Apocalypse

Introduction

Annie ran to the edge of the city. She yanked her surgical mask over her mouth and nose. It only made things harder.
      I suppose I'd rather have to pant through the crowds than get infected. She thought.
      A year earlier, a virus went completely rogue while scientists were researching it. The effects of the of the disease it caused lay dormant for two days before symptoms could occur, giving it time to spread throughout schools, families, and eventually states, then the entire United States was infected. Other countries were to follow quickly. Millions of people were infected within weeks. Most of them died soon after becoming infected. The only symptom was eye discharge. After 12 hours of cleaning goo out of your eyes, you'd begin to throw up. And never stop. People would cough out stomach acid and blood. It only took an hour or two to have hydrochloric acid burning through their esophagus. Followed by a slow death caused by internal bleeding. Almost everyone had it.
      As Annie jogged through the crowd, she searched for someone she knew. She should've known there wouldn't be anyone.  There was only a few hundred people. She had been living in a refuge center in the Twin Cities. But somebody carried in the virus; so they were taken to a different stadium. Again. She was so sick of this! Always moving from place to place and watching the people she had come to know slowly die. It was painful. She had to leave.
      "Keep moving! This is a danger zone!" A loud voice shouted into a megaphone behind them. The crowd shuffled faster. Annie slipped out of the pack. She hid behind a large building. The entire crowd moved without her. She sprinted through the labyrinth of buildings before reaching an exit to the previously crowded city. She walked for two days, while hunting for food in closed-down grocery stores and sleeping there as well. When she arrived at the edge of a small town, there was a large wooden sign that read, "Welcome to Watertown!" with spray paint covering the "Watertown" with "Hell". How original. Annie walked father into town, and at an intersection just before a large bridge, she was greeted by a boy, about 16, who had thick brown hair and blue eyes.
      "Welcome to our town. This place is divided by the four small districts. The Greeks, the Jesters, the Annihilators, and the Virals. The Greeks are a very small and peaceful people. They do not wish to harm others, as long as the Annihilators stay in their own land. The Jesters will prank anybody they see, so beware of them. The Annihilators will find and kill everyone that they find to be a threat. And the Virals, they were all very popular in school before this. They get along great with the Jesters. Which district do you choose to join?" Annie pondered for a moment. This was like a large game of pretend. Maybe it's the illness. She could see how an apocalypse would make people crazy enough to divide into factions, as though that didn't happen prior.
      "The Greeks. Please." She tried to speak confidently.
      "Great! I'm a member of that district." He led Annie through the town. He brought her down Main Street. There was smoke piling through the air and into the sky. It came from behind several buildings. She didn't ask what was back there. Along the road several teenagers protruded from the buildings, snickering. Each, in unison, took a bow. "Run." The boy told Annie. She ran quickly though the thick brush along the sidewalk and hid under the large bridge overlooking a fast-moving river. She watched as the kids walked fearlessly towards the man. He stood his ground. They shoved him. He didn't move. He drew a knife from his pocket. He quickly moved behind another boy and drew it to the boy's neck. "Coming within 5 feet of another district's space is an act of war. This is your last warning, Jesters." The kids held their hands up as a sign of retreat. They ran back to their buildings and laughed. Once they shut the doors, all was completely silent. The only noise was the sound of the river flowing. "Come on!" The man yelled to Annie. She slowly but carefully leaped out. He began to walk again.
"What was that all about?" Annie asked him.
"The Jesters don't know how to check their privileges." He looked back. Nobody was there. "Be on guard. We don't know when anybody here is going to start something."