stalks whipped lightly in the wind and stretched on both sides of the road, only on the left they ended in several oddly large buildings for this area. A town off the road?
Bad city planning, however, had not terrified the young lapine. Before too long other passengers began spotting them. Small figures were darting through the corn, each one pausing for several seconds at a time as if gaining perspective before rushing on a bit more. The waning light of sunset made the things hard to see, and talk began of weather they were wild deer or even a pack of feral coyotes. The bus driver again comforted the passangers. "It's only some animals, people. Don't worry. I'm going to go set out a few flares for the repair truck, and it will help keep any of them away from us."
The old leopard pulled the road hazard kit out from under her seat, grumbling as she cracked her back standing up. The woman opened the doors and stepped out onto the asphalt, popping a couple flares and laying them at each passenger side corner of the bus. On her way back towards the doors, her ears swiveled at a scream from the vehicle, followed by several more. Rushing towards the swinging doors, she herd gravel shifting quickly behind her, turning only in time to see a small furred blur leap into the air shortly before her, grabbing onto her ears and slamming her into the ground painfully.
The old driver could not even catch her breath before the mangy, wounded puppy began tearing. The little golden retriever's fur was matted horribly with dirt and blood while his face and naked body was covered in random lacerations and other wounds. The young canine was snarling like a rabid feral, foaming at the muzzle and spraying it everywhere as he slashed and bit down at the spotted cat as she could only put her hands up in defense of her face. Her tail whipped around violently as if to assist in the fight. The pup's eyes were crusted, glazed and nearly red as if badly infected, and his breath reeked of something rotten eaten recently.
The crowed on the bus was screaming, terrified yet sitting idly at their windows as they watched the small, crazed puppy maul their driver. Only the wolves Greg and his sister Molly stood and ran towards the front of the bus. The raccoon, Val, getting up and following suit, swinging his backpack onto his shoulder and leaving the fox staring out the window, frozen in shock.
The little husky was clinging to his social worker and escort to his new foster home who pet him comfortingly as the three furs ran towards the doors. A wave of screams washed fresh over the busses occupants causing the small pup inside to flatten his ears and tighten his crying eyes. A second small, nude form had run up next to the struggling driver, thrashing on her back from the retriever's relentless assault. The equally disgusting and obviously diseased or psychotic Doberman pup knocked the retriever off of the driver with a body slam as he himself began tearing at the vulnerable points of the driver. His teeth and claws making more efficient wounds than the golden pup was. The little retriever snarled yet moved slower to the woman's side and began tearing into her belly as if a subordinate to the other almost like a pack of wolves.
Greg slid to a stop on the last step to the road, holding his arm out to stop the other two. He shook his head, eyeing the corn stalks. "No. No, No, NO! Get inside now! CLOSE THE DOOR, COON!" The ringtail behind them quickly searched over the dashboard and grabbed the large metal handle, sliding it and pulling the heavy doors shut with a loud clack in front of the two wolves. As soon as the doors were closed, a larger malamute obviously nearly a teenager slammed into the safety glass and began slamming on them, snarling and foaming as the others were.
Greg and Molly looked at each other in fear and shock. The coon shuddered in his boots. Little Trevor and his social worker, Betty huddled each other, the older stroking the pup's ears softly. The entire bus was screaming, crying, watching. The road was filled with small puppies, all converging on the now still driver, only moving as hunks of her meat were pulled off of limbs.
Chapter 2: Escape
The bus sat quietly in the darkness, interior illuminated by several of the passenger reading lights. In it's windows the faces of terrified travelers eyed the roads with flattened ears and pained expressions. The remains of the leopard were now in several places along the road, each segment with several of the young, by now obviously diseased pups gathered around and tearing off their shares. Little fights broke out occasionally and sometimes several of the young dogs would gang up on a smaller on and chase him from one of the feeding sites.
"They act just like a pack of wolves."Greg commented. Molly turned and eyed her brother in shock.
"Greg! That's horrible!" The female flattened her ears and lowered her voice. "They're like monsters, like zombies." Her brother shook his head.
"No, Sis. They're hunting in a pack, I can spot the alpha types and the subordinates. It's all there except.. " He thought for a moment.
"Except there are more than one alpha types. It's like they have rank, yet there is no 'pack'." His sister continued, receiving a nod from her twin brother. From behind them, in the driver seat the coon spoke up from having been staring sadly at the empty ignition of the bus, keys outside with the driver.
"Maybe they can't remember anything if they're sick like they look. What if they just, assume their natural roles and base it off that. Maybe they don't even remember or recognize one another."
The two wolves looked at the slightly older raccoon, Greg extended his paw and introduced himself first. "I'm Greg. This is my sister, Molly. You may be right, um.."
"Val. I wanted to find some adventure so I decided to tour the country. Only got two hundred miles before I found it." He shook the wolf's paw and then his sister's in turn. Any further conversation was cut short as the now semi-quiet bus erupted in renewed screaming.
A tiger had stood up, terror in his eyes and a pocket knife open in his hand as he fumbled with the latch of the emergency window exit. He was obviously not planning on letting someone stop his panicked escape. With a deafening click, making the ears on the feasting, fighting, feral acting puppies outside perk in unison, the window latches clicked. The window fell down on it's hinges and the tiger leapt out the window.
He only got about half way to the edge of the field before he was tackled by four of the young, naked dogs. Their fangs tore into him as if he were not even screaming. His extended claws hooked into one of the dog's ears in panic, tearing it open. The irish setter seemed oblivious as his torn ear flopped in two pieces.
The bus was a deafening roar of panic and cries. The three new friends in the front eyed each other as they saw the older german shepard stand with the small husky pup in her arms, his legs around her waist. She ran to the two wolves and the raccoon who had seemed so eager to save the driver. She saw something, so did the passengers. The woman got to the front before the wall of people started backing up from the puppies leaping up at the high, open window, snarling and flinging foam and spit. Their small claws clicked on the shiny metal siding as they leapt upwards towards the trapped travelers.
Greg scanned the dark horizon, looking towards the small town they had seen. He took a deep breath and said calmly and lowly to his sister and the coon, also making sure the old dog and pup could hear. "We can outrun them. They're puppies. We need to get to that town while everyone is panicking. A roof is better than here."
"Greg! Did you see those kids? They-" his Sister began to protest before being cut off.
"Sis! Remember when we'd run off and dad would chase us? We could never out run him even when we were so mad we couldn't even feel being tackled. We have to do this." He looked at the others in turn, and even the social worked nodded, holding the husky's head in her chest as he clung to her, whimpering.
*CLACK* Another window slammed open from the other side, passengers jumping out and running down the road on instinct with small, mangy forms giving chase. The male wolf locked eyes with his sister. She nodded. "Val, when I say go, you pop this door open. Everyone follow the one in front of you, head to the town. Don't stop for anything. Val, you run up front, I'll take the back and grab anyone who falls behind." He met the gaze of each of them in turn, even the small pup who now stared at him with blue eyes. Greg took a steady breath over the screams on the bus.
"NOW!" The raccoon slammed the door mechanism over and the doors parted, exposing them all to the darkened pavement and now all too shadowed corn fields. Without a wasted moment, they were out and rounding the bus, tearing off through the rows of corn towards the little town all too far in the distance. Having keen eyesight in this light, the raccoon parted the corn with the thickly padded arms of his jacket. The Social worker and husky followed close behind, former dragging the latter on by the paw quickly. In step behind them were Molly and Greg, paying no attention to the fox who had also seized the opportunity.
They ran through the corn as it whipped at them painfully, arms outstretched to shield their faces they followed the sound of each others running, and ignored the screams behind them. The town's seemingly too large buildings loomed ahead, and as the group approached they could see it was enclosed by a tall chain link fence topped by barbed wire.
Coming to a halt at it, Greg spun around to check for any of the things that may have followed. It seemed they all had a kill now, and were busy with their meals. It was all too silent in their immediate area. Val dug through his back pack, removing a multi tool with wire snips. He began to snip holes in the fence as Greg introduced himself to the Fox who had followed. "Hey there, since you made it, I'm Greg." The wolf held out his paw.
The fox with pink headfur grinned in a panic stricken way. "Hi! The names Logan, and what the fuck are those things! Fucking puppies? What the fuck, man They're going to fucking eat us, right? Fuck, man what the fuck? We need to get to that town or we're gonna all die!"
The husky was whimpering and clinging to the older shepard that accompanied him. Molly leaned over to check the coon's progress as he made their entrance. Greg was about to shake the fox out of his episode as he was freaking the small dog with them out, yet he didn't get the chance. As the wolf made to grab for the panic-stricken vulpine, a white blur knocked the red furred teenager to the ground, drawing a scream as sharp young teeth drilled into the fox's muzzle, crushing it mercilessly in the tiny, young poodle's muzzle. The snarling little dog slashed savagely at the screaming fox as the others made through the the hole and into the town shortly beyond.
Chapter 3: The Town From Hell
Crossing the last bit of field at a run, the small group exited the corn field and stared at the small 'town'. It now looked more like a compound with a single road, two large buildings and a few smaller warehouses and buildings between. The sign alongside the small private road read "Private Facility. No Trespassing."
The most shocking thing by far was what was on the streets and even sticking out of the edge of the corn. Young dogs lay all around, obviously starved to death. Their ribs stuck out through patchy fur, their little paws curled tightly as if in severe pain. Not a single one looked as if they had been fed on, either. Greg stared up and down the road at the small curled forms strewn about, still. He was snapped from his shock only by the sounds of retching. The german shepard woman was vomiting, on her knees as the little husky pup was trying to comfort her. Val the raccoon approached Greg's side. "We really need to get to a rooftop or something, man. Like now. Those things are going to start finding us, and you see how they work."
Greg nodded and gave his sister a small nuzzle, hugging her. "Molly, get the pup and woman up and ready. We need to make for that building, and quickly." The female wolf nodded and ran over to the caretaker and the pup to help them up. Val and Greg exchanged nervous glances in the dark street that seemed to only be a half mile long in the middle of a corn field. They both new that this was not an area they were ever meant to walk on.
Taking point, Greg led the little pack of survivors towards the closest of the small buildings, still a painfully long way off it seemed. The rag tag group ran along quietly, only due to exhaustion, and as they neared the small building, looking like a storehouse, only the raccoon saw the small form on the ground in front of them.
Val slid to a stop, yelling. "Wait! One of them is moving!"
Greg, also stopping, scanned the road ahead nervously. "Yeah, man? Isn't that a perfect reason to not stop?"
The old german shepard's caring nature got the best of her as she clung to the husky. "Is he alive? Shouldn't we take him with us?"
Molly shook her head. "These puppies are infected with something we have to keep away from them." She put her paw on the older dog's shoulder. "I'm sorry."
Their little moment was interrupted by the small pup dragging itself slowly along the ground as it came into a range where they could make him out more. He looked like a corpse, wriggling towards them as even his muscles had devoured themselves partially. The dog, by all accounts would not normally be alive, but it still crawled towards them, dragging it's bony frame across the asphalt. The little Labrador moaned in a weak pained voice, it's crusted, sunken eyes locked on the small group intensely. As the entire pack of them began a nervous backing up, the small creature let out a painfully shrill scream of anger as it reached a skinny paw towards them.
The cry pierced the night, as loud as an explosion in their ears. Within moments they heard rustling through the corn as if a silent wind was whipping it about. Howls and barks and cries and screams followed unseen. Greg motioned the group and they all huddled together. The road behind them was now being filled by small forms in the darkness, running fast on their bare paws, unaware that their pads were dried and cracking and leaving little bloody tracks behind them. The little pups clawed at the air as they ran, and the group began to run anew, past the starving one and towards the safety of the building ahead.
The road in front of them now, as well was being converged on by more of the dogs, almost as if coordinated. Greg stopped and grabbed his sister. "We may have to fight, sis. This is bad." He looked to the others.
The raccoon held tight to his backpack straps as if to use it as a weapon as he scanned the flood of diseased puppies. The social worker hugged the crying little husky to her and pet him, herself crying. All of them stood in a tight group in the middle of the dark road, only a few hundred yards from the ravenous young dogs that approached at speed.
Greg closed his eyes and held his sister, receiving a tight embrace. A loud noise, a police siren, made his ears perk and his heart jump against his ribcage. The wolf opened his eyes to the site of bright headlights sliding onto the road ahead, accelerating through the group of puppies and mowing some of the silhouetted forms under his car as the rest began to part into the safety of the corn. Blinding lights shining on them, the small group was about to leap into the corn themselves before they heard the breaks squealing.
The black and white car pulled up with a screech in front of them as it settled on it's suspension. A hyena was out of the car in a flash, a shotgun against his shoulder and scanning the fields. "Everyone, get in the fucking, car RIGHT NOW! GO! GO! GO!"
Without a moment of hesitation, the furs piled into the back and front of the car, cramped and not caring. The hyena blasted a few shots at something unseen at the side of the road as he leapt back into the car, tossing his shotgun to the coon in the passenger seat. "Can you use that?" Val nodded to the hyena in his blue uniform. "Good."
He floored the gas and the car sped off, leaving a bit of rubber on the road and smoke in the air, towards the larger building farther down the small isolated road.
End part 1