It Comes With The Name

Chapter 9: All Good Things Must Come To An End

"Test subject 19. Someone who was bitten and infected and volunteered to have us record the process." He said solemnly. "VI, scan forward to the first event."

The computer zoomed out to show the full brain scan, only the stems once bright lights were now replaced by darkness.

"It invades the brain like Meningitis." He explained while the subject on the screen began to convulse slightly. "The adrenal glands hemorrhage, the brain goes into shut down, then the major organs."

The subject continued convulsing until all the light in the brain was taken over by darkness. Then the subject was still.

"Then, death. Everything you ever were or ever will be, gone."

Jenner turned to look at Andrea who was struggling to hold back the horror on her face.

"She lost somebody two days ago." Lori explained. "Her sister."

"I lost somebody too." Jenner moved closer to Andrea. "I know how devastating it is."

"Scan to the second event." He turned his attention back to the screen. "The resurrection times vary wildly. We had reports of it happening in as little as three minutes. The longest we heard of was eight hours."

They all watched silently as the darkness of the brain began to be replaced with red.

"It restarts the brain?" Lori said in disbelief.

"No, just the brain stem. Basically, it gets them up and moving."

"But they're not alive?"

"You tell me."

"The lobes aren't active, most of it's dark," Lauren observed, not taking her eyes away from the screen. "All the memories are gone."

"Dark, lifeless, dead." Jenner agreed. "The frontal part, the neocortex, the human part -that doesn't come back. The you part. Just a shell driven by mindless instinct."

A sudden flash tore across the screen, leaving a line through the brain.

Carol gasped. "God, what was that?" Jenner didn't answer.

"He shot his patient in the head. Didn't you?" Andrea asked.

Jenner simply ignored her, telling the computer to power down the main screen as well as the workstations.

"You have no idea what it is, do you?" She pressed.

Jenner thought for a moment. "It could be microbial, viral, parasitic, fungal-"

"Or the wrath of God?" Jacqui said with a tear-stained face.

"There is that."

"There are other facilities right?" Carol asked

"There may be some. People like me."

Rick was growing more frustrated. "You don't know? How can you not know?"

Jenner sighed. "Everything went down, communications too. I've been in the dark for almost a month."

Lauren sucked in a deep breath the same feeling of dread she had the previous night washing over her body again. "So there's nothing left anywhere? Nothing?"

Jenner didn't respond.

"Man Imma get shitfaced drunk. Again." Daryl muttered. Lauren would normally scoff or tell him to do something more productive, but at this moment, she agreed.

"Dr. Jenner, I know this has been taxing for you and I hate to ask one more question but- That clock... it's counting down," Dale said pointing to the digital timer on the wall. The time was now counting down to an hour. "What happens at zero."