Revolution: The New World

Meanwhile

June 24, 2075

0945 CDT

Central Winner, South Dakota

Teresa Young's Point of View

I threw up again. Disgusting. Why is vomit so gross? I’m a mess. This is the worst day of my life. How in the world do they expect us to survive four years of this horror? I just want to go home.

“You gotta be fucking kidding me! Not in the car, you stupid girl,” Trevor rudely shouts, unfocused on the road.

“Don’t call her stupid!” Duy and Luke shout back in unison.

“I can say anything I want because it’s my truck, my rules, and I’m the one who saved your guys’ lives. Ungrateful fucks,” Trevor states in anger.

“Well, just back off of her,” Duy snaps back. “She’s just having a rough day.”

“Oh, boo fucking hoo. We’re all having a rough fucking day, so what makes her so special? This bullshit is far from over anyway, so tell her to get her shit together,” Trevor grumbles back.

“Watch it, jackass. Just because you saved our lives doesn’t mean you can act like a dick to us,” Duy responds, ready to fight.

“It’s my truck, so I can say whatever the fuck I want. If ya’ll don’t like it, then use your legs to get to walking while ya’ll still can. Son of a bitch. I never would’ve saved ya’ll from becoming a zombie buffet, had I known you were an ungrateful bunch,” Trevor rants for no reason.

This truck is too cramped for arguing, but luckily there’s plenty of exits for the inevitable danger. I, Duy, and Luke are right next to the back door, the roof has a small exit hole that’s currently being occupied by the machine gunner, and Trevor can exit from the driver or passenger side door.

Luke, he makes surviving look so easy. I suppose it’s to be expected of Veronica Shinka’s protégé. He seems so desensitized to everything, especially since he killed, uh, without hesitation. Maybe I should attempt to break the unspoken rule and ask him for advice. The more I know about this world, the less of a burden I’ll be.

“Any word on the others?” Duy asks Luke.

“No word, but I’m sure they’re ok. They’re reasonably dealing with their own stuff right now,” Luke answers as he stares at his Communicator.

“They’re probably dead,” Trevor chimes in.

“Hey buddy, we’re having an A-B conversation. So kindly C your way out of it,” Duy responds in a calm-ish tone.

“F-u-c-k-y-o-u,” Trevor insults as he gives Duy the middle finger.

“Where are we going, anyway?” Luke quickly asks Trevor.

“I’m taking y’all to Winner Tower. It’s located in the middle of the city, and it’s where everybody else with common sense is goin’. I don’t understand why you dipshits were so rude earlier. Y’all should be on your hands and knees thanking Ezekiel and me here. We would’ve been there already, but Ezekiel has a kind heart and convinced me to save y’all,” Trevor rudely explains.

“Why is everyone going to Winner Tower? What happened to the plan?” Luke coolly asks, striving to ignore his insults.

Your poker face is still oh, so terrible, Luke.

“Look out the fucking window, dumbass. Do you see any flares in the sky? Noooooo. The only thing out there is failure. We fucking lost, stupid. The undead are unstoppable, and this shitty plan flopped! Everyone in the Bravo Battalion has been eaten, is in the process of being eaten, or is fleeing to Winner Tower. If your friends are alive and had any sense, they’d be going to Winner Tower like everyone else.”

I hate this guy.

“Now if y’all don’t mind, I’d ‘preciate y’all shutting yer traps and stop talking to me. Y’all are the worst passengers ever! So disrespectful to me after I saved y’all lives,” Trevor whines and continues to complain.

Mission failed? No, no way. I refuse to believe that Julie and thousands of others died in vain today! I-I bet everyone is ok. Ruby is making irresponsible decisions, as usual, Drew is a blah, Sonya is bossy, and the twins are goofy and clumsy as always. Heh. Just thinking about them is enough to cheer me up. Trevor is wrong. There’s no way they’re dead, especially since Sonya is with them, and nothing can stop Sonya the Invincible. She’s a survivor who’ll never let anything happen to her friends under her watch. Oh God. Stupid Trevor is grumbling something to himself.

“Stupid bitch throwing up in my truck. Dumb ungrateful bastards,” he says.

“Excuse me?!” I say.

“Hey, knock it off, Trevor,” Ezekiel implores as he continues to scout atop the roofless part of the truck. “I’m sorry about my friend’s actions. We’re veterans who’ve been serving for four years. We’ll be able to retire after this mission, but Trevor lost someone he genuinely cared about. He and his fiancé were engaged and fought together for those four years. But lousy shit happened today, and now she’s…no longer with him, so I hope you understand his behavior,” Ezekiel reveals.

I can’t take it anymore!

“I do understand, but that doesn’t mean he can treat us like dirt! I watched those monstrosities tear my cousin’s body apart right in front of me! The look of terror in her eyes and the way they snapped her like a twig will haunt me forever! And then (Stop crying!) I-I watched her die again! I don’t know what the heck will happen next, but you don’t fucking see me acting like him!”

“Well, girlie, people have different ways of dealing with their fucking problems!” Trevor ignorantly retorts.

“Clearly!” I say.

“And Ezekiel, don’t go telling my fucking business to these folks. Just because we wear the same uniform don’t mean shit. I don’t know y’all, and I don’t want to know y’all. I wouldn’t even shed any fucking tears if zombies were to kill y’all right now, and I damn sure wouldn’t save ya’ll again,” Trevor exhausts his anger like a moron.

Jerk!

“Eat a dick! You’re a terrible human being!” I shout.

“Kiss my rear end!” He fumes back in frustration. “Ezekiel! We’re not picking up the next group of stranded folk we find since people want to be so surly!”

Damn it! His rage is understandable. What pride or honor is there in this suicide mission? No, I can’t think like that! Can’t think like him. General Farrington has no choice but to serve the Royals! I bet Trevor thinks he’s hot shit because he survived for four years in this hellish world, but Luke has withstood this madness for twelve years! Oh god. I just realized that I grew up… sheltered, figuratively and literally, and I don’t even know whether it’s a good thing anymore. I’m so stupid. I’m ill-prepared for this shit, and it’s all my fault. I’m sick, there’s dirt, blood, and guts all over my smelly body, and I just, I just want the pain to go away!

“Teresa, I’m just as scared as you are,” Luke suddenly sympathizes with me.” Life out here is so frightening, but you’re adapting better than anyone else I’ve ever seen,” he comforts with a mixture of hope, worry, determination, and sadness in his face.

“Our Communicators!” Me, Luke, and Duy say as our communicators buzz.

Heh. Their buzzing reminds me of boot camp. I should test my memory, to make me and my brain feel better. Now, what did Lieutenant Raydeio Wayves say again? Communicators are silver-colored and round devices, the size of the average male’s palm. It’s similar to a flip-phone that allows for video and/or audio chat with other users while in the range of a nearby Trident. The fact that it’s solar-powered, durable, and lightweight makes it an essential survival tool for expeditions. It’s practically the equivalent of the smartphones of The Old World.

“Holy shit!” Me, Luke, and Duy say.

“Holy shit, back!” Drew exclaims as we open our video chat.

“Is everyone ok?” Duy anxiously asks.

“We are a-ok! Well, okay-ish,” Rachel reveals in the background.

“No, we’re not. We are literally staring at a whirlpool of death,” Drew clarifies in distress.

Drew. Such an honest fellow.

“Join the club, dude. You won’t believe what we went through after we got split up,” I say.

I…I have to hold back my tears. There’s no time to be a crybaby anymore.

“Ruby has a boyfriend,” Drew unveils in hidden jealousy.

“What?!” I say.

“Aww, you jealous Drew?” Rachel teases in the backdrop. “You guys won’t believe how they met. I’ll give you a hint, though. It involves nuts, but not the good kind,” Rachel mischievously implies.

“Drew, I don’t think it would’ve worked out, man,” Billy ignorantly states, clearly unaware of how love works.

“Ooooh, Michelle, though. I reckon she likes the strong and quiet boys,” Rachel further teases.

“I have no interest in either of those women,” Drew blatantly lies.

“That means he likes Michelle and Ruby,” Rachel snickers in the background as Drew tosses Sonya his Communicator.

Heh. They’re as normal as ever.

“Wait, who’s Michelle?” I ask.

“We’ll tell you guys everything later, but we need you to rendezvous with us at Winner Tower,” Sonya calmly orders.

“Already on the way. We don’t have the best company, but we should be there soon,” Duy responds.

“Nah, our company has been the best. Five stars,” Luke jokes, making Sonya smile.

“Glad to see your sense of humor is still as fine as you,” Sonya unknowingly flirts, her eyes briefly lighting up in shock. “I-I mean, I’m glad you’re ok. Ahem. All of you.”

Heh. Awkward.

“We’re glad you and the others are ok too,” Luke responds with a smile.

“Where the hell are you guys?” Duy intervenes.

“We’re on a bridge that leads directly into the tower. We’re making our way across now, Captain,” Sonya responds to Duy in a severe tone.

“She means we’re above a bridge that’s filled with glass windows and concrete,” Drew butts in.

“Above, below, or inside, it doesn’t matter. The point is, we’re going across a bridge,” Sonya says in irritation. “There are too many zombies below us, so the only way across is to go above. We don’t have a lot of time to explain, but we ran into a new squad named “Squad Hades.” Captain Michelle Fox is the leader, and we’ve decided to combine our numbers to reach the tower. Captain, what happened to you guys after we got split up?”

“We had some close calls, but the most important thing is that we’re all ok,” Duy answers in a relaxed tone. “Sonya, we should be able to join up in no ti--”