A Different Virus - Laura's Story

Chapter 85

I nodded, that made sense. Besides, how bad could it be? We were excellent foragers and knew almost every edible plant around. Diane was an awesome hunter and our energy would make us valuable to any place we stayed.

Diane paused outside as she looked around. I could see several dozen people working here and there on various tasks. An older guy wandered over to us, "You look kind of lost."

Diane responded, "We just arrived. I am wondering if it would be possible to speak with someone in charge in regards to our ability to try and fit in here."

The old man nodded, "We welcome almost anyone. You'll want to be speaking with Dale if you think you may have any difficulty fitting in. Come, I will help you find him."

"Thank you."

We followed him as he checked several spots before finally locating the man we were seeking in an office.

The old man knocked on the open door, "Dale, these two ladies would like a word with you."

Dale was an older man, probably in his late fifties. "Sure thing, thanks for leading them up."

The old man nodded and walked off. Dale gestured to two folding chairs in front of his desk, "Please have a seat. What would you like to discuss?"

Diane took off her pack and put it beside the chair as she slowly sat down. I copied her movements and tried to remain motionless to avoid attention in the discussion to come. Diane's muscles were somewhat tensed, betraying her slight nerves at what she was about to say. I knew it was hard for her, she had always spoken freely to me, but had done her level best to hide her abilities from others ever since she got them.

"We are looking for a place to join. We don't cause fights, we know many edible plants, and can do a lot of hunting and gathering. We have no problems with zombies. The only thing is that we tend to make people uneasy."

He looked confused, "How do you make them uneasy?"

Diane closed her eyes for a moment. The moment she opened them, Dale sat bolt upright at the sight of her glowing blue eyes. Her glowing eyes were a fascinating sight. I saw them often at night when we ran together and still admired them. She could make them glow when she chose, but rarely did so during the day simply because she saw no point in it.

Diane blinked again and the glow rapidly faded within a couple of seconds. The faintest glint in the depths of her eyes showed that she wasn't supressing the glow. The glow just wasn't needed for her to see and her emotions weren't strong enough to make them glow.

Diane continued as Dale's eyes were wide, "Our eyes have an odd tendency to glow, usually at night, and it allows us to see in the dark. We stayed at Bethany Fort for a while and assisted the scientist Ninette. She says that both of us are immune to the zombie virus, however it is nearly impossible to transmit the immunity. She did hundreds of tests and failed in her experiments in that area. We are simply looking for a chance to prove we can work for our keep."

I blinked as I realized that Dale wasn't surprised and awed like I had originally thought, he was frightened. He shook his head violently, "I am going to pretend I didn't see or hear any of that. You are welcome to stay the night, but please continue on your way in the morning."

Diane sighed as if she wasn't overly surprised. She stood up and put her backpack back on, "Thank you for your consideration."

She started to leave and I quickly followed on her heels, confused as to why Dale had been scared. What was so scary about glowing eyes? If her eyes had been red, I could see his reaction, but they were the opposite. They were blue.