Chapter Two
Crackpot, welcome to the Plague
It came silently. No one had seen it coming. It was like wildfire, consuming everything in sight. It sent the victim mad, affected their skin and coats and the very worst of it killed the victim completely. Those who survived with the plague were sickly figures, manic and ravenous for the taste of their own kin. Those who was unusually immune where chased and rarely escaped. The only way to kill an infected was to destroy the brain. That way, the few nerves that still controlled the infected were crushed and the victim would finally die. To attack them any other way would only slow them down but not kill them. The five friends had been at the very west of the country and therefore came in touch with it last.
A white Floc floated up upon a large rock, his ears perked forward as he scanned the terrain around him. Below, five more figures stared up expectantly at him. One called out telepathically, "Hurry up Asylum, you're not drawing a picture, you're just seeing if there are any of them around." The white let out an indignant snort before he prepared to leap down again. However, something in the distance caught his eye. "No way." He thought to himself disbelievingly. He squinted to try and get a better look. Sure enough, there was something there. Well, several somethings. Eight, he would guess.
With a swift jump, he levitated back down right next to his companions and they all immediately knew from the worried look that something was up. "So?" A female finally burst into everyone's conciousness with her words, fluffing up her tail. She was a dark navy with pink and white swirls decorating her pelt. Asylum gave her a glare as if to say, don't rush me, but he answered shortly after. "Eight. I don't think there would be that many survivors all together so it must be infected."
"Oooo, our first time meeting them." The second female added, giving out an uncontrollable giggle.
"Don't be so excited about it Hallu." A Floc called Sariel grumbled. The bright blue female also had pink and white splattered all over her and another giggle escaped her throat which was followed by a hiccup.
"We need to get going. I'm not too excited to be meeting what everyone is calling the infected." Pandemic answered. He gave Asylum a pointed glare as if waiting for him to snap back. The two were both very dominant and constantly fought for leadership between the five. Asylum decided to play it cool and just gave a shrug. While Pandemic was loud and out there, Asylum was cocky but a little more reserved. Just as all five turned to leave, the navy paused and lifted her nose to the air. "Too late." She manage to cry out into everyone's mind before eight moaning creatures stumbled around the large rock.
The five Flox flew a bit away, Hallu letting out another hiccup accompanied by a yelp. They had all known they would encounter the Plague sometime but even now, it was a shock to see the effects of it.
All eight creatures were Flox. Their ribs protruded and their paws were twisted in awkward manners. Fur torn and ripped, skin black and rotting in some places, they were a gruesome sight. When they stumbled forward, Sariel and Tempestuous were the first to snap out of their shock. Sariel let out a commanding bark and leaaped in front of his companions, taking the front with Tempest next to him. "Just like we planned." Tempest breathed out.
Her mind flashed back to a few days ago.
---
"We have to be ready. We need to be able to battle them." Asylum said. The five sat, levitating, in a circle, all listening intently. Tempest lifted her head, "Formation first. If we were attacked head on, we need a front line and the back up. Two at the front, they will try and attack straight on while the other three keep them from being surrounded."
"I dance!" Hallu burst out mentally, doing a neat back flip as if to prove her flexibility. Pandemic let out a sigh, "She's not going to help much." Hallucinogenic paused to look at Pan as if she was offended. However, she was quick to return to her dance routine. All five of the Flox were immune to the Plague. It had been a miracle they had actually found each other. But Hallucinogenic was the most unique of them all. She was actually infected but her immune system had adapted to the virus and the only side affect was her new ability to see and do things that weren't normal. Such as her flexibility.
Sariel spoke up this time, saying bluntly, "No, she is helpful. We can have the front line, two on the flank and Hallu can just wing it. She's our trump card." After a moment of silent deliberation, all agreed before further discussing their plans.
"Tempest and Sariel, you two take the front. Tempest is impulsive so she shouldn't lose her nerve when facing the infected. Sariel next because you are the best fighter. Asylum and I will keep the infected from trapping you or getting your blind sides." Pandemic said. More silent deliberation.
Then, simultaneously, they all nodded.
---
Sariel and Tempest nodded to each other before both expertly lunged forward. They were now all on the ground now. Why? Because when on the ground, they could use the solid floor to push off with and gain momentum with. This ultimately made their attacks stronger than if they had remained floating. The black Floc did a shorted but more powerful jump, bowling straight into the first of the infected. They rolled in the dirt, snarling and snapping while Tempest leaped straight over and landed on the back of another victim of the Plague. The infected scrambled around and Tempest fell off, landed on her back. Two infected lunged for her but before their fangs could reach her fur, they were yanked back. The female's eyes had been squeezed shut as she anticipated pain but after a few seconds she opened them to see that Asylum and Pandemic had dragged the two away and were fighting them. Glancing to Sariel, she saw the dark male efficiently crush his enemy's skull with his paw. Tempest gathered up her courage again and attacked the one Asylum was fighting. Tempest got along well with Asylum and fought even better with him. When Asylum attacked the side, Tempest attacked the face. They alternated attacks, moving in sync and understanding each other's gestures. A flick of the tail meant to snap at the opposite side, a flattening of the ears meant to back off. Within seconds, Asylum had inflicted the final bite, his fangs digging into the head of the infected and destroying it's cranium. He shot Tempest a bloody grin before quickly heading off to attack another. Quickly observing the scene, five enemies were dead. Sariel's ear was torn, Asylum's fur was coated in blood and Pandemic's leg was shredded. but they were still fighting fiercely. Another enemy fell. Only two left. Pandemic was losing a lot of blood and backed off, Sariel following him to keep him steady. Asylum was struggling to fight and Tempest charged forward to help. She left out a gasp as the last infected wrapped it's fangs around Asylum's throat. The blood splattered male fell unconscious and with a savage snarl, Tempest looked up to see Hallu come flying over her head, doing a beautiful twirl in mid air. Where had she been throughout the battle? Tempest could only guess she had been fighting around the side lines or had been busy doing yet another dance routine. But now, the blue Floc came flying down as she landed straight on top of the infected's head. The enemy's fangs were jolted away from the unconscious Asylum and before it could even let out a noise of surprise, Hallu crushed it's cranium. Tempestuous stopped in surprise to see Hallu sitting daintily on the dead, letting out a hiccup before howling, "Ta-da!"
---
"That was brilliant Hallu. You really saved me." Asylum croaked as he let Sariel tend to his wound. They sat a little away from the battle scene by a small creek. While everyone had washed their wounds and cleaned their fur, Asylum had refused to rub off the blood. "I will wear the blood of my enemy. Let them fear me." He had declared. Pandemic's leg was better now that it had been washed and it would heal quickly. Other than his ear, Sariel hadn't been hurt too bad beside a few scratches. Tempestuous had a few small bite marks around her flank and legs but she was also fine. However, Hallucinogenic was untouched. Turns out, she had delivered most of the killing blows in the battle. She had been circling the fight, providing a swift bite to the head when she saw the opportunity. Now, all five were praising each other's skills, though Pandemic and Asylum refused to compliment each other, instead pointing out their flaws. "You were too slow."
"Your attacks were obvious"
"You kept tripping up."
This went on for a few more minutes before they both finally ran out of things to accuse each other of. "Next time, Asylum and Tempest will be the front line. They fought like demons together. Pandemic and I will help from the sides, our style is more evasive so we will be better at it."
"And me?" Hallu had stopped dancing and looked at the group with her head tilted. She let out a small hiccup as she waited for an answer.
"You'll keep on dancing Hallu." Sariel said telepathically with a small smile.
"What's the name of your dance anyway?" Tempest asked lightly.
Hallu let a the grin of a lunatic cover her face.
"The Doctors and The Plague."
Chapter Three
Crackpot, welcome Home
The five Flox travelled together for a long time. They had devised up ways to gather food while keeping watch over whatever place they happened to be staying at. Over the time, they slowly began to bond better than most. Each had managed to assume a role within the group, whether it be the leader or the person who simply offered an optimistic view on things when times were down. The only conflict seen was between Asylum and Pandemic, who both had the idea that they were alpha in this rugged band of Flox.
"Hallu! Where the hell do you think you're going! We're supposed to be on watch!" Sariel let his voice call outside of their usual telepathic link. Hallucinogenic did a neat little twirl before pausing to glance back at him. "I promise I'll still look out for our enemies." She replied through the mind. Sariel let out a sigh and glanced about himself once before floating after his companion. It was a new moon which marked their third month living amongst the infected. While Asylum, Pandemic and Tempestuous had gone out to look for food, they had left Sariel and Hallu to watch over the current camp site which was a small clearing in a rather open forest. Not too far East was an abandoned market which was where the other three Flox had gone. The two 'watch dogs' had left their post now and were racing about the forest. Despite Pandemic's words of warning to always watch over the camp, the two Flox felt without guilt as they enjoyed the unusually bright night.
"Oooo, I see glow worms!" Hallu called out telepathically. Sariel let out a yowl of pleasure as they speedily levitated through the forest. He couldn't see any sort of glow worms around but he wasn't surprised. Hallucinogenic had a tendency to see things that weren't there. As they carried on further, Sariel thought about their situation.
The Plague had taken everything. Their home, family, lives, everything. And yet, the five had stuck together through thick and thin. he remembered the day they had first met. Tempest and Pandemic had been the first he had come across. They had shared a meal and allowed him to ramble on about the beauty of flowers and trees. It was only when Tempest had curtly told him to shut up that Sariel had realized not everyone had an eye for detail like he did.
Asylum had been the next he had met. It had only been brief and they had both been young. To be truthful, he hadn't even spoken to him. Sariel and Ash's mother had set up a play date but in the end they had both avoided each other.
And then there was Hallu.
He met her with a bang, literally. She had come crashing into him like a bomb. So full of live, as always. The dark Floc snapped out of his nostalgia when Hallu entered his mind again.
"Oooo, look, there's a really big one!" Sariel squinted and was shocked to realize he could see it too. Surely, there was a bright glowing light up ahead. Wait. Squinting even harder, his jaw dropped in surprise. That light was way too artificial. It was the light of a building that had been left turned on. "Hallu! Wait!" But he was too slow. Hallucinogenic burst into the clearing with Sariel right behind her.
What they saw shocked them both.
There were infected everywhere. They were inside the building, clawing at the windows. Behind the building was a fenced area along with several little building scattered around it. It was a laboratory. And situated right in the middle of the courtyard was the scientist. Or, what was left of him. Now, he was just a wandering corpse, unable to escape his own research paradise.
Hallucinogenic giggled and padded forward, :More friends Sariel, see?"
The dark male Floc knew better than to try and tell her the reality of things so he simply swallowed and nodded, "Yeah, more friends." What stunned Sariel was how sad they all looked, pawing at the glass and letting out pitiful moans. He glanced over to see Hallu looking curiously at him. "Why are you upset Ariel?"
The usage of his nickname hit Sariel deep and he offered a sad smile, "I'm fine." He motioned to the infected, "It's just, they're trapped. They'll never get to see the world like we do." Hallu let this roll over in her mind before nodding firmly to herself. She floated around to the side of the building, her tongue lolling out. "Then let's get them out."
Sariel's eyes widened, "No, wait, no!" The male Floc cursed how slow he was today. Hallu yanked open the emergency door and raced to Sariel's side as the infected poured out. She had a proud look on her face while Sariel's contrasted comically, his looking horrified and yet, satisfied. In a few seconds, there were twenty plague stricken Floc floating around the place. Sariel wrapped his paws around Hallu as if to shield her for what he expected was an oncoming attack.
"Oooo, hugs." Hallu chirped, wrapping her own paws around her companion. Sariel had his eyes squeezed shut and waited. But no attack came. When he dared to open his eyes, he saw that all twenty were back to pawing at the glass. "Ummm, huh?" His voice echoed into Hallucinogenic's mind. Both untangled their paws from one another to watch the odd spectacle. When Hallu began to step towards the infected again, Sariel wrapped his fangs around her tail, "No, don't go over." He was stunned at how strong Hallu was as she simply kept going.
Finally, they were right beside an infected. Hallu pressed her face right up to it, eyes wide before screaming out loud, "HELLO LITTLE FLOC. WHY DO YOU SCRATCH THE GLASS?" Sariel's fur stood on end as he again expected them to turn and attack. Instead, it simply pressed it's muzzle against the glass and began to try and chew it. Amazingly, the infected seemed to have an acidic breath because ever so slowly, the glass began to melt and the creature hungrily lapped it up. Hallu seemed intrigued and tried this for herself. Unfortunately, the glass remained stubbornly solid. Sariel's ears pricked and he tentatively tried it for himself, secretly disappointed that he couldn't melt it either.
"It's their rotting bodies. It creates the acid within their stomach so their breath brings it out too." Sariel finally concluded. Hallucinogenic nodded as though she understood when really, her mind just said, they eat glass, I want to eat glass. Sariel wants to too. She was unaware that she was staring quite intensely at Sariel who stared back with an arched brow, "What?"
"Why do they eat glass?" Hallu said innocently. The black Floc paused, wondering about this too. "Perhaps because softer, normal food simply burns in their stomach, they have to eat something which is more durable and can actually be digested." Both Flox looked back to the twenty. They deformed bodies were being seen in a new light. They had adapted to their new way of living. "I will call this one Barry." Hallu said confidently. Sariel laughed and pointed to another, "And this one?"
"Larry. And that one there is Garry."
Sariel chuckled and tapped Hallucinogenic on the nose. "And you? What about you?"
"I eat glass." Hallu replied. She then raced off into the crowd of infected. Sariel leaped after her and they had a quick game of tag. A few times, one of the victims of the Plague would look at them questionably but it seemed that if they had a food source nearby, attacking the Flox was not priority.
When the two were finally exhausted and had landed on the grass in a tumbling heap of giggles and eating glass jokes, Sariel managed to pull a straight face, "We could learn from them."
"Yeah." Hallu nodded with a pant. "But what about our other friends. Will they let us keep Barry, Larry, Garry, Bob, Billy, Sarah, Destiny, Charlotte, Lucy-"
"I think we can save the name game for later." Sariel laughed again before answering, "I'm not sure."
And as if on cue, the familiar presence of three Flox entered Sariel and Hallu's mind. "Where are you guys!? The camp is empty!"
Sariel immediately recognized Tempestuous's voice. After the Plague had started, her and Asylum had become extremely close and sort of taken on the role as parents for the youngest, Hallucinogenic. Whenever the pair did not know of Hallu's health and location, they freaked. And since Hallu had a tendency to follow, it happened a lot. Sariel quickly felt guilty but he could bring himself to reply. Fortunately, unfortunately, Hallu took it upon herself to answer. "We're with Larry, Garry, Barry, Charlotte, Lucy, Destiny, Sarah, Bob, Billy, Twitchy, Oddly, Cheshire, Traum, Dilly, Dally, Alice-"
"Hallu, dear, can we see these people too?" Tempest's voice was thick with worry and Asylum was quick to add in, "Are they real?"
Sariel decided that it would be best if he replied this time before Hallu blurted out they were less than a meter away from twenty infected. "We found an abandoned science laboratory. There are infected here. They seemed to be eating the glass."
"What? Then get the hell away from them? What happens when they get though you idiot?" Tempest's voice exploded and Sariel could feel Asylum feeding his friend calming emotions through the mind. Sariel wondered how he could go about this as subtly as possible. "Well, aha, see, they're actually on our side of the glass."
"Look Ariel! Destiny's coming towards us!"
And just like that, all five voices crashed into each other. Asylum ordering Sariel to kill Destiny, Hallu crying that Destiny only wanted hugs, Tempest rambling about how Sariel was going to lose his head, Pandemic groaning that they were all idiots and Sariel trying to explain the situation.
"Just get them back on the other side!" Pandemic ordered.
"We're on our way." Asylum added.
With that, there was silence. To make sure that the three didn't eavesdrop on Hallu's and his own conversation, he spoke out loud. "So unless we want all our new friends dead, maybe we should get them back on the other side."
Hallu looked distressed as she began to gently push the infected back into the cage. They were actually quite passive and only one attacked Sariel when he led it too far away from the glass. It snapped at him and Sariel had instinctively shoved it away. It stumbled back towards the bushes and just when Sariel was going to go forward and help it back towards the cage, Asylum and Pandemic burst out of the bushes. Both used their jaws to snap it's legs.
Sariel cried out in unison with Hallucinogenic, "No!"
Tempest charged forward to block Hallu from approaching the now moaning Bob while Asylum efficiently crushed his skull. Sariel flattened his ears and floated a little back when he saw Pandemic approaching him menacingly. "What were you thinking? They could have killed you!" Pandemic growled accusingly into Sariel's mind.
Tempest had calmed Hallu who still looked a little stressed. Asylum batted Sariel across the head with his paw, "You should have consulted us."
"You have to listen! They're not just monsters! They have minds, they work like actual creatures with motives and desires!" Sariel pleaded. Hallu was quick to add, "Yes! They like glass and only attack us because we start off on the offensive. Maybe they're just defending themselves!"
Pandemic looked a little surprised that Hallu had sounded so.....sane. It did make him think it over. "Well, we do have a science laboratory at our disposal. It has security too so maybe this could be our new home."
Tempest looked at them all like they were lunatics. "Are you crazy?!"
Asylum let an uncharacteristically wry grin cross his face, "Maybe we are. So what?" He was replied to with an indignant huff. The five all looked around at each other, deciding what to do. Hallu then began twirling and dancing about.
"The Doctors and The Plague!"
Tempest sighed then went over to pick up the satchel of food they had gathered from the town. "Let's move in then."
---
All the infected were transferred into one of the many buildings. There were several empty ones and several others with scientific equipment. Two were stacked up with food that would last them many months. The glass room was turned into a green house. Hallu and Sariel were in charge of Infected Characteristics. They studied behaviour. Asylum and Pandemic studied Infected Anatomy. They had the more gruesome of the jobs, dissecting and doing torturous experiments to the subjects. Asylum found great amusement in it and Pandemic liked to be creative with his tests. Tempestuous worked in the field, gathering more patients. Word had spread about the five. The few survivors were now flocking to prisons and other places with high level security. From there, radio transmissions were sent into the five who were coming to be known as The Doctors. They were updated on the infected in other parts of the country. To separate themselves from the other survivors, they now wore their signature masks.
Tempest trotted towards the gate of the facility, just about to go on another trip. Asylum and Pandemic had efficiently killed off fifty infected with their experiments. Hallu and Sariel had kept their first twenty-minus Bob-but they still seemed saddened at all the deaths. The two had become so warped up in their research that sometimes, Temp believed they thought everyone was an infected. They barely left their research building though Tempest had reasons to believe why. The two had become extremely close. Hallu and Sariel were so alike and got along so well. Tempest, Asylum and Pandemic had known they were an official couple when they had seen the two cuddling. A small smile played on her lips when she thought of her little Hallu.
Just as she was about to exit, she heard footpaw steps coming up behind her. Pausing, Tempest looked around to see the blood splattered Asylum running up, his mask making him look very intimidating. The red on his coat was now permanent, the five having found dye hidden among the many things in the laboratory. Tempest found herself smiling beneath her mask, glad he was unable to see it. "Need a particular subject?" She asked him telepathically. Asylum lifted off the ground, and floated up beside her. "Nah, just thought I'd come along. Pan is testing out limb regeneration and since cutting off limbs is his thing, I have some free time."
Tempestuous nodded, "Come on then."
---
After using a bag of deliciously good looking glass to lure over forty infected, the two Flox managed to get all of them into a cell before sitting beside one another just outside the gate. Both disliked the sensation of confinement and had come to the habit of joining each other outside the gate at sunset. Today seemed a little more serene than normal. Perhaps it was because Pandemic had finished torturing his victims and their screams were no longer present. Either way, the two had taken off their masks and were together in comfortable silence.
"Hey Ash?" Tempest spoke this time, her voice rusty from not using it.
"Yeah?"
"What did you think of me, the first time we met?"
"I thought you were loud, obnoxious, prideful, a chatterbox, stubborn, had a big ego, irritating-"
"Hey! I was none of those things! I was a great person! You were the obnoxious one! Always too shy, antisocial, depressing, arrogant, snooty-"
"Shut up Temp."
Tempestuous' anger flared and she looked at him fiercely, "You. Did. Not. Just. Say. That. You can't make me shut up-"
A cocky smirk covered the male's face as he interrupted her, "Yes I can."
The navy Floc's mouth opened slightly to start rambling at him but instead she felt Asylum's lips press against hers. He had used enough force that they'd tumbled to the side and she was lying on her back, Asylum standing over her. He felt extremely nervous as he thought to himself, "No backing out now I guess."
Tempest's voice filled his head, "I can hear you. And you know what?"
"What?"
"I'm never going to shut up about you."
Chapter Four
Crackpot, welcome the Subjects
Pandemic and Asylum stood side by side with a steel chrome tray in front of them. Strapped down was one of the infected, letting out loud moans and struggling against the ropes. The tan Floc let a wide cheshire grin spread across his face. Luckily, his mask covered it up so he hadn't creeped Asylum out. "Okay, limb regeneration test one hundred and four. Entire legs." Asylum spoke telepathically to his companion. Pan rushed excitedly over to a tray of violent looking tools and picked up a saw. Even though Asylum couldn't see his face, he just knew that Pan was smiling like a madman.
Returning to the tray, mangled screams pierced through the walls as Pan sliced leisurely through one of the infected's legs. Neither of the pair winced at the noise, both having become accustomed the the noise.
wipwipwiwpwip
