Subject A7

Chapter Eighteen

The night was long and tiring, I did not dare close my eyes no matter how exhausted I was. When the sun started to rise was when I loosened my grip of the tree, I flexed my fingers trying to get the blood back up and running, it stung but bearable.
I looked around and spotted Colin asleep in his tree, was it wrong of me to think that I wanted to throw something at him and watch him fall out of that tree? The memories of him last night shouting at me instead of helping really pissed me off. Soon as we got down, I was going to kill him.
In another tree, I spotted Dylan who was wide awake. He was looking down biting his lip like he was making a decision on whether it was safe enough to climb down, I copied him by looking around at the ground, nothing was there. No animals and no infected.
When I scooted over a bit something hard was against my lower back, I removed it remembering I put that old notebook there and was quite surprised that it did not fall out, would not have noticed and probably would have forgotten about it. I flipped through the pages going back onto the page of the infected observation. The sketches were quite good.
It read:

Infected Observation:
Stage One: Being infected.
- The victim must be bitten or any liquid of the infected inserts into the victim. 
- The victim becomes infected.
- If bitten, bite mark can be cleaned and bandaged but nothing happens. The victim doesn't change.
Stage Two: Exhaustion DAY 1 of being infected.
- Victim slowly becomes a liability.
- Becomes very weak.
- Unable to function properly; can't walk without leaning on someone or something.
- The victim starts showing slight signs of black veins showing and eyes darken.
Stage Three: Anger and loss of control DAY 2
- Victim's skin becomes a sickly yellow color, veins are visible on the skin, eye colour disappears almost turns black.
- Black blood.
- The victim becomes enraged and attacks anyone. The victim does not have much sanity left.
- Victim shouts threats on killing others, begging to die.
Stage Four: Infection has full spread.
- Victim screams endlessly in their last moments, they claw at themselves, ripping eyes from their sockets, feeling the itch on their skin.
- Words become gibberish.
- Start to show signs of becoming strong.
Stage Five: Level Five;
- Victim's eyes darkened entire eye, skin is yellow and their entire body is covered in black veins.
- Cannot go outside in the sunlight prefers the night (doesn't like flashlights)
- A level five infected t cannot see you unless you move (they become blind)
- It attacks anything that moves.
- Must Kill on sight.

That was a lot of information to process. But when I studied it before it screamed, its eyes were entirely covered in darkness, it was covered in black veins and we did not notice it until night fell. It had to have been a level five. I looked up, the sun was still rising, we were safe from the level fives so everything else was a danger so I took a deep breath, put the notebook back in my pants and began to climb down.
I jumped the last couple of meters and looked up to see Dylan was also climbing down, he jumped and looked at me.
We did not say anything except stare, here I was thinking that we're alive and we should really make a move and wondering if Dylan was thinking the same thing.
"We don't have any ammo left," he says. "I used the last of it on the infected."
I pursed my lips digesting what he was saying, that was not good which meant we had to find something else to defend us otherwise we won't last a day.
"We should be safe from the level five, it only comes out at night," I tell him what I recently just learned.
"Level five?"

"I still have the notebook with the information," I tell him.
I was about to start explaining when Colin groans stretching. "Oh?" he rubs his eyes when he spots up out of our trees. "We're leaving? Great."
Anger boiled in the pit of my stomach as I watched him climb down. I waited until he reached the bottom when I stormed over to him. He looks at me, his face drops as he saws how fucking angry I was and before he could say anything, I punched him in the face. He stumbled back, I shook my wrist cursing at the pain. He was muttering something which only made me angrier. I grabbed his shirt and punched him again, Dylan wrapped his arms around my waist pulling me off him.
"Avery? What the hell?" Dylan says letting me go.
"This little shit made me do all the work at opening that stupid door," I yelled pointing at Colin. "We would have made it out easier if he was helping instead of shouting at me!"
"I'm sorry!"
"Oh, do me a favor and shove your apologies up someone else's ass," I shout at him.
"Avery, calm down," Dylan says.
I glared at him.
"Why? If we're going to make it to your campsite with all your friends that we need to fucking work together."
Dylan nods. "I understand that Avery."
"I know you do Dylan, clearly he doesn't" I pointed at Colin again. "Nothing but a fucking chicken shit."
I stormed off picking any direction besides the direction of that house, no way were we going to go back there. Dylan was saying something to Colin but I ignored them too pissed off to care.


Dylan's POV

Dylan was scanning the area around them, he was deciding on whether they should make a move to leave now or just wait it out. He looked at his gun to see that they were out of ammo, that part made him nervous.
He stroked his chin thinking what would Vincent do but movement caught him from the corner of his eye, he saw Avery was making her way down to the ground, the decision was made for him. He began to climb down as well, he jumped once he reached the bottom and looked over at Avery.
Neither he or she said anything, we stared. She looked exhausted, neither of them slept. Just watched for anymore infected. While Colin somehow slept. He was not sure how to tell her that they were out of ammo but better to just say it instead of beating around the bush.
"We don't have any ammo left," he says. "I used the last of it on the infected."
Avery pursed her lips thinking about what he just said.
"We should be safe from the level five, it only comes out at night," she tells him. Wait. What?
"Level five?" he was not sure he was following her, did she name the infected?

"I still have the notebook with the information," I tell him. He blinked.
She opened her mouth to explain things when an "oh?" came from above them, Dylan looks up to see Colin rubbing his eyes when he spots up out of our trees. "We're leaving? Great."
The kid was a whole different level compared to Avery, surely he was not seriously on being scared on everything and the next day was fine by it all? Like the kid was sleeping. Even Dylan who has dealt with shit like this all the time was still not able to sleep half the time.
Once he reached the bottom, Avery, looking like angry goddess storms over to him, Colin takes one look at her, his face drops. He opens his mouth to say something when Avery punched him in the face. Colin stumbled back, Dylan took a step back in shock, Avery just punched the kid.
She shook her wrist cursing at the pain. Colin was muttering something which seemed to only make her angrier. She grabbed his shirt and punched him again, Dylan rushed over to wrap his arms around her waist pulling me off him.
"Avery? What the hell?" Dylan says letting her go. She moved back from him, Dylan really wanted to high five this girl because Colin was kind of annoying but now was not the time.
"This little shit made me do all the work at opening that stupid door," she yells pointing at Colin. "We would have made it out easier if he was helping instead of shouting at me!"
"I'm sorry!" Colin says rubbing his face, there was definitely going to be a bruise.
"Oh, do me a favour and shove your apologies up someone else's ass," she shouts at him.
"Avery, calm down," Dylan says but what he really wanted to say was 'good job' but couldn't.
She glares at him. God, she was hot. Dylan quickly snapped out of it.
"Why? If we're going to make it to your campsite with all your friends that we need to fucking work together."
Dylan nods. "I understand that Avery."
"I know you do Dylan, clearly he doesn't" she points at Colin again. "Nothing but a fucking chicken shit."
Without anything else to say she turns to storm off deciding our next direction. Dylan sighs, she really was something else she was Vincent's daughter all right, he turns back to help Colin to his feet.
"Thank you," Colin says.
"Next time, you help. Don't scream about it, don't cry about it or next time, I will be the one throwing the punches, understand?"
Colin nods.

"Good, because if you want to survive than start pulling your weight, we are not going to carry you."
Colin nods. "Understood, sorry."