Days After Z: Chapter 1

May 2018 Through a thick cloud of smoke a disembodied, slightly gruff voice fades in, [["And so of course I had to kick his ass"]]

"Jack, now we all know you didn't kick anybody's ass, you were lucky the bouncer was paying enough attention to break you punks up" [[The scene gets clearer...]]

~Setting~ A hookah bar in downtown Boston. There are a group of 5 friends hanging around a big elegant green hookah, passing it around the table as they [[chat.]]

"Screw you, Maj, I got my point across before that big bastard snatched me up" ~Jackson Hicks is a pretty average build white guy with a voice twice his size, he is one of those more bark than bite kinda fellas.~ ~Roman "Maj" Stevens is my best friend since damn near birth. He is about 6'4, the classic All-American type. Tall dark and handsome as he says.~ They have a healthy [[love/hate]] relationship with each other.

"Come on fellas break it up, who's got the next round." "Mel is right, we are celebrating, Desy here is graduating on Monday, for Pete's sake! Four long years and damn near 50,000 dollars in the hole, I think the guy could use a drink! Melanie Torres was the rational one out of all of us, the one we could all count on when shit inevitably hits the fan. She was tall, slim, and gorgeous. I still don't know how a guy like Jack snatched her up. The loud one was Cassandra Marino, she was the biggest tomboy I've ever met. Italian, wiry figure, dressed in her best jean jacket, [[Levi's and Chuck Taylors.]]

Maj waved off Jack and flagged down the server, "Des, I got you man, we are all here to celebrate you my dude." I feel slightly out of place, surrounded by all of my friends here, who I've known most of my life, and yet I can't shake this feeling that... [[Get up and go to the restroom]] [[Ignore the feeling]]

"I'll be right back guys" I slide out of the booth and make my way across the bar to the restroom. I don't really need to use it I just needed to get out of there and get a breather. As I enter the restroom, I can hear commotion from back in front. I ignore it as I walk to the sink to splash some water on my face. I can hear shouting and the sound of glass breaking, [["Must be some type of bar fight"]]

I have been around these guys for years, I just need to relax and loosen up. "Let's have a good time tonight g---." My sentence is interrupted by the sound of shouting and glass breaking from the other side of the bar. We all looked over and saw what looked like a bar fight, but... This was different, people weren't trying to break up the fight or calm the guys down. They were just watching, [[Looking on in shock]]

I didn't even hear the man come in, or use the restroom, but there he was right next to me, despite the other empty sinks a more comfortable distance away. "Yeah, always something going on downtown these days." I glance over and I can see the beads of sweat pouring down the man's face. He looks pale and sickly. [["Sir, do you need some help, you don't look too good"]] [[Ignore it and head out]]

"You seem like a good kid, please take this..." The man reaches out handing me a switchblade, it has a serrated edge on one side and the word "NIGH" written on the side. "Take care of yourself, they are coming, I have seen it", I can see his hands shaking and eyes watering as if he is on the verge of crying. [[No, thank you]] [[Uh, sure thank you]]

It's none of my business he is probably just drunk. I dry my hands and start to head towards the door. Before my hand can reach out to grab the door handle, I feel the sharp pain on my neck and I can feel the warm wetness spreading down my torso. Before I collapse, I can hear the man whisper, "I warned them all. No one believed me, I gotta get them before they get me" END [["Must be some type of bar fight"]] [[Prelude:]]

"Take it before it is too late! He slammed his fist into the glass mirror above my sink and shoved the now closed blade into my chest. "The time is running out and you need to be prepared to defend yourself and the ones you love." "Fine man, alright, thank you. I have to get going now, good luck with everything..." As I rushed towards the door, he shouted behind me, "Don't forget, 3 minutes and 45 seconds! That's all you get, that's all any of us get! [[Hahahaha!!]]"

As I grabbed the knife, he looked down at his watch, walked over to the door and locked it. "Ummm, what are you doing?" "Now that you have that I need you to do me a favor, I need you to take care of me." "Take care of you... what exactly do you mean by that?" I mean I have 45 seconds and I need you to make sure I don't hurt anybody, I need you to take that knife and slide it right between my eyes... or in the back of my head at an upward angle, whichever is easier for you." "[[Nah man, I'm not gonna do that]]"

The bartender, barback, and bar patrons were all just staring on as one of the men jumped on top of the other. From afar it looked like a normal fight, but thanks to my new prescription glasses (that I hated before this moment) I could see what looked like the man on top biting the one on bottom. My fear mixed with my curiosity and led me to stand up to get a better look. I could now see the bright red pool slowly growing around the two men on the ground. The sense finally came back to one of the men at the bar, a potbellied, balding, middle-aged man. He jumped up and grabbed the guy on the top of the pile. "Hey man, get offa him, you offa your meds or summin", he shouted as he wrestled with the [[attacker]].

"Hey, do you guys see that...?" I had to be sure I wasn't the only one seeing this. As they dragged the injured man away he left behind a red streak of blood. "What the hell is going on over there, always something going on down... hey, get the hell off me!" Jackson was grabbed from behind by one of the servers, her face and the top half of her apron were [[stained red]].

"What's your problem lady" Maj helped Jackson to wrestle the lady off and she stumbled over the bench and fell, her head hit the side of the next booth with a sound that I could only describe as the sound a large watermelon would make if it was dropped off a roof. As Cass and Melanie ran over to check on her, a sense of clarity came over me and I did a quick scan of the room... The man on the floor from before was missing, the large man that broke up the fight was slumped over the top of the bar, all the TVs in the bar were now displaying the Emergency Alert System, and there was a deafening alarm playing over the speakers that was once playing Top 40 Hits. [["What is this..."]]

I could feel my anxiety flaring up and needed to get some space. [[Get up and go to the restroom]]

The mans words echoed in my mind as I walked out of the restroom. What I didn't realize at the time was that I was walking out of a nightmare and into the [[bowels of hell]].

"You must, I am out of time and if you don't then you will die in this room right along with me" Before I could finish processing the threat he was already rushing me. He grabbed me by my shirt and slammed me against the sink. I tried to wrestle him off, but this guy must be on something because I can't shake his grip. "Do it, do it now, time is running out." [[I can't do this, this is wrong...]] [[This is self-defense, him or me.]]

"I am not a murderer, I won't" "Then unfortunately, you will be my first victim" His grip moved from my chest up to my neck and slowly began to tighten. His freakish strength made it so that nothing I could do could stop him. I could feel my vision begin to blur, my chest begin to burn, and the light begin to dim. I could only think about all the time wasted, the life I could've lived, the mistakes I made and risks I didn't make. Well maybe in the next life... Before the light completely switched off I could feel the snap of my neck and for a split second I could feel the flesh on my shoulder being ripped from it's home on my body. END [[Nah man, I'm not gonna do that]] [[Prelude:]]

I pulled the blade from the knife and warned him to let me go, "This is your last chance..." "Remember this, 3 minutes and 45 seconds, is all you get, DO IT" I shut my eyes, reached out for his face, with my left and plunged the knife in with my right. I felt one last spasm from my attacker and finally his grip loosened. He fell besides me on the floor. I reached down and grabbed the knife, washed both it and my hands in the sink, and took out my phone to call 911. "A busy signal, how is that even possible." I remembered my friends outside and ran to unlock the door. I walked out into the [[bowels of hell]].

There were bodies everywhere, the bar was mostly vacated and the few people still around, were either crying or screaming for help. I went back to my booth and found my friends, or at least what was left of them. They were ripped apart, it looked like wild animals had been let loose on them. I couldn't quite process the whole thing, so I just walked out and took a look at this new world I was living in. This brand new world of mine... To Be Continued... [[Prelude:]]