It all started in March of 2176, a disease started to spread across the globe. Our ancestors always believed if you don’t learn from your actions you are doomed to repeat the same action over and over till you learn the lesson. The world you once knew that was filled with technology was destroyed, it’s the era no one speaks of. The world is overwhelmed with plagues and wars that never seem to end. The newest one has killed off more than half the population is called the Guinness. It starts with just coughing and sneezing but it rots your brain till you are just a corpse then the blood seeps out of every orifice on the human body. If there is any blood on blood contact or the blood gets in an opening to the human body the plague spreads. Many believe it was the Division 2 who created this plague, maybe it got out of hand. We lost contact with many other divisions of the world. Division 1 was originally the United States and Canada, Division 2 was Europe, Asia, and Greenland, Division 3 was South America and Africa, Division 4 was Australia and Antarctica. The world is not what it used to be.
    Wren Spaulding, one of the last of the town Kosa, yeah that is me. I was one of the few survivors of my town in Division 1 - maybe even the last- when the plague first started it wiped out half our population in 3 days time. It spread so fast it was too late by the time we found how it spread. I watched all of my friends and family die almost all together, yet somehow I have not been infected. There are threats that they will start bombing the city to help contain the infections, so today is the day I will say my final goodbyes. It has been almost 4 months since this started and the militia is losing control they are beginning to get sick themselves and we are running out of help. I do not know if the other part of the world is having this also because we lost connection the first day. I plan on walking North until I can find the bridge that will link to Division 2. Back in 2098 our forefathers built a bridge to link the two countries. At that time we were at peace all across the globe, for once no wars or terrorism. We were safe but of course it did not last long. By the time 2120 came around the world had wars again. Division 3 got in a conflict with Division 4 and that was the start of the wars. We were always in a fight with each other and if we are not we are fighting in our own Divisions. Division 2 wanted world peace again. I think they attempted to gain it with this plague but it backfired. As I packed all my belongings I remember the last time I saw my family before they died. My little brother Mikah he always had a smile on his face even as he took his last breath he was smiling. Or my mother Merci, most thought her name meant mercy as in compassion but it was Merci as in thank you in French. She always made sure we were happy, she would do anything for us. At one point in my life she stayed up all night to help me write a story for my Literature class, I am one of those people that cannot write for the life of me no matter how much I try it just does not come to me. Whereas my mom she could just sit and write for hours upon hours. My father Roscoe, was always away at work, but when Mikah first got the plague he came home and got sick also. After my Dad became ill my mom stepped up to help and became ill herself. Within a week of Mikah catching the Guinness, Mom and Dad had it so I was stuck taking care of all three of them. The Guinness did not take long to kill them each of them, they died within three weeks of catching it. Yet I did not get sick, they threw up on me, I cleaned up all the blood. Yet I never even once had a runny nose. How come I can not get sick am I immune or just lucky. So at the age of 17 I had to bury the three most important people in my life.
    I finished packing my bag and started to walk out of the house. I stopped and turned around, the place I grew up with my very first cry to my very first step. It was hard to walk away from a place I called home my whole life. I began to walk down the street toward the main street that leads you out of town. I have a bag of clothes and a bag of canned food, a canteen for water, a pot to boil water or food, and a notebook and pencil so I don’t go insane of boredom.
THREE WEEKS LATER
    I have finally reached the border to what used to be Canada, I have passed through so many towns and I have yet to see another person alive. They indeed bombed cities and towns I saw the mushroom clouds start to appear. One night I was staying in this town that was once called Banquet, I was sleeping when I heard a huge boom and the whole place started to shake. I grabbed all my stuff and ran, that was the closest I ever got to them. I walked across this forest area searching for the main road that was supposed to be coming up at any moment according to the map. I stopped and tried to figure out where I was when I heard twigs snapping and I don’t mean a rabbit snapping the twigs, I am talking about a full grown adult walking a few feet behind me. How long have they been behind me? What do they want? I stopped walking and turned around to see if I could see them and there he was just standing there with a smile on his face, not even trying to hide.
        “Who are you and why are you following me?”
        “I--am William you are the first person alive that I have seen in many months. I did not want to be alone anymore.”
        “Fine, instead of walking behind me like a creep, you walk with me?”
    He ran f0rward to be right beside me, we walked in silence for the rest of the day. We had to keep going to find somewhere safe to sleep. Many thought the world would end became a zombie apocalypse but instead, we died after getting sick. I guess maybe that is what made it easier to keep going. As the last of light disappeared out of the sky we began to find a place to camp for the night. Neither of us talking, I was too shocked to realize someone else but I was alive I have traveled from the south all the way North and he is the first person I crossed. I finally had to break the silence.
        “Where are you from?”
        “I am from the East Coast, where are you from?”
        “Down South, I was hoping that the other Divisions had luck and did not get sick. So I am traveling up to the Peda Bridge, why are you up North?”
        “I buried my Dad and just started walking. I ended up in this town and a couple days later you passed through. I followed you hoping you had an idea of where was safe.”
I started to laugh but I couldn't help it. We were both two lost teenagers trying to find somewhere safe to go. Was there even somewhere safe to go? Or were we both just lost wandering around trying to convince ourselves we are okay, but we are not. We both start to lay out our stuff and we just chatter back and forth about everything. His name is William Freud, 16 years old, it was just him and his Dad before this all started. He lived in a place call Jermaine it was a city but I never heard of it. We sat staring at the skies we no longer knew what to talk about. Talking about our past just made everything worse, but what else was there to talk about.
I started to finally fall asleep when he sneezed, I sat straight up and looked at him. His nose was bleeding. All I could do was ask,
    “Are you sick?”
He started crying, all I could down was sit there. I didn’t want to get sick but he needed someone. So I got up and held him as he cried.
“I didn’t know I was sick or I would have stayed away! I promise. I am so sorry. Please please forgive me.”
“Shh, just relax it is okay just shhh”
    He sat there weeping for around three hours before he finally fell asleep. The whole time all I could think about was my family. How come I always have to be the strong one, maybe I want to cry and be held. I had to be strong when people are at their weakest point they need to look up to a strong person and I just happen to always be the one they look up to. I sat back down on my sleeping bag crying when I realized I was covered in his blood. I got up and ran and ran till I couldn't run anymore. That is when the vomit came and I couldn't stop. His blood on me is the one thing that could kill me at this point in the world. I see a river up ahead so I go and get in and start scrubbing to get his blood off me.
    It’s been about 5 hours since he went to bed and all I can do is sit here. I hear dripping so I look over and the blood has started to leak. I pack my things and leave. I knew he was no longer alive. The blood only gushes like that after they took their last breath. I headed northeast towards the bridge, I was maybe a day or two away from arriving. I had to get as far as I could with the sun still up. So I walked for what felt like an eternity when I finally saw all the gas stations and food places. I knew those were the signs I finally arrived. The sun was just beginning to set so I had about forty-five minutes to find food, water, and shelter. I began at the gas station which I know never to sleep in and found a bunch of food and bottled water so I stocked up. I walked down and found an old keepers house, he must have been the keeper of Division 1 side of the bridge. He kept everything clean and orderly, I wonder where he was, I could tell he has not been back in awhile. I laid down trying to get shut-eye when I started coughing. I looked at hands and saw blood.
    I started crying I knew this was the end I was so close, I had to keep going. So I got up grabbed a couple of bottles of water and started walking across the bridge. If Division 2 started this plague they had to know how to end it. I walked and walked, but I couldn’t walk any further when the coughs became so consistent. I was coughing up so much blood I was choking on it. I had so much to do still I could not die now not after finally reaching the bridge, why God you have one sick twisted humor. Letting me make a friend then killing him, then letting me get to the bridge then killing me. At least I finally will get to see my family again. I sunk down to the ground leaning against the tree and cried. All I wanted was to live and help others see if there was a cure. I look at the sky as the stars began to come out. I smiled as the last tear streamed down my face, this was not as painful as I imagined. I will see my family now. I thought as I took my last breath.