(Warning: Mature Content, not for weak of heart)

   

         

                  
PART 1

Dark vortex ran down the street.. shadows danced and followed him wherever he
went. Some changed shape, and were not his own. ghosts as ogredick and hitman
challenged his sanity. he stopped to breath in short gasps. he couldn't run anymore,
he would have to face them.

"Dark vortex...you can run but you can't hide!"
hitman yells, and starts to laugh wickedly.

"Get in!"
Roe says, as she pulls dark vortex into a vacant building.

"Why are you in here??"
Dark Vortex asks her.

"Hiding from them. Ever since the eclipse, they changed.
lots of people changed. Traveling at night is not safe anymore."
she replied, and then put a finger to her lips.

hitman approached and sniffed the air. his senses were keen. he could
smell dark vortex, and someone else. he couldn't tell if it were and animal
or human.

"did you see whee he went?"
Ogredick asked.

hitman shook his head, and walked passed the
door to where dark vortex had vanished just before.

"dark vortex....come out come out wherever you are!!"
Ogredick yelled into the darkness.

the street was litered with emtpy cars, and only the
people that were affected by the eclipse walked free......

  

         
                  
PART 2

Creature stared at the moon for the longest time. He knew he had changed,
but....this?? He had a thirst for blood. He could feel himself changing again.
If he had a mirror he would have seen himself form into a wolf. His eyes
glowed red in the darkness. His thoughts were human, but that was
all that remained of him being human.

He began to run, as if lost. the thirst for blood more urgent than before.

-------

Jer and Bardi opened the door to the motel
room, and began to gag at the smell of death.

"I can't go out there!"
bardi said, as jer shut the door the room.

"we have to leave!" Jer said, as she
turned the handle on the door again.

"lets leave in the morning..you heard the news..
people been acting all about wierd."
bardi said, as she sat on the bed
and turned the tv back on to the news.

Jer sighed.

A knock on the door startled the two of them.
Jer opened the door, to let roe and a stranger in.

"You guys, it's crazy out there. we have to get
out of here as soon as the sun comes out."
Roe said, as she sat at the table and lit a cigarette.

jer and the young man stared at each other until he looked away.

"oh.. he was being chased."
Roe said, as she fanned away smoke.

"You don't think they followed you here do you?"
Bardi asked.

"I sure hope not."
dark vortex said and looked out through
the curtains into the dark night.

------------------

Creature watched the door to the motel room, drool
dropping from his jaws to the dirt. he was hungry....

 


PART 3

Hister and Tal walked along the highway, Their car had broken down miles
back. Not a car had been seen in the last hour to even think about hitching
a ride.

"Victoria is going to kill me for being late!! I owed her a dinner!"
Tal said, as he quickened his pace.

"dude, you're late already."
hister said, as he yanked tal back by the collar.
"No use hurrying now."

"you're right I guess."
tal said and slowed his pace. "hey...have you noticed that there
haven't been any cars passing lately. no cars either way.

"yeah.."
hister says, and then slides his headphones over his ears.

--------------------------------

Victoria sat in her car and listened to her favorite radio station. she
had never been stood up before. It would be the first and last time
that would ever happen. she turned the ignition and pulled the car
slowly out of the driveway. she'd find the bastard that stood her up,
and make him pay.

The moon was beautiful tonight, she thought.

----------------------

Rob stood in his cabin and opened the trap door. he never thought
he would need the arsenal that was there. ever since that eclipse half
he world had gone crazy. no one was going to come after him.. no one.
and if they did.. they were dead.

His best friend Taff lay in a pool of blood outside the front door. he
had come at rob the night of the eclipse with a filet knife. taff had said
something about having him for dinner, and that was all rob had needed
to hear.

rob moved over to his chair, and sat facing the front door. he was
almost afraid taff would come back to life. another part of him was
almost willing him to come back to life.

he began to wonder if there was anyone else that wasn't affected
last night. It would be awful if he were in this world alone...

-------------


PART 4

Metalbeast stood at the car waiting for Hister and Tal's return. He had
been chosen to stay at the car, incase the tow truck finally showed up.

Drawing the shortest straw wasn't always the best thing.

The silence was almost unbearable. He had never heard the night be
so quiet before. He could hear himself breathing, and his heart beating.

-----

Victoria stared at the road and concentrated. Why was she driving so fast??
Where was she going.. She started to slow down, only when she saw a car
broken down on the side of the road. it was tal's old ride.

------

Metalbeast jumped out of the way of the car just in time..

"heyyyy! watch the shoes!!"
Metal yelled, as the woman jumped out the car.
"Damn woman drivers."

"where is tal?? where are you hiding him?
i thought you were him at first.. sorry about the close call."
Victoria says, and shakes her head. she really didn't feel herself.

"tal is walking ahead to find a ride, or a phone."
metal said, as he scratched his goatee.

"walking?"
victoria said, and turned away from him.

"That's what i said."
Metal replied.

"Oh."
Victoria said, and jumped back into her car .

"HEY wait!! can't you give me a lift!!"
metal screamed as the car sped out of sight!!
"shit!! I am out here...in the dark...shit shit
shit!!! not that i am afraid of the dark...."

He checked his watch, the men had been gone for 2 hours already.
Forget it, he thought, i'm walking. he shoved his hands in his pockets, and
braced himself for what he thought would be a long walk to civilization.

--------

Vamp had been watching the man at his car. this man was to be his next
victim. the sledgehammer he held was dripping still with the fresh blood of
his last victim. killing was better than sex, he thought.

he had wanted to laugh ,as he saw the car that the woman was in drive out
of sight. luck was on his side, and stealth was the name of his game. he had
started to like the look of shock on his victims faces. and most of the time
he killed them in just 3 or 4 blows to the head. he was getting better, he
really liked to see their anguish.

vamp started to follow the man, staying in all the way in the shadows.
he wouldn't stay there for long though.. his lust for death was almost
uncontrollable.

-----

Metal felt as if he were being followed. He turned in circles, and could
see nothing but the dense trees in the moonlight. he sighed, and broke
into a light run. Paranoid or not, the night felt as if it were itself closing
in on him.

 


PART 5

 

--------------

"what is that?"
Jer said, as they sat listening to something scratching at the door.

"It's a dog."
Roe says, as she looks out the window.

"dude that is a wolf!!"
jer said, as she watched the red eyes looking back at her.
" and he looks hungry!"

"is anybody hot?"
bardi says, as she turns on the air conditioner full blast.

-----------------

Creature began to drool, as the thought of fresh meat entered his mind.
If he could only get to the other side of that door, he thought. He started
to bite at the handle on the door, hoping it wouldn't be locked.

---------

Roe watched as the handle on the door started to turn.
"You guys, this thing is trying to get in!!"

"I can't take this you guys!! i don't know what this is going on...
i can handle ghosts, but not this zombie crap!!!"
Bardi said, as she started to fan herself.
" I think I am going to be sick."

Dark vortex hands her the trash can.

"Thanks."
Bardi said, as she runs to the bathroom.

"look I know where we need to go. We just need to get out of here,
past the wolf, and hopefully past the people that were chasing me.
this guy has a whole arsonal of weapons." dark vortex says to the
other girls.

" do we even know how to kill these things?"
roe asks.

"can they be killed, is the question really."
jer says to roe and dark vortex.

"we have to try something!"
dark vortex says, as he walks to the door and holds the knob
tightly. he wasn't going to give the wolf a chance to enter.

not yet anyway.

-------------------------

creature gave up on the knob and walked away. there had to be more
blood..other than a rabbit or two. rabbits weren't his style. he was after
bigger prey. he licked his teeth and smiled. he was sure that from the inside
of that room, his look was pure evil.

---------

"where did the wolf go?"
bardi said, as she re entered the room with bloodshot eyes.

"he's across the street. maybe we can make it to the car."
roe said, and opened the door slowly.
"are you guys ready?"

"no..."
The other three replied.

Roe opened the door and ran to the locked car door.

-------

Here was his chance, creature thought. he began to trot, and then run as
he saw the people run out of the room one by one. their fear was strong,
he could smell it on them..

his teeth bore down on skin and bone, and finally blood. he could hear
screams, but he was diconnected from the world...all he felt was relief.

--------

"barrrrrdiiiii!!"
jer yelled. she started to run back, and dark vortex held on to her.
"we have to help her!!"
she yells, starting to cry.

"there's nothing we can do.. she's gone."
dark vortex says, as he pulls her into the car.

the three of them sit and watch as the wolf licks and bites
at bardi's neck. the wolf had almost snapped her head off.

"run the mother fucker over."
jer says through her tears.

Roe starts the car, and lines it up to hit the wolf.

-----------------------

creature hears the car start, and takes one last lick of blood from the
lifeless body..He growls as the car approaches..Death wasnt going to
come to him this easy, he thought.

He closed his eyes, and could feel himself start to float.. Everything in
him and around him changed. He opened his eyes to see himself floating
above the car.

-----------

Roe screamed in rage as she watched the wolf turn into an eagle and fly
away. she was so close to killing it. Whatever it was that had killed bardi
was a shapeshifter.

-----------

creature laughed as he saw the expressions on their faces. what sound
came from him was a loud screetch of a huge bird. the world was beautiful
from here, he thought.

he watched as the other people got out of the car to inspect their dead friend.
she had died so easily, as she bled to death. now that he had made his first
human kill, he wanted more.

he flew away, leaving the scene behind.

-----------

"what do we do with her?"
jer asked, not wanting to look at her old friend.

" put her in the hotel room..wrap her in blankets and leave her there."
dark vortex replies.

"leave her?"
jer replies.

"i'm not riding in a car with a dead body!!"
Dark vortex yells.

"but...!"
jer starts to argue.

"He's right.. we can come back for her. having her dead body in the
car would attract whatever that eclipse brought on. we don't need the
attention."
Roe says, as she wipes away her own tears.

dark vortex runs into the motel room, and grabs all the blankets from their
room. he throws the dead weight of bardi over his shoulder and puts her
on one of the beds. he had never seen a dead body before, and he hoped
he would never have to see one again.

 

-----------------


PART 6

 

The morning came, and what roamed the night stayed in the shadows.
The ones affected by the eclipse that decided to venture into the sun learned
a harsh lesson. Some suffered a horrific death by melting, and others spon-
taniously combusting.

The others that weren't affected gathered in small groups to discuss what had
happened the night of the eclipse. They discussed what they would have to do
to survive. They would have to kill, even if they had to kill a friend.

-------

Chris buried his good friend eddie that morning. eddie had gone after Chris'
wife, and sliced here with a machete and watched her bleed to death.

Chris had gotten there just in time to see him go after Ash, his son. He ended
eddie's life with one quick blow to the neck with his fist. there was no one left
besides him and his son.

He patted the earth with his shovel, and tried to think of what to do next. He
had to find others that weren't affected. he didn't think he could survive another
night alone.

-----------------------

Rob woke up still sitting in his chair. Had it all been a dream, he wondered?
He rose from his chair, and stood at the front door. If taff was laying outside,
it wasn't a dream. he turned the knob and opened the door, Taff lay a few
feet away.

"Shit", Rob yelled, and walked over to the body... the ants and maggots had
already infested the body. The stench of death was thick in the air, almost
making Rob gag.

He walked back into the house to change clothes. His stomach was rumbling,
but he wasn't sure if it was from being hungry, or nerves. He didn't really think
he could eat after seeing taff. He stood just inside the door and leaned against
it. Rubbing his hands through his hair, and the scruff that had formed on his
cheeks, he grew cold. In that moment he changed, all feelings became numb.

--------------------------

"Where is everyone?"
Tal asked Hister, as they continued walking down the road. Every gas station
they had come to was closed. it was if there was a holiday, and they weren't
told about it.

"What?"
Hister yelled over his music.

"Where is everyone?"
Tal yelled back at hister.

"How should I know."
Hister replied.

He looked around in the morning light, and there was not a soul to be found.

"HEY YOU OVER THERE!!"
a voice yells from a few hundred feet away.

Hister and tal see a man jogging towards them. He is tall and has long dark hair..
"Hey are you..."
Hister starts but the man finishes his sentance.

"Nick Cage?"
The man laughs..
" No, I'm Hardcore."
he says and extends his hand.
" I didn't think anyone was left. I've been hiding out since the eclipse. My family
killed each other, and if i had to go through another night.. I am sure I would be
dead by morning."

"You gotta car?"
Hister said, as he looked around.
There were many cars. Cars with keys though, that was the question.

"Hell yeah I have a car."
Hardcore said with a smile.
"How long have you been walking, and at night too."

"Most the night. what's going on.. you said something about the eclipse??"
Tal asked Hardcore.

"You mean you haven't noticed?? Ever since the eclipse, strange things have
happened. people have turned on each other. some people turn into beasts!
Some people just explode. now them exploding...it's a sight to see."
Hardcore says with a shiver.
"From what i hear, it is happening all over the world."

"Maybe I don't have to worry about Victoria after all."
Tal says with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Don't take it lighty. When night falls, if we haven't
found a way to defend ourselves, we are in deep shit."
Hardcore says to the men.
"Follow me, I have a car to get us out of here.

"We have to go back for Metal."
Tal says, as they walk towards Hardcore's car.

"You left someone behind?? You can forget him..he's most likely dead."
Hardcore says, and unlocks the car doors.

-------------

Metal sat by the side of the road. he was tired of walking. A car
sped by him, and then stopped. It sat a moment, and then pulled back.

"Are you ok?"
Roe asked, as he sat staring at them in disbelief.

"Sorry, i thought you were just my imagination."
Metal said as he stood up.

"Get in, we don't have all day."
She snapped.

He sighed, and pulled himself into the back seat with another man.
They all looked tired, like they hadn't slept in days.

"What's going on?"
Metal asked.

"The end of the World."
Jer replied wide eyed. She stared out the window,
and watched as the scenery swept passed her.

 


PART 7

"There is no god!!"
Hitman said, as he lay in darkness. He could hear Ogredick on the
other side of the room breathing in raspy breaths. Hitman had
fallen asleep as soon as he rested his head on the cold floor.

"I'm dying."
Ogredick says, as he crawls slowly across the floor.

"Get up fool."
Hitman says and rolls over to see Ogredick crawling across the floor.

"I can't breath."
Ogredick replies, as he falls next to Hitman.

"Your skin is peeling away from the bone. I old you not to go into the sun."
Hitman says, as he peels off some of Ogredicks skin.

"You're right, there is no god."
Ogredick says, and lays in a fetal position.
"The night heals."
He says.

"How do you know?"
Hitman asks.

"He told me so."
Ogredick replies.

"Who is he?"
Hitman asks.

Ogredick points to a corner of the room,
and a man comes out from the corner.

"Where did you come from?"
Hitman said, as he tried to stand. The day light had made
them both weak, he fell back to the floor with a loud thud.

"I watched you come in. he'll be fine tonight. The skin won't grow
back, but he will be stronger than before. each night, stronger than before."
Vamp replied.
"He just has to make it to the night again."

"How do you know?"
Hitman asked

"I am your on true god."
Vamp replies. His cloak hiding his evil smile.
"Forget all you knew before...open your mind to me!!"

----------------------

Victoria closed her eyes and started to cry. Her fingers had burned off
one of her hands before she could get back into her house. No bleeding
occured, they just fell off. The pain only lasted for only a minute or two.

She sat in her house, away from the sun. Her eyes had become cat like,
and she could see everything in the darkness she had created. pictures
on the wall, pictures of her and her best friend tal. she hated him, but
why? She couldn't remember anymore why. She just wanted him dead.

She took off her shoe, and threw it at a
picture of the two of them, shattering the glass.

The house was quiet. Death surrounded her, and
yet she wasn't affraid. Victoria was queen of her domain.

-----------------

The eagle had turned into a wolf again before morning arrived.
Creature lay in a cavern and watched as the day passed. His red eyes
glowed in the darkness. His coat a light shade of red from the killings
before. The young girl in the parking lot wasn't the only prey that night.

He nibbled on an arm he had brought with him into the cavern.
Stale blood couldn't satisfy his thirst. he needed more. He nudged
away the arm, and decided to sleep.

His dreams came quickly. Death, lust for
blood, and a new god entered his dreams.

 

 


PART 8

Unreal watched the people at the gas pump. The people that stopped there
were few and far between. She watched as the driver, a young female,
stepped out of the car. Their eyes locked for a moment. Was she like the
others, unreal wondered?

A few moments later a male emerged from the
car and headed her way. She would soon find out.

-----

Dark vortex entered the gas station. He could feel the
woman staring at him as he made his way through the store.

"You have a problem?"
Dark vortex yelled to the woman.

"Yeah I've got a problem."
Unreal responded.

"I wish you wouldn't aim that gun at me."
Dark vortex says, as he steps up to the counter with his groceries.

"I don't have a gun aimed at you!"
Unreal says, as she takes her finger off the safety.

"Yeah, right."
DV says, as he takes out his money.

Roe enteres the store, and watches the exchange.

"Why are you guys acting like nothing has happened?
Why use money at all, why not just take what you can get?"
Roe asks.

Unreal and Dark Vortex stare at her for a moment.

"Money is nothing now."
Roe adds.

Unreal pulls out her small gun.
"You plan on robbing me?"

"Woah hold on a second. we are on your side. I'm sure you have
noticed what has been going on. it's better for us to stick together,
than to kill each other. Put the gun down!!"
Dark Vortex says, as he backs away from her.

"Yeah, i've seen them. i've smelled them."
Unreal replies, and slowly puts down the gun.

"You can't stay here anymore. join us."
Roe says, as she puts more snacks in another bag.

Unreal sighed, she knew they were both right.
"Wait.."
she said to the two of them.

"What?"
Dark Vortex asked.

"Ee have bigger bags!!"
Unreal said with a smile.

Before they had left, Dark Vortex made sure he had the gun
in his jacket pocket. He had also emptied out the cash register
drawer, it wasn't much...but at least he had gotten his money back.

----------------------------

"Rob you in there??"
Hardcore yelled, and knocked hard on the cabin door.

The men could hear something inside the building moving, and
braced themselves for a fight. The door opened slowly, and a
rough looking man stepped through.

"I watched you pull up."
Rob said, as he shook hands with Harcore.
"Looks like we have a battle going on."

"Looks like you are ready for it."
Tal said, as he looked the man over. Rob was dressed in
fatigues, hat on backwards and his pony tail pulled back.

"Hell yeah I am ready. I live for this."
Rob said, and then turned his attention back to Hardcore.
"Had to kill taff. buried him as soon as i could. Hate
to kill blood, but you gotta do what you gotta do."

"Taff? Shit, sorry."
Hardcore replies.

They step into the house finally, with Rob in the lead.

"Check this out guys."
Rob opens a door to show them his arsenal.

"Fuck yeah!!"
Hister reaches out to touch the bazooka,
only to have Rob slap his hand away.

"Fuck off my talk."
Rob says, and continues showing the other items he has.
"You'd be better suited with this."
Rob says, and hands him an Uzi.

Hister shrugs and takes the gun. He'd take anything right now.

"Here check out this sword."
Rob says, as he hands tal a sword.

"Sword?? I don't want any of them to get that close to me!!"
Tal says, shaking his head.

"Here check out this sword."
Rob says again, forcefully putting the sword in Tal's hand.
"You can cut off the son of a bitch's
heads. Now wouldn't that be fun!!"

"Yahooo."
Tal says sarcastically.

"Someone has to be in charge..may well be me. Get used to it."
Rob says, and turns his attention back to Hardcore.
"Saved this for you. It will blow a hole clean
through whatever it is we are up against."

"Thanks.. but I thought this was your favorite."
Hardcore says, as he watches rob pull another weapon out.
"Dude, that looks like a cross between
Edward Scissorhands and Freddy Krueger."

"It's perfect."
Rob says with a smile.

"You're going to be dead before you can use it."
Tal says, as he watches rob put on the gloves.

"Not if i am fast enough. besides, I
want to see the whites of their eyes."
Rob replied.

 

-------

 

Chris dialed phone number after phone number. Could everyone
be affected by the eclipse but him, he wondered? He searched
through his rolidex, and found one more number he could call.

-------

 

Jer's cell phone rang, making everyone in the car jump.

"Hello?"
Jer asked into the phone.
"Are you fucking kidding me?"
She hands the phone to Roe. She couldn't take a prank call right now.

"Hello?"
Roe says, as she sipped on a coke.
"Look, fuck knuckle..I'm on vacation."
she said, and hung up the phone.

Seconds later it rang again.

"He's not going to give up is he?"
Roe said, more than asked. She threw
the phone at metal and he answered it.

"Hello?"
Metal asked the caller. He sat up
straight and listened to the other caller.
"Anyone got a pen and paper??"

Unreal fumbled through her purse and handed him what he needed.

Metal ended the conversation, and handed Roe the paper he had written on.

"Your vacation is up, Roe."
Metal said with a laugh.

"What do you mean?"
Roe asked.

"Just follow those directions and you will find out."

 

 


PART 9

The day was going by slowly, and yet not much had been accomplished
between any of the people that had not been affected by the moon that
night... on the other hand, the evil that had spawned was growing. They
found that all they had to do was stay clear of the sun in order to survive
the daytime.

Victoria lay in her cool, dark bathroom and bathed in a soapy bubble bath.
Ogredick slept, regaining his strehth.. vamp sprang forth the gospel of Vamp
to Hitman, Hitman fell to his knees worshiping, Creature lay waiting in his cave.

-------

"This is how it is, how it will be.....so shall it be written."
Vamp continued to speak as his eyes rolled back into his head.

"Bullshit."
a voice yelled.

Vamp opened his eyes and
picked up his sledgehammer.
"Who dares not bow to me."

"What you are saying is pure bullshit."
Bigdawg says, as he walks further into the room.
"I've been standing here listening to you for the past thirty
minutes. If it is written that you are my new god, show me."
Bigdawg replied, thowing his hands in the air.

"Already a war amonst ourselves."
Ogredick weeses.
"Fucker woke me up."

"Rest, go back to sleep."
Vamp says, and knocks Ogredick on the back
of the head with the handle of the sledgehammer.

"It was only eclipse that gave us our way of life..
or as i have noticed for some, a curse."
Bigdawg said, as he walked closer to the men.

"How can we trust you?"
Hitman asks.

"How can you trust him?"
Bigdawg points at the man in the robe.

Hitman thought for a
moment, and then stood.
"I trust myself."

"Good, because that is the only person you can trust."
Bigdawg says, and then starts running towards vamp.

Vamp lifts his sledgehammer waiting for the man to get
close to him.. he swings and misses, hitting a concret wall.

Bigdawg punshes the other man on the shoulder, pushing him to the ground.

Vamp looses his grip on the sledgehammer. Bigdawg takes
the sledgehammer and pounds the ground next to vamp.

"Who is your god now? is it the man with the sledgehammer?? there is no god,
there is no devil.. those are man made. we all need something to worship....
don't worship something that isn't truely there....the moon is real, worship the
damn moon...I do."
Bigdawg says, and drops the sledgehammer by vamp.

Hitman takes the sledgehammer, and throws it across the room.
"You should be thankful I don't pound you for this."
Hitman says and spits at the wimpering vamp.
"vindicate yourself, motherfucker."

"You believed in me at first..."
Vamp said, as he stood.

Hitman stared at him angrily,
and turned away from him.

"Come here."
Bigdawg said, as he stopped by a far door.

Hitman, and a reluctant vamp, walked over to where he was.
Bigdawg opened a door to a slaughter house. the dead lay across
the floor, almost making criss cross shapes.

Hitman began to twitch..
"Are they fresh??"
he asked.

"As fresh as you can get them without getting in the sun."
Bigdawg said with a smile.
"Vamp's not the only one with a robe."

Hitman ran to one of the bodies on the floor and began to feast.
the taste was electrifying. It was almost as if life was being breathed into him.

Every moment he touched and tasted the skin, days of old vanished from
his thoughts. he had began to wonder what it was like before this. Not
making his own kills would get old to him soon, he thought. how he
longed for the night.

 

-----------------------------------

 

Unreal started to cry..she could feel things, bad things, happening.
Those close to her had gone deeper into a madness she did not long
to be a part of.

She covered her face so no one could see her crying.
Metal put an arm around her, and held her close.

When she closed her eyes, she could see her twin baring his teeth
down on another mans soul. she gagged, and opened her eyes.
It was strange how her and Bigdawg connected in that way.

---------

Bigdawg could feel his sister. They connected, but only for a
moment. it was enough to let her know, he was coming for her.
He'd be there for her soon...

 

 

--------------


PART 10


"Roe, we can't go that way..we have to find my friend Rob.
Going to find chris would be going in the opposite direction by a days drive."
Dark vortex said, as Roe turned her car around to find the interstate.

"We aren't leaving him there alone." Roe replied.

"I'm sure he won't be alone. There's more there that haven't been affected
by that eclipse than he knows. If he would just get out and drive around
he would know."
Dark vortex yelled.

"You don't have to yell, I can hear you."
Roe said, as she looked at the backseat through the rearview mirror.

"He's alone. I was alone."
Unreal said, as her cell phone began to ring.
She answered it, and hung up just as quickly.

"Who was it?"
Metal asked her.

"No one."
Unreal said, and turned her attention out the window. Her phone
started to ring again, but she chose not to answer it. She silenced
it, buy turning it on vibrate.

"Look, all I know is, if it weren't chris you
wouldn't be going out of your way to pick him up."
Dark Vortex said, as he watched Roe in the mirror.

"You don't know me." Roe replied.

"I know your kind."
Dark Vortex said in return.

"Bastard!!"
Roe yelled and slammed on the breaks.
"If you know my kind, you know what I am going to do next."

Dark Vortex sat there for a moment, before the silence was broken again.

"I took you in, I saved you from those creatures. you were alone."
Roe said, as she turned in her seat.

"I wasn't alone."
Dark Vortex replied.

"Get out of my car."
Roe said, and turned back around in her seat.

"What??"
Dark asked.

"You heard me!! Go find your friends, since you weren't alone."
Roe replied.

The tension in the car was thick, the silence almost unbearable.
The only sound you could hear was Unreal's phone vibrating.

"We are in the middle of nowhere."
Dark Vortex says, as he opens his car door.

"Does it look like I care??"
Roe snaps at him.

"Fuck you."
He says, as he slams the door and kicks the car door.

"Well fuck you too."
Roe says and smiles.
"Anyone else want to go with him?"
Roe asks as she starts to drive away??

"No."
replied the other three..

Jer turned back in her seat and waved good-bye to Dark Vortex.

Dark Vortex gave a half wave, and shoved his hands in his pockets.
He had a long way to go on foot. he hoped he wouldn't run into any
of the dreaded creatures before he made it to Rob's.

Ogredick and hitman had been his friends. They were out on the town
drinking and having a blast. Then the eclipse came, and Ogredick
wanted to kill him over two dollars. That's what Dark had thought at
first. And then he realized it was his blood Ogre and Hitman wanted,
or maybe just his soul.

 

 


PART 11

Chris started to pace. the minutes felt like hours, the hours felt like days. He
watched as the sun started to fade, and the night was brought to a beginning.
The silence was broken by the sound of the phone ringing.

"Hello?"
Chris said, as he hoped it would be Jer or Roe.
"Rich?? I didn't know you were in town!!"

"Yeah..i'm on my way over."
Rich replied.

"How are you doing?"
Chris asked, hoping he could get a hint of if he had been affected or not.

"I'm fine, Chris. I thought i was the only one...
thank god you answered your phone."
Rich replied.

Chris sighed with relief. rich sounded like himself, Chris thought.
"How far away are you?"
"Don't want to be alone?"
Rich laughed.
"I'm maybe 15 minutes away."

"Great, that's great to hear!!"
Chris said, as he looked through his blinds.

---------

"Where are we again?"
Roe asks Jer, as she watches Jer look at the map.

"I dunno!! Bardi was the navigator!!"
Jer says, as she turns the map upside down.

Metal takes the map and flips it back over.
"We are supposed to be here."
He says and points to a place in the opposite
direction from where they are supposed to be.
"We need to be here."
He points at the right place.

"Shit!!"
Yells roe, as she makes an u-turn.

"That was cool!"
Metal says laughing.

"I'm going to be sick."
Unreal says, as she hangs her head between her knees.

"There will be no throwing up in the car!!"
Jer says, and hands her a bag.

"Oh gee thanks."
Unreal says, and rolls her eyes.

Jer picks up her phone and dials Chris' number.
"Hey!! we are about 30 minutes away.....rich is there, too...great...see you."
Jer puts away her phone.
"Rich is there, too."

"I heard."
Roe says, and lights a cigarette.

---------


Chris watches as Rich pulls up in the driveway.
Chris went out to greet him, fire place poker in hand.

"I've got a bone to pick with you!!"
Rich says, as he makes his way over to Chris.

"What??"
Chris asks.

"A bone."
Rich says, and hands him a bone.

"What the fuck!!"
Chris says and drops it.

"Bud."
Rich says with a laugh.

Chris stared at him, and brought up the poker.
"Don't make me use this!!"

Eich began to laugh even harder.
"Where is jess??"

"Gone."
Chris replied, as he looked over at his son.

"Ohhh, Ash."
Rich said, as he stepped towards the little boy.

"Get away from him asshole."
Chris said, as he brough up the poker between him and the boy.

"Yeah yeah.."
Rich said, as he pushed the poker away..
"Watch where you put that thing.. You might hurt someone like this..."
He snatched the poker away, surprising chris.
"Damn if the boy bleeds like a pig."
Rich says, as he pushes the poker deeper into the boys heart.
"And yells loud too, I bet just like his momma!"

"Noooooo"
Chris yells, and spears rich with his own body.. Rich holds on to the poker
as he falls, lifting up the baby. The babies lifeless body slides down the poll.
Chris begins to cry out in anger more than fear. Rich's laughter echoes hollowly
in his ears.

 

---------


PART 12

"It's fucking dark and I am walking down the middle of the road. Great, just great."
Dark vortex said out loud. He smiled as he patted his jacket pocket.

"At least I am safe for now with this. "
He held on to the gun for a moment, and then stuffed his hands back into his
pockets. While the day was hot, the night was cold...almost like the desert,
he thought.

A car roars passed him, and screetches to a halt.

"Heeey.. watch where you are going fool!"
He yells.
"You drive like Roe!!"

A hand exits the window on the drivers side, and a hand hails him over.

"Ohh what happened to you!!"
Dark Vortex asks, as he walks up to the car and sees a woman...
Or what used to be a woman.

The woman smiles, and starts to choke. Vomit starts to poor out of
her mouth. At one time, she was probably a beauftiful woman.

"Sick!!"
Dark Vortex says, as he watches the lady try to get out of the car.

"Come here...come closer."
The lady says, with a digusting smile.

"Here, let me do this for you."
Dark vortex says, as he yanks the car door open and jumps away.

The lady falls to the ground, and starts to crawl towards him. One bullet
to her head stops her a few feet away. She looks up at him with blood and
brains pouring out the hole.

"That wasn't nice."
She says, and puts a hand to her head. she starts to peel away the skin.

"Oh good god!!"
Dark Vortex yells, and hops into the car and pulls into reverse.

"Hey what about me!!"
she yells.

"What about you??!"
He yells out the window. He reverses the car a few hundred feet and speeds
toward the lady that is laying across the road. He could see her as he ran her
over... In the rearview mirror, he could see he had split her in two, and yet, she
was moving as nothing had happened.

"Great!! a car cell phone!"
Dark vortex said with a laugh. He dialed a familiar
number, hoping that Rob would answer.
"Hey!... yeah, it's me..... aww shit, not Taff!....be there in a couple hours.."
He says and hangs up the phone.

He hears a noise in the back seat, and feels something grab hold of his hair...

 

---------

Into the night,
We go further.
the eyes are red..
Lips curled in
Evil smiles.
They smell of
Rancid decay.

Lust for blood,
or just the sight of
Death.
Beware the children
Of the eclipse..
They come for you
All too soon.


PART 13

He could feel his life starting to drift away as he was being choked. How
could he loose this battle. if he was gone, there would be no one left. He
tried to push the other man off of him, but he wouldn't budge. If he didn't
find some way, he would be gone soon.

------

Roe drove up into the grass, feet away from the men fighting. She saw
the dead child close by them, and tried to avert her eyes. Rich looked
up at her and started to laugh.

"Get off of him!!"
Jer yelled and started to kick Rich in the ribs.

"Pathetic!!"
Rich yelled, as he rolled off of Chris.

Chris started to choke, as he rolled to get out of Rich's way.

"Where is the gun??"
Metal asks, as Rich starts to run towards him.

"Oh shit!! Dark Vortex has it!!"
Jer yells, and runs behind Rich, and kicks him
in the back of the knees, making him fall.

"Thanks."
Metal says, as he steps on rich's head.

"Get off, idiot!! You're going to kill me!!"
Rich screams.

"Oh yeah??"
Metal says as he starts to grind his boot into Rich's head.

Chris watches stunned from his sitting postion.

Unreal puts a blanket she had found in the trunk of the car over the baby.

"Ahhh get off!!"
Rich screams, as his skull makes a loud pop.

Roe turns away from the scene, and sits
in front of Chris so he can't see Rich die.

"I'm sorry."
Chris says to her.

"Sorry for what?"
Roe asks.

"For letting him die."
Chris replies.

"He needed to die."
Roe says and winces, as she hears another dull pop from Rich's skull.

"No..I'm talking about the baby."
Chris says, with tears in his eyes. he looks over at the blanket.
The baby still had the poker in him. The tears fell freely now,
uncontrollably.

"Unreal, could you be a dear and move him somewhere."
Roe said, amd tilted her head towards the baby.

"Is he dead?"
Jer asked Metal quietly.

"I think so."
Metal replied, as he scraped off his boot in the grass.
"Remind me never to do that again."

Unreal took the baby to the side of the house, and laid him gently
on the ground. She slid the poker out slowly, crying as she did so.
she dropped it again, as her phone started to vibrate with another
phone call.
"Grrrrr."
she said, as she answered the phone and picked up the poker.
"Hello?"
She asked.
"Leave me alone!! please!! I beg you, please!!"
she said, and hung up the phone.

She walked back over to the others, and handed Chris the poker.

"Uhm thanks."
Chris responded. He held on to a kleenex
that Roe had given him, and blew his nose.
"I guess I will bury him with his mother."
He said, and then added
"That fucker can lay there and rot."
He says of Rich, with his view still obscured by Roe.

"Let the vultures have him.. or whatever prey birds you have here."
Roe says, as she turns to see Rich's head caved in.
"Good god, cover his head with something!!"

Metal covers Rich's head with a plastic bag he found on Chris' porch.

"Are you coming with us?"
Roe asks.

"Yeah!!"
Chris responds without any kind of hesitation.

"Get up.. we don't have all night. You know there will be more.
Bring the poker. you have any more weapons in there we can use??
Knife, fork, gun??"
Roe says, as they help each other off the ground.

"Yeah."
Chris says, and stares at the lifeless body on the ground.

"Come on.. lets get your stuff."
Jer says, and tries to turn him away from the body.

"Hold on."
Chris says, as he steps toward Rich and pushes the poker through
Rich's already dead body. The sound was like putting a knife through
a raw piece of meat.

Seconds later, Metal restrained Chris from stabbing the dead body for the 10th time.

"He's dead chris, he's dead."
Metal says, taking away the poker.

"I know."
Chris says, as he looks at the blood seeping through his own shoes.
"I just needed the closure."

----------


PART 14


"She loves me, she loves me not."
Bigdawg says as he called his sister again.
"Maybe I should send her a picture."
He said as he looked around the room of death.

Vamp stared at him. he could just hit him one time with the sledgehammer,
right above the temple. Yes, he could. He licked his lips and waited.

"What are you doing?"
Hitman asked, as he watched Vamp stand in a daze.

"Waiting."
Vamp replied.

"Ogre, wake up."
Hitman said, as he shook Ogre.

Ogre looked around in a haze.
"My mouth is dry."
He says.

"You don't have any lips, they fell off."
Hitman replies.

"You have a constant smile on your face."
Bigdawg says, as he takes a picture of him with his camera.
"Here, eat, you must be hungry.

Ogredick rubbed his teeth with his fingers. No lips. Wierd, he thought.

"What are you going to do with those pictures?"
Hitman asked.

Turn your back on me, vamp thought,
as he watched bigdawg taking pictures.

"I'm going to put them in my scrapbook."
Bigdawg replied sarcasticly.

"Fuck you."
Hitman said, as he left the room. He needed fresh blood.
"Come on vamp, I need you."
Hitman had an idea.

Vamp's eyes focused on Hitman. He'd get bigdawg
later, he wondered what his sound of death would be.

--------------------

Ogredick crawled out of the makeshift bed he had been sleeping in.
He followed slowly out of the place behind Vamp and Hitman, leaving
Bigdawg by himself.

For bigdawg, this power the eclipse gave to them was like having a wet
dream. He continued taking pictures of death and decay, and decided to
call his sister again, this time sending the pictures to her.

"She'll love these."
He said with a laugh.

-------

It was easy to tell who was affected, and who was not, by the eclipse.
Hitman could smell them. his sense was sharp in that area. He watched
as a car pulled away from a drug store, and stepped into the middle of
the road. With his hands in his pocket, he stared the car down. It stopped
inches away..

"What the fuck are you doing shit head!!?"
The man in the driver seat asked.

Hitman smiled at him.

"Are you deaf, or just stupid?"
The man asked.

Hitman continued smiling.

Vamp stood behind the car, almost drooling at the mouth.

"Get out of the way dumb ass."
The female in the passenger side screamed out the window.

Just one wack. he could perfect his aim this time, he thought.

-------

"Shit."
Brandnew said, as she opened her door.
"I'll make the idiot move."

"What!! get back in the car."
Will said, as he pulled her back in the car.
"What if this is one of those things!!"

"Who cares, he's in our way."
Brandnew responded, she pointed at the man.

-----

"This is great!!"
Bigdawg said, as he started to take pictures of the standdown.

Ogredick sat on the side of the road, still too weak to participate.
The lump on the back of his head had grown to baseball size. He
could barely move his head.

--------

Vamp tapped on the back of the car with the sledgehammer, and
Brandnew turned to see what the noise was. He could see her start
to scream, and he started to laugh. Maybe he would like to hear her
scream more, he'd give her 3 wakes with the sledgehammer. Maybe
a 4th blow to the head for final measure.

--------------

Will opened his car door. He would fight like a man, if he had to.

"What are you doing, Will! Just run the idiot over, and lets get out of here."
Brandnew said, as she tried to pull will back into the car.

"They want a fight, they get a fight."
Will said, as he looked back into the car.

-----

"Ohhhhhhhh yeah."
Vamp ran up to will, and shoved the
handle of the sledgehammer into the mans gut.

Vamp could hear the woman start to scream frantically.

"Hold on vamp..not here."
Hitman said, with obvious hunger in his eyes.

Vamp looked into the car window.

"Forget her."
Hitman said, as he picked up will by the back of the neck.

------

"I'm sorry Will."
She said, as she started to pray. She struggled
into the drivers side and shoved the car into drive.
"I'm not looking back, I'm not looking back!!"
She screamed as she looked into the rearview mirror just in time
to see one man hit Will in the side of the face with the sledgehammer.

------------

"Dddaaaamn!! Thanks for the camera moment!"
Bigdawg said, as he watched Vamp hit
the man in the face with the sledgehammer.

"Will is your name?"
Ogredick asked.

Will looked at him, and could feel the blood trickle down his face.

"Pussy name."
Ogredick said, and started to laugh.

"Don't kill him yet.."
Hitman said, as he found some rope.

Vamp stared at bigdawg, and smiled.

"What's your problem."
Bigdawg asked Vamp, as he pulled a chair in front of the now tied up will.
"Some people just have more control over themselves."

Vamp put the leg of the sledgehammer up against
bigdawgs neck and held it there hard. "
I've been waiting for your back to turn against me.
Waiting....i want to see you die. i have visioned it, lived it...."
Vamp says, as he feels Hitman throw a rope around his neck.

Hitman yanks him back, making him choke.
"One at a time, asshole."
Hitman says, as he pushes vamp into a corner.
"I need a female, not this piece of crap."
He says, and leaves the room.

Bigdawg leans over and takes the sledgehammer.
"Looks like it's just me and you."
He whispers to Will.

Will spits in his face.

"That wasn't nice."
Bigdawg says, and brings the
sledgehammer down on one of the mans knees.

"Hoooohaaaa."
Vamp yells, and starts to laugh evily.

 --------

 


PART 15

Dark felt a the hand pull harder on his hair and he brought the car to a halt.
Whatever it was let go of his hair and fell to the floor with a thud. He
jumped out of the car and stared into the backseat, finding a girl in her
mid-teens laying there looking back at him.

She waved at him.

He opened the door, and pulled her out. She was dressed in her night
clothes, with her slippers still on. She had rope tied around her feet loosely.

"Who are you?"
She asked.

"Are you ok?"
Dark Vortex asked her.

"I'd be ok if you told me who you were."
She replied in a hoarse voice.

"Dark Vortex."
He said, as he squatted to untie her feet.

"My sister got a little wierd on me. Knocked me out."
She said, as she watched him.

He looked up at her and smiled.
"You are fine now. We left her back there."
He said, and thumbed in the direction they had just came from.

"Oh."
She said, and then stepped away from the rope.
"I really don't feel well."

"If you have to vomit, don't go to far. We have
to get going again, it's not safe out here."
Dark said.

"Don't I know it."
She said, as she showed him raw bite marks on her arms.

"Ouch."
Dark said with a wince.

"My sister."
She said.
"And since you didn't ask, my name is Jess."

"Sorry. it's not everday you pick up a girl in almost
nothing. Unless you are picking up a hooker that is."
Dark said with a small laugh.

"Shut up."
Jess said with a smile, and playfully poked him on the shoulder.

---------

Dark still didn't trust her, they had driven for a few hours, and yet he hardly
knew anything about her. Her sister had come down with what she called
the "Eclipse Fever". The girl had fallen sleep an hour after they had started
riding again. The clothes that she wore clung to her wet with sweat. He
feared that she would come down with the "Eclipse Fever" also.

He took the gun out of his jacket pocket, and put it under one of his legs.
He figured it would be easier to get to that way.. he turned on the radio,
and heard the end of "Of Wolf and Man" by metallica, and the beginning
of "Detroit Rock City" by Kiss and turn the radio back off. He was in no
mood for music, he was only anxious to make it through the night.

-----

"Dark??"
Jess asked.

"What?"
He replied. He had noticed she had woken up only moments before.
He was surprised she had stayed quiet as long as she did.

"How much further do we have?"
She asked.

"A few more hours. Probably be there in the morning."
he replied.

"Good."
she said with a smile.

Dark didn't know how to take that. He squirmed in his seat, and felt the
gun warm aganst him. The next few hours were going to to either drag
or be become deadly, he thought.

"I need a cigarette."
She said, knowing she didn't smoke. She leaned over him and reached
into her sisters purse that was in the side of the door. She kissed his
cheek, and sat back in her seat and smiled at him sweetly.

 -------


PART 16

It was a night of driving.. Jer put in one of Bardi's old cds and listened to one
of Bardi's favorite songs, glass jaw by systematic. she played it five times,
before roe reached over and took the cd out.

"Enough of that."
Roe said, and she threw the cd out the window.

"Roe!!!"
Jer said in horror.

"I'll buy you another one."
Roe said, as she put in a WASP cd.

"Where are we going?"
Chris asked her.

"I'm not sure. Dark Vortex had told me of this
one person. He'd probably head that way."
Roe replied.

"Which way?"
Unreal asked from the backseat. Metal lay with his head
on her shoulder asleep. She tried to move his head, but failed.

"I don't know."
Roe replied.

"Everything is starting to look familiar.
We aren't going back by the motel, are we?"
Jer asked.

"We left things, Jer. I hadn't planned on going back, until an hour ago."
Roe replied.

"Why didn't you tell us!!"
Jer said, with anger and frustration in her voice.

"Look, you would have tried to get me to back out of my decision.
We need to get our things. Maybe we will run into dark."
Roe said, as she lit a cigarette. If she weren't careful
she would turn into a chain smoker, she thought.

"What about the wolf?"
Jer asked.

"What about it? I am sure it's probably long gone by now."
Roe said.

"Whatever!!"
Jer said, and looked out the window into the night. She could just imagine the
wolf waiting for them, with pieces of Bardi stuck in its jaws. The bastard...
she would kill it if she ever saw it again.

-------

"I can't believe you guys stayed there."
Chris said, as he saw the small motel come into view.

"Neither can we."
Roe said laughing.

"It's a dump."
Jer said, as she looked around. No sign of the filthy animal could be seen.
Not even a bird could be seen, of course the sky was dark.. How would
she know if there was a big bird up there. She shivered violently.

"You ok?"
Chris asked her.

"Uhm, no."
Jer replied, looking back at him. He was
taking the death rather well now, she thought.

Chris blinked as the neon lights of the motel smothered the car with its lights.

"Damn that is bright."
Chris said, and shielded his eyes.

"It's like a bug catcher, and we are the bugs."
Unreal said with her eyes wide.
"How did you ever find this place?"

"We are bugs."
Jer said, as she opened her door to get out. She stepped onto the
gravel and stared at the spot where Bardi had been mauled. the
blood had dried to a dirty brown color. She wished it would rain
so it would wash away.
"I don't want to go in there."
Jer said, as she watched Roe open the door, and put a hand to her mouth.

"Ah fuck, it stinks in here already."
Roe said, as she walked further into the room.

"Let's just leave it all, it's all going to stink like death."
Jer said, as she stood outside the door.

"Get in here!!"
Roe yelled out to jer.

Jer covered her nose, and turned into the room. She averted her attention
from the bed, where Dark had put Bardi. She could hear the flies buzzing
around the bed.

"Holy mary mother of god!!"
Metal yelled, as he stepped into the room.

"Help us."
Jer said, as she threw him one of her bags.

Chris stood outside the room with the poker.

"I have to pee."
Unreal said, as she passed him and ran into the room. She covered her nose from
the stench. She made it to the bathroom, and put her phone on the back of the toilet.
It started to vibrate.
"I hate you, phone!!"

"Unreal, when you are done, we are ready to go."
Jer said, as she knocked lightly on the door.

Unreal heard the others leave the room. Great, she thought, now she was alone
with the dead person. she hurried, and took the toliet paper with her. She held
the phone close to her as it vibrated. She knew it was her brother, she couldn't
bring herself to answer it again.

She stepped out under the neon sign and breathed in fresh air.

"You going to answer that?"
Metal asked her.

"Answer it, or turn it off. The vibrating is annoying me."
Jer said, studying her surroundings. She could have
sworn she saw a big bird flying overhead.

Unreal sighed and answered her phone.
"Pictures"
She said, almost to herself.
"Oh my god!!!"
She yelled, and dropped the phone. She began to gag.
She leaned up against the building, and started to pass out.

Chris held her up aganst the wall.
"No, You don't. don't pass out on us now."
He said, as he helped her to the car.

Metal picked up the phone to give back to unreal,
and looked at the pictures she had recieved.
"Oh god!!"
Metal said, as he slid into the car.

"What!!"
Roe asked, as she sat in the passenger front seat.

"This is sick!!"
Metal said, and started to delete the pictures.

"Wait!! What are they!!"
Jer said, as she moved the front seat back.

"People, dead people. Cursed people."
Metal said, and handed the phone to jer.

"Ahh, jesus!!"
Jer said, and handed the phone to Roe.

"What's this?"
Chris said, as he pulled a small red book from underneath his seat.

"I dunno."
Roe said, as he handed it to her.
"Oh well, looky here. Darks address book."
He had said something about a guy..did he say his name, she
couldn't remember. There were phone numbers all over in the book.
"Damn man, the thing is a mess. here Jer, look through it."
Roe hands her the little book, and looks at the pictures.
"Shit!! OMG, what is this??!"
Roe asks in horror. Her first instinct was to throw the
phone out the window, but it wasn't hers to throw out.

"One of them is my brother."
Unreal says, as she rubs the sleep out of her eyes.
If she went to sleep now, she would surely have nightmares.

"I'm sorry."
Roe says, and hands her back the phone.

Unreal looks at the phone, and throws it out the window.
"Let's get out of here."
She says.

"Alright.."
Jer says, and hands the book back to Roe.
"Couldn't find anything.

"Here, hand it to me."
Metal says, and studies the book.
"Try this one roe."

Roe takes jer's cell, as they pull away from the motel.
"What the fuck..."
Roe yells, as something lands on the roof.

"Oh shit!!"
Jer says, and puts the car into drive. Something tumbles from the roof
and rolls down the back of the car. Jer stops a few feet away, and all
of them turn to look and see what it was.

----

The wolf stares at them with it's evil eyes. The light
from the car breaks reflecting the red in his eyes.

"GO!!"
Roe yells..
"Just go!!"

The wolf walked closer to the car, sniffing.

Unreal started to scream, as he walked up to her side of the car.

"I said moooove."
Roe said, as she punched Jer on the arm.

"Go!!"
Chris yells, and kicks the back of her seat. He could
see Jer was in shock from seeing the wolf again.

-------------------

This wasn't the right time, he thought. He could see the people in the car,
but he wasn't hungry just yet. He licked his smiling teeth, and turn to run.
He'd see them again, he knew that now.

He ran back into the darkness of the woods, leaving the travelers behind.

 --------------

 


PART 17

The bubble bath had been so relaxing, Victoria had fallen asleep. She lay with her
head just above the water, and looked at the hand she had lost the fingers on.
She almost believed she could see them growing back. she didn't want to get
out of the tub, but the water had grown ice cold.

She stepped out of the tub, and looked through the bathroom window into the
night. Finally, she thought. Now she could leave the house and not worry if a
part of her would fall off. She smiled, and left the bathroom toweless.

She walked to her bedroom, and wondered if she had missed any phone calls.
Surely Tal would have called her by now. They were supposed to have dinner,
his treat. She checked her messages. Nothing, not one call. she would have to
call him, he was forgetful sometimes.

She got dressed slowly.. one hand was a hinderance, only when you had a zipper
or button on your clothes. She turned on a light, noticing she hadn't thought about
turning one on. She could see pretty well in the darkness, just one of those things
the eclipse brought on.

She was hungry, she hadn't eaten since...since...yesterday, she thought. The last
meal she had was breakfast from the day before. No wonder her stomach was
hurting her. She walked into the front room, and stepped on a piece of glass.
The only reason she noticed she had been bleeding, was because she slipped
on the wet floor from her blood. She leaned aganst the wall, and pulled the piece
of glass from her foot.

"Now where did that come from."
Victoria asked herself out loud. She looked around the room,
and noticed the shattered picture frame and picture of her and Tal.

"Why...who..."
She said, and then stopped.
"Shit!!"
She started to remember. She took her hand away from her hurt foot,
and smudged her blood across her face. the foot was fine now, it had
already scabbed over, just like her fingers had.

"Tal, you bastard!! you could have atleast called!!"
She yelled as she threw the picture aganst the wall, breaking the frame in two.
A piece of the glass flew back and stung her cheek. Blood trickled in a line
down her face. in seconds the wound scabbed. There were more pictures in
the room, more pictures to throw, more to rip up.

Moments later she sat in the room surrounded by glass and trashed pictures.
Her feet and hands scabbed, and the fingerless hand almost unrecognizable.
She had to find Tal, she thought. She'd drive a piece of the glass straight through
his heart. She grabbed her car keys and hobbled to her car.

The full moon was intense. She drove without her headlights down the road,
with the top down. The wind went through her hair, making her look wild.
A calmness over took her, and she pulled over to stare at the moon.

"Hey, you!!"
A male voice said to her.

"Me?"
Victoria said, as she turned to see where the voice was coming from.

"Yeah, you."
Hitman replied.

Victoria stared at the stranger.

"Are you going to say anything?"
He asked.

"You aren't Tal."
Victoria replied.

"No. I'm hitman."
he replied.

"Look at the moon. That's my moon."
She said, as she turned her attention back to the moon.

"What?"
Hitman asked. Why did he keep running into the wierdos, he thought.

She ran a hand through her hair. He noticed that the other was nothing but a stump.

"You always been that way?"
He asked her.

"It's a gift."
Victoria says with a smile.

He started to laugh. He was hungry, finding another female was not as easy as
he thought it was going to be. He wondred if she would know what hit her.

"Why are you staring at me like that??"
she asked.

He leaned into the car, and punched her in the jaw.

"FUCK!! what was that for?"
She asked. she rubbed her jaw.

His eyes grew wide, as he watched her spit out a tooth. His next impulse was to
get out his switchblade, and slice her to death, but then he noticed all the scabs on
her hands and arms. She wouldn't die easily.

"I have to go..I have to find Tal."
she said, and started the car again.

"Do you even know where you are going?"
He asked her, as she slowly started to pull away.

"I can smell him, i think."
she replied.

He watched her drive away, he was still hungry.

 ----------------

 


PART 18

Headlights beemed through the windows of the rustic cabin. Rob jumped
to his feet, and grabbed his blades, ready for anything that came his way.
Nothing had happened since Taff died, and he was antsy for action.

"Rob, open up man! It's me Dark!!"
Dark yelled, and pounded on the door. If he pounded
any harder, he would knock the door down, he thought.

"And me."
Jess said, and knocked as well.
"Let me in, it's freezing out here."
She looked around at all the trash in the yard. "
God it stinks out here."
She said, as she wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"Shut up will you!!"
Dark said, and pushed her hand away from the door.
"He doesn't know you, he won't let strangers in, so shut the fuck up."

"But you know me."
She said with a smile, and pinched him on the ass.

"Rob, come on. Let us in."
Dark yelled even louder, while staring at Jess angrily.
He was in no way attracted to the girl.

Rob opened the door slowly, and Dark could see two other men
standing in the middle of the room, ready to jump if ordered.

"Damn man!!! Looks like you are ready for a war!"
Dark said, as he and Jess walked into the room.

Jess walked behind him frightened.
"Don't shoot!!"
She stuttered, and then she saw Rob with the blades.
"Or..or..stab!!"

"Who is she and why is she dressed like a hooker?"
Rob asked, as he watched her walk into the room.

"I stole her car to get here. She was sleeping in the backseat."
Dark replied.

"Nice way to lift a car."
Hister said, as he sat back in the chair he had been sitting in all day.
He put his hands behind his head, and his boots on the table. There
was a mighty fine view from there, he thought.

"Look dude, Ogre and HItman are all messed up...."
Dark stopped, as Jess tugged at his shirt.
"What!?"

"I'm cold."
Jess replied.
"Does he have a blanket?"

"No. Who are you?"
Rob asked, as he backed her into a wall. He held his
blades up to her neck, and waited for her to answer.

"Shit man, didn't your pal just tell you who I was!"
Jess replied, as she started to slide down the wall away from the blades.

"Name, moron!!"
Rob said, stabbed the wall beside her.

She started to cough violently.
"Jess!!"
She replied through fits of coughing.
"Now can I have a blanket."
She said, looking at him hatefully.

"Damsel in distress."
Tal said with a chuckle.
"You really only get to see that in action movies."

"Who are Ogre and Hitman?"
Hister asked, totally ignoring Tal's comment.
"What's wrong with them?"

"They changed with the Eclipse."
Dark replied.

"Yeah, so. Most people did."
Hister said, as he thumbed through a book.

A horn honked outside the cabin, making all of them jump. Rob
walked to the window, and was blinded by the beams of more
car headlights.
"Who the fuck is that??"
Rob said, as he opened the front door.

"Female is all I can tell."
Hister said, as he looked out the window.

"Victoria?"
Tal said, as he took Rob's place at the door. Her eyes widened at the
sight of him. They opened so wide, Tal thought they would soon fall out.

Victoria reved the engine, and made the wheels spin in place.

"What the fuck is she doing!!"
Rob yelled, as the car started to charge towards the cabin. Rob ran to
the back of the house, just in time to hear the front of the house crunch
from impact.

Tal had stumbled back as far as he could, and stayed aganst the wall.
Glass and wood had shattered into the cabin, leaving splinters in his skin.
Tal could see blood pouring down the front of Victoria's face, as she
continued to try and drive the car further into the house after him.

"She's trying to get to me!! She's trying to run me over!!"
Tal yelled, and tried to press himself into the wall.

Seeing she couldn't move any further, Victoria jumped
out of the car and tripped over the mess on the floor.
"Asshole!! Who is the whore I saw leave here!!
I have two eyes!! I can see what is going on!!""
Victoria yelled, as she made her way to Tal.

"What??"
Tal replied. He stared at her almost in shock. One of her eyeswas
partially out, and the other was sliding down her face. He started to gag.

"HER HER HER!!"
Victoria pointed at a fleeing Jess.

"I just met her!"
Tal responded, and put a hand over his mouth.

"Die bitch!!"
Rob screamed and shoved a blade through the
back of her head, and pulled her backwards.

Victoria screamed and struggled to speak. She reached back to
grab the blade, and sliced the rest of her fingers off. Her screams
turned into howls of rage.

"DIE!"
Rob yelled again, as he pushed two more blades through her skull.
One blade exiting through her mouth, splashing Tal with blood.

She fell to the floor, and convulsed, and then lay motionless.

They looked around the trashed room, and two bodies lay motionless
on the floor. Victoria's car had rested on Hister's head. He had not
made it out of her way in time. Hister was what saved Tal, Rob thought.
He walked over and kicked Histers body.

"He saved your life."
Rob said, as he kicked Histers body again.

Tal sighed and wiped Victoria's blood off of
him with a rag Dark had brought to him.

"Where is that girl at?"
Rob asked, as he looked around the room. He steadied his
gaze on Dark. He reached down and stabbed the woman one
more time for good messure.

"I dunno."
Dark replied.
"I'll check outside."
Dark left them, and ran outside into the night. She had
to be out there somewhere, the car was still there.

-----

"Thanks for getting me away from that!"
Jess said to the man that was driving.
" Those people were crazy!!"
She said, and started sneezing.

"Bless you!"
Hitman replied.

"Thanks, you're so sweet."
Jess said, with a sweet smile on her face.

He would have to pull over soon, he thought.
He'd been patient for fresh blood long enough.

 ------------


PART 19

Beautiful!! Just beautiful, Vamp thought, as he watched the mans leg snap.
"MY TURN!!"
Vamp yelled, and tried to take the sledgehammer away from Bigdawg.

"Get away you greasy mop!"
Bigdawg yelled, and snatched the sledgehammer back.

Vamp spat angrily in Bigdawgs face, and backed
away slowly. His hate for Bigdawg growing stronger.

Bigdawg wiped his face with his sleeve, and turned his attention back to Will.

"NO Please NO!.. Don't do it anymore."
Will yelled.
"I'll give you anything you want!! Money..sex...even drugs!"
Will cried. He watched as Bigdawg lifted the sledge-
hammer, and brought it inches above his unhurt leg.

"Sex?"
Bigdawg replied.

"Yes!! You heard me!!"
Will said, with bloody tears running down his cheeks.

"You're one sick bastard."
Bigdawg laughed, as he brought the sledgehammer back into
the air, and landed it with a sickening thud on Will's hurt knee.
He'd save the other knee for the lipless man.

Bigdawg dropped the sledgehammer into
Ogredick's hand, letting him have a few goes at Will.

"You get your kicks by hurting me!! You disgusting shit, smiling the whole
time. And you over there!! I know what you are thinking. I've seen you
around..."
Will started to rant at the men, but started to scream when Ogredick
brought the sledgehammer down on his unhurt leg, shattering the kneecap!!
"OH GOD!! I'm going to be sick!!"
Will yelled, and vomited on himself and Ogredick.

Vamp started to laugh. If they would have just let him bash the mans skull in.

Ogredick took off his shirt, revealing burns and scratches from being in the sun.
He would have horrible scars on his body if everything were to return to normal
in the world.
"Do that again, and I will finish you off!"
Ogredick said, as he kicked Will in the stomach.

"Fucker!! Finish me off!!"
Will said, as he stared past Ogredick to Vamp.

"Gimmie my sledgehammer!!"
Vamp said walking up to Ogredick with his hand out.

"Not yet!!"
Bigdawg replied.

"He wants me to finish him off!!"
Vamp said,standing up to Bigdawg.

Ogredick slid his pocket knife out, and cut Will's wrist. The blood was
thick, and warm. Ogredick leaned forward, and licked the bleeding wrist.

"Dude, you taste awful."
Ogredick said, and spit out the blood.

"What..does he have that not so fresh feeling... err... I mean taste!"
Bigdawg said laughing.

"Fuck you moron!"
Will replied. He no longer cried, shock had control of him. He could feel no
pain, only anger. He watched as the blood continued to pour out of him.
"Why don't you just cut me like you mean it!!!"
He said, and watched Ogredick's eyes narrow.

"Let you bleed to death?"
Bigdawg said, and walked up to them.

"NO!! Don't let him bleed to death!!"
Vamp said nervously, and pushed a hand through his greasy long dark hair.
"Where are the drugs?"
Vamp asked Will.

"Drugs?"
Will asked in a daze.

"DRUGS DRUGS DRUGS."
Vamp replied, as he hopped back and forth on his feet.

"He obviously doesn't have drugs!! ?"
Ogredick said to Vamp, as he reached over and patted Will's empty pocket.
"That bitch in the car probably took his wallet."

"He offered sex too, do you want that?"
Bigdawg replied.

Ogredick's grip had loosened on the sledgehammer, and Vamp snatched it away.
Ogredick reached for it, and Vamp pushed him away.Bigdawg moved a safe
distance away, not turning his back on him.

"My turn!!!"
Vamp said with an evil laugh. He lifted the sledgehammer, listening to WIll's screams.
Was the man praying? He wouldn't know what a prayer really sounded like, he never
prayed a day in his life. He brought the sledgehammer down and hit the side of Will's
head with a hard smack.

Blood splattered on the wall behind Will.

Beautiful, just beautiful, Vamp thought. The man was still alive!! He brought
the sledgehammer up again, bringing it down on the otherside of the head.

Blood hit a shirtless Ogredick, making him look more evil than he already was.

Silence overtook the broken man, he could no longer speak.

"Is he still breathing?"
Bigdawg asked, as he stepped closer to Will. Will
opened his eyes, and stared at him with a glassy stare.
"Shit, he scared me!!"

"Move back!!"
Vamp said, hoping that Bigdawg would stay
there so he could atleast get one good hit at him!!

Bigdawg moved away just in time for the sledgehammer to hit where he
had been standing. The sledgehammer hit Will's face straight on, shattering
the bone structure of the face. Will's last death rattle escaped him, as blood
flowed out of every hole that was available.

Beautiful, just beautiful, thought Vamp.

Bigdawg looked at his watch. It was almost 5 in the morning. The sun would be
up soon. The nights went by too fast, he thought. He watched as Vamp put the
sledgehammer down on his makeshift bed and lay down. Vamp hugged the
sledgehammer like a child would hug a teddy bear, Bigdawg thought.

Bigdawg would sleep too, but to turn his back for a second on Vamp might prove fatal!

----------

 


PART 20

Hitman pulled the car over, at the first hint of daylight. He had seen what
daylight could do, and he dared not test it. He had driven into a ritzy
neighborhood. The street was lined with tall oaks on either side. Their
limbs stretching towards each other, as if they were trying to hug.

Darkness reigned over each house. Hitman didn't know if the house he chose
was vacant or not. Actually he didn't care, just as long as he could hide from
the sun for the day. He held Jess' hand, and broke the window to an old
Victorian style house with his elbow. If the owners were there, they would
be down in minutes, or seconds. He stood quietly waiting for any sound of
life within the house.

"Hello?"
Jess yelled into the house impatiently. She heard her echo in return.

They entered the house, Hitman's boots crunching on the broken glass.

Jess ran ahead of Hitman, and up some metal stairs leading to the second
floor. If the breaking glass didn't wake the owners, the noise on the stairs
would, Hitman thought. He took off his jacket, and threw it over a chair.

"Nobody is here!"
Jess yelled from the top of the stairs.
"I think I will take a shower, and find some clothes."
She said, as she skipped off towards the shower.

Hitman shrugged, and watched her enter the bathroom leaving the door
open. He looked around the home, looking at the clutter that the owners
probably prided themselves in. He picked up a glass elephant, and drop-
ped it to the floor. The shards of glass made a rainbow on the wall from
the rising sun. He saw this, and threw a heavy blanket over the curtains
making the room darker.

"What a sound system!!"
Hitman said, as he turned to see a room filled with speaker after speaker.
"What is this?"
He asked outloud, as he flipped a switch. Music
filled the room, shaking the glass in the windows.
"Who is Love & Rockets ?"
Hitman wondered, as he listen to the song So Alive.

He moved the CD cover to find more.

"I've been calling you!!!"
Jess said, as she entered the room in a towel.
" I thought you were going to join me."
She said with a wink of her eye.

He almost felt as if he were in a trance. She had taken his hand to
lead him upstairs. His shoes never made it up there stairs, his pants
never made it to the bathroom. All that was left when he made it to
the shower, was his shirt. She turned and lifted the sweaty shirt,
kissing his chest in the process.

He couldn't think. All that was left was animal instinct. He had never been
this hungry before. He could feel himself ready to explode, and he had no
control over it. He pushed her back into the shower, against the wet wall
from her shower before.

She gasped, and cried out as he lifted her and put her legs around his waist.

He started to bite her neck, and then her breasts, her nipples. He put his lips
to hers, and she could taste the iron taste of blood. He swallowed, and
searched her eyes. She pushed away from him, and then pulled him back
to her. Pain and pleasure for both, as her nails scratched down his back.

She looked down to see blood running down to her navel, he had bitten
off both her nipples. She began to scream, as he dropped her legs and
turned her to face the wall. He pressed her there with his hands, almost
smothering her. She was so thin, he could just snap her in two he thought.

He traced a line down her spine, and then back up, as if teasing her..
The only thing he could hear was the rushing of the blood through his veins.

He needed more.

Her arms began to flail, making the blood on the wall look like angels wings.
Her shoulders bare teeth marks, as he made his way down her back biting
her. She began to slide down the wall, her screams fading as well. Blood
flowed down the tub drain like water.

He watched as she took her last breath. She was no good to him now.
He laid her gently on the bathroom floor, and put a robe over her face.
What blood she had left in her, began to pool beneath her. He carefully
stepped back in the shower to wash away her blood, as the sound of
running water and his own laughter filled his ears.

-------------


PART 21

Brandnew had made it to a spirtual plane. Her car had ran out of gas, but
it didn't matter. She had hotwired the next car she found standing still and
speed away in that one. She prayed silently and outloud, not caring who
heard. The children that she passed on the street looked at her with
hunger in their eyes, or was it pain ? She had driven through night, and
now the sun shown down, making her sweat. The morning sun sent beads
of sweat down her back. Why didn't she put up the hood of the drop top
car, she wondered?

She was tired, but afraid to sleep. She feared what she had seen during
the night would find her. So she kept going, and going, keeping up with the
sun! She didn't know how far she had gone, she didn't care to even read the
signs anymore.

The cell phone on the dashboard started to
ring, disturbing her of her repetitive prayer.

"Hello?"
Brandnew said weakly, and then cleared her throat.

"Where are you?"
a female voice asks her.

"I don't know."
Brandnew responds.
"Larnz?"

"Yeah, it's me."
Larnz replies.
"I just flew over, I'm in South Carolina."

Brandnew shook her head. Why was she telling her this.

"I...I...I'm hiding in a bathroom. What the hell is going on?"
Larnz said, hoping Brandnew would respond.

"I don't know. The end of the world maybe?"
Brandnew responded.
"OH shit"
Brandnew said, as her car started to stall.

"Can you come get me."
Larnz asked of Brandnew.

The car came to a halt at a crossroad. Brandnew
sat for a moment, and then decided to reply.
"My car just died on me. I wish I could!"
Brandnew said, and heard the phone go dead.
"Shit!"
Brandnew said again, as she looked at her surroundings.
She was in the middle of the desert, or was it a prarie, at a crossroads.
Not a single building was in her sight. The only thing she could see was
a single vulture flying in the air.

-------

Jer walked the street, looking up and down the road. It was safe in the
daylight, she thought, as she stretched her legs. Sleep had finally caught up
with them. They could sleep during the day, and travel at night. They were
most likely just a few miles from the place in Dark Vortex's book.

"How are you doing?"
Jer asked, as Chris joined her.

Chris looked at her and shrugged.

"That good huh?"
Jer said, as she put a hand on his shoulder.

Chris gave her a half smile, and walked away.

"You better get some rest."
Roe yelled over to Jer, as she walked into her motel room. She opened
the curtains and kept the door open to keep the light in. She wasn't taking
any chances.

Jer watched Chris as he took a picture
out of his family, and toss it in the trash.

"Reminders only hurt."
Chris said, as he turned to see her watching.

-------------

The world had changed. There were no longer dividers between countries.
It was no longer Religion aganst Religion. It was just people that were
affected by the Eclipse, and those who were not. Friends became enemies.
Enemies became friends.


Vamp watched as the other men slept. Temptation was great, but he
controlled his lust. With his robe on, he quietly left the darkness of the
building.

---------

 

 


PART 22


Rob pulled the truck to the curb, and watched as a single hooded
person walked passed them. The guy stared at them hatefully.

"We going in there right now?"
Tal asked Rob, as they watched the man walk out of sight.

"Shit no!"
Rob replied.

"Why not?"
Tal asked, as he squirmed in the backseat.

"It'd be too easy. I am looking for a fight."
Rob said, as he lifted his bloodstained weapon.

Tal shivered and looked away. He didn't want to
fight. All he wanted to do was go home and sleep.
"Dark Vortex, what do you want to do."
Tal asked Dark.

"Fight"
Dark replied, and stared at the building that he knew his old friends were
in. He thought he could see shadows moving within the building, but maybe
it was just a trick of his imagination. He shook his head and looked away.

"This place is a ghost town."
Rob said, as he pulled away from the curb.
"Is everyone else affected by this thing?"
Rob asked outloud.

"I can't wait for everything to go back to normal."
Tal says, and fiddles with the lock on the door.

"It's not gonna go back to normal, dumbass."
Rob replies.

"Where are we going?"
Dark asks, as Rob starts to drive out of town.

"Back to the house."
Rob replies, as he watches the man that had passed by them earlier.
The man turned to them and smiled. The look made Rob shiver.

"Back there???"
Tal asked, and sat up in his seat.

"Where the fuck else are we gonna go?"
Rob replied, as he continued watching the guy in his rearview window.

Tal sighed, and remained quiet the rest of the trip.

----------

Unreal took her time at driving, and made it to the
cabin in the woods as the sun started to go down.

"What the hell happened here?"
Roe said, as she stood next to the car.
"Do they have tornados here?"

"Is that a car in there?"
Metal asked, and walked to the hole in the house wall.

"Dark??"
Jer yelled into the house.
"There hasn't been a storm here in days, Roe."
She said, looking back at Roe.

"Oh MY GOD!"
Unreal yelled, as she saw the dead woman on the floor,
and then saw the other dead body under the car wheel.
"I hope this isn't Dark!!"
She said, as she bent down to feel if there was any ID on the body.

"Who is it?"
Jer asked, afraid of the answer.

Unreal sighed.
"Hister."
She replied shrugging. She put the wallet carefully
back in the pocket, and stepped over him.

"Dark???"
Roe yelled, as she ran up the stairs.

Chris stood outside of the hole in the house, standing guard with the poker.
He couldn't take seeing anymore blood and death. He had a feeling though
that he would see more of it before it all ended. If it ever ended that is, he
thought.

----------

"Fuck!! Whose car is that at the house!"
Rob yelled, and pushed harder on the accelorator.

 

"Dude, you're gonna wreck us!"
Dark yelled, holding onto the dashboard.

Rob drove even faster, slamming on the breaks only at the last second.

"You think he shit his pants?"
Dark said, as he felt Chris bang on the truck.

"Mother Fucker!!! You almost fucking killed me!"
Chris yelled, as he broke the headlights with the poker.

"Now what did he do that for?"
Rob said, as he jumped out of the truck.
"Come on, you piece of shit!!"
Rob yelled, and lifted the blades in the air.
"I've used them once, and I will use them on you! Don't try me."

"I already have!"
Chris yelled, and ran into him. The men fell
to the ground, both loosing their weapons.

Dark vortex reached into his jacket pocket, and pulled out the gun.
He had begun to wonder if he was ever going to get to use it. He shot
it into the air, and everything went silent.

 


PART 23

"What the hell is going on out here??"
Jer yelled, as she ran outside to see the two men laying on the ground.

"Nothing now."
Rob replied, as he sat on the ground rubbing his jaw.

Unreal helped Chris up.
"You ok ?"
she asked, as she started to dust the dirt off him.

"Yeah."
He replied, as he stared hatefully at Rob. He put a hand out to help Rob
up, and Rob reluctantly accepted. Both men stared at each other, both
bleeding.

"We need another place to stay. With this
car here in the house, we are most vunerable."
Hardcore said, as he surveyed the area.
"Night will fall soon."

"Well yeaah."
Roe replied.
"Do you suggest a place?"
She walked out of the building through the hole in the wall.
"Well I'll be damned."
She said quietly upon seeing Dark Vortex.

"Long time no see."
Dark said smiling at her.

"My place is pretty safe."
Hardcore replied.
"Hey Jer!"

"Hey."
Jer replied, and smiled. They had known each other since they were
kids. She had moved away a few years before in order to find a
better job. She walked over to him, and gave him a short hug.

Dark watched them with raised eyebrows.

"We can get everything we need here quickly,
and make it to my house in thirty minutes."
Hardcore said, as he and Jer stood arm in arm.

"Then what?"
Metal asked, as he stood in the hole the car had made.

"We make a plan, of course."
Rob responds, as he grabs his blades off the ground.

-------

The rainbows on the wall were in a different spot now.
Hitman started to pace in the darkening house. Night
couldn't get there soon enough for him. He turned on the
radio instead of the cd player. He was surprised the radio
stations were still playing. He wondered if somewhere
in the world there was a place that wasn't affected. If it
wasn't, it soon would be.

"Blurry!! Puddle of Mudd..."
He said outloud. He left it there, and paced around the house again.

The rainbows were weakening on the wall, it was only a matter of minutes now.

---------------------------------

Vamp turned towards the sun, and let the wind push his hood back.
He took in the evening sun, squinting and blinking. He stood on the
high hill,and let the wind blow his greasy hair into his face. He slung
the sledgehammer up to his shoulder. He looked back at the small
town, death had taken it over. This was his kind of tow, he thought.
He put the hood back over his head, and made his way back into
town, he had some work to do.

 --------------------

 


PART 24

It was freezing, and Brandnew's sweater wasn't warm enough. She shivered
as she walked into the night. She stayed in the center of the road. It didn't
matter, she hadn't seen a car in hours. She had walked most the day, her
skin had burned a bright red. She was sure she would start peeling soon.

She held her cell phone, contemplating on dialing any number
she could thinkof. She dialed, and continued walking.
"Shit."
She said, as she heard the familar voice telling
her she was not within range of a tower.
"What the hell are these things good for?"
She said as she shoved the phone back into her pocket.

The moon was a bit hazy, she thought. She looked up and could see
the man on the moon. Strange, the moon looked full, and yet hazy.

She shook her head, and concentrated on the road before her. In the
distance she thought she could see a light. It had to be just her
imagination. She walked for a few more minutes, and the light
was still there.

A few moments later Brandnew walked into a small restraunt. There
was a waitress behind the counter and a couple of young girls sitting
in the corner. The young girls looked her way and seemed to be sizing
her up. For some reason, they both looked scared of her.

"What will you be having?"
The waitress asked her.

"I..I..well.."
Brandnew replied, as she sat on a stool.

The waitress rolled her eyes and walked away.

"Hey you..."
One of the girls whispered loudly over to her.

Brandnew looked at them with her eyebrows raised.

"Are you one of them?"
The other girl asked her.

Brandnew put a finger over her mouth, hoping the girl wouldn't
say anymore. She walked over to them and sat down.

"We can't leave"
One of the girls said, as she stired her hot chocolate.

"Why can't you leave?"
Brandnew asked them.

"He's out there."
The same girl responded.

"WHO?"
Brandnew asked loudly.

The waitress turned to them and stared
until a man walked into the restraunt.
"Trogdor, you're all dirty!!"

"Yes ma'am."
He said and laid a bloody leg on the table.

Brandnew put a hand over her mouth. She
wanted to scream, but tried to act normal.

"Steph! Do you think that was Skylar?"
The one girl asked the other.

"I don't want to think Daru, I don't want to think."
Steph replied, looking down into her lap.

Brandnew looked back up to the table where the leg had been. Now
there was a towel, and the waitress wiping the blood away. Where had
the man gone, she wondered. Was he bringing the woman pieces of
people like trophies??

"We've been in here for hours."
Daru said, she she kept stirring her hot chocolate.

"Stop that!!"
Brandnew said, and put a hand over Daru's.

"If I do, she will come over here."
Daru said, and looked anxiously in the direction of the waitress.

"I'm hungry."
Brandnew replied.

"What do you think this bacon is??"
Steph said, pushing the plate of greasy meat away from her.

"Oh fuck...NO!!"
Brandnew said, and gagged.
"How did he get your friend?"

"She had to get something out of the car. She never came back."
Daru replied, and started to stir the now
cold hot chocolate, with her other hand.

"Tell her everything. No use telling tales now."
Steph said, her eyes focusing on Daru.

Daru's whole body shook. She closed her
eyes and began to tell her what they had seen.
"We had walked out there in the night. Skylar had been here before.
There was a quiet lake, and we were just going to go for a late swim.
We get there and there were these bodies.

Some of them were tied to stakes in the ground. Some more half in the
water, half out of the water. It was if the lake was full of dead bodies.
We looked down and what we thought were twigs that were under our
feet, were bones."
Daru couldn't say anymore, tears streamed down her face. She cried quietly.

"We ran until we made it here. That was a few hours ago."
Steph said, and looked away from Daru.

"We can't stay here the night. There's no telling what will happen by sun up."
Brandnew said, as she looked out the window. She could see the man
walking back to the restraunt with something in his hands. From the shape,
it was most likely a head.

"Oh my God!! Daru, don't look behind you."
Steph said, as she saw the man with Skylar's head.
"I think I am going to pass out."

"NO...quit looking over there. I need your attention. As soon as he
leaves. Get up, walk to the door, run to the car as fast as you can.
We will be right behind you."
Brandnew said, as she watched the waitress take the head to the kitchen.
"NOW!"
She said, as the man left and walked out of sight.

Steph jumped from the table, and ran ahead of them. Brandnew and
Daru slipped quietly out the door, leaving the cup of hot chocolate
unstirred.

The door the the restraunt opened, hitting the wall with a loud thud.
"TROG!! They are getting away!!! They must not leave!! Get them boy!!!"
The waitress yelled into the night.

Brandnew and Daru began to run. Trog catching
up to them, standing between them and the car.

"Start the car!!"
Brandnew yelled to Steph. She could see
Steph start the car, and watch them.
"Move!!"
She yelled at Steph.

Steph reved the car, and put it into gear.

Brandnew had run out of the restraunt, fork in hand. It wasn't her
luck to have grabbed a knife,she thought as she started to laugh at
herself. She threw the fork at the man, stabbing him in the arm. He
lunged at her, grabbing her around the waist. He started squeezing
her, and she could feel the air leaving her lungs.
-------------

 


PART 25

Rob opened the blinds slowly, and stared out into the night. Harcore's
house was in the middle of a decent neighborhood, and yet he still
didn't feel safe.

"You just don't know man."
Tal said, as he sipped on his ice tea.

"Shut up."
Rob said, as he turned his attention away from outside. He stared
at Tal, and could just imagine the ways he could shut him up.
"You have any ideas on what to do? If not,
shut the fuck up. I am tired of your whining!!"
Rob said, and turned his attention back to the window. Moments before he
had thought he had seen something moving near a house on the other side of
the street. Hopefully it was just an cat or a dog.

"I feel going after Dark's friends first would be the
best thing to do. We know the area they are in.
We could sneak attack."
Metal said, as he ate his dinner.

"What?? Why don't we just sit here and let them kill themselves off."
Tal said in return.

"Kill themselves off?? How do we know they kill each other?
From what I have seen, they go after anything that isn't one of their own."
Rob said, as he stepped away from the window.
"You telling me you don't want to go after them and kick their asses?"

"Basically, yeah."
Tal replied, looking away from Rob.

"Figures."
Rob muttered, and left the room.

The thick silence broken in the room only when in the
next room the sound of Randy Rhodes guitar is heard.

"Sure we could fight them. But there has got to be more
of them than us by now. We have to protect the girls."
Tal said, as he took another sip of his tea.

"Bullshit, Tal!!"
Roe said, and hit him on the head with the magazine she had been reading.
"I can't believe the shit coming out of your mouth
tonight. Where are you in that head of yours??"

Tal shrugged his shoulders, and slumped down in his seat.

"I'm going to fight until the death if I have to."
She continues, and lights a cigarette. She looked at her
cigarette, silently thanking Hister for being a smoker.

"But, I really think that..."
Tal started to speak, and Jer put a hand over his mouth.

"Stop speaking, stop thinking."
Jer said, and then went back to writing in her journal.

"Shit."
Tal said, and held his tea in the air as if toasting someone invisible.

"What are you writing?"
Dark asked, as he walked up behind Jer.

"Nothing."
Jer replied, and closed the book on her hand.

"Whatever."
Dark said, and drank the rest of his drink before speaking again.
" Look Tal, men and women have to hold their own right now"
He turned away from Tal, and winked at Jer.

"Hey you guys, come check this out!"
Hardcore says, as he comes into the room.
"Chris, Unreal and I have been working out in the work-
shop. Chris has come up with this kick ass blowtorch."

"We can't kill them all..."
Tal says, letting his words trail away. He
sat in his seat, as the others left the room.

"There are more people like us than you think.."
Dark says, as he backs out of the room.

Hardcore stands behind the machine they had created and pulls the trigger.
"Fuck yeah!! About twenty feet of heat!!"
He yells, and starts laughing.

"I can make more. With what Hardcore has,
and the neighbor had....I can make more."
Chris says with a smile. He hands Unreal a smaller version
of the blowtorch, and she demonstrates how it works.

"Thanks babe."
Unreal says, and kisses Chris on the cheek.

"Wow, this is great!!."
Roe says, as Chris hands her a small blowtorch as well.

Dark looked up to see Rob watching them from a window.
He knew it would only be moments before Rob would be
out there with them.

He turned his attention back to the blowtorch Chris was using.

"Awesome!! You did a really good job, Chris."
Rob said, as he made his way over to them. He had been
listening from the window, and was eager to try one of the torches.

"Maybe you guys should quit using the torches. You are going to run out
of fuel while fighting the good fight. What then?? Run home to momma?"
Tal said, as he stepped out onto the patio.

"I've still got these blades."
Rob said, and whirled around to face Tal. One
more word, and Tal's eyes would be fish food.

"Get those away from me."
Tal said, as he tried to push the blades away from his face.

"I could so easily cut out your eyes."
Rob said, as he could see Tal start to shake in fear.

"Stop it Rob!!"
Jer said, as she stood between them.

Rob sighed, and lowered his blades to his side.
"We will leave at first light for Hitman and Ogredick,
Dark.. No use hiding from the inevitable."
Rob said, and pushed his way past Jer and Tal.
"Some people are afraid of the dark."

"First light?"
Dark said, as he checked his watch. It was already one in the morning,
and he knew morning would come to soon. He took Jer by the hand,
leading her back into the house.
"Come on, I don't want to be alone tonight."
He said, as they made their way into the dimly lit house.

 -----------


PART 26

There were more untainted people then Hitman thought. People like him
were most likely the minority, but they sure were a hell of a lot stronger.
He had noticed his taste for blood had grown weaker. It was most likely
because he had sucked dry atleast seven people in the last few hours.

He looked down at his crimson stained shirt, and started to laugh.
"Look ma, I've become a cannibal."
He yelled into the rearview mirror at himself. What did the other people
see just before they stepped into his grasp?? His jacket hid most of the
gruesomeness, but the stench was awful. He could smell death all over.

His stomach ached. The hunger for real food was almost overbearing.
He hadn't eaten food food in a few days, he realized. He hadn't seen
a store for miles, not even a restaurant. All he could see were trees,
and what was left of the moon. Nothing would be open now, unless
he ran into an unfortunate 24 hour greasy spoon.

-------

"Car!"
Brandnew squeaked out, as the man continued to squeeze her.
The lights of a huge automobile had driven into sight.
"Daru!!"

The man let go of Brandnew, as he felt a hard object crash on his head.
Daru stood behind him holding a broken beer bottle. She watches
as the man fell, and as the Hummer pulled into the parking lot.

"Fucking bitch."
Trog said, as he pulled himself to his knees.

"Do it again Daru!!"
Brandnew yelled, as she ran to the Hummer for help.
"Hey Mister!!"

Daru searched the ground for another bottle, as
she watched the man try to make it to his feet.

Brandnew walked the last few paces to the Hummer.
"Oh God!"
She said, as she smelled the stench coming from the Hummer.
She stared at the man in the Hummer, as he smiled at her.

"Shit!!"
Trogdor yelled, as he fell to the ground again.
"I'm bleeding!!"

Brandnew started to stumble backwards. She knew the man in
the Hummer was trouble. Probably more trouble than the man
that was laying on the ground.

Steph honked the car horn violently,
bringing Brandnew back to her senses.
"Oh!!!"
She said, as she walked into Trogdor. She stepped on his hand, making
him howl in pain. She grinded her boot into his hand, snapping his thumb
in two.

"Get in!!!"
Steph yelled to Brandnew.

Daru jumped in the back-seat, and pushed
open the other door for Brandnew to get in.

Steph pushed the car into drive, and felt a thud.
"Damn, what's wrong with the car!!!"
She asked, panicking.

"Fuck, nothing wrong with the car. That guy is holding on to the bumper!!"
Brandnew yelled, as she watched the man hold on with one hand.

"Go faster!!!"
Daru yelled at Steph.

"Is he still there?"
Steph asked, as she pushed the gas to thirty-five miles per hour.

"He's hanging on!!! Swerve!!!"
Brandnew yelled. She could see he was slipping off the
back of the car, just one swerve could knock him off.

"We'll wreck!!"
Steph said, as she slowed down.

"Don't slow down!!!"
Brandnew said, as she leaned to the front seat and took the steering wheel.

Steph held her foot on the gas, as Brandnew spilled over the seat into the
drivers seat. Brandnew swerved back and forth, as she kept an eye on the
man hanging on.

Trogdor couldn't hang on any longer. His shoes had grown holes, and he
could feel blood running through his toes. He let go, falling hard to the
ground.

Daru sighed in relief. In all the commotion, she had not noticed she was
still holding on to part of a bottle. She threw the remaining piece out the
window, and watched it shatter behind them.
"Where are we going?"
She asked Brandnew.

"I have to go back for someone."
Brandnew responded.

"Back? Back where?"
Steph asked, as she put on her seatbelt.
Brandnew was driving like a bat out of hell.

"Sorry to say, but we will be running into more like what was back
there. I ran off and left someone the other day. I gotta go back."
Brandnew said, with tears glistening in her eyes.

"Are you crazy??"
Daru asked her, as she pulled a piece of glass out of one of her hands.

"I'm beginning to think I am."
Brandnew replied, as she stared ahead at the road.

--------------------

Hitman watched as the car drove out of sight.
He scratched his head in deep thought.
"I've seen her before."
He said out loud.

Out of the darkness came a blood-soaked Trogdor.

"Man!! Are you OK?"
Hitman asked, as the man tripped, and fell before him.

"OHhhhh baby you're bleeding!!"
The woman screamed, as she ran from the restaurant.
She pushed a towel to Trogdor's head.
"You blasted man!! Men!! Thinking
they can get every woman they can!!"

"They looked tasty!!"
Trogdor replied.
"Bitches and Hoes is all they are."
He groaned, as the waitress pulled
off one of his toes like dead skin.

"I'm hungry. Got anything good in there to eat ?"
Hitman said, as he watched the
waitress put the toe in Trogdor's mouth.

"We've got the best food in town
babe. Bacon is the best in town."
The Waitress replied.
"Come on in...seat yourself."

Trogdor sat at the bar and patted the seat next to him.
Hitman sat quietly for a few moments, thinking about
the woman he had seen. He rubbed the stubble on his chin,
as he had many times before.

"You sure are lost in thought."
The Waitress said, as she placed some limp bacon in front of him.

"Oh shit!"
Hitman said, as he slowly realized where he had seen the woman.

"My bacon shit?"
The waitress asked, with annoyance in her voice.

"No. No not that. I've got some place to be."
Hitman said, as he hopped off his stool.
"Dude..come on. I've got something to show you!"
If his intuition was right, he knew right where she was headed.

"But my pork chop!!"
Trogdor yelled, as Hitman pushed Trogdor's plate away.

"Later."
Hitman replied, and pulled Trogdor out of the restaurant by his collar.
------------

 


PART 27

"I'm bored."
Bigdawg said, as he watched the morning draw near. Not much had
happened that night, he felt that soon they would have to move on.

"There's nothing left to eat!"
Ogredick said, as he looked around the room.
Drool fell down his chin, and fell to the floor in thin lines.

"Why don't you go out there and get something for us."
Bigdawg replied.

"Sun almost up."
Ogredick replied. He wasn't an idiot. He
was living proof as to what the sun could do.

"What is that?"
Vamp asked, as he looked outside through the window. Loud music
filled his ears, as a car skidded to a halt in the middle of the street. He
pulled his robe around him, and looked back at Bigdawg.
"Going out."
Vamp said, as he left the room.

"Whatever fool."
Bigdawg replied, and pushed himself into a damp dark corner. If
he did move on, he realized then that he would move on by himself.

------

"What are we doing?? Why are you stopping?"
Daru asked, as she watched Brandnew step out of the car.

"Trust me."
Brandnew said, as she stuck her hand into the car, and took the keys from
the ignition. The sun would be out soon. It would be to her advantage. If only
she could remember where the people had come from the other night. She
started walking down the street, searching through glass doors and shattered
windows.

She could hear the car door slam twice, and
could hear the other two girls walking behind her.

"Who are we looking for?"
Steph asked, as she caught up with Brandnew.

"Some of them. I mean, the infected people."
Brandnew replied with a shrug.
"Where is Daru, I thought she was walking with you?"

"She was."
Steph replied, as they both looked back to
see Daru being dragged off by a robed figure.

Daru stared at them, silently screaming for help.

"LET HER GO!!"
Brandnew yelled, as she started to run towards
the robed figure, and knock him down.
"It's you!!"
She said, as the hood fell away from his head.

"It's you!"
Vamp repeated, and started to laugh uncontrollably.
"He's dead, dead, dead!! Want to see!"

"You'll be dead, dead, dead after I am through with you!!"
Brandnew replied, as she pulled him by the
hood of the robe back out into the sunlight.

"I'm melting!!!!"
Vamp said through fits of laughter.

"What the hell!!"
Brandnew said, as she walked around him. From what she
had heard, the sun would kill them. She looked up at the sun.

The sun was missing a corner, darkness is about to fall on them again
f there is about to be another eclipse, she thought. Would it even
matter if she killed him? Would she turn into one of them?? She turned
way from him, as she looked for his sledgehammer.
"Where is it, where is the sledgehammer."
She asked him.

A loud thud turns her attention back to the robed man, only
to see Steph pushed up aganst the wall with the sledgehammer.
"Food."
Vamp says, as he looks over at Brandnew.

Steph slid to the ground, leaving a blood
trail on the wall. All life in her was gone.

"STEPH!!"
Daru cried, as she tried to get to her feet.
Everything felt as if it were going in slow motion.

"What is going on out here?"
Bigdawg asked, as he stood in the darkness just inside the door
to the building. He stared at Vamp, and was shocked to see the
sun not killing his dear friend.

"Food."
Vamp said, and offered him the girl.

Bigdawg reached out to Vamp, touching his face.

Vamp put his hood back on, covering his face. He held onto
his sledgehammer tighter than before, and dropped the girl at
Bigdawg's feet.

"You're one sick man."
Bigdawg replied, and took the offering.

"Honey I'm hommme!"
Hitman yelled into the building. They had entered through the back
of the building, not seeing the ladies and their car. To avoid the sun.
he and Trogdor had stopped at a friendly monistary and borrowed
a monks robe. He gave thanks to Trogdor and his clever mind.
"And I brought a friend."
He said, as he took off the thick robe.

Vamp slithered quietly out the door,
hoping the two men would not see him.

"Where you going! You're next after her."
Bigdawg said, pointing at the woman.

"What??"
Hitman asked Bigdawg.
"What's been going on since I left."

"He's not one of us. He's just a sick bastard."
Bigdawg replied.
"Here Ogredick."
Bigdawg dropped the girl in front of Ogredick and walked back to
the front door. He could see the one girl chasing after Vamp, as
Vamp ran awkwardly down the street. Vamp still had the
sledgehammer, and Bigdawg knew Vamp didn't mind using it.

------

"Fuck off!! Fuck off!!"
Vamp yelled back to Brandnew.

"Stop you idiot!!"
Brandnew yelled. She didn't know what she was going to do once
she got him to stop. The man had tried to kill her once, was she crazy
to stop him from running?

Vamps pace slowed. He was running out of
breath, and the sledgehammer was heavy.
"What do you want?"
He stopped and turned to her with sledgehammer in hand.

"Why are you with them? Help us."
Brandnew replied.

"Help you do what??"
Vamp replied, stepping closer to her. He had that urge to take her
life, just like the others. But for some reason, he wanted more. He
wanted to touch her, kiss her, stroke her hair.

"Don't come any closer. I...I...Just want you to hear me out."
Brandnew said, as he stood inches from her. He smelled
of blood and urine, making her wrinkle her nose in disgust.

He pushed the sledgehammer across her chest, and pushed
her to the nearest wall. He wanted to kiss her, but he licked
her cheek instead.

"Get off of me!!"
She yelled, and tried to push him away.

"Die!!"
He yelled and lifted the Sledgehammer.
He brought it down inches from her head.

She screamed, and at the same time Daru screamed down the
street. Brandnew turned to see Daru being dragged into the
building by two robed men.

"I have to get to her...."
Brandnew said,as she braced to be hit with the sledgehammer.
"Where did he go?"
Brandnew said,as she turned her
attention back to see Vamp had vanished.

------

Vamp turned the corner, and ran as fast as he could. He looked
towards the sun, and could see the eclipse coming on again.
Darkness would settle in for a little while. That little while was
something he didn't want to stick around for.

 -----

 


PART 28

Metalbeast sat in the back of Rob's truck holding to the ropes, losely,
that held the tanks. The group had decided to drive seperate cars. If
one had to make a quick get away, they could. Much to Rob's dismay,
Tal had decided to ride with them in the truck.

"Are we almost there?"
Tal asked, as he looked at his watch.
"Daylight hours guys, they keep ticking away."

"Just a couple more miles."
Dark Vortex replied.

Rob sat quietly, pondering rules of engagement. The scenery passed
by him quickly. Everything had become a blur, except the road ahead
of him. This zone he was in, anything that got in his way would be
shredded to pieces.

"Why the hell are we going out this far again, when we
could have started in Hardcore's backyard? Please remind."
Tal asked anyone that was listening.

"Silence!"
Rob replied, as he continued staring ahead.

"Have you noticed how dark it is getting?"
Tal said, as he looked out the window and
up at the sun without shielding his eyes.

"Another eclipse??"
Hardcore asked, as he pushed down harder on the gas.

"I might have to kill Rob. He's surely to be the next to turn.
Yeah, he'd cross that line pretty easy. Don't you guys think so?"
Tal asked, as he started to squirm in his seat.

"Wouldn't you like to know!!"
Rob replied through gritted teeth. He turned
in his seat, slitting Tal's throat from ear to ear.

"Oh My God!!"
Dark Vortex yelled, as blood splattered himself and the window.

Tal's hands grabbed at his throat, as he let out a death gurgle.

"I'm already a bad mother fucker as it is."
Rob said, as he turned back in his seat.

"Shit!!"
Dark Vortex yelled, and beat on the seat in front of him.
"Fuck man, couldn't you have atleast waited
until all this is over. Or atleast out of the car."

"Pull over."
Rob said, as he listened to Tal's final breath.

----------

"What's going on?"
Chris asked, as he watched Rob step out of the truck.

"We're about to find out."
Roe replied, as they watched three of the four men exit the truck.

------

 

"Why'd we stop?"
Metalbeast asked, as he hopped off the back of the truck.

"Where do you suppose we put him?"
Dark Vortex said, as he stood looking back into the truck.

"Ohhhh Jesus!!"
Metalbeast said, and turned away from the sight.

Rob and Hardcore struggled together to
get Tal's dead weight body out of the truck.

"Fuck if I care."
Rob replied.

Dark Vortex looked back at the car, and could see the expression
of horror on Jer's face. He hated to see her upset. He turned away,
bringing his attention back to the blood soaked truck.

His mind was still on Jer though. She knew every secret he had now.
The few hours before sunlight they had talked for hours. He felt as if
he were confessing his deepest sins. He had never opened up that
much in his entire life. He probably never would again.

-----------

"HOLY SHIT!!"
Roe yelled.

"Tal??"
Unreal asked, as she undid her seatbelt,
and left the car door open as she ran to the men.

"Rob?? What happened?"
Roe asked, as she caught up to them.

"He leaned in when he shouldn't have."
Rob replied, and lifted his blades.

They watched the drying blood in the darkening sunlight.

"We have to get going."
Rob said, as he turned away from them.

"You are so cold."
Metalbeast said, as he and Hardcore laid Tal on the grassy ground.

"Fuck you Rob. He didn't deserve that!!"
Unreal yelled, and stepped towards him.

Rob turned sideways and stared at her, as if daring her.

Unreal stopped, suddenly unsure.
"Fuck you!"
She said, and turned to go back to the car.

"Couldn't you guys do something with the body before we leave."
Roe asked, as she watched as the men started to get back into
the truck.

Dark Vortex stared blankly at Roe, and walked back to Tal.
What to do, he wondered? Dark took his bloody shirt off,
and put it over Tal's frozen face. He looked back at Roe,
shrugged, and re entered the truck.

"Come on, we're loosing time."
Rob yelled back to Roe.

She stepped backwards away from Tal, and into Unreal.

"Shouldn't we atleast say a prayer over him?"
Unreal asked.

"I'm not the praying kind."
Roe said, and walked back to the car. Roe had a feeling
someone would be saying a prayer over him before the
day was out, right before they ate him.

 --------


PART 29

Brandnew ran to the doorway and stopped.
"HELLO?"
She yelled, out of instinct. Great, she thought, give yourself away
real quick. She stepped forward, she couldn't hear a thing. She
stepped through into the dark damp entrance, and almost vomited
at the smell of rotting death.

She stood still trying to gain bearing. Which way did they go, she
wondered. Why had they not gone taken her too, she wondered.
She pushed herself against the wall, half expecting it to crumble.
She could just imagine grotesque hands reaching for her. She
shook her head to rid herself of the image. Nothing scared her,
she thought, as she took a few deep breaths.

She stepped forward, stepping into a wet mass on the floor.
It filled her shoes with a sticky thickness.
"What the fuck is this now?"
Brand New said, as she pulled her lighter out of her pocket.

The small light filled the air surrounding her, almost giving her
a halo. She bent down to see what she had stepped in and
gagged violently.
"WILL!!"
She said, through a covered mouth. She pulled her foot out of his
gut, and ran back to the entrance. Bloody footprints remained on
the sidewalk where she had just left.

She could hear Daru start to scream. Brand New paced back and
forth like a caged cat. She couldn't leave her there. She couldn't let
her die like her friend had died. This was no time to be a coward,
she thought, as she ran back into the building.

----

Daru sat staring at a misfigured man. She had tried to close her eyes
moments before, defying him. Toothpicks had been put into her skin
to keep her from closing her eyes. Blood ran down her cheeks where
the toothpicks had poked through the skin. Now she couldn't keep
her eyes off the man.

"Are you smiling?"
Daru asked, through her pain.

"Yes."
Ogredick replied, and sniffed the air.
"You smell so good."

"Brand New!!"
Daru yelled, starting to panic again.

"Look, she's got all her toes."
Ogredick says to Trogdor, as he points to Daru's sandled feet.

"Shut up."
Trog says, as he looks at his own mishaped feet.
"They grow back."

Daru watched Trogdor as he stared at her feet hungryly. She
sighed and began to cry. Why didn't they just kill her, she wondered?

"Nah, I'm proof."
Ogredick said, as he pulled off one of his ears.
"Falling apart like a leper."

"Yo!"
Hitman said, as he entered the room. He
was followed by Bigdawg and Brand New.
"Remember her?"

"Yum. Her friend was a doll."
Ogredick said with a chuckle.

"We caught her snooping in the next room."
Bigdawg said, as he pulled Brand
New further into the room by her hair.

"Heard a noise, and she had dug herself under a few
of the discarded bodies. Boy does she smell good."
Hitman said, as he sniffed her. Two things he loved, the smell
of death and a woman. He shook his head, to rid himself of
any of those thoughts. There was no time for that right now.

"Fresh blood."
Bigdawg said, as he watched the blood trickle down Daru's face.
"Ogredick, are you waisting precious blood??"
He let go of Brand New's hair to slide a finger
own Daru's face, making her bleed more.

Brand New fell backwards, hoping to
break the make shift rope that bound her.

"Hey now, you aren't going anywhere."
Hitman said, as he breathed in her hair.
"Shit."
He said, and pushed her to the ground.

"I've got an idea!"
Ogredick said hoarsly.
He was tired of just the trickle of blood down the girls face.

"You sick fuck!!"
Brand New yelled, as she watched
Ogredick slice Daru's face with a razorblade.

Daru began to scream, making the
toothpicks dig deeper into her skin.

Brand New turned her face away from
Daru, letting her hair hang into her face.

"Catch."
Ogredick yelled to Hitman.

"MOTHERFUCKER!!"
Brand New yelled, as Hitman began
to cut her hair away from her face.

"We can't have that sweetheart. We want
you to see everything before it's your turn."
Bigdawg said with a smile.

"Keep your eyes open, or you get a pair of these."
Trog said, as he showed Brand New the
bone toothpicks he had set aside for her.

Brand New watched as the toothpicks slid
further into Daru's skin, hardly keeping Daru's
eyes open.

Daru groaned and cried quietly. The pain was unbearable,
as Ogredick began to slice other parts of her body.
"Why don't you let me die."
She said, as he cut her again.

"When the heart stops, there will be no more fresh blood."
Bigdawg replied.
"Enough slicing Ogredick.. Drink."

"She's my pet."
Ogredick said, as he pulled a noose tight around her neck.
Daru began to choke, as he pulled it tighter.

"Fucker, let her go!!"
Brand New yelled.

"What ya say? I'm a little hard of hearing."
Ogredick said, as he put a hand to his missing ear.

"What could you possibly care for?"
Hitman said, as he pulled her to her feet. He
stood behind her, whispering in her ear.
"The blood on your feet..."
He said, and pointed to her feet.
"It's proof you only care about yourself."

"I did what anyone would do!!"
Brand New yelled.

"Run?? Cowards run."
Hitman said, as his hands slid to her waist.

"What are you doing?"
Brand New said, as she felt his hands move to her thighs.

Hitman stepped away from her, shaking his head.

"HELP ME!!"
Daru yelled, and passed out.

"Is she dead??"
Brand New asked, as she fell down to her knees.

"No, she passed out, sweetheart."
Big Dawg replied, as he pulled Daru off her chair.
"Wake up girly."
He started to drag the limp body behind him into the
next room. He was going to strangle her slowly with
the low beams in the next room. He wanted to see her
eyes buldge out of her head.

Daru started to cough, as the noose loosened around her neck..

"Good, you're awake."
Bigdawg said, as he threw the rope over a beam.

"NOOOooo!!"
Daru howled with rage.
"Just end it. I'm not afraid of death."

"Sweetheart..I want to watch you die. I want to
feel you die.. I want to taste you when you die."
Bigdawg replied. He grabbed the rope and started to pull.

  

         
                  
PART 30

 

"So, where are they fuck knuckle?"
Roe says, as she stepped out into the city street.
The silence was almost unbearable. She could
almost get a headache from the loudness of the silence.

"Good God, it's getting dark."
Unreal says, as she looks toward the disappearing sun
with unshielded eyes. She held on to her torch tighter
than before, ready for anything that came her way.

"Well, this is where you found me. They
could be miles away for all I know."
Dark said, staring down the road at the parked cars.

"I wonder if the Eclipse will get dark
enough to fool them out of their hiding places."
Chris said more than asked.

Chris and Unreal looked at each other, both having the same feeling
that something bad was about to happen. Unreal lifted her torch
before her, and lit it.

Jer watched Unreal, and then Chris light his torch moments later.
She too had the same feeling.. It was as if the darkness was bringing
evil with it.

"Hello!!! Come out!! I'm tired of waiting!!"
Roe yelled and started to laugh hysterically.

"So much for fucking stealth!!"
Rob yelled at her angrily.

"Fuck You!!"
Roe yelled back, as she fell violently to the street. She started to
scream as a horrid creature tried to grab at her. She looked into
its melted face and tried not to vomit.

"What the fuck is that??"
Jer yelled, as she kicked at the thing that had jumped on Roe.
"Get off of her!!"
She reached down and pulled at the things back, dragging away its skin.
"OH MY GOD!"
She yelled, as she stared at the skin clinging to her hands.

Roe began to choke as the thing grasped her throat.

"DO SOMETHING!! SOMEONE HELP HER!'
Jer yelled, as she dropped the skin from her hands.

Dark watched as Ogredick tried to strangle the life out of the woman.
He slowly took the gun from his pocket, and held it to his old friends
head. He shot point blank without batting even an eyelash. Blood and
brains splattered onto Roe's face, and his faded blue jeans.

"Sorry, friend."
Dark said, as he watched Roe push the heavy body off her.

"Sorry??"
Roe choked out.

Dark turned away from her, and shoved the gun back into his pocket.
That was one of my friends. I just had to kill one of my best friends."
He said, as he turned towards her again.
"His blood is on me."
He said, as he pointed down to his pants.

Roe started to argue with him, but grew silent as she watched
Dark wipe away a single tear that had slid down his cheek.

"He was a fool. He was always thirsty for more!!"
Bigdawg said, as he stepped into the entrance of
the building the people had gathered in front of.

Roe stared at him, and shuffled backwards and over the lifeless body.

"Who are you, Violent J?"
Jer asked, as she watched the man with the painted face.

Bigdawg laughed and smiled an evil smile. His face had been
painted in blood of the dead, and some not so dead yet.

"You going to kill me?"
He asked, as he saw the man with the gun
turn to him with the gun aimed and ready.

"AAAHHRGH HELP!"
A woman's voice yelled from inside the building. Men's
laughing could be heard soon after, and more yelling and
groaning from the woman.

Unreal and Chris stood back to back with their torches..
ready for the shadows to start moving.

"What the fuck is going on in there??"
Jer asked, as she ran to the door, pushing the man to the side.
"OHhh.."
She said, as she smelledthe stench of death. Vomit forced her to her knees.

"It smells good, doesn't !!!"
Bigdawg said, as he clapped her on the back.

"Fuck off!!"
Roe yelled and pushed him away from Jer.
She pulled Jer back to the street, away from death itself.

"Guys, if this is all you got, you are in trouble.
I think there are more of us than there are of you."
Bigdawg stepped into the middle of the road
and watched as a circle formed around him.

"Must suck to be you!"
Chris said, as he lit up his torch.

"Save it."
Rob said, as he watched people come out of the darkness.

"Are we surrounded?"
Unreal asked, as she lit her torch, as well.

"Looks like it."
Roe said, as she rubbed her bruised neck.

"It's just the way I like it."
Rob said, as he watched some scraggly men exit
the building that the pile of flesh had exited.

"Ah, Fuck."
Metalbeast said, as he held up his sword. If he was gonna die,
he was gonna die fighting. Look menacing, he thought.

"Catch!!"
Hitman said, as he pushed a woman towards Rob.

Brand New fell to Rob's feet, so close she was almost kissing them.
Blood fell from her lips, making the road before him red. She stared
up at him pleading with her eyes for death. Rob pushed her away with
his foot, and walked away from her.

 

---------

Hardcore looked around at the people that had come into the
streets. It was now full Eclipse, and there were more than a
dozen people standing in the street. They were looking at
each other and at the sun.

"We don't have much time."
Rob yelled over to Hardcore, and then threw him a sword.

They moved further away from each other, brandishing their
weapons... wondering who would be the one to make the first move.

---------

Roe stared at the woman on the ground, almost taking pity on her.
"Ennnn."
Brand New squeaked out.

Roe stared at her dagger, and stabbed the woman in the chest.

Brand New's eyes closed, and opened. She sputtered and wheezed.
"OOOOO."
She screamed.

Roe pulled the dagger out and pushed it deeper into the woman again.
She twisted the knife, feeling a popping sensation. Blood no longer
just oosed from the woman's wounds, it poured.

A final breath came from the woman, as she grabbed at Roe's hand.

"You Bitch!!"
Hitman said, as he dropped Brand New's tongue.

Roe stared at the tongue in horror, and rolled towards him.
The dagger in her hand, she pushes it into the flesh of his thigh.

Hitman screamed, as Roe twisted the knife deep into his leg.

Roe pulls the knife out of his flesh, screaming in rage.

"Fucking bitch!!"
Hitman yells, and falls to his knees.

"Feels good doesn't!"
Rob yells to Roe. He looked around at the people fighting.
It looks like the Violent J look alike was wrong. There was
more on their side than not. He smiled broadly, as he sliced
through the neck of a piece of stinking "Eclipse" meat.

Roe stared at Hitman as he pulled himself to his feet.
Her dagger was bent, and useless.

---

"I don't want to kill anymore!! "
Metalbeast yelled, as he threw his weapon to the ground.

"Kill or be killed."
Chris yelled, as he let the flame blast from his torch.

Metal yelled, and fell to the ground in time for the flame to
blast over his head. He could hear running, as he grabbed
for the handle of his sword. He turned onto his back in time
for an unsuspecting Trogdor to land on the tip of Metal's sword.
Metal pushed forward, pulling Trogdor further onto the sword.

"Mother Fu..."
Trogdor said, as he tried to pull himself back up the sword.

"Die...DIE....Diiiiie."
Metal said repeatedly.

"Fu Yo."
Trog said as he fell to his knees.

---

"Sun coming back?"
Unreal asked, as she looked back up at the sun for a moment.

"You'll join us when the sun returns."
Hitman said, as he limped just out of flames reach.

Unreal's flame licked inches away from him. Shivers went down
her spine, as he smiled and laughed. She let the flame shoot again,
this time almost blinding herself. When she could see again, he was
gone.
"Coward, where did you go?"
She yelled, as she tried to follow blood tracks.

"Right here bitch."
Hitman replied, and put a hand over
her mouth to drag her down an alleyway.

 
         
                  
PART 31

 

Vamp stood watching the small town from afar. He watched the
smoke rise into the sky, he watched the town start to burn. He
was glad he wasn't there. He would be dead for sure. He rubbed
the beard on his chin thoughtfully. He looked up into the sky,
noticing that the smoke was almost covering the fact that the
sun was about to reappear. What would happen then, he
wondered?

A noise behind Vamp brought his hand to his sledgehammer.
He turned to see a wolf, teeth red and snarling, a few feet
behind him.

"Here doggy doggy."
Vamp said with a slight crack in his voice. He held tight to the
sledgehammer, hoping he would be the one with the first hit.

The wolf licked it's teeth, and watched the man.
It sniffed the air, and could smell his fear.

"Come here!!"
Vamp said, as he lifted his sledgehammer.
"I'll have dog meat for dinner. Take
you down to the fire and roast you!"
Vamp said with a laugh.

The Wolf sniffed the air again, something was wrong.

"Ahhhh the sun is returning."
Vamp said, with a little dance.

The wolf seemed to understand Vamp. It looked towards the
sky and watched the sun return. It started to sneeze violently.
A long, deep growl escaped the wolfs throat as it charged for
Vamp.

Vamp screamed as the wolf jumped on him, the sledgehammer
falling a few few away. The wolf stared at him face to face, it's
breath hot and smelled of death.

The sun no longer covered, the wolf fell on it's side and slid off
of Vamp. Vamp breathed a sigh of relief and stared at the poor
wolf.

The wolf stared up at him, alive.

Vamp grabbed his sledgehammer and stood over the animal.
The wolf whimpered softly. Vamp leaned closely to the fallen
animal and held a hand to the wolfs mouth, and the wolf licked
his hand.

He might be worth keeping around, Vamp thought? He turned
his attention back to the small town. It had grown quiet, almost
too quiet. He took a step towards the town, but stopped when
the wolf began to growl again.

He turned to see the wolf staring at him with the wicked smile on it's face again.

 
         
                  
PART 32

 

Unreal's torch lay at Hitman's feet, as he stood clearing his eyes with
his fists. The sun was bright, and blinded him as he held his hands
over his eyes. He wasn't burning, he thought, as his sight came back
to him. Behind the spots in his vision, he could see a woman
kneeling before him.

"You broke my fucking fingers you shit!!"
Unreal yelled at him. She stared at her crooked fingers and choked
back vomit that had entered her mouth.. The pain was unbearable,
but she wouldn't let him see how much she hurt.

"Atleast that is the only thing that I did to you."
He replied, as he stepped away from the torch, and the woman
on the ground. He stared down at his bloody shirt, and could remember
everything that had happened in the last few days. He began to vomit and
rip off his shirt.

"There you are!"
Chris said, as he walked slowly to Unreal. He pulled her off the ground
with her good hand, as he kept an eye on the man moaning on the ground.

"Don't worry about me."
Hitman said, as he looked at them with bloodshot eyes.

"We won't."
Unreal replied, as her and Chris walked away to find the others.

Chris turned back to see if the man was following them. He held Unreal
by the elbow to hurry her along, he wasn't taking any chances. If there
was a God, Chris thought, this evil would all be over.


-------------------------


Bigdawg laughed at all the death that surrounded him. He could feel the
flames consume him as soon as the sun returned. He would die and go
to hell. Hell was where he belonged, he thought. His eyes blurred, as
the heat grew more intense. If he actually cared, the burning
would feel like more than just instects biting him.

He laughed harder as he watched more of his kind burst into flames.
The Untouched ran away from them, some of them unsuccessfully.

He grabbed hold of the woman that stood taunting him. She screamed
in agony as the heat touched her, his laughter growing louder. His death
would be her death too.

----

Roe started to burn almost as quickly as the monster that held on to her.
It was as if gasoline had been poured over her. Through the crackle of
the fire, she could hear it's evil laughter. Her every breath was being
sucked out of her, she was suffocating. Death was surely coming to
her, she thought, she couldn't even feel anymore.


---------


Jer stared at the chared remains of the creature and Roe. She watched
as Dark Vortex moved the creature off of Roe. What was left Roe,
was half of a chared body. The other half of her body was ashes, that
slowly blew away when the wind blew. Jer started to cry, as she looked
around at the other dead bodies. A few inches from Roe's body was the
thing that had tried to kill Roe before. Jer shivered violently, as she diverted
her eyes elsewhere. A few yards further was a man impaled on Metal's
sword. A few feet from him, Metal lay in a small pool of blood.

"Metal??"
Jer yelled weakly and crawled over to him.

"Teeth!!"
Metal lay on the ground groaning. His front teeth
were gone, and he was bleeding from the holes.

"Don't speak."
Jer said, as she ripped his shirt and
made him put the shirt over his mouth.

He sat up and the blood gushed down his chin.
"Over?"
He asked, through the shirt.

"I don't know."
Jer replied, as she pushed him back to the
ground and made him put his head in her lap.

"Fuckers are all dead now."
Rob said, as he leaned aganst his burned truck. He watched
as Chris and Unreal rejoined them. Her fingers were bent and
her other hand was cradling them. He could fix them for her,
for a price.

"Hello..."
A man said as he walked slowly around the corner.

"Kill it!!"
Unreal said through gritted teeth.
"He was one of them."
She said, as she pointed to her dead brother.

"NO! Please, wait."
Hitman said, as he limped over to them.
"Please!!"
He held up his hands as he stared down
the barrel of a shotgun that Hardcore held.
"Look, the sun isn't burning me!! Please
don't kill me. I won't hurt any of you!"
He fell to his knees begging for mercy.

Dark pulled his gun out, holding it to Hitman's head.
"I've now got one bullet left. I don't know which chamber
it's in. Let's play a little game called Russian Roulette."
He pulled the trigger, making Hitman wince.
Dark Vortex laughed quietly.

"I don't deserve this."
Hitman said, sadly.

"She didn't deserve to die either, but she did."
Jer said, as she pointed at Roe.

"And she was on vacation!!"
Rob added.
"Guys, from what I can see it's over. Drop
the weapons before he shits his pants."
He said, as he threw his sword in the back of his truck.

"You sure that hunk of junk works."
Metal said, through the bloody cloth.

"Fuck yeah."
Rob said, with a smile.

"We aren't going to take him with us are we?"
Unreal asked angrily.

"Hell no!!"
Rob said, as he spat Hitman's way.
"We found him here, and this is where he will
stay. Even this is over, I still don't trust him."

"Trust me!!"
Hitman said, as he hobbled to the leader of the small group.
"Don't leave me, I beg you! Don't leave me in this place of death!!"

"Shhhhh where is that sound coming from??"
Jer asked, as she scrambled to her feet.

"Ouch."
Metal said, as his head thumped softly on the ground.

In the distance she could hear a wolf howling.

"It sounds like a wolf...so."
Rob said with a shrug.

"Ahhh shit!!"
Unreal said, as she spun around to look for the wolf.

"Don't worry. It doesn't sound close."
Chris said, as he put an arm around her.

"It's a fucking wolf, get over it."
Rob said, as he hopped into his truck and started the ignition.
"You guys coming?"

Jer stared off into the distance still looking for the wolf.
Was this really over she thought? She only heard it howl
once more before joining the rest of group in the back of
Rob's truck.

----------------------

The wolf howled again, as he watch the small group down in the
town below him. He licked his teeth and drooled in hunger. He
moved as if to run the short distance, he wanted to taste fresh
meat again.

"Not yet boy, not yet. I shall call you Syra. Syra be your name."
Vamp giggled, and danced with his sledgehammer.

He obeyed his master. He licked his teeth once more, and waited.




~the end !!~