Rot: Island

answer.

  “We were waiting to board our flight,” Ryan started.

  “We were going to Italy,” Jen interrupted before wiping the fresh tears from her eyes.

  “Yeah, that’s not really important now. Anyway, a plane came in from Los Angeles. There was a report that an attack took place on the plane mid-flight. I’m not sure what exactly went down, but I know they grounded all flights, allowed that plane to land and had a SWAT team meet it out on the runway.

  “The plane was about a hundred yards out, but we could just make out what was going on. Passengers fell out and down the emergency slide. Pretty soon the SWAT team opened fired, but only briefly. We assumed that all the people that made it past the SWAT team were innocent people and the bad guys were shot.”

  “I would have been running for my life,” Jen cut in again. “But these people just walked toward the airport like it was no big deal.”

  “As soon as they got into the airport they just ripped into everyone. I mean they literally ripped into every body they got a hold of. They would knock people down and just stomp on them. I’m sure if there wasn’t so much screaming then we could have heard the sounds of their bones shattering.” Ryan sounded like he would be sick if he kept talking about it.

  Jen sat down cross-legged on the concrete. Ryan kneeled down behind her with his arms around her chest. Her face was pressed into his arm, muffling her soft sobs. “It was so awful,” she finally said. “Everyone was being murdered right in front of us. These people didn’t care at all whether the people they hurt were young or old. Children were stomped to death and torn apart.” She burst into sobs again. This time they were much louder.

  “Maybe we should keep that to ourselves for now,” Tyler suggested.

  “Yeah, I agree. We probably shouldn’t even have told the two of you. I’m sorry you had to hear that.” Ryan gave Tyler an apologetic look, before standing up and walking closer to the man. Layla was holding Jen tightly as the two of them wept together. “Listen,” Ryan said in a whisper to Tyler. “I feel uncomfortable about that injured man back at the dock.”

  “Why?” Tyler’s head cocked slightly to the right, as it usually did when he was confused by a question.

  “I don’t think Jen saw this, but many of the people that were killed at the airport got up and joined the attackers.”

  Tyler snorted quietly as he held in a laugh. His forehead wrinkled as he felt slightly angered by the man’s joke. “That isn’t really something to play with, man. If what you said is real, all those people were murdered - then there is seriously something bad happening on this planet. Not just here, but on this entire planet.”

  “It’s not a joke. I had to watch as that shit happened. I didn’t want to see it. I didn’t want to hear the screams of innocent children as they were murdered. Now, what I know for sure is that after they were dead, those people got back on their feet and went after everyone else.”

  The seriousness in Ryan’s voice was alarming to Tyler. He had only just met the man, but he felt compelled to believe this crazy story. “So what are you trying to say about the injured man?”

  “I just think we need to keep an eye on him. I mean, he is still alive, so I can’t imagine there is any cause for alarm. All I am suggesting is that we keep our eyes and ears open. We need to watch each other’s backs too. I don’t know how long we will be here, but I can’t imagine there is enough food on that boat to feed a group this big for too long.”

  The realization of how serious their situation is hit Tyler hard. He felt as if he had just taken a punch to the stomach by Muhammad Ali. He watched enough movies to know that people will become violent when hungry. An image of the tourists sitting in a cell block cooking each other popped into his head. “We could be the next Donner Party.”

  “You have probably noticed, but the cell towers are down. We can’t make or receive any calls.” Ryan leaned closer to Tyler, “That happened before the flight from L.A even landed. I think someone knew that there was a chance for something bad to happen. The best way to contain something that big is to cut off communications, right?”

  “Ricky! Jordan! You boys need to stay up here away from the water.” The old woman hollered down at the boys as they played by the bay. “I mean it. Get away from there. I’m too old to come after you.”

  The afternoon sun was dimming as it sank beneath the hills next to the Golden Gate Bridge. The warm breeze blew gently across the rough waters of the bay. Jordan brushed his bushy brown hair from his eyes and looked out a few yards into the water. The object that drifted closer to the rocks looked like a sack, but as it slowly floated closer he could tell that it was —

  “A body!” said Ricky. The seven year old boy was disgusted by the floating corpse, but he was always looking to impress his older brother.

  “Maybe we should leave it alone, Ricky,” Jordan said. He was also a little grossed out by it, but he decided he wouldn’t be outdone by his little brother. “Let me pull it up further on the rocks.”

  “No, I can do it,” Ricky said. He splashed down into the bay and grabbed the body before Jordan could object.

  “Ricky get away from there!” he urged his brother.

  The fingers wrapped around the little boy’s legs without warning, causing the boy to cry out and fall back onto the rocks. The slimy skin was wrinkled, reminding the boys of what their own fingers looked like after bath time. The hand slid down Ricky’s leg and finally was able to grasp his shoe. Ricky pulled away hard, and the wrinkle-fingered hand undid the Velcro strap on his Sketchers.

  “You two cut it out now!” the woman yelled sharply down to them again. “Stop with the horseplay before someone falls in the water.”

  “Help!” Ricky was finally able to scream. Jordan was unable to move.

  “Someone help my grandsons,” the woman yelled to a small group that was standing just a little further down the path. “My grandsons are drowning!”

  “I can’t believe the bleeding hasn’t stopped yet,” said Shawn. He had been working on the Bay Cruiser since he graduated high school. His love for the bay was to thank for that, and through his hard work he became the first mate when he was just twenty-four.

  They made the man as comfortable as possible. Resting him in some blankets from the ferry, they continued to try and stop the bleeding. There was a large chunk missing from the man’s left arm, and as the hours wore on, his body temperature fluctuated. It would reach well over one-hundred degrees Fahrenheit for an hour, and then would drop down to ninety. As hypothermia set in he would fall asleep, but the violent trembling he did could be felt in the floor of the large boat.

  “We are down to our last bandages. He has been bleeding non-stop for what, seven or eight hours now? I only have the first aid and CPR certificates, so I’m certainly not in the position to make this call, but he should be dead,” Ji said with concern.

  Shawn felt the same way, but he didn’t want to show too much concern and cause a panic. Picking up the radio, he called up to the captain, “Hey Jim, have you heard anything from the mainland yet?”

  A moment of silence went by before the response came through. “Negative, Shawn. I can’t reach anyone and nobody’s talkin’.”

  “Hey Shawn,” Ji said quietly.

  Shawn looked at the young Chinese man and followed his gaze to the injured man’s lifeless body. With a sigh he said, “He’s gone, Jim. He was one tough bastard for making it this long. He couldn’t even speak to us, but he held onto his life, regardless of how painful it was.”

  “Ok, let’s try to find a comfortable place for him out of sight. I don’t want to alarm the other passengers. You guys get cleaned up and we’ll track down the tour group. I think we will head back to the pier and see if we can learn anything there,” Jim said.

  Shawn signaled for Terrence to come over and help them. He made one last check of the man’s pulse to ensure he was dead, and they picked him up. Shawn and Ji grabbed his shoulders while Terrence picked up his legs.
“I’m thinking the engine room would be the best place for him for now,” said Shawn.

  Before they had made it through the passenger area the man took in a slow, deep breathe. His jaw popped as his mouth opened wide. They laid him down on the cold hard floor and knelt beside him. Ji ran back to grab the blankets, and Shawn pressed his ear down onto the man’s chest to listen for a heartbeat. He couldn’t hear it, but he could hear the long breathe the man was still inhaling.

  Pain shot through Shawn’s head as the man bit down hard. Hair and flesh was ripped from his skull. Terrence helped him up and away from the man, propped him up against one of the benches that ran the length of the room, and had Ji bring the blankets to them instead. He packed the blankets behind Shawn and pressed part of it firmly against the wound on the back of his head.

  “It’s gonna be alright, Shawn. Just hang in there buddy,” Terrence said in between Shawn’s pained screams.

  Terrence stayed close to his friend while Ji ran back once more to grab painkillers from the medkit. He took Shawn’s hands in his own and tried to hold back tears. He was scared as hell, but it didn’t last long. The man came up from behind him, grabbed his hair, and jammed his middle and index fingers deep into Terrence’s right eye.

  As soon as Terrence hit the floor, the man began stomping on his chest. It only took two stomps, and an