Jack's Diary - Day 35, October 21th 2013

     After about a day in darkness, my sight finally returned enough for me to leave my hiding place. Distant objects were still kind of blurry, but I didn't need to see exact details; only detecting movement was necessary and was within my capabilities. I went by the rule that if something charged or shot at me, I shot back. I was also still sore from being beaten up before and from staying in one place for so long, so my body wasn't in a good condition. All I had for a firearm though was the handgun I took from one of the men. Looking back, perhaps I should've just stayed in there for another day.

     Upon exiting the building, the sunlight taunted my eyes and in the distances, I saw two figures walking in my direction. I waved and called out to them, hoping they were my friends, only to have them start shooting at me. They missed all their shots being so far away. They were moving to the right to hide behind a building or to get away when I fired two shots, striking one of them down. The other ran behind the building as I approached. I only had a few rounds left in my gun so I needed more ammo so I had to risk facing them in my condition. The one laying on the ground was squirming, but I couldn't make out what he was doing and I didn't want to waste ammunition on another long range shot. As I got closer, the situation became clear and I shot him just as he had cocked his reloaded handgun. His friend jumped out from behind the building, landing on some glass and alerting me to his presence. I shot him just as he fired off a round. I don't know where the bullet went, but I could swear that I felt a small breeze go by my head. I was blessed with luck I suppose. I could have easily been killed. The men had plenty of ammo to go with their rifles and handguns along with a thick club. Up close, I could see their faces, but I didn't recognize them from the trial. Then again, I never did get to see everyone. Anyways, I quickly took their gear and left before anyone or anything else showed up.

     I walked around the city, never staying in the same place for very long, encountering men (some of which I recognized) and soulless (including a few of the strange and strong looking ones I'd seen before). Nothing that confronted me survived and as the death count grew, I got back more of my original gear (which I guessed had been split among the men). I even felt a thrill again from killing so much. It was so overwhelming and exhilarating, I thought that I might go on another rampage again, but I stopped myself, knowing full well who might end up being my victims.

     As the day dragged on, my sight sluggishly got better, but not enough to decipher faces from far away. When I heard my name called out from the alleyway, I instinctively shot in that direction only to find out it was Tim.

     "Wait! Jack! It's me, Tim!" he shouted.

     "I put away my guns and went to him, "Sorry about that. I didn't see you. Do you know where the others are?" I asked.

     "No. I hoped you knew."

     "You don't even know where Jane is? Seriously? You two stayed next to each other for everything else except now!"

     "She ran off! What'd you want me to say? That stunt you pulled may have let us escape, but how were we suppose to stay together when we couldn't even see who was a friend or enemy? I've been hiding and searching at every opportunity."

     "Whatever. Do you have guns?" I asked.

     "Yah. Right here. What? Are you blind now?"

     "No, but my vision hasn't been the same since that flash. I'm going to need you to be my lookout. Alright?"

     I handed him a few of my guns. "Fine," he said with unenthusiastic tone. With Tim by my side, we started searching the buildings and shooting up the city. I didn't have to worry about shooting Jane or Duke. I just waited for Tim to start shooting to take aim. We searched what seemed like thirty buildings. I was starving at this point, but I didn't care. Finding Jane was my main priority, but I definitely wouldn't leave the city until I found Duke or was sure he left or was dead. It started to get darker and our haste quickened. It was almost night when I heard an electrical buzz, like the sound a walkie-talkie would make. Tim said he saw something run down the alleyway. I knew from the moment that we stepped foot into the alley that we should've just kept walking by. I knew even before Tim saw something move, but I didn't say anything at all. I felt so weak, hungry, and sore, dismissing my instincts which I always listened to and stepped into sure death. I promise myself now that I will never let that happen.

     We were a fourth of the way down the alley when a group of men jumped out from behind anything and everything, pointing bright flashlights at us. It seemed almost instantaneous: the noise, the light, and the gunshots, yet somehow, Tim managed to jump in front of me begin shooting. Within three seconds, he collapsed backwards, knocking me to the ground. He probably died within the first two seconds. I could tell that he had gotten a few because I saw lights creating shadows on the walls beyond the men. As soon as the lights moved toward me, I draw my gun and shot into the lights, breaking the bulbs and hitting flesh. I don't know if I killed them all, but no one except for myself was left alive in that alley. I crawled out from under Tim's body. I knew he was dead already, but I still felt the urge to check. I picked up one of the flashlights and held it over his body. There must have been 50 bullet wounds. He was dead and a bloody mess and he took all of it to save me. He saw what was coming and jumped in front of me to sacrifice himself when he could have easily hid behind me and let me die. I don't know why he did it for someone like me when he had some much more to give to the world and to Jane. I'm crying now, but I wasn't before. I simply closed his eyes and folded his arms and left. It was all I could do. As I was about to exit the alley, I saw something heading toward my face fast and then nothing.

     I woke up on the ground somewhere else with all my weapons stolen. Night had passed and it was now approaching dawn. I was pretty sure someone had knocked me out cold. Why they didn't kill or shot me was another question, but all things become clear with time. I wandered the streets avoiding soulless, looking for weapons and just trying to get my bearings. It was then that I heard two gunshots. I knew it was long shot, but Iran toward where I heard them come from. They were pretty far away, but I was pretty good runner and I heard more of them. I was coming up to the main entrance when I saw Jane was red hair from far away.

     "Hey Jane!" I yelled. She waved back and I saw someone else with her. It was Duke. They were headed out of the city. I ran to them and we continued, with Jane's first words being, "I thought you were dead."

     It didn't occur to me that the situation was unnatural. Duke was shooting soulless left and right and Jane was following him. I'd never seen Duke shoot a gun before and it seemed strange that Jane and Duke were prepared to leave me and Tim here in the city and Jane didn't even ask about Tim so I decided to get some answers.

     "Jane, don't you want to know what happened to Tim?" I asked.

     "I know. He's dead," she said in a somber voice.

     "How did you know that?"

     "Duke told me," she said.

     "Quiet you two!" Duke shouted.

     "Hey, shut up! I'm talking and since when did you get a backbone?"

     Duke didn't respond. We just kept moving and he kept shooting.

     "So, you both were just planning on leaving me here to die?" I asked.

     "No. I was going to keep searching until Duke told me he saw you both get shot so he assumed you were dead."

     If Duke saw what happened, that means he was there and could have been helping us out. I was about to say something when Duke stopped and turned around. He pointed his handgun at me.

     "This is as far as you go, murder!"

     Jane chimed in, "Duke, what're you doing..."

     "Shut up or you'll be joining him!" he shouted at her. He never took his eyes off me and looked directly into my eyes, "So, Jack. How does it feel to be powerless? To have to rely on someone else who holds power in their hands. I've cowered behind you long enough!" he said with gusto.

     "What brought about the change in you?" I asked.

     "No change at all! Just an unveiling!"

     "Not really. You're still a pompous jerk."

     He was just pulling the trigger when Jane pushed his arm out of the way. He threw her against the wall and I was about to tackle him when he pointed the gun directly at my forehead. Jane got up, but he head had a large cut on it.

     "I've read all your journals entries. I find it ironic that you kill monsters being one yourself. You leave your friends behind and you expect me to place trust in you. If anything, you deserved to die long ago. Would you like to say anything before you join Tim?"

     "Just a question. Were you one of the men shooting at us in the alleyway?"

     Duke laughed, "No, but I did watch it. How heroic of Tim to save your life. I only wish they'd gotten you instead so I wouldn't have had to knock you out cold. I'd hope that you would've been eaten or turned, but this ending is much more satisfying."

     "You're still a coward," I told him, "You had your chance to kill me and you didn't take it. You hoped the gunmen would've finished me off when you could've done so yourself. You're afraid of murdering. What, is it below you? Maybe you..."

     "Shut up! I'll prove it to you."

     Duke pulled the trigger. Nothing came out. The round was empty. It was just then that I saw the cowardly look that had always been on his face come back over him. He didn't have any more ammunition. I punched him and helped Jane up only to realize that a group of soulless had cornered us. I began pulling out knives and throwing them, taking out a few, but the gathering was so dense that there was no chance to squeeze through them without being grabbed. There were no windows in the wall behind us. We were trapped. I took out my longest knife and began stabbing at random. I thought for sure that I would finally meet my end. Suddenly, I saw bottles heading toward us. Many of them crashed onto the giant grouping of soulless, setting them ablaze. Sadly, the soulless had come so close already that they had bitten Duke and Jane was partially set on fire and was pinned down by a group of soulless, being feasted on. I ran out of the only gap I could see and met the man who threw the bottles. I told him my name and I followed him. His name is Mike. He was on a loot run for medical supplies. I stood guard for him and alerted him when a large group of soulless (some of the soulless were probably from the same group that cornered me) headed straight for the pharmacy. Long story short, we ran away and now I'm back at his fortified camp. It's a lot more secure than The Hill's was though. He said he'd introduce me to everyone tomorrow, but really, I just don't feel well. I'm extremely tired right now but I can't sleep. I can never sleep. Whenever silence visits me, all I hear is the sound Jane screaming for help. Whenever I close my eyes, all I can see is Jane burning in fire and being picked apart like a turkey at Thanksgiving. I can see Tim's bloody body riddled with holes and I can Duke smirk as he held the gun to my head, claiming that I should have died long ago. Looking back, I'm pretty sure Duke was the one who was contacting the hunters by radio transmission since we did pick up a lot of stuff during the journey, some of which I didn't understand how it worked. Duke's death was his own fault, but Tim and Jane. Even with Duke's intervention, I still should've been able to save them and I should've seen Duke's true colors long ago. I should have killed him when I found him.

     I don't want to write anymore, but I can't stop. I need to chase the memories away. Duke's taunts echo in my mind, most prominent being, "you should've died long ago." He was a fool, but even a fool can see truth sometimes.

- Jack's Diary