Teen Ink

Loss

“Where’d you get-,” Lauren began. “The officer didn’t need it,” I snapped. Lauren had a hurt look on her face.
We loaded up into the car. We drove as far as we could, which was around a mile, before roadblocks stopped us. We hopped out and ran. “You know, there’s a website out there, called Remember the Ishimura, and they say these things are called Necromorphs, or something like that. It said that they’re attracted to this thing, the Marker, you know, like what the Unitologists are crazy about,” Kyle gasped. “Necromorphs,” I muttered. It even sounded deadly.
A Necromorph leapt at us from behind a car. I quickly snapped my gun up and shot off its legs, the creature flopping to the floor. It crawled towards us, bleeding out. I shot off its arms, and then stomped it’s head. You can never be too sure, right?
“Why the limbs? I mean, at least shoot it in the chest,” Kyle said. “That’s how the last owner of this gun got killed,” I retorted. Kyle didn’t reply.
I saw a movement out of the corner of my eye. “Get down, “ I yelled. Kyle turned around, idiot that he was. ‘What,” he asked. One of the baby Necromorphs lunged, shrieking. It latched onto Kyle’s throat with its fangs. Dark blood oozed out of the wound. The tentacles reared up and slammed into Kyle’s head, decapitating him. I yelled and shot the Necromorph so many times that it pretty much exploded.
Kyle’s limp body collapsed to the ground, dead. I stood there, staring at his limp corpse. “Come one, Jacob. We need to go,” Lauren said urgently. I brushed her off. After another five minutes, Lauren and I set off.
After killing another seven Necromorphs, we ran into an abandoned apartment complex. We barricaded the door and the windows. For a long time we just sat there, in silence, as the dying screams of people outside mixed with the ever-growing roar of the Necromorph horde. I held the gun in my lap.
I had a daydream. I was lifting the gun to Lauren’s temple. “Better me than them,” I was saying. I pulled the trigger. After, I put the gun under my chin and fired, the pulling the trigger just as a Necromorph burst into the room.
I shook myself. It would do me no good to think about that. Lauren was staring straight ahead, eyes fixated at a spot on the wall. I inhaled deeply. The world was ending outside, and I was at a loss for words. I tried to think of something to boost Lauren’s spirits, but came up empty.
“So much death,” Lauren whispered. I nodded; it was all I could think of. “Everything we all knew, everyone we loved. Gone. Just like that,” she said. I nodded again. ‘The Unitologists said that the end was coming. They were right,” she continued. I didn’t’ respond. “It’s amazing; these creatures, these Necromorphs, all they do is kill. That’s their sole purpose for existence. Death,” Lauren said, a tear running down her cheek. I put my arm around her.
“It’ll be alright,” I said, “we’ll make it out of this alive.” I hope, I thought. “I’m scared,” Lauren said, looking up at me. “So am I,” I replied softly. I held her close to me, trying to block out the sounds of death.
I pulled Lauren to her feet. “We need supplies,’ I simply said. She nodded. “I’ll head out and gather what I can,” I said. A worried look flashed across Lauren’s face. “I’ll bring this,” I said, holding up my rifle. Lauren ran up and viciously hugged me. After a moment she let go. I said my goodbye and began to head out the fire escape. “Jacob,” Lauren called. “What,” I said, panic growing in my mind. A dozen things popped into my mind, mostly Necromorphs.