Age of Decay (Book 1): Contagion Read online

  Age of Decay - Contagion

  Copyright © 2014 by Brian A. Lamacraft

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  About this Book:

  This book is about average people trying to survive in a world gone to hell. There are no superheroes, no military geniuses, and no vast stockpiles of endless weapons. I wanted to create a story that had a beginning, middle, and an end so you the reader could be satisfied reading it. The story has an ending, so if you don’t want to continue reading new books, that’s fine. You won’t be cheated by a story that just ends nowhere, then begs you to buy the next installment. This isn’t fair to you.

  Brian Lamacraft

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Epilogue

  Prologue

  Derek Anderson had just returned with his wife from a trip to Africa. They had gone on safari, explored the jungles, went to national parks, saw Mt. Kilimanjaro, and had a great African adventure. Today, Derek drove his car through the busy streets of Los Angeles towards his office, but he was coughing a lot, just like his wife this morning before they both left for work. They had been home from Africa for just a full day. Derek had thought about staying home, but he felt he could handle it and go to work. His wife did the same.

  In fact, on the plane ride home, they had both started coughing. The fine mist they produced got into the ventilation system of the plane, spread to the passengers around them, and was inhaled by the crew that passed them from time to time as they waited on the other passengers. For Derek and his wife Susan, it was just another day coming home from a wonderful African trip with a bit of a cold, or what they thought was a cold.

  When they arrived back at LAX, the passengers on their plane went about their business and caught other flights to other locations, spreading the virus around the world without anyone knowing what was going on. The virus traveled to London, Berlin, Shanghai, Moscow, Sydney, and wherever else the airport passengers were going. Those passengers in turn took the virus to other countries, and on and on it went.

  The jungles of Africa hold secrets we don’t fully understand. After all, it was AIDS that came out of Africa and killed millions. The virus Derek and countless thousands were now carrying around with them would begin to spread and along with it, the fabric of society would soon crumble.

  Derek coughed some more and reached into his pocket for another Kleenex. He used it to wipe the sweat beading on his forehead as he drove his car into the parking lot of his office complex. He got out of his car and went into the building, taking the elevator to his office on the 8th floor. He enjoyed his job as a systems analyst, and today was like any other day, except for the coughing which was getting worse by the minute. His face felt like it was on fire, but Derek shrugged it off and went to sit down at his desk. He sat his briefcase down and coughed again, this time covering the Kleenex in a greenish phlegm.

  Next to him, Jill a pretty blonde, pulled her chair back to give him a look. “Hey Derek, you don’t look that hot.”

  Derek coughed harder this time and ran his hands through his hair as he reached to turn on his monitor while at the same time, spreading the virus throughout his workplace.

  “Maybe I should’ve stayed home,” Derek said. Sweat begin to pour from both his temples and ran down his face in a stream. “Don’t… feel… that great…” He examined this hands, which began to shake, the veins bulged. He looked up from his keyboard and blinked, shaking his head, the room swirling around him. “Dizzy, need a drink of wat—”

  “Derek!” Jill let out a yell as Derek tried to stand. He pitched backwards, staggered, then crashed to the floor.

  Another office employee ran towards them after hearing Jill. “What happened?” said John.

  “He tried to get up and just fell over.”

  John put his hand on Derek. “Looks like he’s out cold, you call 9-1-1.” John took off his blazer and put it over Derek.

  “Doing that now,” said Jill, who coughed a bit, clearing her throat. She took her smartphone out of her purse. In about twenty-four to forty-eight hours, Jill too would be just like Derek, and so would John, as well as millions of others.

  For the paramedics who arrived, it was just another day’s work taking a sick person to the hospital, but it was the beginning of the end of civilization as we know it. All over the world, similar occurrences would soon begin, if they hadn’t already. The new virus was taking hold, victim by victim, with death just around the corner.

  It was a short innocent trip for Derek and his wife into the jungles of Africa, but for the world, it would soon be a living nightmare. At least Derek was now famous, for a little while. We all want fame, don’t we? It wasn’t a fame to be proud of, however.

  Derek was patient zero.

  Chapter 1

  The limousine drove deep underground to the secret research facility in the Colorado Mountains. The vehicle stopped, and a marine opened the door. He saluted the general stepping out before escorting him towards the elevator doors. As the doors opened, the other marines standing there saluted as he went into the elevator then took the long ride down to the heart of the massive facility. The soldiers at the bottom led him towards another large door which slid open as he approached. As the general stepped through this door, it sealed shut behind him with a click then a green light flashed above it.

  A man in lab coat walked up, then gestured toward another door behind him. “General, welcome. If you’ll follow me, Sir, we’ll get you into decontamination. The doctor will see you on the other side.”

  The general went through the door into the decontamination area, where they got him into his biohazard suit and mask before moving through this room to the main part of the facility. There stood another man in a similar suit.

  He extended his hand to the man. “Dr. Raj, never thought I’d get to meet you in person. They say you’re one of the best when it comes to flu pandemics, so I need to know what we can expect from this new flu. I’m here at the request of the President.”

  “Yes, welcome, General Drake. We have been expecting you.”

  “I understand you have several flu patients that have changed? I’m not sure what that entitles, Doctor. In what way have these patients changed?”

  Dr. Raj put his hand on the general’s shoulder. “I think it’s better that I don’t get too technical. You need to see this for yourself. I will explain everything.”

  They went through another door into the large containment room. The main area was f
ull of lab equipment. Others in the same suits went about their business, only briefly glancing at the two of them. The entire area buzzed with activity; workers moved about flipping switches or tending to computer keyboards and readouts. At the end of the main area were several individual observation rooms encased in heavy glass. Inside those rooms, several figures could be seen moving around very slowly or putting their hands on the glass. Occasionally, they thumped against it, but the thick containment glass barely budged from the blows. In total, there were three of them.

  “These are the changed patients, I take it?” The general couldn’t see clearly from the other side of the room, he squinted towards them. “They don’t look that sick. Flu patients are usually in bed. Why aren’t these individuals in bed, Doctor?”

  “Oh, there’s no need for a bed, not now. They were sick before with a cough, fever, aches, and pains. That is the typical flu you see.”

  “What are they now?” said the general.

  “Dead.”

  “Dead? They are moving around doctor, how can they be dead?”

  “Oh, I assure you, General, they are quite dead. They have no activity at all, no heartbeat, no vital signs. There’s only faint brain activity and some hearing. They only walk, grunt, hiss occasionally, and of course, eat. Allow me to demonstrate. He nodded to a worker who pushed a button. Inside a room, part of the wall opened up; a small cage could be seen which contained a large rat. The ghoul in the room went over to the cage then clawed at it when it opened. It grabbed the rat in one hand, then bit into it, taking away pieces of flesh like a ravenous wild animal. It stood there and chewed.

  At the far end of the room, the general watched as the man ripped apart the rat. “Doctor, that man is clearly insane. I don’t understand what is going on here. He’s not dead and should be locked away. I demand to know what the hell is going on here!”

  “They eat living flesh, you see. They are quite ravenous for it. The one there eating that unfortunate rat, is actually one of our workers. To understand what we are dealing with, I suggest you follow me closer to the glass.”

  As the general got closer, he could see the reality behind the glass. “Dear God, half his neck is missing! How can this man be alive?” He jumped back a bit as the thing got close, leaving blood smears and slime all over the glass. It scraped a hand down, then beat on the glass, its bloody mouth opening and closing.

  “As I told you, General, he’s dead. When the third one there woke up, he attacked the orderly attending to him and bit into his neck. We were able to restrain them both and put them into containment, but not before they killed two others. Those two we had to eliminate. Once anyone is bitten or scratched by any infected, they in turn die themselves, then change into these. It can happen quite quickly for some. Anyone living killed by these will reanimate. I know it sounds extraordinary, but it is what it is. We simply can’t explain it. Only a direct hit to the brain will destroy it.”

  “So they attack the living?” asked the general.

  “Correct. They will feed on the living like a pack of piranhas.”

  “In your report, Doctor, you mention that this virus came out of Africa?”

  “Yes. The first two patients identified were a couple who had been on vacation in Africa. Apparently they went into the jungles to explore and contracted this new strain of flu. They brought it back on the plane with them, and it spread from L.A, around the world. There are perhaps millions with it now, but we can’t know for sure.”

  “What is the infection rate?”

  “We estimate that around 90-97% will eventually get this virus. There will, of course, be a small percentage with naturally immunity. If we could figure out how those individuals stay immune to this, we would gain ground on this virus. There are very few like this now, but that’s going to change, very quickly.”

  General Drake watched the thing smear its hand over the glass again, trying to get through to him. He winced at the pale gray skin, the white empty eyes. It wasn’t human anymore, but it moved. It has only one desire, one need. The need to feed. “What is going to happen to the general population out there? Will they all turn into this?”

  Dr. Raj sighed. “I’m afraid so, General. This virus is devastating, there’s no cure for it. We have tried literally everything we can think of. It’s going to progress rapidly. In about three or so weeks, there will be millions impacted by this virus with millions more dead or dying. Eventually, it will be billions. Of course, those still alive will have to contend with our friends here. These risen killing machines.”

  “Doctor, you’re telling me that those already dead from this virus will rise?”

  “Yes. Those that aren’t already dead from this virus will also perish from the flu quickly, then rise to consume living flesh. The basic flu will reach a peak, then everyone with it will simply die. As the flu spreads, society will break down in the meantime before the eventual end.”

  “Armageddon,” breathed the general.

  “Yes,” said Raj. “A wave of living dead. It’s ironic general, isn’t it? We thought it would be a meteor or a nuclear war, but it’s our own planet. Maybe it’s our mother earth purifying us for our wrong doing.”

  “Dear God,” said General Drake.

  “We will need more than God to get through this, General.” The doctor watched the thing through the glass, still trying to get out, trying to feed. “A lot more.”

  Chapter 2

  Vancouver, British Columbia, is one of the most beautiful cities you could ever hope to live in. There are the mountains shaped like two lions’ heads, Whistler for skiing, a mild climate, and a general laidback atmosphere that makes the city so charming. You might say it was the perfect place to live in, that is until now. In fact, there was no place on earth that you would want to live in, as those days were fast becoming a distant memory. The virus had started about one month ago with the first cases, but it spread like wildfire across the entire globe. Millions were now infected in North America, and the numbers were climbing to astronomical amounts worldwide. In the last week, the death toll had been steadily climbing, and no one knew how to stop it. Africa was a virtual warzone, far worse than a recent Ebola crisis. Thousands had already died in bloody warfare and starvation from this insidious plague. The U.N. had been called in to control the situation in Africa, but it was spiraling out of control. The infected simply overran the hospital facilities and were dying in the streets.

  In cities and towns across the world, life was grinding to a halt. Commerce was down by a wide margin and there was a growing fear of a complete economic collapse. There were simply not enough workers to fill jobs and business was suffering as a result of the virus. The talk in many circles was that this virus was something new. The talking heads on the box discussed the virus every day, with their typical experts who knew absolutely nothing about this new, horrific plague. Online, people read reports of conspiracies and the like, but unlike the days of old, this was one conspiracy people were now believing. The news ran constant stories of the deaths of famous celebrities, politicians, sports stars, and others who had already succumbed to the virus. There were solemn ceremonies and speeches, but nothing mattered because no one knew how to contain it. No one, regardless of status or health, was safe from the virus as its tentacles seeped into all walks of life. Despite the talk and discussion that a cure was on the horizon, people kept dying. The glimmer of hope faded with each passing day. The once busy city of Vancouver was slowing down day after day as more people stayed home, or even worse, buried a family member. The world sat on the edge of something entirely new, and no one knew where it was going to lead.

  Trevor Blake shoved the paperwork out of his way, then got up to stretch his six foot frame. The thirty-six year old was well-muscled and in good shape as a roofing construction worker. He had dark short brown hair and two-day stubble on his face, which he scratched with his finger. He felt tired from working on the bills and needed a cold beer. Alcohol was becoming something he re
lied on more often as he worried about the current state of the world, his job, and his family. It’s not like his finances mattered anymore, because things had begun to fall apart with this new flu going around. It was hard to believe, but there were now close to two billion infected worldwide with the new flu strain. The numbers varied from day to day. It seemed to happen so fast, over the period of several weeks since the first announcement, it just kept growing and swamping the health care systems of the world along with it. There wasn’t much roofing work now for Trevor, so he stayed home, along with his wife Lauren and their seventeen-year-old son, Jason. The schools were closed due to the flu, and Lauren’s marketing firm had laid her off, there was no work to be done. The only ones with real jobs now were gravediggers, counselors, and doctors. Suicide rates had skyrocketed as people simply didn’t want to live any more after the loss of work or a loved one. No one wanted to work, they wanted to stay home with their families as there was great fear growing with this new flu, called H1N1-ZX. Governments seemed powerless to stop it, or even understand what was happening. This new flu made the Spanish outbreak of 1918 seem pale in comparison.

  Trevor went into the kitchen. He opened the fridge and took out a beer, popping the cap to take a good long pull. Lauren stood by the sink washing plates and glasses. She had nice long legs and she was still in decent shape at thirty-eight years old. With her long blonde hair and a nice figure, she made most men look twice.

  Since the flu outbreak, Lauren had stayed closer to Trevor. He could sense the fear growing in her. He felt it, too, the dread that something terrible was happening. He brought the beer to his lips and let the liquid slide down. I’m drinking more than I should, can’t let my fear out and show them. God this is so horrid, so many people dead or dying and it’s spreading! Maybe this is the end. Maybe—

  “I thought you might be watching the news,” she said. “Not like there’s anything good these days. Susan and Rebecca from work have it now, I was talking to the both of them on the phone earlier. Susan sounds terrible, I hope she is going to be okay. She tried to get into the hospital, but they are turning people away, she had to go home.” I hope we all are going to be okay. This virus scares me, I have never been this scared before in my life. What is happening?